THE CONVERSION OF THE ETHIOPIAN OFFICIAL

26 An angel of the Lord spoke to Philip: “Get up and go south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is the desert road.D,p) 27 So he got up and went. There was an Ethiopian man, a eunuchq and high official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to worship in Jerusalemr 28 and was sitting in his chariot on his way home, reading the prophet Isaiah aloud.

29 The Spirit told Philip, “Go and join that chariot.”s

30 When Philip ran up to it, he heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you’re reading?”

31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone guides me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the Scripture passage he was reading was this:

He was led like a sheep to the slaughter,

and as a lamb is silent before its shearer,

so he does not open his mouth.

33 In his humiliation justice was denied him.

Who will describe his generation?

For his life is taken from the earth.E,t

34 The eunuch said to Philip, “I ask you, who is the prophet saying this about—himself or someone else?” 35 Philip proceeded to tell him the good news about Jesus, beginning with that Scripture.a

36 As they were traveling down the road, they came to some water. The eunuch said, “Look, there’s water. What would keep me from being baptized?”* 38 So he ordered the chariot to stop, and both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lordb carried Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him any longer but went on his way rejoicing. 40 Philip appeared inB Azotus,C and he was traveling and preaching the gospel in all the towns until he came to Caesarea.c