Acts 9–10

The Conversion of Saul

9But Saul, ^bstill ^cbreathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to ^dthe high priest ²and asked him for letters ^eto the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to ^fthe Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. ^3gNow as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. ⁴And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting ^hme?” ⁵And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, ^hwhom you are persecuting. ⁶But ⁱrise and enter the city, and you will be told ^jwhat you are to do.” ^7kThe men who were traveling with him stood speechless, ^lhearing the voice but seeing no one. ⁸Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, ^mhe saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. ⁹And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

¹⁰Now there was a disciple at Damascus named ⁿAnanias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, ^o“Here I am, Lord.” ¹¹And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man ^pof Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, ¹²and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and ^qlay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” ¹³But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, ^rhow much evil he has done to ^syour ^tsaints at Jerusalem. ¹⁴And here he has authority from ^uthe chief priests to bind all who ^vcall on your name.” ¹⁵But the Lord said to him, “Go, for ^whe is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name ^xbefore the Gentiles and ^ykings and the children of Israel. ¹⁶For ^zI will show him how much ^ahe must suffer ^bfor the sake of my name.” ¹⁷So ^cAnanias departed and entered the house. And ^dlaying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and ^ebe filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and ^fhe regained his sight. Then ^ghe rose and was baptized; ¹⁹and ^htaking food, he was strengthened.

Saul Proclaims Jesus in Synagogues

For ⁱsome days he was with the disciples at Damascus. ²⁰And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, ^j“He is the Son of God.” ²¹And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who ^kmade havoc ^lin Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?” ²²But Saul ^mincreased all the more in strength, and ⁿconfounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving ^othat Jesus was the Christ.

Saul Escapes from Damascus

^23pWhen many days had passed, the Jews¹ plotted to kill him, ²⁴but their ^qplot became known to Saul. ^rThey were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, ²⁵but his disciples took him by night and ^slet him down through an opening in the wall,² lowering him in a basket.

Saul in Jerusalem

²⁶And ^twhen he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. ²⁷But ^uBarnabas took him and ^vbrought him to the apostles and declared to them ^whow on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and ^xhow at Damascus he had ^ypreached boldly in the name of Jesus. ²⁸So he went ^zin and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. ²⁹And he spoke and disputed against ^athe Hellenists.³ But ^bthey were seeking to kill him. ³⁰And when ^cthe brothers learned this, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off ^dto Tarsus.

³¹So ^ethe church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And ^fwalking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, ^git multiplied.

The Healing of Aeneas

³²Now ^has Peter went here and there among them all, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda. ³³There he found a man named Aeneas, bedridden for eight years, who was paralyzed. ³⁴And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, ⁱJesus Christ heals you; rise and make your bed.” And immediately he rose. ^35jAnd all the residents of Lydda and ^kSharon saw him, and ^lthey turned to the Lord.

Dorcas Restored to Life

³⁶Now there was in ^mJoppa a disciple named Tabitha, which, translated, means Dorcas.⁴ She was full of ⁿgood works and acts of charity. ³⁷In those days she became ill and died, and when they had washed her, they laid her in ^oan upper room. ³⁸Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him, urging him, ^p“Please come to us without delay.” ³⁹So Peter rose and went with them. And when he arrived, they took him to ^qthe upper room. All the widows stood beside him weeping and showing tunics⁵ and other garments that Dorcas made while she was with them. ⁴⁰But Peter ^rput them all outside, and ^sknelt down and prayed; and turning to the body ^the said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. ⁴¹And he gave her his hand and raised her up. Then, calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive. ⁴²And it became known throughout all Joppa, and ^umany believed in the Lord. ⁴³And he stayed in Joppa for many days ^vwith one Simon, a tanner.

Peter and Cornelius

10At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of ^wwhat was known as the Italian Cohort, ²a devout man ^xwho feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God. ^3yAbout the ninth hour of the day^{1 z}he saw clearly in a vision ^aan angel of God come in and say to him, “Cornelius.” ⁴And he stared at him in terror and said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms ^bhave ascended ^cas a memorial before God. ⁵And now send men to Joppa and bring one Simon who is called Peter. ⁶He is lodging ^dwith one Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.” ⁷When the angel who spoke to him had departed, he called two of his servants and a devout soldier from among those who attended him, ⁸and having related everything to them, he sent them to Joppa.

Peter’s Vision

⁹The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, ^ePeter went up ^fon the housetop about ^gthe sixth hour² to pray. ¹⁰And he became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into ^ha trance ¹¹and saw ⁱthe heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth. ¹²In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. ¹³And there came a voice to him: “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” ¹⁴But Peter said, “By no means, Lord; ^jfor I have never eaten anything that is ^kcommon or ^lunclean.” ¹⁵And the voice came to him again a second time, ^m“What God has made clean, do not call common.” ¹⁶This happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven.

¹⁷Now while Peter was inwardly perplexed as to what ⁿthe vision that he had seen might mean, behold, ^othe men who were sent by Cornelius, having made inquiry for Simon’s house, stood at the gate ¹⁸and called out to ask whether Simon who was called Peter was lodging there. ¹⁹And while Peter was pondering ⁿthe vision, ^pthe Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are looking for you. ²⁰Rise and go down and ^qaccompany them without hesitation,³ for I have sent them.” ²¹And Peter went down to the men and said, “I am the one you are looking for. What is the reason for your coming?” ²²And they said, “Cornelius, a centurion, an upright and ^rGod-fearing man, who is well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation, was directed by ^sa holy angel to send for you to come to his house and ^tto hear what you have to say.” ²³So he invited them in to be his guests.

The next day he rose and went away with them, and ^usome of ^vthe brothers from Joppa accompanied him. ²⁴And on the following day they entered Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. ²⁵When Peter entered, Cornelius met him and ^wfell down at his feet and ^xworshiped him. ²⁶But Peter lifted him up, saying, ^y“Stand up; I too am a man.” ²⁷And as he talked with him, he went in and found many persons gathered. ²⁸And he said to them, “You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew ^zto associate with or to visit anyone of another nation, but ^aGod has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean. ²⁹So when I was sent for, I came without objection. I ask then why you sent for me.”

³⁰And Cornelius said, ^b“Four days ago, about this hour, I was praying in my house at ^cthe ninth hour,⁴ and behold, ^da man stood before me in bright clothing ³¹and said, ‘Cornelius, ^eyour prayer has been heard and your alms have been remembered before God. ³²Send therefore to Joppa and ask for Simon who is called Peter. He is lodging in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the sea.’ ³³So I sent for you at once, and you have been kind enough to come. Now therefore we are all here in the presence of God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord.”

Gentiles Hear the Good News

³⁴So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that ^fGod ^gshows no partiality, ³⁵but ^fin every nation anyone who fears him and ^hdoes what is right is acceptable to him. ³⁶As for ⁱthe word that he sent to Israel, ^jpreaching good news of ^kpeace through Jesus Christ (^lhe is Lord of all), ³⁷you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, ^mbeginning ⁿfrom Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: ³⁸how ^oGod anointed Jesus of Nazareth ^pwith the Holy Spirit and with ^qpower. He went about doing good and healing all ^rwho were oppressed by the devil, ^sfor God was with him. ³⁹And ^twe are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. ^uThey put him to death by hanging him on a tree, ^…