Acts 15:6–21

The Jerusalem Council

⁶Now the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter. ⁷And when there had been much dispute, Peter rose up and said to them: ^f“Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God chose among us, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. ⁸So God, ^gwho knows the heart, ¹acknowledged them by ^hgiving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, ⁹ⁱand made no distinction between us and them, ^jpurifying their hearts by faith. ¹⁰Now therefore, why do you test God ^kby putting a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? ¹¹But ^lwe believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus ²Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.”

¹²Then all the multitude kept silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul declaring how many miracles and wonders God had ^mworked through them among the Gentiles. ¹³And after they had ³become silent, ⁿJames answered, saying, “Men and brethren, listen to me: ^14oSimon has declared how God at the first visited the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name. ¹⁵And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written:

¹⁶‘After ^pthis I will return

And will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down;

I will rebuild its ruins,

And I will set it up;

¹⁷So that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,

Even all the Gentiles who are called by My name,

Says the ⁴Lord who does all these things.’

¹⁸⁵“Known to God from eternity are all His works. ¹⁹Therefore ^qI judge that we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who ^rare turning to God, ²⁰but that we ^swrite to them to abstain ^tfrom things polluted by idols, ^ufrom ⁶sexual immorality, ^vfrom things strangled, and from blood. ²¹For Moses has had throughout many generations those who preach him in every city, ^wbeing read in the synagogues every Sabbath.”