²²“And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem,^k not knowing what will happen to me there. ²³I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me^l that prison and hardships are facing me.^m ²⁴However, I consider my life worth nothing to me;ⁿ my only aim is to finish the race^o and complete the task^p the Lord Jesus has given me^q—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.^r

²⁵“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom^s will ever see me again.^t ²⁶Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you.^u ²⁷For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.^v ²⁸Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock^w of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.^x Be shepherds of the church of God,^a^y which he bought^z with his own blood.^b^a ²⁹I know that after I leave, savage wolves^b will come in among you and will not spare the flock.^c ³⁰Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples^d after them. ³¹So be on your guard! Remember that for three years^e I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.^f

³²“Now I commit you to God^g and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance^h among all those who are sanctified.ⁱ ³³I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing.^j ³⁴You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions.^k ³⁵In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

³⁶When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed.^l ³⁷They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him.^m ³⁸What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again.ⁿ Then they accompanied him to the ship.^o

Read in Logos

Acts 20:24: But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

Footnotes

aMany manuscripts of the Lord
bOr with the blood of his own Son.

Cross references

h Ac 18:5
iSee Ac 2:38
j Ac 24:24; 26:18; Eph 1:15; Col 2:5; Phm 5
kver 16
lSee Ac 8:29; 21:4
mSee Ac 9:16
n Ac 21:13
o 2 Ti 4:7
p 2 Co 4:1
q Gal 1:1; Tit 1:3
rSee Ac 11:23
sSee Mt 4:23
tver 38
u Eze 3:17–19; Ac 18:6
vSee ver 20
wver 29; See Jn 21:16
xSee 1 Ti 3:1
ySee 1 Co 10:32
zSee 1 Co 6:20
aSee Ro 3:25
b Eze 34:5; Mt 7:15
cver 28
dSee Ac 11:26
e Ac 19:10
fver 19
g Ac 14:23
hSee Eph 1:14; See Mt 25:34; Col 1:12; 3:24; Heb 9:15; 1 Pe 1:4
i Ac 26:18
j 1 Sa 12:3; 1 Co 9:12; 2 Co 2:17; 7:2; 11:9; 12:14–17; 1 Th 2:5
kSee Ac 18:3
l Lk 22:41; Ac 9:40; 21:5
mSee Lk 15:20
nver 25
o Ac 21:5