Acts 9:23–43

²³After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him,^{j 24}but Saul learned of their plan.^k Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. ²⁵But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall.^l

²⁶When he came to Jerusalem,^m he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. ²⁷But Barnabasⁿ took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him,^o and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus.^{p 28}So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. ²⁹He talked and debated with the Hellenistic Jews,^aq but they tried to kill him.^{r 30}When the believers^s learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea^t and sent him off to Tarsus.^u

³¹Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria^v enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers.^w

Aeneas and Dorcas

³²As Peter traveled about the country, he went to visit the Lord’s people^x who lived in Lydda. ³³There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years. ³⁴“Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you.^y Get up and roll up your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up. ³⁵All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon^z saw him and turned to the Lord.^a

³⁶In Joppa^b there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good^c and helping the poor. ³⁷About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room.^{d 38}Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples^e heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!”

³⁹Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows^f stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.

⁴⁰Peter sent them all out of the room;^g then he got down on his knees^h and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.”ⁱ She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. ⁴¹He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to them alive. ⁴²This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord.^{j 43}Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.^k