The Thread for Survivors: A 5-Day Devotional Journal of Healing, Finding Your Voice and Sacred Becoming

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EquipHer Vol. 24: "Who’s Economy Are You Working For?"

How to Know Jesus Personally – Start Your Faith Journey Today

Jesus, I Want to Know You

Cultivating a Satisfying Marriage: Leading, Serving, and Discipling Together

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Sent With Purpose

DEPRESSION IS a LIE - a Podcast Series With Dustin Tavella

From Waiting to the Immediate

The Listener’s Bible®: NIV Edition

New International Version™  (Anglicised), Audio Edition

Holy Bible, New International Version™ (Anglicised), South Asian Audio Edition

<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch8" data-usfm="ACT.8">
 <div class="label">8</div><div class="p"> 1And Saul approved of their killing him.</div><div class="s1">The Church Persecuted and Scattered</div><div class="p">On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.</div><div class="s1">Philip in Samaria</div><div class="p"> 4Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 5Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. 6When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. 7For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. 8So there was great joy in that city.</div><div class="s1">Simon the Sorcerer</div><div class="p"> 9Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, 10and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, &#8220;This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.&#8221; 11They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery. 12But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.</div><div class="p"> 14When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. 15When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.</div><div class="p"> 18When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles&#8217; hands, he offered them money 19and said, &#8220;Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 20Peter answered: &#8220;May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 22Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. 23For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 24Then Simon answered, &#8220;Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 25After they had further proclaimed the word of the Lord and testified about Jesus, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many Samaritan villages.</div><div class="s1">Philip and the Ethiopian</div><div class="p"> 26Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, &#8220;Go south to the road&#8212;the desert road&#8212;that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.&#8221; 27So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian#8:27 That is, from the southern Nile region eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means &#8220;queen of the Ethiopians&#8221;). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. 29The Spirit told Philip, &#8220;Go to that chariot and stay near it.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 30Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. &#8220;Do you understand what you are reading?&#8221; Philip asked.</div><div class="p"> 31&#8220;How can I,&#8221; he said, &#8220;unless someone explains it to me?&#8221; So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.</div><div class="p"> 32This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;He was led like a sheep to the slaughter,</div><div class="q2">and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,</div><div class="q2">so he did not open his mouth.</div><div class="q1"> 33In his humiliation he was deprived of justice.</div><div class="q2">Who can speak of his descendants?</div><div class="q2">For his life was taken from the earth.&#8221;#8:33 Isaiah 53:7,8 (see Septuagint)</div><div class="p"> 34The eunuch asked Philip, &#8220;Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?&#8221; 35Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.</div><div class="p"> 36As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, &#8220;Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?&#8221; [37]#8:37 Some manuscripts include here Philip said, &#8220;If you believe with all your heart, you may.&#8221; The eunuch answered, &#8220;I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.&#8221; 38And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. 39When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. 40Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch9" data-usfm="ACT.9">
 <div class="label">9</div><div class="s1">Saul&#8217;s Conversion</div><div class="p"> 1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord&#8217;s disciples. He went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, &#8220;Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 5&#8220;Who are you, Lord?&#8221; Saul asked.</div><div class="p"> &#8220;I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,&#8221; he replied. 6&#8220;Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 7The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.</div><div class="p"> 10In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, &#8220;Ananias!&#8221;</div><div class="p">&#8220;Yes, Lord,&#8221; he answered.</div><div class="p"> 11The Lord told him, &#8220;Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 13&#8220;Lord,&#8221; Ananias answered, &#8220;I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. 14And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 15But the Lord said to Ananias, &#8220;Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, &#8220;Brother Saul, the Lord&#8212;Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here&#8212;has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.&#8221; 18Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul&#8217;s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19and after taking some food, he regained his strength.</div><div class="s1">Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem</div><div class="p">Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. 21All those who heard him were astonished and asked, &#8220;Isn&#8217;t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn&#8217;t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?&#8221; 22Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.</div><div class="p"> 23After many days had gone by, there was a conspiracy among the Jews to kill him, 24but Saul learned of their plan. 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.</div><div class="p"> 26When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. 27But Barnabas 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, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. 28So 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,#9:29 That is, Jews who had adopted the Greek language and culture but they tried to kill him. 30When the believers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.</div><div class="p"> 31Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria 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.</div><div class="s1">Aeneas and Dorcas</div><div class="p"> 32As Peter traveled about the country, he went to visit the Lord&#8217;s people who lived in Lydda. 33There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years. 34&#8220;Aeneas,&#8221; Peter said to him, &#8220;Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.&#8221; Immediately Aeneas got up. 35All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.</div><div class="p"> 36In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. 37About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. 38Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, &#8220;Please come at once!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 39Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.</div><div class="p"> 40Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, &#8220;Tabitha, get up.&#8221; 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. 43Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch10" data-usfm="ACT.10">
 <div class="label">10</div><div class="s1">Cornelius Calls for Peter</div><div class="p"> 1At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment. 2He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. 3One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, &#8220;Cornelius!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 4Cornelius stared at him in fear. &#8220;What is it, Lord?&#8221; he asked.</div><div class="p">The angel answered, &#8220;Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. 5Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. 6He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 7When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier who was one of his attendants. 8He told them everything that had happened and sent them to Joppa.</div><div class="s1">Peter&#8217;s Vision</div><div class="p"> 9About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. 10He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. 11He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. 12It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. 13Then a voice told him, &#8220;Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 14&#8220;Surely not, Lord!&#8221; Peter replied. &#8220;I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 15The voice spoke to him a second time, &#8220;Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 16This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.</div><div class="p"> 17While Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, the men sent by Cornelius found out where Simon&#8217;s house was and stopped at the gate. 18They called out, asking if Simon who was known as Peter was staying there.</div><div class="p"> 19While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, &#8220;Simon, three#10:19 One early manuscript two; other manuscripts do not have the number. men are looking for you. 20So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 21Peter went down and said to the men, &#8220;I&#8217;m the one you&#8217;re looking for. Why have you come?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 22The men replied, &#8220;We have come from Cornelius the centurion. He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people. A holy angel told him to ask you to come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say.&#8221; 23Then Peter invited the men into the house to be his guests.</div><div class="s1">Peter at Cornelius&#8217;s House</div><div class="p">The next day Peter started out with them, and some of the believers from Joppa went along. 24The following day he arrived in Caesarea. Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. 25As Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and fell at his feet in reverence. 26But Peter made him get up. &#8220;Stand up,&#8221; he said, &#8220;I am only a man myself.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 27While talking with him, Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. 28He said to them: &#8220;You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. 29So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. May I ask why you sent for me?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 30Cornelius answered: &#8220;Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me 31and said, &#8216;Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. 32Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, who lives by the sea.&#8217; 33So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 34Then Peter began to speak: &#8220;I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right. 36You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached&#8212; 38how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.</div><div class="p"> 39&#8220;We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, 40but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. 41He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen&#8212;by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. 43All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 44While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. 45The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. 46For they heard them speaking in tongues#10:46 Or other languages and praising God.</div><div class="p">Then Peter said, 47&#8220;Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.&#8221; 48So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch11" data-usfm="ACT.11">
 <div class="label">11</div><div class="s1">Peter Explains His Actions</div><div class="p"> 1The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him 3and said, &#8220;You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 4Starting from the beginning, Peter told them the whole story: 5&#8220;I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was. 6I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles and birds. 7Then I heard a voice telling me, &#8216;Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 8&#8220;I replied, &#8216;Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 9&#8220;The voice spoke from heaven a second time, &#8216;Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.&#8217; 10This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.</div><div class="p"> 11&#8220;Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying. 12The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man&#8217;s house. 13He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, &#8216;Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. 14He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 15&#8220;As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. 16Then I remembered what the Lord had said: &#8216;John baptized with#11:16 Or in water, but you will be baptized with#11:16 Or in the Holy Spirit.&#8217; 17So if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God&#8217;s way?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 18When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, &#8220;So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">The Church in Antioch</div><div class="p"> 19Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. 20Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. 21The Lord&#8217;s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.</div><div class="p"> 22News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. 24He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.</div><div class="p"> 25Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, 26and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.</div><div class="p"> 27During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) 29The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. 30This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch12" data-usfm="ACT.12">
 <div class="label">12</div><div class="s1">Peter&#8217;s Miraculous Escape From Prison</div><div class="p"> 1It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. 2He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. 3When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. 4After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.</div><div class="p"> 5So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.</div><div class="p"> 6The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. &#8220;Quick, get up!&#8221; he said, and the chains fell off Peter&#8217;s wrists.</div><div class="p"> 8Then the angel said to him, &#8220;Put on your clothes and sandals.&#8221; And Peter did so. &#8220;Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,&#8221; the angel told him. 9Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. 10They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.</div><div class="p"> 11Then Peter came to himself and said, &#8220;Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod&#8217;s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 12When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. 13Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door. 14When she recognized Peter&#8217;s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, &#8220;Peter is at the door!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 15&#8220;You&#8217;re out of your mind,&#8221; they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, &#8220;It must be his angel.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 16But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. 17Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. &#8220;Tell James and the other brothers and sisters about this,&#8221; he said, and then he left for another place.</div><div class="p"> 18In the morning, there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. 19After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed.</div><div class="s1">Herod&#8217;s Death</div><div class="p">Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there. 20He had been quarreling with the people of Tyre and Sidon; they now joined together and sought an audience with him. After securing the support of Blastus, a trusted personal servant of the king, they asked for peace, because they depended on the king&#8217;s country for their food supply.</div><div class="p"> 21On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. 22They shouted, &#8220;This is the voice of a god, not of a man.&#8221; 23Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.</div><div class="p"> 24But the word of God continued to spread and flourish.</div><div class="s1">Barnabas and Saul Sent Off</div><div class="p"> 25When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from#12:25 Some manuscripts to Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch13" data-usfm="ACT.13">
 <div class="label">13</div><div class="nb"> 1Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, &#8220;Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.&#8221; 3So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.</div><div class="s1">On Cyprus</div><div class="p"> 4The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus. 5When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. John was with them as their helper.</div><div class="p"> 6They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 7who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. 8But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. 9Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, 10&#8220;You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? 11Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.&#8221;</div><div class="p">Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. 12When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.</div><div class="s1">In Pisidian Antioch</div><div class="p"> 13From Paphos, Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem. 14From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down. 15After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, &#8220;Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people, please speak.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 16Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand and said: &#8220;Fellow Israelites and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me! 17The God of the people of Israel chose our ancestors; he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt; with mighty power he led them out of that country; 18for about forty years he endured their conduct#13:18 Some manuscripts he cared for them in the wilderness; 19and he overthrew seven nations in Canaan, giving their land to his people as their inheritance. 20All this took about 450 years.</div><div class="p">&#8220;After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet. 21Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years. 22After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: &#8216;I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 23&#8220;From this man&#8217;s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised. 24Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel. 25As John was completing his work, he said: &#8216;Who do you suppose I am? I am not the one you are looking for. But there is one coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 26&#8220;Fellow children of Abraham and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent. 27The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. 28Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed. 29When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the cross and laid him in a tomb. 30But God raised him from the dead, 31and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.</div><div class="p"> 32&#8220;We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors 33he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;You are my son;</div><div class="q2">today I have become your father.&#8217;#13:33 Psalm 2:7</div><div class="m"> 34God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.&#8217;#13:34 Isaiah 55:3</div><div class="m"> 35So it is also stated elsewhere:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;You will not let your holy one see decay.&#8217;#13:35 Psalm 16:10 (see Septuagint)</div><div class="p"> 36&#8220;Now when David had served God&#8217;s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. 37But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.</div><div class="p"> 38&#8220;Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. 39Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses. 40Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:</div><div class="q1"> 41&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;Look, you scoffers,</div><div class="q2">wonder and perish,</div><div class="q1">for I am going to do something in your days</div><div class="q2">that you would never believe,</div><div class="q2">even if someone told you.&#8217;#13:41 Hab. 1:5&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 42As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. 43When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.</div><div class="p"> 44On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy. They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him.</div><div class="p"> 46Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: &#8220;We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. 47For this is what the Lord has commanded us:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;I have made you#13:47 The Greek is singular. a light for the Gentiles,</div><div class="q2">that you#13:47 The Greek is singular. may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.&#8217;#13:47 Isaiah 49:6&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 48When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.</div><div class="p"> 49The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. 50But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. 51So they shook the dust off their feet as a warning to them and went to Iconium. 52And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch14" data-usfm="ACT.14">
 <div class="label">14</div><div class="s1">In Iconium</div><div class="p"> 1At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed. 2But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. 3So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders. 4The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. 5There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them. 6But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, 7where they continued to preach the gospel.</div><div class="s1">In Lystra and Derbe</div><div class="p"> 8In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked. 9He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed 10and called out, &#8220;Stand up on your feet!&#8221; At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.</div><div class="p"> 11When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, &#8220;The gods have come down to us in human form!&#8221; 12Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker. 13The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.</div><div class="p"> 14But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: 15&#8220;Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them. 16In the past, he let all nations go their own way. 17Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.&#8221; 18Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.</div><div class="p"> 19Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. 20But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.</div><div class="s1">The Return to Antioch in Syria</div><div class="p"> 21They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, 22strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. &#8220;We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,&#8221; they said. 23Paul and Barnabas appointed elders#14:23 Or Barnabas ordained elders; or Barnabas had elders elected for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust. 24After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia, 25and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.</div><div class="p"> 26From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work they had now completed. 27On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. 28And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch15" data-usfm="ACT.15">
 <div class="label">15</div><div class="s1">The Council at Jerusalem</div><div class="p"> 1Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers: &#8220;Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.&#8221; 2This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. 3The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad. 4When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.</div><div class="p"> 5Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, &#8220;The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 6The apostles and elders met to consider this question. 7After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: &#8220;Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. 8God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. 9He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. 10Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? 11No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 12The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. 13When they finished, James spoke up. &#8220;Brothers,&#8221; he said, &#8220;listen to me. 14Simon#15:14 Greek Simeon, a variant of Simon; that is, Peter has described to us how God first intervened to choose a people for his name from the Gentiles. 15The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:</div><div class="q1"> 16&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;After this I will return</div><div class="q2">and rebuild David&#8217;s fallen tent.</div><div class="q1">Its ruins I will rebuild,</div><div class="q2">and I will restore it,</div><div class="q1"> 17that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,</div><div class="q2">even all the Gentiles who bear my name,</div><div class="q1">says the Lord, who does these things&#8217;#15:17 Amos 9:11,12 (see Septuagint)&#8212;</div><div class="q2"> 18things known from long ago.#15:17,18 Some manuscripts things&#8217;&#8212; / 18 the Lord&#8217;s work is known to him from long ago</div><div class="p"> 19&#8220;It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. 21For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">The Council&#8217;s Letter to Gentile Believers</div><div class="p"> 22Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, men who were leaders among the believers. 23With them they sent the following letter:</div><div class="pmo">The apostles and elders, your brothers,</div><div class="b"></div><div class="pmo">To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia:</div><div class="b"></div><div class="pmo">Greetings.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="pm"> 24We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. 25So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul&#8212; 26men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. 28It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: 29You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things.</div><div class="pmc">Farewell.</div><div class="p"> 30So the men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter. 31The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message. 32Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers. 33After spending some time there, they were sent off by the believers with the blessing of peace to return to those who had sent them. [34]#15:34 Some manuscripts include here But Silas decided to remain there. 35But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached the word of the Lord.</div><div class="s1">Disagreement Between Paul and Barnabas</div><div class="p"> 36Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, &#8220;Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.&#8221; 37Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord. 41He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch16" data-usfm="ACT.16">
 <div class="label">16</div><div class="s1">Timothy Joins Paul and Silas</div><div class="p"> 1Paul came to Derbe and then to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived, whose mother was Jewish and a believer but whose father was a Greek. 2The believers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. 3Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to obey. 5So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Vision of the Man of Macedonia</div><div class="p"> 6Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. 7When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. 8So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, &#8220;Come over to Macedonia and help us.&#8221; 10After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.</div><div class="s1">Lydia&#8217;s Conversion in Philippi</div><div class="p"> 11From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day we went on to Neapolis. 12From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district#16:12 The text and meaning of the Greek for the leading city of that district are uncertain. of Macedonia. And we stayed there several days.</div><div class="p"> 13On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. 14One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul&#8217;s message. 15When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. &#8220;If you consider me a believer in the Lord,&#8221; she said, &#8220;come and stay at my house.&#8221; And she persuaded us.</div><div class="s1">Paul and Silas in Prison</div><div class="p"> 16Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a female slave who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. 17She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, &#8220;These men are servants of the Most High God, who are telling you the way to be saved.&#8221; 18She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, &#8220;In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!&#8221; At that moment the spirit left her.</div><div class="p"> 19When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to face the authorities. 20They brought them before the magistrates and said, &#8220;These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar 21by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 22The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods. 23After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. 24When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.</div><div class="p"> 25About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone&#8217;s chains came loose. 27The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. 28But Paul shouted, &#8220;Don&#8217;t harm yourself! We are all here!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 29The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. 30He then brought them out and asked, &#8220;Sirs, what must I do to be saved?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 31They replied, &#8220;Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved&#8212;you and your household.&#8221; 32Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized. 34The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God&#8212;he and his whole household.</div><div class="p"> 35When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: &#8220;Release those men.&#8221; 36The jailer told Paul, &#8220;The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 37But Paul said to the officers: &#8220;They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 38The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed. 39They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. 40After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia&#8217;s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them. Then they left.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch17" data-usfm="ACT.17">
 <div class="label">17</div><div class="s1">In Thessalonica</div><div class="p"> 1When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. &#8220;This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,&#8221; he said. 4Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.</div><div class="p"> 5But other Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason&#8217;s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd.#17:5 Or the assembly of the people 6But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: &#8220;These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, 7and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar&#8217;s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.&#8221; 8When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. 9Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.</div><div class="s1">In Berea</div><div class="p"> 10As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. 11Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. 12As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.</div><div class="p"> 13But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, some of them went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. 14The believers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea. 15Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.</div><div class="s1">In Athens</div><div class="p"> 16While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 17So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, &#8220;What is this babbler trying to say?&#8221; Others remarked, &#8220;He seems to be advocating foreign gods.&#8221; They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. 19Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, &#8220;May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? 20You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean.&#8221; 21(All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)</div><div class="p"> 22Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: &#8220;People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. 23For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship&#8212;and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.</div><div class="p"> 24&#8220;The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. 25And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. 26From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. 27God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. 28&#8216;For in him we live and move and have our being.&#8217;#17:28 From the Cretan philosopher Epimenides As some of your own poets have said, &#8216;We are his offspring.&#8217;#17:28 From the Cilician Stoic philosopher Aratus</div><div class="p"> 29&#8220;Therefore since we are God&#8217;s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone&#8212;an image made by human design and skill. 30In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 31For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 32When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, &#8220;We want to hear you again on this subject.&#8221; 33At that, Paul left the Council. 34Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch18" data-usfm="ACT.18">
 <div class="label">18</div><div class="s1">In Corinth</div><div class="p"> 1After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. 2There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them, 3and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them. 4Every Sabbath he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks.</div><div class="p"> 5When Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. 6But when they opposed Paul and became abusive, he shook out his clothes in protest and said to them, &#8220;Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent of it. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 7Then Paul left the synagogue and went next door to the house of Titius Justus, a worshiper of God. 8Crispus, the synagogue leader, and his entire household believed in the Lord; and many of the Corinthians who heard Paul believed and were baptized.</div><div class="p"> 9One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: &#8220;Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. 10For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.&#8221; 11So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God.</div><div class="p"> 12While Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews of Corinth made a united attack on Paul and brought him to the place of judgment. 13&#8220;This man,&#8221; they charged, &#8220;is persuading the people to worship God in ways contrary to the law.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 14Just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio said to them, &#8220;If you Jews were making a complaint about some misdemeanor or serious crime, it would be reasonable for me to listen to you. 15But since it involves questions about words and names and your own law&#8212;settle the matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things.&#8221; 16So he drove them off. 17Then the crowd there turned on Sosthenes the synagogue leader and beat him in front of the proconsul; and Gallio showed no concern whatever.</div><div class="s1">Priscilla, Aquila and Apollos</div><div class="p"> 18Paul stayed on in Corinth for some time. Then he left the brothers and sisters and sailed for Syria, accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila. Before he sailed, he had his hair cut off at Cenchreae because of a vow he had taken. 19They arrived at Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. He himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. 20When they asked him to spend more time with them, he declined. 21But as he left, he promised, &#8220;I will come back if it is God&#8217;s will.&#8221; Then he set sail from Ephesus. 22When he landed at Caesarea, he went up to Jerusalem and greeted the church and then went down to Antioch.</div><div class="p"> 23After spending some time in Antioch, Paul set out from there and traveled from place to place throughout the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.</div><div class="p"> 24Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. 25He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor#18:25 Or with fervor in the Spirit and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John. 26He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately.</div><div class="p"> 27When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers and sisters encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. When he arrived, he was a great help to those who by grace had believed. 28For he vigorously refuted his Jewish opponents in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah.</div>
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 <div class="chapter ch19" data-usfm="ACT.19">
 <div class="label">19</div><div class="s1">Paul in Ephesus</div><div class="p"> 1While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples 2and asked them, &#8220;Did you receive the Holy Spirit when#19:2 Or after you believed?&#8221;</div><div class="p">They answered, &#8220;No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 3So Paul asked, &#8220;Then what baptism did you receive?&#8221;</div><div class="p">&#8220;John&#8217;s baptism,&#8221; they replied.</div><div class="p"> 4Paul said, &#8220;John&#8217;s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.&#8221; 5On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues#19:6 Or other languages and prophesied. 7There were about twelve men in all.</div><div class="p"> 8Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God. 9But some of them became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way. So Paul left them. He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. 10This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.</div><div class="p"> 11God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.</div><div class="p"> 13Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, &#8220;In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.&#8221; 14Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. 15One day the evil spirit answered them, &#8220;Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?&#8221; 16Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.</div><div class="p"> 17When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. 18Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done. 19A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.#19:19 A drachma was a silver coin worth about a day&#8217;s wages. 20In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.</div><div class="p"> 21After all this had happened, Paul decided#19:21 Or decided in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia. &#8220;After I have been there,&#8221; he said, &#8220;I must visit Rome also.&#8221; 22He sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia, while he stayed in the province of Asia a little longer.</div><div class="s1">The Riot in Ephesus</div><div class="p"> 23About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way. 24A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in a lot of business for the craftsmen there. 25He called them together, along with the workers in related trades, and said: &#8220;You know, my friends, that we receive a good income from this business. 26And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that gods made by human hands are no gods at all. 27There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited; and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 28When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting: &#8220;Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!&#8221; 29Soon the whole city was in an uproar. The people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul&#8217;s traveling companions from Macedonia, and all of them rushed into the theater together. 30Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. 31Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message begging him not to venture into the theater.</div><div class="p"> 32The assembly was in confusion: Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there. 33The Jews in the crowd pushed Alexander to the front, and they shouted instructions to him. He motioned for silence in order to make a defense before the people. 34But when they realized he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours: &#8220;Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 35The city clerk quieted the crowd and said: &#8220;Fellow Ephesians, doesn&#8217;t all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? 36Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you ought to calm down and not do anything rash. 37You have brought these men here, though they have neither robbed temples nor blasphemed our goddess. 38If, then, Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a grievance against anybody, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. They can press charges. 39If there is anything further you want to bring up, it must be settled in a legal assembly. 40As it is, we are in danger of being charged with rioting because of what happened today. In that case we would not be able to account for this commotion, since there is no reason for it.&#8221; 41After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly.</div>
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 <div class="chapter ch20" data-usfm="ACT.20">
 <div class="label">20</div><div class="s1">Through Macedonia and Greece</div><div class="p"> 1When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples and, after encouraging them, said goodbye and set out for Macedonia. 2He traveled through that area, speaking many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece, 3where he stayed three months. Because some Jews had plotted against him just as he was about to sail for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia. 4He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy also, and Tychicus and Trophimus from the province of Asia. 5These men went on ahead and waited for us at Troas. 6But we sailed from Philippi after the Festival of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, where we stayed seven days.</div><div class="s1">Eutychus Raised From the Dead at Troas</div><div class="p"> 7On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. 8There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. 9Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. 10Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. &#8220;Don&#8217;t be alarmed,&#8221; he said. &#8220;He&#8217;s alive!&#8221; 11Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. 12The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders</div><div class="p"> 13We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot. 14When he met us at Assos, we took him aboard and went on to Mitylene. 15The next day we set sail from there and arrived off Chios. The day after that we crossed over to Samos, and on the following day arrived at Miletus. 16Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, for he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem, if possible, by the day of Pentecost.</div><div class="p"> 17From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. 18When they arrived, he said to them: &#8220;You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. 19I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. 20You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. 21I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.</div><div class="p"> 22&#8220;And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. 23I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. 24However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me&#8212;the task of testifying to the good news of God&#8217;s grace.</div><div class="p"> 25&#8220;Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. 26Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. 27For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. 28Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God,#20:28 Many manuscripts of the Lord which he bought with his own blood.#20:28 Or with the blood of his own Son. 29I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. 31So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.</div><div class="p"> 32&#8220;Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33I have not coveted anyone&#8217;s silver or gold or clothing. 34You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. 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: &#8216;It is more blessed to give than to receive.&#8217; &#8221;</div><div class="p"> 36When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. 37They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. 38What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.</div>
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 <div class="chapter ch21" data-usfm="ACT.21">
 <div class="label">21</div><div class="s1">On to Jerusalem</div><div class="p"> 1After we had torn ourselves away from them, we put out to sea and sailed straight to Kos. The next day we went to Rhodes and from there to Patara. 2We found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, went on board and set sail. 3After sighting Cyprus and passing to the south of it, we sailed on to Syria. We landed at Tyre, where our ship was to unload its cargo. 4We sought out the disciples there and stayed with them seven days. Through the Spirit they urged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem. 5When it was time to leave, we left and continued on our way. All of them, including wives and children, accompanied us out of the city, and there on the beach we knelt to pray. 6After saying goodbye to each other, we went aboard the ship, and they returned home.</div><div class="p"> 7We continued our voyage from Tyre and landed at Ptolemais, where we greeted the brothers and sisters and stayed with them for a day. 8Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven. 9He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.</div><div class="p"> 10After we had been there a number of days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11Coming over to us, he took Paul&#8217;s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, &#8220;The Holy Spirit says, &#8216;In this way the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 12When we heard this, we and the people there pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. 13Then Paul answered, &#8220;Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.&#8221; 14When he would not be dissuaded, we gave up and said, &#8220;The Lord&#8217;s will be done.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 15After this, we started on our way up to Jerusalem. 16Some of the disciples from Caesarea accompanied us and brought us to the home of Mnason, where we were to stay. He was a man from Cyprus and one of the early disciples.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Arrival at Jerusalem</div><div class="p"> 17When we arrived at Jerusalem, the brothers and sisters received us warmly. 18The next day Paul and the rest of us went to see James, and all the elders were present. 19Paul greeted them and reported in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry.</div><div class="p"> 20When they heard this, they praised God. Then they said to Paul: &#8220;You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law. 21They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs. 22What shall we do? They will certainly hear that you have come, 23so do what we tell you. There are four men with us who have made a vow. 24Take these men, join in their purification rites and pay their expenses, so that they can have their heads shaved. Then everyone will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law. 25As for the Gentile believers, we have written to them our decision that they should abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 26The next day Paul took the men and purified himself along with them. Then he went to the temple to give notice of the date when the days of purification would end and the offering would be made for each of them.</div><div class="s1">Paul Arrested</div><div class="p"> 27When the seven days were nearly over, some Jews from the province of Asia saw Paul at the temple. They stirred up the whole crowd and seized him, 28shouting, &#8220;Fellow Israelites, help us! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people and our law and this place. And besides, he has brought Greeks into the temple and defiled this holy place.&#8221; 29(They had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with Paul and assumed that Paul had brought him into the temple.)</div><div class="p"> 30The whole city was aroused, and the people came running from all directions. Seizing Paul, they dragged him from the temple, and immediately the gates were shut. 31While they were trying to kill him, news reached the commander of the Roman troops that the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar. 32He at once took some officers and soldiers and ran down to the crowd. When the rioters saw the commander and his soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.</div><div class="p"> 33The commander came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains. Then he asked who he was and what he had done. 34Some in the crowd shouted one thing and some another, and since the commander could not get at the truth because of the uproar, he ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. 35When Paul reached the steps, the violence of the mob was so great he had to be carried by the soldiers. 36The crowd that followed kept shouting, &#8220;Get rid of him!&#8221;</div><div class="s1">Paul Speaks to the Crowd</div><div class="p"> 37As the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the commander, &#8220;May I say something to you?&#8221;</div><div class="p">&#8220;Do you speak Greek?&#8221; he replied. 38&#8220;Aren&#8217;t you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led four thousand terrorists out into the wilderness some time ago?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 39Paul answered, &#8220;I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 40After receiving the commander&#8217;s permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic#21:40 Or possibly Hebrew; also in 22:2:</div>
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 <div class="chapter ch22" data-usfm="ACT.22">
 <div class="label">22</div><div class="nb"> 1&#8220;Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 2When they heard him speak to them in Aramaic, they became very quiet.</div><div class="p">Then Paul said: 3&#8220;I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. I studied under Gamaliel and was thoroughly trained in the law of our ancestors. I was just as zealous for God as any of you are today. 4I persecuted the followers of this Way to their death, arresting both men and women and throwing them into prison, 5as the high priest and all the Council can themselves testify. I even obtained letters from them to their associates in Damascus, and went there to bring these people as prisoners to Jerusalem to be punished.</div><div class="p"> 6&#8220;About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me. 7I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me, &#8216;Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 8&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;Who are you, Lord?&#8217; I asked.</div><div class="p">&#8220; &#8216;I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting,&#8217; he replied. 9My companions saw the light, but they did not understand the voice of him who was speaking to me.</div><div class="p"> 10&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;What shall I do, Lord?&#8217; I asked.</div><div class="p">&#8220; &#8216;Get up,&#8217; the Lord said, &#8216;and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.&#8217; 11My companions led me by the hand into Damascus, because the brilliance of the light had blinded me.</div><div class="p"> 12&#8220;A man named Ananias came to see me. He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there. 13He stood beside me and said, &#8216;Brother Saul, receive your sight!&#8217; And at that very moment I was able to see him.</div><div class="p"> 14&#8220;Then he said: &#8216;The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth. 15You will be his witness to all people of what you have seen and heard. 16And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 17&#8220;When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance 18and saw the Lord speaking to me. &#8216;Quick!&#8217; he said. &#8216;Leave Jerusalem immediately, because the people here will not accept your testimony about me.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 19&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;Lord,&#8217; I replied, &#8216;these people know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison and beat those who believe in you. 20And when the blood of your martyr#22:20 Or witness Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 21&#8220;Then the Lord said to me, &#8216;Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.&#8217; &#8221;</div><div class="s1">Paul the Roman Citizen</div><div class="p"> 22The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they raised their voices and shouted, &#8220;Rid the earth of him! He&#8217;s not fit to live!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 23As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air, 24the commander ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. He directed that he be flogged and interrogated in order to find out why the people were shouting at him like this. 25As they stretched him out to flog him, Paul said to the centurion standing there, &#8220;Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who hasn&#8217;t even been found guilty?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 26When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and reported it. &#8220;What are you going to do?&#8221; he asked. &#8220;This man is a Roman citizen.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 27The commander went to Paul and asked, &#8220;Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?&#8221;</div><div class="p">&#8220;Yes, I am,&#8221; he answered.</div><div class="p"> 28Then the commander said, &#8220;I had to pay a lot of money for my citizenship.&#8221;</div><div class="p">&#8220;But I was born a citizen,&#8221; Paul replied.</div><div class="p"> 29Those who were about to interrogate him withdrew immediately. The commander himself was alarmed when he realized that he had put Paul, a Roman citizen, in chains.</div><div class="s1">Paul Before the Sanhedrin</div><div class="p"> 30The commander wanted to find out exactly why Paul was being accused by the Jews. So the next day he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the members of the Sanhedrin to assemble. Then he brought Paul and had him stand before them.</div>
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 <div class="chapter ch23" data-usfm="ACT.23">
 <div class="label">23</div><div class="p"> 1Paul looked straight at the Sanhedrin and said, &#8220;My brothers, I have fulfilled my duty to God in all good conscience to this day.&#8221; 2At this the high priest Ananias ordered those standing near Paul to strike him on the mouth. 3Then Paul said to him, &#8220;God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself violate the law by commanding that I be struck!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 4Those who were standing near Paul said, &#8220;How dare you insult God&#8217;s high priest!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 5Paul replied, &#8220;Brothers, I did not realize that he was the high priest; for it is written: &#8216;Do not speak evil about the ruler of your people.&#8217;#23:5 Exodus 22:28&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 6Then Paul, knowing that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, called out in the Sanhedrin, &#8220;My brothers, I am a Pharisee, descended from Pharisees. I stand on trial because of the hope of the resurrection of the dead.&#8221; 7When he said this, a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. 8(The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees believe all these things.)</div><div class="p"> 9There was a great uproar, and some of the teachers of the law who were Pharisees stood up and argued vigorously. &#8220;We find nothing wrong with this man,&#8221; they said. &#8220;What if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?&#8221; 10The dispute became so violent that the commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them. He ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force and bring him into the barracks.</div><div class="p"> 11The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, &#8220;Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">The Plot to Kill Paul</div><div class="p"> 12The next morning some Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul. 13More than forty men were involved in this plot. 14They went to the chief priests and the elders and said, &#8220;We have taken a solemn oath not to eat anything until we have killed Paul. 15Now then, you and the Sanhedrin petition the commander to bring him before you on the pretext of wanting more accurate information about his case. We are ready to kill him before he gets here.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 16But when the son of Paul&#8217;s sister heard of this plot, he went into the barracks and told Paul.</div><div class="p"> 17Then Paul called one of the centurions and said, &#8220;Take this young man to the commander; he has something to tell him.&#8221; 18So he took him to the commander.</div><div class="p">The centurion said, &#8220;Paul, the prisoner, sent for me and asked me to bring this young man to you because he has something to tell you.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 19The commander took the young man by the hand, drew him aside and asked, &#8220;What is it you want to tell me?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 20He said: &#8220;Some Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul before the Sanhedrin tomorrow on the pretext of wanting more accurate information about him. 21Don&#8217;t give in to them, because more than forty of them are waiting in ambush for him. They have taken an oath not to eat or drink until they have killed him. They are ready now, waiting for your consent to their request.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 22The commander dismissed the young man with this warning: &#8220;Don&#8217;t tell anyone that you have reported this to me.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">Paul Transferred to Caesarea</div><div class="p"> 23Then he called two of his centurions and ordered them, &#8220;Get ready a detachment of two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen#23:23 The meaning of the Greek for this word is uncertain. to go to Caesarea at nine tonight. 24Provide horses for Paul so that he may be taken safely to Governor Felix.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 25He wrote a letter as follows:</div><div class="pmo"> 26Claudius Lysias,</div><div class="b"></div><div class="pmo">To His Excellency, Governor Felix:</div><div class="b"></div><div class="pmo">Greetings.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="pm"> 27This man was seized by the Jews and they were about to kill him, but I came with my troops and rescued him, for I had learned that he is a Roman citizen. 28I wanted to know why they were accusing him, so I brought him to their Sanhedrin. 29I found that the accusation had to do with questions about their law, but there was no charge against him that deserved death or imprisonment. 30When I was informed of a plot to be carried out against the man, I sent him to you at once. I also ordered his accusers to present to you their case against him.</div><div class="p"> 31So the soldiers, carrying out their orders, took Paul with them during the night and brought him as far as Antipatris. 32The next day they let the cavalry go on with him, while they returned to the barracks. 33When the cavalry arrived in Caesarea, they delivered the letter to the governor and handed Paul over to him. 34The governor read the letter and asked what province he was from. Learning that he was from Cilicia, 35he said, &#8220;I will hear your case when your accusers get here.&#8221; Then he ordered that Paul be kept under guard in Herod&#8217;s palace.</div>
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 <div class="label">24</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Trial Before Felix</div><div class="p"> 1Five days later the high priest Ananias went down to Caesarea with some of the elders and a lawyer named Tertullus, and they brought their charges against Paul before the governor. 2When Paul was called in, Tertullus presented his case before Felix: &#8220;We have enjoyed a long period of peace under you, and your foresight has brought about reforms in this nation. 3Everywhere and in every way, most excellent Felix, we acknowledge this with profound gratitude. 4But in order not to weary you further, I would request that you be kind enough to hear us briefly.</div><div class="p"> 5&#8220;We have found this man to be a troublemaker, stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the Nazarene sect 6and even tried to desecrate the temple; so we seized him. [7]#24:6-7 Some manuscripts include here him, and we would have judged him in accordance with our law. 7 But the commander Lysias came and took him from us with much violence, 8 ordering his accusers to come before you. 8By examining him yourself you will be able to learn the truth about all these charges we are bringing against him.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 9The other Jews joined in the accusation, asserting that these things were true.</div><div class="p"> 10When the governor motioned for him to speak, Paul replied: &#8220;I know that for a number of years you have been a judge over this nation; so I gladly make my defense. 11You can easily verify that no more than twelve days ago I went up to Jerusalem to worship. 12My accusers did not find me arguing with anyone at the temple, or stirring up a crowd in the synagogues or anywhere else in the city. 13And they cannot prove to you the charges they are now making against me. 14However, I admit that I worship the God of our ancestors as a follower of the Way, which they call a sect. I believe everything that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets, 15and I have the same hope in God as these men themselves have, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked. 16So I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God and man.</div><div class="p"> 17&#8220;After an absence of several years, I came to Jerusalem to bring my people gifts for the poor and to present offerings. 18I was ceremonially clean when they found me in the temple courts doing this. There was no crowd with me, nor was I involved in any disturbance. 19But there are some Jews from the province of Asia, who ought to be here before you and bring charges if they have anything against me. 20Or these who are here should state what crime they found in me when I stood before the Sanhedrin&#8212; 21unless it was this one thing I shouted as I stood in their presence: &#8216;It is concerning the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you today.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 22Then Felix, who was well acquainted with the Way, adjourned the proceedings. &#8220;When Lysias the commander comes,&#8221; he said, &#8220;I will decide your case.&#8221; 23He ordered the centurion to keep Paul under guard but to give him some freedom and permit his friends to take care of his needs.</div><div class="p"> 24Several days later Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish. He sent for Paul and listened to him as he spoke about faith in Christ Jesus. 25As Paul talked about righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and said, &#8220;That&#8217;s enough for now! You may leave. When I find it convenient, I will send for you.&#8221; 26At the same time he was hoping that Paul would offer him a bribe, so he sent for him frequently and talked with him.</div><div class="p"> 27When two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus, but because Felix wanted to grant a favor to the Jews, he left Paul in prison.</div>
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 <div class="label">25</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Trial Before Festus</div><div class="p"> 1Three days after arriving in the province, Festus went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem, 2where the chief priests and the Jewish leaders appeared before him and presented the charges against Paul. 3They requested Festus, as a favor to them, to have Paul transferred to Jerusalem, for they were preparing an ambush to kill him along the way. 4Festus answered, &#8220;Paul is being held at Caesarea, and I myself am going there soon. 5Let some of your leaders come with me, and if the man has done anything wrong, they can press charges against him there.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 6After spending eight or ten days with them, Festus went down to Caesarea. The next day he convened the court and ordered that Paul be brought before him. 7When Paul came in, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him. They brought many serious charges against him, but they could not prove them.</div><div class="p"> 8Then Paul made his defense: &#8220;I have done nothing wrong against the Jewish law or against the temple or against Caesar.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 9Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, &#8220;Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me there on these charges?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 10Paul answered: &#8220;I am now standing before Caesar&#8217;s court, where I ought to be tried. I have not done any wrong to the Jews, as you yourself know very well. 11If, however, I am guilty of doing anything deserving death, I do not refuse to die. But if the charges brought against me by these Jews are not true, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 12After Festus had conferred with his council, he declared: &#8220;You have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar you will go!&#8221;</div><div class="s1">Festus Consults King Agrippa</div><div class="p"> 13A few days later King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea to pay their respects to Festus. 14Since they were spending many days there, Festus discussed Paul&#8217;s case with the king. He said: &#8220;There is a man here whom Felix left as a prisoner. 15When I went to Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews brought charges against him and asked that he be condemned.</div><div class="p"> 16&#8220;I told them that it is not the Roman custom to hand over anyone before they have faced their accusers and have had an opportunity to defend themselves against the charges. 17When they came here with me, I did not delay the case, but convened the court the next day and ordered the man to be brought in. 18When his accusers got up to speak, they did not charge him with any of the crimes I had expected. 19Instead, they had some points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive. 20I was at a loss how to investigate such matters; so I asked if he would be willing to go to Jerusalem and stand trial there on these charges. 21But when Paul made his appeal to be held over for the Emperor&#8217;s decision, I ordered him held until I could send him to Caesar.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 22Then Agrippa said to Festus, &#8220;I would like to hear this man myself.&#8221;</div><div class="p">He replied, &#8220;Tomorrow you will hear him.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">Paul Before Agrippa</div><div class="p"> 23The next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp and entered the audience room with the high-ranking military officers and the prominent men of the city. At the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. 24Festus said: &#8220;King Agrippa, and all who are present with us, you see this man! The whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him in Jerusalem and here in Caesarea, shouting that he ought not to live any longer. 25I found he had done nothing deserving of death, but because he made his appeal to the Emperor I decided to send him to Rome. 26But I have nothing definite to write to His Majesty about him. Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that as a result of this investigation I may have something to write. 27For I think it is unreasonable to send a prisoner on to Rome without specifying the charges against him.&#8221;</div>
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 <div class="label">26</div><div class="p"> 1Then Agrippa said to Paul, &#8220;You have permission to speak for yourself.&#8221;</div><div class="p">So Paul motioned with his hand and began his defense: 2&#8220;King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate to stand before you today as I make my defense against all the accusations of the Jews, 3and especially so because you are well acquainted with all the Jewish customs and controversies. Therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently.</div><div class="p"> 4&#8220;The Jewish people all know the way I have lived ever since I was a child, from the beginning of my life in my own country, and also in Jerusalem. 5They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that I conformed to the strictest sect of our religion, living as a Pharisee. 6And now it is because of my hope in what God has promised our ancestors that I am on trial today. 7This is the promise our twelve tribes are hoping to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night. King Agrippa, it is because of this hope that these Jews are accusing me. 8Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?</div><div class="p"> 9&#8220;I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the Lord&#8217;s people in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. 11Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. I was so obsessed with persecuting them that I even hunted them down in foreign cities.</div><div class="p"> 12&#8220;On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. 13About noon, King Agrippa, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions. 14We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic,#26:14 Or Hebrew &#8216;Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 15&#8220;Then I asked, &#8216;Who are you, Lord?&#8217;</div><div class="p">&#8220; &#8216;I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,&#8217; the Lord replied. 16&#8216;Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of me. 17I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them 18to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.&#8217;</div><div class="p"> 19&#8220;So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the vision from heaven. 20First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and then to the Gentiles, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds. 21That is why some Jews seized me in the temple courts and tried to kill me. 22But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen&#8212; 23that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 24At this point Festus interrupted Paul&#8217;s defense. &#8220;You are out of your mind, Paul!&#8221; he shouted. &#8220;Your great learning is driving you insane.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 25&#8220;I am not insane, most excellent Festus,&#8221; Paul replied. &#8220;What I am saying is true and reasonable. 26The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner. 27King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 28Then Agrippa said to Paul, &#8220;Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 29Paul replied, &#8220;Short time or long&#8212;I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 30The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them. 31After they left the room, they began saying to one another, &#8220;This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 32Agrippa said to Festus, &#8220;This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.&#8221;</div>
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 <div class="label">27</div><div class="s1">Paul Sails for Rome</div><div class="p"> 1When it was decided that we would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, who belonged to the Imperial Regiment. 2We boarded a ship from Adramyttium about to sail for ports along the coast of the province of Asia, and we put out to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was with us.</div><div class="p"> 3The next day we landed at Sidon; and Julius, in kindness to Paul, allowed him to go to his friends so they might provide for his needs. 4From there we put out to sea again and passed to the lee of Cyprus because the winds were against us. 5When we had sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we landed at Myra in Lycia. 6There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy and put us on board. 7We made slow headway for many days and had difficulty arriving off Cnidus. When the wind did not allow us to hold our course, we sailed to the lee of Crete, opposite Salmone. 8We moved along the coast with difficulty and came to a place called Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea.</div><div class="p"> 9Much time had been lost, and sailing had already become dangerous because by now it was after the Day of Atonement.#27:9 That is, Yom Kippur So Paul warned them, 10&#8220;Men, I can see that our voyage is going to be disastrous and bring great loss to ship and cargo, and to our own lives also.&#8221; 11But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship. 12Since the harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided that we should sail on, hoping to reach Phoenix and winter there. This was a harbor in Crete, facing both southwest and northwest.</div><div class="s1">The Storm</div><div class="p"> 13When a gentle south wind began to blow, they saw their opportunity; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. 14Before very long, a wind of hurricane force, called the Northeaster, swept down from the island. 15The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along. 16As we passed to the lee of a small island called Cauda, we were hardly able to make the lifeboat secure, 17so the men hoisted it aboard. Then they passed ropes under the ship itself to hold it together. Because they were afraid they would run aground on the sandbars of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor#27:17 Or the sails and let the ship be driven along. 18We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard. 19On the third day, they threw the ship&#8217;s tackle overboard with their own hands. 20When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the storm continued raging, we finally gave up all hope of being saved.</div><div class="p"> 21After they had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up before them and said: &#8220;Men, you should have taken my advice not to sail from Crete; then you would have spared yourselves this damage and loss. 22But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost; only the ship will be destroyed. 23Last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me 24and said, &#8216;Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.&#8217; 25So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me. 26Nevertheless, we must run aground on some island.&#8221;</div><div class="s1">The Shipwreck</div><div class="p"> 27On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic#27:27 In ancient times the name referred to an area extending well south of Italy. Sea, when about midnight the sailors sensed they were approaching land. 28They took soundings and found that the water was a hundred and twenty feet#27:28 Or about 37 meters deep. A short time later they took soundings again and found it was ninety feet#27:28 Or about 27 meters deep. 29Fearing that we would be dashed against the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight. 30In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow. 31Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, &#8220;Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved.&#8221; 32So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat and let it drift away.</div><div class="p"> 33Just before dawn Paul urged them all to eat. &#8220;For the last fourteen days,&#8221; he said, &#8220;you have been in constant suspense and have gone without food&#8212;you haven&#8217;t eaten anything. 34Now I urge you to take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head.&#8221; 35After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. 36They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves. 37Altogether there were 276 of us on board. 38When they had eaten as much as they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain into the sea.</div><div class="p"> 39When daylight came, they did not recognize the land, but they saw a bay with a sandy beach, where they decided to run the ship aground if they could. 40Cutting loose the anchors, they left them in the sea and at the same time untied the ropes that held the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and made for the beach. 41But the ship struck a sandbar and ran aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, and the stern was broken to pieces by the pounding of the surf.</div><div class="p"> 42The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners to prevent any of them from swimming away and escaping. 43But the centurion wanted to spare Paul&#8217;s life and kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. 44The rest were to get there on planks or on other pieces of the ship. In this way everyone reached land safely.</div>
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 <div class="label">28</div><div class="s1">Paul Ashore on Malta</div><div class="p"> 1Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. 2The islanders showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all because it was raining and cold. 3Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand. 4When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, &#8220;This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, the goddess Justice has not allowed him to live.&#8221; 5But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. 6The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead; but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.</div><div class="p"> 7There was an estate nearby that belonged to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us to his home and showed us generous hospitality for three days. 8His father was sick in bed, suffering from fever and dysentery. Paul went in to see him and, after prayer, placed his hands on him and healed him. 9When this had happened, the rest of the sick on the island came and were cured. 10They honored us in many ways; and when we were ready to sail, they furnished us with the supplies we needed.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Arrival at Rome</div><div class="p"> 11After three months we put out to sea in a ship that had wintered in the island&#8212;it was an Alexandrian ship with the figurehead of the twin gods Castor and Pollux. 12We put in at Syracuse and stayed there three days. 13From there we set sail and arrived at Rhegium. The next day the south wind came up, and on the following day we reached Puteoli. 14There we found some brothers and sisters who invited us to spend a week with them. And so we came to Rome. 15The brothers and sisters there had heard that we were coming, and they traveled as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. At the sight of these people Paul thanked God and was encouraged. 16When we got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with a soldier to guard him.</div><div class="s1">Paul Preaches at Rome Under Guard</div><div class="p"> 17Three days later he called together the local Jewish leaders. When they had assembled, Paul said to them: &#8220;My brothers, although I have done nothing against our people or against the customs of our ancestors, I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Romans. 18They examined me and wanted to release me, because I was not guilty of any crime deserving death. 19The Jews objected, so I was compelled to make an appeal to Caesar. I certainly did not intend to bring any charge against my own people. 20For this reason I have asked to see you and talk with you. It is because of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chain.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 21They replied, &#8220;We have not received any letters from Judea concerning you, and none of our people who have come from there has reported or said anything bad about you. 22But we want to hear what your views are, for we know that people everywhere are talking against this sect.&#8221;</div><div class="p"> 23They arranged to meet Paul on a certain day, and came in even larger numbers to the place where he was staying. He witnessed to them from morning till evening, explaining about the kingdom of God, and from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets he tried to persuade them about Jesus. 24Some were convinced by what he said, but others would not believe. 25They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: &#8220;The Holy Spirit spoke the truth to your ancestors when he said through Isaiah the prophet:</div><div class="q1"> 26&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;Go to this people and say,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;You will be ever hearing but never understanding;</div><div class="q2">you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.&#8221;</div><div class="q1"> 27For this people&#8217;s heart has become calloused;</div><div class="q2">they hardly hear with their ears,</div><div class="q2">and they have closed their eyes.</div><div class="q1">Otherwise they might see with their eyes,</div><div class="q2">hear with their ears,</div><div class="q2">understand with their hearts</div><div class="q1">and turn, and I would heal them.&#8217;#28:27 Isaiah 6:9,10 (see Septuagint)</div><div class="p"> 28&#8220;Therefore I want you to know that God&#8217;s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!&#8221; [29]#28:29 Some manuscripts include here After he said this, the Jews left, arguing vigorously among themselves.</div><div class="p"> 30For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. 31He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ&#8212;with all boldness and without hindrance!</div>
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 <div class="chapter ch1" data-usfm="ROM.1">
 <div class="label">1</div><div class="p"> 1Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God&#8212; 2the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life#1:3 Or who according to the flesh was a descendant of David, 4and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power#1:4 Or was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from#1:5 Or that is faith for his name&#8217;s sake. 6And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="p"> 7To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people:</div><div class="b"></div><div class="p">Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Longing to Visit Rome</div><div class="p"> 8First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. 9God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you 10in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God&#8217;s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.</div><div class="p"> 11I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong&#8212; 12that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other&#8217;s faith. 13I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters,#1:13 The Greek word for brothers and sisters (adelphoi) refers here to believers, both men and women, as part of God&#8217;s family; also in 7:1, 4; 8:12, 29; 10:1; 11:25; 12:1; 15:14, 30; 16:14, 17. that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.</div><div class="p"> 14I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. 15That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome.</div><div class="p"> 16For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed&#8212;a righteousness that is by faith from first to last,#1:17 Or is from faith to faith just as it is written: &#8220;The righteous will live by faith.&#8221;#1:17 Hab. 2:4</div><div class="s1">God&#8217;s Wrath Against Sinful Humanity</div><div class="p"> 18The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20For since the creation of the world God&#8217;s invisible qualities&#8212;his eternal power and divine nature&#8212;have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.</div><div class="p"> 21For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.</div><div class="p"> 24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator&#8212;who is forever praised. Amen.</div><div class="p"> 26Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.</div><div class="p"> 28Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32Although they know God&#8217;s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
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 <div class="chapter ch2" data-usfm="ROM.2">
 <div class="label">2</div><div class="s1">God&#8217;s Righteous Judgment</div><div class="p"> 1You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. 2Now we know that God&#8217;s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. 3So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God&#8217;s judgment? 4Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God&#8217;s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?</div><div class="p"> 5But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God&#8217;s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. 6God &#8220;will repay each person according to what they have done.&#8221;#2:6 Psalm 62:12; Prov. 24:12 7To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 9There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; 10but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 11For God does not show favoritism.</div><div class="p"> 12All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. 13For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God&#8217;s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. 14(Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. 15They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.) 16This will take place on the day when God judges people&#8217;s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.</div><div class="s1">The Jews and the Law</div><div class="p"> 17Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; 18if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; 19if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, 20an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth&#8212; 21you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24As it is written: &#8220;God&#8217;s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.&#8221;#2:24 Isaiah 52:5 (see Septuagint); Ezek. 36:20,22</div><div class="p"> 25Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised. 26So then, if those who are not circumcised keep the law&#8217;s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised? 27The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the#2:27 Or who, by means of a written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker.</div><div class="p"> 28A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 29No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person&#8217;s praise is not from other people, but from God.</div>
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 <div class="label">3</div><div class="s1">God&#8217;s Faithfulness</div><div class="p"> 1What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? 2Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God.</div><div class="p"> 3What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God&#8217;s faithfulness? 4Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;So that you may be proved right when you speak</div><div class="q2">and prevail when you judge.&#8221;#3:4 Psalm 51:4</div><div class="p"> 5But if our unrighteousness brings out God&#8217;s righteousness more clearly, what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.) 6Certainly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world? 7Someone might argue, &#8220;If my falsehood enhances God&#8217;s truthfulness and so increases his glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?&#8221; 8Why not say&#8212;as some slanderously claim that we say&#8212;&#8220;Let us do evil that good may result&#8221;? Their condemnation is just!</div><div class="s1">No One Is Righteous</div><div class="p"> 9What shall we conclude then? Do we have any advantage? Not at all! For we have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under the power of sin. 10As it is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;There is no one righteous, not even one;</div><div class="q2"> 11there is no one who understands;</div><div class="q2">there is no one who seeks God.</div><div class="q1"> 12All have turned away,</div><div class="q2">they have together become worthless;</div><div class="q1">there is no one who does good,</div><div class="q2">not even one.&#8221;#3:12 Psalms 14:1-3; 53:1-3; Eccles. 7:20</div><div class="q1"> 13&#8220;Their throats are open graves;</div><div class="q2">their tongues practice deceit.&#8221;#3:13 Psalm 5:9</div><div class="q1">&#8220;The poison of vipers is on their lips.&#8221;#3:13 Psalm 140:3</div><div class="q2"> 14&#8220;Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.&#8221;#3:14 Psalm 10:7 (see Septuagint)</div><div class="q1"> 15&#8220;Their feet are swift to shed blood;</div><div class="q2"> 16ruin and misery mark their ways,</div><div class="q1"> 17and the way of peace they do not know.&#8221;#3:17 Isaiah 59:7,8</div><div class="q2"> 18&#8220;There is no fear of God before their eyes.&#8221;#3:18 Psalm 36:1</div><div class="p"> 19Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. 20Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God&#8217;s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.</div><div class="s1">Righteousness Through Faith</div><div class="p"> 21But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22This righteousness is given through faith in#3:22 Or through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement,#3:25 The Greek for sacrifice of atonement refers to the atonement cover on the ark of the covenant (see Lev. 16:15,16). through the shedding of his blood&#8212;to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished&#8212; 26he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.</div><div class="p"> 27Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. Because of what law? The law that requires works? No, because of the law that requires faith. 28For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. 29Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles too? Yes, of Gentiles too, 30since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. 31Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.</div>
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 <div class="label">4</div><div class="s1">Abraham Justified by Faith</div><div class="p"> 1What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter? 2If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about&#8212;but not before God. 3What does Scripture say? &#8220;Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.&#8221;#4:3 Gen. 15:6; also in verse 22</div><div class="p"> 4Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. 5However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. 6David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:</div><div class="q1"> 7&#8220;Blessed are those</div><div class="q2">whose transgressions are forgiven,</div><div class="q2">whose sins are covered.</div><div class="q1"> 8Blessed is the one</div><div class="q2">whose sin the Lord will never count against them.&#8221;#4:8 Psalm 32:1,2</div><div class="p"> 9Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham&#8217;s faith was credited to him as righteousness. 10Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before! 11And he received circumcision as a sign, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. 12And he is then also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also follow in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.</div><div class="p"> 13It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. 14For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless, 15because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.</div><div class="p"> 16Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham&#8217;s offspring&#8212;not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. 17As it is written: &#8220;I have made you a father of many nations.&#8221;#4:17 Gen. 17:5 He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed&#8212;the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.</div><div class="p"> 18Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, &#8220;So shall your offspring be.&#8221;#4:18 Gen. 15:5 19Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead&#8212;since he was about a hundred years old&#8212;and that Sarah&#8217;s womb was also dead. 20Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. 22This is why &#8220;it was credited to him as righteousness.&#8221; 23The words &#8220;it was credited to him&#8221; were written not for him alone, 24but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness&#8212;for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 25He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.</div>
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 <div class="label">5</div><div class="s1">Peace and Hope</div><div class="p"> 1Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we#5:1 Many manuscripts let us have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we#5:2 Or let us boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3Not only so, but we#5:3 Or let us also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5And hope does not put us to shame, because God&#8217;s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.</div><div class="p"> 6You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.</div><div class="p"> 9Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God&#8217;s wrath through him! 10For if, while we were God&#8217;s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.</div><div class="s1">Death Through Adam, Life Through Christ</div><div class="p"> 12Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned&#8212;</div><div class="p"> 13To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone&#8217;s account where there is no law. 14Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.</div><div class="p"> 15But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God&#8217;s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! 16Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man&#8217;s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. 17For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God&#8217;s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!</div><div class="p"> 18Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. 19For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.</div><div class="p"> 20The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, 21so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.</div>
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 <div class="label">6</div><div class="s1">Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ</div><div class="p"> 1What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? 3Or don&#8217;t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.</div><div class="p"> 5For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,#6:6 Or be rendered powerless that we should no longer be slaves to sin&#8212; 7because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.</div><div class="p"> 8Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.</div><div class="p"> 11In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. 14For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.</div><div class="s1">Slaves to Righteousness</div><div class="p"> 15What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! 16Don&#8217;t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey&#8212;whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. 18You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.</div><div class="p"> 19I am using an example from everyday life because of your human limitations. Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness. 20When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. 21What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! 22But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. 23For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in#6:23 Or through Christ Jesus our Lord.</div>
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 <div class="label">7</div><div class="s1">Released From the Law, Bound to Christ</div><div class="p"> 1Do you not know, brothers and sisters&#8212;for I am speaking to those who know the law&#8212;that the law has authority over someone only as long as that person lives? 2For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive, but if her husband dies, she is released from the law that binds her to him. 3So then, if she has sexual relations with another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress. But if her husband dies, she is released from that law and is not an adulteress if she marries another man.</div><div class="p"> 4So, my brothers and sisters, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. 5For when we were in the realm of the flesh,#7:5 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit. the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in us, so that we bore fruit for death. 6But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.</div><div class="s1">The Law and Sin</div><div class="p"> 7What shall we say, then? Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, &#8220;You shall not covet.&#8221;#7:7 Exodus 20:17; Deut. 5:21 8But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead. 9Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. 10I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. 11For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death. 12So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good.</div><div class="p"> 13Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! Nevertheless, in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it used what is good to bring about my death, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.</div><div class="p"> 14We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.#7:18 Or my flesh For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do&#8212;this I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.</div><div class="p"> 21So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22For in my inner being I delight in God&#8217;s law; 23but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!</div><div class="p">So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God&#8217;s law, but in my sinful nature#7:25 Or in the flesh a slave to the law of sin.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
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 <div class="label">8</div><div class="s1">Life Through the Spirit</div><div class="p"> 1Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you#8:2 The Greek is singular; some manuscripts me free from the law of sin and death. 3For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh,#8:3 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit; also in verses 4-13. God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering.#8:3 Or flesh, for sin And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.</div><div class="p"> 5Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God&#8217;s law, nor can it do so. 8Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.</div><div class="p"> 9You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life#8:10 Or you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of#8:11 Some manuscripts bodies through his Spirit who lives in you.</div><div class="p"> 12Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation&#8212;but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.</div><div class="p"> 14For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.#8:15 The Greek word for adoption to sonship is a term referring to the full legal standing of an adopted male heir in Roman culture; also in verse 23. And by him we cry, &#8220;Abba,#8:15 Aramaic for father Father.&#8221; 16The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God&#8217;s children. 17Now if we are children, then we are heirs&#8212;heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.</div><div class="s1">Present Suffering and Future Glory</div><div class="p"> 18I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21that#8:20,21 Or subjected it in hope. 21 For the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.</div><div class="p"> 22We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.</div><div class="p"> 26In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God&#8217;s people in accordance with the will of God.</div><div class="p"> 28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who#8:28 Or that all things work together for good to those who love God, who; or that in all things God works together with those who love him to bring about what is good&#8212;with those who have been called according to his purpose. 29For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.</div><div class="s1">More Than Conquerors</div><div class="p"> 31What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all&#8212;how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died&#8212;more than that, who was raised to life&#8212;is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;For your sake we face death all day long;</div><div class="q2">we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.&#8221;#8:36 Psalm 44:22</div><div class="m"> 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,#8:38 Or nor heavenly rulers neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
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 <div class="chapter ch9" data-usfm="ROM.9">
 <div class="label">9</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Anguish Over Israel</div><div class="p"> 1I speak the truth in Christ&#8212;I am not lying, my conscience confirms it through the Holy Spirit&#8212; 2I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. 3For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, 4the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. 5Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised!#9:5 Or Messiah, who is over all. God be forever praised! Or Messiah. God who is over all be forever praised! Amen.</div><div class="s1">God&#8217;s Sovereign Choice</div><div class="p"> 6It is not as though God&#8217;s word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. 7Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham&#8217;s children. On the contrary, &#8220;It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.&#8221;#9:7 Gen. 21:12 8In other words, it is not the children by physical descent who are God&#8217;s children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham&#8217;s offspring. 9For this was how the promise was stated: &#8220;At the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a son.&#8221;#9:9 Gen. 18:10,14</div><div class="p"> 10Not only that, but Rebekah&#8217;s children were conceived at the same time by our father Isaac. 11Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad&#8212;in order that God&#8217;s purpose in election might stand: 12not by works but by him who calls&#8212;she was told, &#8220;The older will serve the younger.&#8221;#9:12 Gen. 25:23 13Just as it is written: &#8220;Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.&#8221;#9:13 Mal. 1:2,3</div><div class="p"> 14What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! 15For he says to Moses,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,</div><div class="q2">and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.&#8221;#9:15 Exodus 33:19</div><div class="m"> 16It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God&#8217;s mercy. 17For Scripture says to Pharaoh: &#8220;I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.&#8221;#9:17 Exodus 9:16 18Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.</div><div class="p"> 19One of you will say to me: &#8220;Then why does God still blame us? For who is able to resist his will?&#8221; 20But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? &#8220;Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, &#8216;Why did you make me like this?&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;#9:20 Isaiah 29:16; 45:9 21Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?</div><div class="p"> 22What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath&#8212;prepared for destruction? 23What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory&#8212; 24even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? 25As he says in Hosea:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;I will call them &#8216;my people&#8217; who are not my people;</div><div class="q2">and I will call her &#8216;my loved one&#8217; who is not my loved one,&#8221;#9:25 Hosea 2:23</div><div class="m"> 26and,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;In the very place where it was said to them,</div><div class="q2">&#8216;You are not my people,&#8217;</div><div class="q2">there they will be called &#8216;children of the living God.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;#9:26 Hosea 1:10</div><div class="m"> 27Isaiah cries out concerning Israel:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea,</div><div class="q2">only the remnant will be saved.</div><div class="q1"> 28For the Lord will carry out</div><div class="q2">his sentence on earth with speed and finality.&#8221;#9:28 Isaiah 10:22,23 (see Septuagint)</div><div class="m"> 29It is just as Isaiah said previously:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;Unless the Lord Almighty</div><div class="q2">had left us descendants,</div><div class="q1">we would have become like Sodom,</div><div class="q2">we would have been like Gomorrah.&#8221;#9:29 Isaiah 1:9</div><div class="s1">Israel&#8217;s Unbelief</div><div class="p"> 30What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; 31but the people of Israel, who pursued the law as the way of righteousness, have not attained their goal. 32Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone. 33As it is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes people to stumble</div><div class="q2">and a rock that makes them fall,</div><div class="q2">and the one who believes in him will never be put to shame.&#8221;#9:33 Isaiah 8:14; 28:16</div>
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 <div class="label">10</div><div class="p"> 1Brothers and sisters, my heart&#8217;s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. 2For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. 3Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God&#8217;s righteousness. 4Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.</div><div class="p"> 5Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: &#8220;The person who does these things will live by them.&#8221;#10:5 Lev. 18:5 6But the righteousness that is by faith says: &#8220;Do not say in your heart, &#8216;Who will ascend into heaven?&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;#10:6 Deut. 30:12 (that is, to bring Christ down) 7&#8220;or &#8216;Who will descend into the deep?&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;#10:7 Deut. 30:13 (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8But what does it say? &#8220;The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,&#8221;#10:8 Deut. 30:14 that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: 9If you declare with your mouth, &#8220;Jesus is Lord,&#8221; and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 11As Scripture says, &#8220;Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.&#8221;#10:11 Isaiah 28:16 (see Septuagint) 12For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile&#8212;the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13for, &#8220;Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.&#8221;#10:13 Joel 2:32</div><div class="p"> 14How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: &#8220;How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!&#8221;#10:15 Isaiah 52:7</div><div class="p"> 16But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, &#8220;Lord, who has believed our message?&#8221;#10:16 Isaiah 53:1 17Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. 18But I ask: Did they not hear? Of course they did:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;Their voice has gone out into all the earth,</div><div class="q2">their words to the ends of the world.&#8221;#10:18 Psalm 19:4</div><div class="m"> 19Again I ask: Did Israel not understand? First, Moses says,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;I will make you envious by those who are not a nation;</div><div class="q2">I will make you angry by a nation that has no understanding.&#8221;#10:19 Deut. 32:21</div><div class="m"> 20And Isaiah boldly says,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;I was found by those who did not seek me;</div><div class="q2">I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me.&#8221;#10:20 Isaiah 65:1</div><div class="m"> 21But concerning Israel he says,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;All day long I have held out my hands</div><div class="q2">to a disobedient and obstinate people.&#8221;#10:21 Isaiah 65:2</div>
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 <div class="label">11</div><div class="s1">The Remnant of Israel</div><div class="p"> 1I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew. Don&#8217;t you know what Scripture says in the passage about Elijah&#8212;how he appealed to God against Israel: 3&#8220;Lord, they have killed your prophets and torn down your altars; I am the only one left, and they are trying to kill me&#8221;#11:3 1 Kings 19:10,14? 4And what was God&#8217;s answer to him? &#8220;I have reserved for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal.&#8221;#11:4 1 Kings 19:18 5So too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. 6And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.</div><div class="p"> 7What then? What the people of Israel sought so earnestly they did not obtain. The elect among them did, but the others were hardened, 8as it is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;God gave them a spirit of stupor,</div><div class="q2">eyes that could not see</div><div class="q2">and ears that could not hear,</div><div class="q1">to this very day.&#8221;#11:8 Deut. 29:4; Isaiah 29:10</div><div class="m"> 9And David says:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;May their table become a snare and a trap,</div><div class="q2">a stumbling block and a retribution for them.</div><div class="q1"> 10May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see,</div><div class="q2">and their backs be bent forever.&#8221;#11:10 Psalm 69:22,23</div><div class="s1">Ingrafted Branches</div><div class="p"> 11Again I ask: Did they stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather, because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious. 12But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their full inclusion bring!</div><div class="p"> 13I am talking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch as I am the apostle to the Gentiles, I take pride in my ministry 14in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them. 15For if their rejection brought reconciliation to the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? 16If the part of the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; if the root is holy, so are the branches.</div><div class="p"> 17If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, 18do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. 19You will say then, &#8220;Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.&#8221; 20Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. 21For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.</div><div class="p"> 22Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. 23And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. 24After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!</div><div class="s1">All Israel Will Be Saved</div><div class="p"> 25I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, 26and in this way#11:26 Or and so all Israel will be saved. As it is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;The deliverer will come from Zion;</div><div class="q2">he will turn godlessness away from Jacob.</div><div class="q1"> 27And this is#11:27 Or will be my covenant with them</div><div class="q2">when I take away their sins.&#8221;#11:27 Isaiah 59:20,21; 27:9 (see Septuagint); Jer. 31:33,34</div><div class="p"> 28As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies for your sake; but as far as election is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, 29for God&#8217;s gifts and his call are irrevocable. 30Just as you who were at one time disobedient to God have now received mercy as a result of their disobedience, 31so they too have now become disobedient in order that they too may now#11:31 Some manuscripts do not have now. receive mercy as a result of God&#8217;s mercy to you. 32For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.</div><div class="s1">Doxology</div><div class="q1"> 33Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and#11:33 Or riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God!</div><div class="q2">How unsearchable his judgments,</div><div class="q2">and his paths beyond tracing out!</div><div class="q1"> 34&#8220;Who has known the mind of the Lord?</div><div class="q2">Or who has been his counselor?&#8221;#11:34 Isaiah 40:13</div><div class="q1"> 35&#8220;Who has ever given to God,</div><div class="q2">that God should repay them?&#8221;#11:35 Job 41:11</div><div class="q1"> 36For from him and through him and for him are all things.</div><div class="q2">To him be the glory forever! Amen.</div>
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 <div class="label">12</div><div class="s1">A Living Sacrifice</div><div class="p"> 1Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God&#8217;s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God&#8212;this is your true and proper worship. 2Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God&#8217;s will is&#8212;his good, pleasing and perfect will.</div><div class="s1">Humble Service in the Body of Christ</div><div class="p"> 3For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your#12:6 Or the faith; 7if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead,#12:8 Or to provide for others do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.</div><div class="s1">Love in Action</div><div class="p"> 9Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with the Lord&#8217;s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.</div><div class="p"> 14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.#12:16 Or willing to do menial work Do not be conceited.</div><div class="p"> 17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God&#8217;s wrath, for it is written: &#8220;It is mine to avenge; I will repay,&#8221;#12:19 Deut. 32:35 says the Lord. 20On the contrary:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;If your enemy is hungry, feed him;</div><div class="q2">if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.</div><div class="q1">In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.&#8221;#12:20 Prov. 25:21,22</div><div class="m"> 21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.</div>
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 <div class="label">13</div><div class="s1">Submission to Governing Authorities</div><div class="p"> 1Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 4For the one in authority is God&#8217;s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God&#8217;s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.</div><div class="p"> 6This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God&#8217;s servants, who give their full time to governing. 7Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.</div><div class="s1">Love Fulfills the Law</div><div class="p"> 8Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. 9The commandments, &#8220;You shall not commit adultery,&#8221; &#8220;You shall not murder,&#8221; &#8220;You shall not steal,&#8221; &#8220;You shall not covet,&#8221;#13:9 Exodus 20:13-15,17; Deut. 5:17-19,21 and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: &#8220;Love your neighbor as yourself.&#8221;#13:9 Lev. 19:18 10Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.</div><div class="s1">The Day Is Near</div><div class="p"> 11And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. 14Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.#13:14 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
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 <div class="chapter ch14" data-usfm="ROM.14">
 <div class="label">14</div><div class="s1">The Weak and the Strong</div><div class="p"> 1Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. 2One person&#8217;s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 3The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. 4Who are you to judge someone else&#8217;s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.</div><div class="p"> 5One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. 6Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. 8If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. 9For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.</div><div class="p"> 10You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister#14:10 The Greek word for brother or sister (adelphos) refers here to a believer, whether man or woman, as part of God&#8217;s family; also in verses 13, 15 and 21.? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God&#8217;s judgment seat. 11It is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;As surely as I live,&#8217; says the Lord,</div><div class="q1">&#8216;every knee will bow before me;</div><div class="q2">every tongue will acknowledge God.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;#14:11 Isaiah 45:23</div><div class="m"> 12So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.</div><div class="p"> 13Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. 14I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. 15If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. 16Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. 17For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.</div><div class="p"> 19Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. 20Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.</div><div class="p"> 22So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. 23But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.#14:23 Some manuscripts place 16:25-27 here; others after 15:33.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkROM">
 <div class="chapter ch15" data-usfm="ROM.15">
 <div class="label">15</div><div class="p"> 1We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. 2Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up. 3For even Christ did not please himself but, as it is written: &#8220;The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.&#8221;#15:3 Psalm 69:9 4For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.</div><div class="p"> 5May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, 6so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.</div><div class="p"> 7Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. 8For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews#15:8 Greek circumcision on behalf of God&#8217;s truth, so that the promises made to the patriarchs might be confirmed 9and, moreover, that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles;</div><div class="q2">I will sing the praises of your name.&#8221;#15:9 2 Samuel 22:50; Psalm 18:49</div><div class="m"> 10Again, it says,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;Rejoice, you Gentiles, with his people.&#8221;#15:10 Deut. 32:43</div><div class="m"> 11And again,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles;</div><div class="q2">let all the peoples extol him.&#8221;#15:11 Psalm 117:1</div><div class="m"> 12And again, Isaiah says,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;The Root of Jesse will spring up,</div><div class="q2">one who will arise to rule over the nations;</div><div class="q2">in him the Gentiles will hope.&#8221;#15:12 Isaiah 11:10 (see Septuagint)</div><div class="p"> 13May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.</div><div class="s1">Paul the Minister to the Gentiles</div><div class="p"> 14I myself am convinced, my brothers and sisters, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with knowledge and competent to instruct one another. 15Yet I have written you quite boldly on some points to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me 16to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. He gave me the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.</div><div class="p"> 17Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. 18I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done&#8212; 19by the power of signs and wonders, through the power of the Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ. 20It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else&#8217;s foundation. 21Rather, as it is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;Those who were not told about him will see,</div><div class="q2">and those who have not heard will understand.&#8221;#15:21 Isaiah 52:15 (see Septuagint)</div><div class="m"> 22This is why I have often been hindered from coming to you.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Plan to Visit Rome</div><div class="p"> 23But now that there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to visit you, 24I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to see you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while. 25Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the Lord&#8217;s people there. 26For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the Lord&#8217;s people in Jerusalem. 27They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews&#8217; spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings. 28So after I have completed this task and have made sure that they have received this contribution, I will go to Spain and visit you on the way. 29I know that when I come to you, I will come in the full measure of the blessing of Christ.</div><div class="p"> 30I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. 31Pray that I may be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea and that the contribution I take to Jerusalem may be favorably received by the Lord&#8217;s people there, 32so that I may come to you with joy, by God&#8217;s will, and in your company be refreshed. 33The God of peace be with you all. Amen.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
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 <div class="chapter ch16" data-usfm="ROM.16">
 <div class="label">16</div><div class="s1">Personal Greetings</div><div class="p"> 1I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon#16:1 Or servant#16:1 The word deacon refers here to a Christian designated to serve with the overseers/elders of the church in a variety of ways; similarly in Phil. 1:1 and 1 Tim. 3:8,12. of the church in Cenchreae. 2I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of his people and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="li1"> 3Greet Priscilla#16:3 Greek Prisca, a variant of Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus. 4They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.</div><div class="li1"> 5Greet also the church that meets at their house.</div><div class="li1">Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia.</div><div class="li1"> 6Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.</div><div class="li1"> 7Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among#16:7 Or are esteemed by the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.</div><div class="li1"> 8Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.</div><div class="li1"> 9Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys.</div><div class="li1"> 10Greet Apelles, whose fidelity to Christ has stood the test.</div><div class="li1">Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus.</div><div class="li1"> 11Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew.</div><div class="li1">Greet those in the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord.</div><div class="li1"> 12Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord.</div><div class="li1">Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord.</div><div class="li1"> 13Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother, who has been a mother to me, too.</div><div class="li1"> 14Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas and the other brothers and sisters with them.</div><div class="li1"> 15Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas and all the Lord&#8217;s people who are with them.</div><div class="li1"> 16Greet one another with a holy kiss.</div><div class="li1">All the churches of Christ send greetings.</div><div class="b"></div><div class="p"> 17I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. 18For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people. 19Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil.</div><div class="p"> 20The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.</div><div class="p">The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.</div><div class="p"> 21Timothy, my co-worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my fellow Jews.</div><div class="p"> 22I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.</div><div class="p"> 23Gaius, whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings.</div><div class="p">Erastus, who is the city&#8217;s director of public works, and our brother Quartus send you their greetings. [24]#16:24 Some manuscripts include here May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you. Amen.</div><div class="p"> 25Now to him who is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, 26but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all the Gentiles might come to the obedience that comes from#16:26 Or that is faith&#8212; 27to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.</div>
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