Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and 6 Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. 7 8 And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith. And Stephen, full of grace and power, wrought great 9 wonders and signs among the people. But there arose certain of them that were of the synagogue called the synagogue of the Libertines, and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of them of Cilicia and Asia, 10 disputing with Stephen. And they were not able to withstand the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spake. 11 Then they suborned men, which said, We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses, and 12 against God. And they stirred up the people, and the elders, and the scribes, and came upon him, and seized 13 him, and brought him into the council, and set up false witnesses, which said, This man ceaseth not to speak 14 words against this holy place, and the law: for we have heard him say, that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses 15 delivered unto us. And all that sat in the council, fastening their eyes on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel. 7 And the high priest said, Are these things so? And 2 he said, Then Brethren and fathers, hearken. The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in 3 Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran, and said unto him, Get thee out of thy land, and from thy kindred, 4 and come into the land which I shall shew thee. came he out of the land of the Chaldæans, and dwelt in Haran: and from thence, when his father was dead, God removed him into this land, wherein ye now 5 dwell: and he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: and he promised that he would give it to him in possession, and to his 6 seed after him, when as yet he had no child. And God spake on this wise, that his seed should sojourn in a strange land, and that they should bring them into bondage, and entreat them evil, four hundred years. 7 And the nation to which they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come 8 forth, and serve me in this place. And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac 9 begat Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs. And the patriarchs, moved with jealousy against Joseph, sold 10 him into Egypt: and God was with him, and delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favour and wisdom before Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made 11 him governor over Egypt and all his house. Now there came a famine over all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction: and our fathers found no sustenance. 12 But when Jacob heard that there was corn in Egypt, 13 he sent forth our fathers the first time. And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren; and Joseph's race became manifest unto Pharaoh. 14 And Joseph sent, and called to him Jacob his father, 15 and all his kindred, threescore and fifteen souls. And Jacob went down into Egypt; and he died, himself, 16 and our fathers; and they were carried over unto Shechem, and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a price in silver of the sons of Hamor in She17 chem. But as the time of the promise drew nigh, which God vouchsafed unto Abraham, the people grew 18 and multiplied in Egypt, till there arose another king 19 over Egypt, which knew not Joseph. The same dealt subtilly with our race, and evil entreated our fathers, that they should cast out their babes to the end they 20 might not live. At which season Moses was born, and was exceeding fair; and he was nourished three 21 months in his father's house: and when he was cast out, Pharaoh's daughter took him up, and nourished 22 him for her own son. And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians; and he was mighty 23 in his words and works. But when he was well-nigh forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his 24 brethren the children of Israel. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him 25 that was oppressed, smiting the Egyptian: and he supposed that his brethren understood how that God by his hand was giving them deliverance; but they 26 understood not. And the day following he appeared unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye 27 wrong one to another? But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler 28 and a judge over us? Wouldest thou kill me, as thou 29 killedst the Egyptian yesterday? And Moses fled at this saying, and became a sojourner in the land of 30 Midian, where he begat two sons. And when forty years were fulfilled, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush. 31 And when Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold, there came a voice of the 32 Lord, I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abra ham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob. And Moses trembled, 33 and durst not behold. And the Lord said unto him, Loose the shoes from thy feet: for the place whereon 34 thou standest is holy ground. I have surely seen the affliction of my people which is in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I am come down to deliver them: and now come, I will send thee into Egypt. 85 This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? him hath God sent to be both a ruler and a deliverer with the hand of the angel which 36 appeared to him in the bush. This man led them forth, having wrought wonders and signs in Egypt, and in the 37 Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years. This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall God raise up unto you from among your brethren, 38 like unto me. This is he that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sinai, and with our fathers: who received living 39 oracles to give unto us: to whom our fathers would not be obedient, but thrust him from them, and turned back 40 in their hearts unto Egypt, saying unto Aaron, Make us gods which shall go before us: for as for this Moses, which led us forth out of the land of Egypt, we wot not 41 what is become of him. And they made a calf in those days, and brought a sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced 42 in the works of their hands. But God turned, and gave them up to serve the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, 43 Did ye offer unto me slain beasts and sacrifices The figures which ye made to worship them: 44 Our fathers had the tabernacle of the testimony in the wilderness, even as he appointed who spake unto Moses, that he should make it according to the figure that he 45 had seen. Which also our fathers, in their turn, brought in with Joshua when they entered on the possession of the nations, which God thrust out before the face of our 16 fathers, unto the days of David; who found favour in 47 48 49 50 51 the sight of God, and asked to find a habitation for the God of Jacob. But Solomon built him a house. Howbeit the Most High dwelleth not in houses made with hands; as saith the prophet, The heaven is my throne, And the earth the footstool of my feet:. What manner of house will ye build me? saith the Or what is the place of my rest? Did not my hand make all these things? Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, 52 so do ye. Which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute? and they killed them which shewed before of the coming of the Righteous One; of whom ye have 53 now become betrayers and murderers; ye who received the law as it was ordained by angels, and kept it not. 54 Now when they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth. 55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus 56 standing on the right hand of God, and said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing 57 on the right hand of God. But they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and rushed upon him 58 with one accord; and they cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their garments 59 at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen, calling upon the Lord, and saying, Lord 60 Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. 8 And Saul was consenting unto his death. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church which was in Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of 2 Judæa and Samaria, except the apostles. And devout men buried Stephen, and made great lamentation over 3 him. But Saul laid waste the church, entering into every house, and haling men and women committed them to prison. 4 They therefore that were scattered abroad went about 5 preaching the word. And Philip went down to the city 6 of Samaria, and proclaimed unto them the Christ. And the multitudes gave heed with one accord unto the things that were spoken by Philip, when they heard, 7 and saw the signs which he did. For from many of those which had unclean spirits, they came out, crying with a loud voice: and many that were palsied, and that 8 were lame, were healed. And there was much joy in that city. 9 But there was a certain man, Simon by name, which beforetime in the city used sorcery, and amazed the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great 10 one: to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is that power of God which 11 is called Great. And they gave heed to him, because that of long time he had amazed them with his sorceries. 12 But when they believed Philip preaching good tidings · concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus 13 Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. And Simon also himself believed: and being baptized, he continued with Philip; and beholding signs and great miracles wrought, he was amazed. 14 Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they 15 sent unto them Peter and John: who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive 16 the Holy Ghost: for as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they had been baptized into the name of the 17 Lord Jesus. Then laid they their hands on them, and 18 they received the Holy Ghost. Now when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles' hands the 19 Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay my 20 hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. But Peter said unto him, Thy silver perish with thee, because thou hast thought to obtain the gift of God with money. 21 Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy 22 heart is not right before God. Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray the Lord, if perhaps the 23 thought of thy heart shall be forgiven thec. For I see that thou art in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of 24 iniquity. And Simon answered and said, Pray ye for me to the Lord, that none of the things which ye have spoken come upon me. 25 26 They therefore, when they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel to many villages of the Samari tans. But an angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza: the same is desert. 27 And he arose and went: and behold, a man of Ethiopia, |