Acts 4

¹And as they spake unto the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them,

²being sore troubled because they taught the people, and proclaimed in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

³And they laid hands on them, and put them in ward unto the morrow: for it was now eventide.

⁴But many of them that heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.

⁵And it came to pass on the morrow, that their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem;

⁶and Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas, and John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the kindred of the high priest.

⁷And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, By what power, or in what name, have ye done this?

⁸Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders,

⁹if we this day are examined concerning a good deed done to an impotent man, by what means this man is made whole;

¹⁰be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even in him doth this man stand here before you whole.

¹¹He is the stone which was set at nought of you the builders, which was made the head of the corner.

¹²And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.

¹³Now when they beheld the boldness of Peter and John, and had perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

¹⁴And seeing the man that was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.

¹⁵But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,

¹⁶saying, What shall we do to these men? for that indeed a notable miracle hath been wrought through them, is manifest to all that dwell in Jerusalem; and we cannot deny it.

¹⁷But that it spread no further among the people, let us threaten them, that they speak henceforth to no man in this name.

¹⁸And they called them, and charged them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.

¹⁹But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it is right in the sight of God to hearken unto you rather than unto God, judge ye:

²⁰for we cannot but speak the things which we saw and heard.

²¹And they, when they had further threatened them, let them go, finding nothing how they might punish them, because of the people; for all men glorified God for that which was done.

²²For the man was more than forty years old, on whom this miracle of healing was wrought.

²³And being let go, they came to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said unto them.

²⁴And they, when they heard it, lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, O Lord, thou that didst make the heaven and the earth and the sea, and all that in them is:

²⁵who by the Holy Spirit, by the mouth of our father David thy servant, didst say, Why did the Gentiles rage, And the peoples imagine vain things?

²⁶The kings of the earth set themselves in array, And the rulers were gathered together, Against the Lord, and against his Anointed:

²⁷for of a truth in this city against thy holy Servant Jesus, whom thou didst anoint, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, were gathered together,

²⁸to do whatsoever thy hand and thy council foreordained to come to pass.

²⁹And now, Lord, look upon their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants to speak thy word with all boldness,

³⁰while thou stretchest forth thy hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of thy holy Servant Jesus.

³¹And when they had prayed, the place was shaken wherein they were gathered together; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

³²And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and soul: and not oneof themsaid that aught of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.

³³And with great power gave the apostles their witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.

³⁴For neither was there among them any that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold,

³⁵and laid them at the apostles’ feet: and distribution was made unto each, according as any one had need.

³⁶And Joseph, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas (which is, being interpreted, Son of exhortation), a Levite, a man of Cyprus by race,

³⁷having a field, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

Acts 4

¹While Peter and John were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to them,

²greatly disturbed that they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead.

³They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in custody until the next day.

⁴But many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand.

⁵The next day the rulers, elders, and scribes assembled in Jerusalem,

⁶along with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and many others from the high priest’s family.

⁷They had Peter and John brought in and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?”

⁸Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of the people!

⁹If we are being examined today about a kind service to a man who was lame, to determine how he was healed,

¹⁰then let this be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.

¹¹This Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’

¹²Salvation exists in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

¹³When they saw the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they marveled and took note that these men had been with Jesus.

¹⁴And seeing the man who had been healed standing there with them, they had nothing to say in response.

¹⁵So they ordered them to leave the Sanhedrin and then conferred together.

¹⁶“What shall we do with these men?” they asked. “It is clear to everyone living in Jerusalem that a remarkable miracle has occurred through them, and we cannot deny it.

¹⁷But to keep this message from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in this name.”

¹⁸Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

¹⁹But Peter and John replied, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to listen to you rather than God.

²⁰For we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

²¹After further threats they let them go. They could not find a way to punish them, because all the people were glorifying God for what had happened.

²²For the man who was miraculously healed was over forty years old.

²³On their release, Peter and John returned to their own people and reported everything that the chief priests and elders had said to them.

²⁴When the believers heard this, they lifted up their voices to God with one accord. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “You made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them.

²⁵You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of Your servant, our father David: ‘Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?

²⁶The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against His Anointed One.’

²⁷In fact, this is the very city where Herod and Pontius Pilate conspired with the Gentiles and the people of Israel against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed.

²⁸They carried out what Your hand and will had decided beforehand would happen.

²⁹And now, Lord, consider their threats, and enable Your servants to speak Your word with complete boldness,

³⁰as You stretch out Your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.”

³¹After they had prayed, their meeting place was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

³²The multitude of believers was one in heart and soul. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they owned.

³³With great power the apostles continued to give their testimony about the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And abundant grace was upon them all.

³⁴There were no needy ones among them, because those who owned lands or houses would sell their property, bring the proceeds from the sales,

³⁵and lay them at the apostles’ feet for distribution to anyone as he had need.

³⁶Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (meaning Son of Encouragement),

³⁷sold a field he owned, brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.