The
Church Persecuted And Scattered
ON
THAT DAY GREAT PERSECUTION BROKE OUT
AGAINST
THE CHURCH AT JERUSALEM,
AND
ALL EXCEPT THE ATPOSTLES
WERE
SCATTERED THROUGHOT JUDEA AND SAMARIA.
2
Godly men buried Stephen
And
mourned deeply for him.
3
BUT SAUL BEGAN TO DESTROY THE CHURCH
Going
from house to house,
He
dragged off men and women and put them in Prison.
Philip
In Samaria
4
THOSE WHO HAD BEEN SCATTERED
PREACHED
THE WORD WHEREVER THEY WENT.
5
Philip went down to a City in Samaria
And
Proclaimed the Christ there.
6
When the Crowds heard Philip
And
saw the Miraculous Signs he did,
THEY
ALL PAID CLOSE ATTENTION TO WHAT HE SAID.
7
WITH SHRIEKS , EVIL SPIRITS CAME OUT OF MANY,
AND
MANY PARALYTICS AND CRIPPLES WERE HEALED.
8
SO THERE WAS GREAT JOY IN THAT CITY.
Simon
The Sorcerer
9
Now 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,
10
And all the people, both high and low,
Gave
him their attention and exclaimed,
'This
man is the Divine Power
Known
as the Great Power.'
11
They followed him because he had Amazed them
For
a long time with his Magic.
12
But when they Believed Philip
AS
HE PREACHED THE GOOD NEWS
OF
THE KINGDOM OF GOD
AND
THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST,
THEY
WERE BAPTIZED,
BOTH
MEN AND WOMEN.
13
Simon himself Believed
And
was Baptized.
And
he followed Philip everywhere,
ASTONISHED
BY THE GREAT SIGNS AND MIRACLES HE SAW.
14
When the Apostles in Jerusalem
Heard
that Samaria had accepted the Word of God,
They
sent Peter and John to them.
15
When they arrived,
THEY
PRAYED FOR THEM
THAT
THEY MIGHT RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT,
16
BECAUSE THE HOLY SPIRIT
HAD
NOT YET COME UPON ANY OF THEM;
THEY
HAD SIMPLY BEEN BAPTIZED
INTO
THE NAME OF THE LORD JESUS.
17
THEN PETER AND JOHN
PLACED
THEIR HANDS ON THEM,
AND
THEY RECEIVED THE HOLY SPIRIT.
18
When Simon saw that the Spirit was given
AT
THE LAYING ON OF THE APOSTLES' HANDS,
HE
OFFERED THEM MONEY AND SAID,
19
'GIVE ME ALSO THIS ABILITY
SO
THAT EVEYONE ON WHOM I LAY MY HANDS
MAY
RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT.'
20
Peter answered:
'MAY
YOUR MONEY PERISH WITH YOU,
BECAUSE
YOU THOUGHT YOU COULD BUY
THE
GIFT OF GOD WITH MONEY.
21
YOU HAVE NO PART OF SHARE IN THIS MINISTRY,
BECAUSE
YOUR HEART IS NOT RIGHT BEFORE GOD.
22
REPENT OF THIS WICKEDNESS
AND
PRAY TO THE LORD.
PERHAPS
HE WILL FORGIVE YOU
FOR
HAVING SUCH A THOUGH IN YOUR HEART.
23
FOR I SEE THAT YOU ARE FULL OF BITTERNESS
AND
CAPTIVE TO SIN.'
24
Then Simon answered,
'Pray
to the Lord for me
So
that nothing you have said may happen to me.'
26
When they had Testified
And
Proclaimed the Word of the Lord,
Peter
and John returned to Jerusalem,
Preaching
the Gospel in many Samaritan Villages.
Philip
And the Ethiopian
26
NOW AND ANGEL OF THE LORD SAID TO PHILIP,
'GO
SOUTH TO THE ROAD—
THAT
GOES DOWN FROM JERUSALEM TO GAZA.'
27
So he started out,
And
on his way he met an Ethiopian Eunuch,
And
important Official
In
charge of all the Treasury of Candace,
Queen
of the Ethiopians.
THIS
MAN HAD GONE TO JERUSALEM TO WORSHIP,
And
on his way home was sitting in his Chariot
Reading
the Book of Isaiah the Prophet.
29
THE SPIRIT TOLD PHILIP,
'GO
TO THAT CHARIOT AND STAY NEAR IT.'
30
Then Philip ran up to the Chariot
And
heard the man reading Isaiah the Prophet.
'DO
YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU ARE READING?'
Philip
asked.
31
'How can I,
UNLESS
SOMEONE EXPLAINS IT TO ME?'
So
he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
32
The Eunuch was reading
This
Passage of Scripture:
He
was like a Sheep to the Slaughter,
And
as a Lamb before the Shearer is Silent,
So
he did not open his mouth.
33
In His Humiliation
He
was deprived of Justice.
Who
can speak of His Descendants?
For
His life was taken from the Earth.'
34
The Eunuch ask Philip,
'TELL
ME PLEASE,
WHO
IS THE PROPHET TALKING ABOUT,
HIMSELF
OR SOMEONE ELSE?'
35
Then Philip began
With
that very Passage of Scripture
AND
TOLD HIM THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT JESUS.
36
As they Traveled along the road,
They
came to some water
And
the Eunuch said,
'LOOK
HERE IS WATER.
WHY
SHOULDN'T I BE BAPTIZED?'
38
And he ordered the Chariot to stop.
Then
both Philip and the Eunuch
Went
down into the water
And
Philip Baptized him.
39
WHEN THEY CAME UP OUT OF THE WTER,
THE
SPIRIT OF THE LORD SUDDENLY TOOK PHILIP AWAY,
And
the Eunuch did not see him again,
BUT
WENT ON HIS WAY REJOICING.
40
Philip, however, appeared at Azotus
And
traveled about,
Preaching
the Gospel
In
all the towns until he reached Caesarea.
(Acts
8)
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