Acts 8
1 Saul was consenting to his death. A great persecution arose against the church which was in Jerusalem in that day. They were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except for the apostles.
Then some men who revered God buried Stephen’s body in a tomb, and they mourned greatly and loudly for him. On that same day [people] started severely persecuting the believers [who were living] in Jerusalem. So most [of the believers] fled [to other places] throughout Judea and Samaria [provinces]. The apostles were the only [believers who remained in Jerusalem].
2 Devout men buried Stephen, and lamented greatly over him.
3 But Saul ravaged the church, entering into every house, and dragged both men and women off to prison.
While the people were killing Stephen, Saul was there approving of their killing Stephen. So Saul [also] began trying to destroy the group of believers. He entered houses one by one, he dragged away men and women [who believed in Jesus], and then he [arranged for] them to be put in prison.
4 Therefore those who were scattered abroad went around proclaiming the word.
The believers who had left Jerusalem went to different places, where they continued preaching the message about Jesus.
5 And Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and proclaimed to them the Christ.
[One of those believers whose name was] Philip went down [from Jerusalem] to a city in Samaria [province]. There he was telling [the people that Jesus is] [MTY] the Messiah.
6 The crowds listened with one accord to the things that were spoken by Philip, when they heard and saw the signs which he did.
Many people there heard Philip [speak] and saw the miraculous things that he was doing. So they all (paid close attention to/listened carefully to) his words.
7 For unclean spirits came out of many of those who had them. They came out, crying with a loud voice. Many who had been paralyzed and lame were healed.
For [example, when Philip commanded] evil spirits who controlled many people [that they should come out of them], they came out, while those spirits screamed. Also, many people who were paralyzed and [many others] who were lame were healed.
8 There was great joy in that city.
So [many people] [MTY] in that city greatly rejoiced.
9 But there was a certain man, Simon by name, who used to practice sorcery in the city, and amazed the people of Samaria, making himself out to be some great one,
There was a man in that city whose name was Simon. He had been practicing sorcery for a long time, and he had been amazing the people in Samaria [province by doing that]. He continually claimed that he was a great/important person.
10 to whom they all listened, from the least to the greatest, saying, "This man is that power of God which is called Great."
All the people there, both ordinary and important people, listened to him. [Various ones of] them were saying, “This man works in extremely powerful ways [because] God has caused him to be a great [person].”
11 They listened to him, because for a long time he had amazed them with his sorceries.
They continued to listen to him carefully, because for a long time he had astonished them by practicing sorcery.
12 But when they believed Philip as he preached good news concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
But then they believed Philip’s [message] when he preached to them about [how] God desires to rule [MET] [the lives of people who believe in him], and about Jesus being the Messiah [MTY]. Both the men and the women who believed in Jesus were baptized. {[Philip] was baptizing both the men and the women [who had come to believe in Jesus]}.
13 Simon himself also believed. Being baptized, he continued with Philip. Seeing signs and great miracles occurring, he was amazed.
Simon himself believed [Philip’s message] and, after he was baptized {after [Philip] baptized him}, he began to constantly accompany Philip. Simon was continually amazed because he often saw [Philip] doing many kinds of miraculous things.
14 Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them,
When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that [many people] [PRS] [throughout] Samaria [district] had believed the message from God [about Jesus], they sent Peter and John there.
15 who, when they had come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit;
When Peter and John arrived in Samaria, they prayed for those [new believers] in order that the Holy Spirit’s [power] would come to them.
16 for he had not yet fallen upon any of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
[Peter and John realized that] the Holy Spirit had not yet begun to empower any of them. They had been baptized {[Philip] had baptized them} [because they had believed] in [MTY] the Lord Jesus, [but they did not know about the Holy Spirit].
17 Then they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
[Then Peter and John] placed their hands on [the heads of] each person, and they received the [power of] [MTY] the Holy Spirit.
18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money,
Simon saw [things that convinced him] that [God] had given the Spirit’s [power to people] as a result of the apostles placing their hands on them. So he offered [to give] money to the apostles,
19 saying, "Give me also this power, that whomever I lay my hands on may receive the Holy Spirit."
saying, “Enable me also to do what [you are doing], so that everyone on whom I place/put my hands may receive the Holy Spirit’s [power].”
20 But Peter said to him, "May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money.
But Peter said to him, “May you [(sg)] and your money go to hell, because you [mistakenly] think that you can buy [from us] what God [alone] gives to [people] (questioned)
21 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.
[God] has not authorized you to have any part of this ministry of giving [the Holy Spirit’s power], because he knows that you are not thinking rightly! (OR, because he knows that you are thinking completely wrongly.)
22 Repent therefore of this, your wickedness, and ask the Lord if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.
So stop thinking wickedly [like] that, and plead that the Lord, if he is willing, will forgive you [for what] you [wickedly] thought/planned [to do]
23 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity."
[Turn away from your evil ways], because I perceive that you [(sg)] are extremely envious of [us], and you [are] a slave of your [continual desire to do evil! God will certainly punish you severely]!”
24 Simon answered, "Pray for me to the Lord, that none of the things which you have spoken happen to me."
Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord [God] that [he] will not do to me what you just said!”
25 They therefore, when they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the Good News to many villages of the Samaritans.
After [Peter and John] told [people there] what they knew personally [about the] Lord [Jesus] and declared to them the message about Jesus, they both returned to Jerusalem. [Along the way] they preached the good message [about Jesus to people] in many villages in Samaria [province].
26 But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, "Arise, and go toward the south to the way that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. This is a desert."
[One day] an angel whom the Lord [God] had sent commanded Philip, “Get ready and go south along the road that extends from Jerusalem to Gaza.” [That was] a road in a desert area.
27 And he arose and went. And look, there was a man from Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Kandake, the queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge over all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship,
So Philip got ready and went [along that road]. Suddenly he met a man from Ethiopia. He was an important official who took care of all the funds for the queen [of] Ethiopia. [In his language people called their queen] Candace. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship [God],
28 and he was returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah.
and he was returning [home] and was seated [riding] in his chariot. [As he was riding], he was reading [out loud from] what the prophet Isaiah [had written] [MTY] [long ago].
29 And the Spirit said to Philip, "Go and join up with that chariot."
[God’s] Spirit told Philip, “Go near to that chariot and keep walking close to [the man who is riding in] it!”
30 And running near, Philip heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?"
So Philip ran [to the chariot and kept running close to it]. Then he heard the official reading what the prophet Isaiah [had written]. He asked the man, “Do you [(sg)] understand what you are reading?”
31 He said, "How can I, unless someone explains it to me?" So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
He answered Philip, “[No!] (I cannot possibly [understand it] if [there is] no one to explain it to me!/How can I [understand it] if [there is] no one to explain it to me?) [RHQ]” Acts 8:31b-35 Then the man said to Philip, “Please come up [and] sit beside me.” [So Philip did that].
32 Now the passage of the Scripture which he was reading was this, "He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he does not open his mouth.
The part of the Scriptures that the official was reading was this: He will [be silent when] they lead him away to kill him [like when] a sheep [is led away to be killed]. As a young sheep is silent when its wool is being cut off {someone cuts off its wool}, [similarly] he will not protest [MTY] [when people cause him to suffer].
33 In his humiliation his justice was taken away. Who will declare his generation? For his life is taken from the earth."
When he will be humiliated by being accused falsely {people will humiliate him [by accusing him falsely]}, [the rulers] (will not consider him innocent/will consider him guilty). No one will possibly be able to tell about his descendants, because he will be killed {people will kill him} without him having [any descendants] on the earth.
34 The eunuch answered Philip, "Who is the prophet talking about? About himself, or about someone else?"
The official asked Philip [about these words that he was reading], “Tell me, who was the prophet writing about? [Was he writing] about himself or about someone else?”
35 Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture, preached to him Jesus.
So Philip began [to explain] that Scripture passage. He told him the good message about [MTY] Jesus. [So the official understood and believed in Jesus].
36 As they went on the way, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water. What is keeping me from being baptized?"
While they were traveling along the road, they came to [a place where there was a pond of] water [near the road]. Then the official said [to Philip], “Look, [there is a pond of] water! (I would like you to baptize me, because I do not know of anything that would prevent me from being baptized {prevent [you] from baptizing me.}/Do you know of anything that would prevent me from being baptized {prevent [you] from baptizing me}?) [RHQ]”
37 And he said to him, "If you believe with all your heart, you may." And he answered and said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."
38 He commanded the chariot to stand still, and they both went down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him.
So the official told [the driver] to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the official went down into the [pond of] water, and [Philip] baptized him.
39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him any more, for he went on his way rejoicing.
When they came up out of the water, suddenly God’s Spirit took Philip away. The official never saw Philip again. But [although he never saw Philip again], the official continued going along the road, very happy [that God had saved him].
40 But Philip was found at Azotus. Passing through, he preached the Good News to all the cities, until he came to Caesarea.
Philip then realized [that the Spirit had miraculously taken him to] Azotus [town]. While he traveled around [in that region], he continued proclaiming the message [about Jesus] in all the towns [between Azotus and Caesarea. And he was still proclaiming] it when he finally arrived in Caesarea [city].
