Acts 8
1 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].
And Saul was well pleased with his slaughter. And at that time there was a great persecution against the congregation in Jerusalem; and they were all dispersed through the regions of Judea, and Samaria, except the Apostles.
And devout men carried away Stephen, and made great lamentation for him.
3 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.
But Saul made havoc of the congregation, entering into houses, and dragging men and whom, whom he committed to prison.
4 The believers who had left Jerusalem went to different places, where they continued preaching the message about Jesus.
Nevertheless, they who were dispersed, went about declaring the glad tidings of the word.
5 [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.
Then came Philip to the city of Samaria, and announced the Messiah to them.
6 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.
And the people unanimously attended to the things that were spoken by Philip; as they heard them, and saw the miracles which he performed.
7 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.
For, unclean spirits, which had possessed many, crying with a loud voice, came out of them; and many, who were paralytic and lame, were healed.
8 So [many people] [MTY] in that city greatly rejoiced.
And there was great joy in that city.
9 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.
But there was a certain man named Simon, who had, before, in that city, used magic, and astonished the nation of Samaria; pretending himself to be some extraordinary person:
10 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].”
to whom they all paid regard, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.
11 They continued to listen to him carefully, because for a long time he had astonished them by practicing sorcery.
And they paid regard to him; because he had, for a long time, astonished them wit his enchantments.
12 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]}.
But when they gave credit to Philip, declaring the glad tidings concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ: they were immersed, both men and women.
13 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.
And Simon himself also believed; and being immersed, he kept near to Philip, beholding with amazement, the great and powerful miracles which were done.
14 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.
Now when the Apostles, who were at Jerusalem, heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent them Peter and John;
15 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.
who, going down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit.
16 [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].
(For he was not yet fallen on any of them; only, they were immersed into the name of the Lord Jesus.)
17 [Then Peter and John] placed their hands on [the heads of] each person, and they received the [power of] [MTY] the Holy Spirit.
Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18 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,
Now when Simon saw that the Holy Spirit was given by the imposition of the Apostles' hands, he offered them money,
19 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].”
saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Spirit.
20 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)
But Peter said to him, Let your money go with you to destruction, since you have thought that the free gift of God might be purchased with money.
21 [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.)
You have no part nor lot in this matter; for your heart is not upright in the sight of God.
22 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]
Reform, therefore, from this your wickedness; and beg of God, if, indeed, the thought of your heart may be forgiven you;
23 [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]!”
for I perceive that you are in the gall of bitterness, and bond of iniquity.
24 Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord [God] that [he] will not do to me what you just said!”
And Simon answered, and said, Make your supplications to the Lord on my behalf; that none of these things which you have spoken, may come upon me.
25 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].
Now when they had borne their testimony, and had spoke the word of the Lord, they turned back for Jerusalem; and declared the glad tidings in many villages of the Samaritans.
26 [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.
And a messenger of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south, by the way that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, which is desert.
27 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],
And he arose, and took his journey; and, behold, a certain Ethiopian officer, a grandee of Candace, the queen of the Ethiopians, that was over all her treasure, who had come to worship at Jerusalem,
28 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].
was returning, and sat in his chariot, reading the Prophet Isaiah.
29 [God’s] Spirit told Philip, “Go near to that chariot and keep walking close to [the man who is riding in] it!”
And the Spirit said to Philip, Approach, and join yourself to this chariot.
30 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?”
And Philip, running up, heard him read in the Prophet Isaiah, and said, Do you understand what you are reading?
31 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].
And he said, How can I, unless some one should guide me? And he requested Philip that he would come up and sit with him.
32 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].
Now the passage of scripture which he was reading, was this, "He was brought to the slaughter, as a sheep; and as a lamb before its shearer, is dumb; so he opened not his mouth.
33 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.
In his humiliation his condemnation was extorted; and who shall describe his generation? for his life is cut off from the earth."
34 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?”
The officer answering Philip, said, I beseech you, of whom does the prophet say this? --of himself, or of some other person?
35 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].
Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from the scripture, told him the glad tidings concerning Jesus.
36 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]”
And as they went along the way, they came to a certain water, and the officer said, Behold, water; what hinders my being immersed?
38 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.
And he ordered the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, both Philip and the officer; and he immersed him.
39 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].
And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly conveyed away Philip, and the officer saw him no more: so he went on his way rejoicing.
40 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].
But Philip was found at Azotus; and going on thence, he proclaimed the glad tidings in all the cities, till he came to Cesarea.
