Acts
Chapter 1
1 I wrote before, Theophilus, about all Jesus began to do and teach.
2 Until the day he was taken up to heaven, after he had given instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.
3 He also showed himself alive to them after his suffering through many sure proofs, being seen by them for forty days, and talking about the things regarding God’s kingdom.
4 While together with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father promised, which, he said, you have heard about from me.
5 John baptized with water, but soon you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.
6 So when they met, they asked him, “Teacher, will you now give the kingdom back to Israel?”
7 He told them, “You do not need to know the times or periods that God has decided by His own authority.”
8 You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; then you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all of Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
9 After he said this, as they watched, he went up; and a cloud hid him from their view.
10 As they watched Jesus going up to heaven very closely, suddenly they saw two men in white clothes standing near them.
11 They also said, “You men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up at the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you saw him go into heaven.”
12 Then they went back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, which is about a Sabbath day’s walk from the city.
13 When they arrived, they went to a room upstairs, where Peter, James, John, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas brother of James were staying.
14 They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women, Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.
15 In those days, Peter stood up among the followers and said, “There are about 120 of us here.”
16 Friends, this scripture had to be fulfilled. The Holy Spirit spoke through David about Judas, who led those who arrested Jesus.
17 He was counted among us and had a share in our work.
18 This man bought a field with the money he got from doing wrong. He fell forward, split open, and all his insides spilled out.
19 Everyone in Jerusalem knew about it, and they called that field in their own language Aceldama, which means Blood Field.
20 The Psalms book says, “Let his home become empty with no one living there; and let another person take his leadership role.”
21 So, from the men who have been with us the whole time that Jesus was with us,
22 Starting with John’s baptism until the day he ascended, someone must be chosen to join us as a witness of his resurrection.
23 They chose two men, Joseph known as Barsabas, also named Justus, and Matthias.
24 They prayed and said, “You, God, who knows everyone’s heart, show us which one of these two you have chosen.”
25 So that he can share in this service and role of apostle, which Judas lost by sinning, to go to where he belongs.
26 They drew lots, and Matthias was chosen. He became one of the twelve apostles.