Thursday, May 6, 2027

^2:38Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.” ⁴⁰With many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!” ⁴¹Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. There were added that day about three thousand souls. ⁴²They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and prayer. ⁴³Fear came on every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.

WEB, public domain

^3:1Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. ²He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him.” ³Jesus answered him, “Most certainly I tell you, unless one is born anew, he can’t see God’s Kingdom.” ⁴Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” ⁵Jesus answered, “Most certainly I tell you, unless one is born of water and Spirit, he can’t enter into God’s Kingdom. ⁶That which is born of the flesh is flesh. That which is born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷Don’t marvel that I said to you, ‘You must all be born anew.’ ⁸The wind blows where it wants to, and you hear its sound, but don’t know where it comes from and where it is going. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” ⁹Nicodemus answered him, “How can these things be?” ¹⁰Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and don’t understand these things? ¹¹Most certainly I tell you, we speak that which we know and testify of that which we have seen, and you don’t receive our witness. ¹²If I told you earthly things and you don’t believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? ¹³No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended out of heaven, the Son of Man, who is in heaven. ¹⁴As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

WEB, public domain

^43:9All the nations are gathered together, and princes shall be gathered out of them: who will declare these things? or who will declare to you things from the beginning? let them bring forth their witnesses, and be justified; and let them hear, and declare the truth. ¹⁰Be ye my witnesses, and I too am a witness, saith the Lord God, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know, and believe, and understand that I am he: before me there was no other God, and after me there shall be none. ¹¹I am God; and beside me there is no Saviour. ¹²I have declared, and have saved; I have reproached, and there was no strange god among you: ye are my witnesses, and I am the Lord God, ¹³even from the beginning; and there is none that can deliver out of my hands: I will work, and who shall turn it back? ¹⁴Thus saith the Lord God that redeems you, the Holy One of Israel; For your sakes I will send to Babylon, and I will stir up all that flee, and the Chaldeans shall be bound in ships.

Brenton LXX, public domain

^4:7But though the righteous be prevented with death, yet shall he be in rest. ⁸For honourable age is not that which standeth in length of time, nor that is measured by number of years. ⁹But wisdom is the grey hair unto men, and an unspotted life is old age. ¹⁰He pleased God, and was beloved of him: so that living among sinners he was translated. ¹¹Yea, speedily was he taken away, lest that wickedness should alter his understanding, or deceit beguile his soul. ¹²For the bewitching of naughtiness doth obscure things that are honest; and the wandering of concupiscence doth undermine the simple mind. ¹³He, being made perfect in a short time, fulfilled a long time: ¹⁴for his soul pleased the Lord: therefore hasted he to take him away from among the wicked. ¹⁵This the people saw, and understood not, neither laid they up this in their minds, That his grace and mercy is with his saints, and that he hath respect unto his chosen.

Brenton LXX, public domain

^12:2But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. ³Therefore whatever you have said in the darkness will be heard in the light. What you have spoken in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops. ⁴“I tell you, my friends, don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. ⁵But I will warn you whom you should fear. Fear him who after he has killed, has power to cast into Gehenna. Yes, I tell you, fear him. ⁶“Aren’t five sparrows sold for two assaria coins? Not one of them is forgotten by God. ⁷But the very hairs of your head are all counted. Therefore don’t be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows. ⁸“I tell you, everyone who confesses me before men, the Son of Man will also confess before the angels of God; ⁹but he who denies me in the presence of men will be denied in the presence of God’s angels. ¹⁰Everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but those who blaspheme against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. ¹¹When they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities, don’t be anxious how or what you will answer or what you will say; ¹²for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that same hour what you must say.”

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^2:38Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.” ⁴⁰With many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!” ⁴¹Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. There were added that day about three thousand souls. ⁴²They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and prayer. ⁴³Fear came on every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.

WEB, public domain

^12:1Now about that time, King Herod stretched out his hands to oppress some of the assembly. ²He killed James, the brother of John, with the sword. ³When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This was during the days of unleavened bread. ⁴When he had arrested him, he put him in prison and delivered him to four squads of four soldiers each to guard him, intending to bring him out to the people after the Passover. ⁵Peter therefore was kept in the prison, but constant prayer was made by the assembly to God for him. ⁶The same night when Herod was about to bring him out, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains. Guards in front of the door kept the prison. ⁷And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up, saying, “Stand up quickly!” His chains fell off his hands. ⁸The angel said to him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” He did so. He said to him, “Put on your cloak and follow me.” ⁹And he went out and followed him. He didn’t know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he saw a vision. ¹⁰When they were past the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went out and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him. ¹¹When Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I truly know that the Lord has sent out his angel and delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from everything the Jewish people were expecting.”

WEB, public domain

^3:1Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. ²He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him.” ³Jesus answered him, “Most certainly I tell you, unless one is born anew, he can’t see God’s Kingdom.” ⁴Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” ⁵Jesus answered, “Most certainly I tell you, unless one is born of water and Spirit, he can’t enter into God’s Kingdom. ⁶That which is born of the flesh is flesh. That which is born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷Don’t marvel that I said to you, ‘You must all be born anew.’ ⁸The wind blows where it wants to, and you hear its sound, but don’t know where it comes from and where it is going. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” ⁹Nicodemus answered him, “How can these things be?” ¹⁰Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and don’t understand these things? ¹¹Most certainly I tell you, we speak that which we know and testify of that which we have seen, and you don’t receive our witness. ¹²If I told you earthly things and you don’t believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? ¹³No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended out of heaven, the Son of Man, who is in heaven. ¹⁴As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

WEB, public domain

^15:17“I command these things to you, that you may love one another. ¹⁸If the world hates you, you know that it has hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹If you were of the world, the world would love its own. But because you are not of the world, since I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. ²⁰Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his lord.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. ²¹But they will do all these things to you for my name’s sake, because they don’t know him who sent me. ²²If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have had sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. ²³He who hates me, hates my Father also. ²⁴If I hadn’t done among them the works which no one else did, they wouldn’t have had sin. But now they have seen and also hated both me and my Father. ²⁵But this happened so that the word may be fulfilled which was written in their law, ‘They hated me without a cause.’ ²⁶“When the Counselor has come, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will testify about me. ²⁷You will also testify, because you have been with me from the beginning. ^16:1“I have said these things to you so that you wouldn’t be caused to stumble. ²They will put you out of the synagogues. Yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers service to God.

WEB, public domain