Acts 13:16-41
Contemporary English Version
16 Paul got up. He motioned with his hand and said:
People of Israel, and everyone else who worships God, listen! 17 (A) The God of Israel chose our ancestors, and he let our people prosper while they were living in Egypt. Then with his mighty power he led them out, 18 (B) and for about 40 years he took care of[a] them in the desert. 19 (C) He destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan and gave their land to our people. 20 (D) All this happened in about 450 years.
Then God gave our people judges until the time of the prophet Samuel, 21 (E) but the people demanded a king. So for 40 years God gave them King Saul, the son of Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. 22 (F) Later, God removed Saul and let David rule in his place. God said about him, “David the son of Jesse is the kind of person who pleases me most! He does everything I want him to do.”
23 God promised that someone from David's family would come to save the people of Israel, and this one is Jesus. 24 (G) But before Jesus came, John was telling everyone in Israel to turn back to God and be baptized. 25 (H) Then, when John's work was almost done, he said, “Who do you people think I am? Do you think I am the Promised One? He will come later, and I am not good enough to untie his sandals.”
26 Now listen, you descendants of Abraham! Pay attention, all of you Gentiles who are here to worship God! Listen to this message about how to be saved, because it is for everyone. 27 The people of Jerusalem and their leaders didn't realize who Jesus was. And they didn't understand the words of the prophets they read each Sabbath. So they condemned Jesus just as the prophets had said.
28-29 (I) They did exactly what the Scriptures said they would. Even though they couldn't find any reason to put Jesus to death, they still asked Pilate to have him killed.
After Jesus had been put to death, he was taken down from the cross[b] and placed in a tomb. 30 But God raised him from death! 31 (J) Then for many days Jesus appeared to his followers who had gone with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. Now they are telling our people about him.
32 God made a promise to our ancestors. And we are here to tell you the good news 33 (K) that he has kept this promise to us. It is just as the second Psalm says about Jesus,
“You are my son because today
I have become your Father.”
34 (L) God raised Jesus from death and will never let his body decay. It is just as God said,
“I will make to you
the same holy promises
that I made to David.”
35 (M) And in another psalm it says, “God will never let the body of his Holy One decay.”
36 When David was alive, he obeyed God. Then after he died, he was buried in the family grave, and his body decayed. 37 But God raised Jesus from death, and his body did not decay.
38 My friends, the message is that Jesus can forgive your sins! The Law of Moses could not set you free from all your sins. 39 But everyone who has faith in Jesus is set free. 40 Make sure what the prophets have said doesn't happen to you. They said,
41 (N) “Look, you people
who make fun of God!
Be amazed
and disappear.
I will do something today
that you won't believe,
even if someone
tells you about it!”
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