Acts 9:23-31
New Catholic Bible
23 After some time had passed, the Jews devised a plan to kill him, 24 but their plot became known to Saul. They were keeping watch on the city gates day and night so that they might kill him, 25 but his disciples took him one night and let him down in a basket over the wall.
26 Saul in Jerusalem and Tarsus. When he arrived in Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him because they did not believe that he had become a disciple. 27 However, Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He related to them how on his journey Saul had seen the Lord who had spoken to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus.
28 Saul then moved about with them in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. 29 He also engaged in debate with the Hellenists[a] but they began planning to kill him. 30 When the brethren learned of this, they brought him to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.[b]
31 Period of Peace for the Church.[c]Meanwhile, the Church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria enjoyed peace, building up strength and living in the fear of the Lord. Encouraged by the Holy Spirit,[d] the Church grew in numbers.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Acts 9:29 Hellenists: see note on Acts 6:1.
- Acts 9:30 Tarsus, the capital of Cilicia (in Asia Minor), was Paul’s native place (Acts 22:3); it is there that Barnabas will go looking for him (Acts 11:25).
- Acts 9:31 Luke gives us a new panoramic picture in which the themes of fervor and growth are stressed. A precarious peace is established, providing the time to contemplate the Church living and animated by the Spirit and planted in the whole land of ancient Israel. In verse 31, Church refers, not to a single Church, as it usually does in Scripture, but to all the communities. Peter visits the various centers, especially those in the area of present-day Tel Aviv. His miracles are recounted in the manner of pages in the Gospels.
- Acts 9:31 Encouraged by the Holy Spirit: this Book stresses the work of the Holy Spirit (see Acts 13:2). Hence, it is sometimes called “The Acts of the Holy Spirit.”
