⁸ But you will receive power when^[a] the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the farthest part of the earth.”

Saul Attempts to Destroy the Church

8 And Saul was agreeing with his murder. Now there happened on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. ² And devout men buried Stephen and made loud lamentation over him. ³ But Saul was attempting to destroy the church. Entering house after house,^[a] he dragged off both men and women and^[b] delivered them^[c] to prison.

Philip Proclaims Christ in Samaria

⁴ Now those who had been scattered went about proclaiming the good news of the word. ⁵ And Philip came down to the city of Samaria and^[d] began proclaiming^[e] the Christ^[f] to them. ⁶ And the crowds with one mind were paying attention to what was being said by Philip, as they heard him^[g] and saw the signs that he was performing. ⁷ For many of those who had unclean spirits, they were coming out of them,^[h] crying out with a loud voice, and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed. ⁸ And there was great joy in that city.

Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch

²⁶ Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, “Get up and go toward the south^[a] on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a desert road.) ²⁷ And he got up and^[b] went, and behold, there was a man, an Ethiopian eunuch (a court official of Candace,^[c] queen of the Ethiopians, who was over all her treasury) who had come to worship in Jerusalem ²⁸ and was returning and sitting in his chariot, and reading aloud the prophet Isaiah. ²⁹ And the Spirit said to Philip, “Approach and join this chariot.” ³⁰ So Philip ran up to it^[d] and^[e] heard him reading aloud Isaiah the prophet and said, “So then, do you understand what you are reading?” ³¹ And he said, “So how could I, unless someone will guide me?” And he invited Philip to come up and^[f] sit with him. ³² Now the passage of scripture that he was reading aloud was this:

³⁴ And the eunuch answered and^[j] said to Philip, “I ask you, about whom does the prophet say this—about himself or about someone else?” ³⁵ So Philip opened his mouth and beginning from this scripture, proclaimed the good news to him about Jesus. ³⁶ And as they were traveling down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?”^{[k] 38} And he ordered the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water—Philip and the eunuch—and he baptized him. ³⁹ And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him any longer, for he went on his way rejoicing. ⁴⁰ But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he^[l] passed through, he proclaimed the good news to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.