King James Version · Under Rome
Acts 8
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And was consenting unto his . And at that time there was a great persecution against which was at ; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of and , except . And devout men carried to his burial, and made great over him. As for , he made havock of , entering into every house, and haling men and women committed them to prison. Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word. Then went down to the city of , and preached Christ unto them. And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. For , crying with loud voice, came out of many that were with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed. And there was great joy in that city. But there was a certain man, called , which beforetime in the same city used , and bewitched the people of , giving out that himself was some great one: To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great of . And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries. But when they preaching the things concerning of , and the name of , they were , both men and women. Then himself also: and when he was , he continued with , and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done. Now when which were at heard that had received the word of , they sent unto them and : Who, when they were come down, for them, that they might receive the Ghost: (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were in the name of .) Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Ghost. And when saw that through laying on of ’ hands the Ghost was given, he offered them money, Saying, Give me also this , that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Ghost. But said unto him, Thy money with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy is not right in the sight of . therefore of this thy wickedness, and , if perhaps the thought of thine may be forgiven thee. For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of . Then answered , and said, ye to for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me. And they, when they had testified and preached the word of , returned to , and preached in many villages of the . And spake unto , saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto that goeth down from unto , which is . And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of , an of great under Candace queen of the , who had the charge of all her , and had come to for to , Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read the . Then said unto , Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. And ran thither to him, and heard him read the , and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he that he would come up and sit with him. The place of the which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his : In his humiliation his was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. And answered , and said, I thee, of whom speaketh the this? of himself, or of some other man? Then opened his , and began at the same , and preached unto him . And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be ? 37And said, If thou believest with all thine , thou mayest. And he answered and said, I that is the Son of . And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both and ; and he him. And when they were come up out of the water, of caught away , that saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing. But was found at : and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Cesarea.
The 1611 translation, public domain. Its original printing included the Apocrypha, which is why the deuterocanonical books can be read here. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · Under Rome, 63 BC to AD 100 ›
Judea as a client kingdom and then a province. Roads, garrisons, taxes, crucifixion, and a common Greek language that let a message travel the empire faster than any before it.
- Rome
- The republic tears itself apart in civil war and comes out as an empire under Augustus. What follows is two centuries of relative peace across the whole Mediterranean, enforced by legions and paid for by taxes, with safe roads and safe sea lanes. Every one of Paul's journeys depends on that.
- Judea
- Governed first through Herod the Great, a client king of enormous ability and enormous brutality who rebuilds the temple into one of the wonders of the ancient world, then directly by Roman prefects. Crucifixion is the standard penalty for sedition and is used often and publicly.
- The wider world
- Greek is spoken from Spain to Syria, which means a letter written in Corinth can be read in Rome without translation. Jewish communities already exist in most major cities, which is where the first Christian preaching lands. Mystery religions, imperial cult, and philosophy all compete in the same marketplace.
- Further afield
- The Han dynasty rules China and trades silk westward along routes that touch the Roman world at second hand. In Britain the Roman conquest begins within a decade of the crucifixion.