Acts 11:19-29

¹⁹Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that happened when Stephen was killed, traveled all the way to Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch. They only spread the good news among the Jews.

²⁰But when some of them who were from Cyprus and Cyrene arrived in Antioch, they shared the good news with the Greeks too, telling them about the Lord Jesus.

²¹The power of the Lord was with them and a large number trusted in the Lord and turned to him.

²²News about what had happened reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.

²³When he arrived and saw for himself how God's grace was working, he was delighted. He encouraged all of them to completely dedicate themselves to God and to stay true.

²⁴Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit, and put his whole trust in God. Many people were brought to the Lord.

²⁵Then Barnabas went on to Tarsus to look for Saul,

²⁶and when he found him, he took Saul back with him to Antioch. Over the course of the next year they worked together with the church, teaching the message to crowds of people. It was in Antioch that the believers were first called “Christians.”

²⁷It was during this time that some prophets went from Jerusalem to Antioch.

²⁸One of them called Agabus stood up and gave a prophetic warning by the Spirit that there would be a terrible famine that would affect the known world. (This came true in the reign of Emperor Claudius.)

²⁹The believers decided to send funds to help the brothers that lived in Judea, with everyone giving according to what they had.