Acts 15:4-30

⁴And when they came to Jerusalem, they had a meeting with the church and the Apostles and the rulers, and they gave an account of all the things which God had done through them.

⁵But some of the Pharisees, who were of the faith, got up and said, It is necessary for these to have circumcision and to keep the law of Moses.

⁶And the Apostles and the rulers of the church came together and gave thought to the question.

⁷And when there had been much discussion, Peter got up and said to them, My brothers, you have knowledge that some time back it was God's pleasure that by my mouth the good news might be given to the Gentiles so that they might have faith.

⁸And God, the searcher of hearts, was a witness to them, giving them the Holy Spirit even as he did to us;

⁹Making no division between them and us, but making clean their hearts by faith.

¹⁰Why then are you testing God, by putting on the neck of the disciples a yoke so hard that not even our fathers or we were strong enough for it?

¹¹But we have faith that we will get salvation through the grace of the Lord Jesus in the same way as they.

¹²And all the people were quiet while Barnabas and Paul gave an account of the signs and wonders which God had done among the Gentiles by them.

¹³And when they had come to an end, James, answering, said, My brothers, give ear to me:

¹⁴Symeon has given an account of how God was first pleased to take from among the Gentiles a people for himself.

¹⁵And this is in agreement with the words of the prophets, as it is said,

¹⁶After these things I will come back, and will put up the tent of David which has been broken down, building up again its broken parts and making it complete:

¹⁷So that the rest of men may make search for the Lord, and all the Gentiles on whom my name is named,

¹⁸Says the Lord, who has made these things clear from the earliest times.

¹⁹For this reason my decision is, that we do not put trouble in the way of those who from among the Gentiles are turned to God;

²⁰But that we give them orders to keep themselves from things offered to false gods, and from the evil desires of the body, and from the flesh of animals put to death in ways against the law, and from blood.

²¹For Moses, from times long past, has his preachers in every town, reading his law in the Synagogues every Sabbath.

²²Then it seemed good to the Apostles and the rulers and all the church, to send men from among them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; Judas, named Barsabbas, and Silas, chief men among the brothers:

²³And they sent a letter by them, saying, The Apostles and the older brothers, to the brothers who are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, may joy be with you:

²⁴Because we have knowledge that some who went from us have been troubling you with their words, putting your souls in doubt; to whom we gave no such order;

²⁵It seemed good to us, having come to an agreement together, to send these men to you, with our well loved Barnabas and Paul,

²⁶Men who have given up their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

²⁷And so we have sent Judas and Silas, who will say the same things to you themselves, by word of mouth.

²⁸For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us, to put on you nothing more than these necessary things;

²⁹To keep from things offered to false gods, and from blood, and from things put to death in ways which are against the law, and from the evil desires of the body; if you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. May you be happy.

³⁰So they, being sent away, came down to Antioch, and having got the people together, they gave them the letter.