Acts 5:1-32

¹Now a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a piece of property,

²and he kept back part of the sale money (his wife also knew it), and brought the other part of it and laid it at the apostles' feet.

³But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the price of the land?

⁴While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own, and after it was sold, was it not in your control? How is it that you thought of this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God.”

⁵Hearing these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last, and great fear came upon all who heard it.

⁶The young men came forward and wrapped him up, and they carried him out and buried him.

⁷After about three hours, his wife came in, not knowing what had happened.

⁸Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much.” She said, “Yes, for so much.”

⁹Then Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.”

¹⁰She immediately fell down at his feet and breathed her last. When the young men came in, they found her dead, and carried her out and buried her beside her husband.

¹¹Great fear came upon the whole church, and upon all who heard these things.

¹²Many signs and wonders were taking place among the people through the hands of the apostles. They were all together in Solomon's Porch.

¹³But no one else had the courage to join them; however, they were held in high esteem by the people.

¹⁴Still more believers were being added to the Lord, multitudes of men and women,

¹⁵so that they even carried the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, so that as Peter came by, his shadow might fall on some of them.

¹⁶There also came together a great number of people from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed.

¹⁷But the high priest rose up, and all those who were with him (which is the sect of the Sadducees); and they were filled with jealousy

¹⁸and laid hands on the apostles, and put them in the public jail.

¹⁹Yet during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and led them out, and said,

²⁰“Go, stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this life.”

²¹When they heard this, they entered into the temple about daybreak and taught. But the high priest came, and those who were with him, and called the council together, all the elders of the people of Israel, and sent to the jail to have the apostles brought.

²²But the officers that went did not find them in the prison, and they returned and reported,

²³“We found the jail securely shut and the guards standing at the door, but when we had opened it, we found no one inside.”

²⁴Now when the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were much perplexed concerning them as to what would come of it.

²⁵Then someone came and told them, “The men whom you put in the jail are standing in the temple and teaching the people.”

²⁶So the captain went with the officers, and brought them back, but without violence, for they feared that the people might stone them.

²⁷When they had brought them, they set them before the council. The high priest interrogated them,

²⁸saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, and yet, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and desire to bring this man's blood upon us.”

²⁹But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.

³⁰The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree.

³¹God exalted him to his right hand to be a prince and a savior, to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

³²We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”