Wɔtaa Akyidifo No Ma Wɔbɔ Ahwete
1Saulo penee kum a wokum Stefano no so. Saa da no ara, wɔtaa agyidifo a wɔwɔ Yerusalem no maa wɔn nyinaa bɔɔ ahwete kɔɔ Yudea ne Samaria nsase so ma ɛkaa asomafo no nko ara. 2Onyamesurofo bi kɔfaa Stefano kosiee no. Wosuu no yiye. 3Esiane sɛ na Saulo pɛ sɛ ogu asafo no nti ɔkɔɔ afi mu kɔkyekyeree agyidifo mmarima ne mmea de wɔn guu afiase.
Filipo Ka Asɛmpa No Wɔ Samaria
4Agyidifo a na wɔabɔ ahwete no kaa asɛmpa no wɔ baabiara a wɔkɔe. 5Filipo kɔɔ Samaria kurow bi mu kɔkaa Agyenkwa no ho asɛm kyerɛɛ nnipa a na wɔwɔ hɔ no. 6Bere a nnipakuw no tee asɛm a Filipo reka na wohuu anwonwade a ɔyɛe no, wɔn nyinaa tiee no. 7Ahonhommɔne de nteɛteɛmu fii nnipa bebree mu. Saa ara na mmubuafo ne mpakye nso sɔre nantewee. 8Eyi nti anigye baa Samaria.
Simon Nkonyaayifo No
9Na ɔbarima bi te saa kurow yi mu a wɔfrɛ no Simon a ɔyɛ nkonyaayifo a esiane ne nkonyaayi no nti Samariafo pii gye no di. Na ɔyɛ obi a ɔhoahoa ne ho sɛ odi mu. 10Eyi maa nnipa a wɔwɔ kurow no mu no nyinaa gyee no too mu kae se, “Saa onipa yi ne Onyankopɔn tumi a wɔfrɛ no Ɔkɛse no.” 11Esiane ne nkonyaa a na oyi no nti, ɛmaa nnipa no nyinaa tu dii nʼakyi. 12Bere a saa nnipa yi gyee asɛmpa a Filipo ka faa Onyankopɔn ahenni ne Yesu Kristo din no ho dii no, wɔbɔɔ mmarima ne mmea nyinaa asu. 13Simon nso gye dii ma wɔbɔɔ no asu. Baabiara a Filipo kɔe no, Simon dii nʼakyi. Anwonwade a ohuu no maa ne ho dwiriw no.
14Bere a asomafo a wɔwɔ Yerusalem no tee sɛ Samariafo agye Onyankopɔn asɛm no adi no, wɔsomaa Petro ne Yohane kɔɔ wɔn nkyɛn. 15Woduu hɔ no, wɔbɔɔ mpae maa agyidifo no sɛnea ɛbɛyɛ a Honhom Kronkron bɛba wɔn so, 16efisɛ saa bere no na asu kɛkɛ na wɔnam Awurade Yesu din so abɔ. Na Honhom Kronkron nnya mmaa wɔn so ɛ. 17Afei Petro ne Yohane de wɔn nsa guguu wɔn so maa Honhom Kronkron baa wɔn so.
18Simon huu sɛ asomafo no nsa a wɔde guguu wɔn so no na ɛma wonyaa Honhom Kronkron no, ɔmaa Petro ne Yohane sika srɛɛ sɛ, 19“Momma me saa tumi yi bi na obiara a mede me nsa begu no so no anya Honhom Kronkron no bi.”
20Petro ka kyerɛɛ no se, “Nnome nka wo ne wo sika nyinaa, efisɛ wususuw sɛ wubetumi de sika atɔ Onyankopɔn akyɛde no. 21Wunni kyɛfa biara wɔ yɛn dwumadi yi mu, efisɛ wo koma mu ntew wɔ Onyankopɔn anim. 22Sakra wʼadwene fi wo bɔne yi ho na bɔ mpae srɛ Onyankopɔn sɛ ɔmfa wo bɔne nkyɛ wo. 23Mihu sɛ anibere bɔne ahyɛ wo koma mu ama bɔne afa wo nnommum.”
24Simon srɛɛ Petro ne Yohane se, “Mommɔ mpae mma me na saa nnome yi mu biara amma me so.”
25Ansa na Petro ne Yohane redu Yerusalem no, wɔkaa asɛmpa no wɔ Samaria nkuraa bebree ase.
Filipo Ne Etiopiani No
26Awurade bɔfo ka kyerɛɛ Filipo se, “Sɔre siesie wo ho kɔ anafo kwan a efi Yerusalem kɔ Gasa no so.” 27Bere a Filipo rekɔ no, ohyiaa Etiopiani piamni bi a ɔyɛ Etiopiahemmea Kandake dabeni8.27 Dabeni: Obi a ɔhwɛ ɔhene anaa ɔhemmea nnabea ne nʼahode so.. Na saa onipa yi akɔ asɔre wɔ Yerusalem, 28a na ɔte ne teaseɛnam mu resan akɔ fie. Na ɔrekenkan Odiyifo Yesaia nhoma no. 29Honhom Kronkron ka kyerɛɛ Filipo se, “Twiw bɛn no.”
30Filipo yɛɛ ntɛm kɔɔ teaseɛnam no ho na ɔtee sɛ ɔrekenkan Odiyifo Yesaia nhoma no, obisaa se, “Wote nea worekenkan yi ase ana?”
31Piamni no buaa no se, “Mɛyɛ dɛn na mate ase? Gye sɛ obi kyerɛ me ase.” Afei ɔka kyerɛɛ Filipo se ɔmforo mmɛtena ne nkyɛn wɔ ne teaseɛnam no mu.
32Na piamni no rekenkan saa Kyerɛwsɛm yi:
“Ɔte sɛ oguamma a wɔrekokum no.
Sɛnea oguamma yɛ komm wɔ ne nwitwitwafo anim no,
saa ara na wammue nʼano.
33Nʼanimguase mu, wannya odimafo.
Na hena na ɔbɛka nʼasefo ho asɛm?
Efisɛ woyii no fii asase yi so.”
34Piamni no bisaa Filipo se, “Odiyifo no reka nʼankasa ho asɛm anaa obi foforo ho asɛm?” 35Filipo nam saa asɛm no so kaa nsɛmpa a ɛfa Yesu ho no kyerɛɛ no.
36Wɔrekɔ no woduu asu bi ho. Piamni no ka kyerɛɛ Filipo se, “Nsu ni. Dɛn na esiw wo kwan sɛ wobɔ me asu?” 37Filipo ka kyerɛ no se, “Sɛ wufi wo koma mu gye di a, mɛbɔ wo asu.” Piamni no buaa no se, “Migye di. Migye di sɛ Yesu Kristo yɛ Onyankopɔn Ba.” 38Piamni no hyɛ maa teaseɛnam no gyinae. Ɔne Filipo kɔɔ asu no ho ma ɔbɔɔ no asu. 39Wofi nsu no mu no, Onyankopɔn Honhom hwim Filipo fii piamni no nkyɛn kɔe. Wanhu Filipo bio de, nanso ɔde anigye toaa nʼakwantu no so. 40Filipo kopuee Asoto kɔɔ so kaa asɛmpa no wɔ nkurow no mu kosii sɛ okoduu Kaesarea.
1And Saul approved of their killing him.
The church persecuted and scattered
On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. 2Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. 3But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.
Philip in Samaria
4Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. 5Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. 6When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. 7For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralysed or lame were healed. 8So there was great joy in that city.
Simon the sorcerer
9Now for some time a man named Simon had practised sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great, 10and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, ‘This man is rightly called the Great Power of God.’ 11They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery. 12But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptised, both men and women. 13Simon himself believed and was baptised. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.
14When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. 15When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18When Simon saw that the Spirit was given at the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money 19and said, ‘Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.’
20Peter answered: ‘May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money! 21You have no part or share in this ministry, because your heart is not right before God. 22Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. 23For I see that you are full of bitterness and captive to sin.’
24Then Simon answered, ‘Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.’
25After they had further proclaimed the word of the Lord and testified about Jesus, Peter and John returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many Samaritan villages.
Philip and the Ethiopian
26Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, ‘Go south to the road – the desert road – that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’ 27So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian8:27 That is, from the southern Nile region eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake, queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. 29The Spirit told Philip, ‘Go to that chariot and stay near it.’
30Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ Philip asked.
31‘How can I,’ he said, ‘unless someone explains it to me?’ So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
32This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading:
‘He was led like a sheep to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
33In his humiliation he was deprived of justice.
Who can speak of his descendants?
For his life was taken from the earth.’8:33 Isaiah 53:7,8 (see Septuagint)
34The eunuch asked Philip, ‘Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?’ 35Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.
36As they travelled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, ‘Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptised?’ 378:37 Some manuscripts include here Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ The eunuch answered, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ 38And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptised him. 39When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. 40Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and travelled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.
