Open English Translation ACTs Chapter 1

1 [ref]Dear Theophilus, I wrote my first account about all the things that Yeshua began to do and to teach 2 until the day when he was taken up[ref] into the sky after, with the help of the holy spirit, having commanded the missionaries that he had chosen.

3 After the time of his suffering, Yeshua presented himself to them in ways that were infallible proofs that he was alive again—appearing to them and telling them about God’s kingdom. 4 [ref]Once when they were together, he told them, “Don’t leave Yerusalem, but wait there for what was promised by the father, as you all have already heard me say. 5 [ref]Yohan immersed people in water, but you all will be immersed in the holy spirit in just a few days.”

6 So when they were next gathered together, they asked him, “Master, is this now the time when you’ll be restoring the kingdom to Israel?”[fn]

7 But Yeshua responded to them, “You don’t need to know the times or seasons when future events will happen—it’s the father who decides all that. 8 [ref]However, you all will be receiving power when the holy spirit lands on you. Then you’ll tell people about me in Yerusalem and all across the provinces of Yudea and Samaria, and all the way to the furtherest parts of the planet.” 9 [ref]After he’d said that and while they were still looking at him, he was lifted up into the sky until they could no longer see him because of the clouds.

10 As they stood there staring into the sky after he’d gone, suddenly two men in white clothes were standing beside them 11 and said, “You men from Galilee! Why are you still standing there looking up at the sky? This Yeshua who has been taken up away from you into heaven will come back in the same way that you saw him go up into heaven.”

12 Then they walked down the Mount of Olives and returned to Yerusalem which was less than a kilometre away. 13 [ref]They went into the upstairs room where they were staying—Peter and Yohan, Yacob and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, Yacob (son of Alpheus), Simon (the Zealot member), and Yudas (son of Yacob). 14 They were united in their ongoing prayers, along with Maria the mother of Yeshua, and his brothers.

15 Then one day, Peter stood up in the meeting of the believers (about 120 of them) and said, 16 “Brothers, it was necessary for the scripture to be fulfilled, where the holy spirit had spoken previously through David about Yudas, the one who guided those that arrested Yeshua 17 because Yudas was one of us and took his part in our work.

18 [ref](Yudas had bought a field with the money he had received for his treachery, and when he had fallen down in that field, his stomach had burst open and his intestines had slid out on the ground. 19 So everyone in Yerusalem started calling that place ‘The field of blood’.)

20 [ref]Now it was written in the scroll of songs:

‘Let his place become deserted with no one living there,’

and

‘Let another person take his position.’

21 So now it’s appropriate for one of the men that has been with us for the whole time that the master Yeshua was interacting with us, 22 [ref]from Yeshua’s immersion by Yohan until the day that he was lifted up from us into the clouds—a witness of the resurrection—to fill this position.

23 So they selected two men: Yosef Barsabbas (nicknamed Justus) and Matthias. 24 Then they requested, “Master, you know everyone’s inner thoughts, so reveal to us which of these two that you have chosen 25 to take this position of service and being an missionary—the position that Yudas deserted to go to his own place.” 26 So they drew straws and Matthias was marked so he was chosen to join the eleven missionaries.