Acts 15:22-35

The Council's Letter to Gentile Believers

22 Then it seemed good to ¹the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judas called ²Barsabbas, and ³Silas, leading men among ⁴the brothers,

23 with the following letter: ⁵"The brothers, both ⁶the apostles and the elders, to the brothers^[a] who are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, ⁷greetings.

24 Since we have heard that ⁸some persons have gone out from us and ⁹troubled you^[b] with words, unsettling your minds, although we gave them no instructions,

25 it has seemed good to us, having come ¹⁰to one accord, to choose men and send them to you with our ¹¹beloved Barnabas and Paul,

26 ¹²men who have ¹³risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ.

27 We have therefore sent ¹⁴Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth.

28 For it has seemed good ¹⁵to the Holy Spirit and ¹⁶to us ¹⁷to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements:

29 ¹⁸that you abstain from ¹⁹what has been sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell."

30 So when they were sent off, they went down to Antioch, and having gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter.

31 And when they had read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement.

32 And Judas and Silas, who were themselves ²⁰prophets, encouraged and ²¹strengthened ²²the brothers with many words.

33 And after they had spent some time, they were sent off ²³in peace by ²⁴the brothers to those who had sent them.^[c]

35 But ²⁵Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.

Cross References

• 1. ver. 2
• 2. [Acts 1:23]
• 3. See 1 Peter 5:12
• 4. ver. 1
• 5. [See ver. 22 above]
• 6. [See ver. 22 above]
• 7. Acts 23:26; James 1:1; [2 John 10, 11]
• 8. ver. 1; [Galatians 2:4; Galatians 5:12; Titus 1:10]
• 9. Galatians 1:7; Galatians 5:10
• 10. See Acts 1:14
• 11. [2 Peter 3:15]
• 12. Acts 9:23-25; Acts 14:19
• 13. [Acts 20:24; Acts 21:13; 2 Corinthians 4:11; 1 John 3:16]
• 14. ver. 22, 32
• 15. [ver. 8; Acts 5:32; John 16:13; 1 Corinthians 7:40]
• 16. [ver. 19]
• 17. [ver. 10; Revelation 2:24]
• 18. See ver. 20
• 19. Acts 21:25; 1 Cor. 8:1, 4, 7, 10; 1 Corinthians 10:19; Revelation 2:14, 20
• 20. See Acts 13:1
• 21. See Acts 14:22
• 22. ver. 1
• 23. Genesis 26:29; Hebrews 11:31; [1 Corinthians 16:11]
• 24. [See ver. 32 above]
• 25. Acts 13:1

Footnotes

• [a]. Or brothers and sisters; also verses 32, 33, 36
• [b]. Some manuscripts some persons from us have troubled you
• [c]. Some manuscripts insert verse 34: But it seemed good to Silas to remain there