"Ye rulers of the people and elders, if you are asking us about the good
deed done to this man who was so helpless, how it was that he was made
well, I will tell you that by the name of Jesus of Nazareth whom you put
to death on the cross, whom God raised from the dead; even by him this
man stands here before you all strong and well. And there is no
salvation except through Jesus Christ, for there is no other name under
heaven given among men that can save us from our sins."

When these rulers saw how bold and strong were the words of Peter and
John, they wondered, especially as they knew that they were plain men,
not learned in books, and not used to speaking. They remembered that
they had seen these men among the followers of Jesus, and they felt that
in some way Jesus had given them his power. And as the man who had been
healed was standing beside them, they could say nothing to deny that a
wonderful work had been done.

The rulers sent Peter and John out of the council-room, while they
talked together. They said to each other:

"What shall we do to these men? We cannot deny that a wonderful work has
been done by them, for every one knows it. But we must stop this from
spreading any more among the people. Let us command them not to speak to
any man about the name of Jesus; and let us tell them, that if they do
speak, we will punish them."

So they called the two apostles into the room again, and said to them:
"We forbid you to speak about Jesus, and the power of his name, to any
man. If you do not stop talking about Jesus, we will lay hands on you,
and put you in prison, and will have you beaten."

But Peter and John answered the rulers: "Whether it is right to obey
you or to obey God, you can judge. As for ourselves we cannot keep
silent; we must speak of what we have seen and heard."

The rulers were afraid to do any harm to Peter and John, because they
knew that the people praised God for the good work that they had done;
and they would be angry to have harm come to them. For fear of the
people, they let them go. And being let go, they went to their own
friends, the company who met in the upper room, and there they gave
thanks to God for helping them to speak his word without fear.

THE STORY OF STEPHEN, THE FIRST MARTYR

In the New Testament, in the book of Acts, you will learn how the
members of the church in Jerusalem gave their money freely to help the
poor. This free giving led to trouble, as