17. Ananias left and went into the house where Saul was staying. Ananias placed his hands on him and said, “Saul, the Lord Jesus has sent me. He is the same one who appeared to you along the road. He wants you to be able to see and to be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
18. Suddenly something like fish scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see. He got up and was baptized.
19. Then he ate and felt much better.For several days Saul stayed with the Lord's followers in Damascus.
20. Soon he went to the Jewish meeting places and started telling people that Jesus is the Son of God.
21. Everyone who heard Saul was amazed and said, “Isn't this the man who caused so much trouble for those people in Jerusalem who worship in the name of Jesus? Didn't he come here to arrest them and take them to the chief priests?”
22. Saul preached with such power that he completely confused the Jewish people in Damascus, as he tried to show them that Jesus is the Messiah.
23. Later some of them made plans to kill Saul,
24. but he found out about it. He learnt that they were guarding the gates of the city day and night in order to kill him.
25. Then one night his followers let him down over the city wall in a large basket.
26. When Saul arrived in Jerusalem, he tried to join the followers. But they were all afraid of him, because they did not believe he was a true follower.
27. Then Barnabas helped him by taking him to the apostles. He explained how Saul had seen the Lord and how the Lord had spoken to him. Barnabas also said that when Saul was in Damascus, he had spoken bravely in the name of Jesus.
28. Saul moved about freely with the followers in Jerusalem and told everyone about the Lord.
29. He was always arguing with the Jews who spoke Greek, and so they tried to kill him.
30. But the followers found out about this and took Saul to Caesarea. From there they sent him to the city of Tarsus.
31. The church in Judea, Galilee, and Samaria now had a time of peace and kept on worshipping the Lord. The church became stronger, as the Holy Spirit encouraged it and helped it grow.
32. While Peter was travelling from place to place, he visited the Lord's followers who lived in the town of Lydda.
33. There he met a man named Aeneas, who for eight years had been sick in bed and could not move.
34. Peter said to Aeneas, “Jesus Christ has healed you! Get up and make up your bed.” Straight away he stood up.
35. Many people in the towns of Lydda and Sharon saw Aeneas and became followers of the Lord.