Jesus sent these 12 out with the following orders.“ Do not go among the Gentiles,” he said.“ Do not enter any town of the Samaritans.

耶稣差这十二个人去，吩咐他们说：“外邦人的路，你们不要走；撒玛利亚人的城，你们不要进；

耶稣差遣这十二个人出去，吩咐他们说：“外邦人的路，你们不要走；撒玛利亚人的城，你们不要进；

耶稣差遣这十二个人出去，吩咐他们说：“外邦人的路，你们不要走；撒玛利亚人的城，你们不要进；

耶稣差遣这十二个人出去，嘱咐他们：“外族人的地方不要去，撒玛利亚人的城镇也不要进，

耶稣差遣这十二个人出去，并且嘱咐他们：“外族人的路，你们不要走，撒玛利亚人的城，你们也不要进；

耶稣差派这十二使徒出去，吩咐他们说：“外邦人的路，你们不要走；撒马利亚人的城，你们不要进；

耶穌差這十二個人去，吩咐他們說：「外邦人的路，你們不要走；撒馬利亞人的城，你們不要進；

耶穌差遣這十二個人出去，吩咐他們說：「外邦人的路，你們不要走；撒瑪利亞人的城，你們不要進；

耶穌差遣這十二個人出去，吩咐他們說：「外邦人的路，你們不要走；撒瑪利亞人的城，你們不要進；

耶穌差遣這十二個人出去，囑咐他們：「外族人的地方不要去，撒瑪利亞人的城鎮也不要進，

耶穌差遣這十二個人出去，並且囑咐他們：“外族人的路，你們不要走，撒瑪利亞人的城，你們也不要進；

耶穌差遣這十二個人，囑咐他們說：『外國人的路、你們不要走；撒瑪利亞人的城、你們不要進；

耶穌差派這十二使徒出去，吩咐他們說：「外邦人的路，你們不要走；撒馬利亞人的城，你們不要進；

耶穌遣此十二人、命之曰、異邦之途勿由、撒瑪利亞之邑勿入、

耶穌遣十二人、命之曰、異邦之塗勿由、撒馬利亞邑勿入、

耶穌遣此十二者、命之曰、毋往異邦人之路、毋入撒瑪利亞之邑、

耶穌遣十二子而諭之曰：『勿往異邦、勿入色馬里城邑、

These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions:“ Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.

These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them,“ Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans,

Jesus sent out the twelve apostles with these instructions:“ Don’t go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans,

Jesus sent out these twelve after giving them instructions:“ Don’t take the road that leads to the Gentiles, and don’t enter any Samaritan town.

These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them, saying,“ Do not go on a road to Gentiles, and do not enter a city of Samaritans;

These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying:“ Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans.

These twelve Jesus sent forth, and charged them, saying, Go not into any way of the Gentiles, and enter not into any city of the Samaritans:

Jesus sent out these 12 after giving them instructions:“ Don’t take the road leading to other nations, and don’t enter any Samaritan town.

These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into[ any] city of the Samaritans enter ye not:

Jesus sent out these twelve, instructing them as follows:“ Do not go to Gentile regions and do not enter any Samaritan town.

Jesus sent these twelve out, and commanded them, saying,“ Don’t go among the Gentiles, and don’t enter into any city of the Samaritans.

The Samaritan woman said to him,“ You are a Jew. I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” She said this because Jews don’t have anything to do with Samaritans.

You Samaritans worship what you do not know. We worship what we do know. Salvation comes from the Jews.But a new time is coming. In fact, it is already here. True worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth. They are the kind of worshipers the Father is looking for.God is spirit. His worshipers must worship him in the Spirit and in truth.”

Then he sent them out to announce God’s kingdom and to heal those who were sick.

“ Then the Lord said to me,‘ Go. I will send you far away to people who are not Jews.’ ”The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they shouted,“ Kill him! He isn’t fit to live!”They shouted and threw off their coats. They threw dust into the air.

And Saul had agreed with the Sanhedrin that Stephen should die. On that day the church in Jerusalem began to be attacked and treated badly. All except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.

He came to a town in Samaria called Sychar. It was near the piece of land Jacob had given his son Joseph.

Again Jesus said,“ May peace be with you! The Father has sent me. So now I am sending you.”

Some Jewish believers had come with Peter. They were amazed because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles.They heard them speaking in languages they had not known before. They also heard them praising God. Then Peter said,“ Surely no one can keep these people from being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.”So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.The apostles and the believers all through Judea heard that Gentiles had also received God’s word.Peter went up to Jerusalem. There the Jewish believers found fault with him.They said,“ You went into the house of Gentiles. You ate with them.”Starting from the beginning, Peter told them the whole story.“ I was in the city of Joppa praying,” he said.“ There I had a vision. I saw something that looked like a large sheet. It was being let down from heaven by its four corners. It came down to where I was.I looked into it and saw four- footed animals of the earth. There were also wild animals, reptiles and birds.Then I heard a voice speaking to me.‘ Get up, Peter,’ the voice said.‘ Kill and eat.’“ I replied,‘ No, Lord! I will not! Nothing that is not pure and“ clean” has ever entered my mouth.’“ A second time the voice spoke from heaven. The voice said,‘ Do not say anything is not pure that God has made“ clean.” ’This happened three times. Then the sheet was pulled up into heaven.“ Just then three men stopped at the house where I was staying. They had been sent to me from Caesarea.The Holy Spirit told me not to let anything keep me from going with them. These six brothers here went with me. We entered the man’s house.He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house. The angel said,‘ Send to Joppa for Simon Peter.He has a message to bring to you. You and your whole family will be saved through it.’“ As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them. He came just as he had come on us at the beginning.Then I remembered the Lord’s words.‘ John baptized with water,’ he had said.‘ But you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’God gave them the same gift he gave those of us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ. So who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?”When they heard this, they didn’t object anymore. They praised God. They said,“ So then, God has allowed even Gentiles to turn away from their sins. He did this so that they could live.”

I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews. He teaches us that God is true. He shows us that God will keep the promises he made to the founders of our nation.Jesus became a servant of the Jews. He did this so that the Gentiles might give glory to God for his mercy. It is written,“ I will praise you among the Gentiles. I will sing the praises of your name.”( 2 Samuel 22:50; Psalm 18:49)

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you. Then you will tell people about me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria. And you will even tell other people about me from one end of the earth to the other.”

The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Kuthah, Avva, Hamath and Sepharvaim. He made all of them live in the towns of Samaria. They took the place of the people of Israel. They lived in all the towns of Samaria.When they first lived there, they didn’t worship the Lord. So he sent lions among them. And the lions killed some of the people.A report was given to the king of Assyria. He was told,“ You forced people to leave their own homes and live in the towns of Samaria. But they don’t know what the god of that country requires. So he has sent lions among them. And the lions are killing the people off. That’s because the people don’t know what that god requires.”Then the king of Assyria gave an order. He said,“ Get one of the priests you captured from Samaria. Send him back to live there. Have him teach the people what the god of that land requires.”So a priest went back to live in Bethel. He was one of the priests who had been forced to leave Samaria. He taught the people of Bethel how to worship the Lord.In spite of that, the people from each nation made statues of their own gods. They made them in all the towns where they had been forced to live. They set up those statues in small temples. The people of Samaria had built the temples at the high places.The people from Babylon made statues of the god named Sukkoth Benoth. Those from Kuthah made statues of the god named Nergal. Those from Hamath made statues of the god named Ashima.The Avvites made statues of the gods named Nibhaz and Tartak. The Sepharvites sacrificed their children in the fire to the gods named Adrammelek and Anammelek. They were the gods of Sepharvaim.So the people of Samaria worshiped the Lord. But they also appointed all kinds of their own people to be their priests. The priests served in the small temples at the high places.The people worshiped the Lord. But they also served their own gods. They followed the evil practices of the nations they had been taken from.The people of Samaria are still stubborn. They continue in their old practices to this day. And now they don’t even worship the Lord. They don’t follow his directions and rules. They don’t obey his laws and commands. The Lord had given all these laws to the family of Jacob. He gave the name Israel to Jacob.The Lord made a covenant with the Israelites. At that time he commanded them,“ Do not worship any other gods. Do not bow down to them. Do not serve them or sacrifice to them.The Lord is the one you must worship. The Lord brought you up out of Egypt by his great power. He saved you by reaching out his mighty arm. You must bow down only to him. You must offer sacrifices only to him.You must always be careful to follow his directions and rules. You must obey the laws and commands he wrote for you. Do not worship other gods.Do not forget the covenant I made with you. And remember, you must not worship other gods.Instead, worship the Lord your God. He will save you from the powerful hand of all your enemies.”But the people wouldn’t listen. Instead, they were stubborn. They continued in their old practices.They worshiped the Lord. But at the same time, they served the statues of their gods. And to this day their children and grandchildren continue to do what their people before them did.

The Jews said to one another,“ Where does this man plan to go? Does he think we can’t find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks? Will he go there to teach the Greeks?

But a Samaritan came to the place where the man was. When he saw the man, he felt sorry for him.

The Jews answered Jesus,“ Aren’t we right when we say you are a Samaritan? Aren’t you controlled by a demon?”

“ Land of Zebulun! Land of Naphtali! Galilee, where Gentiles live! Land along the Mediterranean Sea! Territory east of the Jordan River!

Our people have always worshiped on this mountain. But you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

He sent messengers on ahead. They went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him.But the people there did not welcome Jesus. That was because he was heading for Jerusalem.The disciples James and John saw this. They asked,“ Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to destroy them?”

After this the Lord appointed 72 others. He sent them out two by two ahead of him. They went to every town and place where he was about to go.

Many of the Samaritans from the town of Sychar believed in Jesus. They believed because of what the woman had said about him. She said,“ He told me everything I’ve ever done.”Then the Samaritans came to him and tried to get him to stay with them. So he stayed two days.

He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. The man was a Samaritan.

He sent his slaves to those who had been invited to the dinner. The slaves told them to come. But they refused.

They try to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles. These Jews don’t want the Gentiles to be saved. In this way, these Jews always increase their sins to the limit. God’s anger has come on them at last.

Philip went down to a city in Samaria. There he preached about the Messiah.The crowds listened to Philip and saw the signs he did. All of them paid close attention to what he said.Evil spirits screamed and came out of many people. Many people who were disabled or who couldn’t walk were healed.So there was great joy in that city.A man named Simon lived in the city. For quite a while he had practiced evil magic there. He amazed all the people of Samaria. He claimed to be someone great.And all the people listened to him, from the least important of them to the most important. They exclaimed,“ It is right to call this man the Great Power of God!”He had amazed them for a long time with his evil magic. So they followed him.But Philip announced the good news of God’s kingdom and the name of Jesus Christ. So men and women believed and were baptized.Simon himself believed and was baptized. He followed Philip everywhere. He was amazed by the great signs and miracles he saw.The apostles in Jerusalem heard that people in Samaria had accepted God’s word. So they sent Peter and John to Samaria.When they arrived there, they prayed for the new believers. They prayed that they would receive the Holy Spirit.The Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.Then Peter and John placed their hands on them. And they received the Holy Spirit.Simon watched as the apostles placed their hands on them. He saw that the Spirit was given to them. So he offered money to Peter and John.He said,“ Give me this power too. Then everyone I place my hands on will receive the Holy Spirit.”Peter answered,“ May your money be destroyed with you! Do you think you can buy God’s gift with money?You have no part or share in this holy work. Your heart is not right with God.Turn away from this evil sin of yours. Pray to the Lord. Perhaps he will forgive you for having such a thought in your heart.I see that you are very bitter. You are a prisoner of sin.”Then Simon answered,“ Pray to the Lord for me. Pray that nothing you have said will happen to me.”Peter and John continued to preach the word of the Lord and tell people about Jesus. Then they returned to Jerusalem. On the way they preached the good news in many villages in Samaria.