1 Dear Theophilus:
In my first book I wrote about all the things that Jesus did and taught from the time he began his work 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven. Before he was taken up, he gave instructions by the power of the Holy Spirit to the men he had chosen as his apostles. 3 For forty days after his death he appeared to them many times in ways that proved beyond doubt that he was alive. They saw him, and he talked with them about the Kingdom of God. 4 And when they came together, he gave them this order: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift I told you about, the gift my Father promised. 5 John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
Jesus Is Taken Up to Heaven
6 When the apostles met together with Jesus, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time give the Kingdom back to Israel?”
7 Jesus said to them, “The times and occasions are set by my Father's own authority, and it is not for you to know when they will be. 8 But when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will be filled with power, and you will be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 9 After saying this, he was taken up to heaven as they watched him, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
10 They still had their eyes fixed on the sky as he went away, when two men dressed in white suddenly stood beside them 11 and said, “Galileans, why are you standing there looking up at the sky? This Jesus, who was taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way that you saw him go to heaven.”
Judas' Successor
12 Then the apostles went back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, which is about half a mile away from the city. 13 They entered the city and went up to the room where they were staying: Peter, John, James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, Simon the Patriot, and Judas son of James. 14 They gathered frequently to pray as a group, together with the women and with Mary the mother of Jesus and with his brothers.
15 A few days later there was a meeting of the believers, about a hundred and twenty in all, and Peter stood up to speak. 16 “My friends,” he said, “the scripture had to come true in which the Holy Spirit, speaking through David, made a prediction about Judas, who was the guide for those who arrested Jesus. 17 Judas was a member of our group, for he had been chosen to have a part in our work.”
( 18 With the money that Judas got for his evil act he bought a field, where he fell to his death; he burst open and all his insides spilled out. 19 All the people living in Jerusalem heard about it, and so in their own language they call that field Akeldama, which means “Field of Blood.”)
20 “For it is written in the book of Psalms,
‘May his house become empty;
may no one live in it.’
It is also written,
‘May someone else take his place of service.’
21-22 “So then, someone must join us as a witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. He must be one of the men who were in our group during the whole time that the Lord Jesus traveled about with us, beginning from the time John preached his message of baptism until the day Jesus was taken up from us to heaven.”
23 So they proposed two men: Joseph, who was called Barsabbas (also known as Justus), and Matthias. 24 Then they prayed, “Lord, you know the thoughts of everyone, so show us which of these two you have chosen 25 to serve as an apostle in the place of Judas, who left to go to the place where he belongs.” 26 Then they drew lots to choose between the two men, and the one chosen was Matthias, who was added to the group of eleven apostles.
Teofilo unodika
1 Mu lukwalo gwangu gwe kutanga, Teofilo, ndakakwala ngekwe zwithu zose Jesu zwaakatangisa kuthama kakale kazwidiya, 2 kuswikila zhuba laakatolegwa pezhugwi kudzimu, asinopa batumwa baakabe ashalula ndayo nge Meya yakayengemala. 3 Shule kwe kudziyila kukwe wakazwilakidza ku balume ibabo ne butendeki bunjinji gwe kuti unotjila. Wakabazwilakidza mu tjibaka mazhuba ali makumi manna, ngono kalebeleka nabo ngekwe bushe gwe Ndzimu. 4 Ngono wakati anabo, kabadwa kati basibhude mu Jerusalema, koga balindile tjabakagadziwabgwe ndi Tate, sekwa akaleba eti, “Makahwa ndimi, 5 ngoti Johani wakabe edubika nge vula, koga mu mazhuba mashomanana anozha imwi mowodubikwa nge Meya yakayengemala.”
Jesu unotolegwa kudzimu
(Mako 16:19-20Luke 24:50-53)6 Ndizo batumwa bakati bakubungana, bakabhuzwa Jesu bakati, “She, apa mowobgwiliza bushe mu Iziraela mu tjibaka itjetji kene?”
7 Jesu kati ku bali, “Akute kuli kwenyu kuziba misi ne zwibaka zwakabigwa ndi Tate nge simba labo. 8 Koga moamutjila simba ha Meya yakayengemala izha mu muli, ngono mowobe batendeki bangu mu Jerusalema ne mu Judiya yose ne Samariya ne ku phelelo dze shango.” 9 Shule kwe kuleba ikoku, wakatolegwa pezhugwi kudzimu bakanlinga, ngono gole likan'dusa mu mesho abo.
10 Bakati batjakalingisisa pezhugwi ha iye eyenda, tjinyolotjo balume babili bakaambala butjena bakama pabali 11 bakabe beti, “Balume be Galili mumilileni ipapo makalinga pezhugwi? Jesu iwoyu, watogwa mu muli eyisiwa kudzimu, unowobuya nge zila iyo zwayo yamabona eyenda ku Ndzimu ndiyo.”
N'galithaka wa Judasi
(Matewu 27:3-10)12 Ipapo batumwa bakabgwilila ku Jerusalema bedwa ku Dombo le Mitoba, lipejo ne Jerusalema kungabe gwendo gwe Sabata 13 Bakaswika bakatathila pezhugwi ku ng'umba yabakabe begala. Kwakabe kuli Pita na Johani na Jakubo na Enduru na Filipo na Tomasi na Bhatolomeo na Matewu na Jakubo nkololo wa Alifeo na Simoni Nzeloti na Judasi nkololo wa Jakubo. 14 Bose ibaba bakazwimisila kutembezela bali moyo nng'ompela, kose ne bakadzi babakabe banabo na Mariya mme ba Jesu ne banung'una babe.
15 Mu mazhuba iyawo Pita kamilika kama pakati kwe bagalimoyo (bakabe bali mbunga unolizana zana lina bali makumi mabili 120) 16 kabe eti, “Zwikamu zwangu, matama e hwalo dze Ndzimu akalebgwa nge Meya yakayengemala nge nlomo wa Dafite ngekwa Judasi iye wakabe ali ntungamili wa ibabo bakasunga Jesu akafanila kushingikala. 17 Judasi wakabe ali mmwe wedu, ngobe wakabe ashalugwa kube ne gobe mu nshingo iwoyu.” 18 Ngono ngwenu Judasi wakatenga shango nge mari iyawa aakawana nge nshingo uwe wakabipa, iko kwaakawila nge nsholo mu kufa kukwe kaphutukana mabula awe wose kabhudila pazhe. 19 Bathu bose banogala mu Jerusalema bakahwa nge kwako, ndizo nge lulimi gwabo bakadana shango iyeyo Akelidama, kunodwa kuti, Shango ye Malopa.
20 “Ngobe kwakakwagwa mu lukwalo gwe Njimbo kuyi,
“ ‘Ng'umba iye ngaibe dongo;
kushete ne unogala muili.’
“Kwakakwagwa kakale kuyi,
“ ‘Mmwe ngaatole mamo awe mu nshingo.’
21 “Ndizo kusheteka kushalula mmwe we balume bakabe banaswi mu tjibaka tjose She Jesu betjila naswi, 22 kudwa mu tjibaka tjekudubika kwa Johani kuswikila zhuba Jesu laakatolegwa pezhugwi kudzimu edwa mutili, iwoyo wakafanila abe mmwe wedu ali ntendeki we kumuka kwa She Jesu.”
23 Ndizo bakashalula balume babili, Josefa iye wakabe edang'wa Bhasabhasi, kakale edang'wa Jusito, na Matiyasi. 24 Ipapo bakatembezela beti, “She, imwi moziba moyo we mmwe ne mmwe, ndizo mutilakidze kuti ndi upi wa ibaba babili wamashalula 25 kutola nshingo iwoyu we butumwa wakasiyiwa ndi Judasi eyenda kwaakafanila.” 26 Ipapo bakakandila kubona nshalugwa pakati kwe balume ibabo babili, ngono kukawila Matiyasi, ndizo kapapha bali gumi lina nng'ompela.