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Young Folks' Bible

<div class='chaptertitle'>JESUS LEAVES THE GRAVE.—APPEARS TO MARY.—STEPHEN STONED.—PAUL'S LIFE, AND DEATH.</div> On the first day of the week, as soon as it was light, three wo-men, friends of Je-sus, came to the tomb with the gums and spice they used to lay out their dead. [396] And they said as they went, Who shall roll the stone a-way from the door of the tomb? And lo, when they came near they found that the great stone had been rolled a-way. And when they went in the tomb, they saw an an-gel clothed in a long white robe, and they shook with fear. He said to them, Have no fear. Ye seek Je-sus, who was put to death on the cross. He is not here, though this is the place where they laid him. Go tell his friends that he has ris-en from the dead, and bid them go to Gal-i-lee where they shall see him. Two of the wo-men from the tomb, with fear and yet with joy, ran to tell the good news. But Ma-ry Mag-da-le-ne stood out-side the tomb and wept. And as she stooped down and looked in the tomb, she saw two an-gels in white, the one at the head, the oth-er at the foot of the place where Je-sus had lain. And they said to her, Why dost thou weep? She said, Be-cause they have ta-ken my Lord a-way, and I know not where they have laid him. And when she had thus said, she drew back and saw that Je-sus stood near, yet knew not that it was he. Je-sus said to her, Ma-ry! She turned and said to him, Mas-ter! Je-sus said, Touch me not, for I have not yet gone up to my Fa-ther; but go tell the breth-ren what thou hast seen and heard. [397] And Ma-ry told them that she had seen the Lord, and all that he had said to her. And Je-sus was seen two or three times on the earth af-ter his death, and he came and spoke to those who were to teach and preach as he had taught them. But Thom-as was not with the rest when the Lord came. And when they told him that they had seen the Lord, he said, I doubt it. But if I shall see in his hands the marks of the nails, and thrust my hand in the wound the spear made in his side, then shall I know that it is he. <div class="figleft"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_164.jpg" width-obs="347" height-obs="500" alt="Risen" /> HE IS RIS-EN.</div> In eight days these friends met in a room to talk and pray. Thom-as was with them and the door was shut. Then came Je-sus and stood in their[398] midst and said, Peace be un-to you. Then said he to Thom-as, Reach here and touch my hands, and put thy hand in my side, and doubt no more that I have ris-en from the dead. When Thom-as heard his voice and knew that it was Je-sus, he said, My Lord and my God. Je-sus said to him, Thom-as, be-cause thou hast seen me, thou hast faith in me; blest are they that have not seen me, and yet put their trust in me. At the end of five weeks he met with these friends at Je-ru-sa-lem. And when he had had a talk with them he led them out as far as Beth-a-ny. And he raised his hands and blest them, and as he stood thus he went up in a cloud out of their sight. When the day of Pen-te-cost, or har-vest feast, had come, Pe-ter, and the rest of those whom Je-sus had taught, were all in one place. And all at once there came the great rush of a strong wind that filled the room where they were. And tongues of fire came down on each one of them, and their hearts were filled with a strange pow-er, and they spoke all known tongues. And there were men there from all parts of the East, and when they heard these men of Gal-i-lee speak in their own tongues of the works of God, they were in a maze. And some said, These men are full of new wine. [399] <div class="figright"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_165.jpg" width-obs="472" height-obs="600" alt="Mary sees" /> CHRIST AP-PEAR-ING TO MA-RY.</div> [400] But Pe-ter stood up and said the men were not drunk, but that this strange gift of speech was one of the signs that God had told the Jews that he would send on the earth. And Pe-ter preached so well to the crowd that not a few left the ranks of sin and gave their hearts to Christ, and to good works. From that time those who had been in the school in which Je-sus taught while on earth went out to teach and preach the good news. They gave alms to the poor, healed the sick, and did all the good that they could. One of them, named Ste-phen, stood up to preach and to tell the Jews what God had done for them, and to try to make them give up their sins. He spoke in plain words, and said, The Jews of old put to death those who were sent to tell them that Je-sus was to come; and now you have slain the Just One him-self. When the Jews heard this they were full of rage, and gnashed their teeth at him like wild beasts. But he raised his eyes to the sky, and saw a great light there. And he said, I see Je-sus on the right hand of God. Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears so that they could not hear his words; and they brought him out of the town, and stoned him. [401] <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_166.jpg" width-obs="482" height-obs="600" alt="Ascension" /> THE AS-CEN-SION TO HEAV-EN.</div> [402] And Ste-phen knelt down, and asked God to for-give them for this sin. And then he died. The men who threw the stones at Ste-phen took off their cloaks, that they might have the free use of their arms, and laid them at the feet of a young man named Saul. <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_167.jpg" width-obs="500" height-obs="300" alt="Damascus" /> HOU-SES ON THE WALLS OF DA-MAS-CUS.</div> Now Saul had done much harm to the good cause, and was in a great rage with those who were friends of Je-sus and taught his truths. So he went to the high priest at Je-ru-sa-lem and asked to be sent to Da-mas-cus, that if he found friends of Je-sus there he might bind them with cords and bring them back[404] to Je-ru-sa-lem. And the high priest gave him notes to those who had charge of the church-es in Da-mas-cus, and he set out for that place. But when he came near the town there shone round him a great light, and he was in such fear that he fell to the ground. And a voice said to him, Saul, Saul, why dost thou hate me and hunt me down? <div class="figleft"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_168.jpg" width-obs="478" height-obs="592" alt="Holy Spirit" /> THE COM-ING OF THE HO-LY GHOST.</div> Saul said, Who art thou, Lord? The voice said, I am Je-sus, whom thou dost use so ill. Then Saul shook with fear and said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? The Lord said, Rise, and go in-to the town, and it shall be shown thee what thou must do. And the men who were with him stood dazed and dumb, for they heard the voice, but could see no man. When Saul rose from the earth he could not see, for the light had made him blind; and those who were with him led him by the hand in-to Da-mas-cus. And for three days he had no sight; and he could not eat nor drink. But God sent An-a-ni-as, a good man, to touch his eyes, and his sight and his strength came back. And his heart was changed, and there was no man who could preach as Paul did, by which name he was now known. For a while he went with Bar-na-bas. Then he took Si-las with him, and they made both friends and[405] foes. The Jews at Phil-ip-pi found fault with them, beat them and put them in jail, and bade the jail-er keep them safe. So he made their feet fast in the stocks—which were great blocks of wood with holes in them. At mid-night Paul and Si-las prayed, and those in the jail heard them. Then all at once there came a great earth-quake which shook the jail, and the doors flew o-pen, and the chains fell from those who were bound. The jail-er woke from his sleep, and when he saw that not a door was shut, he feared he would be put to death if those in the jail had fled. So he drew his sword to kill him-self. But Paul cried to him with a loud voice, Do thy-self no harm, for we are all here. <div class="figright"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_169.jpg" width-obs="262" height-obs="400" alt="Saul" /> THE CON-VER-SION OF ST. PAUL.</div> Then the jail-er brought a light, and came to the cell where Paul and Si-las were, and he knelt there,[406] and cried out, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Have faith in the Lord Je-sus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. That same hour of the night the jail-er took Paul and Si-las and washed their wounds, and brought them food, and his heart was full of joy, for he and all in his house were made Chris-tians, and God would for-give their past sins. The next morn the chief men at Phil-ip-pi sent word to the jail-er to let those men go, for the Jews found they had no right to beat Paul. And they feared the law, and begged him to leave the town. Paul went to A-thens, the chief town of Greece, which was full of false gods, to whom al-tars had been built. But there was one al-tar on which were the words, To the Un-known God. Those who built it felt that there was one God of whom they had not been taught, and this al-tar was for him. Paul taught in A-thens, both in-doors and out-doors. And when the wise men heard that he told of Je-sus, and that we were all to rise from the dead, they brought him to Mars' Hill, where the chief court was held. And they said to him, Tell us now what the good news is. For thou dost speak strange words, and we would like to know what they mean. <div class="figleft"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_170.jpg" width-obs="377" height-obs="500" alt="leaving tyre" /> ST. PAUL LEAV-ING TYRE.</div> Paul told them there was but one true God, and[407] they must serve him and give up their sins, and put their trust in Je-sus, and they would all be saved at the last day. Then Paul went to Co-rinth, where he spent some time. At the end of some years he came back to Je-ru-sa-lem. And the Lord's friends met him, and were glad to see his face once more. And he told them where he had been, and how God had helped him. And Paul went up to the church. And while he was there some Jews from A-si-a saw him and took hold of him, and cried out, Men of Is-ra-el, help us. This is the man who has taught that we were[408] not to do as Mo-ses told us, nor to come here to pay our vows. And he has brought with him Gen-tiles whom it is a crime to let come in-to our church. Soon all the town was in an up-roar, and Paul was brought in-to the church, and the gates that led to the courts were all shut. As they were a-bout to kill him, some one went and told the chief who had charge of a band of Ro-man troops, and dwelt near the great church to guard it. And he and some of his men ran down in the midst of the crowd, who, as soon as they saw them, ceased to beat Paul. The chief took Paul from them, and had him bound with chains, and asked who he was and what he had done. Some cried this, and some that, and no one could tell just what they said. And the chief led him off to his own house, to save Paul's life, and the mob brought up the rear, and cried out, A-way with him! Kill him! The next day the chief let Paul go, and sent him to Fe-lix, who ruled in Ju-de-a. And here he was shut up in jail, and was there for two years or more. He told them who he was, and why he had gone to Je-ru-sa-lem, and said he had done no wrong that he knew of; though some might say it was wrong for him to preach that the dead should rise from their graves at the last day. <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_171.jpg" width-obs="570" height-obs="500" alt="at Athens" /> ST. PAUL PREACH-ING AT A-THENS.</div> Fe-lix sent the Jews off, and bade the jail-er let Paul walk in and out as he chose, and see all the friends who might call. He was there for two years, and at the end of that time Fes-tus took Fe-lix's place. At last he was sent to Rome to be tried be-fore the Ce-sar. While on the sea a fierce wind sprang up, and beat the ship so that the men could not steer. And they were in great fear lest they should drown. But Paul told them not to fear, for though the ship might be a wreck there would be no loss of life. At the end of two weeks the ship struck the isle of Mal-ta, and the men swam to the shore on bits of boards. <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_172.jpg" width-obs="372" height-obs="500" alt="shipwreck" /> ST. PAUL'S SHIP-WRECK.</div> [410] [411] <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/i_173.jpg" width-obs="600" height-obs="395" alt="in Athens" /> MEET-ING PLACE IN A-THENS.</div> [412] Paul staid here for three months, and then went to Rome, where he dwelt for two years or more, and taught men to trust in the Lord and to do right. We are not told when or how he died. <hr class="chap" /> <h2>CHAPTER XX.</h2> <div style="break-after:column;"></div>

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