Commemoration of the Apparition of the Sign of the Precious Cross over Jerusalem in 351 AD; Martyr Acacius the Centurion at Byzantium (303); Cyril, Archbishop of Jerusalem

Agrippa said to Paul, “You may speak for yourself.” Then Paul stretched out his hand, and made his defense.

¹²“Whereupon as I traveled to Damascus with the authority and commission from the chief priests, ¹³at noon, O king, I saw on the way a light from the sky, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who traveled with me. ¹⁴When we had all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’

¹⁵“I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ “He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. ¹⁶But arise, and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose: to appoint you a servant and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will reveal to you; ¹⁷delivering you from the people and from the Gentiles, to whom I send you, ¹⁸to open their eyes, that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive remission of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

¹⁹“Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, ²⁰but declared first to them of Damascus, at Jerusalem, and throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, doing works worthy of repentance.

When therefore the people saw the sign which Jesus did, they said, “This is truly the prophet who comes into the world.” ¹⁵Jesus therefore, perceiving that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

¹⁶When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea. ¹⁷They entered into the boat, and were going over the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not come to them. ¹⁸The sea was tossed by a great wind blowing. ¹⁹When therefore they had rowed about twenty-five or thirty stadia, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat; and they were afraid. ²⁰But he said to them, “It is I. Don’t be afraid.” ²¹They were willing therefore to receive him into the boat. Immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.

²²On the next day, the multitude that stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except the one in which his disciples had embarked, and that Jesus hadn’t entered with his disciples into the boat, but his disciples had gone away alone. ²³However, boats from Tiberias came near to the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks. ²⁴When the multitude therefore saw that Jesus wasn’t there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. ²⁵When they found him on the other side of the sea, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?”

²⁶Jesus answered them, “Most certainly I tell you, you seek me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. ²⁷Don’t work for the food which perishes, but for the food which remains to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For God the Father has sealed him.”