heart in a very wonderful manner;
so that instead of entering the town to persecute, he began to preach
the gospel as soon as he was able. This presently brought upon him the
same persecution which he had designed to exercise upon others, and
even endangered his life, so that the brethren found it necessary to
let him down the city wall in a basket by night, and so he escaped the
hands of his enemies. From thence he went to Jerusalem where he
preached the word, but being persecuted there, he went to Cesarea, and
from thence to Tarsus.

In the time of this trouble in the church, Philip went and preached at
Samaria with great success, nay so great was the work that an
impostor, who had deceived the people with legerdemain tricks for a
long time was so amazed, and even convinced, as to profess himself a
Christian, and was baptized; but was afterwards detected, and appeared
to be an hypocrite. Besides him a great number believed in reality,
and being baptized a church was formed there. Soon after this the Lord
commanded Philip to go the way which led from Jerusalem to Gaza, which
he did, and there found an eunuch of great authority in the court of
Ethiopia, to whom he preached Christ, who believed, and was baptized;
after which Philip preached at Ashdod, or Azotus.

About the same time Peter went to Lydda, or Diospolis, and cured Eneas
of a palsy, which was a mean of the conversion not only of the
inhabitants of that town, but also of the neighbouring country, called
Saron, the capital of which was Lasharon; and while he was there, a
circumstance turned up which tended much to the spread of the truth. A
woman of Joppa, a sea-port town in the neighbourhood, dying, they sent
to Lydda for Peter, who went over, and when he had prayed she was
raised to life again; which was an occasion of the conversion of many
in that town. Peter continued there preaching for some time, and
lodged at the house of a tanner.

Now another circumstance also tended to the further propogation of
Christianity, for a Roman military officer who had some acquaintance
with the Old Testament Scriptures, but was not circumcised, was one
day engaged in prayer in his house at Cesarea, when an angel appeared
to him, and bid him send for Peter from Joppa to preach in his house.
Before this the work of God had been wholly confined to the jews, and
jewish proselytes, and even the apostles appeared to have had very
contracted ideas of the Christian dispensation