Acts — Main Characters by Chapter

Acts famously pivots partway through from a Peter-centered church to a Paul-centered mission. Each row below is a person; each bar is a chapter, colored by whoever the text's own narrative centers on in that chapter — Peter's early ministry in Jerusalem, Stephen's speech and martyrdom, Philip's mission to Samaria and the Ethiopian official, and then Paul's conversion and missionary journeys, which dominate the second half of the book. Acts 15's Jerusalem Council, where several voices speak and no single figure drives the chapter, is grouped under Jerusalem Council. Barnabas gets his own row too, overlapping the chapters he shares with Peter, Paul, and the Council — he's a major secondary worker throughout, not the chapter's primary storyteller, so his bars sit alongside those rows' colors rather than replacing them. Bars are clickable and link to that person's page; hover or focus a bar for a chapter summary.

Peter Stephen Philip Paul Barnabas Jerusalem Council

Ch. 9 splits between Saul's conversion (9:1-31, the larger and more significant portion) and Peter's healing of Aeneas and raising of Dorcas (9:32-43); the whole chapter is grouped under Paul. Saul is renamed Paul partway through the book (13:9); the row is labeled “Paul” throughout for consistency. Barnabas's own row spans Acts 9 (vouching for Saul in Jerusalem) and Acts 11-15 (the Antioch mission, the first missionary journey, and the Jerusalem Council, ending with his and Paul's split over John Mark) — chapter-granularity spans, so his bar doesn't imply he's foregrounded in every verse of that range (e.g. most of ch. 12 is Peter's escape from prison; Barnabas reappears only at 12:25).

View as a table

Chapter	Protagonist	Reference	Note
1	Peter	Acts 1	Jesus ascends to heaven after commissioning the apostles; awaiting the Spirit, Peter leads the choosing of Matthias to replace Judas.
2	Peter	Acts 2	The Holy Spirit falls on the gathered believers at Pentecost; Peter preaches, and about three thousand are added to the church.
3	Peter	Acts 3	Peter heals a man lame from birth at the temple gate and preaches to the crowd that gathers.
4	Peter	Acts 4	Peter and John are arrested and testify before the Sanhedrin; the believers share their possessions in common.
5	Peter	Acts 5	Ananias and Sapphira die after lying to the Holy Spirit; the apostles are arrested, freed by an angel, and defended by Gamaliel.
6	Stephen	Acts 6	The Twelve appoint seven men, including Stephen and Philip, to serve the Grecian widows; Stephen, “full of grace and power,” is opposed and arrested.
7	Stephen	Acts 7	Stephen's speech before the Sanhedrin retells Israel's history; he is stoned to death, the first Christian martyr.
8	Philip	Acts 8	Persecution scatters the believers; Philip preaches in Samaria, confronts Simon the sorcerer, and leads an Ethiopian official to Christ.
9	Paul	Acts 9	Saul is converted on the road to Damascus and begins preaching Christ (9:1-31); the chapter closes with Peter healing Aeneas and raising Dorcas (9:32-43).
9	Barnabas (also)	Acts 9	Barnabas vouches for the newly converted Saul before Jerusalem's suspicious believers, describing his encounter with the Lord and his bold preaching in Damascus.
10	Peter	Acts 10	Peter, guided by a vision, brings the gospel to Cornelius, a Gentile centurion, whose household receives the Holy Spirit.
11	Peter	Acts 11	Peter defends his visit to Cornelius before the Jerusalem church; the Antioch church is founded, and Barnabas brings Saul there to teach.
11–15	Barnabas (also)	Acts 11	Sent to the new church at Antioch, Barnabas fetches Saul from Tarsus to teach there, carries relief funds to Judea, and is set apart with Saul (now Paul) for their first missionary journey; after the Jerusalem Council, the two part ways over whether to bring John Mark again.
12	Peter	Acts 12	Herod kills James, the brother of John, and imprisons Peter, who is freed by an angel; Herod is struck down and dies.
13	Paul	Acts 13	Barnabas and Saul are sent out from Antioch; on Cyprus, Saul (now called Paul) blinds the sorcerer Elymas and preaches in Pisidian Antioch.
14	Paul	Acts 14	Paul and Barnabas preach in Iconium and Lystra, where Paul heals a lame man, is stoned and left for dead, then continues on.
15	Jerusalem Council	Acts 15	The Jerusalem Council debates whether Gentile believers must be circumcised; Peter, Paul, Barnabas, and James all speak, and a decision is sent out.
16	Paul	Acts 16	Paul recruits Timothy, is called in a vision to Macedonia, converts Lydia at Philippi, and is imprisoned with Silas before an earthquake frees them.
17	Paul	Acts 17	Paul preaches in Thessalonica and Berea, then reasons with the philosophers at the Areopagus in Athens.
18	Paul	Acts 18	Paul ministers in Corinth alongside Priscilla and Aquila and is brought before the proconsul Gallio.
19	Paul	Acts 19	In Ephesus, Paul baptizes disciples of John, works miracles, and a riot breaks out among the silversmiths over Artemis worship.
20	Paul	Acts 20	Paul raises Eutychus, who fell asleep and dropped from a window, at Troas, then gives a farewell address to the Ephesian elders at Miletus.
21	Paul	Acts 21	Paul is warned by the prophet Agabus, arrives in Jerusalem, and is seized in the temple by an angry crowd.
22	Paul	Acts 22	Paul addresses the crowd from the barracks steps, recounting his conversion, until he claims his Roman citizenship.
23	Paul	Acts 23	Paul divides the Sanhedrin over the resurrection; warned of a plot to kill him, he is sent under guard to Felix in Caesarea.
24	Paul	Acts 24	Paul is accused before governor Felix and gives his defense; Felix leaves him in custody for two years, hoping for a bribe.
25	Paul	Acts 25	The new governor Festus hears Paul's case; Paul appeals to Caesar and is presented before King Agrippa.
26	Paul	Acts 26	Paul gives his defense before Agrippa, again recounting his conversion; Agrippa says he is “almost persuaded” to become a Christian.
27	Paul	Acts 27	Paul sails for Rome as a prisoner; the ship is caught in a storm and wrecked off the island of Malta.
28	Paul	Acts 28	On Malta, Paul survives a viper's bite and heals the sick; he arrives in Rome and preaches the kingdom of God under house arrest.