This guide gives you ready-to-use Bible study questions for Acts 8, with a leader’s answer or discussion note for each one. It works for a small group, a Sunday class, or a quiet personal study. You can run through the questions in order, or pick the sets that fit the time you have.
Acts 8 at a Glance
Acts 8 opens with a sharp turn. Saul approves of the killing of Stephen and then tears through the young church in Jerusalem, so the believers scatter into Judea and Samaria. Instead of silencing the message, the scattering spreads it. Philip goes to a Samaritan city and sees people healed and freed, then Peter and John come down to pray that the new believers receive the Holy Spirit.
The chapter then follows Philip out onto a desert road, where he meets an Ethiopian official reading Isaiah and explains the passage about Jesus. The official asks for baptism on the spot. The chapter ends with Philip carried off by the Spirit and found farther north, still preaching in every town he passes.
Observation Questions
Use this set first, before anyone offers an interpretation. Ask the group to point to the text and name what it says, slowing down on the details. Keep the answers grounded in what the words actually report.
Acts 8:4
Therefore those who were scattered abroad went around preaching the word.
(WEB)
Read this early in the session to set the theme of the chapter. It explains why the persecution did not end the church’s witness, and it prepares the group to see how God uses scattering for good.
Acts 8:12
But when they believed Philip preaching good news concerning God’s Kingdom and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
(WEB)
This verse shows the content and result of Philip’s preaching. Reading it aloud helps the group focus on the good news about God’s kingdom and the name of Jesus Christ.
Acts 8:21-22
21 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart isn’t right before God. 22 Repent therefore of this, your wickedness, and ask God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.
(WEB)
Peter’s rebuke is direct, and reading it slowly gives the group a clear picture of repentance. It is a good passage for discussing how honest correction and prayer fit together.
Acts 8:30-31
30 Philip ran to him, and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 He said, “How can I, unless someone explains it to me?” He begged Philip to come up and sit with him.
(WEB)
This short exchange captures the heart of the chapter: a question about understanding and an invitation to be guided. Reading it aloud reminds the group that Scripture often needs a teacher.
Acts 8:35
Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture, preached to him about Jesus.
(WEB)
Philip begins with a single passage and preaches Jesus from it. Reading this verse helps the group see how the whole Bible points toward Christ, and how a study can move from text to gospel.
Memory Verse for Acts 8
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, thank you that you were at work in Samaria, on the desert road and in the waters of baptism, even when your people were scattered and afraid. We ask that you would give us eyes to see where you are leading us and courage to follow when you send us into unfamiliar places. Keep us from trying to buy or control your gifts, and make our hearts right before you. Help us to speak about Jesus with joy wherever we go, and let our lives show that the good news is still moving from town to town. Amen.
