Book 2 — Chapter 1 — The Course of the Emissaries after the Ascension
After Yahushua's ascension, Matthias is chosen to replace Yehudah Iscariot among the Twelve. Holy Ruach descends at Shavuot, and the emissaries proclaim publicly in Yerushalayim. Kepha's preaching gathers thousands, while the assembly develops common provision for the poor. Seven servants are appointed to oversee distribution, among them Stephanos and Philippos. Stephanos becomes the first of the group to die under judicial violence after disputation and accusation. The persecution following his death scatters believers beyond Yerushalayim, turning repression into geographic expansion. Philippos proclaims in Shomron and encounters Simon the magician, whose attraction to the power displayed by the emissaries is exposed as corrupt when he tries to obtain it by payment. Eusebius also notes the Ethiopian court official baptized by Philippos, seeing in the episode an early fulfillment of the proclamation reaching nations beyond Yehudah.