Acts of Peter

Acts of Peter 10:1

When Marcellus had seen this, he ran outside and fell down before Peter, and said, “Peter, thou holy servant of the holy God, I embrace thy feet; I have committed many sins; resent not my sins, if thou hast some true faith in Christ, whom thou preachest; if thou rememberest the commandments, to hate none, to do no evil to anyone, as I have learned from thy fellow-apostle Paul; mention not my sins, but pray for me to the Lord, the holy Son of God, whom I angered in persecuting his servants. Pray, therefore, for me, like a good advocate of God, that I may not be given over with the sins of Simon to the everlasting fire. For by his persuasion it came about, that I erected to him a statue with the following inscription: (Dedicated) to Simon, the juvenile god. If I knew, Peter, that thou could be gained over with money, I would give (thee) all my property. Despising, I would give it to thee, to save my soul. If I had sons, I would esteem (them) for nothing, but only believe in the living God. I confess, however, that he only seduced me because he said that he is the power of God. Nevertheless I will tell thee, sweetest Peter: I was not worthy to hear thee, servant of God, and I was not firmly established in the belief in God which is in Christ: wherefore I flinched. I pray thee, therefore, be not angry at what I am about to say. Christ our Lord, whom thou preachest in truth, said to thy fellow-apostles in thy presence, ‘If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place and it shall remove.’ But this Simon called thee, Peter, an unbeliever, because thou didst doubt on the waters. And I heard that he also said this: Those who are with me, understood me not. If, therefore, ye, upon whom he laid his hands, whom he even has chosen, with whom he even performed miraculous deeds—if ye doubted, therefore I also am sorry, and relying upon his testimony, I flee to thy intercession. Receive me, who has fallen away from our Lord and his promise. But I believe that by repenting he will have mercy on me. For the Almighty is faithful to forgive my sins.” And Peter said with a loud voice, “Glory and praise be unto our Lord, Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. To thee be praise and honor for ever and ever. Amen. Since thou hast now also fully strengthened us and hast fully established us in thee before the eyes of all who see it, holy Lord, confirm Marcellus and give him and his house thy peace to-day. But all that are lost or erring, thou alone canst lead them rightly. We worship thee, O Lord, the Shepherd of the sheep once scattered, but now they will be brought together through thee. So receive Marcellus also as one of thy sheep, and suffer not that he walk about any longer in error or in ignorance; but receive him among the number of thy sheep. Yea, Lord, receive him, since he beseeches thee with sorrow and with tears.”