Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples became hungry and began to pick the heads of grain and eat.

²Now when the Pharisees saw this, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on a Sabbath!”

³But He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he became hungry, he and his companions—

⁴how he entered the house of God, and they ate theconsecrated bread, which was not lawful for him to eat nor for those with him, but for the priests alone?

⁵Or have you not read in the Law that on the Sabbath the priests in the templeviolate the Sabbath, and yet are innocent?

⁶But I say to you that something greater than the temple is here.

⁷But if you had known what thismeans: ‘I DESIRECOMPASSION,RATHER THAN SACRIFICE,’ you would not have condemnedthe innocent.

⁸For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

⁹Departing from there, He went into their synagogue.

¹⁰And a man was there whose hand was withered. And they questioned Jesus, asking, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—so that they might bring charges against Him.

¹¹But He said to them, “What manis there among you whohas a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will he not take hold of it and lift it out?

¹²How much more valuable then is a person than a sheep! So then, it is lawful to dogood on the Sabbath.”

¹³Then He *said to the man, “Stretch out your hand!” He stretched it out, and it was restored to normal, like the other.

¹⁴But the Pharisees went out and conspired against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.

¹⁵But Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. Many followed Him, and He healed them all,

¹⁶and warned them not to tell who He was.

¹⁷This happened so that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet would be fulfilled:

¹⁸“BEHOLD, MY SERVANT WHOM I HAVE CHOSEN; MY BELOVED IN WHOM MY SOUL DELIGHTS; I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT UPON HIM, AND HE WILL PROCLAIM JUSTICE TO THE GENTILES.

¹⁹HE WILL NOT QUARREL, NOR CRY OUT; NOR WILL ANYONE HEAR HIS VOICE IN THE STREETS.

²⁰A BENT REED HE WILL NOT BREAK off, AND A DIMLY BURNING WICK HE WILL NOT EXTINGUISH, UNTIL HE LEADS JUSTICE TO VICTORY.

²¹AND IN HIS NAME THE GENTILES WILL HOPE.”

²²Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and unable to speak was brought to Jesus, and He healed him so that the man who was unable to speak talked and could see.

²³And all the crowds were amazed and were saying, “This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?”

²⁴But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”

²⁵And knowing their thoughts, Jesus said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and no city or house divided against itself will stand.

²⁶And if Satan is casting out Satan, hehas become divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand?

²⁷And if byBeelzebul I cast out the demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore, they will be your judges.

²⁸But if I cast out the demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

²⁹Or, how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first ties up the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.

³⁰The one who is not with Me is against Me; and the one who does not gather with Me scatters.

³¹“Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.

³²And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.

³³“Either assume the tree to be good as well as its fruit good, or assume the tree to be bad as well as its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit.

³⁴Youoffspring of vipers, how can you, being evil, express any good things? For the mouth speaks from that which fills the heart.

³⁵The good person brings out of his good treasure good things; and the evil person brings out of his evil treasure evil things.

³⁶But I tell you that for everycareless word that peoplespeak, they will give an account of it on the day of judgment.

³⁷Forby your words you will be justified, andby your words you will be condemned.”

³⁸Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”

³⁹But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation craves asign; and so nosign will be given to it except thesign of Jonah the prophet;

⁴⁰for just as JONAH WAS IN THE STOMACH OF THE SEA MONSTER FOR THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.

⁴¹The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.

⁴²The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.

⁴³“Now when the unclean spirit comes out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and does not find it.

⁴⁴Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came’; and when it comes, it finds it unoccupied, swept, and put in order.

⁴⁵Then it goes and brings along with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they come in and live there; and the last condition of that person becomes worse than the first. That is the way it will also be with this evil generation.”

⁴⁶While He was still speaking to the crowds, behold, His mother and brothers were standing outside, seeking to speak to Him.

⁴⁷[Someone said to Him, “Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak to You.”]

⁴⁸But Jesus replied to the one who was telling Him and said, “Who is My mother, and who are My brothers?”

⁴⁹And extending His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Behold: My mother and My brothers!

⁵⁰For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother, and sister, and mother.”

¹The LORD spoke again to Moses and to Aaron, saying to them,

²“Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘These are the creatures which you may eat from all the animals that are on the earth.

³Whatever has a divided hoof, showing split hoofs, and chews the cud, among the animals, that you may eat.

⁴Nevertheless, you are not to eat of these, among those which chew the cud, or among those which have a divided hoof: the camel, for though it chews cud, it does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean to you.

⁵Likewise, the rock hyrax, for though it chews cud, it does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean to you.

⁶The rabbit also, for though it chews cud, it does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean to you.

⁷And the pig, for though it has a divided hoof, and so it shows a split hoof, it does not chew cud; it is unclean to you.

⁸You shall not eat any of their flesh nor touch their carcasses; they are unclean to you.

⁹‘These you may eat, of whatever is in the water: everything that has fins and scales, in the water, in the seas, or in the rivers, you may eat.

¹⁰But whatever is in the seas and in the rivers that does not have fins and scales among all the teeming life of the water, and among all the living creatures that are in the water, they are detestable things to you,

¹¹and they shall be detestable to you; you may not eat any of their flesh, and you shall detest their carcasses.

¹²Whatever in the water does not have fins and scales is detestable to you.

¹³‘Moreover, these you shall detest among the birds; they are detestable, not to be eaten: the eagle, the vulture, and the buzzard,

¹⁴the red kite, the falcon in its kind,

¹⁵every raven in its kind,

¹⁶the ostrich, the owl, the seagull, and the hawk in its kind,

¹⁷the little owl, the cormorant, and the great owl,

¹⁸the white owl, the pelican, and the carrion vulture,

¹⁹the stork, the heron in its kinds, the hoopoe, and the bat.

²⁰‘All the winged insects that walk on all fours are detestable to you.

²¹Yet these you may eat among all the winged insects that walk on all fours: those which have jointed legs above their feet with which to jump on the earth.

²²These of them you may eat: the locust in its kinds, the devastating locust in its kinds, the cricket in its kinds, and the grasshopper in its kinds.

²³But all other winged insects which are four-footed are detestable to you.

²⁴‘By these, moreover, you will be made unclean; whoever touches their carcasses becomes unclean until evening,

²⁵and whoever picks up any of their carcasses shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening.

²⁶As for all the animals which have a divided hoof but do not show a split hoof, or do not chew the cud, they are unclean to you; whoever touches them becomes unclean.

²⁷Also whatever walks on its paws, among all the creatures that walk on all fours, are unclean to you; whoever touches their carcasses becomes unclean until evening,

²⁸and the one who picks up their carcasses shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening; they are unclean to you.

²⁹‘Now these are to you the unclean among the swarming things which swarm on the earth: the mole, the mouse, and the great lizard in its kinds,

³⁰the gecko, the crocodile, the lizard, the sand reptile, and the chameleon.

³¹These are to you the unclean among all the swarming things; whoever touches them when they are dead becomes unclean until evening.

³²Also anything on which one of them may fall when they are dead becomes unclean, including any wooden article, or clothing, or a hide, or a sack—any article of which use is made—it shall be put in the water and be unclean until evening, then it becomes clean.

³³As for any earthenware vessel into which one of them may fall, whatever is in it becomes unclean and you shall break the vessel.

³⁴Any of the food which may be eaten, on which water comes, shall become unclean, and any liquid which may be drunk in every vessel shall become unclean.

³⁵Moreover, everything on which part of their carcass may fall becomes unclean; an oven or a stove shall be smashed; they are unclean and shall continue as unclean to you.

³⁶Nevertheless, a spring or a cistern collecting water shall be clean, though the one who touches their carcass shall be unclean.

³⁷Now if a part of their carcass falls on any seed for sowing which is to be sown, it is clean.

³⁸But if water is put on the seed and a part of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you.

³⁹‘Also if one of the animals dies which you have for food, the one who touches its carcass becomes unclean until evening.

⁴⁰He, too, who eats some of its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening, and the one who picks up its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening.

⁴¹‘Now every swarming thing that swarms on the earth is detestable, not to be eaten.

⁴²Whatever crawls on its belly, and whatever walks on all fours, whatever has many feet, in regard to every swarming thing that swarms on the earth, you shall not eat them, because they are detestable.

⁴³Do not make yourselves detestable through any of the swarming things that swarm; and you shall not make yourselves unclean with them so that you become unclean.

⁴⁴For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, because I am holy. And you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on the earth.

⁴⁵For I am the LORD who brought you up from the land of Egypt, to be your God; so you shall be holy, because I am holy.’ ”

⁴⁶This is the law regarding the animal and the bird, and every living thing that moves in the waters and everything that swarms on the earth,

⁴⁷to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean, and between the edible creature and the creature which is not to be eaten.

¹Now concerning the things about which you wrote, it is good for a man not to touch a woman.

²But because of sexual immoralities, each man is to have his own wife, and each woman is to have her own husband.

³The husband must fulfill his duty to his wife, and likewise the wife also to her husband.

⁴The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; and likewise the husband also does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does.

⁵Stop depriving one another, except by agreement for a time so that you may devote yourselves to prayer, and come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.

⁶But this I say by way of concession, not of command.

⁷Yet I wish that all men were even as I myself am. However, each has his own gift from God, one in this way, and another in that.

⁸But I say to the unmarried and to widows that it is good for them if they remain even as I.

⁹But if they do not have self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

¹⁰But to the married I give instructions, not I, but the Lord, that the wife is not to leave her husband

¹¹(but if she does leave, she must remain unmarried, or else be reconciled to her husband), and that the husband is not to divorce his wife.

¹²But to the rest I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has an unbelieving wife, and she consents to live with him, he must not divorce her.

¹³And if any woman has an unbelieving husband, and he consents to live with her, she must not divorce her husband.

¹⁴For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband; for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy.

¹⁵Yet if the unbelieving one is leaving, let him leave; the brother or the sister is not under bondage in such cases, but God has called us in peace.

¹⁶For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?

¹⁷Only, as the Lord has assigned to each one, as God has called each, in this way let him walk. And so I direct in all the churches.

¹⁸Was any man called when he was already circumcised? He is not to become uncircumcised. Has anyone been called in uncircumcision? He is not to be circumcised.

¹⁹Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but what matters is the keeping of the commandments of God.

²⁰Each person is to remain in that state in which he was called.

²¹Were you called as a slave? Do not let it concern you. But if you are also able to become free, take advantage of that.

²²For the one who was called in the Lord as a slave, is the Lord’s freed person; likewise the one who was called as free, is Christ’s slave.

²³You were bought for a price; do not become slaves of people.

²⁴Brothers and sisters, each one is to remain with God in that condition in which he was called.

²⁵Now concerning virgins, I have no command of the Lord, but I am offering direction as one who by the mercy of the Lord is trustworthy.

²⁶I think, then, that this is good in view of the present distress, that it is good for a man to remain as he is.

²⁷Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be released. Are you released from a wife? Do not seek a wife.

²⁸But if you marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. Yet such people as yourselves will have trouble in this life, and I am trying to spare you.

²⁹But this I say, brothers, the time has been shortened, so that from now on those who have wives should be as though they had none;

³⁰and those who weep, as though they did not weep; and those who rejoice, as though they did not rejoice; and those who buy, as though they did not possess;

³¹and those who use the world, as though they did not make full use of it; for the present form of this world is passing away.

³²But I want you to be free from concern. One who is unmarried is concerned about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord;

³³but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how he may please his wife,

³⁴and his interests are divided. The woman who is unmarried, and the virgin, is concerned about the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and spirit; but one who is married is concerned about the things of the world, how she may please her husband.

³⁵I say this for your own benefit, not to put a restraint on you, but to promote what is appropriate and to secure undistracted devotion to the Lord.

³⁶But if anyone thinks that he is acting dishonorably toward his virgin, if she is past her youth and it ought to be so, let him do what he wishes, he is not sinning; let them marry.

³⁷But the one who stands firm in his heart, if he is not under constraint, but has authority over his own will, and has decided this in his own heart, to keep his own virgin, he will do well.

³⁸So then, both the one who gives his own virgin in marriage does well, and the one who does not give her in marriage will do better.

³⁹A wife is bound as long as her husband lives; but if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord.

⁴⁰But in my opinion she is happier if she remains as she is; and I think that I also have the Spirit of God.

¹What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life—

²and the life was revealed, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was revealed to us—

³what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.

⁴These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete.

⁵This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.

⁶If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth;

⁷but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.

⁸If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.

⁹If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

¹⁰If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.

¹“Do you know the time the mountain goats give birth? Do you observe the calving of the deer?

²Can you count the months they fulfill, Or do you know the time they give birth?

³They kneel down, they deliver their young, They get rid of their labor pains.

⁴Their offspring become strong, they grow up in the open field; They leave and do not return to them.

⁵“Who sent the wild donkey out free? And who opened the bonds of the swift donkey,

⁶To whom I gave the wilderness as his home, And the salt land as his dwelling place?

⁷He laughs at the turmoil of the city, He does not hear the shouting of the taskmaster.

⁸He explores the mountains of his pasture, And searches after every green thing.

⁹Will the wild bull be willing to serve you, Or will he spend the night at your feeding trough?

¹⁰Can you tie down the wild bull in a furrow with ropes, Or will he plow the valleys after you?

¹¹Will you trust him because his strength is great, And leave your labor to him?

¹²Will you have faith in him that he will return your grain And gather it from your threshing floor?

¹³“The wings of the ostrich flap joyously, With the pinion and feathers of love,

¹⁴For she abandons her eggs to the earth And warms them in the dust,

¹⁵And she forgets that a foot may crush them, Or that a wild animal may trample them.

¹⁶She treats her young cruelly, as if they were not hers; Though her labor is for nothing, she is unconcerned,

¹⁷Because God has made her forget wisdom, And has not given her a share of understanding.

¹⁸When she rushes away on high, She laughs at the horse and his rider.

¹⁹“Do you give the horse his might? Do you clothe his neck with a mane?

²⁰Do you make him leap like locusts? His majestic snorting is frightening.

²¹He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength; He goes out to meet the battle.

²²He laughs at fear and is not dismayed; And he does not turn back from the sword.

²³The quiver rattles against him, The flashing spear and javelin.

²⁴He races over the ground with a roar and fury, And he does not stand still when he hears the sound of the trumpet.

²⁵As often as the trumpet sounds he says, ‘Aha!’ And he senses the battle from afar, And the thunder of the captains and the war cry.

²⁶“Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars, Stretching his wings toward the south?

²⁷Is it at your command that the eagle flies high, And makes his nest on high?

²⁸He dwells and spends his nights on the cliff, On the rocky cliff, an inaccessible place.

²⁹From there he tracks food; His eyes look at it from afar.

³⁰His young ones also lick up blood greedily; And where the slain are, there he is.”

¹I will sing of mercy and justice; To You, LORD, I will sing praises.

²I will carefully attend to the blameless way. When will You come to me? I will walk within my house in the integrity of my heart.

³I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; It shall not cling to me.

⁴A perverse heart shall leave me; I will know no evil.

⁵Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will destroy; I will not endure one who has a haughty look and an arrogant heart.

⁶My eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; One who walks in a blameless way is one who will serve me.

⁷One who practices deceit shall not dwell within my house; One who speaks lies shall not maintain his position before me.

⁸Every morning I will destroy all the wicked of the land, So as to eliminate from the city of the LORD all those who do injustice.

¹Does not wisdom call, And understanding raise her voice?

²On top of the heights beside the way, Where the paths meet, she takes her stand;

³Beside the gates, at the opening to the city, At the entrance of the doors, she cries out:

⁴“To you, people, I call, And my voice is to mankind.

⁵You naive ones, understand prudence; And, you fools, understand wisdom!

⁶Listen, for I will speak noble things; And the opening of my lips will reveal right things.

⁷For my mouth will proclaim truth; And wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

⁸All the words of my mouth are in righteousness; There is nothing crooked or perverted in them.

⁹They are all straightforward to him who understands, And right to those who find knowledge.

¹⁰Accept my instruction and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold.

¹¹For wisdom is better than jewels; And all desirable things cannot compare with her.

¹²“I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And I find knowledge and discretion.

¹³The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride, arrogance, the evil way, And the perverted mouth, I hate.

¹⁴Advice is mine and sound wisdom; I am understanding, power is mine.

¹⁵By me kings reign, And rulers decree justice.

¹⁶By me princes rule, and nobles, All who judge rightly.

¹⁷I love those who love me; And those who diligently seek me will find me.

¹⁸Riches and honor are with me, Enduring wealth and righteousness.

¹⁹My fruit is better than gold, even pure gold; And my yield better than choice silver.

²⁰I walk in the way of righteousness, In the midst of the paths of justice,

²¹To endow those who love me with wealth, That I may fill their treasuries.

²²“The LORD created me at the beginning of His way, Before His works of old.

²³From eternity I was established, From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth.

²⁴When there were no ocean depths, I was born, When there were no springs abounding with water.

²⁵Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills, I was born;

²⁶While He had not yet made the earth and the fields, Nor the first dust of the world.

²⁷When He established the heavens, I was there; When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,

²⁸When He made firm the skies above, When the springs of the deep became fixed,

²⁹When He set a boundary for the sea So that the water would not violate His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth;

³⁰Then I was beside Him, as a master workman; And I was His delight daily, Rejoicing always before Him,

³¹Rejoicing in the world, His earth, And having my delight in the sons of mankind.

³²“Now then, sons, listen to me, For blessed are those who keep my ways.

³³Listen to instruction and be wise, And do not neglect it.

³⁴Blessed is the person who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at my doorposts.

³⁵For one who finds me finds life, And obtains favor from the LORD.

³⁶But one who sins against me injures himself; All those who hate me love death.”

¹Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David sought the presence of the LORD. And the LORD said, “It is because of Saul and his bloody house, because he put the Gibeonites to death.”

²So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites, and the sons of Israel had made a covenant with them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah).

³David said to the Gibeonites, “What should I do for you? And how can I make amends, so that you will bless the inheritance of the LORD?”

⁴Then the Gibeonites said to him, “For us it is not a matter of silver or gold with Saul or his house, nor is it for us to put anyone to death in Israel.” Nevertheless David said, “I will do for you whatever you say.”

⁵So they said to the king, “The man who destroyed us and who planned to eliminate us so that we would not exist within any border of Israel—

⁶let seven men from his sons be given to us, and we will hang them before the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the LORD.” And the king said, “I will give them.”

⁷But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath of the LORD which was between them, between David and Saul’s son Jonathan.

⁸So the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, Armoni and Mephibosheth whom she had borne to Saul, and the five sons of Merab the daughter of Saul, whom she had borne to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite.

⁹Then he handed them over to the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the mountain before the LORD, so that the seven of them fell together; and they were put to death in the first days of harvest at the beginning of barley harvest.

¹⁰And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until it rained on them from the sky; and she allowed neither the birds of the sky to rest on them by day nor the wild animals by night.

¹¹When it was reported to David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done,

¹²then David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the public square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them on the day the Philistines struck and killed Saul in Gilboa.

¹³He brought up from there the bones of Saul and the bones of his son Jonathan, and they gathered the bones of those who had been hanged.

¹⁴Then they buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan in the country of Benjamin in Zela, in the grave of his father Kish; So they did everything that the king commanded, and after that God responded to prayer for the land.

¹⁵Now when the Philistines were at war with Israel again, David went down, and his servants with him; and when they fought against the Philistines, David became weary.

¹⁶Then Ishbi-benob, who was among the descendants of the giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred shekels of bronze in weight, had strapped on a new sword, and he intended to kill David.

¹⁷But Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then David’s men swore to him, saying, “You shall not go out again with us to battle, so that you do not extinguish the lamp of Israel.”

¹⁸Now it came about after this that there was war again with the Philistines at Gob; then Sibbecai the Hushathite struck and killed Saph, who was among the descendants of the giant.

¹⁹And there was war with the Philistines again at Gob, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim the Bethlehemite killed Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.

²⁰And there was war at Gath again, where there was a man of great stature who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also had been born to the giant.

²¹When he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimei, David’s brother, struck and killed him.

²²These four were born to the giant at Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.

¹The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying,

²“Go to the house of the Rechabites and speak to them, and bring them into the house of the LORD, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink.”

³So I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all his sons, and all the household of the Rechabites,

⁴and I brought them into the house of the LORD, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan the son of Igdaliah, the man of God, which was next to the chamber of the officials, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the doorkeeper.

⁵Then I set before the men of the house of the Rechabites pitchers full of wine, and cups; and I said to them, “Drink wine!”

⁶But they said, “We will not drink wine, for Jonadab the son of Rechab, our father, commanded us, saying, ‘You shall not drink wine, you or your sons, forever.

⁷You shall not build a house, and you shall not sow seed nor plant a vineyard, nor own one; but you shall live in tents all your days, so that you may live many days in the land where you live as strangers.’

⁸And we have obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab, our father, in all that he commanded us, not to drink wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, or our daughters,

⁹nor to build ourselves houses to live in; and we do not have a vineyard, a field, or seed.

¹⁰But we have lived only in tents, and have obeyed and have done according to all that our father Jonadab commanded us.

¹¹However, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against the land, we said, ‘Come, and let’s go to Jerusalem away from the army of the Chaldeans and the army of the Arameans.’ So we have lived in Jerusalem.”

¹²Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying,

¹³“This is what the LORD of armies, the God of Israel says: ‘Go and say to the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, “Will you not accept instruction by listening to My words?” declares the LORD.

¹⁴“The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab have been followed, which he commanded his sons: not to drink wine. And they do not drink wine to this day, for they have obeyed their father’s command. But I have spoken to you again and again, yet you have not listened to Me.

¹⁵Also I have sent to you all My servants the prophets, sending them again and again, saying: ‘Turn now every person from his evil way and amend your deeds, and do not follow other gods to worship them. Then you will live in the land which I have given to you and to your forefathers; but you have not inclined your ear or listened to Me.

¹⁶Indeed, the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have followed the command of their father which he commanded them, but this people has not listened to Me.’ ” ’

¹⁷Therefore this is what the LORD says, the God of armies, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I am bringing on Judah and on all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster that I have pronounced against them; because I spoke to them but they did not listen, and I have called them but they did not answer.’ ”

¹⁸Then Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites, “This is what the LORD of armies, the God of Israel says: ‘Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father, kept all his commands, and done according to all that he commanded you,

¹⁹therefore this is what the LORD of armies, the God of Israel says: “Jonadab the son of Rechab will not lack a man to stand before Me always.” ’ ”

¹Now when they had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.

²And according to Paul’s custom, he visited them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures,

³explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is the Christ.”

⁴And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large number of the God-fearing Greeks and a significant number of the leading women.

⁵But the Jews, becoming jealous and taking along some wicked men from the marketplace, formed a mob and set the city in an uproar; and they attacked the house of Jason and were seeking to bring them out to the people.

⁶When they did not find them, they began dragging Jason and some brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have upset the world have come here also;

⁷and Jason has welcomed them, and they all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.”

⁸They stirred up the crowd and the city authorities who heard these things.

⁹And when they had received a pledge from Jason and the others, they released them.

¹⁰The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews.

¹¹Now these people were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.

¹²Therefore, many of them believed, along with a significant number of prominent Greek women and men.

¹³But when the Jews of Thessalonica found out that the word of God had been proclaimed by Paul in Berea also, they came there as well, agitating and stirring up the crowds.

¹⁴Then immediately the brothers sent Paul out to go as far as the sea; and Silas and Timothy remained there.

¹⁵Now those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left.

¹⁶Now while Paul was waiting for them in Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him as he observed that the city was full of idols.

¹⁷So he was reasoning in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be present.

¹⁸And some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers as well were conversing with him. Some were saying, “What could this scavenger of tidbits want to say?” Others, “He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities,”—because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection.

¹⁹And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is which you are proclaiming?

²⁰For you are bringing some strange things to our ears; so we want to know what these things mean.”

²¹(Now all the Athenians and the strangers visiting there used to spend their time in nothing other than telling or hearing something new.)

²²So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I see that you are very religious in all respects.

²³For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’ Therefore, what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you.

²⁴The God who made the world and everything that is in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made by hands;

²⁵nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things;

²⁶and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation,

²⁷that they would seek God, if perhaps they might feel around for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us;

²⁸for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His descendants.’

²⁹Therefore, since we are the descendants of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by human skill and thought.

³⁰So having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now proclaiming to mankind that all people everywhere are to repent,

³¹because He has set a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all people by raising Him from the dead.”

³²Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some began to scoff, but others said, “We shall hear from you again concerning this.”

³³So Paul went out from among them.

³⁴But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.