Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Very early in the morning the leading priests and the elders of the people met again to lay plans for putting Jesus to death.

²Then they bound him, led him away, and took him to Pilate, the Roman governor.

³When Judas, who had betrayed him, realized that Jesus had been condemned to die, he was filled with remorse. So he took the thirty pieces of silver back to the leading priests and the elders.

⁴“I have sinned,” he declared, “for I have betrayed an innocent man.” “What do we care?” they retorted. “That’s your problem.”

⁵Then Judas threw the silver coins down in the Temple and went out and hanged himself.

⁶The leading priests picked up the coins. “It wouldn’t be right to put this money in the Temple treasury,” they said, “since it was payment for murder.”

⁷After some discussion they finally decided to buy the potter’s field, and they made it into a cemetery for foreigners.

⁸That is why the field is still called the Field of Blood.

⁹This fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah that says, “They took the thirty pieces of silver — the price at which he was valued by the people of Israel,

¹⁰and purchased the potter’s field, as the LORD directed. ”

¹¹Now Jesus was standing before Pilate, the Roman governor. “Are you the king of the Jews?” the governor asked him. Jesus replied, “You have said it.”

¹²But when the leading priests and the elders made their accusations against him, Jesus remained silent.

¹³“Don’t you hear all these charges they are bringing against you?” Pilate demanded.

¹⁴But Jesus made no response to any of the charges, much to the governor’s surprise.

¹⁵Now it was the governor’s custom each year during the Passover celebration to release one prisoner to the crowd — anyone they wanted.

¹⁶This year there was a notorious prisoner, a man named Barabbas.

¹⁷As the crowds gathered before Pilate’s house that morning, he asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you — Barabbas, or Jesus who is called the Messiah?”

¹⁸(He knew very well that the religious leaders had arrested Jesus out of envy.)

¹⁹Just then, as Pilate was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him this message: “Leave that innocent man alone. I suffered through a terrible nightmare about him last night.”

²⁰Meanwhile, the leading priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas to be released and for Jesus to be put to death.

²¹So the governor asked again, “Which of these two do you want me to release to you?” The crowd shouted back, “Barabbas!”

²²Pilate responded, “Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” They shouted back, “Crucify him!”

²³“Why?” Pilate demanded. “What crime has he committed?” But the mob roared even louder, “Crucify him!”

²⁴Pilate saw that he wasn’t getting anywhere and that a riot was developing. So he sent for a bowl of water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood. The responsibility is yours!”

²⁵And all the people yelled back, “We will take responsibility for his death — we and our children!”

²⁶So Pilate released Barabbas to them. He ordered Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip, then turned him over to the Roman soldiers to be crucified.

²⁷Some of the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into their headquarters and called out the entire regiment.

²⁸They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him.

²⁹They wove thorn branches into a crown and put it on his head, and they placed a reed stick in his right hand as a scepter. Then they knelt before him in mockery and taunted, “Hail! King of the Jews!”

³⁰And they spit on him and grabbed the stick and struck him on the head with it.

³¹When they were finally tired of mocking him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him again. Then they led him away to be crucified.

³²Along the way, they came across a man named Simon, who was from Cyrene, and the soldiers forced him to carry Jesus’ cross.

³³And they went out to a place called Golgotha (which means “Place of the Skull”).

³⁴The soldiers gave Jesus wine mixed with bitter gall, but when he had tasted it, he refused to drink it.

³⁵After they had nailed him to the cross, the soldiers gambled for his clothes by throwing dice.

³⁶Then they sat around and kept guard as he hung there.

³⁷A sign was fastened above Jesus’ head, announcing the charge against him. It read: “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”

³⁸Two revolutionaries were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left.

³⁹The people passing by shouted abuse, shaking their heads in mockery.

⁴⁰“Look at you now!” they yelled at him. “You said you were going to destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days. Well then, if you are the Son of God, save yourself and come down from the cross!”

⁴¹The leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders also mocked Jesus.

⁴²“He saved others,” they scoffed, “but he can’t save himself! So he is the King of Israel, is he? Let him come down from the cross right now, and we will believe in him!

⁴³He trusted God, so let God rescue him now if he wants him! For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”

⁴⁴Even the revolutionaries who were crucified with him ridiculed him in the same way.

⁴⁵At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock.

⁴⁶At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

⁴⁷Some of the bystanders misunderstood and thought he was calling for the prophet Elijah.

⁴⁸One of them ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, holding it up to him on a reed stick so he could drink.

⁴⁹But the rest said, “Wait! Let’s see whether Elijah comes to save him.”

⁵⁰Then Jesus shouted out again, and he released his spirit.

⁵¹At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, rocks split apart,

⁵²and tombs opened. The bodies of many godly men and women who had died were raised from the dead.

⁵³They left the cemetery after Jesus’ resurrection, went into the holy city of Jerusalem, and appeared to many people.

⁵⁴The Roman officer and the other soldiers at the crucifixion were terrified by the earthquake and all that had happened. They said, “This man truly was the Son of God!”

⁵⁵And many women who had come from Galilee with Jesus to care for him were watching from a distance.

⁵⁶Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of James and Joseph), and the mother of James and John, the sons of Zebedee.

⁵⁷As evening approached, Joseph, a rich man from Arimathea who had become a follower of Jesus,

⁵⁸went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. And Pilate issued an order to release it to him.

⁵⁹Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a long sheet of clean linen cloth.

⁶⁰He placed it in his own new tomb, which had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance and left.

⁶¹Both Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting across from the tomb and watching.

⁶²The next day, on the Sabbath, the leading priests and Pharisees went to see Pilate.

⁶³They told him, “Sir, we remember what that deceiver once said while he was still alive: ‘After three days I will rise from the dead.’

⁶⁴So we request that you seal the tomb until the third day. This will prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he was raised from the dead! If that happens, we’ll be worse off than we were at first.”

⁶⁵Pilate replied, “Take guards and secure it the best you can.”

⁶⁶So they sealed the tomb and posted guards to protect it.

¹“Do not make idols or set up carved images, or sacred pillars, or sculptured stones in your land so you may worship them. I am the LORD your God.

²You must keep my Sabbath days of rest and show reverence for my sanctuary. I am the LORD.

³“If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands,

⁴I will send you the seasonal rains. The land will then yield its crops, and the trees of the field will produce their fruit.

⁵Your threshing season will overlap with the grape harvest, and your grape harvest will overlap with the season of planting grain. You will eat your fill and live securely in your own land.

⁶“I will give you peace in the land, and you will be able to sleep with no cause for fear. I will rid the land of wild animals and keep your enemies out of your land.

⁷In fact, you will chase down your enemies and slaughter them with your swords.

⁸Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand! All your enemies will fall beneath your sword.

⁹“I will look favorably upon you, making you fertile and multiplying your people. And I will fulfill my covenant with you.

¹⁰You will have such a surplus of crops that you will need to clear out the old grain to make room for the new harvest!

¹¹I will live among you, and I will not despise you.

¹²I will walk among you; I will be your God, and you will be my people.

¹³I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt so you would no longer be their slaves. I broke the yoke of slavery from your neck so you can walk with your heads held high.

¹⁴“However, if you do not listen to me or obey all these commands,

¹⁵and if you break my covenant by rejecting my decrees, treating my regulations with contempt, and refusing to obey my commands,

¹⁶I will punish you. I will bring sudden terrors upon you — wasting diseases and burning fevers that will cause your eyes to fail and your life to ebb away. You will plant your crops in vain because your enemies will eat them.

¹⁷I will turn against you, and you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you, and you will run even when no one is chasing you!

¹⁸“And if, in spite of all this, you still disobey me, I will punish you seven times over for your sins.

¹⁹I will break your proud spirit by making the skies as unyielding as iron and the earth as hard as bronze.

²⁰All your work will be for nothing, for your land will yield no crops, and your trees will bear no fruit.

²¹“If even then you remain hostile toward me and refuse to obey me, I will inflict disaster on you seven times over for your sins.

²²I will send wild animals that will rob you of your children and destroy your livestock. Your numbers will dwindle, and your roads will be deserted.

²³“And if you fail to learn the lesson and continue your hostility toward me,

²⁴then I myself will be hostile toward you. I will personally strike you with calamity seven times over for your sins.

²⁵I will send armies against you to carry out the curse of the covenant you have broken. When you run to your towns for safety, I will send a plague to destroy you there, and you will be handed over to your enemies.

²⁶I will destroy your food supply, so that ten women will need only one oven to bake bread for their families. They will ration your food by weight, and though you have food to eat, you will not be satisfied.

²⁷“If in spite of all this you still refuse to listen and still remain hostile toward me,

²⁸then I will give full vent to my hostility. I myself will punish you seven times over for your sins.

²⁹Then you will eat the flesh of your own sons and daughters.

³⁰I will destroy your pagan shrines and knock down your places of worship. I will leave your lifeless corpses piled on top of your lifeless idols, and I will despise you.

³¹I will make your cities desolate and destroy your places of pagan worship. I will take no pleasure in your offerings that should be a pleasing aroma to me.

³²Yes, I myself will devastate your land, and your enemies who come to occupy it will be appalled at what they see.

³³I will scatter you among the nations and bring out my sword against you. Your land will become desolate, and your cities will lie in ruins.

³⁴Then at last the land will enjoy its neglected Sabbath years as it lies desolate while you are in exile in the land of your enemies. Then the land will finally rest and enjoy the Sabbaths it missed.

³⁵As long as the land lies in ruins, it will enjoy the rest you never allowed it to take every seventh year while you lived in it.

³⁶“And for those of you who survive, I will demoralize you in the land of your enemies. You will live in such fear that the sound of a leaf driven by the wind will send you fleeing. You will run as though fleeing from a sword, and you will fall even when no one pursues you.

³⁷Though no one is chasing you, you will stumble over each other as though fleeing from a sword. You will have no power to stand up against your enemies.

³⁸You will die among the foreign nations and be devoured in the land of your enemies.

³⁹Those of you who survive will waste away in your enemies’ lands because of their sins and the sins of their ancestors.

⁴⁰“But at last my people will confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors for betraying me and being hostile toward me.

⁴¹When I have turned their hostility back on them and brought them to the land of their enemies, then at last their stubborn hearts will be humbled, and they will pay for their sins.

⁴²Then I will remember my covenant with Jacob and my covenant with Isaac and my covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land.

⁴³For the land must be abandoned to enjoy its years of Sabbath rest as it lies deserted. At last the people will pay for their sins, for they have continually rejected my regulations and despised my decrees.

⁴⁴“But despite all this, I will not utterly reject or despise them while they are in exile in the land of their enemies. I will not cancel my covenant with them by wiping them out, for I am the LORD their God.

⁴⁵For their sakes I will remember my ancient covenant with their ancestors, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of all the nations, that I might be their God. I am the LORD.”

⁴⁶These are the decrees, regulations, and instructions that the LORD gave through Moses on Mount Sinai as evidence of the relationship between himself and the Israelites.

¹As God’s partners, we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of God’s kindness and then ignore it.

²For God says, “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.

³We live in such a way that no one will stumble because of us, and no one will find fault with our ministry.

⁴In everything we do, we show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles and hardships and calamities of every kind.

⁵We have been beaten, been put in prison, faced angry mobs, worked to exhaustion, endured sleepless nights, and gone without food.

⁶We prove ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by the Holy Spirit within us, and by our sincere love.

⁷We faithfully preach the truth. God’s power is working in us. We use the weapons of righteousness in the right hand for attack and the left hand for defense.

⁸We serve God whether people honor us or despise us, whether they slander us or praise us. We are honest, but they call us impostors.

⁹We are ignored, even though we are well known. We live close to death, but we are still alive. We have been beaten, but we have not been killed.

¹⁰Our hearts ache, but we always have joy. We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing, and yet we have everything.

¹¹Oh, dear Corinthian friends! We have spoken honestly with you, and our hearts are open to you.

¹²There is no lack of love on our part, but you have withheld your love from us.

¹³I am asking you to respond as if you were my own children. Open your hearts to us!

¹⁴Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness?

¹⁵What harmony can there be between Christ and the devil ? How can a believer be a partner with an unbeliever?

¹⁶And what union can there be between God’s temple and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God said: “I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

¹⁷Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the LORD. Don’t touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you.

¹⁸And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the LORD Almighty. ”

¹When the Lamb broke the seventh seal on the scroll, there was silence throughout heaven for about half an hour.

²I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and they were given seven trumpets.

³Then another angel with a gold incense burner came and stood at the altar. And a great amount of incense was given to him to mix with the prayers of God’s people as an offering on the gold altar before the throne.

⁴The smoke of the incense, mixed with the prayers of God’s holy people, ascended up to God from the altar where the angel had poured them out.

⁵Then the angel filled the incense burner with fire from the altar and threw it down upon the earth; and thunder crashed, lightning flashed, and there was a terrible earthquake.

⁶Then the seven angels with the seven trumpets prepared to blow their mighty blasts.

⁷The first angel blew his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown down on the earth. One-third of the earth was set on fire, one-third of the trees were burned, and all the green grass was burned.

⁸Then the second angel blew his trumpet, and a great mountain of fire was thrown into the sea. One-third of the water in the sea became blood,

⁹one-third of all things living in the sea died, and one-third of all the ships on the sea were destroyed.

¹⁰Then the third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from the sky, burning like a torch. It fell on one-third of the rivers and on the springs of water.

¹¹The name of the star was Bitterness. It made one-third of the water bitter, and many people died from drinking the bitter water.

¹²Then the fourth angel blew his trumpet, and one-third of the sun was struck, and one-third of the moon, and one-third of the stars, and they became dark. And one-third of the day was dark, and also one-third of the night.

¹³Then I looked, and I heard a single eagle crying loudly as it flew through the air, “Terror, terror, terror to all who belong to this world because of what will happen when the last three angels blow their trumpets.”

¹Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, “Life is not pleasant anymore.”

²Remember him before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is dim to your old eyes, and rain clouds continually darken your sky.

³Remember him before your legs — the guards of your house — start to tremble; and before your shoulders — the strong men — stoop. Remember him before your teeth — your few remaining servants — stop grinding; and before your eyes — the women looking through the windows — see dimly.

⁴Remember him before the door to life’s opportunities is closed and the sound of work fades. Now you rise at the first chirping of the birds, but then all their sounds will grow faint.

⁵Remember him before you become fearful of falling and worry about danger in the streets; before your hair turns white like an almond tree in bloom, and you drag along without energy like a dying grasshopper, and the caperberry no longer inspires sexual desire. Remember him before you near the grave, your everlasting home, when the mourners will weep at your funeral.

⁶Yes, remember your Creator now while you are young, before the silver cord of life snaps and the golden bowl is broken. Don’t wait until the water jar is smashed at the spring and the pulley is broken at the well.

⁷For then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.

⁸“Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless.”

⁹Keep this in mind: The Teacher was considered wise, and he taught the people everything he knew. He listened carefully to many proverbs, studying and classifying them.

¹⁰The Teacher sought to find just the right words to express truths clearly.

¹¹The words of the wise are like cattle prods — painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which a shepherd drives the sheep.

¹²But, my child, let me give you some further advice: Be careful, for writing books is endless, and much study wears you out.

¹³That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.

¹⁴God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad.

¹I love the LORD because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy.

²Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath!

³Death wrapped its ropes around me; the terrors of the grave overtook me. I saw only trouble and sorrow.

⁴Then I called on the name of the LORD: “Please, LORD, save me!”

⁵How kind the LORD is! How good he is! So merciful, this God of ours!

⁶The LORD protects those of childlike faith; I was facing death, and he saved me.

⁷Let my soul be at rest again, for the LORD has been good to me.

⁸He has saved me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.

⁹And so I walk in the LORD’s presence as I live here on earth!

¹⁰I believed in you, so I said, “I am deeply troubled, LORD.”

¹¹In my anxiety I cried out to you, “These people are all liars!”

¹²What can I offer the LORD for all he has done for me?

¹³I will lift up the cup of salvation and praise the LORD’s name for saving me.

¹⁴I will keep my promises to the LORD in the presence of all his people.

¹⁵The LORD cares deeply when his loved ones die.

¹⁶O LORD, I am your servant; yes, I am your servant, born into your household; you have freed me from my chains.

¹⁷I will offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD.

¹⁸I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people —

¹⁹in the house of the LORD in the heart of Jerusalem. Praise the LORD!

¹While dining with a ruler, pay attention to what is put before you.

²If you are a big eater, put a knife to your throat;

³don’t desire all the delicacies, for he might be trying to trick you.

⁴Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich. Be wise enough to know when to quit.

⁵In the blink of an eye wealth disappears, for it will sprout wings and fly away like an eagle.

⁶Don’t eat with people who are stingy; don’t desire their delicacies.

⁷They are always thinking about how much it costs. “Eat and drink,” they say, but they don’t mean it.

⁸You will throw up what little you’ve eaten, and your compliments will be wasted.

⁹Don’t waste your breath on fools, for they will despise the wisest advice.

¹⁰Don’t cheat your neighbor by moving the ancient boundary markers; don’t take the land of defenseless orphans.

¹¹For their Redeemer is strong; he himself will bring their charges against you.

¹²Commit yourself to instruction; listen carefully to words of knowledge.

¹³Don’t fail to discipline your children. The rod of punishment won’t kill them.

¹⁴Physical discipline may well save them from death.

¹⁵My child, if your heart is wise, my own heart will rejoice!

¹⁶Everything in me will celebrate when you speak what is right.

¹⁷Don’t envy sinners, but always continue to fear the LORD.

¹⁸You will be rewarded for this; your hope will not be disappointed.

¹⁹My child, listen and be wise: Keep your heart on the right course.

²⁰Do not carouse with drunkards or feast with gluttons,

²¹for they are on their way to poverty, and too much sleep clothes them in rags.

²²Listen to your father, who gave you life, and don’t despise your mother when she is old.

²³Get the truth and never sell it; also get wisdom, discipline, and good judgment.

²⁴The father of godly children has cause for joy. What a pleasure to have children who are wise.

²⁵So give your father and mother joy! May she who gave you birth be happy.

²⁶O my son, give me your heart. May your eyes take delight in following my ways.

²⁷A prostitute is a dangerous trap; a promiscuous woman is as dangerous as falling into a narrow well.

²⁸She hides and waits like a robber, eager to make more men unfaithful.

²⁹Who has anguish? Who has sorrow? Who is always fighting? Who is always complaining? Who has unnecessary bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

³⁰It is the one who spends long hours in the taverns, trying out new drinks.

³¹Don’t gaze at the wine, seeing how red it is, how it sparkles in the cup, how smoothly it goes down.

³²For in the end it bites like a poisonous snake; it stings like a viper.

³³You will see hallucinations, and you will say crazy things.

³⁴You will stagger like a sailor tossed at sea, clinging to a swaying mast.

³⁵And you will say, “They hit me, but I didn’t feel it. I didn’t even know it when they beat me up. When will I wake up so I can look for another drink?”

¹Rehoboam went to Shechem, where all Israel had gathered to make him king.

²When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard of this, he returned from Egypt, for he had fled to Egypt to escape from King Solomon.

³The leaders of Israel summoned him, and Jeroboam and the whole assembly of Israel went to speak with Rehoboam.

⁴“Your father was a hard master,” they said. “Lighten the harsh labor demands and heavy taxes that your father imposed on us. Then we will be your loyal subjects.”

⁵Rehoboam replied, “Give me three days to think this over. Then come back for my answer.” So the people went away.

⁶Then King Rehoboam discussed the matter with the older men who had counseled his father, Solomon. “What is your advice?” he asked. “How should I answer these people?”

⁷The older counselors replied, “If you are willing to be a servant to these people today and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your loyal subjects.”

⁸But Rehoboam rejected the advice of the older men and instead asked the opinion of the young men who had grown up with him and were now his advisers.

⁹“What is your advice?” he asked them. “How should I answer these people who want me to lighten the burdens imposed by my father?”

¹⁰The young men replied, “This is what you should tell those complainers who want a lighter burden: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist!

¹¹Yes, my father laid heavy burdens on you, but I’m going to make them even heavier! My father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions!’”

¹²Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to hear Rehoboam’s decision, just as the king had ordered.

¹³But Rehoboam spoke harshly to the people, for he rejected the advice of the older counselors

¹⁴and followed the counsel of his younger advisers. He told the people, “My father laid heavy burdens on you, but I’m going to make them even heavier! My father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions!”

¹⁵So the king paid no attention to the people. This turn of events was the will of the LORD, for it fulfilled the LORD’s message to Jeroboam son of Nebat through the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh.

¹⁶When all Israel realized that the king had refused to listen to them, they responded, “Down with the dynasty of David! We have no interest in the son of Jesse. Back to your homes, O Israel! Look out for your own house, O David!” So the people of Israel returned home.

¹⁷But Rehoboam continued to rule over the Israelites who lived in the towns of Judah.

¹⁸King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, who was in charge of forced labor, to restore order, but the people of Israel stoned him to death. When this news reached King Rehoboam, he quickly jumped into his chariot and fled to Jerusalem.

¹⁹And to this day the northern tribes of Israel have refused to be ruled by a descendant of David.

²⁰When the people of Israel learned of Jeroboam’s return from Egypt, they called an assembly and made him king over all Israel. So only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the family of David.

²¹When Rehoboam arrived at Jerusalem, he mobilized the men of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin — 180,000 select troops — to fight against the men of Israel and to restore the kingdom to himself.

²²But God said to Shemaiah, the man of God,

²³“Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the people of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people,

²⁴‘This is what the LORD says: Do not fight against your relatives, the Israelites. Go back home, for what has happened is my doing!’” So they obeyed the message of the LORD and went home, as the LORD had commanded.

²⁵Jeroboam then built up the city of Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and it became his capital. Later he went and built up the town of Peniel.

²⁶Jeroboam thought to himself, “Unless I am careful, the kingdom will return to the dynasty of David.

²⁷When these people go to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices at the Temple of the LORD, they will again give their allegiance to King Rehoboam of Judah. They will kill me and make him their king instead.”

²⁸So on the advice of his counselors, the king made two gold calves. He said to the people, “It is too much trouble for you to worship in Jerusalem. Look, Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of Egypt!”

²⁹He placed these calf idols in Bethel and in Dan — at either end of his kingdom.

³⁰But this became a great sin, for the people worshiped the idols, traveling as far north as Dan to worship the one there.

³¹Jeroboam also erected buildings at the pagan shrines and ordained priests from the common people — those who were not from the priestly tribe of Levi.

³²And Jeroboam instituted a religious festival in Bethel, held on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in imitation of the annual Festival of Shelters in Judah. There at Bethel he himself offered sacrifices to the calves he had made, and he appointed priests for the pagan shrines he had made.

³³So on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a day that he himself had designated, Jeroboam offered sacrifices on the altar at Bethel. He instituted a religious festival for Israel, and he went up to the altar to burn incense.

¹The LORD gave Jeremiah the prophet this message concerning Babylon and the land of the Babylonians.

²This is what the LORD says: “Tell the whole world, and keep nothing back. Raise a signal flag to tell everyone that Babylon will fall! Her images and idols will be shattered. Her gods Bel and Marduk will be utterly disgraced.

³For a nation will attack her from the north and bring such destruction that no one will live there again. Everything will be gone; both people and animals will flee.

⁴“In those coming days,” says the LORD, “the people of Israel will return home together with the people of Judah. They will come weeping and seeking the LORD their God.

⁵They will ask the way to Jerusalem and will start back home again. They will bind themselves to the LORD with an eternal covenant that will never be forgotten.

⁶“My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds have led them astray and turned them loose in the mountains. They have lost their way and can’t remember how to get back to the sheepfold.

⁷All who found them devoured them. Their enemies said, ‘We did nothing wrong in attacking them, for they sinned against the LORD, their true place of rest, and the hope of their ancestors.’

⁸“But now, flee from Babylon! Leave the land of the Babylonians. Like male goats at the head of the flock, lead my people home again.

⁹For I am raising up an army of great nations from the north. They will join forces to attack Babylon, and she will be captured. The enemies’ arrows will go straight to the mark; they will not miss!

¹⁰Babylonia will be looted until the attackers are glutted with loot. I, the LORD, have spoken!

¹¹“You rejoice and are glad, you who plundered my chosen people. You frisk about like a calf in a meadow and neigh like a stallion.

¹²But your homeland will be overwhelmed with shame and disgrace. You will become the least of nations — a wilderness, a dry and desolate land.

¹³Because of the LORD’s anger, Babylon will become a deserted wasteland. All who pass by will be horrified and will gasp at the destruction they see there.

¹⁴“Yes, prepare to attack Babylon, all you surrounding nations. Let your archers shoot at her; spare no arrows. For she has sinned against the LORD.

¹⁵Shout war cries against her from every side. Look! She surrenders! Her walls have fallen. It is the LORD’s vengeance, so take vengeance on her. Do to her as she has done to others!

¹⁶Take from Babylon all those who plant crops; send all the harvesters away. Because of the sword of the enemy, everyone will run away and rush back to their own lands.

¹⁷“The Israelites are like sheep that have been scattered by lions. First the king of Assyria ate them up. Then King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon cracked their bones.”

¹⁸Therefore, this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Now I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, just as I punished the king of Assyria.

¹⁹And I will bring Israel home again to its own land, to feed in the fields of Carmel and Bashan, and to be satisfied once more in the hill country of Ephraim and Gilead.

²⁰In those days,” says the LORD, “no sin will be found in Israel or in Judah, for I will forgive the remnant I preserve.

²¹“Go up, my warriors, against the land of Merathaim and against the people of Pekod. Pursue, kill, and completely destroy them, as I have commanded you,” says the LORD.

²²“Let the battle cry be heard in the land, a shout of great destruction.

²³Babylon, the mightiest hammer in all the earth, lies broken and shattered. Babylon is desolate among the nations!

²⁴Listen, Babylon, for I have set a trap for you. You are caught, for you have fought against the LORD.

²⁵The LORD has opened his armory and brought out weapons to vent his fury. The terror that falls upon the Babylonians will be the work of the Sovereign LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

²⁶Yes, come against her from distant lands. Break open her granaries. Crush her walls and houses into heaps of rubble. Destroy her completely, and leave nothing!

²⁷Destroy even her young bulls — it will be terrible for them, too! Slaughter them all! For Babylon’s day of reckoning has come.

²⁸Listen to the people who have escaped from Babylon, as they tell in Jerusalem how the LORD our God has taken vengeance against those who destroyed his Temple.

²⁹“Send out a call for archers to come to Babylon. Surround the city so none can escape. Do to her as she has done to others, for she has defied the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.

³⁰Her young men will fall in the streets and die. Her soldiers will all be killed,” says the LORD.

³¹“See, I am your enemy, you arrogant people,” says the Lord, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. “Your day of reckoning has arrived — the day when I will punish you.

³²O land of arrogance, you will stumble and fall, and no one will raise you up. For I will light a fire in the cities of Babylon that will burn up everything around them.”

³³This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: “The people of Israel and Judah have been wronged. Their captors hold them and refuse to let them go.

³⁴But the one who redeems them is strong. His name is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. He will defend them and give them rest again in Israel. But for the people of Babylon there will be no rest!

³⁵“The sword of destruction will strike the Babylonians,” says the LORD. “It will strike the people of Babylon — her officials and wise men, too.

³⁶The sword will strike her wise counselors, and they will become fools. The sword will strike her mightiest warriors, and panic will seize them.

³⁷The sword will strike her horses and chariots and her allies from other lands, and they will all become like women. The sword will strike her treasures, and they all will be plundered.

³⁸A drought will strike her water supply, causing it to dry up. And why? Because the whole land is filled with idols, and the people are madly in love with them.

³⁹“Soon Babylon will be inhabited by desert animals and hyenas. It will be a home for owls. Never again will people live there; it will lie desolate forever.

⁴⁰I will destroy it as I destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns,” says the LORD. “No one will live there; no one will inhabit it.

⁴¹“Look! A great army is coming from the north. A great nation and many kings are rising against you from far-off lands.

⁴²They are armed with bows and spears. They are cruel and show no mercy. As they ride forward on horses, they sound like a roaring sea. They are coming in battle formation, planning to destroy you, Babylon.

⁴³The king of Babylon has heard reports about the enemy, and he is weak with fright. Pangs of anguish have gripped him, like those of a woman in labor.

⁴⁴“I will come like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan, leaping on the sheep in the pasture. I will chase Babylon from its land, and I will appoint the leader of my choice. For who is like me, and who can challenge me? What ruler can oppose my will?”

⁴⁵Listen to the LORD’s plans against Babylon and the land of the Babylonians. Even the little children will be dragged off like sheep, and their homes will be destroyed.

⁴⁶The earth will shake with the shout, “Babylon has been taken!” and its cry of despair will be heard around the world.

¹While Peter and John were speaking to the people, they were confronted by the priests, the captain of the Temple guard, and some of the Sadducees.

²These leaders were very disturbed that Peter and John were teaching the people that through Jesus there is a resurrection of the dead.

³They arrested them and, since it was already evening, put them in jail until morning.

⁴But many of the people who heard their message believed it, so the number of men who believed now totaled about 5,000.

⁵The next day the council of all the rulers and elders and teachers of religious law met in Jerusalem.

⁶Annas the high priest was there, along with Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and other relatives of the high priest.

⁷They brought in the two disciples and demanded, “By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?”

⁸Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people,

⁹are we being questioned today because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed?

¹⁰Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead.

¹¹For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’

¹²There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

¹³The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus.

¹⁴But since they could see the man who had been healed standing right there among them, there was nothing the council could say.

¹⁵So they ordered Peter and John out of the council chamber and conferred among themselves.

¹⁶“What should we do with these men?” they asked each other. “We can’t deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it.

¹⁷But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus’ name again.”

¹⁸So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus.

¹⁹But Peter and John replied, “Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him?

²⁰We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.”

²¹The council then threatened them further, but they finally let them go because they didn’t know how to punish them without starting a riot. For everyone was praising God

²²for this miraculous sign — the healing of a man who had been lame for more than forty years.

²³As soon as they were freed, Peter and John returned to the other believers and told them what the leading priests and elders had said.

²⁴When they heard the report, all the believers lifted their voices together in prayer to God: “O Sovereign Lord, Creator of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them —

²⁵you spoke long ago by the Holy Spirit through our ancestor David, your servant, saying, ‘Why were the nations so angry? Why did they waste their time with futile plans?

²⁶The kings of the earth prepared for battle; the rulers gathered together against the LORD and against his Messiah.’

²⁷“In fact, this has happened here in this very city! For Herod Antipas, Pontius Pilate the governor, the Gentiles, and the people of Israel were all united against Jesus, your holy servant, whom you anointed.

²⁸But everything they did was determined beforehand according to your will.

²⁹And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word.

³⁰Stretch out your hand with healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

³¹After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness.

³²All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had.

³³The apostles testified powerfully to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great blessing was upon them all.

³⁴There were no needy people among them, because those who owned land or houses would sell them

³⁵and bring the money to the apostles to give to those in need.

³⁶For instance, there was Joseph, the one the apostles nicknamed Barnabas (which means “Son of Encouragement”). He was from the tribe of Levi and came from the island of Cyprus.

³⁷He sold a field he owned and brought the money to the apostles.