Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land.

²And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them:

³“Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow.

⁴And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it.

⁵Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil.

⁶And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away.

⁷Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain.

⁸And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”

⁹And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

¹⁰And when he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables.

¹¹And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables,

¹² so that “‘they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven.’”

¹³And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?

¹⁴ The sower sows the word.

¹⁵And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them.

¹⁶And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy.

¹⁷And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away.

¹⁸And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word,

¹⁹but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.

²⁰But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”

²¹And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand?

²² For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light.

²³ If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.”

²⁴And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you.

²⁵ For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

²⁶And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.

²⁷He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how.

²⁸The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.

²⁹But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

³⁰And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it?

³¹It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth,

³²yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”

³³With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it.

³⁴He did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.

³⁵On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.”

³⁶And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him.

³⁷And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling.

³⁸But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”

³⁹And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

⁴⁰He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?”

⁴¹And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

¹The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying,

²“Take a census of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their clans and their fathers' houses,

³from thirty years old up to fifty years old, all who can come on duty, to do the work in the tent of meeting.

⁴This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the tent of meeting: the most holy things.

⁵When the camp is to set out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and take down the veil of the screen and cover the ark of the testimony with it.

⁶Then they shall put on it a covering of goatskin and spread on top of that a cloth all of blue, and shall put in its poles.

⁷And over the table of the bread of the Presence they shall spread a cloth of blue and put on it the plates, the dishes for incense, the bowls, and the flagons for the drink offering; the regular showbread also shall be on it.

⁸Then they shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet and cover the same with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles.

⁹And they shall take a cloth of blue and cover the lampstand for the light, with its lamps, its tongs, its trays, and all the vessels for oil with which it is supplied.

¹⁰And they shall put it with all its utensils in a covering of goatskin and put it on the carrying frame.

¹¹And over the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue and cover it with a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles.

¹²And they shall take all the vessels of the service that are used in the sanctuary and put them in a cloth of blue and cover them with a covering of goatskin and put them on the carrying frame.

¹³And they shall take away the ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it.

¹⁴And they shall put on it all the utensils of the altar, which are used for the service there, the fire pans, the forks, the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread on it a covering of goatskin, and shall put in its poles.

¹⁵And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, lest they die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the sons of Kohath are to carry.

¹⁶“And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall have charge of the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the regular grain offering, and the anointing oil, with the oversight of the whole tabernacle and all that is in it, of the sanctuary and its vessels.”

¹⁷The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying,

¹⁸“Let not the tribe of the clans of the Kohathites be destroyed from among the Levites,

¹⁹but deal thus with them, that they may live and not die when they come near to the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint them each to his task and to his burden,

²⁰but they shall not go in to look on the holy things even for a moment, lest they die.”

²¹The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

²²“Take a census of the sons of Gershon also, by their fathers' houses and by their clans.

²³From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, all who can come to do duty, to do service in the tent of meeting.

²⁴This is the service of the clans of the Gershonites, in serving and bearing burdens:

²⁵they shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle and the tent of meeting with its covering and the covering of goatskin that is on top of it and the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting

²⁶and the hangings of the court and the screen for the entrance of the gate of the court that is around the tabernacle and the altar, and their cords and all the equipment for their service. And they shall do all that needs to be done with regard to them.

²⁷All the service of the sons of the Gershonites shall be at the command of Aaron and his sons, in all that they are to carry and in all that they have to do. And you shall assign to their charge all that they are to carry.

²⁸This is the service of the clans of the sons of the Gershonites in the tent of meeting, and their guard duty is to be under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

²⁹“As for the sons of Merari, you shall list them by their clans and their fathers' houses.

³⁰From thirty years old up to fifty years old, you shall list them, everyone who can come on duty, to do the service of the tent of meeting.

³¹And this is what they are charged to carry, as the whole of their service in the tent of meeting: the frames of the tabernacle, with its bars, pillars, and bases,

³²and the pillars around the court with their bases, pegs, and cords, with all their equipment and all their accessories. And you shall list by name the objects that they are required to carry.

³³This is the service of the clans of the sons of Merari, the whole of their service in the tent of meeting, under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.”

³⁴And Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of the congregation listed the sons of the Kohathites, by their clans and their fathers' houses,

³⁵from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty, for service in the tent of meeting;

³⁶and those listed by clans were 2,750.

³⁷This was the list of the clans of the Kohathites, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the LORD by Moses.

³⁸Those listed of the sons of Gershon, by their clans and their fathers' houses,

³⁹from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty for service in the tent of meeting —

⁴⁰those listed by their clans and their fathers' houses were 2,630.

⁴¹This was the list of the clans of the sons of Gershon, all who served in the tent of meeting, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the LORD.

⁴²Those listed of the clans of the sons of Merari, by their clans and their fathers' houses,

⁴³from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come on duty, for service in the tent of meeting —

⁴⁴those listed by clans were 3,200.

⁴⁵This was the list of the clans of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron listed according to the commandment of the LORD by Moses.

⁴⁶All those who were listed of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron and the chiefs of Israel listed, by their clans and their fathers' houses,

⁴⁷from thirty years old up to fifty years old, everyone who could come to do the service of ministry and the service of bearing burdens in the tent of meeting,

⁴⁸those listed were 8,580.

⁴⁹According to the commandment of the LORD through Moses they were listed, each one with his task of serving or carrying. Thus they were listed by him, as the LORD commanded Moses.

¹I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me!

²For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.

³But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.

⁴For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.

⁵Indeed, I consider that I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles.

⁶Even if I am unskilled in speaking, I am not so in knowledge; indeed, in every way we have made this plain to you in all things.

⁷Or did I commit a sin in humbling myself so that you might be exalted, because I preached God's gospel to you free of charge?

⁸I robbed other churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you.

⁹And when I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my need. So I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way.

¹⁰As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia.

¹¹And why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!

¹²And what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do.

¹³For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.

¹⁴And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.

¹⁵So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their deeds.

¹⁶I repeat, let no one think me foolish. But even if you do, accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little.

¹⁷What I am saying with this boastful confidence, I say not as the Lord would but as a fool.

¹⁸Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast.

¹⁹For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves!

²⁰For you bear it if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face.

²¹To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that! But whatever anyone else dares to boast of — I am speaking as a fool — I also dare to boast of that.

²²Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I.

²³Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one — I am talking like a madman — with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death.

²⁴Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one.

²⁵Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea;

²⁶on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers;

²⁷in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.

²⁸And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.

²⁹Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?

³⁰If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.

³¹The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying.

³²At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me,

³³but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.

¹And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads.

²And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority.

³One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast.

⁴And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”

⁵And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months.

⁶It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven.

⁷Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation,

⁸and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain.

⁹If anyone has an ear, let him hear:

¹⁰If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.

¹¹Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon.

¹²It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed.

¹³It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people,

¹⁴and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived.

¹⁵And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain.

¹⁶Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead,

¹⁷so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name.

¹⁸This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.

¹I came to my garden, my sister, my bride, I gathered my myrrh with my spice, I ate my honeycomb with my honey, I drank my wine with my milk. Others Eat, friends, drink, and be drunk with love!

²I slept, but my heart was awake. A sound! My beloved is knocking. “Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my perfect one, for my head is wet with dew, my locks with the drops of the night.”

³I had put off my garment; how could I put it on? I had bathed my feet; how could I soil them?

⁴My beloved put his hand to the latch, and my heart was thrilled within me.

⁵I arose to open to my beloved, and my hands dripped with myrrh, my fingers with liquid myrrh, on the handles of the bolt.

⁶I opened to my beloved, but my beloved had turned and gone. My soul failed me when he spoke. I sought him, but found him not; I called him, but he gave no answer.

⁷The watchmen found me as they went about in the city; they beat me, they bruised me, they took away my veil, those watchmen of the walls.

⁸I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if you find my beloved, that you tell him I am sick with love.

⁹What is your beloved more than another beloved, O most beautiful among women? What is your beloved more than another beloved, that you thus adjure us?

¹⁰My beloved is radiant and ruddy, distinguished among ten thousand.

¹¹His head is the finest gold; his locks are wavy, black as a raven.

¹²His eyes are like doves beside streams of water, bathed in milk, sitting beside a full pool.

¹³His cheeks are like beds of spices, mounds of sweet-smelling herbs. His lips are lilies, dripping liquid myrrh.

¹⁴His arms are rods of gold, set with jewels. His body is polished ivory, bedecked with sapphires.

¹⁵His legs are alabaster columns, set on bases of gold. His appearance is like Lebanon, choice as the cedars.

¹⁶His mouth is most sweet, and he is altogether desirable. This is my beloved and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.

¹I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?

²My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.

³He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.

⁴Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

⁵The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand.

⁶The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.

⁷The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.

⁸The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

¹The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion.

²When a land transgresses, it has many rulers, but with a man of understanding and knowledge, its stability will long continue.

³A poor man who oppresses the poor is a beating rain that leaves no food.

⁴Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law strive against them.

⁵Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the LORD understand it completely.

⁶Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity than a rich man who is crooked in his ways.

⁷The one who keeps the law is a son with understanding, but a companion of gluttons shames his father.

⁸Whoever multiplies his wealth by interest and profit gathers it for him who is generous to the poor.

⁹If one turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination.

¹⁰Whoever misleads the upright into an evil way will fall into his own pit, but the blameless will have a goodly inheritance.

¹¹A rich man is wise in his own eyes, but a poor man who has understanding will find him out.

¹²When the righteous triumph, there is great glory, but when the wicked rise, people hide themselves.

¹³Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

¹⁴Blessed is the one who fears the LORD always, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity.

¹⁵Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a poor people.

¹⁶A ruler who lacks understanding is a cruel oppressor, but he who hates unjust gain will prolong his days.

¹⁷If one is burdened with the blood of another, he will be a fugitive until death; let no one help him.

¹⁸Whoever walks in integrity will be delivered, but he who is crooked in his ways will suddenly fall.

¹⁹Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty.

²⁰A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.

²¹To show partiality is not good, but for a piece of bread a man will do wrong.

²²A stingy man hastens after wealth and does not know that poverty will come upon him.

²³Whoever rebukes a man will afterward find more favor than he who flatters with his tongue.

²⁴Whoever robs his father or his mother and says, “That is no transgression,” is a companion to a man who destroys.

²⁵A greedy man stirs up strife, but the one who trusts in the LORD will be enriched.

²⁶Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.

²⁷Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse.

²⁸When the wicked rise, people hide themselves, but when they perish, the righteous increase.

¹Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”

²And the word of the LORD came to him:

³“Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan.

⁴You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.”

⁵So he went and did according to the word of the LORD. He went and lived by the brook Cherith that is east of the Jordan.

⁶And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.

⁷And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.

⁸Then the word of the LORD came to him,

⁹“Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.”

¹⁰So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.”

¹¹And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.”

¹²And she said, “As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.”

¹³And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son.

¹⁴For thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the LORD sends rain upon the earth.’”

¹⁵And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days.

¹⁶The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah.

¹⁷After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill. And his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him.

¹⁸And she said to Elijah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance and to cause the death of my son!”

¹⁹And he said to her, “Give me your son.” And he took him from her arms and carried him up into the upper chamber where he lodged, and laid him on his own bed.

²⁰And he cried to the LORD, “O LORD my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by killing her son?”

²¹Then he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried to the LORD, “O LORD my God, let this child's life come into him again.”

²²And the LORD listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and he revived.

²³And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house and delivered him to his mother. And Elijah said, “See, your son lives.”

²⁴And the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in your mouth is truth.”

¹But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest

²and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

³Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him.

⁴And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”

⁵And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.

⁶But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.”

⁷The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one.

⁸Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.

⁹And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

¹⁰Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.”

¹¹And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying,

¹²and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.”

¹³But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem.

¹⁴And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.”

¹⁵But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.

¹⁶For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”

¹⁷So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

¹⁸And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized;

¹⁹and taking food, he was strengthened. Saul Proclaims Jesus in Synagogues For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus.

²⁰And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.”

²¹And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?”

²²But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ.

²³When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him,

²⁴but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him,

²⁵but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket.

²⁶And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple.

²⁷But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus.

²⁸So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord.

²⁹And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists. But they were seeking to kill him.

³⁰And when the brothers learned this, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.

³¹So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.

³²Now as Peter went here and there among them all, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda.

³³There he found a man named Aeneas, bedridden for eight years, who was paralyzed.

³⁴And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; rise and make your bed.” And immediately he rose.

³⁵And all the residents of Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord.

³⁶Now there was in Joppa a disciple named Tabitha, which, translated, means Dorcas. She was full of good works and acts of charity.

³⁷In those days she became ill and died, and when they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room.

³⁸Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him, urging him, “Please come to us without delay.”

³⁹So Peter rose and went with them. And when he arrived, they took him to the upper room. All the widows stood beside him weeping and showing tunics and other garments that Dorcas made while she was with them.

⁴⁰But Peter put them all outside, and knelt down and prayed; and turning to the body he said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up.

⁴¹And he gave her his hand and raised her up. Then, calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive.

⁴²And it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.

⁴³And he stayed in Joppa for many days with one Simon, a tanner.