Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹The Pharisees and some of the scribes *gathered to Him after they came from Jerusalem,

²and saw that some of His disciples were eating their bread with unholy hands, that is, unwashed.

³(For the Pharisees and all the other Jews do not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thereby holding firmly to the tradition of the elders;

⁴and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they completely cleanse themselves; and there are many other things which they have received as traditions to firmly hold, such as the washing of cups, pitchers, and copper pots.)

⁵And the Pharisees and the scribes *asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk in accordance with the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with unholy hands?”

⁶But He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME.

⁷AND IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE COMMANDMENTS OF MEN.’

⁸Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.”

⁹He was also saying to them, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition.

¹⁰For Moses said, ‘HONOR YOUR FATHER AND YOUR MOTHER’; and, ‘THE ONE WHO SPEAKS EVIL OF FATHER OR MOTHER, ISCERTAINLY TO BE PUT TO DEATH’;

¹¹but you say, ‘If a person says to his father or his mother, whatever I have that would help you is Corban (that is, given to God),’

¹²you no longer allow him to do anything for his father or his mother;

¹³thereby invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that.”

¹⁴After He called the crowd to Him again, He began saying to them, “Listen to Me, all of you, and understand:

¹⁵there is nothing outside the person which can defile him if it goes into him; but the things which come out of the person are what defile the person.”

¹⁶

¹⁷And when He later entered a house, away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him about the parable.

¹⁸And He *said to them, “Are you so lacking in understanding as well? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the person from outside cannot defile him,

¹⁹because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, andis eliminated?” (Thereby He declared all foods clean.)

²⁰And He was saying, “That which comes out of the person, that is what defiles the person.

²¹For from within, out of thehearts of people, come the evil thoughts, acts of sexual immorality, thefts, murders, acts of adultery,

²²deeds of greed, wickedness, deceit, indecent behavior,envy, slander,pride, and foolishness.

²³All these evil things come from within and defile the person.”

²⁴Now Jesus got up and went from there to the region of Tyre. And when He had entered a house, He wanted no one to know about it; and yet He could not escape notice.

²⁵But after hearing about Him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately came and fell at His feet.

²⁶Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician descent. And she repeatedly asked Him to cast the demon out of her daughter.

²⁷And He was saying to her, “Let the children be satisfied first, for it is notgood to take the children’s bread and throw it to thedogs.”

²⁸But she answered and *said to Him, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs under the table feed on the children’s crumbs.”

²⁹And He said to her, “Because of thisanswer, go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.”

³⁰And after going back to her home, she found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

³¹Again He left the region of Tyre and came through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, within the region of Decapolis.

³²And they *brought to Him one who was deaf and had difficulty speaking, and they *begged Him to lay His hand on him.

³³And Jesus took him aside from the crowd, by himself, and put His fingers in his ears, and after spitting, He touched his tongue with the saliva;

³⁴and looking up to heaven with a deep sigh, He *said to him, “Ephphatha!” that is, “Be opened!”

³⁵And his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was removed, and he began speaking plainly.

³⁶And He gave them orders not to tell anyone; but the more He ordered them, the more widely they continued to proclaim it.

³⁷And they were utterly astonished, saying, “He has done all things well; He makes even those who are deaf hear, and those who are unable to talk, speak.”

¹Now on the day that Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, he anointed it and consecrated it with all its furnishings, and the altar and all its utensils; he anointed them and consecrated them also.

²Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers’ households, made an offering (they were the leaders of the tribes; they were the supervisors over the numbered men).

³When they brought their offering before the LORD, six covered carts and twelve oxen, a cart for every two of the leaders and an ox for each one, then they presented them in front of the tabernacle.

⁴Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

⁵“Accept these things from them, that they may be used in the service of the tent of meeting, and you shall give them to the Levites, to each man according to his service.”

⁶So Moses took the carts and the oxen and gave them to the Levites.

⁷Two carts and four oxen he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service,

⁸and four carts and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their service, under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

⁹But he did not give any to the sons of Kohath, because theirs was the service of the holy objects, which they carried on the shoulder.

¹⁰And the leaders offered the dedication offering for the altar when it was anointed, so the leaders offered their offering before the altar.

¹¹Then the LORD said to Moses, “They shall present their offering, one leader each day, for the dedication of the altar.”

¹²Now the one who presented his offering on the first day was Nahshon the son of Amminadab, of the tribe of Judah;

¹³and his offering was one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

¹⁴one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

¹⁵one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

¹⁶one male goat as a sin offering;

¹⁷and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

¹⁸On the second day Nethanel the son of Zuar, leader of Issachar, presented an offering;

¹⁹he presented as his offering one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

²⁰one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

²¹one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

²²one male goat as a sin offering;

²³and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Nethanel the son of Zuar.

²⁴On the third day it was Eliab the son of Helon, leader of the sons of Zebulun;

²⁵his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

²⁶one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

²⁷one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

²⁸one male goat as a sin offering;

²⁹and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Eliab the son of Helon.

³⁰On the fourth day it was Elizur the son of Shedeur, leader of the sons of Reuben;

³¹his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

³²one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

³³one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

³⁴one male goat as a sin offering;

³⁵and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Elizur the son of Shedeur.

³⁶On the fifth day it was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai, leader of the sons of Simeon;

³⁷his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

³⁸one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

³⁹one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

⁴⁰one male goat as a sin offering;

⁴¹and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.

⁴²On the sixth day it was Eliasaph the son of Deuel, leader of the sons of Gad;

⁴³his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

⁴⁴one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

⁴⁵one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

⁴⁶one male goat as a sin offering;

⁴⁷and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

⁴⁸On the seventh day it was Elishama the son of Ammihud, leader of the sons of Ephraim;

⁴⁹his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

⁵⁰one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

⁵¹one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

⁵²one male goat as a sin offering;

⁵³and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Elishama the son of Ammihud.

⁵⁴On the eighth day it was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, leader of the sons of Manasseh;

⁵⁵his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

⁵⁶one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

⁵⁷one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

⁵⁸one male goat as a sin offering;

⁵⁹and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.

⁶⁰On the ninth day it was Abidan the son of Gideoni, leader of the sons of Benjamin;

⁶¹his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

⁶²one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

⁶³one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

⁶⁴one male goat as a sin offering;

⁶⁵and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Abidan the son of Gideoni.

⁶⁶On the tenth day it was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai, leader of the sons of Dan;

⁶⁷his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

⁶⁸one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

⁶⁹one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

⁷⁰one male goat as a sin offering;

⁷¹and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.

⁷²On the eleventh day it was Pagiel the son of Ochran, leader of the sons of Asher;

⁷³his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

⁷⁴one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

⁷⁵one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

⁷⁶one male goat as a sin offering;

⁷⁷and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Pagiel the son of Ochran.

⁷⁸On the twelfth day it was Ahira the son of Enan, leader of the sons of Naphtali;

⁷⁹his offering was also one silver dish whose weight was 130 shekels, and one silver bowl of seventy shekels in sanctuary shekels, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering;

⁸⁰one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense;

⁸¹one bull, one ram, and one male lamb one year old, as a burnt offering;

⁸²one male goat as a sin offering;

⁸³and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Ahira the son of Enan.

⁸⁴This was the dedication offering for the altar from the leaders of Israel when it was anointed: twelve silver dishes, twelve silver bowls, and twelve gold pans,

⁸⁵each silver dish weighing 130 shekels and each bowl seventy; all the silver of the utensils totaled 2,400 in sanctuary shekels;

⁸⁶the twelve gold pans full of incense, weighing ten shekels apiece in sanctuary shekels, all the gold of the pans totaled 120 shekels.

⁸⁷All the oxen for the burnt offering totaled twelve bulls, all the rams, twelve, the male lambs one year old with their grain offering, twelve, and the male goats as a sin offering, twelve;

⁸⁸and all the oxen for the sacrifice of peace offerings totaled twenty-four bulls, all the rams, sixty, the male goats, sixty, and the male lambs one year old, sixty. This was the dedication offering for the altar after it was anointed.

⁸⁹Now when Moses entered the tent of meeting to speak with Him, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the atoning cover that was on the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim; so He spoke to him.

¹Paul, an apostle (not sent from men nor through human agency, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead),

²and all the brothers who are with me, To the churches of Galatia:

³Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ,

⁴who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,

⁵to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen.

⁶I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel,

⁷which is not just another account; but there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

⁸But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!

⁹As we have said before, even now I say again: if anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!

¹⁰For am I now seeking the favor of people, or of God? Or am I striving to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.

¹¹For I would have you know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel which was preached by me is not of human invention.

¹²For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

¹³For you have heard of my former way of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it;

¹⁴and I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ancestral traditions.

¹⁵But when He who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace was pleased

¹⁶to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood,

¹⁷nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus.

¹⁸Then three years later I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him for fifteen days.

¹⁹But I did not see another one of the apostles except James, the Lord’s brother.

²⁰(Now in what I am writing to you, I assure you before God that I am not lying.)

²¹Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia.

²²I was still unknown by sight to the churches of Judea which are in Christ;

²³but they only kept hearing, “The man who once persecuted us is now preaching the faith which he once tried to destroy.”

²⁴And they were glorifying God because of me.

¹Then I heard a loud voice from the temple, saying to the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”

²So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth; and a harmful and painful sore afflicted the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image.

³The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became blood like that of a dead man; and every living thing in the sea died.

⁴Then the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of waters; and they became blood.

⁵And I heard the angel of the waters saying, “Righteous are You, the One who is and who was, O Holy One, because You judged these things;

⁶for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink. They deserve it.”

⁷And I heard the altar saying, “Yes, Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.”

⁸And the fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given power to scorch people with fire.

⁹And the people were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory.

¹⁰And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain,

¹¹and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pain and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.

¹²The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings from the east.

¹³And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs;

¹⁴for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the entire world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty.

¹⁵(“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and people will not see his shame.”)

¹⁶And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.

¹⁷Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done.”

¹⁸And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since mankind came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty.

¹⁹The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered in the sight of God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath.

²⁰And every island fled, and no mountains were found.

²¹And huge hailstones, weighing about a talent each, *came down from heaven upon people; and people blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because the hailstone plague *was extremely severe.

¹“Oh that you were like a brother to me Who nursed at my mother’s breasts. If I found you outdoors, I would kiss you; No one would despise me, either.

²I would lead you and bring you Into the house of my mother, who used to instruct me; I would give you spiced wine to drink from the juice of my pomegranates.

³Let his left hand be under my head, And his right hand embrace me.”

⁴“Swear to me, you daughters of Jerusalem: Do not disturb or awaken my love Until she pleases.”

⁵“Who is this coming up from the wilderness, Leaning on her beloved?” “Beneath the apple tree I awakened you; There your mother went into labor with you, There she was in labor and gave birth to you.

⁶Put me like a seal over your heart, Like a seal on your arm. For love is as strong as death, Jealousy is as severe as Sheol; Its flames are flames of fire, The flame of the LORD.

⁷Many waters cannot quench love, Nor will rivers flood over it; If a man were to give all the riches of his house for love, It would be utterly despised.”

⁸“We have a little sister, And she has no breasts; What shall we do for our sister On the day when she is spoken for?

⁹If she is a wall, We will build on her a battlement of silver; But if she is a door, We will barricade her with planks of cedar.”

¹⁰“I was a wall, and my breasts were like towers; Then I became in his eyes as one who finds peace.

¹¹Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon; He entrusted the vineyard to caretakers. Each one was to bring a thousand shekels of silver for its fruit.

¹²My very own vineyard is at my disposal; The thousand shekels are for you, Solomon, And two hundred are for those who take care of its fruit.”

¹³“You who sit in the gardens: My companions are listening for your voice— Let me hear it!”

¹⁴“Hurry, my beloved, And be like a gazelle or a young stag On the mountains of balsam trees!”

¹“Had it not been the LORD who was on our side,” Let Israel say,

²“Had it not been the LORD who was on our side When people rose up against us,

³Then they would have swallowed us alive, When their anger was kindled against us;

⁴Then the waters would have flooded over us, The stream would have swept over our souls;

⁵Then the raging waters would have swept over our souls.”

⁶Blessed be the LORD, Who has not given us to be torn by their teeth.

⁷Our souls have escaped like a bird from the trapper’s snare; The snare is broken and we have escaped.

⁸Our help is in the name of the LORD, Who made heaven and earth.

¹The words of King Lemuel, the pronouncement which his mother taught him:

²What, my son? And what, son of my womb? And what, son of my vows?

³Do not give your strength to women, Or your ways to that which destroys kings.

⁴It is not for kings, Lemuel, It is not for kings to drink wine, Or for rulers to desire intoxicating drink,

⁵Otherwise they will drink and forget what is decreed, And pervert the rights of all the needy.

⁶Give intoxicating drink to one who is perishing, And wine to one whose life is bitter.

⁷Let him drink and forget his poverty, And remember his trouble no more.

⁸Open your mouth for the people who cannot speak, For the rights of all the unfortunate.

⁹Open your mouth, judge righteously, And defend the rights of the poor and needy.

¹⁰An excellent wife, who can find her? For her worth is far above jewels.

¹¹The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain.

¹²She does him good and not evil All the days of her life.

¹³She looks for wool and linen, And works with her hands in delight.

¹⁴She is like merchant ships; She brings her food from afar.

¹⁵And she rises while it is still night And gives food to her household, And portions to her attendants.

¹⁶She considers a field and buys it; From her earnings she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷She surrounds her waist with strength And makes her arms strong.

¹⁸She senses that her profit is good; Her lamp does not go out at night.

¹⁹She stretches out her hands to the distaff, And her hands grasp the spindle.

²⁰She extends her hand to the poor, And she stretches out her hands to the needy.

²¹She is not afraid of the snow for her household, For all her household are clothed with scarlet.

²²She makes coverings for herself; Her clothing is fine linen and purple.

²³Her husband is known in the gates, When he sits among the elders of the land.

²⁴She makes linen garments and sells them, And supplies belts to the tradesmen.

²⁵Strength and dignity are her clothing, And she smiles at the future.

²⁶She opens her mouth in wisdom, And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

²⁷She watches over the activities of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness.

²⁸Her children rise up and bless her; Her husband also, and he praises her, saying:

²⁹“Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all.”

³⁰Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.

³¹Give her the product of her hands, And let her works praise her in the gates.

¹Now Ben-hadad, king of Aram, gathered all his army, and there were thirty-two kings with him, and horses and chariots. And he went up and besieged Samaria, and fought against it.

²Then he sent messengers to the city to Ahab, king of Israel, and said to him, “This is what Ben-hadad says:

³‘Your silver and your gold are mine; your most beautiful wives and children are also mine.’ ”

⁴And the king of Israel replied, “As you say, my lord, O king; I am yours, as well as all that I have.”

⁵Then the messengers returned and said, “Ben-hadad says this: ‘I did indeed send word to you, saying, “You shall give me your silver, your gold, your wives, and your children”;

⁶but about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants; and they will take in their hands everything that is pleasing to your eyes, and take it all away.’ ”

⁷Then the king of Israel summoned all the elders of the land and said, “Please be aware and see that this man is looking for trouble; for he sent me his demand for my wives, my children, my silver, and my gold, and I did not refuse him.”

⁸Then all the elders and all the people said to him, “Do not listen nor consent.”

⁹So he said to the messengers of Ben-hadad, “Tell my lord the king, ‘Everything that you sent as a demand to your servant at the first, I will do; but this thing I cannot do.’ ” Then the messengers departed, and brought him word again.

¹⁰Ben-hadad sent word to him and said, “May the gods do so to me and more so, if the dust of Samaria will be enough for handfuls for all the people who follow me.”

¹¹Then the king of Israel replied, “Tell him, ‘He who straps on his weapons had better not boast like one who takes them off.’ ”

¹²And when Ben-hadad heard this message, while he was drinking with the kings in the temporary shelters, he said to his servants, “Take your positions.” So they took their positions against the city.

¹³Now behold, a prophet approached Ahab king of Israel, and said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I am going to hand them over to you today, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’ ”

¹⁴But Ahab said, “By whom?” So he said, “The LORD says this: ‘By the young men of the leaders of the provinces.’ ” Then he said, “Who will begin the battle?” And he said, “You will.”

¹⁵So he mustered the young men of the leaders of the provinces, and there were 232; and after them he mustered all the people, all the sons of Israel: seven thousand.

¹⁶They went out at noon, while Ben-hadad was drinking himself drunk in the temporary shelters with the thirty-two kings who were helping him.

¹⁷The young men of the leaders of the provinces went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out scouts, and they reported to him, saying, “Men have come out from Samaria.”

¹⁸Then he said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive; or if they have come out for war, take them alive as well.”

¹⁹So these men went out from the city, the young men of the leaders of the provinces, and the army which followed them.

²⁰And they killed, each one, his man; and the Arameans fled and Israel pursued them, and Ben-hadad the king of Aram escaped on a horse with horsemen.

²¹The king of Israel also went out and struck the horses and chariots, and killed the Arameans in a great slaughter.

²²Then the prophet approached the king of Israel and said to him, “Go, show yourself courageous and be aware and see what you have to do; for at the turn of the year the king of Aram will march against you.”

²³Now the servants of the king of Aram said to him, “Their gods are gods of the mountains; for that reason they were stronger than we. But let us fight them in the plain, and we will certainly be stronger than they.

²⁴Carry out this plan: remove the kings, each from his place, and put governors in their place,

²⁵and muster an army like the army that you have lost, horse for horse and chariot for chariot. Then we will fight against them in the plain, and we will certainly be stronger than they.” And he listened to their voice and did so.

²⁶So at the turn of the year Ben-hadad mustered the Arameans and went up to Aphek to fight against Israel.

²⁷And the sons of Israel were mustered and given provisions, and they went to meet them; and the sons of Israel camped opposite them like two little flocks of goats, while the Arameans filled the country.

²⁸Then a man of God approached and spoke to the king of Israel, and said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Since the Arameans have said, “The LORD is a god of mountains, but He is not a god of valleys,” therefore I will hand over to you all this great multitude, and you shall know that I am the LORD.’ ”

²⁹So they camped, one opposite the other, for seven days. And on the seventh day the battle was joined, and the sons of Israel killed of the Arameans a hundred thousand foot soldiers in a single day.

³⁰But the rest fled to Aphek into the city, and the wall fell on twenty-seven thousand men who were left. And Ben-hadad fled and came into the city, going from one inner room to another.

³¹But his servants said to him, “Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings. Please let’s put sackcloth around our waists and ropes on our heads, and go out to the king of Israel; perhaps he will let you live.”

³²So they put sackcloth around their waists and ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel and said, “Your servant Ben-hadad says, ‘Please let me live.’ ” And Ahab said, “Is he still alive? He is my brother.”

³³Now the men took this as a good omen, and quickly accepting it from him, they said, “Your brother Ben-hadad.” Then he said, “Go, bring him.” Then Ben-hadad came out to him, and he had him mount the chariot.

³⁴And Ben-hadad said to him, “The cities which my father took from your father I will restore, and you can make streets for yourself in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria.” Ahab said, “And I will let you go with this covenant.” So he made a covenant with him and let him go.

³⁵Now a man from the sons of the prophets said to another by the word of the LORD, “Please strike me.” But the man refused to strike him.

³⁶Then he said to him, “Because you have not listened to the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as you leave me, a lion will kill you.” And as soon as he left him a lion found him and killed him.

³⁷Then he found another man and said, “Please strike me.” And the man struck him, injuring him.

³⁸So the prophet departed and waited for the king by the road, and disguised himself with a bandage over his eyes.

³⁹And as the king passed by, he cried out to the king and said, “Your servant went out into the midst of the battle; and behold, a man turned aside and brought a man to me and said, ‘Guard this man; if for any reason he goes missing, then your life shall be forfeited in place of his life, or else you shall pay a talent of silver.’

⁴⁰Now while your servant was busy here and there, he disappeared.” And the king of Israel said to him, “So shall your judgment be; you yourself determined it.”

⁴¹Then he quickly took the bandage away from his eyes, and the king of Israel recognized him, that he was one of the prophets.

⁴²And the prophet said to him, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Since you have let go from your hand the man I had designated for destruction, your life shall be forfeited in place of his life, and your people in place of his people.’ ”

⁴³So the king of Israel went to his house sullen and furious, and came to Samaria.

¹Now it came about in the thirtieth year, on the fifth day of the fourth month, while I was by the river Chebar among the exiles, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.

²(On the fifth of the month in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s exile,

³the word of the LORD came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and there the hand of the LORD came upon him.)

⁴As I looked, behold, a high wind was coming from the north, a great cloud with fire flashing intermittently and a bright light around it, and in its midst something like gleaming metal in the midst of the fire.

⁵And within it there were figures resembling four living beings. And this was their appearance: they had human form.

⁶Each of them had four faces and four wings.

⁷Their legs were straight and their feet were like a calf’s hoof, and they sparkled like polished bronze.

⁸Under their wings on their four sides were human hands. As for the faces and wings of the four of them,

⁹their wings touched one another; their faces did not turn when they moved, each went straight forward.

¹⁰As for the form of their faces, each had a human face; all four had the face of a lion on the right and the face of a bull on the left, and all four had the face of an eagle.

¹¹Such were their faces. Their wings were spread out above; each had two touching another being, and two covering their bodies.

¹²And each went straight forward; wherever the spirit was about to go, they would go, without turning as they went.

¹³In the midst of the living beings there was something that looked like burning coals of fire, like torches moving among the living beings. The fire was bright, and lightning was flashing from the fire.

¹⁴And the living beings ran back and forth like bolts of lightning.

¹⁵Now as I looked at the living beings, behold, there was one wheel on the ground beside the living beings, for each of the four of them.

¹⁶The appearance of the wheels and their workmanship was like sparkling topaz, and all four of them had the same form, their appearance and workmanship being as if one wheel were within another.

¹⁷Whenever they moved, they moved in any of their four directions without turning as they moved.

¹⁸As for their rims, they were high and awesome, and the rims of all four of them were covered with eyes all around.

¹⁹Whenever the living beings moved, the wheels moved with them. And whenever the living beings rose from the earth, the wheels rose also.

²⁰Wherever the spirit was about to go, they would go in that direction. And the wheels rose just as they did; for the spirit of the living beings was in the wheels.

²¹Whenever those went, they went; and whenever those stopped, they stopped. And whenever those rose from the earth, the wheels rose just as they did; for the spirit of the living beings was in the wheels.

²²Now over the heads of the living beings there was something like an expanse, like the awesome gleam of crystal, spread out over their heads.

²³Under the expanse their wings were stretched out straight, one toward the other; each one also had two wings covering its body on the one side and on the other.

²⁴And I also heard the sound of their wings, like the sound of abundant waters as they went, like the voice of the Almighty, a sound of a crowd like the sound of an army camp; whenever they stopped, they let down their wings.

²⁵And a voice came from above the expanse that was over their heads; whenever they stood still, they let down their wings.

²⁶Now above the expanse that was over their heads there was something resembling a throne, like lapis lazuli in appearance; and on that which resembled a throne, high up, was a figure with the appearance of a man.

²⁷Then I noticed from the appearance of His waist and upward something like gleaming metal that looked like fire all around within it, and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw something like fire; and there was a radiance around Him.

²⁸Like the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face and heard a voice speaking.

¹Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church, to do them harm.

²And he had James the brother of John executed with a sword.

³When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter as well. (Now these were the days of Unleavened Bread.)

⁴When he had arrested him, he put him in prison, turning him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending only after the Passover to bring him before the people.

⁵So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made to God intensely by the church.

⁶On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison.

⁷And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly stood near Peter, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands.

⁸And the angel said to him, “Put on your belt and strap on your sandals.” And he did so. And he *said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.”

⁹And he went out and continued to follow, and yet he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.

¹⁰Now when they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.

¹¹When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.”

¹²And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John, who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying.

¹³When he knocked at the door of the gate, a slave woman named Rhoda came to answer.

¹⁴When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate.

¹⁵They said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. They said, “It is his angel.”

¹⁶But Peter continued knocking; and when they had opened the door, they saw him and were amazed.

¹⁷But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and the brothers.” Then he left and went to another place.

¹⁸Now when day came, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to what could have become of Peter.

¹⁹When Herod had searched for him and had not found him, he examined the guards and ordered that they be led away to execution. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and was spending time there.

²⁰Now he was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; and with one mind they came to him, and having won over Blastus the king’s chamberlain, they were asking for peace, because their country was supported with grain from the king’s country.

²¹On an appointed day, after putting on his royal apparel, Herod took his seat on the rostrum and began delivering an address to them.

²²The people repeatedly cried out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!”

²³And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.

²⁴But the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied.

²⁵And Barnabas and Saul returned when they had fulfilled their mission to Jerusalem, taking along with them John, who was also called Mark.