Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹At that time Jesus passed through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick and eat some heads of grain.

²When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, “See, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.”

³He said to them, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and those who were with him were hungry:

⁴how he entered the house of God, and they ate the bread of the Presence — which is not lawful for him or for those with him to eat, but only for the priests?

⁵Or haven’t you read in the law that on Sabbath days the priests in the temple violate the Sabbath and are innocent?

⁶I tell you that something greater than the temple is here.

⁷If you had known what this means, I desire mercy and not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the innocent.

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

⁹Moving on from there, he entered their synagogue.

¹⁰There he saw a man who had a shriveled hand, and in order to accuse him they asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”

¹¹He replied to them, “Who among you, if he had a sheep that fell into a pit on the Sabbath, wouldn’t take hold of it and lift it out?

¹²A person is worth far more than a sheep; so it is lawful to do what is good on the Sabbath.”

¹³Then he told the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out, and it was restored, as good as the other.

¹⁴But the Pharisees went out and plotted against him, how they might kill him.

¹⁵Jesus was aware of this and withdrew. Large crowds followed him, and he healed them all.

¹⁶He warned them not to make him known,

¹⁷so that what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

¹⁸Here is my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.

¹⁹He will not argue or shout, and no one will hear his voice in the streets.

²⁰He will not break a bruised reed, and he will not put out a smoldering wick, until he has led justice to victory.

²¹The nations will put their hope in his name.

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

²³All the crowds were astounded and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”

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

²⁵Knowing their thoughts, he told them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is headed for destruction, and no city or house divided against itself will stand.

²⁶If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?

²⁷And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons drive them out? For this reason they will be your judges.

²⁸If I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

²⁹How can someone enter a strong man’s house and steal his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.

³⁰Anyone who is not with me is against me, and anyone who does not gather with me scatters.

³¹Therefore, I tell you, people will be forgiven every sin and blasphemy, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.

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

³³“Either make the tree good and its fruit will be good, or make the tree bad and its fruit will be bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.

³⁴Brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart.

³⁵A good person produces good things from his storeroom of good, and an evil person produces evil things from his storeroom of evil.

³⁶I tell you that on the day of judgment people will have to account for every careless word they speak.

³⁷For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

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

³⁹He answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.

⁴⁰For as Jonah was in the belly of the huge fish three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.

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

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

⁴³“When an unclean spirit comes out of a person, it roams through waterless places looking for rest but doesn’t find any.

⁴⁴Then it says, ‘I’ll go back to my house that I came from.’ Returning, it finds the house vacant, swept, and put in order.

⁴⁵Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and settle down there. As a result, that person’s last condition is worse than the first. That’s how it will also be with this evil generation.”

⁴⁶While he was still speaking with the crowds, his mother and brothers were standing outside wanting to speak to him.

⁴⁷Someone told him, “Look, your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you.”

⁴⁸He replied to the one who was speaking to him, “Who is my mother and who are my brothers?”

⁴⁹Stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers!

⁵⁰For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

¹The LORD said to Abram: Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.

²I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.

³I will bless those who bless you, I will curse anyone who treats you with contempt, and all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you.

⁴So Abram went, as the LORD had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.

⁵He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated, and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan,

⁶Abram passed through the land to the site of Shechem, at the oak of Moreh. (At that time the Canaanites were in the land.)

⁷The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the LORD who had appeared to him.

⁸From there he moved on to the hill country east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. He built an altar to the LORD there, and he called on the name of the LORD.

⁹Then Abram journeyed by stages to the Negev.

¹⁰There was a famine in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt to stay there for a while because the famine in the land was severe.

¹¹When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “Look, I know what a beautiful woman you are.

¹²When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ They will kill me but let you live.

¹³Please say you’re my sister so it will go well for me because of you, and my life will be spared on your account.”

¹⁴When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful.

¹⁵Pharaoh’s officials saw her and praised her to Pharaoh, so the woman was taken to Pharaoh’s household.

¹⁶He treated Abram well because of her, and Abram acquired flocks and herds, male and female donkeys, male and female slaves, and camels.

¹⁷But the LORD struck Pharaoh and his household with severe plagues because of Abram’s wife Sarai.

¹⁸So Pharaoh sent for Abram and said, “What have you done to me? Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife?

¹⁹Why did you say, ‘She’s my sister,’ so that I took her as my wife? Now, here is your wife. Take her and go!”

²⁰Then Pharaoh gave his men orders about him, and they sent him away with his wife and all he had.

¹Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship.

²Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

³For by the grace given to me, I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he should think. Instead, think sensibly, as God has distributed a measure of faith to each one.

⁴Now as we have many parts in one body, and all the parts do not have the same function,

⁵in the same way we who are many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another.

⁶According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts: If prophecy, use it according to the proportion of one’s faith;

⁷if service, use it in service; if teaching, in teaching;

⁸if exhorting, in exhortation; giving, with generosity; leading, with diligence; showing mercy, with cheerfulness.

⁹Let love be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good.

¹⁰Love one another deeply as brothers and sisters. Outdo one another in showing honor.

¹¹Do not lack diligence in zeal; be fervent in the Spirit; serve the Lord.

¹²Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer.

¹³Share with the saints in their needs; pursue hospitality.

¹⁴Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.

¹⁵Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.

¹⁶Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud; instead, associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own estimation.

¹⁷Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Give careful thought to do what is honorable in everyone’s eyes.

¹⁸If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

¹⁹Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for God’s wrath, because it is written, Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.

²⁰But If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. For in so doing you will be heaping fiery coals on his head.

²¹Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.

¹Now the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will depart from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,

²through the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared.

³They forbid marriage and demand abstinence from foods that God created to be received with gratitude by those who believe and know the truth.

⁴For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,

⁵since it is sanctified by the word of God and by prayer.

⁶If you point these things out to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, nourished by the words of the faith and the good teaching that you have followed.

⁷But have nothing to do with pointless and silly myths. Rather, train yourself in godliness.

⁸For the training of the body has limited benefit, but godliness is beneficial in every way, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.

⁹This saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance.

¹⁰For this reason we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.

¹¹Command and teach these things.

¹²Don’t let anyone despise your youth, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity.

¹³Until I come, give your attention to public reading, exhortation, and teaching.

¹⁴Don’t neglect the gift that is in you; it was given to you through prophecy, with the laying on of hands by the council of elders.

¹⁵Practice these things; be committed to them, so that your progress may be evident to all.

¹⁶Pay close attention to your life and your teaching; persevere in these things, for in doing this you will save both yourself and your hearers.

¹Then Job answered:

²No doubt you are the people, and wisdom will die with you!

³But I also have a mind like you; I am not inferior to you. Who doesn’t know the things you are talking about?

⁴I am a laughingstock to my friends, by calling on God, who answers me. The righteous and upright man is a laughingstock.

⁵The one who is at ease holds calamity in contempt and thinks it is prepared for those whose feet are slipping.

⁶The tents of robbers are safe, and those who trouble God are secure; God holds them in his hands.

⁷But ask the animals, and they will instruct you; ask the birds of the sky, and they will tell you.

⁸Or speak to the earth, and it will instruct you; let the fish of the sea inform you.

⁹Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this?

¹⁰The life of every living thing is in his hand, as well as the breath of all mankind.

¹¹Doesn’t the ear test words as the palate tastes food?

¹²Wisdom is found with the elderly, and understanding comes with long life.

¹³Wisdom and strength belong to God; counsel and understanding are his.

¹⁴Whatever he tears down cannot be rebuilt; whoever he imprisons cannot be released.

¹⁵When he withholds water, everything dries up, and when he releases it, it destroys the land.

¹⁶True wisdom and power belong to him. The deceived and the deceiver are his.

¹⁷He leads counselors away barefoot and makes judges go mad.

¹⁸He releases the bonds put on by kings and fastens a belt around their waists.

¹⁹He leads priests away barefoot and overthrows established leaders.

²⁰He deprives trusted advisers of speech and takes away the elders’ good judgment.

²¹He pours out contempt on nobles and disarms the strong.

²²He reveals mysteries from the darkness and brings the deepest darkness into the light.

²³He makes nations great, then destroys them; he enlarges nations, then leads them away.

²⁴He deprives the world’s leaders of reason, and makes them wander in a trackless wasteland.

²⁵They grope around in darkness without light; he makes them stagger like a drunkard.

¹For the choir director: according to . A psalm of David. [1] Help, LORD, for no faithful one remains; the loyal have disappeared from the human race.

²They lie to one another; they speak with flattering lips and deceptive hearts.

³May the LORD cut off all flattering lips and the tongue that speaks boastfully.

⁴They say, “Through our tongues we have power; our lips are our own — who can be our master?”

⁵“Because of the devastation of the needy and the groaning of the poor, I will now rise up,” says the LORD. “I will provide safety for the one who longs for it.”

⁶The words of the LORD are pure words, like silver refined in an earthen furnace, purified seven times.

⁷You, LORD, will guard us; you will protect us from this generation forever.

⁸The wicked prowl all around, and what is worthless is exalted by the human race.

¹Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but one who hates correction is stupid.

²One who is good obtains favor from the LORD, but he condemns a person who schemes.

³No one can be made secure by wickedness, but the root of the righteous is immovable.

⁴A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown, but a wife who causes shame is like rottenness in his bones.

⁵The thoughts of the righteous are just, but guidance from the wicked is deceitful.

⁶The words of the wicked are a deadly ambush, but the speech of the upright rescues them.

⁷The wicked are overthrown and perish, but the house of the righteous will stand.

⁸A man is praised for his insight, but a twisted mind is despised.

⁹Better to be disregarded, yet have a servant, than to act important but have no food.

¹⁰The righteous cares about his animal’s health, but even the merciful acts of the wicked are cruel.

¹¹The one who works his land will have plenty of food, but whoever chases fantasies lacks sense.

¹²The wicked desire what evil people have caught, but the root of the righteous is productive.

¹³By rebellious speech an evil person is trapped, but a righteous person escapes from trouble.

¹⁴A person will be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth, and the work of a person’s hands will reward him.

¹⁵A fool’s way is right in his own eyes, but whoever listens to counsel is wise.

¹⁶A fool’s displeasure is known at once, but whoever ignores an insult is sensible.

¹⁷Whoever speaks the truth declares what is right, but a false witness speaks deceit.

¹⁸There is one who speaks rashly, like a piercing sword; but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

¹⁹Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue, only a moment.

²⁰Deceit is in the hearts of those who plot evil, but those who promote peace have joy.

²¹No disaster overcomes the righteous, but the wicked are full of misery.

²²Lying lips are detestable to the LORD, but faithful people are his delight.

²³A shrewd person conceals knowledge, but a foolish heart publicizes stupidity.

²⁴The diligent hand will rule, but laziness will lead to forced labor.

²⁵Anxiety in a person’s heart weighs it down, but a good word cheers it up.

²⁶A righteous person is careful in dealing with his neighbor, but the ways of the wicked lead them astray.

²⁷A lazy hunter doesn’t roast his game, but to a diligent person, his wealth is precious.

²⁸There is life in the path of righteousness, and in its path there is no death.

¹The Israelites struck down the following kings of the land and took possession of their land beyond the Jordan to the east and from the Arnon River to Mount Hermon, including all the Arabah eastward:

²King Sihon of the Amorites lived in Heshbon. He ruled from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon River, along the middle of the valley, and half of Gilead up to the Jabbok River (the border of the Ammonites ),

³the Arabah east of the Sea of Chinnereth to the Sea of Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea), eastward through Beth-jeshimoth and southward below the slopes of Pisgah.

⁴King Og of Bashan, of the remnant of the Rephaim, lived in Ashtaroth and Edrei.

⁵He ruled over Mount Hermon, Salecah, all Bashan up to the Geshurite and Maacathite border, and half of Gilead to the border of King Sihon of Heshbon.

⁶Moses the LORD’s servant and the Israelites struck them down. And Moses the LORD’s servant gave their land as an inheritance to the Reubenites, Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh.

⁷Joshua and the Israelites struck down the following kings of the land beyond the Jordan to the west, from Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which ascends toward Seir (Joshua gave their land as an inheritance to the tribes of Israel according to their allotments:

⁸the hill country, the Judean foothills, the Arabah, the slopes, the wilderness, and the Negev — the lands of the Hethites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites):

⁹the king of Jericho — one the king of Ai, which is next to Bethel — one

¹⁰the king of Jerusalem — one the king of Hebron — one

¹¹the king of Jarmuth — one the king of Lachish — one

¹²the king of Eglon — one the king of Gezer — one

¹³the king of Debir — one the king of Geder — one

¹⁴the king of Hormah — one the king of Arad — one

¹⁵the king of Libnah — one the king of Adullam — one

¹⁶the king of Makkedah — one the king of Bethel — one

¹⁷the king of Tappuah — one the king of Hepher — one

¹⁸the king of Aphek — one the king of Lasharon — one

¹⁹the king of Madon — one the king of Hazor — one

²⁰the king of Shimron-meron — one the king of Achshaph — one

²¹the king of Taanach — one the king of Megiddo — one

²²the king of Kedesh — one the king of Jokneam in Carmel — one

²³the king of Dor in Naphath-dor — one the king of Goiim in Gilgal — one

²⁴the king of Tirzah — one the total number of all kings: — thirty-one.

¹On that day you will say: “I will give thanks to you, LORD, although you were angry with me. Your anger has turned away, and you have comforted me.

²Indeed, God is my salvation; I will trust him and not be afraid, for the LORD, the LORD himself, is my strength and my song. He has become my salvation.”

³You will joyfully draw water from the springs of salvation,

⁴and on that day you will say: “Give thanks to the LORD; proclaim his name! Make his works known among the peoples. Declare that his name is exalted.

⁵Sing to the LORD, for he has done glorious things. Let this be known throughout the earth.

⁶Cry out and sing, citizen of Zion, for the Holy One of Israel is among you in his greatness.”

¹About that time King Herod violently attacked some who belonged to the church,

²and he executed James, John’s brother, with the sword.

³When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter too, during the Festival of Unleavened Bread.

⁴After the arrest, he put him in prison and assigned four squads of four soldiers each to guard him, intending to bring him out to the people after the Passover.

⁵So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was praying fervently to God for him.

⁶When Herod was about to bring him out for trial, that very night Peter, bound with two chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, while the sentries in front of the door guarded the prison.

⁷Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared, and a light shone in the cell. Striking Peter on the side, he woke him up and said, “Quick, get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists.

⁸“Get dressed,” the angel told him, “and put on your sandals.” And he did. “Wrap your cloak around you,” he told him, “and follow me.”

⁹So he went out and followed, and he did not know that what the angel did was really happening, but he thought he was seeing a vision.

¹⁰After they passed the first and second guards, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went outside and passed one street, and suddenly the angel left him.

¹¹When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod’s grasp and from all that the Jewish people expected.”

¹²As soon as he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many had assembled and were praying.

¹³He knocked at the door of the outer gate, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer.

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

¹⁵“You’re out of your mind!” they told her. But she kept insisting that it was true, and they said, “It’s his angel.”

¹⁶Peter, however, kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were amazed.

¹⁷Motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. “Tell these things to James and the brothers,” he said, and he left and went to another place.

¹⁸At daylight, there was a great commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter.

¹⁹After Herod had searched and did not find him, he interrogated the guards and ordered their execution. Then Herod went down from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there.

²⁰Herod had been very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. Together they presented themselves before him. After winning over Blastus, who was in charge of the king’s bedroom, they asked for peace, because their country was supplied with food from the king’s country.

²¹On an appointed day, dressed in royal robes and seated on the throne, Herod delivered a speech to them.

²²The assembled people began to shout, “It’s the voice of a god and not of a man!”

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

²⁴But the word of God flourished and multiplied.

²⁵After they had completed their relief mission, Barnabas and Saul returned to Jerusalem, taking along John who was called Mark.