Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth.

²This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria.

³And all the people were on their way to register for the census, each to his own city.

⁴Now Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David,

⁵in order to register along with Mary, who was betrothed to him, and was pregnant.

⁶While they were there, the time came for her to give birth.

⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

⁸In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock at night.

⁹And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood near them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.

¹⁰And so the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;

¹¹for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

¹²And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

¹³And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly army of angels praising God and saying,

¹⁴“Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among people with whom He is pleased.”

¹⁵When the angels had departed from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let’s go straight to Bethlehem, then, and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”

¹⁶And they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger.

¹⁷When they had seen Him, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child.

¹⁸And all who heard it were amazed about the things which were told them by the shepherds.

¹⁹But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.

²⁰And the shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

²¹And when eight days were completed so that it was time for His circumcision, He was also named Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.

²²And when the days for their purification according to the Law of Moses were completed, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord

²³(as it is written in the Law of the Lord: “EVERY firstborn male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the LORD”),

²⁴and to offer a sacrifice according to what has been stated in the Law of the Lord: “A PAIR OF TURTLEDOVES OR TWO YOUNG DOVES.”

²⁵And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

²⁶And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.

²⁷And he came by the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law,

²⁸then he took Him in his arms, and blessed God, and said,

²⁹“Now, Lord, You are letting Your bond-servant depart in peace, According to Your word;

³⁰For my eyes have seen Your salvation,

³¹Which You have prepared in the presence of all the peoples:

³²A light for revelation for the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.”

³³And His father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him.

³⁴And Simeon blessed them and said to His mother Mary, “Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and as a sign to be opposed—

³⁵and a sword will pierce your own soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

³⁶And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years and had lived with her husband for seven years after her marriage,

³⁷and then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She did not leave the temple grounds, serving night and day with fasts and prayers.

³⁸And at that very moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak about Him to all those who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

³⁹And when His parents had completed everything in accordance with the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city of Nazareth.

⁴⁰Now the Child continued to grow and to become strong, increasing in wisdom; and the favor of God was upon Him.

⁴¹His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover.

⁴²And when He was twelve years old, they went up there according to the custom of the feast;

⁴³and as they were returning, after spending the full number of days required, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but His parents were unaware of it.

⁴⁴Instead, they thought that He was somewhere in the caravan, and they went a day’s journey; and then they began looking for Him among their relatives and acquaintances.

⁴⁵And when they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem, looking for Him.

⁴⁶Then, after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions.

⁴⁷And all who heard Him were amazed at His understanding and His answers.

⁴⁸When Joseph and Mary saw Him, they were bewildered; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You treated us this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You!”

⁴⁹And He said to them, “Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’shouse?”

⁵⁰And yet they on their part did not understand the statement which He had made to them.

⁵¹And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued to be subject to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart.

⁵²And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and people.

¹So the LORD said to Aaron, “You, your sons, and your father’s household with you shall bear the guilt in connection with the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear the guilt in connection with your priesthood.

²But also bring your brothers with you, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, so that they may join you and serve you, while you and your sons with you are before the tent of the testimony.

³And they shall perform duties for you and the duties of the whole tent, but they shall not come near the furnishings of the sanctuary and the altar, or both they and you will die.

⁴They shall join you and perform the duties of the tent of meeting, for all the service of the tent; but an unauthorized person shall not come near you.

⁵So you shall perform the duties of the sanctuary and the duties of the altar, so that there will no longer be wrath on the sons of Israel.

⁶Behold, I Myself have taken your fellow Levites from among the sons of Israel; they are a gift to you, dedicated to the LORD, to perform the service for the tent of meeting.

⁷But you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood for everything that concerns the altar and inside the veil, and you are to perform service. I am giving you the priesthood as a service that is a gift, and the unauthorized person who comes near shall be put to death.”

⁸Then the LORD spoke to Aaron, “Now behold, I Myself have put you in charge of My offerings, all the holy gifts of the sons of Israel I have given to you as a portion and to your sons as a permanent allotment.

⁹This shall be yours from the most holy gifts reserved from the fire; every offering of theirs, namely every grain offering, every sin offering, and every guilt offering, with which they shall make restitution to Me, shall be most holy for you and for your sons.

¹⁰As the most holy gifts you shall eat it; every male shall eat it. It shall be holy to you.

¹¹This also is yours, the offering of their gift, that is, all the wave offerings of the sons of Israel; I have given them to you and to your sons and daughters with you as a permanent allotment. Everyone of your household who is clean may eat it.

¹²All the best of the fresh oil and all the best of the fresh wine and of the grain, the first fruits of what they give to the LORD, I have given them to you.

¹³The first ripe fruits of all that is in their land, which they bring to the LORD, shall be yours; everyone of your household who is clean may eat it.

¹⁴Everything banned from secular use in Israel shall be yours.

¹⁵Every firstborn of the womb of all flesh, whether human or animal, which they offer to the LORD, shall be yours; however you must redeem the human firstborn, and the firstborn of unclean animals you shall redeem.

¹⁶As to their redemption price, from a month old you shall redeem them, by your assessment, five shekels in silver by the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.

¹⁷But the firstborn of an ox, the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat, you shall not redeem; they are holy. You shall sprinkle their blood on the altar and offer up their fat in smoke as an offering by fire, for a soothing aroma to the LORD.

¹⁸However, their meat shall be yours; it shall be yours like the breast of a wave offering and like the right thigh.

¹⁹All the offerings of the holy gifts, which the sons of Israel offer to the LORD, I have given to you and your sons and your daughters with you, as a permanent allotment. It is a permanent covenant of salt before the LORD to you and your descendants with you.”

²⁰Then the LORD said to Aaron, “You shall have no inheritance in their land nor own any portion among them; I am your portion and your inheritance among the sons of Israel.

²¹“To the sons of Levi, behold, I have given all the tithe in Israel as an inheritance, in return for their service which they perform, the service of the tent of meeting.

²²And the sons of Israel shall not come near the tent of meeting again, or they will bring sin on themselves and die.

²³Only the Levites shall perform the service of the tent of meeting, and they shall bear their own guilt; it shall be a permanent statute throughout your generations, and among the sons of Israel they shall have no inheritance.

²⁴For the tithe of the sons of Israel, which they offer as an offering to the LORD, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance; therefore I have said concerning them, ‘They shall have no inheritance among the sons of Israel.’ ”

²⁵Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

²⁶“Moreover, you shall speak to the Levites and say to them, ‘When you take from the sons of Israel the tithe which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then you shall present an offering from it to the LORD, a tithe of the tithe.

²⁷Your offering shall be credited to you like the grain from the threshing floor or the full produce from the wine vat.

²⁸So you shall also present an offering to the LORD from all your tithes, which you receive from the sons of Israel; and from it you shall give the LORD’S offering to Aaron the priest.

²⁹Out of all your gifts you shall present every offering due to the LORD, from all the best of them, the sacred part from them.’

³⁰And you shall say to them, ‘When you have offered from it the best of it, then the rest shall be credited to the Levites like the product of the threshing floor, and like the product of the wine vat.

³¹You may eat it anywhere, you and your households, for it is your compensation in return for your service in the tent of meeting.

³²And you will bring on yourselves no sin by reason of it when you have offered the best of it. But you shall not profane the sacred gifts of the sons of Israel, so that you do not die.’ ”

¹Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

²HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER (which is the first commandment with a promise),

³SO THAT IT MAY TURN OUT WELL FOR YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY LIVE LONG ON THE EARTH.

⁴Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

⁵Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ;

⁶not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.

⁷With goodwill render service, as to the Lord, and not to people,

⁸knowing that whatever good thing each one does, he will receive this back from the Lord, whether slave or free.

⁹And masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening, knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.

¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.

¹¹Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

¹²For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.

¹³Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.

¹⁴Stand firm therefore, having belted your waist with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

¹⁵and having strapped on your feet the preparation of the gospel of peace;

¹⁶in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

¹⁷And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

¹⁸With every prayer and request, pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be alert with all perseverance and every request for all the saints,

¹⁹and pray in my behalf, that speech may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel,

²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

²¹Now, so that you also may know about my circumstances as to what I am doing, Tychicus, the beloved brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will make everything known to you.

²²I have sent him to you for this very purpose, so that you may know about us, and that he may comfort your hearts.

²³Peace be to the brothers and sisters, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

²⁴Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with incorruptible love.

¹Then Zophar the Naamathite responded,

²“Shall a multitude of words go unanswered, And a talkative man be acquitted?

³Shall your boasts silence people? And will you scoff, and no one rebuke?

⁴For you have said, ‘My teaching is pure, And I am innocent in your eyes.’

⁵But if only God would speak, And open His lips against you,

⁶And show you the secrets of wisdom! For sound wisdom has two sides. Know then that God forgets part of your guilt.

⁷“Can you discover the depths of God? Can you discover the limits of the Almighty?

⁸They are as high as the heavens; what can you do? Deeper than Sheol; what can you know?

⁹Its measurement is longer than the earth And broader than the sea.

¹⁰If He passes by or apprehends people, Or calls an assembly, who can restrain Him?

¹¹For He knows false people, And He sees injustice without investigating.

¹²An idiot will become intelligent When a wild donkey is born a human.

¹³“If you would direct your heart rightly And spread out your hands to Him,

¹⁴If wrongdoing is in your hand, put it far away, And do not let malice dwell in your tents;

¹⁵Then, indeed, you could lift up your face without moral blemish, And you would be firmly established and not fear.

¹⁶For you would forget your trouble; Like waters that have passed by, you would remember it.

¹⁷Your life would be brighter than noonday; Darkness would be like the morning.

¹⁸Then you would trust, because there is hope; And you would look around and rest securely.

¹⁹You would lie down and none would disturb you, And many would flatter you.

²⁰But the eyes of the wicked will fail, And there will be no escape for them; And their hope is to breathe their last.”

¹Praise the LORD! Praise the name of the LORD; Praise Him, you servants of the LORD,

²You who stand in the house of the LORD, In the courtyards of the house of our God!

³Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good; Sing praises to His name, for it is lovely.

⁴For the LORD has chosen Jacob for Himself, Israel as His own possession.

⁵For I know that the LORD is great And that our Lord is above all gods.

⁶Whatever the LORD pleases, He does, In heaven and on earth, in the seas and in all the ocean depths.

⁷He causes the mist to ascend from the ends of the earth, He makes lightning for the rain; He brings forth the wind from His treasuries.

⁸He struck the firstborn of Egypt, Both human firstborn and animal.

⁹He sent signs and wonders into your midst, Egypt, Upon Pharaoh and all his servants.

¹⁰He struck many nations And brought death to mighty kings,

¹¹Sihon, king of the Amorites, Og, king of Bashan, And all the kingdoms of Canaan;

¹²And He gave their land as an inheritance, An inheritance to His people Israel.

¹³Your name, LORD, is everlasting, The mention of You, LORD, is throughout all generations.

¹⁴For the LORD will judge His people And will have compassion on His servants.

¹⁵The idols of the nations are nothing but silver and gold, The work of human hands.

¹⁶They have mouths, but they do not speak; They have eyes, but they do not see;

¹⁷They have ears, but they do not hear, Nor is there any breath at all in their mouths.

¹⁸Those who make them will become like them, Yes, everyone who trusts in them.

¹⁹House of Israel, bless the LORD; House of Aaron, bless the LORD;

²⁰House of Levi, bless the LORD; You who revere the LORD, bless the LORD.

²¹Blessed be the LORD from Zion, Who dwells in Jerusalem. Praise the LORD!

¹A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight.

²When pride comes, then comes dishonor; But with the humble there is wisdom.

³The integrity of the upright will guide them, But the perversity of the treacherous will destroy them.

⁴Riches do not benefit on the day of wrath, But righteousness rescues from death.

⁵The righteousness of the blameless will smooth his way, But the wicked will fall by his own wickedness.

⁶The righteousness of the upright will rescue them, But the treacherous will be caught by their own greed.

⁷When a wicked person dies, his expectation will perish, And the hope of strong people perishes.

⁸The righteous is rescued from trouble, But the wicked takes his place.

⁹With his mouth the godless person destroys his neighbor, But through knowledge the righteous will be rescued.

¹⁰When things go well for the righteous, the city rejoices, And when the wicked perish, there is joyful shouting.

¹¹By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted, But by the mouth of the wicked, it is torn down.

¹²One who despises his neighbor lacks sense, But a person of understanding keeps silent.

¹³One who goes about as a slanderer reveals secrets, But one who is trustworthy conceals a matter.

¹⁴Where there is no guidance the people fall, But in an abundance of counselors there is victory.

¹⁵One who is a guarantor for a stranger will certainly suffer for it, But one who hates being a guarantor is secure.

¹⁶A gracious woman attains honor, And ruthless men attain riches.

¹⁷A merciful person does himself good, But the cruel person does himself harm.

¹⁸A wicked person earns deceptive wages, But one who sows righteousness gets a true reward.

¹⁹One who is steadfast in righteousness attains life, But one who pursues evil attains his own death.

²⁰The perverse in heart are an abomination to the LORD, But the blameless in their walk are His delight.

²¹Be assured, the evil person will not go unpunished, But the descendants of the righteous will be rescued.

²²As a ring of gold in a pig’s snout So is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.

²³The desire of the righteous is only good, But the expectation of the wicked is wrath.

²⁴There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more, And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in poverty.

²⁵A generous person will be prosperous, And one who gives others plenty of water will himself be given plenty.

²⁶One who withholds grain, the people will curse him, But blessing will be on the head of him who sells it.

²⁷One who diligently seeks good seeks favor, But one who seeks evil, evil will come to him.

²⁸One who trusts in his riches will fall, But the righteous will flourish like the green leaf.

²⁹One who troubles his own house will inherit wind, And the foolish will be servant to the wise-hearted.

³⁰The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And one who is wise gains souls.

³¹If the righteous will be repaid on the earth, How much more the wicked and the sinner!

¹Now Elisha the prophet summoned one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, “Get ready and take this flask of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead.

²When you arrive there, then look there for Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in and have him get up from among his brothers, and bring him to an inner room.

³Then take the flask of oil and pour it on his head, and say, ‘This is what the LORD says: “I have anointed you king over Israel.” ’ Then open the door and flee, and do not wait.”

⁴So the young man, the servant of the prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead.

⁵When he arrived, behold, the commanders of the army were sitting, and he said, “I have a word for you, commander.” And Jehu said, “For which one of us?” And he said, “For you, commander.”

⁶He then got up and went into the house, and the prophet’s servant poured the oil on his head and said to him, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel says: ‘I have anointed you king over the people of the LORD, over Israel.

⁷And you shall strike the house of Ahab your master, so that I may avenge the blood of My servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the LORD, at the hand of Jezebel.

⁸For the entire house of Ahab shall perish, and I will eliminate from Ahab every male person both slave and free in Israel.

⁹I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah.

¹⁰The dogs will eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel, and no one will bury her.’ ” Then he opened the door and fled.

¹¹Now Jehu went out to the servants of his master, and one said to him, “Is everything well? Why did this crazy fellow come to you?” And he said to them, “You know very well the man and his talk.”

¹²And they said, “It is a lie; tell us now.” And he said, “Such and such he said to me, saying, ‘This is what the LORD says: “I have anointed you king over Israel.” ’ ”

¹³Then they hurried, and each man took his garment and put it under him on the bare steps, and blew the trumpet, saying, “Jehu is king!”

¹⁴So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. Now Joram with all Israel was defending Ramoth-gilead against Hazael king of Aram,

¹⁵but King Joram had returned to Jezreel to have himself healed of the wounds which the Arameans had inflicted on him when he fought Hazael king of Aram. So Jehu said to the other men, “If this is your intent, then let no one escape from the city to go tell about it in Jezreel.”

¹⁶Then Jehu rode in a chariot and went to Jezreel, since Joram was lying there recovering. And Ahaziah the king of Judah had come down to see Joram.

¹⁷Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel and he saw the company of Jehu as he came, and he said, “I see a company.” And Joram said, “Take a horseman and send him to meet them and have him ask, ‘Is your intention peace?’ ”

¹⁸So a horseman went to meet him and said, “This is what the king says: ‘Is your intention peace?’ ” But Jehu said, “How is peace any business of yours? Turn and follow me.” And the watchman reported, “The messenger came to them, but he did not return.”

¹⁹Then he sent a second horseman, and he came to them and said, “This is what the king says: ‘Is your intention peace?’ ” And Jehu answered, “How is peace any business of yours? Turn and follow me.”

²⁰And the watchman reported, “He came up to them, but he did not return; and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi, for he drives furiously.”

²¹Then Joram said, “Get ready.” And they made his chariot ready. Then Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu and found him on the property of Naboth the Jezreelite.

²²When Joram saw Jehu, he said, “Is your intention peace, Jehu?” And he answered, “What ‘peace,’ so long as your mother Jezebel’s acts of prostitution and witchcraft are so many?”

²³So Joram turned back and fled, and he said to Ahaziah, “There is treachery, Ahaziah!”

²⁴Then Jehu drew his bow with his full strength and shot Joram between his arms; and the arrow went through his heart, and he sank in his chariot.

²⁵And Jehu said to Bidkar his officer, “Pick him up and throw him on the property of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite; for remember, when you and I were riding together after his father Ahab, that the LORD brought this pronouncement against him:

²⁶‘I have certainly seen yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will repay you on this property,’ declares the LORD. Now then, pick him up and throw him on the property, in accordance with the word of the LORD.”

²⁷When Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by way of the garden house. But Jehu pursued him and said, “Shoot him too, in the chariot.” So they shot him at the ascent of Gur, which is at Ibleam. But he fled to Megiddo and died there.

²⁸Then his servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his grave with his fathers in the city of David.

²⁹Now in the eleventh year of Joram, the son of Ahab, Ahaziah became king over Judah.

³⁰When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard about it, and she put makeup on her eyes and adorned her head, and looked down through the window.

³¹As Jehu entered the gate, she said, “Is your intention peace, Zimri, his master’s murderer?”

³²Then he raised his face toward the window and said, “Who is with me, who?” And two or three officials looked down at him.

³³Then he said, “Throw her down.” So they threw her down, and some of her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses, and he trampled her underfoot.

³⁴When he came in, he ate and drank; and he said, “See now to this cursed woman and bury her, for she is a king’s daughter.”

³⁵So they went to bury her, but they found nothing of her except the skull, the feet, and the palms of her hands.

³⁶Therefore they returned and informed him. And he said, “This is the word of the LORD, which He spoke by His servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ‘On the property of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel;

³⁷and the corpse of Jezebel will be like dung on the face of the field in the property of Jezreel, so they cannot say, “This is Jezebel.” ’ ”

¹Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

²“Son of man, you live in the midst of the rebellious house, who have eyes to see but do not see, ears to hear but do not hear; for they are a rebellious house.

³So as for you, son of man, prepare for yourself baggage for exile and go into exile by day in their sight; that is, go into exile from your place to another place in their sight. Perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious house.

⁴Bring your baggage out by day in their sight, as baggage for exile. Then you shall go out at evening in their sight, as those who are going into exile.

⁵Dig a hole through the wall in their sight and go out through it.

⁶Load the baggage on your shoulder in their sight and carry it out in the dark. You shall cover your face so that you cannot see the land, for I have set you as a sign to the house of Israel.”

⁷Then I did so, just as I had been commanded. By day I brought out my baggage like the baggage of an exile. Then in the evening I dug through the wall with my hands; I went out in the dark and carried the baggage on my shoulder in their sight.

⁸And in the morning the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

⁹“Son of man, has the house of Israel, the rebellious house, not said to you, ‘What are you doing?’

¹⁰Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: “This pronouncement concerns the prince in Jerusalem as well as all the house of Israel who are in it.” ’

¹¹Say, ‘I am a sign to you. Just as I have done, so it will be done to them; they will go into exile, into captivity.’

¹²The prince who is among them will load his baggage on his shoulder in the dark and go out. They will dig a hole through the wall to bring it out through it. He will cover his face so that he cannot see the land with his eyes.

¹³I will also spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My net. And I will bring him to Babylon in the land of the Chaldeans; yet he will not see it, though he will die there.

¹⁴And I will scatter to every wind all who are around him, his helpers and all his troops; and I will draw out a sword after them.

¹⁵So they will know that I am the LORD, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them among the countries.

¹⁶But I will spare a few of them from the sword, the famine, and plague so that they may tell of all their abominations among the nations where they go, and may know that I am the LORD.”

¹⁷Moreover, the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

¹⁸“Son of man, eat your bread with trembling, and drink your water with quivering and anxiety.

¹⁹Then say to the people of the land, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says concerning the inhabitants of Jerusalem in the land of Israel: “They will eat their bread with anxiety and drink their water with horror, because their land will be stripped of its fullness on account of the violence of all who live in it.

²⁰The inhabited cities will be in ruins, and the land will be a desolation. So you will know that I am the LORD.” ’ ”

²¹Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

²²“Son of man, what is this proverb you people have about the land of Israel, saying, ‘The days are long, and every vision fails’?

²³Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: “I will put an end to this proverb so that they will no longer use it as a proverb in Israel.” But tell them, “The days are approaching as well as the fulfillment of every vision.

²⁴For there will no longer be any false vision or deceptive divination within the house of Israel.

²⁵For I the LORD will speak whatever word I speak, and it will be performed. It will no longer be delayed, for in your days, you rebellious house, I will speak the word and perform it,” declares the Lord GOD.’ ”

²⁶Furthermore, the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

²⁷“Son of man, behold, the house of Israel is saying, ‘The vision that he sees is for many years from now, and he prophesies of times far off.’

²⁸Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: “None of My words will be delayed any longer. Whatever word I speak will be performed,” ’ ” declares the Lord GOD.

¹Now looking intently at the Council, Paul said, “Brothers, I have lived my life with an entirely good conscience before God up to this day.”

²But the high priest Ananias commanded those standing beside him to strike him on the mouth.

³Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Do you sit to try me according to the Law, and in violation of the Law, order me to be struck?”

⁴But those present said, “Are you insulting God’s high priest?”

⁵And Paul said, “I was not aware, brothers, that he is high priest; for it is written: ‘YOU SHALL NOT SPEAK EVIL OF A RULER OF YOUR PEOPLE.’ ”

⁶But Paul, perceiving that one group were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, began crying out in the Council, “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees; I am on trial for the hope and resurrection of the dead!”

⁷When he said this, a dissension occurred between the Pharisees and Sadducees, and the assembly was divided.

⁸For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor an angel, nor a spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.

⁹And a great uproar occurred; and some of the scribes of the Pharisaic party stood up and started arguing heatedly, saying, “We find nothing wrong with this man; suppose a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?”

¹⁰And when a great dissension occurred, the commander was afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, and he ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force, and bring him into the barracks.

¹¹But on the following night, the Lord stood near him and said, “Be courageous! For as you have testified to the truth about Me in Jerusalem, so you must testify in Rome also.”

¹²When it was day, the Jews formed a conspiracy and put themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul.

¹³There were more than forty who formed this plot.

¹⁴They came to the chief priests and the elders and said, “We have put ourselves under an oath to taste nothing until we have killed Paul.

¹⁵Now therefore, you and the Council notify the commander to bring him down to you, as though you were going to investigate his case more thoroughly; and as for us, we are ready to kill him before he comes near the place.”

¹⁶But the son of Paul’s sister heard about their ambush, and he came and entered the barracks and told Paul.

¹⁷Paul called one of the centurions to himself and said, “Take this young man to the commander, for he has something to report to him.”

¹⁸So he took him and led him to the commander and *said, “Paul the prisoner called me over to him and asked me to bring this young man to you because he has something to tell you.”

¹⁹The commander took him by the hand, and stepping aside, began to inquire of him privately, “What is it that you have to report to me?”

²⁰And he said, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down tomorrow to the Council, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more thoroughly about him.

²¹So do not listen to them, for more than forty of them are in hiding to ambush him, and these men have put themselves under an oath not to eat or drink until they kill him; and now they are ready and waiting for assurance from you.”

²²Then the commander let the young man go, instructing him, “Tell no one that you have notified me of these things.”

²³And he called to him two of the centurions and said, “Get two hundred soldiers ready by the third hour of the night to proceed to Caesarea, with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen.”

²⁴They were also to provide mounts to put Paul on and bring him safely to Felix the governor.

²⁵And he wrote a letter with the following content:

²⁶“Claudius Lysias, to the most excellent governor Felix: Greetings.

²⁷When this man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them, I came up to them with the troops and rescued him, after learning that he was a Roman.

²⁸And wanting to ascertain the basis for the charges they were bringing against him, I brought him down to their Council;

²⁹and I found that he was being accused regarding questions in their Law, but was not charged with anything deserving death or imprisonment.

³⁰When I was informed that there would be a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once, also instructing his accusers to bring charges against him before you.”

³¹So the soldiers, in accordance with their orders, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris.

³²But on the next day they let the horsemen go on with him, and they returned to the barracks.

³³When these horsemen had come to Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him.

³⁴Now when he had read it, he also asked from what province Paul was, and when he learned that he was from Cilicia,

³⁵he said, “I will give you a hearing when your accusers arrive as well,” giving orders for Paul to be kept in Herod’s Praetorium.