Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan River. He was led by the Spirit in the wilderness,

²where he was tempted by the devil for forty days. Jesus ate nothing all that time and became very hungry.

³Then the devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become a loaf of bread.”

⁴But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone.’ ”

⁵Then the devil took him up and revealed to him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.

⁶“I will give you the glory of these kingdoms and authority over them,” the devil said, “because they are mine to give to anyone I please.

⁷I will give it all to you if you will worship me.”

⁸Jesus replied, “The Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the LORD your God and serve only him.’ ”

⁹Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, and said, “If you are the Son of God, jump off!

¹⁰For the Scriptures say, ‘He will order his angels to protect and guard you.

¹¹And they will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.’ ”

¹²Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the LORD your God.’ ”

¹³When the devil had finished tempting Jesus, he left him until the next opportunity came.

¹⁴Then Jesus returned to Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. Reports about him spread quickly through the whole region.

¹⁵He taught regularly in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

¹⁶When he came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures.

¹⁷The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written:

¹⁸“The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free,

¹⁹and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come. ”

²⁰He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently.

²¹Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”

²²Everyone spoke well of him and was amazed by the gracious words that came from his lips. “How can this be?” they asked. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”

²³Then he said, “You will undoubtedly quote me this proverb: ‘Physician, heal yourself’ — meaning, ‘Do miracles here in your hometown like those you did in Capernaum.’

²⁴But I tell you the truth, no prophet is accepted in his own hometown.

²⁵“Certainly there were many needy widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land.

²⁶Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them. He was sent instead to a foreigner — a widow of Zarephath in the land of Sidon.

²⁷And many in Israel had leprosy in the time of the prophet Elisha, but the only one healed was Naaman, a Syrian.”

²⁸When they heard this, the people in the synagogue were furious.

²⁹Jumping up, they mobbed him and forced him to the edge of the hill on which the town was built. They intended to push him over the cliff,

³⁰but he passed right through the crowd and went on his way.

³¹Then Jesus went to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and taught there in the synagogue every Sabbath day.

³²There, too, the people were amazed at his teaching, for he spoke with authority.

³³Once when he was in the synagogue, a man possessed by a demon — an evil spirit — cried out, shouting,

³⁴“Go away! Why are you interfering with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are — the Holy One of God!”

³⁵But Jesus reprimanded him. “Be quiet! Come out of the man,” he ordered. At that, the demon threw the man to the floor as the crowd watched; then it came out of him without hurting him further.

³⁶Amazed, the people exclaimed, “What authority and power this man’s words possess! Even evil spirits obey him, and they flee at his command!”

³⁷The news about Jesus spread through every village in the entire region.

³⁸After leaving the synagogue that day, Jesus went to Simon’s home, where he found Simon’s mother-in-law very sick with a high fever. “Please heal her,” everyone begged.

³⁹Standing at her bedside, he rebuked the fever, and it left her. And she got up at once and prepared a meal for them.

⁴⁰As the sun went down that evening, people throughout the village brought sick family members to Jesus. No matter what their diseases were, the touch of his hand healed every one.

⁴¹Many were possessed by demons; and the demons came out at his command, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But because they knew he was the Messiah, he rebuked them and refused to let them speak.

⁴²Early the next morning Jesus went out to an isolated place. The crowds searched everywhere for him, and when they finally found him, they begged him not to leave them.

⁴³But he replied, “I must preach the Good News of the Kingdom of God in other towns, too, because that is why I was sent.”

⁴⁴So he continued to travel around, preaching in synagogues throughout Judea.

¹In the first month of the year, the whole community of Israel arrived in the wilderness of Zin and camped at Kadesh. While they were there, Miriam died and was buried.

²There was no water for the people to drink at that place, so they rebelled against Moses and Aaron.

³The people blamed Moses and said, “If only we had died in the LORD’s presence with our brothers!

⁴Why have you brought the congregation of the LORD’s people into this wilderness to die, along with all our livestock?

⁵Why did you make us leave Egypt and bring us here to this terrible place? This land has no grain, no figs, no grapes, no pomegranates, and no water to drink!”

⁶Moses and Aaron turned away from the people and went to the entrance of the Tabernacle, where they fell face down on the ground. Then the glorious presence of the LORD appeared to them,

⁷and the LORD said to Moses,

⁸“You and Aaron must take the staff and assemble the entire community. As the people watch, speak to the rock over there, and it will pour out its water. You will provide enough water from the rock to satisfy the whole community and their livestock.”

⁹So Moses did as he was told. He took the staff from the place where it was kept before the LORD.

¹⁰Then he and Aaron summoned the people to come and gather at the rock. “Listen, you rebels!” he shouted. “Must we bring you water from this rock?”

¹¹Then Moses raised his hand and struck the rock twice with the staff, and water gushed out. So the entire community and their livestock drank their fill.

¹²But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust me enough to demonstrate my holiness to the people of Israel, you will not lead them into the land I am giving them!”

¹³This place was known as the waters of Meribah (which means “arguing”) because there the people of Israel argued with the LORD, and there he demonstrated his holiness among them.

¹⁴While Moses was at Kadesh, he sent ambassadors to the king of Edom with this message: “This is what your relatives, the people of Israel, say: You know all the hardships we have been through.

¹⁵Our ancestors went down to Egypt, and we lived there a long time, and we and our ancestors were brutally mistreated by the Egyptians.

¹⁶But when we cried out to the LORD, he heard us and sent an angel who brought us out of Egypt. Now we are camped at Kadesh, a town on the border of your land.

¹⁷Please let us travel through your land. We will be careful not to go through your fields and vineyards. We won’t even drink water from your wells. We will stay on the king’s road and never leave it until we have passed through your territory.”

¹⁸But the king of Edom said, “Stay out of my land, or I will meet you with an army!”

¹⁹The Israelites answered, “We will stay on the main road. If our livestock drink your water, we will pay for it. Just let us pass through your country. That’s all we ask.”

²⁰But the king of Edom replied, “Stay out! You may not pass through our land.” With that he mobilized his army and marched out against them with an imposing force.

²¹Because Edom refused to allow Israel to pass through their country, Israel was forced to turn around.

²²The whole community of Israel left Kadesh and arrived at Mount Hor.

²³There, on the border of the land of Edom, the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,

²⁴“The time has come for Aaron to join his ancestors in death. He will not enter the land I am giving the people of Israel, because the two of you rebelled against my instructions concerning the water at Meribah.

²⁵Now take Aaron and his son Eleazar up Mount Hor.

²⁶There you will remove Aaron’s priestly garments and put them on Eleazar, his son. Aaron will die there and join his ancestors.”

²⁷So Moses did as the LORD commanded. The three of them went up Mount Hor together as the whole community watched.

²⁸At the summit, Moses removed the priestly garments from Aaron and put them on Eleazar, Aaron’s son. Then Aaron died there on top of the mountain, and Moses and Eleazar went back down.

²⁹When the people realized that Aaron had died, all Israel mourned for him thirty days.

¹Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate?

²Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose.

³Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.

⁴Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

⁵You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

⁶Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.

⁷Instead, he gave up his divine privileges ; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form,

⁸he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

⁹Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names,

¹⁰that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

¹¹and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

¹²Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.

¹³For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.

¹⁴Do everything without complaining and arguing,

¹⁵so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people.

¹⁶Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless.

¹⁷But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy.

¹⁸Yes, you should rejoice, and I will share your joy.

¹⁹If the Lord Jesus is willing, I hope to send Timothy to you soon for a visit. Then he can cheer me up by telling me how you are getting along.

²⁰I have no one else like Timothy, who genuinely cares about your welfare.

²¹All the others care only for themselves and not for what matters to Jesus Christ.

²²But you know how Timothy has proved himself. Like a son with his father, he has served with me in preaching the Good News.

²³I hope to send him to you just as soon as I find out what is going to happen to me here.

²⁴And I have confidence from the Lord that I myself will come to see you soon.

²⁵Meanwhile, I thought I should send Epaphroditus back to you. He is a true brother, co-worker, and fellow soldier. And he was your messenger to help me in my need.

²⁶I am sending him because he has been longing to see you, and he was very distressed that you heard he was ill.

²⁷And he certainly was ill; in fact, he almost died. But God had mercy on him — and also on me, so that I would not have one sorrow after another.

²⁸So I am all the more anxious to send him back to you, for I know you will be glad to see him, and then I will not be so worried about you.

²⁹Welcome him in the Lord’s love and with great joy, and give him the honor that people like him deserve.

³⁰For he risked his life for the work of Christ, and he was at the point of death while doing for me what you couldn’t do from far away.

¹“Look, I have seen all this with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears, and now I understand.

²I know as much as you do. You are no better than I am.

³As for me, I would speak directly to the Almighty. I want to argue my case with God himself.

⁴As for you, you smear me with lies. As physicians, you are worthless quacks.

⁵If only you could be silent! That’s the wisest thing you could do.

⁶Listen to my charge; pay attention to my arguments.

⁷“Are you defending God with lies? Do you make your dishonest arguments for his sake?

⁸Will you slant your testimony in his favor? Will you argue God’s case for him?

⁹What will happen when he finds out what you are doing? Can you fool him as easily as you fool people?

¹⁰No, you will be in trouble with him if you secretly slant your testimony in his favor.

¹¹Doesn’t his majesty terrify you? Doesn’t your fear of him overwhelm you?

¹²Your platitudes are as valuable as ashes. Your defense is as fragile as a clay pot.

¹³“Be silent now and leave me alone. Let me speak, and I will face the consequences.

¹⁴Why should I put myself in mortal danger and take my life in my own hands?

¹⁵God might kill me, but I have no other hope. I am going to argue my case with him.

¹⁶But this is what will save me — I am not godless. If I were, I could not stand before him.

¹⁷“Listen closely to what I am about to say. Hear me out.

¹⁸I have prepared my case; I will be proved innocent.

¹⁹Who can argue with me over this? And if you prove me wrong, I will remain silent and die.

²⁰“O God, grant me these two things, and then I will be able to face you.

²¹Remove your heavy hand from me, and don’t terrify me with your awesome presence.

²²Now summon me, and I will answer! Or let me speak to you, and you reply.

²³Tell me, what have I done wrong? Show me my rebellion and my sin.

²⁴Why do you turn away from me? Why do you treat me as your enemy?

²⁵Would you terrify a leaf blown by the wind? Would you chase dry straw?

²⁶“You write bitter accusations against me and bring up all the sins of my youth.

²⁷You put my feet in stocks. You examine all my paths. You trace all my footprints.

²⁸I waste away like rotting wood, like a moth-eaten coat.

¹Beside the rivers of Babylon, we sat and wept as we thought of Jerusalem.

²We put away our harps, hanging them on the branches of poplar trees.

³For our captors demanded a song from us. Our tormentors insisted on a joyful hymn: “Sing us one of those songs of Jerusalem!”

⁴But how can we sing the songs of the LORD while in a pagan land?

⁵If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget how to play the harp.

⁶May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth if I fail to remember you, if I don’t make Jerusalem my greatest joy.

⁷O LORD, remember what the Edomites did on the day the armies of Babylon captured Jerusalem. “Destroy it!” they yelled. “Level it to the ground!”

⁸O Babylon, you will be destroyed. Happy is the one who pays you back for what you have done to us.

⁹Happy is the one who takes your babies and smashes them against the rocks!

¹A wise child accepts a parent’s discipline; a mocker refuses to listen to correction.

²Wise words will win you a good meal, but treacherous people have an appetite for violence.

³Those who control their tongue will have a long life; opening your mouth can ruin everything.

⁴Lazy people want much but get little, but those who work hard will prosper.

⁵The godly hate lies; the wicked cause shame and disgrace.

⁶Godliness guards the path of the blameless, but the evil are misled by sin.

⁷Some who are poor pretend to be rich; others who are rich pretend to be poor.

⁸The rich can pay a ransom for their lives, but the poor won’t even get threatened.

⁹The life of the godly is full of light and joy, but the light of the wicked will be snuffed out.

¹⁰Pride leads to conflict; those who take advice are wise.

¹¹Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time.

¹²Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.

¹³People who despise advice are asking for trouble; those who respect a command will succeed.

¹⁴The instruction of the wise is like a life-giving fountain; those who accept it avoid the snares of death.

¹⁵A person with good sense is respected; a treacherous person is headed for destruction.

¹⁶Wise people think before they act; fools don’t — and even brag about their foolishness.

¹⁷An unreliable messenger stumbles into trouble, but a reliable messenger brings healing.

¹⁸If you ignore criticism, you will end in poverty and disgrace; if you accept correction, you will be honored.

¹⁹It is pleasant to see dreams come true, but fools refuse to turn from evil to attain them.

²⁰Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble.

²¹Trouble chases sinners, while blessings reward the righteous.

²²Good people leave an inheritance to their grandchildren, but the sinner’s wealth passes to the godly.

²³A poor person’s farm may produce much food, but injustice sweeps it all away.

²⁴Those who spare the rod of discipline hate their children. Those who love their children care enough to discipline them.

²⁵The godly eat to their hearts’ content, but the belly of the wicked goes hungry.

¹When Athaliah, the mother of King Ahaziah of Judah, learned that her son was dead, she began to destroy the rest of the royal family.

²But Ahaziah’s sister Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram, took Ahaziah’s infant son, Joash, and stole him away from among the rest of the king’s children, who were about to be killed. She put Joash and his nurse in a bedroom, and they hid him from Athaliah, so the child was not murdered.

³Joash remained hidden in the Temple of the LORD for six years while Athaliah ruled over the land.

⁴In the seventh year of Athaliah’s reign, Jehoiada the priest summoned the commanders, the Carite mercenaries, and the palace guards to come to the Temple of the LORD. He made a solemn pact with them and made them swear an oath of loyalty there in the LORD’s Temple; then he showed them the king’s son.

⁵Jehoiada told them, “This is what you must do. A third of you who are on duty on the Sabbath are to guard the royal palace itself.

⁶Another third of you are to stand guard at the Sur Gate. And the final third must stand guard behind the palace guard. These three groups will all guard the palace.

⁷The other two units who are off duty on the Sabbath must stand guard for the king at the LORD’s Temple.

⁸Form a bodyguard around the king and keep your weapons in hand. Kill anyone who tries to break through. Stay with the king wherever he goes.”

⁹So the commanders did everything as Jehoiada the priest ordered. The commanders took charge of the men reporting for duty that Sabbath, as well as those who were going off duty. They brought them all to Jehoiada the priest,

¹⁰and he supplied them with the spears and small shields that had once belonged to King David and were stored in the Temple of the LORD.

¹¹The palace guards stationed themselves around the king, with their weapons ready. They formed a line from the south side of the Temple around to the north side and all around the altar.

¹²Then Jehoiada brought out Joash, the king’s son, placed the crown on his head, and presented him with a copy of God’s laws. They anointed him and proclaimed him king, and everyone clapped their hands and shouted, “Long live the king!”

¹³When Athaliah heard the noise made by the palace guards and the people, she hurried to the LORD’s Temple to see what was happening.

¹⁴When she arrived, she saw the newly crowned king standing in his place of authority by the pillar, as was the custom at times of coronation. The commanders and trumpeters were surrounding him, and people from all over the land were rejoicing and blowing trumpets. When Athaliah saw all this, she tore her clothes in despair and shouted, “Treason! Treason!”

¹⁵Then Jehoiada the priest ordered the commanders who were in charge of the troops, “Take her to the soldiers in front of the Temple, and kill anyone who tries to rescue her.” For the priest had said, “She must not be killed in the Temple of the LORD.”

¹⁶So they seized her and led her out to the gate where horses enter the palace grounds, and she was killed there.

¹⁷Then Jehoiada made a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people that they would be the LORD’s people. He also made a covenant between the king and the people.

¹⁸And all the people of the land went over to the temple of Baal and tore it down. They demolished the altars and smashed the idols to pieces, and they killed Mattan the priest of Baal in front of the altars. Jehoiada the priest stationed guards at the Temple of the LORD.

¹⁹Then the commanders, the Carite mercenaries, the palace guards, and all the people of the land escorted the king from the Temple of the LORD. They went through the gate of the guards and into the palace, and the king took his seat on the royal throne.

²⁰So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was peaceful because Athaliah had been killed at the king’s palace.

²¹Joash was seven years old when he became king.

¹Then some of the leaders of Israel visited me, and while they were sitting with me,

²this message came to me from the LORD:

³“Son of man, these leaders have set up idols in their hearts. They have embraced things that will make them fall into sin. Why should I listen to their requests?

⁴Tell them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: The people of Israel have set up idols in their hearts and fallen into sin, and then they go to a prophet asking for a message. So I, the LORD, will give them the kind of answer their great idolatry deserves.

⁵I will do this to capture the minds and hearts of all my people who have turned from me to worship their detestable idols.’

⁶“Therefore, tell the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Repent and turn away from your idols, and stop all your detestable sins.

⁷I, the LORD, will answer all those, both Israelites and foreigners, who reject me and set up idols in their hearts and so fall into sin, and who then come to a prophet asking for my advice.

⁸I will turn against such people and make a terrible example of them, eliminating them from among my people. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

⁹“‘And if a prophet is deceived into giving a message, it is because I, the LORD, have deceived that prophet. I will lift my fist against such prophets and cut them off from the community of Israel.

¹⁰False prophets and those who seek their guidance will all be punished for their sins.

¹¹In this way, the people of Israel will learn not to stray from me, polluting themselves with sin. They will be my people, and I will be their God. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!’”

¹²Then this message came to me from the LORD:

¹³“Son of man, suppose the people of a country were to sin against me, and I lifted my fist to crush them, cutting off their food supply and sending a famine to destroy both people and animals.

¹⁴Even if Noah, Daniel, and Job were there, their righteousness would save no one but themselves, says the Sovereign LORD.

¹⁵“Or suppose I were to send wild animals to invade the country, kill the people, and make the land too desolate and dangerous to pass through.

¹⁶As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, even if those three men were there, they wouldn’t be able to save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved, but the land would be made desolate.

¹⁷“Or suppose I were to bring war against the land, and I sent enemy armies to destroy both people and animals.

¹⁸As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, even if those three men were there, they wouldn’t be able to save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved.

¹⁹“Or suppose I were to pour out my fury by sending an epidemic into the land, and the disease killed people and animals alike.

²⁰As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, even if Noah, Daniel, and Job were there, they wouldn’t be able to save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved by their righteousness.

²¹“Now this is what the Sovereign LORD says: How terrible it will be when all four of these dreadful punishments fall upon Jerusalem — war, famine, wild animals, and disease — destroying all her people and animals.

²²Yet there will be survivors, and they will come here to join you as exiles in Babylon. You will see with your own eyes how wicked they are, and then you will feel better about what I have done to Jerusalem.

²³When you meet them and see their behavior, you will understand that these things are not being done to Israel without cause. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!”

¹Three days after Festus arrived in Caesarea to take over his new responsibilities, he left for Jerusalem,

²where the leading priests and other Jewish leaders met with him and made their accusations against Paul.

³They asked Festus as a favor to transfer Paul to Jerusalem (planning to ambush and kill him on the way).

⁴But Festus replied that Paul was at Caesarea and he himself would be returning there soon.

⁵So he said, “Those of you in authority can return with me. If Paul has done anything wrong, you can make your accusations.”

⁶About eight or ten days later Festus returned to Caesarea, and on the following day he took his seat in court and ordered that Paul be brought in.

⁷When Paul arrived, the Jewish leaders from Jerusalem gathered around and made many serious accusations they couldn’t prove.

⁸Paul denied the charges. “I am not guilty of any crime against the Jewish laws or the Temple or the Roman government,” he said.

⁹Then Festus, wanting to please the Jews, asked him, “Are you willing to go to Jerusalem and stand trial before me there?”

¹⁰But Paul replied, “No! This is the official Roman court, so I ought to be tried right here. You know very well I am not guilty of harming the Jews.

¹¹If I have done something worthy of death, I don’t refuse to die. But if I am innocent, no one has a right to turn me over to these men to kill me. I appeal to Caesar!”

¹²Festus conferred with his advisers and then replied, “Very well! You have appealed to Caesar, and to Caesar you will go!”

¹³A few days later King Agrippa arrived with his sister, Bernice, to pay their respects to Festus.

¹⁴During their stay of several days, Festus discussed Paul’s case with the king. “There is a prisoner here,” he told him, “whose case was left for me by Felix.

¹⁵When I was in Jerusalem, the leading priests and Jewish elders pressed charges against him and asked me to condemn him.

¹⁶I pointed out to them that Roman law does not convict people without a trial. They must be given an opportunity to confront their accusers and defend themselves.

¹⁷“When his accusers came here for the trial, I didn’t delay. I called the case the very next day and ordered Paul brought in.

¹⁸But the accusations made against him weren’t any of the crimes I expected.

¹⁹Instead, it was something about their religion and a dead man named Jesus, who Paul insists is alive.

²⁰I was at a loss to know how to investigate these things, so I asked him whether he would be willing to stand trial on these charges in Jerusalem.

²¹But Paul appealed to have his case decided by the emperor. So I ordered that he be held in custody until I could arrange to send him to Caesar.”

²²“I’d like to hear the man myself,” Agrippa said. And Festus replied, “You will — tomorrow!”

²³So the next day Agrippa and Bernice arrived at the auditorium with great pomp, accompanied by military officers and prominent men of the city. Festus ordered that Paul be brought in.

²⁴Then Festus said, “King Agrippa and all who are here, this is the man whose death is demanded by all the Jews, both here and in Jerusalem.

²⁵But in my opinion he has done nothing deserving death. However, since he appealed his case to the emperor, I have decided to send him to Rome.

²⁶“But what shall I write the emperor? For there is no clear charge against him. So I have brought him before all of you, and especially you, King Agrippa, so that after we examine him, I might have something to write.

²⁷For it makes no sense to send a prisoner to the emperor without specifying the charges against him!”