Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now it happened on the second Sabbath after the first that He went through the grainfields. And His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate them, rubbing them in their hands.

²And some of the Pharisees said to them, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?”

³But Jesus answering them said, “Have you not even read this, what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him:

⁴how he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?”

⁵And He said to them, “The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.”

⁶Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered the synagogue and taught. And a man was there whose right hand was withered.

⁷So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him.

⁸But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, “Arise and stand here.” And he arose and stood.

⁹Then Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?”

¹⁰And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.

¹¹But they were filled with rage, and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.

¹²Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.

¹³And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles:

¹⁴Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew;

¹⁵Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot;

¹⁶Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor.

¹⁷And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases,

¹⁸as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed.

¹⁹And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.

²⁰Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: “Blessed are you poor, For yours is the kingdom of God.

²¹Blessed are you who hunger now, For you shall be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, For you shall laugh.

²²Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man’s sake.

²³Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.

²⁴“But woe to you who are rich, For you have received your consolation.

²⁵Woe to you who are full, For you shall hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, For you shall mourn and weep.

²⁶Woe to you when all men speak well of you, For so did their fathers to the false prophets.

²⁷“But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,

²⁸bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.

²⁹To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either.

³⁰Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back.

³¹And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.

³²“But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.

³³And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.

³⁴And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back.

³⁵But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.

³⁶Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.

³⁷“Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

³⁸Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

³⁹And He spoke a parable to them: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch?

⁴⁰A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher.

⁴¹And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye?

⁴²Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother’s eye.

⁴³“For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.

⁴⁴For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush.

⁴⁵A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

⁴⁶“But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?

⁴⁷Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like:

⁴⁸He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.

⁴⁹But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great.”

¹Then the children of Israel moved, and camped in the plains of Moab on the side of the Jordan across from Jericho.

²Now Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites.

³And Moab was exceedingly afraid of the people because they were many, and Moab was sick with dread because of the children of Israel.

⁴So Moab said to the elders of Midian, “Now this company will lick up everything around us, as an ox licks up the grass of the field.” And Balak the son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at that time.

⁵Then he sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the sons of his people, to call him, saying: “Look, a people has come from Egypt. See, they cover the face of the earth, and are settling next to me!

⁶Therefore please come at once, curse this people for me, for they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”

⁷So the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the diviner’s fee in their hand, and they came to Balaam and spoke to him the words of Balak.

⁸And he said to them, “Lodge here tonight, and I will bring back word to you, as the LORD speaks to me.” So the princes of Moab stayed with Balaam.

⁹Then God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?”

¹⁰So Balaam said to God, “Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent to me, saying,

¹¹‘Look, a people has come out of Egypt, and they cover the face of the earth. Come now, curse them for me; perhaps I shall be able to overpower them and drive them out.’ ”

¹²And God said to Balaam, “You shall not go with them; you shall not curse the people, for they are blessed.”

¹³So Balaam rose in the morning and said to the princes of Balak, “Go back to your land, for the LORD has refused to give me permission to go with you.”

¹⁴And the princes of Moab rose and went to Balak, and said, “Balaam refuses to come with us.”

¹⁵Then Balak again sent princes, more numerous and more honorable than they.

¹⁶And they came to Balaam and said to him, “Thus says Balak the son of Zippor: ‘Please let nothing hinder you from coming to me;

¹⁷for I will certainly honor you greatly, and I will do whatever you say to me. Therefore please come, curse this people for me.’ ”

¹⁸Then Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak, “Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the LORD my God, to do less or more.

¹⁹Now therefore, please, you also stay here tonight, that I may know what more the LORD will say to me.”

²⁰And God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “If the men come to call you, rise and go with them; but only the word which I speak to you—that you shall do.”

²¹So Balaam rose in the morning, saddled his donkey, and went with the princes of Moab.

²²Then God’s anger was aroused because he went, and the Angel of the LORD took His stand in the way as an adversary against him. And he was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him.

²³Now the donkey saw the Angel of the LORD standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand, and the donkey turned aside out of the way and went into the field. So Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back onto the road.

²⁴Then the Angel of the LORD stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side.

²⁵And when the donkey saw the Angel of the LORD, she pushed herself against the wall and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall; so he struck her again.

²⁶Then the Angel of the LORD went further, and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left.

²⁷And when the donkey saw the Angel of the LORD, she lay down under Balaam; so Balaam’s anger was aroused, and he struck the donkey with his staff.

²⁸Then the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”

²⁹And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have abused me. I wish there were a sword in my hand, for now I would kill you!”

³⁰So the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden, ever since I became yours, to this day? Was I ever disposed to do this to you?” And he said, “No.”

³¹Then the LORD opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the Angel of the LORD standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand; and he bowed his head and fell flat on his face.

³²And the Angel of the LORD said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to stand against you, because your way is perverse before Me.

³³The donkey saw Me and turned aside from Me these three times. If she had not turned aside from Me, surely I would also have killed you by now, and let her live.”

³⁴And Balaam said to the Angel of the LORD, “I have sinned, for I did not know You stood in the way against me. Now therefore, if it displeases You, I will turn back.”

³⁵Then the Angel of the LORD said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but only the word that I speak to you, that you shall speak.” So Balaam went with the princes of Balak.

³⁶Now when Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him at the city of Moab, which is on the border at the Arnon, the boundary of the territory.

³⁷Then Balak said to Balaam, “Did I not earnestly send to you, calling for you? Why did you not come to me? Am I not able to honor you?”

³⁸And Balaam said to Balak, “Look, I have come to you! Now, have I any power at all to say anything? The word that God puts in my mouth, that I must speak.”

³⁹So Balaam went with Balak, and they came to Kirjath Huzoth.

⁴⁰Then Balak offered oxen and sheep, and he sent some to Balaam and to the princes who were with him.

⁴¹So it was, the next day, that Balak took Balaam and brought him up to the high places of Baal, that from there he might observe the extent of the people.

¹Therefore, my beloved and longed-for brethren, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, beloved.

²I implore Euodia and I implore Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord.

³And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life.

⁴Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

⁵Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.

⁶Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;

⁷and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

⁸Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.

⁹The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.

¹⁰But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at last your care for me has flourished again; though you surely did care, but you lacked opportunity.

¹¹Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content:

¹²I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.

¹³I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

¹⁴Nevertheless you have done well that you shared in my distress.

¹⁵Now you Philippians know also that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church shared with me concerning giving and receiving but you only.

¹⁶For even in Thessalonica you sent aid once and again for my necessities.

¹⁷Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account.

¹⁸Indeed I have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God.

¹⁹And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

²⁰Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.

²¹Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren who are with me greet you.

²²All the saints greet you, but especially those who are of Caesar’s household.

²³The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.

¹Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior and the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope,

²To Timothy, a true son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.

³As I urged you when I went into Macedonia—remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine,

⁴nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is in faith.

⁵Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith,

⁶from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to idle talk,

⁷desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm.

⁸But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully,

⁹knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers,

¹⁰for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine,

¹¹according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.

¹²And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry,

¹³although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.

¹⁴And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.

¹⁵This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.

¹⁶However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.

¹⁷Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

¹⁸This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare,

¹⁹having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck,

²⁰of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.

¹Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered and said:

²“Should a wise man answer with empty knowledge, And fill himself with the east wind?

³Should he reason with unprofitable talk, Or by speeches with which he can do no good?

⁴Yes, you cast off fear, And restrain prayer before God.

⁵For your iniquity teaches your mouth, And you choose the tongue of the crafty.

⁶Your own mouth condemns you, and not I; Yes, your own lips testify against you.

⁷“Are you the first man who was born? Or were you made before the hills?

⁸Have you heard the counsel of God? Do you limit wisdom to yourself?

⁹What do you know that we do not know? What do you understand that is not in us?

¹⁰Both the gray-haired and the aged are among us, Much older than your father.

¹¹Are the consolations of God too small for you, And the word spoken gently with you?

¹²Why does your heart carry you away, And what do your eyes wink at,

¹³That you turn your spirit against God, And let such words go out of your mouth?

¹⁴“What is man, that he could be pure? And he who is born of a woman, that he could be righteous?

¹⁵If God puts no trust in His saints, And the heavens are not pure in His sight,

¹⁶How much less man, who is abominable and filthy, Who drinks iniquity like water!

¹⁷“I will tell you, hear me; What I have seen I will declare,

¹⁸What wise men have told, Not hiding anything received from their fathers,

¹⁹To whom alone the land was given, And no alien passed among them:

²⁰The wicked man writhes with pain all his days, And the number of years is hidden from the oppressor.

²¹Dreadful sounds are in his ears; In prosperity the destroyer comes upon him.

²²He does not believe that he will return from darkness, For a sword is waiting for him.

²³He wanders about for bread, saying, ‘Where is it?’ He knows that a day of darkness is ready at his hand.

²⁴Trouble and anguish make him afraid; They overpower him, like a king ready for battle.

²⁵For he stretches out his hand against God, And acts defiantly against the Almighty,

²⁶Running stubbornly against Him With his strong, embossed shield.

²⁷“Though he has covered his face with his fatness, And made his waist heavy with fat,

²⁸He dwells in desolate cities, In houses which no one inhabits, Which are destined to become ruins.

²⁹He will not be rich, Nor will his wealth continue, Nor will his possessions overspread the earth.

³⁰He will not depart from darkness; The flame will dry out his branches, And by the breath of His mouth he will go away.

³¹Let him not trust in futile things, deceiving himself, For futility will be his reward.

³²It will be accomplished before his time, And his branch will not be green.

³³He will shake off his unripe grape like a vine, And cast off his blossom like an olive tree.

³⁴For the company of hypocrites will be barren, And fire will consume the tents of bribery.

³⁵They conceive trouble and bring forth futility; Their womb prepares deceit.”

¹For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. [1] O LORD, You have searched me and known me.

²You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off.

³You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways.

⁴For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether.

⁵You have hedged me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me.

⁶Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it.

⁷Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?

⁸If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.

⁹If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

¹⁰Even there Your hand shall lead me, And Your right hand shall hold me.

¹¹If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,” Even the night shall be light about me;

¹²Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You, But the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to You.

¹³For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.

¹⁴I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.

¹⁵My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

¹⁶Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.

¹⁷How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them!

¹⁸If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You.

¹⁹Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God! Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men.

²⁰For they speak against You wickedly; Your enemies take Your name in vain.

²¹Do I not hate them, O LORD, who hate You? And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?

²²I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them my enemies.

²³Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties;

²⁴And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.

¹A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.

²The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness.

³The eyes of the LORD are in every place, Keeping watch on the evil and the good.

⁴A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, But perverseness in it breaks the spirit.

⁵A fool despises his father’s instruction, But he who receives correction is prudent.

⁶In the house of the righteous there is much treasure, But in the revenue of the wicked is trouble.

⁷The lips of the wise disperse knowledge, But the heart of the fool does not do so.

⁸The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, But the prayer of the upright is His delight.

⁹The way of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, But He loves him who follows righteousness.

¹⁰Harsh discipline is for him who forsakes the way, And he who hates correction will die.

¹¹Hell and Destruction are before the LORD; So how much more the hearts of the sons of men.

¹²A scoffer does not love one who corrects him, Nor will he go to the wise.

¹³A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, But by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.

¹⁴The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, But the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness.

¹⁵All the days of the afflicted are evil, But he who is of a merry heart has a continual feast.

¹⁶Better is a little with the fear of the LORD, Than great treasure with trouble.

¹⁷Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, Than a fatted calf with hatred.

¹⁸A wrathful man stirs up strife, But he who is slow to anger allays contention.

¹⁹The way of the lazy man is like a hedge of thorns, But the way of the upright is a highway.

²⁰A wise son makes a father glad, But a foolish man despises his mother.

²¹Folly is joy to him who is destitute of discernment, But a man of understanding walks uprightly.

²²Without counsel, plans go awry, But in the multitude of counselors they are established.

²³A man has joy by the answer of his mouth, And a word spoken in due season, how good it is!

²⁴The way of life winds upward for the wise, That he may turn away from hell below.

²⁵The LORD will destroy the house of the proud, But He will establish the boundary of the widow.

²⁶The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the LORD, But the words of the pure are pleasant.

²⁷He who is greedy for gain troubles his own house, But he who hates bribes will live.

²⁸The heart of the righteous studies how to answer, But the mouth of the wicked pours forth evil.

²⁹The LORD is far from the wicked, But He hears the prayer of the righteous.

³⁰The light of the eyes rejoices the heart, And a good report makes the bones healthy.

³¹The ear that hears the rebukes of life Will abide among the wise.

³²He who disdains instruction despises his own soul, But he who heeds rebuke gets understanding.

³³The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom, And before honor is humility.

¹In the twenty-third year of Joash the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz the son of Jehu became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years.

²And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin. He did not depart from them.

³Then the anger of the LORD was aroused against Israel, and He delivered them into the hand of Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of Ben-Hadad the son of Hazael, all their days.

⁴So Jehoahaz pleaded with the LORD, and the LORD listened to him; for He saw the oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria oppressed them.

⁵Then the LORD gave Israel a deliverer, so that they escaped from under the hand of the Syrians; and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents as before.

⁶Nevertheless they did not depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, who had made Israel sin, but walked in them; and the wooden image also remained in Samaria.

⁷For He left of the army of Jehoahaz only fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand foot soldiers; for the king of Syria had destroyed them and made them like the dust at threshing.

⁸Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

⁹So Jehoahaz rested with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. Then Joash his son reigned in his place.

¹⁰In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah, Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned sixteen years.

¹¹And he did evil in the sight of the LORD. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, but walked in them.

¹²Now the rest of the acts of Joash, all that he did, and his might with which he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

¹³So Joash rested with his fathers. Then Jeroboam sat on his throne. And Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

¹⁴Elisha had become sick with the illness of which he would die. Then Joash the king of Israel came down to him, and wept over his face, and said, “O my father, my father, the chariots of Israel and their horsemen!”

¹⁵And Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and some arrows.” So he took himself a bow and some arrows.

¹⁶Then he said to the king of Israel, “Put your hand on the bow.” So he put his hand on it, and Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands.

¹⁷And he said, “Open the east window”; and he opened it. Then Elisha said, “Shoot”; and he shot. And he said, “The arrow of the LORD’s deliverance and the arrow of deliverance from Syria; for you must strike the Syrians at Aphek till you have destroyed them.”

¹⁸Then he said, “Take the arrows”; so he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground”; so he struck three times, and stopped.

¹⁹And the man of God was angry with him, and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had destroyed it! But now you will strike Syria only three times.”

²⁰Then Elisha died, and they buried him. And the raiding bands from Moab invaded the land in the spring of the year.

²¹So it was, as they were burying a man, that suddenly they spied a band of raiders; and they put the man in the tomb of Elisha; and when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.

²²And Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz.

²³But the LORD was gracious to them, had compassion on them, and regarded them, because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not yet destroy them or cast them from His presence.

²⁴Now Hazael king of Syria died. Then Ben-Hadad his son reigned in his place.

²⁵And Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz recaptured from the hand of Ben-Hadad, the son of Hazael, the cities which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times Joash defeated him and recaptured the cities of Israel.

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

²“Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations,

³and say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD to Jerusalem: “Your birth and your nativity are from the land of Canaan; your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite.

⁴As for your nativity, on the day you were born your navel cord was not cut, nor were you washed in water to cleanse you; you were not rubbed with salt nor wrapped in swaddling cloths.

⁵No eye pitied you, to do any of these things for you, to have compassion on you; but you were thrown out into the open field, when you yourself were loathed on the day you were born.

⁶“And when I passed by you and saw you struggling in your own blood, I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’ Yes, I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’

⁷I made you thrive like a plant in the field; and you grew, matured, and became very beautiful. Your breasts were formed, your hair grew, but you were naked and bare.

⁸“When I passed by you again and looked upon you, indeed your time was the time of love; so I spread My wing over you and covered your nakedness. Yes, I swore an oath to you and entered into a covenant with you, and you became Mine,” says the Lord GOD.

⁹“Then I washed you in water; yes, I thoroughly washed off your blood, and I anointed you with oil.

¹⁰I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of badger skin; I clothed you with fine linen and covered you with silk.

¹¹I adorned you with ornaments, put bracelets on your wrists, and a chain on your neck.

¹²And I put a jewel in your nose, earrings in your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head.

¹³Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen, silk, and embroidered cloth. You ate pastry of fine flour, honey, and oil. You were exceedingly beautiful, and succeeded to royalty.

¹⁴Your fame went out among the nations because of your beauty, for it was perfect through My splendor which I had bestowed on you,” says the Lord GOD.

¹⁵“But you trusted in your own beauty, played the harlot because of your fame, and poured out your harlotry on everyone passing by who would have it.

¹⁶You took some of your garments and adorned multicolored high places for yourself, and played the harlot on them. Such things should not happen, nor be.

¹⁷You have also taken your beautiful jewelry from My gold and My silver, which I had given you, and made for yourself male images and played the harlot with them.

¹⁸You took your embroidered garments and covered them, and you set My oil and My incense before them.

¹⁹Also My food which I gave you—the pastry of fine flour, oil, and honey which I fed you—you set it before them as sweet incense; and so it was,” says the Lord GOD.

²⁰“Moreover you took your sons and your daughters, whom you bore to Me, and these you sacrificed to them to be devoured. Were your acts of harlotry a small matter,

²¹that you have slain My children and offered them up to them by causing them to pass through the fire?

²²And in all your abominations and acts of harlotry you did not remember the days of your youth, when you were naked and bare, struggling in your blood.

²³“Then it was so, after all your wickedness—‘Woe, woe to you!’ says the Lord GOD—

²⁴that you also built for yourself a shrine, and made a high place for yourself in every street.

²⁵You built your high places at the head of every road, and made your beauty to be abhorred. You offered yourself to everyone who passed by, and multiplied your acts of harlotry.

²⁶You also committed harlotry with the Egyptians, your very fleshly neighbors, and increased your acts of harlotry to provoke Me to anger.

²⁷“Behold, therefore, I stretched out My hand against you, diminished your allotment, and gave you up to the will of those who hate you, the daughters of the Philistines, who were ashamed of your lewd behavior.

²⁸You also played the harlot with the Assyrians, because you were insatiable; indeed you played the harlot with them and still were not satisfied.

²⁹Moreover you multiplied your acts of harlotry as far as the land of the trader, Chaldea; and even then you were not satisfied.

³⁰“How degenerate is your heart!” says the Lord GOD, “seeing you do all these things, the deeds of a brazen harlot.

³¹“You erected your shrine at the head of every road, and built your high place in every street. Yet you were not like a harlot, because you scorned payment.

³²You are an adulterous wife, who takes strangers instead of her husband.

³³Men make payment to all harlots, but you made your payments to all your lovers, and hired them to come to you from all around for your harlotry.

³⁴You are the opposite of other women in your harlotry, because no one solicited you to be a harlot. In that you gave payment but no payment was given you, therefore you are the opposite.”

³⁵‘Now then, O harlot, hear the word of the LORD!

³⁶Thus says the Lord GOD: “Because your filthiness was poured out and your nakedness uncovered in your harlotry with your lovers, and with all your abominable idols, and because of the blood of your children which you gave to them,

³⁷surely, therefore, I will gather all your lovers with whom you took pleasure, all those you loved, and all those you hated; I will gather them from all around against you and will uncover your nakedness to them, that they may see all your nakedness.

³⁸And I will judge you as women who break wedlock or shed blood are judged; I will bring blood upon you in fury and jealousy.

³⁹I will also give you into their hand, and they shall throw down your shrines and break down your high places. They shall also strip you of your clothes, take your beautiful jewelry, and leave you naked and bare.

⁴⁰“They shall also bring up an assembly against you, and they shall stone you with stones and thrust you through with their swords.

⁴¹They shall burn your houses with fire, and execute judgments on you in the sight of many women; and I will make you cease playing the harlot, and you shall no longer hire lovers.

⁴²So I will lay to rest My fury toward you, and My jealousy shall depart from you. I will be quiet, and be angry no more.

⁴³Because you did not remember the days of your youth, but agitated Me with all these things, surely I will also recompense your deeds on your own head,” says the Lord GOD. “And you shall not commit lewdness in addition to all your abominations.

⁴⁴“Indeed everyone who quotes proverbs will use this proverb against you: ‘Like mother, like daughter!’

⁴⁵You are your mother’s daughter, loathing husband and children; and you are the sister of your sisters, who loathed their husbands and children; your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite.

⁴⁶“Your elder sister is Samaria, who dwells with her daughters to the north of you; and your younger sister, who dwells to the south of you, is Sodom and her daughters.

⁴⁷You did not walk in their ways nor act according to their abominations; but, as if that were too little, you became more corrupt than they in all your ways.

⁴⁸“As I live,” says the Lord GOD, “neither your sister Sodom nor her daughters have done as you and your daughters have done.

⁴⁹Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.

⁵⁰And they were haughty and committed abomination before Me; therefore I took them away as I saw fit.

⁵¹“Samaria did not commit half of your sins; but you have multiplied your abominations more than they, and have justified your sisters by all the abominations which you have done.

⁵²You who judged your sisters, bear your own shame also, because the sins which you committed were more abominable than theirs; they are more righteous than you. Yes, be disgraced also, and bear your own shame, because you justified your sisters.

⁵³“When I bring back their captives, the captives of Sodom and her daughters, and the captives of Samaria and her daughters, then I will also bring back the captives of your captivity among them,

⁵⁴that you may bear your own shame and be disgraced by all that you did when you comforted them.

⁵⁵When your sisters, Sodom and her daughters, return to their former state, and Samaria and her daughters return to their former state, then you and your daughters will return to your former state.

⁵⁶For your sister Sodom was not a byword in your mouth in the days of your pride,

⁵⁷before your wickedness was uncovered. It was like the time of the reproach of the daughters of Syria and all those around her, and of the daughters of the Philistines, who despise you everywhere.

⁵⁸You have paid for your lewdness and your abominations,” says the LORD.

⁵⁹For thus says the Lord GOD: “I will deal with you as you have done, who despised the oath by breaking the covenant.

⁶⁰“Nevertheless I will remember My covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.

⁶¹Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed, when you receive your older and your younger sisters; for I will give them to you for daughters, but not because of My covenant with you.

⁶²And I will establish My covenant with you. Then you shall know that I am the LORD,

⁶³that you may remember and be ashamed, and never open your mouth anymore because of your shame, when I provide you an atonement for all you have done,” says the Lord GOD.’ ”

¹And when it was decided that we should sail to Italy, they delivered Paul and some other prisoners to one named Julius, a centurion of the Augustan Regiment.

²So, entering a ship of Adramyttium, we put to sea, meaning to sail along the coasts of Asia. Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica, was with us.

³And the next day we landed at Sidon. And Julius treated Paul kindly and gave him liberty to go to his friends and receive care.

⁴When we had put to sea from there, we sailed under the shelter of Cyprus, because the winds were contrary.

⁵And when we had sailed over the sea which is off Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra, a city of Lycia.

⁶There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing to Italy, and he put us on board.

⁷When we had sailed slowly many days, and arrived with difficulty off Cnidus, the wind not permitting us to proceed, we sailed under the shelter of Crete off Salmone.

⁸Passing it with difficulty, we came to a place called Fair Havens, near the city of Lasea.

⁹Now when much time had been spent, and sailing was now dangerous because the Fast was already over, Paul advised them,

¹⁰saying, “Men, I perceive that this voyage will end with disaster and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives.”

¹¹Nevertheless the centurion was more persuaded by the helmsman and the owner of the ship than by the things spoken by Paul.

¹²And because the harbor was not suitable to winter in, the majority advised to set sail from there also, if by any means they could reach Phoenix, a harbor of Crete opening toward the southwest and northwest, and winter there.

¹³When the south wind blew softly, supposing that they had obtained their desire, putting out to sea, they sailed close by Crete.

¹⁴But not long after, a tempestuous head wind arose, called Euroclydon.

¹⁵So when the ship was caught, and could not head into the wind, we let her drive.

¹⁶And running under the shelter of an island called Clauda, we secured the skiff with difficulty.

¹⁷When they had taken it on board, they used cables to undergird the ship; and fearing lest they should run aground on the Syrtis Sands, they struck sail and so were driven.

¹⁸And because we were exceedingly tempest-tossed, the next day they lightened the ship.

¹⁹On the third day we threw the ship’s tackle overboard with our own hands.

²⁰Now when neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest beat on us, all hope that we would be saved was finally given up.

²¹But after long abstinence from food, then Paul stood in the midst of them and said, “Men, you should have listened to me, and not have sailed from Crete and incurred this disaster and loss.

²²And now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship.

²³For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve,

²⁴saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must be brought before Caesar; and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you.’

²⁵Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me.

²⁶However, we must run aground on a certain island.”

²⁷Now when the fourteenth night had come, as we were driven up and down in the Adriatic Sea, about midnight the sailors sensed that they were drawing near some land.

²⁸And they took soundings and found it to be twenty fathoms; and when they had gone a little farther, they took soundings again and found it to be fifteen fathoms.

²⁹Then, fearing lest we should run aground on the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern, and prayed for day to come.

³⁰And as the sailors were seeking to escape from the ship, when they had let down the skiff into the sea, under pretense of putting out anchors from the prow,

³¹Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.”

³²Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of the skiff and let it fall off.

³³And as day was about to dawn, Paul implored them all to take food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day you have waited and continued without food, and eaten nothing.

³⁴Therefore I urge you to take nourishment, for this is for your survival, since not a hair will fall from the head of any of you.”

³⁵And when he had said these things, he took bread and gave thanks to God in the presence of them all; and when he had broken it he began to eat.

³⁶Then they were all encouraged, and also took food themselves.

³⁷And in all we were two hundred and seventy-six persons on the ship.

³⁸So when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship and threw out the wheat into the sea.

³⁹When it was day, they did not recognize the land; but they observed a bay with a beach, onto which they planned to run the ship if possible.

⁴⁰And they let go the anchors and left them in the sea, meanwhile loosing the rudder ropes; and they hoisted the mainsail to the wind and made for shore.

⁴¹But striking a place where two seas met, they ran the ship aground; and the prow stuck fast and remained immovable, but the stern was being broken up by the violence of the waves.

⁴²And the soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners, lest any of them should swim away and escape.

⁴³But the centurion, wanting to save Paul, kept them from their purpose, and commanded that those who could swim should jump overboard first and get to land,

⁴⁴and the rest, some on boards and some on parts of the ship. And so it was that they all escaped safely to land.