Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him,

²and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities—Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons,

³and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.

⁴And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable:

⁵“A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.

⁶Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.

⁷And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.

⁸But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold.” When He had said these things He cried, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

⁹Then His disciples asked Him, saying, “What does this parable mean?”

¹⁰And He said, “To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that ‘Seeing they may not see, And hearing they may not understand.’

¹¹“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.

¹²Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

¹³But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.

¹⁴Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.

¹⁵But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.

¹⁶“No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.

¹⁷For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.

¹⁸Therefore take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him.”

¹⁹Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd.

²⁰And it was told Him by some, who said, “Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You.”

²¹But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.”

²²Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples. And He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side of the lake.” And they launched out.

²³But as they sailed He fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy.

²⁴And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm.

²⁵But He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, “Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!”

²⁶Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.

²⁷And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.

²⁸When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me!”

²⁹For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.

³⁰Jesus asked him, saying, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion,” because many demons had entered him.

³¹And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss.

³²Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain. So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them. And He permitted them.

³³Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.

³⁴When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country.

³⁵Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.

³⁶They also who had seen it told them by what means he who had been demon-possessed was healed.

³⁷Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. And He got into the boat and returned.

³⁸Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him. But Jesus sent him away, saying,

³⁹“Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you.” And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.

⁴⁰So it was, when Jesus returned, that the multitude welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Him.

⁴¹And behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue. And he fell down at Jesus’ feet and begged Him to come to his house,

⁴²for he had an only daughter about twelve years of age, and she was dying. But as He went, the multitudes thronged Him.

⁴³Now a woman, having a flow of blood for twelve years, who had spent all her livelihood on physicians and could not be healed by any,

⁴⁴came from behind and touched the border of His garment. And immediately her flow of blood stopped.

⁴⁵And Jesus said, “Who touched Me?” When all denied it, Peter and those with him said, “Master, the multitudes throng and press You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’ ”

⁴⁶But Jesus said, “Somebody touched Me, for I perceived power going out from Me.”

⁴⁷Now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling; and falling down before Him, she declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately.

⁴⁸And He said to her, “Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well. Go in peace.”

⁴⁹While He was still speaking, someone came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house, saying to him, “Your daughter is dead. Do not trouble the Teacher.”

⁵⁰But when Jesus heard it, He answered him, saying, “Do not be afraid; only believe, and she will be made well.”

⁵¹When He came into the house, He permitted no one to go in except Peter, James, and John, and the father and mother of the girl.

⁵²Now all wept and mourned for her; but He said, “Do not weep; she is not dead, but sleeping.”

⁵³And they ridiculed Him, knowing that she was dead.

⁵⁴But He put them all outside, took her by the hand and called, saying, “Little girl, arise.”

⁵⁵Then her spirit returned, and she arose immediately. And He commanded that she be given something to eat.

⁵⁶And her parents were astonished, but He charged them to tell no one what had happened.

¹Now when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not go as at other times, to seek to use sorcery, but he set his face toward the wilderness.

²And Balaam raised his eyes, and saw Israel encamped according to their tribes; and the Spirit of God came upon him.

³Then he took up his oracle and said: “The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor, The utterance of the man whose eyes are opened,

⁴The utterance of him who hears the words of God, Who sees the vision of the Almighty, Who falls down, with eyes wide open:

⁵“How lovely are your tents, O Jacob! Your dwellings, O Israel!

⁶Like valleys that stretch out, Like gardens by the riverside, Like aloes planted by the LORD, Like cedars beside the waters.

⁷He shall pour water from his buckets, And his seed shall be in many waters. “His king shall be higher than Agag, And his kingdom shall be exalted.

⁸“God brings him out of Egypt; He has strength like a wild ox; He shall consume the nations, his enemies; He shall break their bones And pierce them with his arrows.

⁹‘He bows down, he lies down as a lion; And as a lion, who shall rouse him?’ “Blessed is he who blesses you, And cursed is he who curses you.”

¹⁰Then Balak’s anger was aroused against Balaam, and he struck his hands together; and Balak said to Balaam, “I called you to curse my enemies, and look, you have bountifully blessed them these three times!

¹¹Now therefore, flee to your place. I said I would greatly honor you, but in fact, the LORD has kept you back from honor.”

¹²So Balaam said to Balak, “Did I not also speak to your messengers whom you sent to me, saying,

¹³‘If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the LORD, to do good or bad of my own will. What the LORD says, that I must speak’?

¹⁴And now, indeed, I am going to my people. Come, I will advise you what this people will do to your people in the latter days.”

¹⁵So he took up his oracle and said: “The utterance of Balaam the son of Beor, And the utterance of the man whose eyes are opened;

¹⁶The utterance of him who hears the words of God, And has the knowledge of the Most High, Who sees the vision of the Almighty, Who falls down, with eyes wide open:

¹⁷“I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall come out of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And destroy all the sons of tumult.

¹⁸“And Edom shall be a possession; Seir also, his enemies, shall be a possession, While Israel does valiantly.

¹⁹Out of Jacob One shall have dominion, And destroy the remains of the city.”

²⁰Then he looked on Amalek, and he took up his oracle and said: “Amalek was first among the nations, But shall be last until he perishes.”

²¹Then he looked on the Kenites, and he took up his oracle and said: “Firm is your dwelling place, And your nest is set in the rock;

²²Nevertheless Kain shall be burned. How long until Asshur carries you away captive?”

²³Then he took up his oracle and said: “Alas! Who shall live when God does this?

²⁴But ships shall come from the coasts of Cyprus, And they shall afflict Asshur and afflict Eber, And so shall Amalek, until he perishes.”

²⁵So Balaam rose and departed and returned to his place; Balak also went his way.

¹For I want you to know what a great conflict I have for you and those in Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh,

²that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ,

³in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

⁴Now this I say lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words.

⁵For though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.

⁶As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,

⁷rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.

⁸Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.

⁹For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;

¹⁰and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.

¹¹In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ,

¹²buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.

¹³And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses,

¹⁴having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

¹⁵Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.

¹⁶So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths,

¹⁷which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.

¹⁸Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,

¹⁹and not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.

²⁰Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations—

²¹“Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,”

²²which all concern things which perish with the using— according to the commandments and doctrines of men?

²³These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.

¹This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work.

²A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;

³not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous;

⁴one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence

⁵(for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?);

⁶not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil.

⁷Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

⁸Likewise deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy for money,

⁹holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience.

¹⁰But let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless.

¹¹Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things.

¹²Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.

¹³For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a good standing and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.

¹⁴These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly;

¹⁵but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

¹⁶And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.

¹“My spirit is broken, My days are extinguished, The grave is ready for me.

²Are not mockers with me? And does not my eye dwell on their provocation?

³“Now put down a pledge for me with Yourself. Who is he who will shake hands with me?

⁴For You have hidden their heart from understanding; Therefore You will not exalt them.

⁵He who speaks flattery to his friends, Even the eyes of his children will fail.

⁶“But He has made me a byword of the people, And I have become one in whose face men spit.

⁷My eye has also grown dim because of sorrow, And all my members are like shadows.

⁸Upright men are astonished at this, And the innocent stirs himself up against the hypocrite.

⁹Yet the righteous will hold to his way, And he who has clean hands will be stronger and stronger.

¹⁰“But please, come back again, all of you, For I shall not find one wise man among you.

¹¹My days are past, My purposes are broken off, Even the thoughts of my heart.

¹²They change the night into day; ‘The light is near,’ they say, in the face of darkness.

¹³If I wait for the grave as my house, If I make my bed in the darkness,

¹⁴If I say to corruption, ‘You are my father,’ And to the worm, ‘You are my mother and my sister,’

¹⁵Where then is my hope? As for my hope, who can see it?

¹⁶Will they go down to the gates of Sheol? Shall we have rest together in the dust?”

¹A Psalm of David. [1] LORD, I cry out to You; Make haste to me! Give ear to my voice when I cry out to You.

²Let my prayer be set before You as incense, The lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.

³Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips.

⁴Do not incline my heart to any evil thing, To practice wicked works With men who work iniquity; And do not let me eat of their delicacies.

⁵Let the righteous strike me; It shall be a kindness. And let him rebuke me; It shall be as excellent oil; Let my head not refuse it. For still my prayer is against the deeds of the wicked.

⁶Their judges are overthrown by the sides of the cliff, And they hear my words, for they are sweet.

⁷Our bones are scattered at the mouth of the grave, As when one plows and breaks up the earth.

⁸But my eyes are upon You, O GOD the Lord; In You I take refuge; Do not leave my soul destitute.

⁹Keep me from the snares they have laid for me, And from the traps of the workers of iniquity.

¹⁰Let the wicked fall into their own nets, While I escape safely.

¹Better is a dry morsel with quietness, Than a house full of feasting with strife.

²A wise servant will rule over a son who causes shame, And will share an inheritance among the brothers.

³The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, But the LORD tests the hearts.

⁴An evildoer gives heed to false lips; A liar listens eagerly to a spiteful tongue.

⁵He who mocks the poor reproaches his Maker; He who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished.

⁶Children’s children are the crown of old men, And the glory of children is their father.

⁷Excellent speech is not becoming to a fool, Much less lying lips to a prince.

⁸A present is a precious stone in the eyes of its possessor; Wherever he turns, he prospers.

⁹He who covers a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates friends.

¹⁰Rebuke is more effective for a wise man Than a hundred blows on a fool.

¹¹An evil man seeks only rebellion; Therefore a cruel messenger will be sent against him.

¹²Let a man meet a bear robbed of her cubs, Rather than a fool in his folly.

¹³Whoever rewards evil for good, Evil will not depart from his house.

¹⁴The beginning of strife is like releasing water; Therefore stop contention before a quarrel starts.

¹⁵He who justifies the wicked, and he who condemns the just, Both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD.

¹⁶Why is there in the hand of a fool the purchase price of wisdom, Since he has no heart for it?

¹⁷A friend loves at all times, And a brother is born for adversity.

¹⁸A man devoid of understanding shakes hands in a pledge, And becomes surety for his friend.

¹⁹He who loves transgression loves strife, And he who exalts his gate seeks destruction.

²⁰He who has a deceitful heart finds no good, And he who has a perverse tongue falls into evil.

²¹He who begets a scoffer does so to his sorrow, And the father of a fool has no joy.

²²A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones.

²³A wicked man accepts a bribe behind the back To pervert the ways of justice.

²⁴Wisdom is in the sight of him who has understanding, But the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.

²⁵A foolish son is a grief to his father, And bitterness to her who bore him.

²⁶Also, to punish the righteous is not good, Nor to strike princes for their uprightness.

²⁷He who has knowledge spares his words, And a man of understanding is of a calm spirit.

²⁸Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace; When he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive.

¹In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah the son of Amaziah, king of Judah, became king.

²He was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem.

³And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah had done,

⁴except that the high places were not removed; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.

⁵Then the LORD struck the king, so that he was a leper until the day of his death; so he dwelt in an isolated house. And Jotham the king’s son was over the royal house, judging the people of the land.

⁶Now the rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

⁷So Azariah rested with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the City of David. Then Jotham his son reigned in his place.

⁸In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel in Samaria six months.

⁹And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, as his fathers had done; he did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin.

¹⁰Then Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, and struck and killed him in front of the people; and he reigned in his place.

¹¹Now the rest of the acts of Zechariah, indeed they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

¹²This was the word of the LORD which He spoke to Jehu, saying, “Your sons shall sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.” And so it was.

¹³Shallum the son of Jabesh became king in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah king of Judah; and he reigned a full month in Samaria.

¹⁴For Menahem the son of Gadi went up from Tirzah, came to Samaria, and struck Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria and killed him; and he reigned in his place.

¹⁵Now the rest of the acts of Shallum, and the conspiracy which he led, indeed they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

¹⁶Then from Tirzah, Menahem attacked Tiphsah, all who were there, and its territory. Because they did not surrender, therefore he attacked it. All the women there who were with child he ripped open.

¹⁷In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem the son of Gadi became king over Israel, and reigned ten years in Samaria.

¹⁸And he did evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not depart all his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin.

¹⁹Pul king of Assyria came against the land; and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to strengthen the kingdom under his control.

²⁰And Menahem exacted the money from Israel, from all the very wealthy, from each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and did not stay there in the land.

²¹Now the rest of the acts of Menahem, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

²²So Menahem rested with his fathers. Then Pekahiah his son reigned in his place.

²³In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah the son of Menahem became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned two years.

²⁴And he did evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin.

²⁵Then Pekah the son of Remaliah, an officer of his, conspired against him and killed him in Samaria, in the citadel of the king’s house, along with Argob and Arieh; and with him were fifty men of Gilead. He killed him and reigned in his place.

²⁶Now the rest of the acts of Pekahiah, and all that he did, indeed they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

²⁷In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah the son of Remaliah became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned twenty years.

²⁸And he did evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin.

²⁹In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, Abel Beth Maachah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria.

³⁰Then Hoshea the son of Elah led a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and struck and killed him; so he reigned in his place in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah.

³¹Now the rest of the acts of Pekah, and all that he did, indeed they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

³²In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, Jotham the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, began to reign.

³³He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok.

³⁴And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD; he did according to all that his father Uzziah had done.

³⁵However the high places were not removed; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. He built the Upper Gate of the house of the LORD.

³⁶Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

³⁷In those days the LORD began to send Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah against Judah.

³⁸So Jotham rested with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the City of David his father. Then Ahaz his son reigned in his place.

¹The word of the LORD came to me again, saying,

²“What do you mean when you use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying: ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, And the children’s teeth are set on edge’?

³“As I live,” says the Lord GOD, “you shall no longer use this proverb in Israel.

⁴“Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father As well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die.

⁵But if a man is just And does what is lawful and right;

⁶If he has not eaten on the mountains, Nor lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, Nor defiled his neighbor’s wife, Nor approached a woman during her impurity;

⁷If he has not oppressed anyone, But has restored to the debtor his pledge; Has robbed no one by violence, But has given his bread to the hungry And covered the naked with clothing;

⁸If he has not exacted usury Nor taken any increase, But has withdrawn his hand from iniquity And executed true judgment between man and man;

⁹If he has walked in My statutes And kept My judgments faithfully— He is just; He shall surely live!” Says the Lord GOD.

¹⁰“If he begets a son who is a robber Or a shedder of blood, Who does any of these things

¹¹And does none of those duties, But has eaten on the mountains Or defiled his neighbor’s wife;

¹²If he has oppressed the poor and needy, Robbed by violence, Not restored the pledge, Lifted his eyes to the idols, Or committed abomination;

¹³If he has exacted usury Or taken increase— Shall he then live? He shall not live! If he has done any of these abominations, He shall surely die; His blood shall be upon him.

¹⁴“If, however, he begets a son Who sees all the sins which his father has done, And considers but does not do likewise;

¹⁵Who has not eaten on the mountains, Nor lifted his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, Nor defiled his neighbor’s wife;

¹⁶Has not oppressed anyone, Nor withheld a pledge, Nor robbed by violence, But has given his bread to the hungry And covered the naked with clothing;

¹⁷Who has withdrawn his hand from the poor And not received usury or increase, But has executed My judgments And walked in My statutes— He shall not die for the iniquity of his father; He shall surely live!

¹⁸“As for his father, Because he cruelly oppressed, Robbed his brother by violence, And did what is not good among his people, Behold, he shall die for his iniquity.

¹⁹“Yet you say, ‘Why should the son not bear the guilt of the father?’ Because the son has done what is lawful and right, and has kept all My statutes and observed them, he shall surely live.

²⁰The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.

²¹“But if a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die.

²²None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall live.

²³Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?” says the Lord GOD, “and not that he should turn from his ways and live?

²⁴“But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die.

²⁵“Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ Hear now, O house of Israel, is it not My way which is fair, and your ways which are not fair?

²⁶When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity, and dies in it, it is because of the iniquity which he has done that he dies.

²⁷Again, when a wicked man turns away from the wickedness which he committed, and does what is lawful and right, he preserves himself alive.

²⁸Because he considers and turns away from all the transgressions which he committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die.

²⁹Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ O house of Israel, is it not My ways which are fair, and your ways which are not fair?

³⁰“Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways,” says the Lord GOD. “Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin.

³¹Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O house of Israel?

³²For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord GOD. “Therefore turn and live!”

¹The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,

²until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen,

³to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.

⁴And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me;

⁵for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

⁶Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”

⁷And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.

⁸But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

⁹Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

¹⁰And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel,

¹¹who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”

¹²Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey.

¹³And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James.

¹⁴These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.

¹⁵And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples (altogether the number of names was about a hundred and twenty), and said,

¹⁶“Men and brethren, this Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus;

¹⁷for he was numbered with us and obtained a part in this ministry.”

¹⁸(Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out.

¹⁹And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.)

²⁰“For it is written in the Book of Psalms: ‘Let his dwelling place be desolate, And let no one live in it’; and, ‘Let another take his office.’

²¹“Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,

²²beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.”

²³And they proposed two: Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.

²⁴And they prayed and said, “You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two You have chosen

²⁵to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.”

²⁶And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.