Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain place, after He finished, one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples."

²He said to them, "When you pray, say: ' Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come.

³'Give us each day our daily bread.

⁴'And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us [who has offended or wronged us]. And lead us not into temptation [ but rescue us from evil].'"

⁵Then He said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says, 'Friend, lend me three loaves [of bread];

⁶for a friend of mine who is on a journey has just come to visit me, and I have nothing to serve him';

⁷and from inside he answers, 'Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.'

⁸I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything just because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence and boldness he will get up and give him whatever he needs.

⁹"So I say to you, ask and keep on asking, and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking, and you will find; knock and keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

¹⁰For everyone who keeps on asking [persistently], receives; and he who keeps on seeking [persistently], finds; and to him who keeps on knocking [persistently], the door will be opened.

¹¹What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead of a fish?

¹²Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?

¹³If you, then, being evil [that is, sinful by nature], know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask and continue to ask Him!"

¹⁴And [at another time] Jesus was casting out a demon, and it was [controlling a man so as to make him] mute; when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds were awed.

¹⁵But some of them said, "He drives out demons by [the power of] Beelzebul (Satan), the ruler of the demons."

¹⁶Others, trying to test Him, were demanding of Him a sign from heaven.

¹⁷But He, well aware of their thoughts and purpose, said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is doomed to destruction; and a house divided against itself falls.

¹⁸If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand and continue to survive? For you are saying that I drive out demons by [the power of] Beelzebul.

¹⁹Now if I drive out the demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons [the Jewish exorcists] drive them out? For this reason they will be your judges.

²⁰But if I drive out the demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has already come upon you.

²¹When the strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his belongings are undisturbed and secure.

²²But when someone stronger than he attacks and overpowers him, he robs him of all his armor on which he had relied and divides his [goods as] spoil.

²³He who is not with Me [believing in Me as Lord and Savior] is against Me [there is no impartial position]; and he who does not gather with Me [assisting in My ministry], scatters.

²⁴"When the unclean spirit comes out of a person, it roams through waterless places in search [of a place] of rest; and not finding any, it says, 'I will go back to my house (person) from which I came.'

²⁵And when it comes, it finds the place swept and put in order.

²⁶Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in [the person] and live there; and the last state of that person becomes worse than the first."

²⁷Now while Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed (happy, favored by God) is the womb that gave birth to You and the breasts at which You nursed!"

²⁸But He said, "On the contrary, blessed (happy, favored by God) are those who hear the word of God and continually observe it."

²⁹Now as the crowds were increasing [in number], He began to say, "This [present] generation is a wicked generation; it seeks a sign (attesting miracle), but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah [the prophet].

³⁰For just as Jonah became a sign to the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man also be [a sign] to this generation.

³¹The Queen of the South (the kingdom of Sheba) will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and look, something greater than Solomon is here.

³²The men of Nineveh will stand up [as witnesses] at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and look, something greater than Jonah is here.

³³"No one lights a lamp and then puts it in a cellar nor under a basket [hiding the light], but [instead it is put] on the lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light.

³⁴The eye is the lamp of your body. When your eye is clear [spiritually perceptive, focused on God], your whole body also is full of light [benefiting from God's precepts]. But when it is bad [spiritually blind], your body also is full of darkness [devoid of God's word].

³⁵Be careful, therefore, that the light that is in you is not darkness.

³⁶So if your whole body is illuminated, with no dark part, it will be entirely bright [with light], as when the lamp gives you light with its bright rays."

³⁷Now after Jesus had spoken, a Pharisee asked Him to have lunch with him. He went in [the Pharisee's home] and reclined at the table [without ceremonially washing His hands].

³⁸The Pharisee noticed this and was surprised that Jesus did not first ceremonially wash before the meal.

³⁹But the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and plate [as required by tradition]; but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.

⁴⁰You foolish ones [acting without reflection or intelligence]! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?

⁴¹But give that which is within as charity [that is, acts of mercy and compassion, not as a public display, but as an expression of your faithfulness to God], and then indeed all things are clean for you.

⁴²"But woe (judgment is coming) to you Pharisees, because you [self-righteously] tithe mint and rue and every [little] garden herb [tending to all the minutiae], and yet disregard and neglect justice and the love of God; but these are the things you should have done, without neglecting the others.

⁴³Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the best seats in the synagogues and to be respectfully greeted in the market places.

⁴⁴Woe to you! For you are like graves which are unmarked, and people walk over them without being aware of it [and are ceremonially unclean]."

⁴⁵One of the lawyers [an expert in the Mosaic Law] answered Him, "Teacher, by saying this, You insult us too!"

⁴⁶But He said, "Woe to you lawyers as well, because you weigh men down with burdens [man-made rules, unreasonable requirements] which are hard to bear, and you yourselves will not even touch the burdens with one of your fingers [to lighten the load].

⁴⁷Woe to you! For you repair or build tombs for the prophets, and it was your fathers who killed them.

⁴⁸So you are witnesses and approve the deeds of your fathers, because they [actually] killed them, and you repair or build their tombs.

⁴⁹For this reason also the wisdom of God said [in the Scriptures], 'I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will put to death and some they will persecute,

⁵⁰so that charges may be brought against this generation [holding them responsible] for the blood of all the prophets shed since the foundation of the world,

⁵¹from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah [the priest], who was murdered between the altar and the house of God. Yes, I tell you, charges will be brought against this generation.'

⁵²Woe to you lawyers, because you have taken away the key to knowledge (scriptural truth). You yourselves did not enter, and you held back those who were entering [by your flawed interpretation of God's word and your man-made tradition]."

⁵³When He left there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be very hostile [toward Him] and to interrogate Him on many subjects,

⁵⁴plotting against Him to catch Him in something He might say.

¹Then the [five] daughters of Zelophehad the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, from the tribes of Manasseh [who was] the son of Joseph, approached [with a request]. These are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.

²They stood before Moses, Eleazar the priest, the leaders, and all the congregation at the doorway of the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle), saying,

³"Our father died in the wilderness. He was not among those who assembled together against the LORD in the company of Korah, but he died for his own sin [as did all those who rebelled at Kadesh], and he had no sons.

⁴Why should the name of our father be removed from his family because he had no son? Give to us a possession (land) among our father's brothers."

⁵So Moses brought their case before the LORD.

⁶Then the LORD said to Moses,

⁷"The request of the daughters of Zelophehad is justified. You shall certainly give them a possession as an inheritance among their father's brothers, and you shall transfer their father's inheritance to them.

⁸Further, you shall say to the Israelites, 'If a man dies and has no son, you shall transfer his inheritance to his daughter.

⁹If a man has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to his brothers.

¹⁰If a man has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his father's brothers.

¹¹If his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his nearest relative in his own family, and he shall take possession of it. It shall be a statute and ordinance to the Israelites, just as the LORD has commanded Moses.'"

¹²Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go up to this mountain (Nebo) [in the] Abarim [range] and look at the land I have given to the sons of Israel.

¹³When you have seen it, you too will be gathered to your people [in death], just as Aaron your brother was gathered;

¹⁴because in the Wilderness of Zin, during the strife of the congregation, you rebelled against My command to treat me as holy [by following My instruction] before their eyes at the water." (These are the waters of Meribah in Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin.)

¹⁵Then Moses spoke to the LORD, saying,

¹⁶" Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation

¹⁷who will go out and come in before them, and will lead them out and bring them in, so that the congregation of the LORD will not be as sheep without a shepherd."

¹⁸The LORD said to Moses, "Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him;

¹⁹and have him stand before Eleazar the priest and before the whole congregation, and give him a commission in their sight.

²⁰You shall put some of your authority and honor on him, so that all the congregation of the Israelites will obey him.

²¹He shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire before the LORD for him by the judgment (decision) of the Urim. At Joshua's command the people shall go out and at his command they shall come in, he and all the congregation of Israel with him."

²²Moses did as the LORD commanded him. He took Joshua and had him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation,

²³and Moses laid his hands on Joshua and commissioned him, just as the LORD had commanded through Moses.

¹God, having spoken to the fathers long ago in [the voices and writings of] the prophets in many separate revelations [each of which set forth a portion of the truth], and in many ways,

²has in these last days spoken [with finality] to us in [the person of One who is by His character and nature] His Son [namely Jesus], whom He appointed heir and lawful owner of all things, through whom also He created the universe [that is, the universe as a space-time-matter continuum].

³The Son is the radiance and only expression of the glory of [our awesome] God [reflecting God's Shekinah glory, the Light-being, the brilliant light of the divine], and the exact representation and perfect imprint of His [Father's] essence, and upholding and maintaining and propelling all things [the entire physical and spiritual universe] by His powerful word [carrying the universe along to its predetermined goal]. When He [Himself and no other] had [by offering Himself on the cross as a sacrifice for sin] accomplished purification from sins and established our freedom from guilt, He sat down [revealing His completed work] at the right hand of the Majesty on high [revealing His Divine authority],

⁴having become as much superior to angels, since He has inherited a more excellent and glorious name than they [that is, Son—the name above all names].

⁵For to which of the angels did the Father ever say, "You are My Son, Today I have begotten (fathered) You [established You as a Son, with kingly dignity]"? And again [did He ever say to the angels], "I shall be a Father to Him And He shall be a Son to Me"?

⁶And when He again brings the firstborn [highest-ranking Son] into the world, He says, "And all the angels of God are to worship Him."

⁷And concerning the angels He says, "Who makes His angels winds, And His ministering servants flames of fire [to do His bidding]."

⁸But about the Son [the Father says to Him], "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, And thescepter of [absolute] righteousness is the scepter ofHis kingdom.

⁹"You have loved righteousness [integrity, virtue, uprightness in purpose] and have hated lawlessness [injustice, sin]. Therefore God, Your God, Has anointed You With the oil of gladness above Your companions."

¹⁰And, "You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, And the heavens are the works of Your hands;

¹¹They will perish, but You remain [forever and ever]; And they will all wear out like a garment,

¹²And like a robe You will roll them up; Like a garment they will be changed. ButYou are the same [forever], And Your years will never end."

¹³But to which of the angels has the Father ever said, "Sit at My right hand [together with me in royal dignity], Until I make your enemies A footstool for your feet [in triumphant conquest]"?

¹⁴Are not all the angels ministering spirits sent out [by God] to serve (accompany, protect) those who will inherit salvation? [Of course they are!]

¹All who are under the yoke as bond-servants (slaves) are to regard their own masters as worthy of honor and respect so that the name of God and the teaching [about Him] will not be spoken against.

²Those who have believing masters are not to be disrespectful toward them because they are brothers [in Christ], but they should serve them even better, because those who benefit from their kindly service are believers and beloved. Teach and urge these [duties and principles].

³If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine and teaching which is in agreement with godliness (personal integrity, upright behavior),

⁴he is conceited and woefully ignorant [understanding nothing]. He has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, which produces envy, quarrels, verbal abuse, evil suspicions,

⁵and perpetual friction between men who are corrupted in mind and deprived of the truth, who think that godliness is a source of profit [a lucrative, money-making business—withdraw from them].

⁶But godliness actually is a source of great gain when accompanied by contentment [that contentment which comes from a sense of inner confidence based on the sufficiency of God].

⁷For we have brought nothing into the world, so [it is clear that] we cannot take anything out of it, either.

⁸But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.

⁹But those who [are not financially ethical and] crave to get rich [with a compulsive, greedy longing for wealth] fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction [leading to personal misery].

¹⁰For the love of money [that is, the greedy desire for it and the willingness to gain it unethically] is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves [through and through] with many sorrows.

¹¹But as for you, O man of God, flee from these things; aim at and pursue righteousness [true goodness, moral conformity to the character of God], godliness [the fear of God], faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness.

¹²Fight the good fight of the faith [in the conflict with evil]; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and [for which] you made the good confession [of faith] in the presence of many witnesses.

¹³I solemnly charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and [in the presence] of Christ Jesus, who made the good confession [in His testimony] before Pontius Pilate,

¹⁴to keep all His precepts without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,

¹⁵which He will bring about in His own time—He who is the blessed and only Sovereign [the absolute Ruler], the King of those who reign as kings and Lord of those who rule as lords,

¹⁶He alone possesses immortality [absolute exemption from death] and lives in unapproachable light, whom no man has ever seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal power and dominion! Amen.

¹⁷As for the rich in this present world, instruct them not to be conceited and arrogant, nor to set their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly and ceaselessly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

¹⁸Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous, willing to share [with others].

¹⁹In this way storing up for themselves the enduring riches of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

²⁰O Timothy, guard and keep safe the deposit [of godly truth] entrusted to you, turn away from worldly and godless chatter [with its profane, empty words], and the contradictions of what is falsely called "knowledge"—

²¹which some have professed and by doing so have erred (missed the mark) and strayed from the faith. Grace be with you.

¹Then Zophar the Naamathite answered and said,

²"Therefore my disquieting thoughts make me answer, Because of the uneasiness that is within me.

³"I have heard the reproof which insults me, But the spirit of my understanding makes me answer.

⁴"Do you not know this from the old days, Since the time that man was placed on the earth,

⁵That the triumphing of the wicked is short, And the joy of the godless is only for a moment?

⁶"Though his pride reaches the heavens And his head touches the clouds,

⁷Yet he perishes forever like his own refuse; Those who have seen him will say, 'Where is he?'

⁸"He flies away like a dream and cannot be found; Yes, he is chased away like a vision of the night.

⁹"The eye which saw him sees him no longer, Neither does his [accustomed] place behold him any longer.

¹⁰"His sons favor the poor [and pay his obligations], And his hands give back his [ill-gotten] wealth.

¹¹"His bones are full of youthful strength But it lies down with him in the dust.

¹²"Though evil and wickedness are sweet in his mouth And he hides it under his tongue,

¹³Though he desires it and will not let it go But holds it in his mouth,

¹⁴Yet his food turns [to poison] in his stomach; It is the venom of vipers within him.

¹⁵"He swallows [his ill-gotten] riches, But will vomit them up; God will drive them out of his belly.

¹⁶"He sucks the poison of vipers [which ill-gotten wealth contains]; The viper's tongue slays him.

¹⁷"He does not look at the rivers, The flowing streams of honey and butter [to enjoy his wealth].

¹⁸"He gives back what he has labored for and attained And cannot swallow it [down to enjoy it]; As to the riches of his labor, He cannot even enjoy them.

¹⁹"For he has oppressed and neglected the poor; He has violently taken away houses which he did not build.

²⁰"Because he knew no quietness or calm within him [because of his greed], He does not retain anything he desires.

²¹"There is nothing left of what he devoured; Therefore his prosperity does not endure.

²²"In the fullness of his excess (great abundance) he will be in trouble; The hand of everyone who suffers will come against him [he is miserable on every side].

²³"When he fills his belly, God will send His fierce anger on him And will rain it upon him while he is eating.

²⁴"He may flee from the iron weapon, But the bow of bronze will pierce him through.

²⁵"The arrow is drawn forth and it comes out of his back [after passing through his body]; Yes, the glittering point comes out of his gall. Terrors march in upon him;

²⁶Complete darkness (misfortune) is held in reserve for his treasures. An unfanned fire will devour him; It will consume the survivor in his tent.

²⁷"The heavens will reveal his wickedness and guilt, And the earth will rise up against him.

²⁸"The produce and increase of his house will depart [with the victors]; His possessions will be dragged away in the day of God's wrath.

²⁹"This is the wicked man's portion from God, And the heritage decreed and appointed to him by God."

¹A Psalm of David. Blessed be the LORD, my Rock and my great strength, Who trains my hands for war And my fingers for battle;

²My [steadfast] lovingkindness and my fortress, My high tower and my rescuer, My shield and He in whom I take refuge, Who subdues my people under me.

³LORD, what is man that You take notice of him? Or the son of man that You think of him?

⁴Man is like a mere breath; His days are like a shadow that passes away.

⁵Bow Your heavens, O LORD, and come down; Touch the mountains, and they will smoke.

⁶Flash lightning and scatter my enemies; Send out Your arrows and confuse and embarrass and frustrate them.

⁷Stretch out Your hand from above; Set me free and rescue me from great waters, Out of the hands of [hostile] foreigners [who surround us]

⁸Whose mouths speak deceit [without restraint], And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

⁹I will sing a new song to You, O God; Upon a harp of ten strings I will sing praises to You,

¹⁰Who gives salvation to kings, Who sets David His servant free from the evil sword.

¹¹Set me free and rescue me from the hand of [hostile] foreigners, Whose mouth speaks deceit [without restraint], And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.

¹²Let our sons in their youth be like plants full grown, And our daughters like corner pillars fashioned for a palace;

¹³Let our barns be full, supplying every kind of produce, And our flocks bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our fields;

¹⁴Let our cattle bear Without mishap and without loss, And let there be no outcry in our streets!

¹⁵How blessed and favored are the people in such circumstance; How blessed [fortunate, prosperous, and favored] are the people whose God is the LORD!

¹Wine is a mocker, strong drink a riotous brawler; And whoever is intoxicated by it is not wise.

²The terror of a king is like the roaring of a lion; Whoever provokes him to anger forfeits his own life.

³It is an honor for a man to keep away from strife [by handling situations with thoughtful foresight], But any fool will [start a] quarrel [without regard for the consequences].

⁴The lazy man does not plow when the winter [planting] season arrives; So he begs at the [next] harvest and has nothing [to reap].

⁵A plan (motive, wise counsel) in the heart of a man is like water in a deep well, But a man of understanding draws it out.

⁶Many a man proclaims his own loyalty and goodness, But who can find a faithful and trustworthy man?

⁷The righteous man who walks in integrity and lives life in accord with his [godly] beliefs— How blessed [happy and spiritually secure] are his children after him [who have his example to follow].

⁸A [discerning] king who sits on the throne of judgment Sifts all evil [like chaff] with his eyes [and cannot be easily fooled].

⁹Who can say, "I have cleansed my heart, I am pure from my sin?"

¹⁰Differing weights [one for buying and another for selling] and differing measures, Both of them are detestable and offensive to the LORD.

¹¹Even a boy is known and distinguished by his acts, Whether his conduct is pure and right.

¹²The hearing ear and the seeing eye, The [omnipotent] LORD has made both of them.

¹³Do not love [excessive] sleep, or you will become poor; Open your eyes [so that you can do your work] and you will be satisfied with bread.

¹⁴"It is [almost] worthless, it is [almost] worthless," says the buyer [as he negotiates the price]; But when he goes his way, then he boasts [about his bargain].

¹⁵There is gold, and an abundance of pearls, But the lips of knowledge are a vessel of preciousness [the most precious of all].

¹⁶[The judge tells the creditor], "Take the clothes of one who is surety for a stranger; And hold him in pledge [when he guarantees a loan] for foreigners."

¹⁷Food gained by deceit is sweet to a man, But afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel [just as sin may be sweet at first, but later its consequences bring despair].

¹⁸Plans are established by counsel; So make war [only] with wise guidance.

¹⁹He who goes about as a gossip reveals secrets; Therefore do not associate with a gossip [who talks freely or flatters].

²⁰Whoever curses his father or his mother, His lamp [of life] will be extinguished in time of darkness.

²¹An inheritance hastily gained [by greedy, unjust means] at the beginning Will not be blessed in the end.

²²Do not say, "I will repay evil"; Wait [expectantly] for the LORD, and He will rescue and save you.

²³Differing weights are detestable and offensive to the LORD, And fraudulent scales are not good.

²⁴Man's steps are ordered and ordained by the LORD. How then can a man [fully] understand his way?

²⁵It is a trap for a man to [ speak a vow of consecration and] say rashly, "It is holy!" And [not until] afterward consider [whether he can fulfill it].

²⁶A wise king sifts out the wicked [from among the good] And drives the [threshing] wheel over them [to separate the chaff from the grain].

²⁷The spirit (conscience) of man is the lamp of the LORD, Searching and examining all the innermost parts of his being.

²⁸Loyalty and mercy, truth and faithfulness, protect the king, And he upholds his throne by lovingkindness.

²⁹The glory of young men is their [physical] strength, And the honor of aged men is their gray head [representing wisdom and experience].

³⁰Blows that wound cleanse away evil, And strokes reach to the innermost parts.

¹Now it came about in the third year of Hoshea the son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah became king.

²He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah.

³Hezekiah did right in the sight of the LORD, in accordance with everything that David his father (ancestor) had done.

⁴He removed the high places [of pagan worship], broke down the images (memorial stones) and cut down the Asherim. He also crushed to pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the Israelites had burned incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan [a bronze sculpture].

⁵Hezekiah trusted in and relied confidently on the LORD, the God of Israel; so that after him there was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among those who were before him.

⁶For he clung to the LORD; he did not turn away from [faithfully] following Him, but he kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses.

⁷And the LORD was with Hezekiah; he was successful wherever he went. And he rebelled against the king of Assyria and refused to serve him.

⁸He defeated the Philistines as far as Gaza [the most distant city] and its borders, from the [isolated] lookout tower to the [populous] fortified city.

⁹Now in the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh of Hoshea the son of Elah king of Israel, Shalmaneser the king of Assyria went up against Samaria and besieged it.

¹⁰At the end of three years they captured it; in the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Israel, Samaria was taken.

¹¹Then the king of Assyria sent Israel into exile to Assyria, and put them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of [the city of] Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes,

¹²because they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God, but broke His covenant, everything that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded; and they would not listen nor do it.

¹³In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria went up against all the fortified cities of Judah [except Jerusalem] and captured them.

¹⁴Then Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, "I have done wrong. Withdraw from me; whatever you impose on me I will bear." So the king of Assyria imposed on Hezekiah king of Judah [a tribute tax of] three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.

¹⁵Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house (temple) of the LORD, and in the treasuries of the king's house (palace).

¹⁶At that time Hezekiah cut away the gold framework from the doors of the temple of the LORD and from the doorposts which he had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria.

¹⁷Then the king of Assyria sent the Tartan and the Rab-saris and the Rabshakeh [his highest officials] with a large army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. They went up and came to Jerusalem, and when they went up and arrived, they stood by the aqueduct of the upper pool, which is on the road of the Fuller's Field.

¹⁸When they called for the king, Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the [king's] household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the secretary went out to [meet] them.

¹⁹Then the Rabshakeh said to them, "Say to Hezekiah, 'Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria, "What is [the reason for] this confidence that you have?

²⁰You say (but they are only empty words) 'I have counsel and strength for the war.' Now on whom do you rely, that you have rebelled against me?

²¹Now pay attention: you are relying on Egypt, on that staff of crushed reed; if a man leans on it, it will only go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust and rely on him.

²²But if you tell me, 'We trust in and rely on the LORD our God,' is it not He whose high places and altars Hezekiah has removed, and has said to Judah and Jerusalem, 'You shall worship [only] before this altar in Jerusalem'?

²³Now then, make a bargain with my lord the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses, if on your part you can put riders on them.

²⁴How then can you drive back even one official of the least of my master's servants, when you rely on Egypt for chariots and horsemen?

²⁵Now have I come up against this place to destroy it without the Lord's approval? The LORD said to me, 'Go up against this land and destroy it.'"'"

²⁶Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebna and Joah, said to the Rabshakeh, "Please speak to your servants in the Aramaic (Syrian) language, because we understand it; and do not speak with us in the Judean (Hebrew) language in the hearing of the people who are on the wall."

²⁷But the Rabshakeh said to them, "Has my master sent me only to your master and to you to say these things? Has he not sent me to the men who sit on the wall, [who are doomed by the siege] to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine along with you?"

²⁸Then the Rabshakeh stood and shouted out with a loud voice in Judean (Hebrew), "Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria.

²⁹Thus says the king, 'Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to rescue you from my hand;

³⁰nor let Hezekiah make you trust in and rely on the LORD, saying, "The LORD will certainly rescue us, and this city [of Jerusalem] will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria."

³¹Do not listen to Hezekiah, for thus says the king of Assyria: "Surrender to me and come out to [meet] me, and every man may eat from his own vine and fig tree, and every man may drink the waters of his own well,

³²until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey, so that you may live and not die." Do not listen to Hezekiah when he misleads and incites you, saying, "The LORD will rescue us!"

³³Has any one of the gods of the nations ever rescued his land from the hand of the king of Assyria?

³⁴Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad [in Aram]? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah [in the valley of the Euphrates]? Have they rescued Samaria (Israel's capital) from my hand?

³⁵Who among all the gods of the lands have rescued their lands from my hand, that the LORD would rescue Jerusalem from my hand?'"

³⁶But the people kept silent and did not answer him, for the king had commanded, "Do not answer him."

³⁷Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the [royal] household, and Shebna the scribe and Joah the son of Asaph the secretary, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn [in grief and despair] and told him what the Rabshakeh had said.

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

²"Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and direct your [prophetic] word against the sanctuaries; prophesy against the land of Israel

³and say to the land of Israel, 'Thus says the LORD, "Behold, I am against you and will draw My sword out of its sheath and I will cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked.

⁴Because I will cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked, therefore My sword will go from its sheath against all flesh from south to north,

⁵and all living will know [without any doubt] that I the LORD have drawn My sword out of its sheath; it will not be sheathed again."'

⁶As for you, son of man, groan with breaking heart and bitter grief, groan in their sight.

⁷And when they say to you, 'Why do you sigh and groan?' you shall answer, 'Because of the news that is coming; and every heart will melt and all hands will be frail, and every spirit will faint and all knees will be weak as water. Behold, it comes and it will happen,' says the Lord GOD."

⁸Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

⁹"Son of man, prophesy and say, 'Thus says the LORD.' Say, 'A sword, a sword [from Babylon] is sharpened And also polished!

¹⁰'It is sharpened to make a slaughter, Polished to flash and glimmer like lightning!' Shall we then rejoice [when such a disaster approaches]? But it rejects and views with contempt the scepter of My son [Judah].

¹¹The sword [of Babylon] is ready to be polished so that it may be handled and put to use; the sword is sharpened and polished to be put in the hand of the slayer (Nebuchadnezzar).

¹²Cry out and wail, son of man, for it is against My people; it is against all the princes of Israel. They are thrown to the sword along with My [terrified] people. Therefore strike your thigh and strike your chest [in grief].

¹³For this sword has been tested [on others]; and what if it views with contempt the scepter [of Judah]? The scepter shall be no more [but shall be swept away]," says the Lord GOD.

¹⁴"Therefore, son of man, prophesy and strike your hands together; and let the sword be doubled the third time [in intensity], the sword for the slain. It is the sword for the great slaughter which surrounds them [so that no one can escape, even by hiding in their inner rooms],

¹⁵so that hearts may melt, and many will fall at their gates. I have given the glittering sword. Ah! It is made [to flash] like lightning; it is pointed and sharpened for slaughter.

¹⁶Turn O sword and cut right or cut left, whichever way your thirst for blood and your edge direct you.

¹⁷I will also strike My hands together, and I will cause My wrath to rest. I the LORD have spoken."

¹⁸The word of the LORD came to me, saying,

¹⁹"As for you, son of man, mark out two ways for the sword of the king of Babylon to come, both starting from the same land. And make a signpost; place it at the head of the way to the city.

²⁰You shall point out a way for the [Babylonian] sword to come to Rabbah [the capital] of the sons of Ammon, and to Judah into fortified Jerusalem.

²¹For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the fork of the two ways, to use divination. He shakes the arrows, he consults the teraphim (household idols), he looks at the liver [of an animal for an omen].

²²In his right hand is the lot marked for Jerusalem: to set battering rams, to open the mouth calling for destruction, to lift up the voice with a war cry, to set battering rams against the gates, to put up assault ramps, and to build siege walls.

²³It will seem like a false divination in their eyes, those who have sworn solemn oaths [of allegiance to Nebuchadnezzar]. But he will remind them of their guilt [by rebelling and violating their oath], that they may be caught.

²⁴"Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD, 'Because you have caused your guilt to be remembered, in that your rebellion is uncovered, so that your sins appear in everything that you do—because you have come to mind, you will be seized with the hand [of the enemy].

²⁵And you, O dishonored and wicked one [Zedekiah], the prince of Israel, whose day has come, whose time of final punishment is here,'

²⁶thus says the Lord GOD, 'Remove the turban and take off the crown; things shall not remain as they have been. Exalt that which is low and abase the high.

²⁷A ruin, a ruin, I will make it a ruin! It shall no longer exist until He comes whose right it is [to reign], and I will give it to Him.'

²⁸"And you, son of man, prophesy and say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD concerning the sons of Ammon and concerning their reproach (disgrace),' and say: 'A sword, a sword is drawn for the slaughter; it is sharpened and polished to put an end [to everything], and to flash like lightning,

²⁹while they (Ammonite prophets) see false visions [of peace] for you, while they divine lies [of escape] for you—to place you [of Ammon] on the headless bodies of the wicked who are slain, whose day has come, whose time of the final punishment is here.

³⁰Return the sword to its sheath. In the place where you were created, in the land of your origin (birth), I will judge you.

³¹I will pour out My indignation on you [sons of Ammon]; I will blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and I will place you in the hand of brutal men, skilled in destruction.

³²You will be fuel for the fire; your blood will be in the midst of the land. You will not be remembered, for I the LORD have spoken.'"

¹And while Peter and John were talking to the people, the priests and the captain [who was in charge of the temple area and] of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to them,

²being extremely disturbed and thoroughly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in [the case of] Jesus the resurrection of the dead.

³So they arrested them and put them in jail until the next day, because it was evening.

⁴But many of those who heard the message [of salvation] believed [in Jesus and accepted Him as the Christ]. And the number of the men came to be about 5,000.

⁵On the next day, their magistrates and elders and scribes (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court) were gathered together in Jerusalem;

⁶and Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all others who were of high-priestly descent.

⁷When they had put the men in front of them, they repeatedly asked, "By what sort of power, or in what name [that is, by what kind of authority], did you do this [healing]?"

⁸Then Peter, filled with [the power of] the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers and elders of the people [members of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish High Court],

⁹if we are being put on trial today [to interrogate us] for a good deed done to [benefit] a disabled man, as to how this man has been restored to health,

¹⁰let it be known and clearly understood by all of you, and by all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you [demanded be] crucified [by the Romans and], whom God raised from the dead—in this name [that is, by the authority and power of Jesus] this man stands here before you in good health.

¹¹This Jesus is the stone which was despised and rejected by you, the builders, but which became thechief Cornerstone.

¹²And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people by which we must be saved [for God has provided the world no alternative for salvation]."

¹³Now when the men of the Sanhedrin (Jewish High Court) saw the confidence and boldness of Peter and John, and grasped the fact that they were uneducated and untrained [ordinary] men, they were astounded, and began to recognize that they had been with Jesus.

¹⁴And seeing the man who had been healed standing there with them, they had nothing to say in reply.

¹⁵But after ordering them to step out of the Council [chamber], they began to confer among themselves,

¹⁶saying, "What are we to do with these men? For the fact that an extraordinary miracle has taken place through them is public knowledge and clearly evident to all the residents of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.

¹⁷But to keep it from spreading further among the people and the nation, let us [sternly] warn them not to speak again to anyone in this name."

¹⁸So they sent for them, and commanded them not to speak [as His representatives] or teach at all in the name of Jesus [using Him as their authority].

¹⁹But Peter and John replied to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you and obey you rather than God, you must judge [for yourselves];

²⁰for we, on our part, cannot stop telling [people] about what we have seen and heard."

²¹When the rulers and Council members had threatened them further, they let them go, finding no way to punish them because [of their fear] of the people, for they were all praising and glorifying and honoring God for what had happened;

²²for the man to whom this sign (attesting miracle) of healing had happened was more than forty years old.

²³After Peter and John were released, they returned to their own [people] and reported everything that the chief priests and elders had said to them.

²⁴And when they heard it, they raised their voices together to God and said, "O Sovereign Lord [having complete power and authority], it is You who made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything that is in them,

²⁵who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David, Your servant, said, 'Why did the nations (Gentiles) become arrogant and rage, And the peoples devise futile things [against the Lord]?

²⁶'The kings of the earth took their stand [to attack], And the rulers were assembled together Against the Lord and against His Anointed (the Christ, the Messiah).'

²⁷For in this city there were gathered together against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,

²⁸to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined [before the creation of the world] to occur [and so without knowing it, they served Your own purpose].

²⁹And now, Lord, observe their threats [take them into account] and grant that Your bond-servants may declare Your message [of salvation] with great confidence,

³⁰while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders (attesting miracles) take place through the name [and the authority and power] of Your holy Servant and Son Jesus."

³¹And when they had prayed, the place where they were meeting together was shaken [a sign of God's presence]; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness and courage.

³²Now the company of believers was of one heart and soul, and not one [of them] claimed that anything belonging to him was [exclusively] his own, but everything was common property and for the use of all.

³³And with great ability and power the apostles were continuously testifying to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace [God's remarkable lovingkindness and favor and goodwill] rested richly upon them all.

³⁴There was not a needy person among them, because those who were owners of land or houses were selling them, and bringing the proceeds of the sales

³⁵and placing the money down at the apostles' feet. Then it was distributed to each as anyone had need.

³⁶Now Joseph, a Levite and native of Cyprus, who was surnamed Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means Son of Encouragement),

³⁷sold a field belonging to him and brought the money and set it at the apostles' feet.