Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹One day Jesus said to his disciples, “There will always be temptations to sin, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting!

²It would be better to be thrown into the sea with a millstone hung around your neck than to cause one of these little ones to fall into sin.

³So watch yourselves! “If another believer sins, rebuke that person; then if there is repentance, forgive.

⁴Even if that person wrongs you seven times a day and each time turns again and asks forgiveness, you must forgive.”

⁵The apostles said to the Lord, “Show us how to increase our faith.”

⁶The Lord answered, “If you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘May you be uprooted and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you!

⁷“When a servant comes in from plowing or taking care of sheep, does his master say, ‘Come in and eat with me’?

⁸No, he says, ‘Prepare my meal, put on your apron, and serve me while I eat. Then you can eat later.’

⁹And does the master thank the servant for doing what he was told to do? Of course not.

¹⁰In the same way, when you obey me you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’”

¹¹As Jesus continued on toward Jerusalem, he reached the border between Galilee and Samaria.

¹²As he entered a village there, ten men with leprosy stood at a distance,

¹³crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

¹⁴He looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy.

¹⁵One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, “Praise God!”

¹⁶He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a Samaritan.

¹⁷Jesus asked, “Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine?

¹⁸Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?”

¹⁹And Jesus said to the man, “Stand up and go. Your faith has healed you. ”

²⁰One day the Pharisees asked Jesus, “When will the Kingdom of God come?” Jesus replied, “The Kingdom of God can’t be detected by visible signs.

²¹You won’t be able to say, ‘Here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the Kingdom of God is already among you. ”

²²Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see the day when the Son of Man returns, but you won’t see it.

²³People will tell you, ‘Look, there is the Son of Man,’ or ‘Here he is,’ but don’t go out and follow them.

²⁴For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other, so it will be on the day when the Son of Man comes.

²⁵But first the Son of Man must suffer terribly and be rejected by this generation.

²⁶“When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day.

²⁷In those days, the people enjoyed banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat and the flood came and destroyed them all.

²⁸“And the world will be as it was in the days of Lot. People went about their daily business — eating and drinking, buying and selling, farming and building —

²⁹until the morning Lot left Sodom. Then fire and burning sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.

³⁰Yes, it will be ‘business as usual’ right up to the day when the Son of Man is revealed.

³¹On that day a person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack. A person out in the field must not return home.

³²Remember what happened to Lot’s wife!

³³If you cling to your life, you will lose it, and if you let your life go, you will save it.

³⁴That night two people will be asleep in one bed; one will be taken, the other left.

³⁵Two women will be grinding flour together at the mill; one will be taken, the other left. ”

³⁶

³⁷“Where will this happen, Lord?” the disciples asked. Jesus replied, “Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near.”

¹This is the route the Israelites followed as they marched out of Egypt under the leadership of Moses and Aaron.

²At the LORD’s direction, Moses kept a written record of their progress. These are the stages of their march, identified by the different places where they stopped along the way.

³They set out from the city of Rameses in early spring — on the fifteenth day of the first month — on the morning after the first Passover celebration. The people of Israel left defiantly, in full view of all the Egyptians.

⁴Meanwhile, the Egyptians were burying all their firstborn sons, whom the LORD had killed the night before. The LORD had defeated the gods of Egypt that night with great acts of judgment!

⁵After leaving Rameses, the Israelites set up camp at Succoth.

⁶Then they left Succoth and camped at Etham on the edge of the wilderness.

⁷They left Etham and turned back toward Pi-hahiroth, opposite Baal-zephon, and camped near Migdol.

⁸They left Pi-hahiroth and crossed the Red Sea into the wilderness beyond. Then they traveled for three days into the Etham wilderness and camped at Marah.

⁹They left Marah and camped at Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees.

¹⁰They left Elim and camped beside the Red Sea.

¹¹They left the Red Sea and camped in the wilderness of Sin.

¹²They left the wilderness of Sin and camped at Dophkah.

¹³They left Dophkah and camped at Alush.

¹⁴They left Alush and camped at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.

¹⁵They left Rephidim and camped in the wilderness of Sinai.

¹⁶They left the wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth-hattaavah.

¹⁷They left Kibroth-hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth.

¹⁸They left Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah.

¹⁹They left Rithmah and camped at Rimmon-perez.

²⁰They left Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah.

²¹They left Libnah and camped at Rissah.

²²They left Rissah and camped at Kehelathah.

²³They left Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher.

²⁴They left Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah.

²⁵They left Haradah and camped at Makheloth.

²⁶They left Makheloth and camped at Tahath.

²⁷They left Tahath and camped at Terah.

²⁸They left Terah and camped at Mithcah.

²⁹They left Mithcah and camped at Hashmonah.

³⁰They left Hashmonah and camped at Moseroth.

³¹They left Moseroth and camped at Bene-jaakan.

³²They left Bene-jaakan and camped at Hor-haggidgad.

³³They left Hor-haggidgad and camped at Jotbathah.

³⁴They left Jotbathah and camped at Abronah.

³⁵They left Abronah and camped at Ezion-geber.

³⁶They left Ezion-geber and camped at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.

³⁷They left Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, at the border of Edom.

³⁸While they were at the foot of Mount Hor, Aaron the priest was directed by the LORD to go up the mountain, and there he died. This happened in midsummer, on the first day of the fifth month of the fortieth year after Israel’s departure from Egypt.

³⁹Aaron was 123 years old when he died there on Mount Hor.

⁴⁰At that time the Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev in the land of Canaan, heard that the people of Israel were approaching his land.

⁴¹Meanwhile, the Israelites left Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah.

⁴²Then they left Zalmonah and camped at Punon.

⁴³They left Punon and camped at Oboth.

⁴⁴They left Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim on the border of Moab.

⁴⁵They left Iye-abarim and camped at Dibon-gad.

⁴⁶They left Dibon-gad and camped at Almon-diblathaim.

⁴⁷They left Almon-diblathaim and camped in the mountains east of the river, near Mount Nebo.

⁴⁸They left the mountains east of the river and camped on the plains of Moab beside the Jordan River, across from Jericho.

⁴⁹Along the Jordan River they camped from Beth-jeshimoth as far as the meadows of Acacia on the plains of Moab.

⁵⁰While they were camped near the Jordan River on the plains of Moab opposite Jericho, the LORD said to Moses,

⁵¹“Give the following instructions to the people of Israel: When you cross the Jordan River into the land of Canaan,

⁵²you must drive out all the people living there. You must destroy all their carved and molten images and demolish all their pagan shrines.

⁵³Take possession of the land and settle in it, because I have given it to you to occupy.

⁵⁴You must distribute the land among the clans by sacred lot and in proportion to their size. A larger portion of land will be allotted to each of the larger clans, and a smaller portion will be allotted to each of the smaller clans. The decision of the sacred lot is final. In this way, the portions of land will be divided among your ancestral tribes.

⁵⁵But if you fail to drive out the people who live in the land, those who remain will be like splinters in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will harass you in the land where you live.

⁵⁶And I will do to you what I had planned to do to them.”

¹This Melchizedek was king of the city of Salem and also a priest of God Most High. When Abraham was returning home after winning a great battle against the kings, Melchizedek met him and blessed him.

²Then Abraham took a tenth of all he had captured in battle and gave it to Melchizedek. The name Melchizedek means “king of justice,” and king of Salem means “king of peace.”

³There is no record of his father or mother or any of his ancestors — no beginning or end to his life. He remains a priest forever, resembling the Son of God.

⁴Consider then how great this Melchizedek was. Even Abraham, the great patriarch of Israel, recognized this by giving him a tenth of what he had taken in battle.

⁵Now the law of Moses required that the priests, who are descendants of Levi, must collect a tithe from the rest of the people of Israel, who are also descendants of Abraham.

⁶But Melchizedek, who was not a descendant of Levi, collected a tenth from Abraham. And Melchizedek placed a blessing upon Abraham, the one who had already received the promises of God.

⁷And without question, the person who has the power to give a blessing is greater than the one who is blessed.

⁸The priests who collect tithes are men who die, so Melchizedek is greater than they are, because we are told that he lives on.

⁹In addition, we might even say that these Levites — the ones who collect the tithe — paid a tithe to Melchizedek when their ancestor Abraham paid a tithe to him.

¹⁰For although Levi wasn’t born yet, the seed from which he came was in Abraham’s body when Melchizedek collected the tithe from him.

¹¹So if the priesthood of Levi, on which the law was based, could have achieved the perfection God intended, why did God need to establish a different priesthood, with a priest in the order of Melchizedek instead of the order of Levi and Aaron?

¹²And if the priesthood is changed, the law must also be changed to permit it.

¹³For the priest we are talking about belongs to a different tribe, whose members have never served at the altar as priests.

¹⁴What I mean is, our Lord came from the tribe of Judah, and Moses never mentioned priests coming from that tribe.

¹⁵This change has been made very clear since a different priest, who is like Melchizedek, has appeared.

¹⁶Jesus became a priest, not by meeting the physical requirement of belonging to the tribe of Levi, but by the power of a life that cannot be destroyed.

¹⁷And the psalmist pointed this out when he prophesied, “You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.”

¹⁸Yes, the old requirement about the priesthood was set aside because it was weak and useless.

¹⁹For the law never made anything perfect. But now we have confidence in a better hope, through which we draw near to God.

²⁰This new system was established with a solemn oath. Aaron’s descendants became priests without such an oath,

²¹but there was an oath regarding Jesus. For God said to him, “The LORD has taken an oath and will not break his vow: ‘You are a priest forever.’”

²²Because of this oath, Jesus is the one who guarantees this better covenant with God.

²³There were many priests under the old system, for death prevented them from remaining in office.

²⁴But because Jesus lives forever, his priesthood lasts forever.

²⁵Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf.

²⁶He is the kind of high priest we need because he is holy and blameless, unstained by sin. He has been set apart from sinners and has been given the highest place of honor in heaven.

²⁷Unlike those other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices every day. They did this for their own sins first and then for the sins of the people. But Jesus did this once for all when he offered himself as the sacrifice for the people’s sins.

²⁸The law appointed high priests who were limited by human weakness. But after the law was given, God appointed his Son with an oath, and his Son has been made the perfect High Priest forever.

¹As for you, Titus, promote the kind of living that reflects wholesome teaching.

²Teach the older men to exercise self-control, to be worthy of respect, and to live wisely. They must have sound faith and be filled with love and patience.

³Similarly, teach the older women to live in a way that honors God. They must not slander others or be heavy drinkers. Instead, they should teach others what is good.

⁴These older women must train the younger women to love their husbands and their children,

⁵to live wisely and be pure, to work in their homes, to do good, and to be submissive to their husbands. Then they will not bring shame on the word of God.

⁶In the same way, encourage the young men to live wisely.

⁷And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching.

⁸Teach the truth so that your teaching can’t be criticized. Then those who oppose us will be ashamed and have nothing bad to say about us.

⁹Slaves must always obey their masters and do their best to please them. They must not talk back

¹⁰or steal, but must show themselves to be entirely trustworthy and good. Then they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive in every way.

¹¹For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people.

¹²And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God,

¹³while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed.

¹⁴He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.

¹⁵You must teach these things and encourage the believers to do them. You have the authority to correct them when necessary, so don’t let anyone disregard what you say.

¹Then Job spoke again:

²“How you have helped the powerless! How you have saved the weak!

³How you have enlightened my stupidity! What wise advice you have offered!

⁴Where have you gotten all these wise sayings? Whose spirit speaks through you?

⁵“The dead tremble — those who live beneath the waters.

⁶The underworld is naked in God’s presence. The place of destruction is uncovered.

⁷God stretches the northern sky over empty space and hangs the earth on nothing.

⁸He wraps the rain in his thick clouds, and the clouds don’t burst with the weight.

⁹He covers the face of the moon, shrouding it with his clouds.

¹⁰He created the horizon when he separated the waters; he set the boundary between day and night.

¹¹The foundations of heaven tremble; they shudder at his rebuke.

¹²By his power the sea grew calm. By his skill he crushed the great sea monster.

¹³His Spirit made the heavens beautiful, and his power pierced the gliding serpent.

¹⁴These are just the beginning of all that he does, merely a whisper of his power. Who, then, can comprehend the thunder of his power?”

¹Praise the LORD! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heaven!

²Praise him for his mighty works; praise his unequaled greatness!

³Praise him with a blast of the ram’s horn; praise him with the lyre and harp!

⁴Praise him with the tambourine and dancing; praise him with strings and flutes!

⁵Praise him with a clash of cymbals; praise him with loud clanging cymbals.

⁶Let everything that breathes sing praises to the LORD! Praise the LORD!

¹Honor is no more associated with fools than snow with summer or rain with harvest.

²Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse will not land on its intended victim.

³Guide a horse with a whip, a donkey with a bridle, and a fool with a rod to his back!

⁴Don’t answer the foolish arguments of fools, or you will become as foolish as they are.

⁵Be sure to answer the foolish arguments of fools, or they will become wise in their own estimation.

⁶Trusting a fool to convey a message is like cutting off one’s feet or drinking poison!

⁷A proverb in the mouth of a fool is as useless as a paralyzed leg.

⁸Honoring a fool is as foolish as tying a stone to a slingshot.

⁹A proverb in the mouth of a fool is like a thorny branch brandished by a drunk.

¹⁰An employer who hires a fool or a bystander is like an archer who shoots at random.

¹¹As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his foolishness.

¹²There is more hope for fools than for people who think they are wise.

¹³The lazy person claims, “There’s a lion on the road! Yes, I’m sure there’s a lion out there!”

¹⁴As a door swings back and forth on its hinges, so the lazy person turns over in bed.

¹⁵Lazy people take food in their hand but don’t even lift it to their mouth.

¹⁶Lazy people consider themselves smarter than seven wise counselors.

¹⁷Interfering in someone else’s argument is as foolish as yanking a dog’s ears.

¹⁸Just as damaging as a madman shooting a deadly weapon

¹⁹is someone who lies to a friend and then says, “I was only joking.”

²⁰Fire goes out without wood, and quarrels disappear when gossip stops.

²¹A quarrelsome person starts fights as easily as hot embers light charcoal or fire lights wood.

²²Rumors are dainty morsels that sink deep into one’s heart.

²³Smooth words may hide a wicked heart, just as a pretty glaze covers a clay pot.

²⁴People may cover their hatred with pleasant words, but they’re deceiving you.

²⁵They pretend to be kind, but don’t believe them. Their hearts are full of many evils.

²⁶While their hatred may be concealed by trickery, their wrongdoing will be exposed in public.

²⁷If you set a trap for others, you will get caught in it yourself. If you roll a boulder down on others, it will crush you instead.

²⁸A lying tongue hates its victims, and flattering words cause ruin.

¹During Jehoiakim’s reign, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon invaded the land of Judah. Jehoiakim surrendered and paid him tribute for three years but then rebelled.

²Then the LORD sent bands of Babylonian, Aramean, Moabite, and Ammonite raiders against Judah to destroy it, just as the LORD had promised through his prophets.

³These disasters happened to Judah because of the LORD’s command. He had decided to banish Judah from his presence because of the many sins of Manasseh,

⁴who had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood. The LORD would not forgive this.

⁵The rest of the events in Jehoiakim’s reign and all his deeds are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah.

⁶When Jehoiakim died, his son Jehoiachin became the next king.

⁷The king of Egypt did not venture out of his country after that, for the king of Babylon captured the entire area formerly claimed by Egypt — from the Brook of Egypt to the Euphrates River.

⁸Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan from Jerusalem.

⁹Jehoiachin did what was evil in the LORD’s sight, just as his father had done.

¹⁰During Jehoiachin’s reign, the officers of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came up against Jerusalem and besieged it.

¹¹Nebuchadnezzar himself arrived at the city during the siege.

¹²Then King Jehoiachin, along with the queen mother, his advisers, his commanders, and his officials, surrendered to the Babylonians. In the eighth year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, he took Jehoiachin prisoner.

¹³As the LORD had said beforehand, Nebuchadnezzar carried away all the treasures from the LORD’s Temple and the royal palace. He stripped away all the gold objects that King Solomon of Israel had placed in the Temple.

¹⁴King Nebuchadnezzar took all of Jerusalem captive, including all the commanders and the best of the soldiers, craftsmen, and artisans — 10,000 in all. Only the poorest people were left in the land.

¹⁵Nebuchadnezzar led King Jehoiachin away as a captive to Babylon, along with the queen mother, his wives and officials, and all Jerusalem’s elite.

¹⁶He also exiled 7,000 of the best troops and 1,000 craftsmen and artisans, all of whom were strong and fit for war.

¹⁷Then the king of Babylon installed Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, as the next king, and he changed Mattaniah’s name to Zedekiah.

¹⁸Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah from Libnah.

¹⁹But Zedekiah did what was evil in the LORD’s sight, just as Jehoiakim had done.

²⁰These things happened because of the LORD’s anger against the people of Jerusalem and Judah, until he finally banished them from his presence and sent them into exile. The Fall of Jerusalem Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

¹Then this message came to me from the LORD:

²“Son of man, sing a funeral song for Tyre,

³that mighty gateway to the sea, the trading center of the world. Give Tyre this message from the Sovereign LORD: “You boasted, O Tyre, ‘My beauty is perfect!’

⁴You extended your boundaries into the sea. Your builders made your beauty perfect.

⁵You were like a great ship built of the finest cypress from Senir. They took a cedar from Lebanon to make a mast for you.

⁶They carved your oars from the oaks of Bashan. Your deck of pine from the coasts of Cyprus was inlaid with ivory.

⁷Your sails were made of Egypt’s finest linen, and they flew as a banner above you. You stood beneath blue and purple awnings made bright with dyes from the coasts of Elishah.

⁸Your oarsmen came from Sidon and Arvad; your helmsmen were skilled men from Tyre itself.

⁹Wise old craftsmen from Gebal did the caulking. Ships from every land came with goods to barter for your trade.

¹⁰“Men from distant Persia, Lydia, and Libya served in your great army. They hung their shields and helmets on your walls, giving you great honor.

¹¹Men from Arvad and Helech stood on your walls. Your towers were manned by men from Gammad. Their shields hung on your walls, completing your beauty.

¹²“Tarshish sent merchants to buy your wares in exchange for silver, iron, tin, and lead.

¹³Merchants from Greece, Tubal, and Meshech brought slaves and articles of bronze to trade with you.

¹⁴“From Beth-togarmah came riding horses, chariot horses, and mules, all in exchange for your goods.

¹⁵Merchants came to you from Dedan. Numerous coastlands were your captive markets; they brought payment in ivory tusks and ebony wood.

¹⁶“Syria sent merchants to buy your rich variety of goods. They traded turquoise, purple dyes, embroidery, fine linen, and jewelry of coral and rubies.

¹⁷Judah and Israel traded for your wares, offering wheat from Minnith, figs, honey, olive oil, and balm.

¹⁸“Damascus sent merchants to buy your rich variety of goods, bringing wine from Helbon and white wool from Zahar.

¹⁹Greeks from Uzal came to trade for your merchandise. Wrought iron, cassia, and fragrant calamus were bartered for your wares.

²⁰“Dedan sent merchants to trade their expensive saddle blankets with you.

²¹The Arabians and the princes of Kedar sent merchants to trade lambs and rams and male goats in exchange for your goods.

²²The merchants of Sheba and Raamah came with all kinds of spices, jewels, and gold in exchange for your wares.

²³“Haran, Canneh, Eden, Sheba, Asshur, and Kilmad came with their merchandise, too.

²⁴They brought choice fabrics to trade — blue cloth, embroidery, and multicolored carpets rolled up and bound with cords.

²⁵The ships of Tarshish were your ocean caravans. Your island warehouse was filled to the brim!

²⁶“But look! Your oarsmen have taken you into stormy seas! A mighty eastern gale has wrecked you in the heart of the sea!

²⁷Everything is lost — your riches and wares, your sailors and pilots, your ship builders, merchants, and warriors. On the day of your ruin, everyone on board sinks into the depths of the sea.

²⁸Your cities by the sea tremble as your pilots cry out in terror.

²⁹All the oarsmen abandon their ships; the sailors and pilots stand on the shore.

³⁰They cry aloud over you and weep bitterly. They throw dust on their heads and roll in ashes.

³¹They shave their heads in grief for you and dress themselves in burlap. They weep for you with bitter anguish and deep mourning.

³²As they wail and mourn over you, they sing this sad funeral song: ‘Was there ever such a city as Tyre, now silent at the bottom of the sea?

³³The merchandise you traded satisfied the desires of many nations. Kings at the ends of the earth were enriched by your trade.

³⁴Now you are a wrecked ship, broken at the bottom of the sea. All your merchandise and crew have gone down with you.

³⁵All who live along the coastlands are appalled at your terrible fate. Their kings are filled with horror and look on with twisted faces.

³⁶The merchants among the nations shake their heads at the sight of you, for you have come to a horrible end and will exist no more.’”

¹In Caesarea there lived a Roman army officer named Cornelius, who was a captain of the Italian Regiment.

²He was a devout, God-fearing man, as was everyone in his household. He gave generously to the poor and prayed regularly to God.

³One afternoon about three o’clock, he had a vision in which he saw an angel of God coming toward him. “Cornelius!” the angel said.

⁴Cornelius stared at him in terror. “What is it, sir?” he asked the angel. And the angel replied, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have been received by God as an offering!

⁵Now send some men to Joppa, and summon a man named Simon Peter.

⁶He is staying with Simon, a tanner who lives near the seashore.”

⁷As soon as the angel was gone, Cornelius called two of his household servants and a devout soldier, one of his personal attendants.

⁸He told them what had happened and sent them off to Joppa.

⁹The next day as Cornelius’s messengers were nearing the town, Peter went up on the flat roof to pray. It was about noon,

¹⁰and he was hungry. But while a meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance.

¹¹He saw the sky open, and something like a large sheet was let down by its four corners.

¹²In the sheet were all sorts of animals, reptiles, and birds.

¹³Then a voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat them.”

¹⁴“No, Lord,” Peter declared. “I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure and unclean. ”

¹⁵But the voice spoke again: “Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.”

¹⁶The same vision was repeated three times. Then the sheet was suddenly pulled up to heaven.

¹⁷Peter was very perplexed. What could the vision mean? Just then the men sent by Cornelius found Simon’s house. Standing outside the gate,

¹⁸they asked if a man named Simon Peter was staying there.

¹⁹Meanwhile, as Peter was puzzling over the vision, the Holy Spirit said to him, “Three men have come looking for you.

²⁰Get up, go downstairs, and go with them without hesitation. Don’t worry, for I have sent them.”

²¹So Peter went down and said, “I’m the man you are looking for. Why have you come?”

²²They said, “We were sent by Cornelius, a Roman officer. He is a devout and God-fearing man, well respected by all the Jews. A holy angel instructed him to summon you to his house so that he can hear your message.”

²³So Peter invited the men to stay for the night. The next day he went with them, accompanied by some of the brothers from Joppa.

²⁴They arrived in Caesarea the following day. Cornelius was waiting for them and had called together his relatives and close friends.

²⁵As Peter entered his home, Cornelius fell at his feet and worshiped him.

²⁶But Peter pulled him up and said, “Stand up! I’m a human being just like you!”

²⁷So they talked together and went inside, where many others were assembled.

²⁸Peter told them, “You know it is against our laws for a Jewish man to enter a Gentile home like this or to associate with you. But God has shown me that I should no longer think of anyone as impure or unclean.

²⁹So I came without objection as soon as I was sent for. Now tell me why you sent for me.”

³⁰Cornelius replied, “Four days ago I was praying in my house about this same time, three o’clock in the afternoon. Suddenly, a man in dazzling clothes was standing in front of me.

³¹He told me, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard, and your gifts to the poor have been noticed by God!

³²Now send messengers to Joppa, and summon a man named Simon Peter. He is staying in the home of Simon, a tanner who lives near the seashore.’

³³So I sent for you at once, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here, waiting before God to hear the message the Lord has given you.”

³⁴Then Peter replied, “I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism.

³⁵In every nation he accepts those who fear him and do what is right.

³⁶This is the message of Good News for the people of Israel — that there is peace with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.

³⁷You know what happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee, after John began preaching his message of baptism.

³⁸And you know that God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Then Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

³⁹“And we apostles are witnesses of all he did throughout Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a cross,

⁴⁰but God raised him to life on the third day. Then God allowed him to appear,

⁴¹not to the general public, but to us whom God had chosen in advance to be his witnesses. We were those who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.

⁴²And he ordered us to preach everywhere and to testify that Jesus is the one appointed by God to be the judge of all — the living and the dead.

⁴³He is the one all the prophets testified about, saying that everyone who believes in him will have their sins forgiven through his name.”

⁴⁴Even as Peter was saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who were listening to the message.

⁴⁵The Jewish believers who came with Peter were amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles, too.

⁴⁶For they heard them speaking in other tongues and praising God. Then Peter asked,

⁴⁷“Can anyone object to their being baptized, now that they have received the Holy Spirit just as we did?”

⁴⁸So he gave orders for them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Afterward Cornelius asked him to stay with them for several days.