Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹He entered Jericho and was passing through.

²And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich.

³And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature.

⁴So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way.

⁵And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.”

⁶So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.

⁷And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.”

⁸And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.”

⁹And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham.

¹⁰For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

¹¹As they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable, because he was near to Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.

¹²He said therefore, “A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return.

¹³Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Engage in business until I come.’

¹⁴But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’

¹⁵When he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by doing business.

¹⁶The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made ten minas more.’

¹⁷And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.’

¹⁸And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made five minas.’

¹⁹And he said to him, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’

²⁰Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your mina, which I kept laid away in a handkerchief;

²¹for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man. You take what you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’

²²He said to him, ‘I will condemn you with your own words, you wicked servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow?

²³Why then did you not put my money in the bank, and at my coming I might have collected it with interest?’

²⁴And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’

²⁵And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten minas!’

²⁶‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.

²⁷But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me.’”

²⁸And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.

²⁹When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples,

³⁰saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here.

³¹If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’”

³²So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them.

³³And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?”

³⁴And they said, “The Lord has need of it.”

³⁵And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it.

³⁶And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road.

³⁷As he was drawing near — already on the way down the Mount of Olives — the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen,

³⁸saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

³⁹And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.”

⁴⁰He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

⁴¹And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it,

⁴²saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.

⁴³For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side

⁴⁴ and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”

⁴⁵And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold,

⁴⁶saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”

⁴⁷And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him,

⁴⁸but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.

¹The LORD spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan at Jericho, saying,

²“Command the people of Israel to give to the Levites some of the inheritance of their possession as cities for them to dwell in. And you shall give to the Levites pasturelands around the cities.

³The cities shall be theirs to dwell in, and their pasturelands shall be for their cattle and for their livestock and for all their beasts.

⁴The pasturelands of the cities, which you shall give to the Levites, shall reach from the wall of the city outward a thousand cubits all around.

⁵And you shall measure, outside the city, on the east side two thousand cubits, and on the south side two thousand cubits, and on the west side two thousand cubits, and on the north side two thousand cubits, the city being in the middle. This shall belong to them as pastureland for their cities.

⁶“The cities that you give to the Levites shall be the six cities of refuge, where you shall permit the manslayer to flee, and in addition to them you shall give forty-two cities.

⁷All the cities that you give to the Levites shall be forty-eight, with their pasturelands.

⁸And as for the cities that you shall give from the possession of the people of Israel, from the larger tribes you shall take many, and from the smaller tribes you shall take few; each, in proportion to the inheritance that it inherits, shall give of its cities to the Levites.”

⁹And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

¹⁰“Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan,

¹¹then you shall select cities to be cities of refuge for you, that the manslayer who kills any person without intent may flee there.

¹²The cities shall be for you a refuge from the avenger, that the manslayer may not die until he stands before the congregation for judgment.

¹³And the cities that you give shall be your six cities of refuge.

¹⁴You shall give three cities beyond the Jordan, and three cities in the land of Canaan, to be cities of refuge.

¹⁵These six cities shall be for refuge for the people of Israel, and for the stranger and for the sojourner among them, that anyone who kills any person without intent may flee there.

¹⁶“But if he struck him down with an iron object, so that he died, he is a murderer. The murderer shall be put to death.

¹⁷And if he struck him down with a stone tool that could cause death, and he died, he is a murderer. The murderer shall be put to death.

¹⁸Or if he struck him down with a wooden tool that could cause death, and he died, he is a murderer. The murderer shall be put to death.

¹⁹The avenger of blood shall himself put the murderer to death; when he meets him, he shall put him to death.

²⁰And if he pushed him out of hatred or hurled something at him, lying in wait, so that he died,

²¹or in enmity struck him down with his hand, so that he died, then he who struck the blow shall be put to death. He is a murderer. The avenger of blood shall put the murderer to death when he meets him.

²²“But if he pushed him suddenly without enmity, or hurled anything on him without lying in wait

²³or used a stone that could cause death, and without seeing him dropped it on him, so that he died, though he was not his enemy and did not seek his harm,

²⁴then the congregation shall judge between the manslayer and the avenger of blood, in accordance with these rules.

²⁵And the congregation shall rescue the manslayer from the hand of the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall restore him to his city of refuge to which he had fled, and he shall live in it until the death of the high priest who was anointed with the holy oil.

²⁶But if the manslayer shall at any time go beyond the boundaries of his city of refuge to which he fled,

²⁷and the avenger of blood finds him outside the boundaries of his city of refuge, and the avenger of blood kills the manslayer, he shall not be guilty of blood.

²⁸For he must remain in his city of refuge until the death of the high priest, but after the death of the high priest the manslayer may return to the land of his possession.

²⁹And these things shall be for a statute and rule for you throughout your generations in all your dwelling places.

³⁰“If anyone kills a person, the murderer shall be put to death on the evidence of witnesses. But no person shall be put to death on the testimony of one witness.

³¹Moreover, you shall accept no ransom for the life of a murderer, who is guilty of death, but he shall be put to death.

³²And you shall accept no ransom for him who has fled to his city of refuge, that he may return to dwell in the land before the death of the high priest.

³³You shall not pollute the land in which you live, for blood pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land for the blood that is shed in it, except by the blood of the one who shed it.

³⁴You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I dwell, for I the LORD dwell in the midst of the people of Israel.”

¹Now even the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly place of holiness.

²For a tent was prepared, the first section, in which were the lampstand and the table and the bread of the Presence. It is called the Holy Place.

³Behind the second curtain was a second section called the Most Holy Place,

⁴having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron's staff that budded, and the tablets of the covenant.

⁵Above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail.

⁶These preparations having thus been made, the priests go regularly into the first section, performing their ritual duties,

⁷but into the second only the high priest goes, and he but once a year, and not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people.

⁸By this the Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the holy places is not yet opened as long as the first section is still standing

⁹(which is symbolic for the present age). According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper,

¹⁰but deal only with food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until the time of reformation.

¹¹But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation)

¹²he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

¹³For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh,

¹⁴how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

¹⁵Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.

¹⁶For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established.

¹⁷For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive.

¹⁸Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood.

¹⁹For when every commandment of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people,

²⁰saying, “This is the blood of the covenant that God commanded for you.”

²¹And in the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship.

²²Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.

²³Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.

²⁴For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.

²⁵Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own,

²⁶for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

²⁷And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

²⁸so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

¹Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our beloved fellow worker

²and Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier, and the church in your house:

³Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁴I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers,

⁵because I hear of your love and of the faith that you have toward the Lord Jesus and for all the saints,

⁶and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.

⁷For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you.

⁸Accordingly, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do what is required,

⁹yet for love's sake I prefer to appeal to you — I, Paul, an old man and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus —

¹⁰I appeal to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I became in my imprisonment.

¹¹(Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and to me.)

¹²I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart.

¹³I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel,

¹⁴but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own accord.

¹⁵For this perhaps is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back forever,

¹⁶no longer as a bondservant but more than a bondservant, as a beloved brother — especially to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.

¹⁷So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me.

¹⁸If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account.

¹⁹I, Paul, write this with my own hand: I will repay it — to say nothing of your owing me even your own self.

²⁰Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ.

²¹Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say.

²²At the same time, prepare a guest room for me, for I am hoping that through your prayers I will be graciously given to you.

²³Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you,

²⁴and so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.

²⁵The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.

¹“Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place for gold that they refine.

²Iron is taken out of the earth, and copper is smelted from the ore.

³Man puts an end to darkness and searches out to the farthest limit the ore in gloom and deep darkness.

⁴He opens shafts in a valley away from where anyone lives; they are forgotten by travelers; they hang in the air, far away from mankind; they swing to and fro.

⁵As for the earth, out of it comes bread, but underneath it is turned up as by fire.

⁶Its stones are the place of sapphires, and it has dust of gold.

⁷“That path no bird of prey knows, and the falcon's eye has not seen it.

⁸The proud beasts have not trodden it; the lion has not passed over it.

⁹“Man puts his hand to the flinty rock and overturns mountains by the roots.

¹⁰He cuts out channels in the rocks, and his eye sees every precious thing.

¹¹He dams up the streams so that they do not trickle, and the thing that is hidden he brings out to light.

¹²“But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?

¹³Man does not know its worth, and it is not found in the land of the living.

¹⁴The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’ and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’

¹⁵It cannot be bought for gold, and silver cannot be weighed as its price.

¹⁶It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire.

¹⁷Gold and glass cannot equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.

¹⁸No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; the price of wisdom is above pearls.

¹⁹The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, nor can it be valued in pure gold.

²⁰“From where, then, does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding?

²¹It is hidden from the eyes of all living and concealed from the birds of the air.

²²Abaddon and Death say, ‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’

²³“God understands the way to it, and he knows its place.

²⁴For he looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.

²⁵When he gave to the wind its weight and apportioned the waters by measure,

²⁶when he made a decree for the rain and a way for the lightning of the thunder,

²⁷then he saw it and declared it; he established it, and searched it out.

²⁸And he said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”

¹Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?

²The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying,

³“Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.”

⁴He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.

⁵Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying,

⁶“As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.”

⁷I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you.

⁸Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession.

⁹You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.”

¹⁰Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth.

¹¹Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.

¹²Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

¹The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion.

²When a land transgresses, it has many rulers, but with a man of understanding and knowledge, its stability will long continue.

³A poor man who oppresses the poor is a beating rain that leaves no food.

⁴Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law strive against them.

⁵Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the LORD understand it completely.

⁶Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity than a rich man who is crooked in his ways.

⁷The one who keeps the law is a son with understanding, but a companion of gluttons shames his father.

⁸Whoever multiplies his wealth by interest and profit gathers it for him who is generous to the poor.

⁹If one turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination.

¹⁰Whoever misleads the upright into an evil way will fall into his own pit, but the blameless will have a goodly inheritance.

¹¹A rich man is wise in his own eyes, but a poor man who has understanding will find him out.

¹²When the righteous triumph, there is great glory, but when the wicked rise, people hide themselves.

¹³Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

¹⁴Blessed is the one who fears the LORD always, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity.

¹⁵Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a poor people.

¹⁶A ruler who lacks understanding is a cruel oppressor, but he who hates unjust gain will prolong his days.

¹⁷If one is burdened with the blood of another, he will be a fugitive until death; let no one help him.

¹⁸Whoever walks in integrity will be delivered, but he who is crooked in his ways will suddenly fall.

¹⁹Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty.

²⁰A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.

²¹To show partiality is not good, but for a piece of bread a man will do wrong.

²²A stingy man hastens after wealth and does not know that poverty will come upon him.

²³Whoever rebukes a man will afterward find more favor than he who flatters with his tongue.

²⁴Whoever robs his father or his mother and says, “That is no transgression,” is a companion to a man who destroys.

²⁵A greedy man stirs up strife, but the one who trusts in the LORD will be enriched.

²⁶Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.

²⁷Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse.

²⁸When the wicked rise, people hide themselves, but when they perish, the righteous increase.

¹Adam, Seth, Enosh;

²Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared;

³Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech;

⁴Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

⁵The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.

⁶The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah.

⁷The sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Rodanim.

⁸The sons of Ham: Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan.

⁹The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabta, Raamah, and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan.

¹⁰Cush fathered Nimrod. He was the first on earth to be a mighty man.

¹¹Egypt fathered Ludim, Anamim, Lehabim, Naphtuhim,

¹²Pathrusim, Casluhim (from whom the Philistines came), and Caphtorim.

¹³Canaan fathered Sidon his firstborn and Heth,

¹⁴and the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites,

¹⁵the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites,

¹⁶the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites.

¹⁷The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arpachshad, Lud, and Aram. And the sons of Aram: Uz, Hul, Gether, and Meshech.

¹⁸Arpachshad fathered Shelah, and Shelah fathered Eber.

¹⁹To Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg (for in his days the earth was divided), and his brother's name was Joktan.

²⁰Joktan fathered Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah,

²¹Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah,

²²Obal, Abimael, Sheba,

²³Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab; all these were the sons of Joktan.

²⁴Shem, Arpachshad, Shelah;

²⁵Eber, Peleg, Reu;

²⁶Serug, Nahor, Terah;

²⁷Abram, that is, Abraham.

²⁸The sons of Abraham: Isaac and Ishmael.

²⁹These are their genealogies: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebaioth, and Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam,

³⁰Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema,

³¹Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. These are the sons of Ishmael.

³²The sons of Keturah, Abraham's concubine: she bore Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. The sons of Jokshan: Sheba and Dedan.

³³The sons of Midian: Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the descendants of Keturah.

³⁴Abraham fathered Isaac. The sons of Isaac: Esau and Israel.

³⁵The sons of Esau: Eliphaz, Reuel, Jeush, Jalam, and Korah.

³⁶The sons of Eliphaz: Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, Kenaz, and of Timna, Amalek.

³⁷The sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah.

³⁸The sons of Seir: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan.

³⁹The sons of Lotan: Hori and Hemam; and Lotan's sister was Timna.

⁴⁰The sons of Shobal: Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam. The sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah.

⁴¹The son of Anah: Dishon. The sons of Dishon: Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran.

⁴²The sons of Ezer: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan. The sons of Dishan: Uz and Aran.

⁴³These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the people of Israel: Bela the son of Beor, the name of his city being Dinhabah.

⁴⁴Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his place.

⁴⁵Jobab died, and Husham of the land of the Temanites reigned in his place.

⁴⁶Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who defeated Midian in the country of Moab, reigned in his place, the name of his city being Avith.

⁴⁷Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his place.

⁴⁸Samlah died, and Shaul of Rehoboth on the Euphrates reigned in his place.

⁴⁹Shaul died, and Baal-hanan, the son of Achbor, reigned in his place.

⁵⁰Baal-hanan died, and Hadad reigned in his place, the name of his city being Pai; and his wife's name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab.

⁵¹And Hadad died. The chiefs of Edom were: chiefs Timna, Alvah, Jetheth,

⁵²Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon,

⁵³Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar,

⁵⁴Magdiel, and Iram; these are the chiefs of Edom.

¹In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me:

²“Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt;

³speak, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lies in the midst of his streams, that says, ‘My Nile is my own; I made it for myself.’

⁴I will put hooks in your jaws, and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales; and I will draw you up out of the midst of your streams, with all the fish of your streams that stick to your scales.

⁵And I will cast you out into the wilderness, you and all the fish of your streams; you shall fall on the open field, and not be brought together or gathered. To the beasts of the earth and to the birds of the heavens I give you as food.

⁶Then all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the LORD. “Because you have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel,

⁷when they grasped you with the hand, you broke and tore all their shoulders; and when they leaned on you, you broke and made all their loins to shake.

⁸Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will bring a sword upon you, and will cut off from you man and beast,

⁹and the land of Egypt shall be a desolation and a waste. Then they will know that I am the LORD. “Because you said, ‘The Nile is mine, and I made it,’

¹⁰therefore, behold, I am against you and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt an utter waste and desolation, from Migdol to Syene, as far as the border of Cush.

¹¹No foot of man shall pass through it, and no foot of beast shall pass through it; it shall be uninhabited forty years.

¹²And I will make the land of Egypt a desolation in the midst of desolated countries, and her cities shall be a desolation forty years among cities that are laid waste. I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them through the countries.

¹³“For thus says the Lord GOD: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they were scattered,

¹⁴and I will restore the fortunes of Egypt and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin, and there they shall be a lowly kingdom.

¹⁵It shall be the most lowly of the kingdoms, and never again exalt itself above the nations. And I will make them so small that they will never again rule over the nations.

¹⁶And it shall never again be the reliance of the house of Israel, recalling their iniquity, when they turn to them for aid. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD.”

¹⁷In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me:

¹⁸“Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre. Every head was made bald, and every shoulder was rubbed bare, yet neither he nor his army got anything from Tyre to pay for the labor that he had performed against her.

¹⁹Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off its wealth and despoil it and plunder it; and it shall be the wages for his army.

²⁰I have given him the land of Egypt as his payment for which he labored, because they worked for me, declares the Lord GOD.

²¹“On that day I will cause a horn to spring up for the house of Israel, and I will open your lips among them. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

¹About that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church.

²He killed James the brother of John with the sword,

³and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread.

⁴And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.

⁵So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.

⁶Now when Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison.

⁷And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his hands.

⁸And the angel said to him, “Dress yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.”

⁹And he went out and followed him. He did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.

¹⁰When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them of its own accord, and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel left him.

¹¹When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.”

¹²When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying.

¹³And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer.

¹⁴Recognizing Peter's voice, in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate.

¹⁵They said to her, “You are out of your mind.” But she kept insisting that it was so, and they kept saying, “It is his angel!”

¹⁶But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed.

¹⁷But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Tell these things to James and to the brothers.” Then he departed and went to another place.

¹⁸Now when day came, there was no little disturbance among the soldiers over what had become of Peter.

¹⁹And after Herod searched for him and did not find him, he examined the sentries and ordered that they should be put to death. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and spent time there.

²⁰Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they came to him with one accord, and having persuaded Blastus, the king's chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the king's country for food.

²¹On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them.

²²And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!”

²³Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.

²⁴But the word of God increased and multiplied.

²⁵And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had completed their service, bringing with them John, whose other name was Mark.