Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹One day as Jesus was teaching the people and preaching the Good News in the Temple, the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders came up to him.

²They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right?”

³“Let me ask you a question first,” he replied.

⁴“Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human?”

⁵They talked it over among themselves. “If we say it was from heaven, he will ask why we didn’t believe John.

⁶But if we say it was merely human, the people will stone us because they are convinced John was a prophet.”

⁷So they finally replied that they didn’t know.

⁸And Jesus responded, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I do these things.”

⁹Now Jesus turned to the people again and told them this story: “A man planted a vineyard, leased it to tenant farmers, and moved to another country to live for several years.

¹⁰At the time of the grape harvest, he sent one of his servants to collect his share of the crop. But the farmers attacked the servant, beat him up, and sent him back empty-handed.

¹¹So the owner sent another servant, but they also insulted him, beat him up, and sent him away empty-handed.

¹²A third man was sent, and they wounded him and chased him away.

¹³“‘What will I do?’ the owner asked himself. ‘I know! I’ll send my cherished son. Surely they will respect him.’

¹⁴“But when the tenant farmers saw his son, they said to each other, ‘Here comes the heir to this estate. Let’s kill him and get the estate for ourselves!’

¹⁵So they dragged him out of the vineyard and murdered him. “What do you suppose the owner of the vineyard will do to them?” Jesus asked.

¹⁶“I’ll tell you — he will come and kill those farmers and lease the vineyard to others.” “How terrible that such a thing should ever happen,” his listeners protested.

¹⁷Jesus looked at them and said, “Then what does this Scripture mean? ‘The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’

¹⁸Everyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on.”

¹⁹The teachers of religious law and the leading priests wanted to arrest Jesus immediately because they realized he was telling the story against them — they were the wicked farmers. But they were afraid of the people’s reaction.

²⁰Watching for their opportunity, the leaders sent spies pretending to be honest men. They tried to get Jesus to say something that could be reported to the Roman governor so he would arrest Jesus.

²¹“Teacher,” they said, “we know that you speak and teach what is right and are not influenced by what others think. You teach the way of God truthfully.

²²Now tell us — is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

²³He saw through their trickery and said,

²⁴“Show me a Roman coin. Whose picture and title are stamped on it?” “Caesar’s,” they replied.

²⁵“Well then,” he said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”

²⁶So they failed to trap him by what he said in front of the people. Instead, they were amazed by his answer, and they became silent.

²⁷Then Jesus was approached by some Sadducees — religious leaders who say there is no resurrection from the dead.

²⁸They posed this question: “Teacher, Moses gave us a law that if a man dies, leaving a wife but no children, his brother should marry the widow and have a child who will carry on the brother’s name.

²⁹Well, suppose there were seven brothers. The oldest one married and then died without children.

³⁰So the second brother married the widow, but he also died.

³¹Then the third brother married her. This continued with all seven of them, who died without children.

³²Finally, the woman also died.

³³So tell us, whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For all seven were married to her!”

³⁴Jesus replied, “Marriage is for people here on earth.

³⁵But in the age to come, those worthy of being raised from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage.

³⁶And they will never die again. In this respect they will be like angels. They are children of God and children of the resurrection.

³⁷“But now, as to whether the dead will be raised — even Moses proved this when he wrote about the burning bush. Long after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had died, he referred to the Lord as ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’

³⁸So he is the God of the living, not the dead, for they are all alive to him.”

³⁹“Well said, Teacher!” remarked some of the teachers of religious law who were standing there.

⁴⁰And then no one dared to ask him any more questions.

⁴¹Then Jesus presented them with a question. “Why is it,” he asked, “that the Messiah is said to be the son of David?

⁴²For David himself wrote in the book of Psalms: ‘The LORD said to my Lord, Sit in the place of honor at my right hand

⁴³until I humble your enemies, making them a footstool under your feet.’

⁴⁴Since David called the Messiah ‘Lord,’ how can the Messiah be his son?”

⁴⁵Then, with the crowds listening, he turned to his disciples and said,

⁴⁶“Beware of these teachers of religious law! For they like to parade around in flowing robes and love to receive respectful greetings as they walk in the marketplaces. And how they love the seats of honor in the synagogues and the head table at banquets.

⁴⁷Yet they shamelessly cheat widows out of their property and then pretend to be pious by making long prayers in public. Because of this, they will be severely punished.”

¹Then the heads of the clans of Gilead — descendants of Makir, son of Manasseh, son of Joseph — came to Moses and the family leaders of Israel with a petition.

²They said, “Sir, the LORD instructed you to divide the land by sacred lot among the people of Israel. You were told by the LORD to give the grant of land owned by our brother Zelophehad to his daughters.

³But if they marry men from another tribe, their grants of land will go with them to the tribe into which they marry. In this way, the total area of our tribal land will be reduced.

⁴Then when the Year of Jubilee comes, their portion of land will be added to that of the new tribe, causing it to be lost forever to our ancestral tribe.”

⁵So Moses gave the Israelites this command from the LORD: “The claim of the men of the tribe of Joseph is legitimate.

⁶This is what the LORD commands concerning the daughters of Zelophehad: Let them marry anyone they like, as long as it is within their own ancestral tribe.

⁷None of the territorial land may pass from tribe to tribe, for all the land given to each tribe must remain within the tribe to which it was first allotted.

⁸The daughters throughout the tribes of Israel who are in line to inherit property must marry within their tribe, so that all the Israelites will keep their ancestral property.

⁹No grant of land may pass from one tribe to another; each tribe of Israel must keep its allotted portion of land.”

¹⁰The daughters of Zelophehad did as the LORD commanded Moses.

¹¹Mahlah, Tirzah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Noah all married cousins on their father’s side.

¹²They married into the clans of Manasseh son of Joseph. Thus, their inheritance of land remained within their ancestral tribe.

¹³These are the commands and regulations that the LORD gave to the people of Israel through Moses while they were camped on the plains of Moab beside the Jordan River, across from Jericho.

¹The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, not the good things themselves. The sacrifices under that system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they were never able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship.

²If they could have provided perfect cleansing, the sacrifices would have stopped, for the worshipers would have been purified once for all time, and their feelings of guilt would have disappeared.

³But instead, those sacrifices actually reminded them of their sins year after year.

⁴For it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

⁵That is why, when Christ came into the world, he said to God, “You did not want animal sacrifices or sin offerings. But you have given me a body to offer.

⁶You were not pleased with burnt offerings or other offerings for sin.

⁷Then I said, ‘Look, I have come to do your will, O God — as is written about me in the Scriptures.’”

⁸First, Christ said, “You did not want animal sacrifices or sin offerings or burnt offerings or other offerings for sin, nor were you pleased with them” (though they are required by the law of Moses).

⁹Then he said, “Look, I have come to do your will.” He cancels the first covenant in order to put the second into effect.

¹⁰For God’s will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time.

¹¹Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins.

¹²But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.

¹³There he waits until his enemies are humbled and made a footstool under his feet.

¹⁴For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy.

¹⁵And the Holy Spirit also testifies that this is so. For he says,

¹⁶“This is the new covenant I will make with my people on that day, says the LORD: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”

¹⁷Then he says, “I will never again remember their sins and lawless deeds.”

¹⁸And when sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices.

¹⁹And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus.

²⁰By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place.

²¹And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house,

²²let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.

²³Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.

²⁴Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.

²⁵And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

²⁶Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins.

²⁷There is only the terrible expectation of God’s judgment and the raging fire that will consume his enemies.

²⁸For anyone who refused to obey the law of Moses was put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.

²⁹Just think how much worse the punishment will be for those who have trampled on the Son of God, and have treated the blood of the covenant, which made us holy, as if it were common and unholy, and have insulted and disdained the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to us.

³⁰For we know the one who said, “I will take revenge. I will pay them back.” He also said, “The LORD will judge his own people.”

³¹It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

³²Think back on those early days when you first learned about Christ. Remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrible suffering.

³³Sometimes you were exposed to public ridicule and were beaten, and sometimes you helped others who were suffering the same things.

³⁴You suffered along with those who were thrown into jail, and when all you owned was taken from you, you accepted it with joy. You knew there were better things waiting for you that will last forever.

³⁵So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you!

³⁶Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised.

³⁷“For in just a little while, the Coming One will come and not delay.

³⁸And my righteous ones will live by faith. But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.”

³⁹But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved.

¹This letter is from James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am writing to the “twelve tribes” — Jewish believers scattered abroad. Greetings!

²Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.

³For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.

⁴So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

⁵If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.

⁶But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.

⁷Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

⁸Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.

⁹Believers who are poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them.

¹⁰And those who are rich should boast that God has humbled them. They will fade away like a little flower in the field.

¹¹The hot sun rises and the grass withers; the little flower droops and falls, and its beauty fades away. In the same way, the rich will fade away with all of their achievements.

¹²God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

¹³And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else.

¹⁴Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away.

¹⁵These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.

¹⁶So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters.

¹⁷Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.

¹⁸He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.

¹⁹Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.

²⁰Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.

²¹So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.

²²But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.

²³For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror.

²⁴You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like.

²⁵But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

²⁶If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.

²⁷Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

¹Job continued speaking:

²“I long for the years gone by when God took care of me,

³when he lit up the way before me and I walked safely through the darkness.

⁴When I was in my prime, God’s friendship was felt in my home.

⁵The Almighty was still with me, and my children were around me.

⁶My steps were awash in cream, and the rocks gushed olive oil for me.

⁷“Those were the days when I went to the city gate and took my place among the honored leaders.

⁸The young stepped aside when they saw me, and even the aged rose in respect at my coming.

⁹The princes stood in silence and put their hands over their mouths.

¹⁰The highest officials of the city stood quietly, holding their tongues in respect.

¹¹“All who heard me praised me. All who saw me spoke well of me.

¹²For I assisted the poor in their need and the orphans who required help.

¹³I helped those without hope, and they blessed me. And I caused the widows’ hearts to sing for joy.

¹⁴Everything I did was honest. Righteousness covered me like a robe, and I wore justice like a turban.

¹⁵I served as eyes for the blind and feet for the lame.

¹⁶I was a father to the poor and assisted strangers who needed help.

¹⁷I broke the jaws of godless oppressors and plucked their victims from their teeth.

¹⁸“I thought, ‘Surely I will die surrounded by my family after a long, good life.

¹⁹For I am like a tree whose roots reach the water, whose branches are refreshed with the dew.

²⁰New honors are constantly bestowed on me, and my strength is continually renewed.’

²¹“Everyone listened to my advice. They were silent as they waited for me to speak.

²²And after I spoke, they had nothing to add, for my counsel satisfied them.

²³They longed for me to speak as people long for rain. They drank my words like a refreshing spring rain.

²⁴When they were discouraged, I smiled at them. My look of approval was precious to them.

²⁵Like a chief, I told them what to do. I lived like a king among his troops and comforted those who mourned.

¹O LORD, I have so many enemies; so many are against me.

²So many are saying, “God will never rescue him!” Interlude

³But you, O LORD, are a shield around me; you are my glory, the one who holds my head high.

⁴I cried out to the LORD, and he answered me from his holy mountain. Interlude

⁵I lay down and slept, yet I woke up in safety, for the LORD was watching over me.

⁶I am not afraid of ten thousand enemies who surround me on every side.

⁷Arise, O LORD! Rescue me, my God! Slap all my enemies in the face! Shatter the teeth of the wicked!

⁸Victory comes from you, O LORD. May you bless your people. Interlude

¹Whoever stubbornly refuses to accept criticism will suddenly be destroyed beyond recovery.

²When the godly are in authority, the people rejoice. But when the wicked are in power, they groan.

³The man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father, but if he hangs around with prostitutes, his wealth is wasted.

⁴A just king gives stability to his nation, but one who demands bribes destroys it.

⁵To flatter friends is to lay a trap for their feet.

⁶Evil people are trapped by sin, but the righteous escape, shouting for joy.

⁷The godly care about the rights of the poor; the wicked don’t care at all.

⁸Mockers can get a whole town agitated, but the wise will calm anger.

⁹If a wise person takes a fool to court, there will be ranting and ridicule but no satisfaction.

¹⁰The bloodthirsty hate blameless people, but the upright seek to help them.

¹¹Fools vent their anger, but the wise quietly hold it back.

¹²If a ruler pays attention to liars, all his advisers will be wicked.

¹³The poor and the oppressor have this in common — the LORD gives sight to the eyes of both.

¹⁴If a king judges the poor fairly, his throne will last forever.

¹⁵To discipline a child produces wisdom, but a mother is disgraced by an undisciplined child.

¹⁶When the wicked are in authority, sin flourishes, but the godly will live to see their downfall.

¹⁷Discipline your children, and they will give you peace of mind and will make your heart glad.

¹⁸When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful.

¹⁹Words alone will not discipline a servant; the words may be understood, but they are not heeded.

²⁰There is more hope for a fool than for someone who speaks without thinking.

²¹A servant pampered from childhood will become a rebel.

²²An angry person starts fights; a hot-tempered person commits all kinds of sin.

²³Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor.

²⁴If you assist a thief, you only hurt yourself. You are sworn to tell the truth, but you dare not testify.

²⁵Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the LORD means safety.

²⁶Many seek the ruler’s favor, but justice comes from the LORD.

²⁷The righteous despise the unjust; the wicked despise the godly.

¹The sons of Israel were Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun,

²Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.

³Judah had three sons from Bathshua, a Canaanite woman. Their names were Er, Onan, and Shelah. But the LORD saw that the oldest son, Er, was a wicked man, so he killed him.

⁴Later Judah had twin sons from Tamar, his widowed daughter-in-law. Their names were Perez and Zerah. So Judah had five sons in all.

⁵The sons of Perez were Hezron and Hamul.

⁶The sons of Zerah were Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Darda — five in all.

⁷The son of Carmi (a descendant of Zimri) was Achan, who brought disaster on Israel by taking plunder that had been set apart for the LORD.

⁸The son of Ethan was Azariah.

⁹The sons of Hezron were Jerahmeel, Ram, and Caleb.

¹⁰Ram was the father of Amminadab. Amminadab was the father of Nahshon, a leader of Judah.

¹¹Nahshon was the father of Salmon. Salmon was the father of Boaz.

¹²Boaz was the father of Obed. Obed was the father of Jesse.

¹³Jesse’s first son was Eliab, his second was Abinadab, his third was Shimea,

¹⁴his fourth was Nethanel, his fifth was Raddai,

¹⁵his sixth was Ozem, and his seventh was David.

¹⁶Their sisters were named Zeruiah and Abigail. Zeruiah had three sons named Abishai, Joab, and Asahel.

¹⁷Abigail married a man named Jether, an Ishmaelite, and they had a son named Amasa.

¹⁸Hezron’s son Caleb had sons from his wife Azubah and from Jerioth. Her sons were named Jesher, Shobab, and Ardon.

¹⁹After Azubah died, Caleb married Ephrathah, and they had a son named Hur.

²⁰Hur was the father of Uri. Uri was the father of Bezalel.

²¹When Hezron was sixty years old, he married Gilead’s sister, the daughter of Makir. They had a son named Segub.

²²Segub was the father of Jair, who ruled twenty-three towns in the land of Gilead.

²³(But Geshur and Aram captured the Towns of Jair and also took Kenath and its sixty surrounding villages.) All these were descendants of Makir, the father of Gilead.

²⁴Soon after Hezron died in the town of Caleb-ephrathah, his wife Abijah gave birth to a son named Ashhur (the father of Tekoa).

²⁵The sons of Jerahmeel, the oldest son of Hezron, were Ram (the firstborn), Bunah, Oren, Ozem, and Ahijah.

²⁶Jerahmeel had a second wife named Atarah. She was the mother of Onam.

²⁷The sons of Ram, the oldest son of Jerahmeel, were Maaz, Jamin, and Eker.

²⁸The sons of Onam were Shammai and Jada. The sons of Shammai were Nadab and Abishur.

²⁹The sons of Abishur and his wife Abihail were Ahban and Molid.

³⁰The sons of Nadab were Seled and Appaim. Seled died without children,

³¹but Appaim had a son named Ishi. The son of Ishi was Sheshan. Sheshan had a descendant named Ahlai.

³²The sons of Jada, Shammai’s brother, were Jether and Jonathan. Jether died without children,

³³but Jonathan had two sons named Peleth and Zaza. These were all descendants of Jerahmeel.

³⁴Sheshan had no sons, though he did have daughters. He also had an Egyptian servant named Jarha.

³⁵Sheshan gave one of his daughters to be the wife of Jarha, and they had a son named Attai.

³⁶Attai was the father of Nathan. Nathan was the father of Zabad.

³⁷Zabad was the father of Ephlal. Ephlal was the father of Obed.

³⁸Obed was the father of Jehu. Jehu was the father of Azariah.

³⁹Azariah was the father of Helez. Helez was the father of Eleasah.

⁴⁰Eleasah was the father of Sismai. Sismai was the father of Shallum.

⁴¹Shallum was the father of Jekamiah. Jekamiah was the father of Elishama.

⁴²The descendants of Caleb, the brother of Jerahmeel, included Mesha (the firstborn), who became the father of Ziph. Caleb’s descendants also included the sons of Mareshah, the father of Hebron.

⁴³The sons of Hebron were Korah, Tappuah, Rekem, and Shema.

⁴⁴Shema was the father of Raham. Raham was the father of Jorkeam. Rekem was the father of Shammai.

⁴⁵The son of Shammai was Maon. Maon was the father of Beth-zur.

⁴⁶Caleb’s concubine Ephah gave birth to Haran, Moza, and Gazez. Haran was the father of Gazez.

⁴⁷The sons of Jahdai were Regem, Jotham, Geshan, Pelet, Ephah, and Shaaph.

⁴⁸Another of Caleb’s concubines, Maacah, gave birth to Sheber and Tirhanah.

⁴⁹She also gave birth to Shaaph (the father of Madmannah) and Sheva (the father of Macbenah and Gibea). Caleb also had a daughter named Acsah.

⁵⁰These were all descendants of Caleb. Descendants of Caleb’s Son Hur The sons of Hur, the oldest son of Caleb’s wife Ephrathah, were Shobal (the founder of Kiriath-jearim),

⁵¹Salma (the founder of Bethlehem), and Hareph (the founder of Beth-gader).

⁵²The descendants of Shobal (the founder of Kiriath-jearim) were Haroeh, half the Manahathites,

⁵³and the families of Kiriath-jearim — the Ithrites, Puthites, Shumathites, and Mishraites, from whom came the people of Zorah and Eshtaol.

⁵⁴The descendants of Salma were the people of Bethlehem, the Netophathites, Atroth-beth-joab, the other half of the Manahathites, the Zorites,

⁵⁵and the families of scribes living at Jabez — the Tirathites, Shimeathites, and Sucathites. All these were Kenites who descended from Hammath, the father of the family of Recab.

¹This is another message that came to me from the LORD:

²“Son of man, prophesy and give this message from the Sovereign LORD: “Weep and wail for that day,

³for the terrible day is almost here — the day of the LORD! It is a day of clouds and gloom, a day of despair for the nations.

⁴A sword will come against Egypt, and those who are slaughtered will cover the ground. Its wealth will be carried away and its foundations destroyed. The land of Ethiopia will be ravished.

⁵Ethiopia, Libya, Lydia, all Arabia, and all their other allies will be destroyed in that war.

⁶“For this is what the LORD says: All of Egypt’s allies will fall, and the pride of her power will end. From Migdol to Aswan they will be slaughtered by the sword, says the Sovereign LORD.

⁷Egypt will be desolate, surrounded by desolate nations, and its cities will be in ruins, surrounded by other ruined cities.

⁸And the people of Egypt will know that I am the LORD when I have set Egypt on fire and destroyed all their allies.

⁹At that time I will send swift messengers in ships to terrify the complacent Ethiopians. Great panic will come upon them on that day of Egypt’s certain destruction. Watch for it! It is sure to come!

¹⁰“For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: By the power of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, I will destroy the hordes of Egypt.

¹¹He and his armies — the most ruthless of all — will be sent to demolish the land. They will make war against Egypt until slaughtered Egyptians cover the ground.

¹²I will dry up the Nile River and sell the land to wicked men. I will destroy the land of Egypt and everything in it by the hands of foreigners. I, the LORD, have spoken!

¹³“This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will smash the idols of Egypt and the images at Memphis. There will be no rulers left in Egypt; terror will sweep the land.

¹⁴I will destroy southern Egypt, set fire to Zoan, and bring judgment against Thebes.

¹⁵I will pour out my fury on Pelusium, the strongest fortress of Egypt, and I will stamp out the hordes of Thebes.

¹⁶Yes, I will set fire to all Egypt! Pelusium will be racked with pain; Thebes will be torn apart; Memphis will live in constant terror.

¹⁷The young men of Heliopolis and Bubastis will die in battle, and the women will be taken away as slaves.

¹⁸When I come to break the proud strength of Egypt, it will be a dark day for Tahpanhes, too. A dark cloud will cover Tahpanhes, and its daughters will be led away as captives.

¹⁹And so I will greatly punish Egypt, and they will know that I am the LORD.”

²⁰On April 29, during the eleventh year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, this message came to me from the LORD:

²¹“Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. His arm has not been put in a cast so that it may heal. Neither has it been bound up with a splint to make it strong enough to hold a sword.

²²Therefore, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am the enemy of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt! I will break both of his arms — the good arm along with the broken one — and I will make his sword clatter to the ground.

²³I will scatter the Egyptians to many lands throughout the world.

²⁴I will strengthen the arms of Babylon’s king and put my sword in his hand. But I will break the arms of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he will lie there mortally wounded, groaning in pain.

²⁵I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, while the arms of Pharaoh fall useless to his sides. And when I put my sword in the hand of Babylon’s king and he brings it against the land of Egypt, Egypt will know that I am the LORD.

²⁶I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, dispersing them throughout the earth. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

¹Among the prophets and teachers of the church at Antioch of Syria were Barnabas, Simeon (called “the black man” ), Lucius (from Cyrene), Manaen (the childhood companion of King Herod Antipas ), and Saul.

²One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Appoint Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.”

³So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way.

⁴So Barnabas and Saul were sent out by the Holy Spirit. They went down to the seaport of Seleucia and then sailed for the island of Cyprus.

⁵There, in the town of Salamis, they went to the Jewish synagogues and preached the word of God. John Mark went with them as their assistant.

⁶Afterward they traveled from town to town across the entire island until finally they reached Paphos, where they met a Jewish sorcerer, a false prophet named Bar-Jesus.

⁷He had attached himself to the governor, Sergius Paulus, who was an intelligent man. The governor invited Barnabas and Saul to visit him, for he wanted to hear the word of God.

⁸But Elymas, the sorcerer (as his name means in Greek), interfered and urged the governor to pay no attention to what Barnabas and Saul said. He was trying to keep the governor from believing.

⁹Saul, also known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he looked the sorcerer in the eye.

¹⁰Then he said, “You son of the devil, full of every sort of deceit and fraud, and enemy of all that is good! Will you never stop perverting the true ways of the Lord?

¹¹Watch now, for the Lord has laid his hand of punishment upon you, and you will be struck blind. You will not see the sunlight for some time.” Instantly mist and darkness came over the man’s eyes, and he began groping around begging for someone to take his hand and lead him.

¹²When the governor saw what had happened, he became a believer, for he was astonished at the teaching about the Lord.

¹³Paul and his companions then left Paphos by ship for Pamphylia, landing at the port town of Perga. There John Mark left them and returned to Jerusalem.

¹⁴But Paul and Barnabas traveled inland to Antioch of Pisidia. On the Sabbath they went to the synagogue for the services.

¹⁵After the usual readings from the books of Moses and the prophets, those in charge of the service sent them this message: “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, come and give it.”

¹⁶So Paul stood, lifted his hand to quiet them, and started speaking. “Men of Israel,” he said, “and you God-fearing Gentiles, listen to me.

¹⁷“The God of this nation of Israel chose our ancestors and made them multiply and grow strong during their stay in Egypt. Then with a powerful arm he led them out of their slavery.

¹⁸He put up with them through forty years of wandering in the wilderness.

¹⁹Then he destroyed seven nations in Canaan and gave their land to Israel as an inheritance.

²⁰All this took about 450 years. “After that, God gave them judges to rule until the time of Samuel the prophet.

²¹Then the people begged for a king, and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, who reigned for forty years.

²²But God removed Saul and replaced him with David, a man about whom God said, ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart. He will do everything I want him to do.’

²³“And it is one of King David’s descendants, Jesus, who is God’s promised Savior of Israel!

²⁴Before he came, John the Baptist preached that all the people of Israel needed to repent of their sins and turn to God and be baptized.

²⁵As John was finishing his ministry he asked, ‘Do you think I am the Messiah? No, I am not! But he is coming soon — and I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the sandals on his feet.’

²⁶“Brothers — you sons of Abraham, and also you God-fearing Gentiles — this message of salvation has been sent to us!

²⁷The people in Jerusalem and their leaders did not recognize Jesus as the one the prophets had spoken about. Instead, they condemned him, and in doing this they fulfilled the prophets’ words that are read every Sabbath.

²⁸They found no legal reason to execute him, but they asked Pilate to have him killed anyway.

²⁹“When they had done all that the prophecies said about him, they took him down from the cross and placed him in a tomb.

³⁰But God raised him from the dead!

³¹And over a period of many days he appeared to those who had gone with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to the people of Israel.

³²“And now we are here to bring you this Good News. The promise was made to our ancestors,

³³and God has now fulfilled it for us, their descendants, by raising Jesus. This is what the second psalm says about Jesus: ‘You are my Son. Today I have become your Father. ’

³⁴For God had promised to raise him from the dead, not leaving him to rot in the grave. He said, ‘I will give you the sacred blessings I promised to David.’

³⁵Another psalm explains it more fully: ‘You will not allow your Holy One to rot in the grave.’

³⁶This is not a reference to David, for after David had done the will of God in his own generation, he died and was buried with his ancestors, and his body decayed.

³⁷No, it was a reference to someone else — someone whom God raised and whose body did not decay.

³⁸“Brothers, listen! We are here to proclaim that through this man Jesus there is forgiveness for your sins.

³⁹Everyone who believes in him is made right in God’s sight — something the law of Moses could never do.

⁴⁰Be careful! Don’t let the prophets’ words apply to you. For they said,

⁴¹‘Look, you mockers, be amazed and die! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it.’ ”

⁴²As Paul and Barnabas left the synagogue that day, the people begged them to speak about these things again the next week.

⁴³Many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, and the two men urged them to continue to rely on the grace of God.

⁴⁴The following week almost the entire city turned out to hear them preach the word of the Lord.

⁴⁵But when some of the Jews saw the crowds, they were jealous; so they slandered Paul and argued against whatever he said.

⁴⁶Then Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and declared, “It was necessary that we first preach the word of God to you Jews. But since you have rejected it and judged yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we will offer it to the Gentiles.

⁴⁷For the Lord gave us this command when he said, ‘I have made you a light to the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the farthest corners of the earth.’ ”

⁴⁸When the Gentiles heard this, they were very glad and thanked the Lord for his message; and all who were chosen for eternal life became believers.

⁴⁹So the Lord’s message spread throughout that region.

⁵⁰Then the Jews stirred up the influential religious women and the leaders of the city, and they incited a mob against Paul and Barnabas and ran them out of town.

⁵¹So they shook the dust from their feet as a sign of rejection and went to the town of Iconium.

⁵²And the believers were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.