Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Looking up, He saw the rich people putting their gifts into the treasury.

²And He saw a poor widow putting in two small copper coins.

³He said, "Truly I say to you, this poor widow has put in [proportionally] more than all of them;

⁴for they all put in gifts from their abundance; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on."

⁵As some were talking about the temple, that it was decorated with beautiful stones and consecrated offerings [of magnificent gifts of gold which were displayed on the walls and hung in the porticoes], He said,

⁶"As for all these things which you see, the time will come when there will not be one stone left on another that will not be torn down."

⁷They asked Him, "Teacher, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign when these things are about to happen?"

⁸He said, "Be careful and see to it that you are not misled; for many will come in My name [appropriating for themselves the name Messiah which belongs to Me alone], saying, 'I am He,' and, 'The time is near!' Do not follow them.

⁹When you hear of wars and disturbances [civil unrest, revolts, uprisings], do not panic; for these things must take place first, but the end will not come immediately."

¹⁰Then Jesus told them, "Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom.

¹¹There will be violent earthquakes, and in various places famines and [deadly and devastating] pestilences (plagues, epidemics); and there will be terrible sights and great signs from heaven.

¹²"But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, turning you over to the synagogues and prisons, and bringing you before kings and governors for My name's sake.

¹³This will be a time and an opportunity for you to testify [about Me].

¹⁴So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves;

¹⁵for I will give you [skillful] words and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute.

¹⁶But you will be betrayed and handed over even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death,

¹⁷and you will be continually hated by everyone because of [your association with] My name.

¹⁸But not a hair of your head will perish.

¹⁹By your [patient] endurance [empowered by the Holy Spirit] you will gain your souls.

²⁰"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by [hostile] armies, then understand [with confident assurance] that her complete destruction is near.

²¹At that time, those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those who are inside the city (Jerusalem) must get out, and those who are [out] in the country must not enter the city;

²²for these are days of vengeance [of rendering full justice or satisfaction], so that all things which are written will be fulfilled.

²³Woe to those women who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For great trouble and anguish will be on the land, and wrath and retribution on this people [Israel].

²⁴And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled (completed).

²⁵"There will be signs (attesting miracles) in the sun and moon and stars; and on the earth [there will be] distress and anguish among nations, in perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea and the waves,

²⁶people fainting from fear and expectation of the [dreadful] things coming on the world; for the [very] powers of the heavens will be shaken.

²⁷Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with [transcendent, overwhelming] power [subduing the nations] and with great glory.

²⁸Now when these things begin to occur, stand tall and lift up your heads [in joy], because [suffering ends as] your redemption is drawing near."

²⁹Then He told them a parable: "Look at the fig tree and all the trees;

³⁰as soon as they put out leaves, you see it and know for yourselves that summer is near.

³¹So you too, when you see these things happening, know [without any doubt] that the kingdom of God is near.

³²I assure you and most solemnly say to you, this generation [those living at that definite period of time preceding the second coming] will not pass away until everything takes place.

³³Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

³⁴"But be on guard, so that your hearts are not weighed down and depressed with the giddiness of debauchery and the nausea of self-indulgence and the worldly worries of life, and then that day [when the Messiah returns] will not come on you suddenly like a trap;

³⁵for it will come upon all those who live on the face of all the earth.

³⁶But keep alert at all times [be attentive and ready], praying that you may have the strength and ability [to be found worthy and] to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand in the presence of the Son of Man [at His coming]."

³⁷Now in the daytime Jesus was teaching in [the porches and courts of] the temple, but at night He would go out and spend the night on the mount that is called Olivet.

³⁸And early in the morning all the people would come to Him in the temple to listen to Him.

¹These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel [while they were still] beyond [that is, on the east side of] the Jordan [River] in the wilderness [across from Jerusalem], in the Arabah [the long, deep valley running north and south from the eastern arm of the Red Sea to beyond the Dead Sea] opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel and Laban and Hazeroth and Dizahab (place of gold).

²It is [only] eleven days' journey from Horeb (Mount Sinai) by way of Mount Seir to Kadesh-barnea [on Canaan's border; yet Israel wandered in the wilderness for forty years before crossing the border and entering Canaan, the promised land].

³In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses spoke to the children of Israel in accordance with all that the LORD had commanded him to say to them,

⁴after he had defeated Sihon the king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, who lived at Ashtaroth in Edrei.

⁵Beyond (east of) the Jordan in the land of Moab, Moses began to explain this law, saying,

⁶"The LORD our God spoke to us at Horeb, saying, 'You have stayed long enough on this mountain.

⁷Turn and resume your journey, and go to the hill country of the Amorites, and to all their neighbors in the Arabah, in the hill country and in the lowland (the Shephelah), in the Negev (South country) and on the coast of the [Mediterranean] Sea, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river, the river Euphrates.

⁸Look, I have set the land before you; go in and take possession of the land which the LORD swore (solemnly promised) to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their descendants after them.'

⁹"I spoke to you at that time, saying, 'I am not able to bear the burden of you alone.

¹⁰The LORD your God has multiplied you, and look, today you are as numerous as the stars of heaven.

¹¹May the LORD, the God of your fathers, add to you a thousand times as many as you are and bless you, just as He has promised you!

¹²How can I alone bear the weight and pressure and burden of you and your strife (contention) and complaining?

¹³Choose for yourselves wise, understanding, experienced, and respected men from your tribes, and I will appoint them as heads (leaders) over you.'

¹⁴And you answered me, 'The thing which you have said to do is good.'

¹⁵So I took the leaders of your tribes, wise and experienced men, and made them leaders over you, commanders of thousands, and hundreds, and fifties, and tens, and officers (administrators) for your tribes.

¹⁶"Then I commanded your judges at that time, saying, 'Hear the matters between your brothers [your fellow countrymen], and judge righteously and fairly between a man and his brother, or the stranger (resident alien, foreigner) who is with him.

¹⁷You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear and pay attention to the [cases of the] least [important] as well as the great. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God's. The case that is too hard for you [to judge], you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.'

¹⁸I commanded you at that time [regarding] all the things that you should do.

¹⁹"Then we set out from Horeb (Sinai), and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, just as the LORD our God commanded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea.

²⁰And I said to you, 'You have come to the hill country of the Amorites which the LORD our God is about to give us.

²¹Behold, the LORD your God has set the land before you; go up and take possession of it, just as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has spoken to you. Do not fear or be dismayed.'

²²"Then all of you approached me and said, 'Let us send men [into the land] before us, so that they may explore and search the area for us, and bring back to us word regarding the way we should go, and the cities we should enter.'

²³The plan pleased me and I took twelve of your men, one man from each tribe.

²⁴They turned and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and spied it out.

²⁵Then they took some of the fruit of the land in their hands and brought it down to us; and they reported back to us, and said, 'It is a good land which the LORD our God is about to give us.'

²⁶"Yet you were not willing to go up [to take possession of it], but rebelled against the command of the LORD your God.

²⁷You murmured and were ill-tempered (discontented) in your tents, and said, 'Because the LORD hates us He has brought us from the land of Egypt to hand us over to the Amorites to destroy us.

²⁸Where can we go up? Our brothers (spies) have made our hearts melt [in fear] and demoralized us by saying, "The people are bigger and taller than we; the cities are large, and fortified [all the way up] to heaven. And besides, we saw the [giant-like] sons of the Anakim there."'

²⁹Then I said to you, 'Do not be shocked, nor fear them.

³⁰The LORD your God who goes before you will fight for you Himself, just as He did for you in Egypt before your [very] eyes,

³¹and in the wilderness where you saw how the LORD your God carried and protected you, just as a man carries his son, all along the way which you traveled until you arrived at this place.'

³²Yet in spite of this word, you did not trust [that is, confidently rely on and believe] the LORD your God,

³³who went before you along the way, in fire by night and in a cloud by day, to seek a place for you to make camp and to show you the way in which you should go.

³⁴"And the LORD heard the sound of your words, and He was angry and took an oath, saying,

³⁵'Not one of these men, this evil generation, shall see the good land which I swore (solemnly promised) to give to your fathers,

³⁶except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him and to his children I will give the land on which he has walked, because he has followed the LORD completely [and remained true to Him].'

³⁷The LORD was angry with me also because of you, saying, 'Not even you shall enter Canaan.

³⁸Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall enter there. Encourage and strengthen him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.

³⁹Moreover, your little ones whom you said would become prey, and your sons, who today have no knowledge of good or evil, shall enter Canaan, and I will give it to them and they shall possess it.

⁴⁰But as for you, turn around and set out for the wilderness by way of the Red Sea (Sea of Reeds).'

⁴¹"Then you answered and said to me, 'We have sinned against the LORD. We will go up and fight, just as the LORD our God has commanded us.' So you equipped every man with weapons of war, and regarded it as easy to go up into the hill country.

⁴²But the LORD said to me, 'Say to them, "Do not go up and do not fight, for I am not among you [because of your rebellion]; otherwise you will be [badly] defeated by your enemies."'

⁴³So I spoke to you, but you would not listen. Instead you rebelled against the command of the LORD, and acted presumptuously and went up into the hill country.

⁴⁴Then the Amorites who lived in that hill country came out against you and chased you as bees do, and struck you down in Seir as far as Hormah.

⁴⁵And you returned and wept before the LORD; but the LORD would not listen to your voice nor pay attention to you.

⁴⁶So you stayed in Kadesh; many days you stayed there.

¹Now faith is the assurance (title deed, confirmation) of things hoped for (divinely guaranteed), and the evidence of things not seen [the conviction of their reality—faith comprehends as fact what cannot be experienced by the physical senses].

²For by this [kind of] faith the men of old gained [divine] approval.

³By faith [that is, with an inherent trust and enduring confidence in the power, wisdom and goodness of God] we understand that the worlds (universe, ages) were framed and created [formed, put in order, and equipped for their intended purpose] by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.

⁴By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which it was testified of him that he was righteous (upright, in right standing with God), and God testified by accepting his gifts. And though he died, yet through [this act of] faith he still speaks.

⁵By faith [that pleased God] Enoch was caught up and taken to heaven so that he would not have a glimpse of death; and he was not found because God had taken him; for even before he was taken [to heaven], he received the testimony [still on record] that he had walked with God and pleased Him.

⁶But without faith it is impossible to [walk with God and] please Him, for whoever comes [near] to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He rewards those who [earnestly and diligently] seek Him.

⁷By faith [with confidence in God and His word] Noah, being warned by God about events not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his family. By this [act of obedience] he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness which comes by faith.

⁸By faith Abraham, when he was called [by God], obeyed by going to a place which he was to receive as an inheritance; and he went, not knowing where he was going.

⁹By faith he lived as a foreigner in the promised land, as in a strange land, living in tents [as nomads] with Isaac and Jacob, who were fellow heirs of the same promise.

¹⁰For he was [waiting expectantly and confidently] looking forward to the city which has foundations, [an eternal, heavenly city] whose architect and builder is God.

¹¹By faith even Sarah herself received the ability to conceive [a child], even [when she was long] past the normal age for it, because she considered Him who had given her the promise to be reliable and true [to His word].

¹²So from one man, though he was [physically] as good as dead, were born as many descendants as the stars of heaven in number, and innumerable as the sand on the seashore.

¹³All these died in faith [guided and sustained by it], without receiving the [tangible fulfillment of God's] promises, only having seen (anticipated) them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

¹⁴Now those who say such things make it clear that they are looking for a country of their own.

¹⁵And if they had been thinking of that country from which they departed [as their true home], they would have had [a continuing] opportunity to return.

¹⁶But the truth is that they were longing for a better country, that is, a heavenly one. For that reason God is not ashamed [of them or] to be called their God [even to be surnamed their God—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob]; for He has prepared a city for them.

¹⁷By faith Abraham, when he was tested [that is, as the testing of his faith was still in progress], offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises [of God] was ready to sacrifice his only son [of promise];

¹⁸to whom it was said, "Through Isaac your descendants shall be called."

¹⁹For he considered [it reasonable to believe] that God was able to raise Isaac even from among the dead. [Indeed, in the sense that he was prepared to sacrifice Isaac in obedience to God] Abraham did receive him back [from the dead] figuratively speaking.

²⁰By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau [believing what God revealed to him], even regarding things to come.

²¹By faith Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and bowed in worship, leaning on the top of his staff.

²²By faith Joseph, when he was dying, referred to [the promise of God for] the exodus of the sons of Israel [from Egypt], and gave instructions concerning [the burial of] his bones [in the land of the promise].

²³By faith Moses, after his birth, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful and divinely favored child; and they were not afraid of the king's (Pharaoh's) decree.

²⁴By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter,

²⁵because he preferred to endure the hardship of the people of God rather than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin.

²⁶He considered the reproach of the Christ [that is, the rebuke he would suffer for his faithful obedience to God] to be greater wealth than all the treasures of Egypt; for he looked ahead to the reward [promised by God].

²⁷By faith he left Egypt, being unafraid of the wrath of the king; for he endured [steadfastly], as seeing Him who is unseen.

²⁸By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood [on the doorposts], so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch them (the firstborn of Israel).

²⁹By faith the people [of Israel] crossed the Red Sea as though they were passing through dry land; but when the Egyptians attempted it they were drowned.

³⁰By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days [by Joshua and the sons of Israel].

³¹By faith Rahab the prostitute was not destroyed along with those who were disobedient, because she had welcomed the spies [sent by the sons of Israel] in peace.

³²And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets,

³³who by faith [that is, with an enduring trust in God and His promises] subdued kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promised blessings, closed the mouths of lions,

³⁴extinguished the power of [raging] fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became mighty and unbeatable in battle, putting enemy forces to flight.

³⁵Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured [to death], refusing to accept release [offered on the condition of denying their faith], so that they would be resurrected to a better life;

³⁶and others experienced the trial of mocking and scourging [amid torture], and even chains and imprisonment.

³⁷They were stoned [to death], they were sawn in two, they were lured with tempting offers [to renounce their faith], they were put to death by the sword; they went about wrapped in the skins of sheep and goats, utterly destitute, oppressed, cruelly treated

³⁸(people of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and [living in] caves and holes in the ground.

³⁹And all of these, though they gained [divine] approval through their faith, did not receive [the fulfillment of] what was promised,

⁴⁰because God had us in mind and had something better for us, so that they [these men and women of authentic faith] would not be made perfect [that is, completed in Him] apart from us.

¹My fellow believers, do not practice your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of partiality [toward people—show no favoritism, no prejudice, no snobbery].

²For if a man comes into your meeting place wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in dirty clothes also comes in,

³and you pay special attention to the one who wears the fine clothes, and say to him, "You sit here in this good seat," and you tell the poor man, "You stand over there, or sit down [on the floor] by my footstool,"

⁴have you not discriminated among yourselves, and become judges with wrong motives?

⁵Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters: has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and [as believers to be] heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?

⁶But you [in contrast] have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress and exploit you, and personally drag you into the courts of law?

⁷Do they not blaspheme the precious name [of Christ] by which you are called?

⁸If, however, you are [really] fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, if you have an unselfish concern for others and do things for their benefit]" you are doing well.

⁹But if you show partiality [prejudice, favoritism], you are committing sin and are convicted by the Law as offenders.

¹⁰For whoever keeps the whole Law but stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of [breaking] all of it.

¹¹For He who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." Now if you do not commit adultery, but you murder, you have become guilty of transgressing the [entire] Law.

¹²Speak and act [consistently] as people who are going to be judged by the law of liberty [that moral law that frees obedient Christians from the bondage of sin].

¹³For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; but [to the one who has shown mercy] mercy triumphs [victoriously] over judgment.

¹⁴What is the benefit, my fellow believers, if someone claims to have faith but has no [good] works [as evidence]? Can that [kind of] faith save him? [No, a mere claim of faith is not sufficient—genuine faith produces good works.]

¹⁵If a brother or sister is without [adequate] clothing and lacks [enough] food for each day,

¹⁶and one of you says to them, "Go in peace [with my blessing], [keep] warm and feed yourselves," but he does not give them the necessities for the body, what good does that do?

¹⁷So too, faith, if it does not have works [to back it up], is by itself dead [inoperative and ineffective].

¹⁸But someone may say, "You [claim to] have faith and I have [good] works; show me your [alleged] faith without the works [if you can], and I will show you my faith by my works [that is, by what I do]."

¹⁹You believe that God is one; you do well [to believe that]. The demons also believe [that], and shudder and bristle [in awe-filled terror—they have seen His wrath]!

²⁰But are you willing to recognize, you foolish [spiritually shallow] person, that faith without [good] works is useless?

²¹Was our father Abraham not [shown to be] justified by works [of obedience which expressed his faith] when he offered Isaac his son on the altar [as a sacrifice to God]?

²²You see that [his] faith was working together with his works, and as a result of the works, his faith was completed [reaching its maturity when he expressed his faith through obedience].

²³And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and this [faith] was credited to him [by God] as righteousness and as conformity to His will," and he was called the friend of God.

²⁴You see that a man (believer) is justified by works and not by faith alone [that is, by acts of obedience a born-again believer reveals his faith].

²⁵In the same way, was Rahab the prostitute not justified by works too, when she received the [Hebrew] spies as guests and protected them, and sent them away [to escape] by a different route?

²⁶For just as the [human] body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works [of obedience] is also dead.

¹"But now those younger than I mock and laugh at me, Whose fathers I refused to put with the sheepdogs of my flock.

²"Indeed, how could the strength of their hands profit me? Vigor had perished from them.

³"They are gaunt with want and famine; They gnaw the dry and barren ground by night in [the gloom of] waste and desolation.

⁴"They pluck [and eat] saltwort (mallows) among the bushes, And their food is the root of the broom shrub.

⁵"They are driven from the community; They shout after them as after a thief.

⁶"They must dwell on the slopes of wadis And in holes in the ground and in rocks.

⁷"Among the bushes they cry out [like wild animals]; Beneath the prickly scrub they gather and huddle together.

⁸"They are the sons of [worthless and nameless] fools, They have been driven out of the land.

⁹"And now I have become [the subject of] their taunting; Yes, I am a byword and a laughingstock to them.

¹⁰"They hate me, they stand aloof from me, And do not refrain from spitting in my face.

¹¹"For God has loosed His bowstring [attacking me] and [He has] afflicted and humbled me; They have cast off the bridle [of restraint] before me.

¹²"On my right the [rabble] brood rises; They push my feet away, and they build up their ways of destruction against me [like an advancing army].

¹³"They break up and clutter my path [upsetting my plans], They profit from my destruction; No one restrains them.

¹⁴"As through a wide breach they come, Amid the crash [of falling walls] they roll on [over me].

¹⁵"Terrors are turned upon me; They chase away my honor and reputation like the wind, And my prosperity has passed away like a cloud.

¹⁶"And now my soul is poured out within me; The days of affliction have seized me.

¹⁷"My bones are pierced [with aching] in the night season, And the pains that gnaw me take no rest.

¹⁸"By the great force [of my disease] my garment (skin) is disfigured and blemished; It binds about me [choking me] like the collar of my coat.

¹⁹"God has cast me into the mire [a swampland of crisis], And I have become [worthless] like dust and ashes.

²⁰"I cry to You for help, [Lord,] but You do not answer me; I stand up, but You [only] gaze [indifferently] at me.

²¹"You have become harsh and cruel to me; With the might of Your hand You [keep me alive only to] persecute me.

²²"You lift me up on the wind and cause me to ride [upon it]; And You toss me about in the tempest and dissolve me in the storm.

²³"For I know that You will bring me to death And to the house of meeting [appointed] for all the living.

²⁴"However, does not one falling in a heap of ruins stretch out his hand? Or in his disaster [will he not] therefore cry out for help?

²⁵"Did I not weep for one whose life was hard and filled with trouble? Was not my heart grieved for the needy?

²⁶"When I expected good, then came evil [to me]; And when I waited for light, then came darkness.

²⁷"I am seething within and my heart is troubled and cannot rest; Days of affliction come to meet me.

²⁸"I go about mourning without comfort [my skin blackened by disease, not by the heat of the sun]; I stand up in the assembly and cry out for help.

²⁹"I am a brother to [howling] jackals, And a companion to ostriches [which scream dismally].

³⁰"My skin falls from me in blackened flakes, And my bones are burned with fever.

³¹"Therefore my lyre (harp) is used for [the sound of] mourning, And my flute for the [sound of the] voices of those who weep.

¹To the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David. Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have freed me when I was hemmed in and relieved me when I was in distress; Be gracious to me and hear [and respond to] my prayer.

²O sons of men, how long will my honor and glory be [turned into] shame? How long will you [my enemies] love worthless (vain, futile) things and seek deception and lies? Selah.

³But know that the LORD has set apart for Himself [and dealt wonderfully with] the godly man [the one of honorable character and moral courage—the one who does right]. The LORD hears and responds when I call to Him.

⁴Tremble [with anger or fear], and do not sin; Meditate in your heart upon your bed and be still [reflect on your sin and repent of your rebellion]. Selah.

⁵Offer righteous sacrifices; Trust [confidently] in the LORD.

⁶Many are saying, "Oh, that we might see some good!" Lift up the light of Your face upon us, O LORD.

⁷You have put joy in my heart, More than [others know] when their wheat and new wine have yielded abundantly.

⁸In peace [and with a tranquil heart] I will both lie down and sleep, For You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety and confident trust.

¹The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, the oracle: The man says to Ithiel, to Ithiel and to Ucal:

²Surely I am more brutish and stupid than any man, And I do not have the understanding of a man [for I do not know what I do not know].

³I have not learned [skillful and godly] wisdom, Nor do I have knowledge of the Holy One [who is the source of wisdom].

⁴Who has ascended into heaven and descended? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has bound the waters in His garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is His Son's name? Certainly you know!

⁵Every word of God is tested and refined [like silver]; He is a shield to those who trust and take refuge in Him.

⁶Do not add to His words, Or He will reprove you, and you will be found a liar.

⁷Two things I have asked of You; Do not deny them to me before I die:

⁸Keep deception and lies far from me; Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion,

⁹So that I will not be full and deny You and say, "Who is the LORD?" Or that I will not be poor and steal, And so profane the name of my God.

¹⁰Do not slander or malign a servant before his master [stay out of another's personal life], Or he will curse you [for your interference], and you will be found guilty.

¹¹There is a generation (class of people) that curses its father And does not bless its mother.

¹²There is a generation (class of people) that is pure in its own eyes, Yet is not washed from its filthiness.

¹³There is a generation (class of people)—oh, how lofty are their eyes! And their eyelids are raised in arrogance.

¹⁴There is a generation (class of people) whose teeth are like swords And whose jaw teeth are like knives, To devour the afflicted from the earth And the needy from among men.

¹⁵The leech has two daughters, "Give, give!" There are three things that are never satisfied, Four that do not say, "It is enough":

¹⁶Sheol, and the barren womb, Earth that is never satisfied with water, And fire that never says, "It is enough."

¹⁷The eye that mocks a father And scorns a mother, The ravens of the valley will pick it out, And the young vultures will devour it.

¹⁸There are three things which are too astounding and unexpectedly wonderful for me, Four which I do not understand:

¹⁹The way of an eagle in the air, The way of a serpent on a rock, The way of a ship in the middle of the sea, And the way of a man with a maid.

²⁰This is the way of an adulterous woman: She eats and wipes her mouth And says, "I have done no wrong."

²¹Under three things the earth is disquieted and quakes, And under four it cannot bear up:

²²Under a servant when he reigns, Under a [spiritually blind] fool when he is filled with food,

²³Under an unloved woman when she gets married, And under a maidservant when she supplants her mistress.

²⁴There are four things that are small on the earth, But they are exceedingly wise:

²⁵The ants are not a strong people, Yet they prepare their food in the summer;

²⁶The shephanim are not a mighty folk, Yet they make their houses in the rocks;

²⁷The locusts have no king, Yet all of them go out in groups;

²⁸You may grasp the lizard with your hands, Yet it is in kings' palaces.

²⁹There are three things which are stately in step, Even four which are stately in their stride:

³⁰The lion, which is mighty among beasts And does not turn back before any;

³¹The strutting rooster, the male goat also, And the king when his army is with him.

³²If you have foolishly exalted yourself, Or if you have plotted evil, put your hand on your mouth.

³³Surely the churning of milk produces butter, And wringing the nose produces blood; So the churning of anger produces strife.

¹These were the sons of David who were born to him in Hebron: the firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; second, Daniel (Chileab), by Abigail the Carmelitess;

²third, Absalom the son of Maacah, daughter of Talmai king of Geshur; fourth, Adonijah, the son of Haggith;

³fifth, Shephatiah, by Abital; sixth, Ithream, by his wife Eglah.

⁴These six were born to David in Hebron; he reigned there seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years.

⁵These were born to David in Jerusalem: Shimea (Shammua), Shobab, Nathan, Solomon—four by Bath-shua (Bathsheba) daughter of Ammiel (Eliam);

⁶then Ibhar, Elishama (Elishua), Eliphelet (Elpelet),

⁷Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia,

⁸Elishama, Eliada (Beeliada), and Eliphelet—nine in all.

⁹All these were the sons of David, besides the sons of the concubines; and Tamar was their sister.

¹⁰Solomon's son was Rehoboam. Abijah was his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son,

¹¹Joram (Jehoram) his son, Ahaziah his son, Joash his son,

¹²Amaziah his son, Azariah his son, Jotham his son,

¹³Ahaz his son, Hezekiah his son, Manasseh his son,

¹⁴Amon his son, Josiah his son.

¹⁵The sons of Josiah: firstborn, Johanan; second, Jehoiakim (Eliakim); third, Zedekiah; fourth, Shallum (Jehoahaz).

¹⁶The sons (descendants) of Jehoiakim: Jehoiachin (Jeconiah) his son, Zedekiah his son.

¹⁷The sons (descendants) of Jehoiachin (Jeconiah) the prisoner: Shealtiel his son,

¹⁸Malchiram, Pedaiah, Shenazzar, Jekamiah, Hoshama and Nedabiah.

¹⁹The sons of Pedaiah: Zerubbabel and Shimei. The sons of Zerubbabel: Meshullam and Hananiah, and Shelomith was their sister;

²⁰and Hashubah, Ohel, Berechiah, Hasadiah, and Jushab-hesed—five in all.

²¹The sons of Hananiah: Pelatiah and Jeshaiah, the sons of Rephaiah, the sons of Arnan, the sons of Obadiah, the sons of Shecaniah.

²²The sons (descendants) of Shecaniah: Shemaiah. The sons of Shemaiah: Hattush, Igal, Bariah, Neariah, and Shaphat—six in all.

²³The sons of Neariah: Elioenai, Hizkiah, and Azrikam—three in all.

²⁴The sons of Elioenai: Hodaviah, Eliashib, Pelaiah, Akkub, Johanan, Delaiah, and Anani—seven in all.

¹In the eleventh year [after King Jehoiachin was taken captive to Babylon], in the third month, on the first of the month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

²"Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes, 'Whom are you like in your greatness?

³'Behold (listen carefully), Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon With beautiful branches and with forest shade, And of high stature, With its top among the clouds.

⁴'The waters nourished it, the deep [underground waters] made it grow tall. Its rivers ran all around the place where it was planted, Sending out its streams to all the trees (other nations) of the field.

⁵'Therefore it towered higher than all the trees of the forest And its boughs multiplied and its branches grew long; Because there was so much water they spread outward.

⁶'All the birds of the sky made their nests in its twigs, And under its branches all the animals of the field gave birth [to their young], And all of the great nations lived under its shadow.

⁷'So it was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches; For its roots extended [downward] to great waters.

⁸'The cedars in the garden of God could not hide or rival it; The cypress trees did not have boughs like it, And the plane trees did not have branches like it. No tree in the garden of God was like it in its beauty.

⁹'I made it beautiful with the great mass of its branches, So that all the trees of Eden which were in the garden of God were jealous of it (Assyria).

¹⁰'Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, "Because it is high in stature and has set its top among the thick boughs and the clouds, and its heart is proud of its height,

¹¹I will hand it over to a mighty one and a mighty one of the nations; he will most certainly deal with it. I have driven it away in accordance with its wickedness.

¹²Alien tyrants of the nations have cut it down and left it; its foliage has fallen on the mountains and in all the valleys and its branches have been broken in all the ravines of the land. And all the nations of the earth have come from under its shade and have left it.

¹³All the birds of the sky will nest in its ruins, and all the animals of the field will rest on its fallen branches

¹⁴so that none of the trees by the waters may exalt themselves because of their height, nor set their top among the clouds, nor their well-watered mighty ones stand [arrogantly] in their height. For they have all been handed over to death, to the earth beneath, among the sons of men, with those who go down to the pit (the grave)."

¹⁵'Thus says the Lord GOD, "On the day when Assyria went down to Sheol (the place of the dead) I caused mourning; I closed the deep [subterranean waters] over it and restrained its rivers. And the many waters [that contributed to its prosperity] were held back; and I made [the heart of] Lebanon mourn for it, and all the trees of the field wilted away because of it.

¹⁶I made the nations quake at the sound of its fall when I cast it down to Sheol with those who descend into the pit; and all the well-watered trees of Eden, the choicest and the best of Lebanon, will be comforted in the earth beneath [at Assyria's downfall].

¹⁷They also went down to Sheol with it to those who were slain by the sword; those who were its strength lived under its shade among the nations.

¹⁸"Which among the trees of Eden do you equal in glory and in greatness [O Egypt]? Yet you [also] will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the earth beneath (nether world). You will lie among the uncircumcised (the barbaric, the boorish, the crude) with those who were slain by the sword. This is how it shall be with Pharaoh and all his hordes!"' says the Lord GOD."

¹Now in Iconium Paul and Barnabas went into the Jewish synagogue together and spoke in such a way [with such power and boldness] that a large number of Jews as well as Greeks believed [and confidently accepted Jesus as Savior];

²but the unbelieving Jews [who rejected Jesus as Messiah] stirred up and embittered the minds of the Gentiles against the believers.

³So Paul and Barnabas stayed for a long time, speaking boldly and confidently for the Lord, who continued to testify to the word of His grace, granting that signs and wonders (attesting miracles) be done by them.

⁴But the people of the city were divided; some were siding with the Jews, and some with the apostles.

⁵When there was an attempt by both the Gentiles and the Jews, together with their rulers, to shamefully mistreat and to stone them,

⁶they, aware of the situation, escaped to Lystra and Derbe, [taking refuge in the] cities of Lycaonia, and the neighboring region;

⁷and there they continued to preach the good news.

⁸Now at Lystra a man sat who was unable to use his feet, for he was crippled from birth and had never walked.

⁹This man was listening to Paul as he spoke, and Paul looked intently at him and saw that he had faith to be healed,

¹⁰and said with a loud voice, "Stand up on your feet." And he jumped up and began to walk.

¹¹And the crowds, when they saw what Paul had done, raised their voices, shouting in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have come down to us in human form!"

¹²They began calling Barnabas, Zeus [chief of the Greek gods], and Paul, Hermes [messenger of the Greek gods], since he took the lead in speaking.

¹³The priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance of the city, brought bulls and garlands to the city gates, and wanted to offer sacrifices with the crowds.

¹⁴But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard about it, they tore their robes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting,

¹⁵"Men, why are you doing these things? We too are only men of the same nature as you, bringing the good news to you, so that you turn from these useless and meaningless things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything that is in them.

¹⁶In generations past He permitted all the nations to go their own ways;

¹⁷yet He did not leave Himself without some witness [as evidence of Himself], in that He kept constantly doing good things and showing you kindness, and giving you rains from heaven and productive seasons, filling your hearts with food and happiness."

¹⁸Even saying these words, with difficulty they prevented the people from offering sacrifices to them.

¹⁹But Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium, and having won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, thinking he was dead.

²⁰But the disciples formed a circle around him, and he got up and went back into the city; and the next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe.

²¹They preached the good news to that city and made many disciples, then they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch,

²²strengthening and establishing the hearts of the disciples; encouraging them to remain firm in the faith, saying, "It is through many tribulations and hardships that we must enter the kingdom of God."

²³When they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they entrusted them to the Lord in whom they believed [and joyfully accepted as the Messiah].

²⁴Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia.

²⁵When they had spoken the word [of salvation through faith in Christ] in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

²⁶From there they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been entrusted to the grace of God for the work which they had now completed.

²⁷Arriving there, they gathered the church together and began to report [in great detail] everything that God had done with them and how He had opened to the Gentiles a door of faith [in Jesus as the Messiah and Savior].

²⁸And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.