Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was approaching.

²And the chief priests and the scribes were trying to find a way to put Him to death, since they were afraid of the people.

³And Satan entered Judas, the one called Iscariot, who belonged to the number of the twelve.

⁴And he left and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he was to betray Him to them.

⁵And they were delighted, and agreed to give him money.

⁶And so he consented, and began looking for a good opportunity to betray Him to them away from the crowd.

⁷Now the first day of Unleavened Bread came, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed.

⁸And so Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, so that we may eat it.”

⁹They said to Him, “Where do You want us to prepare it?”

¹⁰And He said to them, “When you have entered the city, a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you; follow him into the house that he enters.

¹¹And you shall say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, “Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?” ’

¹²And he will show you a large, furnished upstairs room; prepare it there.”

¹³And they left and found everything just as He had told them; and they prepared the Passover.

¹⁴When the hour came, He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him.

¹⁵And He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer;

¹⁶for I say to you, I shall not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

¹⁷And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He said, “Take this and share it among yourselves;

¹⁸for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.”

¹⁹And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, which is being given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

²⁰And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup, which is poured out for you, is the new covenant in My blood.

²¹But behold, the hand of the one betraying Me is withMine on the table.

²²For indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!”

²³And they began to debate among themselves which one of them it was who was going to do this.

²⁴And a dispute also developed among them as to which one of them was regarded as being the greatest.

²⁵And He said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles domineer over them; and those who have authority over them are called ‘Benefactors.’

²⁶But it is not this way for you; rather, the one who is the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like the servant.

²⁷For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at the table? But I am among you as the one who serves.

²⁸“You are the ones who have stood by Me in My trials;

²⁹and just as My Father has granted Me a kingdom, I grant you

³⁰that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

³¹“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded to sift you men like wheat;

³²but I have prayed foryou, thatyour faith will not fail; andyou, when you haveturned back, strengthen your brothers.”

³³But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You both to prison and to death!”

³⁴But He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me.”

³⁵And He said to them, “When I sent you out without money belt and bag and sandals, you did not lack anything, did you?” They said, “No, nothing.”

³⁶And He said to them, “But now,whoever has a money belt is to take it along, likewise also a bag, andwhoever has no sword is to sell hiscloak and buy one.

³⁷For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me: ‘AND HE WAS COUNTED WITH WRONGDOERS’; for that which refers to Me has itsfulfillment.”

³⁸They said, “Lord, look, here are two swords.” And He said to them, “It is enough.”

³⁹And He came out and went, as was His habit, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples also followed Him.

⁴⁰Now when He arrived at the place, He said to them, “Pray that you do not come into temptation.”

⁴¹And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and began to pray,

⁴²saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.”

⁴³[Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him.

⁴⁴And being in agony, He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground].

⁴⁵When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow,

⁴⁶and He said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you do not come into temptation.”

⁴⁷While He was still speaking, behold, a crowd came, and the one called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading the way for them; and he approached Jesus to kiss Him.

⁴⁸But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”

⁴⁹When those who were around Him saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?”

⁵⁰And one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear.

⁵¹But Jesus responded and said, “Stop! No more of this.” And He touched his ear and healed him.

⁵²And Jesus said to the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders who had come against Him, “Have you come out with swords and clubs as you would against a man inciting a revolt?

⁵³While I was with you daily in the temple, you did not lay hands on Me; butthis hour and the power of darkness are yours.”

⁵⁴Now they arrested Him and led Him away, and brought Him to the house of the high priest; but Peter was following at a distance.

⁵⁵After they kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter was sitting among them.

⁵⁶And a slave woman, seeing him as he sat in the firelight, and staring at him, said, “This man was with Him as well.”

⁵⁷But he denied it, saying, “I do not know Him, woman!”

⁵⁸And a little later, another person saw him and said, “You are one of them too!” But Peter said, “Man, I am not!”

⁵⁹And after about an hour had passed, some other man began to insist, saying, “Certainly this man also was with Him, for he, too, is a Galilean.”

⁶⁰But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about!” And immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed.

⁶¹And then the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had told him, “Before a rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.”

⁶²And he went out and wept bitterly.

⁶³The men who were holding Jesus in custody began mocking Him and beating Him,

⁶⁴and they blindfolded Him and repeatedly asked Him, saying, “Prophesy, who is the one who hit You?”

⁶⁵And they were saying many other things against Him, blaspheming.

⁶⁶When it was day, the Council of elders of the people assembled, both chief priests and scribes, and they led Him away to their council chamber, saying,

⁶⁷“If You are the Christ, tell us.” But He said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe;

⁶⁸and if I ask a question, you will not answer.

⁶⁹But from now on the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”

⁷⁰And they all said, “So You are the Son of God?” And He said to them, “You say correctly that I am.”

⁷¹And then they said, “What further need do we have of testimony? For we have heard it ourselves from His own mouth!”

¹“Then we turned and set out for the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea, as the LORD spoke to me, and we circled Mount Seir for many days.

²And the LORD spoke to me, saying,

³‘You have circled this mountain long enough. Now turn north,

⁴and command the people, saying, “You are going to pass through the territory of your brothers the sons of Esau, who live in Seir; and they will be afraid of you. So be very careful;

⁵do not provoke them, for I will not give you any of their land, not even as much as a footprint, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession.

⁶You are to buy food from them with money so that you may eat, and you shall also purchase water from them with money so that you may drink.

⁷For the LORD your God has blessed you in all that you have done; He has known your wandering through this great wilderness. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you; you have not lacked anything.” ’

⁸“So we passed beyond our brothers the sons of Esau, who live in Seir, away from the Arabah road, away from Elath and Ezion-geber. And we turned and passed through by the way of the wilderness of Moab.

⁹Then the LORD said to me, ‘Do not attack Moab, nor provoke them to war, for I will not give you any of their land as a possession, because I have given Ar to the sons of Lot as a possession.’

¹⁰(The Emim lived there previously, a people as great, numerous, and tall as the Anakim.

¹¹Like the Anakim, they too are regarded as Rephaim, but the Moabites call them Emim.

¹²The Horites previously lived in Seir, but the sons of Esau dispossessed them and destroyed them from before them, and settled in their place; just as Israel did to the land of their possession which the LORD gave them.)

¹³‘Now arise and cross over the Wadi Zered yourselves.’ So we crossed over the Wadi Zered.

¹⁴Now the time that it took for us to come from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the Wadi Zered was thirty-eight years, until all the generation of the men of war perished from within the camp, just as the LORD had sworn to them.

¹⁵Indeed, the hand of the LORD was against them, to destroy them from within the camp until they all perished.

¹⁶“So it came about, when all the men of war had finally perished from among the people,

¹⁷that the LORD spoke to me, saying,

¹⁸‘Today you shall cross over Ar, the border of Moab.

¹⁹When you come opposite the sons of Ammon, do not attack them nor provoke them, for I will not give you any of the land of the sons of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to the sons of Lot as a possession.’

²⁰(It is also regarded as the land of the Rephaim, because the Rephaim previously lived in it, but the Ammonites call them Zamzummin,

²¹a people as great, numerous, and tall as the Anakim; but the LORD destroyed them before them. And they dispossessed them and settled in their place,

²²just as He did for the sons of Esau, who live in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites from before them; they dispossessed them and settled in their place, where they remain even to this day.

²³And as for the Avvim, who lived in villages as far as Gaza, the Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, destroyed them and lived in their place.)

²⁴‘Arise, set out, and pass through the Valley of Arnon. Look! I have handed over to you Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land; start taking possession and plunge into battle with him.

²⁵This day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you upon the faces of people everywhere, who, when they hear the news of you, will tremble and be in anguish because of you.’

²⁶“So I sent messengers from the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon king of Heshbon with words of peace, saying,

²⁷‘Let me pass through your land; I will travel only on the road. I will not turn aside to the right or to the left.

²⁸You will sell me food for money so that I may eat, and give me water for money so that I may drink, only let me pass through on foot,

²⁹just as the sons of Esau who live in Seir and the Moabites who live in Ar did for me, until I cross over the Jordan into the land that the LORD our God is giving us.’

³⁰But Sihon king of Heshbon was not willing for us to pass through his land; for the LORD your God hardened his spirit and made his heart obstinate, in order to hand him over to you, as he is today.

³¹And the LORD said to me, ‘See, I have begun to turn Sihon and his land over to you. Begin taking possession, so that you may possess his land.’

³²“Then Sihon came out with all his people to meet us in battle at Jahaz.

³³And the LORD our God turned him over to us, and we defeated him with his sons and all his people.

³⁴So we captured all his cities at that time and utterly destroyed the men, women, and children of every city. We left no survivor.

³⁵We took only the animals as our plunder, and the spoils of the cities which we had captured.

³⁶From Aroer which is on the edge of the Valley of Arnon and from the city which is in the valley, even to Gilead, there was no city that was too high for us; the LORD our God turned it all over to us.

³⁷Only you did not go near the land of the sons of Ammon, all along the river Jabbok and the cities of the hill country, and wherever the LORD our God had commanded us to avoid.

¹Therefore, since we also have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let’s rid ourselves of every obstacle and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let’s run with endurance the race that is set before us,

²looking only at Jesus, the originator and perfecter of the faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

³For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

⁴You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin;

⁵and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, “MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD, NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE PUNISHED BY HIM;

⁶FOR WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE PUNISHES EVERY SON WHOM HE ACCEPTS.”

⁷It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?

⁸But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

⁹Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?

¹⁰For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.

¹¹For the moment, all discipline seems not to be pleasant, but painful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

¹²Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble,

¹³and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is impaired may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.

¹⁴Pursue peace with all people, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.

¹⁵See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;

¹⁶that there be no sexually immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal.

¹⁷For you know that even afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.

¹⁸For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind,

¹⁹and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words, which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them.

²⁰For they could not cope with the command, “If even an animal touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.”

²¹And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, “I am terrified and trembling.”

²²But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels,

²³to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect,

²⁴and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel.

²⁵See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns us from heaven.

²⁶And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN.”

²⁷This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

²⁸Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let’s show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe;

²⁹for our God is a consuming fire.

¹Do not become teachers in large numbers, my brothers, since you know that we who are teachers will incur a stricter judgment.

²For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to rein in the whole body as well.

³Now if we put the bits into the horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their whole body as well.

⁴Look at the ships too: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are nevertheless directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot determines.

⁵So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire!

⁶And the tongue is a fire, the very world of unrighteousness; the tongue is set among our body’s parts as that which defiles the whole body and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.

⁷For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race.

⁸But no one among mankind can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

⁹With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people, who have been made in the likeness of God;

¹⁰from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, these things should not be this way.

¹¹Does a spring send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water?

¹²Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, bear olives, or a vine bear figs? Nor can salt water produce fresh.

¹³Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.

¹⁴But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth.

¹⁵This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic.

¹⁶For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing.

¹⁷But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peace-loving, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial, free of hypocrisy.

¹⁸And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

¹“I have made a covenant with my eyes; How then could I look at a virgin?

²And what is the portion of God from above, Or the inheritance of the Almighty from on high?

³Is it not disaster to the criminal, And misfortune to those who practice injustice?

⁴Does He not see my ways, And count all my steps?

⁵“If I have walked with deception, And my foot has hurried after deceit,

⁶Let Him weigh me with accurate scales, And let God know my integrity.

⁷If my step has turned from the way, Or my heart followed my eyes, Or if any spot has stuck to my hands,

⁸Let me sow and another eat, And let my crops be uprooted.

⁹“If my heart has been enticed by a woman, Or I have lurked at my neighbor’s doorway,

¹⁰May my wife grind grain for another, And let others kneel down over her.

¹¹For that would be a lustful crime; Moreover, it would be wrongdoing punishable by judges.

¹²For it would be fire that consumes to Abaddon, And would uproot all my increase.

¹³“If I have rejected the claim of my male or female slaves When they filed a complaint against me,

¹⁴What then could I do when God arises? And when He calls me to account, how am I to answer Him?

¹⁵Did He who made me in the womb not make him, And the same one create us in the womb?

¹⁶“If I have kept the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,

¹⁷Or have eaten my morsel alone, And the orphan has not shared it

¹⁸(But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, And from my infancy I guided her),

¹⁹If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or that the needy had no covering,

²⁰If his waist has not thanked me, And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep,

²¹If I have lifted up my hand against the orphan, Because I saw I had support in the gate,

²²May my shoulder fall from its socket, And my arm be broken off at the elbow.

²³For disaster from God is a terror to me, And because of His majesty I can do nothing.

²⁴“If I have put my confidence in gold, And called fine gold my trust,

²⁵If I have gloated because my wealth was great, And because my hand had obtained so much;

²⁶If I have looked at the sun when it shone, Or the moon going in splendor,

²⁷And my heart was secretly enticed, And my hand threw a kiss from my mouth,

²⁸That too would have been a guilty deed calling for judgment, For I would have denied God above.

²⁹“Have I rejoiced at the misfortune of my enemy, Or become excited when evil found him?

³⁰No, I have not allowed my mouth to sin By asking for his life in a curse.

³¹Have the people of my tent not said, ‘Who can find one who has not been satisfied with his meat’?

³²The stranger has not spent the night outside, For I have opened my doors to the traveler.

³³Have I covered my wrongdoings like a man, By hiding my guilt in my shirt pocket,

³⁴Because I feared the great multitude And the contempt of families terrified me, And I kept silent and did not go out of doors?

³⁵Oh that I had one to hear me! Here is my signature; Let the Almighty answer me! And the indictment which my adversary has written,

³⁶I would certainly carry it on my shoulder, I would tie it to myself like a garland.

³⁷I would declare to Him the number of my steps; Like a prince, I would approach Him.

³⁸“If my land cries out against me, And its furrows weep together;

³⁹If I have eaten its fruit without money, Or have caused its owners to lose their lives,

⁴⁰May the thorn-bush grow instead of wheat, And stinkweed instead of barley.” The words of Job are ended.

¹Listen to my words, LORD, Consider my sighing.

²Listen to the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God, For to You I pray.

³In the morning, LORD, You will hear my voice; In the morning I will present my prayer to You and be on the watch.

⁴For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; No evil can dwell with You.

⁵The boastful will not stand before Your eyes; You hate all who do injustice.

⁶You destroy those who speak lies; The LORD loathes the person of bloodshed and deceit.

⁷But as for me, by Your abundant graciousness I will enter Your house, At Your holy temple I will bow in reverence for You.

⁸LORD, lead me in Your righteousness because of my enemies; Make Your way straight before me.

⁹For there is nothing trustworthy in their mouth; Their inward part is destruction itself. Their throat is an open grave; They flatter with their tongue.

¹⁰Make them pay, God; Have them fall by their own schemes! Scatter them in the multitude of their wrongdoings, For they are rebellious against You.

¹¹But rejoice, all who take refuge in You, Sing for joy forever! And may You shelter them, That those who love Your name may rejoice in You.

¹²For You bless the righteous person, LORD, You surround him with favor as with a shield.

¹The words of King Lemuel, the pronouncement which his mother taught him:

²What, my son? And what, son of my womb? And what, son of my vows?

³Do not give your strength to women, Or your ways to that which destroys kings.

⁴It is not for kings, Lemuel, It is not for kings to drink wine, Or for rulers to desire intoxicating drink,

⁵Otherwise they will drink and forget what is decreed, And pervert the rights of all the needy.

⁶Give intoxicating drink to one who is perishing, And wine to one whose life is bitter.

⁷Let him drink and forget his poverty, And remember his trouble no more.

⁸Open your mouth for the people who cannot speak, For the rights of all the unfortunate.

⁹Open your mouth, judge righteously, And defend the rights of the poor and needy.

¹⁰An excellent wife, who can find her? For her worth is far above jewels.

¹¹The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain.

¹²She does him good and not evil All the days of her life.

¹³She looks for wool and linen, And works with her hands in delight.

¹⁴She is like merchant ships; She brings her food from afar.

¹⁵And she rises while it is still night And gives food to her household, And portions to her attendants.

¹⁶She considers a field and buys it; From her earnings she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷She surrounds her waist with strength And makes her arms strong.

¹⁸She senses that her profit is good; Her lamp does not go out at night.

¹⁹She stretches out her hands to the distaff, And her hands grasp the spindle.

²⁰She extends her hand to the poor, And she stretches out her hands to the needy.

²¹She is not afraid of the snow for her household, For all her household are clothed with scarlet.

²²She makes coverings for herself; Her clothing is fine linen and purple.

²³Her husband is known in the gates, When he sits among the elders of the land.

²⁴She makes linen garments and sells them, And supplies belts to the tradesmen.

²⁵Strength and dignity are her clothing, And she smiles at the future.

²⁶She opens her mouth in wisdom, And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

²⁷She watches over the activities of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness.

²⁸Her children rise up and bless her; Her husband also, and he praises her, saying:

²⁹“Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all.”

³⁰Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.

³¹Give her the product of her hands, And let her works praise her in the gates.

¹The sons of Judah were Perez, Hezron, Carmi, Hur, and Shobal.

²Reaiah the son of Shobal fathered Jahath, and Jahath fathered Ahumai and Lahad. These were the families of the Zorathites.

³These were the sons of Etam: Jezreel, Ishma, and Idbash; and the name of their sister was Hazzelelponi.

⁴Penuel was the father of Gedor, and Ezer the father of Hushah. These were the sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephrathah, the father of Bethlehem.

⁵Ashhur, the father of Tekoa, had two wives, Helah and Naarah.

⁶Naarah bore to him Ahuzzam, Hepher, Temeni, and Haahashtari. These were the sons of Naarah.

⁷The sons of Helah were Zereth, Izhar, and Ethnan.

⁸Koz fathered Anub and Zobebah, and the families of Aharhel, the son of Harum.

⁹Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother named him Jabez, saying, “Because I gave birth to him in pain.”

¹⁰Now Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, “Oh that You would greatly bless me and extend my border, and that Your hand might be with me, and that You would keep me from harm so that it would not hurt me!” And God brought about what he requested.

¹¹Chelub the brother of Shuhah fathered Mehir, who was the father of Eshton.

¹²Eshton fathered Beth-rapha and Paseah, and Tehinnah the father of Ir-nahash. These are the men of Recah.

¹³Now the sons of Kenaz were Othniel and Seraiah. And the sons of Othniel were Hathath and Meonothai.

¹⁴Meonothai fathered Ophrah, and Seraiah fathered Joab the father of Ge-harashim, for they were craftsmen.

¹⁵The sons of Caleb the son of Jephunneh were Iru, Elah, and Naam; and the son of Elah was Kenaz.

¹⁶The sons of Jehallelel were Ziph and Ziphah, Tiria and Asarel.

¹⁷The sons of Ezrah were Jether, Mered, Epher, and Jalon. And Mered’s wife conceived and gave birth to Miriam, Shammai, and Ishbah the father of Eshtemoa.

¹⁸(His Jewish wife gave birth to Jered, the father of Gedor, Heber the father of Soco, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah.) These were the sons of Bithia the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Mered married.

¹⁹The sons of the wife of Hodiah, the sister of Naham, were the fathers of Keilah the Garmite and Eshtemoa the Maacathite.

²⁰The sons of Shimon were Amnon and Rinnah, and Benhanan and Tilon. And the sons of Ishi were Zoheth and Ben-zoheth.

²¹The sons of Shelah the son of Judah were Er the father of Lecah and Laadah the father of Mareshah, and the families of the house of the linen workers at Beth-ashbea;

²²and Jokim, the men of Cozeba, Joash, Saraph, who ruled in Moab, and Jashubi-lehem. And the records are ancient.

²³These were the potters and the inhabitants of Netaim and Gederah; they lived there with the king for his work.

²⁴The sons of Simeon were Nemuel and Jamin, Jarib, Zerah, and Shaul;

²⁵Shallum was his son, Mibsam his son, and Mishma his son.

²⁶The sons of Mishma were Hammuel his son, Zaccur his son, and Shimei his son.

²⁷Now Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters; but his brothers did not have many sons, nor did all their family increase like the sons of Judah.

²⁸They lived in Beersheba, Moladah, and Hazar-shual,

²⁹in Bilhah, Ezem, Tolad,

³⁰Bethuel, Hormah, Ziklag,

³¹Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susim, Beth-biri, and Shaaraim. These were their cities until the reign of David.

³²Their villages were Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Tochen, and Ashan, five cities,

³³and all their settlements that were around the same cities as far as Baal. These were their dwellings, and they have their genealogy.

³⁴Meshobab, Jamlech, Joshah the son of Amaziah,

³⁵Joel, Jehu the son of Joshibiah, the son of Seraiah, the son of Asiel,

³⁶and Elioenai, Jaakobah, Jeshohaiah, Asaiah, Adiel, Jesimiel, Benaiah,

³⁷and Ziza the son of Shiphi, the son of Allon, the son of Jedaiah, the son of Shimri, the son of Shemaiah—

³⁸these mentioned by name were leaders in their families; and their fathers’ houses spread out greatly.

³⁹They went to the entrance of Gedor, as far as the east side of the valley, to seek pasture for their flocks.

⁴⁰They found pasture that was rich and good, and the land was spread out on both sides, and peaceful and undisturbed; for those who lived there previously were Hamites.

⁴¹These people, recorded by name, came in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and they attacked their tents and the Meunites who were found there, and utterly destroyed them to this day; and they lived in their place, because there was pasture there for their flocks.

⁴²From them, from the sons of Simeon, five hundred men went to Mount Seir, with Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah, and Uzziel, the sons of Ishi, as their leaders.

⁴³They destroyed the remnant of the Amalekites who escaped, and they have lived there to this day.

¹In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first of the month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

²“Son of man, take up a song of mourning over Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say to him, ‘You compared yourself to a young lion of the nations, Yet you are like the monster in the seas; And you burst forth in your rivers And muddied the waters with your feet And fouled their rivers.’ ”

³This is what the Lord GOD says: “Now I will spread My net over you With a contingent of many peoples, And they will lift you up in My net.

⁴I will leave you on the land; I will hurl you on the open field. And I will cause all the birds of the sky to nest on you, And I will satisfy the animals of the whole earth with you.

⁵I will lay your flesh on the mountains And fill the valleys with your refuse.

⁶I will also make the land drink the discharge of your blood As far as the mountains, And the ravines will be full of you.

⁷And when I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars; I will cover the sun with a cloud And the moon will not give its light.

⁸All the shining lights in the heavens I will darken over you And will set darkness on your land,” Declares the Lord GOD.

⁹“I will also trouble the hearts of many peoples when I bring your destruction among the nations, into lands which you have not known.

¹⁰And I will make many peoples appalled at you, and their kings will be horribly afraid of you when I brandish My sword before them; and they will tremble again and again, every person for his own life, on the day of your fall.”

¹¹For the Lord GOD says this: “The sword of the king of Babylon will attack you.

¹²By the swords of the warriors I will make your multitude fall; all of them are tyrants of the nations, And they will devastate the pride of Egypt, And all its multitude will be destroyed.

¹³I will also eliminate all its cattle from beside many waters; And a human foot will not muddy them anymore, And the hoofs of animals will not muddy them.

¹⁴Then I will make their waters settle, And make their rivers run like oil,” Declares the Lord GOD.

¹⁵“When I make the land of Egypt a desolation, And the land is destitute of that which filled it, When I strike all those who live in it, Then they shall know that I am the LORD.

¹⁶This is a song of mourning, and they shall sing it. The daughters of the nations shall sing it. Over Egypt and over all her hordes they shall sing it,” declares the Lord GOD.

¹⁷In the twelfth year, on the fifteenth of the month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

¹⁸“Son of man, lament for the hordes of Egypt and bring it down, her and the daughters of the mighty nations, to the netherworld, with those who go down to the pit;

¹⁹‘Whom do you surpass in beauty? Go down and make your bed with the uncircumcised.’

²⁰They shall fall in the midst of those who are killed by the sword. She is turned over to the sword; they have dragged her and all her hordes away.

²¹The strong among the mighty ones shall speak of him and his helpers from the midst of Sheol: ‘They have gone down, they lie still, the uncircumcised, killed by the sword.’

²²“Assyria is there and all her company; her graves are all around her. All of them killed, fallen by the sword,

²³whose graves are set in the remotest parts of the pit, and her company is all around her grave. All of them killed, fallen by the sword, who spread terror in the land of the living.

²⁴“Elam is there and all her hordes around her grave; all of them killed, fallen by the sword, who went down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the earth, who inflicted their terror on the land of the living, and bore their disgrace with those who go down to the pit.

²⁵They have made a bed for her among the slain with all her hordes. Her graves are around it, they are all uncircumcised, killed by the sword (although their terror was inflicted on the land of the living), and they bore their disgrace with those who go down to the pit; they were put in the midst of the slain.

²⁶“Meshech, Tubal, and all their hordes are there; their graves surround them. All of them were killed by the sword uncircumcised, though they inflicted their terror on the land of the living.

²⁷Nor do they lie beside the fallen heroes of the uncircumcised, who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war and whose swords were placed under their heads; but the punishment for their wrongdoing rested on their bones, though the terror of these heroes was once in the land of the living.

²⁸But in the midst of the uncircumcised you will be broken and lie with those killed by the sword.

²⁹“There also is Edom, its kings and all its princes, who despite all their might are laid with those killed by the sword; they will lie with the uncircumcised and with those who go down to the pit.

³⁰“There also are the chiefs of the north, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who in spite of the terror resulting from their might, in shame went down with the slain. So they lay down uncircumcised with those killed by the sword and bore their disgrace with those who go down to the pit.

³¹“These Pharaoh will see, and he will find consolation regarding all his hordes killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his army,” declares the Lord GOD.

³²“Though I inflicted the terror of him on the land of the living, yet he will be laid to rest among the uncircumcised along with those killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his hordes,” declares the Lord GOD.

¹Some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

²And after Paul and Barnabas had a heated argument and debate with them, the brothers determined that Paul and Barnabas and some others of them should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders concerning this issue.

³Therefore, after being sent on their way by the church, they were passing through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and they were bringing great joy to all the brothers and sisters.

⁴When they arrived in Jerusalem, they were received by the church, the apostles, and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them.

⁵But some of the sect of the Pharisees who had believed stood up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to direct them to keep the Law of Moses.”

⁶The apostles and the elders came together to look into this matter.

⁷After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of the gospel and believe.

⁸And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us;

⁹and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith.

¹⁰Since this is the case, why are you putting God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our forefathers nor we have been able to bear?

¹¹But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.”

¹²All the people kept silent, and they were listening to Barnabas and Paul as they were relating all the signs and wonders that God had done through them among the Gentiles.

¹³After they stopped speaking, James responded, saying, “Brothers, listen to me.

¹⁴Simeon has described how God first concerned Himself about taking a people for His name from among the Gentiles.

¹⁵The words of the Prophets agree with this, just as it is written:

¹⁶‘AFTER THESE THINGS I will return, AND I WILL REBUILD THE FALLEN TABERNACLE OF DAVID, AND I WILL REBUILD ITS RUINS, AND I WILL RESTORE IT,

¹⁷SO THAT THE REST OF MANKIND MAY SEEK THE LORD, AND ALL THE GENTILES WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME,’

¹⁸SAYS THE LORD, WHO MAKES THESE THINGS known from long ago.

¹⁹Therefore, it is my judgment that we do not cause trouble for those from the Gentiles who are turning to God,

²⁰but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols, from acts of sexual immorality, from what has been strangled, and from blood.

²¹For from ancient generations Moses has those who preach him in every city, since he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath.”

²²Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas: Judas who was called Barsabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brothers,

²³and they sent this letter with them: “The apostles and the brothers who are elders, to the brothers and sisters in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia who are from the Gentiles: Greetings.

²⁴Since we have heard that some of our number to whom we gave no instruction have confused you by their teaching, upsetting your souls,

²⁵it seemed good to us, having become of one mind, to select men to send to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

²⁶men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

²⁷Therefore, we have sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will also report the same things by word of mouth.

²⁸For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these essentials:

²⁹that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from acts of sexual immorality; if you keep yourselves free from such things, you will do well. Farewell.”

³⁰So when they were sent away, they went down to Antioch; and after gathering the congregation together, they delivered the letter.

³¹When they had read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement.

³²Judas and Silas, also being prophets themselves, encouraged and strengthened the brothers and sisters with a lengthy message.

³³After they had spent time there, they were sent away from the brothers and sisters in peace to those who had sent them out.

³⁴

³⁵But Paul and Barnabas stayed in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.

³⁶After some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let’s return and visit the brothers and sisters in every city in which we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are.”

³⁷Barnabas wanted to take John, called Mark, along with them also.

³⁸But Paul was of the opinion that they should not take along with them this man who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work.

³⁹Now it turned into such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus.

⁴⁰But Paul chose Silas, and left after being entrusted by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.

⁴¹And he was traveling through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.