Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.

²Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.

³And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”

⁴Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.”

⁵His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”

⁶Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece.

⁷Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.

⁸And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it.

⁹When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom.

¹⁰And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”

¹¹This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.

¹²After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days.

¹³Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

¹⁴And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.

¹⁵When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables.

¹⁶And He said to those who sold doves, “Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!”

¹⁷Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.”

¹⁸So the Jews answered and said to Him, “What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?”

¹⁹Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

²⁰Then the Jews said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?”

²¹But He was speaking of the temple of His body.

²²Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.

²³Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.

²⁴But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men,

²⁵and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.

¹“Now this is the commandment, and these are the statutes and judgments which the LORD your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess,

²that you may fear the LORD your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you and your son and your grandson, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged.

³Therefore hear, O Israel, and be careful to observe it, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the LORD God of your fathers has promised you— ‘a land flowing with milk and honey.’

⁴“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!

⁵You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

⁶“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.

⁷You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.

⁸You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.

⁹You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

¹⁰“So it shall be, when the LORD your God brings you into the land of which He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give you large and beautiful cities which you did not build,

¹¹houses full of all good things, which you did not fill, hewn-out wells which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant— when you have eaten and are full—

¹²then beware, lest you forget the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.

¹³You shall fear the LORD your God and serve Him, and shall take oaths in His name.

¹⁴You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are all around you

¹⁵(for the LORD your God is a jealous God among you), lest the anger of the LORD your God be aroused against you and destroy you from the face of the earth.

¹⁶“You shall not tempt the LORD your God as you tempted Him in Massah.

¹⁷You shall diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God, His testimonies, and His statutes which He has commanded you.

¹⁸And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may be well with you, and that you may go in and possess the good land of which the LORD swore to your fathers,

¹⁹to cast out all your enemies from before you, as the LORD has spoken.

²⁰“When your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What is the meaning of the testimonies, the statutes, and the judgments which the LORD our God has commanded you?’

²¹then you shall say to your son: ‘We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, and the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand;

²²and the LORD showed signs and wonders before our eyes, great and severe, against Egypt, Pharaoh, and all his household.

²³Then He brought us out from there, that He might bring us in, to give us the land of which He swore to our fathers.

²⁴And the LORD commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day.

²⁵Then it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to observe all these commandments before the LORD our God, as He has commanded us.’

¹What advantage then has the Jew, or what is the profit of circumcision?

²Much in every way! Chiefly because to them were committed the oracles of God.

³For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect?

⁴Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. As it is written: “That You may be justified in Your words, And may overcome when You are judged.”

⁵But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unjust who inflicts wrath? (I speak as a man.)

⁶Certainly not! For then how will God judge the world?

⁷For if the truth of God has increased through my lie to His glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner?

⁸And why not say, “Let us do evil that good may come”?—as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just.

⁹What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.

¹⁰As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;

¹¹There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God.

¹²They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.”

¹³“Their throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit”; “The poison of asps is under their lips”;

¹⁴“Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”

¹⁵“Their feet are swift to shed blood;

¹⁶Destruction and misery are in their ways;

¹⁷And the way of peace they have not known.”

¹⁸“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

¹⁹Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

²⁰Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

²¹But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,

²²even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;

²³for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

²⁴being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

²⁵whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,

²⁶to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

²⁷Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith.

²⁸Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law.

²⁹Or is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also,

³⁰since there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.

³¹Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.

¹Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking,

²as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby,

³if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

⁴Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious,

⁵you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

⁶Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, “Behold, I lay in Zion A chief cornerstone, elect, precious, And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.”

⁷Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, “The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone,”

⁸and “A stone of stumbling And a rock of offense.” They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.

⁹But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

¹⁰who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

¹¹Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,

¹²having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

¹³Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme,

¹⁴or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good.

¹⁵For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men—

¹⁶as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God.

¹⁷Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.

¹⁸Servants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh.

¹⁹For this is commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully.

²⁰For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God.

²¹For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:

²²“Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth”;

²³who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;

²⁴who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness— by whose stripes you were healed.

²⁵For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

¹Moreover Elihu answered and said:

²“Do you think this is right? Do you say, ‘My righteousness is more than God’s’?

³For you say, ‘What advantage will it be to You? What profit shall I have, more than if I had sinned?’

⁴“I will answer you, And your companions with you.

⁵Look to the heavens and see; And behold the clouds— They are higher than you.

⁶If you sin, what do you accomplish against Him? Or, if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to Him?

⁷If you are righteous, what do you give Him? Or what does He receive from your hand?

⁸Your wickedness affects a man such as you, And your righteousness a son of man.

⁹“Because of the multitude of oppressions they cry out; They cry out for help because of the arm of the mighty.

¹⁰But no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker, Who gives songs in the night,

¹¹Who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth, And makes us wiser than the birds of heaven?’

¹²There they cry out, but He does not answer, Because of the pride of evil men.

¹³Surely God will not listen to empty talk, Nor will the Almighty regard it.

¹⁴Although you say you do not see Him, Yet justice is before Him, and you must wait for Him.

¹⁵And now, because He has not punished in His anger, Nor taken much notice of folly,

¹⁶Therefore Job opens his mouth in vain; He multiplies words without knowledge.”

¹To the Chief Musician. To the tune of “Death of the Son.” A Psalm of David. [1] I will praise You, O LORD, with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works.

²I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.

³When my enemies turn back, They shall fall and perish at Your presence.

⁴For You have maintained my right and my cause; You sat on the throne judging in righteousness.

⁵You have rebuked the nations, You have destroyed the wicked; You have blotted out their name forever and ever.

⁶O enemy, destructions are finished forever! And you have destroyed cities; Even their memory has perished.

⁷But the LORD shall endure forever; He has prepared His throne for judgment.

⁸He shall judge the world in righteousness, And He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness.

⁹The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, A refuge in times of trouble.

¹⁰And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; For You, LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.

¹¹Sing praises to the LORD, who dwells in Zion! Declare His deeds among the people.

¹²When He avenges blood, He remembers them; He does not forget the cry of the humble.

¹³Have mercy on me, O LORD! Consider my trouble from those who hate me, You who lift me up from the gates of death,

¹⁴That I may tell of all Your praise In the gates of the daughter of Zion. I will rejoice in Your salvation.

¹⁵The nations have sunk down in the pit which they made; In the net which they hid, their own foot is caught.

¹⁶The LORD is known by the judgment He executes; The wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Meditation. Selah

¹⁷The wicked shall be turned into hell, And all the nations that forget God.

¹⁸For the needy shall not always be forgotten; The expectation of the poor shall not perish forever.

¹⁹Arise, O LORD, Do not let man prevail; Let the nations be judged in Your sight.

²⁰Put them in fear, O LORD, That the nations may know themselves to be but men. Selah

¹Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding;

²For I give you good doctrine: Do not forsake my law.

³When I was my father’s son, Tender and the only one in the sight of my mother,

⁴He also taught me, and said to me: “Let your heart retain my words; Keep my commands, and live.

⁵Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.

⁶Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you; Love her, and she will keep you.

⁷Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.

⁸Exalt her, and she will promote you; She will bring you honor, when you embrace her.

⁹She will place on your head an ornament of grace; A crown of glory she will deliver to you.”

¹⁰Hear, my son, and receive my sayings, And the years of your life will be many.

¹¹I have taught you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in right paths.

¹²When you walk, your steps will not be hindered, And when you run, you will not stumble.

¹³Take firm hold of instruction, do not let go; Keep her, for she is your life.

¹⁴Do not enter the path of the wicked, And do not walk in the way of evil.

¹⁵Avoid it, do not travel on it; Turn away from it and pass on.

¹⁶For they do not sleep unless they have done evil; And their sleep is taken away unless they make someone fall.

¹⁷For they eat the bread of wickedness, And drink the wine of violence.

¹⁸But the path of the just is like the shining sun, That shines ever brighter unto the perfect day.

¹⁹The way of the wicked is like darkness; They do not know what makes them stumble.

²⁰My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings.

²¹Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart;

²²For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.

²³Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.

²⁴Put away from you a deceitful mouth, And put perverse lips far from you.

²⁵Let your eyes look straight ahead, And your eyelids look right before you.

²⁶Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.

²⁷Do not turn to the right or the left; Remove your foot from evil.

¹Now Benjamin begot Bela his firstborn, Ashbel the second, Aharah the third,

²Nohah the fourth, and Rapha the fifth.

³The sons of Bela were Addar, Gera, Abihud,

⁴Abishua, Naaman, Ahoah,

⁵Gera, Shephuphan, and Huram.

⁶These are the sons of Ehud, who were the heads of the fathers’ houses of the inhabitants of Geba, and who forced them to move to Manahath:

⁷Naaman, Ahijah, and Gera who forced them to move. He begot Uzza and Ahihud.

⁸Also Shaharaim had children in the country of Moab, after he had sent away Hushim and Baara his wives.

⁹By Hodesh his wife he begot Jobab, Zibia, Mesha, Malcam,

¹⁰Jeuz, Sachiah, and Mirmah. These were his sons, heads of their fathers’ houses.

¹¹And by Hushim he begot Abitub and Elpaal.

¹²The sons of Elpaal were Eber, Misham, and Shemed, who built Ono and Lod with its towns;

¹³and Beriah and Shema, who were heads of their fathers’ houses of the inhabitants of Aijalon, who drove out the inhabitants of Gath.

¹⁴Ahio, Shashak, Jeremoth,

¹⁵Zebadiah, Arad, Eder,

¹⁶Michael, Ispah, and Joha were the sons of Beriah.

¹⁷Zebadiah, Meshullam, Hizki, Heber,

¹⁸Ishmerai, Jizliah, and Jobab were the sons of Elpaal.

¹⁹Jakim, Zichri, Zabdi,

²⁰Elienai, Zillethai, Eliel,

²¹Adaiah, Beraiah, and Shimrath were the sons of Shimei.

²²Ishpan, Eber, Eliel,

²³Abdon, Zichri, Hanan,

²⁴Hananiah, Elam, Antothijah,

²⁵Iphdeiah, and Penuel were the sons of Shashak.

²⁶Shamsherai, Shehariah, Athaliah,

²⁷Jaareshiah, Elijah, and Zichri were the sons of Jeroham.

²⁸These were heads of the fathers’ houses by their generations, chief men. These dwelt in Jerusalem.

²⁹Now the father of Gibeon, whose wife’s name was Maacah, dwelt at Gibeon.

³⁰And his firstborn son was Abdon, then Zur, Kish, Baal, Nadab,

³¹Gedor, Ahio, Zecher,

³²and Mikloth, who begot Shimeah. They also dwelt alongside their relatives in Jerusalem, with their brethren.

³³Ner begot Kish, Kish begot Saul, and Saul begot Jonathan, Malchishua, Abinadab, and Esh-Baal.

³⁴The son of Jonathan was Merib-Baal, and Merib-Baal begot Micah.

³⁵The sons of Micah were Pithon, Melech, Tarea, and Ahaz.

³⁶And Ahaz begot Jehoaddah; Jehoaddah begot Alemeth, Azmaveth, and Zimri; and Zimri begot Moza.

³⁷Moza begot Binea, Raphah his son, Eleasah his son, and Azel his son.

³⁸Azel had six sons whose names were these: Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, and Hanan. All these were the sons of Azel.

³⁹And the sons of Eshek his brother were Ulam his firstborn, Jeush the second, and Eliphelet the third.

⁴⁰The sons of Ulam were mighty men of valor—archers. They had many sons and grandsons, one hundred and fifty in all. These were all sons of Benjamin.

¹“And you, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel, and say, ‘O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD!

²Thus says the Lord GOD: “Because the enemy has said of you, ‘Aha! The ancient heights have become our possession,’ ” ’

³therefore prophesy, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Because they made you desolate and swallowed you up on every side, so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations, and you are taken up by the lips of talkers and slandered by the people”—

⁴therefore, O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD! Thus says the Lord GOD to the mountains, the hills, the rivers, the valleys, the desolate wastes, and the cities that have been forsaken, which became plunder and mockery to the rest of the nations all around—

⁵therefore thus says the Lord GOD: “Surely I have spoken in My burning jealousy against the rest of the nations and against all Edom, who gave My land to themselves as a possession, with wholehearted joy and spiteful minds, in order to plunder its open country.” ’

⁶“Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel, and say to the mountains, the hills, the rivers, and the valleys, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I have spoken in My jealousy and My fury, because you have borne the shame of the nations.”

⁷Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: “I have raised My hand in an oath that surely the nations that are around you shall bear their own shame.

⁸But you, O mountains of Israel, you shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit to My people Israel, for they are about to come.

⁹For indeed I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you shall be tilled and sown.

¹⁰I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, all of it; and the cities shall be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt.

¹¹I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bear young; I will make you inhabited as in former times, and do better for you than at your beginnings. Then you shall know that I am the LORD.

¹²Yes, I will cause men to walk on you, My people Israel; they shall take possession of you, and you shall be their inheritance; no more shall you bereave them of children.”

¹³‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Because they say to you, ‘You devour men and bereave your nation of children,’

¹⁴therefore you shall devour men no more, nor bereave your nation anymore,” says the Lord GOD.

¹⁵“Nor will I let you hear the taunts of the nations anymore, nor bear the reproach of the peoples anymore, nor shall you cause your nation to stumble anymore,” says the Lord GOD.’ ”

¹⁶Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying:

¹⁷“Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their own ways and deeds; to Me their way was like the uncleanness of a woman in her customary impurity.

¹⁸Therefore I poured out My fury on them for the blood they had shed on the land, and for their idols with which they had defiled it.

¹⁹So I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed throughout the countries; I judged them according to their ways and their deeds.

²⁰When they came to the nations, wherever they went, they profaned My holy name—when they said of them, ‘These are the people of the LORD, and yet they have gone out of His land.’

²¹But I had concern for My holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations wherever they went.

²²“Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for My holy name’s sake, which you have profaned among the nations wherever you went.

²³And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the LORD,” says the Lord GOD, “when I am hallowed in you before their eyes.

²⁴For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land.

²⁵Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols.

²⁶I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

²⁷I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.

²⁸Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God.

²⁹I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. I will call for the grain and multiply it, and bring no famine upon you.

³⁰And I will multiply the fruit of your trees and the increase of your fields, so that you need never again bear the reproach of famine among the nations.

³¹Then you will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good; and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your iniquities and your abominations.

³²Not for your sake do I do this,” says the Lord GOD, “let it be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel!”

³³‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will also enable you to dwell in the cities, and the ruins shall be rebuilt.

³⁴The desolate land shall be tilled instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass by.

³⁵So they will say, ‘This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden; and the wasted, desolate, and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.’

³⁶Then the nations which are left all around you shall know that I, the LORD, have rebuilt the ruined places and planted what was desolate. I, the LORD, have spoken it, and I will do it.”

³⁷‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “I will also let the house of Israel inquire of Me to do this for them: I will increase their men like a flock.

³⁸Like a flock offered as holy sacrifices, like the flock at Jerusalem on its feast days, so shall the ruined cities be filled with flocks of men. Then they shall know that I am the LORD.” ’ ”

¹And it happened, while Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples

²he said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” So they said to him, “We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.”

³And he said to them, “Into what then were you baptized?” So they said, “Into John’s baptism.”

⁴Then Paul said, “John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.”

⁵When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

⁶And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied.

⁷Now the men were about twelve in all.

⁸And he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God.

⁹But when some were hardened and did not believe, but spoke evil of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus.

¹⁰And this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.

¹¹Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul,

¹²so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them.

¹³Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.”

¹⁴Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.

¹⁵And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”

¹⁶Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

¹⁷This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.

¹⁸And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds.

¹⁹Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver.

²⁰So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.

²¹When these things were accomplished, Paul purposed in the Spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, I must also see Rome.”

²²So he sent into Macedonia two of those who ministered to him, Timothy and Erastus, but he himself stayed in Asia for a time.

²³And about that time there arose a great commotion about the Way.

²⁴For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Diana, brought no small profit to the craftsmen.

²⁵He called them together with the workers of similar occupation, and said: “Men, you know that we have our prosperity by this trade.

²⁶Moreover you see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but throughout almost all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are not gods which are made with hands.

²⁷So not only is this trade of ours in danger of falling into disrepute, but also the temple of the great goddess Diana may be despised and her magnificence destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worship.”

²⁸Now when they heard this, they were full of wrath and cried out, saying, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”

²⁹So the whole city was filled with confusion, and rushed into the theater with one accord, having seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians, Paul’s travel companions.

³⁰And when Paul wanted to go in to the people, the disciples would not allow him.

³¹Then some of the officials of Asia, who were his friends, sent to him pleading that he would not venture into the theater.

³²Some therefore cried one thing and some another, for the assembly was confused, and most of them did not know why they had come together.

³³And they drew Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. And Alexander motioned with his hand, and wanted to make his defense to the people.

³⁴But when they found out that he was a Jew, all with one voice cried out for about two hours, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”

³⁵And when the city clerk had quieted the crowd, he said: “Men of Ephesus, what man is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple guardian of the great goddess Diana, and of the image which fell down from Zeus?

³⁶Therefore, since these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rashly.

³⁷For you have brought these men here who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of your goddess.

³⁸Therefore, if Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a case against anyone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. Let them bring charges against one another.

³⁹But if you have any other inquiry to make, it shall be determined in the lawful assembly.

⁴⁰For we are in danger of being called in question for today’s uproar, there being no reason which we may give to account for this disorderly gathering.”

⁴¹And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly.