Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹The Pharisees and Sadducees approached, and tested him, asking him to show them a sign from heaven.

²He replied, “When evening comes you say, ‘It will be good weather because the sky is red.’

³And in the morning, ‘Today will be stormy because the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to read the appearance of the sky, but you can’t read the signs of the times.

⁴An evil and adulterous generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” Then he left them and went away.

⁵The disciples reached the other shore, and they had forgotten to take bread.

⁶Then Jesus told them, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”

⁷They were discussing among themselves, “We didn’t bring any bread.”

⁸Aware of this, Jesus said, “You of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves that you do not have bread?

⁹Don’t you understand yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand and how many baskets you collected?

¹⁰Or the seven loaves for the four thousand and how many large baskets you collected?

¹¹Why is it you don’t understand that when I told you, ‘Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees,’ it wasn’t about bread?”

¹²Then they understood that he had not told them to beware of the leaven in bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

¹³When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”

¹⁴They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

¹⁵“But you,” he asked them, “who do you say that I am?”

¹⁶Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

¹⁷Jesus responded, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father in heaven.

¹⁸And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

¹⁹I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will have been loosed in heaven.”

²⁰Then he gave the disciples orders to tell no one that he was the Messiah.

²¹From then on Jesus began to point out to his disciples that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised the third day.

²²Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, “Oh no, Lord! This will never happen to you!”

²³Jesus turned and told Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me because you’re not thinking about God’s concerns but human concerns.”

²⁴Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.

²⁵For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it.

²⁶For what will it benefit someone if he gains the whole world yet loses his life? Or what will anyone give in exchange for his life?

²⁷For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will reward each according to what he has done.

²⁸Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

¹Abram’s wife Sarai had not borne any children for him, but she owned an Egyptian slave named Hagar.

²Sarai said to Abram, “Since the LORD has prevented me from bearing children, go to my slave; perhaps through her I can build a family.” And Abram agreed to what Sarai said.

³So Abram’s wife Sarai took Hagar, her Egyptian slave, and gave her to her husband Abram as a wife for him. This happened after Abram had lived in the land of Canaan ten years.

⁴He slept with Hagar, and she became pregnant. When she saw that she was pregnant, her mistress became contemptible to her.

⁵Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for my suffering! I put my slave in your arms, and when she saw that she was pregnant, I became contemptible to her. May the LORD judge between me and you.”

⁶Abram replied to Sarai, “Here, your slave is in your hands; do whatever you want with her.” Then Sarai mistreated her so much that she ran away from her.

⁷The angel of the LORD found her by a spring in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur.

⁸He said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?” She replied, “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai.”

⁹The angel of the LORD said to her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her authority.”

¹⁰The angel of the LORD said to her, “I will greatly multiply your offspring, and they will be too many to count.”

¹¹The angel of the LORD said to her, “You have conceived and will have a son. You will name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard your cry of affliction.

¹²This man will be like a wild donkey. His hand will be against everyone, and everyone’s hand will be against him; he will settle near all his relatives.”

¹³So she named the LORD who spoke to her: “You are El-roi,” for she said, “In this place, have I actually seen the one who sees me?”

¹⁴That is why the well is called Beer-lahai-roi. It is between Kadesh and Bered.

¹⁵So Hagar gave birth to Abram’s son, and Abram named his son (whom Hagar bore) Ishmael.

¹⁶Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to him.

¹I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church in Cenchreae.

²So you should welcome her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints and assist her in whatever matter she may require your help. For indeed she has been a benefactor of many — and of me also.

³Give my greetings to Prisca and Aquila, my coworkers in Christ Jesus,

⁴who risked their own necks for my life. Not only do I thank them, but so do all the Gentile churches.

⁵Greet also the church that meets in their home. Greet my dear friend Epaenetus, who is the first convert to Christ from Asia.

⁶Greet Mary, who has worked very hard for you.

⁷Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews and fellow prisoners. They are noteworthy in the eyes of the apostles, and they were also in Christ before me.

⁸Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.

⁹Greet Urbanus, our coworker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys.

¹⁰Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus.

¹¹Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew. Greet those who belong to the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord.

¹²Greet Tryphaena and Tryphosa, who have worked hard in the Lord. Greet my dear friend Persis, who has worked very hard in the Lord.

¹³Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; also his mother — and mine.

¹⁴Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers and sisters who are with them.

¹⁵Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them.

¹⁶Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send you greetings.

¹⁷Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who create divisions and obstacles contrary to the teaching that you learned. Avoid them,

¹⁸because such people do not serve our Lord Christ but their own appetites. They deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting with smooth talk and flattering words.

¹⁹The report of your obedience has reached everyone. Therefore I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise about what is good, and yet innocent about what is evil.

²⁰The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

²¹Timothy, my coworker, and Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater, my fellow countrymen, greet you.

²²I Tertius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord.

²³Gaius, who is host to me and to the whole church, greets you. Erastus, the city treasurer, and our brother Quartus greet you.

²⁴

²⁵Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation about Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept silent for long ages

²⁶but now revealed and made known through the prophetic Scriptures, according to the command of the eternal God to advance the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles —

²⁷to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ — to him be the glory forever! Amen.

¹You, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

²What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

³Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

⁴No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the concerns of civilian life; he seeks to please the commanding officer.

⁵Also, if anyone competes as an athlete, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.

⁶The hardworking farmer ought to be the first to get a share of the crops.

⁷Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

⁸Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead and descended from David, according to my gospel,

⁹for which I suffer to the point of being bound like a criminal. But the word of God is not bound.

¹⁰This is why I endure all things for the elect: so that they also may obtain salvation, which is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

¹¹This saying is trustworthy: For if we died with him, we will also live with him;

¹²if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us;

¹³if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself.

¹⁴Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to fight about words. This is useless and leads to the ruin of those who listen.

¹⁵Be diligent to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth.

¹⁶Avoid irreverent and empty speech, since those who engage in it will produce even more godlessness,

¹⁷and their teaching will spread like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are among them.

¹⁸They have departed from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and are ruining the faith of some.

¹⁹Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, bearing this inscription: The Lord knows those who are his, and let everyone who calls on the name of the Lord turn away from wickedness.

²⁰Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also those of wood and clay; some for honorable use and some for dishonorable.

²¹So if anyone purifies himself from anything dishonorable, he will be a special instrument, set apart, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.

²²Flee from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.

²³But reject foolish and ignorant disputes, because you know that they breed quarrels.

²⁴The Lord’s servant must not quarrel, but must be gentle to everyone, able to teach, and patient,

²⁵instructing his opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance leading them to the knowledge of the truth.

²⁶Then they may come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

¹Then Job answered:

²I have heard many things like these. You are all miserable comforters.

³Is there no end to your empty words? What provokes you that you continue testifying?

⁴If you were in my place I could also talk like you. I could string words together against you and shake my head at you.

⁵Instead, I would encourage you with my mouth, and the consolation from my lips would bring relief.

⁶If I speak, my suffering is not relieved, and if I hold back, does any of it leave me?

⁷Surely he has now exhausted me. You have devastated my entire family.

⁸You have shriveled me up  — it has become a witness; my frailty rises up against me and testifies to my face.

⁹His anger tears at me, and he harasses me. He gnashes his teeth at me. My enemy pierces me with his eyes.

¹⁰They open their mouths against me and strike my cheeks with contempt; they join themselves together against me.

¹¹God hands me over to the unjust; he throws me to the wicked.

¹²I was at ease, but he shattered me; he seized me by the scruff of the neck and smashed me to pieces. He set me up as his target;

¹³his archers surround me. He pierces my kidneys without mercy and pours my bile on the ground.

¹⁴He breaks through my defenses again and again; he charges at me like a warrior.

¹⁵I have sewn sackcloth over my skin; I have buried my strength in the dust.

¹⁶My face has grown red with weeping, and darkness covers my eyes,

¹⁷although my hands are free from violence and my prayer is pure.

¹⁸Earth, do not cover my blood; may my cry for help find no resting place.

¹⁹Even now my witness is in heaven, and my advocate is in the heights!

²⁰My friends scoff at me as I weep before God.

²¹I wish that someone might argue for a man with God just as anyone would for a friend.

²²For only a few years will pass before I go the way of no return.

¹A of David. [1] Protect me, God, for I take refuge in you.

²I said to the LORD, “You are my Lord; I have nothing good besides you.”

³As for the holy people who are in the land, they are the noble ones. All my delight is in them.

⁴The sorrows of those who take another god for themselves will multiply; I will not pour out their drink offerings of blood, and I will not speak their names with my lips.

⁵LORD, you are my portion and my cup of blessing; you hold my future.

⁶The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

⁷I will bless the LORD who counsels me  — even at night when my thoughts trouble me.

⁸I always let the LORD guide me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

⁹Therefore my heart is glad and my whole being rejoices; my body also rests securely.

¹⁰For you will not abandon me to Sheol; you will not allow your faithful one to see decay.

¹¹You reveal the path of life to me; in your presence is abundant joy; at your right hand are eternal pleasures.

¹The reflections of the heart belong to mankind, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD.

²All a person’s ways seem right to him, but the LORD weighs motives.

³Commit your activities to the LORD, and your plans will be established.

⁴The LORD has prepared everything for his purpose — even the wicked for the day of disaster.

⁵Everyone with a proud heart is detestable to the LORD; be assured, he will not go unpunished.

⁶Iniquity is atoned for by loyalty and faithfulness, and one turns from evil by the fear of the LORD.

⁷When a person’s ways please the LORD, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

⁸Better a little with righteousness than great income with injustice.

⁹A person’s heart plans his way, but the LORD determines his steps.

¹⁰God’s verdict is on the lips of a king; his mouth should not give an unfair judgment.

¹¹Honest balances and scales are the LORD’s; all the weights in the bag are his concern.

¹²Wicked behavior is detestable to kings, since a throne is established through righteousness.

¹³Righteous lips are a king’s delight, and he loves one who speaks honestly.

¹⁴A king’s fury is a messenger of death, but a wise person appeases it.

¹⁵When a king’s face lights up, there is life; his favor is like a cloud with spring rain.

¹⁶Get wisdom — how much better it is than gold! And get understanding — it is preferable to silver.

¹⁷The highway of the upright avoids evil; the one who guards his way protects his life.

¹⁸Pride comes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall.

¹⁹Better to be lowly of spirit with the humble than to divide plunder with the proud.

²⁰The one who understands a matter finds success, and the one who trusts in the LORD will be happy.

²¹Anyone with a wise heart is called discerning, and pleasant speech increases learning.

²²Insight is a fountain of life for its possessor, but the discipline of fools is folly.

²³The heart of a wise person instructs his mouth; it adds learning to his speech.

²⁴Pleasant words are a honeycomb: sweet to the taste and health to the body.

²⁵There is a way that seems right to a person, but its end is the way to death.

²⁶A worker’s appetite works for him because his hunger urges him on.

²⁷A worthless person digs up evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire.

²⁸A contrary person spreads conflict, and a gossip separates close friends.

²⁹A violent person lures his neighbor, leading him on a path that is not good.

³⁰The one who narrows his eyes is planning deceptions; the one who compresses his lips brings about evil.

³¹Gray hair is a glorious crown; it is found in the ways of righteousness.

³²Patience is better than power, and controlling one’s emotions, than capturing a city.

³³The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.

¹The allotment for the descendants of Joseph went from the Jordan at Jericho to the Waters of Jericho on the east, through the wilderness ascending from Jericho into the hill country of Bethel.

²From Bethel it went to Luz and proceeded to the border of the Archites by Ataroth.

³It then descended westward to the border of the Japhletites as far as the border of lower Beth-horon, then to Gezer, and ended at the Mediterranean Sea.

⁴So Ephraim and Manasseh, the sons of Joseph, received their inheritance.

⁵This was the territory of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans: The border of their inheritance went from Ataroth-addar on the east to Upper Beth-horon.

⁶In the north the border went westward from Michmethath; it turned eastward from Taanath-shiloh and passed it east of Janoah.

⁷From Janoah it descended to Ataroth and Naarah, and then reached Jericho and went to the Jordan.

⁸From Tappuah the border went westward along the Brook of Kanah and ended at the Mediterranean Sea. This was the inheritance of the tribe of the descendants of Ephraim by their clans, together with

⁹the cities set apart for the descendants of Ephraim within the inheritance of the descendants of Manasseh — all these cities with their settlements.

¹⁰However, they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer. So the Canaanites still live in Ephraim today, but they are forced laborers.

¹Send lambs to the ruler of the land, from Sela in the desert to the mountain of Daughter Zion.

²Like a bird fleeing, forced from the nest, the daughters of Moab will be at the fords of the Arnon.

³Give us counsel and make a decision. Shelter us at noonday with shade that is as dark as night. Hide the refugees; do not betray the one who flees.

⁴Let my refugees stay with you; be a refuge for Moab from the aggressor. When the oppressor has gone, destruction has ended, and marauders have vanished from the land,

⁵a throne will be established in love, and one will sit on it faithfully in the tent of David, judging and pursuing what is right, quick to execute justice.

⁶We have heard of Moab’s pride  — how very proud he is — his haughtiness, his pride, his arrogance, and his empty boasting.

⁷Therefore let Moab wail; let every one of them wail for Moab. You who are completely devastated, mourn for the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth.

⁸For Heshbon’s terraced vineyards and the grapevines of Sibmah have withered. The rulers of the nations have trampled its choice vines that reached as far as Jazer and spread to the desert. Their shoots spread out and reached the sea.

⁹So I join with Jazer to weep for the vines of Sibmah; I drench Heshbon and Elealeh with my tears. Triumphant shouts have fallen silent over your summer fruit and your harvest.

¹⁰Joy and rejoicing have been removed from the orchard; no one is singing or shouting for joy in the vineyards. No one tramples grapes in the winepresses. I have put an end to the shouting.

¹¹Therefore I moan like the sound of a lyre for Moab, as does my innermost being for Kir-heres.

¹²When Moab appears and tires himself out on the high place and comes to his sanctuary to pray, it will do him no good.

¹³This is the message that the LORD previously announced about Moab.

¹⁴And now the LORD says, “In three years, as a hired worker counts years, Moab’s splendor will become an object of contempt, in spite of a very large population. And those who are left will be few and weak.”

¹Paul went on to Derbe and Lystra, where there was a disciple named Timothy, the son of a believing Jewish woman, but his father was a Greek.

²The brothers and sisters at Lystra and Iconium spoke highly of him.

³Paul wanted Timothy to go with him; so he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, since they all knew that his father was a Greek.

⁴As they traveled through the towns, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders at Jerusalem for the people to observe.

⁵So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.

⁶They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia; they had been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.

⁷When they came to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.

⁸Passing by Mysia they went down to Troas.

⁹During the night Paul had a vision in which a Macedonian man was standing and pleading with him, “Cross over to Macedonia and help us!”

¹⁰After he had seen the vision, we immediately made efforts to set out for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.

¹¹From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, the next day to Neapolis,

¹²and from there to Philippi, a Roman colony and a leading city of the district of Macedonia. We stayed in that city for several days.

¹³On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate by the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and spoke to the women gathered there.

¹⁴A God-fearing woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, was listening. The Lord opened her heart to respond to what Paul was saying.

¹⁵After she and her household were baptized, she urged us, “If you consider me a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.

¹⁶Once, as we were on our way to prayer, a slave girl met us who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She made a large profit for her owners by fortune-telling.

¹⁷As she followed Paul and us she cried out, “These men, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation, are the servants of the Most High God.”

¹⁸She did this for many days. Paul was greatly annoyed. Turning to the spirit, he said, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out right away.

¹⁹When her owners realized that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities.

²⁰Bringing them before the chief magistrates, they said, “These men are seriously disturbing our city. They are Jews

²¹and are promoting customs that are not legal for us as Romans to adopt or practice.”

²²The crowd joined in the attack against them, and the chief magistrates stripped off their clothes and ordered them to be beaten with rods.

²³After they had severely flogged them, they threw them in jail, ordering the jailer to guard them carefully.

²⁴Receiving such an order, he put them into the inner prison and secured their feet in the stocks.

²⁵About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

²⁶Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the jail were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s chains came loose.

²⁷When the jailer woke up and saw the doors of the prison standing open, he drew his sword and was going to kill himself, since he thought the prisoners had escaped.

²⁸But Paul called out in a loud voice, “Don’t harm yourself, because we’re all here!”

²⁹The jailer called for lights, rushed in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas.

³⁰He escorted them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

³¹They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved — you and your household.”

³²And they spoke the word of the Lord to him along with everyone in his house.

³³He took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds. Right away he and all his family were baptized.

³⁴He brought them into his house, set a meal before them, and rejoiced because he had come to believe in God with his entire household.

³⁵When daylight came, the chief magistrates sent the police to say, “Release those men.”

³⁶The jailer reported these words to Paul: “The magistrates have sent orders for you to be released. So come out now and go in peace.”

³⁷But Paul said to them, “They beat us in public without a trial, although we are Roman citizens, and threw us in jail. And now are they going to send us away secretly? Certainly not! On the contrary, let them come themselves and escort us out.”

³⁸The police reported these words to the magistrates. They were afraid when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens.

³⁹So they came to appease them, and escorting them from prison, they urged them to leave town.

⁴⁰After leaving the jail, they came to Lydia’s house, where they saw and encouraged the brothers and sisters, and departed.