Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹“These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble.

²They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service.

³And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me.

⁴But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them. And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you.

⁵“But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’

⁶But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.

⁷Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.

⁸And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

⁹of sin, because they do not believe in Me;

¹⁰of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more;

¹¹of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

¹²“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.

¹³However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.

¹⁴He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.

¹⁵All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.

¹⁶“A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father.”

¹⁷Then some of His disciples said among themselves, “What is this that He says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’; and, ‘because I go to the Father’?”

¹⁸They said therefore, “What is this that He says, ‘A little while’? We do not know what He is saying.”

¹⁹Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, “Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, ‘A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me’?

²⁰Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.

²¹A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.

²²Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.

²³“And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.

²⁴Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.

²⁵“These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father.

²⁶In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you;

²⁷for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.

²⁸I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the Father.”

²⁹His disciples said to Him, “See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech!

³⁰Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this we believe that You came forth from God.”

³¹Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe?

³²Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.

³³These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

¹“When you go out to battle against your enemies, and see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them; for the LORD your God is with you, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.

²So it shall be, when you are on the verge of battle, that the priest shall approach and speak to the people.

³And he shall say to them, ‘Hear, O Israel: Today you are on the verge of battle with your enemies. Do not let your heart faint, do not be afraid, and do not tremble or be terrified because of them;

⁴for the LORD your God is He who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.’

⁵“Then the officers shall speak to the people, saying: ‘What man is there who has built a new house and has not dedicated it? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man dedicate it.

⁶Also what man is there who has planted a vineyard and has not eaten of it? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man eat of it.

⁷And what man is there who is betrothed to a woman and has not married her? Let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle and another man marry her.’

⁸“The officers shall speak further to the people, and say, ‘What man is there who is fearful and fainthearted? Let him go and return to his house, lest the heart of his brethren faint like his heart.’

⁹And so it shall be, when the officers have finished speaking to the people, that they shall make captains of the armies to lead the people.

¹⁰“When you go near a city to fight against it, then proclaim an offer of peace to it.

¹¹And it shall be that if they accept your offer of peace, and open to you, then all the people who are found in it shall be placed under tribute to you, and serve you.

¹²Now if the city will not make peace with you, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it.

¹³And when the LORD your God delivers it into your hands, you shall strike every male in it with the edge of the sword.

¹⁴But the women, the little ones, the livestock, and all that is in the city, all its spoil, you shall plunder for yourself; and you shall eat the enemies’ plunder which the LORD your God gives you.

¹⁵Thus you shall do to all the cities which are very far from you, which are not of the cities of these nations.

¹⁶“But of the cities of these peoples which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance, you shall let nothing that breathes remain alive,

¹⁷but you shall utterly destroy them: the Hittite and the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite, just as the LORD your God has commanded you,

¹⁸lest they teach you to do according to all their abominations which they have done for their gods, and you sin against the LORD your God.

¹⁹“When you besiege a city for a long time, while making war against it to take it, you shall not destroy its trees by wielding an ax against them; if you can eat of them, do not cut them down to use in the siege, for the tree of the field is man’s food.

²⁰Only the trees which you know are not trees for food you may destroy and cut down, to build siegeworks against the city that makes war with you, until it is subdued.

¹Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

²To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

³Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁴I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus,

⁵that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge,

⁶even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you,

⁷so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,

⁸who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁹God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

¹⁰Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

¹¹For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are contentions among you.

¹²Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.”

¹³Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

¹⁴I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,

¹⁵lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name.

¹⁶Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other.

¹⁷For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.

¹⁸For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

¹⁹For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”

²⁰Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

²¹For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

²²For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom;

²³but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness,

²⁴but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

²⁵Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

²⁶For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.

²⁷But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty;

²⁸and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are,

²⁹that no flesh should glory in His presence.

³⁰But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption—

³¹that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the LORD.”

¹Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ:

²Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.

³Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.

⁴For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁵But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.

⁶And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day;

⁷as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

⁸Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries.

⁹Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”

¹⁰But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves.

¹¹Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.

¹²These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots;

¹³raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.

¹⁴Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints,

¹⁵to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”

¹⁶These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and they mouth great swelling words, flattering people to gain advantage.

¹⁷But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ:

¹⁸how they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts.

¹⁹These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit.

²⁰But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,

²¹keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

²²And on some have compassion, making a distinction;

²³but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh.

²⁴Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,

²⁵To God our Savior, Who alone is wise, Be glory and majesty, Dominion and power, Both now and forever. Amen.

¹A good name is better than precious ointment, And the day of death than the day of one’s birth;

²Better to go to the house of mourning Than to go to the house of feasting, For that is the end of all men; And the living will take it to heart.

³Sorrow is better than laughter, For by a sad countenance the heart is made better.

⁴The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, But the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

⁵It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise Than for a man to hear the song of fools.

⁶For like the crackling of thorns under a pot, So is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.

⁷Surely oppression destroys a wise man’s reason, And a bribe debases the heart.

⁸The end of a thing is better than its beginning; The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

⁹Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, For anger rests in the bosom of fools.

¹⁰Do not say, “Why were the former days better than these?” For you do not inquire wisely concerning this.

¹¹Wisdom is good with an inheritance, And profitable to those who see the sun.

¹²For wisdom is a defense as money is a defense, But the excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it.

¹³Consider the work of God; For who can make straight what He has made crooked?

¹⁴In the day of prosperity be joyful, But in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, So that man can find out nothing that will come after him.

¹⁵I have seen everything in my days of vanity: There is a just man who perishes in his righteousness, And there is a wicked man who prolongs life in his wickedness.

¹⁶Do not be overly righteous, Nor be overly wise: Why should you destroy yourself?

¹⁷Do not be overly wicked, Nor be foolish: Why should you die before your time?

¹⁸It is good that you grasp this, And also not remove your hand from the other; For he who fears God will escape them all.

¹⁹Wisdom strengthens the wise More than ten rulers of the city.

²⁰For there is not a just man on earth who does good And does not sin.

²¹Also do not take to heart everything people say, Lest you hear your servant cursing you.

²²For many times, also, your own heart has known That even you have cursed others.

²³All this I have proved by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise”; But it was far from me.

²⁴As for that which is far off and exceedingly deep, Who can find it out?

²⁵I applied my heart to know, To search and seek out wisdom and the reason of things, To know the wickedness of folly, Even of foolishness and madness.

²⁶And I find more bitter than death The woman whose heart is snares and nets, Whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God shall escape from her, But the sinner shall be trapped by her.

²⁷Here is what I have found,” says the Preacher, “Adding one thing to the other to find out the reason,

²⁸Which my soul still seeks but I cannot find: One man among a thousand I have found, But a woman among all these I have not found.

²⁹Truly, this only I have found: That God made man upright, But they have sought out many schemes.”

¹A Psalm of David. [1] The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

²He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.

³He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.

⁴Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

⁵You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.

⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.

¹A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; He rages against all wise judgment.

²A fool has no delight in understanding, But in expressing his own heart.

³When the wicked comes, contempt comes also; And with dishonor comes reproach.

⁴The words of a man’s mouth are deep waters; The wellspring of wisdom is a flowing brook.

⁵It is not good to show partiality to the wicked, Or to overthrow the righteous in judgment.

⁶A fool’s lips enter into contention, And his mouth calls for blows.

⁷A fool’s mouth is his destruction, And his lips are the snare of his soul.

⁸The words of a talebearer are like tasty trifles, And they go down into the inmost body.

⁹He who is slothful in his work Is a brother to him who is a great destroyer.

¹⁰The name of the LORD is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe.

¹¹The rich man’s wealth is his strong city, And like a high wall in his own esteem.

¹²Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty, And before honor is humility.

¹³He who answers a matter before he hears it, It is folly and shame to him.

¹⁴The spirit of a man will sustain him in sickness, But who can bear a broken spirit?

¹⁵The heart of the prudent acquires knowledge, And the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.

¹⁶A man’s gift makes room for him, And brings him before great men.

¹⁷The first one to plead his cause seems right, Until his neighbor comes and examines him.

¹⁸Casting lots causes contentions to cease, And keeps the mighty apart.

¹⁹A brother offended is harder to win than a strong city, And contentions are like the bars of a castle.

²⁰A man’s stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth; From the produce of his lips he shall be filled.

²¹Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.

²²He who finds a wife finds a good thing, And obtains favor from the LORD.

²³The poor man uses entreaties, But the rich answers roughly.

²⁴A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

¹Then David said, “This is the house of the LORD God, and this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel.”

²So David commanded to gather the aliens who were in the land of Israel; and he appointed masons to cut hewn stones to build the house of God.

³And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails of the doors of the gates and for the joints, and bronze in abundance beyond measure,

⁴and cedar trees in abundance; for the Sidonians and those from Tyre brought much cedar wood to David.

⁵Now David said, “Solomon my son is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the LORD must be exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious throughout all countries. I will now make preparation for it.” So David made abundant preparations before his death.

⁶Then he called for his son Solomon, and charged him to build a house for the LORD God of Israel.

⁷And David said to Solomon: “My son, as for me, it was in my mind to build a house to the name of the LORD my God;

⁸but the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘You have shed much blood and have made great wars; you shall not build a house for My name, because you have shed much blood on the earth in My sight.

⁹Behold, a son shall be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies all around. His name shall be Solomon, for I will give peace and quietness to Israel in his days.

¹⁰He shall build a house for My name, and he shall be My son, and I will be his Father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.’

¹¹Now, my son, may the LORD be with you; and may you prosper, and build the house of the LORD your God, as He has said to you.

¹²Only may the LORD give you wisdom and understanding, and give you charge concerning Israel, that you may keep the law of the LORD your God.

¹³Then you will prosper, if you take care to fulfill the statutes and judgments with which the LORD charged Moses concerning Israel. Be strong and of good courage; do not fear nor be dismayed.

¹⁴Indeed I have taken much trouble to prepare for the house of the LORD one hundred thousand talents of gold and one million talents of silver, and bronze and iron beyond measure, for it is so abundant. I have prepared timber and stone also, and you may add to them.

¹⁵Moreover there are workmen with you in abundance: woodsmen and stonecutters, and all types of skillful men for every kind of work.

¹⁶Of gold and silver and bronze and iron there is no limit. Arise and begin working, and the LORD be with you.”

¹⁷David also commanded all the leaders of Israel to help Solomon his son, saying,

¹⁸“Is not the LORD your God with you? And has He not given you rest on every side? For He has given the inhabitants of the land into my hand, and the land is subdued before the LORD and before His people.

¹⁹Now set your heart and your soul to seek the LORD your God. Therefore arise and build the sanctuary of the LORD God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD and the holy articles of God into the house that is to be built for the name of the LORD.”

¹Now in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; and his spirit was so troubled that his sleep left him.

²Then the king gave the command to call the magicians, the astrologers, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans to tell the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king.

³And the king said to them, “I have had a dream, and my spirit is anxious to know the dream.”

⁴Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will give the interpretation.”

⁵The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “My decision is firm: if you do not make known the dream to me, and its interpretation, you shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made an ash heap.

⁶However, if you tell the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts, rewards, and great honor. Therefore tell me the dream and its interpretation.”

⁷They answered again and said, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will give its interpretation.”

⁸The king answered and said, “I know for certain that you would gain time, because you see that my decision is firm:

⁹if you do not make known the dream to me, there is only one decree for you! For you have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the time has changed. Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can give me its interpretation.”

¹⁰The Chaldeans answered the king, and said, “There is not a man on earth who can tell the king’s matter; therefore no king, lord, or ruler has ever asked such things of any magician, astrologer, or Chaldean.

¹¹It is a difficult thing that the king requests, and there is no other who can tell it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”

¹²For this reason the king was angry and very furious, and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.

¹³So the decree went out, and they began killing the wise men; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them.

¹⁴Then with counsel and wisdom Daniel answered Arioch, the captain of the king’s guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon;

¹⁵he answered and said to Arioch the king’s captain, “Why is the decree from the king so urgent?” Then Arioch made the decision known to Daniel.

¹⁶So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell the king the interpretation.

¹⁷Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions,

¹⁸that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

¹⁹Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

²⁰Daniel answered and said: “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His.

²¹And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding.

²²He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him.

²³“I thank You and praise You, O God of my fathers; You have given me wisdom and might, And have now made known to me what we asked of You, For You have made known to us the king’s demand.”

²⁴Therefore Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He went and said thus to him: “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; take me before the king, and I will tell the king the interpretation.”

²⁵Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel before the king, and said thus to him, “I have found a man of the captives of Judah, who will make known to the king the interpretation.”

²⁶The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen, and its interpretation?”

²⁷Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, “The secret which the king has demanded, the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king.

²⁸But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these:

²⁹As for you, O king, thoughts came to your mind while on your bed, about what would come to pass after this; and He who reveals secrets has made known to you what will be.

³⁰But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me because I have more wisdom than anyone living, but for our sakes who make known the interpretation to the king, and that you may know the thoughts of your heart.

³¹“You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome.

³²This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze,

³³its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.

³⁴You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces.

³⁵Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

³⁶“This is the dream. Now we will tell the interpretation of it before the king.

³⁷You, O king, are a king of kings. For the God of heaven has given you a kingdom, power, strength, and glory;

³⁸and wherever the children of men dwell, or the beasts of the field and the birds of the heaven, He has given them into your hand, and has made you ruler over them all— you are this head of gold.

³⁹But after you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours; then another, a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.

⁴⁰And the fourth kingdom shall be as strong as iron, inasmuch as iron breaks in pieces and shatters everything; and like iron that crushes, that kingdom will break in pieces and crush all the others.

⁴¹Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay.

⁴²And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile.

⁴³As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay.

⁴⁴And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.

⁴⁵Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold—the great God has made known to the king what will come to pass after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure.”

⁴⁶Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face, prostrate before Daniel, and commanded that they should present an offering and incense to him.

⁴⁷The king answered Daniel, and said, “Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret.”

⁴⁸Then the king promoted Daniel and gave him many great gifts; and he made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon.

⁴⁹Also Daniel petitioned the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel sat in the gate of the king.

¹But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession.

²And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

³But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself?

⁴While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.”

⁵Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things.

⁶And the young men arose and wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him.

⁷Now it was about three hours later when his wife came in, not knowing what had happened.

⁸And Peter answered her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much?” She said, “Yes, for so much.”

⁹Then Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.”

¹⁰Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. And the young men came in and found her dead, and carrying her out, buried her by her husband.

¹¹So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things.

¹²And through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people. And they were all with one accord in Solomon’s Porch.

¹³Yet none of the rest dared join them, but the people esteemed them highly.

¹⁴And believers were increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women,

¹⁵so that they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them.

¹⁶Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.

¹⁷Then the high priest rose up, and all those who were with him (which is the sect of the Sadducees), and they were filled with indignation,

¹⁸and laid their hands on the apostles and put them in the common prison.

¹⁹But at night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said,

²⁰“Go, stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this life.”

²¹And when they heard that, they entered the temple early in the morning and taught. But the high priest and those with him came and called the council together, with all the elders of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.

²²But when the officers came and did not find them in the prison, they returned and reported,

²³saying, “Indeed we found the prison shut securely, and the guards standing outside before the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside!”

²⁴Now when the high priest, the captain of the temple, and the chief priests heard these things, they wondered what the outcome would be.

²⁵So one came and told them, saying, “Look, the men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people!”

²⁶Then the captain went with the officers and brought them without violence, for they feared the people, lest they should be stoned.

²⁷And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them,

²⁸saying, “Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name? And look, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this Man’s blood on us!”

²⁹But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men.

³⁰The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree.

³¹Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.

³²And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him.”

³³When they heard this, they were furious and plotted to kill them.

³⁴Then one in the council stood up, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people, and commanded them to put the apostles outside for a little while.

³⁵And he said to them: “Men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men.

³⁶For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was slain, and all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing.

³⁷After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census, and drew away many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed.

³⁸And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing;

³⁹but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God.”

⁴⁰And they agreed with him, and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.

⁴¹So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.

⁴²And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.