Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹When Jesus had spoken these words, He went away with His disciples across the ravine of the Kidron, where there was a garden which He entered with His disciples.

²Now Judas, who was betraying Him, also knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with His disciples.

³So Judas, having obtained the Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, *came there with lanterns, torches, and weapons.

⁴Jesus therefore, knowing all the things that were coming upon Him, came out into the open and *said to them, “Whom are you seeking?”

⁵They answered Him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He *said to them, “I am He.” And Judas also, who was betraying Him, was standing with them.

⁶Now then, when He said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground.

⁷He then asked them again, “Whom are you seeking?” And they said, “Jesus the Nazarene.”

⁸Jesus answered, “I told you that I am He; so if you are seeking Me, let these men go on their way.”

⁹This took place so that the word which He spoke would be fulfilled: “Of those whom You have given Me I lost not one.”

¹⁰Then Simon Peter, since he had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear; and the slave’s name was Malchus.

¹¹So Jesus said to Peter, “Put the sword into the sheath; the cup which the Father has given Me, am I not to drink it?”

¹²So the Roman cohort, the commander, and the officers of the Jews arrested Jesus and bound Him,

¹³and brought Him to Annas first; for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year.

¹⁴Now Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it was in their best interest for one man to die in behalf of the people.

¹⁵Simon Peter was following Jesus, and so was another disciple. Now that disciple was known to the high priest, and he entered with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest,

¹⁶but Peter was standing at the door outside. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the doorkeeper, and brought Peter in.

¹⁷Then the slave woman who was the doorkeeper *said to Peter, “You are not also one of this Man’s disciples, are you?” He *said, “I am not.”

¹⁸Now the slaves and the officers were standing there, having made a charcoal fire, for it was cold and they were warming themselves; and Peter was also with them, standing and warming himself.

¹⁹The high priest then questioned Jesus about His disciples, and about His teaching.

²⁰Jesus answered him, “I have spoken openly to the world; I always taught insynagogues and in the temple area, where all the Jews congregate; and I said nothing in secret.

²¹Why are you asking Me? Ask those who have heard what I spoke to them. Look: these people know what I said.”

²²But when He said this, one of the officers, who was standing nearby, struck Jesus, saying, “Is that the way You answer the high priest?”

²³Jesus answered him, “If I have spoken wrongly, testify of the wrong; but if rightly, why do you strike Me?”

²⁴So Annas sent Him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.

²⁵Now Simon Peter was still standing and warming himself. So they said to him, “You are not one of His disciples as well, are you?” He denied it, and said, “I am not.”

²⁶One of the slaves of the high priest, who was related to the one whose ear Peter cut off, *said, “Did I not see you in the garden with Him?”

²⁷Peter then denied it again, and immediately a rooster crowed.

²⁸Then they *brought Jesus from Caiaphas into the Praetorium, and it was early; and they themselves did not enter the Praetorium, so that they would not be defiled, but might eat the Passover.

²⁹Therefore Pilate came out to them and *said, “What accusation are you bringing against this Man?”

³⁰They answered and said to him, “If this Man were not a criminal, we would not have handed Him over to you.”

³¹So Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves, and judge Him according to your law.” The Jews said to him, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death.”

³²This happened so that the word of Jesus which He said, indicating what kind of death He was going to die, would be fulfilled.

³³Therefore Pilate entered the Praetorium again, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, “You are the King of the Jews?”

³⁴Jesus answered, “Are you saying thison your own, or did others tell you about Me?”

³⁵Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed You over to me; what have You done?”

³⁶Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is notof this realm.”

³⁷Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this purpose I have been born, and for this I have come into the world: to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to My voice.”

³⁸Pilate *said to Him, “What is truth?” And after saying this, he came out again to the Jews and *said to them, “I find no grounds at all for charges in His case.

³⁹However, you have a custom that I release one prisoner for you at the Passover; therefore do you wish that I release for you the King of the Jews?”

⁴⁰So they shouted again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas.” Now Barabbas was a rebel.

¹“You shall not see your countryman’s ox or his sheep straying away, and avoid them; you shall certainly bring them back to your countryman.

²And if your countryman is not near you, or if you do not know him, then you shall bring it to your house, and it shall remain with you until your countryman looks for it; then you shall restore it to him.

³You shall also do this with his donkey, and you shall do the same with his garment, and you shall do likewise with any lost property of your countryman, which has been lost by him and you have found. You are not allowed to avoid them.

⁴You shall not see your countryman’s donkey or his ox fallen down on the road, and avoid them; you shall certainly help him raise them up.

⁵“A woman shall not wear a man’s clothing, nor shall a man put on a woman’s clothing; for whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD your God.

⁶“If you happen to come upon a bird’s nest along the way, in any tree or on the ground, with young ones or eggs in it, and the mother sitting on the young or on the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young;

⁷you shall certainly let the mother go, but the young you may take for yourself, in order that it may go well for you and that you may prolong your days.

⁸“When you build a new house, you shall make a parapet for your roof, so that you will not bring guilt for bloodshed on your house if anyone falls from it.

⁹“You shall not sow your vineyard with two kinds of seed, otherwise all the produce of the seed which you have sown and the yield of the vineyard will be forfeited to the sanctuary.

¹⁰“You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together.

¹¹“You shall not wear a material of wool and linen combined together.

¹²“You shall make yourself tassels on the four corners of your garment with which you cover yourself.

¹³“If any man takes a wife and goes in to her and then turns against her,

¹⁴and he charges her with shameful behavior and publicly defames her, and says, ‘I took this woman, but when I came near her, I did not find her to have evidence of virginity,’

¹⁵then the girl’s father and her mother shall take and bring out the evidence of the girl’s virginity to the elders of the city at the gate.

¹⁶And the girl’s father shall say to the elders, ‘I gave my daughter to this man as a wife, but he turned against her;

¹⁷and behold, he has charged her with shameful behavior, saying, “I did not find your daughter to have evidence of virginity.” But this is the evidence of my daughter’s virginity.’ And they shall spread out the garment before the elders of the city.

¹⁸Then the elders of that city shall take the man and rebuke him,

¹⁹and they shall fine him a hundred shekels of silver and give it to the girl’s father, because he publicly defamed a virgin of Israel. And she shall remain his wife; he is not allowed to divorce her all his days.

²⁰“But if this charge is true, and they did not find the girl to have evidence of virginity,

²¹then they shall bring the girl out to the doorway of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death, because she has committed a disgraceful sin in Israel by playing the prostitute in her father’s house; so you shall eliminate the evil from among you.

²²“If a man is found sleeping with a married woman, then both of them shall die, the man who slept with the woman, and the woman; so you shall eliminate the evil from Israel.

²³“If there is a girl who is a virgin betrothed to a man, and another man finds her in the city and sleeps with her,

²⁴then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city and you shall stone them to death: the girl, because she did not cry out for help though she was in the city, and the man, because he has violated his neighbor’s wife. So you shall eliminate the evil from among you.

²⁵“But if the man finds the girl who is betrothed in the field, and the man seizes her and rapes her, then only the man who raped her shall die.

²⁶And you are not to do anything to the girl; there is no sin in the girl worthy of death, for just as a man rises against his neighbor and murders him, so is this case.

²⁷When he found her in the field, the betrothed girl cried out, but there was no one to save her.

²⁸“If a man finds a girl who is a virgin, who is not betrothed, and he seizes her and has sexual relations with her, and they are discovered,

²⁹then the man who had sexual relations with her shall give the girl’s father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall become his wife, because he has violated her; he is not allowed to divorce her all his days.

³⁰“A man shall not take his father’s wife in marriage, so that he does not uncover his father’s garment.

¹And I, brothers and sisters, could not speak to you as spiritual people, but only as fleshly, as to infants in Christ.

²I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to consume it. But even now you are not yet able,

³for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like ordinary people?

⁴For when one person says, “I am with Paul,” and another, “I am with Apollos,” are you not ordinary people?

⁵What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one.

⁶I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth.

⁷So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth.

⁸Now the one who plants and the one who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor.

⁹For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.

¹⁰According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each person must be careful how he builds on it.

¹¹For no one can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

¹²Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw,

¹³each one’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each one’s work.

¹⁴If anyone’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.

¹⁵If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only so as through fire.

¹⁶Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

¹⁷If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will destroy that person; for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are.

¹⁸Take care that no one deceives himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise.

¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the sight of God. For it is written: “He is THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE WISE BY THEIR CRAFTINESS”;

²⁰and again, “THE LORD KNOWS THE THOUGHTS of the wise, THAT THEY ARE useless.”

²¹So then, no one is to be boasting in people. For all things belong to you,

²²whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the world or life or death, or things present or things to come; all things belong to you,

²³and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.

¹“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:

²‘I know your deeds and your labor and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil people, and you have put those who call themselves apostles to the test, and they are not, and you found them to be false;

³and you haveperseverance and have endured on account of My name, and have not become weary.

⁴But I have this against you, that you have left your first love.

⁵Therefore, remember from where you have fallen, and repent, and do thedeeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and I will remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.

⁶But you have this, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

⁷The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who overcomes, I will grant to eat from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.’

⁸“And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says this:

⁹‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich), and the slander by those who say they are Jews, and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

¹⁰Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days.Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.

¹¹The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death.’

¹²“And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this:

¹³‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is; and you hold firmly to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.

¹⁴But I have a few things against you, because you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put astumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit sexual immorality.

¹⁵So you too, have some who in the same way hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.

¹⁶Therefore repent; or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will wage war against them with the sword of My mouth.

¹⁷The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows except the one who receives it.’

¹⁸“And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: The Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and feet like burnished bronze, says this:

¹⁹‘I know your deeds, and your love and faith, and service and perseverance, and that your deeds of late are greater than at first.

²⁰But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.

²¹I gave her time to repent, and she does not want to repent of her sexual immorality.

²²Behold, I will throw her on a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent ofher deeds.

²³And I will kill her children withplague, and all the churches will know that I am He who searches theminds and hearts; and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds.

²⁴But I say to you, the rest who are in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not known the deep things of Satan, as they call them—I place no other burden on you.

²⁵Nevertheless what you have, hold firmly until I come.

²⁶The one who overcomes, and the one who keeps My deeds until the end, I will give him authority over thenations;

²⁷AND HE SHALLRULE THEM WITH A ROD OF IRON, AS THE VESSELS OF THE POTTER ARE SHATTERED, as I also have received authority from My Father;

²⁸and I will give him the morning star.

²⁹The one who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’

¹For I have taken all this to my heart, even to examine it all, that righteous people, wise people, and their deeds are in the hand of God. People do not know whether it will be love or hatred; anything awaits them.

²It is the same for all. There is one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and the unclean; for the person who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good person is, so is the sinner; the one who swears an oath is just as the one who is afraid to swear an oath.

³This is an evil in everything that is done under the sun, that there is one fate for everyone. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of mankind are full of evil, and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterward they go to the dead.

⁴For whoever is joined to all the living, there is hope; for better a live dog, than a dead lion.

⁵For the living know that they will die; but the dead do not know anything, nor do they have a reward any longer, for their memory is forgotten.

⁶Indeed their love, their hate, and their zeal have already perished, and they will no longer have a share in all that is done under the sun.

⁷Go then, eat your bread in happiness, and drink your wine with a cheerful heart; for God has already approved your works.

⁸See that your clothes are white all the time, and that there is no lack of oil on your head.

⁹Enjoy life with the wife whom you love all the days of your futile life which He has given you under the sun, all the days of your futility; for this is your reward in life and in your work which you have labored under the sun.

¹⁰Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity, planning, knowledge, or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.

¹¹I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise nor wealth to the discerning, nor favor to the skillful; for time and chance overtake them all.

¹²For indeed, a person does not know his time: like fish that are caught in a treacherous net and birds caught in a snare, so the sons of mankind are ensnared at an evil time when it suddenly falls on them.

¹³This too I saw as wisdom under the sun, and it impressed me:

¹⁴there was a small city with few men in it, and a great king came to it, surrounded it, and constructed large siegeworks against it.

¹⁵But there was found in it a poor wise man, and he saved the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man.

¹⁶So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are ignored.

¹⁷The words of the wise heard in calm are better than the shouting of a ruler among fools.

¹⁸Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.

¹To You, LORD, I lift up my soul.

²My God, in You I trust, Do not let me be ashamed; Do not let my enemies rejoice over me.

³Indeed, none of those who wait for You will be ashamed; Those who deal treacherously without cause will be ashamed.

⁴Make me know Your ways, LORD; Teach me Your paths.

⁵Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; For You I wait all the day.

⁶Remember, LORD, Your compassion and Your faithfulness, For they have been from of old.

⁷Do not remember the sins of my youth or my wrongdoings; Remember me according to Your faithfulness, For Your goodness’ sake, LORD.

⁸The LORD is good and upright; Therefore He instructs sinners in the way.

⁹He leads the humble in justice, And He teaches the humble His way.

¹⁰All the paths of the LORD are faithfulness and truth To those who comply with His covenant and His testimonies.

¹¹For the sake of Your name, LORD, Forgive my wrongdoing, for it is great.

¹²Who is the person who fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the way he should choose.

¹³His soul will dwell in prosperity, And his descendants will inherit the land.

¹⁴The secret of the LORD is for those who fear Him, And He will make them know His covenant.

¹⁵My eyes are continually toward the LORD, For He will rescue my feet from the net.

¹⁶Turn to me and be gracious to me, For I am lonely and afflicted.

¹⁷The troubles of my heart are enlarged; Bring me out of my distresses.

¹⁸Look at my misery and my trouble, And forgive all my sins.

¹⁹Look at my enemies, for they are many, And they hate me with violent hatred.

²⁰Guard my soul and save me; Do not let me be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.

²¹Let integrity and uprightness protect me, For I wait for You.

²²Redeem Israel, God, From all his distress.

¹Wine is a mocker, intoxicating drink a brawler, And whoever is intoxicated by it is not wise.

²The terror of a king is like the roaring of a lion; One who provokes him to anger forfeits his own life.

³Avoiding strife is an honor for a person, But any fool will quarrel.

⁴The lazy one does not plow after the autumn, So he begs during the harvest and has nothing.

⁵A plan in the heart of a person is like deep water, But a person of understanding draws it out.

⁶Many a person proclaims his own loyalty, But who can find a trustworthy person?

⁷A righteous person who walks in his integrity— How blessed are his sons after him.

⁸A king who sits on the throne of justice Disperses all evil with his eyes.

⁹Who can say, “I have cleansed my heart, I am pure from my sin”?

¹⁰Differing weights and differing measures, Both of them are abominable to the LORD.

¹¹It is by his deeds that a boy distinguishes himself, If his conduct is pure and right.

¹²The hearing ear and the seeing eye, The LORD has made both of them.

¹³Do not love sleep, or you will become poor; Open your eyes, and you will be satisfied with food.

¹⁴“Bad, bad,” says the buyer, But when he goes his way, then he boasts.

¹⁵There is gold, and an abundance of jewels; But lips of knowledge are a more precious thing.

¹⁶Take his garment when he becomes guarantor for a stranger; And for foreigners, seize a pledge from him.

¹⁷Bread obtained by a lie is sweet to a person, But afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel.

¹⁸Prepare plans by consultation, And make war by wise guidance.

¹⁹One who goes about as a slanderer reveals secrets; Therefore do not associate with a gossip.

²⁰He who curses his father or his mother, His lamp will go out in time of darkness.

²¹An inheritance gained in a hurry at the beginning Will not be blessed in the end.

²²Do not say, “I will repay evil”; Wait for the LORD, and He will save you.

²³Differing weights are an abomination to the LORD, And a false scale is not good.

²⁴A man’s steps are ordained by the LORD; How then can a person understand his way?

²⁵It is a trap for a person to say carelessly, “It is holy!” And after the vows to make inquiry.

²⁶A wise king scatters the wicked, And drives a threshing wheel over them.

²⁷The spirit of a person is the lamp of the LORD, Searching all the innermost parts of his being.

²⁸Loyalty and truth watch over the king, And he upholds his throne by loyalty.

²⁹The glory of young men is their strength, And the honor of old men is their gray hair.

³⁰Bruising wounds clean away evil, And blows cleanse the innermost parts.

¹Now the divisions of the descendants of Aaron were these: the sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

²But Nadab and Abihu died before their father and had no sons. So Eleazar and Ithamar served as priests.

³David, with Zadok of the sons of Eleazar and Ahimelech of the sons of Ithamar, divided them according to their offices for their ministry.

⁴Since more chief men were found from the descendants of Eleazar than the descendants of Ithamar, they divided them this way: there were sixteen heads of fathers’ households of the descendants of Eleazar, and eight of the descendants of Ithamar according to their fathers’ households.

⁵So they were divided by lot, the one as the other; for they were officers of the sanctuary and officers of God, both from the descendants of Eleazar and the descendants of Ithamar.

⁶Shemaiah, the son of Nethanel the scribe, from the Levites, recorded them in the presence of the king, the leaders, Zadok the priest, Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, and the heads of the fathers’ households of the priests and the Levites; one father’s household taken for Eleazar and one taken for Ithamar.

⁷Now the first lot came out for Jehoiarib, the second for Jedaiah,

⁸the third for Harim, the fourth for Seorim,

⁹the fifth for Malchijah, the sixth for Mijamin,

¹⁰the seventh for Hakkoz, the eighth for Abijah,

¹¹the ninth for Jeshua, the tenth for Shecaniah,

¹²the eleventh for Eliashib, the twelfth for Jakim,

¹³the thirteenth for Huppah, the fourteenth for Jeshebeab,

¹⁴the fifteenth for Bilgah, the sixteenth for Immer,

¹⁵the seventeenth for Hezir, the eighteenth for Happizzez,

¹⁶the nineteenth for Pethahiah, the twentieth for Jehezkel,

¹⁷the twenty-first for Jachin, the twenty-second for Gamul,

¹⁸the twenty-third for Delaiah, and the twenty-fourth for Maaziah.

¹⁹These were their offices for their ministry when they entered the house of the LORD according to the ordinance given to them through their father Aaron, just as the LORD God of Israel had commanded him.

²⁰Now for the rest of the sons of Levi: of the sons of Amram, Shubael; of the sons of Shubael, Jehdeiah.

²¹Of Rehabiah: of the sons of Rehabiah, Isshiah, the first.

²²Of the Izharites, Shelomoth; of the sons of Shelomoth, Jahath.

²³The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, Jekameam the fourth.

²⁴Of the sons of Uzziel, Micah; of the sons of Micah, Shamir.

²⁵The brother of Micah, Isshiah; of the sons of Isshiah, Zechariah.

²⁶The sons of Merari, Mahli and Mushi; the sons of Jaaziah, Beno.

²⁷The sons of Merari: by Jaaziah were Beno, Shoham, Zaccur, and Ibri.

²⁸By Mahli: Eleazar, who had no sons.

²⁹By Kish: the sons of Kish, Jerahmeel.

³⁰The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jerimoth. These were the sons of the Levites according to their fathers’ households.

³¹These also cast lots just as their relatives, the sons of Aaron did in the presence of David the king, Zadok, Ahimelech, and the heads of the fathers’ households of the priests and of the Levites—the head of fathers’ households as well as those of his younger brother.

¹Nebuchadnezzar the king to all the peoples, nations, and populations of all languages who live in all the earth: “May your peace be great!

²I am pleased to declare the signs and miracles that the Most High God has done for me.

³How great are His signs And how mighty are His miracles! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, And His dominion is from generation to generation.

⁴“I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at ease in my house and happy in my palace.

⁵I saw a dream and it startled me; and these appearances as I lay on my bed and the visions in my mind kept alarming me.

⁶So I gave orders to bring into my presence all the wise men of Babylon, so that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream.

⁷Then the soothsayer priests, the sorcerers, the Chaldeans, and the diviners came in and I related the dream to them, but they could not make its interpretation known to me.

⁸But finally Daniel came in before me, whose name is Belteshazzar according to the name of my god, and in whom is a spirit of the holy gods; and I related the dream to him, saying,

⁹‘Belteshazzar, chief of the soothsayer priests, since I know that a spirit of the holy gods is in you and no secret baffles you, tell me the visions of my dream which I have seen, along with its interpretation.

¹⁰‘Now these were the visions in my mind as I lay on my bed: I was looking, and behold, there was a tree in the middle of the earth and its height was great.

¹¹The tree grew large and became strong And its height reached to the sky, And it was visible to the end of the whole earth.

¹²Its foliage was beautiful and its fruit abundant, And in it was food for all. The animals of the field found shade under it, And the birds of the sky lived in its branches, And all living creatures fed from it.

¹³‘I was looking in the visions in my mind as I lay on my bed, and behold, an angelic watcher, a holy one, descended from heaven.

¹⁴He shouted out and spoke as follows: “Chop down the tree and cut off its branches, Shake off its foliage and scatter its fruit; Let the animals flee from under it And the birds from its branches.

¹⁵Yet leave the stump with its roots in the ground, But with a band of iron and bronze around it In the new grass of the field; And let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, And let him share with the animals in the grass of the earth.

¹⁶Let his mind change from that of a human And let an animal’s mind be given to him, And let seven periods of time pass over him.

¹⁷This sentence is by the decree of the angelic watchers, And the decision is a command of the holy ones, In order that the living may know That the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, And He grants it to whomever He wishes And sets over it the lowliest of people.”

¹⁸This is the dream that I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen. Now you, Belteshazzar, tell me its interpretation, since none of the wise men of my kingdom is able to make known to me the interpretation; but you are able, because a spirit of the holy gods is in you.’

¹⁹“Then Daniel, whose name is Belteshazzar, was appalled for a while as his thoughts alarmed him. The king responded and said, ‘Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its interpretation alarm you.’ Belteshazzar replied, ‘My lord, if only the dream applied to those who hate you, and its interpretation to your adversaries!

²⁰The tree that you saw, which became large and grew strong, whose height reached to the sky and was visible to all the earth,

²¹and whose foliage was beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in which was food for all, under which the animals of the field lived and in whose branches the birds of the sky settled—

²²it is you, O king; for you have become great and grown strong, and your majesty has become great and reached to the sky, and your dominion to the end of the earth.

²³And in that the king saw an angelic watcher, a holy one, descending from heaven and saying, “Chop down the tree and destroy it; yet leave the stump with its roots in the ground, but with a band of iron and bronze around it in the new grass of the field, let him be drenched with the dew of heaven, and let him share with the animals of the field until seven periods of time pass over him,”

²⁴this is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king:

²⁵that you be driven away from mankind and your dwelling place be with the animals of the field, and you be given grass to eat like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven; and seven periods of time will pass over you, until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes.

²⁶And in that it was commanded to leave the stump with the roots of the tree, your kingdom will remain as yours after you recognize that it is Heaven that rules.

²⁷Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you: wipe away your sin by doing righteousness, and your wrongdoings by showing mercy to the poor, in case there may be a prolonging of your prosperity.’

²⁸“All of this happened to Nebuchadnezzar the king.

²⁹Twelve months later he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon.

³⁰The king began speaking and was saying, ‘Is this not Babylon the great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty?’

³¹While the word was still in the king’s mouth, a voice came from heaven, saying, ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is declared: sovereignty has been removed from you,

³²and you will be driven away from mankind, and your dwelling place will be with the animals of the field. You will be given grass to eat like cattle, and seven periods of time will pass over you until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever He wishes.’

³³Immediately the word concerning Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled; and he was driven away from mankind and began eating grass like cattle, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair had grown like eagles’ feathers and his nails like birds’ claws.

³⁴“But at the end of that period, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever; For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom endures from generation to generation.

³⁵All the inhabitants of the earth are of no account, But He does according to His will among the army of heaven And among the inhabitants of earth; And no one can fend off His hand Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’

³⁶At that time my reason returned to me. And my majesty and splendor were restored to me for the honor of my kingdom, and my state counselors and my nobles began seeking me out; so I was reestablished in my sovereignty, and surpassing greatness was added to me.

³⁷Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, exalt, and honor the King of heaven, for all His works are true and His ways just; and He is able to humble those who walk in pride.”

¹Now the high priest said, “Are these things so?”

²And Stephen said, “Listen to me, brothers and fathers! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran,

³and He said to him, ‘GO FROM YOUR COUNTRY AND YOUR RELATIVES, AND COME TO THE LAND WHICH I WILL SHOW YOU.’

⁴Then he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. And from there, after his father died, God had him move to this country in which you are now living.

⁵But He gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot of ground, and yet, He promised that He would give it to him as a possession, and to his descendants after him, even though he had no child.

⁶But God spoke to this effect, that his DESCENDANTS WOULD BE STRANGERS IN A LAND THAT WAS NOT THEIRS, AND THEY WOULD ENSLAVE AND MISTREAT them for four hundred years.

⁷‘AND WHATEVER NATION TO WHICH THEY ARE ENSLAVED I MYSELF WILL JUDGE,’ said God, ‘AND AFTER THAT THEY WILL COME OUT AND SERVE ME IN THIS PLACE.’

⁸And He gave him the covenant of circumcision; and so Abraham fathered Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac fathered Jacob, and Jacob, the twelve patriarchs.

⁹“The patriarchs became jealous of Joseph and sold him into Egypt. Yet God was with him,

¹⁰and rescued him from all his afflictions, and granted him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he made him governor over Egypt and his entire household.

¹¹“Now a famine came over all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction with it, and our fathers could find no food.

¹²But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers there the first time.

¹³And on the second visit, Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family was revealed to Pharaoh.

¹⁴Then Joseph sent word and invited his father Jacob and all his relatives to come to him, seventy-five people in all.

¹⁵And Jacob went down to Egypt, and he and our fathers died there.

¹⁶And they were brought back from there to Shechem and laid in the tomb which Abraham had purchased for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.

¹⁷“But as the time of the promise which God had assured to Abraham was approaching, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt,

¹⁸until ANOTHER KING AROSE OVER EGYPT WHO DID NOT KNOW JOSEPH.

¹⁹It was he who shrewdly took advantage of our nation and mistreated our fathers in order that they would abandon their infants in the Nile, so that they would not survive.

²⁰At this time Moses was born; and he was beautiful to God. He was nurtured for three months in his father’s home.

²¹And after he had been put outside, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and nurtured him as her own son.

²²Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was proficient in speaking and action.

²³But when he was approaching the age of forty, it entered his mind to visit his countrymen, the sons of Israel.

²⁴And when he saw one of them being treated unjustly, he defended and took vengeance for the oppressed man by fatally striking the Egyptian.

²⁵And he thought that his brothers understood that God was granting them deliverance through him; but they did not understand.

²⁶And on the following day he appeared to them as they were fighting each other, and he tried to reconcile them to peace, by saying, ‘Men, you are brothers, why are you injuring each other?’

²⁷But the one who was injuring his neighbor pushed him away, saying, ‘WHO MADE YOU A RULER AND JUDGE OVER US?

²⁸YOU DO NOT INTEND TO KILL ME AS YOU KILLED THE EGYPTIAN YESTERDAY, DO YOU?’

²⁹At this remark, MOSES FLED AND BECAME A STRANGER IN THE LAND OF MIDIAN, where he fathered two sons.

³⁰“After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning thorn bush.

³¹When Moses saw it, he was astonished at the sight; and as he approached to look more closely, the voice of the Lord came:

³²‘I AM THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND ISAAC, AND JACOB.’ Moses shook with fear and did not dare to look closely.

³³But the LORD said to him, ‘REMOVE YOUR SANDALS FROM YOUR FEET, FOR THE PLACE ON WHICH YOU ARE STANDING IS HOLY GROUND.

³⁴I HAVE CERTAINLY SEEN THE OPPRESSION OF MY PEOPLE WHO ARE IN EGYPT, AND HAVE HEARD THEIR GROANING, AND I HAVE COME DOWN TO RESCUE THEM; AND NOW COME, I WILL SEND YOU TO EGYPT.’

³⁵“This Moses whom they disowned, saying, ‘WHO MADE YOU A RULER AND A JUDGE?’ is the one whom God sent to be both a ruler and a deliverer with the help of the angel who appeared to him in the thorn bush.

³⁶This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in the land of Egypt and in the Red Sea, and in the wilderness for forty years.

³⁷This is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel, ‘GOD WILL RAISE UP FOR YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME FROM YOUR COUNTRYMEN.’

³⁸This is the one who was in the assembly in the wilderness together with the angel who spoke to him at length on Mount Sinai, and who was with our fathers; and he received living words to pass on to you.

³⁹Our fathers were unwilling to be obedient to him; on the contrary they rejected him and turned back to Egypt in their hearts,

⁴⁰saying to Aaron, ‘MAKE US A GOD WHO WILL GO BEFORE US; FOR THIS MOSES WHO LED US OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT—WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM.’

⁴¹At that time they made a calf and brought a sacrifice to the idol, and were rejoicing in the works of their hands.

⁴²But God turned away and gave them over to serve the heavenly lights; as it is written in the book of the prophets: ‘YOU DID NOT OFFER ME VICTIMS AND SACRIFICES FOR FORTY YEARS IN THE WILDERNESS, DID YOU, HOUSE OF ISRAEL?

⁴³YOU ALSO TOOK ALONG THE TABERNACLE OF MOLOCH AND THE STAR OF YOUR GOD ROMPHA, THE IMAGES WHICH YOU MADE TO WORSHIP. I ALSO WILL DEPORT YOU BEYOND BABYLON.’

⁴⁴“Our fathers had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as He who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern which he had seen.

⁴⁵Our fathers in turn received it, and they also brought it in with Joshua upon dispossessing the nations that God drove out from our fathers, until the time of David.

⁴⁶David found favor in God’s sight, and asked that he might find a dwelling place for the house of Jacob.

⁴⁷But it was Solomon who built a house for Him.

⁴⁸However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says:

⁴⁹‘HEAVEN IS MY THRONE, AND THE EARTH IS THE FOOTSTOOL OF MY FEET; WHAT KIND OF HOUSE WILL YOU BUILD FOR ME?’ says the Lord, ‘OR WHAT PLACE IS THERE FOR MY REST?

⁵⁰WAS IT NOT MY HAND THAT MADE ALL THESE THINGS?’

⁵¹“You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did.

⁵²Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, and you have now become betrayers and murderers of Him;

⁵³you who received the Law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.”

⁵⁴Now when they heard this, they were infuriated, and they began gnashing their teeth at him.

⁵⁵But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God;

⁵⁶and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

⁵⁷But they shouted with loud voices, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one mind.

⁵⁸When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.

⁵⁹They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!”

⁶⁰Then he fell on his knees and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” Having said this, he fell asleep.