Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹When Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples over the Brook Kidron, where there was a garden, which He and His disciples entered.

²And Judas, who betrayed Him, also knew the place; for Jesus often met there with His disciples.

³Then Judas, having received a detachment of troops, and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees, came there with lanterns, torches, and weapons.

⁴Jesus therefore, knowing all things that would come upon Him, went forward and said to them, “Whom are you seeking?”

⁵They answered Him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am He.” And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them.

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

⁷Then He asked them again, “Whom are you seeking?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.”

⁸Jesus answered, “I have told you that I am He. Therefore, if you seek Me, let these go their way,”

⁹that the saying might be fulfilled which He spoke, “Of those whom You gave Me I have lost none.”

¹⁰Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus.

¹¹So Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into the sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?”

¹²Then the detachment of troops and the captain and the officers of the Jews arrested Jesus and bound Him.

¹³And they led Him away to Annas first, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas who was high priest that year.

¹⁴Now it was Caiaphas who advised the Jews that it was expedient that one man should die for the people.

¹⁵And Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. Now that disciple was known to the high priest, and went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest.

¹⁶But Peter stood at the door outside. Then the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to her who kept the door, and brought Peter in.

¹⁷Then the servant girl who kept the door said to Peter, “You are not also one of this Man’s disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not.”

¹⁸Now the servants and officers who had made a fire of coals stood there, for it was cold, and they warmed themselves. And Peter stood with them and warmed himself.

¹⁹The high priest then asked Jesus about His disciples and His doctrine.

²⁰Jesus answered him, “I spoke openly to the world. I always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where the Jews always meet, and in secret I have said nothing.

²¹Why do you ask Me? Ask those who have heard Me what I said to them. Indeed they know what I said.”

²²And when He had said these things, one of the officers who stood by struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying, “Do You answer the high priest like that?”

²³Jesus answered him, “If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil; but if well, why do you strike Me?”

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

²⁵Now Simon Peter stood and warmed himself. Therefore they said to him, “You are not also one of His disciples, are you?” He denied it and said, “I am not!”

²⁶One of the servants of the high priest, a relative of him whose ear Peter cut off, said, “Did I not see you in the garden with Him?”

²⁷Peter then denied again; and immediately a rooster crowed.

²⁸Then they led Jesus from Caiaphas to the Praetorium, and it was early morning. But they themselves did not go into the Praetorium, lest they should be defiled, but that they might eat the Passover.

²⁹Pilate then went out to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this Man?”

³⁰They answered and said to him, “If He were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered Him up to you.”

³¹Then Pilate said to them, “You take Him and judge Him according to your law.” Therefore the Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death,”

³²that the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled which He spoke, signifying by what death He would die.

³³Then Pilate entered the Praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?”

³⁴Jesus answered him, “Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning Me?”

³⁵Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You 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 fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”

³⁷Pilate therefore said to Him, “Are You a king then?” Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.”

³⁸Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, “I find no fault in Him at all.

³⁹“But you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Do you therefore want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”

⁴⁰Then they all cried again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber.

¹“You shall not see your brother’s ox or his sheep going astray, and hide yourself from them; you shall certainly bring them back to your brother.

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

³You shall do the same with his donkey, and so shall you do with his garment; with any lost thing of your brother’s, which he has lost and you have found, you shall do likewise; you must not hide yourself.

⁴“You shall not see your brother’s donkey or his ox fall down along the road, and hide yourself from them; you shall surely help him lift them up again.

⁵“A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the LORD your God.

⁶“If a bird’s nest happens to be before you along the way, in any tree or on the ground, with young ones or eggs, with the mother sitting on the young or on the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young;

⁷you shall surely let the mother go, and take the young for yourself, that it may be well with you and that you may prolong your days.

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

⁹“You shall not sow your vineyard with different kinds of seed, lest the yield of the seed which you have sown and the fruit of your vineyard be defiled.

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

¹¹“You shall not wear a garment of different sorts, such as wool and linen mixed together.

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

¹³“If any man takes a wife, and goes in to her, and detests her,

¹⁴and charges her with shameful conduct, and brings a bad name on her, and says, ‘I took this woman, and when I came to her I found she was not a virgin,’

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

¹⁶And the young woman’s father shall say to the elders, ‘I gave my daughter to this man as wife, and he detests her.

¹⁷Now he has charged her with shameful conduct, saying, “I found your daughter was not a virgin,” and yet these are the evidences of my daughter’s virginity.’ And they shall spread the cloth before the elders of the city.

¹⁸Then the elders of that city shall take that man and punish him;

¹⁹and they shall fine him one hundred shekels of silver and give them to the father of the young woman, because he has brought a bad name on a virgin of Israel. And she shall be his wife; he cannot divorce her all his days.

²⁰“But if the thing is true, and evidences of virginity are not found for the young woman,

²¹then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death with stones, because she has done a disgraceful thing in Israel, to play the harlot in her father’s house. So you shall put away the evil from among you.

²²“If a man is found lying with a woman married to a husband, then both of them shall die—the man that lay with the woman, and the woman; so you shall put away the evil from Israel.

²³“If a young woman who is a virgin is betrothed to a husband, and a man finds her in the city and lies with her,

²⁴then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she did not cry out in the city, and the man because he humbled his neighbor’s wife; so you shall put away the evil from among you.

²⁵“But if a man finds a betrothed young woman in the countryside, and the man forces her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die.

²⁶But you shall do nothing to the young woman; there is in the young woman no sin deserving of death, for just as when a man rises against his neighbor and kills him, even so is this matter.

²⁷For he found her in the countryside, and the betrothed young woman cried out, but there was no one to save her.

²⁸“If a man finds a young woman who is a virgin, who is not betrothed, and he seizes her and lies with her, and they are found out,

²⁹then the man who lay with her shall give to the young woman’s father fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife because he has humbled her; he shall not be permitted to divorce her all his days.

³⁰“A man shall not take his father’s wife, nor uncover his father’s bed.

¹And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ.

²I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able;

³for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?

⁴For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not carnal?

⁵Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one?

⁶I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.

⁷So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.

⁸Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.

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

¹⁰According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it.

¹¹For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

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

¹³each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is.

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

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

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

¹⁷If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

¹⁸Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.

¹⁹For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their own craftiness”;

²⁰and again, “The LORD knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.”

²¹Therefore let no one boast in men. For all things are yours:

²²whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the world or life or death, or things present or things to come—all are yours.

²³And you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.

¹“To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, ‘These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands:

²“I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars;

³and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name’s sake and have not become weary.

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

⁵Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.

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

⁷“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” ’

⁸“And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ‘These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life:

⁹“I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

¹⁰Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.

¹¹“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.” ’

¹²“And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write, ‘These things says He who has the sharp two-edged sword:

¹³“I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.

¹⁴But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality.

¹⁵Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate.

¹⁶Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth.

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

¹⁸“And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write, ‘These things says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass:

¹⁹“I know your works, love, service, faith, and your patience; and as for your works, the last are more than the first.

²⁰Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.

²¹And I gave her time to repent of her sexual immorality, and she did not repent.

²²Indeed I will cast her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds.

²³I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works.

²⁴“Now to you I say, and to the rest in Thyatira, as many as do not have this doctrine, who have not known the depths of Satan, as they say, I will put on you no other burden.

²⁵But hold fast what you have till I come.

²⁶And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations—

²⁷‘He shall rule them with a rod of iron; They shall be dashed to pieces like the potter’s vessels’— as I also have received from My Father;

²⁸and I will give him the morning star.

²⁹“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’

¹For I considered all this in my heart, so that I could declare it all: that the righteous and the wise and their works are in the hand of God. People know neither love nor hatred by anything they see before them.

²All things come alike to all: One event happens to the righteous and the wicked; To the good, the clean, and the unclean; To him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As is the good, so is the sinner; He who takes an oath as he who fears an oath.

³This is an evil in all that is done under the sun: that one thing happens to all. Truly the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil; madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead.

⁴But for him who is joined to all the living there is hope, for a living dog is better than a dead lion.

⁵For the living know that they will die; But the dead know nothing, And they have no more reward, For the memory of them is forgotten.

⁶Also their love, their hatred, and their envy have now perished; Nevermore will they have a share In anything done under the sun.

⁷Go, eat your bread with joy, And drink your wine with a merry heart; For God has already accepted your works.

⁸Let your garments always be white, And let your head lack no oil.

⁹Live joyfully with the wife whom you love all the days of your vain life which He has given you under the sun, all your days of vanity; for that is your portion in life, and in the labor which you perform under the sun.

¹⁰Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.

¹¹I returned and saw under the sun that— The race is not to the swift, Nor the battle to the strong, Nor bread to the wise, Nor riches to men of understanding, Nor favor to men of skill; But time and chance happen to them all.

¹²For man also does not know his time: Like fish taken in a cruel net, Like birds caught in a snare, So the sons of men are snared in an evil time, When it falls suddenly upon them.

¹³This wisdom I have also seen under the sun, and it seemed great to me:

¹⁴There was a little city with few men in it; and a great king came against it, besieged it, and built great snares around it.

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

¹⁶Then I said: “Wisdom is better than strength. Nevertheless the poor man’s wisdom is despised, And his words are not heard.

¹⁷Words of the wise, spoken quietly, should be heard Rather than the shout of a ruler of fools.

¹⁸Wisdom is better than weapons of war; But one sinner destroys much good.”

¹A Psalm of David. [1] To You, O LORD, I lift up my soul.

²O my God, I trust in You; Let me not be ashamed; Let not my enemies triumph over me.

³Indeed, let no one who waits on You be ashamed; Let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without cause.

⁴Show me Your ways, O LORD; Teach me Your paths.

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

⁶Remember, O LORD, Your tender mercies and Your lovingkindnesses, For they are from of old.

⁷Do not remember the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions; According to Your mercy remember me, For Your goodness’ sake, O LORD.

⁸Good and upright is the LORD; Therefore He teaches sinners in the way.

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

¹⁰All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth, To such as keep His covenant and His testimonies.

¹¹For Your name’s sake, O LORD, Pardon my iniquity, for it is great.

¹²Who is the man that fears the LORD? Him shall He teach in the way He chooses.

¹³He himself shall dwell in prosperity, And his descendants shall inherit the earth.

¹⁴The secret of the LORD is with those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant.

¹⁵My eyes are ever toward the LORD, For He shall pluck my feet out of the net.

¹⁶Turn Yourself to me, and have mercy on me, For I am desolate and afflicted.

¹⁷The troubles of my heart have enlarged; Bring me out of my distresses!

¹⁸Look on my affliction and my pain, And forgive all my sins.

¹⁹Consider my enemies, for they are many; And they hate me with cruel hatred.

²⁰Keep my soul, and deliver me; Let me not be ashamed, for I put my trust in You.

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

²²Redeem Israel, O God, Out of all their troubles!

¹Wine is a mocker, Strong drink is a brawler, And whoever is led astray by it is not wise.

²The wrath of a king is like the roaring of a lion; Whoever provokes him to anger sins against his own life.

³It is honorable for a man to stop striving, Since any fool can start a quarrel.

⁴The lazy man will not plow because of winter; He will beg during harvest and have nothing.

⁵Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water, But a man of understanding will draw it out.

⁶Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, But who can find a faithful man?

⁷The righteous man walks in his integrity; His children are blessed after him.

⁸A king who sits on the throne of judgment Scatters all evil with his eyes.

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

¹⁰Diverse weights and diverse measures, They are both alike, an abomination to the LORD.

¹¹Even a child is known by his deeds, Whether what he does is pure and right.

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

¹³Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty; Open your eyes, and you will be satisfied with bread.

¹⁴“It is good for nothing,” cries the buyer; But when he has gone his way, then he boasts.

¹⁵There is gold and a multitude of rubies, But the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.

¹⁶Take the garment of one who is surety for a stranger, And hold it as a pledge when it is for a seductress.

¹⁷Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man, But afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel.

¹⁸Plans are established by counsel; By wise counsel wage war.

¹⁹He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets; Therefore do not associate with one who flatters with his lips.

²⁰Whoever curses his father or his mother, His lamp will be put out in deep darkness.

²¹An inheritance gained hastily at the beginning Will not be blessed at the end.

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

²³Diverse weights are an abomination to the LORD, And dishonest scales are not good.

²⁴A man’s steps are of the LORD; How then can a man understand his own way?

²⁵It is a snare for a man to devote rashly something as holy, And afterward to reconsider his vows.

²⁶A wise king sifts out the wicked, And brings the threshing wheel over them.

²⁷The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD, Searching all the inner depths of his heart.

²⁸Mercy and truth preserve the king, And by lovingkindness he upholds his throne.

²⁹The glory of young men is their strength, And the splendor of old men is their gray head.

³⁰Blows that hurt cleanse away evil, As do stripes the inner depths of the heart.

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

²And Nadab and Abihu died before their father, and had no children; therefore Eleazar and Ithamar ministered as priests.

³Then David with Zadok of the sons of Eleazar, and Ahimelech of the sons of Ithamar, divided them according to the schedule of their service.

⁴There were more leaders found of the sons of Eleazar than of the sons of Ithamar, and thus they were divided. Among the sons of Eleazar were sixteen heads of their fathers’ houses, and eight heads of their fathers’ houses among the sons of Ithamar.

⁵Thus they were divided by lot, one group as another, for there were officials of the sanctuary and officials of the house of God, from the sons of Eleazar and from the sons of Ithamar.

⁶And the scribe, Shemaiah the son of Nethanel, one of the Levites, wrote them down before the king, the leaders, Zadok the priest, Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the priests and Levites, one father’s house taken for Eleazar and one for Ithamar.

⁷Now the first lot fell to Jehoiarib, the second to Jedaiah,

⁸the third to Harim, the fourth to Seorim,

⁹the fifth to Malchijah, the sixth to Mijamin,

¹⁰the seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abijah,

¹¹the ninth to Jeshua, the tenth to Shecaniah,

¹²the eleventh to Eliashib, the twelfth to Jakim,

¹³the thirteenth to Huppah, the fourteenth to Jeshebeab,

¹⁴the fifteenth to Bilgah, the sixteenth to Immer,

¹⁵the seventeenth to Hezir, the eighteenth to Happizzez,

¹⁶the nineteenth to Pethahiah, the twentieth to Jehezekel,

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

¹⁸the twenty-third to Delaiah, the twenty-fourth to Maaziah.

¹⁹This was the schedule of their service for coming into the house of the LORD according to their ordinance by the hand of Aaron their father, as the LORD God of Israel had commanded him.

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

²¹Concerning Rehabiah, of the sons of Rehabiah, the first was Isshiah.

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

²³Of the sons of Hebron, Jeriah was the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth.

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

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

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

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

²⁸Of Mahli: Eleazar, who had no sons.

²⁹Of Kish: the son of Kish, Jerahmeel.

³⁰Also the sons of Mushi were Mahli, Eder, and Jerimoth. These were the sons of the Levites according to their fathers’ houses.

³¹These also cast lots just as their brothers the sons of Aaron did, in the presence of King David, Zadok, Ahimelech, and the heads of the fathers’ houses of the priests and Levites. The chief fathers did just as their younger brethren.

¹Nebuchadnezzar the king, To all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you.

²I thought it good to declare the signs and wonders that the Most High God has worked for me.

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

⁴I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at rest in my house, and flourishing in my palace.

⁵I saw a dream which made me afraid, and the thoughts on my bed and the visions of my head troubled me.

⁶Therefore I issued a decree to bring in all the wise men of Babylon before me, that they might make known to me the interpretation of the dream.

⁷Then the magicians, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers came in, and I told them the dream; but they did not make known to me its interpretation.

⁸But at last Daniel came before me (his name is Belteshazzar, according to the name of my god; in him is the Spirit of the Holy God), and I told the dream before him, saying:

⁹“Belteshazzar, chief of the magicians, because I know that the Spirit of the Holy God is in you, and no secret troubles you, explain to me the visions of my dream that I have seen, and its interpretation.

¹⁰“These were the visions of my head while on my bed: I was looking, and behold, A tree in the midst of the earth, And its height was great.

¹¹The tree grew and became strong; Its height reached to the heavens, And it could be seen to the ends of all the earth.

¹²Its leaves were lovely, Its fruit abundant, And in it was food for all. The beasts of the field found shade under it, The birds of the heavens dwelt in its branches, And all flesh was fed from it.

¹³“I saw in the visions of my head while on my bed, and there was a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven.

¹⁴He cried aloud and said thus: ‘Chop down the tree and cut off its branches, Strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the beasts get out from under it, And the birds from its branches.

¹⁵Nevertheless leave the stump and roots in the earth, Bound with a band of iron and bronze, In the tender grass of the field. Let it be wet with the dew of heaven, And let him graze with the beasts On the grass of the earth.

¹⁶Let his heart be changed from that of a man, Let him be given the heart of a beast, And let seven times pass over him.

¹⁷‘This decision is by the decree of the watchers, And the sentence by the word of the holy ones, In order that the living may know That the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, Gives it to whomever He will, And sets over it the lowest of men.’

¹⁸“This dream I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen. Now you, Belteshazzar, declare its interpretation, since all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to make known to me the interpretation; but you are able, for the Spirit of the Holy God is in you.”

¹⁹Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was astonished for a time, and his thoughts troubled him. So the king spoke, and said, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream or its interpretation trouble you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, may the dream concern those who hate you, and its interpretation concern your enemies!

²⁰“The tree that you saw, which grew and became strong, whose height reached to the heavens and which could be seen by all the earth,

²¹whose leaves were lovely and its fruit abundant, in which was food for all, under which the beasts of the field dwelt, and in whose branches the birds of the heaven had their home—

²²it is you, O king, who have grown and become strong; for your greatness has grown and reaches to the heavens, and your dominion to the end of the earth.

²³“And inasmuch as the king saw a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Chop down the tree and destroy it, but leave its stump and roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze in the tender grass of the field; let it be wet with the dew of heaven, and let him graze with the beasts of the field, till seven times 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:

²⁵They shall drive you from men, your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make you eat grass like oxen. They shall wet you with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.

²⁶“And inasmuch as they gave the command to leave the stump and roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be assured to you, after you come to know that Heaven rules.

²⁷Therefore, O king, let my advice be acceptable to you; break off your sins by being righteous, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps there may be a lengthening of your prosperity.”

²⁸All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar.

²⁹At the end of the twelve months he was walking about the royal palace of Babylon.

³⁰The king spoke, saying, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?”

³¹While the word was still in the king’s mouth, a voice fell from heaven: “King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you!

³²And they shall drive you from men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. They shall make you eat grass like oxen; and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.”

³³That very hour the word was fulfilled concerning Nebuchadnezzar; he was driven from men and ate grass like oxen; his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair had grown like eagles’ feathers and his nails like birds’ claws.

³⁴And at the end of the time I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my understanding 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 is from generation to generation.

³⁵All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He does according to His will in the army of heaven And among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand Or say to Him, “What have You done?”

³⁶At the same time my reason returned to me, and for the glory of my kingdom, my honor and splendor returned to me. My counselors and nobles resorted to me, I was restored to my kingdom, and excellent majesty was added to me.

³⁷Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down.

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

²And he said, “Brethren and fathers, listen: The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran,

³and said to him, ‘Get out of your country and from your relatives, and come to a land that I will show you.’

⁴Then he came out of the land of the Chaldeans and dwelt in Haran. And from there, when his father was dead, He moved him to this land in which you now dwell.

⁵And God gave him no inheritance in it, not even enough to set his foot on. But even when Abraham had no child, He promised to give it to him for a possession, and to his descendants after him.

⁶But God spoke in this way: that his descendants would dwell in a foreign land, and that they would bring them into bondage and oppress them four hundred years.

⁷‘And the nation to whom they will be in bondage I will judge,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and serve Me in this place.’

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

⁹“And the patriarchs, becoming envious, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was with him

¹⁰and delivered him out of all his troubles, and gave him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house.

¹¹Now a famine and great trouble came over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and our fathers found no sustenance.

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

¹³And the second time Joseph was made known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to the Pharaoh.

¹⁴Then Joseph sent and called his father Jacob and all his relatives to him, seventy-five people.

¹⁵So Jacob went down to Egypt; and he died, he and our fathers.

¹⁶And they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem.

¹⁷“But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt

¹⁸till another king arose who did not know Joseph.

¹⁹This man dealt treacherously with our people, and oppressed our forefathers, making them expose their babies, so that they might not live.

²⁰At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing to God; and he was brought up in his father’s house for three months.

²¹But when he was set out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and brought him up as her own son.

²²And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds.

²³“Now when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel.

²⁴And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended and avenged him who was oppressed, and struck down the Egyptian.

²⁵For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand.

²⁶And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?’

²⁷But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us?

²⁸Do you want to kill me as you did the Egyptian yesterday?’

²⁹Then, at this saying, Moses fled and became a dweller in the land of Midian, where he had two sons.

³⁰“And when forty years had passed, an Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire in a bush, in the wilderness of Mount Sinai.

³¹When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he drew near to observe, the voice of the Lord came to him,

³²saying, ‘I am the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and dared not look.

³³‘Then the LORD said to him, “Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.

³⁴I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt; I have heard their groaning and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.” ’

³⁵“This Moses whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’ is the one God sent to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the Angel who appeared to him in the bush.

³⁶He brought them out, after he had shown wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red Sea, and in the wilderness forty years.

³⁷“This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel, ‘The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear.’

³⁸“This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the Angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, the one who received the living oracles to give to us,

³⁹whom our fathers would not obey, but rejected. And in their hearts they turned back to Egypt,

⁴⁰saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods to go before us; as for this Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’

⁴¹And they made a calf in those days, offered sacrifices to the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.

⁴²Then God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the Prophets: ‘Did you offer Me slaughtered animals and sacrifices during forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?

⁴³You also took up the tabernacle of Moloch, And the star of your god Remphan, Images which you made to worship; And I will carry you away beyond Babylon.’

⁴⁴“Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He appointed, instructing Moses to make it according to the pattern that he had seen,

⁴⁵which our fathers, having received it in turn, also brought with Joshua into the land possessed by the Gentiles, whom God drove out before the face of our fathers until the days of David,

⁴⁶who found favor before God and asked to find a dwelling for the God of Jacob.

⁴⁷But Solomon built Him a house.

⁴⁸“However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says:

⁴⁹‘Heaven is My throne, And earth is My footstool. What house will you build for Me? says the LORD, Or what is the place of My rest?

⁵⁰Has My hand not made all these things?’

⁵¹“You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you.

⁵²Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers,

⁵³who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.”

⁵⁴When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.

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

⁵⁶and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”

⁵⁷Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord;

⁵⁸and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.

⁵⁹And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

⁶⁰Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.