Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem,

²saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

³When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

⁴And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.

⁵So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:

⁶‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ”

⁷Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared.

⁸And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”

⁹When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was.

¹⁰When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.

¹¹And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

¹²Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

¹³Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.”

¹⁴When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt,

¹⁵and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”

¹⁶Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men.

¹⁷Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying:

¹⁸“A voice was heard in Ramah, Lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, Refusing to be comforted, Because they are no more.”

¹⁹Now when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,

²⁰saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the young Child’s life are dead.”

²¹Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.

²²But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea instead of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned by God in a dream, he turned aside into the region of Galilee.

²³And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, “He shall be called a Nazarene.”

¹Now Moses, with the elders of Israel, commanded the people, saying: “Keep all the commandments which I command you today.

²And it shall be, on the day when you cross over the Jordan to the land which the LORD your God is giving you, that you shall set up for yourselves large stones, and whitewash them with lime.

³You shall write on them all the words of this law, when you have crossed over, that you may enter the land which the LORD your God is giving you, ‘a land flowing with milk and honey,’ just as the LORD God of your fathers promised you.

⁴Therefore it shall be, when you have crossed over the Jordan, that on Mount Ebal you shall set up these stones, which I command you today, and you shall whitewash them with lime.

⁵And there you shall build an altar to the LORD your God, an altar of stones; you shall not use an iron tool on them.

⁶You shall build with whole stones the altar of the LORD your God, and offer burnt offerings on it to the LORD your God.

⁷You shall offer peace offerings, and shall eat there, and rejoice before the LORD your God.

⁸And you shall write very plainly on the stones all the words of this law.”

⁹Then Moses and the priests, the Levites, spoke to all Israel, saying, “Take heed and listen, O Israel: This day you have become the people of the LORD your God.

¹⁰Therefore you shall obey the voice of the LORD your God, and observe His commandments and His statutes which I command you today.”

¹¹And Moses commanded the people on the same day, saying,

¹²“These shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people, when you have crossed over the Jordan: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin;

¹³and these shall stand on Mount Ebal to curse: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.

¹⁴“And the Levites shall speak with a loud voice and say to all the men of Israel:

¹⁵‘Cursed is the one who makes a carved or molded image, an abomination to the LORD, the work of the hands of the craftsman, and sets it up in secret.’ “And all the people shall answer and say, ‘Amen!’

¹⁶‘Cursed is the one who treats his father or his mother with contempt.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

¹⁷‘Cursed is the one who moves his neighbor’s landmark.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

¹⁸‘Cursed is the one who makes the blind to wander off the road.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

¹⁹‘Cursed is the one who perverts the justice due the stranger, the fatherless, and widow.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

²⁰‘Cursed is the one who lies with his father’s wife, because he has uncovered his father’s bed.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

²¹‘Cursed is the one who lies with any kind of animal.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

²²‘Cursed is the one who lies with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

²³‘Cursed is the one who lies with his mother-in-law.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

²⁴‘Cursed is the one who attacks his neighbor secretly.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

²⁵‘Cursed is the one who takes a bribe to slay an innocent person.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

²⁶‘Cursed is the one who does not confirm all the words of this law by observing them.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

¹Now concerning things offered to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.

²And if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know.

³But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him.

⁴Therefore concerning the eating of things offered to idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no other God but one.

⁵For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many gods and many lords),

⁶yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live.

⁷However, there is not in everyone that knowledge; for some, with consciousness of the idol, until now eat it as a thing offered to an idol; and their conscience, being weak, is defiled.

⁸But food does not commend us to God; for neither if we eat are we the better, nor if we do not eat are we the worse.

⁹But beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak.

¹⁰For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, will not the conscience of him who is weak be emboldened to eat those things offered to idols?

¹¹And because of your knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died?

¹²But when you thus sin against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ.

¹³Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.

¹After these things I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree.

²Then I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God. And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea,

³saying, “Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.”

⁴And I heard the number of those who were sealed. One hundred and forty-four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel were sealed:

⁵of the tribe of Judah twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Gad twelve thousand were sealed;

⁶of the tribe of Asher twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand were sealed;

⁷of the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Levi twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand were sealed;

⁸of the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand were sealed; of the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand were sealed.

⁹After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands,

¹⁰and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

¹¹All the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God,

¹²saying: “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom, Thanksgiving and honor and power and might, Be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”

¹³Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?”

¹⁴And I said to him, “Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

¹⁵Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them.

¹⁶They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat;

¹⁷for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

¹I am the rose of Sharon, And the lily of the valleys.

²Like a lily among thorns, So is my love among the daughters.

³Like an apple tree among the trees of the woods, So is my beloved among the sons. I sat down in his shade with great delight, And his fruit was sweet to my taste.

⁴He brought me to the banqueting house, And his banner over me was love.

⁵Sustain me with cakes of raisins, Refresh me with apples, For I am lovesick.

⁶His left hand is under my head, And his right hand embraces me.

⁷I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, By the gazelles or by the does of the field, Do not stir up nor awaken love Until it pleases.

⁸The voice of my beloved! Behold, he comes Leaping upon the mountains, Skipping upon the hills.

⁹My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Behold, he stands behind our wall; He is looking through the windows, Gazing through the lattice.

¹⁰My beloved spoke, and said to me: “Rise up, my love, my fair one, And come away.

¹¹For lo, the winter is past, The rain is over and gone.

¹²The flowers appear on the earth; The time of singing has come, And the voice of the turtledove Is heard in our land.

¹³The fig tree puts forth her green figs, And the vines with the tender grapes Give a good smell. Rise up, my love, my fair one, And come away!

¹⁴“O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, In the secret places of the cliff, Let me see your face, Let me hear your voice; For your voice is sweet, And your face is lovely.”

¹⁵Catch us the foxes, The little foxes that spoil the vines, For our vines have tender grapes.

¹⁶My beloved is mine, and I am his. He feeds his flock among the lilies.

¹⁷Until the day breaks And the shadows flee away, Turn, my beloved, And be like a gazelle Or a young stag Upon the mountains of Bether.

¹A Psalm. A Song at the dedication of the house of David. [1] I will extol You, O LORD, for You have lifted me up, And have not let my foes rejoice over me.

²O LORD my God, I cried out to You, And You healed me.

³O LORD, You brought my soul up from the grave; You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.

⁴Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.

⁵For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.

⁶Now in my prosperity I said, “I shall never be moved.”

⁷LORD, by Your favor You have made my mountain stand strong; You hid Your face, and I was troubled.

⁸I cried out to You, O LORD; And to the LORD I made supplication:

⁹“What profit is there in my blood, When I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your truth?

¹⁰Hear, O LORD, and have mercy on me; LORD, be my helper!”

¹¹You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,

¹²To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

¹These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied:

²It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.

³As the heavens for height and the earth for depth, So the heart of kings is unsearchable.

⁴Take away the dross from silver, And it will go to the silversmith for jewelry.

⁵Take away the wicked from before the king, And his throne will be established in righteousness.

⁶Do not exalt yourself in the presence of the king, And do not stand in the place of the great;

⁷For it is better that he say to you, “Come up here,” Than that you should be put lower in the presence of the prince, Whom your eyes have seen.

⁸Do not go hastily to court; For what will you do in the end, When your neighbor has put you to shame?

⁹Debate your case with your neighbor, And do not disclose the secret to another;

¹⁰Lest he who hears it expose your shame, And your reputation be ruined.

¹¹A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold In settings of silver.

¹²Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold Is a wise rebuker to an obedient ear.

¹³Like the cold of snow in time of harvest Is a faithful messenger to those who send him, For he refreshes the soul of his masters.

¹⁴Whoever falsely boasts of giving Is like clouds and wind without rain.

¹⁵By long forbearance a ruler is persuaded, And a gentle tongue breaks a bone.

¹⁶Have you found honey? Eat only as much as you need, Lest you be filled with it and vomit.

¹⁷Seldom set foot in your neighbor’s house, Lest he become weary of you and hate you.

¹⁸A man who bears false witness against his neighbor Is like a club, a sword, and a sharp arrow.

¹⁹Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble Is like a bad tooth and a foot out of joint.

²⁰Like one who takes away a garment in cold weather, And like vinegar on soda, Is one who sings songs to a heavy heart.

²¹If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; And if he is thirsty, give him water to drink;

²²For so you will heap coals of fire on his head, And the LORD will reward you.

²³The north wind brings forth rain, And a backbiting tongue an angry countenance.

²⁴It is better to dwell in a corner of a housetop, Than in a house shared with a contentious woman.

²⁵As cold water to a weary soul, So is good news from a far country.

²⁶A righteous man who falters before the wicked Is like a murky spring and a polluted well.

²⁷It is not good to eat much honey; So to seek one’s own glory is not glory.

²⁸Whoever has no rule over his own spirit Is like a city broken down, without walls.

¹Furthermore King David said to all the assembly: “My son Solomon, whom alone God has chosen, is young and inexperienced; and the work is great, because the temple is not for man but for the LORD God.

²Now for the house of my God I have prepared with all my might: gold for things to be made of gold, silver for things of silver, bronze for things of bronze, iron for things of iron, wood for things of wood, onyx stones, stones to be set, glistening stones of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, and marble slabs in abundance.

³Moreover, because I have set my affection on the house of my God, I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house, my own special treasure of gold and silver:

⁴three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the houses;

⁵the gold for things of gold and the silver for things of silver, and for all kinds of work to be done by the hands of craftsmen. Who then is willing to consecrate himself this day to the LORD?”

⁶Then the leaders of the fathers’ houses, leaders of the tribes of Israel, the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the officers over the king’s work, offered willingly.

⁷They gave for the work of the house of God five thousand talents and ten thousand darics of gold, ten thousand talents of silver, eighteen thousand talents of bronze, and one hundred thousand talents of iron.

⁸And whoever had precious stones gave them to the treasury of the house of the LORD, into the hand of Jehiel the Gershonite.

⁹Then the people rejoiced, for they had offered willingly, because with a loyal heart they had offered willingly to the LORD; and King David also rejoiced greatly.

¹⁰Therefore David blessed the LORD before all the assembly; and David said: “Blessed are You, LORD God of Israel, our Father, forever and ever.

¹¹Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, The power and the glory, The victory and the majesty; For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours; Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, And You are exalted as head over all.

¹²Both riches and honor come from You, And You reign over all. In Your hand is power and might; In Your hand it is to make great And to give strength to all.

¹³“Now therefore, our God, We thank You And praise Your glorious name.

¹⁴But who am I, and who are my people, That we should be able to offer so willingly as this? For all things come from You, And of Your own we have given You.

¹⁵For we are aliens and pilgrims before You, As were all our fathers; Our days on earth are as a shadow, And without hope.

¹⁶“O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have prepared to build You a house for Your holy name is from Your hand, and is all Your own.

¹⁷I know also, my God, that You test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things; and now with joy I have seen Your people, who are present here to offer willingly to You.

¹⁸O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep this forever in the intent of the thoughts of the heart of Your people, and fix their heart toward You.

¹⁹And give my son Solomon a loyal heart to keep Your commandments and Your testimonies and Your statutes, to do all these things, and to build the temple for which I have made provision.”

²⁰Then David said to all the assembly, “Now bless the LORD your God.” So all the assembly blessed the LORD God of their fathers, and bowed their heads and prostrated themselves before the LORD and the king.

²¹And they made sacrifices to the LORD and offered burnt offerings to the LORD on the next day: a thousand bulls, a thousand rams, a thousand lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel.

²²So they ate and drank before the LORD with great gladness on that day. And they made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and anointed him before the LORD to be the leader, and Zadok to be priest.

²³Then Solomon sat on the throne of the LORD as king instead of David his father, and prospered; and all Israel obeyed him.

²⁴All the leaders and the mighty men, and also all the sons of King David, submitted themselves to King Solomon.

²⁵So the LORD exalted Solomon exceedingly in the sight of all Israel, and bestowed on him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel.

²⁶Thus David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel.

²⁷And the period that he reigned over Israel was forty years; seven years he reigned in Hebron, and thirty-three years he reigned in Jerusalem.

²⁸So he died in a good old age, full of days and riches and honor; and Solomon his son reigned in his place.

²⁹Now the acts of King David, first and last, indeed they are written in the book of Samuel the seer, in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer,

³⁰with all his reign and his might, and the events that happened to him, to Israel, and to all the kingdoms of the lands.

¹In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans—

²in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the LORD through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem.

³Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.

⁴And I prayed to the LORD my God, and made confession, and said, “O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments,

⁵we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments.

⁶Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land.

⁷O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day—to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them, because of the unfaithfulness which they have committed against You.

⁸“O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You.

⁹To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him.

¹⁰We have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in His laws, which He set before us by His servants the prophets.

¹¹Yes, all Israel has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore the curse and the oath written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against Him.

¹²And He has confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our judges who judged us, by bringing upon us a great disaster; for under the whole heaven such has never been done as what has been done to Jerusalem.

¹³“As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us; yet we have not made our prayer before the LORD our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth.

¹⁴Therefore the LORD has kept the disaster in mind, and brought it upon us; for the LORD our God is righteous in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His voice.

¹⁵And now, O Lord our God, who brought Your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made Yourself a name, as it is this day—we have sinned, we have done wickedly!

¹⁶“O Lord, according to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from Your city Jerusalem, Your holy mountain; because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and Your people are a reproach to all those around us.

¹⁷Now therefore, our God, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the Lord’s sake cause Your face to shine on Your sanctuary, which is desolate.

¹⁸O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies.

¹⁹O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God, for Your city and Your people are called by Your name.”

²⁰Now while I was speaking, praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God,

²¹yes, while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, reached me about the time of the evening offering.

²²And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill to understand.

²³At the beginning of your supplications the command went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision:

²⁴“Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, To finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy.

²⁵“Know therefore and understand, That from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times.

²⁶“And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined.

²⁷Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate.”

¹Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the church.

²Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword.

³And because he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to seize Peter also. Now it was during the Days of Unleavened Bread.

⁴So when he had arrested him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to keep him, intending to bring him before the people after Passover.

⁵Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church.

⁶And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were keeping the prison.

⁷Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, “Arise quickly!” And his chains fell off his hands.

⁸Then the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and tie on your sandals”; and so he did. And he said to him, “Put on your garment and follow me.”

⁹So he went out and followed him, and did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.

¹⁰When they were past the first and the second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened to them of its own accord; and they went out and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.

¹¹And when Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the Jewish people.”

¹²So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying.

¹³And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a girl named Rhoda came to answer.

¹⁴When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her gladness she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gate.

¹⁵But they said to her, “You are beside yourself!” Yet she kept insisting that it was so. So they said, “It is his angel.”

¹⁶Now Peter continued knocking; and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.

¹⁷But motioning to them with his hand to keep silent, he declared to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Go, tell these things to James and to the brethren.” And he departed and went to another place.

¹⁸Then, as soon as it was day, there was no small stir among the soldiers about what had become of Peter.

¹⁹But when Herod had searched for him and not found him, he examined the guards and commanded that they should be put to death. And he went down from Judea to Caesarea, and stayed there.

²⁰Now Herod had been very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; but they came to him with one accord, and having made Blastus the king’s personal aide their friend, they asked for peace, because their country was supplied with food by the king’s country.

²¹So on a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne and gave an oration to them.

²²And the people kept shouting, “The voice of a god and not of a man!”

²³Then immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died.

²⁴But the word of God grew and multiplied.

²⁵And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their ministry, and they also took with them John whose surname was Mark.