Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Then Jesus was led by the [Holy] Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

²After He had gone without food for forty days and forty nights, He became hungry.

³And the tempter came and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread."

⁴But Jesus replied, "It is written and forever remains written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes out of the mouth of God.'"

⁵Then the devil took Him into the holy city [Jerusalem] and placed Him on the pinnacle (highest point) of the temple.

⁶And he said [mockingly] to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, 'He will command His angels concerning You [to serve, care for, protect and watch over You]'; and 'They will lift you up on their hands, So that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.'"

⁷Jesus said to him, "On the other hand, it is written and forever remains written, 'You shall not test the Lord your God.'"

⁸Again, the devil took Him up on a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory [splendor, magnificence, and excellence] of them;

⁹and he said to Him, "All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me."

¹⁰Then Jesus said to him, "Go away, Satan! For it is written and forever remains written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.'"

¹¹Then the devil left Him; and angels came and ministered to Him [bringing Him food and serving Him].

¹²Now when Jesus heard that John [the Baptist] had been arrested and put in prison, He left for Galilee.

¹³And leaving Nazareth, He went and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the country of Zebulun and Naphtali.

¹⁴This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah:

¹⁵"The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee [in the district] of the Gentiles—

¹⁶"The people who were sitting (living) in [spiritual] darkness have seen a great Light, And for those who were sitting (living) in the land and shadow of [spiritual and moral] death, Upon them a Light has dawned."

¹⁷From that time Jesus began to preach and say, " Repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, regret past sins, live your life in a way that proves repentance; seek God's purpose for your life], for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."

¹⁸As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He noticed two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.

¹⁹And He said to them, " Follow Me [as My disciples, accepting Me as your Master and Teacher and walking the same path of life that I walk], and I will make you fishers of men."

²⁰Immediately they left their nets and followed Him [becoming His disciples, believing and trusting in Him and following His example].

²¹And going on [further] from there He noticed two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets; and He called them [to follow Him as His disciples].

²²Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him [becoming His disciples, believing and trusting in Him and following His example].

²³And He went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the good news (gospel) of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people [demonstrating and revealing that He was indeed the promised Messiah].

²⁴So the news about Him spread throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all who were sick, those suffering with various diseases and pains, those under the power of demons, and epileptics, paralytics; and He healed them.

²⁵Large crowds followed Him from Galilee and the Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and the other side of the Jordan.

¹These are the words of the covenant which the LORD commanded Moses to make with the sons of Israel in the land of Moab, in addition to the covenant which He made with them at Horeb (Sinai).

²Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, "You have seen all that the LORD did before your eyes in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his servants, and to all his land;

³the great trials [of Pharaoh] which your eyes have seen, the signs and those great wonders.

⁴Yet to this day the LORD has not given you a heart and mind to understand, nor eyes to see, nor ears to hear.

⁵I have led you in the wilderness forty years; your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn out on your feet.

⁶You have not eaten bread, nor have you drunk wine or strong drink, so that you might know that I am the LORD your God [on whom you must depend].

⁷When you reached this place, Sihon the king of Heshbon and Og the king of Bashan came out to meet us in battle, but we defeated them;

⁸and we took their land and gave it as an inheritance to the tribe of Reuben, the tribe of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.

⁹So keep the words of this covenant and obey them, so that you may prosper and be successful in everything that you do.

¹⁰"All of you stand today before the LORD your God—your chiefs, your tribes, your elders and your officers, even all the men of Israel,

¹¹your little ones, your wives, and the stranger (resident alien, foreigner) who is in your camps, from the one who chops and gathers your firewood to the one who draws your water—

¹²so that you may enter into the covenant of the LORD your God, and into His oath and agreement which the LORD your God is making with you today,

¹³so that He may establish you today as His people and that He may be your God, just as He spoke to you and as He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

¹⁴"It is not with you alone that I am making this covenant and this oath,

¹⁵but with those [future Israelites] who are not here with us today, as well as with those who stand here with us today in the presence of the LORD our God

¹⁶(for you know how we lived in the land of Egypt, and how we passed through the nations along the way;

¹⁷and you have seen their detestable acts and their [repulsive] idols of wood and stone, [lifeless images] of silver and gold, which they had with them),

¹⁸so that there will not be among you a man or woman, or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the LORD our God, to go and serve the [false] gods of these nations; so that there will not be among you a root [of idolatry] bearing poisonous fruit and wormwood (bitterness).

¹⁹It will happen that when he (a renegade) hears the words of this oath, and he imagines himself as blessed, saying, 'I will have peace and safety even though I walk within the stubbornness of my heart [rejecting God and His law], in order that the watered land dwindles away along with the dry [destroying everything],'

²⁰the LORD will not be willing to forgive him, but then the anger of the LORD and His jealousy will burn against that man, and every curse which is written in this book will rest on him; the LORD will blot out his name from under heaven.

²¹Then the LORD will single him out for disaster from all the tribes of Israel [making an example of him], according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this Book of the Law.

²²Now the next generation, your children who come after you and the foreigner who comes from a distant land, when they see the plagues of this land and the diseases with which the LORD has afflicted it, will say,

²³'The whole land is brimstone and salt, a burning waste, unsown and unproductive, and no grass grows in it; it is like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the LORD overthrew in His anger and wrath.'

²⁴All the nations will say, 'Why has the LORD done this thing to this land? Why this great outburst of anger?'

²⁵Then people will say, 'It is because they abandoned (broke) the covenant of the LORD, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.

²⁶For they went and served other gods and worshiped them, [false] gods whom they have not known and whom He had not allotted (given) to them.

²⁷So the anger of the LORD burned against this land, bringing on it every curse that is written in this book;

²⁸and the LORD uprooted them from their land in anger and in wrath and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as it is this day.'

²⁹"The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things which are revealed and disclosed belong to us and to our children forever, so that we may do all of the words of this law.

¹For I do not want you to be unaware, believers, that our fathers were all under the cloud [in which God's presence went before them] and they all passed [miraculously and safely] through the [Red] Sea;

²And all [of them] were baptized into Moses [into his safekeeping as their leader] in the cloud and in the sea;

³and all [of them] ate the same spiritual food;

⁴and all [of them] drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.

⁵Nevertheless, God was not well-pleased with most of them, for they were scattered along the ground in the wilderness [because their lack of self-control led to disobedience which led to death].

⁶Now these things [the warnings and admonitions] took place as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did.

⁷Do not be worshipers of handmade gods, as some of them were; just as it is written [in Scripture], "The people sat down to eat and drink [after sacrificing to the golden calf at Horeb], and stood up to play [indulging in immoral activities]."

⁸We must not indulge in [nor tolerate] sexual immorality, as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand [suddenly] fell [dead] in a single day!

⁹We must not tempt the Lord [that is, test His patience, question His purpose or exploit His goodness], as some of them did—and they were killed by serpents.

¹⁰And do not murmur [in unwarranted discontent], as some of them did—and were destroyed by the destroyer.

¹¹Now these things happened to them as an example and warning [to us]; they were written for our instruction [to admonish and equip us], upon whom the ends of the ages have come.

¹²Therefore let the one who thinks he stands firm [immune to temptation, being overconfident and self-righteous], take care that he does not fall [into sin and condemnation].

¹³No temptation [regardless of its source] has overtaken or enticed you that is not common to human experience [nor is any temptation unusual or beyond human resistance]; but God is faithful [to His word—He is compassionate and trustworthy], and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability [to resist], but along with the temptation He [has in the past and is now and] will [always] provide the way out as well, so that you will be able to endure it [without yielding, and will overcome temptation with joy].

¹⁴Therefore, my beloved, run [keep far, far away] from [any sort of] idolatry [and that includes loving anything more than God, or participating in anything that leads to sin and enslaves the soul].

¹⁵I am speaking as to wise and sensible people; judge [carefully and thoughtfully consider] for yourselves what I say.

¹⁶Is the cup of blessing which we bless [at the Lord's Supper] not a sharing in the blood of Christ? [Indeed it is.] Is the bread which we break not a sharing in the body of Christ? [Indeed it is.]

¹⁷Since there is one bread, we [believers] who are many are [united into] one body; for we all partake of the one bread [which represents the body of Christ].

¹⁸Consider the people of Israel; are those who eat the sacrifices not partners of the altar [united in their worship of the same God]? [Indeed they are.]

¹⁹What do I mean then? That a thing offered to idols is anything [special or changed simply because it is offered], or that an idol is anything?

²⁰On the contrary, the things which the Gentiles (pagans) sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons [in effect], and not to God; and I do not want you to become partners with demons [by eating at feasts in pagan temples].

²¹You cannot drink [both] the Lord's cup and the cup of demons. You cannot share in both the Lord's table and the table of demons [thereby becoming partners with them].

²²Do we [really] provoke the Lord to jealousy [when we eat food sacrificed to handmade "gods" at pagan feasts]? Are we [spiritually] stronger than He? [Certainly not! He knows that the idols are nothing. But we deeply offend Him.]

²³All things are lawful [that is, morally legitimate, permissible], but not all things are beneficial or advantageous. All things are lawful, but not all things are constructive [to character] and edifying [to spiritual life].

²⁴Let no one seek [only] his own good, but [also] that of the other person.

²⁵[Regarding meat offered to idols:] Eat anything that is sold in the meat market without asking any questions for the sake of your conscience,

²⁶For the [whole] earth is the Lord's, and everything that is in it.

²⁷If one of the unbelievers invites you [to a meal at his home] and you want to go, eat whatever is served to you without asking questions [about its source] for the sake of your conscience.

²⁸But if anyone says to you, "This meat has been offered in sacrifice to an idol," do not eat it, out of consideration for the one who told you, and for conscience's sake—

²⁹and by conscience I mean for the sake of the other man's, not yours. For why is my freedom [of choice] judged by another's conscience [another's ethics—another's sense of right and wrong]?

³⁰If I take my share [of food] with thankfulness, why am I accused because of something for which I give thanks?

³¹So then, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of [our great] God.

³²Do not offend Jews or Greeks or even the church of God [but live to honor Him];

³³just as I please everyone in all things [as much as possible adapting myself to the interests of others], not seeking my own benefit but that of the many, so that they [will be open to the message of salvation and] may be saved.

¹Then the fifth angel sounded [his trumpet], and I saw a star (angelic being) that had fallen from heaven to the earth; and the key of the bottomless pit (abyss) was given to him (the star-angel).

²He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke like the smoke of a great furnace flowed out of the pit; and the sun and the atmosphere were darkened by the smoke from the pit.

³Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power [to hurt] was given to them, like the power which the earth's scorpions have.

⁴They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but [to hurt] only the people who do not have the seal (mark of ownership, protection) of God on their foreheads.

⁵They were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment and cause them extreme pain for five months; and their torment was like the torment from a scorpion when it stings a man.

⁶And in those days people will seek death and will not find it; and they will long to die [to escape the pain], but [will discover that] death evades them.

⁷The locusts resembled horses prepared and equipped for battle; and on their heads appeared to be [something like] golden crowns, and their faces resembled human faces.

⁸They had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions.

⁹They had breastplates (scales) like breastplates made of iron; and the [whirring] noise of their wings was like the [thunderous] noise of countless horse-drawn chariots charging [at full speed] into battle.

¹⁰They have tails like scorpions, and stingers; and in their tails is their power to hurt people for five months.

¹¹They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss (the bottomless pit); in Hebrew his name is Abaddon (destruction), and in Greek he is called Apollyon (destroyer-king).

¹²The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still coming after these things.

¹³Then the sixth angel sounded [his trumpet], and I heard a solitary voice from the four horns of the golden altar which stands before God,

¹⁴saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates."

¹⁵So the four angels, who had been prepared for the [appointed] hour and day and month and year, were released to kill a third of mankind.

¹⁶The number of the troops of cavalry was twice ten thousand times ten thousand (two hundred million); I heard the number of them.

¹⁷And this is how I saw the horses and their riders in my vision: the riders had breastplates [the color] of fire and of hyacinth (sapphire blue) and of brimstone (yellow); and the heads of the horses looked like the heads of lions; and from out of their mouths came fire and smoke and brimstone (burning sulfur).

¹⁸A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues—by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone that came from the mouths of the horses.

¹⁹For the power of the horses [to do harm] is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents and have heads, and it is with them that they do harm.

²⁰The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent even then of the works of their hands, so as to cease worshiping and paying homage to the demons and the idols of gold and of silver and of bronze and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk;

²¹and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries (drugs, intoxications) nor of their [sexual] immorality nor of their thefts.

¹(The Bridegroom) "How fair and beautiful you are, my darling, How very beautiful! Your eyes behind your veil are like those of a dove; Your hair is like [the shimmering black fleece of] a flock of [Arabian] goats That have descended from Mount Gilead [beyond the Jordan].

²"Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn ewes Which have come up from washing, All of which bear twins, And not one among them has lost her young.

³"Your lips are like a ribbon of scarlet, And your mouth is lovely. Your temples are like a slice of the pomegranate Behind your veil.

⁴"Your neck is like the tower of David, Built with rows of [glistening] stones, Whereon hang a thousand shields, All of them shields of warriors.

⁵"Your two breasts are like two fawns, Twins of a gazelle Which feed among the lilies.

⁶"Until the day breaks And the shadows flee away, [In my thoughts] I will go my way to the mountain of myrrh And to the hill of frankincense.

⁷"O my love, you are altogether beautiful and fair. There is no flaw nor blemish in you!

⁸"Come away with me from Lebanon, my [promised] bride, May you come with me from Lebanon. Journey down from the top of Amana, From the summit of Senir and Hermon, From the dens of lions, From the mountains of leopards.

⁹"You have ravished my heart and given me courage, my sister, my [promised] bride; You have ravished my heart and given me courage with a single glance of your eyes, With one jewel of your necklace.

¹⁰"How beautiful is your love, my sister, my [promised] bride! How much better is your love than wine, And the fragrance of your oils Than all kinds of balsam and spices.

¹¹"Your lips, my [promised] bride, drip honey [as the honeycomb]; Honey and milk are under your tongue, And the fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.

¹²"A garden enclosed is my sister, my [promised] bride— A rock garden locked, a spring sealed up.

¹³"Your shoots are an orchard of pomegranates, [A paradise] with precious fruits, henna with fragrant plants,

¹⁴Fragrant plants and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, With all trees of frankincense, Myrrh and aloes, along with all the finest spices.

¹⁵"You are a fountain in a garden, A well of fresh and living water, And streams flowing from Lebanon."

¹⁶(The Shulammite Bride) "Awake, O north wind, And come, south wind [blow softly upon my garden]; Make my garden breathe out fragrance, [for the one in whom my soul delights], Let its spices flow forth. Let my beloved come into his garden And eat its choicest fruits."

¹A Psalm of David. A skillful song, or a didactic or reflective poem. Blessed [fortunate, prosperous, favored by God] is he whose transgression is forgiven, And whose sin is covered.

²Blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute wickedness, And in whose spirit there is no deceit.

³When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away Through my groaning all the day long.

⁴For day and night Your hand [of displeasure] was heavy upon me; My energy (vitality, strength) was drained away as with the burning heat of summer. Selah.

⁵I acknowledged my sin to You, And I did not hide my wickedness; I said, "I will confess [all] my transgressions to the LORD"; And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.

⁶Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to You [for forgiveness] in a time when You [are near and] may be found; Surely when the great waters [of trial and distressing times] overflow they will not reach [the spirit in] him.

⁷You are my hiding place; You, LORD, protect me from trouble; You surround me with songs and shouts of deliverance. Selah.

⁸I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you [who are willing to learn] with My eye upon you.

⁹Do not be like the horse or like the mule which have no understanding, Whose trappings include bridle and rein to hold them in check, Otherwise they will not come near to you.

¹⁰Many are the sorrows of the wicked, But he who trusts in and relies on the LORD shall be surrounded with compassion and lovingkindness.

¹¹Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous [who actively seek right standing with Him]; Shout for joy, all you upright in heart.

¹Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring.

²Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; A stranger, and not your own lips.

³Stone is heavy and the sand weighty, But a fool's [unreasonable] wrath is heavier and more burdensome than both of them.

⁴Wrath is cruel and anger is an overwhelming flood, But who is able to endure and stand before [the sin of] jealousy?

⁵Better is an open reprimand [of loving correction] Than love that is hidden.

⁶Faithful are the wounds of a friend [who corrects out of love and concern], But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful [because they serve his hidden agenda].

⁷He who is satisfied loathes honey, But to the hungry soul any bitter thing is sweet.

⁸Like a bird that wanders from her nest [with its comfort and safety], So is a man who wanders from his home.

⁹Oil and perfume make the heart glad; So does the sweetness of a friend's counsel that comes from the heart.

¹⁰Do not abandon your own friend and your father's friend, And do not go to your brother's house in the day of your disaster. Better is a neighbor who is near than a brother who is far away.

¹¹My son, be wise, and make my heart glad, That I may reply to him who reproaches (reprimands, criticizes) me.

¹²A prudent man sees evil and hides himself and avoids it, But the naive [who are easily misled] continue on and are punished [by suffering the consequences of sin].

¹³[The judge tells the creditor,] "Take the garment of one who is surety (guarantees a loan) for a stranger; And hold him in pledge when he is surety for an immoral woman [for it is unlikely the debt will be repaid]."

¹⁴He who blesses his neighbor with a loud voice early in the morning, It will be counted as a curse to him [for it will either be annoying or his purpose will be suspect].

¹⁵A constant dripping on a day of steady rain And a contentious (quarrelsome) woman are alike;

¹⁶Whoever attempts to restrain her [criticism] might as well try to stop the wind, And grasps oil with his right hand.

¹⁷As iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens [and influences] another [through discussion].

¹⁸He who tends the fig tree will eat its fruit, And he who faithfully protects and cares for his master will be honored.

¹⁹As in water face reflects face, So the heart of man reflects man.

²⁰Sheol (the place of the dead) and Abaddon (the underworld) are never satisfied; Nor are the eyes of man ever satisfied.

²¹The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold [to separate the impurities of the metal], And each is tested by the praise given to him [and his response to it, whether humble or proud].

²²Even though you pound a [hardened, arrogant] fool [who rejects wisdom] in a mortar with a pestle like grain, Yet his foolishness will not leave him.

²³Be diligent to know the condition of your flocks, And pay attention to your herds;

²⁴For riches are not forever, Nor does a crown endure to all generations.

²⁵When the grass is gone, the new growth is seen, And herbs of the mountain are gathered in,

²⁶The lambs will supply wool for your clothing, And the goats will bring the price of a field.

²⁷And there will be enough goats' milk for your food, For the food of your household, And for the maintenance of your maids.

¹Now Solomon decided to build a house (temple) for the Name of the LORD, and a royal palace for himself.

²So Solomon assigned 70,000 men to carry loads, 80,000 men to quarry stone in the mountains, and 3,600 to supervise them.

³Then Solomon sent word to Hiram king of Tyre, saying, "As you dealt with my father David and sent him cedars to build himself a house in which to live, [please] do the same for me.

⁴Observe, I am about to build a house for the Name of the LORD my God, dedicated to Him, to burn fragrant incense [of sweet spices] before Him, to set out the showbread continually, and to offer burnt offerings morning and evening, on Sabbaths, New Moons, and on the festivals of the LORD our God, as ordained forever in Israel.

⁵The house I am going to build will be great, for our God is greater than all the gods.

⁶But who is able to build a house for Him, since the heavens and [even] the highest heavens cannot contain Him? Who am I to build a house for Him, except [as a place] to burn incense before Him?

⁷Now send me a man who is skilled to work in gold, silver, bronze, and iron, and in purple, crimson, and blue fabrics, and who knows how to make engravings, to work with the skilled men who are with me in Judah and Jerusalem, whom my father David provided.

⁸Send me also cedar, cypress, and algum timber, for I know that your servants know how to cut timber in Lebanon. And indeed my servants will work with your servants

⁹to prepare for me an abundance of timber, because the house I am about to build will be great and wonderful.

¹⁰And I will give to your servants who cut timber, 20,000 measures of crushed wheat and 20,000 measures of barley, and 20,000 baths of wine and 20,000 baths of [olive] oil."

¹¹Then Hiram, king of Tyre replied in a letter sent to Solomon: "Because the LORD loves His people, He has made you king over them."

¹²Hiram said also, "Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who has given King David a wise son, endowed with discretion and understanding, who will build a house for the LORD and a royal palace for himself.

¹³"Now I am sending a skilled man, endowed with understanding, Huram-abi,

¹⁴the son of a Danite woman and a Tyrian father. He is trained to work in gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and wood; in purple, blue, and crimson fabrics, and in fine linen. He is able to make any kind of engraving and to carry out any design given him. He will work with your skilled men and those of my lord, David your father.

¹⁵Now then, let my lord send to his servants the wheat, the barley, the oil, and the wine of which he has spoken.

¹⁶We will cut whatever timber you need from Lebanon and bring it to you on rafts by sea to Joppa, so that you may take it up to Jerusalem."

¹⁷Then Solomon took a count of all the aliens in the land of Israel, like the census that his father David had taken; and they were found to be 153,600.

¹⁸He assigned 70,000 of them to carry loads and 80,000 to quarry stone in the mountain, and 3,600 as overseers to make the people work.

¹"Also I, in the first year of Darius the Mede, I (Gabriel) arose to be an encouragement and a protection for him.

²And now I will tell you the truth. Behold, three more kings are going to arise in Persia. Then a fourth will become far richer than all of them. When he becomes strong through his riches he will stir up the whole empire against the realm of Greece.

³Then a mighty [warlike, threatening] king will arise who will rule with great authority and do as he pleases.

⁴But as soon as he (Alexander) has risen, his kingdom will be broken [by his death] and divided toward the four winds of heaven [the north, south, east, and west], but not to his descendants, nor according to the [Grecian] authority with which he ruled, for his kingdom will be torn out and uprooted and given to others (his four generals) to the exclusion of these.

⁵"Then the king of the South (Egypt) will be strong, along with one of his princes who will be stronger than he and have dominance over him; his domain will be a great dominion.

⁶After some years the Syrian king of the North and the Egyptian king of the South will make an alliance; the daughter (Berenice) of the king of the South will come to the king of the North to make an equitable and peaceful agreement (marriage); but she will not retain the power of her position, nor will he retain his power. She will be handed over with her attendants and her father as well as he who supported her in those times.

⁷But out of a branch of her [familial] roots will one (her brother, Ptolemy III Euergetes I) arise in his place, and he will come against the [Syrian] army and enter the fortress of the king of the North, and he will deal with them and will prevail.

⁸Also he will carry off to Egypt their [Syrian] gods with their cast images and their precious and costly treasure of silver and of gold, and he will refrain from waging war against the king of the North for some years.

⁹And the king of the North will come into the realm of the king of the South, but he will retreat to his own country [badly defeated].

¹⁰"His sons will prepare for battle and assemble a multitude of great forces; which will keep on coming and overflow [the land], and pass through, so that they may again wage war as far as his fortress.

¹¹The king of the South (Ptolemy IV Philopator of Egypt) will be enraged and go out and fight with the king of the North (Antiochus III the Great); and the Syrian king will raise a great multitude (army), but the multitude shall be given into the hand of the Egyptian king.

¹²When the multitude (army) is captured and carried away, the heart of the Egyptian king will be proud (arrogant), and he will cause tens of thousands to fall, but he will not prevail.

¹³For the king of the North will again raise a multitude (army) greater than the one before, and after several years he will advance with a great army and substantial equipment.

¹⁴"In those times many will rise up against the king of the South (Egypt); also the violent men among your own people will arise in order to fulfill the [earlier] visions, but they will fail.

¹⁵Then the king of the North (Syria) will come and build up siege ramps and capture a well-fortified city. The forces of the South will not stand their ground, not even the finest troops, for there will be no strength to stand [against the Syrian king].

¹⁶But he (Syria) who comes against him (Egypt) will do exactly as he pleases, and no one will be able to stand against him; he (Antiochus III the Great) will also stay for a time in the Beautiful and Glorious Land [of Israel], with destruction in his hand.

¹⁷He will be determined to come with the power of his entire kingdom, and propose equitable conditions and terms of peace, which he will put into effect [by making an agreement with the king of the South]. He will also give him his daughter (Cleopatra I), in an attempt to overthrow the kingdom, but it will not succeed or be to his advantage.

¹⁸After this, he (Antiochus III the Great, King of Syria) will turn his attention to the islands and coastlands and capture many [of them]. But a commander (Lucius Scipio Asiaticus of Rome) will put an end to his aggression [toward Rome's territorial interests]; in fact, he will repay his insolence and turn his audacity back upon him.

¹⁹Then he will turn back toward the fortresses of his own land [of Syria], but he will stumble and fall and not be found.

²⁰"Then in his place one (his eldest son, Seleucus IV Philopator) will arise who will send an oppressor through the Jewel of his kingdom; yet within a few days he will be shattered, though not in anger nor in battle.

²¹And in his place [in Syria] will arise a despicable and despised person, to whom royal majesty and the honor of kingship have not been conferred, but he will come [without warning] in a time of tranquility and seize the kingdom by intrigue.

²²The overwhelming forces [of the invading armies of Egypt] will be flooded away before him and smashed; and also the prince of the covenant [will be smashed].

²³After an alliance is made with him he will work deceitfully, and he will go up and gain power with a small force of people.

²⁴In a time of tranquility, [without warning] he will enter the most productive and richest parts of the kingdom [of Egypt], and he will accomplish that which his fathers never did, nor his fathers' fathers; he will distribute plunder, spoil and goods among them. He will devise plans against strongholds, but only for a time [decreed by God].

²⁵He will stir up his strength and courage against [his former Egyptian ally] the king of the South (Ptolemy VI) with a great army; so the king of the South will prepare an extremely great and powerful army to wage war, but he will not stand, for schemes will be devised against him.

²⁶Yes, those who eat his fine food will betray and destroy him (Ptolemy VI), and his army will be swept away, and many will fall down slain.

²⁷And as for both of these kings, their hearts will be set on doing evil; they will speak lies over the same table, but it will not succeed, for the end is yet to come at the appointed time.

²⁸Then he (Antiochus IV Epiphanes) will return to his land with great treasure (plunder); and his heart will be set against the holy covenant, and he will take action and return to his own land (Syria).

²⁹"At the time appointed [by God] he will return and come into the South, but this last time will not be successful as were the previous invasions [of Egypt].

³⁰For ships of Cyprus [in Roman hands] will come against him; therefore he will be discouraged and turn back [to Israel] and carry out his rage against the holy covenant and take action; so he will return and show favoritism toward those [Jews] who abandon (break) the holy covenant [with God].

³¹Armed forces of his will arise [in Jerusalem] and defile and desecrate the sanctuary, the [spiritual] stronghold, and will do away with the regular sacrifice [that is, the daily burnt offering]; and they will set up [a pagan altar in the sanctuary which is] the abomination of desolation.

³²With smooth words [of flattery and praise] he will turn to godlessness those who [are willing to] disregard the [Mosaic] covenant, but the people who [are spiritually mature and] know their God will display strength and take action [to resist].

³³They who are wise and have spiritual insight among the people will instruct many and help them understand; yet for many days some [of them and their followers] will fall by the sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder.

³⁴Now when they fall they will receive a little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy.

³⁵Some of those who are [spiritually] wise and have insight will fall [as martyrs] in order to refine, to purge and to make those among God's people pure, until the end time; because it is yet to come at the time appointed [by God].

³⁶"Then the king (the Antichrist) will do exactly as he pleases; he will exalt himself and magnify himself above every god and will speak astounding and disgusting things against the God of gods and he will prosper until the indignation is finished, for that which is determined [by God] will be done.

³⁷He will have no regard for the gods of his fathers or for the desire of women, nor will he have regard for any other god, for he shall magnify himself above them all.

³⁸Instead, he will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know; he will honor him with gold and silver, with precious stones and with expensive things.

³⁹He will act against the strongest fortresses with the help of a foreign god; he will give great honor to those who acknowledge him and he will cause them to rule over the many, and will parcel out land for a price.

⁴⁰"At the end time the king of the South will push and attack him (the Antichrist), and the king of the North will storm against him with chariots and horsemen and with many ships; and he will enter countries, overwhelm them and pass through.

⁴¹He shall also enter the Beautiful and Glorious Land (Israel), and many countries will fall, but these will be rescued out of his hand: Edom, Moab, and the foremost [core] of the people of Ammon.

⁴²Then he will stretch out his hand against other countries, but Egypt will not be among the ones which escape.

⁴³He will have power over the treasures of gold and silver and over all the precious things of Egypt, and the Libyans and the Ethiopians will follow in his footsteps.

⁴⁴But rumors from the east and from the north will alarm and disturb him, and he will set out with great fury to destroy and to annihilate many.

⁴⁵He will pitch his palatial tents between the seas and the glorious Holy Mountain (Zion); yet he will come to his end with no one to help him [in his final battle with God].

¹Now in Iconium Paul and Barnabas went into the Jewish synagogue together and spoke in such a way [with such power and boldness] that a large number of Jews as well as Greeks believed [and confidently accepted Jesus as Savior];

²but the unbelieving Jews [who rejected Jesus as Messiah] stirred up and embittered the minds of the Gentiles against the believers.

³So Paul and Barnabas stayed for a long time, speaking boldly and confidently for the Lord, who continued to testify to the word of His grace, granting that signs and wonders (attesting miracles) be done by them.

⁴But the people of the city were divided; some were siding with the Jews, and some with the apostles.

⁵When there was an attempt by both the Gentiles and the Jews, together with their rulers, to shamefully mistreat and to stone them,

⁶they, aware of the situation, escaped to Lystra and Derbe, [taking refuge in the] cities of Lycaonia, and the neighboring region;

⁷and there they continued to preach the good news.

⁸Now at Lystra a man sat who was unable to use his feet, for he was crippled from birth and had never walked.

⁹This man was listening to Paul as he spoke, and Paul looked intently at him and saw that he had faith to be healed,

¹⁰and said with a loud voice, "Stand up on your feet." And he jumped up and began to walk.

¹¹And the crowds, when they saw what Paul had done, raised their voices, shouting in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have come down to us in human form!"

¹²They began calling Barnabas, Zeus [chief of the Greek gods], and Paul, Hermes [messenger of the Greek gods], since he took the lead in speaking.

¹³The priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance of the city, brought bulls and garlands to the city gates, and wanted to offer sacrifices with the crowds.

¹⁴But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard about it, they tore their robes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting,

¹⁵"Men, why are you doing these things? We too are only men of the same nature as you, bringing the good news to you, so that you turn from these useless and meaningless things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything that is in them.

¹⁶In generations past He permitted all the nations to go their own ways;

¹⁷yet He did not leave Himself without some witness [as evidence of Himself], in that He kept constantly doing good things and showing you kindness, and giving you rains from heaven and productive seasons, filling your hearts with food and happiness."

¹⁸Even saying these words, with difficulty they prevented the people from offering sacrifices to them.

¹⁹But Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium, and having won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, thinking he was dead.

²⁰But the disciples formed a circle around him, and he got up and went back into the city; and the next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe.

²¹They preached the good news to that city and made many disciples, then they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch,

²²strengthening and establishing the hearts of the disciples; encouraging them to remain firm in the faith, saying, "It is through many tribulations and hardships that we must enter the kingdom of God."

²³When they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they entrusted them to the Lord in whom they believed [and joyfully accepted as the Messiah].

²⁴Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia.

²⁵When they had spoken the word [of salvation through faith in Christ] in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

²⁶From there they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been entrusted to the grace of God for the work which they had now completed.

²⁷Arriving there, they gathered the church together and began to report [in great detail] everything that God had done with them and how He had opened to the Gentiles a door of faith [in Jesus as the Messiah and Savior].

²⁸And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.