Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Then some Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem came to Jesus and said,

²"Why do Your disciples violate the tradition (religious laws) handed down by the [Jewish] elders? For Your disciples do not [ceremonially] wash their hands before they eat."

³He replied to them, "Why also do you violate the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition [handed down by the elders]?

⁴For God said [through Moses], 'Honor your father and mother,' and, 'He who speaks evil of or insults or treats improperly father or mother is to be put to death.'

⁵But you say, 'If anyone says to his father or mother, "Whatever [money or resource that] I have that would help you is [already dedicated and] given to God,"

⁶he is not to honor his father or his mother [by helping them with their need].' So by this you have invalidated the word of God [depriving it of force and authority and making it of no effect] for the sake of your tradition [handed down by the elders].

⁷You hypocrites (play-actors, pretenders), rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you when he said,

⁸'This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far away from Me.

⁹'But in vain do they worship Me, For they teach as doctrines the precepts of men.'"

¹⁰After Jesus called the crowd to Him, He said, "Listen and understand this:

¹¹It is not what goes into the mouth of a man that defiles and dishonors him, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles and dishonors him."

¹²Then the disciples came and said to Jesus, "Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard you say this?"

¹³He answered, "Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant will be torn up by the roots.

¹⁴Leave them alone; they are blind guides[leading blind followers]. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit."

¹⁵Peter asked Him, "Explain this parable [about what defiles a person] to us."

¹⁶And He said, "Are you still so dull [and unable to put things together]?

¹⁷Do you not understand that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated?

¹⁸But whatever [word] comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this is what defiles and dishonors the man.

¹⁹For out of the heart come evil thoughts and plans, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies, slanders (verbal abuse, irreverent speech, blaspheming).

²⁰These are the things which defile and dishonor the man; but eating with [ceremonially] unwashed hands does not defile the man."

²¹After leaving there, Jesus withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon.

²²And a Canaanite woman from that district came out and began to cry out [urgently], saying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David (Messiah); my daughter is cruelly possessed by a demon."

²³But He did not say a word in answer to her. And His disciples came and asked Him [repeatedly], "Send her away, because she keeps shouting out after us."

²⁴He answered, "I was commissioned by God and sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."

²⁵But she came and began to kneel down before Him, saying, "Lord, help me!"

²⁶And He replied, "It is not good (appropriate, fair) to take the children's bread and throw it to the pet dogs."

²⁷She said, "Yes, Lord; but even the pet dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their [young] masters' table."

²⁸Then Jesus answered her, "Woman, your faith [your personal trust and confidence in My power] is great; it will be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed from that moment.

²⁹Jesus went on from there and passed along by [the eastern shore of] the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up on the hillside and was sitting there.

³⁰And great crowds came to Him, bringing with them the lame, crippled, blind, mute, and many others, and they put them down at His feet; and He healed them.

³¹So the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they praised and glorified the God of Israel.

³²Then Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, "I feel compassion for the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days and have nothing [left] to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, because they might faint [from exhaustion] on the way [home]."

³³The disciples said to Him, "Where are we to get enough bread in this isolated place to feed so large a crowd?"

³⁴And Jesus asked them, "How many loaves [of bread] do you have?" They replied, "Seven, and a few small fish."

³⁵He directed the crowd to sit down on the ground,

³⁶and He took the seven loaves and the fish; and when He had given thanks, He broke them and started giving them to the disciples, and the disciples [gave them] to the people.

³⁷And they all ate and were satisfied, and they gathered up seven full baskets of the broken pieces that were left over.

³⁸[Among] those who ate were 4,000 men, not counting women and children.

³⁹Then Jesus sent the crowds away, got into the boat and went to the district of Magadan.

¹Now it happened, when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them,

²that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful and desirable; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose and desired.

³Then the LORD said, "My Spirit shall not strive and remain with man forever, because he is indeed flesh [sinful, corrupt—given over to sensual appetites]; nevertheless his days shall yet be a hundred and twenty years."

⁴There were Nephilim (men of stature, notorious men) on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God lived with the daughters of men, and they gave birth to their children. These were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown (great reputation, fame).

⁵The LORD saw that the wickedness (depravity) of man was great on the earth, and that every imagination or intent of the thoughts of his heart were only evil continually.

⁶The LORD regretted that He had made mankind on the earth, and He was [deeply] grieved in His heart.

⁷So the LORD said, "I will destroy (annihilate) mankind whom I have created from the surface of the earth—not only man, but the animals and the crawling things and the birds of the air—because it [deeply] grieves Me [to see mankind's sin] and I regret that I have made them."

⁸But Noah found favor and grace in the eyes of the LORD.

⁹These are the records of the generations (family history) of Noah. Noah was a righteous man [one who was just and had right standing with God], blameless in his [evil] generation; Noah walked (lived) [in habitual fellowship] with God.

¹⁰Now Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

¹¹The [population of the] earth was corrupt [absolutely depraved—spiritually and morally putrid] in God's sight, and the land was filled with violence [desecration, infringement, outrage, assault, and lust for power].

¹²God looked on the earth and saw how debased and degenerate it was, for all humanity had corrupted their way on the earth and lost their true direction.

¹³God said to Noah, "I intend to make an end of all that lives, for through men the land is filled with violence; and behold, I am about to destroy them together with the land.

¹⁴Make yourself an ark of gopher wood; make in it rooms (stalls, pens, coops, nests, cages, compartments) and coat it inside and out with pitch (bitumen).

¹⁵This is the way you are to make it: the length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits (450' x 75' x 45').

¹⁶You shall make a window [for light and ventilation] for the ark, and finish it to at least a cubit (eighteen inches) from the top—and set the [entry] door of the ark in its side; and you shall make it with lower, second and third decks.

¹⁷For behold, I, even I, will bring a flood of waters on the earth, to destroy all life under the heavens in which there is the breath and spirit of life; everything that is on the land shall die.

¹⁸But I will establish My covenant (solemn promise, formal agreement) with you; and you shall come into the ark—you and your [three] sons and your wife, and your sons' wives with you.

¹⁹And of every living thing [found on land], you shall bring two of every kind into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female.

²⁰Of fowls and birds according to their kind, of animals according to their kind, of every crawling thing of the ground according to its kind—two of every kind shall come to you to keep them alive.

²¹Also take with you every kind of food that is edible, and you shall collect and store it; and it shall be food for you and for them."

²²So Noah did this; according to all that God commanded him, that is what he did.

¹For we know that if the earthly tent [our physical body] which is our house is torn down [through death], we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

²For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our [immortal, eternal] celestial dwelling,

³so that by putting it on we will not be found naked.

⁴For while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened [often weighed down, oppressed], not that we want to be unclothed [separated by death from the body], but to be clothed, so that what is mortal [the body] will be swallowed up by life [after the resurrection].

⁵Now He who has made us and prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave us the [Holy] Spirit as a pledge [a guarantee, a down payment on the fulfillment of His promise].

⁶So then, being always filled with good courage and confident hope, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord—

⁷for we walk by faith, not by sight [living our lives in a manner consistent with our confident belief in God's promises]—

⁸we are [as I was saying] of good courage and confident hope, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.

⁹Therefore, whether we are at home [on earth] or away from home [and with Him], it is our [constant] ambition to be pleasing to Him.

¹⁰For we [believers will be called to account and] must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be repaid for what has been done in the body, whether good or bad [that is, each will be held responsible for his actions, purposes, goals, motives—the use or misuse of his time, opportunities and abilities].

¹¹Therefore, since we know the fear of the Lord [and understand the importance of obedience and worship], we persuade people [to be reconciled to Him]. But we are plainly known to God [He knows everything about us]; and I hope that we are plainly known also in your consciences [your God-given discernment].

¹²We are not commending ourselves to you again, but are giving you an occasion to be [rightfully] proud of us, so that you will have an answer for those who take pride in [outward] appearances [the virtues they pretend to have] rather than what is [actually] in heart.

¹³If we are out of our mind [just unstable fanatics as some critics say], it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for your benefit.

¹⁴For the love of Christ controls and compels us, because we have concluded this, that One died for all, therefore all died;

¹⁵and He died for all, so that all those who live would no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and was raised for their sake.

¹⁶So from now on we regard no one from a human point of view [according to worldly standards and values]. Though we have known Christ from a human point of view, now we no longer know Him in this way.

¹⁷Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life].

¹⁸But all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ [making us acceptable to Him] and gave us the ministry of reconciliation [so that by our example we might bring others to Him],

¹⁹that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting people's sins against them [but canceling them]. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation [that is, restoration to favor with God].

²⁰So we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making His appeal through us; we [as Christ's representatives] plead with you on behalf of Christ to be reconciled to God.

²¹He made Christ who knew no sin to [judicially] be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we would become the righteousness of God [that is, we would be made acceptable to Him and placed in a right relationship with Him by His gracious lovingkindness].

¹And then I saw an angel descending from heaven, holding the key of the abyss (the bottomless pit) and a great chain was in his hand.

²And he overpowered and laid hold of the dragon, that old serpent [of primeval times], who is the devil and Satan, and bound him [securely] for a thousand years (a millennium);

³and the angel hurled him into the abyss, and closed it and sealed it above him [preventing his escape or rescue], so that he would no longer deceive and seduce the nations, until the thousand years were at an end. After these things he must be liberated for a short time.

⁴And then I saw thrones, and sitting on them were those to whom judgment [that is, the authority to act as judges] was given. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had refused to worship the beast or his image, and had not accepted his mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

⁵The rest of the dead [the non-believers] did not come to life again until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection.

⁶Blessed (happy, prosperous, to be admired) and holy is the person who takes part in the first resurrection; over these the second death [which is eternal separation from God, the lake of fire] has no power or authority, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and they will reign with Him a thousand years.

⁷And when the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison (the abyss),

⁸and will come out to deceive and mislead the nations which are in the four corners of the earth—[including] Gog and Magog—to gather them together for the war; their number is like the sand of the seashore.

⁹And they swarmed up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints (God's people) and the beloved city [ Jerusalem]; but fire came down from heaven and consumed them.

¹⁰And the devil who had deceived them was hurled into the lake of fire and burning brimstone (sulfur), where the beast (Antichrist) and false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night, forever and ever.

¹¹And I saw a great white throne and Him who was seated upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them [for this heaven and earth are passing away].

¹²And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the Book of Life; and the dead were judged according to what they had done as written in the books [that is, everything done while on earth].

¹³And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, and death and Hades (the realm of the dead) surrendered the dead who were in them; and they were judged and sentenced, every one according to their deeds.

¹⁴Then death and Hades [the realm of the dead] were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire [the eternal separation from God].

¹⁵And if anyone's name was not found written in the Book of Life, he was hurled into the lake of fire.

¹"Is not man forced to labor on earth? And are not his days like the days of a hired man?

²"As a slave earnestly longs for the shade, And as a hired man eagerly awaits his wages,

³So am I allotted months of futility and suffering, And [long] nights of trouble and misery are appointed to me.

⁴"When I lie down I say, 'When shall I arise [and the night be gone]?' But the night continues, And I am continually tossing until the dawning of day.

⁵"My body is clothed with worms and a crust of dust; My skin is hardened [and broken and loathsome], and [breaks out and] runs.

⁶"My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle, And are spent without hope.

⁷"Remember that my life is but breath [a puff of wind, a sigh]; My eye will not see good again.

⁸"The eye of him who sees me [now] will see me no more; Your eyes will be upon me, but I will not be.

⁹"As a cloud vanishes and is gone, So he who goes down to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) does not come up.

¹⁰"He will not return again to his house, Nor will his place know about him anymore.

¹¹"Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit, I will complain in the bitterness of my soul [O Lord].

¹²"Am I the sea, or the sea monster, That You set a guard over me?

¹³"When I say, 'My bed will comfort me, My couch will ease my complaint,'

¹⁴Then You frighten me with dreams And terrify me through visions,

¹⁵So that I would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pain.

¹⁶"I waste away and loathe my life; I will not live forever. Let me alone, for my days are but a breath [futile and without substance].

¹⁷"What is man that You [should] magnify him [and think him important]? And that You are concerned about him?

¹⁸"And that You examine him every morning And try and test him every moment?

¹⁹"Will You never turn Your gaze away from me [it plagues me], Nor let me alone until I swallow my spittle?

²⁰"If I have sinned, what [harm] have I done to You, O Watcher of mankind? Why have You set me as a target for You, So that I am a burden to myself?

²¹"Why then do You not pardon my transgression And take away my sin and guilt? For now I will lie down in the dust; And You will seek me [diligently], but I will not be."

¹Judge and vindicate me, O God; plead my case against an ungodly nation. O rescue me from the deceitful and unjust man!

²For You are the God of my strength [my stronghold—in whom I take refuge]; why have You rejected me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?

³O send out Your light and Your truth, let them lead me; Let them bring me to Your holy hill And to Your dwelling places.

⁴Then I will go to the altar of God, To God, my exceeding joy; With the lyre I will praise You, O God, my God!

⁵Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why are you restless and disturbed within me? Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall again praise Him, The help of my [sad] countenance and my God.

¹My son, keep my words And treasure my commandments within you [so they are readily available to guide you].

²Keep my commandments and live, And keep my teaching and law as the apple of your eye.

³Bind them [securely] on your fingers; Write them on the tablet of your heart.

⁴Say to [skillful and godly] wisdom, "You are my sister," And regard understanding and intelligent insight as your intimate friends;

⁵That they may keep you from the immoral woman, From the foreigner [who does not observe God's laws and] who flatters with her [smooth] words.

⁶For at the window of my house I looked out through my lattice.

⁷And among the naive [the inexperienced and gullible], I saw among the youths A young man lacking [good] sense,

⁸Passing through the street near her corner; And he took the path to her house

⁹In the twilight, in the evening; In the black and dark night.

¹⁰And there a woman met him, Dressed as a prostitute and sly and cunning of heart.

¹¹She was boisterous and rebellious; She would not stay at home.

¹²At times she was in the streets, at times in the market places, Lurking and setting her ambush at every corner.

¹³So she caught him and kissed him And with a brazen and impudent face she said to him:

¹⁴"I have peace offerings with me; Today I have paid my vows.

¹⁵"So I came out to meet you [that you might share with me the feast of my offering], Diligently I sought your face and I have found you.

¹⁶"I have spread my couch with coverings and cushions of tapestry, With colored fine linen of Egypt.

¹⁷"I have perfumed my bed With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

¹⁸"Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning; Let us console and delight ourselves with love.

¹⁹"For my husband is not at home. He has gone on a long journey;

²⁰He has taken a bag of money with him, And he will come home on the appointed day."

²¹With her many persuasions she caused him to yield; With her flattering lips she seduced him.

²²Suddenly he went after her, as an ox goes to the slaughter [not knowing the outcome], Or as one in stocks going to the correction [to be given] to a fool,

²³Until an arrow pierced his liver [with a mortal wound]; Like a bird fluttering straight into the net, He did not know that it would cost him his life.

²⁴Now therefore, my sons, listen to me, And pay attention to the words of my mouth.

²⁵Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways, Do not stray into her [evil, immoral] paths.

²⁶For she has cast down many [mortally] wounded; Indeed, all who were killed by her were strong.

²⁷Her house is the way to Sheol, Descending to the chambers of death.

¹In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, Abijah became king over Judah.

²He reigned three years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Micaiah the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah. And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam [of Israel].

³Abijah began the battle with an army of brave soldiers, 400,000 chosen men. Jeroboam drew up in battle formation against him with 800,000 chosen men, valiant men.

⁴Then Abijah stood on Mount Zemaraim, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, and said, "Listen to me, Jeroboam and all Israel:

⁵Do you not know that the LORD God of Israel, gave rule over Israel forever to David and to his sons by a covenant of salt [a permanent pact, extending to each generation of Israel]?

⁶Yet Jeroboam the son of Nebat, a servant of Solomon the son of David, rose up and rebelled against his lord [the king],

⁷and worthless (unprincipled, unethical) men gathered around him, useless and wicked men, who proved too strong for Rehoboam the son of Solomon when Rehoboam was young and timid, and could not assert himself against them.

⁸"And now you intend to assert yourselves against the kingdom of the LORD which is in the hands of the sons of David, since you are a great multitude and have with you the golden calves (idols) which Jeroboam made for you as gods.

⁹Have you not driven out the priests of the LORD, the sons of Aaron and the Levites, and made priests for yourselves like the peoples of other lands? So whoever comes to consecrate himself with a young bull and seven rams, even he may become a priest of non-existent gods (idols).

¹⁰But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not abandoned (turned away from) Him. The sons of Aaron are ministering to the LORD as priests, and the Levites attend to their service.

¹¹Every morning and every evening they offer the burnt offerings and the fragrant incense to the LORD; and the showbread is set on the clean table [of pure gold], and the golden lampstand with its lamps is ready to light every evening; for we keep the charge of the LORD our God [that is, the obligation we have to Him], but you have abandoned (turned away from) Him.

¹²Behold, God is with us at our head, and His priests [are here] with their signal trumpets to sound an alarm against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against the LORD God of your fathers, for you cannot succeed."

¹³But Jeroboam had set an ambush to come from the rear, so that Israel was in front of Judah and the ambush was behind them.

¹⁴When [the men of] Judah turned around, they were attacked from both front and rear; so they cried out to the LORD [for help], and the priests blew the trumpets.

¹⁵Then the men of Judah raised a war cry; and as they shouted, God struck Jeroboam and all Israel [with defeat] before Abijah and Judah.

¹⁶And the sons of Israel fled before Judah, and God handed over the sons of Israel to them.

¹⁷Abijah and his people inflicted on them a great defeat, so that 500,000 chosen men of Israel fell slain.

¹⁸Thus the sons of Israel were subdued (humbled) at that time, and the sons of Judah prevailed because they relied on the LORD, the God of their fathers.

¹⁹Abijah pursued Jeroboam and captured [several] cities from him: Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephraim (Ephron), with their villages.

²⁰Jeroboam did not recover strength again during the time of [the reign of] Abijah. And the LORD struck him and he died.

²¹But Abijah became powerful. He took fourteen wives for himself and fathered twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.

²²Now the rest of the acts of Abijah, and his ways and his sayings, are written in the writing of the prophet Iddo.

¹Israel is a luxuriant and prolific vine; He produces fruit for himself. The more his fruit, The more altars he made [to Baal]; The richer his land, The better he made the [idolatrous] pillars.

²Their heart is divided (faithless); Now they must bear their guilt and punishment. The LORD will break down [the horns of] their altars; He will destroy their idolatrous pillars.

³Surely now they will say [in despair], "We have no [true] king, For we do not revere the LORD; And as for the king, what can he do for us [to rescue us]?"

⁴They have spoken empty (disingenuous) words, Swearing falsely to make covenants [they intend to break]; Therefore, judgment springs up like poisonous weeds in the furrows of the field.

⁵The people of Samaria will fear and tremble For the [idolatrous] calf of Beth-aven (House of Wickedness). Indeed, its people will mourn over it And its idolatrous priests will cry out and wail over it, Over its glory, because the glory [of their calf god] has departed from it.

⁶The golden calf itself will be carried to Assyria As tribute to King Jareb; Ephraim will be seized with shame And Israel will be ashamed of his own counsel [to worship the calf and separate Israel from Judah].

⁷As for Samaria, her king will be cut off and float away Like a twig on the surface of the water.

⁸Also the high places of Aven (Beth-aven), the sin of Israel, will be destroyed; The thorn and the thistle will grow on their [pagan] altars, And [in despair] they will say to the mountains, "Cover us!" And to the hills, "Fall on us!"

⁹O Israel, you have [willfully] sinned since the days of Gibeah; There they (Israel) stand! Will not the battle against the sons of wickedness overtake them at Gibeah?

¹⁰When it is my desire [to defend My righteousness], I will chastise them; And [hostile] peoples will be gathered against them When they are bound and punished for their double guilt [their revolt against the LORD and their worship of idols].

¹¹Ephraim is a trained heifer that loves to tread out the grain, But I will come over her fair neck with a heavy yoke [for hard field work]. I will harness Ephraim; Judah will plow and Jacob will harrow and rake for himself.

¹²Sow with a view to righteousness [that righteousness, like seed, may germinate]; Reap in accordance with mercy and lovingkindness. Break up your uncultivated ground, For it is time to seek and search diligently for the LORD [and to long for His blessing] Until He comes to rain righteousness and His gift of salvation on you.

¹³You have plowed and planted wickedness, you have reaped the [willful] injustice [of oppressors], You have eaten the fruit of lies. Because you have trusted in your own way and your chariots, and in your many warriors,

¹⁴Therefore an uproar will arise among your people, And all your fortresses will be destroyed, As Shalman destroyed Beth-arbel on the day of battle, When mothers were dashed in pieces with their children.

¹⁵In this way it will be done to you at [idolatrous] Bethel because of your great wickedness; At daybreak the king of Israel will be completely cut off.

¹Now Festus arrived in the province, and three days later he went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea [Maritima].

²And [there in Jerusalem] the chief priests and the leading men of the Jews brought charges against Paul [before Festus], and they repeatedly pleaded with him,

³asking as a concession against Paul, that he would have him brought to Jerusalem; (meanwhile planning an ambush to kill him on the way).

⁴Festus answered that Paul was being held in custody in Caesarea [Maritima] and that he himself was about to leave shortly.

⁵"So," he said, "let those who are in a position of authority among you go there with me, and if there is anything criminal about the man, let them bring charges against him."

⁶Now after Festus had spent no more than eight or ten days among them, he went down to Caesarea, and on the next day he took his seat on the tribunal (the judicial bench), and ordered Paul to be brought [before him].

⁷After Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many serious charges against him which they were not able to prove,

⁸while Paul declared in his own defense, "I have done no wrong and committed no offense either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar."

⁹But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul, " Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial there in my presence [before the Jewish Sanhedrin] on these charges?"

¹⁰Paul said, "I am standing before Caesar's tribunal, where I ought to be tried. I have done nothing wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know.

¹¹Therefore, if I am guilty and have committed anything worthy of death, I do not try to escape death; but if there is nothing to the accusations which these men are bringing against me, no one can hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar (Emperor Nero)."

¹²Then Festus, after conferring with [the men who formed] his council, answered, "You have appealed to Caesar; to Caesar you shall go."

¹³Now several days later, Agrippa [II] the king and Bernice [his sister] arrived at Caesarea and paid their respects to Festus [the new governor].

¹⁴While they were spending many days there, Festus laid Paul's case before the king, saying, "There is a man here who was left as a prisoner by Felix.

¹⁵When I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews [told me about him and] brought charges against him, petitioning for a sentence of condemnation against him.

¹⁶I told them that it was not the custom of the Romans to hand over any man [for punishment] before the accused meets his accusers face to face and has the opportunity to defend himself against the charges.

¹⁷So after they arrived together here, I did not delay, but on the next day took my place on the tribunal and ordered that the man be brought before me.

¹⁸When his accusers stood up, they brought no charges against him of crimes that I was expecting [neither civil nor criminal actions],

¹⁹instead they had some points of disagreement with him about their own religion and about one Jesus, a man who had died, but whom Paul kept asserting and insisting [over and over] to be alive.

²⁰And I, being at a loss as to how to investigate these things, asked whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and be tried there regarding these matters.

²¹But when Paul appealed to be held in custody for a decision by the Emperor [Nero], I ordered him to be kept in custody until I could send him to Caesar."

²²Then Agrippa said to Festus, "I would like to hear the man myself." "Tomorrow," Festus replied, "you will hear him."

²³So the next day Agrippa and [his sister] Bernice came with great pageantry, and they went into the auditorium accompanied by the military commanders and the prominent men of the city. At the command of Festus, Paul was brought in.

²⁴Then Festus said, "King Agrippa and all you gentlemen present with us, you see this man [Paul] about whom all the Jewish people appealed to me, both at Jerusalem and here, loudly insisting that he ought not to live any longer.

²⁵But I found that he had done nothing worthy of death; however, since he appealed to the Emperor [Nero], I decided to send him [to Rome].

²⁶But I have nothing specific about him to write to my lord. So I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after the investigation has taken place, I will have something to put in writing.

²⁷For it seems absurd and unreasonable to me to send a prisoner [to Rome] without indicating the charges against him."