Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Jesus also told them other parables. He said,

²“The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a king who prepared a great wedding feast for his son.

³When the banquet was ready, he sent his servants to notify those who were invited. But they all refused to come!

⁴“So he sent other servants to tell them, ‘The feast has been prepared. The bulls and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the banquet!’

⁵But the guests he had invited ignored them and went their own way, one to his farm, another to his business.

⁶Others seized his messengers and insulted them and killed them.

⁷“The king was furious, and he sent out his army to destroy the murderers and burn their town.

⁸And he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, and the guests I invited aren’t worthy of the honor.

⁹Now go out to the street corners and invite everyone you see.’

¹⁰So the servants brought in everyone they could find, good and bad alike, and the banquet hall was filled with guests.

¹¹“But when the king came in to meet the guests, he noticed a man who wasn’t wearing the proper clothes for a wedding.

¹²‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how is it that you are here without wedding clothes?’ But the man had no reply.

¹³Then the king said to his aides, ‘Bind his hands and feet and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

¹⁴“For many are called, but few are chosen.”

¹⁵Then the Pharisees met together to plot how to trap Jesus into saying something for which he could be arrested.

¹⁶They sent some of their disciples, along with the supporters of Herod, to meet with him. “Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You teach the way of God truthfully. You are impartial and don’t play favorites.

¹⁷Now tell us what you think about this: Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

¹⁸But Jesus knew their evil motives. “You hypocrites!” he said. “Why are you trying to trap me?

¹⁹Here, show me the coin used for the tax.” When they handed him a Roman coin,

²⁰he asked, “Whose picture and title are stamped on it?”

²¹“Caesar’s,” they replied. “Well, then,” he said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”

²²His reply amazed them, and they went away.

²³That same day Jesus was approached by some Sadducees — religious leaders who say there is no resurrection from the dead. They posed this question:

²⁴“Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies without children, his brother should marry the widow and have a child who will carry on the brother’s name.’

²⁵Well, suppose there were seven brothers. The oldest one married and then died without children, so his brother married the widow.

²⁶But the second brother also died, and the third brother married her. This continued with all seven of them.

²⁷Last of all, the woman also died.

²⁸So tell us, whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For all seven were married to her.”

²⁹Jesus replied, “Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures, and you don’t know the power of God.

³⁰For when the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage. In this respect they will be like the angels in heaven.

³¹“But now, as to whether there will be a resurrection of the dead — haven’t you ever read about this in the Scriptures? Long after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had died, God said,

³²‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ So he is the God of the living, not the dead.”

³³When the crowds heard him, they were astounded at his teaching.

³⁴But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees with his reply, they met together to question him again.

³⁵One of them, an expert in religious law, tried to trap him with this question:

³⁶“Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”

³⁷Jesus replied, “‘You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’

³⁸This is the first and greatest commandment.

³⁹A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

⁴⁰The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

⁴¹Then, surrounded by the Pharisees, Jesus asked them a question:

⁴²“What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?” They replied, “He is the son of David.”

⁴³Jesus responded, “Then why does David, speaking under the inspiration of the Spirit, call the Messiah ‘my Lord’? For David said,

⁴⁴‘The LORD said to my Lord, Sit in the place of honor at my right hand until I humble your enemies beneath your feet.’

⁴⁵Since David called the Messiah ‘my Lord,’ how can the Messiah be his son?”

⁴⁶No one could answer him. And after that, no one dared to ask him any more questions.

¹So Abram left Egypt and traveled north into the Negev, along with his wife and Lot and all that they owned.

²(Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.)

³From the Negev, they continued traveling by stages toward Bethel, and they pitched their tents between Bethel and Ai, where they had camped before.

⁴This was the same place where Abram had built the altar, and there he worshiped the LORD again.

⁵Lot, who was traveling with Abram, had also become very wealthy with flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, and many tents.

⁶But the land could not support both Abram and Lot with all their flocks and herds living so close together.

⁷So disputes broke out between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot. (At that time Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land.)

⁸Finally Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not allow this conflict to come between us or our herdsmen. After all, we are close relatives!

⁹The whole countryside is open to you. Take your choice of any section of the land you want, and we will separate. If you want the land to the left, then I’ll take the land on the right. If you prefer the land on the right, then I’ll go to the left.”

¹⁰Lot took a long look at the fertile plains of the Jordan Valley in the direction of Zoar. The whole area was well watered everywhere, like the garden of the LORD or the beautiful land of Egypt. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.)

¹¹Lot chose for himself the whole Jordan Valley to the east of them. He went there with his flocks and servants and parted company with his uncle Abram.

¹²So Abram settled in the land of Canaan, and Lot moved his tents to a place near Sodom and settled among the cities of the plain.

¹³But the people of this area were extremely wicked and constantly sinned against the LORD.

¹⁴After Lot had gone, the LORD said to Abram, “Look as far as you can see in every direction — north and south, east and west.

¹⁵I am giving all this land, as far as you can see, to you and your descendants as a permanent possession.

¹⁶And I will give you so many descendants that, like the dust of the earth, they cannot be counted!

¹⁷Go and walk through the land in every direction, for I am giving it to you.”

¹⁸So Abram moved his camp to Hebron and settled near the oak grove belonging to Mamre. There he built another altar to the LORD.

¹This boasting will do no good, but I must go on. I will reluctantly tell about visions and revelations from the Lord.

²I was caught up to the third heaven fourteen years ago. Whether I was in my body or out of my body, I don’t know — only God knows.

³Yes, only God knows whether I was in my body or outside my body. But I do know

⁴that I was caught up to paradise and heard things so astounding that they cannot be expressed in words, things no human is allowed to tell.

⁵That experience is worth boasting about, but I’m not going to do it. I will boast only about my weaknesses.

⁶If I wanted to boast, I would be no fool in doing so, because I would be telling the truth. But I won’t do it, because I don’t want anyone to give me credit beyond what they can see in my life or hear in my message,

⁷even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.

⁸Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away.

⁹Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.

¹⁰That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

¹¹You have made me act like a fool. You ought to be writing commendations for me, for I am not at all inferior to these “super apostles,” even though I am nothing at all.

¹²When I was with you, I certainly gave you proof that I am an apostle. For I patiently did many signs and wonders and miracles among you.

¹³The only thing I failed to do, which I do in the other churches, was to become a financial burden to you. Please forgive me for this wrong!

¹⁴Now I am coming to you for the third time, and I will not be a burden to you. I don’t want what you have — I want you. After all, children don’t provide for their parents. Rather, parents provide for their children.

¹⁵I will gladly spend myself and all I have for you, even though it seems that the more I love you, the less you love me.

¹⁶Some of you admit I was not a burden to you. But others still think I was sneaky and took advantage of you by trickery.

¹⁷But how? Did any of the men I sent to you take advantage of you?

¹⁸When I urged Titus to visit you and sent our other brother with him, did Titus take advantage of you? No! For we have the same spirit and walk in each other’s steps, doing things the same way.

¹⁹Perhaps you think we’re saying these things just to defend ourselves. No, we tell you this as Christ’s servants, and with God as our witness. Everything we do, dear friends, is to strengthen you.

²⁰For I am afraid that when I come I won’t like what I find, and you won’t like my response. I am afraid that I will find quarreling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorderly behavior.

²¹Yes, I am afraid that when I come again, God will humble me in your presence. And I will be grieved because many of you have not given up your old sins. You have not repented of your impurity, sexual immorality, and eagerness for lustful pleasure.

¹“How frail is humanity! How short is life, how full of trouble!

²We blossom like a flower and then wither. Like a passing shadow, we quickly disappear.

³Must you keep an eye on such a frail creature and demand an accounting from me?

⁴Who can bring purity out of an impure person? No one!

⁵You have decided the length of our lives. You know how many months we will live, and we are not given a minute longer.

⁶So leave us alone and let us rest! We are like hired hands, so let us finish our work in peace.

⁷“Even a tree has more hope! If it is cut down, it will sprout again and grow new branches.

⁸Though its roots have grown old in the earth and its stump decays,

⁹at the scent of water it will bud and sprout again like a new seedling.

¹⁰“But when people die, their strength is gone. They breathe their last, and then where are they?

¹¹As water evaporates from a lake and a river disappears in drought,

¹²people are laid to rest and do not rise again. Until the heavens are no more, they will not wake up nor be roused from their sleep.

¹³“I wish you would hide me in the grave and forget me there until your anger has passed. But mark your calendar to think of me again!

¹⁴Can the dead live again? If so, this would give me hope through all my years of struggle, and I would eagerly await the release of death.

¹⁵You would call and I would answer, and you would yearn for me, your handiwork.

¹⁶For then you would guard my steps, instead of watching for my sins.

¹⁷My sins would be sealed in a pouch, and you would cover my guilt.

¹⁸“But instead, as mountains fall and crumble and as rocks fall from a cliff,

¹⁹as water wears away the stones and floods wash away the soil, so you destroy people’s hope.

²⁰You always overpower them, and they pass from the scene. You disfigure them in death and send them away.

²¹They never know if their children grow up in honor or sink to insignificance.

²²They suffer painfully; their life is full of trouble.”

¹The LORD, the Mighty One, is God, and he has spoken; he has summoned all humanity from where the sun rises to where it sets.

²From Mount Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines in glorious radiance.

³Our God approaches, and he is not silent. Fire devours everything in his way, and a great storm rages around him.

⁴He calls on the heavens above and earth below to witness the judgment of his people.

⁵“Bring my faithful people to me — those who made a covenant with me by giving sacrifices.”

⁶Then let the heavens proclaim his justice, for God himself will be the judge. Interlude

⁷“O my people, listen as I speak. Here are my charges against you, O Israel: I am God, your God!

⁸I have no complaint about your sacrifices or the burnt offerings you constantly offer.

⁹But I do not need the bulls from your barns or the goats from your pens.

¹⁰For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills.

¹¹I know every bird on the mountains, and all the animals of the field are mine.

¹²If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for all the world is mine and everything in it.

¹³Do I eat the meat of bulls? Do I drink the blood of goats?

¹⁴Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God, and keep the vows you made to the Most High.

¹⁵Then call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory.”

¹⁶But God says to the wicked: “Why bother reciting my decrees and pretending to obey my covenant?

¹⁷For you refuse my discipline and treat my words like trash.

¹⁸When you see thieves, you approve of them, and you spend your time with adulterers.

¹⁹Your mouth is filled with wickedness, and your tongue is full of lies.

²⁰You sit around and slander your brother — your own mother’s son.

²¹While you did all this, I remained silent, and you thought I didn’t care. But now I will rebuke you, listing all my charges against you.

²²Repent, all of you who forget me, or I will tear you apart, and no one will help you.

²³But giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me. If you keep to my path, I will reveal to you the salvation of God.”

¹A wise woman builds her home, but a foolish woman tears it down with her own hands.

²Those who follow the right path fear the LORD; those who take the wrong path despise him.

³A fool’s proud talk becomes a rod that beats him, but the words of the wise keep them safe.

⁴Without oxen a stable stays clean, but you need a strong ox for a large harvest.

⁵An honest witness does not lie; a false witness breathes lies.

⁶A mocker seeks wisdom and never finds it, but knowledge comes easily to those with understanding.

⁷Stay away from fools, for you won’t find knowledge on their lips.

⁸The prudent understand where they are going, but fools deceive themselves.

⁹Fools make fun of guilt, but the godly acknowledge it and seek reconciliation.

¹⁰Each heart knows its own bitterness, and no one else can fully share its joy.

¹¹The house of the wicked will be destroyed, but the tent of the godly will flourish.

¹²There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.

¹³Laughter can conceal a heavy heart, but when the laughter ends, the grief remains.

¹⁴Backsliders get what they deserve; good people receive their reward.

¹⁵Only simpletons believe everything they’re told! The prudent carefully consider their steps.

¹⁶The wise are cautious and avoid danger; fools plunge ahead with reckless confidence.

¹⁷Short-tempered people do foolish things, and schemers are hated.

¹⁸Simpletons are clothed with foolishness, but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.

¹⁹Evil people will bow before good people; the wicked will bow at the gates of the godly.

²⁰The poor are despised even by their neighbors, while the rich have many “friends.”

²¹It is a sin to belittle one’s neighbor; blessed are those who help the poor.

²²If you plan to do evil, you will be lost; if you plan to do good, you will receive unfailing love and faithfulness.

²³Work brings profit, but mere talk leads to poverty!

²⁴Wealth is a crown for the wise; the effort of fools yields only foolishness.

²⁵A truthful witness saves lives, but a false witness is a traitor.

²⁶Those who fear the LORD are secure; he will be a refuge for their children.

²⁷Fear of the LORD is a life-giving fountain; it offers escape from the snares of death.

²⁸A growing population is a king’s glory; a prince without subjects has nothing.

²⁹People with understanding control their anger; a hot temper shows great foolishness.

³⁰A peaceful heart leads to a healthy body; jealousy is like cancer in the bones.

³¹Those who oppress the poor insult their Maker, but helping the poor honors him.

³²The wicked are crushed by disaster, but the godly have a refuge when they die.

³³Wisdom is enshrined in an understanding heart; wisdom is not found among fools.

³⁴Godliness makes a nation great, but sin is a disgrace to any people.

³⁵A king rejoices in wise servants but is angry with those who disgrace him.

¹After this, the armies of the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites declared war on Jehoshaphat.

²Messengers came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army from Edom is marching against you from beyond the Dead Sea. They are already at Hazazon-tamar.” (This was another name for En-gedi.)

³Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the LORD for guidance. He also ordered everyone in Judah to begin fasting.

⁴So people from all the towns of Judah came to Jerusalem to seek the LORD’s help.

⁵Jehoshaphat stood before the community of Judah and Jerusalem in front of the new courtyard at the Temple of the LORD.

⁶He prayed, “O LORD, God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you!

⁷O our God, did you not drive out those who lived in this land when your people Israel arrived? And did you not give this land forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham?

⁸Your people settled here and built this Temple to honor your name.

⁹They said, ‘Whenever we are faced with any calamity such as war, plague, or famine, we can come to stand in your presence before this Temple where your name is honored. We can cry out to you to save us, and you will hear us and rescue us.’

¹⁰“And now see what the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir are doing. You would not let our ancestors invade those nations when Israel left Egypt, so they went around them and did not destroy them.

¹¹Now see how they reward us! For they have come to throw us out of your land, which you gave us as an inheritance.

¹²O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help.”

¹³As all the men of Judah stood before the LORD with their little ones, wives, and children,

¹⁴the Spirit of the LORD came upon one of the men standing there. His name was Jahaziel son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite who was a descendant of Asaph.

¹⁵He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.

¹⁶Tomorrow, march out against them. You will find them coming up through the ascent of Ziz at the end of the valley that opens into the wilderness of Jeruel.

¹⁷But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the LORD’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the LORD is with you!”

¹⁸Then King Jehoshaphat bowed low with his face to the ground. And all the people of Judah and Jerusalem did the same, worshiping the LORD.

¹⁹Then the Levites from the clans of Kohath and Korah stood to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud shout.

²⁰Early the next morning the army of Judah went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. On the way Jehoshaphat stopped and said, “Listen to me, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be able to stand firm. Believe in his prophets, and you will succeed.”

²¹After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the LORD and praising him for his holy splendor. This is what they sang: “Give thanks to the LORD; his faithful love endures forever!”

²²At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the LORD caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves.

²³The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had destroyed the army of Seir, they began attacking each other.

²⁴So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped.

²⁵King Jehoshaphat and his men went out to gather the plunder. They found vast amounts of equipment, clothing, and other valuables — more than they could carry. There was so much plunder that it took them three days just to collect it all!

²⁶On the fourth day they gathered in the Valley of Blessing, which got its name that day because the people praised and thanked the LORD there. It is still called the Valley of Blessing today.

²⁷Then all the men returned to Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat leading them, overjoyed that the LORD had given them victory over their enemies.

²⁸They marched into Jerusalem to the music of harps, lyres, and trumpets, and they proceeded to the Temple of the LORD.

²⁹When all the surrounding kingdoms heard that the LORD himself had fought against the enemies of Israel, the fear of God came over them.

³⁰So Jehoshaphat’s kingdom was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side.

³¹So Jehoshaphat ruled over the land of Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-five years. His mother was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi.

³²Jehoshaphat was a good king, following the ways of his father, Asa. He did what was pleasing in the LORD’s sight.

³³During his reign, however, he failed to remove all the pagan shrines, and the people never fully committed themselves to follow the God of their ancestors.

³⁴The rest of the events of Jehoshaphat’s reign, from beginning to end, are recorded in The Record of Jehu Son of Hanani, which is included in The Book of the Kings of Israel.

³⁵Some time later King Jehoshaphat of Judah made an alliance with King Ahaziah of Israel, who was very wicked.

³⁶Together they built a fleet of trading ships at the port of Ezion-geber.

³⁷Then Eliezer son of Dodavahu from Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat. He said, “Because you have allied yourself with King Ahaziah, the LORD will destroy your work.” So the ships met with disaster and never put out to sea.

¹“At the time of those events,” says the LORD, “when I restore the prosperity of Judah and Jerusalem,

²I will gather the armies of the world into the valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will judge them for harming my people, my special possession, for scattering my people among the nations, and for dividing up my land.

³They threw dice to decide which of my people would be their slaves. They traded boys to obtain prostitutes and sold girls for enough wine to get drunk.

⁴“What do you have against me, Tyre and Sidon and you cities of Philistia? Are you trying to take revenge on me? If you are, then watch out! I will strike swiftly and pay you back for everything you have done.

⁵You have taken my silver and gold and all my precious treasures, and have carried them off to your pagan temples.

⁶You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, so they could take them far from their homeland.

⁷“But I will bring them back from all the places to which you sold them, and I will pay you back for everything you have done.

⁸I will sell your sons and daughters to the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the people of Arabia, a nation far away. I, the LORD, have spoken!”

⁹Say to the nations far and wide: “Get ready for war! Call out your best warriors. Let all your fighting men advance for the attack.

¹⁰Hammer your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Train even your weaklings to be warriors.

¹¹Come quickly, all you nations everywhere. Gather together in the valley.” And now, O LORD, call out your warriors!

¹²“Let the nations be called to arms. Let them march to the valley of Jehoshaphat. There I, the LORD, will sit to pronounce judgment on them all.

¹³Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, tread the grapes, for the winepress is full. The storage vats are overflowing with the wickedness of these people.”

¹⁴Thousands upon thousands are waiting in the valley of decision. There the day of the LORD will soon arrive.

¹⁵The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will no longer shine.

¹⁶The LORD’s voice will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth will shake. But the LORD will be a refuge for his people, a strong fortress for the people of Israel.

¹⁷“Then you will know that I, the LORD your God, live in Zion, my holy mountain. Jerusalem will be holy forever, and foreign armies will never conquer her again.

¹⁸In that day the mountains will drip with sweet wine, and the hills will flow with milk. Water will fill the streambeds of Judah, and a fountain will burst forth from the LORD’s Temple, watering the arid valley of acacias.

¹⁹But Egypt will become a wasteland and Edom will become a wilderness, because they attacked the people of Judah and killed innocent people in their land.

²⁰“But Judah will be filled with people forever, and Jerusalem will endure through all generations.

²¹I will pardon my people’s crimes, which I have not yet pardoned; and I, the LORD, will make my home in Jerusalem with my people.”

¹While Peter and John were speaking to the people, they were confronted by the priests, the captain of the Temple guard, and some of the Sadducees.

²These leaders were very disturbed that Peter and John were teaching the people that through Jesus there is a resurrection of the dead.

³They arrested them and, since it was already evening, put them in jail until morning.

⁴But many of the people who heard their message believed it, so the number of men who believed now totaled about 5,000.

⁵The next day the council of all the rulers and elders and teachers of religious law met in Jerusalem.

⁶Annas the high priest was there, along with Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and other relatives of the high priest.

⁷They brought in the two disciples and demanded, “By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?”

⁸Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people,

⁹are we being questioned today because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed?

¹⁰Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead.

¹¹For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’

¹²There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

¹³The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus.

¹⁴But since they could see the man who had been healed standing right there among them, there was nothing the council could say.

¹⁵So they ordered Peter and John out of the council chamber and conferred among themselves.

¹⁶“What should we do with these men?” they asked each other. “We can’t deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it.

¹⁷But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus’ name again.”

¹⁸So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus.

¹⁹But Peter and John replied, “Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him?

²⁰We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.”

²¹The council then threatened them further, but they finally let them go because they didn’t know how to punish them without starting a riot. For everyone was praising God

²²for this miraculous sign — the healing of a man who had been lame for more than forty years.

²³As soon as they were freed, Peter and John returned to the other believers and told them what the leading priests and elders had said.

²⁴When they heard the report, all the believers lifted their voices together in prayer to God: “O Sovereign Lord, Creator of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them —

²⁵you spoke long ago by the Holy Spirit through our ancestor David, your servant, saying, ‘Why were the nations so angry? Why did they waste their time with futile plans?

²⁶The kings of the earth prepared for battle; the rulers gathered together against the LORD and against his Messiah.’

²⁷“In fact, this has happened here in this very city! For Herod Antipas, Pontius Pilate the governor, the Gentiles, and the people of Israel were all united against Jesus, your holy servant, whom you anointed.

²⁸But everything they did was determined beforehand according to your will.

²⁹And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word.

³⁰Stretch out your hand with healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

³¹After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness.

³²All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had.

³³The apostles testified powerfully to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great blessing was upon them all.

³⁴There were no needy people among them, because those who owned land or houses would sell them

³⁵and bring the money to the apostles to give to those in need.

³⁶For instance, there was Joseph, the one the apostles nicknamed Barnabas (which means “Son of Encouragement”). He was from the tribe of Levi and came from the island of Cyprus.

³⁷He sold a field he owned and brought the money to the apostles.