Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹They came to the other side of the sea, to the region of the Gerasenes.

²As soon as he got out of the boat, a man with an unclean spirit came out of the tombs and met him.

³He lived in the tombs, and no one was able to restrain him anymore — not even with a chain  —

⁴because he often had been bound with shackles and chains, but had torn the chains apart and smashed the shackles. No one was strong enough to subdue him.

⁵Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains, he was always crying out and cutting himself with stones.

⁶When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and knelt down before him.

⁷And he cried out with a loud voice, “What do you have to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you before God, don’t torment me!”

⁸For he had told him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!”

⁹“What is your name?” he asked him. “My name is Legion,” he answered him, “because we are many.”

¹⁰And he begged him earnestly not to send them out of the region.

¹¹A large herd of pigs was there, feeding on the hillside.

¹²The demons begged him, “Send us to the pigs, so that we may enter them.”

¹³So he gave them permission, and the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs. The herd of about two thousand rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned there.

¹⁴The men who tended them ran off and reported it in the town and the countryside, and people went to see what had happened.

¹⁵They came to Jesus and saw the man who had been demon-possessed, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid.

¹⁶Those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the demon-possessed man and told about the pigs.

¹⁷Then they began to beg him to leave their region.

¹⁸As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged him earnestly that he might remain with him.

¹⁹Jesus did not let him but told him, “Go home to your own people, and report to them how much the Lord has done for you and how he has had mercy on you.”

²⁰So he went out and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and they were all amazed.

²¹When Jesus had crossed over again by boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the sea.

²²One of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet

²³and begged him earnestly, “My little daughter is dying. Come and lay your hands on her so that she can get well and live.”

²⁴So Jesus went with him, and a large crowd was following and pressing against him.

²⁵Now a woman suffering from bleeding for twelve years

²⁶had endured much under many doctors. She had spent everything she had and was not helped at all. On the contrary, she became worse.

²⁷Having heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his clothing.

²⁸For she said, “If I just touch his clothes, I’ll be made well.”

²⁹Instantly her flow of blood ceased, and she sensed in her body that she was healed of her affliction.

³⁰At once Jesus realized in himself that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?”

³¹His disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing against you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’”

³²But he was looking around to see who had done this.

³³The woman, with fear and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before him, and told him the whole truth.

³⁴“Daughter,” he said to her, “your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be healed from your affliction.”

³⁵While he was still speaking, people came from the synagogue leader’s house and said, “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the teacher anymore?”

³⁶When Jesus overheard what was said, he told the synagogue leader, “Don’t be afraid. Only believe.”

³⁷He did not let anyone accompany him except Peter, James, and John, James’s brother.

³⁸They came to the leader’s house, and he saw a commotion — people weeping and wailing loudly.

³⁹He went in and said to them, “Why are you making a commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep.”

⁴⁰They laughed at him, but he put them all outside. He took the child’s father, mother, and those who were with him, and entered the place where the child was.

⁴¹Then he took the child by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum” (which is translated, “Little girl, I say to you, get up” ).

⁴²Immediately the girl got up and began to walk. (She was twelve years old.) At this they were utterly astounded.

⁴³Then he gave them strict orders that no one should know about this and told them to give her something to eat.

¹Abraham was now old, getting on in years, and the LORD had blessed him in everything.

²Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his household who managed all he owned, “Place your hand under my thigh,

³and I will have you swear by the LORD, God of heaven and God of earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I live,

⁴but will go to my land and my family to take a wife for my son Isaac.”

⁵The servant said to him, “Suppose the woman is unwilling to follow me to this land? Should I have your son go back to the land you came from?”

⁶Abraham answered him, “Make sure that you don’t take my son back there.

⁷The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from my native land, who spoke to me and swore to me, ‘I will give this land to your offspring’  — he will send his angel before you, and you can take a wife for my son from there.

⁸If the woman is unwilling to follow you, then you are free from this oath to me, but don’t let my son go back there.”

⁹So the servant placed his hand under his master Abraham’s thigh and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.

¹⁰The servant took ten of his master’s camels, and with all kinds of his master’s goods in hand, he went to Aram-naharaim, to Nahor’s town.

¹¹At evening, the time when women went out to draw water, he made the camels kneel beside a well outside the town.

¹²“LORD, God of my master Abraham,” he prayed, “make this happen for me today, and show kindness to my master Abraham.

¹³I am standing here at the spring where the daughters of the men of the town are coming out to draw water.

¹⁴Let the girl to whom I say, ‘Please lower your water jug so that I may drink,’ and who responds, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels also’ — let her be the one you have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.”

¹⁵Before he had finished speaking, there was Rebekah — daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor — coming with a jug on her shoulder.

¹⁶Now the girl was very beautiful, a virgin — no man had been intimate with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jug, and came up.

¹⁷Then the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please let me have a little water from your jug.”

¹⁸She replied, “Drink, my lord.” She quickly lowered her jug to her hand and gave him a drink.

¹⁹When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I’ll also draw water for your camels until they have had enough to drink.”

²⁰She quickly emptied her jug into the trough and hurried to the well again to draw water. She drew water for all his camels

²¹while the man silently watched her to see whether or not the LORD had made his journey a success.

²²As the camels finished drinking, the man took a gold ring weighing half a shekel, and for her wrists two bracelets weighing ten shekels of gold.

²³“Whose daughter are you?” he asked. “Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?”

²⁴She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, whom she bore to Nahor.”

²⁵She also said to him, “We have plenty of straw and feed and a place to spend the night.”

²⁶Then the man knelt low, worshiped the LORD,

²⁷and said, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not withheld his kindness and faithfulness from my master. As for me, the LORD has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”

²⁸The girl ran and told her mother’s household about these things.

²⁹Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, and Laban ran out to the man at the spring.

³⁰As soon as he had seen the ring and the bracelets on his sister’s wrists, and when he had heard his sister Rebekah’s words — “The man said this to me!” — he went to the man. He was standing there by the camels at the spring.

³¹Laban said, “Come, you who are blessed by the LORD. Why are you standing out here? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.”

³²So the man came to the house, and the camels were unloaded. Straw and feed were given to the camels, and water was brought to wash his feet and the feet of the men with him.

³³A meal was set before him, but he said, “I will not eat until I have said what I have to say.” So Laban said, “Please speak.”

³⁴“I am Abraham’s servant,” he said.

³⁵“The LORD has greatly blessed my master, and he has become rich. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male and female slaves, and camels and donkeys.

³⁶Sarah, my master’s wife, bore a son to my master in her old age, and he has given him everything he owns.

³⁷My master put me under this oath: ‘You will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites in whose land I live

³⁸but will go to my father’s family and to my clan to take a wife for my son.’

³⁹But I said to my master, ‘Suppose the woman will not come back with me?’

⁴⁰He said to me, ‘The LORD before whom I have walked will send his angel with you and make your journey a success, and you will take a wife for my son from my clan and from my father’s family.

⁴¹Then you will be free from my oath if you go to my family and they do not give her to you — you will be free from my oath.’

⁴²“Today when I came to the spring, I prayed: LORD, God of my master Abraham, if only you will make my journey successful!

⁴³I am standing here at a spring. Let the young woman who comes out to draw water, and I say to her, ‘Please let me drink a little water from your jug,’

⁴⁴and who responds to me, ‘Drink, and I’ll draw water for your camels also’ — let her be the woman the LORD has appointed for my master’s son.

⁴⁵“Before I had finished praying silently, there was Rebekah coming with her jug on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew water. So I said to her, ‘Please let me have a drink.’

⁴⁶She quickly lowered her jug from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels also.’ So I drank, and she also watered the camels.

⁴⁷Then I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you? ’ She responded, ‘The daughter of Bethuel son of Nahor, whom Milcah bore to him.’ So I put the ring on her nose and the bracelets on her wrists.

⁴⁸Then I knelt low, worshiped the LORD, and blessed the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who guided me on the right way to take the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son.

⁴⁹Now, if you are going to show kindness and faithfulness to my master, tell me; if not, tell me, and I will go elsewhere.”

⁵⁰Laban and Bethuel answered, “This is from the LORD; we have no choice in the matter.

⁵¹Rebekah is here in front of you. Take her and go, and let her be a wife for your master’s son, just as the LORD has spoken.”

⁵²When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed to the ground before the LORD.

⁵³Then he brought out objects of silver and gold, and garments, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious gifts to her brother and her mother.

⁵⁴Then he and the men with him ate and drank and spent the night. When they got up in the morning, he said, “Send me to my master.”

⁵⁵But her brother and mother said, “Let the girl stay with us for about ten days. Then she can go.”

⁵⁶But he responded to them, “Do not delay me, since the LORD has made my journey a success. Send me away so that I may go to my master.”

⁵⁷So they said, “Let’s call the girl and ask her opinion.”

⁵⁸They called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” She replied, “I will go.”

⁵⁹So they sent away their sister Rebekah with the one who had nursed and raised her, and Abraham’s servant and his men.

⁶⁰They blessed Rebekah, saying to her: Our sister, may you become thousands upon ten thousands. May your offspring possess the city gates of their enemies.

⁶¹Then Rebekah and her female servants got up, mounted the camels, and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and left.

⁶²Now Isaac was returning from Beer-lahai-roi, for he was living in the Negev region.

⁶³In the early evening Isaac went out to walk in the field, and looking up he saw camels coming.

⁶⁴Rebekah looked up, and when she saw Isaac, she got down from her camel

⁶⁵and asked the servant, “Who is that man in the field coming to meet us?” The servant answered, “It is my master.” So she took her veil and covered herself.

⁶⁶Then the servant told Isaac everything he had done.

⁶⁷And Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah and took Rebekah to be his wife. Isaac loved her, and he was comforted after his mother’s death.

¹Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to live worthy of the calling you have received,

²with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,

³making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

⁴There is one body and one Spirit  — just as you were called to one hope at your calling —

⁵one Lord, one faith, one baptism,

⁶one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.

⁷Now grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

⁸For it says: When he ascended on high, he took the captives captive; he gave gifts to people.

⁹But what does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower parts of the earth?

¹⁰The one who descended is also the one who ascended far above all the heavens, to fill all things.

¹¹And he himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers,

¹²equipping the saints for the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ,

¹³until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son, growing into maturity with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness.

¹⁴Then we will no longer be little children, tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit.

¹⁵But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into him who is the head  — Christ.

¹⁶From him the whole body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the body for building up itself in love by the proper working of each individual part.

¹⁷Therefore, I say this and testify in the Lord: You should no longer live as the Gentiles live, in the futility of their thoughts.

¹⁸They are darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them and because of the hardness of their hearts.

¹⁹They became callous and gave themselves over to promiscuity for the practice of every kind of impurity with a desire for more and more.

²⁰But that is not how you came to know Christ,

²¹assuming you heard about him and were taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus,

²²to take off your former way of life, the old self that is corrupted by deceitful desires,

²³to be renewed in the spirit of your minds,

²⁴and to put on the new self, the one created according to God’s likeness in righteousness and purity of the truth.

²⁵Therefore, putting away lying, speak the truth, each one to his neighbor, because we are members of one another.

²⁶Be angry and do not sin. Don’t let the sun go down on your anger,

²⁷and don’t give the devil an opportunity.

²⁸Let the thief no longer steal. Instead, he is to do honest work with his own hands, so that he has something to share with anyone in need.

²⁹No foul language should come from your mouth, but only what is good for building up someone in need, so that it gives grace to those who hear.

³⁰And don’t grieve God’s Holy Spirit. You were sealed by him for the day of redemption.

³¹Let all bitterness, anger and wrath, shouting and slander be removed from you, along with all malice.

³²And be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ.

¹You, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

²What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

³Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

⁴No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the concerns of civilian life; he seeks to please the commanding officer.

⁵Also, if anyone competes as an athlete, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.

⁶The hardworking farmer ought to be the first to get a share of the crops.

⁷Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

⁸Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead and descended from David, according to my gospel,

⁹for which I suffer to the point of being bound like a criminal. But the word of God is not bound.

¹⁰This is why I endure all things for the elect: so that they also may obtain salvation, which is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

¹¹This saying is trustworthy: For if we died with him, we will also live with him;

¹²if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us;

¹³if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself.

¹⁴Remind them of these things, and charge them before God not to fight about words. This is useless and leads to the ruin of those who listen.

¹⁵Be diligent to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth.

¹⁶Avoid irreverent and empty speech, since those who engage in it will produce even more godlessness,

¹⁷and their teaching will spread like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are among them.

¹⁸They have departed from the truth, saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and are ruining the faith of some.

¹⁹Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, bearing this inscription: The Lord knows those who are his, and let everyone who calls on the name of the Lord turn away from wickedness.

²⁰Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also those of wood and clay; some for honorable use and some for dishonorable.

²¹So if anyone purifies himself from anything dishonorable, he will be a special instrument, set apart, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.

²²Flee from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.

²³But reject foolish and ignorant disputes, because you know that they breed quarrels.

²⁴The Lord’s servant must not quarrel, but must be gentle to everyone, able to teach, and patient,

²⁵instructing his opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance leading them to the knowledge of the truth.

²⁶Then they may come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

¹Then Bildad the Shuhite replied:

²Dominion and dread belong to him, the one who establishes harmony in his heights.

³Can his troops be numbered? Does his light not shine on everyone?

⁴How can a human be justified before God? How can one born of woman be pure?

⁵If even the moon does not shine and the stars are not pure in his sight,

⁶how much less a human, who is a maggot, a son of man, who is a worm!

¹For the choir director: on stringed instruments. Of David. [1] God, hear my cry; pay attention to my prayer.

²I call to you from the ends of the earth when my heart is without strength. Lead me to a rock that is high above me,

³for you have been a refuge for me, a strong tower in the face of the enemy.

⁴I will dwell in your tent forever and take refuge under the shelter of your wings. Selah

⁵God, you have heard my vows; you have given a heritage to those who fear your name.

⁶Add days to the king’s life; may his years span many generations.

⁷May he sit enthroned before God forever. Appoint faithful love and truth to guard him.

⁸Then I will continually sing of your name, fulfilling my vows day by day.

¹These too are proverbs of Solomon, which the men of King Hezekiah of Judah, copied.

²It is the glory of God to conceal a matter and the glory of kings to investigate a matter.

³As the heavens are high and the earth is deep, so the hearts of kings cannot be investigated.

⁴Remove impurities from silver, and material will be produced for a silversmith.

⁵Remove the wicked from the king’s presence, and his throne will be established in righteousness.

⁶Don’t boast about yourself before the king, and don’t stand in the place of the great;

⁷for it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here!” than to demote you in plain view of a noble.

⁸Don’t take a matter to court hastily. Otherwise, what will you do afterward if your opponent humiliates you?

⁹Make your case with your opponent without revealing another’s secret;

¹⁰otherwise, the one who hears will disgrace you, and you’ll never live it down.

¹¹A word spoken at the right time is like gold apples in silver settings.

¹²A wise correction to a receptive ear is like a gold ring or an ornament of gold.

¹³To those who send him, a trustworthy envoy is like the coolness of snow on a harvest day; he refreshes the life of his masters.

¹⁴The one who boasts about a gift that does not exist is like clouds and wind without rain.

¹⁵A ruler can be persuaded through patience, and a gentle tongue can break a bone.

¹⁶If you find honey, eat only what you need; otherwise, you’ll get sick from it and vomit.

¹⁷Seldom set foot in your neighbor’s house; otherwise, he’ll get sick of you and hate you.

¹⁸A person giving false testimony against his neighbor is like a club, a sword, or a sharp arrow.

¹⁹Trusting an unreliable person in a difficult time is like a rotten tooth or a faltering foot.

²⁰Singing songs to a troubled heart is like taking off clothing on a cold day or like pouring vinegar on soda.

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

²²for you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you.

²³The north wind produces rain, and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.

²⁴Better to live on the corner of a roof than to share a house with a nagging wife.

²⁵Good news from a distant land is like cold water to a parched throat.

²⁶A righteous person who yields to the wicked is like a muddied spring or a polluted well.

²⁷It is not good to eat too much honey or to seek glory after glory.

²⁸A person who does not control his temper is like a city whose wall is broken down.

¹When all this was completed, all Israel who had attended went out to the cities of Judah and broke up the sacred pillars, chopped down the Asherah poles, and tore down the high places and altars throughout Judah and Benjamin, as well as in Ephraim and Manasseh, to the last one. Then all the Israelites returned to their cities, each to his own possession.

²Hezekiah reestablished the divisions of the priests and Levites for the burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, for ministry, for giving thanks, and for praise in the gates of the camp of the LORD, each division corresponding to his service among the priests and Levites.

³The king contributed from his own possessions for the regular morning and evening burnt offerings, the burnt offerings of the Sabbaths, of the New Moons, and of the appointed feasts, as written in the law of the LORD.

⁴He told the people who lived in Jerusalem to give a contribution for the priests and Levites so that they could devote their energy to the law of the LORD.

⁵When the word spread, the Israelites gave liberally of the best of the grain, new wine, fresh oil, honey, and of all the produce of the field, and they brought in an abundance, a tenth of everything.

⁶As for the Israelites and Judahites who lived in the cities of Judah, they also brought a tenth of the herds and flocks, and a tenth of the dedicated things that were consecrated to the LORD their God. They gathered them into large piles.

⁷In the third month they began building up the piles, and they finished in the seventh month.

⁸When Hezekiah and his officials came and viewed the piles, they blessed the LORD and his people Israel.

⁹Hezekiah asked the priests and Levites about the piles.

¹⁰The chief priest Azariah, of the household of Zadok, answered him, “Since they began bringing the offering to the LORD’s temple, we eat and are satisfied and there is plenty left over because the LORD has blessed his people; this abundance is what is left over.”

¹¹Hezekiah told them to prepare chambers in the LORD’s temple, and they prepared them.

¹²The offering, the tenth, and the dedicated things were brought faithfully. Conaniah the Levite was the officer in charge of them, and his brother Shimei was second.

¹³Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah were deputies under the authority of Conaniah and his brother Shimei by appointment of King Hezekiah and of Azariah the chief official of God’s temple.

¹⁴Kore son of Imnah the Levite, the keeper of the East Gate, was over the freewill offerings to God to distribute the contribution to the LORD and the consecrated things.

¹⁵Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah in the cities of the priests were to distribute it faithfully under his authority to their brothers by divisions, whether large or small.

¹⁶In addition, they distributed it to males registered by genealogy three years old and above; to all who would enter the LORD’s temple for their daily duty, for their service in their responsibilities according to their divisions.

¹⁷They distributed also to those recorded by genealogy of the priests by their ancestral families and the Levites twenty years old and above, by their responsibilities in their divisions;

¹⁸to those registered by genealogy — with all their dependents, wives, sons, and daughters — of the whole assembly (for they had faithfully consecrated themselves as holy);

¹⁹and to the descendants of Aaron, the priests, in the common fields of their cities, in each and every city. There were men who were registered by name to distribute a portion to every male among the priests and to every Levite recorded by genealogy.

²⁰Hezekiah did this throughout all Judah. He did what was good and upright and true before the LORD his God.

²¹He was diligent in every deed that he began in the service of God’s temple, in the instruction and the commands, in order to seek his God, and he prospered.

¹The word of the LORD came to Jonah son of Amittai:

²“Get up! Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it because their evil has come up before me.”

³Jonah got up to flee to Tarshish from the LORD’s presence. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. He paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the LORD’s presence.

⁴But the LORD threw a great wind onto the sea, and such a great storm arose on the sea that the ship threatened to break apart.

⁵The sailors were afraid, and each cried out to his god. They threw the ship’s cargo into the sea to lighten the load. Meanwhile, Jonah had gone down to the lowest part of the vessel and had stretched out and fallen into a deep sleep.

⁶The captain approached him and said, “What are you doing sound asleep? Get up! Call to your god. Maybe this god will consider us, and we won’t perish.”

⁷“Come on!” the sailors said to each other. “Let’s cast lots. Then we’ll know who is to blame for this trouble we’re in.” So they cast lots, and the lot singled out Jonah.

⁸Then they said to him, “Tell us who is to blame for this trouble we’re in. What is your business, and where are you from? What is your country, and what people are you from?”

⁹He answered them, “I’m a Hebrew. I worship the LORD, the God of the heavens, who made the sea and the dry land.”

¹⁰Then the men were seized by a great fear and said to him, “What is this you’ve done?” The men knew he was fleeing from the LORD’s presence because he had told them.

¹¹So they said to him, “What should we do to you so that the sea will calm down for us?” For the sea was getting worse and worse.

¹²He answered them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea so that it will calm down for you, for I know that I’m to blame for this great storm that is against you.”

¹³Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they couldn’t because the sea was raging against them more and more.

¹⁴So they called out to the LORD: “Please, LORD, don’t let us perish because of this man’s life, and don’t charge us with innocent blood! For you, LORD, have done just as you pleased.”

¹⁵Then they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging.

¹⁶The men were seized by great fear of the LORD, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows.

¹⁷The LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

¹Some men came down from Judea and began to teach the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom prescribed by Moses, you cannot be saved.”

²After Paul and Barnabas had engaged them in serious argument and debate, Paul and Barnabas and some others were appointed to go up to the apostles and elders in Jerusalem about this issue.

³When they had been sent on their way by the church, they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and they brought great joy to all the brothers and sisters.

⁴When they arrived at Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church, the apostles, and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them.

⁵But some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to command them to keep the law of Moses.”

⁶The apostles and the elders gathered to consider this matter.

⁷After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them: “Brothers and sisters, you are aware that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the gospel message and believe.

⁸And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he also did to us.

⁹He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith.

¹⁰Now then, why are you testing God by putting a yoke on the disciples’ necks that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear?

¹¹On the contrary, we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus in the same way they are.”

¹²The whole assembly became silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul describe all the signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.

¹³After they stopped speaking, James responded: “Brothers and sisters, listen to me.

¹⁴Simeon has reported how God first intervened to take from the Gentiles a people for his name.

¹⁵And the words of the prophets agree with this, as it is written:

¹⁶After these things I will return and rebuild David’s fallen tent. I will rebuild its ruins and set it up again,

¹⁷so the rest of humanity may seek the Lord — even all the Gentiles who are called by my name — declares the Lord who makes these things

¹⁸known from long ago.

¹⁹Therefore, in my judgment, we should not cause difficulties for those among the Gentiles who turn to God,

²⁰but instead we should write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from eating anything that has been strangled, and from blood.

²¹For since ancient times, Moses has had those who proclaim him in every city, and every Sabbath day he is read aloud in the synagogues.”

²²Then the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, decided to select men who were among them and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas: Judas, called Barsabbas, and Silas, both leading men among the brothers.

²³They wrote: “From the apostles and the elders, your brothers, To the brothers and sisters among the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: Greetings.

²⁴Since we have heard that some without our authorization went out from us and troubled you with their words and unsettled your hearts,

²⁵we have unanimously decided to select men and send them to you along with our dearly loved Barnabas and Paul,

²⁶who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

²⁷Therefore we have sent Judas and Silas, who will personally report the same things by word of mouth.

²⁸For it was the Holy Spirit’s decision — and ours — not to place further burdens on you beyond these requirements:

²⁹that you abstain from food offered to idols, from blood, from eating anything that has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. You will do well if you keep yourselves from these things. Farewell.”

³⁰So they were sent off and went down to Antioch, and after gathering the assembly, they delivered the letter.

³¹When they read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement.

³²Both Judas and Silas, who were also prophets themselves, encouraged the brothers and sisters and strengthened them with a long message.

³³After spending some time there, they were sent back in peace by the brothers and sisters to those who had sent them.

³⁴

³⁵But Paul and Barnabas, along with many others, remained in Antioch, teaching and proclaiming the word of the Lord.

³⁶After some time had passed, Paul said to Barnabas, “Let’s go back and visit the brothers and sisters in every town where we have preached the word of the Lord and see how they’re doing.”

³⁷Barnabas wanted to take along John Mark.

³⁸But Paul insisted that they should not take along this man who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone on with them to the work.

³⁹They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed off to Cyprus.

⁴⁰But Paul chose Silas and departed, after being commended by the brothers and sisters to the grace of the Lord.

⁴¹He traveled through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.