Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Then he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a pit for the wine press, and built a watchtower; then he leased it to tenants and went to another country.

²When the season came, he sent a slave to the tenants to collect from them his share of the produce of the vineyard.

³But they seized him, and beat him, and sent him away empty-handed.

⁴And again he sent another slave to them; this one they beat over the head and insulted.

⁵Then he sent another, and that one they killed. And so it was with many others; some they beat, and others they killed.

⁶He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

⁷But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’

⁸So they seized him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.

⁹What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others.

¹⁰Have you not read this scripture: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone;

¹¹this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’?”

¹²When they realized that he had told this parable against them, they wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowd. So they left him and went away.

¹³Then they sent to him some Pharisees and some Herodians to trap him in what he said.

¹⁴And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality, but teach the way of God in accordance with truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?

¹⁵Should we pay them, or should we not?” But knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why are you putting me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me see it.”

¹⁶And they brought one. Then he said to them, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” They answered, “The emperor’s.”

¹⁷Jesus said to them, “Give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at him.

¹⁸Some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him a question, saying,

¹⁹“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no child, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother.

²⁰There were seven brothers; the first married and, when he died, left no children;

²¹and the second married the widow and died, leaving no children; and the third likewise;

²²none of the seven left children. Last of all the woman herself died.

²³In the resurrection whose wife will she be? For the seven had married her.”

²⁴Jesus said to them, “Is not this the reason you are wrong, that you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God?

²⁵For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.

²⁶And as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the story about the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?

²⁷He is God not of the dead, but of the living; you are quite wrong.”

²⁸One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the first of all?”

²⁹Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one;

³⁰you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’

³¹The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

³²Then the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that ‘he is one, and besides him there is no other’;

³³and ‘to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength,’ and ‘to love one’s neighbor as oneself,’ — this is much more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

³⁴When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” After that no one dared to ask him any question.

³⁵While Jesus was teaching in the temple, he said, “How can the scribes say that the Messiah is the son of David?

³⁶David himself, by the Holy Spirit, declared, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.”’

³⁷David himself calls him Lord; so how can he be his son?” And the large crowd was listening to him with delight.

³⁸As he taught, he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces,

³⁹and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets!

⁴⁰They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”

⁴¹He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums.

⁴²A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny.

⁴³Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury.

⁴⁴For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

¹Now Jacob heard that the sons of Laban were saying, “Jacob has taken all that was our father’s; he has gained all this wealth from what belonged to our father.”

²And Jacob saw that Laban did not regard him as favorably as he did before.

³Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your ancestors and to your kindred, and I will be with you.”

⁴So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah into the field where his flock was,

⁵and said to them, “I see that your father does not regard me as favorably as he did before. But the God of my father has been with me.

⁶You know that I have served your father with all my strength;

⁷yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times, but God did not permit him to harm me.

⁸If he said, ‘The speckled shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore speckled; and if he said, ‘The striped shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore striped.

⁹Thus God has taken away the livestock of your father, and given them to me.

¹⁰“During the mating of the flock I once had a dream in which I looked up and saw that the male goats that leaped upon the flock were striped, speckled, and mottled.

¹¹Then the angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob,’ and I said, ‘Here I am!’

¹²And he said, ‘Look up and see that all the goats that leap on the flock are striped, speckled, and mottled; for I have seen all that Laban is doing to you.

¹³I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and made a vow to me. Now leave this land at once and return to the land of your birth.’”

¹⁴Then Rachel and Leah answered him, “Is there any portion or inheritance left to us in our father’s house?

¹⁵Are we not regarded by him as foreigners? For he has sold us, and he has been using up the money given for us.

¹⁶All the property that God has taken away from our father belongs to us and to our children; now then, do whatever God has said to you.”

¹⁷So Jacob arose, and set his children and his wives on camels;

¹⁸and he drove away all his livestock, all the property that he had gained, the livestock in his possession that he had acquired in Paddan-aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan.

¹⁹Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep, and Rachel stole her father’s household gods.

²⁰And Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean, in that he did not tell him that he intended to flee.

²¹So he fled with all that he had; starting out he crossed the Euphrates, and set his face toward the hill country of Gilead.

²²On the third day Laban was told that Jacob had fled.

²³So he took his kinsfolk with him and pursued him for seven days until he caught up with him in the hill country of Gilead.

²⁴But God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream by night, and said to him, “Take heed that you say not a word to Jacob, either good or bad.”

²⁵Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban with his kinsfolk camped in the hill country of Gilead.

²⁶Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done? You have deceived me, and carried away my daughters like captives of the sword.

²⁷Why did you flee secretly and deceive me and not tell me? I would have sent you away with mirth and songs, with tambourine and lyre.

²⁸And why did you not permit me to kiss my sons and my daughters farewell? What you have done is foolish.

²⁹It is in my power to do you harm; but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Take heed that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad.’

³⁰Even though you had to go because you longed greatly for your father’s house, why did you steal my gods?”

³¹Jacob answered Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I thought that you would take your daughters from me by force.

³²But anyone with whom you find your gods shall not live. In the presence of our kinsfolk, point out what I have that is yours, and take it.” Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the gods.

³³So Laban went into Jacob’s tent, and into Leah’s tent, and into the tent of the two maids, but he did not find them. And he went out of Leah’s tent, and entered Rachel’s.

³⁴Now Rachel had taken the household gods and put them in the camel’s saddle, and sat on them. Laban felt all about in the tent, but did not find them.

³⁵And she said to her father, “Let not my lord be angry that I cannot rise before you, for the way of women is upon me.” So he searched, but did not find the household gods.

³⁶Then Jacob became angry, and upbraided Laban. Jacob said to Laban, “What is my offense? What is my sin, that you have hotly pursued me?

³⁷Although you have felt about through all my goods, what have you found of all your household goods? Set it here before my kinsfolk and your kinsfolk, so that they may decide between us two.

³⁸These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams of your flocks.

³⁹That which was torn by wild beasts I did not bring to you; I bore the loss of it myself; of my hand you required it, whether stolen by day or stolen by night.

⁴⁰It was like this with me: by day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes.

⁴¹These twenty years I have been in your house; I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you have changed my wages ten times.

⁴²If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God saw my affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked you last night.”

⁴³Then Laban answered and said to Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters, the children are my children, the flocks are my flocks, and all that you see is mine. But what can I do today about these daughters of mine, or about their children whom they have borne?

⁴⁴Come now, let us make a covenant, you and I; and let it be a witness between you and me.”

⁴⁵So Jacob took a stone, and set it up as a pillar.

⁴⁶And Jacob said to his kinsfolk, “Gather stones,” and they took stones, and made a heap; and they ate there by the heap.

⁴⁷Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha: but Jacob called it Galeed.

⁴⁸Laban said, “This heap is a witness between you and me today.” Therefore he called it Galeed,

⁴⁹and the pillar Mizpah, for he said, “The LORD watch between you and me, when we are absent one from the other.

⁵⁰If you ill-treat my daughters, or if you take wives in addition to my daughters, though no one else is with us, remember that God is witness between you and me.”

⁵¹Then Laban said to Jacob, “See this heap and see the pillar, which I have set between you and me.

⁵²This heap is a witness, and the pillar is a witness, that I will not pass beyond this heap to you, and you will not pass beyond this heap and this pillar to me, for harm.

⁵³May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor” — the God of their father — “judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac,

⁵⁴and Jacob offered a sacrifice on the height and called his kinsfolk to eat bread; and they ate bread and tarried all night in the hill country.

⁵⁵Early in the morning Laban rose up, and kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them; then he departed and returned home.

¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

²To the saints and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ in Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

³In our prayers for you we always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

⁴for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,

⁵because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. You have heard of this hope before in the word of the truth, the gospel

⁶that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and growing in the whole world, so it has been bearing fruit among yourselves from the day you heard it and truly comprehended the grace of God.

⁷This you learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf,

⁸and he has made known to us your love in the Spirit.

⁹For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,

¹⁰so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God.

¹¹May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully

¹²giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light.

¹³He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son,

¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

¹⁵He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;

¹⁶for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers — all things have been created through him and for him.

¹⁷He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

¹⁸He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything.

¹⁹For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,

²⁰and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.

²¹And you who were once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds,

²²he has now reconciled in his fleshly body through death, so as to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him —

²³provided that you continue securely established and steadfast in the faith, without shifting from the hope promised by the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven. I, Paul, became a servant of this gospel.

²⁴I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church.

²⁵I became its servant according to God’s commission that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known,

²⁶the mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages and generations but has now been revealed to his saints.

²⁷To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

²⁸It is he whom we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone in all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

²⁹For this I toil and struggle with all the energy that he powerfully inspires within me.

¹James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings.

²My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy,

³because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance;

⁴and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing.

⁵If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you.

⁶But ask in faith, never doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind;

⁷[7, 8] for the doubter, being double-minded and unstable in every way, must not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

⁸

⁹Let the believer who is lowly boast in being raised up,

¹⁰and the rich in being brought low, because the rich will disappear like a flower in the field.

¹¹For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the field; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. It is the same way with the rich; in the midst of a busy life, they will wither away.

¹²Blessed is anyone who endures temptation. Such a one has stood the test and will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

¹³No one, when tempted, should say, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil and he himself tempts no one.

¹⁴But one is tempted by one’s own desire, being lured and enticed by it;

¹⁵then, when that desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and that sin, when it is fully grown, gives birth to death.

¹⁶Do not be deceived, my beloved.

¹⁷Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

¹⁸In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

¹⁹You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger;

²⁰for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness.

²¹Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.

²²But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves.

²³For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror;

²⁴for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like.

²⁵But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act — they will be blessed in their doing.

²⁶If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless.

²⁷Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

¹So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.

²Then Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became angry. He was angry at Job because he justified himself rather than God;

³he was angry also at Job’s three friends because they had found no answer, though they had declared Job to be in the wrong.

⁴Now Elihu had waited to speak to Job, because they were older than he.

⁵But when Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouths of these three men, he became angry.

⁶Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite answered: “I am young in years, and you are aged; therefore I was timid and afraid to declare my opinion to you.

⁷I said, ‘Let days speak, and many years teach wisdom.’

⁸But truly it is the spirit in a mortal, the breath of the Almighty, that makes for understanding.

⁹It is not the old that are wise, nor the aged that understand what is right.

¹⁰Therefore I say, ‘Listen to me; let me also declare my opinion.’

¹¹“See, I waited for your words, I listened for your wise sayings, while you searched out what to say.

¹²I gave you my attention, but there was in fact no one that confuted Job, no one among you that answered his words.

¹³Yet do not say, ‘We have found wisdom; God may vanquish him, not a human.’

¹⁴He has not directed his words against me, and I will not answer him with your speeches.

¹⁵“They are dismayed, they answer no more; they have not a word to say.

¹⁶And am I to wait, because they do not speak, because they stand there, and answer no more?

¹⁷I also will give my answer; I also will declare my opinion.

¹⁸For I am full of words; the spirit within me constrains me.

¹⁹My heart is indeed like wine that has no vent; like new wineskins, it is ready to burst.

²⁰I must speak, so that I may find relief; I must open my lips and answer.

²¹I will not show partiality to any person or use flattery toward anyone.

²²For I do not know how to flatter — or my Maker would soon put an end to me!

¹Let God rise up, let his enemies be scattered; let those who hate him flee before him.

²As smoke is driven away, so drive them away; as wax melts before the fire, let the wicked perish before God.

³But let the righteous be joyful; let them exult before God; let them be jubilant with joy.

⁴Sing to God, sing praises to his name; lift up a song to him who rides upon the clouds — his name is the LORD — be exultant before him.

⁵Father of orphans and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.

⁶God gives the desolate a home to live in; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity, but the rebellious live in a parched land.

⁷O God, when you went out before your people, when you marched through the wilderness, Selah

⁸the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain at the presence of God, the God of Sinai, at the presence of God, the God of Israel.

⁹Rain in abundance, O God, you showered abroad; you restored your heritage when it languished;

¹⁰your flock found a dwelling in it; in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.

¹¹The Lord gives the command; great is the company of those who bore the tidings:

¹²“The kings of the armies, they flee, they flee!” The women at home divide the spoil,

¹³though they stay among the sheepfolds — the wings of a dove covered with silver, its pinions with green gold.

¹⁴When the Almighty scattered kings there, snow fell on Zalmon.

¹⁵O mighty mountain, mountain of Bashan; O many-peaked mountain, mountain of Bashan!

¹⁶Why do you look with envy, O many-peaked mountain, at the mount that God desired for his abode, where the LORD will reside forever?

¹⁷With mighty chariotry, twice ten thousand, thousands upon thousands, the Lord came from Sinai into the holy place.

¹⁸You ascended the high mount, leading captives in your train and receiving gifts from people, even from those who rebel against the LORD God’s abiding there.

¹⁹Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation. Selah

²⁰Our God is a God of salvation, and to GOD, the Lord, belongs escape from death.

²¹But God will shatter the heads of his enemies, the hairy crown of those who walk in their guilty ways.

²²The Lord said, “I will bring them back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,

²³so that you may bathe your feet in blood, so that the tongues of your dogs may have their share from the foe.”

²⁴Your solemn processions are seen, O God, the processions of my God, my King, into the sanctuary —

²⁵the singers in front, the musicians last, between them girls playing tambourines:

²⁶“Bless God in the great congregation, the LORD, O you who are of Israel’s fountain!”

²⁷There is Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead, the princes of Judah in a body, the princes of Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.

²⁸Summon your might, O God; show your strength, O God, as you have done for us before.

²⁹Because of your temple at Jerusalem kings bear gifts to you.

³⁰Rebuke the wild animals that live among the reeds, the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples. Trample under foot those who lust after tribute; scatter the peoples who delight in war.

³¹Let bronze be brought from Egypt; let Ethiopia hasten to stretch out its hands to God.

³²Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth; sing praises to the Lord, Selah

³³O rider in the heavens, the ancient heavens; listen, he sends out his voice, his mighty voice.

³⁴Ascribe power to God, whose majesty is over Israel; and whose power is in the skies.

³⁵Awesome is God in his sanctuary, the God of Israel; he gives power and strength to his people. Blessed be God!

¹The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:

²For learning about wisdom and instruction, for understanding words of insight,

³for gaining instruction in wise dealing, righteousness, justice, and equity;

⁴to teach shrewdness to the simple, knowledge and prudence to the young —

⁵let the wise also hear and gain in learning, and the discerning acquire skill,

⁶to understand a proverb and a figure, the words of the wise and their riddles.

⁷The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

⁸Hear, my child, your father’s instruction, and do not reject your mother’s teaching;

⁹for they are a fair garland for your head, and pendants for your neck.

¹⁰My child, if sinners entice you, do not consent.

¹¹If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood; let us wantonly ambush the innocent;

¹²like Sheol let us swallow them alive and whole, like those who go down to the Pit.

¹³We shall find all kinds of costly things; we shall fill our houses with booty.

¹⁴Throw in your lot among us; we will all have one purse” —

¹⁵my child, do not walk in their way, keep your foot from their paths;

¹⁶for their feet run to evil, and they hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷For in vain is the net baited while the bird is looking on;

¹⁸yet they lie in wait — to kill themselves! and set an ambush — for their own lives!

¹⁹Such is the end of all who are greedy for gain; it takes away the life of its possessors.

²⁰Wisdom cries out in the street; in the squares she raises her voice.

²¹At the busiest corner she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:

²²“How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge?

²³Give heed to my reproof; I will pour out my thoughts to you; I will make my words known to you.

²⁴Because I have called and you refused, have stretched out my hand and no one heeded,

²⁵and because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof,

²⁶I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when panic strikes you,

²⁷when panic strikes you like a storm, and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you.

²⁸Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently, but will not find me.

²⁹Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD,

³⁰would have none of my counsel, and despised all my reproof,

³¹therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way and be sated with their own devices.

³²For waywardness kills the simple, and the complacency of fools destroys them;

³³but those who listen to me will be secure and will live at ease, without dread of disaster.”

¹Now these were the people of the province who came from those captive exiles whom King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had carried captive to Babylonia; they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, all to their own towns.

²They came with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum, and Baanah. The number of the Israelite people:

³the descendants of Parosh, two thousand one hundred seventy-two.

⁴Of Shephatiah, three hundred seventy-two.

⁵Of Arah, seven hundred seventy-five.

⁶Of Pahath-moab, namely the descendants of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred twelve.

⁷Of Elam, one thousand two hundred fifty-four.

⁸Of Zattu, nine hundred forty-five.

⁹Of Zaccai, seven hundred sixty.

¹⁰Of Bani, six hundred forty-two.

¹¹Of Bebai, six hundred twenty-three.

¹²Of Azgad, one thousand two hundred twenty-two.

¹³Of Adonikam, six hundred sixty-six.

¹⁴Of Bigvai, two thousand fifty-six.

¹⁵Of Adin, four hundred fifty-four.

¹⁶Of Ater, namely of Hezekiah, ninety-eight.

¹⁷Of Bezai, three hundred twenty-three.

¹⁸Of Jorah, one hundred twelve.

¹⁹Of Hashum, two hundred twenty-three.

²⁰Of Gibbar, ninety-five.

²¹Of Bethlehem, one hundred twenty-three.

²²The people of Netophah, fifty-six.

²³Of Anathoth, one hundred twenty-eight.

²⁴The descendants of Azmaveth, forty-two.

²⁵Of Kiriatharim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred forty-three.

²⁶Of Ramah and Geba, six hundred twenty-one.

²⁷The people of Michmas, one hundred twenty-two.

²⁸Of Bethel and Ai, two hundred twenty-three.

²⁹The descendants of Nebo, fifty-two.

³⁰Of Magbish, one hundred fifty-six.

³¹Of the other Elam, one thousand two hundred fifty-four.

³²Of Harim, three hundred twenty.

³³Of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred twenty-five.

³⁴Of Jericho, three hundred forty-five.

³⁵Of Senaah, three thousand six hundred thirty.

³⁶The priests: the descendants of Jedaiah, of the house of Jeshua, nine hundred seventy-three.

³⁷Of Immer, one thousand fifty-two.

³⁸Of Pashhur, one thousand two hundred forty-seven.

³⁹Of Harim, one thousand seventeen.

⁴⁰The Levites: the descendants of Jeshua and Kadmiel, of the descendants of Hodaviah, seventy-four.

⁴¹The singers: the descendants of Asaph, one hundred twenty-eight.

⁴²The descendants of the gatekeepers: of Shallum, of Ater, of Talmon, of Akkub, of Hatita, and of Shobai, in all one hundred thirty-nine.

⁴³The temple servants: the descendants of Ziha, Hasupha, Tabbaoth,

⁴⁴Keros, Siaha, Padon,

⁴⁵Lebanah, Hagabah, Akkub,

⁴⁶Hagab, Shamlai, Hanan,

⁴⁷Giddel, Gahar, Reaiah,

⁴⁸Rezin, Nekoda, Gazzam,

⁴⁹Uzza, Paseah, Besai,

⁵⁰Asnah, Meunim, Nephisim,

⁵¹Bakbuk, Hakupha, Harhur,

⁵²Bazluth, Mehida, Harsha,

⁵³Barkos, Sisera, Temah,

⁵⁴Neziah, and Hatipha.

⁵⁵The descendants of Solomon’s servants: Sotai, Hassophereth, Peruda,

⁵⁶Jaalah, Darkon, Giddel,

⁵⁷Shephatiah, Hattil, Pochereth-hazzebaim, and Ami.

⁵⁸All the temple servants and the descendants of Solomon’s servants were three hundred ninety-two.

⁵⁹The following were those who came up from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addan, and Immer, though they could not prove their families or their descent, whether they belonged to Israel:

⁶⁰the descendants of Delaiah, Tobiah, and Nekoda, six hundred fifty-two.

⁶¹Also, of the descendants of the priests: the descendants of Habaiah, Hakkoz, and Barzillai (who had married one of the daughters of Barzillai the Gileadite, and was called by their name).

⁶²These looked for their entries in the genealogical records, but they were not found there, and so they were excluded from the priesthood as unclean;

⁶³the governor told them that they were not to partake of the most holy food, until there should be a priest to consult Urim and Thummim.

⁶⁴The whole assembly together was forty-two thousand three hundred sixty,

⁶⁵besides their male and female servants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty-seven; and they had two hundred male and female singers.

⁶⁶They had seven hundred thirty-six horses, two hundred forty-five mules,

⁶⁷four hundred thirty-five camels, and six thousand seven hundred twenty donkeys.

⁶⁸As soon as they came to the house of the LORD in Jerusalem, some of the heads of families made freewill offerings for the house of God, to erect it on its site.

⁶⁹According to their resources they gave to the building fund sixty-one thousand darics of gold, five thousand minas of silver, and one hundred priestly robes.

⁷⁰The priests, the Levites, and some of the people lived in Jerusalem and its vicinity; and the singers, the gatekeepers, and the temple servants lived in their towns, and all Israel in their towns.

¹In days to come the mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised up above the hills. Peoples shall stream to it,

²and many nations shall come and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

³He shall judge between many peoples, and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more;

⁴but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees, and no one shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken.

⁵For all the peoples walk, each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the LORD our God forever and ever.

⁶In that day, says the LORD, I will assemble the lame and gather those who have been driven away, and those whom I have afflicted.

⁷The lame I will make the remnant, and those who were cast off, a strong nation; and the LORD will reign over them in Mount Zion now and forevermore.

⁸And you, O tower of the flock, hill of daughter Zion, to you it shall come, the former dominion shall come, the sovereignty of daughter Jerusalem.

⁹Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in you? Has your counselor perished, that pangs have seized you like a woman in labor?

¹⁰Writhe and groan, O daughter Zion, like a woman in labor; for now you shall go forth from the city and camp in the open country; you shall go to Babylon. There you shall be rescued, there the LORD will redeem you from the hands of your enemies.

¹¹Now many nations are assembled against you, saying, “Let her be profaned, and let our eyes gaze upon Zion.”

¹²But they do not know the thoughts of the LORD; they do not understand his plan, that he has gathered them as sheaves to the threshing floor.

¹³Arise and thresh, O daughter Zion, for I will make your horn iron and your hoofs bronze; you shall beat in pieces many peoples, and shall devote their gain to the LORD, their wealth to the Lord of the whole earth.

¹“Brothers and fathers, listen to the defense that I now make before you.”

²When they heard him addressing them in Hebrew, they became even more quiet. Then he said:

³“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, educated strictly according to our ancestral law, being zealous for God, just as all of you are today.

⁴I persecuted this Way up to the point of death by binding both men and women and putting them in prison,

⁵as the high priest and the whole council of elders can testify about me. From them I also received letters to the brothers in Damascus, and I went there in order to bind those who were there and to bring them back to Jerusalem for punishment.

⁶“While I was on my way and approaching Damascus, about noon a great light from heaven suddenly shone about me.

⁷I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’

⁸I answered, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ Then he said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth whom you are persecuting.’

⁹Now those who were with me saw the light but did not hear the voice of the one who was speaking to me.

¹⁰I asked, ‘What am I to do, Lord?’ The Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go to Damascus; there you will be told everything that has been assigned to you to do.’

¹¹Since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, those who were with me took my hand and led me to Damascus.

¹²“A certain Ananias, who was a devout man according to the law and well spoken of by all the Jews living there,

¹³came to me; and standing beside me, he said, ‘Brother Saul, regain your sight!’ In that very hour I regained my sight and saw him.

¹⁴Then he said, ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will, to see the Righteous One and to hear his own voice;

¹⁵for you will be his witness to all the world of what you have seen and heard.

¹⁶And now why do you delay? Get up, be baptized, and have your sins washed away, calling on his name.’

¹⁷“After I had returned to Jerusalem and while I was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance

¹⁸and saw Jesus saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.’

¹⁹And I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know that in every synagogue I imprisoned and beat those who believed in you.

²⁰And while the blood of your witness Stephen was shed, I myself was standing by, approving and keeping the coats of those who killed him.’

²¹Then he said to me, ‘Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”

²²Up to this point they listened to him, but then they shouted, “Away with such a fellow from the earth! For he should not be allowed to live.”

²³And while they were shouting, throwing off their cloaks, and tossing dust into the air,

²⁴the tribune directed that he was to be brought into the barracks, and ordered him to be examined by flogging, to find out the reason for this outcry against him.

²⁵But when they had tied him up with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, “Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who is uncondemned?”

²⁶When the centurion heard that, he went to the tribune and said to him, “What are you about to do? This man is a Roman citizen.”

²⁷The tribune came and asked Paul, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?” And he said, “Yes.”

²⁸The tribune answered, “It cost me a large sum of money to get my citizenship.” Paul said, “But I was born a citizen.”

²⁹Immediately those who were about to examine him drew back from him; and the tribune also was afraid, for he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had bound him.

³⁰Since he wanted to find out what Paul was being accused of by the Jews, the next day he released him and ordered the chief priests and the entire council to meet. He brought Paul down and had him stand before them.