Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Immediately, in the morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council; and they bound Jesus, led Him away, and delivered Him to Pilate.

²Then Pilate asked Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” He answered and said to him, “It is as you say.”

³And the chief priests accused Him of many things, but He answered nothing.

⁴Then Pilate asked Him again, saying, “Do You answer nothing? See how many things they testify against You!”

⁵But Jesus still answered nothing, so that Pilate marveled.

⁶Now at the feast he was accustomed to releasing one prisoner to them, whomever they requested.

⁷And there was one named Barabbas, who was chained with his fellow rebels; they had committed murder in the rebellion.

⁸Then the multitude, crying aloud, began to ask him to do just as he had always done for them.

⁹But Pilate answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”

¹⁰For he knew that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy.

¹¹But the chief priests stirred up the crowd, so that he should rather release Barabbas to them.

¹²Pilate answered and said to them again, “What then do you want me to do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?”

¹³So they cried out again, “Crucify Him!”

¹⁴Then Pilate said to them, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they cried out all the more, “Crucify Him!”

¹⁵So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and he delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified.

¹⁶Then the soldiers led Him away into the hall called Praetorium, and they called together the whole garrison.

¹⁷And they clothed Him with purple; and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head,

¹⁸and began to salute Him, “Hail, King of the Jews!”

¹⁹Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee, they worshiped Him.

²⁰And when they had mocked Him, they took the purple off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him out to crucify Him.

²¹Then they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of the country and passing by, to bear His cross.

²²And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.

²³Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.

²⁴And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.

²⁵Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.

²⁶And the inscription of His accusation was written above: THE KING OF THE JEWS.

²⁷With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.

²⁸So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And He was numbered with the transgressors.”

²⁹And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who destroy the temple and build it in three days,

³⁰save Yourself, and come down from the cross!”

³¹Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, “He saved others; Himself He cannot save.

³²Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.

³³Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.

³⁴And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

³⁵Some of those who stood by, when they heard that, said, “Look, He is calling for Elijah!”

³⁶Then someone ran and filled a sponge full of sour wine, put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink, saying, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to take Him down.”

³⁷And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last.

³⁸Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

³⁹So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!”

⁴⁰There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome,

⁴¹who also followed Him and ministered to Him when He was in Galilee, and many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem.

⁴²Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath,

⁴³Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.

⁴⁴Pilate marveled that He was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him if He had been dead for some time.

⁴⁵So when he found out from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph.

⁴⁶Then he bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen. And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.

⁴⁷And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed where He was laid.

¹Now Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land.

²And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her and lay with her, and violated her.

³His soul was strongly attracted to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young woman and spoke kindly to the young woman.

⁴So Shechem spoke to his father Hamor, saying, “Get me this young woman as a wife.”

⁵And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter. Now his sons were with his livestock in the field; so Jacob held his peace until they came.

⁶Then Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to speak with him.

⁷And the sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard it; and the men were grieved and very angry, because he had done a disgraceful thing in Israel by lying with Jacob’s daughter, a thing which ought not to be done.

⁸But Hamor spoke with them, saying, “The soul of my son Shechem longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as a wife.

⁹And make marriages with us; give your daughters to us, and take our daughters to yourselves.

¹⁰So you shall dwell with us, and the land shall be before you. Dwell and trade in it, and acquire possessions for yourselves in it.”

¹¹Then Shechem said to her father and her brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes, and whatever you say to me I will give.

¹²Ask me ever so much dowry and gift, and I will give according to what you say to me; but give me the young woman as a wife.”

¹³But the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father, and spoke deceitfully, because he had defiled Dinah their sister.

¹⁴And they said to them, “We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, for that would be a reproach to us.

¹⁵But on this condition we will consent to you: If you will become as we are, if every male of you is circumcised,

¹⁶then we will give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters to us; and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.

¹⁷But if you will not heed us and be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and be gone.”

¹⁸And their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, Hamor’s son.

¹⁹So the young man did not delay to do the thing, because he delighted in Jacob’s daughter. He was more honorable than all the household of his father.

²⁰And Hamor and Shechem his son came to the gate of their city, and spoke with the men of their city, saying:

²¹“These men are at peace with us. Therefore let them dwell in the land and trade in it. For indeed the land is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters to us as wives, and let us give them our daughters.

²²Only on this condition will the men consent to dwell with us, to be one people: if every male among us is circumcised as they are circumcised.

²³Will not their livestock, their property, and every animal of theirs be ours? Only let us consent to them, and they will dwell with us.”

²⁴And all who went out of the gate of his city heeded Hamor and Shechem his son; every male was circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city.

²⁵Now it came to pass on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword and came boldly upon the city and killed all the males.

²⁶And they killed Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah from Shechem’s house, and went out.

²⁷The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and plundered the city, because their sister had been defiled.

²⁸They took their sheep, their oxen, and their donkeys, what was in the city and what was in the field,

²⁹and all their wealth. All their little ones and their wives they took captive; and they plundered even all that was in the houses.

³⁰Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have troubled me by making me obnoxious among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites; and since I am few in number, they will gather themselves together against me and kill me. I shall be destroyed, my household and I.”

³¹But they said, “Should he treat our sister like a harlot?”

¹Masters, give your bondservants what is just and fair, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

²Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving;

³meanwhile praying also for us, that God would open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in chains,

⁴that I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak.

⁵Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time.

⁶Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.

⁷Tychicus, a beloved brother, faithful minister, and fellow servant in the Lord, will tell you all the news about me.

⁸I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that he may know your circumstances and comfort your hearts,

⁹with Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will make known to you all things which are happening here.

¹⁰Aristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, with Mark the cousin of Barnabas (about whom you received instructions: if he comes to you, welcome him),

¹¹and Jesus who is called Justus. These are my only fellow workers for the kingdom of God who are of the circumcision; they have proved to be a comfort to me.

¹²Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.

¹³For I bear him witness that he has a great zeal for you, and those who are in Laodicea, and those in Hierapolis.

¹⁴Luke the beloved physician and Demas greet you.

¹⁵Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that is in his house.

¹⁶Now when this epistle is read among you, see that it is read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.

¹⁷And say to Archippus, “Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you may fulfill it.”

¹⁸This salutation by my own hand—Paul. Remember my chains. Grace be with you. Amen.

¹Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?

²You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.

³You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.

⁴Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

⁵Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”?

⁶But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”

⁷Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

⁸Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

⁹Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.

¹⁰Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

¹¹Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge.

¹²There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?

¹³Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”;

¹⁴whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.

¹⁵Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.”

¹⁶But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

¹⁷Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.

¹Moreover Elihu answered and said:

²“Do you think this is right? Do you say, ‘My righteousness is more than God’s’?

³For you say, ‘What advantage will it be to You? What profit shall I have, more than if I had sinned?’

⁴“I will answer you, And your companions with you.

⁵Look to the heavens and see; And behold the clouds— They are higher than you.

⁶If you sin, what do you accomplish against Him? Or, if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to Him?

⁷If you are righteous, what do you give Him? Or what does He receive from your hand?

⁸Your wickedness affects a man such as you, And your righteousness a son of man.

⁹“Because of the multitude of oppressions they cry out; They cry out for help because of the arm of the mighty.

¹⁰But no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker, Who gives songs in the night,

¹¹Who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth, And makes us wiser than the birds of heaven?’

¹²There they cry out, but He does not answer, Because of the pride of evil men.

¹³Surely God will not listen to empty talk, Nor will the Almighty regard it.

¹⁴Although you say you do not see Him, Yet justice is before Him, and you must wait for Him.

¹⁵And now, because He has not punished in His anger, Nor taken much notice of folly,

¹⁶Therefore Job opens his mouth in vain; He multiplies words without knowledge.”

¹In You, O LORD, I put my trust; Let me never be put to shame.

²Deliver me in Your righteousness, and cause me to escape; Incline Your ear to me, and save me.

³Be my strong refuge, To which I may resort continually; You have given the commandment to save me, For You are my rock and my fortress.

⁴Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.

⁵For You are my hope, O Lord GOD; You are my trust from my youth.

⁶By You I have been upheld from birth; You are He who took me out of my mother’s womb. My praise shall be continually of You.

⁷I have become as a wonder to many, But You are my strong refuge.

⁸Let my mouth be filled with Your praise And with Your glory all the day.

⁹Do not cast me off in the time of old age; Do not forsake me when my strength fails.

¹⁰For my enemies speak against me; And those who lie in wait for my life take counsel together,

¹¹Saying, “God has forsaken him; Pursue and take him, for there is none to deliver him.”

¹²O God, do not be far from me; O my God, make haste to help me!

¹³Let them be confounded and consumed Who are adversaries of my life; Let them be covered with reproach and dishonor Who seek my hurt.

¹⁴But I will hope continually, And will praise You yet more and more.

¹⁵My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness And Your salvation all the day, For I do not know their limits.

¹⁶I will go in the strength of the Lord GOD; I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only.

¹⁷O God, You have taught me from my youth; And to this day I declare Your wondrous works.

¹⁸Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me, Until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to everyone who is to come.

¹⁹Also Your righteousness, O God, is very high, You who have done great things; O God, who is like You?

²⁰You, who have shown me great and severe troubles, Shall revive me again, And bring me up again from the depths of the earth.

²¹You shall increase my greatness, And comfort me on every side.

²²Also with the lute I will praise You— And Your faithfulness, O my God! To You I will sing with the harp, O Holy One of Israel.

²³My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to You, And my soul, which You have redeemed.

²⁴My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long; For they are confounded, For they are brought to shame Who seek my hurt.

¹Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding;

²For I give you good doctrine: Do not forsake my law.

³When I was my father’s son, Tender and the only one in the sight of my mother,

⁴He also taught me, and said to me: “Let your heart retain my words; Keep my commands, and live.

⁵Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.

⁶Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you; Love her, and she will keep you.

⁷Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.

⁸Exalt her, and she will promote you; She will bring you honor, when you embrace her.

⁹She will place on your head an ornament of grace; A crown of glory she will deliver to you.”

¹⁰Hear, my son, and receive my sayings, And the years of your life will be many.

¹¹I have taught you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in right paths.

¹²When you walk, your steps will not be hindered, And when you run, you will not stumble.

¹³Take firm hold of instruction, do not let go; Keep her, for she is your life.

¹⁴Do not enter the path of the wicked, And do not walk in the way of evil.

¹⁵Avoid it, do not travel on it; Turn away from it and pass on.

¹⁶For they do not sleep unless they have done evil; And their sleep is taken away unless they make someone fall.

¹⁷For they eat the bread of wickedness, And drink the wine of violence.

¹⁸But the path of the just is like the shining sun, That shines ever brighter unto the perfect day.

¹⁹The way of the wicked is like darkness; They do not know what makes them stumble.

²⁰My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings.

²¹Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart;

²²For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.

²³Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.

²⁴Put away from you a deceitful mouth, And put perverse lips far from you.

²⁵Let your eyes look straight ahead, And your eyelids look right before you.

²⁶Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.

²⁷Do not turn to the right or the left; Remove your foot from evil.

¹Then the prophet Haggai and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophets, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel, who was over them.

²So Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak rose up and began to build the house of God which is in Jerusalem; and the prophets of God were with them, helping them.

³At the same time Tattenai the governor of the region beyond the River and Shethar-Boznai and their companions came to them and spoke thus to them: “Who has commanded you to build this temple and finish this wall?”

⁴Then, accordingly, we told them the names of the men who were constructing this building.

⁵But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, so that they could not make them cease till a report could go to Darius. Then a written answer was returned concerning this matter.

⁶This is a copy of the letter that Tattenai sent: The governor of the region beyond the River, and Shethar-Boznai, and his companions, the Persians who were in the region beyond the River, to Darius the king.

⁷(They sent a letter to him, in which was written thus) To Darius the king: All peace.

⁸Let it be known to the king that we went into the province of Judea, to the temple of the great God, which is being built with heavy stones, and timber is being laid in the walls; and this work goes on diligently and prospers in their hands.

⁹Then we asked those elders, and spoke thus to them: “Who commanded you to build this temple and to finish these walls?”

¹⁰We also asked them their names to inform you, that we might write the names of the men who were chief among them.

¹¹And thus they returned us an answer, saying: “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and completed.

¹²But because our fathers provoked the God of heaven to wrath, He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this temple and carried the people away to Babylon.

¹³However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree to build this house of God.

¹⁴Also, the gold and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple that was in Jerusalem and carried into the temple of Babylon—those King Cyrus took from the temple of Babylon, and they were given to one named Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor.

¹⁵And he said to him, ‘Take these articles; go, carry them to the temple site that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its former site.’

¹⁶Then the same Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundation of the house of God which is in Jerusalem; but from that time even until now it has been under construction, and it is not finished.”

¹⁷Now therefore, if it seems good to the king, let a search be made in the king’s treasure house, which is there in Babylon, whether it is so that a decree was issued by King Cyrus to build this house of God at Jerusalem, and let the king send us his pleasure concerning this matter.

¹Woe is me! For I am like those who gather summer fruits, Like those who glean vintage grapes; There is no cluster to eat Of the first-ripe fruit which my soul desires.

²The faithful man has perished from the earth, And there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; Every man hunts his brother with a net.

³That they may successfully do evil with both hands— The prince asks for gifts, The judge seeks a bribe, And the great man utters his evil desire; So they scheme together.

⁴The best of them is like a brier; The most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge; The day of your watchman and your punishment comes; Now shall be their perplexity.

⁵Do not trust in a friend; Do not put your confidence in a companion; Guard the doors of your mouth From her who lies in your bosom.

⁶For son dishonors father, Daughter rises against her mother, Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; A man’s enemies are the men of his own household.

⁷Therefore I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me.

⁸Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; When I fall, I will arise; When I sit in darkness, The LORD will be a light to me.

⁹I will bear the indignation of the LORD, Because I have sinned against Him, Until He pleads my case And executes justice for me. He will bring me forth to the light; I will see His righteousness.

¹⁰Then she who is my enemy will see, And shame will cover her who said to me, “Where is the LORD your God?” My eyes will see her; Now she will be trampled down Like mud in the streets.

¹¹In the day when your walls are to be built, In that day the decree shall go far and wide.

¹²In that day they shall come to you From Assyria and the fortified cities, From the fortress to the River, From sea to sea, And mountain to mountain.

¹³Yet the land shall be desolate Because of those who dwell in it, And for the fruit of their deeds.

¹⁴Shepherd Your people with Your staff, The flock of Your heritage, Who dwell solitarily in a woodland, In the midst of Carmel; Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, As in days of old.

¹⁵“As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show them wonders.”

¹⁶The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; They shall put their hand over their mouth; Their ears shall be deaf.

¹⁷They shall lick the dust like a serpent; They shall crawl from their holes like snakes of the earth. They shall be afraid of the LORD our God, And shall fear because of You.

¹⁸Who is a God like You, Pardoning iniquity And passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in mercy.

¹⁹He will again have compassion on us, And will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins Into the depths of the sea.

²⁰You will give truth to Jacob And mercy to Abraham, Which You have sworn to our fathers From days of old.

¹Now when Festus had come to the province, after three days he went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem.

²Then the high priest and the chief men of the Jews informed him against Paul; and they petitioned him,

³asking a favor against him, that he would summon him to Jerusalem— while they lay in ambush along the road to kill him.

⁴But Festus answered that Paul should be kept at Caesarea, and that he himself was going there shortly.

⁵“Therefore,” he said, “let those who have authority among you go down with me and accuse this man, to see if there is any fault in him.”

⁶And when he had remained among them more than ten days, he went down to Caesarea. And the next day, sitting on the judgment seat, he commanded Paul to be brought.

⁷When he had come, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood about and laid many serious complaints against Paul, which they could not prove,

⁸while he answered for himself, “Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar have I offended in anything at all.”

⁹But Festus, wanting to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and there be judged before me concerning these things?”

¹⁰So Paul said, “I stand at Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be judged. To the Jews I have done no wrong, as you very well know.

¹¹For if I am an offender, or have committed anything deserving of death, I do not object to dying; but if there is nothing in these things of which these men accuse me, no one can deliver me to them. I appeal to Caesar.”

¹²Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, “You have appealed to Caesar? To Caesar you shall go!”

¹³And after some days King Agrippa and Bernice came to Caesarea to greet Festus.

¹⁴When they had been there many days, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying: “There is a certain man left a prisoner by Felix,

¹⁵about whom the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me, when I was in Jerusalem, asking for a judgment against him.

¹⁶To them I answered, ‘It is not the custom of the Romans to deliver any man to destruction before the accused meets the accusers face to face, and has opportunity to answer for himself concerning the charge against him.’

¹⁷Therefore when they had come together, without any delay, the next day I sat on the judgment seat and commanded the man to be brought in.

¹⁸When the accusers stood up, they brought no accusation against him of such things as I supposed,

¹⁹but had some questions against him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, who had died, whom Paul affirmed to be alive.

²⁰And because I was uncertain of such questions, I asked whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and there be judged concerning these matters.

²¹But when Paul appealed to be reserved for the decision of Augustus, I commanded him to be kept till I could send him to Caesar.”

²²Then Agrippa said to Festus, “I also would like to hear the man myself.” “Tomorrow,” he said, “you shall hear him.”

²³So the next day, when Agrippa and Bernice had come with great pomp, and had entered the auditorium with the commanders and the prominent men of the city, at Festus’ command Paul was brought in.

²⁴And Festus said: “King Agrippa and all the men who are here present with us, you see this man about whom the whole assembly of the Jews petitioned me, both at Jerusalem and here, crying out that he was not fit to live any longer.

²⁵But when I found that he had committed nothing deserving of death, and that he himself had appealed to Augustus, I decided to send him.

²⁶I have nothing certain to write to my lord concerning him. Therefore I have brought him out before you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after the examination has taken place I may have something to write.

²⁷For it seems to me unreasonable to send a prisoner and not to specify the charges against him.”