Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Then Jesus said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his property.

²So he summoned him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Give me an accounting of your management, because you cannot be my manager any longer.’

³Then the manager said to himself, ‘What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg.

⁴I have decided what to do so that, when I am dismissed as manager, people may welcome me into their homes.’

⁵So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’

⁶He answered, ‘A hundred jugs of olive oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.’

⁷Then he asked another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He replied, ‘A hundred containers of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill and make it eighty.’

⁸And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.

⁹And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.

¹⁰“Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much.

¹¹If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?

¹²And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own?

¹³No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”

¹⁴The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this, and they ridiculed him.

¹⁵So he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of others; but God knows your hearts; for what is prized by human beings is an abomination in the sight of God.

¹⁶“The law and the prophets were in effect until John came; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is proclaimed, and everyone tries to enter it by force.

¹⁷But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than for one stroke of a letter in the law to be dropped.

¹⁸“Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and whoever marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery.

¹⁹“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day.

²⁰And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,

²¹who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores.

²²The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried.

²³In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side.

²⁴He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.’

²⁵But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony.

²⁶Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’

²⁷He said, ‘Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house —

²⁸for I have five brothers — that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.’

²⁹Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’

³⁰He said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’

³¹He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”

¹These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household:

²Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah,

³Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin,

⁴Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.

⁵The total number of people born to Jacob was seventy. Joseph was already in Egypt.

⁶Then Joseph died, and all his brothers, and that whole generation.

⁷But the Israelites were fruitful and prolific; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.

⁸Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.

⁹He said to his people, “Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we.

¹⁰Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.”

¹¹Therefore they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with forced labor. They built supply cities, Pithom and Rameses, for Pharaoh.

¹²But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread, so that the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites.

¹³The Egyptians became ruthless in imposing tasks on the Israelites,

¹⁴and made their lives bitter with hard service in mortar and brick and in every kind of field labor. They were ruthless in all the tasks that they imposed on them.

¹⁵The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah,

¹⁶“When you act as midwives to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, she shall live.”

¹⁷But the midwives feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but they let the boys live.

¹⁸So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this, and allowed the boys to live?”

¹⁹The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.”

²⁰So God dealt well with the midwives; and the people multiplied and became very strong.

²¹And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.

²²Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, “Every boy that is born to the Hebrews you shall throw into the Nile, but you shall let every girl live.”

¹What then are we to say was gained by Abraham, our ancestor according to the flesh?

²For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.

³For what does the scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.”

⁴Now to one who works, wages are not reckoned as a gift but as something due.

⁵But to one who without works trusts him who justifies the ungodly, such faith is reckoned as righteousness.

⁶So also David speaks of the blessedness of those to whom God reckons righteousness apart from works:

⁷“Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;

⁸blessed is the one against whom the Lord will not reckon sin.”

⁹Is this blessedness, then, pronounced only on the circumcised, or also on the uncircumcised? We say, “Faith was reckoned to Abraham as righteousness.”

¹⁰How then was it reckoned to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised.

¹¹He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the ancestor of all who believe without being circumcised and who thus have righteousness reckoned to them,

¹²and likewise the ancestor of the circumcised who are not only circumcised but who also follow the example of the faith that our ancestor Abraham had before he was circumcised.

¹³For the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law but through the righteousness of faith.

¹⁴If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void.

¹⁵For the law brings wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there violation.

¹⁶For this reason it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants, not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham (for he is the father of all of us,

¹⁷as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”) — in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.

¹⁸Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become “the father of many nations,” according to what was said, “So numerous shall your descendants be.”

¹⁹He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was already as good as dead (for he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb.

²⁰No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God,

²¹being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised.

²²Therefore his faith “was reckoned to him as righteousness.”

²³Now the words, “it was reckoned to him,” were written not for his sake alone,

²⁴but for ours also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead,

²⁵who was handed over to death for our trespasses and was raised for our justification.

¹Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, To those who are called, who are beloved in God the Father and kept safe for Jesus Christ:

²May mercy, peace, and love be yours in abundance.

³Beloved, while eagerly preparing to write to you about the salvation we share, I find it necessary to write and appeal to you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.

⁴For certain intruders have stolen in among you, people who long ago were designated for this condemnation as ungodly, who pervert the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

⁵Now I desire to remind you, though you are fully informed, that the Lord, who once for all saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.

⁶And the angels who did not keep their own position, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains in deepest darkness for the judgment of the great day.

⁷Likewise, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which, in the same manner as they, indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural lust, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.

⁸Yet in the same way these dreamers also defile the flesh, reject authority, and slander the glorious ones.

⁹But when the archangel Michael contended with the devil and disputed about the body of Moses, he did not dare to bring a condemnation of slander against him, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”

¹⁰But these people slander whatever they do not understand, and they are destroyed by those things that, like irrational animals, they know by instinct.

¹¹Woe to them! For they go the way of Cain, and abandon themselves to Balaam’s error for the sake of gain, and perish in Korah’s rebellion.

¹²These are blemishes on your love-feasts, while they feast with you without fear, feeding themselves. They are waterless clouds carried along by the winds; autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, uprooted;

¹³wild waves of the sea, casting up the foam of their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the deepest darkness has been reserved forever.

¹⁴It was also about these that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “See, the Lord is coming with ten thousands of his holy ones,

¹⁵to execute judgment on all, and to convict everyone of all the deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”

¹⁶These are grumblers and malcontents; they indulge their own lusts; they are bombastic in speech, flattering people to their own advantage.

¹⁷But you, beloved, must remember the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;

¹⁸for they said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, indulging their own ungodly lusts.”

¹⁹It is these worldly people, devoid of the Spirit, who are causing divisions.

²⁰But you, beloved, build yourselves up on your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit;

²¹keep yourselves in the love of God; look forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.

²²And have mercy on some who are wavering;

²³save others by snatching them out of the fire; and have mercy on still others with fear, hating even the tunic defiled by their bodies.

²⁴Now to him who is able to keep you from falling, and to make you stand without blemish in the presence of his glory with rejoicing,

²⁵to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

¹Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off a foul odor; so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

²The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of a fool to the left.

³Even when fools walk on the road, they lack sense, and show to everyone that they are fools.

⁴If the anger of the ruler rises against you, do not leave your post, for calmness will undo great offenses.

⁵There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, as great an error as if it proceeded from the ruler:

⁶folly is set in many high places, and the rich sit in a low place.

⁷I have seen slaves on horseback, and princes walking on foot like slaves.

⁸Whoever digs a pit will fall into it; and whoever breaks through a wall will be bitten by a snake.

⁹Whoever quarries stones will be hurt by them; and whoever splits logs will be endangered by them.

¹⁰If the iron is blunt, and one does not whet the edge, then more strength must be exerted; but wisdom helps one to succeed.

¹¹If the snake bites before it is charmed, there is no advantage in a charmer.

¹²Words spoken by the wise bring them favor, but the lips of fools consume them.

¹³The words of their mouths begin in foolishness, and their talk ends in wicked madness;

¹⁴yet fools talk on and on. No one knows what is to happen, and who can tell anyone what the future holds?

¹⁵The toil of fools wears them out, for they do not even know the way to town.

¹⁶Alas for you, O land, when your king is a servant, and your princes feast in the morning!

¹⁷Happy are you, O land, when your king is a nobleman, and your princes feast at the proper time — for strength, and not for drunkenness!

¹⁸Through sloth the roof sinks in, and through indolence the house leaks.

¹⁹Feasts are made for laughter; wine gladdens life, and money meets every need.

²⁰Do not curse the king, even in your thoughts, or curse the rich, even in your bedroom; for a bird of the air may carry your voice, or some winged creature tell the matter.

¹O LORD, God of my salvation, when, at night, I cry out in your presence,

²let my prayer come before you; incline your ear to my cry.

³For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol.

⁴I am counted among those who go down to the Pit; I am like those who have no help,

⁵like those forsaken among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, like those whom you remember no more, for they are cut off from your hand.

⁶You have put me in the depths of the Pit, in the regions dark and deep.

⁷Your wrath lies heavy upon me, and you overwhelm me with all your waves. Selah

⁸You have caused my companions to shun me; you have made me a thing of horror to them. I am shut in so that I cannot escape;

⁹my eye grows dim through sorrow. Every day I call on you, O LORD; I spread out my hands to you.

¹⁰Do you work wonders for the dead? Do the shades rise up to praise you? Selah

¹¹Is your steadfast love declared in the grave, or your faithfulness in Abaddon?

¹²Are your wonders known in the darkness, or your saving help in the land of forgetfulness?

¹³But I, O LORD, cry out to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you.

¹⁴O LORD, why do you cast me off? Why do you hide your face from me?

¹⁵Wretched and close to death from my youth up, I suffer your terrors; I am desperate.

¹⁶Your wrath has swept over me; your dread assaults destroy me.

¹⁷They surround me like a flood all day long; from all sides they close in on me.

¹⁸You have caused friend and neighbor to shun me; my companions are in darkness.

¹The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will.

²All deeds are right in the sight of the doer, but the LORD weighs the heart.

³To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.

⁴Haughty eyes and a proud heart — the lamp of the wicked — are sin.

⁵The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to want.

⁶The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death.

⁷The violence of the wicked will sweep them away, because they refuse to do what is just.

⁸The way of the guilty is crooked, but the conduct of the pure is right.

⁹It is better to live in a corner of the housetop than in a house shared with a contentious wife.

¹⁰The souls of the wicked desire evil; their neighbors find no mercy in their eyes.

¹¹When a scoffer is punished, the simple become wiser; when the wise are instructed, they increase in knowledge.

¹²The Righteous One observes the house of the wicked; he casts the wicked down to ruin.

¹³If you close your ear to the cry of the poor, you will cry out and not be heard.

¹⁴A gift in secret averts anger; and a concealed bribe in the bosom, strong wrath.

¹⁵When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous, but dismay to evildoers.

¹⁶Whoever wanders from the way of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead.

¹⁷Whoever loves pleasure will suffer want; whoever loves wine and oil will not be rich.

¹⁸The wicked is a ransom for the righteous, and the faithless for the upright.

¹⁹It is better to live in a desert land than with a contentious and fretful wife.

²⁰Precious treasure remains in the house of the wise, but the fool devours it.

²¹Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life and honor.

²²One wise person went up against a city of warriors and brought down the stronghold in which they trusted.

²³To watch over mouth and tongue is to keep out of trouble.

²⁴The proud, haughty person, named “Scoffer,” acts with arrogant pride.

²⁵The craving of the lazy person is fatal, for lazy hands refuse to labor.

²⁶All day long the wicked covet, but the righteous give and do not hold back.

²⁷The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination; how much more when brought with evil intent.

²⁸A false witness will perish, but a good listener will testify successfully.

²⁹The wicked put on a bold face, but the upright give thought to their ways.

³⁰No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel, can avail against the LORD.

³¹The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but the victory belongs to the LORD.

¹These are the priests and the Levites who came up with Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,

²Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,

³Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,

⁴Iddo, Ginnethoi, Abijah,

⁵Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,

⁶Shemaiah, Joiarib, Jedaiah,

⁷Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, Jedaiah. These were the leaders of the priests and of their associates in the days of Jeshua.

⁸And the Levites: Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, and Mattaniah, who with his associates was in charge of the songs of thanksgiving.

⁹And Bakbukiah and Unno their associates stood opposite them in the service.

¹⁰Jeshua was the father of Joiakim, Joiakim the father of Eliashib, Eliashib the father of Joiada,

¹¹Joiada the father of Jonathan, and Jonathan the father of Jaddua.

¹²In the days of Joiakim the priests, heads of ancestral houses, were: of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;

¹³of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan;

¹⁴of Malluchi, Jonathan; of Shebaniah, Joseph;

¹⁵of Harim, Adna; of Meraioth, Helkai;

¹⁶of Iddo, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;

¹⁷of Abijah, Zichri; of Miniamin, of Moadiah, Piltai;

¹⁸of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;

¹⁹of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi;

²⁰of Sallai, Kallai; of Amok, Eber;

²¹of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; of Jedaiah, Nethanel.

²²As for the Levites, in the days of Eliashib, Joiada, Johanan, and Jaddua, there were recorded the heads of ancestral houses; also the priests until the reign of Darius the Persian.

²³The Levites, heads of ancestral houses, were recorded in the Book of the Annals until the days of Johanan son of Eliashib.

²⁴And the leaders of the Levites: Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua son of Kadmiel, with their associates over against them, to praise and to give thanks, according to the commandment of David the man of God, section opposite to section.

²⁵Mattaniah, Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, and Akkub were gatekeepers standing guard at the storehouses of the gates.

²⁶These were in the days of Joiakim son of Jeshua son of Jozadak, and in the days of the governor Nehemiah and of the priest Ezra, the scribe.

²⁷Now at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem they sought out the Levites in all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem to celebrate the dedication with rejoicing, with thanksgivings and with singing, with cymbals, harps, and lyres.

²⁸The companies of the singers gathered together from the circuit around Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netophathites;

²⁹also from Beth-gilgal and from the region of Geba and Azmaveth; for the singers had built for themselves villages around Jerusalem.

³⁰And the priests and the Levites purified themselves; and they purified the people and the gates and the wall.

³¹Then I brought the leaders of Judah up onto the wall, and appointed two great companies that gave thanks and went in procession. One went to the right on the wall to the Dung Gate;

³²and after them went Hoshaiah and half the officials of Judah,

³³and Azariah, Ezra, Meshullam,

³⁴Judah, Benjamin, Shemaiah, and Jeremiah,

³⁵and some of the young priests with trumpets: Zechariah son of Jonathan son of Shemaiah son of Mattaniah son of Micaiah son of Zaccur son of Asaph;

³⁶and his kindred, Shemaiah, Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, Judah, and Hanani, with the musical instruments of David the man of God; and the scribe Ezra went in front of them.

³⁷At the Fountain Gate, in front of them, they went straight up by the stairs of the city of David, at the ascent of the wall, above the house of David, to the Water Gate on the east.

³⁸The other company of those who gave thanks went to the left, and I followed them with half of the people on the wall, above the Tower of the Ovens, to the Broad Wall,

³⁹and above the Gate of Ephraim, and by the Old Gate, and by the Fish Gate and the Tower of Hananel and the Tower of the Hundred, to the Sheep Gate; and they came to a halt at the Gate of the Guard.

⁴⁰So both companies of those who gave thanks stood in the house of God, and I and half of the officials with me;

⁴¹and the priests Eliakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and Hananiah, with trumpets;

⁴²and Maaseiah, Shemaiah, Eleazar, Uzzi, Jehohanan, Malchijah, Elam, and Ezer. And the singers sang with Jezrahiah as their leader.

⁴³They offered great sacrifices that day and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and children also rejoiced. The joy of Jerusalem was heard far away.

⁴⁴On that day men were appointed over the chambers for the stores, the contributions, the first fruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions required by the law for the priests and for the Levites from the fields belonging to the towns; for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who ministered.

⁴⁵They performed the service of their God and the service of purification, as did the singers and the gatekeepers, according to the command of David and his son Solomon.

⁴⁶For in the days of David and Asaph long ago there was a leader of the singers, and there were songs of praise and thanksgiving to God.

⁴⁷In the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah all Israel gave the daily portions for the singers and the gatekeepers. They set apart that which was for the Levites; and the Levites set apart that which was for the descendants of Aaron.

¹And again I looked up and saw four chariots coming out from between two mountains — mountains of bronze.

²The first chariot had red horses, the second chariot black horses,

³the third chariot white horses, and the fourth chariot dappled gray horses.

⁴Then I said to the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?”

⁵The angel answered me, “These are the four winds of heaven going out, after presenting themselves before the Lord of all the earth.

⁶The chariot with the black horses goes toward the north country, the white ones go toward the west country, and the dappled ones go toward the south country.”

⁷When the steeds came out, they were impatient to get off and patrol the earth. And he said, “Go, patrol the earth.” So they patrolled the earth.

⁸Then he cried out to me, “Lo, those who go toward the north country have set my spirit at rest in the north country.”

⁹The word of the LORD came to me:

¹⁰Collect silver and gold from the exiles — from Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah — who have arrived from Babylon; and go the same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah.

¹¹Take the silver and gold and make a crown, and set it on the head of the high priest Joshua son of Jehozadak;

¹²say to him: Thus says the LORD of hosts: Here is a man whose name is Branch: for he shall branch out in his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD.

¹³It is he that shall build the temple of the LORD; he shall bear royal honor, and shall sit upon his throne and rule. There shall be a priest by his throne, with peaceful understanding between the two of them.

¹⁴And the crown shall be in the care of Heldai, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Josiah son of Zephaniah, as a memorial in the temple of the LORD.

¹⁵Those who are far off shall come and help to build the temple of the LORD; and you shall know that the LORD of hosts has sent me to you. This will happen if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God.

¹The same thing occurred in Iconium, where Paul and Barnabas went into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks became believers.

²But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.

³So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who testified to the word of his grace by granting signs and wonders to be done through them.

⁴But the residents of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles.

⁵And when an attempt was made by both Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to mistreat them and to stone them,

⁶the apostles learned of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding country;

⁷and there they continued proclaiming the good news.

⁸In Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet and had never walked, for he had been crippled from birth.

⁹He listened to Paul as he was speaking. And Paul, looking at him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed,

¹⁰said in a loud voice, “Stand upright on your feet.” And the man sprang up and began to walk.

¹¹When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”

¹²Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes, because he was the chief speaker.

¹³The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates; he and the crowds wanted to offer sacrifice.

¹⁴When the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting,

¹⁵“Friends, why are you doing this? We are mortals just like you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them.

¹⁶In past generations he allowed all the nations to follow their own ways;

¹⁷yet he has not left himself without a witness in doing good — giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, and filling you with food and your hearts with joy.”

¹⁸Even with these words, they scarcely restrained the crowds from offering sacrifice to them.

¹⁹But Jews came there from Antioch and Iconium and won over the crowds. Then they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead.

²⁰But when the disciples surrounded him, he got up and went into the city. The next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe.

²¹After they had proclaimed the good news to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, then on to Iconium and Antioch.

²²There they strengthened the souls of the disciples and encouraged them to continue in the faith, saying, “It is through many persecutions that we must enter the kingdom of God.”

²³And after they had appointed elders for them in each church, with prayer and fasting they entrusted them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.

²⁴Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia.

²⁵When they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

²⁶From there they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had completed.

²⁷When they arrived, they called the church together and related all that God had done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith for the Gentiles.

²⁸And they stayed there with the disciples for some time.