Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there,

²and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration.

³The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother told him, “They have no more wine.”

⁴“Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”

⁵But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

⁶Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons.

⁷Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled,

⁸he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed his instructions.

⁹When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over.

¹⁰“A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!”

¹¹This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

¹²After the wedding he went to Capernaum for a few days with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples.

¹³It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration, so Jesus went to Jerusalem.

¹⁴In the Temple area he saw merchants selling cattle, sheep, and doves for sacrifices; he also saw dealers at tables exchanging foreign money.

¹⁵Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and cattle, scattered the money changers’ coins over the floor, and turned over their tables.

¹⁶Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, “Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!”

¹⁷Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the Scriptures: “Passion for God’s house will consume me.”

¹⁸But the Jewish leaders demanded, “What are you doing? If God gave you authority to do this, show us a miraculous sign to prove it.”

¹⁹“All right,” Jesus replied. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

²⁰“What!” they exclaimed. “It has taken forty-six years to build this Temple, and you can rebuild it in three days?”

²¹But when Jesus said “this temple,” he meant his own body.

²²After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered he had said this, and they believed both the Scriptures and what Jesus had said.

²³Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him.

²⁴But Jesus didn’t trust them, because he knew all about people.

²⁵No one needed to tell him about human nature, for he knew what was in each person’s heart.

¹Then the LORD said to Moses, “I will strike Pharaoh and the land of Egypt with one more blow. After that, Pharaoh will let you leave this country. In fact, he will be so eager to get rid of you that he will force you all to leave.

²Tell all the Israelite men and women to ask their Egyptian neighbors for articles of silver and gold.”

³(Now the LORD had caused the Egyptians to look favorably on the people of Israel. And Moses was considered a very great man in the land of Egypt, respected by Pharaoh’s officials and the Egyptian people alike.)

⁴Moses had announced to Pharaoh, “This is what the LORD says: At midnight tonight I will pass through the heart of Egypt.

⁵All the firstborn sons will die in every family in Egypt, from the oldest son of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, to the oldest son of his lowliest servant girl who grinds the flour. Even the firstborn of all the livestock will die.

⁶Then a loud wail will rise throughout the land of Egypt, a wail like no one has heard before or will ever hear again.

⁷But among the Israelites it will be so peaceful that not even a dog will bark. Then you will know that the LORD makes a distinction between the Egyptians and the Israelites.

⁸All the officials of Egypt will run to me and fall to the ground before me. ‘Please leave!’ they will beg. ‘Hurry! And take all your followers with you.’ Only then will I go!” Then, burning with anger, Moses left Pharaoh.

⁹Now the LORD had told Moses earlier, “Pharaoh will not listen to you, but then I will do even more mighty miracles in the land of Egypt.”

¹⁰Moses and Aaron performed these miracles in Pharaoh’s presence, but the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he wouldn’t let the Israelites leave the country.

¹Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don’t argue with them about what they think is right or wrong.

²For instance, one person believes it’s all right to eat anything. But another believer with a sensitive conscience will eat only vegetables.

³Those who feel free to eat anything must not look down on those who don’t. And those who don’t eat certain foods must not condemn those who do, for God has accepted them.

⁴Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? Their own master will judge whether they stand or fall. And with the Lord’s help, they will stand and receive his approval.

⁵In the same way, some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike. You should each be fully convinced that whichever day you choose is acceptable.

⁶Those who worship the Lord on a special day do it to honor him. Those who eat any kind of food do so to honor the Lord, since they give thanks to God before eating. And those who refuse to eat certain foods also want to please the Lord and give thanks to God.

⁷For we don’t live for ourselves or die for ourselves.

⁸If we live, it’s to honor the Lord. And if we die, it’s to honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

⁹Christ died and rose again for this very purpose — to be Lord both of the living and of the dead.

¹⁰So why do you condemn another believer ? Why do you look down on another believer? Remember, we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.

¹¹For the Scriptures say, “‘As surely as I live,’ says the LORD, ‘every knee will bend to me, and every tongue will declare allegiance to God. ’”

¹²Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God.

¹³So let’s stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall.

¹⁴I know and am convinced on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat. But if someone believes it is wrong, then for that person it is wrong.

¹⁵And if another believer is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it. Don’t let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died.

¹⁶Then you will not be criticized for doing something you believe is good.

¹⁷For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

¹⁸If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too.

¹⁹So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.

²⁰Don’t tear apart the work of God over what you eat. Remember, all foods are acceptable, but it is wrong to eat something if it makes another person stumble.

²¹It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else if it might cause another believer to stumble.

²²You may believe there’s nothing wrong with what you are doing, but keep it between yourself and God. Blessed are those who don’t feel guilty for doing something they have decided is right.

²³But if you have doubts about whether or not you should eat something, you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.

¹Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, surrounded by a cloud, with a rainbow over his head. His face shone like the sun, and his feet were like pillars of fire.

²And in his hand was a small scroll that had been opened. He stood with his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land.

³And he gave a great shout like the roar of a lion. And when he shouted, the seven thunders answered.

⁴When the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write. But I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Keep secret what the seven thunders said, and do not write it down.”

⁵Then the angel I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand toward heaven.

⁶He swore an oath in the name of the one who lives forever and ever, who created the heavens and everything in them, the earth and everything in it, and the sea and everything in it. He said, “There will be no more delay.

⁷When the seventh angel blows his trumpet, God’s mysterious plan will be fulfilled. It will happen just as he announced it to his servants the prophets.”

⁸Then the voice from heaven spoke to me again: “Go and take the open scroll from the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.”

⁹So I went to the angel and told him to give me the small scroll. “Yes, take it and eat it,” he said. “It will be sweet as honey in your mouth, but it will turn sour in your stomach!”

¹⁰So I took the small scroll from the hand of the angel, and I ate it! It was sweet in my mouth, but when I swallowed it, it turned sour in my stomach.

¹¹Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings.”

¹Oh, I wish you were my brother, who nursed at my mother’s breasts. Then I could kiss you no matter who was watching, and no one would criticize me.

²I would bring you to my childhood home, and there you would teach me. I would give you spiced wine to drink, my sweet pomegranate wine.

³Your left arm would be under my head, and your right arm would embrace me.

⁴Promise me, O women of Jerusalem, not to awaken love until the time is right.

⁵Who is this sweeping in from the desert, leaning on her lover? Young Woman I aroused you under the apple tree, where your mother gave you birth, where in great pain she delivered you.

⁶Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm. For love is as strong as death, its jealousy as enduring as the grave. Love flashes like fire, the brightest kind of flame.

⁷Many waters cannot quench love, nor can rivers drown it. If a man tried to buy love with all his wealth, his offer would be utterly scorned.

⁸We have a little sister too young to have breasts. What will we do for our sister if someone asks to marry her?

⁹If she is a virgin, like a wall, we will protect her with a silver tower. But if she is promiscuous, like a swinging door, we will block her door with a cedar bar.

¹⁰I was a virgin, like a wall; now my breasts are like towers. When my lover looks at me, he is delighted with what he sees.

¹¹Solomon has a vineyard at Baal-hamon, which he leases out to tenant farmers. Each of them pays a thousand pieces of silver for harvesting its fruit.

¹²But my vineyard is mine to give, and Solomon need not pay a thousand pieces of silver. But I will give two hundred pieces to those who care for its vines.

¹³O my darling, lingering in the gardens, your companions are fortunate to hear your voice. Let me hear it, too!

¹⁴Come away, my love! Be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices.

¹Sing a new song to the LORD, for he has done wonderful deeds. His right hand has won a mighty victory; his holy arm has shown his saving power!

²The LORD has announced his victory and has revealed his righteousness to every nation!

³He has remembered his promise to love and be faithful to Israel. The ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.

⁴Shout to the LORD, all the earth; break out in praise and sing for joy!

⁵Sing your praise to the LORD with the harp, with the harp and melodious song,

⁶with trumpets and the sound of the ram’s horn. Make a joyful symphony before the LORD, the King!

⁷Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise! Let the earth and all living things join in.

⁸Let the rivers clap their hands in glee! Let the hills sing out their songs of joy

⁹before the LORD, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with justice, and the nations with fairness.

¹The sayings of King Lemuel contain this message, which his mother taught him.

²O my son, O son of my womb, O son of my vows,

³do not waste your strength on women, on those who ruin kings.

⁴It is not for kings, O Lemuel, to guzzle wine. Rulers should not crave alcohol.

⁵For if they drink, they may forget the law and not give justice to the oppressed.

⁶Alcohol is for the dying, and wine for those in bitter distress.

⁷Let them drink to forget their poverty and remember their troubles no more.

⁸Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed.

⁹Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice.

¹⁰Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies.

¹¹Her husband can trust her, and she will greatly enrich his life.

¹²She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.

¹³She finds wool and flax and busily spins it.

¹⁴She is like a merchant’s ship, bringing her food from afar.

¹⁵She gets up before dawn to prepare breakfast for her household and plan the day’s work for her servant girls.

¹⁶She goes to inspect a field and buys it; with her earnings she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷She is energetic and strong, a hard worker.

¹⁸She makes sure her dealings are profitable; her lamp burns late into the night.

¹⁹Her hands are busy spinning thread, her fingers twisting fiber.

²⁰She extends a helping hand to the poor and opens her arms to the needy.

²¹She has no fear of winter for her household, for everyone has warm clothes.

²²She makes her own bedspreads. She dresses in fine linen and purple gowns.

²³Her husband is well known at the city gates, where he sits with the other civic leaders.

²⁴She makes belted linen garments and sashes to sell to the merchants.

²⁵She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.

²⁶When she speaks, her words are wise, and she gives instructions with kindness.

²⁷She carefully watches everything in her household and suffers nothing from laziness.

²⁸Her children stand and bless her. Her husband praises her:

²⁹“There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!”

³⁰Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the LORD will be greatly praised.

³¹Reward her for all she has done. Let her deeds publicly declare her praise.

¹So on March 7 the two decrees of the king were put into effect. On that day, the enemies of the Jews had hoped to overpower them, but quite the opposite happened. It was the Jews who overpowered their enemies.

²The Jews gathered in their cities throughout all the king’s provinces to attack anyone who tried to harm them. But no one could make a stand against them, for everyone was afraid of them.

³And all the nobles of the provinces, the highest officers, the governors, and the royal officials helped the Jews for fear of Mordecai.

⁴For Mordecai had been promoted in the king’s palace, and his fame spread throughout all the provinces as he became more and more powerful.

⁵So the Jews went ahead on the appointed day and struck down their enemies with the sword. They killed and annihilated their enemies and did as they pleased with those who hated them.

⁶In the fortress of Susa itself, the Jews killed 500 men.

⁷They also killed Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha,

⁸Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha,

⁹Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha —

¹⁰the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews. But they did not take any plunder.

¹¹That very day, when the king was informed of the number of people killed in the fortress of Susa,

¹²he called for Queen Esther. He said, “The Jews have killed 500 men in the fortress of Susa alone, as well as Haman’s ten sons. If they have done that here, what has happened in the rest of the provinces? But now, what more do you want? It will be granted to you; tell me and I will do it.”

¹³Esther responded, “If it please the king, give the Jews in Susa permission to do again tomorrow as they have done today, and let the bodies of Haman’s ten sons be impaled on a pole.”

¹⁴So the king agreed, and the decree was announced in Susa. And they impaled the bodies of Haman’s ten sons.

¹⁵Then the Jews at Susa gathered together on March 8 and killed 300 more men, and again they took no plunder.

¹⁶Meanwhile, the other Jews throughout the king’s provinces had gathered together to defend their lives. They gained relief from all their enemies, killing 75,000 of those who hated them. But they did not take any plunder.

¹⁷This was done throughout the provinces on March 7, and on March 8 they rested, celebrating their victory with a day of feasting and gladness.

¹⁸(The Jews at Susa killed their enemies on March 7 and again on March 8, then rested on March 9, making that their day of feasting and gladness.)

¹⁹So to this day, rural Jews living in remote villages celebrate an annual festival and holiday on the appointed day in late winter, when they rejoice and send gifts of food to each other.

²⁰Mordecai recorded these events and sent letters to the Jews near and far, throughout all the provinces of King Xerxes,

²¹calling on them to celebrate an annual festival on these two days.

²²He told them to celebrate these days with feasting and gladness and by giving gifts of food to each other and presents to the poor. This would commemorate a time when the Jews gained relief from their enemies, when their sorrow was turned into gladness and their mourning into joy.

²³So the Jews accepted Mordecai’s proposal and adopted this annual custom.

²⁴Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews, had plotted to crush and destroy them on the date determined by casting lots (the lots were called purim).

²⁵But when Esther came before the king, he issued a decree causing Haman’s evil plot to backfire, and Haman and his sons were impaled on a sharpened pole.

²⁶That is why this celebration is called Purim, because it is the ancient word for casting lots. So because of Mordecai’s letter and because of what they had experienced,

²⁷the Jews throughout the realm agreed to inaugurate this tradition and to pass it on to their descendants and to all who became Jews. They declared they would never fail to celebrate these two prescribed days at the appointed time each year.

²⁸These days would be remembered and kept from generation to generation and celebrated by every family throughout the provinces and cities of the empire. This Festival of Purim would never cease to be celebrated among the Jews, nor would the memory of what happened ever die out among their descendants.

²⁹Then Queen Esther, the daughter of Abihail, along with Mordecai the Jew, wrote another letter putting the queen’s full authority behind Mordecai’s letter to establish the Festival of Purim.

³⁰Letters wishing peace and security were sent to the Jews throughout the 127 provinces of the empire of Xerxes.

³¹These letters established the Festival of Purim — an annual celebration of these days at the appointed time, decreed by both Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther. (The people decided to observe this festival, just as they had decided for themselves and their descendants to establish the times of fasting and mourning.)

³²So the command of Esther confirmed the practices of Purim, and it was all written down in the records.

¹“Listen, you priests — this command is for you!

²Listen to me and make up your minds to honor my name,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, “or I will bring a terrible curse against you. I will curse even the blessings you receive. Indeed, I have already cursed them, because you have not taken my warning to heart.

³I will punish your descendants and splatter your faces with the manure from your festival sacrifices, and I will throw you on the manure pile.

⁴Then at last you will know it was I who sent you this warning so that my covenant with the Levites can continue,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

⁵“The purpose of my covenant with the Levites was to bring life and peace, and that is what I gave them. This required reverence from them, and they greatly revered me and stood in awe of my name.

⁶They passed on to the people the truth of the instructions they received from me. They did not lie or cheat; they walked with me, living good and righteous lives, and they turned many from lives of sin.

⁷“The words of a priest’s lips should preserve knowledge of God, and people should go to him for instruction, for the priest is the messenger of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

⁸But you priests have left God’s paths. Your instructions have caused many to stumble into sin. You have corrupted the covenant I made with the Levites,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

⁹“So I have made you despised and humiliated in the eyes of all the people. For you have not obeyed me but have shown favoritism in the way you carry out my instructions.”

¹⁰Are we not all children of the same Father? Are we not all created by the same God? Then why do we betray each other, violating the covenant of our ancestors?

¹¹Judah has been unfaithful, and a detestable thing has been done in Israel and in Jerusalem. The men of Judah have defiled the LORD’s beloved sanctuary by marrying women who worship idols.

¹²May the LORD cut off from the nation of Israel every last man who has done this and yet brings an offering to the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

¹³Here is another thing you do. You cover the LORD’s altar with tears, weeping and groaning because he pays no attention to your offerings and doesn’t accept them with pleasure.

¹⁴You cry out, “Why doesn’t the LORD accept my worship?” I’ll tell you why! Because the LORD witnessed the vows you and your wife made when you were young. But you have been unfaithful to her, though she remained your faithful partner, the wife of your marriage vows.

¹⁵Didn’t the LORD make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his. And what does he want? Godly children from your union. So guard your heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth.

¹⁶“For I hate divorce!” says the LORD, the God of Israel. “To divorce your wife is to overwhelm her with cruelty, ” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. “So guard your heart; do not be unfaithful to your wife.”

¹⁷You have wearied the LORD with your words. “How have we wearied him?” you ask. You have wearied him by saying that all who do evil are good in the LORD’s sight, and he is pleased with them. You have wearied him by asking, “Where is the God of justice?”

¹Five days later Ananias, the high priest, arrived with some of the Jewish elders and the lawyer Tertullus, to present their case against Paul to the governor.

²When Paul was called in, Tertullus presented the charges against Paul in the following address to the governor: “You have provided a long period of peace for us Jews and with foresight have enacted reforms for us.

³For all of this, Your Excellency, we are very grateful to you.

⁴But I don’t want to bore you, so please give me your attention for only a moment.

⁵We have found this man to be a troublemaker who is constantly stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the cult known as the Nazarenes.

⁶Furthermore, he was trying to desecrate the Temple when we arrested him.

⁷

⁸You can find out the truth of our accusations by examining him yourself.”

⁹Then the other Jews chimed in, declaring that everything Tertullus said was true.

¹⁰The governor then motioned for Paul to speak. Paul said, “I know, sir, that you have been a judge of Jewish affairs for many years, so I gladly present my defense before you.

¹¹You can quickly discover that I arrived in Jerusalem no more than twelve days ago to worship at the Temple.

¹²My accusers never found me arguing with anyone in the Temple, nor stirring up a riot in any synagogue or on the streets of the city.

¹³These men cannot prove the things they accuse me of doing.

¹⁴“But I admit that I follow the Way, which they call a cult. I worship the God of our ancestors, and I firmly believe the Jewish law and everything written in the prophets.

¹⁵I have the same hope in God that these men have, that he will raise both the righteous and the unrighteous.

¹⁶Because of this, I always try to maintain a clear conscience before God and all people.

¹⁷“After several years away, I returned to Jerusalem with money to aid my people and to offer sacrifices to God.

¹⁸My accusers saw me in the Temple as I was completing a purification ceremony. There was no crowd around me and no rioting.

¹⁹But some Jews from the province of Asia were there — and they ought to be here to bring charges if they have anything against me!

²⁰Ask these men here what crime the Jewish high council found me guilty of,

²¹except for the one time I shouted out, ‘I am on trial before you today because I believe in the resurrection of the dead!’”

²²At that point Felix, who was quite familiar with the Way, adjourned the hearing and said, “Wait until Lysias, the garrison commander, arrives. Then I will decide the case.”

²³He ordered an officer to keep Paul in custody but to give him some freedom and allow his friends to visit him and take care of his needs.

²⁴A few days later Felix came back with his wife, Drusilla, who was Jewish. Sending for Paul, they listened as he told them about faith in Christ Jesus.

²⁵As he reasoned with them about righteousness and self-control and the coming day of judgment, Felix became frightened. “Go away for now,” he replied. “When it is more convenient, I’ll call for you again.”

²⁶He also hoped that Paul would bribe him, so he sent for him quite often and talked with him.

²⁷After two years went by in this way, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. And because Felix wanted to gain favor with the Jewish people, he left Paul in prison.