Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹While He was passing by, He noticed a man [who had been] blind from birth.

²His disciples asked Him, "Rabbi (Teacher), who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?"

³Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but it was so that the works of God might be displayed and illustrated in him.

⁴We must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; night is coming when no one can work.

⁵As long as I am in the world, I am the Light of the world [giving guidance through My word and works]."

⁶When He had said this, He spat on the ground and made mud with His saliva, and He spread the mud [like an ointment] on the man's eyes.

⁷And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent). So he went away and washed, and came back seeing.

⁸So the neighbors, and those who used to know him as a beggar, said, "Is not this the man who used to sit and beg?"

⁹Some said, "It is he." Still others said, "No, but he looks like him." But he kept saying, "I am the man."

¹⁰So they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"

¹¹He replied, "The Man called Jesus made mud and smeared it on my eyes and told me, 'Go to Siloam and wash.' So I went and washed, and I received my sight!"

¹²They asked him, "Where is He?" He said, "I do not know."

¹³Then they brought the man who was formerly blind to the Pharisees.

¹⁴Now it was on a Sabbath day that Jesus made the mud and opened the man's eyes.

¹⁵So the Pharisees asked him again how he received his sight. And he said to them, "He smeared mud on my eyes, and I washed, and now I see."

¹⁶Then some of the Pharisees said, "This Man [Jesus] is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath." But others said, "How can a man who is a sinner (a non-observant Jew) do such signs and miracles?" So there was a difference of opinion among them.

¹⁷Accordingly they said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him, since He opened your eyes?" And he said, "[It must be that] He is a prophet!"

¹⁸However, the Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the man's parents.

¹⁹They asked them, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? Then how does he now see?"

²⁰His parents answered, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind;

²¹but as to how he now sees, we do not know; or who has opened his eyes, we do not know. Ask him [and stop asking us]; he is of age, he will speak for himself and give his own account of it."

²²His parents said this because they were afraid of [the leaders of] the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone acknowledged Jesus to be the Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue (excommunicated).

²³Because of this his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."

²⁴So a second time they called the man who had been [born] blind, and said to him, "Give God glory and praise [for your sight]! We know this Man [Jesus] is a sinner [separated from God]."

²⁵Then he answered, "I do not know whether He is a sinner [separated from God]; but one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see."

²⁶So they said to him, "What did He [actually] do to you? How did He open your eyes?"

²⁷He answered, "I already told you and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again and again? Do you want to become His disciples, too?"

²⁸And [at that remark] they stormed at him and jeered, "You are His disciple, but we are disciples of Moses!

²⁹We know [for certain] that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this Man, we do not know where He is from."

³⁰The man replied, "Well, this is astonishing! You do not know where He comes from, and yet He opened my eyes!

³¹We know [according to your tradition] that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone fears God and does His will, He hears him.

³²Since the beginning of time it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind.

³³If this Man were not from God, He would not be able to do anything [like this because God would not hear His prayer]."

³⁴They answered him, "You were born entirely in sins [from head to foot], and you [presume to] teach us?" Then they threw him out [of the synagogue].

³⁵Jesus heard that they had put him out [of the synagogue], and finding him, He asked, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

³⁶He answered, "Who is He, Sir? Tell me so that I may believe in Him."

³⁷Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him, and [in fact] He is the one who is talking with you."

³⁸And he said, "Lord, I believe [in You and Your word]!" And he worshiped Him [with reverence and awe].

³⁹Then Jesus said, "I came into this world for judgment [to separate those who believe in Me from those who reject Me—to declare judgment on those who choose to be separated from God], so that the sightless would see, and those who see would become blind."

⁴⁰Some Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, "Are we also blind?"

⁴¹Jesus said to them, "If you were blind [to spiritual things], you would have no sin [and would not be blamed for your unbelief]; but since you claim to have [spiritual] sight, [you have no excuse so] your sin and guilt remain.

¹Now Jethro (Reuel), the priest of Midian, Moses' father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people, and that the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.

²Then Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, took Moses' wife Zipporah, after he had sent her away [from Egypt],

³along with her two sons, of whom one was named Gershom (stranger), for Moses said, "I have been a stranger in a foreign land."

⁴The other [son] was named Eliezer (my God is help), for Moses said, "The God of my father was my help, and He rescued me from the sword of Pharaoh."

⁵Then Jethro, his father-in-law, came with Moses' sons and his wife to [join] Moses in the wilderness where he was camped, at the mountain of God [that is, Mt. Sinai in Horeb].

⁶He sent a message to Moses, "I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons [who are] with her."

⁷So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, and he bowed down [in respect] and kissed him. They asked each other about their well-being and went into the tent.

⁸Moses told his father-in-law about all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israel's sake, and about all the hardship that had happened during the journey, and how the LORD had rescued them.

⁹Jethro rejoiced over all the good things the LORD had done to Israel, in that He had rescued them from the hand of the Egyptians.

¹⁰Jethro said, "Blessed be the LORD, who has rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of Pharaoh, and who has rescued the people from under the hand of the Egyptians.

¹¹Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods; indeed, it was proven when they acted insolently toward Israel [and the LORD showed Himself infinitely superior to all their gods]."

¹²Then Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, took a burnt offering and [other] sacrifices [to offer] to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat a meal with Moses' father-in-law before God.

¹³Now the next day Moses sat to judge [the disputes] the people [had with one another], and the people stood around Moses from dawn to dusk.

¹⁴When Moses' father-in-law saw everything that he was doing for the people, he said, "What is this that you are doing for the people? Why are you sitting alone [as a judge] with all the people standing around you from dawn to dusk?"

¹⁵Moses said to his father-in-law, "Because the people come to me to ask [about the will] of God.

¹⁶When they have a dispute they come to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor and I make known the statutes of God and His laws."

¹⁷Moses' father-in-law said to him, "The thing that you are doing is not good.

¹⁸You will certainly wear out both yourself and these people who are with you, because the task is too heavy for you [to bear]; you cannot do it alone.

¹⁹Now listen to me; I will advise you, and may God be with you [to confirm my advice]. You shall represent the people before God. You shall bring their disputes and causes to Him.

²⁰You shall teach them the decrees and laws. You shall show them the way they are to live and the work they are to do.

²¹Furthermore, you shall select from all the people competent men who [reverently] fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain; you shall place these over the people as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens.

²²They shall judge the people at all times; have them bring every major dispute to you, but let them judge every minor dispute themselves. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you.

²³If you will do this thing and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure [the responsibility], and all these people will also go [back] to their tents in peace."

²⁴So Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything that he had said.

²⁵Moses chose able men from all Israel and made them heads over the people, leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens [from the highest to the lowest judicial levels].

²⁶And they judged the people at all times; they would bring the difficult cases to Moses, but every minor dispute they judged and decided themselves.

²⁷Then Moses said goodbye to his father-in-law, and Jethro went back to his own land (Midian).

¹It is actually reported [everywhere] that there is sexual immorality among you, a kind of immorality that is condemned even among the [unbelieving] Gentiles: that someone has [an intimate relationship with] his father's wife.

²And you are proud and arrogant! You should have mourned in shame so that the man who has done this [disgraceful] thing would be removed from your fellowship!

³For I, though absent [from you] in body but present in spirit, have already passed judgment on him who has committed this [act], as if I were present.

⁴In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you are assembled, and I am with you in spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus,

⁵you are to hand over this man to Satan for the destruction of his body, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

⁶Your boasting [over the supposed spirituality of your church] is not good [indeed, it is vulgar and inappropriate]. Do you not know that [just] a little leaven ferments the whole batch [of dough, just as a little sin corrupts a person or an entire church]?

⁷Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new batch, just as you are, still unleavened. For Christ our Passover Lamb has been sacrificed.

⁸Therefore, let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with leaven of vice and malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and [untainted] truth.

⁹I wrote you in my [previous] letter not to associate with [sexually] immoral people—

¹⁰not meaning the immoral people of this world, or the greedy ones and swindlers, or idolaters, for then you would have to get out of the world and human society altogether!

¹¹But actually, I have written to you not to associate with any so-called [Christian] brother if he is sexually immoral or greedy, or is an idolater [devoted to anything that takes the place of God], or is a reviler [who insults or slanders or otherwise verbally abuses others], or is a drunkard or a swindler—you must not so much as eat with such a person.

¹²For what business is it of mine to judge outsiders (non-believers)? Do you not judge those who are within the church [to protect the church as the situation requires]?

¹³God alone sits in judgment on those who are outside [the faith]. Remove the wicked one from among you [expel him from your church].

¹Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, "Come here, I will show you the judgment and doom of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters [influencing nations],

²she with whom the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality, and the inhabitants of the earth have become intoxicated with the wine of her immorality."

³And the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was entirely covered with blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns.

⁴The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold, precious stones and pearls, [and she was] holding in her hand a gold cup full of the abominations and the filth of her [sexual] immorality.

⁵And on her forehead a name was written, a mystery: "BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES (false religions, heresies) AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH."

⁶I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints (God's people), and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus [who were martyred]. When I saw her, I wondered in amazement.

⁷But the angel said to me, "Why do you wonder? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and ten horns.

⁸"The beast that you saw was [once], but [now] is not, and he is about to come up out of the abyss (the bottomless pit, the dwelling place of demons) and go to destruction (perdition). And the inhabitants of the earth, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, will be astonished when they see the beast, because he was and is not and is yet to come [to earth].

⁹Here is the mind which has wisdom [and this is what it knows about the vision]. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits;

¹⁰and they are seven kings: five of whom have fallen, one exists and is reigning; the other [the seventh] has not yet come, and when he does come, he must remain a little while.

¹¹And the beast that [once] was but is not, is himself also an eighth king and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction (perdition).

¹²The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but [together] they receive authority as kings for a single hour [for a common purpose] along with the beast.

¹³These [kings] have one purpose [one mind, one common goal], and they give their power and authority to the beast.

¹⁴They will wage war against the Lamb (Christ), and the Lamb will triumph and conquer them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him and on His side are the called and chosen (elect) and faithful."

¹⁵Then the angel said to me, "The waters which you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages.

¹⁶And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the prostitute and will make her desolate and naked [stripped of her power and influence], and will eat her flesh and completely consume her with fire.

¹⁷For God has put it in their hearts to carry out His purpose by agreeing together to surrender their kingdom to the beast, until the [prophetic] words of God will be fulfilled.

¹⁸The woman whom you saw is the great city, which reigns over and dominates and controls the kings and the political leaders of the earth."

¹"Is not man forced to labor on earth? And are not his days like the days of a hired man?

²"As a slave earnestly longs for the shade, And as a hired man eagerly awaits his wages,

³So am I allotted months of futility and suffering, And [long] nights of trouble and misery are appointed to me.

⁴"When I lie down I say, 'When shall I arise [and the night be gone]?' But the night continues, And I am continually tossing until the dawning of day.

⁵"My body is clothed with worms and a crust of dust; My skin is hardened [and broken and loathsome], and [breaks out and] runs.

⁶"My days are swifter than a weaver's shuttle, And are spent without hope.

⁷"Remember that my life is but breath [a puff of wind, a sigh]; My eye will not see good again.

⁸"The eye of him who sees me [now] will see me no more; Your eyes will be upon me, but I will not be.

⁹"As a cloud vanishes and is gone, So he who goes down to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) does not come up.

¹⁰"He will not return again to his house, Nor will his place know about him anymore.

¹¹"Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit, I will complain in the bitterness of my soul [O Lord].

¹²"Am I the sea, or the sea monster, That You set a guard over me?

¹³"When I say, 'My bed will comfort me, My couch will ease my complaint,'

¹⁴Then You frighten me with dreams And terrify me through visions,

¹⁵So that I would choose suffocation, Death rather than my pain.

¹⁶"I waste away and loathe my life; I will not live forever. Let me alone, for my days are but a breath [futile and without substance].

¹⁷"What is man that You [should] magnify him [and think him important]? And that You are concerned about him?

¹⁸"And that You examine him every morning And try and test him every moment?

¹⁹"Will You never turn Your gaze away from me [it plagues me], Nor let me alone until I swallow my spittle?

²⁰"If I have sinned, what [harm] have I done to You, O Watcher of mankind? Why have You set me as a target for You, So that I am a burden to myself?

²¹"Why then do You not pardon my transgression And take away my sin and guilt? For now I will lie down in the dust; And You will seek me [diligently], but I will not be."

¹O give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the people.

²Sing to Him, sing praises to Him; Speak of all His wonderful acts and devoutly praise them.

³Glory in His holy name; Let the hearts of those who seek and require the LORD [as their most essential need] rejoice.

⁴Seek and deeply long for the LORD and His strength [His power, His might]; Seek and deeply long for His face and His presence continually.

⁵Remember [with awe and gratitude] the wonderful things which He has done, His amazing deeds and the judgments uttered by His mouth [on His enemies, as in Egypt],

⁶O you offspring of Abraham, His servant, O you sons of Jacob, His chosen ones!

⁷He is the LORD our God; His judgments are in all the earth.

⁸He has remembered His covenant forever, The word which He commanded and established to a thousand generations,

⁹The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His sworn oath to Isaac,

¹⁰Which He confirmed to Jacob as a statute, To Israel as an everlasting covenant,

¹¹Saying, "To you I will give the land of Canaan As the measured portion of your inheritance."

¹²When there were only a few men in number, Very few [in fact], and strangers in it;

¹³And they wandered from one nation to another, From one kingdom to another people,

¹⁴He allowed no man to oppress them; He rebuked kings for their sakes, saying,

¹⁵"Do not touch My anointed ones, And do My prophets no harm."

¹⁶And He called for a famine upon the land [of Egypt]; He cut off every source of bread.

¹⁷He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave.

¹⁸His feet they hurt with shackles; He was put in chains of iron,

¹⁹Until the time that his word [of prophecy regarding his brothers] came true, The word of the LORD tested and refined him.

²⁰The king sent and released him, The ruler of the peoples [of Egypt], and set him free.

²¹He made Joseph lord of his house And ruler of all his possessions,

²²To imprison his princes at his will, That he might teach his elders wisdom.

²³Israel also came into Egypt; Thus Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.

²⁴There the LORD greatly increased [the number of] His people, And made them more powerful than their enemies.

²⁵He turned the heart [of the Egyptians] to hate His people, To deal craftily with His servants.

²⁶He sent Moses His servant, And Aaron, whom He had chosen.

²⁷They exhibited His wondrous signs among them, Great miracles in the land of Ham (Egypt).

²⁸He sent [thick, oppressive] darkness and made the land dark; And Moses and Aaron did not rebel against His words.

²⁹He turned Egypt's waters into blood And caused their fish to die.

³⁰Their land swarmed with frogs, Even in the chambers of their kings.

³¹He spoke, and there came swarms of flies And gnats in all their territory.

³²He gave them hail for rain, With flaming fire in their land.

³³He struck their vines also and their fig trees, And shattered the [ice-laden] trees of their territory.

³⁴He spoke, and the [migratory] locusts came, And the young locusts, even without number,

³⁵And ate up all the vegetation in their land, And devoured the fruit of their ground.

³⁶He also struck down all the firstborn in their land, The first fruits and chief substance of all their strength.

³⁷He brought the sons of Israel out [of Egypt] with silver and gold, And among their tribes there was not one who stumbled.

³⁸Egypt was glad when they departed, For the dread and fear of them had fallen on the Egyptians.

³⁹The LORD spread a cloud as a covering [by day], And a fire to illumine the night.

⁴⁰The Israelites asked, and He brought quail, And satisfied them with the bread of heaven.

⁴¹He opened the rock and water flowed out; It ran in the dry places like a river.

⁴²For He remembered His holy word To Abraham His servant;

⁴³He brought out His people with joy, And His chosen ones with a joyful shout,

⁴⁴He gave them the lands of the nations [of Canaan], So that they would possess the fruits of those peoples' labor,

⁴⁵So that they might observe His precepts And keep His laws [obediently accepting and honoring and valuing them]. Praise the LORD! (Hallelujah!)

¹My son, keep my words And treasure my commandments within you [so they are readily available to guide you].

²Keep my commandments and live, And keep my teaching and law as the apple of your eye.

³Bind them [securely] on your fingers; Write them on the tablet of your heart.

⁴Say to [skillful and godly] wisdom, "You are my sister," And regard understanding and intelligent insight as your intimate friends;

⁵That they may keep you from the immoral woman, From the foreigner [who does not observe God's laws and] who flatters with her [smooth] words.

⁶For at the window of my house I looked out through my lattice.

⁷And among the naive [the inexperienced and gullible], I saw among the youths A young man lacking [good] sense,

⁸Passing through the street near her corner; And he took the path to her house

⁹In the twilight, in the evening; In the black and dark night.

¹⁰And there a woman met him, Dressed as a prostitute and sly and cunning of heart.

¹¹She was boisterous and rebellious; She would not stay at home.

¹²At times she was in the streets, at times in the market places, Lurking and setting her ambush at every corner.

¹³So she caught him and kissed him And with a brazen and impudent face she said to him:

¹⁴"I have peace offerings with me; Today I have paid my vows.

¹⁵"So I came out to meet you [that you might share with me the feast of my offering], Diligently I sought your face and I have found you.

¹⁶"I have spread my couch with coverings and cushions of tapestry, With colored fine linen of Egypt.

¹⁷"I have perfumed my bed With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

¹⁸"Come, let us drink our fill of love until morning; Let us console and delight ourselves with love.

¹⁹"For my husband is not at home. He has gone on a long journey;

²⁰He has taken a bag of money with him, And he will come home on the appointed day."

²¹With her many persuasions she caused him to yield; With her flattering lips she seduced him.

²²Suddenly he went after her, as an ox goes to the slaughter [not knowing the outcome], Or as one in stocks going to the correction [to be given] to a fool,

²³Until an arrow pierced his liver [with a mortal wound]; Like a bird fluttering straight into the net, He did not know that it would cost him his life.

²⁴Now therefore, my sons, listen to me, And pay attention to the words of my mouth.

²⁵Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways, Do not stray into her [evil, immoral] paths.

²⁶For she has cast down many [mortally] wounded; Indeed, all who were killed by her were strong.

²⁷Her house is the way to Sheol, Descending to the chambers of death.

¹Now Jericho [a fortified city with high walls] was tightly closed because [of the people's fear] of the sons of Israel; no one went out or came in.

²The LORD said to Joshua, "See, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and the mighty warriors.

³Now you shall march around the city, all the men of war circling the city once. You shall do this [once each day] for six days.

⁴Also, seven priests shall carry seven trumpets [made] of rams' horns ahead of the ark; then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets.

⁵When they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall cry out with a great shout (battle cry); and the wall of the city will fall down in its place, and the people shall go up, each man [going] straight ahead [climbing over the rubble]."

⁶So Joshua the son of Nun called for the priests and said to them, "Take up the ark of the covenant, and have seven priests carry seven trumpets made of rams' horns ahead of the ark of the LORD."

⁷He said to the people, "Go forward! March around the city, and let the armed men go ahead of the ark of the LORD."

⁸And it was so, that when Joshua had spoken to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets made of rams' horns went on before the LORD and blew the trumpets; then the ark of the covenant of the LORD went behind them.

⁹The armed men went in front of the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard came after the ark, while the priests continued to blow the trumpets.

¹⁰But Joshua commanded the people, "You shall not shout [the battle cry] nor let your voice be heard nor let a word come out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout!"

¹¹So Joshua had the ark of the LORD taken around the city [on the first day], circling it once; then they came back into the camp and spent the night in the camp.

¹²Then Joshua got up early in the morning [on the second day], and the priests took up the ark of the LORD.

¹³The seven priests carrying the seven trumpets made of rams' horns ahead of the ark of the LORD went on continually, blowing the trumpets; and the armed men went ahead of them and the rear guard came after the ark of the LORD, while the priests continued to blow the trumpets.

¹⁴On the second day they marched around the city once, and returned to the camp; they did this for six days.

¹⁵Then on the seventh day they got up early at daybreak and marched around the city in the same way seven times; only on that day they marched around the city seven times.

¹⁶And the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, "Shout! For the LORD has given you the city.

¹⁷The city and everything that is in it shall be under the ban [that is, designated to be destroyed as a form of tribute] to the LORD; only Rahab the prostitute and all [the people] who are with her in her house shall [be allowed to] live, because she hid and protected the messengers (scouts) whom we sent.

¹⁸But as for you, keep yourselves [away] from the things under the ban [which are to be destroyed], so that you do not covet them and take some of the things under the ban [for personal gain], and put the camp of Israel under the ban (doomed to destruction), and bring disaster upon it.

¹⁹All the silver and gold and articles of bronze and iron are holy (consecrated) to the LORD; they shall go into the treasury of the LORD."

²⁰So the people shouted [the battle cry], and the priests blew the trumpets. When the people heard the sound of the trumpet, they raised a great shout and the wall [of Jericho] fell down, so that the sons of Israel went up into the city, every man straight ahead [climbing over the rubble], and they overthrew the city.

²¹Then they utterly destroyed everything that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword.

²²But Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, "Go into the prostitute's house and bring the woman and all that she has out of there, as you have sworn to her."

²³So the young men, the spies, went in and brought out Rahab and her father and her mother and her brothers and everything that she had; they also brought out all her relatives and allowed them to stay outside the camp of Israel [at Gilgal during the time required for ceremonial cleansing].

²⁴Then they completely burned the city and everything that was in it. They put only the silver and the gold, and the articles of bronze and of iron, into the treasury of the house (tabernacle) of the LORD.

²⁵So Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with her father's household and everything that she had; and she has lived among Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers (scouts) whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

²⁶Then Joshua made them take an oath at that time, saying, "Cursed before the LORD is the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho; with the loss of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he shall set up its gates."

²⁷So the LORD was with Joshua, and his fame was in all the land.

¹Now let me sing for my greatly Beloved [LORD] A song of my Beloved about His vineyard (His chosen people). My greatly Beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile slope (the promised land, Canaan).

²He dug it all around and cleared away its stones, And planted it with the choicest vine (the people of Judah). And He built a tower in the center of it; And also hewed out a wine vat in it. Then He expected it to produce [the choicest] grapes, But it produced only worthless ones.

³"And now, says the Lord, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, Judge between Me and My vineyard (My people).

⁴"What more could have been done for My vineyard that I have not done in it? When I expected it to produce good grapes, why did it yield worthless ones?

⁵"So now let me tell you what I am going to do to My vineyard: I will take away its thorn-hedge, and it will be burned up; I will break down its stone wall and it will be trampled down [by enemies].

⁶"I will turn it into a wasteland; It will not be pruned or cultivated, But briars and thorns will come up. I will also command the clouds not to rain on it."

⁷For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house (nation) of Israel And the men of Judah are His delightful planting [which He loves]. So He looked for justice, but in fact, [He saw] bloodshed and lawlessness; [He looked] for righteousness, but in fact, [He heard] a cry of distress and oppression.

⁸Woe (judgment is coming) to those who join house to house and join field to field [to increase their holdings by depriving others], Until there is no more room [for others], So that you have to live alone in the midst of the land!

⁹In my ears the LORD of hosts said, "Be assured that many houses will become desolate, Even great and beautiful ones will be unoccupied.

¹⁰"For ten acres of vineyard will yield [only] one bath of wine, And a homer ( six bushels) of seed will produce [only] one ephah of grain."

¹¹Woe (judgment is coming) to those who rise early in the morning to pursue intoxicating drink, Who stay up late in the night till wine inflames them!

¹²They have lyre and harp, tambourine and flute, and wine at their feasts; But they do not regard nor even pay attention to the deeds of the LORD, Nor do they consider the work of His hands.

¹³Therefore My people go into exile because they lack knowledge [of God]; And their honorable men are famished, And their common people are parched with thirst.

¹⁴Therefore Sheol (the realm of the dead) has increased its appetite and opened its mouth beyond measure; And Jerusalem's splendor, her multitude, her [boisterous] uproar and her [drunken] revelers descend into it.

¹⁵So the common man will be bowed down and the man of importance degraded, And the eyes of the proud (arrogant) will be degraded.

¹⁶But the LORD of hosts will be exalted in justice, And God, the Holy One, will show Himself holy in righteousness [through His righteous judgments].

¹⁷Then the lambs will graze [among the ruins] as in their own pasture, And strangers will eat in the desolate places of the [exiled] wealthy.

¹⁸Woe (judgment is coming) to those who drag along wickedness with cords of falsehood, And sin as if with cart ropes [towing their own punishment];

¹⁹Who say, "Let Him move speedily, let Him expedite His work [His promised vengeance], so that we may see it; And let the purpose of the Holy One of Israel approach And come to pass, so that we may know it!"

²⁰Woe (judgment is coming) to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!

²¹Woe (judgment is coming) to those who are wise in their own eyes And clever and shrewd in their own sight!

²²Woe (judgment is coming) to those who are heroes at drinking wine And men of strength in mixing intoxicating drinks,

²³Who justify the wicked and acquit the guilty for a bribe, And take away the rights of those who are in the right!

²⁴Therefore, as the tongue of fire consumes the stubble [from straw] And the dry grass collapses into the flame, So their root will become like rot and their blossom blow away like fine dust; Because they have rejected the law of the LORD of hosts And despised and discarded the word of the Holy One of Israel.

²⁵Therefore the anger of the LORD has burned against His people, And He has stretched out His hand against them and has struck them down. And the mountains trembled, and their dead bodies lay like rubbish in the middle of the streets. In spite of all this God's anger is not turned away, But His hand is still stretched out [in judgment].

²⁶He will lift up a flag to [call] the distant nations [to bring His judgment on Judah], And will whistle for them from the ends of the earth; And indeed, they will come with great speed swiftly.

²⁷No one among them is weary or stumbles, No one slumbers or sleeps; Nor is the belt at their waist undone [as if unprepared for action], Nor is the strap of their sandal broken.

²⁸Their arrows are sharp and all their bows are strung and bent; Their horses' hoofs seem like flint and their chariot wheels like a whirlwind.

²⁹Their roaring is like a lioness, they roar like young lions; They growl and seize their prey And carry it off and there is no one to save it.

³⁰And in that day they will roar against them (Judah) like the roaring of the sea. And if one looks to the land, in fact, there is darkness and distress; Even the light will be darkened by its clouds.

¹Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour (3:00 p.m.),

²and a man who had been unable to walk from birth was being carried along, whom they used to set down every day at that gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, so that he could beg alms from those entering the temple.

³So when he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he began asking [them] for coins.

⁴But Peter, along with John, stared at him intently and said, "Look at us!"

⁵And the man began to pay attention to them, eagerly expecting to receive something from them.

⁶But Peter said, "Silver and gold I do not have; but what I do have I give to you: In the name (authority, power) of Jesus Christ the Nazarene—[begin now to] walk and go on walking!"

⁷Then he seized the man's right hand with a firm grip and raised him up. And at once his feet and ankles became strong and steady,

⁸and with a leap he stood up and began to walk; and he went into the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.

⁹All the people saw him walking and praising God;

¹⁰and they recognized him as the very man who usually sat begging for coins at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, and they were filled with wonder and amazement and were mystified at what had happened to him.

¹¹Now while he was still holding on to Peter and John, all the people, utterly amazed, ran together and crowded around them at the covered porch called Solomon's portico.

¹²And Peter, seeing this, said to the people, "You men of Israel, why are you amazed at this? Why are you staring at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?

¹³The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His Servant and Son Jesus [doing Him this honor], the One whom you handed over and disowned and rejected before Pilate, when he had decided to release Him.

¹⁴But you disowned and denied the Holy and Righteous One and asked for [the pardon of] a murderer to be granted to you.

¹⁵But you killed the Prince (Author, Originator, Source) of life, whom God raised [bodily] from the dead. To this [fact] we are witnesses [for we have seen the risen Christ].

¹⁶And on the basis of faith in His name, it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know; and the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect health and complete wholeness in your presence.

¹⁷"Now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance [not fully aware of what you were doing], just as your rulers did also.

¹⁸And so God has fulfilled what He foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ (Messiah, Anointed) would suffer.

¹⁹So repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, regret past sins] and return [to God—seek His purpose for your life], so that your sins may be wiped away [blotted out, completely erased], so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord [restoring you like a cool wind on a hot day];

²⁰and that He may send [to you] Jesus, the Christ, who has been appointed for you,

²¹whom heaven must keep until the time for the [complete] restoration of all things about which God promised through the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time.

²²Moses said, 'The Lord God will raise up for you a Prophetlike me from your countrymen; you shall listen to Him and obey everything He tells you.

²³And it will be that every person that does not listen to and heed that Prophet will be utterly destroyed from among the people.'

²⁴Indeed, all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who came after him, also announced these days.

²⁵You are the sons (descendants) of the prophets and [heirs] of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, 'And in your seed (descendant) all the families of the earth shall be blessed.'

²⁶It was for you first of all that God raised up His Servant and Son [Jesus], and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways."