Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹" I am the true Vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.

²Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that continues to bear fruit, He [repeatedly] prunes, so that it will bear more fruit [even richer and finer fruit].

³You are already clean because of the word which I have given you [the teachings which I have discussed with you].

⁴Remain in Me, and I [will remain] in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself without remaining in the vine, neither can you [bear fruit, producing evidence of your faith] unless you remain in Me.

⁵ I am the Vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him bears much fruit, for [otherwise] apart from Me [that is, cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing.

⁶If anyone does not remain in Me, he is thrown out like a [broken off] branch, and withers and dies; and they gather such branches and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.

⁷If you remain in Me and My words remain in you [that is, if we are vitally united and My message lives in your heart], ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you.

⁸My Father is glorified and honored by this, when you bear much fruit, and prove yourselves to be My [true] disciples.

⁹I have loved you just as the Father has loved Me; remain in My love [and do not doubt My love for you].

¹⁰If you keep My commandments and obey My teaching, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and remain in His love.

¹¹I have told you these things so that My joy and delight may be in you, and that your joy may be made full and complete and overflowing.

¹²"This is My commandment, that you love and unselfishly seek the best for one another, just as I have loved you.

¹³No one has greater love [nor stronger commitment] than to lay down his own life for his friends.

¹⁴You are my friends if you keep on doing what I command you.

¹⁵I do not call you servants any longer, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you [My] friends, because I have revealed to you everything that I have heard from My Father.

¹⁶You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and I have appointed and placed and purposefully planted you, so that you would go and bear fruit and keep on bearing, and that your fruit will remain and be lasting, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name [as My representative] He may give to you.

¹⁷This [is what] I command you: that you love and unselfishly seek the best for one another.

¹⁸"If the world hates you [and it does], know that it has hated Me before it hated you.

¹⁹If you belonged to the world, the world would love [you as] its own and would treat you with affection. But you are not of the world [you no longer belong to it], but I have chosen you out of the world. And because of this the world hates you.

²⁰Remember [and continue to remember] that I told you, 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.

²¹But they will do all these [hurtful] things to you for My name's sake [because you bear My name and are identified with Me], for they do not know the One who sent Me.

²²If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have [the guilt of their] sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin.

²³The one who hates Me also hates My Father.

²⁴If I had not done among them the works (attesting miracles) which no one else [ever] did, they would not have [the guilt of their] sin; but now [the fact is that] they have both seen [these works] and have hated Me [and continue to hate Me] and My Father as well.

²⁵But [this is so] that the word which has been written in their Law would be fulfilled, 'They hated Me without a cause.'

²⁶"But when the Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor—Counselor, Strengthener, Standby) comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of Truth who comes from the Father, He will testify and bear witness about Me.

²⁷But you will testify also and be My witnesses, because you have been with Me from the beginning.

¹Then God said to Moses, "Come up to the LORD, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu (Aaron's older sons), and seventy of Israel's elders, and you shall worship at a [safe] distance.

²Moses alone shall approach the LORD, but the others shall not come near, nor shall the people come up with him."

³Then Moses came and told the people everything that the LORD had said and all the ordinances. And all the people answered with one voice, "Everything the LORD has said we will do."

⁴Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. Then he got up early in the morning, and built an altar [for worship] at the foot of the mountain with twelve pillars (memorial stones) representing the twelve tribes of Israel.

⁵Then he sent young Israelite men, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as peace offerings to the LORD.

⁶Moses took half of the blood and put it in large basins, and [the other] half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.

⁷Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it aloud to the people; and they said, "Everything that the LORD has said we will do, and we will be obedient."

⁸So Moses took the blood [which had been placed in the large basins] and sprinkled it on the people, and said, "Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words."

⁹Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up [the mountainside],

¹⁰and they saw [a manifestation of] the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, just as clear as the sky itself.

¹¹Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the Israelites; and they saw [the manifestation of the presence of] God, and ate and drank.

¹²Now the LORD said to Moses, "Come up to Me on the mountain and stay there, and I will give you the stone tablets with the law and the commandments which I have written for their instruction."

¹³So Moses arose with Joshua his attendant, and he went up to the mountain of God.

¹⁴And he said to the elders, "Wait here for us until we come back to you. Remember that Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a legal matter, let him go to them."

¹⁵Then Moses went up to the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain.

¹⁶The glory and brilliance of the LORD rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. On the seventh day God called to Moses from the midst of the cloud.

¹⁷In the sight of the Israelites the appearance of the glory and brilliance of the LORD was like consuming fire on the top of the mountain.

¹⁸Moses entered the midst of the cloud and went up the mountain; and he was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.

¹Imitate me, just as I imitate Christ.

²I praise and appreciate you because you remember me in everything and you firmly hold to the traditions [the substance of my instructions], just as I have passed them on to you.

³But I want you to understand that Christ is the head (authority over) of every man, and man is the head of woman, and God is the head of Christ.

⁴Every man who prays or prophesies with something on his head dishonors his head [and the One who is his head].

⁵And every woman who prays or prophesies when she has her head uncovered disgraces her head; for she is one and the same as the woman whose head is shaved [in disgrace].

⁶If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, she should cover her head.

⁷A man ought not have his head covered [during worship], since he is the image and [reflected] glory of God; but the woman is [the expression of] man's glory.

⁸For man does not originate from woman, but woman from man;

⁹for indeed man was not created for the sake of woman, but woman for the sake of man.

¹⁰Therefore the woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head, for the sake of the angels [so as not to offend them].

¹¹Nevertheless, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman.

¹²For as the woman originates from the man, so also man is born through the woman; and all things [whether male or female] originate from God [as their Creator].

¹³Judge for yourselves; is it proper for a woman to offer prayer to God [publicly] with her head uncovered?

¹⁴Does not common sense itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him,

¹⁵but if a woman has long hair, it is her ornament and glory? For her long hair is given to her as a covering.

¹⁶Now if anyone is inclined to be contentious [about this], we have no other practice [in worship than this], nor do the churches of God [in general].

¹⁷But in giving this next instruction, I do not praise you, because when you meet together it is not for the better but for the worse.

¹⁸For, in the first place, when you meet together in church, I hear that there are divisions among you; and in part I believe it,

¹⁹for [doubtless] there have to be factions among you, so that those who are of approved character may be clearly recognized among you.

²⁰So when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord's Supper,

²¹for when you eat, each one hurries to get his own supper first [not waiting for others or the poor]. So one goes hungry while another gets drunk.

²²What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you show contempt for the church of God and humiliate those [impoverished believers] who have nothing? What will I say to you? Shall I praise you for this? In this I will not praise you!

²³For I received from the Lord Himself that [instruction] which I passed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night in which He was betrayed took bread;

²⁴and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "This is (represents) My body, which is [offered as a sacrifice] for you. Do this in [affectionate] remembrance of Me."

²⁵In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant [ratified and established] in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in [affectionate] remembrance of Me."

²⁶For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are [symbolically] proclaiming [the fact of] the Lord's death until He comes [again].

²⁷So then whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in a way that is unworthy [of Him] will be guilty of [profaning and sinning against] the body and blood of the Lord.

²⁸But a person must [prayerfully] examine himself [and his relationship to Christ], and only when he has done so should he eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

²⁹For anyone who eats and drinks [without solemn reverence and heartfelt gratitude for the sacrifice of Christ], eats and drinks a judgment on himself if he does not recognize the body [of Christ].

³⁰That [careless and unworthy participation] is the reason why many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep [in death].

³¹But if we evaluated and judged ourselves honestly [recognizing our shortcomings and correcting our behavior], we would not be judged.

³²But when we [fall short and] are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined [by undergoing His correction] so that we will not be condemned [to eternal punishment] along with the world.

³³So then, my brothers and sisters, when you come together to eat [the Lord's Supper], wait for one another [and see to it that no one is left out].

³⁴If anyone is too hungry [to wait], let him eat at home, so that you will not come together for judgment [on yourselves]. About the remaining matters [of which I was informed], I will take care of them when I come.

¹[Job continued:] "Behold, my eye has seen all this, My ear has heard and understood it.

²"What you know I also know; I am not inferior to you.

³"But I wish to speak to the Almighty, And I desire to argue with God.

⁴"But you smear me with lies [you defame my character most untruthfully]; You are all worthless physicians and have no remedy to offer.

⁵"Oh, that you would be completely silent, And that silence would be your wisdom!

⁶"Please hear my argument And listen to the pleadings of my lips.

⁷"Will you speak what is unjust for God, And speak what is deceitful for Him?

⁸"Will you show partiality for Him [and be unjust to me so that you may gain favor with Him]? Will you contend and plead for God?

⁹"Will it be well for you when He investigates you [and your tactics against me]? Or will you deceive Him as one deceives a man?

¹⁰"He will surely reprimand you If you secretly show partiality.

¹¹"Will not His majesty terrify you, And will not the dread of Him fall upon you?

¹²"Your memorable sayings are [worthless, merely] proverbs of ashes; Your defenses are defenses of [crumbling] clay.

¹³"Be silent before me so that I may speak; And let happen to me what may.

¹⁴"Why should I take my flesh in my teeth And put my life in my hands [incurring the wrath of God]?

¹⁵"Even though He kills me; I will hope in Him. Nevertheless, I will argue my ways to His face.

¹⁶"This also will be my salvation, For a godless man may not come before Him.

¹⁷"Listen diligently to my speech, And let my declaration fill your ears.

¹⁸"Behold now, I have prepared my case; I know that I will be vindicated.

¹⁹"Who will argue and contend with me? For then I would be silent and die.

²⁰"Only [O Lord,] do not do two things to me, And then I will not hide myself from Your face:

²¹Withdraw Your hand from me and remove this bodily suffering, And let not the dread of You terrify me.

²²"Then [Lord,] call, and I will answer; Or let me speak, and then reply to me.

²³"How many are my iniquities and sins [that so much sorrow should come to me]? Make me recognize and understand my transgression and my sin.

²⁴"Why do You hide Your face [as if offended] And consider me Your enemy?

²⁵"Will You cause a windblown leaf to tremble? Will You pursue the chaff of the dry stubble?

²⁶"For You write bitter things against me [in Your indictment] And make me inherit and suffer for the iniquities of my youth.

²⁷"You also put my feet in the stocks [as punishment] And [critically] observe all my paths; You set a circle and limit around the soles of my feet [which I must not overstep],

²⁸While I waste away like a rotten thing, Like a garment that is moth-eaten.

¹Praise the LORD! (Hallelujah!) I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart, In the company of the upright and in the congregation.

²Great are the works of the LORD, Studied by all those who delight in them.

³Splendid and majestic is His work, And His righteousness endures forever.

⁴He has made His wonderful acts to be remembered; The LORD is gracious and merciful and full of loving compassion.

⁵He has given food to those who fear Him [with awe-inspired reverence]; He will remember His covenant forever.

⁶He has declared and made known to His people the power of His works, In giving them the heritage of the nations.

⁷The works of His hands are truth and [absolute] justice; All His precepts are sure (established, reliable, trustworthy).

⁸They are upheld forever and ever; They are done in [absolute] truth and uprightness.

⁹He has sent redemption to His people; He has ordained His covenant forever; Holy and awesome is His name—[inspiring reverence and godly fear].

¹⁰The [reverent] fear of the LORD is the beginning (the prerequisite, the absolute essential, the alphabet) of wisdom; A good understanding and a teachable heart are possessed by all those who do the will of the Lord; His praise endures forever.

¹A wise son heeds and accepts [and is the result of] his father's discipline and instruction, But a scoffer does not listen to reprimand and does not learn from his errors.

²From the fruit of his mouth a [wise] man enjoys good, But the desire of the treacherous is for violence.

³The one who guards his mouth [thinking before he speaks] protects his life; The one who opens his lips wide [and chatters without thinking] comes to ruin.

⁴The soul (appetite) of the lazy person craves and gets nothing [for lethargy overcomes ambition], But the soul (appetite) of the diligent [who works willingly] is rich and abundantly supplied.

⁵A righteous man hates lies, But a wicked man is loathsome, and he acts shamefully.

⁶Righteousness (being in right standing with God) guards the one whose way is blameless, But wickedness undermines and overthrows the sinner.

⁷There is one who pretends to be rich, yet has nothing at all; Another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.

⁸The ransom for a man's life is his wealth, But the poor man does not even have to listen to a rebuke or threats [from the envious].

⁹The light of the righteous [within him—grows brighter and] rejoices, But the lamp of the wicked [is a temporary light and] goes out.

¹⁰Through pride and presumption come nothing but strife, But [skillful and godly] wisdom is with those who welcome [well-advised] counsel.

¹¹Wealth obtained by fraud dwindles, But he who gathers gradually by [honest] labor will increase [his riches].

¹²Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But when desire is fulfilled, it is a tree of life.

¹³Whoever despises the word and counsel [of God] brings destruction upon himself, But he who [reverently] fears and respects the commandment [of God] will be rewarded.

¹⁴The teaching of the wise is a fountain and source of life, So that one may avoid the snares of death.

¹⁵Good understanding wins favor [from others], But the way of the unfaithful is hard [like barren, dry soil].

¹⁶Every prudent and self-disciplined man acts with knowledge, But a [closed-minded] fool [who refuses to learn] displays his foolishness [for all to see].

¹⁷A wicked messenger falls into hardship, But a faithful ambassador brings healing.

¹⁸Poverty and shame will come to him who refuses instruction and discipline, But he who accepts and learns from reproof or censure is honored.

¹⁹Desire realized is sweet to the soul; But it is detestable to fools to turn away from evil [which they have planned].

²⁰He who walks [as a companion] with wise men will be wise, But the companions of [conceited, dull-witted] fools [are fools themselves and] will experience harm.

²¹Adversity pursues sinners, But the [consistently] upright will be rewarded with prosperity.

²²A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, And the wealth of the sinner is stored up for [the hands of] the righteous.

²³Abundant food is in the fallow (uncultivated) ground of the poor, But [without protection] it is swept away by injustice.

²⁴He who withholds the rod [of discipline] hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines and trains him diligently and appropriately [with wisdom and love].

²⁵The [consistently] righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite, But the stomach of the wicked is in need [of bread].

¹Now these are the kings of the land whom the sons of Israel defeated, and whose land they possessed beyond the Jordan toward the east, from the valley of the [river] Arnon to Mount Hermon, and all the Arabah [plain] to the east:

²Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and ruled from Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of the [river] Arnon, both the middle of the valley and half of Gilead, and as far as the brook Jabbok, [which is] the border of the sons of Ammon;

³and the Arabah [plain] as far as the Sea of Chinnereth (Galilee) eastward, and as far as the sea of the Arabah, the Salt (Dead) Sea, eastward toward Beth-jeshimoth, and southward to the foot of the slopes of [Mount] Pisgah;

⁴and the territory of Og king of Bashan, one of the remnant of the Rephaim, who lived at Ashtaroth and at Edrei,

⁵and ruled over Mount Hermon and Salecah and all of Bashan to the border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and over half of Gilead, as far as the border of Sihon king of Heshbon.

⁶Moses the servant of the LORD and the sons of Israel defeated them; and Moses the servant of the LORD gave their land as a possession to the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh.

⁷These are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the sons of Israel defeated on the west side of the Jordan, from Baal-gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir. Joshua gave their land to the tribes of Israel as a possession according to their divisions,

⁸in the hill country, in the lowland (foothills), in the Arabah [plain], on the slopes [descending to the Dead Sea], and in the wilderness, and in the Negev (South country)—the [lands of the] Hittite, the Amorite and the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite and the Jebusite:

⁹the king of Jericho, one; the king of Ai, which is beside Bethel, one;

¹⁰the king of Jerusalem, one; the king of Hebron, one;

¹¹the king of Jarmuth, one; the king of Lachish, one;

¹²the king of Eglon, one; the king of Gezer, one;

¹³the king of Debir, one; the king of Geder, one;

¹⁴the king of Hormah, one; the king of Arad, one;

¹⁵the king of Libnah, one; the king of Adullam, one;

¹⁶the king of Makkedah, one; the king of Bethel, one;

¹⁷the king of Tappuah, one; the king of Hepher, one;

¹⁸the king of Aphek, one; the king of Lasharon, one;

¹⁹the king of Madon, one; the king of Hazor, one;

²⁰the king of Shimron-meron, one; the king of Achshaph, one;

²¹the king of Taanach, one; the king of Megiddo, one;

²²the king of Kedesh, one; the king of Jokneam in Carmel, one;

²³the king of Dor in the heights of Dor, one; the king of Goiim in Gilgal, one;

²⁴the king of Tirzah, one: in all, thirty-one kings.

¹Then a Shoot (the Messiah) will spring from the stock of Jesse [David's father], And a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.

²And the Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him— The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and strength, The Spirit of knowledge and of the [reverential and obedient] fear of the LORD—

³And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make decisions by what His ears hear;

⁴But with righteousness and justice He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the downtrodden of the earth; And He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.

⁵And righteousness will be the belt around His loins, And faithfulness the belt around His waist.

⁶And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down with the young goat, And the calf and the young lion and the fatted steer together; And a little child will lead them.

⁷And the cow and the bear will graze [together], Their young will lie down together, And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

⁸And the nursing child will [safely] play over the hole of the cobra, And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper's den [and not be hurt].

⁹They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea.

¹⁰Then in that day The nations will make supplications to the Root of Jesse Who will stand as a signal for the peoples; And His resting place will be glorious.

¹¹Then it will happen on that day that the Lord Will again acquire with His hand a second time The remnant of His people, who will remain, From Assyria, from [Lower] Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush (Ethiopia), from Elam [in Persia], from Shinar [Babylonia], from Hamath [in Aram], And from the coastlands bordering the [Mediterranean] Sea.

¹²And He will lift up a signal for the nations And assemble the outcasts of Israel, And will gather the dispersed of Judah From the four corners of the earth.

¹³Then the jealousy of Ephraim will depart, And those who harass Judah will be cut off; Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, And Judah will not harass Ephraim.

¹⁴Ephraim and Judah will [unite and] swoop down on the slopes of the Philistines toward the west; Together they will plunder the sons (Arabs) of the east. They will possess Edom and Moab, And the sons of Ammon will be subject to them.

¹⁵And the LORD will utterly destroy The tongue of the Sea of Egypt; And with His scorching wind He will wave His hand over the River; He will strike and divide it into seven channels And make [it possible for] people [to] walk over in sandals.

¹⁶And there will be a highway from Assyria For the remnant of His people who will be left, Just as there was for Israel In the day when they came up out of the land of Egypt.

¹Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord [and relentless in his search for believers], went to the high priest,

²and he asked for letters [of authority] from him to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any men or women there belonging to the Way [believers, followers of Jesus the Messiah], men and women alike, he could arrest them and bring them bound [with chains] to Jerusalem.

³As he traveled he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him [displaying the glory and majesty of Christ];

⁴and he fell to the ground and heard a voice [from heaven] saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting and oppressing Me?"

⁵And Saul said, "Who are You, Lord?" And He answered, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting,

⁶now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."

⁷The men who were traveling with him [were terrified and] stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one.

⁸Saul got up from the ground, but though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.

⁹And he was unable to see for three days, and he neither ate nor drank.

¹⁰Now in Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias; and the Lord said to him in a vision, "Ananias." And he answered, "Here I am, Lord."

¹¹And the Lord said to him, "Get up and go to the street called Straight, and ask at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul; for he is praying [there],

¹²and in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come in and place his hands on him, so that he may regain his sight."

¹³But Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard from many people about this man, especially how much suffering and evil he has brought on Your saints (God's people) at Jerusalem;

¹⁴and here [in Damascus] he has authority from the high priests to put in chains all who call on Your name [confessing You as Savior]."

¹⁵But the Lord said to him, "Go, for this man is a [deliberately] chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel;

¹⁶for I will make clear to him how much he must suffer and endure for My name's sake."

¹⁷So Ananias left and entered the house, and he laid his hands on Saul and said, "Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came [to Damascus], has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit [in order to proclaim Christ to both Jews and Gentiles]."

¹⁸Immediately something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he got up and was baptized;

¹⁹and he took some food and was strengthened. For several days [afterward] Saul remained with the disciples who were at Damascus.

²⁰And immediately he began proclaiming Jesus in the synagogues, saying, "This Man is the Son of God [the promised Messiah]!"

²¹All those who heard him continued to be amazed and said, "Is this not the man who in Jerusalem attacked those who called on this name [of Jesus], and had come here [to Damascus] for the express purpose of bringing them bound [with chains] before the chief priests?"

²²But Saul increased in strength more and more, and continued to perplex the Jews who lived in Damascus by examining [theological evidence] and proving [with Scripture] that this Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed).

²³After considerable time had passed [about three years or so], the Jews plotted together to kill him,

²⁴but their plot became known to Saul. They were also watching the city's gates day and night so they could kill him;

²⁵but his disciples took him at night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a large basket.

²⁶When he arrived in Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple.

²⁷However, Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles, and described to them how Saul had seen the Lord on the road [to Damascus], and how He had spoken to him, and how at Damascus Saul had preached openly and spoken confidently in the name of Jesus.

²⁸So he was with them, moving around freely [as one among them] in Jerusalem, speaking out boldly in the name of the Lord.

²⁹He was talking and arguing with the Hellenists (Greek-speaking Jews); but they were attempting to kill him.

³⁰When the brothers found out [about the plot], they brought him down to Caesarea [Maritima] and sent him off to Tarsus [his home town].

³¹So the church throughout Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace [without persecution], being built up [in wisdom, virtue, and faith]; and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort and encouragement of the Holy Spirit, it continued to grow [in numbers].

³²Now as Peter was traveling throughout the land, he went down to [visit] the saints (God's people) who lived at Lydda.

³³There he found a man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden for eight years and was paralyzed.

³⁴Peter said to him, "Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed." Immediately Aeneas got up.

³⁵Then all who lived at Lydda and the plain of Sharon saw [what had happened to] him, and they turned to the Lord.

³⁶Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha, (which translated into Greek means Dorcas). She was rich in acts of kindness and charity which she continually did.

³⁷During that time it happened that she became sick and died; and when they had washed her body, they laid it in an upstairs room.

³⁸Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him, urging him, "Come to us without delay."

³⁹So Peter got up [at once] and went with them. When he arrived, they brought him into the upstairs room; and all the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing [him] all the tunics and robes that Dorcas used to make while she was with them.

⁴⁰But Peter sent them all out [of the room] and knelt down and prayed; then turning to the body he said, "Tabitha, arise!" And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up.

⁴¹And he gave her his hand and helped her up; and then he called in the saints (God's people) and the widows, and he presented her [to them] alive.

⁴²This became known all over Joppa, and many came to believe in the Lord [that is, to adhere to and trust in and rely on Jesus as Christ and Savior].

⁴³And so it was that Peter stayed in Joppa for many days with Simon, a tanner.