Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem,

²saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

³When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;

⁴and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.

⁵They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:

⁶“‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”

⁷Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared.

⁸And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.”

⁹After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was.

¹⁰When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.

¹¹And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.

¹²And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

¹³Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.”

¹⁴And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt

¹⁵and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

¹⁶Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men.

¹⁷Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah:

¹⁸“A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.”

¹⁹But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,

²⁰saying, “Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead.”

²¹And he rose and took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel.

²²But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he withdrew to the district of Galilee.

²³And he went and lived in a city called Nazareth, so that what was spoken by the prophets might be fulfilled, that he would be called a Nazarene.

¹When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered themselves together to Aaron and said to him, “Up, make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.”

²So Aaron said to them, “Take off the rings of gold that are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.”

³So all the people took off the rings of gold that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron.

⁴And he received the gold from their hand and fashioned it with a graving tool and made a golden calf. And they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”

⁵When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made a proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.”

⁶And they rose up early the next day and offered burnt offerings and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.

⁷And the LORD said to Moses, “Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.

⁸They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them. They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’”

⁹And the LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people.

¹⁰Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you.”

¹¹But Moses implored the LORD his God and said, “O LORD, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?

¹²Why should the Egyptians say, ‘With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your burning anger and relent from this disaster against your people.

¹³Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.’”

¹⁴And the LORD relented from the disaster that he had spoken of bringing on his people.

¹⁵Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand, tablets that were written on both sides; on the front and on the back they were written.

¹⁶The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.

¹⁷When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a noise of war in the camp.”

¹⁸But he said, “It is not the sound of shouting for victory, or the sound of the cry of defeat, but the sound of singing that I hear.”

¹⁹And as soon as he came near the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses' anger burned hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands and broke them at the foot of the mountain.

²⁰He took the calf that they had made and burned it with fire and ground it to powder and scattered it on the water and made the people of Israel drink it.

²¹And Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you that you have brought such a great sin upon them?”

²²And Aaron said, “Let not the anger of my lord burn hot. You know the people, that they are set on evil.

²³For they said to me, ‘Make us gods who shall go before us. As for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’

²⁴So I said to them, ‘Let any who have gold take it off.’ So they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf.”

²⁵And when Moses saw that the people had broken loose (for Aaron had let them break loose, to the derision of their enemies),

²⁶then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, “Who is on the LORD's side? Come to me.” And all the sons of Levi gathered around him.

²⁷And he said to them, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ‘Put your sword on your side each of you, and go to and fro from gate to gate throughout the camp, and each of you kill his brother and his companion and his neighbor.’”

²⁸And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And that day about three thousand men of the people fell.

²⁹And Moses said, “Today you have been ordained for the service of the LORD, each one at the cost of his son and of his brother, so that he might bestow a blessing upon you this day.”

³⁰The next day Moses said to the people, “You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.”

³¹So Moses returned to the LORD and said, “Alas, this people has sinned a great sin. They have made for themselves gods of gold.

³²But now, if you will forgive their sin — but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written.”

³³But the LORD said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me, I will blot out of my book.

³⁴But now go, lead the people to the place about which I have spoken to you; behold, my angel shall go before you. Nevertheless, in the day when I visit, I will visit their sin upon them.”

³⁵Then the LORD sent a plague on the people, because they made the calf, the one that Aaron made.

¹Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you?

²You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all.

³And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

⁴Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God.

⁵Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God,

⁶who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

⁷Now if the ministry of death, carved in letters on stone, came with such glory that the Israelites could not gaze at Moses' face because of its glory, which was being brought to an end,

⁸will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory?

⁹For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, the ministry of righteousness must far exceed it in glory.

¹⁰Indeed, in this case, what once had glory has come to have no glory at all, because of the glory that surpasses it.

¹¹For if what was being brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory.

¹²Since we have such a hope, we are very bold,

¹³not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end.

¹⁴But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away.

¹⁵Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts.

¹⁶But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.

¹⁷Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

¹⁸And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope,

²To Timothy, my true child in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

³As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine,

⁴nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith.

⁵The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

⁶Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussion,

⁷desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make confident assertions.

⁸Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully,

⁹understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers,

¹⁰the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine,

¹¹in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.

¹²I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service,

¹³though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief,

¹⁴and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

¹⁵The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.

¹⁶But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.

¹⁷To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

¹⁸This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare,

¹⁹holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith,

²⁰among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.

¹Then Job answered and said:

²“Keep listening to my words, and let this be your comfort.

³Bear with me, and I will speak, and after I have spoken, mock on.

⁴As for me, is my complaint against man? Why should I not be impatient?

⁵Look at me and be appalled, and lay your hand over your mouth.

⁶When I remember, I am dismayed, and shuddering seizes my flesh.

⁷Why do the wicked live, reach old age, and grow mighty in power?

⁸Their offspring are established in their presence, and their descendants before their eyes.

⁹Their houses are safe from fear, and no rod of God is upon them.

¹⁰Their bull breeds without fail; their cow calves and does not miscarry.

¹¹They send out their little boys like a flock, and their children dance.

¹²They sing to the tambourine and the lyre and rejoice to the sound of the pipe.

¹³They spend their days in prosperity, and in peace they go down to Sheol.

¹⁴They say to God, ‘Depart from us! We do not desire the knowledge of your ways.

¹⁵What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? And what profit do we get if we pray to him?’

¹⁶Behold, is not their prosperity in their hand? The counsel of the wicked is far from me.

¹⁷“How often is it that the lamp of the wicked is put out? That their calamity comes upon them? That God distributes pains in his anger?

¹⁸That they are like straw before the wind, and like chaff that the storm carries away?

¹⁹You say, ‘God stores up their iniquity for their children.’ Let him pay it out to them, that they may know it.

²⁰Let their own eyes see their destruction, and let them drink of the wrath of the Almighty.

²¹For what do they care for their houses after them, when the number of their months is cut off?

²²Will any teach God knowledge, seeing that he judges those who are on high?

²³One dies in his full vigor, being wholly at ease and secure,

²⁴his pails full of milk and the marrow of his bones moist.

²⁵Another dies in bitterness of soul, never having tasted of prosperity.

²⁶They lie down alike in the dust, and the worms cover them.

²⁷“Behold, I know your thoughts and your schemes to wrong me.

²⁸For you say, ‘Where is the house of the prince? Where is the tent in which the wicked lived?’

²⁹Have you not asked those who travel the roads, and do you not accept their testimony

³⁰that the evil man is spared in the day of calamity, that he is rescued in the day of wrath?

³¹Who declares his way to his face, and who repays him for what he has done?

³²When he is carried to the grave, watch is kept over his tomb.

³³The clods of the valley are sweet to him; all mankind follows after him, and those who go before him are innumerable.

³⁴How then will you comfort me with empty nothings? There is nothing left of your answers but falsehood.”

¹Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD!

²Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart,

³who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways!

⁴You have commanded your precepts to be kept diligently.

⁵Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes!

⁶Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all your commandments.

⁷I will praise you with an upright heart, when I learn your righteous rules.

⁸I will keep your statutes; do not utterly forsake me!

⁹How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.

¹⁰With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!

¹¹I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.

¹²Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes!

¹³With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth.

¹⁴In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches.

¹⁵I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways.

¹⁶I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.

¹⁷Deal bountifully with your servant, that I may live and keep your word.

¹⁸Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law.

¹⁹I am a sojourner on the earth; hide not your commandments from me!

²⁰My soul is consumed with longing for your rules at all times.

²¹You rebuke the insolent, accursed ones, who wander from your commandments.

²²Take away from me scorn and contempt, for I have kept your testimonies.

²³Even though princes sit plotting against me, your servant will meditate on your statutes.

²⁴Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors.

²⁵My soul clings to the dust; give me life according to your word!

²⁶When I told of my ways, you answered me; teach me your statutes!

²⁷Make me understand the way of your precepts, and I will meditate on your wondrous works.

²⁸My soul melts away for sorrow; strengthen me according to your word!

²⁹Put false ways far from me and graciously teach me your law!

³⁰I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I set your rules before me.

³¹I cling to your testimonies, O LORD; let me not be put to shame!

³²I will run in the way of your commandments when you enlarge my heart!

³³Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes; and I will keep it to the end.

³⁴Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart.

³⁵Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it.

³⁶Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain!

³⁷Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways.

³⁸Confirm to your servant your promise, that you may be feared.

³⁹Turn away the reproach that I dread, for your rules are good.

⁴⁰Behold, I long for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life!

⁴¹Let your steadfast love come to me, O LORD, your salvation according to your promise;

⁴²then shall I have an answer for him who taunts me, for I trust in your word.

⁴³And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for my hope is in your rules.

⁴⁴I will keep your law continually, forever and ever,

⁴⁵and I shall walk in a wide place, for I have sought your precepts.

⁴⁶I will also speak of your testimonies before kings and shall not be put to shame,

⁴⁷for I find my delight in your commandments, which I love.

⁴⁸I will lift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on your statutes.

⁴⁹Remember your word to your servant, in which you have made me hope.

⁵⁰This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.

⁵¹The insolent utterly deride me, but I do not turn away from your law.

⁵²When I think of your rules from of old, I take comfort, O LORD.

⁵³Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked, who forsake your law.

⁵⁴Your statutes have been my songs in the house of my sojourning.

⁵⁵I remember your name in the night, O LORD, and keep your law.

⁵⁶This blessing has fallen to me, that I have kept your precepts.

⁵⁷The LORD is my portion; I promise to keep your words.

⁵⁸I entreat your favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to your promise.

⁵⁹When I think on my ways, I turn my feet to your testimonies;

⁶⁰I hasten and do not delay to keep your commandments.

⁶¹Though the cords of the wicked ensnare me, I do not forget your law.

⁶²At midnight I rise to praise you, because of your righteous rules.

⁶³I am a companion of all who fear you, of those who keep your precepts.

⁶⁴The earth, O LORD, is full of your steadfast love; teach me your statutes!

⁶⁵You have dealt well with your servant, O LORD, according to your word.

⁶⁶Teach me good judgment and knowledge, for I believe in your commandments.

⁶⁷Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word.

⁶⁸You are good and do good; teach me your statutes.

⁶⁹The insolent smear me with lies, but with my whole heart I keep your precepts;

⁷⁰their heart is unfeeling like fat, but I delight in your law.

⁷¹It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.

⁷²The law of your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces.

⁷³Your hands have made and fashioned me; give me understanding that I may learn your commandments.

⁷⁴Those who fear you shall see me and rejoice, because I have hoped in your word.

⁷⁵I know, O LORD, that your rules are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me.

⁷⁶Let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant.

⁷⁷Let your mercy come to me, that I may live; for your law is my delight.

⁷⁸Let the insolent be put to shame, because they have wronged me with falsehood; as for me, I will meditate on your precepts.

⁷⁹Let those who fear you turn to me, that they may know your testimonies.

⁸⁰May my heart be blameless in your statutes, that I may not be put to shame!

⁸¹My soul longs for your salvation; I hope in your word.

⁸²My eyes long for your promise; I ask, “When will you comfort me?”

⁸³For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke, yet I have not forgotten your statutes.

⁸⁴How long must your servant endure? When will you judge those who persecute me?

⁸⁵The insolent have dug pitfalls for me; they do not live according to your law.

⁸⁶All your commandments are sure; they persecute me with falsehood; help me!

⁸⁷They have almost made an end of me on earth, but I have not forsaken your precepts.

⁸⁸In your steadfast love give me life, that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth.

⁸⁹Forever, O LORD, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.

⁹⁰Your faithfulness endures to all generations; you have established the earth, and it stands fast.

⁹¹By your appointment they stand this day, for all things are your servants.

⁹²If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.

⁹³I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life.

⁹⁴I am yours; save me, for I have sought your precepts.

⁹⁵The wicked lie in wait to destroy me, but I consider your testimonies.

⁹⁶I have seen a limit to all perfection, but your commandment is exceedingly broad.

⁹⁷Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.

⁹⁸Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me.

⁹⁹I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation.

¹⁰⁰I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts.

¹⁰¹I hold back my feet from every evil way, in order to keep your word.

¹⁰²I do not turn aside from your rules, for you have taught me.

¹⁰³How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

¹⁰⁴Through your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way.

¹⁰⁵Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

¹⁰⁶I have sworn an oath and confirmed it, to keep your righteous rules.

¹⁰⁷I am severely afflicted; give me life, O LORD, according to your word!

¹⁰⁸Accept my freewill offerings of praise, O LORD, and teach me your rules.

¹⁰⁹I hold my life in my hand continually, but I do not forget your law.

¹¹⁰The wicked have laid a snare for me, but I do not stray from your precepts.

¹¹¹Your testimonies are my heritage forever, for they are the joy of my heart.

¹¹²I incline my heart to perform your statutes forever, to the end.

¹¹³I hate the double-minded, but I love your law.

¹¹⁴You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in your word.

¹¹⁵Depart from me, you evildoers, that I may keep the commandments of my God.

¹¹⁶Uphold me according to your promise, that I may live, and let me not be put to shame in my hope!

¹¹⁷Hold me up, that I may be safe and have regard for your statutes continually!

¹¹⁸You spurn all who go astray from your statutes, for their cunning is in vain.

¹¹⁹All the wicked of the earth you discard like dross, therefore I love your testimonies.

¹²⁰My flesh trembles for fear of you, and I am afraid of your judgments.

¹²¹I have done what is just and right; do not leave me to my oppressors.

¹²²Give your servant a pledge of good; let not the insolent oppress me.

¹²³My eyes long for your salvation and for the fulfillment of your righteous promise.

¹²⁴Deal with your servant according to your steadfast love, and teach me your statutes.

¹²⁵I am your servant; give me understanding, that I may know your testimonies!

¹²⁶It is time for the LORD to act, for your law has been broken.

¹²⁷Therefore I love your commandments above gold, above fine gold.

¹²⁸Therefore I consider all your precepts to be right; I hate every false way.

¹²⁹Your testimonies are wonderful; therefore my soul keeps them.

¹³⁰The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.

¹³¹I open my mouth and pant, because I long for your commandments.

¹³²Turn to me and be gracious to me, as is your way with those who love your name.

¹³³Keep steady my steps according to your promise, and let no iniquity get dominion over me.

¹³⁴Redeem me from man's oppression, that I may keep your precepts.

¹³⁵Make your face shine upon your servant, and teach me your statutes.

¹³⁶My eyes shed streams of tears, because people do not keep your law.

¹³⁷Righteous are you, O LORD, and right are your rules.

¹³⁸You have appointed your testimonies in righteousness and in all faithfulness.

¹³⁹My zeal consumes me, because my foes forget your words.

¹⁴⁰Your promise is well tried, and your servant loves it.

¹⁴¹I am small and despised, yet I do not forget your precepts.

¹⁴²Your righteousness is righteous forever, and your law is true.

¹⁴³Trouble and anguish have found me out, but your commandments are my delight.

¹⁴⁴Your testimonies are righteous forever; give me understanding that I may live.

¹⁴⁵With my whole heart I cry; answer me, O LORD! I will keep your statutes.

¹⁴⁶I call to you; save me, that I may observe your testimonies.

¹⁴⁷I rise before dawn and cry for help; I hope in your words.

¹⁴⁸My eyes are awake before the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promise.

¹⁴⁹Hear my voice according to your steadfast love; O LORD, according to your justice give me life.

¹⁵⁰They draw near who persecute me with evil purpose; they are far from your law.

¹⁵¹But you are near, O LORD, and all your commandments are true.

¹⁵²Long have I known from your testimonies that you have founded them forever.

¹⁵³Look on my affliction and deliver me, for I do not forget your law.

¹⁵⁴Plead my cause and redeem me; give me life according to your promise!

¹⁵⁵Salvation is far from the wicked, for they do not seek your statutes.

¹⁵⁶Great is your mercy, O LORD; give me life according to your rules.

¹⁵⁷Many are my persecutors and my adversaries, but I do not swerve from your testimonies.

¹⁵⁸I look at the faithless with disgust, because they do not keep your commands.

¹⁵⁹Consider how I love your precepts! Give me life according to your steadfast love.

¹⁶⁰The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.

¹⁶¹Princes persecute me without cause, but my heart stands in awe of your words.

¹⁶²I rejoice at your word like one who finds great spoil.

¹⁶³I hate and abhor falsehood, but I love your law.

¹⁶⁴Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous rules.

¹⁶⁵Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.

¹⁶⁶I hope for your salvation, O LORD, and I do your commandments.

¹⁶⁷My soul keeps your testimonies; I love them exceedingly.

¹⁶⁸I keep your precepts and testimonies, for all my ways are before you.

¹⁶⁹Let my cry come before you, O LORD; give me understanding according to your word!

¹⁷⁰Let my plea come before you; deliver me according to your word.

¹⁷¹My lips will pour forth praise, for you teach me your statutes.

¹⁷²My tongue will sing of your word, for all your commandments are right.

¹⁷³Let your hand be ready to help me, for I have chosen your precepts.

¹⁷⁴I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight.

¹⁷⁵Let my soul live and praise you, and let your rules help me.

¹⁷⁶I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant, for I do not forget your commandments.

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

²Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

¹⁰The soul of the wicked desires evil; his neighbor finds no mercy in his eyes.

¹¹When a scoffer is punished, the simple becomes wise; when a wise man is instructed, he gains knowledge.

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

¹³Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor will himself call out and not be answered.

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

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

¹⁶One who wanders from the way of good sense will rest in the assembly of the dead.

¹⁷Whoever loves pleasure will be a poor man; he who loves wine and oil will not be rich.

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

¹⁹It is better to live in a desert land than with a quarrelsome and fretful woman.

²⁰Precious treasure and oil are in a wise man's dwelling, but a foolish man devours it.

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

²²A wise man scales the city of the mighty and brings down the stronghold in which they trust.

²³Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.

²⁴“Scoffer” is the name of the arrogant, haughty man who acts with arrogant pride.

²⁵The desire of the sluggard kills him, for his hands refuse to labor.

²⁶All day long he craves and craves, but the righteous gives and does not hold back.

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

²⁸A false witness will perish, but the word of a man who hears will endure.

²⁹A wicked man puts on a bold face, but the upright gives thought to his ways.

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

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

¹Then the LORD said to Joshua,

²“Say to the people of Israel, ‘Appoint the cities of refuge, of which I spoke to you through Moses,

³that the manslayer who strikes any person without intent or unknowingly may flee there. They shall be for you a refuge from the avenger of blood.

⁴He shall flee to one of these cities and shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city and explain his case to the elders of that city. Then they shall take him into the city and give him a place, and he shall remain with them.

⁵And if the avenger of blood pursues him, they shall not give up the manslayer into his hand, because he struck his neighbor unknowingly, and did not hate him in the past.

⁶And he shall remain in that city until he has stood before the congregation for judgment, until the death of him who is high priest at the time. Then the manslayer may return to his own town and his own home, to the town from which he fled.’”

⁷So they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, and Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah.

⁸And beyond the Jordan east of Jericho, they appointed Bezer in the wilderness on the tableland, from the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead, from the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan, from the tribe of Manasseh.

⁹These were the cities designated for all the people of Israel and for the stranger sojourning among them, that anyone who killed a person without intent could flee there, so that he might not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, till he stood before the congregation.

¹An oracle concerning Egypt. Behold, the LORD is riding on a swift cloud and comes to Egypt; and the idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence, and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them.

²And I will stir up Egyptians against Egyptians, and they will fight, each against another and each against his neighbor, city against city, kingdom against kingdom;

³and the spirit of the Egyptians within them will be emptied out, and I will confound their counsel; and they will inquire of the idols and the sorcerers, and the mediums and the necromancers;

⁴and I will give over the Egyptians into the hand of a hard master, and a fierce king will rule over them, declares the Lord GOD of hosts.

⁵And the waters of the sea will be dried up, and the river will be dry and parched,

⁶and its canals will become foul, and the branches of Egypt's Nile will diminish and dry up, reeds and rushes will rot away.

⁷There will be bare places by the Nile, on the brink of the Nile, and all that is sown by the Nile will be parched, will be driven away, and will be no more.

⁸The fishermen will mourn and lament, all who cast a hook in the Nile; and they will languish who spread nets on the water.

⁹The workers in combed flax will be in despair, and the weavers of white cotton.

¹⁰Those who are the pillars of the land will be crushed, and all who work for pay will be grieved.

¹¹The princes of Zoan are utterly foolish; the wisest counselors of Pharaoh give stupid counsel. How can you say to Pharaoh, “I am a son of the wise, a son of ancient kings”?

¹²Where then are your wise men? Let them tell you that they might know what the LORD of hosts has purposed against Egypt.

¹³The princes of Zoan have become fools, and the princes of Memphis are deluded; those who are the cornerstones of her tribes have made Egypt stagger.

¹⁴The LORD has mingled within her a spirit of confusion, and they will make Egypt stagger in all its deeds, as a drunken man staggers in his vomit.

¹⁵And there will be nothing for Egypt that head or tail, palm branch or reed, may do.

¹⁶In that day the Egyptians will be like women, and tremble with fear before the hand that the LORD of hosts shakes over them.

¹⁷And the land of Judah will become a terror to the Egyptians. Everyone to whom it is mentioned will fear because of the purpose that the LORD of hosts has purposed against them.

¹⁸In that day there will be five cities in the land of Egypt that speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the LORD of hosts. One of these will be called the City of Destruction.

¹⁹In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the LORD at its border.

²⁰It will be a sign and a witness to the LORD of hosts in the land of Egypt. When they cry to the LORD because of oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and deliver them.

²¹And the LORD will make himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians will know the LORD in that day and worship with sacrifice and offering, and they will make vows to the LORD and perform them.

²²And the LORD will strike Egypt, striking and healing, and they will return to the LORD, and he will listen to their pleas for mercy and heal them.

²³In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria will come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians.

²⁴In that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth,

²⁵whom the LORD of hosts has blessed, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel my inheritance.”

¹Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.

²And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures,

³explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.”

⁴And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women.

⁵But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd.

⁶And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also,

⁷and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.”

⁸And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things.

⁹And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.

¹⁰The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue.

¹¹Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

¹²Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek women of high standing as well as men.

¹³But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at Berea also, they came there too, agitating and stirring up the crowds.

¹⁴Then the brothers immediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea, but Silas and Timothy remained there.

¹⁵Those who conducted Paul brought him as far as Athens, and after receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they departed.

¹⁶Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols.

¹⁷So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there.

¹⁸Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him. And some said, “What does this babbler wish to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities” — because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection.

¹⁹And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?

²⁰For you bring some strange things to our ears. We wish to know therefore what these things mean.”

²¹Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.

²²So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious.

²³For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.

²⁴The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man,

²⁵nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.

²⁶And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place,

²⁷that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us,

²⁸for “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’

²⁹Being then God's offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man.

³⁰The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent,

³¹because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

³²Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, “We will hear you again about this.”

³³So Paul went out from their midst.

³⁴But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.