Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹When Jesus had finished all these words, He said to His disciples,

²“You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man is to be handed over for crucifixion.”

³At that time the chief priests and the elders of the people were gathered together in the courtyard of the high priest named Caiaphas;

⁴and they plotted together to arrest Jesus covertly and kill Him.

⁵But they were saying, “Not during the festival, otherwise a riot might occur among the people.”

⁶Now when Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the Leper,

⁷a woman came to Him with an alabaster vial of very expensive perfume, and she poured it on His head as He was reclining at the table.

⁸But the disciples were indignant when they saw this, and said, “Why this waste?

⁹For this perfume could have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor.”

¹⁰But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why are you bothering the woman? For she has done a good deed for Me.

¹¹For you always have the poor with you; but you do not always have Me.

¹²For when she poured this perfume on My body, she did it to prepare Me for burial.

¹³Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told in memory of her.”

¹⁴Then one of the twelve, named Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests

¹⁵and said, “What are you willing to give me to betray Him to you?” And they set out for him thirty pieces of silver.

¹⁶And from then on he looked for a good opportunity to betray Jesus.

¹⁷Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?”

¹⁸And He said, “Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, “My time is near; I am keeping the Passover at your house with My disciples.” ’ ”

¹⁹The disciples did as Jesus had directed them; and they prepared the Passover.

²⁰Now when evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the twelve.

²¹And as they were eating, He said, “Truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me.”

²²Being deeply grieved, they began saying to Him, each one: “Surely it is not I, Lord?”

²³And He answered, “He who dipped his hand with Me in the bowl is the one who will betray Me.

²⁴The Son of Man is going away just as it is written about Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been goodfor that man if he had not been born.”

²⁵And Judas, who was betraying Him, said, “Surely it is not I, Rabbi?” Jesus *said to him, “You have said it yourself.”

²⁶Now while they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

²⁷And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you;

²⁸for this is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.

²⁹But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it with you, new, in My Father’s kingdom.”

³⁰And after singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

³¹Then Jesus *said to them, “You will allfall away because of Me this night, for it is written: ‘I WILL STRIKE THE SHEPHERD, AND THE SHEEP OF THE FLOCK WILL BE SCATTERED.’

³²But after I have been raised, I will go ahead of you to Galilee.”

³³But Peter replied to Him, “Even if they all fall away because of You, I will never fall away!”

³⁴Jesus said to him, “Truly I say to you that this very night, before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.”

³⁵Peter *said to Him, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” All the disciples said the same thing as well.

³⁶Then Jesus *came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and *told His disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”

³⁷And He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee with Him, and began to be grieved and distressed.

³⁸Then He *said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.”

³⁹And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.”

⁴⁰And He *came to the disciples and *found them sleeping, and He *said to Peter, “So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour?

⁴¹Keep watching and praying, so that you do not come into temptation; the spirit iswilling, but the flesh is weak.”

⁴²He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, “My Father, if this cup cannot pass away unless I drink from it, Your will be done.”

⁴³Again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.

⁴⁴And He left them again, and went away and prayed a third time, saying the same thing once more.

⁴⁵Then He *came to the disciples and *said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the houris at hand and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners.

⁴⁶Get up, let’s go; behold, the one who is betraying Me is near!”

⁴⁷And while He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, came accompanied by a large crowd with swords and clubs, who came from the chief priests and elders of the people.

⁴⁸Now he who was betraying Him gave them a sign previously, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the one; arrest Him.”

⁴⁹And immediately Judas went up to Jesus and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed Him.

⁵⁰But Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you have come for.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and arrested Him.

⁵¹And behold, one of those who were with Jesus reached and drew his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear.

⁵²Then Jesus *said to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword will perish by the sword.

⁵³Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelvelegions of angels?

⁵⁴How then would the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?”

⁵⁵At that time Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would against a man inciting a revolt? Every day I used to sit within the temple grounds teaching, and you did not arrest Me.

⁵⁶But all this has taken place so that the Scriptures of the prophets will be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left Him and fled.

⁵⁷Those who had arrested Jesus led Him away to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were gathered together.

⁵⁸But Peter was following Him at a distance, as far as the courtyard of the high priest, and he came inside and sat down with the officers to see the outcome.

⁵⁹Now the chief priests and the entire Council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, so that they might put Him to death.

⁶⁰They did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on two came forward,

⁶¹and said, “This man stated, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.’ ”

⁶²The high priest stood up and said to Him, “Do You offer no answer for what these men are testifying against You?”

⁶³But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I place You under oath by the living God, to tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.”

⁶⁴Jesus *said to him, “You have said it yourself. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

⁶⁵Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? See, you have now heard the blasphemy;

⁶⁶what do you think?” They answered, “He deserves death!”

⁶⁷Then they spit in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others slapped Him,

⁶⁸and said, “Prophesy to us, You Christ; who is the one who hit You?”

⁶⁹Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a slave woman came to him and said, “You too were with Jesus the Galilean.”

⁷⁰But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about.”

⁷¹When he had gone out to the gateway, another slave woman saw him and *said to those who were there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.”

⁷²And again he denied it, with an oath: “I do not know the man.”

⁷³A little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “You really are one of them as well, since even the way you talk gives you away.”

⁷⁴Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” And immediately a rooster crowed.

⁷⁵And Peter remembered the statement that Jesus had made: “Before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

¹Now there was a famine in the land, besides the previous famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines.

²And the LORD appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; stay in the land of which I shall tell you.

³Live for a time in this land and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and to your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to your father Abraham.

⁴I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and will give your descendants all these lands; and by your descendants all the nations of the earth shall be blessed,

⁵because Abraham obeyed Me and fulfilled his duty to Me, and kept My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.”

⁶So Isaac lived in Gerar.

⁷When the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “my wife,” thinking, “the men of the place might kill me on account of Rebekah, since she is beautiful.”

⁸Now it came about, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked down through a window, and saw them, and behold, Isaac was caressing his wife Rebekah.

⁹Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Behold, she certainly is your wife! So how is it that you said, ‘She is my sister’?” And Isaac said to him, “Because I thought, ‘otherwise I might be killed on account of her.’ ”

¹⁰And Abimelech said, “What is this that you have done to us? One of the people might easily have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.”

¹¹So Abimelech commanded all the people, saying, “He who touches this man or his wife will certainly be put to death.”

¹²Now Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundred times as much. And the LORD blessed him,

¹³and the man became rich, and continued to grow richer until he became very wealthy;

¹⁴for he had possessions of flocks and herds, and a great household, so that the Philistines envied him.

¹⁵Now all the wells which his father’s servants had dug in the days of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up by filling them with dirt.

¹⁶Then Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you are too powerful for us.”

¹⁷So Isaac departed from there and camped in the Valley of Gerar, and settled there.

¹⁸Then Isaac dug again the wells of water which had been dug in the days of his father Abraham, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham; and he gave them the same names which his father had given them.

¹⁹But when Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of flowing water,

²⁰the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with the herdsmen of Isaac, saying, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek, because they argued with him.

²¹Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over it too, so he named it Sitnah.

²²Then he moved away from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it; so he named it Rehoboth, for he said, “At last the LORD has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.”

²³And he went up from there to Beersheba.

²⁴And the LORD appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham; Do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants, For the sake of My servant Abraham.”

²⁵So he built an altar there and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there; and there Isaac’s servants dug a well.

²⁶Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar with his adviser Ahuzzath, and Phicol the commander of his army.

²⁷Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, since you hate me and have sent me away from you?”

²⁸They said, “We have seen plainly that the LORD has been with you; so we said, ‘An oath must now be taken by us,’ that is, by you and us. So let us make a covenant with you,

²⁹that you will do us no harm, just as we have not touched you and have done to you nothing but good, and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the LORD.”

³⁰Then he made them a feast, and they ate and drank.

³¹In the morning they got up early and exchanged oaths; then Isaac sent them away, and they left him in peace.

³²Now it came about on the same day, that Isaac’s servants came in and told him about the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.”

³³So he called it Shibah; therefore the name of the city is Beersheba to this day.

³⁴When Esau was forty years old he married Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite;

³⁵and they brought grief to Isaac and Rebekah.

¹For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our fathers were all under the cloud and they all passed through the sea;

²and they all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

³and they all ate the same spiritual food,

⁴and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.

⁵Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased; for their dead bodies were spread out in the wilderness.

⁶Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they indeed craved them.

⁷Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “THE PEOPLE SAT DOWN TO EAT AND TO DRINK, AND ROSE UP TO PLAY.”

⁸Nor are we to commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in one day.

⁹Nor are we to put the Lord to the test, as some of them did, and were killed by the snakes.

¹⁰Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were killed by the destroyer.

¹¹Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.

¹²Therefore let the one who thinks he stands watch out that he does not fall.

¹³No temptation has overtaken you except something common to mankind; and God is faithful, so He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.

¹⁴Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.

¹⁵I speak as to wise people; you then, judge what I say.

¹⁶Is the cup of blessing which we bless not a sharing in the blood of Christ? Is the bread which we break not a sharing in the body of Christ?

¹⁷Since there is one loaf, we who are many are one body; for we all partake of the one loaf.

¹⁸Look at the people of Israel; are those who eat the sacrifices not partners in the altar?

¹⁹What do I mean then? That food sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything?

²⁰No, but I say that things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God; and I do not want you to become partners with demons.

²¹You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.

²²Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? We are not stronger than He, are we?

²³All things are permitted, but not all things are of benefit. All things are permitted, but not all things build people up.

²⁴No one is to seek his own advantage, but rather that of his neighbor.

²⁵Eat anything that is sold in the meat market without asking questions, for the sake of conscience;

²⁶FOR THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S, AND ALL IT CONTAINS.

²⁷If one of the unbelievers invites you and you want to go, eat anything that is set before you without asking questions, for the sake of conscience.

²⁸But if anyone says to you, “This is meat sacrificed to idols,” do not eat it, for the sake of that one who informed you and for the sake of conscience;

²⁹Now by “conscience” I do not mean your own, but the other person’s; for why is my freedom judged by another’s conscience?

³⁰If I partake with thankfulness, why am I slandered about that for which I give thanks?

³¹Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all things for the glory of God.

³²Do not offend Jews or Greeks, or the church of God;

³³just as I also please everyone in all things, not seeking my own benefit but the benefit of the many, so that they may be saved.

¹What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is the source not your pleasures that wage war in your body’s parts?

²You lust and do not have, so you commit murder. And you are envious and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask.

³You ask and do not receive, because you ask with the wrong motives, so that you may spend what you request on your pleasures.

⁴You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

⁵Or do you think that the Scripture says to no purpose, “He jealously desires the Spirit whom He has made to dwell in us”?

⁶But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, “GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.”

⁷Submit therefore to God. But resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

⁸Come close to God and He will come close to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

⁹Be miserable, and mourn, and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy into gloom.

¹⁰Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.

¹¹Do not speak against one another, brothers and sisters. The one who speaks against a brother or sister, or judges his brother or sister, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it.

¹²There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; but who are you, judging your neighbor?

¹³Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.”

¹⁴Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. For you are just a vapor that appears for a little while, and then vanishes away.

¹⁵Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.”

¹⁶But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.

¹⁷So for one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, for him it is sin.

¹Then Job responded,

²“What a help you are to the weak! You have saved the arm without strength!

³What advice you have given to one without wisdom! What helpful insight you have abundantly provided!

⁴To whom have you uttered words? And whose spirit was expressed through you?

⁵“The departed spirits are made to tremble Under the waters and their inhabitants.

⁶Sheol is naked before Him, And Abaddon has no covering.

⁷He stretches out the north over empty space And hangs the earth on nothing.

⁸He wraps up the waters in His clouds, And the cloud does not burst under them.

⁹He obscures the face of the full moon And spreads His cloud over it.

¹⁰He has inscribed a circle on the surface of the waters At the boundary of light and darkness.

¹¹The pillars of heaven tremble And are amazed at His rebuke.

¹²With His power He quieted the sea, And by His understanding He shattered Rahab.

¹³By His breath the heavens are cleared; His hand has pierced the fleeing serpent.

¹⁴Behold, these are the fringes of His ways; And how faint a word we hear of Him! But His mighty thunder, who can understand?”

¹Vindicate me, LORD, for I have walked in my integrity, And I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.

²Examine me, LORD, and put me to the test; Refine my mind and my heart.

³For Your goodness is before my eyes, And I have walked in Your truth.

⁴I do not sit with deceitful people, Nor will I go with pretenders.

⁵I hate the assembly of evildoers, And I will not sit with the wicked.

⁶I will wash my hands in innocence, And I will go around Your altar, LORD,

⁷That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving And declare all Your wonders.

⁸LORD, I love the dwelling of Your house, And the place where Your glory remains.

⁹Do not take my soul away along with sinners, Nor my life with men of bloodshed,

¹⁰In whose hands is a wicked scheme, And whose right hand is full of bribes.

¹¹But as for me, I will walk in my integrity; Redeem me, and be gracious to me.

¹²My foot stands on level ground; In the congregations I will bless the LORD.

¹Like snow in summer and like rain in harvest, So honor is not fitting for a fool.

²Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying, So a curse without cause does not come to rest.

³A whip is for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, And a rod for the back of fools.

⁴Do not answer a fool according to his foolishness, Or you will also be like him.

⁵Answer a fool as his foolishness deserves, So that he will not be wise in his own eyes.

⁶One who sends a message by the hand of a fool Chops off his own feet and drinks violence.

⁷Like useless legs to one who cannot walk, So is a proverb in the mouths of fools.

⁸Like one who binds a stone in a sling, So is one who gives honor to a fool.

⁹Like a thorn that sticks in the hand of a heavy drinker, So is a proverb in the mouths of fools.

¹⁰Like an archer who wounds everyone, So is one who hires a fool or hires those who pass by.

¹¹Like a dog that returns to its vomit, So is a fool who repeats his foolishness.

¹²Do you see a person wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.

¹³A lazy one says, “There is a lion on the road! A lion is in the public square!”

¹⁴As the door turns on its hinges, So does a lazy one on his bed.

¹⁵A lazy one buries his hand in the dish; He is weary of bringing it to his mouth again.

¹⁶A lazy one is wiser in his own eyes Than seven people who can give a discreet answer.

¹⁷Like one who takes a dog by the ears, So is one who passes by and meddles with strife not belonging to him.

¹⁸Like a maniac who shoots Flaming arrows, arrows, and death,

¹⁹So is a person who deceives his neighbor, And says, “Was I not joking?”

²⁰For lack of wood the fire goes out, And where there is no gossiper, quarreling quiets down.

²¹Like charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire, So is a contentious person to kindle strife.

²²The words of a gossiper are like dainty morsels, And they go down into the innermost parts of the body.

²³Like an earthenware vessel overlaid with silver impurities Are burning lips and a wicked heart.

²⁴One who hates disguises it with his lips, But he harbors deceit in his heart.

²⁵When he speaks graciously, do not believe him, Because there are seven abominations in his heart.

²⁶Though his hatred covers itself with deception, His wickedness will be revealed in the assembly.

²⁷One who digs a pit will fall into it, And one who rolls a stone, it will come back on him.

²⁸A lying tongue hates those it crushes, And a flattering mouth works ruin.

¹Now the angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, “I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land which I have sworn to your fathers; and I said, ‘I will never break My covenant with you,

²and as for you, you shall not make a covenant with the inhabitants of this land; you shall tear down their altars.’ But you have not obeyed Me; what is this thing that you have done?

³Therefore I also said, ‘I will not drive them out from you; but they will become like thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a snare to you.’ ”

⁴Now when the angel of the LORD spoke these words to all the sons of Israel, the people raised their voices and wept.

⁵So they named that place Bochim; and there they sacrificed to the LORD.

⁶When Joshua had dismissed the people, the sons of Israel went, each one to his inheritance, to take possession of the land.

⁷The people served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who survived Joshua, who had seen all the great work of the LORD which He had done for Israel.

⁸Then Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of 110.

⁹And they buried him in the territory of his inheritance in Timnath-heres, in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.

¹⁰All that generation also were gathered to their fathers; and another generation rose up after them who did not know the LORD, nor even the work which He had done for Israel.

¹¹Then the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals,

¹²and they abandoned the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they followed other gods from the gods of the peoples who were around them, and bowed down to them; so they provoked the LORD to anger.

¹³They abandoned the LORD and served Baal and the Ashtaroth.

¹⁴Then the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He handed them over to plunderers, and they plundered them; and He sold them into the hands of their enemies around them, so that they could no longer stand against their enemies.

¹⁵Wherever they went, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had spoken and just as the LORD had sworn to them, so that they were severely distressed.

¹⁶Then the LORD raised up judges who saved them from the hands of those who plundered them.

¹⁷Yet they did not listen to their judges, for they committed infidelity with other gods and bowed down to them. They turned aside quickly from the way in which their fathers had walked in obeying the commandments of the LORD; they did not do the same as their fathers.

¹⁸And when the LORD raised up judges for them, the LORD was with the judge and saved them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the LORD was moved to pity by their groaning because of those who tormented and oppressed them.

¹⁹But it came about, when the judge died, that they would turn back and act more corruptly than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them and bow down to them; they did not abandon their practices or their obstinate ways.

²⁰So the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He said, “Because this nation has violated My covenant which I commanded their fathers, and has not listened to My voice,

²¹I in turn will no longer drive out from them any of the nations which Joshua left when he died,

²²in order to test Israel by them, whether they will keep the way of the LORD to walk in it as their fathers did, or not.”

²³So the LORD allowed those nations to remain, not driving them out quickly; and He did not hand them over to Joshua.

¹On that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: “We have a strong city; He sets up walls and ramparts for security.

²Open the gates, that the righteous nation may enter, The one that remains faithful.

³The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in You.

⁴Trust in the LORD forever, For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock.

⁵For He has brought low those who dwell on high, the unassailable city; He lays it low, He lays it low to the ground, He casts it to the dust.

⁶The foot will trample it, The feet of the poor, the steps of the helpless.”

⁷The way of the righteous is smooth; O Upright One, make the path of the righteous level.

⁸Indeed, while following the way of Your judgments, LORD, We have waited for You eagerly; Your name, and remembering You, is the desire of our souls.

⁹At night my soul longs for You, Indeed, my spirit within me seeks You diligently; For when the earth experiences Your judgments, The inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

¹⁰Though the wicked person is shown compassion, He does not learn righteousness; He deals unjustly in the land of uprightness, And does not perceive the majesty of the LORD.

¹¹LORD, Your hand is lifted up, yet they do not see it. They see Your zeal for the people and are put to shame; Indeed, fire will devour Your enemies.

¹²LORD, You will establish peace for us, Since You have also performed for us all our works.

¹³LORD, our God, other masters besides You have ruled us; But through You alone we confess Your name.

¹⁴The dead will not live, the departed spirits will not rise; Therefore You have punished and destroyed them, And You have eliminated all remembrance of them.

¹⁵You have increased the nation, LORD, You have increased the nation, You are glorified; You have extended all the borders of the land.

¹⁶LORD, they sought You in distress; They could only whisper a prayer, Your discipline was upon them.

¹⁷As the pregnant woman approaches the time to give birth, She writhes and cries out in her labor pains; This is how we were before You, LORD.

¹⁸We were pregnant, we writhed in labor, We gave birth, as it seems, only to wind. We could not accomplish deliverance for the earth, Nor were inhabitants of the world born.

¹⁹Your dead will live; Their corpses will rise. You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy, For your dew is as the dew of the dawn, And the earth will give birth to the departed spirits.

²⁰Come, my people, enter your rooms And close your doors behind you; Hide for a little while Until indignation runs its course.

²¹For behold, the LORD is about to come out from His place To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their wrongdoing; And the earth will reveal her bloodshed And will no longer cover her slain.

¹Now Agrippa said to Paul, “You are permitted to speak for yourself.” Then Paul extended his hand and proceeded to make his defense:

²“Regarding all the things of which I am accused by the Jews, King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate that I am about to make my defense before you today,

³especially because you are an expert in all customs and questions among the Jews; therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.

⁴“So then, all Jews know my way of life since my youth, which from the beginning was spent among my own nation and in Jerusalem,

⁵since they have known about me for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that I lived as a Pharisee according to the strictest sect of our religion.

⁶And now I am standing trial for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers;

⁷the promise to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly serve God night and day. For this hope, O king, I am being accused by Jews.

⁸Why is it considered incredible among you people if God raises the dead?

⁹“So I thought to myself that I had to act in strong opposition to the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

¹⁰And this is just what I did in Jerusalem; not only did I lock up many of the saints in prisons, after receiving authority from the chief priests, but I also cast my vote against them when they were being put to death.

¹¹And as I punished them often in all the synagogues, I tried to force them to blaspheme; and since I was extremely enraged at them, I kept pursuing them even to foreign cities.

¹²“While so engaged, as I was journeying to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests,

¹³at midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who were journeying with me.

¹⁴And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew dialect, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’

¹⁵And I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.

¹⁶But get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you as a servant and a witness not only to the things in which you have seen Me, but also to the things in which I will appear to you,

¹⁷rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you,

¹⁸to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light, and from thepower of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.’

¹⁹“For that reason, King Agrippa, I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision,

²⁰but continually proclaimed to those in Damascus first, and in Jerusalem, and then all the region of Judea, and even to the Gentiles, that they are to repent and turn to God, performing deeds consistent with repentance.

²¹For these reasons some Jews seized me in the temple and tried to murder me.

²²So, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place,

²³as to whether the Christ was to suffer, and whether, as first from the resurrection of the dead, He would proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.”

²⁴While Paul was stating these things in his defense, Festus *said in a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind! Your great learning is driving you insane.”

²⁵But Paul *said, “I am not insane, most excellent Festus; on the contrary, I am speaking out with truthful and rational words.

²⁶For the king knows about these matters, and I also speak to him with confidence, since I am persuaded that none of these things escape his notice; for this has not been done in a corner.

²⁷King Agrippa, do you believe the Prophets? I know that you believe.”

²⁸Agrippa replied to Paul, “In a short time you are going to persuade me to make a Christian of myself.”

²⁹And Paul said, “I would wish to God that even in a short or long time not only you, but also all who hear me this day would become such as I myself am, except for these chains.”

³⁰The king stood up and the governor and Bernice, and those who were sitting with them,

³¹and when they had gone out, they began talking to one another, saying, “This man is not doing anything deserving death or imprisonment.”

³²And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.”