Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹“Do not judge, so that you will not be judged.

²For in the way you judge, you will be judged; andby your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.

³Why do you look at thespeck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?

⁴Or howcan you say to your brother, ‘Let me take thespeck out of your eye,’ and look, the log is in your own eye?

⁵You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take thespeck out of your brother’s eye!

⁶“Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

⁷“ Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

⁸For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.

⁹Or what person is there among youwho, when his son asks for a loaf of bread,will give him a stone?

¹⁰Orif he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?

¹¹So if you, despite beingevil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

¹²“In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.

¹³“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.

¹⁴For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

¹⁵“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.

¹⁶You willknow them by their fruits.Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they?

¹⁷So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.

¹⁸A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.

¹⁹Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

²⁰So then, you willknow them by their fruits.

²¹“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.

²²Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform manymiracles?’

²³And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; LEAVE ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’

²⁴“Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts on them, will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.

²⁵And the rain fell and thefloods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.

²⁶And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does notact on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.

²⁷And the rain fell and thefloods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and its collapse was great.”

²⁸When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching;

²⁹for He was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

¹Now Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; its length was two and a half cubits, its width one and a half cubits, and its height one and a half cubits;

²and he overlaid it with pure gold inside and out, and made a gold molding for it all around.

³He cast four rings of gold for it on its four feet; two rings on one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it.

⁴And he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold.

⁵He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry it.

⁶He also made an atoning cover of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and one and a half cubits wide.

⁷And he made two cherubim of gold; he made them of hammered work at the two ends of the atoning cover:

⁸one cherub at the one end and one cherub at the other end; he made the cherubim of one piece with the atoning cover at the two ends.

⁹And the cherubim had their wings spread upward, covering the atoning cover with their wings, with their faces toward each other; the faces of the cherubim were toward the atoning cover.

¹⁰Then he made the table of acacia wood, two cubits long, a cubit wide, and one and a half cubits high.

¹¹He overlaid it with pure gold, and made a gold molding for it all around.

¹²And he made a rim for it of a hand width all around, and made a gold molding for its rim all around.

¹³He also cast four gold rings for it and put the rings on the four corners that were on its four legs.

¹⁴Close by the rim were the rings, the holders for the poles to carry the table.

¹⁵And he made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold, to carry the table.

¹⁶He also made the utensils which were on the table, its dishes, its pans, its libation bowls, and its jars, with which to pour out drink offerings, of pure gold.

¹⁷Then he made the lampstand of pure gold. He made the lampstand of hammered work, its base and its shaft; its cups, its bulbs, and its flowers were of one piece with it.

¹⁸There were six branches going out of its sides; three branches of the lampstand from the one side of it and three branches of the lampstand from the other side of it;

¹⁹three cups shaped like almond blossoms, a bulb and a flower on one branch, and three cups shaped like almond blossoms, a bulb and a flower on the other branch—so for the six branches going out of the lampstand.

²⁰And on the lampstand there were four cups shaped like almond blossoms, its bulbs and its flowers;

²¹and a bulb was under the first pair of branches coming out of it, and a bulb under the second pair of branches coming out of it, and a bulb under the third pair of branches coming out of it, for the six branches coming out of the lampstand.

²²Their bulbs and their branches were of one piece with it; the whole of it was a single hammered work of pure gold.

²³And he made its seven lamps with its tongs and its trays of pure gold.

²⁴He made it and all its utensils from a talent of pure gold.

²⁵Then he made the altar of incense of acacia wood: a cubit long and a cubit wide, square, and two cubits high; its horns were of one piece with it.

²⁶And he overlaid it with pure gold, its top and its sides all around, and its horns; and he made a gold molding for it all around.

²⁷He also made two golden rings for it under its molding, on its two sides—on opposite sides—as holders for poles with which to carry it.

²⁸And he made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold.

²⁹Then he made the holy anointing oil and the pure, fragrant incense of spices, the work of a perfumer.

¹Now, brothers and sisters, we make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the churches of Macedonia,

²that in a great ordeal of affliction their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality.

³For I testify that according to their ability, and beyond their ability, they gave voluntarily,

⁴begging us with much urging for the favor of participation in the support of the saints,

⁵and this, not as we had expected, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God.

⁶So we urged Titus that as he had previously made a beginning, so he would also complete in you this gracious work as well.

⁷But just as you excel in everything, in faith, speaking, knowledge, and in all earnestness and in the love we inspired in you, see that you also excel in this gracious work.

⁸I am not saying this as a command, but as proving, through the earnestness of others, the sincerity of your love as well.

⁹For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.

¹⁰I give my opinion in this matter, for this is to your advantage, who were the first to begin a year ago not only to do this, but also to desire to do it.

¹¹But now finish doing it also, so that just as there was the willingness to desire it, so there may be also the completion of it by your ability.

¹²For if the willingness is present, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.

¹³For this is not for the relief of others and for your hardship, but by way of equality—

¹⁴at this present time your abundance will serve as assistance for their need, so that their abundance also may serve as assistance for your need, so that there may be equality;

¹⁵as it is written: “THE ONE WHO had gathered much did not have too much, AND THE ONE WHO had gathered little did not have too little.”

¹⁶But thanks be to God who puts the same earnestness in your behalf in the heart of Titus.

¹⁷For he not only accepted our appeal, but being himself very earnest, he has gone to you of his own accord.

¹⁸We have sent along with him the brother whose fame in the things of the gospel has spread through all the churches;

¹⁹and not only that, but he has also been appointed by the churches to travel with us in this gracious work, which is being administered by us for the glory of the Lord Himself, and to show our readiness,

²⁰taking precaution so that no one will discredit us in our administration of this generous gift;

²¹for we have regard for what is honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of other people.

²²We have sent with them our brother, whom we have often tested and found diligent in many things, but now even more diligent because of his great confidence in you.

²³As for Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker among you; as for our brothers, they are messengers of the churches, a glory to Christ.

²⁴Therefore, openly before the churches, show them the proof of your love and of our reason for boasting about you.

¹All who are under the yoke as slaves are to regard their own masters as worthy of all honor so that the name of God and our doctrine will not be spoken against.

²Those who have believers as their masters must not be disrespectful to them because they are brothers or sisters, but must serve them all the more, because those who partake of the benefit are believers and beloved. Teach and preach these principles.

³If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness,

⁴he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a sick craving for controversial questions and disputes about words, from which come envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions,

⁵and constant friction between people of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.

⁶But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment.

⁷For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it, either.

⁸If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content.

⁹But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge people into ruin and destruction.

¹⁰For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

¹¹But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.

¹²Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

¹³I direct you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate,

¹⁴that you keep the commandment without fault or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,

¹⁵which He will bring about at the proper time—He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,

¹⁶who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.

¹⁷Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to set their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy.

¹⁸Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,

¹⁹storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

²⁰Timothy, protect what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly, empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”—

²¹which some have professed and thereby have gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you.

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?”

¹“Had it not been the LORD who was on our side,” Let Israel say,

²“Had it not been the LORD who was on our side When people rose up against us,

³Then they would have swallowed us alive, When their anger was kindled against us;

⁴Then the waters would have flooded over us, The stream would have swept over our souls;

⁵Then the raging waters would have swept over our souls.”

⁶Blessed be the LORD, Who has not given us to be torn by their teeth.

⁷Our souls have escaped like a bird from the trapper’s snare; The snare is broken and we have escaped.

⁸Our help is in the name of the LORD, Who made heaven and earth.

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 it came about after the death of Joshua that the sons of Israel inquired of the LORD, saying, “Who shall go up first for us against the Canaanites, to fight against them?”

²The LORD said, “Judah shall go up; behold, I have handed the land over to him.”

³Then Judah said to his brother Simeon, “Go up with me into the territory allotted me, and let’s fight the Canaanites; and I in turn will go with you into the territory allotted you.” So Simeon went with him.

⁴Judah went up, and the LORD handed over to them the Canaanites and the Perizzites, and they defeated ten thousand men at Bezek.

⁵They found Adoni-bezek in Bezek and fought against him, and they defeated the Canaanites and the Perizzites.

⁶But Adoni-bezek fled; and they pursued him and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and big toes.

⁷And Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and their big toes cut off used to gather up scraps under my table; as I have done, so God has repaid me.” So they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

⁸Then the sons of Judah fought against Jerusalem and captured it, and struck it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire.

⁹Afterward, the sons of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites living in the hill country, and in the Negev, and in the lowland.

¹⁰So Judah went against the Canaanites who lived in Hebron (the name of Hebron was previously Kiriath-arba); and they struck Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai.

¹¹Then from there he went against the inhabitants of Debir (the name of Debir was previously Kiriath-sepher).

¹²And Caleb said, “Whoever attacks Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will give him my daughter Achsah as a wife.”

¹³Now Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, captured it; so he gave him his daughter Achsah as a wife.

¹⁴Then it happened that when she came to him, she incited him to ask her father for a field. Then later, she dismounted from her donkey, and Caleb said to her, “What do you want?”

¹⁵She said to him, “Give me a blessing: since you have given me the land of the Negev, give me springs of water also.” So Caleb gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.

¹⁶Now the descendants of the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up from the city of palms with the sons of Judah, to the wilderness of Judah which is in the south of Arad; and they went and lived with the people.

¹⁷Then Judah went with his brother Simeon, and they struck the Canaanites living in Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. So the name of the city was called Hormah.

¹⁸And Judah took Gaza with its territory, Ashkelon with its territory, and Ekron with its territory.

¹⁹Now the LORD was with Judah, and they took possession of the hill country; but they could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had iron chariots.

²⁰Then they gave Hebron to Caleb, as Moses had promised; and he drove out from there the three sons of Anak.

²¹But the sons of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem; so the Jebusites have lived with the sons of Benjamin in Jerusalem to this day.

²²Likewise the house of Joseph went up against Bethel, and the LORD was with them.

²³The house of Joseph had men spy out Bethel (the name of the city previously was Luz).

²⁴And the spies saw a man coming out of the city, and they said to him, “Please show us the entrance to the city, and we will treat you kindly.”

²⁵So he showed them the entrance to the city, and they struck the city with the edge of the sword, but they let the man and all his family go free.

²⁶Then the man went to the land of the Hittites and built a city, and named it Luz, which is its name to this day.

²⁷But Manasseh did not take possession of Beth-shean and its villages, or Taanach and its villages, or the inhabitants of Dor and its villages, or the inhabitants of Ibleam and its villages, or the inhabitants of Megiddo and its villages; so the Canaanites persisted in living in this land.

²⁸And it came about, when Israel became strong, that they put the Canaanites to forced labor; but they did not drive them out completely.

²⁹And Ephraim did not drive out the Canaanites who were living in Gezer; so the Canaanites lived in Gezer among them.

³⁰Zebulun did not drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, or the inhabitants of Nahalol; so the Canaanites lived among them and became subject to forced labor.

³¹Asher did not drive out the inhabitants of Acco, or the inhabitants of Sidon, or of Ahlab, or of Achzib, Helbah, Aphik, or of Rehob.

³²So the Asherites lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; for they did not drive them out.

³³Naphtali did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, or the inhabitants of Beth-anath, but lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; and the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and Beth-anath became forced labor for them.

³⁴Then the Amorites forced the sons of Dan into the hill country, for they did not allow them to come down to the valley;

³⁵yet the Amorites persisted in living on Mount Heres, in Aijalon and Shaalbim; but when the power of the house of Joseph grew strong, they became forced labor.

³⁶The border of the Amorites ran from the ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela and upward.

¹Behold, the LORD lays the earth waste, devastates it, twists its surface, and scatters its inhabitants.

²And the people will be like the priest, the servant like his master, the female servant like her mistress, the buyer like the seller, the lender like the borrower, the creditor like the debtor.

³The earth will be completely laid waste and completely plundered, for the LORD has spoken this word.

⁴The earth dries up and crumbles away, the mainland dries out and crumbles away, the exalted of the people of the earth dwindle.

⁵The earth is also defiled by its inhabitants, for they violated laws, altered statutes, and broke the everlasting covenant.

⁶Therefore, a curse devours the earth, and those who live on it suffer for their guilt. Therefore, the inhabitants of the earth decrease in number, and few people are left.

⁷The new wine mourns, The vine decays, All the joyful-hearted sigh.

⁸The joy of tambourines ceases, The noise of revelers stops, The joy of the harp ceases.

⁹They do not drink wine with song; Intoxicating drink is bitter to those who drink it.

¹⁰The city of chaos is broken down; Every house is shut up so that no one may enter.

¹¹There is an outcry in the streets concerning the wine; All joy turns to gloom. The joy of the earth is banished.

¹²Desolation is left in the city And the gate is battered to ruins.

¹³For so it will be in the midst of the earth among the peoples, As the shaking of an olive tree, As the gleanings when the grape harvest is over.

¹⁴They raise their voices, they shout for joy; They cry out from the west concerning the majesty of the LORD.

¹⁵Therefore glorify the LORD in the east, The name of the LORD, the God of Israel, In the coastlands of the sea.

¹⁶From the ends of the earth we hear songs: “Glory to the Righteous One,” But I say, “I am finished! I am finished! Woe to me! The treacherous deal treacherously, And the treacherous deal very treacherously.”

¹⁷Terror and pit and snare Confront you, you inhabitant of the earth.

¹⁸Then it will be that the one who flees the sound of terror will fall into the pit, And the one who climbs out of the pit will be caught in the snare; For the windows above are opened, and the foundations of the earth shake.

¹⁹The earth is broken apart, The earth is split through, The earth is shaken violently.

²⁰The earth trembles like a heavy drinker And sways like a hut, For its wrongdoing is heavy upon it, And it will fall, never to rise again.

²¹So it will happen on that day, That the LORD will punish the rebellious angels of heaven on high, And the kings of the earth on earth.

²²They will be gathered together Like prisoners in the dungeon, And will be confined in prison; And after many days they will be punished.

²³Then the moon will be ashamed and the sun be put to shame, For the LORD of armies will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, And His glory will be before His elders.

¹“Brothers and fathers, hear my defense which I now offer to you.”

²And when they heard that he was addressing them in the Hebrew dialect, they became even more quiet; and he *said,

³“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated under Gamaliel, strictly according to the Law of our fathers, being zealous for God just as you all are today.

⁴I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and putting both men and women into prisons,

⁵as also the high priest and all the Council of the elders can testify. From them I also received letters to the brothers, and started off for Damascus in order to bring even those who were there to Jerusalem as prisoners to be punished.

⁶“But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus at about noon, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me,

⁷and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’

⁸And I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.’

⁹And those who were with me saw the light, but did not understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me.

¹⁰And I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go on into Damascus, and there you will be told about everything that has been appointed for you to do.’

¹¹But since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I came into Damascus being led by the hand by those who were with me.

¹²“Now a certain Ananias, a man who was devout by the standard of the Law and well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there,

¹³came to me, and standing nearby he said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very moment I looked up at him.

¹⁴And he said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear a message from His mouth.

¹⁵For you will be a witness for Him to all people of what you have seen and heard.

¹⁶Now why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins by calling on His name.’

¹⁷“It happened when I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, that I fell into a trance,

¹⁸and I saw Him saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about Me.’

¹⁹And I said, ‘Lord, they themselves understand that in one synagogue after another I used to imprison and beat those who believed in You.

²⁰And when the blood of Your witness Stephen was being shed, I also was standing nearby and approving, and watching over the cloaks of those who were killing him.’

²¹And He said to me, ‘Go! For I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’  ”

²²They listened to him up to this statement, and then they raised their voices and said, “Away with such a man from the earth, for he should not be allowed to live!”

²³And as they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and tossing dust into the air,

²⁴the commander ordered that he be brought into the barracks, saying that he was to be interrogated by flogging so that he would find out the reason why they were shouting against him that way.

²⁵But when they stretched him out with straps, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, “Is it lawful for you to flog a man who is a Roman and uncondemned?”

²⁶When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and told him, saying, “What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman.”

²⁷The commander came and said to Paul, “Tell me, are you a Roman?” And he said, “Yes.”

²⁸The commander answered, “I acquired this citizenship for a large sum of money.” And Paul said, “But I was actually born a citizen.”

²⁹Therefore, those who were about to interrogate him immediately backed away from him; and the commander also was afraid when he found out that he was a Roman, and because he had put him in chains.

³⁰Now on the next day, wanting to know for certain why Paul had been accused by the Jews, he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the Council to assemble, and he brought Paul down and placed him before them.