Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹And Jesus, getting into a boat, crossed over the Sea of Galilee and came to [Capernaum] His own city.

²They brought to Him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a stretcher. Seeing their [active] faith [springing from confidence in Him], Jesus said to the paralytic, "Do not be afraid, son; your sins are forgiven [the penalty is paid, the guilt removed, and you are declared to be in right standing with God]."

³And some of the scribes said to themselves, "This man blasphemes [by claiming the rights and prerogatives of God]!"

⁴But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, "Why do you think evil in your hearts?

⁵For which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven and the penalty paid,' or to say, 'Get up and walk'? [Both are possible for God; both are impossible for man.]

⁶But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority and the power on earth to forgive sins"—then He said to the paralytic, "Get up, pick up your stretcher and go home."

⁷And he got up and went home [healed and forgiven].

⁸When the crowds saw this, they were awestruck, and glorified God and praised Him, who had given such authority and power to men.

⁹As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew (Levi) sitting in the tax collector's booth; and He said to him, "Follow Me [as My disciple, accepting Me as your Master and Teacher and walking the same path of life that I walk]." And Matthew got up and followed Him.

¹⁰Then as Jesus was reclining at the table in Matthew's house, many tax collectors and sinners [including non-observant Jews] came and ate with Him and His disciples.

¹¹When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, "Why does your Master eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

¹²But when Jesus heard this, He said, "Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but [only] those who are sick.

¹³Go and learn what this [Scripture] means: 'I desire compassion [for those in distress], and not [animal] sacrifice,' for I did not come to call [to repentance] the [self-proclaimed] righteous [who see no need to change], but sinners [those who recognize their sin and actively seek forgiveness]."

¹⁴Then the disciples of John [the Baptist] came to Jesus, asking, "Why do we and the Pharisees often fast [as a religious exercise], but Your disciples do not fast?"

¹⁵And Jesus replied to them, "Can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.

¹⁶But no one puts a piece of unshrunk (new) cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results.

¹⁷Nor is new wine put into old wineskins [that have lost their elasticity]; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the [fermenting] wine spills and the wineskins are ruined. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, so both are preserved."

¹⁸While He was saying these things to them, a ruler (synagogue official) entered [the house] and kneeled down and worshiped Him, saying, "My daughter has just now died; but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will live."

¹⁹Jesus got up and began to accompany the ruler, with His disciples.

²⁰Then a woman who had suffered from a hemorrhage for twelve years came up behind Him and touched the [tassel] fringe of His outer robe;

²¹for she had been saying to herself, "If I only touch His outer robe, I will be healed."

²²But Jesus turning and seeing her said, "Take courage, daughter; your [personal trust and confident] faith [in Me] has made you well." And at once the woman was [completely] healed.

²³When Jesus came to the ruler's house, and saw the flute players [who were professional, hired mourners] and the [grieving] crowd making an uproar,

²⁴He said, "Go away; for the girl is not dead, but is sleeping." And they laughed and jeered at Him.

²⁵But when the crowd had been sent outside, Jesus went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up.

²⁶And the news about this spread throughout all that district.

²⁷As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, screaming loudly, "Have mercy and compassion on us, Son of David (Messiah)!"

²⁸When He went into the house, the blind men came up to Him, and Jesus said to them, "Do you believe [with a deep, abiding trust] that I am able to do this?" They said to Him, "Yes, Lord."

²⁹Then He touched their eyes, saying, "According to your faith [your trust and confidence in My power and My ability to heal] it will be done to you."

³⁰And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them: "See that no one knows this!"

³¹But they went out and spread the news about Him throughout that whole district.

³²While they were going away, a mute, demon-possessed man was brought to Jesus.

³³And when the demon was driven out [by Jesus], the mute man spoke; and the crowds wondered in amazement, saying, "Never before has anything like this [miracle] been seen in Israel."

³⁴But the Pharisees were saying, "He casts out the demons by [the power of] the ruler of demons."

³⁵Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages [in Galilee], teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news (gospel) of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness [His words and His works reflecting His Messiahship].

³⁶When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion and pity for them, because they were dispirited and distressed, like sheep without a shepherd.

³⁷Then He said to His disciples, "The harvest is [indeed] plentiful, but the workers are few.

³⁸So pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest."

¹Moreover, from the blue and purple and scarlet fabric, they made finely woven garments for serving and ministering in the Holy Place; they made the holy garments for Aaron, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

²Bezalel made the ephod of gold, and of blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and fine twisted linen.

³Then Bezalel and Oholiab hammered the gold [into thin sheets] and cut it into threads to work into the blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and into the fine linen, the work of a skilled craftsman.

⁴They made attaching shoulder pieces for the ephod; it was attached at its two [upper] edges.

⁵The skillfully woven sash with which to bind it, which was on the ephod [to hold it in place], was like its workmanship, of the same material: of gold and of blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and fine twisted linen, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

⁶They made the onyx stones, set in settings of gold filigree; they were engraved as signets are engraved, with the names of [the twelve tribes of] the sons of Israel.

⁷And he put them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod to be memorial stones (a remembrance) for the sons of Israel (Jacob), just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

⁸Bezalel made the breastpiece, the work of a skillful craftsman, like the workmanship of the ephod: of gold and of blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and fine twisted linen.

⁹It was square; they made the breastpiece folded double, a [hand's] span long and a [hand's] span wide when folded double.

¹⁰And they mounted four rows of stones on it. The first row was a row of ruby, topaz, and emerald;

¹¹and the second row, a turquoise, a sapphire, and a diamond;

¹²and the third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst;

¹³and the fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper; they were mounted in settings of gold filigree.

¹⁴The stones corresponded to the names of the sons of Israel; they were twelve [in all], corresponding to their names, engraved like a signet, each with its name, for the twelve tribes.

¹⁵And they made on the breastpiece twisted chains like cords of pure gold.

¹⁶They made two settings of gold filigree and two gold rings, and put the two rings on the two ends of the breastpiece.

¹⁷Then they put the two twisted cords of gold in the two rings on the ends of the breastpiece.

¹⁸They put the [other] two ends of the two cords on the two filigree settings, and put them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front of it.

¹⁹They made two rings of gold and put them on the two ends of the breastpiece, on its inner edge which was next to the ephod.

²⁰Furthermore, they made two [other] gold rings and attached them to the bottom of the two shoulder pieces of the ephod, at the front of it, close to the place where it is joined, above the woven sash of the ephod.

²¹They bound the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a blue cord, so that it would lie on the woven sash of the ephod, and so that the breastpiece would not come loose from the ephod, just as the LORD commanded Moses.

²²Then Bezalel made the robe of the ephod of woven work, all of blue;

²³there was an opening [for the head] in the middle of the robe, like the opening in a coat of armor, with a hem around it, so that it would not be frayed or torn.

²⁴On the hem of the robe they made pomegranates of blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and fine twisted linen.

²⁵They also made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates around the hem of the robe;

²⁶a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, all [the way] around the hem of the robe, for service and ministering, just as the LORD commanded Moses.

²⁷And they made tunics of finely woven linen for Aaron and his sons,

²⁸and the turban of fine linen, and the ornamental caps of fine linen, and the linen undergarments of fine twisted linen,

²⁹and the sash of fine twisted linen, and blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, the work of an embroiderer, just as the LORD commanded Moses.

³⁰They made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and wrote on it an inscription, like the engravings of a signet, "Holy to the LORD."

³¹They tied a blue cord to it, to fasten it on the turban above, just as the LORD commanded Moses.

³²Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the Tent of Meeting was finished; and the Israelites did according to all that the LORD had commanded Moses; that is what they did.

³³They brought the tabernacle to Moses [for him to inspect]: the tent and all its furnishings, its hooks, its [frame] boards, its bars, its support poles, its sockets or bases;

³⁴and the covering of rams' skins dyed red, and the covering of porpoise skins, and the veil (partition) of the screen (curtain);

³⁵the ark of the Testimony, its carrying poles and the mercy seat;

³⁶the table and all its utensils and the bread of the Presence (showbread);

³⁷the pure gold lampstand and its lamps, with the lamps placed in order, all its utensils, and the oil for the light;

³⁸the golden altar [of incense], the anointing oil and the fragrant incense, and the [hanging] veil for the doorway of the tent;

³⁹the bronze altar [of burnt offering] and its grating of bronze, its poles and all its utensils, the basin and its base;

⁴⁰the curtains of the courtyard, its support poles and sockets, and the screen (curtain) for the courtyard gate, its cords and pegs, and all the utensils for the service of the tabernacle, for the Tent of Meeting [of God with His people];

⁴¹the [finely] woven garments for serving and ministering in the Holy Place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons to minister as priests.

⁴²So the Israelites did all the work according to all that the LORD had commanded Moses.

⁴³And Moses [carefully] inspected all the work, and behold, they had done it; just as the LORD had commanded, so had they done it. So Moses blessed them.

¹Now I, Paul, urge you by the gentleness and graciousness of Christ—I who am meek [so they say] when with you face to face, but bold [outspoken and fearless] toward you when absent!

²I ask that when I do come I will not be driven to the boldness that I intend to show toward those few who regard us as if we walked according to the flesh [like men without the Spirit].

³For though we walk in the flesh [as mortal men], we are not carrying on our [spiritual] warfare according to the flesh and using the weapons of man.

⁴The weapons of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood]. Our weapons are divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.

⁵We are destroying sophisticated arguments and every exalted and proud thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought and purpose captive to the obedience of Christ,

⁶being ready to punish every act of disobedience, when your own obedience [as a church] is complete.

⁷You are looking [only] at the outward appearance of things. If anyone is confident that he is Christ's, he should reflect and consider this, that just as he is Christ's, so too are we.

⁸For even though I boast rather freely about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be ashamed [of the truth],

⁹nor do I want to seem to be trying to frighten you with my letters;

¹⁰for they say, "His letters are weighty and forceful and impressive, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible [of no account]."

¹¹Let such people realize that what we say by word in letters when we are absent, is the same as what we are in action when present.

¹²We do not have the audacity to put ourselves in the same class or compare ourselves with some who [supply testimonials to] commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they lack wisdom and behave like fools.

¹³We, on the other hand, will not boast beyond our proper limit, but [will keep] within the limits of our commission (territory, authority) which God has granted to us as a measure, which reaches and includes even you.

¹⁴We are not overstepping the limits of our province, as if we did not [legitimately] reach to you, for we were the [very] first to come even as far as you with the good news of Christ.

¹⁵We do not go beyond our proper limit, boasting in the work of other men, but we have the hope that as your faith [in Christ and His divine power] continues to grow, our field among you may be greatly expanded [but still within the limits of our commission],

¹⁶so that we may preach the gospel even in the lands beyond you, but not to boast in work already accomplished in another one's field of activity.

¹⁷However, "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."

¹⁸For it is not he who commends and praises himself who is approved [by God], but it is the one whom the Lord commends and praises.

¹So you, my son, be strong [constantly strengthened] and empowered in the grace that is [to be found only] in Christ Jesus.

²The things [the doctrine, the precepts, the admonitions, the sum of my ministry] which you have heard me teach in the presence of many witnesses, entrust [as a treasure] to reliable and faithful men who will also be capable and qualified to teach others.

³Take with me your share of hardship [passing through the difficulties which you are called to endure], like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

⁴No soldier in active service gets entangled in the [ordinary business] affairs of civilian life; [he avoids them] so that he may please the one who enlisted him to serve.

⁵And if anyone competes as an athlete [in competitive games], he is not crowned [with the wreath of victory] unless he competes according to the rules.

⁶The hard-working farmer [who labors to produce crops] ought to be the first to receive his share of the crops.

⁷Think over the things I am saying [grasp their application], for the Lord will grant you insight and understanding in everything.

⁸Remember Jesus Christ [the ever-living Lord who has] risen from the dead, [as the prophesied King] descended from David [king of Israel], according to my gospel [the good news that I preach],

⁹for that [gospel] I am suffering even to [the point of] wearing chains like a criminal; but the word of God is not chained or imprisoned!

¹⁰For this reason I [am ready to] patiently endure all things for the sake of those who are the elect (God's chosen ones), so that they too may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it the reward of eternal glory.

¹¹This is a faithful and trustworthy saying: If we died with Him, we will also live with Him;

¹²If we endure, we will also reign with Him; If we deny Him, He will also deny us;

¹³If we are faithless, He remains faithful [true to His word and His righteous character], for He cannot deny Himself.

¹⁴Remind the people of these facts, and solemnly charge them in the presence of God to avoid petty controversy over words, which does no good, and [upsets and undermines and] ruins [the faith of] those who listen.

¹⁵Study and do your best to present yourself to God approved, a workman [tested by trial] who has no reason to be ashamed, accurately handling and skillfully teaching the word of truth.

¹⁶But avoid all irreverent babble and godless chatter [with its profane, empty words], for it will lead to further ungodliness,

¹⁷and their teaching will spread like gangrene. So it is with Hymenaeus and Philetus,

¹⁸who have deviated from the truth. They claim that the resurrection has already taken place, and they undermine the faith of some.

¹⁹Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God [which He has laid] stands [sure and unshaken despite attacks], bearing this seal: "The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Let everyone who names the name of the Lord stand apart from wickedness and withdraw from wrongdoing."

²⁰Now in a large house there are not only vessels and objects of gold and silver, but also vessels and objects of wood and of earthenware, and some are for honorable (noble, good) use and some for dishonorable (ignoble, common).

²¹Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things [which are dishonorable—disobedient, sinful], he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified [set apart for a special purpose and], useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.

²²Run away from youthful lusts—pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace with those [believers] who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

²³But have nothing to do with foolish and ignorant speculations [useless disputes over unedifying, stupid controversies], since you know that they produce strife and give birth to quarrels.

²⁴The servant of the Lord must not participate in quarrels, but must be kind to everyone [even-tempered, preserving peace, and he must be], skilled in teaching, patient and tolerant when wronged.

²⁵He must correct those who are in opposition with courtesy and gentleness in the hope that God may grant that they will repent and be led to the knowledge of the truth [accurately understanding and welcoming it],

²⁶and that they may come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.

¹"Surely there is a mine for silver, And a place where they refine gold.

²"Iron is taken out of the earth, And copper is smelted from the stone ore.

³"Man puts an end to darkness [by bringing in a light], And to the farthest bounds he searches out The rock buried in gloom and deep shadow.

⁴"He breaks open (mine) shafts far away from where people live, [In places] forgotten by the [human] foot; They dangle [in the mines] and hang away from men.

⁵"[As for] the earth, out of it comes food, But underneath [its surface, down deep] it is turned over as fire.

⁶"Its stones are the bed of sapphires; It holds dust of gold.

⁷"The path [deep within] no bird of prey knows, And the falcon's eye has not caught sight of it.

⁸"The proud beasts [and their young] have not walked on it, Nor has the fierce lion passed over it.

⁹"Man puts his hand on [and tears apart] the flinty rock; He overturns the mountains at the base [looking for treasure].

¹⁰"He cuts out channels and passages among the rocks; And his eye sees every precious thing.

¹¹"Man dams up the streams from flowing [so that they do not trickle into the mine], And what is hidden he brings out to the light.

¹²"But where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?

¹³"Man does not know the value of it; Nor is it found in the land of the living.

¹⁴"The deep says, 'It is not in me'; And the sea says, 'It is not with me.'

¹⁵"It cannot be obtained for pure gold, Nor can silver be weighed as its price.

¹⁶"It cannot be valued in [terms of] the gold of Ophir, In the precious onyx or beryl, or the sapphire.

¹⁷"Gold and glass cannot equal wisdom, Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold.

¹⁸"No mention of coral and crystal can be made; For the possession of wisdom is even above [that of] rubies or pearls.

¹⁹"The topaz of Ethiopia cannot compare with it, Nor can it be valued in pure gold.

²⁰"From where then does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding?

²¹"It is hidden from the eyes of all the living And concealed from the birds of the heavens.

²²"Abaddon (the place of destruction) and Death say, 'We have [only] heard a report of it with our ears.'

²³"God understands the way [to wisdom] And He knows its place [for wisdom is with God alone].

²⁴"For He looks to the ends of the earth And sees everything under the heavens.

²⁵"When He gave weight and pressure to the wind And allotted the waters by measure,

²⁶When He made a limit for the rain And a way for the thunderbolt,

²⁷Then He saw wisdom and declared it; He established it and searched it out.

²⁸"But to man He said, 'Behold, the reverential and worshipful fear of the Lord—that is wisdom; And to depart from evil is understanding.'"

¹A Song of Ascents. When the LORD brought back the captives to Zion (Jerusalem), We were like those who dream [it seemed so unreal].

²Then our mouth was filled with laughter And our tongue with joyful shouting; Then they said among the nations, "The LORD has done great things for them."

³The LORD has done great things for us; We are glad!

⁴Restore our captivity, O LORD, As the stream-beds in the South (the Negev) [are restored by torrents of rain].

⁵They who sow in tears shall reap with joyful singing.

⁶He who goes back and forth weeping, carrying his bag of seed [for planting], Will indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

¹The wicked flee when no one pursues them, But the righteous are as bold as a lion.

²When a land does wrong, it has many princes, But when the ruler is a man of understanding and knowledge, its stability endures.

³A poor man who oppresses and exploits the lowly Is like a sweeping rain which leaves no food.

⁴Those who set aside the law [of God and man] praise the wicked, But those who keep the law [of God and man] struggle with them.

⁵Evil men do not understand justice, But they who long for and seek the LORD understand it fully.

⁶Better is the poor who walks in his integrity Than he who is crooked and two-faced though he is rich.

⁷He who keeps the law [of God and man] is a wise and discerning son, But he who is a companion of gluttons humiliates his father [and himself].

⁸He who increases his wealth by interest and usury (excessive interest) Gathers it for him who is gracious to the poor.

⁹He who turns his ear away from listening to the law [of God and man], Even his prayer is repulsive [to God].

¹⁰He who leads the upright astray on an evil path Will himself fall into his own pit, But the blameless will inherit good.

¹¹The rich man [who is conceited and relies on his wealth instead of God] is wise in his own eyes, But the poor man who has understanding [because he relies on God] is able to see through him.

¹²When the righteous triumph, there is great glory and celebration; But when the wicked rise [to prominence], men hide themselves.

¹³He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But whoever confesses and turns away from his sins will find compassion and mercy.

¹⁴Blessed and favored by God is the man who fears [sin and its consequence] at all times, But he who hardens his heart [and is determined to sin] will fall into disaster.

¹⁵Like a roaring lion and a charging bear Is a wicked ruler over a poor people.

¹⁶A leader who is a great oppressor lacks understanding and common sense [and his wickedness shortens his days], But he who hates unjust gain will [be blessed and] prolong his days.

¹⁷A man who is burdened with the guilt of human blood (murder) Will be a fugitive until death; let no one support him or give him refuge.

¹⁸He who walks blamelessly and uprightly will be kept safe, But he who is crooked (perverse) will suddenly fall.

¹⁹He who cultivates his land will have plenty of bread, But he who follows worthless people and frivolous pursuits will have plenty of poverty.

²⁰A faithful (right-minded) man will abound with blessings, But he who hurries to be rich will not go unpunished.

²¹To have regard for one person over another and to show favoritism is not good, Because for a piece of bread a man will transgress.

²²He who has an evil and envious eye hurries to be rich And does not know that poverty will come upon him.

²³He who [appropriately] reprimands a [wise] man will afterward find more favor Than he who flatters with the tongue.

²⁴He who robs his father or his mother And says, "This is no sin," Is [not only a thief but also] the companion of a man who destroys.

²⁵An arrogant and greedy man stirs up strife, But he who trusts in the LORD will be blessed and prosper.

²⁶He who trusts confidently in his own heart is a [dull, thickheaded] fool, But he who walks in [skillful and godly] wisdom will be rescued.

²⁷He who gives to the poor will never want, But he who shuts his eyes [from their need] will have many curses.

²⁸When the wicked rise [to power], men hide themselves; But when the wicked perish, the [consistently] righteous increase and become great.

¹Now these are the nations which the LORD left [in order] to test Israel by them (that is, all [the people of Israel] who had not [previously] experienced any of the wars in Canaan;

²only in order that the generations of the sons of Israel might be taught war, at least those who had not experienced it previously).

³The remaining nations are: the five lords (governors) of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who lived on Mount Lebanon from Mount Baal-hermon to the entrance of Hamath.

⁴They were [allowed to remain] for the testing of Israel, to determine whether Israel would listen to and obey the commandments of the LORD, which He had commanded their fathers (ancestors) through Moses.

⁵And the Israelites lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites;

⁶and they took their daughters for themselves as wives and gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their [pagan] gods.

⁷And the Israelites did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they forgot the LORD their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth.

⁸So the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the Israelites served Cushan-rishathaim eight years.

⁹But when the Israelites cried out to the LORD [for help], the LORD raised up a man to rescue the people of Israel, Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother.

¹⁰The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the LORD gave Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand, and he prevailed over Cushan-rishathaim.

¹¹And the land was at rest [from oppression for] forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.

¹²Now the Israelites again did evil in the sight of the LORD, and the LORD strengthened Eglon king of Moab against Israel, since they had done what was evil in the sight of the LORD.

¹³And Eglon gathered to him the sons of Ammon and Amalek, and went and struck down Israel [in defeat], and they took possession of the City of Palm Trees (Jericho).

¹⁴And the Israelites served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years.

¹⁵But when the Israelites cried out to the LORD [for help], the LORD raised up a man to rescue them, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a left-handed man. And the Israelites sent a gift of tribute by him to Eglon king of Moab.

¹⁶Now Ehud made for himself a sword a cubit long, which had two edges, and he bound it on his right thigh under his robe.

¹⁷And he brought the tribute to Eglon king of Moab. Now Eglon was a very fat man.

¹⁸And when Ehud had finished presenting the tribute, he sent away the people who had carried it.

¹⁹But Ehud himself turned back from the sculptured stones at Gilgal, [and he returned to Eglon] and said [to him], "I have a secret message for you, O king." Eglon said "Keep silence." And all who attended him left him.

²⁰Ehud came to him as he was sitting alone in his [private] cool upper chamber, and Ehud said, "I have a message from God for you." And the king got up from his seat.

²¹Then Ehud reached out with his left hand and took the sword from his right thigh, and plunged it into Eglon's belly.

²²And the hilt also went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, because Ehud did not draw the sword out of his belly; and the refuse came out.

²³Then Ehud went out into the vestibule and shut the doors of the upper chamber behind him, and locked them.

²⁴When Ehud departed, Eglon's servants came. And when they saw that the doors of the upper room were locked, they said, "He is only relieving himself in the cool room."

²⁵They waited [a very long time] until they became embarrassed and uneasy, but he still did not open the doors of the upper room. So [finally] they took the key and opened them, and behold, their master had fallen to the floor, dead.

²⁶Now Ehud escaped while they lingered, and he passed beyond the sculptured stones and escaped to Seirah.

²⁷When he had arrived, he blew a trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim; and the sons of Israel went down with him from the hill country, and he was in front of them.

²⁸And he said to them, "Pursue them, for the LORD has handed over your enemies the Moabites to you." So they went down after him and seized the fords of the Jordan opposite Moab and did not allow anyone to cross.

²⁹They struck down at that time about ten thousand Moabite men, all strong, courageous men; not a man escaped.

³⁰So Moab was subdued and humbled that day under the hand of Israel, and the land was at rest for eighty years.

³¹After Ehud came Shamgar the son of Anath, who struck down six hundred Philistine men with an oxgoad. He too saved Israel.

¹In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: "We have a strong city; He sets up salvation as walls and ramparts.

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

³"You will keep in perfect and constant peace the one whose mind is steadfast [that is, committed and focused on You—in both inclination and character], Because he trusts and takes refuge in You [with hope and confident expectation].

⁴"Trust [confidently] in the LORD forever [He is your fortress, your shield, your banner], For the Lord God is an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages].

⁵"For He has thrown down the [arrogant] ones who dwell on high, the lofty and inaccessible city; He lays it low, He lays it low to the ground, He hurls it to the dust.

⁶"The foot will trample it, Even the feet of the suffering, and the steps of the helpless."

⁷The way of the righteous [those in right-standing with God—living in moral and spiritual integrity] is smooth and level; O Upright One, make a level path for the just and righteous.

⁸Indeed, in the path of Your judgments, O LORD, We have waited expectantly for You; Your name, even Your memory, is the desire and deep longing of our souls.

⁹In the night my soul longs for You [O LORD], Indeed, my spirit within me seeks You diligently; For [only] when Your judgments are experienced on the earth Will the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

¹⁰Though the wicked is shown compassion and favor, He does not learn righteousness; In the land of uprightness he deals unjustly, And refuses to see the majesty of the LORD.

¹¹Though Your hand is lifted up [to strike], O LORD, the wicked do not see it. Let them see Your zeal for Your people and be put to shame; Indeed, let the fire reserved for Your enemies consume them.

¹²LORD, You will establish peace for us, Since You have also performed for us all that we have done.

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

¹⁴The [wicked] dead will not live [again], the spirits of the dead will not rise and return; Therefore You have punished and destroyed them, And You have wiped out every memory of them [every trace of them].

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

¹⁶O LORD, they sought You in distress; They managed only a prayerful whisper When Your discipline was upon them.

¹⁷As a woman with child approaches the time to give birth, She is in pain and struggles and cries out in her labor, So we were before You, O LORD.

¹⁸We have been with child, we have twisted and struggled in labor; We gave birth, as it seems, only to wind. We could not accomplish salvation for the earth, Nor were inhabitants of the world born.

¹⁹Your dead will live; Their dead bodies will rise. You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy! For your dew is a dew of [celestial] light [heavenly, supernatural], And the earth will give birth to the spirits of the dead.

²⁰Come, my people, enter your chambers And shut your doors behind you; Hide for a little while Until the [Lord's] wrath is past.

²¹Listen carefully, the LORD is about to come out of His [heavenly] place To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their wickedness [their sin, their injustice, their wrongdoing]; The earth will reveal the [innocent] blood shed upon her And will no longer cover her slain.

¹Five days later, the high priest Ananias came down [from Jerusalem to Caesarea] with some elders and an attorney named Tertullus [acting as spokesman and counsel]. They presented to the governor their [formal] charges against Paul.

²After Paul had been summoned, Tertullus began the complaint [against him], saying to the governor: "Since through you we have attained great peace, and since by your foresight reforms are being carried out for this nation,

³in every way and in every place, most excellent Felix, we acknowledge this with all gratitude.

⁴But so that I do not weary you further, I beg you to grant us, by your kindness, a brief hearing.

⁵For we have found this man to be a public menace and one who instigates dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the [heretical] sect of the Nazarenes.

⁶He even tried to desecrate the temple, but we took him into custody[and we intended to judge him by our Law,

⁷but Lysias the commander came, and with great force took him out of our hands,

⁸and ordered his accusers to come before you.] By interrogating him yourself concerning all these matters you will be able to determine [the truth about] these things with which we charge him."

⁹The Jews also joined in the attack, declaring and insisting that these things were so.

¹⁰When the governor nodded for him to speak, Paul answered, "Knowing that for many years you have been a judge over this nation, I make my defense cheerfully and with good courage.

¹¹As you can easily verify, it has been no more than twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem to worship.

¹²Neither in the temple, nor in the synagogues, nor elsewhere in the city did they find me carrying on a discussion or disputing with anybody or causing a crowd to gather.

¹³Nor can they present evidence to you to prove what they now bring against me.

¹⁴But I confess this to you, that according to the Way, which they call a [divisive and heretical] sect, I do worship and serve the God of our fathers, [confidently] believing everything that is in accordance with the Law [of Moses] and that is written in the Prophets;

¹⁵having [the same] hope in God which these men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of [the dead], both of the righteous and of the wicked.

¹⁶In view of this, I also do my best and strive always to have a clear conscience before God and before men.

¹⁷Now after several years I came [to Jerusalem] to bring to my people charitable contributions and offerings.

¹⁸They found me in the temple presenting these offerings, after I had undergone [the rites of] purification, without any crowd or uproar. But there were some Jews from [the west coast province of] Asia [Minor],

¹⁹who ought to have been here before you to present their charges, if they have anything against me.

²⁰Or else let these men tell what crime they found [me guilty of] when I stood before the Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court),

²¹other than for this one statement which I had shouted out as I stood among them, 'For the resurrection of the dead I am on trial before you today.'"

²²But Felix, having a rather accurate understanding about the Way, put them off, saying, "When Lysias the commander comes down, I will decide your case."

²³Then he ordered the centurion to keep Paul in custody, but to let him have some freedom, and [he told the centurion] not to stop any of his friends from providing for his needs.

²⁴Several days later Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was a Jewess. He sent for Paul and listened to him talk about faith in Christ Jesus.

²⁵But as he was discussing righteousness, self-control [honorable behavior, personal integrity], and the judgment to come, Felix became frightened and said, "Go away for now, and when I find [a convenient] time I will send for you."

²⁶At the same time he was also hoping to get money from Paul [as a bribe]; so he continued to send for him quite often and talked with him.

²⁷But after two years had passed, Felix was succeeded [in office] by Porcius Festus; and wishing to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul imprisoned.