Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹At about that time Jesus was walking through some grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, so they began breaking off some heads of grain and eating them.

²But some Pharisees saw them do it and protested, “Look, your disciples are breaking the law by harvesting grain on the Sabbath.”

³Jesus said to them, “Haven’t you read in the Scriptures what David did when he and his companions were hungry?

⁴He went into the house of God, and he and his companions broke the law by eating the sacred loaves of bread that only the priests are allowed to eat.

⁵And haven’t you read in the law of Moses that the priests on duty in the Temple may work on the Sabbath?

⁶I tell you, there is one here who is even greater than the Temple!

⁷But you would not have condemned my innocent disciples if you knew the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’

⁸For the Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath!”

⁹Then Jesus went over to their synagogue,

¹⁰where he noticed a man with a deformed hand. The Pharisees asked Jesus, “Does the law permit a person to work by healing on the Sabbath?” (They were hoping he would say yes, so they could bring charges against him.)

¹¹And he answered, “If you had a sheep that fell into a well on the Sabbath, wouldn’t you work to pull it out? Of course you would.

¹²And how much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Yes, the law permits a person to do good on the Sabbath.”

¹³Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored, just like the other one!

¹⁴Then the Pharisees called a meeting to plot how to kill Jesus.

¹⁵But Jesus knew what they were planning. So he left that area, and many people followed him. He healed all the sick among them,

¹⁶but he warned them not to reveal who he was.

¹⁷This fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah concerning him:

¹⁸“Look at my Servant, whom I have chosen. He is my Beloved, who pleases me. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.

¹⁹He will not fight or shout or raise his voice in public.

²⁰He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. Finally he will cause justice to be victorious.

²¹And his name will be the hope of all the world.”

²²Then a demon-possessed man, who was blind and couldn’t speak, was brought to Jesus. He healed the man so that he could both speak and see.

²³The crowd was amazed and asked, “Could it be that Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah?”

²⁴But when the Pharisees heard about the miracle, they said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.”

²⁵Jesus knew their thoughts and replied, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A town or family splintered by feuding will fall apart.

²⁶And if Satan is casting out Satan, he is divided and fighting against himself. His own kingdom will not survive.

²⁷And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own exorcists? They cast out demons, too, so they will condemn you for what you have said.

²⁸But if I am casting out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you.

²⁹For who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger — someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house.

³⁰“Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.

³¹“So I tell you, every sin and blasphemy can be forgiven — except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which will never be forgiven.

³²Anyone who speaks against the Son of Man can be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, either in this world or in the world to come.

³³“A tree is identified by its fruit. If a tree is good, its fruit will be good. If a tree is bad, its fruit will be bad.

³⁴You brood of snakes! How could evil men like you speak what is good and right? For whatever is in your heart determines what you say.

³⁵A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart.

³⁶And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak.

³⁷The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you.”

³⁸One day some teachers of religious law and Pharisees came to Jesus and said, “Teacher, we want you to show us a miraculous sign to prove your authority.”

³⁹But Jesus replied, “Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign; but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah.

⁴⁰For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.

⁴¹“The people of Nineveh will stand up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, for they repented of their sins at the preaching of Jonah. Now someone greater than Jonah is here — but you refuse to repent.

⁴²The queen of Sheba will also stand up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, for she came from a distant land to hear the wisdom of Solomon. Now someone greater than Solomon is here — but you refuse to listen.

⁴³“When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, seeking rest but finding none.

⁴⁴Then it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ So it returns and finds its former home empty, swept, and in order.

⁴⁵Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before. That will be the experience of this evil generation.”

⁴⁶As Jesus was speaking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him.

⁴⁷Someone told Jesus, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, and they want to speak to you.”

⁴⁸Jesus asked, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?”

⁴⁹Then he pointed to his disciples and said, “Look, these are my mother and brothers.

⁵⁰Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!”

¹“When you present grain as an offering to the LORD, the offering must consist of choice flour. You are to pour olive oil on it, sprinkle it with frankincense,

²and bring it to Aaron’s sons, the priests. The priest will scoop out a handful of the flour moistened with oil, together with all the frankincense, and burn this representative portion on the altar. It is a special gift, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

³The rest of the grain offering will then be given to Aaron and his sons. This offering will be considered a most holy part of the special gifts presented to the LORD.

⁴“If your offering is a grain offering baked in an oven, it must be made of choice flour, but without any yeast. It may be presented in the form of thin cakes mixed with olive oil or wafers spread with olive oil.

⁵If your grain offering is cooked on a griddle, it must be made of choice flour mixed with olive oil but without any yeast.

⁶Break it in pieces and pour olive oil on it; it is a grain offering.

⁷If your grain offering is prepared in a pan, it must be made of choice flour and olive oil.

⁸“No matter how a grain offering for the LORD has been prepared, bring it to the priest, who will present it at the altar.

⁹The priest will take a representative portion of the grain offering and burn it on the altar. It is a special gift, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

¹⁰The rest of the grain offering will then be given to Aaron and his sons as their food. This offering will be considered a most holy part of the special gifts presented to the LORD.

¹¹“Do not use yeast in preparing any of the grain offerings you present to the LORD, because no yeast or honey may be burned as a special gift presented to the LORD.

¹²You may add yeast and honey to an offering of the first crops of your harvest, but these must never be offered on the altar as a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

¹³Season all your grain offerings with salt to remind you of God’s eternal covenant. Never forget to add salt to your grain offerings.

¹⁴“If you present a grain offering to the LORD from the first portion of your harvest, bring fresh grain that is coarsely ground and roasted on a fire.

¹⁵Put olive oil on this grain offering, and sprinkle it with frankincense.

¹⁶The priest will take a representative portion of the grain moistened with oil, together with all the frankincense, and burn it as a special gift presented to the LORD.

¹This is the third time I am coming to visit you (and as the Scriptures say, “The facts of every case must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses” ).

²I have already warned those who had been sinning when I was there on my second visit. Now I again warn them and all others, just as I did before, that next time I will not spare them.

³I will give you all the proof you want that Christ speaks through me. Christ is not weak when he deals with you; he is powerful among you.

⁴Although he was crucified in weakness, he now lives by the power of God. We, too, are weak, just as Christ was, but when we deal with you we will be alive with him and will have God’s power.

⁵Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you ; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.

⁶As you test yourselves, I hope you will recognize that we have not failed the test of apostolic authority.

⁷We pray to God that you will not do what is wrong by refusing our correction. I hope we won’t need to demonstrate our authority when we arrive. Do the right thing before we come — even if that makes it look like we have failed to demonstrate our authority.

⁸For we cannot oppose the truth, but must always stand for the truth.

⁹We are glad to seem weak if it helps show that you are actually strong. We pray that you will become mature.

¹⁰I am writing this to you before I come, hoping that I won’t need to deal severely with you when I do come. For I want to use the authority the Lord has given me to strengthen you, not to tear you down.

¹¹Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words: Be joyful. Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in harmony and peace. Then the God of love and peace will be with you.

¹²Greet each other with a sacred kiss.

¹³All of God’s people here send you their greetings.

¹⁴May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

¹This letter is from Paul, a slave of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ. I have been sent to proclaim faith to those God has chosen and to teach them to know the truth that shows them how to live godly lives.

²This truth gives them confidence that they have eternal life, which God — who does not lie — promised them before the world began.

³And now at just the right time he has revealed this message, which we announce to everyone. It is by the command of God our Savior that I have been entrusted with this work for him.

⁴I am writing to Titus, my true son in the faith that we share. May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior give you grace and peace.

⁵I left you on the island of Crete so you could complete our work there and appoint elders in each town as I instructed you.

⁶An elder must live a blameless life. He must be faithful to his wife, and his children must be believers who don’t have a reputation for being wild or rebellious.

⁷A church leader is a manager of God’s household, so he must live a blameless life. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered; he must not be a heavy drinker, violent, or dishonest with money.

⁸Rather, he must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must love what is good. He must live wisely and be just. He must live a devout and disciplined life.

⁹He must have a strong belief in the trustworthy message he was taught; then he will be able to encourage others with wholesome teaching and show those who oppose it where they are wrong.

¹⁰For there are many rebellious people who engage in useless talk and deceive others. This is especially true of those who insist on circumcision for salvation.

¹¹They must be silenced, because they are turning whole families away from the truth by their false teaching. And they do it only for money.

¹²Even one of their own men, a prophet from Crete, has said about them, “The people of Crete are all liars, cruel animals, and lazy gluttons.”

¹³This is true. So reprimand them sternly to make them strong in the faith.

¹⁴They must stop listening to Jewish myths and the commands of people who have turned away from the truth.

¹⁵Everything is pure to those whose hearts are pure. But nothing is pure to those who are corrupt and unbelieving, because their minds and consciences are corrupted.

¹⁶Such people claim they know God, but they deny him by the way they live. They are detestable and disobedient, worthless for doing anything good.

¹“I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust at a young woman.

²For what has God above chosen for us? What is our inheritance from the Almighty on high?

³Isn’t it calamity for the wicked and misfortune for those who do evil?

⁴Doesn’t he see everything I do and every step I take?

⁵“Have I lied to anyone or deceived anyone?

⁶Let God weigh me on the scales of justice, for he knows my integrity.

⁷If I have strayed from his pathway, or if my heart has lusted for what my eyes have seen, or if I am guilty of any other sin,

⁸then let someone else eat the crops I have planted. Let all that I have planted be uprooted.

⁹“If my heart has been seduced by a woman, or if I have lusted for my neighbor’s wife,

¹⁰then let my wife serve another man; let other men sleep with her.

¹¹For lust is a shameful sin, a crime that should be punished.

¹²It is a fire that burns all the way to hell. It would wipe out everything I own.

¹³“If I have been unfair to my male or female servants when they brought their complaints to me,

¹⁴how could I face God? What could I say when he questioned me?

¹⁵For God created both me and my servants. He created us both in the womb.

¹⁶“Have I refused to help the poor, or crushed the hopes of widows?

¹⁷Have I been stingy with my food and refused to share it with orphans?

¹⁸No, from childhood I have cared for orphans like a father, and all my life I have cared for widows.

¹⁹Whenever I saw the homeless without clothes and the needy with nothing to wear,

²⁰did they not praise me for providing wool clothing to keep them warm?

²¹“If I raised my hand against an orphan, knowing the judges would take my side,

²²then let my shoulder be wrenched out of place! Let my arm be torn from its socket!

²³That would be better than facing God’s judgment. For if the majesty of God opposes me, what hope is there?

²⁴“Have I put my trust in money or felt secure because of my gold?

²⁵Have I gloated about my wealth and all that I own?

²⁶“Have I looked at the sun shining in the skies, or the moon walking down its silver pathway,

²⁷and been secretly enticed in my heart to throw kisses at them in worship?

²⁸If so, I should be punished by the judges, for it would mean I had denied the God of heaven.

²⁹“Have I ever rejoiced when disaster struck my enemies, or become excited when harm came their way?

³⁰No, I have never sinned by cursing anyone or by asking for revenge.

³¹“My servants have never said, ‘He let others go hungry.’

³²I have never turned away a stranger but have opened my doors to everyone.

³³“Have I tried to hide my sins like other people do, concealing my guilt in my heart?

³⁴Have I feared the crowd or the contempt of the masses, so that I kept quiet and stayed indoors?

³⁵“If only someone would listen to me! Look, I will sign my name to my defense. Let the Almighty answer me. Let my accuser write out the charges against me.

³⁶I would face the accusation proudly. I would wear it like a crown.

³⁷For I would tell him exactly what I have done. I would come before him like a prince.

³⁸“If my land accuses me and all its furrows cry out together,

³⁹or if I have stolen its crops or murdered its owners,

⁴⁰then let thistles grow on that land instead of wheat, and weeds instead of barley.” Job’s words are ended.

¹From my earliest youth my enemies have persecuted me. Let all Israel repeat this:

²From my earliest youth my enemies have persecuted me, but they have never defeated me.

³My back is covered with cuts, as if a farmer had plowed long furrows.

⁴But the LORD is good; he has cut me free from the ropes of the ungodly.

⁵May all who hate Jerusalem be turned back in shameful defeat.

⁶May they be as useless as grass on a rooftop, turning yellow when only half grown,

⁷ignored by the harvester, despised by the binder.

⁸And may those who pass by refuse to give them this blessing: “The LORD bless you; we bless you in the LORD’s name.”

¹The sayings of King Lemuel contain this message, which his mother taught him.

²O my son, O son of my womb, O son of my vows,

³do not waste your strength on women, on those who ruin kings.

⁴It is not for kings, O Lemuel, to guzzle wine. Rulers should not crave alcohol.

⁵For if they drink, they may forget the law and not give justice to the oppressed.

⁶Alcohol is for the dying, and wine for those in bitter distress.

⁷Let them drink to forget their poverty and remember their troubles no more.

⁸Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed.

⁹Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice.

¹⁰Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies.

¹¹Her husband can trust her, and she will greatly enrich his life.

¹²She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.

¹³She finds wool and flax and busily spins it.

¹⁴She is like a merchant’s ship, bringing her food from afar.

¹⁵She gets up before dawn to prepare breakfast for her household and plan the day’s work for her servant girls.

¹⁶She goes to inspect a field and buys it; with her earnings she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷She is energetic and strong, a hard worker.

¹⁸She makes sure her dealings are profitable; her lamp burns late into the night.

¹⁹Her hands are busy spinning thread, her fingers twisting fiber.

²⁰She extends a helping hand to the poor and opens her arms to the needy.

²¹She has no fear of winter for her household, for everyone has warm clothes.

²²She makes her own bedspreads. She dresses in fine linen and purple gowns.

²³Her husband is well known at the city gates, where he sits with the other civic leaders.

²⁴She makes belted linen garments and sashes to sell to the merchants.

²⁵She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.

²⁶When she speaks, her words are wise, and she gives instructions with kindness.

²⁷She carefully watches everything in her household and suffers nothing from laziness.

²⁸Her children stand and bless her. Her husband praises her:

²⁹“There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!”

³⁰Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the LORD will be greatly praised.

³¹Reward her for all she has done. Let her deeds publicly declare her praise.

¹The Israelites did evil in the LORD’s sight. So the LORD handed them over to the Midianites for seven years.

²The Midianites were so cruel that the Israelites made hiding places for themselves in the mountains, caves, and strongholds.

³Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, marauders from Midian, Amalek, and the people of the east would attack Israel,

⁴camping in the land and destroying crops as far away as Gaza. They left the Israelites with nothing to eat, taking all the sheep, goats, cattle, and donkeys.

⁵These enemy hordes, coming with their livestock and tents, were as thick as locusts; they arrived on droves of camels too numerous to count. And they stayed until the land was stripped bare.

⁶So Israel was reduced to starvation by the Midianites. Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD for help.

⁷When they cried out to the LORD because of Midian,

⁸the LORD sent a prophet to the Israelites. He said, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I brought you up out of slavery in Egypt.

⁹I rescued you from the Egyptians and from all who oppressed you. I drove out your enemies and gave you their land.

¹⁰I told you, ‘I am the LORD your God. You must not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you now live.’ But you have not listened to me.”

¹¹Then the angel of the LORD came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abiezer. Gideon son of Joash was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites.

¹²The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the LORD is with you!”

¹³“Sir,” Gideon replied, “if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The LORD brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the LORD has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.”

¹⁴Then the LORD turned to him and said, “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!”

¹⁵“But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!”

¹⁶The LORD said to him, “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man.”

¹⁷Gideon replied, “If you are truly going to help me, show me a sign to prove that it is really the LORD speaking to me.

¹⁸Don’t go away until I come back and bring my offering to you.” He answered, “I will stay here until you return.”

¹⁹Gideon hurried home. He cooked a young goat, and with a basket of flour he baked some bread without yeast. Then, carrying the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot, he brought them out and presented them to the angel, who was under the great tree.

²⁰The angel of God said to him, “Place the meat and the unleavened bread on this rock, and pour the broth over it.” And Gideon did as he was told.

²¹Then the angel of the LORD touched the meat and bread with the tip of the staff in his hand, and fire flamed up from the rock and consumed all he had brought. And the angel of the LORD disappeared.

²²When Gideon realized that it was the angel of the LORD, he cried out, “Oh, Sovereign LORD, I’m doomed! I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face!”

²³“It is all right,” the LORD replied. “Do not be afraid. You will not die.”

²⁴And Gideon built an altar to the LORD there and named it Yahweh-Shalom (which means “the LORD is peace”). The altar remains in Ophrah in the land of the clan of Abiezer to this day.

²⁵That night the LORD said to Gideon, “Take the second bull from your father’s herd, the one that is seven years old. Pull down your father’s altar to Baal, and cut down the Asherah pole standing beside it.

²⁶Then build an altar to the LORD your God here on this hilltop sanctuary, laying the stones carefully. Sacrifice the bull as a burnt offering on the altar, using as fuel the wood of the Asherah pole you cut down.”

²⁷So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the LORD had commanded. But he did it at night because he was afraid of the other members of his father’s household and the people of the town.

²⁸Early the next morning, as the people of the town began to stir, someone discovered that the altar of Baal had been broken down and that the Asherah pole beside it had been cut down. In their place a new altar had been built, and on it were the remains of the bull that had been sacrificed.

²⁹The people said to each other, “Who did this?” And after asking around and making a careful search, they learned that it was Gideon, the son of Joash.

³⁰“Bring out your son,” the men of the town demanded of Joash. “He must die for destroying the altar of Baal and for cutting down the Asherah pole.”

³¹But Joash shouted to the mob that confronted him, “Why are you defending Baal? Will you argue his case? Whoever pleads his case will be put to death by morning! If Baal truly is a god, let him defend himself and destroy the one who broke down his altar!”

³²From then on Gideon was called Jerub-baal, which means “Let Baal defend himself,” because he broke down Baal’s altar.

³³Soon afterward the armies of Midian, Amalek, and the people of the east formed an alliance against Israel and crossed the Jordan, camping in the valley of Jezreel.

³⁴Then the Spirit of the LORD clothed Gideon with power. He blew a ram’s horn as a call to arms, and the men of the clan of Abiezer came to him.

³⁵He also sent messengers throughout Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun, and Naphtali, summoning their warriors, and all of them responded.

³⁶Then Gideon said to God, “If you are truly going to use me to rescue Israel as you promised,

³⁷prove it to me in this way. I will put a wool fleece on the threshing floor tonight. If the fleece is wet with dew in the morning but the ground is dry, then I will know that you are going to help me rescue Israel as you promised.”

³⁸And that is just what happened. When Gideon got up early the next morning, he squeezed the fleece and wrung out a whole bowlful of water.

³⁹Then Gideon said to God, “Please don’t be angry with me, but let me make one more request. Let me use the fleece for one more test. This time let the fleece remain dry while the ground around it is wet with dew.”

⁴⁰So that night God did as Gideon asked. The fleece was dry in the morning, but the ground was covered with dew.

¹“What sorrow awaits Ariel, the City of David. Year after year you celebrate your feasts.

²Yet I will bring disaster upon you, and there will be much weeping and sorrow. For Jerusalem will become what her name Ariel means — an altar covered with blood.

³I will be your enemy, surrounding Jerusalem and attacking its walls. I will build siege towers and destroy it.

⁴Then deep from the earth you will speak; from low in the dust your words will come. Your voice will whisper from the ground like a ghost conjured up from the grave.

⁵“But suddenly, your ruthless enemies will be crushed like the finest of dust. Your many attackers will be driven away like chaff before the wind. Suddenly, in an instant,

⁶I, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, will act for you with thunder and earthquake and great noise, with whirlwind and storm and consuming fire.

⁷All the nations fighting against Jerusalem will vanish like a dream! Those who are attacking her walls will vanish like a vision in the night.

⁸A hungry person dreams of eating but wakes up still hungry. A thirsty person dreams of drinking but is still faint from thirst when morning comes. So it will be with your enemies, with those who attack Mount Zion.”

⁹Are you amazed and incredulous? Don’t you believe it? Then go ahead and be blind. You are stupid, but not from wine! You stagger, but not from liquor!

¹⁰For the LORD has poured out on you a spirit of deep sleep. He has closed the eyes of your prophets and visionaries.

¹¹All the future events in this vision are like a sealed book to them. When you give it to those who can read, they will say, “We can’t read it because it is sealed.”

¹²When you give it to those who cannot read, they will say, “We don’t know how to read.”

¹³And so the Lord says, “These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote.

¹⁴Because of this, I will once again astound these hypocrites with amazing wonders. The wisdom of the wise will pass away, and the intelligence of the intelligent will disappear.”

¹⁵What sorrow awaits those who try to hide their plans from the LORD, who do their evil deeds in the dark! “The LORD can’t see us,” they say. “He doesn’t know what’s going on!”

¹⁶How foolish can you be? He is the Potter, and he is certainly greater than you, the clay! Should the created thing say of the one who made it, “He didn’t make me”? Does a jar ever say, “The potter who made me is stupid”?

¹⁷Soon — and it will not be very long — the forests of Lebanon will become a fertile field, and the fertile field will yield bountiful crops.

¹⁸In that day the deaf will hear words read from a book, and the blind will see through the gloom and darkness.

¹⁹The humble will be filled with fresh joy from the LORD. The poor will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

²⁰The scoffer will be gone, the arrogant will disappear, and those who plot evil will be killed.

²¹Those who convict the innocent by their false testimony will disappear. A similar fate awaits those who use trickery to pervert justice and who tell lies to destroy the innocent.

²²That is why the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, says to the people of Israel, “My people will no longer be ashamed or turn pale with fear.

²³For when they see their many children and all the blessings I have given them, they will recognize the holiness of the Holy One of Jacob. They will stand in awe of the God of Israel.

²⁴Then the wayward will gain understanding, and complainers will accept instruction.

¹When the time came, we set sail for Italy. Paul and several other prisoners were placed in the custody of a Roman officer named Julius, a captain of the Imperial Regiment.

²Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was also with us. We left on a ship whose home port was Adramyttium on the northwest coast of the province of Asia; it was scheduled to make several stops at ports along the coast of the province.

³The next day when we docked at Sidon, Julius was very kind to Paul and let him go ashore to visit with friends so they could provide for his needs.

⁴Putting out to sea from there, we encountered strong headwinds that made it difficult to keep the ship on course, so we sailed north of Cyprus between the island and the mainland.

⁵Keeping to the open sea, we passed along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, landing at Myra, in the province of Lycia.

⁶There the commanding officer found an Egyptian ship from Alexandria that was bound for Italy, and he put us on board.

⁷We had several days of slow sailing, and after great difficulty we finally neared Cnidus. But the wind was against us, so we sailed across to Crete and along the sheltered coast of the island, past the cape of Salmone.

⁸We struggled along the coast with great difficulty and finally arrived at Fair Havens, near the town of Lasea.

⁹We had lost a lot of time. The weather was becoming dangerous for sea travel because it was so late in the fall, and Paul spoke to the ship’s officers about it.

¹⁰“Men,” he said, “I believe there is trouble ahead if we go on — shipwreck, loss of cargo, and danger to our lives as well.”

¹¹But the officer in charge of the prisoners listened more to the ship’s captain and the owner than to Paul.

¹²And since Fair Havens was an exposed harbor — a poor place to spend the winter — most of the crew wanted to go on to Phoenix, farther up the coast of Crete, and spend the winter there. Phoenix was a good harbor with only a southwest and northwest exposure.

¹³When a light wind began blowing from the south, the sailors thought they could make it. So they pulled up anchor and sailed close to the shore of Crete.

¹⁴But the weather changed abruptly, and a wind of typhoon strength (called a “northeaster”) burst across the island and blew us out to sea.

¹⁵The sailors couldn’t turn the ship into the wind, so they gave up and let it run before the gale.

¹⁶We sailed along the sheltered side of a small island named Cauda, where with great difficulty we hoisted aboard the lifeboat being towed behind us.

¹⁷Then the sailors bound ropes around the hull of the ship to strengthen it. They were afraid of being driven across to the sandbars of Syrtis off the African coast, so they lowered the sea anchor to slow the ship and were driven before the wind.

¹⁸The next day, as gale-force winds continued to batter the ship, the crew began throwing the cargo overboard.

¹⁹The following day they even took some of the ship’s gear and threw it overboard.

²⁰The terrible storm raged for many days, blotting out the sun and the stars, until at last all hope was gone.

²¹No one had eaten for a long time. Finally, Paul called the crew together and said, “Men, you should have listened to me in the first place and not left Crete. You would have avoided all this damage and loss.

²²But take courage! None of you will lose your lives, even though the ship will go down.

²³For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me,

²⁴and he said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul, for you will surely stand trial before Caesar! What’s more, God in his goodness has granted safety to everyone sailing with you.’

²⁵So take courage! For I believe God. It will be just as he said.

²⁶But we will be shipwrecked on an island.”

²⁷About midnight on the fourteenth night of the storm, as we were being driven across the Sea of Adria, the sailors sensed land was near.

²⁸They dropped a weighted line and found that the water was 120 feet deep. But a little later they measured again and found it was only 90 feet deep.

²⁹At this rate they were afraid we would soon be driven against the rocks along the shore, so they threw out four anchors from the back of the ship and prayed for daylight.

³⁰Then the sailors tried to abandon the ship; they lowered the lifeboat as though they were going to put out anchors from the front of the ship.

³¹But Paul said to the commanding officer and the soldiers, “You will all die unless the sailors stay aboard.”

³²So the soldiers cut the ropes to the lifeboat and let it drift away.

³³Just as day was dawning, Paul urged everyone to eat. “You have been so worried that you haven’t touched food for two weeks,” he said.

³⁴“Please eat something now for your own good. For not a hair of your heads will perish.”

³⁵Then he took some bread, gave thanks to God before them all, and broke off a piece and ate it.

³⁶Then everyone was encouraged and began to eat —

³⁷all 276 of us who were on board.

³⁸After eating, the crew lightened the ship further by throwing the cargo of wheat overboard.

³⁹When morning dawned, they didn’t recognize the coastline, but they saw a bay with a beach and wondered if they could get to shore by running the ship aground.

⁴⁰So they cut off the anchors and left them in the sea. Then they lowered the rudders, raised the foresail, and headed toward shore.

⁴¹But they hit a shoal and ran the ship aground too soon. The bow of the ship stuck fast, while the stern was repeatedly smashed by the force of the waves and began to break apart.

⁴²The soldiers wanted to kill the prisoners to make sure they didn’t swim ashore and escape.

⁴³But the commanding officer wanted to spare Paul, so he didn’t let them carry out their plan. Then he ordered all who could swim to jump overboard first and make for land.

⁴⁴The others held on to planks or debris from the broken ship. So everyone escaped safely to shore.