Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now when morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people conferred together against Jesus to put Him to death;

²and they bound Him and led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate the governor.

³Then when Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He had been condemned, he felt remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,

⁴saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us? You shall see to it yourself!”

⁵And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and left; and he went away and hanged himself.

⁶The chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, “It is not lawful to put them in the temple treasury, since it is money paid for blood.”

⁷And they conferred together and with the money bought the Potter’s Field as a burial place for strangers.

⁸For this reason that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day.

⁹Then that which was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: “AND THEY TOOK THE THIRTY PIECES OF SILVER, THE PRICE OF THE ONE WHOSE PRICE HAD BEEN SET by the sons of Israel;

¹⁰AND THEY GAVE THEM FOR THE POTTER’S FIELD, JUST AS THE LORD DIRECTED ME.”

¹¹Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor questioned Him, saying, “So You are the King of the Jews?” And Jesus said to him, “It is as you say.”

¹²And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not offer any answer.

¹³Then Pilate *said to Him, “Do You not hear how many things they are testifying against You?”

¹⁴And still He did not answer him in regard to even a single charge, so the governor was greatly amazed.

¹⁵Now at the Passover Feast the governor was accustomed to release for the people any one prisoner whom they wanted.

¹⁶And at that time they were holding a notorious prisoner called Barabbas.

¹⁷So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?”

¹⁸For he knew that it was because of envy that they had handed Him over.

¹⁹And while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “See that you have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.”

²⁰But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas, and to put Jesus to death.

²¹And the governor said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.”

²²Pilate *said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all *said, “Crucify Him!”

²³But he said, “Why, what evil has He done?” Yet they kept shouting all the more, saying, “Crucify Him!”

²⁴Now when Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; you yourselves shall see.”

²⁵And all the people replied, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!”

²⁶Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus flogged, he handed Him over to be crucified.

²⁷Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole Roman cohort to Him.

²⁸And they stripped Him and put a red cloak on Him.

²⁹And after twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and put a reed in His right hand; and they knelt down before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!”

³⁰And they spit on Him, and took the reed and beat Him on the head.

³¹And after they had mocked Him, they took the cloak off Him and put His own garments back on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him.

³²As they were coming out, they found a man of Cyrene named Simon, whom they compelled to carry His cross.

³³And when they came to a place called Golgotha, which means Place of a Skull,

³⁴they gave Him wine mixed with bile to drink; and after tasting it, He was unwilling to drink it.

³⁵And when they had crucified Him, they divided His garments among themselves by casting lots.

³⁶And sitting down, they began to keep watch over Him there.

³⁷And above His head they put up the charge against Him which read, “THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”

³⁸At that time two rebels *were being crucified with Him, one on the right and one on the left.

³⁹And those passing by were speaking abusively to Him, shaking their heads,

⁴⁰and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.”

⁴¹In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Him and saying,

⁴²“He saved others; He cannot save Himself! He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him.

⁴³HE HAS TRUSTED IN GOD; LET GOD RESCUE Him now, IF HE TAKES PLEASURE IN HIM; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”

⁴⁴And the rebels who had been crucified with Him were also insulting Him in the same way.

⁴⁵Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour.

⁴⁶And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI, LEMA SABAKTANEI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?”

⁴⁷And some of those who were standing there, when they heard it, said, “This man is calling for Elijah.”

⁴⁸And immediately one of them ran, and taking a sponge, he filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink.

⁴⁹But the rest of them said, “Let us see if Elijah comes to save Him.”

⁵⁰And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and gave up His spirit.

⁵¹And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split.

⁵²Also the tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised;

⁵³and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection, they entered the holy city and appeared to many.

⁵⁴Now as for the centurion and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the other things that were happening, they became extremely frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

⁵⁵And many women were there watching from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee while caring for Him.

⁵⁶Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

⁵⁷Now when it was evening, a rich man from Arimathea came, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus.

⁵⁸This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him.

⁵⁹And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth,

⁶⁰and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut out in the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away.

⁶¹And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the tomb.

⁶²Now on the next day, that is, the day which is after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered together with Pilate,

⁶³and they said, “Sir, we remember that when that deceiver was still alive, He said, ‘After three days I am rising.’

⁶⁴Therefore, give orders for the tomb to be made secure until the third day; otherwise, His disciples may come and steal Him, and say to the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last deception will be worse than the first.”

⁶⁵Pilate said to them, “You have a guard; go, make it as secure as you know how.”

⁶⁶And they went and made the tomb secure with the guard, sealing the stone.

¹Now it came about, when Isaac was old and his eyes were too dim to see, that he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” And he said to him, “Here I am.”

²Then Isaac said, “Behold now, I am old and I do not know the day of my death.

³Now then, please take your gear, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me;

⁴and prepare a delicious meal for me such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, so that my soul may bless you before I die.”

⁵Now Rebekah was listening while Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game to bring home,

⁶Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Behold, I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, saying,

⁷‘Bring me some game and prepare a delicious meal for me, so that I may eat, and bless you in the presence of the LORD before my death.’

⁸So now, my son, listen to me as I command you.

⁹Go now to the flock and bring me two choice young goats from there, so that I may prepare them as a delicious meal for your father, such as he loves.

¹⁰Then you shall bring it to your father, that he may eat, so that he may bless you before his death.”

¹¹But Jacob said to his mother Rebekah, “Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man and I am a smooth man.

¹²Perhaps my father will touch me, then I will be like a deceiver in his sight, and I will bring upon myself a curse and not a blessing.”

¹³But his mother said to him, “Your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, get the goats for me.”

¹⁴So he went and got them, and brought them to his mother; and his mother made a delicious meal such as his father loved.

¹⁵Then Rebekah took the best garments of her elder son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob.

¹⁶And she put the skins of the young goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck.

¹⁷She also gave the delicious meal and the bread which she had made to her son Jacob.

¹⁸Then he came to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?”

¹⁹Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn; I have done as you told me. Come now, sit and eat of my game, so that you may bless me.”

²⁰Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have it so quickly, my son?” And he said, “Because the LORD your God made it come to me.”

²¹Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come close, so that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.”

²²So Jacob came close to his father Isaac, and he touched him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.”

²³And he did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so he blessed him.

²⁴And he said, “Are you really my son Esau?” And he said, “I am.”

²⁵So he said, “Bring it to me, and I will eat of my son’s game, that I may bless you.” And he brought it to him, and he ate; he also brought him wine and he drank.

²⁶Then his father Isaac said to him, “Please come close and kiss me, my son.”

²⁷So he came close and kissed him; and when he smelled the smell of his garments, he blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son Is like the smell of a field which the LORD has blessed;

²⁸Now may God give you of the dew of heaven, And of the fatness of the earth, And an abundance of grain and new wine;

²⁹May peoples serve you, And nations bow down to you; Be master of your brothers, And may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be those who curse you, And blessed be those who bless you.”

³⁰Now it came about, as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had hardly gone out from the presence of his father Isaac, that his brother Esau came in from his hunting.

³¹Then he also made a delicious meal, and brought it to his father; and he said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son’s game, that you may bless me.”

³²His father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?” And he said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.”

³³Then Isaac trembled violently, and said, “Who then was he who hunted game and brought it to me, so that I ate from all of it before you came, and blessed him? Yes, and he shall be blessed.”

³⁴When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me, me as well, my father!”

³⁵And he said, “Your brother came deceitfully and has taken away your blessing.”

³⁶Then Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob, for he has betrayed me these two times? He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”

³⁷But Isaac replied to Esau, “Behold, I have made him your master, and I have given to him all his relatives as servants; and with grain and new wine I have sustained him. What then can I do for you, my son?”

³⁸Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me, me as well, my father.” So Esau raised his voice and wept.

³⁹Then his father Isaac answered and said to him, “Behold, away from the fertility of the earth shall be your dwelling, And away from the dew of heaven from above.

⁴⁰And by your sword you shall live, And you shall serve your brother; But it shall come about when you become restless, That you will break his yoke from your neck.”

⁴¹So Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him; and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”

⁴²Now when the words of her elder son Esau were reported to Rebekah, she sent word and called her younger son Jacob, and said to him, “Behold your brother Esau is consoling himself concerning you by planning to kill you.

⁴³Now then, my son, obey my voice, and arise, flee to Haran, to my brother Laban!

⁴⁴Stay with him a few days, until your brother’s fury subsides,

⁴⁵until your brother’s anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I will send word and get you from there. Why should I lose you both in one day?”

⁴⁶And Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am tired of living because of the daughters of Heth; if Jacob takes a wife from the daughters of Heth like these from the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?”

¹Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

²Now I praise you because you remember me in everything and hold firmly to the traditions, just as I handed them down to you.

³But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ.

⁴Every man who has something on his head while praying or prophesying disgraces his head.

⁵But every woman who has her head uncovered while praying or prophesying disgraces her head, for it is one and the same as the woman whose head is shaved.

⁶For if a woman does not cover her head, have her also cut her hair off; however, if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, have her cover her head.

⁷For a man should not have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man.

⁸For man does not originate from woman, but woman from man;

⁹for indeed man was not created for the woman’s sake, but woman for the man’s sake.

¹⁰Therefore the woman should have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.

¹¹However, in the Lord, neither is woman independent of man, nor is man independent of woman.

¹²For as the woman originated from the man, so also the man has his birth through the woman; and all things originate from God.

¹³Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered?

¹⁴Does even nature itself not teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him,

¹⁵but if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her? For her hair is given to her as a covering.

¹⁶But if anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor have the churches of God.

¹⁷Now in giving this next instruction I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better, but for the worse.

¹⁸For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part I believe it.

¹⁹For there also have to be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you.

²⁰Therefore when you come together it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper,

²¹for when you eat, each one takes his own supper first; and one goes hungry while another gets drunk.

²²What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What am I to say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I do not praise you.

²³For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread;

²⁴and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

²⁵In the same way He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”

²⁶For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.

²⁷Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy way, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord.

²⁸But a person must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.

²⁹For the one who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not properly recognize the body.

³⁰For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number are asleep.

³¹But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged.

³²But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world.

³³So then, my brothers and sisters, when you come together to eat, wait for one another.

³⁴If anyone is hungry, have him eat at home, so that you do not come together for judgment. As to the remaining matters, I will give instructions when I come.

¹Come now, you rich people, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you.

²Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten.

³Your gold and your silver have corroded, and their corrosion will serve as a testimony against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure!

⁴Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of armies.

⁵You have lived for pleasure on the earth and lived luxuriously; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.

⁶You have condemned and put to death the righteous person; he offers you no resistance.

⁷Therefore be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains.

⁸You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near.

⁹Do not complain, brothers and sisters, against one another, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door.

¹⁰As an example, brothers and sisters, of suffering and patience, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.

¹¹We count those blessed who endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.

¹²But above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you do not fall under judgment.

¹³Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises.

¹⁴Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;

¹⁵and the prayer of faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.

¹⁶Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. A prayer of a righteous person, when it is brought about, can accomplish much.

¹⁷Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months.

¹⁸Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.

¹⁹My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you strays from the truth and someone turns him back,

²⁰let him know that the one who has turned a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.

¹Job again took up his discourse and said,

²“As God lives, who has taken away my right, And the Almighty, who has embittered my soul,

³For as long as life is in me, And the breath of God is in my nostrils,

⁴My lips certainly will not speak unjustly, Nor will my tongue mutter deceit.

⁵Far be it from me that I should declare you right; Until I die, I will not give up my integrity.

⁶I have kept hold of my righteousness and will not let it go. My heart does not rebuke any of my days.

⁷“May my enemy be as the wicked, And my opponent as the criminal.

⁸For what is the hope of the godless when he makes an end of life, When God requires his life?

⁹Will God hear his cry When distress comes upon him?

¹⁰Or will he take pleasure in the Almighty? Will he call on God at all times?

¹¹I will instruct you in the power of God; What is with the Almighty I will not conceal.

¹²Behold, all of you have seen it; Why then do you talk of nothing?

¹³“This is the portion of a wicked person from God, And the inheritance which tyrants receive from the Almighty:

¹⁴Though his sons are many, they are destined for the sword; And his descendants will not be satisfied with bread.

¹⁵His survivors will be buried because of the plague, And their widows will not be able to weep.

¹⁶Though he piles up silver like dust, And prepares garments as plentiful as the clay,

¹⁷He may prepare it, but the righteous will wear it And the innocent will divide the silver.

¹⁸He has built his house like the spider’s web, Or a hut which the watchman has made.

¹⁹He lies down rich, but never again; He opens his eyes, and it no longer exists.

²⁰Terrors overtake him like a flood; A storm steals him away in the night.

²¹The east wind carries him away, and he is gone; For it sweeps him away from his place.

²²For it will hurl at him without mercy; He will certainly try to flee from its power.

²³People will clap their hands at him, And will whistle at him from their places.

¹The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom should I fear? The LORD is the defense of my life; Whom should I dread?

²When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh, My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell.

³If an army encamps against me, My heart will not fear; If war arises against me, In spite of this I am confident.

⁴One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD And to meditate in His temple.

⁵For on the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle; He will hide me in the secret place of His tent; He will lift me up on a rock.

⁶And now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me, And I will offer sacrifices in His tent with shouts of joy; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD.

⁷Hear, LORD, when I cry with my voice, And be gracious to me and answer me.

⁸When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You, “I shall seek Your face, LORD.”

⁹Do not hide Your face from me, Do not turn Your servant away in anger; You have been my help; Do not abandon me nor forsake me, God of my salvation!

¹⁰For my father and my mother have forsaken me, But the LORD will take me up.

¹¹Teach me Your way, LORD, And lead me on a level path Because of my enemies.

¹²Do not turn me over to the desire of my enemies, For false witnesses have risen against me, And the violent witness.

¹³I certainly believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living.

¹⁴Wait for the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD.

¹Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring.

²Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; A stranger, and not your own lips.

³A stone is heavy and the sand weighty, But the provocation of a fool is heavier than both of them.

⁴Wrath is fierce and anger is a flood, But who can stand before jealousy?

⁵Better is open rebuke Than love that is concealed.

⁶Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But deceitful are the kisses of an enemy.

⁷A satisfied person despises honey, But to a hungry person any bitter thing is sweet.

⁸Like a bird that wanders from its nest, So is a person who wanders from his home.

⁹Oil and perfume make the heart glad, And a person’s advice is sweet to his friend.

¹⁰Do not abandon your friend or your father’s friend, And do not go to your brother’s house on the day of your disaster; Better is a neighbor who is near than a brother far away.

¹¹Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad, So that I may reply to one who taunts me.

¹²A prudent person sees evil and hides himself; But the naive proceed, and pay the penalty.

¹³Take his garment when he becomes a guarantor for a stranger; And for a foreign woman seize a pledge from him.

¹⁴One who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning, It will be considered a curse to him.

¹⁵A constant dripping on a day of steady rain And a contentious woman are alike;

¹⁶He who would restrain her restrains the wind, And grasps oil with his right hand.

¹⁷As iron sharpens iron, So one person sharpens another.

¹⁸One who tends the fig tree will eat its fruit, And one who cares for his master will be honored.

¹⁹As in water a face reflects the face, So the heart of a person reflects the person.

²⁰Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, Nor are the eyes of a person ever satisfied.

²¹The crucible is for silver and the furnace for gold, And each is tested by the praise accorded him.

²²Though you pound the fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain, His foolishness still will not leave him.

²³Know well the condition of your flocks, And pay attention to your herds;

²⁴For riches are not forever, Nor does a crown endure to all generations.

²⁵When the grass disappears, the new growth is seen, And the herbs of the mountains are gathered in,

²⁶The lambs will be for your clothing, And the goats will bring the price of a field,

²⁷And there will be enough goats’ milk for your food, For the food of your household, And sustenance for your attendants.

¹Now these are the nations that the LORD left, to test Israel by them (that is, all the Israelites who had not experienced any of the wars of Canaan;

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

³These nations are: the five governors of the Philistines and all the Canaanites and the Sidonians, and the Hivites who lived on Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal-hermon as far as Lebo-hamath.

⁴They were left to test Israel by them, to find out if they would obey the commandments of the LORD, which He had commanded their fathers through Moses.

⁵The sons of Israel lived among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites;

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

⁷So the sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and they forgot the LORD their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth.

⁸Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, so that He sold them into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim, king of Mesopotamia; and the sons of Israel served Cushan-rishathaim for eight years.

⁹But the sons of Israel cried out to the LORD, and the LORD raised up a deliverer for the sons of Israel to set them free, Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother.

¹⁰And the Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel. When he went to war, the LORD handed over to him Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia, so that he prevailed over Cushan-rishathaim.

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

¹²Now the sons of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD. So the LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD.

¹³And he gathered to himself the sons of Ammon and Amalek; and he went and defeated Israel, and they took possession of the city of the palm trees.

¹⁴And the sons of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab for eighteen years.

¹⁵But when the sons of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for them, Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjaminite, a left-handed man. And the sons of Israel sent tribute by him to Eglon the king of Moab.

¹⁶Now Ehud made himself a sword which had two edges, a cubit in length, and he strapped it on his right thigh under his cloak.

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

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

¹⁹But he himself turned back from the idols which were at Gilgal, and said, “I have a secret message for you, O king.” And the king said, “Silence!” And all who were attending him left him.

²⁰Then Ehud came to him while he was sitting in his cool roof chamber alone. And Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” And he got up from his seat.

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

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

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

²⁴When he had left, the king’s servants came and looked, and behold, the doors of the roof chamber were locked; and they said, “Undoubtedly he is relieving himself in the cool room.”

²⁵So they waited until it would have been shameful to wait longer; but behold, he did not open the doors of the roof chamber. So they took the key and opened them, and behold, their master had fallen to the floor dead.

²⁶Now Ehud escaped while they were hesitating, and he passed by the idols and escaped to Seirah.

²⁷And when he arrived, he blew the trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim; and the sons of Israel went down with him from the hill country, and he was leading them.

²⁸Then he said to them, “Pursue them, for the LORD has handed your enemies the Moabites over to you.” So they went down after him and took control of the crossing places of the Jordan opposite Moab, and did not allow anyone to cross.

²⁹They struck and killed about ten thousand Moabites at that time, all robust and valiant men; and no one escaped.

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

³¹Now after him came Shamgar the son of Anath, who struck and killed six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad; and he also saved Israel.

¹On that day the LORD will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, With His fierce and great and mighty sword, Even Leviathan the twisted serpent; And He will kill the dragon who lives in the sea.

²On that day, “A vineyard of beauty, sing of it!

³I, the LORD, am its keeper; I water it every moment. So that no one will damage it, I guard it night and day.

⁴I have no wrath. Should someone give Me briars and thorns in battle, Then I would step on them, I would burn them completely.

⁵Or let him rely on My protection, Let him make peace with Me, Let him make peace with Me.”

⁶In the days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will blossom and sprout, And they will fill the whole world with fruit.

⁷Like the striking of Him who has struck them, has He struck them? Or like the slaughter of His slain, have they been slain?

⁸You contended with them by banishing them, by driving them away. With His fierce wind He has expelled them on the day of the east wind.

⁹Therefore through this Jacob’s wrongdoing will be forgiven; And this will be the full price of the pardoning of his sin: When he makes all the altar stones like pulverized chalk stones; When Asherim and incense altars will not stand.

¹⁰For the fortified city is isolated, A homestead deserted and abandoned like the desert; There the calf will graze, And there it will lie down and feed on its branches.

¹¹When its limbs are dry, they are broken off; Women come and make a fire with them, For they are not a people of discernment, Therefore their Maker will not have compassion on them. And their Creator will not be gracious to them.

¹²On that day the LORD will thresh from the flowing stream of the Euphrates River to the brook of Egypt, and you will be gathered up one by one, you sons of Israel.

¹³It will come about also on that day that a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were perishing in the land of Assyria and who were scattered in the land of Egypt will come and worship the LORD on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.

¹Now when it was decided that we would sail for Italy, they proceeded to turn Paul and some other prisoners over to a centurion of the Augustan cohort, named Julius.

²And we boarded an Adramyttian ship that was about to sail to the regions along the coast of Asia, and put out to sea accompanied by Aristarchus, a Macedonian of Thessalonica.

³The next day we put in at Sidon; and Julius treated Paul with consideration and allowed him to go to his friends and receive care.

⁴From there we put out to sea and sailed under the shelter of Cyprus, because the winds were contrary.

⁵When we had sailed through the sea along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we landed at Myra in Lycia.

⁶There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy, and he put us aboard it.

⁷When we had sailed slowly for a good many days, and with difficulty had arrived off Cnidus, since the wind did not permit us to go farther, we sailed under the shelter of Crete, off Salmone;

⁸and with difficulty sailing past it, we came to a place called Fair Havens, near which was the city of Lasea.

⁹When considerable time had passed and the voyage was now dangerous, since even the fast was already over, Paul started admonishing them,

¹⁰saying to them, “Men, I perceive that the voyage will certainly be with damage and great loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.”

¹¹But the centurion was more persuaded by the pilot and the captain of the ship than by what was being said by Paul.

¹²The harbor was not suitable for wintering, so the majority reached a decision to put out to sea from there, if somehow they could reach Phoenix, a harbor of Crete facing southwest and northwest, and spend the winter there.

¹³When a moderate south wind came up, thinking that they had attained their purpose, they weighed anchor and began sailing along Crete, closer to shore.

¹⁴But before very long a violent wind, called Euraquilo, rushed down from the land;

¹⁵and when the ship was caught in it and could not head up into the wind, we gave up and let ourselves be driven by the wind.

¹⁶Running under the shelter of a small island called Cauda, we were able to get the ship’s boat under control only with difficulty.

¹⁷After they had hoisted it up, they used supporting cables in undergirding the ship; and fearing that they might run aground on the shallows of Syrtis, they let down the sea anchor and let themselves be driven along in this way.

¹⁸The next day as we were being violently tossed by the storm, they began to jettison the cargo;

¹⁹and on the third day they threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands.

²⁰Since neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small storm was assailing us, from then on all hope of our being saved was slowly abandoned.

²¹When many had lost their appetites, Paul then stood among them and said, “Men, you should have followed my advice and not have set sail from Crete, and thereby spared yourselves this damage and loss.

²²And yet now I urge you to keep up your courage, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship.

²³For this very night an angel of the God to whom I belong, whom I also serve, came to me,

²⁴saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar; and behold, God has graciously granted you all those who are sailing with you.’

²⁵Therefore, keep up your courage, men, for I believe God that it will turn out exactly as I have been told.

²⁶But we must run aground on a certain island.”

²⁷But when the fourteenth night came, as we were being driven about in the Adriatic Sea, about midnight the sailors began to suspect that they were approaching some land.

²⁸And they took soundings and found it to be twenty fathoms; and a little farther on they took another sounding and found it to be fifteen fathoms.

²⁹Fearing that we might run aground somewhere on the rocks, they cast four anchors from the stern and prayed for daybreak.

³⁰But as the sailors were trying to escape from the ship and had let down the ship’s boat into the sea, on the pretense that they were going to lay out anchors from the bow,

³¹Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men remain on the ship, you yourselves cannot be saved.”

³²Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of the ship’s boat and let it fall away.

³³Until the day was about to dawn, Paul kept encouraging them all to take some food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have been constantly watching and going without eating, having taken in nothing.

³⁴Therefore, I encourage you to take some food, for this is for your survival, for not a hair from the head of any of you will perish.”

³⁵Having said this, he took bread and gave thanks to God in the presence of them all, and he broke it and began to eat.

³⁶All of them were encouraged and they themselves also took food.

³⁷We were 276 people on the ship in all.

³⁸When they had eaten enough, they began lightening the ship by throwing the wheat out into the sea.

³⁹Now when day came, they could not recognize the land; but they did notice a bay with a beach, and they resolved to run the ship onto it if they could.

⁴⁰And casting off the anchors, they left them in the sea while at the same time they were loosening the ropes of the rudders; and they hoisted the foresail to the wind and were heading for the beach.

⁴¹But they struck a reef where two seas met and ran the ship aground; and the prow stuck firmly and remained immovable, while the stern started to break up due to the force of the waves.

⁴²The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners, so that none of them would swim away and escape;

⁴³but the centurion, wanting to bring Paul safely through, kept them from accomplishing their intention, and commanded that those who could swim were to jump overboard first and get to land,

⁴⁴and the rest were to follow, some on planks, and others on various things from the ship. And so it happened that they all were brought safely to land.