Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Early in the morning, all the chief priests and the elders of the people made their plans how to have Jesus executed.

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

³When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders.

⁴“I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood.” “What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.”

⁵So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

⁶The chief priests picked up the coins and said, “It is against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money.”

⁷So they decided to use the money to buy the potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners.

⁸That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day.

⁹Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: “They took the thirty pieces of silver, the price set on him by the people of Israel,

¹⁰and they used them to buy the potter’s field, as the Lord commanded me.”

¹¹Meanwhile Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” “You have said so,” Jesus replied.

¹²When he was accused by the chief priests and the elders, he gave no answer.

¹³Then Pilate asked him, “Don’t you hear the testimony they are bringing against you?”

¹⁴But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge—to the great amazement of the governor.

¹⁵Now it was the governor’s custom at the festival to release a prisoner chosen by the crowd.

¹⁶At that time they had a well-known prisoner whose name was Jesus Barabbas.

¹⁷So when the crowd had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Jesus Barabbas, or Jesus who is called the Messiah?”

¹⁸For he knew it was out of self-interest that they had handed Jesus over to him.

¹⁹While Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him this message: “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him.”

²⁰But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed.

²¹“Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” asked the governor. “Barabbas,” they answered.

²²“What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” Pilate asked. They all answered, “Crucify him!”

²³“Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!”

²⁴When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!”

²⁵All the people answered, “His blood is on us and on our children!”

²⁶Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.

²⁷Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him.

²⁸They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him,

²⁹and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said.

³⁰They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again.

³¹After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

³²As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross.

³³They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”).

³⁴There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it.

³⁵When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

³⁶And sitting down, they kept watch over him there.

³⁷Above his head they placed the written charge against him: THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

³⁸Two rebels were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left.

³⁹Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads

⁴⁰and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!”

⁴¹In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him.

⁴²“He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.

⁴³He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”

⁴⁴In the same way the rebels who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

⁴⁵From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land.

⁴⁶About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).

⁴⁷When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”

⁴⁸Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink.

⁴⁹The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

⁵⁰And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

⁵¹At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split

⁵²and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.

⁵³They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

⁵⁴When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”

⁵⁵Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs.

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

⁵⁷As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus.

⁵⁸Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him.

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

⁶⁰and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away.

⁶¹Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.

⁶²The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate.

⁶³“Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’

⁶⁴So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.”

⁶⁵“Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.”

⁶⁶So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.

¹The LORD said to Moses,

²“Speak to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites and say to them: ‘This is what the LORD has commanded:

³Any Israelite who sacrifices an ox, a lamb or a goat in the camp or outside of it

⁴instead of bringing it to the entrance to the tent of meeting to present it as an offering to the LORD in front of the tabernacle of the LORD—that person shall be considered guilty of bloodshed; they have shed blood and must be cut off from their people.

⁵This is so the Israelites will bring to the LORD the sacrifices they are now making in the open fields. They must bring them to the priest, that is, to the LORD, at the entrance to the tent of meeting and sacrifice them as fellowship offerings.

⁶The priest is to splash the blood against the altar of the LORD at the entrance to the tent of meeting and burn the fat as an aroma pleasing to the LORD.

⁷They must no longer offer any of their sacrifices to the goat idols to whom they prostitute themselves. This is to be a lasting ordinance for them and for the generations to come.’

⁸“Say to them: ‘Any Israelite or any foreigner residing among them who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice

⁹and does not bring it to the entrance to the tent of meeting to sacrifice it to the LORD must be cut off from the people of Israel.

¹⁰“ ‘I will set my face against any Israelite or any foreigner residing among them who eats blood, and I will cut them off from the people.

¹¹For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life.

¹²Therefore I say to the Israelites, “None of you may eat blood, nor may any foreigner residing among you eat blood.”

¹³“ ‘Any Israelite or any foreigner residing among you who hunts any animal or bird that may be eaten must drain out the blood and cover it with earth,

¹⁴because the life of every creature is its blood. That is why I have said to the Israelites, “You must not eat the blood of any creature, because the life of every creature is its blood; anyone who eats it must be cut off.”

¹⁵“ ‘Anyone, whether native-born or foreigner, who eats anything found dead or torn by wild animals must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be ceremonially unclean till evening; then they will be clean.

¹⁶But if they do not wash their clothes and bathe themselves, they will be held responsible.’ ”

¹Further, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you.

²Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh.

³For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh—

⁴though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more:

⁵circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee;

⁶as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.

⁷But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.

⁸What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ

⁹and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.

¹⁰I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,

¹¹and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.

¹²Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

¹³Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,

¹⁴I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

¹⁵All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you.

¹⁶Only let us live up to what we have already attained.

¹⁷Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do.

¹⁸For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.

¹⁹Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.

²⁰But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,

²¹who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

¹But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.

²Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.

³In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

⁴For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;

⁵if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others;

⁶if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly;

⁷and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless

⁸(for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)—

⁹if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment.

¹⁰This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the flesh and despise authority. Bold and arrogant, they are not afraid to heap abuse on celestial beings;

¹¹yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not heap abuse on such beings when bringing judgment on them from the Lord.

¹²But these people blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like unreasoning animals, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like animals they too will perish.

¹³They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you.

¹⁴With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed—an accursed brood!

¹⁵They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Bezer, who loved the wages of wickedness.

¹⁶But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey—an animal without speech—who spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

¹⁷These people are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them.

¹⁸For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of the flesh, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error.

¹⁹They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.”

²⁰If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning.

²¹It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them.

²²Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” and, “A sow that is washed returns to her wallowing in the mud.”

¹Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun: I saw the tears of the oppressed— and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors— and they have no comforter.

²And I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive.

³But better than both is the one who has never been born, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.

⁴And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

⁵Fools fold their hands and ruin themselves.

⁶Better one handful with tranquillity than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.

⁷Again I saw something meaningless under the sun:

⁸There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless— a miserable business!

⁹Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:

¹⁰If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.

¹¹Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?

¹²Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

¹³Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to heed a warning.

¹⁴The youth may have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in poverty within his kingdom.

¹⁵I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king’s successor.

¹⁶There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

¹Of David. Praise be to the LORD my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.

²He is my loving God and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.

³LORD, what are human beings that you care for them, mere mortals that you think of them?

⁴They are like a breath; their days are like a fleeting shadow.

⁵Part your heavens, LORD, and come down; touch the mountains, so that they smoke.

⁶Send forth lightning and scatter the enemy; shoot your arrows and rout them.

⁷Reach down your hand from on high; deliver me and rescue me from the mighty waters, from the hands of foreigners

⁸whose mouths are full of lies, whose right hands are deceitful.

⁹I will sing a new song to you, my God; on the ten-stringed lyre I will make music to you,

¹⁰to the One who gives victory to kings, who delivers his servant David. From the deadly sword

¹¹deliver me; rescue me from the hands of foreigners whose mouths are full of lies, whose right hands are deceitful.

¹²Then our sons in their youth will be like well-nurtured plants, and our daughters will be like pillars carved to adorn a palace.

¹³Our barns will be filled with every kind of provision. Our sheep will increase by thousands, by tens of thousands in our fields;

¹⁴our oxen will draw heavy loads. There will be no breaching of walls, no going into captivity, no cry of distress in our streets.

¹⁵Blessed is the people of whom this is true; blessed is the people whose God is the LORD.

¹A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

²The tongue of the wise adorns knowledge, but the mouth of the fool gushes folly.

³The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good.

⁴The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.

⁵A fool spurns a parent’s discipline, but whoever heeds correction shows prudence.

⁶The house of the righteous contains great treasure, but the income of the wicked brings ruin.

⁷The lips of the wise spread knowledge, but the hearts of fools are not upright.

⁸The LORD detests the sacrifice of the wicked, but the prayer of the upright pleases him.

⁹The LORD detests the way of the wicked, but he loves those who pursue righteousness.

¹⁰Stern discipline awaits anyone who leaves the path; the one who hates correction will die.

¹¹Death and Destruction lie open before the LORD— how much more do human hearts!

¹²Mockers resent correction, so they avoid the wise.

¹³A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit.

¹⁴The discerning heart seeks knowledge, but the mouth of a fool feeds on folly.

¹⁵All the days of the oppressed are wretched, but the cheerful heart has a continual feast.

¹⁶Better a little with the fear of the LORD than great wealth with turmoil.

¹⁷Better a small serving of vegetables with love than a fattened calf with hatred.

¹⁸A hot-tempered person stirs up conflict, but the one who is patient calms a quarrel.

¹⁹The way of the sluggard is blocked with thorns, but the path of the upright is a highway.

²⁰A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish man despises his mother.

²¹Folly brings joy to one who has no sense, but whoever has understanding keeps a straight course.

²²Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.

²³A person finds joy in giving an apt reply— and how good is a timely word!

²⁴The path of life leads upward for the prudent to keep them from going down to the realm of the dead.

²⁵The LORD tears down the house of the proud, but he sets the widow’s boundary stones in place.

²⁶The LORD detests the thoughts of the wicked, but gracious words are pure in his sight.

²⁷The greedy bring ruin to their households, but the one who hates bribes will live.

²⁸The heart of the righteous weighs its answers, but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.

²⁹The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.

³⁰Light in a messenger’s eyes brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones.

³¹Whoever heeds life-giving correction will be at home among the wise.

³²Those who disregard discipline despise themselves, but the one who heeds correction gains understanding.

³³Wisdom’s instruction is to fear the LORD, and humility comes before honor.

¹The men of Israel had taken an oath at Mizpah: “Not one of us will give his daughter in marriage to a Benjamite.”

²The people went to Bethel, where they sat before God until evening, raising their voices and weeping bitterly.

³“LORD, God of Israel,” they cried, “why has this happened to Israel? Why should one tribe be missing from Israel today?”

⁴Early the next day the people built an altar and presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings.

⁵Then the Israelites asked, “Who from all the tribes of Israel has failed to assemble before the LORD?” For they had taken a solemn oath that anyone who failed to assemble before the LORD at Mizpah was to be put to death.

⁶Now the Israelites grieved for the tribe of Benjamin, their fellow Israelites. “Today one tribe is cut off from Israel,” they said.

⁷“How can we provide wives for those who are left, since we have taken an oath by the LORD not to give them any of our daughters in marriage?”

⁸Then they asked, “Which one of the tribes of Israel failed to assemble before the LORD at Mizpah?” They discovered that no one from Jabesh Gilead had come to the camp for the assembly.

⁹For when they counted the people, they found that none of the people of Jabesh Gilead were there.

¹⁰So the assembly sent twelve thousand fighting men with instructions to go to Jabesh Gilead and put to the sword those living there, including the women and children.

¹¹“This is what you are to do,” they said. “Kill every male and every woman who is not a virgin.”

¹²They found among the people living in Jabesh Gilead four hundred young women who had never slept with a man, and they took them to the camp at Shiloh in Canaan.

¹³Then the whole assembly sent an offer of peace to the Benjamites at the rock of Rimmon.

¹⁴So the Benjamites returned at that time and were given the women of Jabesh Gilead who had been spared. But there were not enough for all of them.

¹⁵The people grieved for Benjamin, because the LORD had made a gap in the tribes of Israel.

¹⁶And the elders of the assembly said, “With the women of Benjamin destroyed, how shall we provide wives for the men who are left?

¹⁷The Benjamite survivors must have heirs,” they said, “so that a tribe of Israel will not be wiped out.

¹⁸We can’t give them our daughters as wives, since we Israelites have taken this oath: ‘Cursed be anyone who gives a wife to a Benjamite.’

¹⁹But look, there is the annual festival of the LORD in Shiloh, which lies north of Bethel, east of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem, and south of Lebonah.”

²⁰So they instructed the Benjamites, saying, “Go and hide in the vineyards

²¹and watch. When the young women of Shiloh come out to join in the dancing, rush from the vineyards and each of you seize one of them to be your wife. Then return to the land of Benjamin.

²²When their fathers or brothers complain to us, we will say to them, ‘Do us the favor of helping them, because we did not get wives for them during the war. You will not be guilty of breaking your oath because you did not give your daughters to them.’ ”

²³So that is what the Benjamites did. While the young women were dancing, each man caught one and carried her off to be his wife. Then they returned to their inheritance and rebuilt the towns and settled in them.

²⁴At that time the Israelites left that place and went home to their tribes and clans, each to his own inheritance.

²⁵In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.

¹“But now listen, Jacob, my servant, Israel, whom I have chosen.

²This is what the LORD says— he who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

³For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.

⁴They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams.

⁵Some will say, ‘I belong to the LORD’; others will call themselves by the name of Jacob; still others will write on their hand, ‘The LORD’s,’ and will take the name Israel.

⁶“This is what the LORD says— Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.

⁷Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and lay out before me what has happened since I established my ancient people, and what is yet to come— yes, let them foretell what will come.

⁸Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.”

⁹All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame.

¹⁰Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit nothing?

¹¹People who do that will be put to shame; such craftsmen are only human beings. Let them all come together and take their stand; they will be brought down to terror and shame.

¹²The blacksmith takes a tool and works with it in the coals; he shapes an idol with hammers, he forges it with the might of his arm. He gets hungry and loses his strength; he drinks no water and grows faint.

¹³The carpenter measures with a line and makes an outline with a marker; he roughs it out with chisels and marks it with compasses. He shapes it in human form, human form in all its glory, that it may dwell in a shrine.

¹⁴He cut down cedars, or perhaps took a cypress or oak. He let it grow among the trees of the forest, or planted a pine, and the rain made it grow.

¹⁵It is used as fuel for burning; some of it he takes and warms himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread. But he also fashions a god and worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it.

¹⁶Half of the wood he burns in the fire; over it he prepares his meal, he roasts his meat and eats his fill. He also warms himself and says, “Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.”

¹⁷From the rest he makes a god, his idol; he bows down to it and worships. He prays to it and says, “Save me! You are my god!”

¹⁸They know nothing, they understand nothing; their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds closed so they cannot understand.

¹⁹No one stops to think, no one has the knowledge or understanding to say, “Half of it I used for fuel; I even baked bread over its coals, I roasted meat and I ate. Shall I make a detestable thing from what is left? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?”

²⁰Such a person feeds on ashes; a deluded heart misleads him; he cannot save himself, or say, “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?”

²¹“Remember these things, Jacob, for you, Israel, are my servant. I have made you, you are my servant; Israel, I will not forget you.

²²I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.”

²³Sing for joy, you heavens, for the LORD has done this; shout aloud, you earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees, for the LORD has redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel.

²⁴“This is what the LORD says— your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the LORD, the Maker of all things, who stretches out the heavens, who spreads out the earth by myself,

²⁵who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who overthrows the learning of the wise and turns it into nonsense,

²⁶who carries out the words of his servants and fulfills the predictions of his messengers, who says of Jerusalem, ‘It shall be inhabited,’ of the towns of Judah, ‘They shall be rebuilt,’ and of their ruins, ‘I will restore them,’

²⁷who says to the watery deep, ‘Be dry, and I will dry up your streams,’

²⁸who says of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, “Let it be rebuilt,” and of the temple, “Let its foundations be laid.” ’

¹At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Greeks believed.

²But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the other Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.

³So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders.

⁴The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles.

⁵There was a plot afoot among both Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them.

⁶But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country,

⁷where they continued to preach the gospel.

⁸In Lystra there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked.

⁹He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed

¹⁰and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.

¹¹When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”

¹²Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker.

¹³The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.

¹⁴But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting:

¹⁵“Friends, why are you doing this? We too are only human, like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them.

¹⁶In the past, he let all nations go their own way.

¹⁷Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.”

¹⁸Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.

¹⁹Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead.

²⁰But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

²¹They preached the gospel in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch,

²²strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.

²³Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.

²⁴After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia,

²⁵and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

²⁶From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work they had now completed.

²⁷On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles.

²⁸And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.