Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

²There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.

³His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.

⁴The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

⁵The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.

⁶He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.

⁷Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

⁸So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.

⁹Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.

¹⁰Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

¹¹While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened.

¹²When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money,

¹³telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’

¹⁴If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.”

¹⁵So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.

¹⁶Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go.

¹⁷When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.

¹⁸Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

¹⁹Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

²⁰and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

¹The LORD said to Moses,

²“Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘I am the LORD your God.

³You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices.

⁴You must obey my laws and be careful to follow my decrees. I am the LORD your God.

⁵Keep my decrees and laws, for the person who obeys them will live by them. I am the LORD.

⁶“ ‘No one is to approach any close relative to have sexual relations. I am the LORD.

⁷“ ‘Do not dishonor your father by having sexual relations with your mother. She is your mother; do not have relations with her.

⁸“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with your father’s wife; that would dishonor your father.

⁹“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with your sister, either your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether she was born in the same home or elsewhere.

¹⁰“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter; that would dishonor you.

¹¹“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with the daughter of your father’s wife, born to your father; she is your sister.

¹²“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with your father’s sister; she is your father’s close relative.

¹³“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with your mother’s sister, because she is your mother’s close relative.

¹⁴“ ‘Do not dishonor your father’s brother by approaching his wife to have sexual relations; she is your aunt.

¹⁵“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with your daughter-in-law. She is your son’s wife; do not have relations with her.

¹⁶“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with your brother’s wife; that would dishonor your brother.

¹⁷“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with both a woman and her daughter. Do not have sexual relations with either her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter; they are her close relatives. That is wickedness.

¹⁸“ ‘Do not take your wife’s sister as a rival wife and have sexual relations with her while your wife is living.

¹⁹“ ‘Do not approach a woman to have sexual relations during the uncleanness of her monthly period.

²⁰“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with your neighbor’s wife and defile yourself with her.

²¹“ ‘Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molek, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.

²²“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable.

²³“ ‘Do not have sexual relations with an animal and defile yourself with it. A woman must not present herself to an animal to have sexual relations with it; that is a perversion.

²⁴“ ‘Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, because this is how the nations that I am going to drive out before you became defiled.

²⁵Even the land was defiled; so I punished it for its sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants.

²⁶But you must keep my decrees and my laws. The native-born and the foreigners residing among you must not do any of these detestable things,

²⁷for all these things were done by the people who lived in the land before you, and the land became defiled.

²⁸And if you defile the land, it will vomit you out as it vomited out the nations that were before you.

²⁹“ ‘Everyone who does any of these detestable things—such persons must be cut off from their people.

³⁰Keep my requirements and do not follow any of the detestable customs that were practiced before you came and do not defile yourselves with them. I am the LORD your God.’ ”

¹Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends!

²I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord.

³Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

⁴Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

⁵Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

⁶Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

⁷And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

⁸Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

⁹Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

¹⁰I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it.

¹¹I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.

¹²I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.

¹³I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

¹⁴Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles.

¹⁵Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only;

¹⁶for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid more than once when I was in need.

¹⁷Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account.

¹⁸I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.

¹⁹And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

²⁰To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

²¹Greet all God’s people in Christ Jesus. The brothers and sisters who are with me send greetings.

²²All God’s people here send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household.

²³The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

¹Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.

²I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles.

³Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.

⁴They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.”

⁵But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water.

⁶By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed.

⁷By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

⁸But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.

⁹The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

¹⁰But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.

¹¹Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives

¹²as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.

¹³But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.

¹⁴So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.

¹⁵Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him.

¹⁶He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.

¹⁷Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position.

¹⁸But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

¹Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.

²Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.

³A dream comes when there are many cares, and many words mark the speech of a fool.

⁴When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow.

⁵It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it.

⁶Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands?

⁷Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore fear God.

⁸If you see the poor oppressed in a district, and justice and rights denied, do not be surprised at such things; for one official is eyed by a higher one, and over them both are others higher still.

⁹The increase from the land is taken by all; the king himself profits from the fields.

¹⁰Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless.

¹¹As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owners except to feast their eyes on them?

¹²The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether they eat little or much, but as for the rich, their abundance permits them no sleep.

¹³I have seen a grievous evil under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owners,

¹⁴or wealth lost through some misfortune, so that when they have children there is nothing left for them to inherit.

¹⁵Everyone comes naked from their mother’s womb, and as everyone comes, so they depart. They take nothing from their toil that they can carry in their hands.

¹⁶This too is a grievous evil: As everyone comes, so they depart, and what do they gain, since they toil for the wind?

¹⁷All their days they eat in darkness, with great frustration, affliction and anger.

¹⁸This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot.

¹⁹Moreover, when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God.

²⁰They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart.

¹A psalm of praise. Of David. I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever.

²Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever.

³Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.

⁴One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts.

⁵They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty— and I will meditate on your wonderful works.

⁶They tell of the power of your awesome works— and I will proclaim your great deeds.

⁷They celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

⁸The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love.

⁹The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.

¹⁰All your works praise you, LORD; your faithful people extol you.

¹¹They tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might,

¹²so that all people may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.

¹³Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The LORD is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.

¹⁴The LORD upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.

¹⁵The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.

¹⁶You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

¹⁷The LORD is righteous in all his ways and faithful in all he does.

¹⁸The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.

¹⁹He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.

²⁰The LORD watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.

²¹My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever.

¹To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the LORD comes the proper answer of the tongue.

²All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the LORD.

³Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.

⁴The LORD works out everything to its proper end— even the wicked for a day of disaster.

⁵The LORD detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.

⁶Through love and faithfulness sin is atoned for; through the fear of the LORD evil is avoided.

⁷When the LORD takes pleasure in anyone’s way, he causes their enemies to make peace with them.

⁸Better a little with righteousness than much gain with injustice.

⁹In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps.

¹⁰The lips of a king speak as an oracle, and his mouth does not betray justice.

¹¹Honest scales and balances belong to the LORD; all the weights in the bag are of his making.

¹²Kings detest wrongdoing, for a throne is established through righteousness.

¹³Kings take pleasure in honest lips; they value the one who speaks what is right.

¹⁴A king’s wrath is a messenger of death, but the wise will appease it.

¹⁵When a king’s face brightens, it means life; his favor is like a rain cloud in spring.

¹⁶How much better to get wisdom than gold, to get insight rather than silver!

¹⁷The highway of the upright avoids evil; those who guard their ways preserve their lives.

¹⁸Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.

¹⁹Better to be lowly in spirit along with the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud.

²⁰Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD.

²¹The wise in heart are called discerning, and gracious words promote instruction.

²²Prudence is a fountain of life to the prudent, but folly brings punishment to fools.

²³The hearts of the wise make their mouths prudent, and their lips promote instruction.

²⁴Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.

²⁵There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.

²⁶The appetite of laborers works for them; their hunger drives them on.

²⁷A scoundrel plots evil, and on their lips it is like a scorching fire.

²⁸A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends.

²⁹A violent person entices their neighbor and leads them down a path that is not good.

³⁰Whoever winks with their eye is plotting perversity; whoever purses their lips is bent on evil.

³¹Gray hair is a crown of splendor; it is attained in the way of righteousness.

³²Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city.

³³The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.

¹In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab.

²The man’s name was Elimelek, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to Moab and lived there.

³Now Elimelek, Naomi’s husband, died, and she was left with her two sons.

⁴They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years,

⁵both Mahlon and Kilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband.

⁶When Naomi heard in Moab that the LORD had come to the aid of his people by providing food for them, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there.

⁷With her two daughters-in-law she left the place where she had been living and set out on the road that would take them back to the land of Judah.

⁸Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back, each of you, to your mother’s home. May the LORD show you kindness, as you have shown kindness to your dead husbands and to me.

⁹May the LORD grant that each of you will find rest in the home of another husband.” Then she kissed them goodbye and they wept aloud

¹⁰and said to her, “We will go back with you to your people.”

¹¹But Naomi said, “Return home, my daughters. Why would you come with me? Am I going to have any more sons, who could become your husbands?

¹²Return home, my daughters; I am too old to have another husband. Even if I thought there was still hope for me—even if I had a husband tonight and then gave birth to sons—

¹³would you wait until they grew up? Would you remain unmarried for them? No, my daughters. It is more bitter for me than for you, because the LORD’s hand has turned against me!”

¹⁴At this they wept aloud again. Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye, but Ruth clung to her.

¹⁵“Look,” said Naomi, “your sister-in-law is going back to her people and her gods. Go back with her.”

¹⁶But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.

¹⁷Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.”

¹⁸When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped urging her.

¹⁹So the two women went on until they came to Bethlehem. When they arrived in Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them, and the women exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?”

²⁰“Don’t call me Naomi,” she told them. “Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter.

²¹I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The LORD has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.”

²²So Naomi returned from Moab accompanied by Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, arriving in Bethlehem as the barley harvest was beginning.

¹“This is what the LORD says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:

²I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron.

³I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.

⁴For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my chosen, I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me.

⁵I am the LORD, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me,

⁶so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting people may know there is none besides me. I am the LORD, and there is no other.

⁷I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things.

⁸“You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the LORD, have created it.

⁹“Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’?

¹⁰Woe to the one who says to a father, ‘What have you begotten?’ or to a mother, ‘What have you brought to birth?’

¹¹“This is what the LORD says— the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker: Concerning things to come, do you question me about my children, or give me orders about the work of my hands?

¹²It is I who made the earth and created mankind on it. My own hands stretched out the heavens; I marshaled their starry hosts.

¹³I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness: I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward, says the LORD Almighty.”

¹⁴This is what the LORD says: “The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush, and those tall Sabeans— they will come over to you and will be yours; they will trudge behind you, coming over to you in chains. They will bow down before you and plead with you, saying, ‘Surely God is with you, and there is no other; there is no other god.’ ”

¹⁵Truly you are a God who has been hiding himself, the God and Savior of Israel.

¹⁶All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced; they will go off into disgrace together.

¹⁷But Israel will be saved by the LORD with an everlasting salvation; you will never be put to shame or disgraced, to ages everlasting.

¹⁸For this is what the LORD says— he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited— he says: “I am the LORD, and there is no other.

¹⁹I have not spoken in secret, from somewhere in a land of darkness; I have not said to Jacob’s descendants, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I, the LORD, speak the truth; I declare what is right.

²⁰“Gather together and come; assemble, you fugitives from the nations. Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save.

²¹Declare what is to be, present it— let them take counsel together. Who foretold this long ago, who declared it from the distant past? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me.

²²“Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.

²³By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear.

²⁴They will say of me, ‘In the LORD alone are deliverance and strength.’ ” All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame.

²⁵But all the descendants of Israel will find deliverance in the LORD and will make their boast in him.

¹Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.”

²This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.

³The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad.

⁴When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.

⁵Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.”

⁶The apostles and elders met to consider this question.

⁷After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe.

⁸God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us.

⁹He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.

¹⁰Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear?

¹¹No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”

¹²The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.

¹³When they finished, James spoke up. “Brothers,” he said, “listen to me.

¹⁴Simon has described to us how God first intervened to choose a people for his name from the Gentiles.

¹⁵The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:

¹⁶“ ‘After this I will return and rebuild David’s fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it,

¹⁷that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord, even all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things’—

¹⁸things known from long ago.

¹⁹“It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.

²⁰Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood.

²¹For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”

²²Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, men who were leaders among the believers.

²³With them they sent the following letter: The apostles and elders, your brothers, To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia: Greetings.

²⁴We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said.

²⁵So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul—

²⁶men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

²⁷Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing.

²⁸It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements:

²⁹You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell.

³⁰So the men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter.

³¹The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message.

³²Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers.

³³After spending some time there, they were sent off by the believers with the blessing of peace to return to those who had sent them.

³⁴

³⁵But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached the word of the Lord.

³⁶Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.”

³⁷Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them,

³⁸but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work.

³⁹They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus,

⁴⁰but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord.

⁴¹He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.