Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.

²And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.

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

⁴For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men.

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

⁶He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.

⁷Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.”

⁸So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples.

⁹Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of 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 they were going, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests everything that had happened.

¹²After the priests had assembled with the elders, they devised a plan to give a large sum of money to the soldiers,

¹³telling them, “You must say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’

¹⁴If this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.”

¹⁵So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story is still told among the Jews to this day.

¹⁶Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them.

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

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

¹⁹Go therefore 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 that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

¹The LORD spoke to Moses, saying:

²Speak to the people of Israel and say to them: I am the LORD your God.

³You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived, and you shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You shall not follow their statutes.

⁴My ordinances you shall observe and my statutes you shall keep, following them: I am the LORD your God.

⁵You shall keep my statutes and my ordinances; by doing so one shall live: I am the LORD.

⁶None of you shall approach anyone near of kin to uncover nakedness: I am the LORD.

⁷You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father, which is the nakedness of your mother; she is your mother, you shall not uncover her nakedness.

⁸You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife; it is the nakedness of your father.

⁹You shall not uncover the nakedness of your sister, your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether born at home or born abroad.

¹⁰You shall not uncover the nakedness of your son’s daughter or of your daughter’s daughter, for their nakedness is your own nakedness.

¹¹You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter, begotten by your father, since she is your sister.

¹²You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister; she is your father’s flesh.

¹³You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s flesh.

¹⁴You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother, that is, you shall not approach his wife; she is your aunt.

¹⁵You shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law: she is your son’s wife; you shall not uncover her nakedness.

¹⁶You shall not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife; it is your brother’s nakedness.

¹⁷You shall not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter, and you shall not take her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter to uncover her nakedness; they are your flesh; it is depravity.

¹⁸And you shall not take a woman as a rival to her sister, uncovering her nakedness while her sister is still alive.

¹⁹You shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness while she is in her menstrual uncleanness.

²⁰You shall not have sexual relations with your kinsman’s wife, and defile yourself with her.

²¹You shall not give any of your offspring to sacrifice them to Molech, and so profane the name of your God: I am the LORD.

²²You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.

²³You shall not have sexual relations with any animal and defile yourself with it, nor shall any woman give herself to an animal to have sexual relations with it: it is perversion.

²⁴Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, for by all these practices the nations I am casting out before you have defiled themselves.

²⁵Thus the land became defiled; and I punished it for its iniquity, and the land vomited out its inhabitants.

²⁶But you shall keep my statutes and my ordinances and commit none of these abominations, either the citizen or the alien who resides among you

²⁷(for the inhabitants of the land, who were before you, committed all of these abominations, and the land became defiled);

²⁸otherwise the land will vomit you out for defiling it, as it vomited out the nation that was before you.

²⁹For whoever commits any of these abominations shall be cut off from their people.

³⁰So keep my charge not to commit any of these abominations that were done before you, and not to defile yourselves by them: I am the LORD your God.

¹Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

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

³Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

⁴Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.

⁵Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.

⁶Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

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

⁸Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

⁹Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

¹⁰I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it.

¹¹Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have.

¹²I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need.

¹³I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

¹⁴In any case, it was kind of you to share my distress.

¹⁵You Philippians indeed know that in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you alone.

¹⁶For even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me help for my needs more than once.

¹⁷Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the profit that accumulates to your account.

¹⁸I have been paid in full and have more than enough; I am fully satisfied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.

¹⁹And my God will fully satisfy every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

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

²¹Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The friends who are with me greet you.

²²All the saints greet you, especially those of the emperor’s household.

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

¹This is now, beloved, the second letter I am writing to you; in them I am trying to arouse your sincere intention by reminding you

²that you should remember the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets, and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken through your apostles.

³First of all you must understand this, that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and indulging their own lusts

⁴and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since our ancestors died, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation!”

⁵They deliberately ignore this fact, that by the word of God heavens existed long ago and an earth was formed out of water and by means of water,

⁶through which the world of that time was deluged with water and perished.

⁷But by the same word the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the godless.

⁸But do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day.

⁹The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance.

¹⁰But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and everything that is done on it will be disclosed.

¹¹Since all these things are to be dissolved in this way, what sort of persons ought you to be in leading lives of holiness and godliness,

¹²waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved, and the elements will melt with fire?

¹³But, in accordance with his promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home.

¹⁴Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish;

¹⁵and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation. So also our beloved brother Paul wrote to you according to the wisdom given him,

¹⁶speaking of this as he does in all his letters. There are some things in them hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other scriptures.

¹⁷You therefore, beloved, since you are forewarned, beware that you are not carried away with the error of the lawless and lose your own stability.

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

¹Guard your steps when you go to the house of God; to draw near to listen is better than the sacrifice offered by fools; for they do not know how to keep from doing evil.

²Never be rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be quick to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven, and you upon earth; therefore let your words be few.

³For dreams come with many cares, and a fool’s voice with many words.

⁴When you make a vow to God, do not delay fulfilling it; for he has no pleasure in fools. Fulfill what you vow.

⁵It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not fulfill it.

⁶Do not let your mouth lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake; why should God be angry at your words, and destroy the work of your hands?

⁷With many dreams come vanities and a multitude of words; but fear God.

⁸If you see in a province the oppression of the poor and the violation of justice and right, do not be amazed at the matter; for the high official is watched by a higher, and there are yet higher ones over them.

⁹But all things considered, this is an advantage for a land: a king for a plowed field.

¹⁰The lover of money will not be satisfied with money; nor the lover of wealth, with gain. This also is vanity.

¹¹When goods increase, those who eat them increase; and what gain has their owner but to see them with his eyes?

¹²Sweet is the sleep of laborers, whether they eat little or much; but the surfeit of the rich will not let them sleep.

¹³There is a grievous ill that I have seen under the sun: riches were kept by their owners to their hurt,

¹⁴and those riches were lost in a bad venture; though they are parents of children, they have nothing in their hands.

¹⁵As they came from their mother’s womb, so they shall go again, naked as they came; they shall take nothing for their toil, which they may carry away with their hands.

¹⁶This also is a grievous ill: just as they came, so shall they go; and what gain do they have from toiling for the wind?

¹⁷Besides, all their days they eat in darkness, in much vexation and sickness and resentment.

¹⁸This is what I have seen to be good: it is fitting to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of the life God gives us; for this is our lot.

¹⁹Likewise all to whom God gives wealth and possessions and whom he enables to enjoy them, and to accept their lot and find enjoyment in their toil — this is the gift of God.

²⁰For they will scarcely brood over the days of their lives, because God keeps them occupied with the joy of their hearts.

¹I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever.

²Every day I will bless you, and praise your name forever and ever.

³Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable.

⁴One generation shall laud your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.

⁵On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.

⁶The might of your awesome deeds shall be proclaimed, and I will declare your greatness.

⁷They shall celebrate the fame of your abundant goodness, and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

⁸The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

⁹The LORD is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made.

¹⁰All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD, and all your faithful shall bless you.

¹¹They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom, and tell of your power,

¹²to make known to all people your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.

¹³Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The LORD is faithful in all his words, and gracious in all his deeds.

¹⁴The LORD upholds all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down.

¹⁵The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season.

¹⁶You open your hand, satisfying the desire of every living thing.

¹⁷The LORD is just in all his ways, and kind in all his doings.

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

¹⁹He fulfills the desire of all who fear him; he also 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 the praise of the LORD, and all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.

¹The plans of the mind belong to mortals, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD.

²All one’s ways may be pure in one’s own eyes, but the LORD weighs the spirit.

³Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established.

⁴The LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.

⁵All those who are arrogant are an abomination to the LORD; be assured, they will not go unpunished.

⁶By loyalty and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for, and by the fear of the LORD one avoids evil.

⁷When the ways of people please the LORD, he causes even their enemies to be at peace with them.

⁸Better is a little with righteousness than large income with injustice.

⁹The human mind plans the way, but the LORD directs the steps.

¹⁰Inspired decisions are on the lips of a king; his mouth does not sin in judgment.

¹¹Honest balances and scales are the LORD’s; all the weights in the bag are his work.

¹²It is an abomination to kings to do evil, for the throne is established by righteousness.

¹³Righteous lips are the delight of a king, and he loves those who speak what is right.

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

¹⁵In the light of a king’s face there is life, and his favor is like the clouds that bring the spring rain.

¹⁶How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.

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

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

¹⁹It is better to be of a lowly spirit among the poor than to divide the spoil with the proud.

²⁰Those who are attentive to a matter will prosper, and happy are those who trust in the LORD.

²¹The wise of heart is called perceptive, and pleasant speech increases persuasiveness.

²²Wisdom is a fountain of life to one who has it, but folly is the punishment of fools.

²³The mind of the wise makes their speech judicious, and adds persuasiveness to their lips.

²⁴Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.

²⁵Sometimes there is a way that seems to be right, but in the end it is the way to death.

²⁶The appetite of workers works for them; their hunger urges them on.

²⁷Scoundrels concoct evil, and their speech is like a scorching fire.

²⁸A perverse person spreads strife, and a whisperer separates close friends.

²⁹The violent entice their neighbors, and lead them in a way that is not good.

³⁰One who winks the eyes plans perverse things; one who compresses the lips brings evil to pass.

³¹Gray hair is a crown of glory; it is gained in a righteous life.

³²One who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and one whose temper is controlled than one who captures a city.

³³The lot is cast into the lap, but the decision is the LORD’s alone.

¹In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to live in the country of Moab, he and his wife and two sons.

²The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion; they were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and remained there.

³But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons.

⁴These took Moabite wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. When they had lived there about ten years,

⁵both Mahlon and Chilion also died, so that the woman was left without her two sons and her husband.

⁶Then she started to return with her daughters-in-law from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the LORD had considered his people and given them food.

⁷So she set out from the place where she had been living, she and her two daughters-in-law, and they went on their way to go back to the land of Judah.

⁸But Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back each of you to your mother’s house. May the LORD deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me.

⁹The LORD grant that you may find security, each of you in the house of your husband.” Then she kissed them, and they wept aloud.

¹⁰They said to her, “No, we will return with you to your people.”

¹¹But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters, why will you go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb that they may become your husbands?

¹²Turn back, my daughters, go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. Even if I thought there was hope for me, even if I should have a husband tonight and bear sons,

¹³would you then wait until they were grown? Would you then refrain from marrying? No, my daughters, it has been far more bitter for me than for you, because the hand of the LORD has turned against me.”

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

¹⁵So she said, “See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.”

¹⁶But Ruth said, “Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God.

¹⁷Where you die, I will die — there will I be buried. May the LORD do thus and so to me, and more as well, if even death parts me from you!”

¹⁸When Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.

¹⁹So the two of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. When they came to Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them; and the women said, “Is this Naomi?”

²⁰She said to them, “Call me no longer Naomi, call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt bitterly with me.

²¹I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty; why call me Naomi when the LORD has dealt harshly with me, and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?”

²²So Naomi returned together with Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, who came back with her from the country of Moab. They came to Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.

¹Thus says the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped to subdue nations before him and strip kings of their robes, to open doors before him — and the gates shall not be closed:

²I will go before you and level the mountains, I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron,

³I will give you the treasures of darkness and riches hidden in secret places, so that you may know that it is I, the LORD, the God of Israel, who call you by your name.

⁴For the sake of my servant Jacob, and Israel my chosen, I call you by your name, I surname you, though you do not know me.

⁵I am the LORD, and there is no other; besides me there is no god. I arm you, though you do not know me,

⁶so that they may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is no one besides me; I am the LORD, and there is no other.

⁷I form light and create darkness, I make weal and create woe; I the LORD do all these things.

⁸Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the skies rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation may spring up, and let it cause righteousness to sprout up also; I the LORD have created it.

⁹Woe to you who strive with your Maker, earthen vessels with the potter! Does the clay say to the one who fashions it, “What are you making”? or “Your work has no handles”?

¹⁰Woe to anyone who says to a father, “What are you begetting?” or to a woman, “With what are you in labor?”

¹¹Thus says the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker: Will you question me about my children, or command me concerning the work of my hands?

¹²I made the earth, and created humankind upon it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host.

¹³I have aroused Cyrus in righteousness, and I will make all his paths straight; he shall build my city and set my exiles free, not for price or reward, says the LORD of hosts.

¹⁴Thus says the LORD: The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Ethiopia, and the Sabeans, tall of stature, shall come over to you and be yours, they shall follow you; they shall come over in chains and bow down to you. They will make supplication to you, saying, “God is with you alone, and there is no other; there is no god besides him.”

¹⁵Truly, you are a God who hides himself, O God of Israel, the Savior.

¹⁶All of them are put to shame and confounded, the makers of idols go in confusion together.

¹⁷But Israel is saved by the LORD with everlasting salvation; you shall not be put to shame or confounded to all eternity.

¹⁸For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (he is God!), who formed the earth and made it (he established it; he did not create it a chaos, he formed it to be inhabited!): I am the LORD, and there is no other.

¹⁹I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, “Seek me in chaos.” I the LORD speak the truth, I declare what is right.

²⁰Assemble yourselves and come together, draw near, you survivors of the nations! They have no knowledge — those who carry about their wooden idols, and keep on praying to a god that cannot save.

²¹Declare and present your case; let them take counsel together! Who told this long ago? Who declared it of old? Was it not I, the LORD? There is no other god besides me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is no one besides me.

²²Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.

²³By myself I have sworn, from my mouth has gone forth in righteousness a word that shall not return: “To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.”

²⁴Only in the LORD, it shall be said of me, are righteousness and strength; all who were incensed against him shall come to him and be ashamed.

²⁵In the LORD all the offspring of Israel shall triumph and glory.

¹Then certain individuals came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

²And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to discuss this question with the apostles and the elders.

³So they were sent on their way by the church, and as they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, they reported the conversion of the Gentiles, and brought great joy to all the believers.

⁴When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them.

⁵But some believers who belonged to the sect of the Pharisees stood up and said, “It is necessary for them to be circumcised and ordered to keep the law of Moses.”

⁶The apostles and the elders met together to consider this matter.

⁷After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “My brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that I should be the one through whom the Gentiles would hear the message of the good news and become believers.

⁸And God, who knows the human heart, testified to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us;

⁹and in cleansing their hearts by faith he has made no distinction between them and us.

¹⁰Now therefore why are you putting God to the test by placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear?

¹¹On the contrary, we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”

¹²The whole assembly kept silence, and listened to Barnabas and Paul as they told of all the signs and wonders that God had done through them among the Gentiles.

¹³After they finished speaking, James replied, “My brothers, listen to me.

¹⁴Simeon has related how God first looked favorably on the Gentiles, to take from among them a people for his name.

¹⁵This agrees with the words of the prophets, as it is written,

¹⁶‘After this I will return, and I will rebuild the dwelling of David, which has fallen; from its ruins I will rebuild it, and I will set it up,

¹⁷so that all other peoples may seek the Lord — even all the Gentiles over whom my name has been called. Thus says the Lord, who has been making these things

¹⁸known from long ago.’

¹⁹Therefore I have reached the decision that we should not trouble those Gentiles who are turning to God,

²⁰but we should write to them to abstain only from things polluted by idols and from fornication and from whatever has been strangled and from blood.

²¹For in every city, for generations past, Moses has had those who proclaim him, for he has been read aloud every sabbath in the synagogues.”

²²Then the apostles and the elders, with the consent of the whole church, decided to choose men from among their members and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leaders among the brothers,

²³with the following letter: “The brothers, both the apostles and the elders, to the believers of Gentile origin in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, greetings.

²⁴Since we have heard that certain persons who have gone out from us, though with no instructions from us, have said things to disturb you and have unsettled your minds,

²⁵we have decided unanimously to choose representatives and send them to you, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

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

²⁷We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth.

²⁸For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to impose on you no further burden than these essentials:

²⁹that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from fornication. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”

³⁰So they were sent off and went down to Antioch. When they gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter.

³¹When its members read it, they rejoiced at the exhortation.

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

³³After they had been there for some time, they were sent off in peace by the believers to those who had sent them.

³⁴

³⁵But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, and there, with many others, they taught and proclaimed the word of the Lord.

³⁶After some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Come, let us return and visit the believers in every city where we proclaimed the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.”

³⁷Barnabas wanted to take with them John called Mark.

³⁸But Paul decided not to take with them one who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not accompanied them in the work.

³⁹The disagreement became so sharp that they parted company; Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus.

⁴⁰But Paul chose Silas and set out, the believers commending him to the grace of the Lord.

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