Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Jesus went into the synagogue again and noticed a man with a deformed hand.

²Since it was the Sabbath, Jesus’ enemies watched him closely. If he healed the man’s hand, they planned to accuse him of working on the Sabbath.

³Jesus said to the man with the deformed hand, “Come and stand in front of everyone.”

⁴Then he turned to his critics and asked, “Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it?” But they wouldn’t answer him.

⁵He looked around at them angrily and was deeply saddened by their hard hearts. Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored!

⁶At once the Pharisees went away and met with the supporters of Herod to plot how to kill Jesus.

⁷Jesus went out to the lake with his disciples, and a large crowd followed him. They came from all over Galilee, Judea,

⁸Jerusalem, Idumea, from east of the Jordan River, and even from as far north as Tyre and Sidon. The news about his miracles had spread far and wide, and vast numbers of people came to see him.

⁹Jesus instructed his disciples to have a boat ready so the crowd would not crush him.

¹⁰He had healed many people that day, so all the sick people eagerly pushed forward to touch him.

¹¹And whenever those possessed by evil spirits caught sight of him, the spirits would throw them to the ground in front of him shrieking, “You are the Son of God!”

¹²But Jesus sternly commanded the spirits not to reveal who he was.

¹³Afterward Jesus went up on a mountain and called out the ones he wanted to go with him. And they came to him.

¹⁴Then he appointed twelve of them and called them his apostles. They were to accompany him, and he would send them out to preach,

¹⁵giving them authority to cast out demons.

¹⁶These are the twelve he chose: Simon (whom he named Peter),

¹⁷James and John (the sons of Zebedee, but Jesus nicknamed them “Sons of Thunder” ),

¹⁸Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James (son of Alphaeus), Thaddaeus, Simon (the zealot ),

¹⁹Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed him).

²⁰One time Jesus entered a house, and the crowds began to gather again. Soon he and his disciples couldn’t even find time to eat.

²¹When his family heard what was happening, they tried to take him away. “He’s out of his mind,” they said.

²²But the teachers of religious law who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “He’s possessed by Satan, the prince of demons. That’s where he gets the power to cast out demons.”

²³Jesus called them over and responded with an illustration. “How can Satan cast out Satan?” he asked.

²⁴“A kingdom divided by civil war will collapse.

²⁵Similarly, a family splintered by feuding will fall apart.

²⁶And if Satan is divided and fights against himself, how can he stand? He would never survive.

²⁷Let me illustrate this further. Who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger — someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house.

²⁸“I tell you the truth, all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven,

²⁹but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences.”

³⁰He told them this because they were saying, “He’s possessed by an evil spirit.”

³¹Then Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him. They stood outside and sent word for him to come out and talk with them.

³²There was a crowd sitting around Jesus, and someone said, “Your mother and your brothers are outside asking for you.”

³³Jesus replied, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?”

³⁴Then he looked at those around him and said, “Look, these are my mother and brothers.

³⁵Anyone who does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

¹The LORD said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the priests, the descendants of Aaron. “A priest must not make himself ceremonially unclean by touching the dead body of a relative.

²The only exceptions are his closest relatives — his mother or father, son or daughter, brother,

³or his virgin sister who depends on him because she has no husband.

⁴But a priest must not defile himself and make himself unclean for someone who is related to him only by marriage.

⁵“The priests must not shave their heads or trim their beards or cut their bodies.

⁶They must be set apart as holy to their God and must never bring shame on the name of God. They must be holy, for they are the ones who present the special gifts to the LORD, gifts of food for their God.

⁷“Priests may not marry a woman defiled by prostitution, and they may not marry a woman who is divorced from her husband, for the priests are set apart as holy to their God.

⁸You must treat them as holy because they offer up food to your God. You must consider them holy because I, the LORD, am holy, and I make you holy.

⁹“If a priest’s daughter defiles herself by becoming a prostitute, she also defiles her father’s holiness, and she must be burned to death.

¹⁰“The high priest has the highest rank of all the priests. The anointing oil has been poured on his head, and he has been ordained to wear the priestly garments. He must never leave his hair uncombed or tear his clothing.

¹¹He must not defile himself by going near a dead body. He may not make himself ceremonially unclean even for his father or mother.

¹²He must not defile the sanctuary of his God by leaving it to attend to a dead person, for he has been made holy by the anointing oil of his God. I am the LORD.

¹³“The high priest may marry only a virgin.

¹⁴He may not marry a widow, a woman who is divorced, or a woman who has defiled herself by prostitution. She must be a virgin from his own clan,

¹⁵so that he will not dishonor his descendants among his clan, for I am the LORD who makes him holy.”

¹⁶Then the LORD said to Moses,

¹⁷“Give the following instructions to Aaron: In all future generations, none of your descendants who has any defect will qualify to offer food to his God.

¹⁸No one who has a defect qualifies, whether he is blind, lame, disfigured, deformed,

¹⁹or has a broken foot or arm,

²⁰or is hunchbacked or dwarfed, or has a defective eye, or skin sores or scabs, or damaged testicles.

²¹No descendant of Aaron who has a defect may approach the altar to present special gifts to the LORD. Since he has a defect, he may not approach the altar to offer food to his God.

²²However, he may eat from the food offered to God, including the holy offerings and the most holy offerings.

²³Yet because of his physical defect, he may not enter the room behind the inner curtain or approach the altar, for this would defile my holy places. I am the LORD who makes them holy.”

²⁴So Moses gave these instructions to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites.

¹Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand.

²Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.

³For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.

⁴And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.

⁵So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.

⁶Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming.

⁷You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world.

⁸But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language.

⁹Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds.

¹⁰Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.

¹¹In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.

¹²Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.

¹³Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

¹⁴Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.

¹⁵And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

¹⁶Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.

¹⁷And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

¹⁸Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting for those who belong to the Lord.

¹⁹Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly.

²⁰Children, always obey your parents, for this pleases the Lord.

²¹Fathers, do not aggravate your children, or they will become discouraged.

²²Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything you do. Try to please them all the time, not just when they are watching you. Serve them sincerely because of your reverent fear of the Lord.

²³Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

²⁴Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.

²⁵But if you do what is wrong, you will be paid back for the wrong you have done. For God has no favorites.

¹See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him.

²Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.

³And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure.

⁴Everyone who sins is breaking God’s law, for all sin is contrary to the law of God.

⁵And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in him.

⁶Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is.

⁷Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous.

⁸But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil.

⁹Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God.

¹⁰So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God.

¹¹This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another.

¹²We must not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because Cain had been doing what was evil, and his brother had been doing what was righteous.

¹³So don’t be surprised, dear brothers and sisters, if the world hates you.

¹⁴If we love our brothers and sisters who are believers, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead.

¹⁵Anyone who hates another brother or sister is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them.

¹⁶We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters.

¹⁷If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion — how can God’s love be in that person?

¹⁸Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions.

¹⁹Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God.

²⁰Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything.

²¹Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence.

²²And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.

²³And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us.

²⁴Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us.

¹How wonderful to be wise, to analyze and interpret things. Wisdom lights up a person’s face, softening its harshness.

²Obey the king since you vowed to God that you would.

³Don’t try to avoid doing your duty, and don’t stand with those who plot evil, for the king can do whatever he wants.

⁴His command is backed by great power. No one can resist or question it.

⁵Those who obey him will not be punished. Those who are wise will find a time and a way to do what is right,

⁶for there is a time and a way for everything, even when a person is in trouble.

⁷Indeed, how can people avoid what they don’t know is going to happen?

⁸None of us can hold back our spirit from departing. None of us has the power to prevent the day of our death. There is no escaping that obligation, that dark battle. And in the face of death, wickedness will certainly not rescue the wicked.

⁹I have thought deeply about all that goes on here under the sun, where people have the power to hurt each other.

¹⁰I have seen wicked people buried with honor. Yet they were the very ones who frequented the Temple and are now praised in the same city where they committed their crimes! This, too, is meaningless.

¹¹When a crime is not punished quickly, people feel it is safe to do wrong.

¹²But even though a person sins a hundred times and still lives a long time, I know that those who fear God will be better off.

¹³The wicked will not prosper, for they do not fear God. Their days will never grow long like the evening shadows.

¹⁴And this is not all that is meaningless in our world. In this life, good people are often treated as though they were wicked, and wicked people are often treated as though they were good. This is so meaningless!

¹⁵So I recommend having fun, because there is nothing better for people in this world than to eat, drink, and enjoy life. That way they will experience some happiness along with all the hard work God gives them under the sun.

¹⁶In my search for wisdom and in my observation of people’s burdens here on earth, I discovered that there is ceaseless activity, day and night.

¹⁷I realized that no one can discover everything God is doing under the sun. Not even the wisest people discover everything, no matter what they claim.

¹Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens! Praise him from the skies!

²Praise him, all his angels! Praise him, all the armies of heaven!

³Praise him, sun and moon! Praise him, all you twinkling stars!

⁴Praise him, skies above! Praise him, vapors high above the clouds!

⁵Let every created thing give praise to the LORD, for he issued his command, and they came into being.

⁶He set them in place forever and ever. His decree will never be revoked.

⁷Praise the LORD from the earth, you creatures of the ocean depths,

⁸fire and hail, snow and clouds, wind and weather that obey him,

⁹mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars,

¹⁰wild animals and all livestock, small scurrying animals and birds,

¹¹kings of the earth and all people, rulers and judges of the earth,

¹²young men and young women, old men and children.

¹³Let them all praise the name of the LORD. For his name is very great; his glory towers over the earth and heaven!

¹⁴He has made his people strong, honoring his faithful ones — the people of Israel who are close to him. Praise the LORD!

¹Better to be poor and honest than to be dishonest and a fool.

²Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes.

³People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the LORD.

⁴Wealth makes many “friends”; poverty drives them all away.

⁵A false witness will not go unpunished, nor will a liar escape.

⁶Many seek favors from a ruler; everyone is the friend of a person who gives gifts!

⁷The relatives of the poor despise them; how much more will their friends avoid them! Though the poor plead with them, their friends are gone.

⁸To acquire wisdom is to love yourself; people who cherish understanding will prosper.

⁹A false witness will not go unpunished, and a liar will be destroyed.

¹⁰It isn’t right for a fool to live in luxury or for a slave to rule over princes!

¹¹Sensible people control their temper; they earn respect by overlooking wrongs.

¹²The king’s anger is like a lion’s roar, but his favor is like dew on the grass.

¹³A foolish child is a calamity to a father; a quarrelsome wife is as annoying as constant dripping.

¹⁴Fathers can give their sons an inheritance of houses and wealth, but only the LORD can give an understanding wife.

¹⁵Lazy people sleep soundly, but idleness leaves them hungry.

¹⁶Keep the commandments and keep your life; despising them leads to death.

¹⁷If you help the poor, you are lending to the LORD — and he will repay you!

¹⁸Discipline your children while there is hope. Otherwise you will ruin their lives.

¹⁹Hot-tempered people must pay the penalty. If you rescue them once, you will have to do it again.

²⁰Get all the advice and instruction you can, so you will be wise the rest of your life.

²¹You can make many plans, but the LORD’s purpose will prevail.

²²Loyalty makes a person attractive. It is better to be poor than dishonest.

²³Fear of the LORD leads to life, bringing security and protection from harm.

²⁴Lazy people take food in their hand but don’t even lift it to their mouth.

²⁵If you punish a mocker, the simpleminded will learn a lesson; if you correct the wise, they will be all the wiser.

²⁶Children who mistreat their father or chase away their mother are an embarrassment and a public disgrace.

²⁷If you stop listening to instruction, my child, you will turn your back on knowledge.

²⁸A corrupt witness makes a mockery of justice; the mouth of the wicked gulps down evil.

²⁹Punishment is made for mockers, and the backs of fools are made to be beaten.

¹Boaz went to the town gate and took a seat there. Just then the family redeemer he had mentioned came by, so Boaz called out to him, “Come over here and sit down, friend. I want to talk to you.” So they sat down together.

²Then Boaz called ten leaders from the town and asked them to sit as witnesses.

³And Boaz said to the family redeemer, “You know Naomi, who came back from Moab. She is selling the land that belonged to our relative Elimelech.

⁴I thought I should speak to you about it so that you can redeem it if you wish. If you want the land, then buy it here in the presence of these witnesses. But if you don’t want it, let me know right away, because I am next in line to redeem it after you.” The man replied, “All right, I’ll redeem it.”

⁵Then Boaz told him, “Of course, your purchase of the land from Naomi also requires that you marry Ruth, the Moabite widow. That way she can have children who will carry on her husband’s name and keep the land in the family.”

⁶“Then I can’t redeem it,” the family redeemer replied, “because this might endanger my own estate. You redeem the land; I cannot do it.”

⁷Now in those days it was the custom in Israel for anyone transferring a right of purchase to remove his sandal and hand it to the other party. This publicly validated the transaction.

⁸So the other family redeemer drew off his sandal as he said to Boaz, “You buy the land.”

⁹Then Boaz said to the elders and to the crowd standing around, “You are witnesses that today I have bought from Naomi all the property of Elimelech, Kilion, and Mahlon.

¹⁰And with the land I have acquired Ruth, the Moabite widow of Mahlon, to be my wife. This way she can have a son to carry on the family name of her dead husband and to inherit the family property here in his hometown. You are all witnesses today.”

¹¹Then the elders and all the people standing in the gate replied, “We are witnesses! May the LORD make this woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, from whom all the nation of Israel descended! May you prosper in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem.

¹²And may the LORD give you descendants by this young woman who will be like those of our ancestor Perez, the son of Tamar and Judah.”

¹³So Boaz took Ruth into his home, and she became his wife. When he slept with her, the LORD enabled her to become pregnant, and she gave birth to a son.

¹⁴Then the women of the town said to Naomi, “Praise the LORD, who has now provided a redeemer for your family! May this child be famous in Israel.

¹⁵May he restore your youth and care for you in your old age. For he is the son of your daughter-in-law who loves you and has been better to you than seven sons!”

¹⁶Naomi took the baby and cuddled him to her breast. And she cared for him as if he were her own.

¹⁷The neighbor women said, “Now at last Naomi has a son again!” And they named him Obed. He became the father of Jesse and the grandfather of David.

¹⁸This is the genealogical record of their ancestor Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron.

¹⁹Hezron was the father of Ram. Ram was the father of Amminadab.

²⁰Amminadab was the father of Nahshon. Nahshon was the father of Salmon.

²¹Salmon was the father of Boaz. Boaz was the father of Obed.

²²Obed was the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David.

¹“Listen to me, O family of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel and born into the family of Judah. Listen, you who take oaths in the name of the LORD and call on the God of Israel. You don’t keep your promises,

²even though you call yourself the holy city and talk about depending on the God of Israel, whose name is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

³Long ago I told you what was going to happen. Then suddenly I took action, and all my predictions came true.

⁴For I know how stubborn and obstinate you are. Your necks are as unbending as iron. Your heads are as hard as bronze.

⁵That is why I told you what would happen; I told you beforehand what I was going to do. Then you could never say, ‘My idols did it. My wooden image and metal god commanded it to happen!’

⁶You have heard my predictions and seen them fulfilled, but you refuse to admit it. Now I will tell you new things, secrets you have not yet heard.

⁷They are brand new, not things from the past. So you cannot say, ‘We knew that all the time!’

⁸“Yes, I will tell you of things that are entirely new, things you never heard of before. For I know so well what traitors you are. You have been rebels from birth.

⁹Yet for my own sake and for the honor of my name, I will hold back my anger and not wipe you out.

¹⁰I have refined you, but not as silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.

¹¹I will rescue you for my sake — yes, for my own sake! I will not let my reputation be tarnished, and I will not share my glory with idols!

¹²“Listen to me, O family of Jacob, Israel my chosen one! I alone am God, the First and the Last.

¹³It was my hand that laid the foundations of the earth, my right hand that spread out the heavens above. When I call out the stars, they all appear in order.”

¹⁴Have any of your idols ever told you this? Come, all of you, and listen: The LORD has chosen Cyrus as his ally. He will use him to put an end to the empire of Babylon and to destroy the Babylonian armies.

¹⁵“I have said it: I am calling Cyrus! I will send him on this errand and will help him succeed.

¹⁶Come closer, and listen to this. From the beginning I have told you plainly what would happen.” And now the Sovereign LORD and his Spirit have sent me with this message.

¹⁷This is what the LORD says — your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow.

¹⁸Oh, that you had listened to my commands! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river and righteousness rolling over you like waves in the sea.

¹⁹Your descendants would have been like the sands along the seashore — too many to count! There would have been no need for your destruction, or for cutting off your family name.”

²⁰Yet even now, be free from your captivity! Leave Babylon and the Babylonians. Sing out this message! Shout it to the ends of the earth! The LORD has redeemed his servants, the people of Israel.

²¹They were not thirsty when he led them through the desert. He divided the rock, and water gushed out for them to drink.

²²“But there is no peace for the wicked,” says the LORD.

¹Then Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.

²There he became acquainted with a Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently arrived from Italy with his wife, Priscilla. They had left Italy when Claudius Caesar deported all Jews from Rome.

³Paul lived and worked with them, for they were tentmakers just as he was.

⁴Each Sabbath found Paul at the synagogue, trying to convince the Jews and Greeks alike.

⁵And after Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul spent all his time preaching the word. He testified to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah.

⁶But when they opposed and insulted him, Paul shook the dust from his clothes and said, “Your blood is upon your own heads — I am innocent. From now on I will go preach to the Gentiles.”

⁷Then he left and went to the home of Titius Justus, a Gentile who worshiped God and lived next door to the synagogue.

⁸Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, and everyone in his household believed in the Lord. Many others in Corinth also heard Paul, became believers, and were baptized.

⁹One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision and told him, “Don’t be afraid! Speak out! Don’t be silent!

¹⁰For I am with you, and no one will attack and harm you, for many people in this city belong to me.”

¹¹So Paul stayed there for the next year and a half, teaching the word of God.

¹²But when Gallio became governor of Achaia, some Jews rose up together against Paul and brought him before the governor for judgment.

¹³They accused Paul of “persuading people to worship God in ways that are contrary to our law.”

¹⁴But just as Paul started to make his defense, Gallio turned to Paul’s accusers and said, “Listen, you Jews, if this were a case involving some wrongdoing or a serious crime, I would have a reason to accept your case.

¹⁵But since it is merely a question of words and names and your Jewish law, take care of it yourselves. I refuse to judge such matters.”

¹⁶And he threw them out of the courtroom.

¹⁷The crowd then grabbed Sosthenes, the leader of the synagogue, and beat him right there in the courtroom. But Gallio paid no attention.

¹⁸Paul stayed in Corinth for some time after that, then said good-bye to the brothers and sisters and went to nearby Cenchrea. There he shaved his head according to Jewish custom, marking the end of a vow. Then he set sail for Syria, taking Priscilla and Aquila with him.

¹⁹They stopped first at the port of Ephesus, where Paul left the others behind. While he was there, he went to the synagogue to reason with the Jews.

²⁰They asked him to stay longer, but he declined.

²¹As he left, however, he said, “I will come back later, God willing.” Then he set sail from Ephesus.

²²The next stop was at the port of Caesarea. From there he went up and visited the church at Jerusalem and then went back to Antioch.

²³After spending some time in Antioch, Paul went back through Galatia and Phrygia, visiting and strengthening all the believers.

²⁴Meanwhile, a Jew named Apollos, an eloquent speaker who knew the Scriptures well, had arrived in Ephesus from Alexandria in Egypt.

²⁵He had been taught the way of the Lord, and he taught others about Jesus with an enthusiastic spirit and with accuracy. However, he knew only about John’s baptism.

²⁶When Priscilla and Aquila heard him preaching boldly in the synagogue, they took him aside and explained the way of God even more accurately.

²⁷Apollos had been thinking about going to Achaia, and the brothers and sisters in Ephesus encouraged him to go. They wrote to the believers in Achaia, asking them to welcome him. When he arrived there, he proved to be of great benefit to those who, by God’s grace, had believed.

²⁸He refuted the Jews with powerful arguments in public debate. Using the Scriptures, he explained to them that Jesus was the Messiah.