Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹In those days, when there was again a large crowd [gathered before Him] and they had nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples and told them,

²"I feel compassion for the crowd; they have been with Me now for three days and have nothing [left] to eat.

³If I send them away to their homes hungry, they will faint [from exhaustion] on the road; because some of them have come a long way."

⁴His disciples replied to Him, "Where will anyone be able to find enough bread here in this isolated place to feed these people?"

⁵He asked them, "How many loaves [of bread] do you have?" They said, "Seven."

⁶He directed the people to sit down on the ground; and taking the seven loaves, He gave thanks and broke them, and [repeatedly] gave them to His disciples to set before them, and they served the crowd.

⁷They also had a few small fish; and when Jesus had blessed them [and given thanks], He ordered these [fish] to be set before them as well.

⁸And the people ate and were satisfied; and they picked up seven large baskets full of the broken pieces that were left over.

⁹About four thousand [men] were there [besides women and children]; and He sent them away.

¹⁰Then immediately He got into the boat with His disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.

¹¹The Pharisees came out and began to argue [contentiously and debate] with Him, demanding from Him a sign from heaven, to test Him [because of their unbelief].

¹²He groaned and sighed deeply in His spirit and said, "Why does this generation demand a sign? I assure you and most solemnly say to you, no sign will be given to this generation!"

¹³Leaving them, He again boarded the boat and left for the other side.

¹⁴Now the disciples had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat.

¹⁵Jesus repeatedly ordered them, saying, "Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."

¹⁶They began discussing this with one another, saying, "It is because we have no bread [that He said this]."

¹⁷Jesus, aware of this [discussion], said to them, "Why are you discussing [the fact] that you have no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened?

¹⁸Though you have eyes, do you not see? And though you have ears, do you not hear and listen [to what I have said]? And do you not remember,

¹⁹when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces you picked up?" They answered, "Twelve."

²⁰"And [when I broke] the seven [loaves] for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?" And they answered, "Seven."

²¹And He was saying to them, "Do you still not understand?"

²²Then they came to Bethsaida; and some people brought a blind man to Jesus and begged Him to touch him.

²³Taking the blind man by the hand, He led him out of the village; and after spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, "Do you see anything?"

²⁴And he looked up and said, "I see people, but [they look] like trees, walking around."

²⁵Then again Jesus laid His hands on his eyes; and the man stared intently and [his sight] was [completely] restored, and he began to see everything clearly.

²⁶And He sent him to his home, saying, "Do not even enter the village."

²⁷Then Jesus and His disciples went out to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way He asked His disciples, "Who do people say that I am?"

²⁸They answered Him, "John the Baptist; and others say Elijah; but others, one of the prophets."

²⁹And He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter replied to Him, "You [in contrast to the others] are the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)."

³⁰Then Jesus strictly warned them not to tell anyone about Him.

³¹And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must [of necessity] suffer many things and be rejected [as the Messiah] by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and must be put to death, and after three days rise [from death to life].

³²He was stating the matter plainly [not holding anything back]. Then Peter took Him aside and began to reprimand Him.

³³But turning around [with His back to Peter] and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan; for your mind is not set on God's will or His values and purposes, but on what pleases man."

³⁴Jesus called the crowd together with His disciples, and said to them, "If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself [set aside selfish interests], and take up his cross [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me].

³⁵For whoever wishes to save his life [in this world] will [eventually] lose it [through death], but whoever loses his life [in this world] for My sake and the gospel's will save it [from the consequences of sin and separation from God].

³⁶For what does it benefit a man to gain the whole world [with all its pleasures], and forfeit his soul?

³⁷For what will a man give in exchange for his soul and eternal life [in God's kingdom]?

³⁸For whoever is ashamed [here and now] of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels."

¹'You shall not make idols for yourselves, nor shall you erect an image, a sacred pillar or an obelisk, nor shall you place any figured stone in your land so that you may bow down to it; for I am the LORD your God.

²You shall keep My Sabbaths and have reverence for My sanctuary. I am the LORD.

³If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments and [obediently] do them,

⁴then I will give you rain in its season, and the land will yield her produce and the trees of the field bear their fruit.

⁵And your threshing season will last until grape gathering and the grape gathering [time] will last until planting, and you will eat your bread and be filled and live securely in your land.

⁶I will also grant peace in the land, so that you may lie down and there will be no one to make you afraid. I will also eliminate harmful animals from the land, and no sword will pass through your land.

⁷And you will chase your enemies, and they will fall before you by the sword.

⁸Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will put ten thousand to flight; your enemies will fall before you by the sword.

⁹For I will turn toward you [with favor and regard] and make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will establish and confirm My covenant with you.

¹⁰You will eat the old supply of [abundant] produce, and clear out the old [to make room] for the new.

¹¹I will make My dwelling among you, and My soul will not reject nor separate itself from you.

¹²I will walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people.

¹³I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt so that you would not be their slaves; and I broke the bars of your yoke and made you walk upright [with heads held high as free men].

¹⁴'But if you do not obey Me and do not [obediently] do all these commandments,

¹⁵if, instead, you reject My statutes, and if your soul rejects My ordinances, so that you will not [obediently] do all My commandments, and in this way break My covenant,

¹⁶I, in turn, will do this to you: I will appoint over you sudden terror, consumption, and fever that will waste away the eyes and cause the soul to languish also. And you will sow your seed uselessly, for your enemies will eat what you plant.

¹⁷I will set My face against you so that you will be struck down before your enemies; those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee when no one is pursuing you.

¹⁸If in spite of all this you still will not listen to Me and be obedient, then I will punish you seven times more for your sins.

¹⁹I will break your pride in your power, and I will make your sky like iron [giving no rain and blocking all prayers] and your ground like bronze [hard to plow and yielding no produce].

²⁰Your strength will be spent uselessly, for your land will not yield its produce and the trees of the land will not yield their fruit.

²¹'If then, you act with hostility toward Me and are unwilling to obey Me, I will increase the plague on you seven times in accordance with your sins.

²²I will let loose the [wild] animals of the field among you, which will bereave you of your children and destroy your livestock and make you so few in number that your roads will lie deserted and desolate.

²³'And if by these things you are not turned to Me, but act with hostility against Me,

²⁴then I also will act with hostility against you, and I will strike you seven times for your sins.

²⁵I will bring a sword on you that will execute vengeance for [breaking] the covenant; and when you gather together in your cities, I will send pestilence (virulent disease) among you, and you shall be handed over to the enemy.

²⁶When I break your staff of bread [that is, cut off your supply of food], ten women will bake your bread in one oven, and they will ration your bread; and you will eat and not be satisfied.

²⁷'Yet if in spite of this you will not [attentively] listen to Me but act with hostility against me,

²⁸then I will act with hostility against you in wrath, and I also will punish you seven times for your sins.

²⁹You will eat the flesh of your sons and the flesh of your daughters.

³⁰I will destroy your high places [devoted to idolatrous worship], and cut down your incense altars, and heap your dead bodies upon the [crushed] bodies of your idols, and My soul will detest you [with deep and unutterable loathing].

³¹I will lay waste your cities as well and will make your sanctuaries desolate, and I will not smell your sweet and soothing aromas [of offerings by fire].

³²I will make the land desolate, and your enemies who settle in it will be appalled at it.

³³I will scatter you among the nations and draw out the sword [of your enemies] after you; your land will become desolate and your cities will become ruins.

³⁴'Then the land [of Israel] will enjoy its Sabbaths as long as it lies desolate, while you are in your enemies' land; then the land will rest and enjoy its Sabbaths.

³⁵As long as it lies desolate, it will have rest, the rest it did not have on your Sabbaths, while you were living on it.

³⁶As for those who are left of you, I will bring despair (lack of courage, weakness) into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; the sound of a scattered leaf will put them to flight, and they will flee as if [running] from the sword, and will fall even when no one is chasing them.

³⁷They shall stumble over one another as if to escape from a sword when no one is chasing them; and you will have no power to stand before your enemies.

³⁸You will perish among the nations; the land of your enemies will consume you.

³⁹Those of you who are left will rot away because of their wickedness in the lands of your enemies; also because of the wickedness of their forefathers they will rot away like them.

⁴⁰'If they confess their wickedness and the wickedness of their forefathers, in their unfaithfulness which they have committed against Me—and also in their acting with hostility toward Me—

⁴¹I also was acting with hostility toward them and brought them into the land of their enemies—then if their uncircumcised (sin-filled) hearts are humbled and they accept the punishment for their wickedness,

⁴²then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My covenant with Abraham, and remember the land.

⁴³But the land will be abandoned by them and will enjoy its Sabbaths while it lies desolate without them; and they will accept the punishment for their wickedness and make amends because they rejected My ordinances and their soul rejected My statutes.

⁴⁴Yet in spite of this, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them, nor will I so despise them as to destroy them, breaking My covenant with them; for I am the LORD their God.

⁴⁵But I will, for their sake, [earnestly] remember the covenant with their forefathers, whom I have brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God. I am the LORD.'"

⁴⁶These are the statutes, ordinances, and laws which the LORD established between Himself and the Israelites through Moses at Mount Sinai.

¹Therefore, while the promise of entering His rest still remains and is freely offered today, let us fear, in case any one of you may seem to come short of reaching it or think he has come too late.

²For indeed we have had the good news [of salvation] preached to us, just as the Israelites also [when the good news of the promised land came to them]; but the message they heard did not benefit them, because it was not united with faith [in God] by those who heard.

³For we who believe [that is, we who personally trust and confidently rely on God] enter that rest [so we have His inner peace now because we are confident in our salvation, and assured of His power], just as He has said, "As I swore [an oath] in My wrath, They shall not enter My rest," [this He said] although His works were completed from the foundation of the world [waiting for all who would believe].

⁴For somewhere [in Scripture] He has said this about the seventh day: "And God rested on the seventh day from all His works";

⁵and again in this, "They shall not enter My rest."

⁶Therefore, since the promise remains for some to enter His rest, and those who formerly had the good news preached to them failed to [grasp it and did not] enter because of [their unbelief evidenced by] disobedience,

⁷He again sets a definite day, [a new] "Today," [providing another opportunity to enter that rest by] saying through David after so long a time, just as has been said before [in the words already quoted], "Today if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts."

⁸[This mention of a rest was not a reference to their entering into Canaan.] For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not speak about another day [of opportunity] after that.

⁹So there remains a [full and complete] Sabbath rest for the people of God.

¹⁰For the one who has once entered His rest has also rested from [the weariness and pain of] his [human] labors, just as God rested from [those labors uniquely] His own.

¹¹Let us therefore make every effort to enter that rest [of God, to know and experience it for ourselves], so that no one will fall by following the same example of disobedience [as those who died in the wilderness].

¹²For the word of God is living and active and full of power [making it operative, energizing, and effective]. It is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating as far as the division of the soul and spirit [the completeness of a person], and of both joints and marrow [the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and judging the very thoughts and intentions of the heart.

¹³And not a creature exists that is concealed from His sight, but all things are open and exposed, and revealed to the eyes of Him with whom we have to give account.

¹⁴Inasmuch then as we [believers] have a great High Priest who has [already ascended and] passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession [of faith and cling tenaciously to our absolute trust in Him as Savior].

¹⁵For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize and understand our weaknesses and temptations, but One who has been tempted [knowing exactly how it feels to be human] in every respect as we are, yet without [committing any] sin.

¹⁶Therefore let us [with privilege] approach the throne of grace [that is, the throne of God's gracious favor] with confidence and without fear, so that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find [His amazing] grace to help in time of need [an appropriate blessing, coming just at the right moment].

¹Jude, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, [writes this letter], To those who are the called (God's chosen ones, the elect), dearly loved by God the Father, and kept [secure and set apart] for Jesus Christ:

²May mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you [filling your heart with the spiritual well-being and serenity experienced by those who walk closely with God].

³Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I was compelled to write to you [urgently] appealing that you fight strenuously for [the defense of] the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints [the faith that is the sum of Christian belief that was given verbally to believers].

⁴For certain people have crept in unnoticed [just as if they were sneaking in by a side door]. They are ungodly persons whose condemnation was predicted long ago, for they distort the grace of our God into decadence and immoral freedom [viewing it as an opportunity to do whatever they want], and deny and disown our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

⁵Now I want to remind you, although you are fully informed once for all, that the Lord, after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, subsequently destroyed those who did not believe [who refused to trust and obey and rely on Him].

⁶And angels who did not keep their own designated place of power, but abandoned their proper dwelling place, [these] He has kept in eternal chains under [the thick gloom of utter] darkness for the judgment of the great day,

⁷just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the adjacent cities, since they in the same way as these angels indulged in gross immoral freedom and unnatural vice and sensual perversity. They are exhibited [in plain sight] as an example in undergoing the punishment of everlasting fire.

⁸Nevertheless in the same way, these dreamers [who are dreaming that God will not punish them] also defile the body, and reject [legitimate] authority, and revile and mock angelic majesties.

⁹But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil (Satan), and arguing about the body of Moses, did not dare bring an abusive condemnation against him, but [simply] said, "The Lord rebuke you!"

¹⁰But these men sneer at anything which they do not understand; and whatever they do know by [mere] instinct, like unreasoning and irrational beasts—by these things they are destroyed.

¹¹Woe to them! For they have gone the [defiant] way of Cain, and for profit they have run headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of [mutinous] Korah.

¹²These men are hidden reefs [elements of great danger to others] in your love feasts when they feast together with you without fear, looking after [only] themselves; [they are like] clouds without water, swept along by the winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted and lifeless;

¹³wild waves of the sea, flinging up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the gloom of deep darkness has been reserved forever.

¹⁴It was about these people that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, when he said, "Look, the Lord came with myriads of His holy ones

¹⁵to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly deeds they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh and cruel things ungodly sinners have spoken against Him."

¹⁶These people are [habitual] murmurers, griping and complaining, following after their own desires [controlled by passion]; they speak arrogantly, [pretending admiration and] flattering people to gain an advantage.

¹⁷But as for you, beloved, remember the [prophetic] words spoken by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.

¹⁸They used to say to you, "In the last days there will be scoffers, following after their own ungodly passions."

¹⁹These are the ones who are [agitators] causing divisions—worldly-minded [secular, unspiritual, carnal, merely sensual—unsaved], devoid of the Spirit.

²⁰But you, beloved, build yourselves up on [the foundation of] your most holy faith [continually progress, rise like an edifice higher and higher], pray in the Holy Spirit,

²¹and keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously and looking forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ [which will bring you] to eternal life.

²²And have mercy on some, who are doubting;

²³save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy but with fear, loathing even the clothing spotted and polluted by their shameless immoral freedom.

²⁴Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling or falling into sin, and to present you unblemished [blameless and faultless] in the presence of His glory with triumphant joy and unspeakable delight,

²⁵to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and power, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

¹The Song of Songs [the best of songs], which is Solomon's.

²(The Shulammite Bride) "May he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!" [Solomon arrives, she turns to him, saying,] "For your love is better than wine.

³"The aroma of your oils is fragrant and pleasing; Your name is perfume poured out; Therefore the maidens love you.

⁴"Draw me away with you and let us run together! Let the king bring me into his chambers." (The Chorus) "We will rejoice and be glad in you; We will remember and extol your love more [sweet and fragrant] than wine. Rightly do they love you."

⁵(The Shulammite Bride) "I am deeply tanned but lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem, [I am dark] like the tents of [the Bedouins of] Kedar, Like the [beautiful] curtains of Solomon.

⁶"Do not gaze at me because I am deeply tanned, [I have worked in] the sun; it has left its mark on me. My mother's sons were angry with me; They made me keeper of the vineyards, But my own vineyard (my complexion) I have not kept."

⁷"Tell me, O you whom my soul loves, Where do you pasture your flock, Where do you make it lie down at noon? For why should I be like one who is veiled Beside the flocks of your companions?"

⁸(The Bridegroom) "If you do not know [where your lover is], O you fairest among women, Run along, follow the tracks of the flock, And pasture your young goats By the tents of the shepherds.

⁹"To me, my love, you are like My [favorite] mare among the chariots of Pharaoh.

¹⁰"Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments, Your neck with strings of jewels."

¹¹(The Chorus) "We will make for you chains and ornaments of gold, [Studded] with beads of silver."

¹²(The Shulammite Bride) "While the king was at his table, My perfume (Solomon) sent forth [his] fragrance [surrounding me].

¹³"My beloved is to me like a pouch of myrrh Which lies all night between my breasts.

¹⁴"My beloved is to me a cluster of henna flowers In the [fragrant] vineyards of Engedi."

¹⁵(The Bridegroom) "Behold, how beautiful you are, my darling, Behold, how beautiful you are! Your eyes are dove's eyes."

¹⁶(The Shulammite Bride) "Behold, how fair and handsome you are, my beloved; And so delightful! Our arbor is green and luxuriant.

¹⁷"The beams of our houses are cedars, Our rafters and panels are cypresses.

¹A Psalm of David. When he fled from Absalom his son. O LORD, how my enemies have increased! Many are rising up against me.

²Many are saying of me, "There is no help [no salvation] for him in God." Selah.

³But You, O LORD, are a shield for me, My glory [and my honor], and the One who lifts my head.

⁴With my voice I was crying to the LORD, And He answered me from His holy mountain. Selah.

⁵I lay down and slept [safely]; I awakened, for the LORD sustains me.

⁶I will not be intimidated or afraid of the ten thousands Who have set themselves against me all around.

⁷Arise, O LORD; save me, O my God! For You have struck all my enemies on the cheek; You have shattered the teeth of the wicked.

⁸Salvation belongs to the LORD; May Your blessing be upon Your people. Selah.

¹Do not be envious of evil men, Nor desire to be with them;

²For their minds plot violence, And their lips talk of trouble [for the innocent].

³Through [skillful and godly] wisdom a house [a life, a home, a family] is built, And by understanding it is established [on a sound and good foundation],

⁴And by knowledge its rooms are filled With all precious and pleasant riches.

⁵A wise man is strong, And a man of knowledge strengthens his power;

⁶For by wise guidance you can wage your war, And in an abundance of [wise] counselors there is victory and safety.

⁷Wisdom is too exalted for a [hardened, arrogant] fool; He does not open his mouth in the gate [where the city's rulers sit in judgment].

⁸He who plans to do evil Will be called a schemer or deviser of evil.

⁹The devising of folly is sin, And the scoffer is repulsive to men.

¹⁰If you are slack (careless) in the day of distress, Your strength is limited.

¹¹Rescue those who are being taken away to death, And those who stagger to the slaughter, Oh hold them back [from their doom]!

¹²If you [claim ignorance and] say, "See, we did not know this," Does He not consider it who weighs and examines the hearts and their motives? And does He not know it who guards your life and keeps your soul? And will He not repay [you and] every man according to his works?

¹³My son, eat honey, because it is good, And the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.

¹⁴Know that [skillful and godly] wisdom is [so very good] for your life and soul; If you find wisdom, then there will be a future and a reward, And your hope and expectation will not be cut off.

¹⁵Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; Do not destroy his resting place;

¹⁶For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again, But the wicked stumble in time of disaster and collapse.

¹⁷Do not rejoice and gloat when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad [in self-righteousness] when he stumbles,

¹⁸Or the LORD will see your gloating and be displeased, And turn His anger away from your enemy.

¹⁹Do not get upset because of evildoers, Or be envious of the wicked,

²⁰For there will be no future for the evil man; The lamp of the wicked will be put out.

²¹My son, fear the LORD and the king; And do not associate with those who are given to change [of allegiance, and are revolutionary],

²²For their tragedy will rise suddenly, And who knows the punishment that both [the LORD and the king] will bring on the rebellious?

²³These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judgment is not good.

²⁴He who says to the wicked, "You are righteous," Peoples will curse him, nations will denounce him;

²⁵But to those [honorable judges] who rebuke the wicked, it will go well with them and they will find delight, And a good blessing will come upon them.

²⁶He kisses the lips [and wins the hearts of people] Who gives a right and straightforward answer.

²⁷Prepare your work outside And get it ready for yourself in the field; Afterward build your house and establish a home.

²⁸Do not be a witness against your neighbor without cause, And do not deceive with your lips [speak neither lies nor half-truths].

²⁹Do not say, "I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for his deed."

³⁰I went by the field of the lazy man, And by the vineyard of the man lacking understanding and common sense;

³¹And, behold, it was all overgrown with thorns, And nettles were covering its surface, And its stone wall was broken down.

³²When I saw, I considered it well; I looked and received instruction.

³³"Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to rest [and daydream],"

³⁴Then your poverty will come as a robber, And your want like an armed man.

¹Then the Philistines took the ark of God, and they brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.

²They took the ark of God and brought it into the house of Dagon and set it beside [the image of] Dagon [their chief idol].

³When the people of Ashdod got up early the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the LORD. So they took Dagon and returned him to his place.

⁴But when they got up early the next morning, behold, Dagon had [again] fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the LORD, and his head and both palms of his hands were [lying] cut off on the threshold; only the trunk [portion] of [the idol of] Dagon was left on him.

⁵This is the reason neither the priests of Dagon nor any who enter Dagon's house step on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.

⁶Then the hand of the LORD was heavy on the people of Ashdod, and He caused them to be dumbfounded and struck them with tumors, both Ashdod and its territory.

⁷When the men of Ashdod saw what had happened, they said, "The ark of the God of Israel must not remain with us, for His hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our god."

⁸So they sent word and gathered all the lords (governors) of the Philistines to them and said, "What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?" They answered, "Let the ark of the God of Israel be brought around to Gath." So they took the ark of the God of Israel there.

⁹But it happened that after they had taken it to Gath, the hand of the LORD was against the city, causing an extremely great panic [because of the deaths from the plague], for He struck the people of the city, both young and old, and tumors broke out on them.

¹⁰So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And as the ark of God came to Ekron, the Ekronites cried out, "They have brought the ark of the God of Israel [from Gath] to us, to kill us and our people."

¹¹So they sent word and gathered all the lords of the Philistines and said, "Send away the ark of the God of Israel; let it be returned to its own place, so that it will not kill us and our people." For there was a deadly panic throughout the city; the hand of God was very heavy (severe) there.

¹²The men who had not died were stricken with tumors and the cry of the city [for help] went up to heaven.

¹Who has believed [confidently trusted in, relied on, and adhered to] our message [of salvation]? And to whom [if not us] has the arm and infinite power of the LORD been revealed?

²For He [the Servant of God] grew up before Him like a tender shoot (plant), And like a root out of dry ground; He has no stately form or majestic splendor That we would look at Him, Nor [handsome] appearance that we would be attracted to Him.

³He was despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and pain and acquainted with grief; And like One from whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we did not appreciate His worth or esteem Him.

⁴But [in fact] He has borne our griefs, And He has carried our sorrows and pains; Yet we [ignorantly] assumed that He was stricken, Struck down by God and degraded and humiliated [by Him].

⁵But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was crushed for our wickedness [our sin, our injustice, our wrongdoing]; The punishment [required] for our well-being fell on Him, And by His stripes (wounds) we are healed.

⁶All of us like sheep have gone astray, We have turned, each one, to his own way; But the LORD has caused the wickedness of us all [our sin, our injustice, our wrongdoing] To fall on Him [instead of us].

⁷He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth [to complain or defend Himself]; Like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before her shearers, So He did not open His mouth.

⁸After oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation [His contemporaries], who [among them] concerned himself with the fact That He was cut off from the land of the living [by His death] For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke [of death] was due?

⁹His grave was assigned with the wicked, But He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.

¹⁰Yet the LORD was willing To crush Him, causing Him to suffer; If He would give Himself as a guilt offering [an atonement for sin], He shall see His [spiritual] offspring, He shall prolong His days, And the will (good pleasure) of the LORD shall succeed and prosper in His hand.

¹¹As a result of the anguish of His soul, He shall see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge [of what He has accomplished] the Righteous One, My Servant, shall justify the many [making them righteous—upright before God, in right standing with Him], For He shall bear [the responsibility for] their sins.

¹²Therefore, I will divide and give Him a portion with the great [kings and rulers], And He shall divide the spoils with the mighty, Because He [willingly] poured out His life to death, And was counted among the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore and took away the sin of many, And interceded [with the Father] for the transgressors.

¹Then Paul, looking intently at the Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court), said, "Kinsmen, I have lived my life before God with a perfectly good conscience until this very day."

²[At this] the high priest Ananias ordered those who stood beside him to strike Paul on the mouth.

³Then Paul said to him, "God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Do you actually sit to judge me according to the Law, and yet in violation of the Law order me to be struck?"

⁴But those who stood near Paul said, "Are you insulting the high priest of God?"

⁵Paul said, "I was not aware, brothers, that he was high priest; for it is written, 'You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.'"

⁶But recognizing that one group were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, Paul began affirming loudly in the Council chamber, "Kinsmen, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees; I am on trial for the hope and resurrection of the dead!"

⁷When he said this, an angry dispute erupted between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the [whole crowded] assembly was divided [into two factions].

⁸For the Sadducees say that there is no [such thing as a] resurrection, nor an angel, nor a spirit, but the Pharisees [speak out freely and] acknowledge [their belief in] them all.

⁹Then a great uproar occurred, and some of the scribes of the Pharisees' party stood up and began to argue heatedly [in Paul's favor], saying, "We find nothing wrong with this man; suppose a spirit or an angel has [really] spoken to him?"

¹⁰And as the dissension became even greater, the commander, fearing that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, ordered the troops to go down and forcibly take him from them, and bring him to the barracks.

¹¹On the following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, "Be brave; for as you have solemnly and faithfully witnessed about Me at Jerusalem, so you must also testify at Rome."

¹²Now when day came, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves under an oath (curse), saying that they would not eat or drink until they had killed Paul.

¹³There were more than forty [men] who formed this plot [and swore this oath].

¹⁴They went to the chief priests and elders and said, "We have bound ourselves under a solemn oath not to taste anything [neither food nor drink] until we have killed Paul.

¹⁵So now you, along with the Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court), notify the commander to bring Paul down to you, as if you were going to investigate his case more thoroughly. But we are ready to kill him before he comes near [the place]."

¹⁶But the son of Paul's sister heard of their [planned] ambush, and he went to the barracks and told Paul.

¹⁷Then Paul, calling in one of the centurions, said, "Take this young man to the commander, for he has something to tell him."

¹⁸So he took him and led him to the commander and said, "Paul the prisoner called for me and asked me to bring this young man to you, because he has something to tell you."

¹⁹The commander took him by the hand and stepping aside, began to ask him privately, "What is it that you have to tell me?"

²⁰And he said, "The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court) tomorrow, as if they were going to interrogate him more thoroughly.

²¹But do not listen to them, for more than forty of them are lying in wait for him, and they have bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they have killed him. Even now they are ready, just waiting for your promise."

²²So the commander let the young man leave, instructing him, "Do not tell anyone that you have given me this information."

²³Then summoning two of the centurions, he said, "Have two hundred soldiers ready by the third hour of the night (9:00 p.m.) to go as far as Caesarea, with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen;

²⁴also provide mounts for Paul to ride, and bring him safely to Felix the governor."

²⁵And [after instructing the centurions] he wrote a letter to this effect:

²⁶"Claudius Lysias, to the most excellent governor Felix, greetings.

²⁷"This man was seized [as a prisoner] by the Jews and was about to be killed by them, when I came upon him with the troops and rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman citizen.

²⁸And wanting to know the exact charge which they were making against him, I brought him down to their Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court);

²⁹and I discovered that he was accused in regard to questions and issues in their Law, but [he was] under no accusation that would call for the penalty of death or [even] for imprisonment.

³⁰"When I was told that there would be a plot against the man, I sent him to you immediately, also directing his accusers to bring their charges against him before you."

³¹So the soldiers, in compliance with their orders, took Paul and brought him to Antipatris during the night.

³²And the next day, leaving the horsemen to go on with him, they returned to the barracks.

³³When these [horsemen] reached Caesarea, they delivered the letter to the governor, and also presented Paul to him.

³⁴After reading the letter, he asked which province Paul was from, and when he learned that he was from Cilicia [an imperial province],

³⁵he said, "I will hear your case when your accusers have arrived," giving orders that Paul be kept under guard in Herod's Praetorium (the governor's official residence).