Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹And Jesus said to them, "I assure you and most solemnly say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste (experience) death before they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power."

²Six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured (changed in form) before them [and began to shine brightly with divine and regal glory];

³and His clothes became radiant and dazzling, intensely white, as no launderer on earth can whiten them.

⁴Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were having a conversation with Jesus.

⁵Peter responded and said to Jesus, "Rabbi (Master), it is good for us to be here; let us make three [sacred] tents—one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah."

⁶For he did not [really] know what to say because they were terrified [and stunned by the miraculous sight].

⁷Then a cloud formed, overshadowing them, and a voice came out of the cloud, "This is My beloved Son. Listen to Him and obey Him!"

⁸Suddenly they looked around and no longer saw anyone with them, except Jesus alone.

⁹As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus expressly ordered them not to tell anyone what they had seen, until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

¹⁰So they [carefully and faithfully] kept the matter to themselves, discussing and questioning [with one another] what it meant to rise from the dead.

¹¹They asked Him, saying, "Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first [before the Messiah comes]?"

¹²He answered them, "Elijah does come first and restores and reestablishes all things. And yet how is it written of the Son of Man that He will suffer many things [grief and physical distress] and be treated with contempt [utterly despised and rejected]?

¹³But I say to you that Elijah has in fact come [already], and they did to him whatever they wished, just as it is written [in Scripture] of him."

¹⁴When they came [back] to the [other nine] disciples, they saw a large crowd around them, and scribes questioning and arguing with them.

¹⁵Immediately, when the entire crowd saw Jesus, they were startled and began running up to greet Him.

¹⁶He asked them, "What are you discussing with them?"

¹⁷One of the crowd replied to Him, "Teacher, I brought You my son, possessed with a spirit which makes him unable to speak;

¹⁸and whenever it seizes him [intending to do harm], it throws him down, and he foams [at the mouth], and grinds his teeth and becomes stiff. I told Your disciples to drive it out, and they could not do it."

¹⁹He replied, "O unbelieving (faithless) generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him to Me!"

²⁰They brought the boy to Him. When the [demonic] spirit saw Him, immediately it threw the boy into a convulsion, and falling to the ground he began rolling around and foaming at the mouth.

²¹Jesus asked his father, "How long has this been happening to him?" And he answered, "Since childhood.

²²The demon has often thrown him both into fire and into water, intending to kill him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!"

²³Jesus said to him, "[You say to Me,] 'If You can?' All things are possible for the one who believes and trusts [in Me]!"

²⁴Immediately the father of the boy cried out [with a desperate, piercing cry], saying, "I do believe; help [me overcome] my unbelief."

²⁵When Jesus saw that a crowd was rapidly gathering [around them], He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, "You deaf and mute spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again!"

²⁶After screaming out and throwing him into a terrible convulsion, it came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse [so still and pale] that many [of the spectators] said, "He is dead!"

²⁷But Jesus took him by the hand and raised him; and he stood up.

²⁸When He had gone indoors, His disciples began asking Him privately, "Why were we unable to drive it out?"

²⁹He replied to them, "This kind [of unclean spirit] cannot come out by anything but prayer [to the Father]."

³⁰They went on from there and began to go through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know it,

³¹because He was teaching His disciples [and preparing them for the future]. He told them, "The Son of Man is to be betrayed and handed over to men [who are His enemies], and they will kill Him; and when He has been killed, He will rise [from the dead] three days later."

³²But they did not understand this statement, and they were afraid to ask Him [what He meant].

³³They arrived at Capernaum; and when He was in the house, He asked them, "What were you discussing and arguing about on the road?"

³⁴But they kept quiet, because on the road they had discussed and debated with one another which one [of them] was the greatest.

³⁵Sitting down [to teach], He called the twelve [disciples] and said to them, "If anyone wants to be first, he must be last of all [in importance] and a servant of all."

³⁶Taking a child, He set him before them; and taking him in His arms, He said to them,

³⁷"Whoever receives and welcomes one child such as this in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives not [only] Me, but Him who sent Me."

³⁸John said to Him, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to stop him because he was not accompanying us [as Your disciple]."

³⁹But Jesus said, "Do not stop him; for there is no one who will perform a miracle in My name, and be able soon afterward to speak evil of Me.

⁴⁰For he who is not against us is for us.

⁴¹For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because of your name as followers of Christ, I assure you and most solemnly say to you, he will not lose his reward.

⁴²"But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe and trust in Me to stumble [that is, to sin or lose faith], it would be better for him if a heavy millstone [one requiring a donkey's strength to turn it] were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.

⁴³If your hand causes you to stumble and sin, cut it off [that is, remove yourself from the source of temptation]! It is better for you to enter life crippled, than to have two hands and go into hell, into the unquenchable fire,

⁴⁴[where their worm does not die, and the fire is not put out.]

⁴⁵If your foot causes you to stumble and sin, cut it off [that is, remove yourself from the source of temptation]! It would be better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into hell,

⁴⁶[where their worm does not die, and the fire is not put out.]

⁴⁷If your eye causes you to stumble and sin, throw it out [that is, remove yourself from the source of temptation]! It would be better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell,

⁴⁸where their worm [that feeds on the dead] does not die, and the fire is not put out.

⁴⁹"For everyone will be salted with fire.

⁵⁰Salt is good and useful; but if salt has lost its saltiness (purpose), how will you make it salty? Have salt within yourselves continually, and be at peace with one another."

¹Again, the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

²"Speak to the children of Israel and say to them, 'When a man makes a special vow [consecrating himself or a member of his family], he shall be valued according to your [established system of] valuation of people belonging to the LORD [that is, the priest accepts from the man making the vow a specified amount of money for the temple treasury in place of the actual person].

³If your valuation is of a male between twenty and sixty years of age, then your valuation shall be fifty shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary.

⁴Or if the person is a female, then your valuation shall be thirty shekels.

⁵If the person is between five years and twenty years of age, then your valuation for the male shall be twenty shekels and for the female ten shekels.

⁶But if the child is between one month and five years of age, then your valuation shall be five shekels of silver for the male and three shekels for the female.

⁷If the person is sixty years old and above, your valuation shall be fifteen shekels for the male, and ten shekels for the female.

⁸But if the person is too poor to pay your valuation, then he shall be placed before the priest, and the priest shall value him; according to the ability of the one who vowed, the priest shall value him.

⁹'Now if it is an animal of the kind which men can present as an offering to the LORD, any such that one gives to the LORD shall be holy.

¹⁰He shall not replace it or exchange it, a good for a bad, or a bad for a good; but if he does exchange an animal for an animal, then both the original offering and its substitute shall be holy.

¹¹If it is any unclean animal of the kind which men do not present as an offering to the LORD, then he shall bring the animal before the priest,

¹²and the priest shall value it as either good or bad; it shall be as you, the priest, value it.

¹³But if he ever wishes to redeem it, then he shall add one-fifth of it to your valuation.

¹⁴'If a man consecrates his house as sacred to the LORD, the priest shall appraise it as either good or bad; as the priest appraises it, so shall it stand.

¹⁵If the one who consecrates his house should wish to redeem it, then he shall add one-fifth of your valuation price to it, so that it may be his.

¹⁶'And if a man consecrates to the LORD part of a field of his own property, then your valuation shall be proportionate to the seed needed for it; a homer of barley seed shall be valued at fifty shekels of silver.

¹⁷If he consecrates his field during the Year of Jubilee, it shall stand according to your valuation.

¹⁸But if he consecrates his field after the Jubilee, then the priest shall calculate the price for him in proportion to the years that remain until the Year of Jubilee; and it shall be deducted from your valuation.

¹⁹If the one who consecrates the field should ever wish to redeem it, then he shall add one-fifth of the appraisal price to it, so that it may return to him.

²⁰If he does not redeem the field, but has sold it to another man, it may no longer be redeemed.

²¹When the field reverts in the Jubilee, the field shall be holy to the LORD, like a field set apart (devoted); the priest shall possess it as his property.

²²Or if a man consecrates to the LORD a field which he has bought, which is not part of the field of his [ancestral] property,

²³then the priest shall calculate for him the amount of your valuation up to the Year of Jubilee; and the man shall give that [amount] on that day as a holy thing to the LORD.

²⁴In the Year of Jubilee the field shall return to the one from whom it was purchased, to whom the land belonged [as his ancestral inheritance].

²⁵Every valuation of yours shall be in accordance with the sanctuary shekel; twenty gerahs shall make a shekel.

²⁶'However, the firstborn among animals, which as a firstborn belongs to the LORD, no man may consecrate, whether an ox or a sheep. It is [already] the Lord's.

²⁷If it is among the unclean animals, the owner may redeem it in accordance with your valuation, and add one-fifth to it; or if it is not redeemed, then it shall be sold in accordance with your valuation.

²⁸'But nothing that a man sets apart [that is, devotes as an offering] to the LORD out of all that he has, of man or of animal or of the fields of his own property, shall be sold or redeemed. Anything devoted to destruction (banned, cursed) is most holy to the LORD.

²⁹No one who may have been set apart among men shall be ransomed [from death], he shall most certainly be put to death.

³⁰'And all the tithe (tenth part) of the land, whether the seed of the land or the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's; it is holy to the LORD.

³¹If a man wishes to redeem any part of his tithe, he shall add one-fifth to it.

³²For every tithe of the herd or flock, whatever passes under the [shepherd's] staff, the tenth one shall be holy to the LORD.

³³The man is not to be concerned whether the animal is good or bad, nor shall he exchange it. But if he does exchange it, then both it and its substitute shall become holy; it shall not be redeemed.'"

³⁴These are the commandments which the LORD commanded Moses on Mount Sinai for the children of Israel.

¹For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed [to act] on behalf of men in things relating to God, so that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins.

²He is able to deal gently with the spiritually ignorant and misguided, since he is also subject to human weakness;

³and because of this [human weakness] he is required to offer sacrifices for sins, for himself as well as for the people.

⁴And besides, one does not appropriate for himself the honor [of being high priest], but he who is called by God, just as Aaron was.

⁵So too Christ did not glorify Himself so as to be made a high priest, but He [was exalted and appointed by the One] who said to Him, "You are My Son, Today I have begotten (fathered) You [declared Your authority and rule over the nations]";

⁶just as He also says in another place, "You are a priest [appointed] forever According to the order ofMelchizedek."

⁷In the days of His earthly life, Jesus offered up both [specific] petitions and [urgent] supplications [for that which He needed] with fervent crying and tears to the One who was [always] able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverent submission toward God [His sinlessness and His unfailing determination to do the Father's will].

⁸Although He was a Son [who had never been disobedient to the Father], He learned [active, special] obedience through what He suffered.

⁹And having been made perfect [uniquely equipped and prepared as Savior and retaining His integrity amid opposition], He became the source of eternal salvation [an eternal inheritance] to all those who obey Him,

¹⁰being designated by God as High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek.

¹¹Concerning this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull and sluggish in [your spiritual] hearing and disinclined to listen.

¹²For though by this time you ought to be teachers [because of the time you have had to learn these truths], you actually need someone to teach you again the elementary principles of God's word [from the beginning], and you have come to be continually in need of milk, not solid food.

¹³For everyone who lives on milk is [doctrinally inexperienced and] unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a spiritual infant.

¹⁴But solid food is for the [spiritually] mature, whose senses are trained by practice to distinguish between what is morally good and what is evil.

¹This is the revelation of Jesus Christ [His unveiling of the divine mysteries], which God [the Father] gave to Him to show to His bond-servants (believers) the things which must soon take place [in their entirety]; and He sent and communicated it by His angel (divine messenger) to His bond-servant John,

²who testified and gave supporting evidence to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to everything that he saw [in his visions].

³Blessed (happy, prosperous, to be admired) is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and who keep the things which are written in it [heeding them and taking them to heart]; for the time [of fulfillment] is near.

⁴John, to the seven churches that are in [the province of] Asia: Grace [be granted] to you and peace [inner calm and spiritual well-being], from Him Who is [existing forever] and Who was [continually existing in the past] and Who is to come, and from the seven Spirits that are before His throne,

⁵and from Jesus Christ, the faithful and trustworthy Witness, the Firstborn of the dead, and the Ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who [always] loves us and who [has once for all] freed us [or washed us] from our sins by His own blood (His sacrificial death)—

⁶and formed us into a kingdom [as His subjects], priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the power and the majesty and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

⁷Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes (nations) of the earth will mourn over Him [realizing their sin and guilt, and anticipating the coming wrath]. So it is to be. Amen.

⁸"I am the Alpha and the Omega [the Beginning and the End]," says the Lord God, "Who is [existing forever] and Who was [continually existing in the past] and Who is to come, the Almighty [the Omnipotent, the Ruler of all]."

⁹I, John, your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patient endurance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos, [exiled there] because of [my preaching of] the word of God [regarding eternal salvation] and the testimony of Jesus Christ.

¹⁰I was in the Spirit [in special communication with the Holy Spirit and empowered to receive and record the revelation from Jesus Christ] on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet,

¹¹saying, "Write on a scroll what you see [in this revelation], and send it to the seven churches—to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea."

¹²Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And after turning I saw seven golden lampstands;

¹³and in the midst of the lampstands I saw someone like the Son of Man, dressed in a robe reaching to His feet, and with a golden sash wrapped around His chest.

¹⁴His head and His hair were white like white wool, [glistening white] like snow; and His [all-seeing] eyes were [flashing] like a flame of fire [piercing into my being].

¹⁵His feet were like burnished [white-hot] bronze, refined in a furnace, and His voice was [powerful] like the sound of many waters.

¹⁶In His right hand He held seven stars, and from His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword [of judgment]; and His face [reflecting His majesty and the Shekinah glory] was like the sun shining in [all] its power [at midday].

¹⁷When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as though dead. And He placed His right hand on me and said, "Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last [absolute Deity, the Son of God],

¹⁸and the Ever-living One [living in and beyond all time and space]. I died, but see, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of [absolute control and victory over] death and of Hades (the realm of the dead).

¹⁹So write the things which you have seen [in the vision], and the things which are [now happening], and the things which will take place after these things.

²⁰As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels ( divine messengers) of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

¹"I am the rose [of the plain] of Sharon, The lily of the valleys [that grows in deep places]."

²(The Bridegroom) "Like the lily among the thorns, So are you, my darling, among the maidens."

³(The Shulammite Bride) "Like an apple tree [rare and welcome] among the trees of the forest, So is my beloved among the young men! In his shade I took great delight and sat down, And his fruit was sweet and delicious to my palate.

⁴"He has brought me to his banqueting place, And his banner over me is love [waving overhead to protect and comfort me].

⁵"Sustain me with raisin cakes, Refresh me with apples, Because I am sick with love.

⁶"Let his left hand be under my head And his right hand embrace me."

⁷(The Bridegroom) "I command that you take an oath, O daughters of Jerusalem, By the gazelles or by the does of the field [which run free], That you do not rouse nor awaken my love Until she pleases."

⁸(The Shulammite Bride) "Listen! My beloved! Behold, he comes, Climbing on the mountains, Leaping and running on the hills!

⁹"My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Behold, he is standing behind our wall, He is looking through the windows, He is gazing through the lattice.

¹⁰"My beloved speaks and says to me, 'Arise, my love, my fair one, And come away.

¹¹'For behold, the winter is past, The rain is over and gone.

¹²'The flowers appear on the earth once again; The time for singing has come, And the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.

¹³'The fig tree has budded and ripens her figs, And the vines are in blossom and give forth their fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, And come away [to climb the rocky steps of the hillside].'"

¹⁴(The Bridegroom) "O my dove, [here] in the clefts in the rock, In the sheltered and secret place of the steep pathway, Let me see your face, Let me hear your voice; For your voice is sweet, And your face is lovely."

¹⁵(The Chorus) "Catch the foxes for us, The little foxes that spoil and ruin the vineyards [of love], While our vineyards are in blossom."

¹⁶(The Shulammite Bride) "My beloved is mine and I am his; He pastures his flock among the lilies.

¹⁷"Until the cool of the day when the shadows flee away, Return quickly, my beloved, and be like a gazelle Or a young stag on the mountains of Bether [which separate us]."

¹To the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David. Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have freed me when I was hemmed in and relieved me when I was in distress; Be gracious to me and hear [and respond to] my prayer.

²O sons of men, how long will my honor and glory be [turned into] shame? How long will you [my enemies] love worthless (vain, futile) things and seek deception and lies? Selah.

³But know that the LORD has set apart for Himself [and dealt wonderfully with] the godly man [the one of honorable character and moral courage—the one who does right]. The LORD hears and responds when I call to Him.

⁴Tremble [with anger or fear], and do not sin; Meditate in your heart upon your bed and be still [reflect on your sin and repent of your rebellion]. Selah.

⁵Offer righteous sacrifices; Trust [confidently] in the LORD.

⁶Many are saying, "Oh, that we might see some good!" Lift up the light of Your face upon us, O LORD.

⁷You have put joy in my heart, More than [others know] when their wheat and new wine have yielded abundantly.

⁸In peace [and with a tranquil heart] I will both lie down and sleep, For You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety and confident trust.

¹These are also the proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied:

²It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.

³As the heavens for height and the earth for depth, So the hearts and minds of kings are unsearchable.

⁴Take away the dross from the silver, And there comes out [the pure metal for] a vessel for the silversmith [to shape].

⁵Take away the wicked from before the king, And his throne will be established in righteousness.

⁶Do not be boastfully ambitious and claim honor in the presence of the king, And do not stand in the place of great men;

⁷For it is better that it be said to you, "Come up here," Than for you to be placed lower in the presence of the prince, Whom your eyes have seen.

⁸Do not rush out to argue your case [before magistrates or judges]; Otherwise what will you do in the end [when your case is lost and] When your neighbor (opponent) humiliates you?

⁹Argue your case with your neighbor himself [before you go to court]; And do not reveal another's secret,

¹⁰Or he who hears it will shame you And the rumor about you [and your action in court] will have no end.

¹¹Like apples of gold in settings of silver Is a word spoken at the right time.

¹²Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold Is a wise reprover to an ear that listens and learns.

¹³Like the cold of snow [brought from the mountains] in the time of harvest, So is a faithful messenger to those who send him; For he refreshes the life of his masters.

¹⁴Like clouds and wind without rain Is a man who boasts falsely of gifts [he does not give].

¹⁵By patience and a calm spirit a ruler may be persuaded, And a soft and gentle tongue breaks the bone [of resistance].

¹⁶Have you found [pleasure sweet like] honey? Eat only as much as you need, Otherwise, being filled excessively, you vomit it.

¹⁷Let your foot seldom be in your neighbor's house, Or he will become tired of you and hate you.

¹⁸Like a club and a sword and a piercing arrow Is a man who testifies falsely against his neighbor (acquaintance).

¹⁹Like a broken tooth or an unsteady foot Is confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble.

²⁰Like one who takes off a garment in cold weather, or like [a reactive, useless mixture of] vinegar on soda, Is he who [thoughtlessly] sings [joyful] songs to a heavy heart.

²¹If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; And if he is thirsty, give him water to drink;

²²For in doing so, you will heap coals of fire upon his head, And the LORD will reward you.

²³The north wind brings forth rain; And a backbiting tongue, an angry countenance.

²⁴It is better to live in a corner of the housetop [on the flat roof, exposed to the weather] Than in a house shared with a quarrelsome (contentious) woman.

²⁵Like cold water to a thirsty soul, So is good news from a distant land.

²⁶Like a muddied fountain and a polluted spring Is a righteous man who yields and compromises his integrity before the wicked.

²⁷It is not good to eat much honey, Nor is it glorious to seek one's own glory.

²⁸Like a city that is broken down and without walls [leaving it unprotected] Is a man who has no self-control over his spirit [and sets himself up for trouble].

¹Now the ark of the LORD had been in the country of the Philistines for seven months.

²And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners (seers), saying, "What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? Let us know how we can send it back to its place."

³They said, "If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it empty [without a gift]; but be sure to return [it] to Him [together with] a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why His hand is not removed from you."

⁴Then they said, "What shall the guilt offering be which we shall return to Him?" They answered, " Five golden tumors and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords (governors) of the Philistines, for one plague was on all of you and on your lords.

⁵"So you shall make replicas of your tumors and of your mice that ravage the land, and give glory to the God of Israel; perhaps He will lighten His hand [of judgment] on you and your gods and your land.

⁶"Why then do you harden your hearts [allowing pride to cause your downfall] just as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? When He had severely dealt with them and mocked them, did they not allow the people [of Israel] to go, and they departed?

⁷"Now then, make a new cart and prepare two milk cows on which a yoke has never been placed; and hitch the cows to the cart and take their calves back home, away from them.

⁸"Then take the ark of the LORD and put it on the cart; and put the articles of gold which you are returning to Him as a guilt offering in a box beside it. Then send it away [without a driver].

⁹"But watch, if it goes up by the way of its own territory to Beth-shemesh, then [you will know that] He has done us this great evil. But if not, then we will know that it was not His hand that struck us; this disaster happened to us by chance."

¹⁰And the men did so, and took two milk cows and hitched them to the cart, and corralled their calves at home.

¹¹They put the ark of the LORD on the cart, and the box containing the golden mice and the replicas of their tumors.

¹²And the cows went straight toward Beth-shemesh along the highway, lowing as they went, and did not turn away to the right or the left. And the Philistine lords (governors) followed them to the border of Beth-shemesh.

¹³Now the men of Beth-shemesh were gathering their wheat harvest in the valley, and they looked up and saw the ark and rejoiced to see it.

¹⁴The cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh and stopped there. A large stone was there; and the men split up the wood of the cart [for firewood] and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the LORD.

¹⁵The Levites had taken down the ark of the LORD and the box beside it, in which were the articles of gold, and put them on the large stone. And the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings and made sacrifices that day to the LORD.

¹⁶When the five lords of the Philistines saw what happened, they returned to Ekron that day.

¹⁷These are the golden tumors which the Philistines returned as a guilt offering to the LORD: one for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gath and one for Ekron [the five chief cities of the Philistines];

¹⁸also the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both fortified cities and [unwalled] country villages. The large stone on which the Levites set the ark of the LORD remains a witness to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh.

¹⁹The LORD struck down some of the men of Beth-shemesh because they had looked into the ark of the LORD. He struck down 50,070 men among the people, and the people mourned because the LORD had struck the people with a great slaughter.

²⁰The men of Beth-shemesh said, "Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? And to whom shall He go up from us?"

²¹So they sent messengers to the residents of Kiriath-jearim, saying, "The Philistines have returned the ark of the LORD. Come down and take it up to you."

¹"Shout for joy, O barren one, she who has not given birth; Break forth into joyful shouting and rejoice, she who has not gone into labor [with child]! For the [spiritual] sons of the desolate one will be more numerous Than the sons of the married woman," says the LORD.

²"Enlarge the site of your tent [to make room for more children]; Stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, do not spare them; Lengthen your tent ropes And make your pegs (stakes) firm [in the ground].

³"For you will spread out to the right and to the left; And your descendants will take possession of nations And will inhabit deserted cities.

⁴"Do not fear, for you will not be put to shame, And do not feel humiliated or ashamed, for you will not be disgraced. For you will forget the shame of your youth, And you will no longer remember the disgrace of your widowhood.

⁵"For your husband is your Maker, The LORD of hosts is His name; And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of the whole earth.

⁶"For the LORD has called you, Like a wife who has been abandoned, grieved in spirit, And like a wife [married] in her youth when she is [later] rejected and scorned," Says your God.

⁷"For a brief moment I abandoned you, But with great compassion and mercy I will gather you [to Myself again].

⁸"In an outburst of wrath I hid My face from you for a moment, But with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you," Says the LORD your Redeemer.

⁹"For this is like the waters of Noah to Me, As I swore [an oath] that the waters of Noah Would not flood the earth again; In the same way I have sworn that I will not be angry with you Nor will I rebuke you.

¹⁰"For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you, Nor will My covenant of peace be shaken," Says the LORD who has compassion on you.

¹¹"O you afflicted [city], storm-tossed, and not comforted, Listen carefully, I will set your [precious] stones in mortar, And lay your foundations with sapphires.

¹²"And I will make your battlements of rubies, And your gates of [shining] beryl stones, And all your [barrier] walls of precious stones.

¹³"And all your [spiritual] sons will be disciples [of the LORD], And great will be the well-being of your sons.

¹⁴"You will be firmly established in righteousness: You will be far from [even the thought of] oppression, for you will not fear, And from terror, for it will not come near you.

¹⁵"If anyone fiercely attacks you it will not be from Me. Whoever attacks you will fall because of you.

¹⁶"Listen carefully, I have created the smith who blows on the fire of coals And who produces a weapon for its purpose; And I have created the destroyer to inflict ruin.

¹⁷"No weapon that is formed against you will succeed; And every tongue that rises against you in judgment you will condemn. This [peace, righteousness, security, and triumph over opposition] is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, And this is their vindication from Me," says the LORD.

¹Five days later, the high priest Ananias came down [from Jerusalem to Caesarea] with some elders and an attorney named Tertullus [acting as spokesman and counsel]. They presented to the governor their [formal] charges against Paul.

²After Paul had been summoned, Tertullus began the complaint [against him], saying to the governor: "Since through you we have attained great peace, and since by your foresight reforms are being carried out for this nation,

³in every way and in every place, most excellent Felix, we acknowledge this with all gratitude.

⁴But so that I do not weary you further, I beg you to grant us, by your kindness, a brief hearing.

⁵For we have found this man to be a public menace and one who instigates dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the [heretical] sect of the Nazarenes.

⁶He even tried to desecrate the temple, but we took him into custody[and we intended to judge him by our Law,

⁷but Lysias the commander came, and with great force took him out of our hands,

⁸and ordered his accusers to come before you.] By interrogating him yourself concerning all these matters you will be able to determine [the truth about] these things with which we charge him."

⁹The Jews also joined in the attack, declaring and insisting that these things were so.

¹⁰When the governor nodded for him to speak, Paul answered, "Knowing that for many years you have been a judge over this nation, I make my defense cheerfully and with good courage.

¹¹As you can easily verify, it has been no more than twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem to worship.

¹²Neither in the temple, nor in the synagogues, nor elsewhere in the city did they find me carrying on a discussion or disputing with anybody or causing a crowd to gather.

¹³Nor can they present evidence to you to prove what they now bring against me.

¹⁴But I confess this to you, that according to the Way, which they call a [divisive and heretical] sect, I do worship and serve the God of our fathers, [confidently] believing everything that is in accordance with the Law [of Moses] and that is written in the Prophets;

¹⁵having [the same] hope in God which these men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of [the dead], both of the righteous and of the wicked.

¹⁶In view of this, I also do my best and strive always to have a clear conscience before God and before men.

¹⁷Now after several years I came [to Jerusalem] to bring to my people charitable contributions and offerings.

¹⁸They found me in the temple presenting these offerings, after I had undergone [the rites of] purification, without any crowd or uproar. But there were some Jews from [the west coast province of] Asia [Minor],

¹⁹who ought to have been here before you to present their charges, if they have anything against me.

²⁰Or else let these men tell what crime they found [me guilty of] when I stood before the Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court),

²¹other than for this one statement which I had shouted out as I stood among them, 'For the resurrection of the dead I am on trial before you today.'"

²²But Felix, having a rather accurate understanding about the Way, put them off, saying, "When Lysias the commander comes down, I will decide your case."

²³Then he ordered the centurion to keep Paul in custody, but to let him have some freedom, and [he told the centurion] not to stop any of his friends from providing for his needs.

²⁴Several days later Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was a Jewess. He sent for Paul and listened to him talk about faith in Christ Jesus.

²⁵But as he was discussing righteousness, self-control [honorable behavior, personal integrity], and the judgment to come, Felix became frightened and said, "Go away for now, and when I find [a convenient] time I will send for you."

²⁶At the same time he was also hoping to get money from Paul [as a bribe]; so he continued to send for him quite often and talked with him.

²⁷But after two years had passed, Felix was succeeded [in office] by Porcius Festus; and wishing to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul imprisoned.