Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Since [as is well known] many have undertaken to compile an orderly account of the things which have been fulfilled among us [by God],

²exactly as they were handed down to us by those [with personal experience] who from the beginning [of Christ's ministry] were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word [that is, of the teaching concerning salvation through faith in Christ],

³it seemed fitting for me as well, [and so I have decided] after having carefully searched out and investigated all the events accurately, from the very beginning, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus;

⁴so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught [that is, the history and doctrine of the faith].

⁵In the days of Herod [the Great], king of Judea, there was a certain priest whose name was Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron [the first high priest of Israel], and her name was Elizabeth.

⁶They both were righteous (approved) in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord.

⁷But they were childless, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both far advanced in years.

⁸Now it happened while Zacharias was serving as priest before God in the appointed order of his priestly division,

⁹as was the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter [the sanctuary of] the temple of the Lord and burn incense [on the altar of incense].

¹⁰And all the congregation was praying outside [in the court of the temple] at the hour of the incense offering.

¹¹And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense.

¹²When Zacharias saw the angel, he was troubled and overcome with fear.

¹³But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, because your petition [in prayer] was heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John.

¹⁴You will have great joy and delight, and many will rejoice over his birth,

¹⁵for he will be great and distinguished in the sight of the Lord; and will never drink wine or liquor, and he will be filled with and empowered to act by the Holy Spirit while still in his mother's womb.

¹⁶He will turn many of the sons of Israel back [from sin] to [love and serve] the Lord their God.

¹⁷It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous [which is to seek and submit to the will of God]—in order to make ready a people [perfectly] prepared [spiritually and morally] for the Lord."

¹⁸And Zacharias said to the angel, "How will I be certain of this? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in age."

¹⁹The angel replied and said to him, "I am Gabriel; I stand and minister in the [very] presence of God, and I have been sent [by Him] to speak to you and to bring you this good news.

²⁰Listen carefully, you will be continually silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe what I told you; but my words will be fulfilled at their proper time."

²¹The people [outside in the court] were waiting for Zacharias, and were wondering about his long delay in the temple.

²²But when he did come out, he was unable to speak to them. They realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he kept making signs to them, and remained mute.

²³When his time of priestly service was finished, he returned to his home.

²⁴Now after this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant, and for five months she secluded herself completely, saying,

²⁵"This is how the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked with favor on me, to take away my disgrace among men."

²⁶Now in the sixth month [of Elizabeth's pregnancy] the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth,

²⁷to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.

²⁸And coming to her, the angel said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you."

²⁹But she was greatly perplexed at what he said, and kept carefully considering what kind of greeting this was.

³⁰The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

³¹Listen carefully: you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus.

³²He will be great and eminent and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;

³³and He will reign over the house of Jacob (Israel) forever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end."

³⁴Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin and have no intimacy with any man?"

³⁵Then the angel replied to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you [like a cloud]; for that reason the holy (pure, sinless) Child shall be called the Son of God.

³⁶And listen, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month.

³⁷For with God nothing [is or ever] shall be impossible."

³⁸Then Mary said, " Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word." And the angel left her.

³⁹Now at this time Mary arose and hurried to the hill country, to a city of Judah (Judea),

⁴⁰and she entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.

⁴¹When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, her baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and empowered by Him.

⁴²And she exclaimed loudly, "Blessed [worthy to be praised] are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!

⁴³And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?

⁴⁴For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.

⁴⁵And blessed [spiritually fortunate and favored by God] is she who believed and confidently trusted that there would be a fulfillment of the things that were spoken to her [by the angel sent] from the Lord."

⁴⁶And Mary said, "My soul magnifies and exalts the Lord,

⁴⁷And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

⁴⁸"For He has looked [with loving care] on the humble state of His maidservant; For behold, from now on all generations will count me blessed and happy and favored by God!

⁴⁹"For He who is mighty has done great things for me; And holy is His name [to be worshiped in His purity, majesty, and glory].

⁵⁰"And His mercy is upon generation after generation Toward those who [stand in great awe of God and] fear Him. from generation to generation.

⁵¹"He has done mighty deeds with His [powerful] arm; He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.

⁵²"He has brought down rulers from their thrones, And exalted those who were humble.

⁵³"He has filled the hungry with good things; And sent the rich away empty-handed.

⁵⁴"He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy,

⁵⁵Just as He promised to our fathers, To Abraham and to his descendants forever."

⁵⁶And Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months, and then returned to her home.

⁵⁷Now the time had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son.

⁵⁸Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown His great mercy toward her, and they were rejoicing with her.

⁵⁹It happened that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child [as required by the Law], and they intended to name him Zacharias, after his father;

⁶⁰but his mother answered, "No indeed; instead he will be called John."

⁶¹And they said to her, "None of your relatives is called by that name."

⁶²Then they made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him called.

⁶³And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote as follows, "His name is John." And they were all astonished.

⁶⁴At once Zacharias' mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began speaking, praising and blessing and thanking God.

⁶⁵Then fear came on all their neighbors; and all these things were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea.

⁶⁶All who heard these things kept them in mind, saying, "What then will this little boy turn out to be?" For the hand of the Lord was certainly with him [to bring about his birth].

⁶⁷Now Zacharias his father was filled with the Holy Spirit and empowered by Him, and he prophesied, saying,

⁶⁸"Blessed (praised, glorified) be the Lord, the God of Israel, Because He has visited us and brought redemption to His people,

⁶⁹And He has raised up a horn of salvation [a mighty and valiant Savior] for us In the house of David His servant—

⁷⁰Just as He promised by the mouth of His holy prophets from the most ancient times—

⁷¹Salvation from our enemies, And from the hand of all who hate us;

⁷²To show mercy [as He promised] to our fathers, And to remember His holy covenant [the promised blessing],

⁷³The oath which He swore to Abraham our father,

⁷⁴To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear,

⁷⁵In holiness [being set apart] and righteousness [being upright] before Him all our days.

⁷⁶"And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; For you will go on before the Lord (the Messiah) to prepare His ways;

⁷⁷To give His people the knowledge of salvation By the forgiveness of their sins,

⁷⁸Because of the tender mercy of our God, With which the Sunrise (the Messiah) from on high will dawn and visit us,

⁷⁹To shine upon those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, To guide our feet [in a straight line] into the way of peace and serenity."

⁸⁰The child continued to grow and to become strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel [as John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Messiah].

¹Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

²"Speak to Aaron and say to him, 'When you set up and light the lamps, the seven lamps will shine in front of the lampstand.'"

³And Aaron did so; he set up the lamps at the front of the lampstand, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

⁴Now this was the workmanship of the lampstand: hammered work of gold; from its base to its flowers it was hammered work; according to the pattern which the LORD had shown Moses, so he made the lampstand.

⁵Again the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

⁶"Take the Levites from among the sons of Israel and cleanse them.

⁷This is what you shall do to them to [ceremonially] cleanse them: sprinkle the water of purification on them, and let them use a razor over their whole body and wash their clothes, and they will be clean.

⁸Then let them take a young bull and its grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, and you shall take another young bull as a sin offering.

⁹You shall present the Levites before the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle), and you shall also assemble the whole congregation of the children of Israel,

¹⁰and present the Levites before the LORD, and the Israelites shall lay their hands on the Levites.

¹¹"Aaron shall present the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the Israelites, so that they may perform the service of the LORD.

¹²Then the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the bulls, then you are to offer the one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering to the LORD, to make atonement for the Levites.

¹³You shall have the Levites stand before Aaron and his sons and present them as a wave offering to the LORD.

¹⁴"Thus you shall separate the Levites from among the Israelites, and the Levites shall be Mine [in a very special sense].

¹⁵Then after that the Levites may go in to serve the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle), but you shall cleanse them [first] and present them as a wave offering;

¹⁶for they are wholly given to Me from among the Israelites. I have taken them for Myself instead of all who are born first, the firstborn of all the Israelites.

¹⁷For all the firstborn among the Israelites are Mine, among the men and among the animals; on the day that I struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified and set the Israelites apart for Myself.

¹⁸And I have taken the Levites instead of every firstborn among the Israelites.

¹⁹I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the Israelites, to perform the service of the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle) and to make atonement for them, so that there will be no plague among the Israelites if they should approach the sanctuary."

²⁰Thus Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel did [these things] to the Levites; in accordance with all that the LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so the Israelites did to them.

²¹The Levites, too, purified themselves from sin and they washed their clothes; and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the LORD, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.

²²Then after that the Levites went in to perform their service in the Tent of Meeting before Aaron and his sons; just as the LORD had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.

²³Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

²⁴"This is what applies to the Levites: from twenty-five years old and upward they shall enter to perform service in the work of the Tent of Meeting,

²⁵but at the age of fifty years, they shall retire from the service of the [tabernacle] work and serve no longer.

²⁶They may assist their brothers in the Tent of Meeting to keep an obligation, but they shall do no [heavy or difficult] work. Thus you shall deal with the Levites concerning their obligations."

¹Let love of your fellow believers continue.

²Do not neglect to extend hospitality to strangers [especially among the family of believers—being friendly, cordial, and gracious, sharing the comforts of your home and doing your part generously], for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.

³Remember those who are in prison, as if you were their fellow prisoner, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body [and subject to physical suffering].

⁴Marriage is to be held in honor among all [that is, regarded as something of great value], and the marriage bed undefiled [by immorality or by any sexual sin]; for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.

⁵Let your character [your moral essence, your inner nature] be free from the love of money [shun greed—be financially ethical], being content with what you have; for He has said, "I will never [under any circumstances] desert you [nor give you up nor leave you without support, nor will I in any degree leave you helpless], nor will I forsake or let you down or relax My hold on you [assuredly not]!"

⁶So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently say, "The Lord is my Helper [in time of need], I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?"

⁷Remember your leaders [for it was they] who brought you the word of God; and consider the result of their conduct [the outcome of their godly lives], and imitate their faith [their conviction that God exists and is the Creator and Ruler of all things, the Provider of eternal salvation through Christ, and imitate their reliance on God with absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness].

⁸Jesus Christ is [eternally changeless, always] the same yesterday and today and forever.

⁹Do not be carried away by diverse and strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be established and strengthened by grace and not by foods [rules of diet and ritualistic meals], which bring no benefit or spiritual growth to those who observe them.

¹⁰We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle (sacred tent) have no right to eat.

¹¹For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest as an offering for sin, are burned outside the camp.

¹²Therefore Jesus also suffered and died outside the [city] gate so that He might sanctify and set apart for God as holy the people [who believe] through [the shedding of] His own blood.

¹³So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His contempt [the disgrace and shame that He had to suffer].

¹⁴For here we have no lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come.

¹⁵Through Him, therefore, let us at all times offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, which is the fruit of lips that thankfully acknowledge and confess and glorify His name.

¹⁶Do not neglect to do good, to contribute [to the needy of the church as an expression of fellowship], for such sacrifices are always pleasing to God.

¹⁷Obey your [spiritual] leaders and submit to them [recognizing their authority over you], for they are keeping watch over your souls and continually guarding your spiritual welfare as those who will give an account [of their stewardship of you]. Let them do this with joy and not with grief and groans, for this would be of no benefit to you.

¹⁸Keep praying for us, for we are convinced that we have a good conscience, seeking to conduct ourselves honorably [that is, with moral courage and personal integrity] in all things.

¹⁹And I urge all of you to pray earnestly, so that I may be restored to you soon.

²⁰Now may the God of peace [the source of serenity and spiritual well-being] who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood that sealed and ratified the eternal covenant,

²¹equip you with every good thing to carry out His will and strengthen you [making you complete and perfect as you ought to be], accomplishing in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

²²I call on you, brothers and sisters, listen [patiently] to this message of exhortation and encouragement, for I have written to you briefly.

²³Notice that our brother Timothy has been released [from prison]. If he comes soon, I will see you [along with him].

²⁴Give our greetings to all of your [spiritual] leaders and to all of the saints (God's people). Those [Christians] from Italy send you their greetings.

²⁵Grace be with you all.

¹Then the fifth angel sounded [his trumpet], and I saw a star (angelic being) that had fallen from heaven to the earth; and the key of the bottomless pit (abyss) was given to him (the star-angel).

²He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke like the smoke of a great furnace flowed out of the pit; and the sun and the atmosphere were darkened by the smoke from the pit.

³Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power [to hurt] was given to them, like the power which the earth's scorpions have.

⁴They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but [to hurt] only the people who do not have the seal (mark of ownership, protection) of God on their foreheads.

⁵They were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment and cause them extreme pain for five months; and their torment was like the torment from a scorpion when it stings a man.

⁶And in those days people will seek death and will not find it; and they will long to die [to escape the pain], but [will discover that] death evades them.

⁷The locusts resembled horses prepared and equipped for battle; and on their heads appeared to be [something like] golden crowns, and their faces resembled human faces.

⁸They had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions.

⁹They had breastplates (scales) like breastplates made of iron; and the [whirring] noise of their wings was like the [thunderous] noise of countless horse-drawn chariots charging [at full speed] into battle.

¹⁰They have tails like scorpions, and stingers; and in their tails is their power to hurt people for five months.

¹¹They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss (the bottomless pit); in Hebrew his name is Abaddon (destruction), and in Greek he is called Apollyon (destroyer-king).

¹²The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still coming after these things.

¹³Then the sixth angel sounded [his trumpet], and I heard a solitary voice from the four horns of the golden altar which stands before God,

¹⁴saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates."

¹⁵So the four angels, who had been prepared for the [appointed] hour and day and month and year, were released to kill a third of mankind.

¹⁶The number of the troops of cavalry was twice ten thousand times ten thousand (two hundred million); I heard the number of them.

¹⁷And this is how I saw the horses and their riders in my vision: the riders had breastplates [the color] of fire and of hyacinth (sapphire blue) and of brimstone (yellow); and the heads of the horses looked like the heads of lions; and from out of their mouths came fire and smoke and brimstone (burning sulfur).

¹⁸A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues—by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone that came from the mouths of the horses.

¹⁹For the power of the horses [to do harm] is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents and have heads, and it is with them that they do harm.

²⁰The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent even then of the works of their hands, so as to cease worshiping and paying homage to the demons and the idols of gold and of silver and of bronze and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk;

²¹and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries (drugs, intoxications) nor of their [sexual] immorality nor of their thefts.

¹Again there was a day when the sons of God (angels) came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan (adversary, accuser) also came among them to present himself before the LORD.

²The LORD said to Satan, "From where have you come?" Then Satan answered the LORD, "From roaming around on the earth and from walking around on it."

³The LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered and reflected on My servant Job? For there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God [with reverence] and abstains from and turns away from evil [because he honors God]. And still he maintains and holds tightly to his integrity, although you incited Me against him to destroy him without cause."

⁴Satan answered the LORD, " Skin for skin! Yes, a man will give all he has for his life.

⁵But put forth Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh [and severely afflict him]; and he will curse You to Your face."

⁶So the LORD said to Satan, "Behold, he is in your hand, only spare his life."

⁷So Satan departed from the presence of the LORD and struck Job with loathsome boils and agonizingly painful sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.

⁸And Job took a piece of broken pottery with which to scrape himself, and he sat [down] among the ashes (rubbish heaps).

⁹Then his wife said to him, "Do you still cling to your integrity [and your faith and trust in God, without blaming Him]? Curse God and die!"

¹⁰But he said to her, "You speak as one of the [spiritually] foolish women speaks [ignorant and oblivious to God's will]. Shall we indeed accept [only] good from God and not [also] accept adversity and disaster?" In [spite of] all this Job did not sin with [words from] his lips.

¹¹Now when Job's three friends heard of all this adversity that had come upon him, each one came from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite; for they had made an appointment together to come to sympathize with him and to comfort him.

¹²When they looked from a distance and did not recognize him [because of his disfigurement], they raised their voices and wept; and each one tore his robe [in grief] and they threw dust over their heads toward the sky [in sorrow].

¹³So they sat down on the ground with Job for seven days and seven nights and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his pain was very great.

¹To the Chief Musician; set an octave below. A Psalm of David. Save and help and rescue, LORD, for godly people cease to be, For the faithful vanish from among the sons of men.

²They speak deceitful and worthless words to one another; With flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

³May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, The tongue that speaks great things [in boasting];

⁴Who have said, "With our tongue we will prevail; Our lips are our own; who is lord and master over us?"

⁵"Because of the devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy, Now I will arise," says the LORD; "I will place him in the safety for which he longs."

⁶The words and promises of the LORD are pure words, Like silver refined in an earthen furnace, purified seven times.

⁷You, O LORD, will preserve and keep them; You will protect him from this [evil] generation forever.

⁸The wicked strut about [in pompous self-importance] on every side, As vileness is exalted and baseness is prized among the sons of men.

¹My son, if you will receive my words And treasure my commandments within you,

²So that your ear is attentive to [skillful and godly] wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding [seeking it conscientiously and striving for it eagerly];

³Yes, if you cry out for insight, And lift up your voice for understanding;

⁴If you seek skillful and godly wisdom as you would silver And search for her as you would hidden treasures;

⁵Then you will understand the [reverent] fear of the LORD [that is, worshiping Him and regarding Him as truly awesome] And discover the knowledge of God.

⁶For the LORD gives [skillful and godly] wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.

⁷He stores away sound wisdom for the righteous [those who are in right standing with Him]; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity [those of honorable character and moral courage],

⁸He guards the paths of justice; And He preserves the way of His saints (believers).

⁹Then you will understand righteousness and justice [in every circumstance] And integrity and every good path.

¹⁰For [skillful and godly] wisdom will enter your heart And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.

¹¹Discretion will watch over you, Understanding and discernment will guard you,

¹²To keep you from the way of evil and the evil man, From the man who speaks perverse things;

¹³From those who leave the paths of uprightness To walk in the ways of darkness;

¹⁴Who find joy in doing evil And delight in the perversity of evil,

¹⁵Whose paths are crooked, And who are devious in their ways;

¹⁶To keep you from the immoral woman; From the seductress with her flattering words,

¹⁷Who leaves the companion (husband) of her youth, And forgets the covenant of her God.

¹⁸For her house leads down to death And her paths lead to the dead;

¹⁹None who go to her return again, Nor do they regain the paths of life—

²⁰So you will walk in the way of good men [that is, those of personal integrity, moral courage and honorable character], And keep to the paths of the righteous.

²¹For the upright [those who are in right standing with God] will live in the land And those [of integrity] who are blameless [in God's sight] will remain in it;

²²But the wicked will be cut off from the land And the treacherous shall be [forcibly] uprooted and removed from it.

¹One day Jonathan the son of Saul said to his young armor bearer, "Come, let us go over to the Philistine garrison on the other side." But he did not tell his father.

²Saul was staying in the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree in Migron; and with him were about six hundred men,

³and Ahijah the son of Ichabod's brother Ahitub the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the Lord's priest at Shiloh, was wearing the ephod. And the people did not know that Jonathan had gone.

⁴Between the passes by which Jonathan sought to cross over to get to the Philistine garrison, there was a rocky crag on the one side and a rocky crag on the other side; one [crag] was named Bozez, and the other, Seneh.

⁵The one crag was on the north in front of Michmash, and the other on the south in front of Geba.

⁶Jonathan said to his young armor bearer, "Come, let us cross over to the garrison of these uncircumcised men; it may be that the LORD will work for us. For there is nothing to prevent the LORD from saving, whether by many or by few."

⁷And his armor bearer said to him, "Do everything that is in your heart (mind); here I am with you in whatever you think [best]."

⁸Jonathan said, "See now, we are going to cross over to the [Philistine] men and reveal ourselves to them.

⁹If they say to us, 'Wait until we come to you,' then we will stand in our place and not go up to them.

¹⁰But if they say, 'Come up to us,' we will go up, for the LORD has handed them over to us; and this shall be the sign to us."

¹¹When both of them revealed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines, the Philistines said, "Look, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have hidden themselves."

¹²So the men of the garrison responded to Jonathan and his armor bearer, "Come up to us and we will tell you something." Jonathan said to his armor bearer, "Climb up after me, for the LORD has given them into the hands of Israel."

¹³Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, his armor bearer following after him. The enemy fell before Jonathan [in combat], and his armor bearer killed some of them after him.

¹⁴That first slaughter which Jonathan and his armor bearer made was about twenty men within about half a [plow] furrow in a plot of land [the area of which a yoke of oxen could plow in a day].

¹⁵And there was trembling in the [Philistine] camp, in the field, and among all the people; even the garrison and the raiding party trembled [in fear], and the earth quaked and it became a trembling and terror from God.

¹⁶Saul's watchmen in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and behold, the multitude melted away and they went here and there.

¹⁷Then Saul said to the people with him, "Take a count and see who has left us." When they had taken a count, behold, Jonathan and his armor bearer were missing.

¹⁸Saul said to Ahijah [the priest], "Bring the ark of God here." For at that time the ark of God was with the sons of Israel.

¹⁹While Saul talked to the priest, the commotion in the Philistine camp continued and increased, so Saul said to the priest, "Withdraw your hand."

²⁰Then Saul and all the people who were with him rallied and went into the battle; and behold, every [Philistine] man's sword was against his companion, in wild confusion.

²¹Now the Hebrews who were with the Philistines previously, who went up with them all around in the camp, they also turned to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.

²²When all the men of Israel who had hidden themselves in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines had fled, they too pursued them closely in the battle.

²³So the LORD saved Israel that day, and the battle spread beyond Beth-aven.

²⁴But the men of Israel were hard-pressed that day, because Saul had put the people under a curse, saying, "Cursed be the man who eats food before evening, and before I have taken vengeance on my enemies." So none of the people ate any food.

²⁵All the people of the land came to a forest, and there was honey on the ground.

²⁶When the people entered the forest, the honey was dripping, but no man put his hand to his mouth [to taste it], because the people feared the oath [of Saul].

²⁷But Jonathan had not heard when his father put the people under the oath. So he put out the end of the staff that was in his hand and dipped it into a honeycomb, and then he put his hand to his mouth, and his energy was restored.

²⁸But one of the people told him, "Your father strictly put the people under an oath, saying, 'Cursed be the man who eats food today.'" And the people were exhausted [and hungry].

²⁹Then Jonathan said, "My father has troubled the land [with his foolish curse]. See how my energy is restored because I tasted a little of this honey.

³⁰How much better [it would have been] if only the people had eaten freely today from the spoil of their enemies which they found! For now the slaughter among the Philistines has not been great."

³¹They struck the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. And the people were very tired.

³²[When night came and the oath ended] the people rushed greedily upon the spoil. They took sheep, oxen, and calves, and slaughtered them on the ground; and they ate them [raw] with the blood [still in them].

³³Then Saul was told, "Look, the people are sinning against the LORD by eating [the meat] with the blood." And he said, "You have violated [the Law] and acted treacherously; roll a large stone to me today."

³⁴Saul said, "Spread out among the people and tell them, 'Each one of you bring me his ox or his sheep, and butcher it [properly] here and eat; and do not sin against the LORD by eating [the meat with] the blood.'" So that night each one brought his ox with him and butchered it there.

³⁵And Saul built an altar to the LORD; it was the first altar that he built to the LORD.

³⁶Then Saul said, "Let us go down after the Philistines by night and plunder them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them [alive]." They said, "Do whatever seems good to you." Then the priest said, "Let us approach God here."

³⁷Saul asked [counsel] of God, "Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will You hand them over to Israel?" But He did not answer him that day.

³⁸Then Saul said, "Come here, all you who are leaders of the people, and let us find out how this sin [causing God's silence] happened today.

³⁹For as the LORD lives, who saves Israel, for even if the guilt is in my son Jonathan, he shall most certainly die." But not one of all the people answered him.

⁴⁰Then he said to all the Israelites, " You shall be on one side; I and my son Jonathan will be on the other side." The people said to Saul, "Do what seems good to you."

⁴¹Therefore, Saul said to the LORD, the God of Israel, "Give a perfect lot [identifying the transgressor]." Then Saul and Jonathan were selected [by lot], but the other men went free.

⁴²Saul said, "Cast [lots] between me and my son Jonathan." And Jonathan was selected.

⁴³Saul said to Jonathan, "Tell me what you have done." So Jonathan told him, "I tasted a little honey with the end of the staff that was in my hand. Here I am, I must die!"

⁴⁴Saul answered, "May God do so [to me], and more also [if I do not keep my word], for you shall most certainly die, Jonathan."

⁴⁵But the people said to Saul, "Must Jonathan, who has brought about this great victory in Israel, be put to death? Far from it! As the LORD lives, not one hair of his head shall fall to the ground, for he has worked with God this day." So the people rescued Jonathan and he was not put to death.

⁴⁶Then Saul stopped pursuing the Philistines, and the Philistines went to their own place.

⁴⁷When Saul assumed control of the kingdom of Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side: Moab, the sons (descendants) of Ammon, Edom, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. Wherever he turned, he inflicted punishment.

⁴⁸He acted valiantly and defeated the Amalekites, and rescued Israel from the hands of those who had plundered them.

⁴⁹Now Saul's sons were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malchi-shua. The names of his two daughters were these: the name of the firstborn was Merab, and the name of the younger, Michal.

⁵⁰The name of Saul's wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz. The commander of his army was named Abner, the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.

⁵¹Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.

⁵²Now the war against the Philistines was severe (brutal, relentless) all the days of Saul; and whenever Saul saw any mighty or courageous man, he recruited him for his staff.

¹For Zion's sake I (Isaiah) will not be silent, And for Jerusalem's sake I will not keep quiet, Until her righteousness and vindication go forth as brightness, And her salvation goes forth like a burning torch.

²The nations will see your righteousness and vindication [by God], And all kings [will see] your glory; And you will be called by a new name Which the mouth of the LORD will designate.

³You will also be [considered] a crown of glory and splendor in the hand of the LORD, And a royal diadem [exceedingly beautiful] in the hand of your God.

⁴It will no longer be said of you [Judah], "Azubah (Abandoned)," Nor will it any longer be said of your land, "Shemamah (Desolate)"; But you will be called, "Hephzibah (My Delight is in Her)," And your land, " Married"; For the LORD delights in you, And to Him your land will be married [owned and protected by the LORD].

⁵For as a young man marries a virgin [O Jerusalem], So your sons will marry you; And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So your God will rejoice over you.

⁶On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed and stationed watchmen (prophets), Who will never keep silent day or night; You who profess the LORD, take no rest for yourselves,

⁷And give Him no rest [from your prayers] until He establishes Jerusalem And makes her a praise on the earth.

⁸The LORD has sworn [an oath] by His right hand and by His mighty arm, "I will never again give your grain as food for your enemies, Nor will [the invading] foreigners drink your new wine for which you have labored."

⁹But they who have harvested it will eat it and praise the LORD, And they who have gathered it will drink it [at the feasts celebrated] in the courtyards of My sanctuary.

¹⁰Go through, go through the gates, Clear the way for the people; Build up, build up the highway, Remove the stones, lift up a banner over the peoples.

¹¹Listen carefully, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth, Say to the Daughter of Zion, "Look now, your salvation is coming [in the LORD]; Indeed, His reward is with Him, and His restitution accompanies Him."

¹²And they will call them "The Holy People, The Redeemed of the LORD"; And you will be called "Sought Out, A City Not Deserted."

¹And while Peter and John were talking to the people, the priests and the captain [who was in charge of the temple area and] of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to them,

²being extremely disturbed and thoroughly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in [the case of] Jesus the resurrection of the dead.

³So they arrested them and put them in jail until the next day, because it was evening.

⁴But many of those who heard the message [of salvation] believed [in Jesus and accepted Him as the Christ]. And the number of the men came to be about 5,000.

⁵On the next day, their magistrates and elders and scribes (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court) were gathered together in Jerusalem;

⁶and Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all others who were of high-priestly descent.

⁷When they had put the men in front of them, they repeatedly asked, "By what sort of power, or in what name [that is, by what kind of authority], did you do this [healing]?"

⁸Then Peter, filled with [the power of] the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers and elders of the people [members of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish High Court],

⁹if we are being put on trial today [to interrogate us] for a good deed done to [benefit] a disabled man, as to how this man has been restored to health,

¹⁰let it be known and clearly understood by all of you, and by all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you [demanded be] crucified [by the Romans and], whom God raised from the dead—in this name [that is, by the authority and power of Jesus] this man stands here before you in good health.

¹¹This Jesus is the stone which was despised and rejected by you, the builders, but which became thechief Cornerstone.

¹²And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people by which we must be saved [for God has provided the world no alternative for salvation]."

¹³Now when the men of the Sanhedrin (Jewish High Court) saw the confidence and boldness of Peter and John, and grasped the fact that they were uneducated and untrained [ordinary] men, they were astounded, and began to recognize that they had been with Jesus.

¹⁴And seeing the man who had been healed standing there with them, they had nothing to say in reply.

¹⁵But after ordering them to step out of the Council [chamber], they began to confer among themselves,

¹⁶saying, "What are we to do with these men? For the fact that an extraordinary miracle has taken place through them is public knowledge and clearly evident to all the residents of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.

¹⁷But to keep it from spreading further among the people and the nation, let us [sternly] warn them not to speak again to anyone in this name."

¹⁸So they sent for them, and commanded them not to speak [as His representatives] or teach at all in the name of Jesus [using Him as their authority].

¹⁹But Peter and John replied to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you and obey you rather than God, you must judge [for yourselves];

²⁰for we, on our part, cannot stop telling [people] about what we have seen and heard."

²¹When the rulers and Council members had threatened them further, they let them go, finding no way to punish them because [of their fear] of the people, for they were all praising and glorifying and honoring God for what had happened;

²²for the man to whom this sign (attesting miracle) of healing had happened was more than forty years old.

²³After Peter and John were released, they returned to their own [people] and reported everything that the chief priests and elders had said to them.

²⁴And when they heard it, they raised their voices together to God and said, "O Sovereign Lord [having complete power and authority], it is You who made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything that is in them,

²⁵who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David, Your servant, said, 'Why did the nations (Gentiles) become arrogant and rage, And the peoples devise futile things [against the Lord]?

²⁶'The kings of the earth took their stand [to attack], And the rulers were assembled together Against the Lord and against His Anointed (the Christ, the Messiah).'

²⁷For in this city there were gathered together against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,

²⁸to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined [before the creation of the world] to occur [and so without knowing it, they served Your own purpose].

²⁹And now, Lord, observe their threats [take them into account] and grant that Your bond-servants may declare Your message [of salvation] with great confidence,

³⁰while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders (attesting miracles) take place through the name [and the authority and power] of Your holy Servant and Son Jesus."

³¹And when they had prayed, the place where they were meeting together was shaken [a sign of God's presence]; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness and courage.

³²Now the company of believers was of one heart and soul, and not one [of them] claimed that anything belonging to him was [exclusively] his own, but everything was common property and for the use of all.

³³And with great ability and power the apostles were continuously testifying to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace [God's remarkable lovingkindness and favor and goodwill] rested richly upon them all.

³⁴There was not a needy person among them, because those who were owners of land or houses were selling them, and bringing the proceeds of the sales

³⁵and placing the money down at the apostles' feet. Then it was distributed to each as anyone had need.

³⁶Now Joseph, a Levite and native of Cyprus, who was surnamed Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means Son of Encouragement),

³⁷sold a field belonging to him and brought the money and set it at the apostles' feet.