Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us,

²just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us,

³it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus,

⁴that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed.

⁵There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

⁶And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

⁷But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.

⁸So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division,

⁹according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.

¹⁰And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense.

¹¹Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

¹²And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

¹³But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.

¹⁴And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.

¹⁵For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.

¹⁶And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.

¹⁷He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

¹⁸And Zacharias said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”

¹⁹And the angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings.

²⁰But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.”

²¹And the people waited for Zacharias, and marveled that he lingered so long in the temple.

²²But when he came out, he could not speak to them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he beckoned to them and remained speechless.

²³So it was, as soon as the days of his service were completed, that he departed to his own house.

²⁴Now after those days his wife Elizabeth conceived; and she hid herself five months, saying,

²⁵“Thus the Lord has dealt with me, in the days when He looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”

²⁶Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,

²⁷to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.

²⁸And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

²⁹But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.

³⁰Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

³¹And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.

³²He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.

³³And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

³⁴Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

³⁵And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.

³⁶Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.

³⁷For with God nothing will be impossible.”

³⁸Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

³⁹Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah,

⁴⁰and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.

⁴¹And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.

⁴²Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!

⁴³But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

⁴⁴For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

⁴⁵Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”

⁴⁶And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord,

⁴⁷And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

⁴⁸For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.

⁴⁹For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name.

⁵⁰And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation.

⁵¹He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

⁵²He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly.

⁵³He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty.

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

⁵⁵As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever.”

⁵⁶And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house.

⁵⁷Now Elizabeth’s full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son.

⁵⁸When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they rejoiced with her.

⁵⁹So it was, on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zacharias.

⁶⁰His mother answered and said, “No; he shall be called John.”

⁶¹But they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.”

⁶²So they made signs to his father—what he would have him called.

⁶³And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, “His name is John.” So they all marveled.

⁶⁴Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, praising God.

⁶⁵Then fear came on all who dwelt around them; and all these sayings were discussed throughout all the hill country of Judea.

⁶⁶And all those who heard them kept them in their hearts, saying, “What kind of child will this be?” And the hand of the Lord was with him.

⁶⁷Now his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:

⁶⁸“Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people,

⁶⁹And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of His servant David,

⁷⁰As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, Who have been since the world began,

⁷¹That we should be saved from our enemies And from the hand of all who hate us,

⁷²To perform the mercy promised to our fathers And to remember His holy covenant,

⁷³The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:

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

⁷⁵In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.

⁷⁶“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,

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

⁷⁸Through the tender mercy of our God, With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us;

⁷⁹To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace.”

⁸⁰So the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.

¹And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying:

²“Speak to Aaron, and say to him, ‘When you arrange the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light in front of the lampstand.’ ”

³And Aaron did so; he arranged the lamps to face toward the front of the lampstand, as the LORD commanded Moses.

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

⁵Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying:

⁶“Take the Levites from among the children of Israel and cleanse them ceremonially.

⁷Thus you shall do to them to cleanse them: Sprinkle water of purification on them, and let them shave all their body, and let them wash their clothes, and so make themselves clean.

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

⁹And you shall bring the Levites before the tabernacle of meeting, and you shall gather together the whole congregation of the children of Israel.

¹⁰So you shall bring the Levites before the LORD, and the children of Israel shall lay their hands on the Levites;

¹¹and Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD like a wave offering from the children of Israel, that they may perform the work of the LORD.

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

¹³“And you shall stand the Levites before Aaron and his sons, and then offer them like a wave offering to the LORD.

¹⁴Thus you shall separate the Levites from among the children of Israel, and the Levites shall be Mine.

¹⁵After that the Levites shall go in to service the tabernacle of meeting. So you shall cleanse them and offer them like a wave offering.

¹⁶For they are wholly given to Me from among the children of Israel; I have taken them for Myself instead of all who open the womb, the firstborn of all the children of Israel.

¹⁷For all the firstborn among the children of Israel are Mine, both man and beast; on the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them to Myself.

¹⁸I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn of the children of Israel.

¹⁹And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the work for the children of Israel in the tabernacle of meeting, and to make atonement for the children of Israel, that there be no plague among the children of Israel when the children of Israel come near the sanctuary.”

²⁰Thus Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel did to the Levites; according to all that the LORD commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so the children of Israel did to them.

²¹And the Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes; then Aaron presented them like a wave offering before the LORD, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them.

²²After that the Levites went in to do their work in the tabernacle of meeting before Aaron and his sons; as the LORD commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.

²³Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

²⁴“This is what pertains to the Levites: From twenty-five years old and above one may enter to perform service in the work of the tabernacle of meeting;

²⁵and at the age of fifty years they must cease performing this work, and shall work no more.

²⁶They may minister with their brethren in the tabernacle of meeting, to attend to needs, but they themselves shall do no work. Thus you shall do to the Levites regarding their duties.”

¹Let brotherly love continue.

²Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.

³Remember the prisoners as if chained with them—those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also.

⁴Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge.

⁵Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

⁶So we may boldly say: “The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”

⁷Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct.

⁸Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

⁹Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not with foods which have not profited those who have been occupied with them.

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

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

¹²Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate.

¹³Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach.

¹⁴For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come.

¹⁵Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.

¹⁶But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

¹⁷Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.

¹⁸Pray for us; for we are confident that we have a good conscience, in all things desiring to live honorably.

¹⁹But I especially urge you to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.

²⁰Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,

²¹make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

²²And I appeal to you, brethren, bear with the word of exhortation, for I have written to you in few words.

²³Know that our brother Timothy has been set free, with whom I shall see you if he comes shortly.

²⁴Greet all those who rule over you, and all the saints. Those from Italy greet you.

²⁵Grace be with you all. Amen.

¹Then the fifth angel sounded: And I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. To him was given the key to the bottomless pit.

²And he opened the bottomless pit, and smoke arose out of the pit like the smoke of a great furnace. So the sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke of the pit.

³Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth. And to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.

⁴They were commanded not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

⁵And they were not given authority to kill them, but to torment them for five months. Their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man.

⁶In those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will desire to die, and death will flee from them.

⁷The shape of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle. On their heads were crowns of something like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men.

⁸They had hair like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth.

⁹And they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots with many horses running into battle.

¹⁰They had tails like scorpions, and there were stings in their tails. Their power was to hurt men five months.

¹¹And they had as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon.

¹²One woe is past. Behold, still two more woes are coming after these things.

¹³Then the sixth angel sounded: And I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is 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 hour and day and month and year, were released to kill a third of mankind.

¹⁶Now the number of the army of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them.

¹⁷And thus I saw the horses in the vision: those who sat on them had breastplates of fiery red, hyacinth blue, and sulfur yellow; and the heads of the horses were like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths came fire, smoke, and brimstone.

¹⁸By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed—by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which came out of their mouths.

¹⁹For their power is in their mouth and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents, having heads; and with them they do harm.

²⁰But the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, that they should not worship demons, and idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk.

²¹And they did not repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

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

²And the LORD said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Satan answered the LORD and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it.”

³Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause.”

⁴So Satan answered the LORD and said, “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life.

⁵But stretch out Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will surely curse You to Your face!”

⁶And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand, but spare his life.”

⁷So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD, and struck Job with painful boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.

⁸And he took for himself a potsherd with which to scrape himself while he sat in the midst of the ashes.

⁹Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!”

¹⁰But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with 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 and mourn with him, and to comfort him.

¹²And when they raised their eyes from afar, and did not recognize him, they lifted their voices and wept; and each one tore his robe and sprinkled dust on his head toward heaven.

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

¹To the Chief Musician. On an eight-stringed harp. A Psalm of David. [1] Help, LORD, for the godly man ceases! For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men.

²They speak idly everyone with his neighbor; With flattering lips and a double heart they speak.

³May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, And the tongue that speaks proud things,

⁴Who have said, “With our tongue we will prevail; Our lips are our own; Who is lord over us?”

⁵“For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, Now I will arise,” says the LORD; “I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.”

⁶The words of the LORD are pure words, Like silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times.

⁷You shall keep them, O LORD, You shall preserve them from this generation forever.

⁸The wicked prowl on every side, When vileness is exalted among the sons of men.

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

²So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding;

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

⁴If you seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures;

⁵Then you will understand the fear of the LORD, And find the knowledge of God.

⁶For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding;

⁷He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly;

⁸He guards the paths of justice, And preserves the way of His saints.

⁹Then you will understand righteousness and justice, Equity and every good path.

¹⁰When wisdom enters your heart, And knowledge is pleasant to your soul,

¹¹Discretion will preserve you; Understanding will keep you,

¹²To deliver you from the way of evil, From the man who speaks perverse things,

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

¹⁴Who rejoice in doing evil, And delight in the perversity of the wicked;

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

¹⁶To deliver you from the immoral woman, From the seductress who flatters with her words,

¹⁷Who forsakes the companion of her youth, And forgets the covenant of her God.

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

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

²⁰So you may walk in the way of goodness, And keep to the paths of righteousness.

²¹For the upright will dwell in the land, And the blameless will remain in it;

²²But the wicked will be cut off from the earth, And the unfaithful will be uprooted from it.

¹Now it happened one day that Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man who bore his armor, “Come, let us go over to the Philistines’ garrison that is on the other side.” But he did not tell his father.

²And Saul was sitting in the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree which is in Migron. The people who were with him were about six hundred men.

³Ahijah the son of Ahitub, Ichabod’s brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the LORD’s priest in Shiloh, was wearing an ephod. But the people did not know that Jonathan had gone.

⁴Between the passes, by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philistines’ garrison, there was a sharp rock on one side and a sharp rock on the other side. And the name of one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.

⁵The front of one faced northward opposite Michmash, and the other southward opposite Gibeah.

⁶Then Jonathan said to the young man who bore his armor, “Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the LORD will work for us. For nothing restrains the LORD from saving by many or by few.”

⁷So his armorbearer said to him, “Do all that is in your heart. Go then; here I am with you, according to your heart.”

⁸Then Jonathan said, “Very well, let us cross over to these men, and we will show ourselves to them.

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

¹⁰But if they say thus, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up. For the LORD has delivered them into our hand, and this will be a sign to us.”

¹¹So both of them showed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines. And the Philistines said, “Look, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have hidden.”

¹²Then the men of the garrison called to Jonathan and his armorbearer, and said, “Come up to us, and we will show you something.” Jonathan said to his armorbearer, “Come up after me, for the LORD has delivered them into the hand of Israel.”

¹³And Jonathan climbed up on his hands and knees with his armorbearer after him; and they fell before Jonathan. And as he came after him, his armorbearer killed them.

¹⁴That first slaughter which Jonathan and his armorbearer made was about twenty men within about half an acre of land.

¹⁵And there was trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. The garrison and the raiders also trembled; and the earth quaked, so that it was a very great trembling.

¹⁶Now the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and there was the multitude, melting away; and they went here and there.

¹⁷Then Saul said to the people who were with him, “Now call the roll and see who has gone from us.” And when they had called the roll, surprisingly, Jonathan and his armorbearer were not there.

¹⁸And Saul said to Ahijah, “Bring the ark of God here” (for at that time the ark of God was with the children of Israel).

¹⁹Now it happened, while Saul talked to the priest, that the noise which was in the camp of the Philistines continued to increase; so Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.”

²⁰Then Saul and all the people who were with him assembled, and they went to the battle; and indeed every man’s sword was against his neighbor, and there was very great confusion.

²¹Moreover the Hebrews who were with the Philistines before that time, who went up with them into the camp from the surrounding country, they also joined the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.

²²Likewise all the men of Israel who had hidden in the mountains of Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, they also followed hard after them in the battle.

²³So the LORD saved Israel that day, and the battle shifted to Beth Aven.

²⁴And the men of Israel were distressed that day, for Saul had placed the people under oath, saying, “Cursed is the man who eats any food until evening, before I have taken vengeance on my enemies.” So none of the people tasted food.

²⁵Now all the people of the land came to a forest; and there was honey on the ground.

²⁶And when the people had come into the woods, there was the honey, dripping; but no one put his hand to his mouth, for the people feared the oath.

²⁷But Jonathan had not heard his father charge the people with the oath; therefore he stretched out the end of the rod that was in his hand and dipped it in a honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and his countenance brightened.

²⁸Then one of the people said, “Your father strictly charged the people with an oath, saying, ‘Cursed is the man who eats food this day.’ ” And the people were faint.

²⁹But Jonathan said, “My father has troubled the land. Look now, how my countenance has brightened because I tasted a little of this honey.

³⁰How much better if the people had eaten freely today of the spoil of their enemies which they found! For now would there not have been a much greater slaughter among the Philistines?”

³¹Now they had driven back the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. So the people were very faint.

³²And the people rushed on the spoil, and took sheep, oxen, and calves, and slaughtered them on the ground; and the people ate them with the blood.

³³Then they told Saul, saying, “Look, the people are sinning against the LORD by eating with the blood!” So he said, “You have dealt treacherously; roll a large stone to me this day.”

³⁴Then Saul said, “Disperse yourselves among the people, and say to them, ‘Bring me here every man’s ox and every man’s sheep, slaughter them here, and eat; and do not sin against the LORD by eating with the blood.’ ” So every one of the people brought his ox with him that night, and slaughtered it there.

³⁵Then Saul built an altar to the LORD. This was the first altar that he built to the LORD.

³⁶Now 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.” And they said, “Do whatever seems good to you.” Then the priest said, “Let us draw near to God here.”

³⁷So Saul asked counsel of God, “Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will You deliver them into the hand of Israel?” But He did not answer him that day.

³⁸And Saul said, “Come over here, all you chiefs of the people, and know and see what this sin was today.

³⁹For as the LORD lives, who saves Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die.” But not a man among all the people answered him.

⁴⁰Then he said to all Israel, “You be on one side, and my son Jonathan and I will be on the other side.” And the people said to Saul, “Do what seems good to you.”

⁴¹Therefore Saul said to the LORD God of Israel, “Give a perfect lot.” So Saul and Jonathan were taken, but the people escaped.

⁴²And Saul said, “Cast lots between my son Jonathan and me.” So Jonathan was taken.

⁴³Then Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.” And Jonathan told him, and said, “I only tasted a little honey with the end of the rod that was in my hand. So now I must die!”

⁴⁴Saul answered, “God do so and more also; for you shall surely die, Jonathan.”

⁴⁵But the people said to Saul, “Shall Jonathan die, who has accomplished this great deliverance in Israel? Certainly not! 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 did not die.

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

⁴⁷So Saul established his sovereignty over Israel, and fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, against the people of Ammon, against Edom, against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines. Wherever he turned, he harassed them.

⁴⁸And he gathered an army and attacked the Amalekites, and delivered Israel from the hands of those who plundered them.

⁴⁹The sons of Saul were Jonathan, Jishui, and Malchishua. And the names of his two daughters were these: the name of the firstborn Merab, and the name of the younger Michal.

⁵⁰The name of Saul’s wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz. And the name of the commander of his army was 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 there was fierce war with the Philistines all the days of Saul. And when Saul saw any strong man or any valiant man, he took him for himself.

¹For Zion’s sake I will not hold My peace, And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, Until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, And her salvation as a lamp that burns.

²The Gentiles shall see your righteousness, And all kings your glory. You shall be called by a new name, Which the mouth of the LORD will name.

³You shall also be a crown of glory In the hand of the LORD, And a royal diadem In the hand of your God.

⁴You shall no longer be termed Forsaken, Nor shall your land any more be termed Desolate; But you shall be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; For the LORD delights in you, And your land shall be married.

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

⁶I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; They shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the LORD, do not keep silent,

⁷And give Him no rest till He establishes And till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.

⁸The LORD has sworn by His right hand And by the arm of His strength: “Surely I will no longer give your grain As food for your enemies; And the sons of the foreigner shall not drink your new wine, For which you have labored.

⁹But those who have gathered it shall eat it, And praise the LORD; Those who have brought it together shall drink it in My holy courts.”

¹⁰Go through, Go through the gates! Prepare the way for the people; Build up, Build up the highway! Take out the stones, Lift up a banner for the peoples!

¹¹Indeed the LORD has proclaimed To the end of the world: “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Surely your salvation is coming; Behold, His reward is with Him, And His work before Him.’ ”

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

¹Now as they spoke to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came upon them,

²being greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

³And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.

⁴However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.

⁵And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes,

⁶as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem.

⁷And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?”

⁸Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders of Israel:

⁹If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man, by what means he has been made well,

¹⁰let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole.

¹¹This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.’

¹²Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

¹³Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.

¹⁴And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.

¹⁵But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,

¹⁶saying, “What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.

¹⁷But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.”

¹⁸So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.

¹⁹But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.

²⁰For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”

²¹So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way of punishing them, because of the people, since they all glorified God for what had been done.

²²For the man was over forty years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed.

²³And being let go, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them.

²⁴So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them,

²⁵who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: ‘Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things?

²⁶The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the LORD and against His Christ.’

²⁷“For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together

²⁸to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done.

²⁹Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word,

³⁰by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”

³¹And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.

³²Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common.

³³And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.

³⁴Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold,

³⁵and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need.

³⁶And Joses, who was also named Barnabas by the apostles (which is translated Son of Encouragement), a Levite of the country of Cyprus,

³⁷having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.