Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene,

²in the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zechariah, in the wilderness.

³And he came into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins;

⁴as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet: “THE VOICE OF ONE CALLING OUT IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!

⁵EVERY RAVINE WILL BE FILLED, AND EVERY MOUNTAIN AND HILL WILL BE LOWERED; THE CROOKED WILL BECOME STRAIGHT, AND THE ROUGH ROADS SMOOTH;

⁶AND ALL FLESH WILL SEE THE SALVATION OF GOD!’ ”

⁷So he was saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

⁸Therefore produce fruits that are consistent with repentance, and do not start saying to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children for Abraham.

⁹But indeed the axe is already being laid at the root of the trees; so every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰And the crowds were questioning him, saying, “Then what are we to do?”

¹¹And he would answer and say to them, “The one who has two tunics is to share with the one who has none; and the one who has food is to do likewise.”

¹²Now even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what are we to do?”

¹³And he said to them, “Collect no more than what you have been ordered to.”

¹⁴And soldiers also were questioning him, saying, “What are we to do, we as well?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone, nor harass anyone, and be content with your wages.”

¹⁵Now while the people were in a state of expectation and they all were thinking carefully in their hearts about John, whether he himself perhaps was the Christ,

¹⁶John responded to them all, saying, “As for me, I baptize you with water; but He is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the straps of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

¹⁷His winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor, and to gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

¹⁸So with many other exhortations he preached the gospel to the people.

¹⁹But when Herod the tetrarch was reprimanded by him regarding Herodias, his brother’s wife, and regarding all the evil things which Herod had done,

²⁰Herod also added this to them all: he locked John up in prison.

²¹Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus also was baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened,

²²and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came from heaven: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well pleased.”

²³When He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years old, being, as was commonly held, the son of Joseph, the son of Eli,

²⁴the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph,

²⁵the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Hesli, the son of Naggai,

²⁶the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda,

²⁷the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri,

²⁸the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er,

²⁹the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi,

³⁰the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim,

³¹the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David,

³²the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon,

³³the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah,

³⁴the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,

³⁵the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Heber, the son of Shelah,

³⁶the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech,

³⁷the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan,

³⁸the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.

¹The LORD spoke further to Moses, saying,

²“Make yourself two trumpets of silver, you shall make them of hammered work; and you shall use them for summoning the congregation and breaking camp.

³Now when both are blown, all the congregation shall meet you at the entrance of the tent of meeting.

⁴But if only one is blown, then the leaders, the heads of the divisions of Israel, shall meet you.

⁵And when you blow an alarm, the camps that are pitched on the east side shall set out.

⁶Then when you sound an alarm the second time, the camps that are pitched on the south side shall set out; an alarm is to be sounded for them to break camp.

⁷When convening the assembly, however, you shall blow the trumpets without sounding an alarm.

⁸The sons of Aaron, moreover, the priests, shall blow the trumpets; and this shall be a permanent statute for you throughout your generations.

⁹And when you go to war in your land against the enemy who attacks you, then you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets, so that you will be thought of by the LORD your God, and be saved from your enemies.

¹⁰Also on the day of your joy and at your appointed feasts, and on the first days of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings, and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be as a reminder of you before your God. I am the LORD your God.”

¹¹Now in the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth of the month, the cloud was lifted from above the tabernacle of the testimony;

¹²and the sons of Israel set out on their journeys from the wilderness of Sinai. Then the cloud settled in the wilderness of Paran.

¹³So they moved on for the first time in accordance with the command of the LORD through Moses.

¹⁴The flag of the camp of the sons of Judah, by their armies, set out first, with Nahshon the son of Amminadab, over its army,

¹⁵and Nethanel the son of Zuar, over the tribal army of the sons of Issachar;

¹⁶and Eliab the son of Helon over the tribal army of the sons of Zebulun.

¹⁷Then the tabernacle was taken down; and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari, who were carrying the tabernacle, set out.

¹⁸Next the flag of the camp of Reuben, by their armies, set out with Elizur the son of Shedeur, over its army,

¹⁹and Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai over the tribal army of the sons of Simeon,

²⁰and Eliasaph the son of Deuel was over the tribal army of the sons of Gad.

²¹Then the Kohathites set out, carrying the holy objects; and the tabernacle was set up before their arrival.

²²Next the flag of the camp of the sons of Ephraim, by their armies, set out, with Elishama the son of Ammihud over its army,

²³and Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur over the tribal army of the sons of Manasseh;

²⁴and Abidan the son of Gideoni over the tribal army of the sons of Benjamin.

²⁵Then the flag of the camp of the sons of Dan, by their armies, which formed the rear guard for all the camps, set out, with Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai over its army,

²⁶and Pagiel the son of Ochran over the tribal army of the sons of Asher;

²⁷and Ahira the son of Enan over the tribal army of the sons of Naphtali.

²⁸This was the order of marching for the sons of Israel by their armies as they set out.

²⁹Then Moses said to Hobab the son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses’ father-in-law, “We are setting out to the place of which the LORD said, ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us and we will do you good, for the LORD has promised good concerning Israel.”

³⁰But he said to him, “I will not come, but rather will go to my own land and relatives.”

³¹Then he said, “Please do not leave us, since you know where we should camp in the wilderness, and you will be as eyes for us.

³²So it will be, if you go with us, that whatever good the LORD does for us, we will do for you.”

³³So they moved on from the mountain of the LORD three days’ journey, with the ark of the covenant of the LORD going on in front of them for the three days, to seek out a resting place for them.

³⁴And the cloud of the LORD was over them by day when they set out from the camp.

³⁵Then it came about when the ark set out that Moses said, “Rise up, LORD! And may Your enemies be scattered, And those who hate You flee from Your presence.”

³⁶And when it came to rest, he said, “Return, LORD, To the myriad thousands of Israel.”

¹Therefore you have no excuse, you foolish person, everyone of you who passes judgment; for in that matter in which you judge someone else, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.

²And we know that the judgment of God rightly falls upon those who practice such things.

³But do you suppose this, you foolish person who passes judgment on those who practice such things, and yet does them as well, that you will escape the judgment of God?

⁴Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and restraint and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?

⁵But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God,

⁶who WILL REPAY EACH PERSON ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS:

⁷to those who by perseverance in doing good seek glory, honor, and immortality, He will give eternal life;

⁸but to those who are self-serving and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, He will give wrath and indignation.

⁹There will be tribulation and distress for every soul of mankind who does evil, for the Jew first and also for the Greek,

¹⁰but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who does what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

¹¹For there is no partiality with God.

¹²For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law, and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law;

¹³for it is not the hearers of the Law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the Law who will be justified.

¹⁴For when Gentiles who do not have the Law instinctively perform the requirements of the Law, these, though not having the Law, are a law to themselves,

¹⁵in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience testifying and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them,

¹⁶on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of mankind through Christ Jesus.

¹⁷But if you call yourself a Jew and rely upon the Law and boast in God,

¹⁸and know His will and distinguish the things that matter, being instructed from the Law,

¹⁹and are confident that you yourself are a guide to people who are blind, a light to those in darkness,

²⁰a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of the immature, possessing in the Law the embodiment of knowledge and of the truth—

²¹you, therefore, who teach someone else, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that one is not to steal, do you steal?

²²You who say that one is not to commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who loathe idols, do you rob temples?

²³You who boast in the Law, through your breaking the Law, do you dishonor God?

²⁴For “THE NAME OF GOD IS BLASPHEMED AMONG THE GENTILES BECAUSE OF YOU,” just as it is written.

²⁵For indeed circumcision is of value if you practice the Law; but if you are a violator of the Law, your circumcision has turned into uncircumcision.

²⁶So if the uncircumcised man keeps the requirements of the Law, will his uncircumcision not be regarded as circumcision?

²⁷And he who is physically uncircumcised, if he keeps the Law, will he not judge you who though having the letter of the Law and circumcision are a violator of the Law?

²⁸For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh.

²⁹But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from people, but from God.

¹Then there was given to me a measuring rod like a staff; and someone said, “Get up and measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it.

²Leave out the courtyard which is outside the temple and do not measure it, because it has been given to the nations; and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.

³And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”

⁴These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth.

⁵And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; and so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way.

⁶These have the power to shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.

⁷When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them.

⁸And their dead bodies will lie on the street of the great city which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.

⁹Those from the peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not allow their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb.

¹⁰And those who live on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who live on the earth.

¹¹And after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them.

¹²And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them.

¹³And at that time there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

¹⁴The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.

¹⁵Then the seventh angel sounded; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever.”

¹⁶And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God,

¹⁷saying, “We give You thanks, Lord God, the Almighty, the One who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign.

¹⁸And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to reward Your bond-servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”

¹⁹And the temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder, and an earthquake, and a great hailstorm.

¹Then Eliphaz the Temanite responded,

²“If one ventures a word with you, will you become impatient? But who can refrain from speaking?

³Behold, you have taught many, And you have strengthened weak hands.

⁴Your words have helped the stumbling to stand, And you have strengthened feeble knees.

⁵But now it comes to you, and you are impatient; It touches you, and you are horrified.

⁶Is your fear of God not your confidence, And the integrity of your ways your hope?

⁷“Remember now, who ever perished being innocent? Or where were the upright destroyed?

⁸According to what I have seen, those who plow wrongdoing And those who sow trouble harvest it.

⁹By the breath of God they perish, And by the blast of His anger they come to an end.

¹⁰The roaring of the lion and the voice of the fierce lion, And the teeth of the young lions are broken out.

¹¹The lion perishes for lack of prey, And the cubs of the lioness are scattered.

¹²“Now a word was brought to me secretly, And my ear received a whisper of it.

¹³Amid disquieting thoughts from visions of the night, When deep sleep falls on people,

¹⁴Dread came upon me, and trembling, And made all my bones shake.

¹⁵Then a spirit passed by my face; The hair of my flesh stood up.

¹⁶Something was standing still, but I could not recognize its appearance; A form was before my eyes; There was silence, then I heard a voice:

¹⁷‘Can mankind be righteous before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker?

¹⁸He puts no trust even in His servants; And He accuses His angels of error.

¹⁹How much more those who live in houses of clay, Whose foundation is in the dust, Who are crushed before the moth!

²⁰Between morning and evening they are broken in pieces; Unregarded, they perish forever.

²¹Is their tent-cord not pulled out within them? They die, yet without wisdom.’

¹The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they have committed detestable acts; There is no one who does good.

²The LORD has looked down from heaven upon the sons of mankind To see if there are any who understand, Who seek God.

³They have all turned aside, together they are corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one.

⁴Do all the workers of injustice not know, Who devour my people as they eat bread, And do not call upon the LORD?

⁵There they are in great dread, For God is with a righteous generation.

⁶You would put to shame the plan of the poor, But the LORD is his refuge.

⁷Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion! When the LORD restores the fortunes of His people, Jacob will rejoice, Israel will be glad.

¹Listen, my sons, to the instruction of a father, And pay attention so that you may gain understanding,

²For I give you good teaching; Do not abandon my instruction.

³When I was a son to my father, Tender and the only son in the sight of my mother,

⁴He taught me and said to me, “Let your heart take hold of my words; Keep my commandments and live;

⁵Acquire wisdom! Acquire understanding! Do not forget nor turn away from the words of my mouth.

⁶Do not abandon her, and she will guard you; Love her, and she will watch over you.

⁷The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; And with all your possessions, acquire understanding.

⁸Prize her, and she will exalt you; She will honor you if you embrace her.

⁹She will place on your head a garland of grace; She will present you with a crown of beauty.”

¹⁰Listen, my son, and accept my sayings, And the years of your life will be many.

¹¹I have instructed you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in upright paths.

¹²When you walk, your steps will not be hampered; And if you run, you will not stumble.

¹³Take hold of instruction; do not let go. Guard her, for she is your life.

¹⁴Do not enter the path of the wicked And do not proceed in the way of evil people.

¹⁵Avoid it, do not pass by it; Turn away from it and pass on.

¹⁶For they cannot sleep unless they do evil; And they are robbed of sleep unless they make someone stumble.

¹⁷For they eat the bread of wickedness, And drink the wine of violence.

¹⁸But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn That shines brighter and brighter until the full day.

¹⁹The way of the wicked is like darkness; They do not know over what they stumble.

²⁰My son, pay attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings.

²¹They are not to escape from your sight; Keep them in the midst of your heart.

²²For they are life to those who find them, And healing to all their body.

²³Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life.

²⁴Rid yourself of a deceitful mouth And keep devious speech far from you.

²⁵Let your eyes look directly ahead And let your gaze be fixed straight in front of you.

²⁶Watch the path of your feet, And all your ways will be established.

²⁷Do not turn to the right or to the left; Turn your foot from evil.

¹Now the LORD said to Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, because I have chosen a king for Myself among his sons.”

²But Samuel said, “How can I go? When Saul hears about it, he will kill me.” But the LORD said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’

³And you shall invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will let you know what you shall do; and you shall anoint for Me the one whom I designate to you.”

⁴So Samuel did what the LORD told him, and he came to Bethlehem. Then the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and said, “Do you come in peace?”

⁵And he said, “In peace; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” He also consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.

⁶When they entered, he looked at Eliab and thought, “Surely the LORD’S anointed is standing before Him.”

⁷But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God does not see as man sees, since man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”

⁸Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass before Samuel. But he said, “The LORD has not chosen this one, either.”

⁹Next Jesse had Shammah pass by. And he said, “The LORD has not chosen this one, either.”

¹⁰So Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen these.”

¹¹Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are these all the boys?” And he said, “The youngest is still left, but behold, he is tending the sheep.” So Samuel said to Jesse, “Send word and bring him; for we will not take our places at the table until he comes here.”

¹²So he sent word and brought him in. Now he was reddish, with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the LORD said, “Arise, anoint him; for this is he.”

¹³So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel set out and went to Ramah.

¹⁴Now the Spirit of the LORD left Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD terrified him.

¹⁵Saul’s servants then said to him, “Behold now, an evil spirit from God is terrifying you.

¹⁶May our lord now command your servants who are before you. Have them search for a man who is a skillful musician on the harp; and it shall come about whenever the evil spirit from God is upon you, that he shall play the harp with his hand, and you will become well.”

¹⁷So Saul said to his servants, “Now select for me a man who can play well, and bring him to me.”

¹⁸Then one of the young men responded and said, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is a skillful musician, a valiant mighty man, a warrior, skillful in speech, and a handsome man; and the LORD is with him.”

¹⁹So Saul sent messengers to Jesse to say, “Send me your son David, who is with the flock.”

²⁰And Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread and a jug of wine, and he took a young goat, and sent them to Saul by his son David.

²¹Then David came to Saul and attended him; and Saul greatly loved him, and he became his armor bearer.

²²So Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Let David now be my attendant for he has found favor in my sight.”

²³So it came about whenever the evil spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the harp and play it with his hand; and Saul would feel relieved and become well, and the evil spirit would leave him.

¹Oh, that You would tear open the heavens and come down, That the mountains would quake at Your presence—

²As fire kindles brushwood, as fire causes water to boil— To make Your name known to Your adversaries, That the nations may tremble at Your presence!

³When You did awesome things which we did not expect, You came down, the mountains quaked at Your presence.

⁴For from days of old they have not heard or perceived by ear, Nor has the eye seen a God besides You, Who acts in behalf of one who waits for Him.

⁵You meet him who rejoices in doing righteousness, Who remembers You in Your ways. Behold, You were angry, for we sinned, We continued in our sins for a long time; Yet shall we be saved?

⁶For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our wrongdoings, like the wind, take us away.

⁷There is no one who calls on Your name, Who stirs himself to take hold of You; For You have hidden Your face from us And have surrendered us to the power of our wrongdoings.

⁸But now, LORD, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter, And all of us are the work of Your hand.

⁹Do not be angry beyond measure, LORD, Nor remember wrongdoing forever. Behold, please look, all of us are Your people.

¹⁰Your holy cities have become a wilderness, Zion has become a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.

¹¹Our holy and beautiful house, Where our fathers praised You, Has been burned by fire; And all our precious things have become a ruin.

¹²Will You restrain Yourself at these things, LORD? Will You keep silent and afflict us beyond measure?

¹Now at this time, as the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint developed on the part of the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily serving of food.

²So the twelve summoned the congregation of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables.

³Instead, brothers and sisters, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task.

⁴But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

⁵The announcement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch.

⁶And they brought these men before the apostles; and after praying, they laid their hands on them.

⁷The word of God kept spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith.

⁸And Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people.

⁹But some men from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and argued with Stephen.

¹⁰But they were unable to cope with his wisdom and the Spirit by whom he was speaking.

¹¹Then they secretly induced men to say, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.”

¹²And they stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes, and they came up to him and dragged him away, and brought him before the Council.

¹³They put forward false witnesses who said, “This man does not stop speaking against this holy place and the Law;

¹⁴for we have heard him say that this Nazarene, Jesus, will destroy this place and change the customs which Moses handed down to us.”

¹⁵And all who were sitting in the Council stared at him, and they saw his face, which was like the face of an angel.