Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar—when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene—

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

³He went into all the country 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: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.

⁵Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth.

⁶And all people will see God’s salvation.’ ”

⁷John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?

⁸Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham.

⁹The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰“What should we do then?” the crowd asked.

¹¹John answered, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”

¹²Even tax collectors came to be baptized. “Teacher,” they asked, “what should we do?”

¹³“Don’t collect any more than you are required to,” he told them.

¹⁴Then some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?” He replied, “Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely—be content with your pay.”

¹⁵The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Messiah.

¹⁶John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

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

¹⁸And with many other words John exhorted the people and proclaimed the good news to them.

¹⁹But when John rebuked Herod the tetrarch because of his marriage to Herodias, his brother’s wife, and all the other evil things he had done,

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

²¹When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened

²²and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

²³Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph, the son of Heli,

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

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

²⁶the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josek, 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 Melki, 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 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 Eber, 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 Mahalalel, the son of Kenan,

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

¹The LORD said to Moses:

²“Make two trumpets of hammered silver, and use them for calling the community together and for having the camps set out.

³When both are sounded, the whole community is to assemble before you at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

⁴If only one is sounded, the leaders—the heads of the clans of Israel—are to assemble before you.

⁵When a trumpet blast is sounded, the tribes camping on the east are to set out.

⁶At the sounding of a second blast, the camps on the south are to set out. The blast will be the signal for setting out.

⁷To gather the assembly, blow the trumpets, but not with the signal for setting out.

⁸“The sons of Aaron, the priests, are to blow the trumpets. This is to be a lasting ordinance for you and the generations to come.

⁹When you go into battle in your own land against an enemy who is oppressing you, sound a blast on the trumpets. Then you will be remembered by the LORD your God and rescued from your enemies.

¹⁰Also at your times of rejoicing—your appointed festivals and New Moon feasts—you are to sound the trumpets over your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, and they will be a memorial for you before your God. I am the LORD your God.”

¹¹On the twentieth day of the second month of the second year, the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle of the covenant law.

¹²Then the Israelites set out from the Desert of Sinai and traveled from place to place until the cloud came to rest in the Desert of Paran.

¹³They set out, this first time, at the LORD’s command through Moses.

¹⁴The divisions of the camp of Judah went first, under their standard. Nahshon son of Amminadab was in command.

¹⁵Nethanel son of Zuar was over the division of the tribe of Issachar,

¹⁶and Eliab son of Helon was over the division of the tribe of Zebulun.

¹⁷Then the tabernacle was taken down, and the Gershonites and Merarites, who carried it, set out.

¹⁸The divisions of the camp of Reuben went next, under their standard. Elizur son of Shedeur was in command.

¹⁹Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai was over the division of the tribe of Simeon,

²⁰and Eliasaph son of Deuel was over the division of the tribe of Gad.

²¹Then the Kohathites set out, carrying the holy things. The tabernacle was to be set up before they arrived.

²²The divisions of the camp of Ephraim went next, under their standard. Elishama son of Ammihud was in command.

²³Gamaliel son of Pedahzur was over the division of the tribe of Manasseh,

²⁴and Abidan son of Gideoni was over the division of the tribe of Benjamin.

²⁵Finally, as the rear guard for all the units, the divisions of the camp of Dan set out under their standard. Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai was in command.

²⁶Pagiel son of Okran was over the division of the tribe of Asher,

²⁷and Ahira son of Enan was over the division of the tribe of Naphtali.

²⁸This was the order of march for the Israelite divisions as they set out.

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

³⁰He answered, “No, I will not go; I am going back to my own land and my own people.”

³¹But Moses said, “Please do not leave us. You know where we should camp in the wilderness, and you can be our eyes.

³²If you come with us, we will share with you whatever good things the LORD gives us.”

³³So they set out from the mountain of the LORD and traveled for three days. The ark of the covenant of the LORD went before them during those three days to find them a place to rest.

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

³⁵Whenever the ark set out, Moses said, “Rise up, LORD! May your enemies be scattered; may your foes flee before you.”

³⁶Whenever it came to rest, he said, “Return, LORD, to the countless thousands of Israel.”

¹You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.

²Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth.

³So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment?

⁴Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?

⁵But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.

⁶God “will repay each person according to what they have done.”

⁷To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.

⁸But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.

⁹There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile;

¹⁰but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.

¹¹For God does not show favoritism.

¹²All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law.

¹³For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God’s sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous.

¹⁴(Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law.

¹⁵They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.)

¹⁶This will take place on the day when God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares.

¹⁷Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God;

¹⁸if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law;

¹⁹if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark,

²⁰an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth—

²¹you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal?

²²You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples?

²³You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law?

²⁴As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

²⁵Circumcision has value if you observe the law, but if you break the law, you have become as though you had not been circumcised.

²⁶So then, if those who are not circumcised keep the law’s requirements, will they not be regarded as though they were circumcised?

²⁷The one who is not circumcised physically and yet obeys the law will condemn you who, even though you have the written code and circumcision, are a lawbreaker.

²⁸A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical.

²⁹No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.

¹I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers.

²But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months.

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

⁴They are “the two olive trees” and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”

⁵If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die.

⁶They have power to shut up the heavens so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.

⁷Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them.

⁸Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city—which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified.

⁹For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial.

¹⁰The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.

¹¹But after the three and a half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them.

¹²Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on.

¹³At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

¹⁴The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon.

¹⁵The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever.”

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

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

¹⁸The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your people who revere your name, both great and small— and for destroying those who destroy the earth.”

¹⁹Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.

¹Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:

²“If someone ventures a word with you, will you be impatient? But who can keep from speaking?

³Think how you have instructed many, how you have strengthened feeble hands.

⁴Your words have supported those who stumbled; you have strengthened faltering knees.

⁵But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged; it strikes you, and you are dismayed.

⁶Should not your piety be your confidence and your blameless ways your hope?

⁷“Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished? Where were the upright ever destroyed?

⁸As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it.

⁹At the breath of God they perish; at the blast of his anger they are no more.

¹⁰The lions may roar and growl, yet the teeth of the great lions are broken.

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

¹²“A word was secretly brought to me, my ears caught a whisper of it.

¹³Amid disquieting dreams in the night, when deep sleep falls on people,

¹⁴fear and trembling seized me and made all my bones shake.

¹⁵A spirit glided past my face, and the hair on my body stood on end.

¹⁶It stopped, but I could not tell what it was. A form stood before my eyes, and I heard a hushed voice:

¹⁷‘Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can even a strong man be more pure than his Maker?

¹⁸If God places no trust in his servants, if he charges his angels with error,

¹⁹how much more those who live in houses of clay, whose foundations are in the dust, who are crushed more readily than a moth!

²⁰Between dawn and dusk they are broken to pieces; unnoticed, they perish forever.

²¹Are not the cords of their tent pulled up, so that they die without wisdom?’

¹For the director of music. Of David. The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.

²The LORD looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.

³All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.

⁴Do all these evildoers know nothing? They devour my people as though eating bread; they never call on the LORD.

⁵But there they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is present in the company of the righteous.

⁶You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the LORD is their refuge.

⁷Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the LORD restores his people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

¹Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction; pay attention and gain understanding.

²I give you sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching.

³For I too was a son to my father, still tender, and cherished by my mother.

⁴Then he taught me, and he said to me, “Take hold of my words with all your heart; keep my commands, and you will live.

⁵Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or turn away from them.

⁶Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you.

⁷The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.

⁸Cherish her, and she will exalt you; embrace her, and she will honor you.

⁹She will give you a garland to grace your head and present you with a glorious crown.”

¹⁰Listen, my son, accept what I say, and the years of your life will be many.

¹¹I instruct you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths.

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

¹³Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life.

¹⁴Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evildoers.

¹⁵Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way.

¹⁶For they cannot rest until they do evil; they are robbed of sleep till they make someone stumble.

¹⁷They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.

¹⁸The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.

¹⁹But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble.

²⁰My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words.

²¹Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart;

²²for they are life to those who find them and health to one’s whole body.

²³Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

²⁴Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips.

²⁵Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you.

²⁶Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways.

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

¹The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”

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

³Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate.”

⁴Samuel did what the LORD said. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town trembled when they met him. They asked, “Do you come in peace?”

⁵Samuel replied, “Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me.” Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.

⁶When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the LORD’s anointed stands here before the LORD.”

⁷But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”

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

⁹Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, “Nor has the LORD chosen this one.”

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

¹¹So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?” “There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.” Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”

¹²So he sent for him and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the LORD said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”

¹³So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah.

¹⁴Now the Spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD tormented him.

¹⁵Saul’s attendants said to him, “See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you.

¹⁶Let our lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the lyre. He will play when the evil spirit from God comes on you, and you will feel better.”

¹⁷So Saul said to his attendants, “Find someone who plays well and bring him to me.”

¹⁸One of the servants answered, “I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the lyre. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the LORD is with him.”

¹⁹Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.”

²⁰So Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them with his son David to Saul.

²¹David came to Saul and entered his service. Saul liked him very much, and David became one of his armor-bearers.

²²Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Allow David to remain in my service, for I am pleased with him.”

²³Whenever the spirit from God came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.

¹Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before you!

²As when fire sets twigs ablaze and causes water to boil, come down to make your name known to your enemies and cause the nations to quake before you!

³For when you did awesome things that we did not expect, you came down, and the mountains trembled before you.

⁴Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.

⁵You come to the help of those who gladly do right, who remember your ways. But when we continued to sin against them, you were angry. How then can we be saved?

⁶All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.

⁷No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and have given us over to our sins.

⁸Yet you, LORD, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.

⁹Do not be angry beyond measure, LORD; do not remember our sins forever. Oh, look on us, we pray, for we are all your people.

¹⁰Your sacred cities have become a wasteland; even Zion is a wasteland, Jerusalem a desolation.

¹¹Our holy and glorious temple, where our ancestors praised you, has been burned with fire, and all that we treasured lies in ruins.

¹²After all this, LORD, will you hold yourself back? Will you keep silent and punish us beyond measure?

¹In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.

²So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables.

³Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them

⁴and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”

⁵This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.

⁶They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

⁷So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.

⁸Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people.

⁹Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen.

¹⁰But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke.

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

¹²So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin.

¹³They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law.

¹⁴For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.”

¹⁵All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.