Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹He entered a synagogue again; and a man was there whose hand was withered.

²And they were watching Him closely to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.

³He *said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and come forward!”

⁴And He *said to them, “Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do harm, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent.

⁵After looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He *said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored.

⁶The Pharisees went out and immediately began conspiring with the Herodians against Him, as to how they might put Him to death.

⁷Jesus withdrew to the sea with His disciples; and a large multitude from Galilee followed, and also from Judea,

⁸and from Jerusalem, and from Idumea, and beyond the Jordan, and the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon, a great number of people heard about everything that He was doing and came to Him.

⁹And He told His disciples to see that a boat would be ready for Him because of the masses, so that they would not crowd Him;

¹⁰for He had healed many, with the result that all those who had diseases pushed in around Him in order to touch Him.

¹¹And whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they would fall down before Him and shout, “You are the Son of God!”

¹²And He strongly warned them not to reveal who He was.

¹³And He *went up on the mountain and *summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him.

¹⁴And He appointed twelve, so that they would be with Him and that He could send them out to preach,

¹⁵and to have authority to cast out the demons.

¹⁶And He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter),

¹⁷James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to them He gave the name Boanerges, which means, “Sons of Thunder”);

¹⁸and Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot;

¹⁹and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.

²⁰And He *came home, and the crowd *gathered again, to such an extent that they could not even eat a meal.

²¹And when His own people heard about this, they came out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “He has lost His senses.”

²²The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.”

²³And so He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in parables: “How can Satan cast out Satan?

²⁴And if a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.

²⁵If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.

²⁶And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, buthe is finished!

²⁷But no one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man, and then he will plunder his house.

²⁸“Truly I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons and daughters of men, and whatever blasphemies they commit;

²⁹but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”—

³⁰because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

³¹Then His mother and His brothers *came, and while standing outside they sent word to Him, calling for Him.

³²And a crowd was sitting around Him, and they *said to Him, “Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are outside looking for You.”

³³Answering them, He *said, “Who are My mother and My brothers?”

³⁴And looking around at those who were sitting around Him, He *said, “Here are My mother and My brothers!

³⁵For whoever does the will of God, this is My brother, and sister, and mother.”

¹Now Jacob heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that was our father’s, and from what belonged to our father he has made all this wealth.”

²And Jacob saw the attitude of Laban, and behold, it was not friendly toward him as it had been before.

³Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”

⁴So Jacob sent word and called Rachel and Leah to his flock in the field,

⁵and said to them, “I see your father’s attitude, that it is not friendly toward me as it was before, but the God of my father has been with me.

⁶You know that I have served your father with all my strength.

⁷Yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times; however, God did not allow him to do me harm.

⁸If he said this: ‘The speckled shall be your wages,’ then all the flock delivered speckled; and if he said this: ‘The striped shall be your wages,’ then all the flock delivered striped.

⁹So God has taken away your father’s livestock and given them to me.

¹⁰And it came about at the time when the flock was breeding that I raised my eyes and saw in a dream—and behold—the male goats that were mating were striped, speckled, or mottled.

¹¹Then the angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob’; and I said, ‘Here I am.’

¹²He said, ‘Now raise your eyes and see that all the male goats that are mating are striped, speckled, or mottled; for I have seen everything that Laban has been doing to you.

¹³I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a memorial stone, where you made a vow to Me; now arise, leave this land, and return to the land of your birth.’ ”

¹⁴Rachel and Leah said to him, “Do we still have any share or inheritance in our father’s house?

¹⁵Are we not regarded by him as foreigners? For he has sold us, and has also entirely consumed our purchase price.

¹⁶Surely all the wealth which God has taken away from our father belongs to us and our children; now then, do whatever God has told you.”

¹⁷Then Jacob stood up and put his children and his wives on camels;

¹⁸and he drove away all his livestock and all his property which he had acquired, the livestock he possessed which he had acquired in Paddan-aram, to go to the land of Canaan to his father Isaac.

¹⁹Laban had gone to shear his flock, and Rachel stole the household idols that were her father’s.

²⁰And Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was fleeing.

²¹So he fled with all that he had; and he got up and crossed the Euphrates River, and set out for the hill country of Gilead.

²²When Laban was informed on the third day that Jacob had fled,

²³he took his kinsmen with him and pursued him a distance of seven days’ journey, and he overtook him in the hill country of Gilead.

²⁴However, God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream of the night and said to him, “Be careful that you do not speak to Jacob either good or bad.”

²⁵And Laban caught up with Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country, and Laban with his kinsmen camped in the hill country of Gilead.

²⁶Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done by deceiving me and carrying away my daughters like captives of the sword?

²⁷Why did you flee secretly and deceive me, and did not tell me, so that I might have sent you away with joy and with songs, with tambourine and with lyre;

²⁸and did not allow me to kiss my grandchildren and my daughters? Now you have done foolishly.

²⁹It is in my power to do you harm, but the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Be careful not to speak either good or bad to Jacob.’

³⁰Now you have indeed gone away because you longed greatly for your father’s house; but why did you steal my gods?”

³¹Then Jacob replied to Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I thought that you would take your daughters from me by force.

³²The one with whom you find your gods shall not live; in the presence of our relatives point out what is yours among my belongings and take it for yourself.” Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.

³³So Laban went into Jacob’s tent, and into Leah’s tent, and into the tent of the two slave women, but he did not find them. Then he went out of Leah’s tent and entered Rachel’s tent.

³⁴Now Rachel had taken the household idols and put them in the camel’s saddlebag, and she sat on them. So Laban searched through all the tent, but did not find them.

³⁵And she said to her father, “May my lord not be angry that I cannot stand in your presence, because the way of women is upon me.” So he searched but did not find the household idols.

³⁶Then Jacob became angry and argued with Laban; and Jacob said to Laban, “What is my offense? What is my sin that you have hotly pursued me?

³⁷Though you have searched through all my property, what have you found of all your household property? Set it here in front of my relatives and your relatives, so that they may decide between the two of us.

³⁸For these twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten the rams of your flocks.

³⁹I did not even bring to you that which was torn by wild animals; I took the loss myself. You demanded it of my hand whether stolen by day or stolen by night.

⁴⁰This is how I was: by day the heat consumed me and the frost by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes.

⁴¹For these twenty years I have been in your house; I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you changed my wages ten times.

⁴²If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the fear of Isaac, had not been for me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, so He rendered judgment last night.”

⁴³Then Laban replied to Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters, the children are my grandchildren, the flocks are my flocks, and everything that you see is mine. But what can I do this day to these daughters of mine or to their children to whom they have given birth?

⁴⁴So now come, let’s make a covenant, you and I, and it shall be a witness between you and me.”

⁴⁵Then Jacob took a stone and set it up as a memorial stone.

⁴⁶Jacob said to his relatives, “Gather stones.” So they took stones and made a heap, and they ate there by the heap.

⁴⁷Now Laban called it Jegar-sahadutha, but Jacob called it Galeed.

⁴⁸Laban said, “This heap is a witness between you and me this day.” Therefore it was named Galeed,

⁴⁹and Mizpah, for he said, “May the LORD keep watch between you and me when we are absent one from the other.

⁵⁰If you mistreat my daughters, or if you take wives besides my daughters, although no one is with us, see, God is witness between you and me.”

⁵¹Laban also said to Jacob, “Behold this heap and behold the memorial stone which I have set between you and me.

⁵²This heap is a witness, and the memorial stone is a witness, that I will not pass by this heap to you for harm, and you will not pass by this heap and this memorial stone to me, for harm.

⁵³The God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” So Jacob swore by the fear of his father Isaac.

⁵⁴Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain, and called his relatives to the meal; and they ate the meal and spent the night on the mountain.

⁵⁵Then early in the morning Laban got up, and kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then Laban departed and returned to his place.

¹Now I make known to you, brothers and sisters, the gospel which I preached to you, which you also received, in which you also stand,

²by which you also are saved, if you hold firmly to the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.

³For I handed down to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,

⁴and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

⁵and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.

⁶After that He appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep;

⁷then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles;

⁸and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.

⁹For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

¹⁰But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.

¹¹Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

¹²Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?

¹³But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised;

¹⁴and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, your faith also is in vain.

¹⁵Moreover, we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised.

¹⁶For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised;

¹⁷and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.

¹⁸Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.

¹⁹If we have hoped in Christ only in this life, we are of all people most to be pitied.

²⁰But the fact is, Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.

²¹For since by a man death came, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead.

²²For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.

²³But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming,

²⁴then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to our God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.

²⁵For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.

²⁶The last enemy that will be abolished is death.

²⁷For HE HAS PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is clear that this excludes the Father who put all things in subjection to Him.

²⁸When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all.

²⁹For otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?

³⁰Why are we also in danger every hour?

³¹I affirm, brothers and sisters, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, that I die daily.

³²If from human motives I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what good is it to me? If the dead are not raised, LET’S EAT AND DRINK, FOR TOMORROW WE DIE.

³³Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”

³⁴Sober up morally and stop sinning, for some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.

³⁵But someone will say, “How are the dead raised? And with what kind of body do they come?”

³⁶You fool! That which you sow does not come to life unless it dies;

³⁷and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else.

³⁸But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own.

³⁹All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of mankind, another flesh of animals, another flesh of birds, and another of fish.

⁴⁰There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another.

⁴¹There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.

⁴²So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body;

⁴³it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;

⁴⁴it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

⁴⁵So also it is written: “The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING PERSON.” The last Adam was a life-giving spirit.

⁴⁶However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual.

⁴⁷The first man is from the earth, earthy; the second man is from heaven.

⁴⁸As is the earthy one, so also are those who are earthy; and as is the heavenly one, so also are those who are heavenly.

⁴⁹Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the image of the heavenly.

⁵⁰Now I say this, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

⁵¹Behold, I am telling you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed,

⁵²in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

⁵³For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.

⁵⁴But when this perishable puts on the imperishable, and this mortal puts on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written: “DEATH HAS BEEN SWALLOWED UP in victory.

⁵⁵WHERE, O DEATH, IS YOUR VICTORY? WHERE, O DEATH, IS YOUR STING?”

⁵⁶The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law;

⁵⁷but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁵⁸Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, be firm, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

¹Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because the one who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,

²so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human lusts, but for the will of God.

³For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of indecent behavior, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties, and wanton idolatries.

⁴In all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them in the same excesses of debauchery, and they slander you;

⁵but they will give an account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.

⁶For the gospel has for this purpose been preached even to those who are dead, that though they are judged in the flesh as people, they may live in the spirit according to the will of God.

⁷The end of all things is near; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.

⁸Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.

⁹Be hospitable to one another without complaint.

¹⁰As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the multifaceted grace of God.

¹¹Whoever speaks is to do so as one who is speaking actual words of God; whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

¹²Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though something strange were happening to you;

¹³but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that at the revelation of His glory you may also rejoice and be overjoyed.

¹⁴If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory, and of God, rests upon you.

¹⁵Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler;

¹⁶but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name.

¹⁷For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

¹⁸AND IF IT IS WITH DIFFICULTY THAT THE RIGHTEOUS IS SAVED, WHAT WILL BECOME OF THE GODLESS MAN AND THE SINNER?

¹⁹Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God are to entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.

¹“I have made a covenant with my eyes; How then could I look at a virgin?

²And what is the portion of God from above, Or the inheritance of the Almighty from on high?

³Is it not disaster to the criminal, And misfortune to those who practice injustice?

⁴Does He not see my ways, And count all my steps?

⁵“If I have walked with deception, And my foot has hurried after deceit,

⁶Let Him weigh me with accurate scales, And let God know my integrity.

⁷If my step has turned from the way, Or my heart followed my eyes, Or if any spot has stuck to my hands,

⁸Let me sow and another eat, And let my crops be uprooted.

⁹“If my heart has been enticed by a woman, Or I have lurked at my neighbor’s doorway,

¹⁰May my wife grind grain for another, And let others kneel down over her.

¹¹For that would be a lustful crime; Moreover, it would be wrongdoing punishable by judges.

¹²For it would be fire that consumes to Abaddon, And would uproot all my increase.

¹³“If I have rejected the claim of my male or female slaves When they filed a complaint against me,

¹⁴What then could I do when God arises? And when He calls me to account, how am I to answer Him?

¹⁵Did He who made me in the womb not make him, And the same one create us in the womb?

¹⁶“If I have kept the poor from their desire, Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,

¹⁷Or have eaten my morsel alone, And the orphan has not shared it

¹⁸(But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father, And from my infancy I guided her),

¹⁹If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or that the needy had no covering,

²⁰If his waist has not thanked me, And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep,

²¹If I have lifted up my hand against the orphan, Because I saw I had support in the gate,

²²May my shoulder fall from its socket, And my arm be broken off at the elbow.

²³For disaster from God is a terror to me, And because of His majesty I can do nothing.

²⁴“If I have put my confidence in gold, And called fine gold my trust,

²⁵If I have gloated because my wealth was great, And because my hand had obtained so much;

²⁶If I have looked at the sun when it shone, Or the moon going in splendor,

²⁷And my heart was secretly enticed, And my hand threw a kiss from my mouth,

²⁸That too would have been a guilty deed calling for judgment, For I would have denied God above.

²⁹“Have I rejoiced at the misfortune of my enemy, Or become excited when evil found him?

³⁰No, I have not allowed my mouth to sin By asking for his life in a curse.

³¹Have the people of my tent not said, ‘Who can find one who has not been satisfied with his meat’?

³²The stranger has not spent the night outside, For I have opened my doors to the traveler.

³³Have I covered my wrongdoings like a man, By hiding my guilt in my shirt pocket,

³⁴Because I feared the great multitude And the contempt of families terrified me, And I kept silent and did not go out of doors?

³⁵Oh that I had one to hear me! Here is my signature; Let the Almighty answer me! And the indictment which my adversary has written,

³⁶I would certainly carry it on my shoulder, I would tie it to myself like a garland.

³⁷I would declare to Him the number of my steps; Like a prince, I would approach Him.

³⁸“If my land cries out against me, And its furrows weep together;

³⁹If I have eaten its fruit without money, Or have caused its owners to lose their lives,

⁴⁰May the thorn-bush grow instead of wheat, And stinkweed instead of barley.” The words of Job are ended.

¹In You, LORD, I have taken refuge; Let me never be put to shame; In Your righteousness rescue me.

²Incline Your ear to me, rescue me quickly; Be a rock of strength for me, A stronghold to save me.

³For You are my rock and my fortress; For the sake of Your name You will lead me and guide me.

⁴You will pull me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me, For You are my strength.

⁵Into Your hand I entrust my spirit; You have redeemed me, LORD, God of truth.

⁶I hate those who devote themselves to worthless idols, But I trust in the LORD.

⁷I will rejoice and be glad in Your faithfulness, Because You have seen my misery; You have known the troubles of my soul,

⁸And You have not handed me over to the enemy; You have set my feet in a large place.

⁹Be gracious to me, LORD, for I am in distress; My eye is wasted away from grief, my soul and my body too.

¹⁰For my life is spent with sorrow And my years with sighing; My strength has failed because of my guilt, And my body has wasted away.

¹¹Because of all my adversaries, I have become a disgrace, Especially to my neighbors, And an object of dread to my acquaintances; Those who see me in the street flee from me.

¹²I am forgotten like a dead person, out of mind; I am like a broken vessel.

¹³For I have heard the slander of many, Terror is on every side; While they took counsel together against me, They schemed to take away my life.

¹⁴But as for me, I trust in You, LORD, I say, “You are my God.”

¹⁵My times are in Your hand; Rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from those who persecute me.

¹⁶Make Your face shine upon Your servant; Save me in Your faithfulness.

¹⁷Let me not be put to shame, LORD, for I call upon You; Let the wicked be put to shame, let them be silent in Sheol.

¹⁸Let the lying lips be speechless, Which speak arrogantly against the righteous With pride and contempt.

¹⁹How great is Your goodness, Which You have stored up for those who fear You, Which You have performed for those who take refuge in You, Before the sons of mankind!

²⁰You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the conspiracies of mankind; You keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues.

²¹Blessed be the LORD, For He has shown His marvelous faithfulness to me in a besieged city.

²²As for me, I said in my alarm, “I am cut off from Your eyes”; Nevertheless You heard the sound of my pleadings When I called to You for help.

²³Love the LORD, all His godly ones! The LORD watches over the faithful But fully repays the one who acts arrogantly.

²⁴Be strong and let your heart take courage, All you who wait for the LORD.

¹The words of King Lemuel, the pronouncement which his mother taught him:

²What, my son? And what, son of my womb? And what, son of my vows?

³Do not give your strength to women, Or your ways to that which destroys kings.

⁴It is not for kings, Lemuel, It is not for kings to drink wine, Or for rulers to desire intoxicating drink,

⁵Otherwise they will drink and forget what is decreed, And pervert the rights of all the needy.

⁶Give intoxicating drink to one who is perishing, And wine to one whose life is bitter.

⁷Let him drink and forget his poverty, And remember his trouble no more.

⁸Open your mouth for the people who cannot speak, For the rights of all the unfortunate.

⁹Open your mouth, judge righteously, And defend the rights of the poor and needy.

¹⁰An excellent wife, who can find her? For her worth is far above jewels.

¹¹The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain.

¹²She does him good and not evil All the days of her life.

¹³She looks for wool and linen, And works with her hands in delight.

¹⁴She is like merchant ships; She brings her food from afar.

¹⁵And she rises while it is still night And gives food to her household, And portions to her attendants.

¹⁶She considers a field and buys it; From her earnings she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷She surrounds her waist with strength And makes her arms strong.

¹⁸She senses that her profit is good; Her lamp does not go out at night.

¹⁹She stretches out her hands to the distaff, And her hands grasp the spindle.

²⁰She extends her hand to the poor, And she stretches out her hands to the needy.

²¹She is not afraid of the snow for her household, For all her household are clothed with scarlet.

²²She makes coverings for herself; Her clothing is fine linen and purple.

²³Her husband is known in the gates, When he sits among the elders of the land.

²⁴She makes linen garments and sells them, And supplies belts to the tradesmen.

²⁵Strength and dignity are her clothing, And she smiles at the future.

²⁶She opens her mouth in wisdom, And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

²⁷She watches over the activities of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness.

²⁸Her children rise up and bless her; Her husband also, and he praises her, saying:

²⁹“Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all.”

³⁰Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.

³¹Give her the product of her hands, And let her works praise her in the gates.

¹Then Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) and all the people who were with him got up early, and camped beside the spring of Harod; and the camp of Midian was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley.

²And the LORD said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to hand Midian over to them, otherwise Israel would become boastful, saying, ‘My own power has saved me.’

³Now therefore come, proclaim in the hearing of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is afraid and worried, is to return and leave Mount Gilead.’ ” So twenty-two thousand from the people returned, but ten thousand remained.

⁴Then the LORD said to Gideon, “The people are still too many; bring them down to the water and I will test them for you there. So it shall be that he of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go with you; but everyone of whom I say to you, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”

⁵So he brought the people down to the water. Then the LORD said to Gideon, “You shall put everyone who laps the water with his tongue as a dog laps in one group, and everyone who kneels down to drink in another.”

⁶Now the number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people kneeled down to drink water.

⁷And the LORD said to Gideon, “I will save you with the three hundred men who lapped, and will hand the Midianites over to you; so have all the other people go, each man to his home.”

⁸So the three hundred men took the people’s provisions and their trumpets in their hands. And Gideon dismissed all the other men of Israel, each to his tent, but retained the three hundred men; and the camp of Midian was below him in the valley.

⁹Now on the same night it came about that the LORD said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have handed it over to you.

¹⁰But if you are afraid to go down, go with Purah your servant down to the camp,

¹¹so that you will hear what they say; and afterward you will have the courage to go down against the camp.” So he went down with Purah his servant to the outposts of the army that was in the camp.

¹²Now the Midianites, the Amalekites, and all the people of the east were lying in the valley as numerous as locusts; and their camels were without number, as numerous as the sand on the seashore.

¹³When Gideon came, behold, a man was relating a dream to his friend. And he said, “Behold, I had a dream; a loaf of barley bread was tumbling into the camp of Midian, and it came to the tent and struck it so that it fell, and turned it upside down so that the tent collapsed.”

¹⁴And his friend replied, “This is nothing other than the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel; God has handed over to him Midian and all the camp.”

¹⁵When Gideon heard the account of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed in worship. Then he returned to the camp of Israel and said, “Arise, for the LORD has handed over to you the camp of Midian!”

¹⁶And he divided the three hundred men into three units, and he put trumpets and empty pitchers into the hands of all of them, with torches inside the pitchers.

¹⁷Then he said to them, “Look at me and do likewise. And behold, when I come to the outskirts of the camp, do as I do.

¹⁸When I and all who are with me blow the trumpet, then you also blow the trumpets around the entire camp and say, ‘For the LORD and for Gideon!’ ”

¹⁹So Gideon and the hundred men who were with him came to the outskirts of the camp at the beginning of the middle night watch, when they had just posted the watch; and they blew the trumpets and smashed the pitchers that were in their hands.

²⁰When the three units blew the trumpets and broke the pitchers, they held the torches in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands for blowing, and shouted, “A sword for the LORD and for Gideon!”

²¹And each stood in his place around the camp; and all the army ran, crying out as they fled.

²²And when they blew the three hundred trumpets, the LORD set the sword of one against another even throughout the entire army; and the army fled as far as Beth-shittah toward Zererah, as far as the edge of Abel-meholah, by Tabbath.

²³And the men of Israel were summoned from Naphtali, Asher, and all Manasseh, and they pursued Midian.

²⁴Then Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against Midian and take control of the waters ahead of them, as far as Beth-barah and the Jordan.” So all the men of Ephraim were summoned, and they took control of the waters as far as Beth-barah and the Jordan.

²⁵And they captured the two leaders of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb, and they killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and they killed Zeeb at the wine press of Zeeb, while they pursued Midian; and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon from across the Jordan.

¹Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help And rely on horses, And trust in chariots because they are many And in horsemen because they are very strong, But they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the LORD!

²Yet He also is wise and will bring disaster, And does not retract His words, But will arise against the house of evildoers, And against the help of the workers of injustice.

³Now the Egyptians are human and not God, And their horses are flesh and not spirit; So the LORD will stretch out His hand, And any helper will stumble, And one who is helped will fall. And all of them will come to an end together.

⁴For this is what the LORD says to me: “As the lion or the young lion growls over his prey, Against which a band of shepherds is called out, And he will not be terrified at their voice nor disturbed at their noise, So will the LORD of armies come down to wage war on Mount Zion and on its hill.”

⁵Like flying birds so the LORD of armies will protect Jerusalem. He will protect and save it; He will pass over and rescue it.

⁶Return to Him against whom you have been profoundly obstinate, you sons of Israel.

⁷For on that day every person will reject his silver idols and his gold idols, which your hands have made for you as a sin.

⁸And the Assyrian will fall by a sword not wielded by a man, And a sword not of man will devour him. So he will not escape the sword, And his young men will become forced laborers.

⁹“His rock will pass away because of panic, And his officers will be terrified by the flag,” Declares the LORD, whose fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.

¹Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the ninth hour, the hour of prayer.

²And a man who had been unable to walk from birth was being carried, whom they used to set down every day at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, in order for him to beg for charitable gifts from those entering the temple grounds.

³When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple grounds, he began asking to receive a charitable gift.

⁴But Peter, along with John, looked at him intently and said, “Look at us!”

⁵And he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them.

⁶But Peter said, “I do not have silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, walk!”

⁷And grasping him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened.

⁸And leaping up, he stood and began to walk; and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.

⁹And all the people saw him walking and praising God;

¹⁰and they recognized him as being the very one who used to sit at the Beautiful Gate of the temple to beg for charitable gifts, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

¹¹While he was clinging to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them at the portico named Solomon’s, completely astonished.

¹²But when Peter saw this, he replied to the people, “Men of Israel, why are you amazed at this, or why are you staring at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made him walk?

¹³The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus, the one whom you handed over and disowned in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release Him.

¹⁴But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,

¹⁵but put to death the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses.

¹⁶And on the basis of faith in His name, it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know; and the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all.

¹⁷“And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers also did.

¹⁸But the things which God previously announced by the mouths of all the prophets, that His Christ would suffer, He has fulfilled in this way.

¹⁹Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord;

²⁰and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you,

²¹whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things, about which God spoke by the mouths of His holy prophets from ancient times.

²²Moses said, ‘THE LORD GOD WILL RAISE UP FOR YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME FROM YOUR COUNTRYMEN; TO HIM YOU SHALL LISTEN regarding everything He says to you.

²³And it shall be that every soul that does not listen to that prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.’

²⁴And likewise, all the prophets who have spoken from Samuel and his successors onward, have also announced these days.

²⁵It is you who are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God ordained with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘AND IN YOUR SEED ALL THE FAMILIES OF THE EARTH SHALL BE BLESSED.’

²⁶God raised up His Servant for you first, and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.”