Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹One Sabbath day Jesus went to eat dinner in the home of a leader of the Pharisees, and the people were watching him closely.

²There was a man there whose arms and legs were swollen.

³Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in religious law, “Is it permitted in the law to heal people on the Sabbath day, or not?”

⁴When they refused to answer, Jesus touched the sick man and healed him and sent him away.

⁵Then he turned to them and said, “Which of you doesn’t work on the Sabbath? If your son or your cow falls into a pit, don’t you rush to get him out?”

⁶Again they could not answer.

⁷When Jesus noticed that all who had come to the dinner were trying to sit in the seats of honor near the head of the table, he gave them this advice:

⁸“When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor. What if someone who is more distinguished than you has also been invited?

⁹The host will come and say, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then you will be embarrassed, and you will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table!

¹⁰“Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table. Then when your host sees you, he will come and say, ‘Friend, we have a better place for you!’ Then you will be honored in front of all the other guests.

¹¹For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

¹²Then he turned to his host. “When you put on a luncheon or a banquet,” he said, “don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward.

¹³Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.

¹⁴Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you.”

¹⁵Hearing this, a man sitting at the table with Jesus exclaimed, “What a blessing it will be to attend a banquet in the Kingdom of God!”

¹⁶Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations.

¹⁷When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’

¹⁸But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’

¹⁹Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’

²⁰Another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’

²¹“The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’

²²After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’

²³So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full.

²⁴For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’”

²⁵A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them,

²⁶“If you want to be my disciple, you must, by comparison, hate everyone else — your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters — yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.

²⁷And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.

²⁸“But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it?

²⁹Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you.

³⁰They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’

³¹“Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him?

³²And if he can’t, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away.

³³So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.

³⁴“Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again?

³⁵Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown away. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!”

¹The Canaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that the Israelites were approaching on the road through Atharim. So he attacked the Israelites and took some of them as prisoners.

²Then the people of Israel made this vow to the LORD: “If you will hand these people over to us, we will completely destroy all their towns.”

³The LORD heard the Israelites’ request and gave them victory over the Canaanites. The Israelites completely destroyed them and their towns, and the place has been called Hormah ever since.

⁴Then the people of Israel set out from Mount Hor, taking the road to the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom. But the people grew impatient with the long journey,

⁵and they began to speak against God and Moses. “Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die here in the wilderness?” they complained. “There is nothing to eat here and nothing to drink. And we hate this horrible manna!”

⁶So the LORD sent poisonous snakes among the people, and many were bitten and died.

⁷Then the people came to Moses and cried out, “We have sinned by speaking against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take away the snakes.” So Moses prayed for the people.

⁸Then the LORD told him, “Make a replica of a poisonous snake and attach it to a pole. All who are bitten will live if they simply look at it!”

⁹So Moses made a snake out of bronze and attached it to a pole. Then anyone who was bitten by a snake could look at the bronze snake and be healed!

¹⁰The Israelites traveled next to Oboth and camped there.

¹¹Then they went on to Iye-abarim, in the wilderness on the eastern border of Moab.

¹²From there they traveled to the valley of Zered Brook and set up camp.

¹³Then they moved out and camped on the far side of the Arnon River, in the wilderness adjacent to the territory of the Amorites. The Arnon is the boundary line between the Moabites and the Amorites.

¹⁴For this reason The Book of the Wars of the LORD speaks of “the town of Waheb in the area of Suphah, and the ravines of the Arnon River,

¹⁵and the ravines that extend as far as the settlement of Ar on the border of Moab.”

¹⁶From there the Israelites traveled to Beer, which is the well where the LORD said to Moses, “Assemble the people, and I will give them water.”

¹⁷There the Israelites sang this song: “Spring up, O well! Yes, sing its praises!

¹⁸Sing of this well, which princes dug, which great leaders hollowed out with their scepters and staffs.” Then the Israelites left the wilderness and proceeded on through Mattanah,

¹⁹Nahaliel, and Bamoth.

²⁰After that they went to the valley in Moab where Pisgah Peak overlooks the wasteland.

²¹The Israelites sent ambassadors to King Sihon of the Amorites with this message:

²²“Let us travel through your land. We will be careful not to go through your fields and vineyards. We won’t even drink water from your wells. We will stay on the king’s road until we have passed through your territory.”

²³But King Sihon refused to let them cross his territory. Instead, he mobilized his entire army and attacked Israel in the wilderness, engaging them in battle at Jahaz.

²⁴But the Israelites slaughtered them with their swords and occupied their land from the Arnon River to the Jabbok River. They went only as far as the Ammonite border because the boundary of the Ammonites was fortified.

²⁵So Israel captured all the towns of the Amorites and settled in them, including the city of Heshbon and its surrounding villages.

²⁶Heshbon had been the capital of King Sihon of the Amorites. He had defeated a former Moabite king and seized all his land as far as the Arnon River.

²⁷Therefore, the ancient poets wrote this about him: “Come to Heshbon and let it be rebuilt! Let the city of Sihon be restored.

²⁸A fire flamed forth from Heshbon, a blaze from the city of Sihon. It burned the city of Ar in Moab; it destroyed the rulers of the Arnon heights.

²⁹What sorrow awaits you, O people of Moab! You are finished, O worshipers of Chemosh! Chemosh has left his sons as refugees, his daughters as captives of Sihon, the Amorite king.

³⁰We have utterly destroyed them, from Heshbon to Dibon. We have completely wiped them out as far away as Nophah and Medeba. ”

³¹So the people of Israel occupied the territory of the Amorites.

³²After Moses sent men to explore the Jazer area, they captured all the towns in the region and drove out the Amorites who lived there.

³³Then they turned and marched up the road to Bashan, but King Og of Bashan and all his people attacked them at Edrei.

³⁴The LORD said to Moses, “Do not be afraid of him, for I have handed him over to you, along with all his people and his land. Do the same to him as you did to King Sihon of the Amorites, who ruled in Heshbon.”

³⁵And Israel killed King Og, his sons, and all his subjects; not a single survivor remained. Then Israel occupied their land.

¹Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God.

²So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished.

³For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you.

⁴The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong.

⁵So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.

⁶Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do.

⁷Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority.

⁸Owe nothing to anyone — except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law.

⁹For the commandments say, “You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet.” These — and other such commandments — are summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

¹⁰Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law.

¹¹This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.

¹²The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living.

¹³Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy.

¹⁴Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.

¹Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.

²It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.

³No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him.

⁴And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads.

⁵And there will be no night there — no need for lamps or sun — for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.

⁶Then the angel said to me, “Everything you have heard and seen is trustworthy and true. The Lord God, who inspires his prophets, has sent his angel to tell his servants what will happen soon. ”

⁷“Look, I am coming soon! Blessed are those who obey the words of prophecy written in this book. ”

⁸I, John, am the one who heard and saw all these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me.

⁹But he said, “No, don’t worship me. I am a servant of God, just like you and your brothers the prophets, as well as all who obey what is written in this book. Worship only God!”

¹⁰Then he instructed me, “Do not seal up the prophetic words in this book, for the time is near.

¹¹Let the one who is doing harm continue to do harm; let the one who is vile continue to be vile; let the one who is righteous continue to live righteously; let the one who is holy continue to be holy.”

¹²“Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds.

¹³I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”

¹⁴Blessed are those who wash their robes. They will be permitted to enter through the gates of the city and eat the fruit from the tree of life.

¹⁵Outside the city are the dogs — the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idol worshipers, and all who love to live a lie.

¹⁶“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this message for the churches. I am both the source of David and the heir to his throne. I am the bright morning star.”

¹⁷The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” Let anyone who hears this say, “Come.” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life.

¹⁸And I solemnly declare to everyone who hears the words of prophecy written in this book: If anyone adds anything to what is written here, God will add to that person the plagues described in this book.

¹⁹And if anyone removes any of the words from this book of prophecy, God will remove that person’s share in the tree of life and in the holy city that are described in this book.

²⁰He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!” Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!

²¹May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s holy people.

¹Then Eliphaz the Temanite replied:

²“A wise man wouldn’t answer with such empty talk! You are nothing but a windbag.

³The wise don’t engage in empty chatter. What good are such words?

⁴Have you no fear of God, no reverence for him?

⁵Your sins are telling your mouth what to say. Your words are based on clever deception.

⁶Your own mouth condemns you, not I. Your own lips testify against you.

⁷“Were you the first person ever born? Were you born before the hills were made?

⁸Were you listening at God’s secret council? Do you have a monopoly on wisdom?

⁹What do you know that we don’t? What do you understand that we do not?

¹⁰On our side are aged, gray-haired men much older than your father!

¹¹“Is God’s comfort too little for you? Is his gentle word not enough?

¹²What has taken away your reason? What has weakened your vision,

¹³that you turn against God and say all these evil things?

¹⁴Can any mortal be pure? Can anyone born of a woman be just?

¹⁵Look, God does not even trust the angels. Even the heavens are not absolutely pure in his sight.

¹⁶How much less pure is a corrupt and sinful person with a thirst for wickedness!

¹⁷“If you will listen, I will show you. I will answer you from my own experience.

¹⁸And it is confirmed by the reports of wise men who have heard the same thing from their fathers —

¹⁹from those to whom the land was given long before any foreigners arrived.

²⁰“The wicked writhe in pain throughout their lives. Years of trouble are stored up for the ruthless.

²¹The sound of terror rings in their ears, and even on good days they fear the attack of the destroyer.

²²They dare not go out into the darkness for fear they will be murdered.

²³They wander around, saying, ‘Where can I find bread?’ They know their day of destruction is near.

²⁴That dark day terrifies them. They live in distress and anguish, like a king preparing for battle.

²⁵For they shake their fists at God, defying the Almighty.

²⁶Holding their strong shields, they defiantly charge against him.

²⁷“These wicked people are heavy and prosperous; their waists bulge with fat.

²⁸But their cities will be ruined. They will live in abandoned houses that are ready to tumble down.

²⁹Their riches will not last, and their wealth will not endure. Their possessions will no longer spread across the horizon.

³⁰“They will not escape the darkness. The burning sun will wither their shoots, and the breath of God will destroy them.

³¹Let them no longer fool themselves by trusting in empty riches, for emptiness will be their only reward.

³²They will be cut down in the prime of life; their branches will never again be green.

³³They will be like a vine whose grapes are harvested too early, like an olive tree that loses its blossoms before the fruit can form.

³⁴For the godless are barren. Their homes, enriched through bribery, will burn.

³⁵They conceive trouble and give birth to evil. Their womb produces deceit.”

¹O LORD, I give my life to you.

²I trust in you, my God! Do not let me be disgraced, or let my enemies rejoice in my defeat.

³No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced, but disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others.

⁴Show me the right path, O LORD; point out the road for me to follow.

⁵Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.

⁶Remember, O LORD, your compassion and unfailing love, which you have shown from long ages past.

⁷Do not remember the rebellious sins of my youth. Remember me in the light of your unfailing love, for you are merciful, O LORD.

⁸The LORD is good and does what is right; he shows the proper path to those who go astray.

⁹He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way.

¹⁰The LORD leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all who keep his covenant and obey his demands.

¹¹For the honor of your name, O LORD, forgive my many, many sins.

¹²Who are those who fear the LORD? He will show them the path they should choose.

¹³They will live in prosperity, and their children will inherit the land.

¹⁴The LORD is a friend to those who fear him. He teaches them his covenant.

¹⁵My eyes are always on the LORD, for he rescues me from the traps of my enemies.

¹⁶Turn to me and have mercy, for I am alone and in deep distress.

¹⁷My problems go from bad to worse. Oh, save me from them all!

¹⁸Feel my pain and see my trouble. Forgive all my sins.

¹⁹See how many enemies I have and how viciously they hate me!

²⁰Protect me! Rescue my life from them! Do not let me be disgraced, for in you I take refuge.

²¹May integrity and honesty protect me, for I put my hope in you.

²²O God, ransom Israel from all its troubles.

¹A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.

²The tongue of the wise makes knowledge appealing, but the mouth of a fool belches out foolishness.

³The LORD is watching everywhere, keeping his eye on both the evil and the good.

⁴Gentle words are a tree of life; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.

⁵Only a fool despises a parent’s discipline; whoever learns from correction is wise.

⁶There is treasure in the house of the godly, but the earnings of the wicked bring trouble.

⁷The lips of the wise give good advice; the heart of a fool has none to give.

⁸The LORD detests the sacrifice of the wicked, but he delights in the prayers of the upright.

⁹The LORD detests the way of the wicked, but he loves those who pursue godliness.

¹⁰Whoever abandons the right path will be severely disciplined; whoever hates correction will die.

¹¹Even Death and Destruction hold no secrets from the LORD. How much more does he know the human heart!

¹²Mockers hate to be corrected, so they stay away from the wise.

¹³A glad heart makes a happy face; a broken heart crushes the spirit.

¹⁴A wise person is hungry for knowledge, while the fool feeds on trash.

¹⁵For the despondent, every day brings trouble; for the happy heart, life is a continual feast.

¹⁶Better to have little, with fear for the LORD, than to have great treasure and inner turmoil.

¹⁷A bowl of vegetables with someone you love is better than steak with someone you hate.

¹⁸A hot-tempered person starts fights; a cool-tempered person stops them.

¹⁹A lazy person’s way is blocked with briers, but the path of the upright is an open highway.

²⁰Sensible children bring joy to their father; foolish children despise their mother.

²¹Foolishness brings joy to those with no sense; a sensible person stays on the right path.

²²Plans go wrong for lack of advice; many advisers bring success.

²³Everyone enjoys a fitting reply; it is wonderful to say the right thing at the right time!

²⁴The path of life leads upward for the wise; they leave the grave behind.

²⁵The LORD tears down the house of the proud, but he protects the property of widows.

²⁶The LORD detests evil plans, but he delights in pure words.

²⁷Greed brings grief to the whole family, but those who hate bribes will live.

²⁸The heart of the godly thinks carefully before speaking; the mouth of the wicked overflows with evil words.

²⁹The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayers of the righteous.

³⁰A cheerful look brings joy to the heart; good news makes for good health.

³¹If you listen to constructive criticism, you will be at home among the wise.

³²If you reject discipline, you only harm yourself; but if you listen to correction, you grow in understanding.

³³Fear of the LORD teaches wisdom; humility precedes honor.

¹But David kept thinking to himself, “Someday Saul is going to get me. The best thing I can do is escape to the Philistines. Then Saul will stop hunting for me in Israelite territory, and I will finally be safe.”

²So David took his 600 men and went over and joined Achish son of Maoch, the king of Gath.

³David and his men and their families settled there with Achish at Gath. David brought his two wives along with him — Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, Nabal’s widow from Carmel.

⁴Word soon reached Saul that David had fled to Gath, so he stopped hunting for him.

⁵One day David said to Achish, “If it is all right with you, we would rather live in one of the country towns instead of here in the royal city.”

⁶So Achish gave him the town of Ziklag (which still belongs to the kings of Judah to this day),

⁷and they lived there among the Philistines for a year and four months.

⁸David and his men spent their time raiding the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites — people who had lived near Shur, toward the land of Egypt, since ancient times.

⁹David did not leave one person alive in the villages he attacked. He took the sheep, goats, cattle, donkeys, camels, and clothing before returning home to see King Achish.

¹⁰“Where did you make your raid today?” Achish would ask. And David would reply, “Against the south of Judah, the Jerahmeelites, and the Kenites.”

¹¹No one was left alive to come to Gath and tell where he had really been. This happened again and again while he was living among the Philistines.

¹²Achish believed David and thought to himself, “By now the people of Israel must hate him bitterly. Now he will have to stay here and serve me forever!”

¹If only my head were a pool of water and my eyes a fountain of tears, I would weep day and night for all my people who have been slaughtered.

²Oh, that I could go away and forget my people and live in a travelers’ shack in the desert. For they are all adulterers — a pack of treacherous liars.

³“My people bend their tongues like bows to shoot out lies. They refuse to stand up for the truth. They only go from bad to worse. They do not know me,” says the LORD.

⁴“Beware of your neighbor! Don’t even trust your brother! For brother takes advantage of brother, and friend slanders friend.

⁵They all fool and defraud each other; no one tells the truth. With practiced tongues they tell lies; they wear themselves out with all their sinning.

⁶They pile lie upon lie and utterly refuse to acknowledge me,” says the LORD.

⁷Therefore, this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: “See, I will melt them down in a crucible and test them like metal. What else can I do with my people?

⁸For their tongues shoot lies like poisoned arrows. They speak friendly words to their neighbors while scheming in their heart to kill them.

⁹Should I not punish them for this?” says the LORD. “Should I not avenge myself against such a nation?”

¹⁰I will weep for the mountains and wail for the wilderness pastures. For they are desolate and empty of life; the lowing of cattle is heard no more; the birds and wild animals have all fled.

¹¹“I will make Jerusalem into a heap of ruins,” says the LORD. “It will be a place haunted by jackals. The towns of Judah will be ghost towns, with no one living in them.”

¹²Who is wise enough to understand all this? Who has been instructed by the LORD and can explain it to others? Why has the land been so ruined that no one dares to travel through it?

¹³The LORD replies, “This has happened because my people have abandoned my instructions; they have refused to obey what I said.

¹⁴Instead, they have stubbornly followed their own desires and worshiped the images of Baal, as their ancestors taught them.

¹⁵So now, this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: Look! I will feed them with bitterness and give them poison to drink.

¹⁶I will scatter them around the world, in places they and their ancestors never heard of, and even there I will chase them with the sword until I have destroyed them completely.”

¹⁷This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: “Consider all this, and call for the mourners. Send for the women who mourn at funerals.

¹⁸Quick! Begin your weeping! Let the tears flow from your eyes.

¹⁹Hear the people of Jerusalem crying in despair, ‘We are ruined! We are completely humiliated! We must leave our land, because our homes have been torn down.’”

²⁰Listen, you women, to the words of the LORD; open your ears to what he has to say. Teach your daughters to wail; teach one another how to lament.

²¹For death has crept in through our windows and has entered our mansions. It has killed off the flower of our youth: Children no longer play in the streets, and young men no longer gather in the squares.

²²This is what the LORD says: “Bodies will be scattered across the fields like clumps of manure, like bundles of grain after the harvest. No one will be left to bury them.”

²³This is what the LORD says: “Don’t let the wise boast in their wisdom, or the powerful boast in their power, or the rich boast in their riches.

²⁴But those who wish to boast should boast in this alone: that they truly know me and understand that I am the LORD who demonstrates unfailing love and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth, and that I delight in these things. I, the LORD, have spoken!

²⁵“A time is coming,” says the LORD, “when I will punish all those who are circumcised in body but not in spirit —

²⁶the Egyptians, Edomites, Ammonites, Moabites, the people who live in the desert in remote places, and yes, even the people of Judah. And like all these pagan nations, the people of Israel also have uncircumcised hearts.”

¹Paul and Silas then traveled through the towns of Amphipolis and Apollonia and came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue.

²As was Paul’s custom, he went to the synagogue service, and for three Sabbaths in a row he used the Scriptures to reason with the people.

³He explained the prophecies and proved that the Messiah must suffer and rise from the dead. He said, “This Jesus I’m telling you about is the Messiah.”

⁴Some of the Jews who listened were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with many God-fearing Greek men and quite a few prominent women.

⁵But some of the Jews were jealous, so they gathered some troublemakers from the marketplace to form a mob and start a riot. They attacked the home of Jason, searching for Paul and Silas so they could drag them out to the crowd.

⁶Not finding them there, they dragged out Jason and some of the other believers instead and took them before the city council. “Paul and Silas have caused trouble all over the world,” they shouted, “and now they are here disturbing our city, too.

⁷And Jason has welcomed them into his home. They are all guilty of treason against Caesar, for they profess allegiance to another king, named Jesus.”

⁸The people of the city, as well as the city council, were thrown into turmoil by these reports.

⁹So the officials forced Jason and the other believers to post bond, and then they released them.

¹⁰That very night the believers sent Paul and Silas to Berea. When they arrived there, they went to the Jewish synagogue.

¹¹And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul’s message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth.

¹²As a result, many Jews believed, as did many of the prominent Greek women and men.

¹³But when some Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God in Berea, they went there and stirred up trouble.

¹⁴The believers acted at once, sending Paul on to the coast, while Silas and Timothy remained behind.

¹⁵Those escorting Paul went with him all the way to Athens; then they returned to Berea with instructions for Silas and Timothy to hurry and join him.

¹⁶While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was deeply troubled by all the idols he saw everywhere in the city.

¹⁷He went to the synagogue to reason with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles, and he spoke daily in the public square to all who happened to be there.

¹⁸He also had a debate with some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers. When he told them about Jesus and his resurrection, they said, “What’s this babbler trying to say with these strange ideas he’s picked up?” Others said, “He seems to be preaching about some foreign gods.”

¹⁹Then they took him to the high council of the city. “Come and tell us about this new teaching,” they said.

²⁰“You are saying some rather strange things, and we want to know what it’s all about.”

²¹(It should be explained that all the Athenians as well as the foreigners in Athens seemed to spend all their time discussing the latest ideas.)

²²So Paul, standing before the council, addressed them as follows: “Men of Athens, I notice that you are very religious in every way,

²³for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines. And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’ This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about.

²⁴“He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples,

²⁵and human hands can’t serve his needs — for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need.

²⁶From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries.

²⁷“His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him — though he is not far from any one of us.

²⁸For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’

²⁹And since this is true, we shouldn’t think of God as an idol designed by craftsmen from gold or silver or stone.

³⁰“God overlooked people’s ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him.

³¹For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead.”

³²When they heard Paul speak about the resurrection of the dead, some laughed in contempt, but others said, “We want to hear more about this later.”

³³That ended Paul’s discussion with them,

³⁴but some joined him and became believers. Among them were Dionysius, a member of the council, a woman named Damaris, and others with them.