Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Then He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him.

²And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were astonished, saying, “Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands!

³Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” So they were offended at Him.

⁴But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.”

⁵Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them.

⁶And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.

⁷And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits.

⁸He commanded them to take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bag, no bread, no copper in their money belts—

⁹but to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics.

¹⁰Also He said to them, “In whatever place you enter a house, stay there till you depart from that place.

¹¹And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!”

¹²So they went out and preached that people should repent.

¹³And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.

¹⁴Now King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well known. And he said, “John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.”

¹⁵Others said, “It is Elijah.” And others said, “It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets.”

¹⁶But when Herod heard, he said, “This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!”

¹⁷For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife; for he had married her.

¹⁸Because John had said to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”

¹⁹Therefore Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not;

²⁰for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.

²¹Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.

²²And when Herodias’ daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.”

²³He also swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”

²⁴So she went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist!”

²⁵Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”

²⁶And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her.

²⁷Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison,

²⁸brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother.

²⁹When his disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.

³⁰Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.

³¹And He said to them, “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.

³²So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.

³³But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him.

³⁴And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things.

³⁵When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, “This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late.

³⁶Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat.”

³⁷But He answered and said to them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to Him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?”

³⁸But He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they found out they said, “Five, and two fish.”

³⁹Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.

⁴⁰So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties.

⁴¹And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.

⁴²So they all ate and were filled.

⁴³And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish.

⁴⁴Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.

⁴⁵Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away.

⁴⁶And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.

⁴⁷Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea; and He was alone on the land.

⁴⁸Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by.

⁴⁹And when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed it was a ghost, and cried out;

⁵⁰for they all saw Him and were troubled. But immediately He talked with them and said to them, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”

⁵¹Then He went up into the boat to them, and the wind ceased. And they were greatly amazed in themselves beyond measure, and marveled.

⁵²For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened.

⁵³When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret and anchored there.

⁵⁴And when they came out of the boat, immediately the people recognized Him,

⁵⁵ran through that whole surrounding region, and began to carry about on beds those who were sick to wherever they heard He was.

⁵⁶Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well.

¹Now Dinah the daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land.

²And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her and lay with her, and violated her.

³His soul was strongly attracted to Dinah the daughter of Jacob, and he loved the young woman and spoke kindly to the young woman.

⁴So Shechem spoke to his father Hamor, saying, “Get me this young woman as a wife.”

⁵And Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter. Now his sons were with his livestock in the field; so Jacob held his peace until they came.

⁶Then Hamor the father of Shechem went out to Jacob to speak with him.

⁷And the sons of Jacob came in from the field when they heard it; and the men were grieved and very angry, because he had done a disgraceful thing in Israel by lying with Jacob’s daughter, a thing which ought not to be done.

⁸But Hamor spoke with them, saying, “The soul of my son Shechem longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as a wife.

⁹And make marriages with us; give your daughters to us, and take our daughters to yourselves.

¹⁰So you shall dwell with us, and the land shall be before you. Dwell and trade in it, and acquire possessions for yourselves in it.”

¹¹Then Shechem said to her father and her brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes, and whatever you say to me I will give.

¹²Ask me ever so much dowry and gift, and I will give according to what you say to me; but give me the young woman as a wife.”

¹³But the sons of Jacob answered Shechem and Hamor his father, and spoke deceitfully, because he had defiled Dinah their sister.

¹⁴And they said to them, “We cannot do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, for that would be a reproach to us.

¹⁵But on this condition we will consent to you: If you will become as we are, if every male of you is circumcised,

¹⁶then we will give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters to us; and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people.

¹⁷But if you will not heed us and be circumcised, then we will take our daughter and be gone.”

¹⁸And their words pleased Hamor and Shechem, Hamor’s son.

¹⁹So the young man did not delay to do the thing, because he delighted in Jacob’s daughter. He was more honorable than all the household of his father.

²⁰And Hamor and Shechem his son came to the gate of their city, and spoke with the men of their city, saying:

²¹“These men are at peace with us. Therefore let them dwell in the land and trade in it. For indeed the land is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters to us as wives, and let us give them our daughters.

²²Only on this condition will the men consent to dwell with us, to be one people: if every male among us is circumcised as they are circumcised.

²³Will not their livestock, their property, and every animal of theirs be ours? Only let us consent to them, and they will dwell with us.”

²⁴And all who went out of the gate of his city heeded Hamor and Shechem his son; every male was circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city.

²⁵Now it came to pass on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword and came boldly upon the city and killed all the males.

²⁶And they killed Hamor and Shechem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah from Shechem’s house, and went out.

²⁷The sons of Jacob came upon the slain, and plundered the city, because their sister had been defiled.

²⁸They took their sheep, their oxen, and their donkeys, what was in the city and what was in the field,

²⁹and all their wealth. All their little ones and their wives they took captive; and they plundered even all that was in the houses.

³⁰Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have troubled me by making me obnoxious among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites; and since I am few in number, they will gather themselves together against me and kill me. I shall be destroyed, my household and I.”

³¹But they said, “Should he treat our sister like a harlot?”

¹But I determined this within myself, that I would not come again to you in sorrow.

²For if I make you sorrowful, then who is he who makes me glad but the one who is made sorrowful by me?

³And I wrote this very thing to you, lest, when I came, I should have sorrow over those from whom I ought to have joy, having confidence in you all that my joy is the joy of you all.

⁴For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you, with many tears, not that you should be grieved, but that you might know the love which I have so abundantly for you.

⁵But if anyone has caused grief, he has not grieved me, but all of you to some extent—not to be too severe.

⁶This punishment which was inflicted by the majority is sufficient for such a man,

⁷so that, on the contrary, you ought rather to forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow.

⁸Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him.

⁹For to this end I also wrote, that I might put you to the test, whether you are obedient in all things.

¹⁰Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ,

¹¹lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.

¹²Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ’s gospel, and a door was opened to me by the Lord,

¹³I had no rest in my spirit, because I did not find Titus my brother; but taking my leave of them, I departed for Macedonia.

¹⁴Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.

¹⁵For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.

¹⁶To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And who is sufficient for these things?

¹⁷For we are not, as so many, peddling the word of God; but as of sincerity, but as from God, we speak in the sight of God in Christ.

¹But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.

²And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.

³By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.

⁴For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment;

⁵and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly;

⁶and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly;

⁷and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked

⁸(for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)—

⁹then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment,

¹⁰and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries,

¹¹whereas angels, who are greater in power and might, do not bring a reviling accusation against them before the Lord.

¹²But these, like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed, speak evil of the things they do not understand, and will utterly perish in their own corruption,

¹³and will receive the wages of unrighteousness, as those who count it pleasure to carouse in the daytime. They are spots and blemishes, carousing in their own deceptions while they feast with you,

¹⁴having eyes full of adultery and that cannot cease from sin, enticing unstable souls. They have a heart trained in covetous practices, and are accursed children.

¹⁵They have forsaken the right way and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;

¹⁶but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet.

¹⁷These are wells without water, clouds carried by a tempest, for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.

¹⁸For when they speak great swelling words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error.

¹⁹While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage.

²⁰For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning.

²¹For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them.

²²But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: “A dog returns to his own vomit,” and, “a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire.”

¹Elihu further answered and said:

²“Hear my words, you wise men; Give ear to me, you who have knowledge.

³For the ear tests words As the palate tastes food.

⁴Let us choose justice for ourselves; Let us know among ourselves what is good.

⁵“For Job has said, ‘I am righteous, But God has taken away my justice;

⁶Should I lie concerning my right? My wound is incurable, though I am without transgression.’

⁷What man is like Job, Who drinks scorn like water,

⁸Who goes in company with the workers of iniquity, And walks with wicked men?

⁹For he has said, ‘It profits a man nothing That he should delight in God.’

¹⁰“Therefore listen to me, you men of understanding: Far be it from God to do wickedness, And from the Almighty to commit iniquity.

¹¹For He repays man according to his work, And makes man to find a reward according to his way.

¹²Surely God will never do wickedly, Nor will the Almighty pervert justice.

¹³Who gave Him charge over the earth? Or who appointed Him over the whole world?

¹⁴If He should set His heart on it, If He should gather to Himself His Spirit and His breath,

¹⁵All flesh would perish together, And man would return to dust.

¹⁶“If you have understanding, hear this; Listen to the sound of my words:

¹⁷Should one who hates justice govern? Will you condemn Him who is most just?

¹⁸Is it fitting to say to a king, ‘You are worthless,’ And to nobles, ‘You are wicked’?

¹⁹Yet He is not partial to princes, Nor does He regard the rich more than the poor; For they are all the work of His hands.

²⁰In a moment they die, in the middle of the night; The people are shaken and pass away; The mighty are taken away without a hand.

²¹“For His eyes are on the ways of man, And He sees all his steps.

²²There is no darkness nor shadow of death Where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.

²³For He need not further consider a man, That he should go before God in judgment.

²⁴He breaks in pieces mighty men without inquiry, And sets others in their place.

²⁵Therefore He knows their works; He overthrows them in the night, And they are crushed.

²⁶He strikes them as wicked men In the open sight of others,

²⁷Because they turned back from Him, And would not consider any of His ways,

²⁸So that they caused the cry of the poor to come to Him; For He hears the cry of the afflicted.

²⁹When He gives quietness, who then can make trouble? And when He hides His face, who then can see Him, Whether it is against a nation or a man alone?—

³⁰That the hypocrite should not reign, Lest the people be ensnared.

³¹“For has anyone said to God, ‘I have borne chastening; I will offend no more;

³²Teach me what I do not see; If I have done iniquity, I will do no more’?

³³Should He repay it according to your terms, Just because you disavow it? You must choose, and not I; Therefore speak what you know.

³⁴“Men of understanding say to me, Wise men who listen to me:

³⁵‘Job speaks without knowledge, His words are without wisdom.’

³⁶Oh, that Job were tried to the utmost, Because his answers are like those of wicked men!

³⁷For he adds rebellion to his sin; He claps his hands among us, And multiplies his words against God.”

¹A Psalm of David when he pretended madness before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he departed. [1] I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

²My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; The humble shall hear of it and be glad.

³Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together.

⁴I sought the LORD, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears.

⁵They looked to Him and were radiant, And their faces were not ashamed.

⁶This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him, And saved him out of all his troubles.

⁷The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them.

⁸Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

⁹Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him.

¹⁰The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.

¹¹Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

¹²Who is the man who desires life, And loves many days, that he may see good?

¹³Keep your tongue from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit.

¹⁴Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it.

¹⁵The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry.

¹⁶The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

¹⁷The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears, And delivers them out of all their troubles.

¹⁸The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit.

¹⁹Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the LORD delivers him out of them all.

²⁰He guards all his bones; Not one of them is broken.

²¹Evil shall slay the wicked, And those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.

²²The LORD redeems the soul of His servants, And none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned.

¹My son, do not forget my law, But let your heart keep my commands;

²For length of days and long life And peace they will add to you.

³Let not mercy and truth forsake you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart,

⁴And so find favor and high esteem In the sight of God and man.

⁵Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;

⁶In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

⁷Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil.

⁸It will be health to your flesh, And strength to your bones.

⁹Honor the LORD with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase;

¹⁰So your barns will be filled with plenty, And your vats will overflow with new wine.

¹¹My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, Nor detest His correction;

¹²For whom the LORD loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.

¹³Happy is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains understanding;

¹⁴For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, And her gain than fine gold.

¹⁵She is more precious than rubies, And all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.

¹⁶Length of days is in her right hand, In her left hand riches and honor.

¹⁷Her ways are ways of pleasantness, And all her paths are peace.

¹⁸She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, And happy are all who retain her.

¹⁹The LORD by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding He established the heavens;

²⁰By His knowledge the depths were broken up, And clouds drop down the dew.

²¹My son, let them not depart from your eyes— Keep sound wisdom and discretion;

²²So they will be life to your soul And grace to your neck.

²³Then you will walk safely in your way, And your foot will not stumble.

²⁴When you lie down, you will not be afraid; Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet.

²⁵Do not be afraid of sudden terror, Nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes;

²⁶For the LORD will be your confidence, And will keep your foot from being caught.

²⁷Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in the power of your hand to do so.

²⁸Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come back, And tomorrow I will give it,” When you have it with you.

²⁹Do not devise evil against your neighbor, For he dwells by you for safety’s sake.

³⁰Do not strive with a man without cause, If he has done you no harm.

³¹Do not envy the oppressor, And choose none of his ways;

³²For the perverse person is an abomination to the LORD, But His secret counsel is with the upright.

³³The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, But He blesses the home of the just.

³⁴Surely He scorns the scornful, But gives grace to the humble.

³⁵The wise shall inherit glory, But shame shall be the legacy of fools.

¹After Abimelech there arose to save Israel Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar; and he dwelt in Shamir in the mountains of Ephraim.

²He judged Israel twenty-three years; and he died and was buried in Shamir.

³After him arose Jair, a Gileadite; and he judged Israel twenty-two years.

⁴Now he had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys; they also had thirty towns, which are called “Havoth Jair” to this day, which are in the land of Gilead.

⁵And Jair died and was buried in Camon.

⁶Then the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the people of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; and they forsook the LORD and did not serve Him.

⁷So the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel; and He sold them into the hands of the Philistines and into the hands of the people of Ammon.

⁸From that year they harassed and oppressed the children of Israel for eighteen years—all the children of Israel who were on the other side of the Jordan in the land of the Amorites, in Gilead.

⁹Moreover the people of Ammon crossed over the Jordan to fight against Judah also, against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was severely distressed.

¹⁰And the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, saying, “We have sinned against You, because we have both forsaken our God and served the Baals!”

¹¹So the LORD said to the children of Israel, “Did I not deliver you from the Egyptians and from the Amorites and from the people of Ammon and from the Philistines?

¹²Also the Sidonians and Amalekites and Maonites oppressed you; and you cried out to Me, and I delivered you from their hand.

¹³Yet you have forsaken Me and served other gods. Therefore I will deliver you no more.

¹⁴“Go and cry out to the gods which you have chosen; let them deliver you in your time of distress.”

¹⁵And the children of Israel said to the LORD, “We have sinned! Do to us whatever seems best to You; only deliver us this day, we pray.”

¹⁶So they put away the foreign gods from among them and served the LORD. And His soul could no longer endure the misery of Israel.

¹⁷Then the people of Ammon gathered together and encamped in Gilead. And the children of Israel assembled together and encamped in Mizpah.

¹⁸And the people, the leaders of Gilead, said to one another, “Who is the man who will begin the fight against the people of Ammon? He shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.”

¹Come near, you nations, to hear; And heed, you people! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, The world and all things that come forth from it.

²For the indignation of the LORD is against all nations, And His fury against all their armies; He has utterly destroyed them, He has given them over to the slaughter.

³Also their slain shall be thrown out; Their stench shall rise from their corpses, And the mountains shall be melted with their blood.

⁴All the host of heaven shall be dissolved, And the heavens shall be rolled up like a scroll; All their host shall fall down As the leaf falls from the vine, And as fruit falling from a fig tree.

⁵“For My sword shall be bathed in heaven; Indeed it shall come down on Edom, And on the people of My curse, for judgment.

⁶The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, It is made overflowing with fatness, With the blood of lambs and goats, With the fat of the kidneys of rams. For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah, And a great slaughter in the land of Edom.

⁷The wild oxen shall come down with them, And the young bulls with the mighty bulls; Their land shall be soaked with blood, And their dust saturated with fatness.”

⁸For it is the day of the LORD’s vengeance, The year of recompense for the cause of Zion.

⁹Its streams shall be turned into pitch, And its dust into brimstone; Its land shall become burning pitch.

¹⁰It shall not be quenched night or day; Its smoke shall ascend forever. From generation to generation it shall lie waste; No one shall pass through it forever and ever.

¹¹But the pelican and the porcupine shall possess it, Also the owl and the raven shall dwell in it. And He shall stretch out over it The line of confusion and the stones of emptiness.

¹²They shall call its nobles to the kingdom, But none shall be there, and all its princes shall be nothing.

¹³And thorns shall come up in its palaces, Nettles and brambles in its fortresses; It shall be a habitation of jackals, A courtyard for ostriches.

¹⁴The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the jackals, And the wild goat shall bleat to its companion; Also the night creature shall rest there, And find for herself a place of rest.

¹⁵There the arrow snake shall make her nest and lay eggs And hatch, and gather them under her shadow; There also shall the hawks be gathered, Every one with her mate.

¹⁶“Search from the book of the LORD, and read: Not one of these shall fail; Not one shall lack her mate. For My mouth has commanded it, and His Spirit has gathered them.

¹⁷He has cast the lot for them, And His hand has divided it among them with a measuring line. They shall possess it forever; From generation to generation they shall dwell in it.”

¹Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the Hellenists, because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution.

²Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables.

³Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business;

⁴but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

⁵And the saying pleased the whole multitude. And they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch,

⁶whom they set before the apostles; and when they had prayed, they laid hands on them.

⁷Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith.

⁸And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people.

⁹Then there arose some from what is called the Synagogue of the Freedmen (Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and those from Cilicia and Asia), disputing with Stephen.

¹⁰And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke.

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

¹²And they stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes; and they came upon him, seized him, and brought him to the council.

¹³They also set up false witnesses who said, “This man does not cease to speak blasphemous words against this holy place and the law;

¹⁴for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs which Moses delivered to us.”

¹⁵And all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at him, saw his face as the face of an angel.