Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹And He began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard and put afence around it, and dug a vat under the wine press and built a tower, and leased it tovine-growers and went on a journey.

²And at the harvest time he sent a slave to the vine-growers, in order to receive his share of the produce of the vineyard from the vine-growers.

³And they took him, and beat him, and sent him away empty-handed.

⁴And again he sent them another slave, and they wounded him in the head, and treated him shamefully.

⁵And he sent another, and that one they killed; and so with many others, beating some and killing others.

⁶He had one more man to send, a beloved son; he sent him to them last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

⁷But those vine-growers said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!’

⁸And they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.

⁹What will theowner of the vineyard do? He will come and put the vine-growers to death, and give the vineyard to others.

¹⁰Have you not even read this Scripture: ‘A STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS HAS BECOME THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE;

¹¹THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES’?”

¹²And they were seeking to seize Him, and yet they feared the people, for they understood that He told the parable against them. And so they left Him and went away.

¹³Then they *sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Him in order to trap Him in a statement.

¹⁴They came and *said to Him, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful and do not care what anyone thinks; for You are not partial to anyone, but You teach the way of God in truth. Is it permissible to pay a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?

¹⁵Are we to pay, or not pay?” But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, “Why are you testing Me? Bring Me adenarius to look at.”

¹⁶And they brought one. And He *said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” And they said to Him, “Caesar’s.”

¹⁷And Jesus said to them, “Pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at Him.

¹⁸Some Sadducees (who say that there is no resurrection) *came to Jesus, and began questioning Him, saying,

¹⁹“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves behind a wife and does not leave a child, his brother is to marry the wife and raise up children for his brother.

²⁰There were seven brothers; and the first took a wife, and died leaving no children.

²¹The second one married her, and died leaving behind no children; and the third likewise;

²²and so the seven together left no children. Last of all the woman also died.

²³In the resurrection, which one’s wife will she be? For each of the seven had her as his wife.”

²⁴Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are mistaken, that you do notunderstand the Scriptures nor the power of God?

²⁵For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.

²⁶Butregarding the fact that the dead rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, THE GOD OF ISAAC, AND THE GOD OF JACOB’?

²⁷He is not the Godof the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken.”

²⁸One of the scribes came up and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?”

²⁹Jesus answered, “Theforemost is, ‘HEAR, ISRAEL! THE LORD IS OUR GOD, THE LORD IS ONE;

³⁰AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.’

³¹The second is this: ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

³²And the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher; You have truly stated that HE IS ONE, AND THERE IS NO OTHER BESIDES HIM;

³³and to love Him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

³⁴When Jesus saw that he had answered intelligently, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And then, no one dared any longer to question Him.

³⁵And Jesus responded and began saying, as He taught in the temple area, “How is it that the scribes say that theChrist is the son of David?

³⁶David himself saidin the Holy Spirit, ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES UNDER YOUR FEET.” ’

³⁷David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; so in what sense is He his son?” And the large crowd enjoyed listening to Him.

³⁸And in His teaching He was saying: “Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes, and like personal greetings in the marketplaces,

³⁹and seats of honor in the synagogues, and places of honor at banquets,

⁴⁰who devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers. These will receive all the more condemnation.”

⁴¹And Jesus sat down opposite the treasury, and began watching how the people were putting money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large amounts.

⁴²And a poor widow came and put in two lepta coins, which amount to a quadrans.

⁴³Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than allthe contributors to the treasury;

⁴⁴for they all put in out of theirsurplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned,all she had to live on.”

¹Then it came about after these things, that the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt offended their lord, the king of Egypt.

²And Pharaoh was furious with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker.

³So he put them in confinement in the house of the captain of the bodyguard, in the prison, the same place where Joseph was imprisoned.

⁴And the captain of the bodyguard put Joseph in charge of them, and he took care of them; and they were in confinement for some time.

⁵Then the cupbearer and the baker for the king of Egypt, who were confined in the prison, both had a dream the same night, each man with his own dream and each dream with its own interpretation.

⁶When Joseph came to them in the morning and saw them, behold, they were dejected.

⁷So he asked Pharaoh’s officials who were with him in confinement in his master’s house, “Why are your faces so sad today?”

⁸And they said to him, “We have had a dream, and there is no one to interpret it.” Then Joseph said to them, “Do interpretations not belong to God? Tell it to me, please.”

⁹So the chief cupbearer told his dream to Joseph, saying to him, “In my dream, behold, there was a vine in front of me;

¹⁰and on the vine were three branches. And as it was budding, its blossoms came out, and its clusters produced ripe grapes.

¹¹Now Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand; so I took the grapes and squeezed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand.”

¹²Then Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it: the three branches are three days;

¹³within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head and restore you to your office; and you will put Pharaoh’s cup into his hand as in your former practice when you were his cupbearer.

¹⁴Only keep me in mind when it goes well for you, and please do me a kindness by mentioning me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this prison.

¹⁵For I was in fact kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing that they should have put me into the dungeon.”

¹⁶When the chief baker saw that he had interpreted favorably, he said to Joseph, “I also saw in my dream, and behold, there were three baskets of white bread on my head;

¹⁷and in the top basket there were some of all kinds of baked food for Pharaoh, and the birds were eating them out of the basket on my head.”

¹⁸Then Joseph answered and said, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days;

¹⁹within three more days Pharaoh will lift up your head from you and will hang you on a wooden post, and the birds will eat your flesh off you.”

²⁰So it came about on the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, that he held a feast for all his servants; and he lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants.

²¹He restored the chief cupbearer to his office, and he put the cup into Pharaoh’s hand;

²²but he hanged the chief baker, just as Joseph had interpreted to them.

²³Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him.

¹Now, brothers and sisters, we make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the churches of Macedonia,

²that in a great ordeal of affliction their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality.

³For I testify that according to their ability, and beyond their ability, they gave voluntarily,

⁴begging us with much urging for the favor of participation in the support of the saints,

⁵and this, not as we had expected, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God.

⁶So we urged Titus that as he had previously made a beginning, so he would also complete in you this gracious work as well.

⁷But just as you excel in everything, in faith, speaking, knowledge, and in all earnestness and in the love we inspired in you, see that you also excel in this gracious work.

⁸I am not saying this as a command, but as proving, through the earnestness of others, the sincerity of your love as well.

⁹For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.

¹⁰I give my opinion in this matter, for this is to your advantage, who were the first to begin a year ago not only to do this, but also to desire to do it.

¹¹But now finish doing it also, so that just as there was the willingness to desire it, so there may be also the completion of it by your ability.

¹²For if the willingness is present, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.

¹³For this is not for the relief of others and for your hardship, but by way of equality—

¹⁴at this present time your abundance will serve as assistance for their need, so that their abundance also may serve as assistance for your need, so that there may be equality;

¹⁵as it is written: “THE ONE WHO had gathered much did not have too much, AND THE ONE WHO had gathered little did not have too little.”

¹⁶But thanks be to God who puts the same earnestness in your behalf in the heart of Titus.

¹⁷For he not only accepted our appeal, but being himself very earnest, he has gone to you of his own accord.

¹⁸We have sent along with him the brother whose fame in the things of the gospel has spread through all the churches;

¹⁹and not only that, but he has also been appointed by the churches to travel with us in this gracious work, which is being administered by us for the glory of the Lord Himself, and to show our readiness,

²⁰taking precaution so that no one will discredit us in our administration of this generous gift;

²¹for we have regard for what is honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of other people.

²²We have sent with them our brother, whom we have often tested and found diligent in many things, but now even more diligent because of his great confidence in you.

²³As for Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker among you; as for our brothers, they are messengers of the churches, a glory to Christ.

²⁴Therefore, openly before the churches, show them the proof of your love and of our reason for boasting about you.

¹Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves the child born of Him.

²By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and follow His commandments.

³For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.

⁴For whoever has been born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.

⁵Who is the one who overcomes the world, but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

⁶This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.

⁷For there are three that testify:

⁸the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.

⁹If we receive the testimony of people, the testimony of God is greater; for the testimony of God is this, that He has testified concerning His Son.

¹⁰The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son.

¹¹And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.

¹²The one who has the Son has the life; the one who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.

¹³These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.

¹⁴This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.

¹⁵And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.

¹⁶If anyone sees his brother or sister committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will, for him, give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death; I am not saying that he should ask about that.

¹⁷All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death.

¹⁸We know that no one who has been born of God sins; but He who was born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him.

¹⁹We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

²⁰And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.

²¹Little children, guard yourselves from idols.

¹Then the LORD said to Job,

²“Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Let him who rebukes God give an answer.”

³Then Job answered the LORD and said,

⁴“Behold, I am insignificant; what can I say in response to You? I put my hand on my mouth.

⁵I have spoken once, and I will not reply; Or twice, and I will add nothing more.”

⁶Then the LORD answered Job from the whirlwind and said,

⁷“Now tighten the belt on your waist like a man; I will ask you, and you instruct Me.

⁸Will you really nullify My judgment? Will you condemn Me so that you may be justified?

⁹Or do you have an arm like God, And can you thunder with a voice like His?

¹⁰“Adorn yourself with pride and dignity, And clothe yourself with honor and majesty.

¹¹Let out your outbursts of anger, And look at everyone who is arrogant, and humble him.

¹²Look at everyone who is arrogant, and humble him, And trample down the wicked where they stand.

¹³Hide them together in the dust; Imprison them in the hidden place.

¹⁴Then I will also confess to you, That your own right hand can save you.

¹⁵“Behold, Behemoth, which I made as well as you; He eats grass like an ox.

¹⁶Behold, his strength in his waist, And his power in the muscles of his belly.

¹⁷He hangs his tail like a cedar; The tendons of his thighs are knit together.

¹⁸His bones are tubes of bronze; His limbs are like bars of iron.

¹⁹“He is the first of the ways of God; Let his Maker bring His sword near.

²⁰Indeed the mountains bring him food, And all the animals of the field play there.

²¹He lies down under the lotus plants, In the hiding place of the reeds and the marsh.

²²The lotus plants cover him with shade; The willows of the brook surround him.

²³If a river rages, he is not alarmed; He is confident, though the Jordan rushes to his mouth.

²⁴Can anyone capture him when he is on watch, Can anyone pierce his nose with barbs?

¹I waited patiently for the LORD; And He reached down to me and heard my cry.

²He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the mud; And He set my feet on a rock, making my footsteps firm.

³He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear And will trust in the LORD.

⁴How blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust, And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who become involved in falsehood.

⁵Many, LORD my God, are the wonders which You have done, And Your thoughts toward us; There is no one to compare with You. If I would declare and speak of them, They would be too numerous to count.

⁶You have not desired sacrifice and meal offering; You have opened my ears; You have not required burnt offering and sin offering.

⁷Then I said, “Behold, I have come; It is written of me in the scroll of the book.

⁸I delight to do Your will, my God; Your Law is within my heart.”

⁹I have proclaimed good news of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold, I will not restrain my lips, LORD, You know.

¹⁰I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart; I have spoken of Your faithfulness and Your salvation; I have not concealed Your mercy and Your truth from the great congregation.

¹¹You, LORD, will not withhold Your compassion from me; Your mercy and Your truth will continually watch over me.

¹²For evils beyond number have surrounded me; My guilty deeds have overtaken me, so that I am not able to see; They are more numerous than the hairs of my head, And my heart has failed me.

¹³Be pleased, LORD, to rescue me; Hurry, LORD, to help me.

¹⁴May those be ashamed and humiliated together Who seek my life to destroy it; May those be turned back and dishonored Who delight in my hurt.

¹⁵May those be appalled because of their shame Who say to me, “Aha, aha!”

¹⁶May all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; May those who love Your salvation continually say, “The LORD be exalted!”

¹⁷But I am afflicted and needy; May the Lord be mindful of me. You are my help and my savior; Do not delay, my God.

¹Wisdom has built her house, She has carved out her seven pillars;

²She has prepared her food, she has mixed her wine; She has also set her table;

³She has sent out her attendants, she calls out From the tops of the heights of the city:

⁴“Whoever is naive, let him turn in here!” To him who lacks understanding she says,

⁵“Come, eat of my food And drink of the wine I have mixed.

⁶Abandon your foolishness and live, And proceed in the way of understanding.”

⁷One who corrects a scoffer gets dishonor for himself, And one who rebukes a wicked person gets insults for himself.

⁸Do not rebuke a scoffer, or he will hate you; Rebuke a wise person and he will love you.

⁹Give instruction to a wise person and he will become still wiser; Teach a righteous person and he will increase his insight.

¹⁰The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

¹¹For by me your days will be multiplied, And years of life will be added to you.

¹²If you are wise, you are wise for yourself, And if you scoff, you alone will suffer from it.

¹³A woman of foolishness is boisterous, She has a lack of understanding and knows nothing.

¹⁴She sits at the doorway of her house, On a seat by the high places of the city,

¹⁵Calling to those who pass by, Who are going straight on their paths:

¹⁶“Whoever is naive, let him turn in here,” And to him who lacks understanding she says,

¹⁷“Stolen water is sweet; And bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”

¹⁸But he does not know that the dead are there, That her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

¹Now Samson went to Gaza and saw a prostitute there, and had relations with her.

²When it was reported to the Gazites, saying, “Samson has come here,” they surrounded the place and lay in wait for him all night at the gate of the city. And they kept silent all night, saying, “Let’s wait until the morning light, then we will kill him.”

³Now Samson lay asleep until midnight, and at midnight he got up and took hold of the doors of the city gate and the two doorposts, and pulled them up along with the bars; then he put them on his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the mountain which is opposite Hebron.

⁴After this it came about that he was in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.

⁵So the governors of the Philistines came up to her and said to her, “Entice him, and see where his great strength lies and how we can overpower him so that we may bind him to humble him. Then we will each give you 1,100 pieces of silver.”

⁶So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me where your great strength lies, and how you can be bound to humble you.”

⁷And Samson said to her, “If they bind me with seven fresh animal tendons that have not been dried, then I will become weak and be like any other man.”

⁸Then the governors of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh animal tendons that had not been dried, and she bound him with them.

⁹Now she had men prepared for an ambush in an inner room. And she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he tore the tendons to pieces just like a thread of flax is torn apart when it comes too close to fire. So his strength was not discovered.

¹⁰Then Delilah said to Samson, “Behold, you have toyed with me and told me lies; now please tell me how you may be bound.”

¹¹Then He said to her, “If they bind me tightly with new ropes which have not been used, then I will become weak and be like any other man.”

¹²So Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” For the men in the ambush were waiting in the inner room. But he tore the ropes from his arms like thread.

¹³Then Delilah said to Samson, “Up to now you have toyed with me and told me lies; tell me how you may be bound.” And he said to her, “If you weave the seven locks of my hair with the web [and fasten it with the pin, then I will be weak like any other man.”

¹⁴So while he slept, Delilah wove the seven locks of his hair with the web]. And she fastened it with the pin and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he awoke from his sleep and pulled out the pin of the loom and the web.

¹⁵Then she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have toyed with me these three times and have not told me where your great strength is.”

¹⁶And it came about, when she pressed him daily with her words and urged him, that his soul was annoyed to death.

¹⁷So he told her all that was in his heart and said to her, “A razor has never come on my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaved, then my strength will leave me and I will become weak and be like any other man.”

¹⁸When Delilah saw that he had told her all that was in his heart, she sent word and called the governors of the Philistines, saying, “Come up once more, for he has told me all that is in his heart.” Then the governors of the Philistines came up to her and brought up the money in their hands.

¹⁹And she made him sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to humble him, and his strength left him.

²⁰She said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the LORD had departed from him.

²¹Then the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes; and they brought him down to Gaza and restrained him with bronze chains, and he became a grinder in the prison.

²²However, the hair of his head began to grow again after it was shaved off.

²³Now the governors of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to celebrate, for they said, “Our god has handed Samson our enemy over to us.”

²⁴When the people saw him, they praised their god, for they said, “Our god has handed our enemy over to us, Even the destroyer of our country, Who has killed many of us.”

²⁵It so happened when they were in high spirits, that they said, “Call for Samson, that he may amuse us.” So they called for Samson from the prison, and he entertained them. And they made him stand between the pillars.

²⁶Then Samson said to the boy who was holding his hand, “Let me feel the pillars on which the house rests, so that I may lean against them.”

²⁷Now the house was full of men and women, and all the governors of the Philistines were there. And about three thousand men and women were on the roof looking on while Samson was entertaining them.

²⁸Then Samson called to the LORD and said, “Lord GOD, please remember me and please strengthen me just this time, O God, that I may at once take vengeance on the Philistines for my two eyes.”

²⁹Then Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and braced himself against them, the one with his right hand and the other with his left.

³⁰And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” And he pushed outwards powerfully, so that the house fell on the governors and all the people who were in it. And the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he killed during his lifetime.

³¹Then his brothers and all his father’s household came down and took him, and brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of his father Manoah. So he had judged Israel for twenty years.

¹“Comfort, comfort My people,” says your God.

²“Speak kindly to Jerusalem; And call out to her, that her warfare has ended, That her guilt has been removed, That she has received of the LORD’S hand Double for all her sins.”

³The voice of one calling out, “Clear the way for the LORD in the wilderness; Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

⁴Let every valley be lifted up, And every mountain and hill be made low; And let the uneven ground become a plain, And the rugged terrain a broad valley;

⁵Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

⁶A voice says, “Call out.” Then he answered, “What shall I call out?” All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.

⁷The grass withers, the flower fades, When the breath of the LORD blows upon it; The people are indeed grass!

⁸The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.

⁹Go up on a high mountain, Zion, messenger of good news, Raise your voice forcefully, Jerusalem, messenger of good news; Raise it up, do not fear. Say to the cities of Judah, “Here is your God!”

¹⁰Behold, the Lord GOD will come with might, With His arm ruling for Him. Behold, His compensation is with Him, And His reward before Him.

¹¹Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, In His arm He will gather the lambs And carry them in the fold of His robe; He will gently lead the nursing ewes.

¹²Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, And measured the heavens with a span, And calculated the dust of the earth with a measure, And weighed the mountains in a balance And the hills in a pair of scales?

¹³Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, Or as His counselor has informed Him?

¹⁴With whom did He consult and who gave Him understanding? And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge, And informed Him of the way of understanding?

¹⁵Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, And are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales; Behold, He lifts up the islands like fine dust.

¹⁶Even Lebanon is not enough to burn, Nor its animals enough for a burnt offering.

¹⁷All the nations are as nothing before Him, They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and meaningless.

¹⁸To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare with Him?

¹⁹As for the idol, a craftsman casts it, A goldsmith plates it with gold, And a silversmith fashions chains of silver.

²⁰He who is too impoverished for such an offering Selects a tree that does not rot; He seeks out for himself a skillful craftsman To prepare an idol that will not totter.

²¹Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?

²²It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain And spreads them out like a tent to live in.

²³It is He who reduces rulers to nothing, Who makes the judges of the earth meaningless.

²⁴Scarcely have they been planted, Scarcely have they been sown, Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth, But He merely blows on them, and they wither, And the storm carries them away like stubble.

²⁵“To whom then will you compare Me That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.

²⁶Raise your eyes on high And see who has created these stars, The One who brings out their multitude by number, He calls them all by name; Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power, Not one of them is missing.

²⁷Why do you say, Jacob, and you assert, Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, And the justice due me escapes the notice of my God”?

²⁸Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth Does not become weary or tired. His understanding is unsearchable.

²⁹He gives strength to the weary, And to the one who lacks might He increases power.

³⁰Though youths grow weary and tired, And vigorous young men stumble badly,

³¹Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary.

¹Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church, to do them harm.

²And he had James the brother of John executed with a sword.

³When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter as well. (Now these were the days of Unleavened Bread.)

⁴When he had arrested him, he put him in prison, turning him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending only after the Passover to bring him before the people.

⁵So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made to God intensely by the church.

⁶On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison.

⁷And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly stood near Peter, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands.

⁸And the angel said to him, “Put on your belt and strap on your sandals.” And he did so. And he *said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.”

⁹And he went out and continued to follow, and yet he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.

¹⁰Now when they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.

¹¹When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.”

¹²And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John, who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying.

¹³When he knocked at the door of the gate, a slave woman named Rhoda came to answer.

¹⁴When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate.

¹⁵They said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. They said, “It is his angel.”

¹⁶But Peter continued knocking; and when they had opened the door, they saw him and were amazed.

¹⁷But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and the brothers.” Then he left and went to another place.

¹⁸Now when day came, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to what could have become of Peter.

¹⁹When Herod had searched for him and had not found him, he examined the guards and ordered that they be led away to execution. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and was spending time there.

²⁰Now he was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; and with one mind they came to him, and having won over Blastus the king’s chamberlain, they were asking for peace, because their country was supported with grain from the king’s country.

²¹On an appointed day, after putting on his royal apparel, Herod took his seat on the rostrum and began delivering an address to them.

²²The people repeatedly cried out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!”

²³And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.

²⁴But the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied.

²⁵And Barnabas and Saul returned when they had fulfilled their mission to Jerusalem, taking along with them John, who was also called Mark.