Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Since [as is well known] many have undertaken to compile an orderly account of the things which have been fulfilled among us [by God],

²exactly as they were handed down to us by those [with personal experience] who from the beginning [of Christ's ministry] were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word [that is, of the teaching concerning salvation through faith in Christ],

³it seemed fitting for me as well, [and so I have decided] after having carefully searched out and investigated all the events accurately, from the very beginning, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus;

⁴so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught [that is, the history and doctrine of the faith].

⁵In the days of Herod [the Great], king of Judea, there was a certain priest whose name was Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was a descendant of Aaron [the first high priest of Israel], and her name was Elizabeth.

⁶They both were righteous (approved) in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord.

⁷But they were childless, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both far advanced in years.

⁸Now it happened while Zacharias was serving as priest before God in the appointed order of his priestly division,

⁹as was the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter [the sanctuary of] the temple of the Lord and burn incense [on the altar of incense].

¹⁰And all the congregation was praying outside [in the court of the temple] at the hour of the incense offering.

¹¹And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense.

¹²When Zacharias saw the angel, he was troubled and overcome with fear.

¹³But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, because your petition [in prayer] was heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John.

¹⁴You will have great joy and delight, and many will rejoice over his birth,

¹⁵for he will be great and distinguished in the sight of the Lord; and will never drink wine or liquor, and he will be filled with and empowered to act by the Holy Spirit while still in his mother's womb.

¹⁶He will turn many of the sons of Israel back [from sin] to [love and serve] the Lord their God.

¹⁷It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous [which is to seek and submit to the will of God]—in order to make ready a people [perfectly] prepared [spiritually and morally] for the Lord."

¹⁸And Zacharias said to the angel, "How will I be certain of this? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in age."

¹⁹The angel replied and said to him, "I am Gabriel; I stand and minister in the [very] presence of God, and I have been sent [by Him] to speak to you and to bring you this good news.

²⁰Listen carefully, you will be continually silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe what I told you; but my words will be fulfilled at their proper time."

²¹The people [outside in the court] were waiting for Zacharias, and were wondering about his long delay in the temple.

²²But when he did come out, he was unable to speak to them. They realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he kept making signs to them, and remained mute.

²³When his time of priestly service was finished, he returned to his home.

²⁴Now after this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant, and for five months she secluded herself completely, saying,

²⁵"This is how the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked with favor on me, to take away my disgrace among men."

²⁶Now in the sixth month [of Elizabeth's pregnancy] the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth,

²⁷to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.

²⁸And coming to her, the angel said, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you."

²⁹But she was greatly perplexed at what he said, and kept carefully considering what kind of greeting this was.

³⁰The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.

³¹Listen carefully: you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus.

³²He will be great and eminent and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;

³³and He will reign over the house of Jacob (Israel) forever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end."

³⁴Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin and have no intimacy with any man?"

³⁵Then the angel replied to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you [like a cloud]; for that reason the holy (pure, sinless) Child shall be called the Son of God.

³⁶And listen, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month.

³⁷For with God nothing [is or ever] shall be impossible."

³⁸Then Mary said, " Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word." And the angel left her.

³⁹Now at this time Mary arose and hurried to the hill country, to a city of Judah (Judea),

⁴⁰and she entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.

⁴¹When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, her baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and empowered by Him.

⁴²And she exclaimed loudly, "Blessed [worthy to be praised] are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!

⁴³And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?

⁴⁴For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.

⁴⁵And blessed [spiritually fortunate and favored by God] is she who believed and confidently trusted that there would be a fulfillment of the things that were spoken to her [by the angel sent] from the Lord."

⁴⁶And Mary said, "My soul magnifies and exalts the Lord,

⁴⁷And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

⁴⁸"For He has looked [with loving care] on the humble state of His maidservant; For behold, from now on all generations will count me blessed and happy and favored by God!

⁴⁹"For He who is mighty has done great things for me; And holy is His name [to be worshiped in His purity, majesty, and glory].

⁵⁰"And His mercy is upon generation after generation Toward those who [stand in great awe of God and] fear Him. from generation to generation.

⁵¹"He has done mighty deeds with His [powerful] arm; He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.

⁵²"He has brought down rulers from their thrones, And exalted those who were humble.

⁵³"He has filled the hungry with good things; And sent the rich away empty-handed.

⁵⁴"He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy,

⁵⁵Just as He promised to our fathers, To Abraham and to his descendants forever."

⁵⁶And Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months, and then returned to her home.

⁵⁷Now the time had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son.

⁵⁸Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown His great mercy toward her, and they were rejoicing with her.

⁵⁹It happened that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child [as required by the Law], and they intended to name him Zacharias, after his father;

⁶⁰but his mother answered, "No indeed; instead he will be called John."

⁶¹And they said to her, "None of your relatives is called by that name."

⁶²Then they made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him called.

⁶³And he asked for a writing tablet and wrote as follows, "His name is John." And they were all astonished.

⁶⁴At once Zacharias' mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began speaking, praising and blessing and thanking God.

⁶⁵Then fear came on all their neighbors; and all these things were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea.

⁶⁶All who heard these things kept them in mind, saying, "What then will this little boy turn out to be?" For the hand of the Lord was certainly with him [to bring about his birth].

⁶⁷Now Zacharias his father was filled with the Holy Spirit and empowered by Him, and he prophesied, saying,

⁶⁸"Blessed (praised, glorified) be the Lord, the God of Israel, Because He has visited us and brought redemption to His people,

⁶⁹And He has raised up a horn of salvation [a mighty and valiant Savior] for us In the house of David His servant—

⁷⁰Just as He promised by the mouth of His holy prophets from the most ancient times—

⁷¹Salvation from our enemies, And from the hand of all who hate us;

⁷²To show mercy [as He promised] to our fathers, And to remember His holy covenant [the promised blessing],

⁷³The oath which He swore to Abraham our father,

⁷⁴To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear,

⁷⁵In holiness [being set apart] and righteousness [being upright] before Him all our days.

⁷⁶"And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; For you will go on before the Lord (the Messiah) to prepare His ways;

⁷⁷To give His people the knowledge of salvation By the forgiveness of their sins,

⁷⁸Because of the tender mercy of our God, With which the Sunrise (the Messiah) from on high will dawn and visit us,

⁷⁹To shine upon those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, To guide our feet [in a straight line] into the way of peace and serenity."

⁸⁰The child continued to grow and to become strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel [as John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Messiah].

¹Then Joseph could not control himself [any longer] in front of all those who attended him, and he called out, "Have everyone leave me." So no man stood there when Joseph revealed himself to his brothers.

²Joseph wept aloud, and the Egyptians [who had just left him] heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard of it.

³Then Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?" But his brothers were speechless, for they were stunned and dismayed by [the fact that they were in] Joseph's presence.

⁴And Joseph said to his brothers, "Please come closer to me." And they approached him. And he said, "I am Joseph your brother, whom you sold into Egypt.

⁵Now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me ahead of you to save life and preserve our family.

⁶For the famine has been in the land these two years, and there are still five more years in which there will be no plowing and harvesting.

⁷God sent me [to Egypt] ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on the earth, and to keep you alive by a great escape.

⁸So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt.

⁹Hurry and go up to my father, and tell him, 'Your son Joseph says this to you: "God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay.

¹⁰You shall live in the land of Goshen [the best pasture land of Egypt], and you shall be close to me—you and your children and your grandchildren, your flocks and your herds and all you have.

¹¹There I will provide for you and sustain you, so that you and your household and all that are yours may not become impoverished, for there are still five years of famine to come."'

¹²Look! Your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see, that I am speaking to you [personally in your language and not through an interpreter].

¹³Now you must tell my father of all my splendor and power in Egypt, and of everything that you have seen; and you must hurry and bring my father down here."

¹⁴Then he embraced his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, and Benjamin wept on his neck.

¹⁵He kissed all his brothers and wept on them, and afterward his brothers talked with him.

¹⁶When the news was heard in Pharaoh's house that Joseph's brothers had come, it pleased Pharaoh and his servants.

¹⁷Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Tell your brothers, 'Do this: load your animals and return to the land of Canaan [without delay],

¹⁸and get your father and your households and come to me. I will give you the best of the land of Egypt and you will eat the fat (the finest produce) of the land.'

¹⁹Now you [brothers of Joseph] are ordered [by Pharaoh], 'Do this: take wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones and for your wives, and bring your father and come.

²⁰Do not be concerned with your goods, for the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.'"

²¹Then the sons of Israel did so; and Joseph gave them wagons according to the command of Pharaoh, and gave them provisions for the journey.

²²To each of them Joseph gave changes of clothing, but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver and five changes of clothing.

²³To his father he sent the following: ten male donkeys loaded with the good things of Egypt, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and provision for his father [to supply all who were with him] on the journey.

²⁴So he sent his brothers away, and as they departed, he said to them, "See that you do not quarrel on the journey [about how to explain this to our father]."

²⁵So they went up from Egypt, and came to the land of Canaan to Jacob their father,

²⁶and they said to him, "Joseph is still alive, and indeed he is ruler over all the land of Egypt." But Jacob was stunned and his heart almost stopped beating, because he did not believe them.

²⁷When they told him everything that Joseph had said to them, and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of their father Jacob revived.

²⁸And Israel (Jacob) said, "It is enough! Joseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die."

¹This is the third time that I am visiting you. Every fact shall be sustained and confirmed by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

²I have already warned those who have sinned in the past and all the rest as well, and I warn them now even though I am absent [from you] as I did when I was with you the second time, that if I come back I will not spare anyone,

³since you seek [forensic] proof that Christ is speaking in and through me. He is not weak or ineffective in dealing with you, but powerful within you.

⁴For even though He was crucified in weakness [yielding Himself], yet He lives [resurrected] by the power of God [His Father]. For we too are weak in Him [as He was humanly weak], yet we are alive and well [in fellowship] with Him because of the power of God directed toward you.

⁵Test and evaluate yourselves to see whether you are in the faith and living your lives as [committed] believers. Examine yourselves [not me]! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves [by an ongoing experience] that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test and are rejected as counterfeit?

⁶But I hope you will acknowledge that we do not fail the test nor are we to be rejected.

⁷But I pray to God that you may do nothing wrong. Not so that we [and our teaching] may appear to be approved, but that you may continue doing what is right, even though we [by comparison] may seem to have failed.

⁸For we can do nothing against the truth, but only for the truth [and the gospel—the good news of salvation].

⁹We are glad when we are weak [since God's power comes freely through us], but you [by comparison] are strong. We also pray for this, that you be made complete [fully restored, growing and maturing in godly character and spirit—pleasing your heavenly Father by the life you live].

¹⁰For this reason I am writing these things while absent from you, so that when I come, I will not need to deal severely [with you], in my use of the authority which the Lord has given me [to be used] for building you up and not for tearing you down.

¹¹Finally, believers, rejoice! Be made complete [be what you should be], be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace [enjoy the spiritual well-being experienced by believers who walk closely with God]; and the God of love and peace [the source of lovingkindness] will be with you.

¹²Greet one another with a holy kiss.

¹³All God's people greet you.

¹⁴The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

¹"To the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Ephesus write: "These are the words of the One who holds [firmly] the seven stars [which are the angels or messengers of the seven churches] in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands (the seven churches):

²'I know your deeds and your toil, and your patient endurance, and that you cannot tolerate those who are evil, and have tested and critically appraised those who call themselves apostles (special messengers, personally chosen representatives, of Christ), and [in fact] are not, and have found them to be liars and impostors;

³and [I know that] you [who believe] are enduring patiently and are bearing up for My name's sake, and that you have not grown weary [of being faithful to the truth].

⁴But I have this [charge] against you, that you have left your first love [you have lost the depth of love that you first had for Me].

⁵So remember the heights from which you have fallen, and repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, your sinful behavior—seek God's will] and do the works you did at first [when you first knew Me]; otherwise, I will visit you and remove your lampstand (the church, its impact) from its place—unless you repent.

⁶Yet you have this [to your credit], that you hate the works and corrupt teachings of the Nicolaitans [that mislead and delude the people], which I also hate.

⁷He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God], I will grant [the privilege] to eat [the fruit] from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.'

⁸"And to the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Smyrna write: "These are the words of the First and the Last [absolute Deity, the Son of God] who died and came to life [again]:

⁹'I know your suffering and your poverty (but you are rich), and how you are blasphemed and slandered by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan [they are Jews only by blood, and do not believe and truly honor the God whom they claim to worship].

¹⁰Fear nothing that you are about to suffer. Be aware that the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested [in your faith], and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful to the point of death [if you must die for your faith], and I will give you the crown [consisting] of life.

¹¹He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God] will not be hurt by the second death ( the lake of fire).'

¹²"And to the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Pergamum write: "These are the words of Him who has and wields the sharp two-edged sword [in judgment]:

¹³'I know where you dwell, [a place] where Satan sits enthroned. Yet you are holding fast to My name, and you did not deny My faith even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed (martyred) among you, where Satan dwells.

¹⁴But I have a few things against you, because you have there some [among you] who are holding to the [corrupt] teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, [enticing them] to eat things that had been sacrificed to idols and to commit [acts of sexual] immorality.

¹⁵You also have some who in the same way are holding to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.

¹⁶Therefore repent [change your inner self—your old way of thinking, your sinful behavior—seek God's will]; or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war and fight against them with the sword of My mouth [in judgment].

¹⁷He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God], to him I will give [the privilege of eating] some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone with a new name engraved on the stone which no one knows except the one who receives it.'

¹⁸"And to the angel (divine messenger) of the church in Thyatira write: "These are the words of the Son of God, who has eyes [that flash] like a flame of fire [in righteous judgment], and whose feet are like burnished [white-hot] bronze:

¹⁹'I know your deeds, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your last deeds are more numerous and greater than the first.

²⁰But I have this [charge] against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess [claiming to be inspired], and she teaches and misleads My bond-servants so that they commit [acts of sexual] immorality and eat food sacrificed to idols.

²¹I gave her time to repent [to change her inner self and her sinful way of thinking], but she has no desire to repent of her immorality and refuses to do so.

²² Listen carefully, I will throw her on a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her [I will bring] into great anguish, unless they repent of her deeds.

²³And I will kill her children (followers) with pestilence [thoroughly annihilating them], and all the churches will know [without any doubt] that I am He who searches the minds and hearts [the innermost thoughts, purposes]; and I will give to each one of you [a reward or punishment] according to your deeds.

²⁴But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not explored and known the depths of Satan, as they call them—I place no other burden on you,

²⁵except to hold tightly to what you have until I come.

²⁶And he who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God] and he who keeps My deeds [doing things that please Me] until the [very] end, to him I will give authority and power over the nations;

²⁷and he shall shepherd and rule them with a rod of iron, as the earthen pots are broken in pieces, as I also have received authority [and power to rule them] from My Father;

²⁸and I will give him the Morning Star.

²⁹He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches.'

¹There is a season (a time appointed) for everything and a time for every delight and event or purpose under heaven—

²A time to be born and a time to die; A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted.

³A time to kill and a time to heal; A time to tear down and a time to build up.

⁴A time to weep and a time to laugh; A time to mourn and a time to dance.

⁵A time to throw away stones and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing.

⁶A time to search and a time to give up as lost; A time to keep and a time to throw away.

⁷A time to tear apart and a time to sew together; A time to keep silent and a time to speak.

⁸A time to love and a time to hate; A time for war and a time for peace.

⁹What profit is there for the worker from that in which he labors?

¹⁰I have seen the task which God has given to the sons of men with which to occupy themselves.

¹¹He has made everything beautiful and appropriate in its time. He has also planted eternity [a sense of divine purpose] in the human heart [a mysterious longing which nothing under the sun can satisfy, except God]—yet man cannot find out (comprehend, grasp) what God has done (His overall plan) from the beginning to the end.

¹²I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good as long as they live;

¹³and also that every man should eat and drink and see and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God.

¹⁴I know that whatever God does, it endures forever; nothing can be added to it nor can anything be taken from it, for God does it so that men will fear and worship Him [with awe-filled reverence, knowing that He is God].

¹⁵That which is has already been, and that which will be has already been, for God seeks what has passed by [so that history repeats itself].

¹⁶Moreover, I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness, and in the place of righteousness there is wickedness.

¹⁷I said to myself, "God will judge both the righteous and the wicked," for there is a time [appointed] for every matter and for every deed.

¹⁸I said to myself regarding the sons of men, "God is surely testing them in order for them to see that [by themselves, without God] they are [only] animals."

¹⁹For the [earthly] fate of the sons of men and the fate of animals is the same. As one dies, so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath and there is no preeminence or advantage for man [in and of himself] over an animal, for all is vanity.

²⁰All go to the same place. All came from the dust and all return to the dust.

²¹Who knows if the spirit of man ascends upward and the spirit of the animal descends downward to the earth?

²²So I have seen that there is nothing better than that a man should be happy in his own works and activities, for that is his portion (share). For who will bring him [back] to see what will happen after he is gone?

¹To the Chief Musician; set to the [tune of] "Lilies." A Psalm of the sons of Korah. A skillful song, or a didactic or reflective poem. A Song of Love. My heart overflows with a good theme; I address my psalm to the King. My tongue is like the pen of a skillful writer.

²You are fairer than the sons of men; Graciousness is poured upon Your lips; Therefore God has blessed You forever.

³Strap Your sword on Your thigh, O mighty One, In Your splendor and Your majesty!

⁴And in Your majesty ride on triumphantly For the cause of truth and humility and righteousness; Let Your right hand guide You to awesome things.

⁵Your arrows are sharp; The peoples (nations) fall under You; Your arrows pierce the hearts of the King's enemies.

⁶Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; The scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Your kingdom.

⁷You have loved righteousness (virtue, morality, justice) and hated wickedness; Therefore God, your God, has anointed You Above Your companions with the oil of jubilation.

⁸All Your garments are fragrant with myrrh, aloes and cassia; From ivory palaces stringed instruments have made You glad.

⁹Kings' daughters are among Your noble ladies; At Your right hand stands the queen in gold from Ophir.

¹⁰Hear, O daughter, consider and incline your ear [to my instruction]: Forget your people and your father's house;

¹¹Then the King will desire your beauty; Because He is your Lord, bow down and honor Him.

¹²The daughter of Tyre will come with a gift; The rich among the people will seek your favor.

¹³Glorious is the King's daughter within [the palace]; Her robe is interwoven with gold.

¹⁴She will be brought to the King in embroidered garments; The virgins, her companions who follow her, Will be brought to You.

¹⁵With gladness and rejoicing will they be led; They will enter into the King's palace.

¹⁶In place of your fathers will be your sons; You shall make princes in all the land.

¹⁷I will make Your name to be remembered in all generations; Therefore the peoples will praise and give You thanks forever and ever.

¹The wise woman builds her house [on a foundation of godly precepts, and her household thrives], But the foolish one [who lacks spiritual insight] tears it down with her own hands [by ignoring godly principles].

²He who walks in uprightness [reverently] fears the LORD [and obeys and worships Him with profound respect], But he who is devious in his ways despises Him.

³In the mouth of the [arrogant] fool [who rejects God] is a rod for his back, But the lips of the wise [when they speak with godly wisdom] will protect them.

⁴Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, But much revenue [because of good crops] comes by the strength of the ox.

⁵A faithful and trustworthy witness will not lie, But a false witness speaks lies.

⁶A scoffer seeks wisdom and finds none [for his ears are closed to wisdom], But knowledge is easy for one who understands [because he is willing to learn].

⁷Leave the presence of a [shortsighted] fool, For you will not find knowledge or hear godly wisdom from his lips.

⁸The wisdom of the sensible is to understand his way, But the foolishness of [shortsighted] fools is deceit.

⁹Fools mock sin [but sin mocks the fools], But among the upright there is good will and the favor and blessing of God.

¹⁰The heart knows its own bitterness, And no stranger shares its joy.

¹¹The house of the wicked will be overthrown, But the tent of the upright will thrive.

¹²There is a way which seems right to a man and appears straight before him, But its end is the way of death.

¹³Even in laughter the heart may be in pain, And the end of joy may be grief.

¹⁴The backslider in heart will have his fill with his own [rotten] ways, But a good man will be satisfied with his ways [the godly thought and action which his heart pursues and in which he delights].

¹⁵The naive or inexperienced person [is easily misled and] believes every word he hears, But the prudent man [is discreet and astute and] considers well where he is going.

¹⁶A wise man suspects danger and cautiously avoids evil, But the fool is arrogant and careless.

¹⁷A quick-tempered man acts foolishly and without self-control, And a man of wicked schemes is hated.

¹⁸The naive [are unsophisticated and easy to exploit and] inherit foolishness, But the sensible [are thoughtful and far-sighted and] are crowned with knowledge.

¹⁹The evil will bow down before the good, And the wicked [will bow down] at the gates of the righteous.

²⁰The poor man is hated even by his neighbor, But those who love the rich are many.

²¹He who despises his neighbor sins [against God and his fellow man], But happy [blessed and favored by God] is he who is gracious and merciful to the poor.

²²Do they not go astray who devise evil and wander from the way of righteousness? But kindness and truth will be to those who devise good.

²³In all labor there is profit, But mere talk leads only to poverty.

²⁴The crown of the wise is their wealth [of wisdom], But the foolishness of [closed-minded] fools is [nothing but] folly.

²⁵A truthful witness saves lives, But he who speaks lies is treacherous.

²⁶In the [reverent] fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, And His children will [always] have a place of refuge.

²⁷The [reverent] fear of the LORD [that leads to obedience and worship] is a fountain of life, So that one may avoid the snares of death.

²⁸In a multitude of people is a king's glory, But in a lack of people is a [pretentious] prince's ruin.

²⁹He who is slow to anger has great understanding [and profits from his self-control], But he who is quick-tempered exposes and exalts his foolishness [for all to see].

³⁰A calm and peaceful and tranquil heart is life and health to the body, But passion and envy are like rottenness to the bones.

³¹He who oppresses the poor taunts and insults his Maker, But he who is kind and merciful and gracious to the needy honors Him.

³²The wicked is overthrown through his wrongdoing, But the righteous has hope and confidence and a refuge [with God] even in death.

³³Wisdom rests [silently] in the heart of one who has understanding, But what is in the heart of [shortsighted] fools is made known.

³⁴Righteousness [moral and spiritual integrity and virtuous character] exalts a nation, But sin is a disgrace to any people.

³⁵The king's favor and good will are toward a servant who acts wisely and discreetly, But his anger and wrath are toward him who acts shamefully.

¹Now the men of Israel had sworn [an oath] at Mizpah, "None of us shall give his daughter in marriage to [a man of] Benjamin."

²So the people came to Bethel and sat there before God until evening, and lifted up their voices and wept bitterly.

³They said, "O LORD, God of Israel, why has this come about in Israel, that there should be today one tribe missing from Israel?"

⁴And the next day the people got up early and built an altar there and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.

⁵Then the sons of Israel said, "Which one from all the tribes of Israel did not come up in the assembly to the LORD?" For they had taken a great oath concerning him who did not come up to the LORD at Mizpah, saying, "He shall certainly be put to death."

⁶And the sons of Israel felt sorry [and had compassion] for their brother Benjamin and said, "One tribe has been cut off from Israel today.

⁷What shall we do for wives for those who are left, since we have sworn [an oath] by the LORD that we will not give them any of our daughters as wives?"

⁸And they said, "Which one is there of the tribes from Israel that did not come up to Mizpah to the LORD?" And behold, [it was discovered that] no one had come to the camp from Jabesh-gilead, to the assembly.

⁹For when the people were assembled, behold, there was not one of the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead there.

¹⁰And the congregation sent twelve thousand of the most courageous men there, and commanded them saying, "Go and strike the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead with the sword, including the women and the children.

¹¹And this is the thing that you shall do; you shall utterly destroy every male and every woman who is not a virgin."

¹²And they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead four hundred young virgins who had not known a man intimately; and they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.

¹³Then the whole congregation sent word to the [surviving] sons of Benjamin who were at the rock of Rimmon, and proclaimed peace to them.

¹⁴So [the survivors of] Benjamin returned at that time, and they gave them the women whom they had kept alive from the women of Jabesh-gilead; but there were not enough [to provide wives] for them.

¹⁵And the people were sorry [and had compassion] for [the survivors of the tribe of] Benjamin because the LORD had made a gap in the tribes of Israel.

¹⁶Then the elders of the congregation said, "What shall we do for wives for those [men] who are left, since the women of Benjamin have been destroyed?"

¹⁷They said, "There must be an inheritance for the survivors of Benjamin, so that a tribe will not be wiped out from Israel.

¹⁸But we cannot give them wives from our daughters." For the sons of Israel had sworn [an oath], "Cursed is he who gives a wife to [a man from the tribe of] Benjamin."

¹⁹So they said, "Listen, there is the yearly feast of the LORD at Shiloh, which is on the north side of Bethel, on the east side of the highway that goes up from Bethel to Shechem, and on the south side of Lebonah."

²⁰So they instructed the sons of Benjamin, saying, "Go, set an ambush in the vineyards,

²¹and watch; if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in the dances, then you shall come out of the vineyards and each of you shall catch his wife from the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of [the tribe of] Benjamin.

²²When their fathers or their brothers come to complain to us, we shall say to them, 'Give them to us voluntarily, because we did not take a wife for each man of Benjamin in battle, nor did you give wives to them, for that would have made you guilty [of breaking your oath].'"

²³So the sons of [the tribe of] Benjamin did as instructed and took wives according to their number, from the dancers whom they carried away. Then they went and returned to their inheritance, and rebuilt the towns and lived in them.

²⁴The sons of Israel departed from there at that time, each man to his tribe and family, and each man went from there to his inheritance.

²⁵In those days [when the judges governed] there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes.

¹This is what the LORD says to His anointed, to Cyrus [king of Persia], Whose right hand I have held To subdue nations before him, And I will ungird the loins of kings [disarming them]; To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:

²"I will go before you and level the mountains; I will shatter the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron.

³"I will give you the treasures of darkness [the hoarded treasures] And the hidden riches of secret places, So that you may know that it is I, The LORD, the God of Israel, who calls you (Cyrus the Great) by your name.

⁴"For the sake of Jacob My servant, And of Israel My chosen, I have also called you by your name; I have given you an honorable name Though you have not known Me.

⁵"I am the LORD, and there is no one else; There is no God except Me. I will embrace and arm you, though you have not known Me,

⁶That people may know from the rising to the setting of the sun [the world over] That there is no one except Me. I am the LORD, and there is no other,

⁷The One forming light and creating darkness, Causing peace and creating disaster; I am the LORD who does all these things.

⁸"Rain down, O heavens, from above, Let the clouds pour down righteousness [all the blessings of God]; Let the earth open up, let salvation bear fruit, And righteousness spring up with it; I, the LORD, have created it.

⁹"Woe (judgment is coming) to him who quarrels with his Maker— A [worthless] piece of broken pottery among other broken pieces [equally worthless]! Shall the clay say to the potter, 'What are you doing?' Or does the thing say, 'He has no hands'?

¹⁰"Woe (judgment is coming) to him who says to a father, 'What are you fathering?' Or to a woman, 'With what are you in labor?'"

¹¹For the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker says this, "Ask Me about the things to come concerning My sons, And give Me orders concerning the work of My hands.

¹²"I made the earth and created man upon it. My hands, stretched out the heavens, And I commanded all their host.

¹³"I have stirred up Cyrus and put him into action in righteousness [to accomplish My purpose] And I will make all his ways smooth; He will build My city and let My exiles go, Without any payment or reward," says the LORD of hosts.

¹⁴For this is what the LORD says, "The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush (ancient Ethiopia) And the Sabeans, men of stature, Will come over to you and they will be yours; They will walk behind you, in chains [of subjection to you] they will come over, And they will bow down before you; They will make supplication to you, [humbly and earnestly] saying, 'Most certainly God is with you, and there is no other, No other God [besides Him].'"

¹⁵Truly, You are a God who hides Himself, O God of Israel, Savior!

¹⁶They will be put to shame and also humiliated, all of them; They who make idols will go away together in humiliation.

¹⁷Israel has been saved by the LORD With an everlasting salvation; You will not be put to shame or humiliated for all eternity.

¹⁸For the LORD, who created the heavens(He is God, who formed the earth and made it; He established it and did not create it to be a wasteland, but formed it to be inhabited) says this, "I am the LORD, and there is no one else.

¹⁹"I have not spoken in secret, In a corner of a land of darkness; I did not say to the descendants of Jacob, 'Seek Me in vain [with no benefit for yourselves].' I, the LORD, speak righteousness [the truth—trustworthy, a straightforward correlation between deeds and words], Declaring things that are upright.

²⁰"Assemble yourselves and come; Come together, you survivors of the nations! They are ignorant, Who carry around their wooden idols [in religious processions or into battle] And keep on praying to a god that cannot save them.

²¹"Declare and present your defense of idols; Indeed, let them consult together. Who announced this [rise of Cyrus and his conquests] long before it happened? Who declared it long ago? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, A [consistently and uncompromisingly] just and righteous God and a Savior; There is none except Me.

²²"Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other.

²³"I have sworn [an oath] by Myself, The word is gone out of My mouth in righteousness And shall not return, That to Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear [allegiance].

²⁴"It shall be said of Me, 'Only in the LORD are righteousness and strength.' To Him people will come, And all who were angry at Him will be put to shame.

²⁵"In the LORD all the offspring of Israel Will be justified (declared free of guilt) and will glory [in God]."

¹Now after Paul and Silas had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.

²And Paul entered the synagogue, as was his custom, and for three Sabbaths he engaged in discussion and friendly debate with them from the Scriptures,

³explaining and pointing out [scriptural evidence] that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and rise from the dead, and saying, "This Jesus, whom I am proclaiming to you, is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)."

⁴And some of them were persuaded to believe and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large number of the God-fearing Greeks and many of the leading women.

⁵But the [unbelieving] Jews became jealous, and taking along some thugs from [the lowlifes in] the market place, they formed a mob and set the city in an uproar; and then attacking Jason's house tried to bring Paul and Silas out to the people.

⁶But when they failed to find them, they dragged Jason and some brothers before the city authorities, shouting, "These men who have turned the world upside down have come here too;

⁷and Jason has welcomed them [into his house and protected them]! And they all are saying things contrary to the decrees of Caesar, [actually] claiming that there is another king, Jesus."

⁸They stirred up the crowd and the city authorities who heard these things.

⁹And when they had taken security (bail) from Jason and the others, they let them go.

¹⁰The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea; and when they arrived, they entered the Jewish synagogue.

¹¹Now these people were more noble and open-minded than those in Thessalonica, so they received the message [of salvation through faith in the Christ] with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

¹²As a result many of them became believers, together with a number of prominent Greek women and men.

¹³But when the Jews of Thessalonica learned that the word of God [concerning eternal salvation through faith in Christ] had also been preached by Paul at Berea, they came there too, agitating and disturbing the crowds.

¹⁴So at that time the brothers immediately sent Paul away to go as far as the sea; but Silas and Timothy remained there [at Berea].

¹⁵Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens; and [after] receiving instructions [from Paul] for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible, they left.

¹⁶Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was greatly angered when he saw that the city was full of idols.

¹⁷So he had discussions in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles, and in the market place day after day with any who happened to be there.

¹⁸And some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to engage in conversation with him. And some said, "What could this idle babbler [with his eclectic, scrap-heap learning] have in mind to say?" Others said, "He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities"—because he was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.

¹⁹They took him and brought him to the Areopagus (Hill of Ares, the Greek god of war), saying, "May we know what this [strange] new teaching is which you are proclaiming?

²⁰For you are bringing some startling and strange things to our ears; so we want to know what they mean."

²¹(Now all the Athenians and the foreigners visiting there used to spend their [leisure] time in nothing other than telling or hearing something new.)

²²So Paul, standing in the center of the Areopagus, said: "Men of Athens, I observe [with every turn I make throughout the city] that you are very religious and devout in all respects.

²³Now as I was going along and carefully looking at your objects of worship, I came to an altar with this inscription: 'TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.' Therefore what you already worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.

²⁴The God who created the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands;

²⁵nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, because it is He who gives to all [people] life and breath and all things.

²⁶And He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their lands and territories.

²⁷This was so that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grasp for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.

²⁸For in Him we live and move and exist [that is, in Him we actually have our being], as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we also are His children.'

²⁹So then, being God's children, we should not think that the Divine Nature (deity) is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination or skill of man.

³⁰Therefore God overlooked and disregarded the former ages of ignorance; but now He commands all people everywhere to repent [that is, to change their old way of thinking, to regret their past sins, and to seek God's purpose for their lives],

³¹because He has set a day when He will judge the inhabited world in righteousness by a Man whom He has appointed and destined for that task, and He has provided credible proof to everyone by raising Him from the dead."

³²Now when they heard [the term] resurrection from the dead, some mocked and sneered; but others said, "We will hear from you again about this matter."

³³So Paul left them.

³⁴But some men joined him and believed; among them were Dionysius, [a judge] of the Council of Areopagus, and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.