Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not become discouraged,

²saying, “In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect any person.

³Now there was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me justice against myopponent.’

⁴For a while he was unwilling; but later he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect any person,

⁵yet because this widow is bothering me, I will give her justice; otherwiseby continually coming she will wear me out.’ ”

⁶And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unrighteous judge *said;

⁷now, will God not bring about justice for His elect who cry out to Him dayand night, and will He delay long for them?

⁸I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He findfaith on the earth?”

⁹Now He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt:

¹⁰“Two men went up into thetemple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

¹¹The Pharisee stood and began praying this in regard to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, crooked, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.

¹²I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’

¹³But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to raise his eyes toward heaven, but was beating his chest, saying, ‘God, bemerciful to me, the sinner!’

¹⁴I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other one; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

¹⁵Now they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He would touch them; but when the disciples saw it, they began rebuking them.

¹⁶But Jesus called for the little ones, saying, “Allow the children to come to Me, and do notforbid them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

¹⁷Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.”

¹⁸A ruler questioned Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

¹⁹But Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Megood? No one isgood except God alone.

²⁰You know the commandments, ‘DO NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, DO NOT MURDER, DO NOT STEAL, DO NOT GIVE FALSE TESTIMONY, HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER.’ ”

²¹And he said, “All these things I have kept since my youth.”

²²Now when Jesus heard this, He said to him, “One thing you still lack; sell all that you possess and distribute the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

²³But when he had heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely wealthy.

²⁴And Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!

²⁵For it is easier for a camel togo through the eye of a needle, than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God!”

²⁶Those who heard Him said, “And so who can be saved?”

²⁷But He said, “The things that are impossible with people are possible with God.”

²⁸Peter said, “Behold, we have left our own homes and followed You.”

²⁹And He said to them, “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house, or wife, or brothers, or parents, or children for the sake of the kingdom of God,

³⁰who will not receive many times as much at this time, and in the age to come, eternal life.”

³¹Now He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all the things that have been written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished.

³²For He will behanded over to the Gentiles, and will be ridiculed, and abused, and spit upon,

³³and after they have flogged Him, they will kill Him; and on the third day He will rise.”

³⁴The disciples understood none of these things, and the meaning of this statement was hidden from them, and they did not comprehend the things that were said.

³⁵Now as Jesus was approaching Jericho, a man who was blind was sitting by the road, begging.

³⁶But when he heard a crowd going by, he began inquiring what this was.

³⁷They told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.

³⁸And he called out, saying, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

³⁹Those who led the way were sternly telling him to be quiet; but he kept crying out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

⁴⁰And Jesus stopped and commanded that he be brought to Him; and when he came near, He asked him,

⁴¹“What do you want Me to do for you?” And he said, “Lord, I want to regain my sight!”

⁴²And Jesus said to him, “Regain your sight; your faith hasmade you well.”

⁴³And immediately he regained his sight and began following Him, glorifying God; and when all the people saw it, they gave praise to God.

¹Now the LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,

²“This month shall be the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year for you.

³Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth of this month they are, each one, to take a lamb for themselves, according to the fathers’ households, a lamb for each household.

⁴Now if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his neighbor nearest to his house are to take one according to the number of persons in them; in proportion to what each one should eat, you are to divide the lamb.

⁵Your lamb shall be an unblemished male a year old; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats.

⁶You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month, then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel is to slaughter it at twilight.

⁷Moreover, they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses in which they eat it.

⁸They shall eat the flesh that same night, roasted with fire, and they shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.

⁹Do not eat any of it raw or boiled at all with water, but rather roasted with fire, both its head and its legs along with its entrails.

¹⁰And you shall not leave any of it over until morning, but whatever is left of it until morning, you shall completely burn with fire.

¹¹Now you shall eat it in this way: with your garment belted around your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in a hurry—it is the LORD’S Passover.

¹²For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and fatally strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the human firstborn to animals; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments—I am the LORD.

¹³The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will come upon you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

¹⁴‘Now this day shall be a memorial to you, and you shall celebrate it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations you are to celebrate it as a permanent ordinance.

¹⁵For seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, but on the first day you shall remove dough with yeast from your houses; for whoever eats anything with yeast from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel.

¹⁶And on the first day you shall have a holy assembly, and another holy assembly on the seventh day; no work at all shall be done on them, except for what must be eaten by every person—that alone may be prepared by you.

¹⁷You shall also keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your multitudes out of the land of Egypt; therefore you shall keep this day throughout your generations as a permanent ordinance.

¹⁸In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the month at evening.

¹⁹For seven days there shall be no dough with yeast found in your houses; for whoever eats anything with yeast, that person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a stranger or a native of the land.

²⁰You shall not eat anything with yeast; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.’ ”

²¹Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and take for yourselves lambs according to your families, and slaughter the Passover lamb.

²²And you shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood which is in the basin, and apply some of the blood that is in the basin to the lintel and the two doorposts; and none of you shall go outside the door of his house until morning.

²³For the LORD will pass through to strike the Egyptians; but when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to come in to your houses to strike you.

²⁴And you shall keep this event as an ordinance for you and your children forever.

²⁵When you enter the land which the LORD will give you, as He has promised, you shall keep this rite.

²⁶And when your children say to you, ‘What does this rite mean to you?’

²⁷then you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to the LORD because He passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians, but spared our homes.’ ” And the people bowed low and worshiped.

²⁸Then the sons of Israel went and did so; just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

²⁹Now it came about at midnight that the LORD struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of cattle.

³⁰And Pharaoh got up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians, and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was no home where there was not someone dead.

³¹Then he called for Moses and Aaron at night and said, “Rise up, get out from among my people, both you and the sons of Israel; and go, worship the LORD, as you have said.

³²Take both your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and go, and bless me also.”

³³The Egyptians urged the people, to send them out of the land in a hurry, for they said, “We will all be dead.”

³⁴So the people took their dough before it was leavened, with their kneading bowls bound up in the clothes on their shoulders.

³⁵Now the sons of Israel had done according to the word of Moses, for they had requested from the Egyptians articles of silver and articles of gold, and clothing;

³⁶and the LORD had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have their request. Therefore they plundered the Egyptians.

³⁷Now the sons of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, aside from children.

³⁸A mixed multitude also went up with them, along with flocks and herds, a very large number of livestock.

³⁹And they baked the dough which they had brought out of Egypt into cakes of unleavened bread. For it had no yeast, since they were driven out of Egypt and could not delay, nor had they prepared any provisions for themselves.

⁴⁰Now the time that the sons of Israel had lived in Egypt was 430 years.

⁴¹And at the end of 430 years, on this very day, all the multitudes of the LORD departed from the land of Egypt.

⁴²It is a night to be observed for the LORD, for having brought them out of the land of Egypt; this night is for the LORD, to be observed by all the sons of Israel throughout their generations.

⁴³And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the ordinance of the Passover: no foreigner is to eat it;

⁴⁴but as for every slave that someone has purchased with money, after you have circumcised him, then he may eat it.

⁴⁵A stranger or a hired worker shall not eat it.

⁴⁶It is to be eaten in a single house; you are not to bring any of the meat outside of the house, nor are you to break any bone of it.

⁴⁷All the congregation of Israel are to celebrate this.

⁴⁸But if a stranger resides with you and celebrates the Passover to the LORD, all of his males are to be circumcised, and then he shall come near to celebrate it; and he shall be like a native of the land. But no uncircumcised male may eat it.

⁴⁹The same law shall apply to the native as to the stranger who resides among you.”

⁵⁰Then all the sons of Israel did so; they did just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron.

⁵¹And on that very day the LORD brought the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt according to their multitudes.

¹Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

²To the saints and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

³We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,

⁴since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints;

⁵because of the hope reserved for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel

⁶which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth;

⁷just as you learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful servant of Christ on our behalf,

⁸and he also informed us of your love in the Spirit.

⁹For this reason we also, since the day we heard about it, have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,

¹⁰so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;

¹¹strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all perseverance and patience; joyously

¹²giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

¹³For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,

¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

¹⁵He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation:

¹⁶for by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominions, or rulers, or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.

¹⁷He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

¹⁸He is also the head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.

¹⁹For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him,

²⁰and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.

²¹And although you were previously alienated and hostile in attitude, engaged in evil deeds,

²²yet He has now reconciled you in His body of flesh through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach—

²³if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.

²⁴Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am supplementing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions in behalf of His body, which is the church.

²⁵I was made a minister of this church according to the commission from God granted to me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God,

²⁶that is, the mystery which had been hidden from the past ages and generations, but now has been revealed to His saints,

²⁷to whom God willed to make known what the wealth of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles is, the mystery that is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

²⁸We proclaim Him, admonishing every person and teaching every person with all wisdom, so that we may present every person complete in Christ.

²⁹For this purpose I also labor, striving according to His power which works mightily within me.

¹After these things I heard something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Hallelujah! Salvation, glory, and power belong to our God,

²BECAUSE HIS JUDGMENTS ARE TRUE AND RIGHTEOUS; for He has judged the great prostitute who was corrupting the earth with her sexual immorality, and HE HAS AVENGED THE BLOOD OF HIS BOND-SERVANTS ON HER.”

³And a second time they said, “Hallelujah! HER SMOKE RISES FOREVER AND EVER.”

⁴And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne, saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!”

⁵And a voice came from the throne, saying, “Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.”

⁶Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters, and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.

⁷Let’s rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, because the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His bride has prepared herself.”

⁸It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

⁹Then he *said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.’ ” And he *said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

¹⁰Then I fell at his feet to worship him. But he *said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brothers and sisters who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

¹¹And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war.

¹²His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many crowns; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself.

¹³He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.

¹⁴And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses.

¹⁵From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty.

¹⁶And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written: “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

¹⁷Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in midheaven, “Come, assemble for the great feast of God,

¹⁸so that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, both free and slaves, and small and great.”

¹⁹And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies, assembled to make war against Him who sat on the horse, and against His army.

²⁰And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire, which burns with brimstone.

²¹And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh.

¹“Oh that you were like a brother to me Who nursed at my mother’s breasts. If I found you outdoors, I would kiss you; No one would despise me, either.

²I would lead you and bring you Into the house of my mother, who used to instruct me; I would give you spiced wine to drink from the juice of my pomegranates.

³Let his left hand be under my head, And his right hand embrace me.”

⁴“Swear to me, you daughters of Jerusalem: Do not disturb or awaken my love Until she pleases.”

⁵“Who is this coming up from the wilderness, Leaning on her beloved?” “Beneath the apple tree I awakened you; There your mother went into labor with you, There she was in labor and gave birth to you.

⁶Put me like a seal over your heart, Like a seal on your arm. For love is as strong as death, Jealousy is as severe as Sheol; Its flames are flames of fire, The flame of the LORD.

⁷Many waters cannot quench love, Nor will rivers flood over it; If a man were to give all the riches of his house for love, It would be utterly despised.”

⁸“We have a little sister, And she has no breasts; What shall we do for our sister On the day when she is spoken for?

⁹If she is a wall, We will build on her a battlement of silver; But if she is a door, We will barricade her with planks of cedar.”

¹⁰“I was a wall, and my breasts were like towers; Then I became in his eyes as one who finds peace.

¹¹Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-hamon; He entrusted the vineyard to caretakers. Each one was to bring a thousand shekels of silver for its fruit.

¹²My very own vineyard is at my disposal; The thousand shekels are for you, Solomon, And two hundred are for those who take care of its fruit.”

¹³“You who sit in the gardens: My companions are listening for your voice— Let me hear it!”

¹⁴“Hurry, my beloved, And be like a gazelle or a young stag On the mountains of balsam trees!”

¹My soul waits in silence for God alone; From Him comes my salvation.

²He alone is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I will not be greatly shaken.

³How long will you attack a man, That you may murder him, all of you, Like a leaning wall, like a tottering fence?

⁴They have planned only to thrust him down from his high position; They delight in falsehood; They bless with their mouth, But inwardly they curse. Selah

⁵My soul, wait in silence for God alone, For my hope is from Him.

⁶He alone is my rock and my salvation, My refuge; I will not be shaken.

⁷My salvation and my glory rest on God; The rock of my strength, my refuge is in God.

⁸Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your hearts before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah

⁹People of low standing are only breath, and people of rank are a lie; In the balances they go up. Together they are lighter than breath.

¹⁰Do not trust in oppression, And do not vainly rely on robbery; If wealth increases, do not set your heart on it.

¹¹God has spoken once; Twice I have heard this: That power belongs to God;

¹²And faithfulness is Yours, Lord, For You reward a person according to his work.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

¹Saul was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for forty-two years over Israel.

²Now Saul chose for himself three thousand men of Israel, of whom two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, while a thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah of Benjamin. But he sent the rest of the people away, each to his tent.

³And Jonathan attacked the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul blew the trumpet throughout the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear!”

⁴And all Israel heard the news that Saul had attacked the garrison of the Philistines, and also that Israel had become repulsive to the Philistines. Then the people were summoned to Saul at Gilgal.

⁵Now the Philistines assembled to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen, and people like the sand which is on the seashore in abundance; and they came up and camped in Michmash, east of Beth-aven.

⁶When the men of Israel saw that they were in trouble (for the people were hard-pressed), then the people kept themselves hidden in caves, in crevices, in cliffs, in crypts, and in pits.

⁷And some of the Hebrews crossed the Jordan into the land of Gad and Gilead. But as for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him, trembling.

⁸Now he waited for seven days, until the appointed time that Samuel had set, but Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattering from him.

⁹So Saul said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings.” And he offered the burnt offering.

¹⁰But as soon as he finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him and to greet him.

¹¹But Samuel said, “What have you done?” And Saul said, “Since I saw that the people were scattering from me, and that you did not come at the appointed time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Michmash,

¹²I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not asked the favor of the LORD.’ So I worked up the courage and offered the burnt offering.”

¹³But Samuel said to Saul, “You have acted foolishly! You have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, for the LORD would now have established your kingdom over Israel forever.

¹⁴But now your kingdom shall not endure. The LORD has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the LORD has appointed him ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you.”

¹⁵Then Samuel set out and went up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul counted the people who were present with him, about six hundred men.

¹⁶Now Saul, his son Jonathan, and the people who were present with them were staying in Geba of Benjamin while the Philistines camped at Michmash.

¹⁷Then raiders came from the camp of the Philistines in three companies: one company turned toward Ophrah, to the land of Shual,

¹⁸and another company turned toward Beth-horon, and another company turned toward the border that overlooks the Valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.

¹⁹Now no blacksmith could be found in all the land of Israel, because the Philistines said, “Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears.”

²⁰So all Israel went down to the Philistines, each to sharpen his plowshare, his mattock, his axe, and his hoe.

²¹The charge was two-thirds of a shekel for the plowshares, the mattocks, the forks, and the axes, and to fix the cattle goads.

²²So it came about on the day of battle that neither sword nor spear was found in the hands of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan, but they were found with Saul and his son Jonathan.

²³And the garrison of the Philistines went out to the gorge of Michmash.

¹For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet, Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness, And her salvation like a torch that is burning.

²The nations will see your righteousness, And all kings your glory; And you will be called by a new name Which the mouth of the LORD will designate.

³You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD, And a royal headband in the hand of your God.

⁴It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,” Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”; But you will be called, “My delight is in her,” And your land, “Married”; For the LORD delights in you, And to Him your land will be married.

⁵For as a young man marries a virgin, So your sons will marry you; And as the groom rejoices over the bride, So your God will rejoice over you.

⁶On your walls, Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen; All day and all night they will never keep silent. You who profess the LORD, take no rest for yourselves;

⁷And give Him no rest until He establishes And makes Jerusalem an object of praise on the earth.

⁸The LORD has sworn by His right hand and by His mighty arm: “I will never again give your grain as food for your enemies, Nor will foreigners drink your new wine for which you have labored.”

⁹But those who harvest it will eat it and praise the LORD; And those who gather it will drink it in the courtyards of My sanctuary.

¹⁰Go through, go through the gates, Clear a way for the people! Build up, build up the highway, Remove the stones, lift up a flag over the peoples.

¹¹Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth: Say to the daughter of Zion, “Behold, your salvation is coming; Behold His reward is with Him, and His compensation before Him.”

¹²And they will call them, “The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD”; And you will be called, “Sought Out, A City Not Abandoned.”

¹Now at this time, as the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint developed on the part of the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily serving of food.

²So the twelve summoned the congregation of the disciples and said, “It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables.

³Instead, brothers and sisters, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task.

⁴But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

⁵The announcement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch.

⁶And they brought these men before the apostles; and after praying, they laid their hands on them.

⁷The word of God kept spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith.

⁸And Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people.

⁹But some men from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and argued with Stephen.

¹⁰But they were unable to cope with his wisdom and the Spirit by whom he was speaking.

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 up to him and dragged him away, and brought him before the Council.

¹³They put forward false witnesses who said, “This man does not stop speaking against this holy place and the Law;

¹⁴for we have heard him say that this Nazarene, Jesus, will destroy this place and change the customs which Moses handed down to us.”

¹⁵And all who were sitting in the Council stared at him, and they saw his face, which was like the face of an angel.