Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour had come that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.

²And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray Him,

³Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God,

⁴rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself.

⁵After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.

⁶Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, “Lord, are You washing my feet?”

⁷Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.”

⁸Peter said to Him, “You shall never wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”

⁹Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”

¹⁰Jesus said to him, “He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.”

¹¹For He knew who would betray Him; therefore He said, “You are not all clean.”

¹²So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you?

¹³You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am.

¹⁴If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.

¹⁵For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you.

¹⁶Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him.

¹⁷If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

¹⁸“I do not speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen; but that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘He who eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against Me.’

¹⁹Now I tell you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe that I am He.

²⁰Most assuredly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.”

²¹When Jesus had said these things, He was troubled in spirit, and testified and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.”

²²Then the disciples looked at one another, perplexed about whom He spoke.

²³Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.

²⁴Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask who it was of whom He spoke.

²⁵Then, leaning back on Jesus’ breast, he said to Him, “Lord, who is it?”

²⁶Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.” And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.

²⁷Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.”

²⁸But no one at the table knew for what reason He said this to him.

²⁹For some thought, because Judas had the money box, that Jesus had said to him, “Buy those things we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor.

³⁰Having received the piece of bread, he then went out immediately. And it was night.

³¹So, when he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him.

³²If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and glorify Him immediately.

³³Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come,’ so now I say to you.

³⁴A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

³⁵By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

³⁶Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, where are You going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me afterward.”

³⁷Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.”

³⁸Jesus answered him, “Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times.

¹Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying:

²“See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah.

³And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship,

⁴to design artistic works, to work in gold, in silver, in bronze,

⁵in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of workmanship.

⁶“And I, indeed I, have appointed with him Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and I have put wisdom in the hearts of all the gifted artisans, that they may make all that I have commanded you:

⁷the tabernacle of meeting, the ark of the Testimony and the mercy seat that is on it, and all the furniture of the tabernacle—

⁸the table and its utensils, the pure gold lampstand with all its utensils, the altar of incense,

⁹the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the laver and its base—

¹⁰the garments of ministry, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his sons, to minister as priests,

¹¹and the anointing oil and sweet incense for the holy place. According to all that I have commanded you they shall do.”

¹²And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

¹³“Speak also to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the LORD who sanctifies you.

¹⁴You shall keep the Sabbath, therefore, for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that person shall be cut off from among his people.

¹⁵Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death.

¹⁶Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant.

¹⁷It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.’ ”

¹⁸And when He had made an end of speaking with him on Mount Sinai, He gave Moses two tablets of the Testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God.

¹What advantage then has the Jew, or what is the profit of circumcision?

²Much in every way! Chiefly because to them were committed the oracles of God.

³For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect?

⁴Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar. As it is written: “That You may be justified in Your words, And may overcome when You are judged.”

⁵But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unjust who inflicts wrath? (I speak as a man.)

⁶Certainly not! For then how will God judge the world?

⁷For if the truth of God has increased through my lie to His glory, why am I also still judged as a sinner?

⁸And why not say, “Let us do evil that good may come”?—as we are slanderously reported and as some affirm that we say. Their condemnation is just.

⁹What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.

¹⁰As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;

¹¹There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God.

¹²They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.”

¹³“Their throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit”; “The poison of asps is under their lips”;

¹⁴“Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”

¹⁵“Their feet are swift to shed blood;

¹⁶Destruction and misery are in their ways;

¹⁷And the way of peace they have not known.”

¹⁸“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

¹⁹Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

²⁰Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

²¹But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,

²²even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;

²³for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

²⁴being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

²⁵whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,

²⁶to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

²⁷Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith.

²⁸Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law.

²⁹Or is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also,

³⁰since there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.

³¹Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.

¹You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

²And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

³You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

⁴No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.

⁵And also if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.

⁶The hardworking farmer must be first to partake of the crops.

⁷Consider what I say, and may the Lord give you understanding in all things.

⁸Remember that Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, was raised from the dead according to my gospel,

⁹for which I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even to the point of chains; but the word of God is not chained.

¹⁰Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

¹¹This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, We shall also live with Him.

¹²If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us.

¹³If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.

¹⁴Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers.

¹⁵Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

¹⁶But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness.

¹⁷And their message will spread like cancer. Hymenaeus and Philetus are of this sort,

¹⁸who have strayed concerning the truth, saying that the resurrection is already past; and they overthrow the faith of some.

¹⁹Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”

²⁰But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor.

²¹Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.

²²Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

²³But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife.

²⁴And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient,

²⁵in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth,

²⁶and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.

¹Then Job answered and said:

²“How long will you torment my soul, And break me in pieces with words?

³These ten times you have reproached me; You are not ashamed that you have wronged me.

⁴And if indeed I have erred, My error remains with me.

⁵If indeed you exalt yourselves against me, And plead my disgrace against me,

⁶Know then that God has wronged me, And has surrounded me with His net.

⁷“If I cry out concerning wrong, I am not heard. If I cry aloud, there is no justice.

⁸He has fenced up my way, so that I cannot pass; And He has set darkness in my paths.

⁹He has stripped me of my glory, And taken the crown from my head.

¹⁰He breaks me down on every side, And I am gone; My hope He has uprooted like a tree.

¹¹He has also kindled His wrath against me, And He counts me as one of His enemies.

¹²His troops come together And build up their road against me; They encamp all around my tent.

¹³“He has removed my brothers far from me, And my acquaintances are completely estranged from me.

¹⁴My relatives have failed, And my close friends have forgotten me.

¹⁵Those who dwell in my house, and my maidservants, Count me as a stranger; I am an alien in their sight.

¹⁶I call my servant, but he gives no answer; I beg him with my mouth.

¹⁷My breath is offensive to my wife, And I am repulsive to the children of my own body.

¹⁸Even young children despise me; I arise, and they speak against me.

¹⁹All my close friends abhor me, And those whom I love have turned against me.

²⁰My bone clings to my skin and to my flesh, And I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.

²¹“Have pity on me, have pity on me, O you my friends, For the hand of God has struck me!

²²Why do you persecute me as God does, And are not satisfied with my flesh?

²³“Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book!

²⁴That they were engraved on a rock With an iron pen and lead, forever!

²⁵For I know that my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth;

²⁶And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God,

²⁷Whom I shall see for myself, And my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!

²⁸If you should say, ‘How shall we persecute him?’— Since the root of the matter is found in me,

²⁹Be afraid of the sword for yourselves; For wrath brings the punishment of the sword, That you may know there is a judgment.”

¹To the Chief Musician. On an instrument of Gath. A Psalm of Asaph. [1] Sing aloud to God our strength; Make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob.

²Raise a song and strike the timbrel, The pleasant harp with the lute.

³Blow the trumpet at the time of the New Moon, At the full moon, on our solemn feast day.

⁴For this is a statute for Israel, A law of the God of Jacob.

⁵This He established in Joseph as a testimony, When He went throughout the land of Egypt, Where I heard a language I did not understand.

⁶“I removed his shoulder from the burden; His hands were freed from the baskets.

⁷You called in trouble, and I delivered you; I answered you in the secret place of thunder; I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah

⁸“Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you! O Israel, if you will listen to Me!

⁹There shall be no foreign god among you; Nor shall you worship any foreign god.

¹⁰I am the LORD your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt; Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

¹¹“But My people would not heed My voice, And Israel would have none of Me.

¹²So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart, To walk in their own counsels.

¹³“Oh, that My people would listen to Me, That Israel would walk in My ways!

¹⁴I would soon subdue their enemies, And turn My hand against their adversaries.

¹⁵The haters of the LORD would pretend submission to Him, But their fate would endure forever.

¹⁶He would have fed them also with the finest of wheat; And with honey from the rock I would have satisfied you.”

¹Better is the poor who walks in his integrity Than one who is perverse in his lips, and is a fool.

²Also it is not good for a soul to be without knowledge, And he sins who hastens with his feet.

³The foolishness of a man twists his way, And his heart frets against the LORD.

⁴Wealth makes many friends, But the poor is separated from his friend.

⁵A false witness will not go unpunished, And he who speaks lies will not escape.

⁶Many entreat the favor of the nobility, And every man is a friend to one who gives gifts.

⁷All the brothers of the poor hate him; How much more do his friends go far from him! He may pursue them with words, yet they abandon him.

⁸He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; He who keeps understanding will find good.

⁹A false witness will not go unpunished, And he who speaks lies shall perish.

¹⁰Luxury is not fitting for a fool, Much less for a servant to rule over princes.

¹¹The discretion of a man makes him slow to anger, And his glory is to overlook a transgression.

¹²The king’s wrath is like the roaring of a lion, But his favor is like dew on the grass.

¹³A foolish son is the ruin of his father, And the contentions of a wife are a continual dripping.

¹⁴Houses and riches are an inheritance from fathers, But a prudent wife is from the LORD.

¹⁵Laziness casts one into a deep sleep, And an idle person will suffer hunger.

¹⁶He who keeps the commandment keeps his soul, But he who is careless of his ways will die.

¹⁷He who has pity on the poor lends to the LORD, And He will pay back what he has given.

¹⁸Chasten your son while there is hope, And do not set your heart on his destruction.

¹⁹A man of great wrath will suffer punishment; For if you rescue him, you will have to do it again.

²⁰Listen to counsel and receive instruction, That you may be wise in your latter days.

²¹There are many plans in a man’s heart, Nevertheless the LORD’s counsel—that will stand.

²²What is desired in a man is kindness, And a poor man is better than a liar.

²³The fear of the LORD leads to life, And he who has it will abide in satisfaction; He will not be visited with evil.

²⁴A lazy man buries his hand in the bowl, And will not so much as bring it to his mouth again.

²⁵Strike a scoffer, and the simple will become wary; Rebuke one who has understanding, and he will discern knowledge.

²⁶He who mistreats his father and chases away his mother Is a son who causes shame and brings reproach.

²⁷Cease listening to instruction, my son, And you will stray from the words of knowledge.

²⁸A disreputable witness scorns justice, And the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.

²⁹Judgments are prepared for scoffers, And beatings for the backs of fools.

¹Now it came to pass after the death of Saul, when David had returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had stayed two days in Ziklag,

²on the third day, behold, it happened that a man came from Saul’s camp with his clothes torn and dust on his head. So it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the ground and prostrated himself.

³And David said to him, “Where have you come from?” So he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.”

⁴Then David said to him, “How did the matter go? Please tell me.” And he answered, “The people have fled from the battle, many of the people are fallen and dead, and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.”

⁵So David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?”

⁶Then the young man who told him said, “As I happened by chance to be on Mount Gilboa, there was Saul, leaning on his spear; and indeed the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him.

⁷Now when he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I answered, ‘Here I am.’

⁸And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ So I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’

⁹He said to me again, ‘Please stand over me and kill me, for anguish has come upon me, but my life still remains in me.’

¹⁰So I stood over him and killed him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord.”

¹¹Therefore David took hold of his own clothes and tore them, and so did all the men who were with him.

¹²And they mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son, for the people of the LORD and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.

¹³Then David said to the young man who told him, “Where are you from?” And he answered, “I am the son of an alien, an Amalekite.”

¹⁴So David said to him, “How was it you were not afraid to put forth your hand to destroy the LORD’s anointed?”

¹⁵Then David called one of the young men and said, “Go near, and execute him!” And he struck him so that he died.

¹⁶So David said to him, “Your blood is on your own head, for your own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I have killed the LORD’s anointed.’ ”

¹⁷Then David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son,

¹⁸and he told them to teach the children of Judah the Song of the Bow; indeed it is written in the Book of Jasher:

¹⁹“The beauty of Israel is slain on your high places! How the mighty have fallen!

²⁰Tell it not in Gath, Proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon— Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

²¹“O mountains of Gilboa, Let there be no dew nor rain upon you, Nor fields of offerings. For the shield of the mighty is cast away there! The shield of Saul, not anointed with oil.

²²From the blood of the slain, From the fat of the mighty, The bow of Jonathan did not turn back, And the sword of Saul did not return empty.

²³“Saul and Jonathan were beloved and pleasant in their lives, And in their death they were not divided; They were swifter than eagles, They were stronger than lions.

²⁴“O daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, Who clothed you in scarlet, with luxury; Who put ornaments of gold on your apparel.

²⁵“How the mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle! Jonathan was slain in your high places.

²⁶I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan; You have been very pleasant to me; Your love to me was wonderful, Surpassing the love of women.

²⁷“How the mighty have fallen, And the weapons of war perished!”

¹Then the LORD said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before Me, My mind would not be favorable toward this people. Cast them out of My sight, and let them go forth.

²And it shall be, if they say to you, ‘Where should we go?’ then you shall tell them, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Such as are for death, to death; And such as are for the sword, to the sword; And such as are for the famine, to the famine; And such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.” ’

³“And I will appoint over them four forms of destruction,” says the LORD: “the sword to slay, the dogs to drag, the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy.

⁴I will hand them over to trouble, to all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, for what he did in Jerusalem.

⁵“For who will have pity on you, O Jerusalem? Or who will bemoan you? Or who will turn aside to ask how you are doing?

⁶You have forsaken Me,” says the LORD, “You have gone backward. Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you; I am weary of relenting!

⁷And I will winnow them with a winnowing fan in the gates of the land; I will bereave them of children; I will destroy My people, Since they do not return from their ways.

⁸Their widows will be increased to Me more than the sand of the seas; I will bring against them, Against the mother of the young men, A plunderer at noonday; I will cause anguish and terror to fall on them suddenly.

⁹“She languishes who has borne seven; She has breathed her last; Her sun has gone down While it was yet day; She has been ashamed and confounded. And the remnant of them I will deliver to the sword Before their enemies,” says the LORD.

¹⁰Woe is me, my mother, That you have borne me, A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth! I have neither lent for interest, Nor have men lent to me for interest. Every one of them curses me.

¹¹The LORD said: “Surely it will be well with your remnant; Surely I will cause the enemy to intercede with you In the time of adversity and in the time of affliction.

¹²Can anyone break iron, The northern iron and the bronze?

¹³Your wealth and your treasures I will give as plunder without price, Because of all your sins, Throughout your territories.

¹⁴And I will make you cross over with your enemies Into a land which you do not know; For a fire is kindled in My anger, Which shall burn upon you.”

¹⁵O LORD, You know; Remember me and visit me, And take vengeance for me on my persecutors. In Your enduring patience, do not take me away. Know that for Your sake I have suffered rebuke.

¹⁶Your words were found, and I ate them, And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; For I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts.

¹⁷I did not sit in the assembly of the mockers, Nor did I rejoice; I sat alone because of Your hand, For You have filled me with indignation.

¹⁸Why is my pain perpetual And my wound incurable, Which refuses to be healed? Will You surely be to me like an unreliable stream, As waters that fail?

¹⁹Therefore thus says the LORD: “If you return, Then I will bring you back; You shall stand before Me; If you take out the precious from the vile, You shall be as My mouth. Let them return to you, But you must not return to them.

²⁰And I will make you to this people a fortified bronze wall; And they will fight against you, But they shall not prevail against you; For I am with you to save you And deliver you,” says the LORD.

²¹“I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked, And I will redeem you from the grip of the terrible.”

¹Now when Festus had come to the province, after three days he went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem.

²Then the high priest and the chief men of the Jews informed him against Paul; and they petitioned him,

³asking a favor against him, that he would summon him to Jerusalem— while they lay in ambush along the road to kill him.

⁴But Festus answered that Paul should be kept at Caesarea, and that he himself was going there shortly.

⁵“Therefore,” he said, “let those who have authority among you go down with me and accuse this man, to see if there is any fault in him.”

⁶And when he had remained among them more than ten days, he went down to Caesarea. And the next day, sitting on the judgment seat, he commanded Paul to be brought.

⁷When he had come, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood about and laid many serious complaints against Paul, which they could not prove,

⁸while he answered for himself, “Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar have I offended in anything at all.”

⁹But Festus, wanting to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and there be judged before me concerning these things?”

¹⁰So Paul said, “I stand at Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be judged. To the Jews I have done no wrong, as you very well know.

¹¹For if I am an offender, or have committed anything deserving of death, I do not object to dying; but if there is nothing in these things of which these men accuse me, no one can deliver me to them. I appeal to Caesar.”

¹²Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, “You have appealed to Caesar? To Caesar you shall go!”

¹³And after some days King Agrippa and Bernice came to Caesarea to greet Festus.

¹⁴When they had been there many days, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying: “There is a certain man left a prisoner by Felix,

¹⁵about whom the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me, when I was in Jerusalem, asking for a judgment against him.

¹⁶To them I answered, ‘It is not the custom of the Romans to deliver any man to destruction before the accused meets the accusers face to face, and has opportunity to answer for himself concerning the charge against him.’

¹⁷Therefore when they had come together, without any delay, the next day I sat on the judgment seat and commanded the man to be brought in.

¹⁸When the accusers stood up, they brought no accusation against him of such things as I supposed,

¹⁹but had some questions against him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, who had died, whom Paul affirmed to be alive.

²⁰And because I was uncertain of such questions, I asked whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and there be judged concerning these matters.

²¹But when Paul appealed to be reserved for the decision of Augustus, I commanded him to be kept till I could send him to Caesar.”

²²Then Agrippa said to Festus, “I also would like to hear the man myself.” “Tomorrow,” he said, “you shall hear him.”

²³So the next day, when Agrippa and Bernice had come with great pomp, and had entered the auditorium with the commanders and the prominent men of the city, at Festus’ command Paul was brought in.

²⁴And Festus said: “King Agrippa and all the men who are here present with us, you see this man about whom the whole assembly of the Jews petitioned me, both at Jerusalem and here, crying out that he was not fit to live any longer.

²⁵But when I found that he had committed nothing deserving of death, and that he himself had appealed to Augustus, I decided to send him.

²⁶I have nothing certain to write to my lord concerning him. Therefore I have brought him out before you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after the examination has taken place I may have something to write.

²⁷For it seems to me unreasonable to send a prisoner and not to specify the charges against him.”