Professor Horner’s Reading Plan

¹Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw the stone [already] removed from the [groove across the entrance of the] tomb.

²So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple (John), whom Jesus loved (esteemed), and said to them, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him!"

³So Peter and the other disciple left, and they were going to the tomb.

⁴And the two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and arrived at the tomb first.

⁵Stooping down and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings [neatly] lying there; but he did not go in.

⁶Then Simon Peter came up, following him, and went into the tomb and saw the linen wrappings [neatly] lying there;

⁷and the [burial] face-cloth which had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the [other] linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself.

⁸So the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, went in too; and he saw [the wrappings and the face-cloth] and believed [without any doubt that Jesus had risen from the dead].

⁹For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise from the dead.

¹⁰Then the disciples went back again to their own homes.

¹¹But Mary [who had returned] was standing outside the tomb sobbing; and so, as she wept, she stooped down and looked into the tomb;

¹²and she saw two angels in white sitting there, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.

¹³And they said to her, "Woman, why are you crying?" She told them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him."

¹⁴After saying this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus.

¹⁵Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you crying? For whom are you looking?" Supposing that He was the gardener, she replied, "Sir, if you are the one who has carried Him away from here, tell me where you have put Him, and I will take Him away."

¹⁶Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, "Rabboni!" (which means, Teacher).

¹⁷Jesus said to her, " Do not hold Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brothers and tell them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.'"

¹⁸Mary Magdalene came, reporting to the disciples that she had seen the Lord and that He had said these things to her.

¹⁹So when it was evening on that same day, the first day of the week, though the disciples were [meeting] behind barred doors for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them, and said, " Peace to you."

²⁰After He said this, He showed them His hands and His side. When the disciples saw the Lord, they were filled with great joy.

²¹Then Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you [as My representatives]."

²²And when He said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

²³If you forgive the sins of anyone they are forgiven [because of their faith]; if you retain the sins of anyone, they are retained [and remain unforgiven because of their unbelief]."

²⁴But Thomas, one of the twelve [disciples], who was called Didymus (the twin), was not with them when Jesus came.

²⁵So the other disciples kept telling him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the marks of the nails, and put my finger into the nail prints, and put my hand into His side, I will never believe."

²⁶Eight days later His disciples were again inside the house, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, though the doors had been barred, and stood among them and said, "Peace to you."

²⁷Then He said to Thomas, "Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and put out your hand and place it in My side. Do not be unbelieving, but [stop doubting and] believe."

²⁸Thomas answered Him, "My Lord and my God!"

²⁹Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, do you now believe? Blessed [happy, spiritually secure, and favored by God] are they who did not see [Me] and yet believed [in Me]."

³⁰There are also many other signs (attesting miracles) that Jesus performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;

³¹but these have been written so that you may believe [with a deep, abiding trust] that Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed), the Son of God; and that by believing [and trusting in and relying on Him] you may have life in His name.

¹Then Bezalel made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood; its top was square, five cubits long and five cubits wide, and three cubits high.

²And he made its horns (horn-shaped projections) on the four corners of it; the horns were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with bronze.

³He made all the utensils and vessels of the altar [of burnt offering], the pots, shovels, basins [to catch the blood of the sacrificed animal], meat hooks and the firepans [to store live coals]. He made all its utensils of bronze.

⁴He made for the altar a grating of bronze mesh under its rim, extending halfway up it.

⁵He cast four rings for the four corners of the bronze grating as holders for the carrying poles.

⁶And he made the carrying poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with bronze.

⁷He put the poles through the rings on the sides of the altar, with which to carry it; he made it hollow with planks.

⁸Bezalel made the basin and its base of bronze from the mirrors of the attending women who served and ministered at the doorway of the Tent of Meeting.

⁹Then he made the court: for the south side the curtains of the court were of fine twisted linen, a hundred cubits;

¹⁰their twenty support poles, and their twenty bronze sockets; the hooks of the support poles and their connecting rings were silver.

¹¹And for the north side [of the court the curtains were also] a hundred cubits; their twenty support poles and their twenty bronze sockets; the hooks of the support poles and their connecting rings were silver.

¹²For the west side [of the court] there were curtains of fifty cubits with their ten support poles and their ten sockets; the hooks of the support poles and their connecting rings were silver.

¹³For the east side [the front of the courtyard, there were curtains of] fifty cubits.

¹⁴The curtains for one side of the court gate were fifteen cubits, with their three support poles and their three sockets;

¹⁵and the same for the other side [of the court gate]. Left and right of the court gate there were curtains of fifteen cubits; with their three support poles and their three sockets.

¹⁶All the curtains around the court were of fine twisted linen.

¹⁷The sockets for the support poles were made of bronze, the hooks of the support poles and their connecting rings were made of silver; and silver overlaid their tops. All the support poles of the court had silver connecting rings.

¹⁸The screen (curtain) for the gate of the courtyard [on the east side] was the work of an embroiderer, in blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and fine twisted linen; it was twenty cubits long and five cubits high, corresponding to the curtains of the court.

¹⁹Their four support poles and their four sockets were bronze; their hooks were silver, and silver overlaid their tops and their connecting rings.

²⁰All the pegs for the tabernacle and the court were bronze.

²¹This is the sum of the things for the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the Testimony, as counted according to the command of Moses, for the work of the Levites, under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest.

²²Now Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made everything that the LORD commanded Moses.

²³With him was Oholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, an engraver and a skillful craftsman and an embroiderer in blue and in purple and in scarlet fabric, and in fine linen.

²⁴All the gold that was used for the work, in all the building and furnishing of the sanctuary, the gold from the wave offering, was twenty-nine talents and seven hundred and thirty shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary.

²⁵The silver from those of the congregation who were assembled and counted was 100 talents and 1,775 shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary;

²⁶a beka for each man (that is, half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary) for everyone who was counted, from twenty years old and upward, for 603,550 men.

²⁷The hundred talents of silver were for casting the sockets of the sanctuary and the sockets of the veil (partition curtain); a hundred sockets for the hundred talents, a talent for a socket.

²⁸Of the 1,775 shekels, he made hooks for the support poles and overlaid their tops and made connecting rings for them.

²⁹The bronze of the wave offering was seventy talents and 2,400 shekels.

³⁰With it Bezalel made the sockets for the doorway of the Tent of Meeting, and the bronze altar and its bronze grating, and all the utensils of the altar,

³¹and the sockets of the court all around and the sockets of the court gate, and all the pegs of the tabernacle and all the pegs around the court.

¹Brothers and sisters, my heart's desire and my prayer to God for Israel is for their salvation.

²For I testify about them that they have a certain enthusiasm for God, but not in accordance with [correct and vital] knowledge [about Him and His purposes].

³For not knowing about God's righteousness [which is based on faith], and seeking to establish their own [righteousness based on works], they did not submit to God's righteousness.

⁴For Christ is the end of the law [it leads to Him and its purpose is fulfilled in Him], for [granting] righteousness to everyone who believes [in Him as Savior].

⁵For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is based on law [with all its intricate demands] shall live by it.

⁶But the righteousness based on faith [which produces a right relationship with Him] says the following: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into Heaven?' that is, to bring Christ down;

⁷or, 'Who will descend into the abyss?' that is, to bring Christ up from the dead [as if we had to be saved by our own efforts, doing the impossible]."

⁸But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart"—that is, the word [the message, the basis] of faith which we preach—

⁹because if you acknowledge and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord [recognizing His power, authority, and majesty as God], and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

¹⁰For with the heart a person believes [in Christ as Savior] resulting in his justification [that is, being made righteous—being freed of the guilt of sin and made acceptable to God]; and with the mouth he acknowledges and confesses [his faith openly], resulting in and confirming [his] salvation.

¹¹For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes in Him [whoever adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Him] will not be disappointed [in his expectations]."

¹²For there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile; for the same Lord is Lord over all [of us], and [He is] abounding in riches (blessings) for all who call on Him [in faith and prayer].

¹³For "whoever calls on the name of the Lord [in prayer] will be saved."

¹⁴But how will people call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how will they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher (messenger)?

¹⁵And how will they preach unless they are commissioned and sent [for that purpose]? Just as it is written and forever remains written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!"

¹⁶But they did not all pay attention to the good news [of salvation]; for Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed our report?"

¹⁷So faith comes from hearing [what is told], and what is heard comes by the [preaching of the] message concerning Christ.

¹⁸But I say, did they not hear? Indeed they have; "Their voice [that of creation bearing God's message] has gone out to all the earth, And their words to the [farthest] ends of the world."

¹⁹But I say, did Israel fail to understand [that the gospel was to go also to the Gentiles]? First Moses says, "I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation (Gentiles); With a nation that lacks understanding I will make you angry."

²⁰Then Isaiah is very bold and says, "I have been found by those who did not seek Me; I have shown Myself to those who did not [consciously] ask for Me."

²¹But of Israel he says, "All day long I have stretched out My hands [in compassion] to a disobedient and obstinate people."

¹James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve [Hebrew] tribes [scattered abroad among the Gentiles] in the dispersion: Greetings (rejoice)!

²Consider it nothing but joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you fall into various trials.

³Be assured that the testing of your faith [through experience] produces endurance [leading to spiritual maturity, and inner peace].

⁴And let endurance have its perfect result and do a thorough work, so that you may be perfect and completely developed [in your faith], lacking in nothing.

⁵If any of you lacks wisdom [to guide him through a decision or circumstance], he is to ask of [our benevolent] God, who gives to everyone generously and without rebuke or blame, and it will be given to him.

⁶But he must ask [for wisdom] in faith, without doubting [God's willingness to help], for the one who doubts is like a billowing surge of the sea that is blown about and tossed by the wind.

⁷For such a person ought not to think or expect that he will receive anything [at all] from the Lord,

⁸being a double-minded man, unstable and restless in all his ways [in everything he thinks, feels, or decides].

⁹Let the brother in humble circumstances glory in his high position [as a born-again believer, called to the true riches and to be an heir of God];

¹⁰and the rich man is to glory in being humbled [by trials revealing human frailty, knowing true riches are found in the grace of God], for like the flower of the grass he will pass away.

¹¹For the sun rises with a scorching wind and withers the grass; its flower falls off and its beauty fades away; so too will the rich man, in the midst of his pursuits, fade away.

¹²Blessed [happy, spiritually prosperous, favored by God] is the man who is steadfast under trial and perseveres when tempted; for when he has passed the test and been approved, he will receive the [victor's] crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

¹³Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God" [for temptation does not originate from God, but from our own flaws]; for God cannot be tempted by [what is] evil, and He Himself tempts no one.

¹⁴But each one is tempted when he is dragged away, enticed and baited [to commit sin] by his own [worldly] desire (lust, passion).

¹⁵Then when the illicit desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin has run its course, it gives birth to death.

¹⁶Do not be misled, my beloved brothers and sisters.

¹⁷Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above; it comes down from the Father of lights [the Creator and Sustainer of the heavens], in whom there is no variation [no rising or setting] or shadow cast by His turning [for He is perfect and never changes].

¹⁸It was of His own will that He gave us birth [as His children] by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits of His creatures [a prime example of what He created to be set apart to Himself—sanctified, made holy for His divine purposes].

¹⁹Understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters. Let everyone be quick to hear [be a careful, thoughtful listener], slow to speak [a speaker of carefully chosen words and], slow to anger [patient, reflective, forgiving];

²⁰for the [resentful, deep-seated] anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God [that standard of behavior which He requires from us].

²¹So get rid of all uncleanness and all that remains of wickedness, and with a humble spirit receive the word [of God] which is implanted [actually rooted in your heart], which is able to save your souls.

²²But prove yourselves doers of the word [actively and continually obeying God's precepts], and not merely listeners [who hear the word but fail to internalize its meaning], deluding yourselves [by unsound reasoning contrary to the truth].

²³For if anyone only listens to the word without obeying it, he is like a man who looks very carefully at his natural face in a mirror;

²⁴for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he immediately forgets what he looked like.

²⁵But he who looks carefully into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and faithfully abides by it, not having become a [careless] listener who forgets but an active doer [who obeys], he will be blessed and favored by God in what he does [in his life of obedience].

²⁶If anyone thinks himself to be religious [scrupulously observant of the rituals of his faith], and does not control his tongue but deludes his own heart, this person's religion is worthless (futile, barren).

²⁷Pure and unblemished religion [as it is expressed in outward acts] in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit and look after the fatherless and the widows in their distress, and to keep oneself uncontaminated by the [secular] world.

¹But Job answered and said,

²"What a help you are to the weak (powerless)! How you have saved the arm that is without strength!

³"How you have counseled the one who has no wisdom! And how abundantly you have provided sound wisdom and helpful insight!

⁴"To whom have you uttered [these] words? And whose spirit [inspired what] came forth from you?

⁵"The spirits of the dead tremble Underneath the waters and their inhabitants.

⁶"Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) is naked before God, And Abaddon (the place of destruction) has no covering [from His eyes].

⁷"It is He who spreads out the north over emptiness And hangs the earth on nothing.

⁸"He wraps the waters in His clouds [which otherwise would spill on earth all at once], And the cloud does not burst under them.

⁹"He covers the face of the full moon And spreads His cloud over it.

¹⁰"He has inscribed a circular limit (the horizon) on the face of the waters At the boundary between light and darkness.

¹¹"The pillars of the heavens tremble And are terrified at His rebuke.

¹²"He stirred up the sea by His power, And by His understanding He smashed [proud] Rahab.

¹³"By His breath the heavens are cleared; His hand has pierced the [swiftly] fleeing serpent.

¹⁴"Yet these are just the fringes of His ways [mere samples of His power], The faintest whisper of His voice! Who can contemplate the thunder of His [full] mighty power?"

¹A Song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. To the Chief Musician; set to chant mournfully. A didactic or reflective poem of Heman the Ezrahite. O LORD, the God of my salvation, I have cried out [for help] by day and in the night before You.

²Let my prayer come before You and enter into Your presence; Incline Your ear to my cry!

³For my soul is full of troubles, And my life draws near the grave (Sheol, the place of the dead).

⁴I am counted among those who go down to the pit (grave); I am like a man who has no strength [a mere shadow],

⁵Cast away [from the living] and abandoned among the dead, Like the slain who lie in a [nameless] grave, Whom You no longer remember, And they are cut off from Your hand.

⁶You have laid me in the lowest pit, In dark places, in the depths.

⁷Your wrath has rested heavily upon me, And You have afflicted me with all Your waves. Selah.

⁸You have put my friends far from me; You have made me an object of loathing to them. I am shut up and I cannot go out.

⁹My eye grows dim with sorrow. O LORD, I have called on You every day; I have spread out my hands to You [in prayer].

¹⁰Will You perform wonders for the dead? Shall the departed spirits arise and praise You? Selah.

¹¹Will Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave Or Your faithfulness in Abaddon (the underworld)?

¹²Will Your wonders be known in the darkness? And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness [where the dead forget and are forgotten]?

¹³But I have cried out to You, O LORD, for help; And in the morning my prayer will come to You.

¹⁴O LORD, why do You reject me? Why do You hide Your face from me?

¹⁵I was afflicted and close to death from my youth on; I suffer Your terrors; I am overcome.

¹⁶Your fierce wrath has swept over me; Your terrors have destroyed me.

¹⁷They have surrounded me like flood waters all day long; They have completely encompassed me.

¹⁸Lover and friend You have placed far from me; My familiar friends are in darkness.

¹Like snow in summer and like rain in harvest, So honor is not fitting for a [shortsighted] fool.

²Like the sparrow in her wandering, like the swallow in her flying, So the curse without cause does not come and alight [on the undeserving].

³A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, And a rod for the backs of fools [who refuse to learn].

⁴Do not answer [nor pretend to agree with the frivolous comments of] a [closed-minded] fool according to his folly, Otherwise you, even you, will be like him.

⁵Answer [and correct the erroneous concepts of] a fool according to his folly, Otherwise he will be wise in his own eyes [if he thinks you agree with him].

⁶He who sends a message by the hand of a fool Cuts off his own feet (sabotages himself) and drinks the violence [it brings on himself as a consequence].

⁷Like the legs which are useless to the lame, So is a proverb in the mouth of a fool [who cannot learn from its wisdom].

⁸Like one who [absurdly] binds a stone in a sling [making it impossible to throw], So is he who [absurdly] gives honor to a fool.

⁹Like a thorn that goes [without being felt] into the hand of a drunken man, So is a proverb in the mouth of a fool [who remains unaffected by its wisdom].

¹⁰Like a [careless] archer who [shoots arrows wildly and] wounds everyone, So is he who hires a fool or those who [by chance just] pass by.

¹¹Like a dog that returns to his vomit Is a fool who repeats his foolishness.

¹²Do you see a man [who is unteachable and] wise in his own eyes and full of self-conceit? There is more hope for a fool than for him.

¹³The lazy person [who is self-indulgent and relies on lame excuses] says, "There is a lion in the road! A lion is in the open square [and if I go outside to work I will be killed]!"

¹⁴As the door turns on its hinges, So does the lazy person on his bed [never getting out of it].

¹⁵The lazy person buries his hand in the dish [losing opportunity after opportunity]; It wearies him to bring it back to his mouth.

¹⁶The lazy person is wiser in his own eyes Than seven [sensible] men who can give a discreet answer.

¹⁷Like one who grabs a dog by the ears [and is likely to be bitten] Is he who, passing by, stops to meddle with a dispute that is none of his business.

¹⁸Like a madman who throws Firebrands, arrows, and death,

¹⁹So is the man who deceives his neighbor (acquaintance, friend) And then says, "Was I not joking?"

²⁰For lack of wood the fire goes out, And where there is no whisperer [who gossips], contention quiets down.

²¹Like charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire, So is a contentious man to kindle strife.

²²The words of a whisperer (gossip) are like dainty morsels [to be greedily eaten]; They go down into the innermost chambers of the body [to be remembered and mused upon].

²³Like a [common] clay vessel covered with the silver dross [making it appear silver when it has no real value] Are burning lips [murmuring manipulative words] and a wicked heart.

²⁴He who hates, disguises it with his lips, But he stores up deceit in his heart.

²⁵When he speaks graciously and kindly [to conceal his malice], do not trust him, For seven abominations are in his heart.

²⁶Though his hatred covers itself with guile and deceit, His malevolence will be revealed openly before the assembly.

²⁷Whoever digs a pit [for another man's feet] will fall into it, And he who rolls a stone [up a hill to do mischief], it will come back on him.

²⁸A lying tongue hates those it wounds and crushes, And a flattering mouth works ruin.

¹Now it came about after this that David defeated the Philistines and subdued (humbled) them, and he took control of Metheg-ammah [the main city] from the hand of the Philistines.

²He defeated Moab, and measured them with a length of rope, making them lie down on the ground; he measured two lengths to [choose those to] put to death, and one full length to [choose those to] be kept alive. And the [surviving] Moabites became servants to David, bringing tribute.

³Then David defeated Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to restore his power at the River [Euphrates].

⁴David captured from him 1,700 horsemen and 20,000 foot soldiers. David also hamstrung all the chariot horses (making them lame), but reserved enough of them for a hundred chariots.

⁵When the Arameans (Syrians) of Damascus came to help Hadadezer, king of Zobah, David struck down 22,000 Arameans.

⁶Then David put garrisons among the Arameans in Damascus, and the Arameans became his servants and brought tribute. The LORD helped David wherever he went.

⁷David took the shields of gold that were carried by the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.

⁸And from Betah and Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David took an immense quantity of bronze.

⁹When Toi king of Hamath heard about David's defeat of all the forces of Hadadezer,

¹⁰Toi sent Joram his son to King David to greet and congratulate him for his battle and defeat of Hadadezer; for Hadadezer had been at war with Toi. Joram brought with him articles of silver, gold, and bronze [as gifts].

¹¹King David also dedicated these [gifts] to the LORD, along with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations which he subdued:

¹²from Aram (Syria), Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, and Amalek, and from the spoil of Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

¹³So David made a name for himself when he returned from killing 18,000 Arameans (Syrians) in the Valley of Salt.

¹⁴He put garrisons in Edom; in all Edom he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became servants to David. And the LORD helped him wherever he went.

¹⁵So David reigned over all Israel, and continued to administer justice and righteousness for all his people.

¹⁶Joab the son of Zeruiah was [commander] over the army; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder (secretary);

¹⁷Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were the [chief] priests, and Seraiah was the scribe;

¹⁸Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was [head] over both the Cherethites and Pelethites [the king's bodyguards]; and David's sons were chief [confidential] advisers (officials) [to the king].

¹Thus says the LORD, "Go down to the house of the king of Judah and speak this word there:

²'Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, you who sit on the throne of David—you and your servants and your people who enter by these gates.

³Thus says the LORD, "Execute justice and righteousness, and rescue the one who has been robbed from the hand of his oppressor. And do no wrong; do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.

⁴For if you will indeed obey this word, then kings will enter through the gates of this palace, sitting in David's place on his throne, riding in chariots and on horses, even the king himself and his servants and his people.

⁵But if you will not hear and obey these words, I swear [an oath] by Myself," says the LORD, "that this house will become a desolation."'"

⁶For thus says the LORD in regard to the house of the king of Judah: "You are [as valuable] to Me as [the green pastures of] Gilead [east of the Jordan] Or as the [plentiful] summit of Lebanon [west of the Jordan], Yet most certainly [if you will not listen to Me] I will make you a wilderness, And uninhabited cities.

⁷"For I will prepare and appoint destroyers [to execute My judgments] against you, Each with his weapons; And they will cut down your [palaces built of] choicest cedars And throw them in the fire.

⁸"Many nations will pass by this city; and each man will say to another, 'Why has the LORD done this to this great city?'

⁹Then they will answer, 'Because the people ignored and abandoned the [solemn] covenant with the LORD their God and worshiped other gods and served them.'"

¹⁰Do not weep for the dead or mourn for him; But weep bitterly for the one who goes away [into exile], For he will never return And see his native country [again].

¹¹For thus says the LORD in regard to Shallum (Jehoahaz) the [third] son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father and who went from this place, "Shallum will not return here anymore;

¹²he will die in the place where they led him captive and not see this land again.

¹³"Woe (judgment is coming) to him who builds his house by [acts of] unrighteousness And his upper chambers by injustice, Who uses his neighbor's service without pay And does not give him wages [for his work],

¹⁴Who says, 'I will build myself a spacious house With large upper rooms, And cut out its [wide] windows, And panel it with cedar and paint it vermilion."

¹⁵"Do you think that you become a king because you have much more cedar [in your palace than Solomon]? Did not your father [Josiah], as he ate and drank, Do just and righteous acts [being upright and in right standing with God]? Then all was well with him.

¹⁶"He defended the cause of the afflicted and needy; Then all was well. Is that not what it means to know Me?" Says the LORD.

¹⁷"But your eyes and your heart Are only intent on your own dishonest gain, On shedding innocent blood, On oppression and extortion and violence."

¹⁸Therefore thus says the LORD in regard to Jehoiakim the [second] son of Josiah, king of Judah, "The relatives will not lament (mourn over with expressions of grief) for him: 'Alas, my brother!' or, 'Alas, sister,' [how great our loss]! The subjects will not lament for him: 'Alas, master!' or 'Alas, majesty [how great was his glory]!'

¹⁹" He shall be buried with the burial of a donkey— Dragged off and thrown out beyond the gates of Jerusalem.

²⁰"Go up [north] to Lebanon and cry out, And raise your voice in [the hills of] Bashan [across the Jordan]; Cry out also from Abarim, For all your lovers (allies) have been destroyed.

²¹"I spoke to you in your [times of] prosperity, But you said, 'I will not listen!' This has been your attitude and practice from your youth; You have not obeyed My voice.

²²"The wind [of adversity] will carry away all your shepherds (rulers, statesmen), And your lovers (allies) will go into exile. Surely then you will be ashamed and humiliated and disgraced Because of all your wickedness.

²³"O inhabitant of [Jerusalem, whose palaces are made from the cedars of] Lebanon, You who nest in the cedars, How you will groan and how miserable you will be when pains come on you, Pain like a woman in childbirth!

²⁴"As I live," says the LORD, "though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet [ring] on My right hand, yet would I pull you (Coniah) off.

²⁵And I will place you in the hand of those who seek your life and in the hand of those whom you fear, even into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and into the hand of the Chaldeans.

²⁶I will hurl you and the mother who gave you birth into another country where you were not born, and there you will die.

²⁷But as for the land to which they long to return, they will not return to it.

²⁸"Is this man [King] Coniah a despised, broken jar? Is he a vessel in which no one takes pleasure? Why are he and his [royal] descendants hurled out And cast into a land which they do not know or understand?

²⁹"O land, land, land, Hear the word of the LORD!

³⁰Thus says the LORD, 'Write this man [Coniah] down as childless, A man who will not prosper (succeed) in his lifetime; For not one of his descendants will succeed In sitting on the throne of David Or ruling again in Judah.'"

¹And while Peter and John were talking to the people, the priests and the captain [who was in charge of the temple area and] of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to them,

²being extremely disturbed and thoroughly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in [the case of] Jesus the resurrection of the dead.

³So they arrested them and put them in jail until the next day, because it was evening.

⁴But many of those who heard the message [of salvation] believed [in Jesus and accepted Him as the Christ]. And the number of the men came to be about 5,000.

⁵On the next day, their magistrates and elders and scribes (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court) were gathered together in Jerusalem;

⁶and Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all others who were of high-priestly descent.

⁷When they had put the men in front of them, they repeatedly asked, "By what sort of power, or in what name [that is, by what kind of authority], did you do this [healing]?"

⁸Then Peter, filled with [the power of] the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers and elders of the people [members of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish High Court],

⁹if we are being put on trial today [to interrogate us] for a good deed done to [benefit] a disabled man, as to how this man has been restored to health,

¹⁰let it be known and clearly understood by all of you, and by all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you [demanded be] crucified [by the Romans and], whom God raised from the dead—in this name [that is, by the authority and power of Jesus] this man stands here before you in good health.

¹¹This Jesus is the stone which was despised and rejected by you, the builders, but which became thechief Cornerstone.

¹²And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among people by which we must be saved [for God has provided the world no alternative for salvation]."

¹³Now when the men of the Sanhedrin (Jewish High Court) saw the confidence and boldness of Peter and John, and grasped the fact that they were uneducated and untrained [ordinary] men, they were astounded, and began to recognize that they had been with Jesus.

¹⁴And seeing the man who had been healed standing there with them, they had nothing to say in reply.

¹⁵But after ordering them to step out of the Council [chamber], they began to confer among themselves,

¹⁶saying, "What are we to do with these men? For the fact that an extraordinary miracle has taken place through them is public knowledge and clearly evident to all the residents of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.

¹⁷But to keep it from spreading further among the people and the nation, let us [sternly] warn them not to speak again to anyone in this name."

¹⁸So they sent for them, and commanded them not to speak [as His representatives] or teach at all in the name of Jesus [using Him as their authority].

¹⁹But Peter and John replied to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you and obey you rather than God, you must judge [for yourselves];

²⁰for we, on our part, cannot stop telling [people] about what we have seen and heard."

²¹When the rulers and Council members had threatened them further, they let them go, finding no way to punish them because [of their fear] of the people, for they were all praising and glorifying and honoring God for what had happened;

²²for the man to whom this sign (attesting miracle) of healing had happened was more than forty years old.

²³After Peter and John were released, they returned to their own [people] and reported everything that the chief priests and elders had said to them.

²⁴And when they heard it, they raised their voices together to God and said, "O Sovereign Lord [having complete power and authority], it is You who made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything that is in them,

²⁵who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David, Your servant, said, 'Why did the nations (Gentiles) become arrogant and rage, And the peoples devise futile things [against the Lord]?

²⁶'The kings of the earth took their stand [to attack], And the rulers were assembled together Against the Lord and against His Anointed (the Christ, the Messiah).'

²⁷For in this city there were gathered together against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,

²⁸to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined [before the creation of the world] to occur [and so without knowing it, they served Your own purpose].

²⁹And now, Lord, observe their threats [take them into account] and grant that Your bond-servants may declare Your message [of salvation] with great confidence,

³⁰while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders (attesting miracles) take place through the name [and the authority and power] of Your holy Servant and Son Jesus."

³¹And when they had prayed, the place where they were meeting together was shaken [a sign of God's presence]; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness and courage.

³²Now the company of believers was of one heart and soul, and not one [of them] claimed that anything belonging to him was [exclusively] his own, but everything was common property and for the use of all.

³³And with great ability and power the apostles were continuously testifying to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace [God's remarkable lovingkindness and favor and goodwill] rested richly upon them all.

³⁴There was not a needy person among them, because those who were owners of land or houses were selling them, and bringing the proceeds of the sales

³⁵and placing the money down at the apostles' feet. Then it was distributed to each as anyone had need.

³⁶Now Joseph, a Levite and native of Cyprus, who was surnamed Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means Son of Encouragement),

³⁷sold a field belonging to him and brought the money and set it at the apostles' feet.