Uzziah King of Judah^(A)(B)

26 Then all the people of Judah^(C) took Uzziah,^[a] who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. ² He was the one who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after Amaziah rested with his ancestors.

³ Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-two years. His mother’s name was Jekoliah; she was from Jerusalem. ⁴ He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Amaziah had done. ⁵ He sought God during the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear^[b] of God.^(D) As long as he sought the Lord, God gave him success.^(E)

⁶ He went to war against the Philistines^(F) and broke down the walls of Gath, Jabneh and Ashdod.^(G) He then rebuilt towns near Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines. ⁷ God helped him against the Philistines and against the Arabs^(H) who lived in Gur Baal and against the Meunites.^{(I) 8} The Ammonites^(J) brought tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread as far as the border of Egypt, because he had become very powerful.

⁹ Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate,^(K) at the Valley Gate^(L) and at the angle of the wall, and he fortified them. ¹⁰ He also built towers in the wilderness and dug many cisterns, because he had much livestock in the foothills and in the plain. He had people working his fields and vineyards in the hills and in the fertile lands, for he loved the soil.

¹¹ Uzziah had a well-trained army, ready to go out by divisions according to their numbers as mustered by Jeiel the secretary and Maaseiah the officer under the direction of Hananiah, one of the royal officials. ¹² The total number of family leaders over the fighting men was 2,600. ¹³ Under their command was an army of 307,500 men trained for war, a powerful force to support the king against his enemies. ¹⁴ Uzziah provided shields, spears, helmets, coats of armor, bows and slingstones for the entire army.^{(M) 15} In Jerusalem he made devices invented for use on the towers and on the corner defenses so that soldiers could shoot arrows and hurl large stones from the walls. His fame spread far and wide, for he was greatly helped until he became powerful.

¹⁶ But after Uzziah became powerful, his pride^(N) led to his downfall.^(O) He was unfaithful^(P) to the Lord his God, and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense^(Q) on the altar of incense. ¹⁷ Azariah^(R) the priest with eighty other courageous priests of the Lord followed him in. ¹⁸ They confronted King Uzziah and said, “It is not right for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord. That is for the priests,^(S) the descendants^(T) of Aaron,^(U) who have been consecrated to burn incense.^(V) Leave the sanctuary, for you have been unfaithful; and you will not be honored by the Lord God.”

¹⁹ Uzziah, who had a censer in his hand ready to burn incense, became angry. While he was raging at the priests in their presence before the incense altar in the Lord’s temple, leprosy^[c](W) broke out on his forehead. ²⁰ When Azariah the chief priest and all the other priests looked at him, they saw that he had leprosy on his forehead, so they hurried him out. Indeed, he himself was eager to leave, because the Lord had afflicted him.

²¹ King Uzziah had leprosy until the day he died. He lived in a separate house^[d](X)—leprous, and banned from the temple of the Lord. Jotham his son had charge of the palace and governed the people of the land.

²² The other events of Uzziah’s reign, from beginning to end, are recorded by the prophet Isaiah^(Y) son of Amoz. ²³ Uzziah^(Z) rested with his ancestors and was buried near them in a cemetery that belonged to the kings, for people said, “He had leprosy.” And Jotham his son succeeded him as king.^(AA)

46 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The gate of the inner court^(A) facing east^(B) is to be shut on the six working days, but on the Sabbath day and on the day of the New Moon^(C) it is to be opened. ² The prince is to enter from the outside through the portico^(D) of the gateway and stand by the gatepost. The priests are to sacrifice his burnt offering^(E) and his fellowship offerings. He is to bow down in worship at the threshold of the gateway and then go out, but the gate will not be shut until evening.^{(F) 3} On the Sabbaths^(G) and New Moons the people of the land are to worship in the presence of the Lord at the entrance of that gateway.^{(H) 4} The burnt offering the prince brings to the Lord on the Sabbath day is to be six male lambs and a ram, all without defect. ⁵ The grain offering given with the ram is to be an ephah,^[a] and the grain offering with the lambs is to be as much as he pleases, along with a hin^[b] of olive oil for each ephah.^{(I) 6} On the day of the New Moon^(J) he is to offer a young bull, six lambs and a ram, all without defect.^{(K) 7} He is to provide as a grain offering one ephah with the bull, one ephah with the ram, and with the lambs as much as he wants to give, along with a hin of oil for each ephah.^{(L) 8} When the prince enters, he is to go in through the portico^(M) of the gateway, and he is to come out the same way.^(N)

⁹ “‘When the people of the land come before the Lord at the appointed festivals,^(O) whoever enters by the north gate to worship is to go out the south gate; and whoever enters by the south gate is to go out the north gate. No one is to return through the gate by which they entered, but each is to go out the opposite gate. ¹⁰ The prince is to be among them, going in when they go in and going out when they go out.^{(P) 11} At the feasts and the appointed festivals, the grain offering is to be an ephah with a bull, an ephah with a ram, and with the lambs as much as he pleases, along with a hin of oil for each ephah.^(Q)

¹² “‘When the prince provides^(R) a freewill offering^(S) to the Lord—whether a burnt offering or fellowship offerings—the gate facing east is to be opened for him. He shall offer his burnt offering or his fellowship offerings as he does on the Sabbath day. Then he shall go out, and after he has gone out, the gate will be shut.^(T)

¹³ “‘Every day you are to provide a year-old lamb without defect for a burnt offering to the Lord; morning by morning^(U) you shall provide it.^{(V) 14} You are also to provide with it morning by morning a grain offering, consisting of a sixth of an ephah^[c] with a third of a hin^[d] of oil^(W) to moisten the flour. The presenting of this grain offering to the Lord is a lasting ordinance.^{(X) 15} So the lamb and the grain offering and the oil shall be provided morning by morning for a regular^(Y) burnt offering.^(Z)

¹⁶ “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: If the prince makes a gift from his inheritance to one of his sons, it will also belong to his descendants; it is to be their property by inheritance.^{(AA) 17} If, however, he makes a gift from his inheritance to one of his servants, the servant may keep it until the year of freedom;^(AB) then it will revert to the prince. His inheritance belongs to his sons only; it is theirs. ¹⁸ The prince must not take^(AC) any of the inheritance^(AD) of the people, driving them off their property. He is to give his sons their inheritance out of his own property, so that not one of my people will be separated from their property.’”

¹⁹ Then the man brought me through the entrance^(AE) at the side of the gate to the sacred rooms facing north,^(AF) which belonged to the priests, and showed me a place at the western end. ²⁰ He said to me, “This is the place where the priests are to cook the guilt offering and the sin offering^[e] and bake the grain offering, to avoid bringing them into the outer court and consecrating^(AG) the people.”^(AH)

²¹ He then brought me to the outer court and led me around to its four corners, and I saw in each corner another court. ²² In the four corners of the outer court were enclosed^[f] courts, forty cubits long and thirty cubits wide;^[g] each of the courts in the four corners was the same size. ²³ Around the inside of each of the four courts was a ledge of stone, with places for fire built all around under the ledge. ²⁴ He said to me, “These are the kitchens where those who minister at the temple are to cook the sacrifices of the people.”

In Thessalonica

17 When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica,^(A) where there was a Jewish synagogue. ² As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue,^(B) and on three Sabbath^(C) days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures,^{(D) 3} explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer^(E) and rise from the dead.^(F) “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,”^(G) he said. ⁴ Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas,^(H) as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.

⁵ But other Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city.^(I) They rushed to Jason’s^(J) house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd.^{[a] 6} But when they did not find them, they dragged^(K) Jason and some other believers^(L) before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world^(M) have now come here,^{(N) 7} and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.”^{(O) 8} When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. ⁹ Then they made Jason^(P) and the others post bond and let them go.

In Berea

¹⁰ As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas^(Q) away to Berea.^(R) On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue.^{(S) 11} Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica,^(T) for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures^(U) every day to see if what Paul said was true.^{(V) 12} As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.^(W)

¹³ But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea,^(X) some of them went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. ¹⁴ The believers^(Y) immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas^(Z) and Timothy^(AA) stayed at Berea. ¹⁵ Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens^(AB) and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.^(AC)

In Athens

¹⁶ While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. ¹⁷ So he reasoned in the synagogue^(AD) with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. ¹⁸ A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news^(AE) about Jesus and the resurrection.^{(AF) 19} Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus,^(AG) where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching^(AH) is that you are presenting? ²⁰ You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean.” ²¹ (All the Athenians^(AI) and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)

²² Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus^(AJ) and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious.^{(AK) 23} For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship^(AL)—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.

²⁴ “The God who made the world and everything in it^(AM) is the Lord of heaven and earth^(AN) and does not live in temples built by human hands.^{(AO) 25} And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.^{(AP) 26} From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.^{(AQ) 27} God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us.^{(AR) 28} ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’^[b](AS) As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’^[c]

²⁹ “Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill.^{(AT) 30} In the past God overlooked^(AU) such ignorance,^(AV) but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.^{(AW) 31} For he has set a day when he will judge^(AX) the world with justice^(AY) by the man he has appointed.^(AZ) He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”^(BA)

³² When they heard about the resurrection of the dead,^(BB) some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.” ³³ At that, Paul left the Council. ³⁴ Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus,^(BC) also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.

In Corinth

18 After this, Paul left Athens^(BD) and went to Corinth.^{(BE) 2} There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla,^(BF) because Claudius^(BG) had ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them, ³ and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.^{(BH) 4} Every Sabbath^(BI) he reasoned in the synagogue,^(BJ) trying to persuade Jews and Greeks.

⁵ When Silas^(BK) and Timothy^(BL) came from Macedonia,^(BM) Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah.^{(BN) 6} But when they opposed Paul and became abusive,^(BO) he shook out his clothes in protest^(BP) and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads!^(BQ) I am innocent of it.^(BR) From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”^(BS)

⁷ Then Paul left the synagogue and went next door to the house of Titius Justus, a worshiper of God.^{(BT) 8} Crispus,^(BU) the synagogue leader,^(BV) and his entire household^(BW) believed in the Lord; and many of the Corinthians who heard Paul believed and were baptized.

⁹ One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision:^(BX) “Do not be afraid;^(BY) keep on speaking, do not be silent. ¹⁰ For I am with you,^(BZ) and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” ¹¹ So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God.^(CA)

¹² While Gallio was proconsul^(CB) of Achaia,^(CC) the Jews of Corinth made a united attack on Paul and brought him to the place of judgment. ¹³ “This man,” they charged, “is persuading the people to worship God in ways contrary to the law.”

¹⁴ Just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio said to them, “If you Jews were making a complaint about some misdemeanor or serious crime, it would be reasonable for me to listen to you. ¹⁵ But since it involves questions about words and names and your own law^(CD)—settle the matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things.” ¹⁶ So he drove them off. ¹⁷ Then the crowd there turned on Sosthenes^(CE) the synagogue leader^(CF) and beat him in front of the proconsul; and Gallio showed no concern whatever.

Priscilla, Aquila and Apollos

¹⁸ Paul stayed on in Corinth for some time. Then he left the brothers and sisters^(CG) and sailed for Syria,^(CH) accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila.^(CI) Before he sailed, he had his hair cut off at Cenchreae^(CJ) because of a vow he had taken.^{(CK) 19} They arrived at Ephesus,^(CL) where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. He himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. ²⁰ When they asked him to spend more time with them, he declined. ²¹ But as he left, he promised, “I will come back if it is God’s will.”^(CM) Then he set sail from Ephesus. ²² When he landed at Caesarea,^(CN) he went up to Jerusalem and greeted the church and then went down to Antioch.^(CO)

²³ After spending some time in Antioch, Paul set out from there and traveled from place to place throughout the region of Galatia^(CP) and Phrygia,^(CQ) strengthening all the disciples.^(CR)

²⁴ Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos,^(CS) a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus.^(CT) He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. ²⁵ He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor^[d](CU) and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John.^{(CV) 26} He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila^(CW) heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately.

²⁷ When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia,^(CX) the brothers and sisters^(CY) encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. When he arrived, he was a great help to those who by grace had believed. ²⁸ For he vigorously refuted his Jewish opponents in public debate, proving from the Scriptures^(CZ) that Jesus was the Messiah.^(DA)