The Year for Canceling Debts^(A)

15 At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts.^{(B) 2} This is how it is to be done: Every creditor shall cancel any loan they have made to a fellow Israelite. They shall not require payment from anyone among their own people, because the Lord’s time for canceling debts has been proclaimed. ³ You may require payment from a foreigner,^(C) but you must cancel any debt your fellow Israelite owes you. ⁴ However, there need be no poor people among you, for in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless^(D) you, ⁵ if only you fully obey the Lord your God and are careful to follow^(E) all these commands I am giving you today. ⁶ For the Lord your God will bless you as he has promised, and you will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. You will rule over many nations but none will rule over you.^(F)

⁷ If anyone is poor^(G) among your fellow Israelites in any of the towns of the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted^(H) toward them. ⁸ Rather, be openhanded^(I) and freely lend them whatever they need. ⁹ Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought: “The seventh year, the year for canceling debts,^(J) is near,” so that you do not show ill will^(K) toward the needy among your fellow Israelites and give them nothing. They may then appeal to the Lord against you, and you will be found guilty of sin.^{(L) 10} Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart;^(M) then because of this the Lord your God will bless^(N) you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. ¹¹ There will always be poor people^(O) in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.^(P)

Freeing Servants^(Q)(R)

¹² If any of your people—Hebrew men or women—sell themselves to you and serve you six years, in the seventh year you must let them go free.^{(S) 13} And when you release them, do not send them away empty-handed. ¹⁴ Supply them liberally from your flock, your threshing floor^(T) and your winepress. Give to them as the Lord your God has blessed you. ¹⁵ Remember that you were slaves^(U) in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you.^(V) That is why I give you this command today.

¹⁶ But if your servant says to you, “I do not want to leave you,” because he loves you and your family and is well off with you, ¹⁷ then take an awl and push it through his earlobe into the door, and he will become your servant for life. Do the same for your female servant.

¹⁸ Do not consider it a hardship to set your servant free, because their service to you these six years has been worth twice as much as that of a hired hand. And the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do.

The Firstborn Animals

¹⁹ Set apart for the Lord^(W) your God every firstborn male^(X) of your herds and flocks.^(Y) Do not put the firstborn of your cows to work, and do not shear the firstborn of your sheep.^{(Z) 20} Each year you and your family are to eat them in the presence of the Lord your God at the place he will choose.^{(AA) 21} If an animal has a defect,^(AB) is lame or blind, or has any serious flaw, you must not sacrifice it to the Lord your God.^{(AC) 22} You are to eat it in your own towns. Both the ceremonially unclean and the clean may eat it, as if it were gazelle or deer.^{(AD) 23} But you must not eat the blood; pour it out on the ground like water.^(AE)

The Passover^(AF)

16 Observe the month of Aviv^(AG) and celebrate the Passover^(AH) of the Lord your God, because in the month of Aviv he brought you out of Egypt by night. ² Sacrifice as the Passover to the Lord your God an animal from your flock or herd at the place the Lord will choose as a dwelling for his Name.^{(AI) 3} Do not eat it with bread made with yeast, but for seven days eat unleavened bread, the bread of affliction,^(AJ) because you left Egypt in haste^(AK)—so that all the days of your life you may remember the time of your departure from Egypt.^{(AL) 4} Let no yeast be found in your possession in all your land for seven days. Do not let any of the meat you sacrifice on the evening^(AM) of the first day remain until morning.^(AN)

⁵ You must not sacrifice the Passover in any town the Lord your God gives you ⁶ except in the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name. There you must sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary^[a](AO) of your departure from Egypt. ⁷ Roast^(AP) it and eat it at the place the Lord your God will choose. Then in the morning return to your tents. ⁸ For six days eat unleavened bread and on the seventh day hold an assembly^(AQ) to the Lord your God and do no work.^(AR)

The Festival of Weeks^(AS)

⁹ Count off seven weeks^(AT) from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain.^{(AU) 10} Then celebrate the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you. ¹¹ And rejoice^(AV) before the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name^(AW)—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, the Levites^(AX) in your towns, and the foreigners,^(AY) the fatherless and the widows living among you.^{(AZ) 12} Remember that you were slaves in Egypt,^(BA) and follow carefully these decrees.

The Festival of Tabernacles^(BB)

¹³ Celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor^(BC) and your winepress.^{(BD) 14} Be joyful^(BE) at your festival—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites, the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns. ¹⁵ For seven days celebrate the festival to the Lord your God at the place the Lord will choose. For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy^(BF) will be complete.

¹⁶ Three times a year all your men must appear^(BG) before the Lord your God at the place he will choose: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread,^(BH) the Festival of Weeks and the Festival of Tabernacles.^(BI) No one should appear before the Lord empty-handed:^{(BJ) 17} Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the Lord your God has blessed you.

Judges

¹⁸ Appoint judges^(BK) and officials for each of your tribes in every town the Lord your God is giving you, and they shall judge the people fairly.^{(BL) 19} Do not pervert justice^(BM) or show partiality.^(BN) Do not accept a bribe,^(BO) for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the innocent. ²⁰ Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the Lord your God is giving you.

Worshiping Other Gods

²¹ Do not set up any wooden Asherah pole^(BP) beside the altar you build to the Lord your God,^{(BQ) 22} and do not erect a sacred stone,^(BR) for these the Lord your God hates.

Peter Explains His Actions

11 The apostles and the believers^(A) throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.^{(B) 2} So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers^(C) criticized him ³ and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”^(D)

⁴ Starting from the beginning, Peter told them the whole story: ⁵ “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision.^(E) I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was. ⁶ I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles and birds. ⁷ Then I heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’

⁸ “I replied, ‘Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’

⁹ “The voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’^{(F) 10} This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.

¹¹ “Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea^(G) stopped at the house where I was staying. ¹² The Spirit told^(H) me to have no hesitation about going with them.^(I) These six brothers^(J) also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. ¹³ He told us how he had seen an angel^(K) appear in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. ¹⁴ He will bring you a message^(L) through which you and all your household^(M) will be saved.’

¹⁵ “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on^(N) them as he had come on us at the beginning.^{(O) 16} Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with^[a] water,^(P) but you will be baptized with^[b] the Holy Spirit.’^{(Q) 17} So if God gave them the same gift^(R) he gave us^(S) who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?”

¹⁸ When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.”^(T)

The Church in Antioch

¹⁹ Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed^(U) traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch,^(V) spreading the word only among Jews. ²⁰ Some of them, however, men from Cyprus^(W) and Cyrene,^(X) went to Antioch^(Y) and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news^(Z) about the Lord Jesus. ²¹ The Lord’s hand was with them,^(AA) and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.^(AB)

²² News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas^(AC) to Antioch. ²³ When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done,^(AD) he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts.^{(AE) 24} He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit^(AF) and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.^(AG)

²⁵ Then Barnabas went to Tarsus^(AH) to look for Saul, ²⁶ and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples^(AI) were called Christians first^(AJ) at Antioch.

²⁷ During this time some prophets^(AK) came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. ²⁸ One of them, named Agabus,^(AL) stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world.^(AM) (This happened during the reign of Claudius.)^{(AN) 29} The disciples,^(AO) as each one was able, decided to provide help^(AP) for the brothers and sisters^(AQ) living in Judea. ³⁰ This they did, sending their gift to the elders^(AR) by Barnabas^(AS) and Saul.^(AT)

Peter’s Miraculous Escape From Prison

12 It was about this time that King Herod^(AU) arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. ² He had James, the brother of John,^(AV) put to death with the sword.^{(AW) 3} When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews,^(AX) he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread.^{(AY) 4} After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.^(AZ)

⁵ So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.^(BA)

⁶ The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains,^(BB) and sentries stood guard at the entrance. ⁷ Suddenly an angel^(BC) of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists.^(BD)

⁸ Then the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him. ⁹ Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision.^{(BE) 10} They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself,^(BF) and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.

¹¹ Then Peter came to himself^(BG) and said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me^(BH) from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen.”

¹² When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark,^(BI) where many people had gathered and were praying.^{(BJ) 13} Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door.^{(BK) 14} When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed^(BL) she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!”

¹⁵ “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”^(BM)

¹⁶ But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. ¹⁷ Peter motioned with his hand^(BN) for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. “Tell James^(BO) and the other brothers and sisters^(BP) about this,” he said, and then he left for another place.

¹⁸ In the morning, there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. ¹⁹ After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed.^(BQ)

Herod’s Death

Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea^(BR) and stayed there. ²⁰ He had been quarreling with the people of Tyre and Sidon;^(BS) they now joined together and sought an audience with him. After securing the support of Blastus, a trusted personal servant of the king, they asked for peace, because they depended on the king’s country for their food supply.^(BT)

²¹ On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. ²² They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man.” ²³ Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel^(BU) of the Lord struck him down,^(BV) and he was eaten by worms and died.

²⁴ But the word of God^(BW) continued to spread and flourish.^(BX)

Barnabas and Saul Sent Off

²⁵ When Barnabas^(BY) and Saul had finished their mission,^(BZ) they returned from^[c] Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.^(CA)

Purpose and Theme

1 The proverbs^(A) of Solomon^(B) son of David, king of Israel:^(C)

Prologue: Exhortations to Embrace Wisdom

Warning Against the Invitation of Sinful Men

Wisdom’s Rebuke