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M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

The classic M'Cheyne plan--read the Old Testament, New Testament, and Psalms or Gospels every day.

Duration: 365 days

Genesis 5

Chapter 5

Generations: Adam to Noah.^[a] ¹^(A)This is the record of the descendants of Adam. When God created human beings, he made them in the likeness of God; ²he created them male and female. When they were created, he blessed them and named them humankind.

³^(B)Adam was one hundred and thirty years old when he begot a son in his likeness, after his image; and he named him Seth.^(C) ⁴Adam lived eight hundred years after he begot Seth, and he had other sons and daughters. ⁵The whole lifetime of Adam was nine hundred and thirty years; then he died.

⁶When Seth was one hundred and five years old, he begot Enosh. ⁷Seth lived eight hundred and seven years after he begot Enosh, and he had other sons and daughters. ⁸The whole lifetime of Seth was nine hundred and twelve years; then he died.

⁹When Enosh was ninety years old, he begot Kenan. ¹⁰Enosh lived eight hundred and fifteen years after he begot Kenan, and he had other sons and daughters. ¹¹The whole lifetime of Enosh was nine hundred and five years; then he died.

¹²When Kenan was seventy years old, he begot Mahalalel. ¹³Kenan lived eight hundred and forty years after he begot Mahalalel, and he had other sons and daughters. ¹⁴The whole lifetime of Kenan was nine hundred and ten years; then he died.

¹⁵When Mahalalel was sixty-five years old, he begot Jared. ¹⁶Mahalalel lived eight hundred and thirty years after he begot Jared, and he had other sons and daughters. ¹⁷The whole lifetime of Mahalalel was eight hundred and ninety-five years; then he died.

¹⁸When Jared was one hundred and sixty-two years old, he begot Enoch. ¹⁹Jared lived eight hundred years after he begot Enoch, and he had other sons and daughters. ²⁰The whole lifetime of Jared was nine hundred and sixty-two years; then he died.

²¹When Enoch was sixty-five years old, he begot Methuselah. ²²Enoch walked with God after he begot Methuselah for three hundred years, and he had other sons and daughters. ²³The whole lifetime of Enoch was three hundred and sixty-five years. ²⁴Enoch walked with God,^[b] and he was no longer here, for God took him.^(D)

²⁵When Methuselah was one hundred and eighty-seven years old, he begot Lamech. ²⁶Methuselah lived seven hundred and eighty-two years after he begot Lamech, and he had other sons and daughters. ²⁷The whole lifetime of Methuselah was nine hundred and sixty-nine years; then he died.

²⁸When Lamech was one hundred and eighty-two years old, he begot a son ²⁹^(E)and named him Noah, saying, “This one shall bring us relief from our work and the toil of our hands, out of the very ground that the Lord has put under a curse.”^[c] ³⁰Lamech lived five hundred and ninety-five years after he begot Noah, and he had other sons and daughters. ³¹The whole lifetime of Lamech was seven hundred and seventy-seven years; then he died.

³²When Noah was five hundred years old, he begot Shem, Ham, and Japheth.^[d]^(F)

Footnotes

5:1–32 The second of the five Priestly formulas in Part I (“This is the record of the descendants…”; see 2:4a; 6:9; 10:1; 11:10) introduces the second of the three linear genealogies in Gn 1–11 (4:17–24 and 11:10–26). In each, a list of individuals (six in 4:17–24, ten in 5:1–32, or nine in 11:10–26) ends in three people who initiate action. Linear genealogies (father to son) in ancient societies had a communicative function, grounding the authority or claim of the last-named individual in the first-named. Here, the genealogy has a literary function as well, advancing the story by showing the expansion of the human race after Adam, as well as the transmission to his descendant Noah of the divine image given to Adam. Correcting the impression one might get from the genealogy in 4:17–24, this genealogy traces the line through Seth rather than through Cain. Most of the names in the series are the same as the names in Cain’s line in 4:17–19 (Enosh, Enoch, Lamech) or spelled with variant spellings (Mahalalel, Jared, Methuselah). The genealogy itself and its placement before the flood shows the influence of ancient Mesopotamian literature, which contains lists of cities and kings before and after the flood. Before the flood, the ages of the kings ranged from 18,600 to 36,000 years, but after it were reduced to between 140 and 1,200 years. The biblical numbers are much smaller. There are some differences in the numbers in the Hebrew and Greek manuscripts.
5:24 Enoch is in the important seventh position in the ten-member genealogy. In place of the usual formula “then he died,” the change to “Enoch walked with God” implies that he did not die, but like Elijah (2 Kgs 2:11–12) was taken alive to God’s abode. This mysterious narrative spurred much speculation and writing (beginning as early as the third century B.C.) about Enoch the sage who knew the secrets of heaven and who could communicate them to human beings (see Sir 44:16; 49:14; Hb 11:5; Jude 14–15 and the apocryphal work 1 Enoch).
5:29 The sound of the Hebrew word noah, “Noah,” is echoed in the word yenahamenu, “he will bring us relief”; the latter refers both to the curse put on the soil because of human disobedience (3:17–19) and to Noah’s success in agriculture, especially in raising grapes for wine (9:20–21).
5:32 Shem, Ham, and Japheth: like the genealogies in 4:17–24 and 11:10–26, the genealogy ends in three individuals who engage in important activity. Their descendants will be detailed in chap. 10, where it will be seen that the lineage is political-geographical as well as “ethnic.”

Matthew 5

Chapter 5

The Sermon on the Mount. ¹^[a]When he saw the crowds,^[b] he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. ²He began to teach them, saying:

The Beatitudes^[c]

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit,^[d]
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.^(A)
⁴^[e]Blessed are they who mourn,^(B)
    for they will be comforted.
⁵^[f]Blessed are the meek,^(C)
    for they will inherit the land.
⁶Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,^[g]
    for they will be satisfied.
⁷Blessed are the merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.^(D)
⁸^[h]Blessed are the clean of heart,^(E)
    for they will see God.
⁹Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they will be called children of God.
¹⁰Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,^[i]
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.^(F)

¹¹Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you [falsely] because of me.^(G) ¹²^[j]Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.^(H) Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

The Similes of Salt and Light.^[k] ¹³^(I)“You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.^[l] ¹⁴You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.^(J) ¹⁵Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house.^(K) ¹⁶Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.^(L)

Teaching About the Law. ¹⁷^[m]“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. ¹⁸Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place.^(M) ¹⁹Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.^[n] ²⁰I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Teaching About Anger.^[o] ²¹“You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,^(N) ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.’^[p] ²²^[q]But I say to you, whoever is angry^[r] with his brother will be liable to judgment,^(O) and whoever says to his brother, ‘Raqa,’ will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna. ²³Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you,^(P) ²⁴leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. ²⁵Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him.^(Q) Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. ²⁶Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.

Teaching About Adultery. ²⁷^[s]“You have heard that it was said,^(R) ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ ²⁸But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. ²⁹^[t]If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away.^(S) It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna. ³⁰And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body go into Gehenna.

Teaching About Divorce. ³¹^[u]“It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce.’^(T) ³²But I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.^(U)

Teaching About Oaths. ³³^[v]^(V)“Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow.’ ³⁴^(W)But I say to you, do not swear at all;^[w] not by heaven, for it is God’s throne; ³⁵nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. ³⁶Do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. ³⁷^[x]Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.

Teaching About Retaliation. ³⁸^[y]“You have heard that it was said,^(X) ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ ³⁹^(Y)But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on [your] right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. ⁴⁰If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well. ⁴¹Should anyone press you into service for one mile,^[z] go with him for two miles.^(Z) ⁴²Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.^(AA)

Love of Enemies.^[aa] ⁴³^(AB)“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’^(AC) ⁴⁴But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. ⁴⁶For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors^[ab] do the same? ⁴⁷And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same?^[ac] ⁴⁸So be perfect,^[ad] just as your heavenly Father is perfect.^(AD)

Footnotes

5:1–7:29 The first of the five discourses that are a central part of the structure of this gospel. It is the discourse section of the first book and contains sayings of Jesus derived from Q and from M. The Lucan parallel is in that gospel’s “Sermon on the Plain” (Lk 6:20–49), although some of the sayings in Matthew’s “Sermon on the Mount” have their parallels in other parts of Luke. The careful topical arrangement of the sermon is probably not due only to Matthew’s editing; he seems to have had a structured discourse of Jesus as one of his sources. The form of that source may have been as follows: four beatitudes (Mt 5:3–4, 6, 11–12), a section on the new righteousness with illustrations (Mt 5:17, 20–24, 27–28, 33–48), a section on good works (Mt 6:1–6, 16–18), and three warnings (Mt 7:1–2, 15–21, 24–27).
5:1–2 Unlike Luke’s sermon, this is addressed not only to the disciples but to the crowds (see Mt 7:28).
5:3–12 The form Blessed are (is) occurs frequently in the Old Testament in the Wisdom literature and in the psalms. Although modified by Matthew, the first, second, fourth, and ninth beatitudes have Lucan parallels (Mt 5:3 // Lk 6:20; Mt 5:4 // Lk 6:21b; Mt 5:6 // Lk 6:21a; Mt 5:11–12 // Lk 5:22–23). The others were added by the evangelist and are probably his own composition. A few manuscripts, Western and Alexandrian, and many versions and patristic quotations give the second and third beatitudes in inverted order.
5:3 The poor in spirit: in the Old Testament, the poor (’anāwîm) are those who are without material possessions and whose confidence is in God (see Is 61:1; Zep 2:3; in the NAB the word is translated lowly and humble, respectively, in those texts). Matthew added in spirit in order either to indicate that only the devout poor were meant or to extend the beatitude to all, of whatever social rank, who recognized their complete dependence on God. The same phrase poor in spirit is found in the Qumran literature (1QM 14:7).
5:4 Cf. Is 61:2, “(The Lord has sent me)…to comfort all who mourn.” They will be comforted: here the passive is a “theological passive” equivalent to the active “God will comfort them”; so also in Mt 5:6, 7.
5:5 Cf. Ps 37:11, “…the meek shall possess the land.” In the psalm “the land” means the land of Palestine; here it means the kingdom.
5:6 For righteousness: a Matthean addition. For the meaning of righteousness here, see note on Mt 3:14–15.
5:8 Cf. Ps 24:4. Only one “whose heart is clean” can take part in the temple worship. To be with God in the temple is described in Ps 42:3 as “beholding his face,” but here the promise to the clean of heart is that they will see God not in the temple but in the coming kingdom.
5:10 Righteousness here, as usually in Matthew, means conduct in conformity with God’s will.
5:12 The prophets who were before you: the disciples of Jesus stand in the line of the persecuted prophets of Israel. Some would see the expression as indicating also that Matthew considered all Christian disciples as prophets.
5:13–16 By their deeds the disciples are to influence the world for good. They can no more escape notice than a city set on a mountain. If they fail in good works, they are as useless as flavorless salt or as a lamp whose light is concealed.
5:13 The unusual supposition of salt losing its flavor has led some to suppose that the saying refers to the salt of the Dead Sea that, because chemically impure, could lose its taste.
5:17–20 This statement of Jesus’ position concerning the Mosaic law is composed of traditional material from Matthew’s sermon documentation (see note on Mt 5:1–7:29), other Q material (cf. Mt 18; Lk 16:17), and the evangelist’s own editorial touches. To fulfill the law appears at first to mean a literal enforcement of the law in the least detail: until heaven and earth pass away nothing of the law will pass (Mt 5:18). Yet the “passing away” of heaven and earth is not necessarily the end of the world understood, as in much apocalyptic literature, as the dissolution of the existing universe. The “turning of the ages” comes with the apocalyptic event of Jesus’ death and resurrection, and those to whom this gospel is addressed are living in the new and final age, prophesied by Isaiah as the time of “new heavens and a new earth” (Is 65:17; 66:22). Meanwhile, during Jesus’ ministry when the kingdom is already breaking in, his mission remains within the framework of the law, though with significant anticipation of the age to come, as the following antitheses (Mt 5:21–48) show.
5:19 Probably these commandments means those of the Mosaic law. But this is an interim ethic “until heaven and earth pass away.”
5:21–48 Six examples of the conduct demanded of the Christian disciple. Each deals with a commandment of the law, introduced by You have heard that it was said to your ancestors or an equivalent formula, followed by Jesus’ teaching in respect to that commandment, But I say to you; thus their designation as “antitheses.” Three of them accept the Mosaic law but extend or deepen it (Mt 5:21–22; 27–28; 43–44); three reject it as a standard of conduct for the disciples (Mt 5:31–32; 33–37; 38–39).
5:21 Cf. Ex 20:13; Dt 5:17. The second part of the verse is not an exact quotation from the Old Testament, but cf. Ex 21:12.
5:22–26 Reconciliation with an offended brother is urged in the admonition of Mt 5:23–24 and the parable of Mt 5:25–26 (// Lk 12:58–59). The severity of the judge in the parable is a warning of the fate of unrepentant sinners in the coming judgment by God.
5:22 Anger is the motive behind murder, as the insulting epithets are steps that may lead to it. They, as well as the deed, are all forbidden. Raqa: an Aramaic word rēqā’ or rēqâ probably meaning “imbecile,” “blockhead,” a term of abuse. The ascending order of punishment, judgment (by a local council?), trial before the Sanhedrin, condemnation to Gehenna, points to a higher degree of seriousness in each of the offenses. Sanhedrin: the highest judicial body of Judaism. Gehenna: in Hebrew gê-hinnōm, “Valley of Hinnom,” or gê ben-hinnōm, “Valley of the son of Hinnom,” southwest of Jerusalem, the center of an idolatrous cult during the monarchy in which children were offered in sacrifice (see 2 Kgs 23:10; Jer 7:31). In Jos 18:16 (Septuagint, Codex Vaticanus) the Hebrew is transliterated into Greek as gaienna, which appears in the New Testament as geenna. The concept of punishment of sinners by fire either after death or after the final judgment is found in Jewish apocalyptic literature (e.g., Enoch 90:26) but the name geenna is first given to the place of punishment in the New Testament.
5:27 See Ex 20:14; Dt 5:18.
5:29–30 No sacrifice is too great to avoid total destruction in Gehenna.
5:31–32 See Dt 24:1–5. The Old Testament commandment that a bill of divorce be given to the woman assumes the legitimacy of divorce itself. It is this that Jesus denies. (Unless the marriage is unlawful): this “exceptive clause,” as it is often called, occurs also in Mt 19:9, where the Greek is slightly different. There are other sayings of Jesus about divorce that prohibit it absolutely (see Mk 10:11–12; Lk 16:18; cf. 1 Cor 7:10, 11b), and most scholars agree that they represent the stand of Jesus. Matthew’s “exceptive clauses” are understood by some as a modification of the absolute prohibition. It seems, however, that the unlawfulness that Matthew gives as a reason why a marriage must be broken refers to a situation peculiar to his community: the violation of Mosaic law forbidding marriage between persons of certain blood and/or legal relationship (Lv 18:6–18). Marriages of that sort were regarded as incest (porneia), but some rabbis allowed Gentile converts to Judaism who had contracted such marriages to remain in them. Matthew’s “exceptive clause” is against such permissiveness for Gentile converts to Christianity; cf. the similar prohibition of porneia in Acts 15:20, 29. In this interpretation, the clause constitutes no exception to the absolute prohibition of divorce when the marriage is lawful.
5:33 This is not an exact quotation of any Old Testament text, but see Ex 20:7; Dt 5:11; Lv 19:12. The purpose of an oath was to guarantee truthfulness by one’s calling on God as witness.
5:34–36 The use of these oath formularies that avoid the divine name is in fact equivalent to swearing by it, for all the things sworn by are related to God.
5:37 Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No’: literally, “let your speech be ‘Yes, yes,’ ‘No, no.’” Some have understood this as a milder form of oath, permitted by Jesus. In view of Mt 5:34, “Do not swear at all,” that is unlikely. From the evil one: i.e., from the devil. Oath-taking presupposes a sinful weakness of the human race, namely, the tendency to lie. Jesus demands of his disciples a truthfulness that makes oaths unnecessary.
5:38–42 See Lv 24:20. The Old Testament commandment was meant to moderate vengeance; the punishment should not exceed the injury done. Jesus forbids even this proportionate retaliation. Of the five examples that follow, only the first deals directly with retaliation for evil; the others speak of liberality.
5:41 Roman garrisons in Palestine had the right to requisition the property and services of the native population.
5:43–48 See Lv 19:18. There is no Old Testament commandment demanding hatred of one’s enemy, but the “neighbor” of the love commandment was understood as one’s fellow countryman. Both in the Old Testament (Ps 139:19–22) and at Qumran (1QS 9:21) hatred of evil persons is assumed to be right. Jesus extends the love commandment to the enemy and the persecutor. His disciples, as children of God, must imitate the example of their Father, who grants his gifts of sun and rain to both the good and the bad.
5:46 Tax collectors: Jews who were engaged in the collection of indirect taxes such as tolls and customs. See note on Mk 2:14.
5:47 Jesus’ disciples must not be content with merely usual standards of conduct; see Mt 5:20 where the verb “surpass” (Greek perisseuō) is cognate with the unusual (perisson) of this verse.
5:48 Perfect: in the gospels this word occurs only in Matthew, here and in Mt 19:21. The Lucan parallel (Lk 6:36) demands that the disciples be merciful.

Ezra 5

Chapter 5

The Work Resumed Under Darius; Further Problems. ¹^(A)Then the prophets Haggai and Zechariah,^[a] son of Iddo, began to prophesy to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel. ²Thereupon Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua, son of Jozadak, began again to build the house of God in Jerusalem, with the prophets of God giving them support. ³At that time Tattenai, governor of West-of-Euphrates, came to them, along with Shethar-bozenai, and their fellow officials, and asked of them: “Who issued the decree for you to build this house and complete this edifice? ⁴What are the names of the men who are building this structure?” ⁵But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews, and they were not delayed during the time a report went to Darius and a written order came back concerning this matter.

⁶A copy of the letter which Tattenai, governor of West-of-Euphrates, along with Shethar-bozenai and their fellow officials from West-of-Euphrates, sent to King Darius; ⁷they sent him a report in which was written the following:

“To King Darius, all good wishes! ⁸Let it be known to the king that we have visited the province of Judah and the house of the great God: it is being rebuilt of cut stone and the walls are being reinforced with timber; the work is being carried out diligently, prospering under their hands. ⁹We then questioned the elders, addressing to them the following words: ‘Who issued the decree for you to build this house and complete this edifice?’ ¹⁰We also asked them their names, in order to give you a list of the men who are their leaders. ¹¹This was their answer to us: ‘We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the house built here many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and completed. ¹²But because our ancestors provoked the wrath of the God of heaven, he delivered them into the power of the Chaldean, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, who destroyed this house and exiled the people to Babylon. ¹³^(B)However, in the first year of Cyrus, king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree for the rebuilding of this house of God. ¹⁴Moreover, the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem and carried off to the temple in Babylon, King Cyrus ordered to be removed from the temple in Babylon, and they were given to a certain Sheshbazzar, whom he named governor. ¹⁵He commanded him: Take these vessels and deposit them in the temple of Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its former site. ¹⁶Then this same Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the house of God in Jerusalem. Since that time to the present the building has been going on, and is not yet completed.’ ¹⁷Now, if it please the king, let a search be made in the royal archives of Babylon to discover whether a decree really was issued by King Cyrus for the rebuilding of this house of God in Jerusalem. And may the king’s decision in this matter be communicated to us.”

Acts 5

Chapter 5

Ananias and Sapphira.^[a] ¹A man named Ananias, however, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property. ²He retained for himself, with his wife’s knowledge, some of the purchase price, took the remainder, and put it at the feet of the apostles. ³But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart so that you lied to the holy Spirit and retained part of the price of the land?^(A) ⁴While it remained unsold, did it not remain yours? And when it was sold, was it not still under your control? Why did you contrive this deed? You have lied not to human beings, but to God.” ⁵When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last, and great fear came upon all who heard of it. ⁶The young men came and wrapped him up, then carried him out and buried him.

⁷After an interval of about three hours, his wife came in, unaware of what had happened. ⁸Peter said to her, “Tell me, did you sell the land for this amount?” She answered, “Yes, for that amount.” ⁹Then Peter said to her, “Why did you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? Listen, the footsteps of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” ¹⁰At once, she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. When the young men entered they found her dead, so they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. ¹¹And great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things.^(B)

Signs and Wonders of the Apostles.^[b] ¹²Many signs and wonders were done among the people at the hands of the apostles. They were all together in Solomon’s portico.^(C) ¹³None of the others dared to join them, but the people esteemed them. ¹⁴Yet more than ever, believers in the Lord, great numbers of men and women, were added to them. ¹⁵Thus they even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on cots and mats so that when Peter came by, at least his shadow might fall on one or another of them.^(D) ¹⁶A large number of people from the towns in the vicinity of Jerusalem also gathered, bringing the sick and those disturbed by unclean spirits, and they were all cured.

Trial Before the Sanhedrin.^[c] ¹⁷Then the high priest rose up and all his companions, that is, the party of the Sadducees, and, filled with jealousy,^(E) ¹⁸laid hands upon the apostles and put them in the public jail. ¹⁹But during the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison, led them out, and said,^(F) ²⁰“Go and take your place in the temple area, and tell the people everything about this life.” ²¹When they heard this, they went to the temple early in the morning and taught. When the high priest and his companions arrived, they convened the Sanhedrin, the full senate of the Israelites, and sent to the jail to have them brought in. ²²But the court officers who went did not find them in the prison, so they came back and reported, ²³“We found the jail securely locked and the guards stationed outside the doors, but when we opened them, we found no one inside.” ²⁴When they heard this report, the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests were at a loss about them, as to what this would come to. ²⁵Then someone came in and reported to them, “The men whom you put in prison are in the temple area and are teaching the people.” ²⁶Then the captain and the court officers went and brought them in, but without force, because they were afraid of being stoned by the people.^(G)

²⁷When they had brought them in and made them stand before the Sanhedrin, the high priest questioned them, ²⁸“We gave you strict orders [did we not?] to stop teaching in that name. Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and want to bring this man’s blood upon us.”^(H) ²⁹But Peter and the apostles said in reply, “We must obey God rather than men.^(I) ³⁰^[d]The God of our ancestors raised Jesus,^(J) though you had him killed by hanging him on a tree. ³¹God exalted him at his right hand^[e] as leader and savior to grant Israel repentance and forgiveness of sins.^(K) ³²We are witnesses of these things, as is the holy Spirit that God has given to those who obey him.”^(L)

³³When they heard this, they became infuriated and wanted to put them to death. ³⁴^[f]But a Pharisee in the Sanhedrin named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, respected by all the people, stood up, ordered the men to be put outside for a short time,^(M) ³⁵and said to them, “Fellow Israelites, be careful what you are about to do to these men. ³⁶^[g]Some time ago, Theudas appeared, claiming to be someone important, and about four hundred men joined him, but he was killed, and all those who were loyal to him were disbanded and came to nothing. ³⁷After him came Judas the Galilean at the time of the census. He also drew people after him, but he too perished and all who were loyal to him were scattered. ³⁸So now I tell you, have nothing to do with these men, and let them go. For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself. ³⁹But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God.” They were persuaded by him. ⁴⁰After recalling the apostles, they had them flogged, ordered them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus, and dismissed them.^(N) ⁴¹So they left the presence of the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they had been found worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name.^(O) ⁴²And all day long, both at the temple and in their homes, they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the Messiah, Jesus.^(P)

Footnotes

5:1–11 The sin of Ananias and Sapphira did not consist in the withholding of part of the money but in their deception of the community. Their deaths are ascribed to a lie to the holy Spirit (Acts 5:3, 9), i.e., they accepted the honor accorded them by the community for their generosity, but in reality they were not deserving of it.
5:12–16 This, the third summary portraying the Jerusalem community, underscores the Twelve as its bulwark, especially because of their charismatic power to heal the sick; cf. Acts 2:42–47; 4:32–37.
5:17–42 A second action against the community is taken by the Sanhedrin in the arrest and trial of the Twelve; cf. Acts 4:1–3. The motive is the jealousy of the religious authorities over the popularity of the apostles (Acts 5:17) who are now charged with the defiance of the Sanhedrin’s previous order to them to abandon their prophetic role (Acts 5:28; cf. Acts 4:18). In this crisis the apostles are favored by a miraculous release from prison (Acts 5:18–24). (For similar incidents involving Peter and Paul, see Acts 12:6–11; 16:25–29.) The real significance of such an event, however, would be manifest only to people of faith, not to unbelievers; since the Sanhedrin already judged the Twelve to be inauthentic prophets, it could disregard reports of their miracles. When the Twelve immediately resumed public teaching, the Sanhedrin determined to invoke upon them the penalty of death (Acts 5:33) prescribed in Dt 13:6–10. Gamaliel’s advice against this course finally prevailed, but it did not save the Twelve from the punishment of scourging (Acts 5:40) in a last endeavor to shake their conviction of their prophetic mission.
5:30 Hanging him on a tree: that is, crucifying him (cf. also Gal 3:13).
5:31 At his right hand: see note on Acts 2:33.
5:34 Gamaliel: in Acts 22:3, Paul identifies himself as a disciple of this Rabbi Gamaliel I who flourished in Jerusalem between A.D. 25 and 50.
5:36–37 Gamaliel offers examples of unsuccessful contemporary movements to argue that if God is not the origin of this movement preached by the apostles it will perish by itself. The movement initiated by Theudas actually occurred when C. Cuspius Fadus was governor, A.D. 44–46. Luke’s placing of Judas the Galilean after Theudas and at the time of the census (see note on Lk 2:1–2) is an indication of the vagueness of his knowledge of these events.

New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)

Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

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The Beatitudes[c]

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The Beatitudes^[c]