On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, the month Shebat, in Darius’ second year, ¹  the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berechiah son of Iddo, as follows:

In King Darius’ fourth year, on the fourth day of Kislev, the ninth month, ¹  the word of the Lord came to Zechariah.

But when he heard that Archelaus ¹  was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, ²  he was afraid to go there. After being warned in a dream, he went to the regions of Galilee.

Going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in a boat ¹  with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. Then ²  he called them.

“I tell you the truth, ¹  whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever you release on earth will have been released in heaven.

Again he sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Look! The feast I have prepared for you is ready. ¹  My oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.”’

The Son of Man will go as it is written about him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would be better for him if he had never been born.”

After looking around ¹  at them in anger, grieved by the hardness of their hearts, ²  he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. ³ 

It is like a man going on a journey. He left his house and put his slaves ¹  in charge, assigning ²  to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to stay alert.

For the Son of Man will go as it is written about him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would be better for him if he had never been born.”

Those ¹  on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, ²  but ³  in a time of testing ⁴  fall away. ⁵ 

Jesus ¹  also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who was informed of accusations ²  that his manager ³  was wasting ⁴  his assets.

Now when they heard this, they began to drift away one at a time, starting with the older ones, ¹  until Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him.

but since it concerns points of disagreement ¹  about words and names and your own law, settle ²  it yourselves. I will not be ³  a judge of these things!”

When ¹  our time was over, ²  we left and went on our way. All of them, with their wives and children, accompanied ³  us outside of the city. After ⁴  kneeling down on the beach and praying, ⁵ 

I punished ¹  them often in all the synagogues ²  and tried to force ³  them to blaspheme. Because I was so furiously enraged ⁴  at them, I went to persecute ⁵  them even in foreign cities.

The brothers from there, ¹  when they heard about us, came as far as the Forum of Appius ²  and Three Taverns ³  to meet us. When he saw them, ⁴  Paul thanked God and took courage.

So they began to leave, ¹  unable to agree among themselves, after Paul made one last statement: “The Holy Spirit spoke rightly to your ancestors ²  through the prophet Isaiah

Consequently, ¹  just as condemnation ²  for all people ³  came ⁴  through one transgression, ⁵  so too through the one righteous act ⁶  came righteousness leading to life ⁷  for all people.

And do this ¹  because we know ²  the time, that it is already the hour for us to awake from sleep, for our salvation is now nearer than when we became believers.