Daily Readings - 17/04/2026

^5:34 One member of the Sanhedrin, however, a Pharisee called Gamaliel, who was a doctor of the Law and respected by the whole people,[*b] stood up and asked to have the men taken outside for a time.

^5:35 Then he addressed the Sanhedrin, ‘Men of Israel, be careful how you deal with these people.

^5:36 There was Theudas who became notorious not so long ago. He claimed to be someone important, and he even collected about four hundred followers; but when he was killed, all his followers scattered and that was the end of them.

^5:37 And then there was Judas the Galilean, at the time of the census, who attracted crowds of supporters; but he got killed too, and all his followers dispersed.

^5:38 What I suggest, therefore, is that you leave these men alone and let them go. If this enterprise, this movement of theirs, is of human origin it will break up of its own accord;

^5:39 but if it does in fact come from God you will not only be unable to destroy them, but you might find yourselves fighting against God.’ His advice was accepted;

^5:40 and they had the apostles called in, gave orders for them to be flogged, warned them not to speak in the name of Jesus and released them.

^5:41 And so they left the presence of the Sanhedrin glad to have had the honour of suffering humiliation for the sake of the name.

^5:42 They preached every day both in the Temple and in private houses, and their proclamation of the Good News of Christ Jesus was never interrupted.

^26:1 Yahweh, be my judge! I go my way in my innocence, My trust in Yahweh never wavers.

^26:2 Test me, Yahweh, and probe me, put me to the trial, loins and heart;

^26:3 for your love is before my eyes, and I live my life in loyalty to you.

^26:4 No sitting with wastrels for me, no associating with hypocrites;

^26:5 I hate the society of evil men, I refuse to sit down with the wicked.

^26:6 I wash my hands in innocence and join the procession round your altar,

^26:7 singing a hymn of thanksgiving, proclaiming all your wonders.

^26:8 I love the house where you live, the place where your glory makes its home.

^26:9 Do not let my soul share the fate of sinners, or my life the doom of men of blood,

^26:10 men with guilt on their hands, whose right hands are heavy with bribes.

^26:11 But I live my life in innocence, redeem me, Yahweh, take pity on me;

^26:12 my foot is set on the right path, I bless you, Yahweh, at the Assemblies.

^6:1 Some time after this, Jesus went off to the other side of the Sea of Galilee – or of Tiberias –

^6:2 and a large crowd followed him, impressed by the signs he gave by curing the sick.

^6:3 Jesus climbed the hillside, and sat down there with his disciples.

^6:4 It was shortly before the Jewish feast of Passover.

^6:5 Looking up, Jesus saw the crowds approaching and said to Philip, ‘Where can we buy some bread for these people to eat?’

^6:6 He only said this to test Philip; he himself knew exactly what he was going to do.

^6:7 Philip answered, ‘Two hundred denarii would only buy enough to give them a small piece each’.

^6:8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said,

^6:9 ‘There is a small boy here with five barley loaves and two fish; but what is that between so many?’

^6:10 Jesus said to them, ‘Make the people sit down’. There was plenty of grass there, and as many as five thousand men sat down.

^6:11 Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and gave them out to all who were sitting ready; he then did the same with the fish, giving out as much as was wanted.

^6:12 When they had eaten enough he said to the disciples, ‘Pick up the pieces left over, so that nothing gets wasted’.

^6:13 So they picked them up, and filled twelve hampers with scraps left over from the meal of five barley loaves.

^6:14 The people, seeing this sign that he had given, said, ‘This really is the prophet who is to come into the world’.

^6:15 Jesus, who could see they were about to come and take him by force and make him king, escaped back to the hills by himself.