Basic English Version : Read the Bible in 1 Year

2 Chronicles 21 / Basic English

1. And Jehoshaphat went to rest with his fathers, and his body was put into the earth in the town of David. And Jehoram his son became king in his place.
2. And he had brothers, sons of Jehoshaphat, Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azariah, Michael, and Shephatiah; all these were sons of Jehoshaphat, king of Israel.
3. And their father gave them much silver and gold and things of great value, as well as walled towns in Judah; but the kingdom he gave to Jehoram, because he was the oldest.
4. Now when Jehoram had taken his place over his father's kingdom, and had made his position safe, he put all his brothers to death with the sword, as well as some of the princes of Israel.
5. Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king; and he was ruling in Jerusalem for eight years.
6. He went in the ways of the kings of Israel, and did as the family of Ahab did, for the daughter of Ahab was his wife; and he did evil in the eyes of the Lord.
7. But it was not the Lord's purpose to send destruction on the family of David, because of the agreement he had made with David, when he said he would give to him and to his sons a light for ever.
8. In his time Edom made themselves free from the rule of Judah, and took a king for themselves.
9. Then Jehoram went over with his captains and all his war-carriages ... made an attack by night on the Edomites, whose forces were all round him ... on the captains of the war-carriages.
10. So Edom made themselves free from the rule of Judah, to this day: and at the same time Libnah made itself free from his rule; because he was turned away from the Lord, the God of his fathers.
11. And more than this, he made high places in the mountains of Judah, teaching the people of Jerusalem to go after false gods, and guiding Judah away from the true way.
12. And a letter came to him from Elijah the prophet, saying, The Lord, the God of your father David, says, Because you have not kept to the ways of your father Jehoshaphat or the ways of Asa, king of Judah,
13. But have gone in the way of the kings of Israel, and have made Judah and the people of Jerusalem go after false gods, as the family of Ahab did: and because you have put to death your father's sons, your brothers, who were better than yourself:
14. Now, truly, the Lord will send a great destruction on your people and your children and your wives and everything which is yours:
15. And you yourself will undergo the cruel pains of a disease in your stomach, so that day by day your inside will be falling out because of the disease.
16. Then the Philistines and the Arabians, who are by Ethiopia, were moved by the Lord to make war on Jehoram;
17. And they came up against Judah, forcing a way into it, and took away all the goods in the king's house, as well as his sons and his wives; so that he had no son but only Jehoahaz, the youngest.
18. And after all this the Lord sent on him a disease of the stomach from which it was impossible for him to be made well.
19. And time went on, and after two years, his inside falling out because of the disease, he came to his death in cruel pain. And his people made no burning for him like the burning made for his fathers.
20. He was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he was ruling in Jerusalem for eight years: and at his death he was not regretted; they put his body into the earth in the town of David, but not in the resting-place of the kings.

2 Chronicles 22 / Basic English

1. And the people of Jerusalem made Ahaziah, his youngest son, king in his place, for the band of men who came with the Arabians to the army had put all the older sons to death. So Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, became king.
2. Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he was ruling in Jerusalem for one year. His mother's name was Athaliah, the daughter of Omri.
3. He went in the ways of the family of Ahab, for his mother was his teacher in evil-doing.
4. And he did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as the family of Ahab did; for after the death of his father they were his guides to his destruction.
5. Acting on their suggestion, he went with Jehoram, son of Ahab, king of Israel, to make war on Hazael, king of Aram, at Ramoth-gilead: and Joram was wounded by the bowmen.
6. And he went back to Jezreel to get well from the wounds which they had given him at Ramah when he was fighting against Hazael, king of Aram. And Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, king of Judah, went down to Jezreel to see Jehoram, the son of Ahab, because he was ill.
7. Now by the purpose of God, Ahaziah's journey to see Jehoram was the cause of his downfall: for when he came there, he went out with Jehoram against Jehu, the son of Nimshi, who had been marked out by the Lord for the destruction of the family of Ahab.
8. Now when Jehu was effecting the punishment of the family of Ahab, he came to the princes of Judah and the sons of Ahaziah's brothers, the servants of Ahaziah, and put them to death.
9. And he went in search of Ahaziah; and when they came where he was, (for he was in a secret place in Samaria,) they took him to Jehu and put him to death; then they put his body to rest in the earth, for they said, He is the son of Jehoshaphat, whose heart was true to the Lord. So the family of Ahaziah had no power to keep the kingdom.
10. Now when Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah, saw that her son was dead, she had all the rest of the seed of the kingdom of Judah put to death.
11. But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, secretly took Joash, the son of Ahaziah, away from among the king's sons who were put to death, and put him and the woman who took care of him in a bedroom. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of King Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest and sister of Ahaziah, kept him safe from Athaliah, so that she did not put him to death.
12. And she kept him safe with her in the house of God for six years, while Athaliah was ruling the land.

2 Chronicles 23 / Basic English

1. In the seventh year, Jehoiada made himself strong, and made an agreement with the captains of hundreds, Azariah, the son of Jeroham, Ishmael, the son of Jehohanan, Azariah, the son of Obed, Maaseiah, the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat, the son of Zichri.
2. And they went through Judah, getting together the Levites and the heads of families in Israel from all the towns of Judah, and they came to Jerusalem.
3. And all the people made an agreement with the king in the house of God. And he said to them, Truly, the king's son will be king, as the Lord has said about the sons of David.
4. This is what you are to do: let a third of you, of the priests and Levites, who come in on the Sabbath, keep the doors;
5. And a third are to be stationed at the king's house; and a third at the doorway of the horses: while all the people are waiting in the open spaces round the house of the Lord.
6. But let no one come into the house of the Lord but only the priests and those of the Levites who have work to do there; they may go in for they are holy; but the rest of the people are to keep the orders of the Lord.
7. And the Levites are to make a circle round the king, every man being armed; and any man who comes into the house is to be put to death; you are to keep with the king when he comes in and when he goes out.
8. So the Levites and all Judah did as Jehoiada the priest had given them orders: every one took with him his men, those who were to come in and those who were to go out on the Sabbath; for Jehoiada had not sent away the divisions.
9. Then Jehoiada the priest gave to the captains of hundreds the spears and body-covers which had been King David's and which were kept in the house of God.
10. And he put all the people in position, every man with his instruments of war in his hand, from the right side of the house to the left, by the altar and the house and all round the king.
11. Then they made the king's son come out, and they put the crown on his head and gave him the arm-bands and made him king: and Jehoiada and his sons put the holy oil on him and said, Long life to the king.
12. Now Athaliah, hearing the noise of the people running and praising the king, came to the people in the house of the Lord:
13. And looking, she saw the king in his place by the pillar at the doorway, and the captains and the horns by his side; and all the people of the land were giving signs of joy and sounding the horns; and the makers of melody were playing on instruments of music, taking the chief part in the song of praise. Then Athaliah, violently parting her robes, said, Broken faith, broken faith!
14. Then Jehoiada the priest gave orders to the captains of hundreds who had authority over the army, saying, Take her outside the lines, and let anyone who goes after her be put to death with the sword. For the priest said, Let her not be put to death in the house of the Lord.
15. So they put their hands on her, and she went to the king's house by the doorway of the king's horses; and there she was put to death.
16. And Jehoiada made an agreement between the Lord and all the people and the king, that they would be the Lord's people.
17. Then all the people went to the house of Baal and had it pulled down, and its altars and images broken up; and Mattan, the priest of Baal, they put to death before the altars.
18. And Jehoiada put the work and the care of the house of the Lord into the hands of the priests and the Levites, who had been grouped in divisions by David to make burned offerings to the Lord, as it is recorded in the law of Moses, with joy and song as David had said.
19. And he put door-keepers at the doors of the Lord's house, to see that no one who was unclean in any way might come in.
20. Then he took the captains of hundreds and the chiefs and the rulers of the people and all the people of the land, and they came down with the king from the house of the Lord through the higher doorway into the king's house, and put the king on the seat of the kingdom.
21. So all the people of the land were glad and the town was quiet, for they had put Athaliah to death with the sword.

Acts 5 / Basic English

1. But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, got money for his property,
2. And kept back part of the price, his wife having knowledge of it, and took the rest and put it at the feet of the Apostles.
3. But Peter said, Ananias, why has the Evil One put it into your heart to be false to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
4. While you had it, was it not your property? and after you had given it in exchange, was it not still in your power? how has this purpose come into your mind? you have been false, not to men, but to God.
5. And at these words, Ananias went down on the earth, and his life went from him: and great fear came on all who were present.
6. And the young men went and made ready his body, and took it out, and put it in the earth.
7. And about three hours after, his wife, having no knowledge of what had taken place, came in.
8. And Peter said to her, Give me an answer: was this amount of money the price of the land? And she said, Yes, it was.
9. But Peter said to her, Why have you made an agreement together to be false to the Spirit of the Lord? See, the feet of the young men who have put the body of your husband in the earth, are at the door, and they will take you out.
10. And straight away she went down at his feet, and her life went from her: and the young men came in and saw her dead, and they took her out and put her in the earth with her husband.
11. Then great fear came on all the church and on all who had knowledge of these things.
12. Now a number of signs and wonders were done among the people by the hands of the Apostles; and they were all together in Solomon's covered way.
13. The others, in fear, kept back from joining them: but the people made much of them;
14. And a great number of men and women had faith, and were joined to the Lord;
15. And they even took into the streets people who were ill, and put them on beds, so that when Peter went by, some of them might be in his shade.
16. And numbers of people came together from the towns round about Jerusalem, with those who were ill and those who were troubled with unclean spirits: and they were all made well.
17. But the high priest and those who were with him (the Sadducees) were full of envy,
18. And they took the Apostles and put them in the common prison.
19. But in the night an angel of the Lord, opening the doors of the prison, took them out and said,
20. Go, take your place in the Temple and give the people all the teaching about this Life.
21. And hearing this, they went into the Temple at dawn, and were teaching. But the high priest and those who were with him got together the Sanhedrin and the representatives of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to get them.
22. But the men who were sent saw that they were not in the prison, and came back with the news,
23. Saying, The doors of the prison were safely shut, and the keepers were at the doors, but when they were open, there was nobody inside.
24. Now, at these words, the captain of the Temple and the chief priests were greatly troubled about what might be the end of this business.
25. And someone came and said to them, The men, whom you put in prison, are in the Temple teaching the people.
26. Then the captain and some of the police went and took them, but not violently, for fear that they might be stoned by the people.
27. And they took them into the Sanhedrin, and the high priest said to them,
28. We gave you very clear orders not to give teaching in this name: and now Jerusalem is full of your teaching, and you are attempting to make us responsible for this man's death.
29. But Peter and the Apostles, answering, said, We have to do the orders of God, not of man.
30. The God of our fathers gave Jesus back to life, whom you had put to death, hanging him on a tree.
31. Him God has put on high at his right hand, as a Ruler and a Saviour, to give to Israel a change of heart and forgiveness of sins.
32. And we are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who keep his laws.
33. But when these words came to their ears, they were cut to the heart, and had a mind to put them to death.
34. But one of the Sanhedrin, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a man of learning in the law, of whom all the people had a high opinion, got up and made a suggestion for the men to be put outside for a little time.
35. And he said to them, Men of Israel, take care what you do about these men.
36. For before this there was Theudas, who said he was someone important, to whom about four hundred men gave their support: he was put to death, and his band was broken up and came to nothing.
37. After this man, there was Judas of Galilee, at the time of the numbering, and some of the people went after him: he was put to death, and all his supporters were put to flight.
38. And now I say to you, Do nothing to these men, but let them be: for if this teaching or this work is of men, it will come to nothing:
39. But if it is of God, you will not be able to overcome them, and you are in danger of fighting against God.
40. And he seemed to them to be right: and they sent for the Apostles, and, after having them whipped and giving them orders to give no teaching in the name of Jesus, they let them go.
41. So they went away from the Sanhedrin, happy to undergo shame for the Name.
42. And every day, in the Temple and privately, they went on teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.