M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Jacob’s Flight to Laban
28 So Isaac called Jacob, blessed him, and commanded him, “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. 2 Get up. Go to Paddan Aram,[a] to the house of Bethuel, your mother’s father. Take a wife from there from the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. 3 May God Almighty bless you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, so that you may become a community of peoples. 4 May he give you and your descendants along with you the blessing he gave to Abraham, so that you may inherit the land where you have been living as an alien, the land God gave to Abraham.”
5 So Isaac sent Jacob away. He went to Paddan Aram to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean. Laban was the brother of Rebekah, who was the mother of Jacob and Esau.
6 Esau observed that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan Aram to take a wife from there, and that as he blessed him, he had commanded him, “You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan.” 7 When he saw that Jacob had obeyed his father and his mother and had gone to Paddan Aram, 8 Esau realized that the daughters of Canaan did not please Isaac, his father. 9 So Esau went to Ishmael, and he took Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebaioth, to be his wife, in addition to the wives that he already had.
10 Jacob set out from Beersheba and traveled toward Haran. 11 He came to a certain place and decided to spend the night there, because the sun had set. He took one of the stones from that place, put it under his head, and lay down to sleep in that place. 12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway set up on the earth with its top reaching to heaven. There were angels of God ascending and descending on it. 13 There at the top stood the Lord, who said, “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. The land on which you are lying, I give to you and to your descendants. 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south. In you and in your seed[b] all the families of the earth will be blessed. 15 Now, I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back again into this land. Indeed, I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised to you.”
16 Jacob woke up from his sleep, and he said, “Certainly the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 He was afraid[c] and he said, “How awe- inspiring is this place! This is nothing other than the house of God, and this is the gate to heaven.”
18 Jacob got up early in the morning. He took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up as a sacred memorial stone and poured oil on top of it. 19 He named that place Bethel. (Before this, the name of the city had been Luz.) 20 Jacob took a vow, “If God will be with me to keep me safe on this journey I am making, and if he gives me food to eat and clothing to put on, 21 and I come back to my father’s house in safety, the Lord will be my God, 22 and this stone that I have set up as a memorial stone will be God’s house, and I will certainly give you a tenth of everything that you give me.”
27 Early in the morning, all the chief priests and the elders of the people reached the decision to put Jesus to death. 2 They bound him, led him away, and handed him over to Pontius Pilate, the governor.
The End of Judas
3 Then when Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he felt remorse. He brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders 4 and said, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us? That’s your problem.”
5 He threw the pieces of silver into the temple and left. Then he went out and hanged himself. 6 The chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, “It is not lawful to put these into the treasury, since it is blood money.” 7 They reached a decision to buy the potter’s field with the money, as a burial place for foreigners. 8 So that field has been called The Field of Blood to this day. 9 Then what was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:
They took the thirty pieces of silver, the price the sons of Israel had set for him, 10 and they gave them for the potter’s field, just as the Lord commanded me.[a]
Jesus’ Trial in Pilate’s Court
11 When Jesus stood in the presence of the governor, the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”
Jesus said to him, “It is as you say.”
12 When he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing. 13 Then Pilate said to him, “Don’t you hear how many things they are testifying against you?”
14 But he did not answer him—not even one word, so that the governor was very surprised.
Barabbas or Jesus?
15 At the time of the Festival the governor had a custom to release to the crowd any one prisoner they wanted. 16 At that time they were holding a notorious prisoner named Barabbas. 17 So when they were assembled, Pilate said to them, “Which one do you want me to release to you? Barabbas—or Jesus, who is called Christ?” 18 For Pilate knew that they had handed Jesus over to him because of envy.
19 While he was sitting on the judgment seat, Pilate’s wife sent him a message. “Have nothing to do with that righteous man,” she said, “since I have suffered many things today in a dream because of him.” 20 But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus put to death. 21 The governor asked them, “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?”
“Barabbas!” they said.
22 Pilate said to them, “Then what should I do with Jesus, who is called Christ?”
They all said to him, “Crucify him!”
23 But the governor said, “Why? What has he done wrong?”
But they kept shouting even louder: “Crucify him!”
24 When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing and that instead it was turning into a riot, he took water, washed his hands in front of the crowd, and said, “I am innocent of this righteous man’s blood. It is your responsibility.”
25 And all the people answered, “Let his blood be on us and on our children!”
26 Then he released Barabbas to them, but he had Jesus flogged and handed him over to be crucified.
Soldiers Mock Jesus
27 Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole cohort[b] of soldiers around him. 28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him. 29 They twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand, knelt in front of him, and mocked him by saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 They spit on him, took the staff, and hit him repeatedly on his head.
The Crucifixion
31 After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.
32 As they were going out of the city, they found a man of Cyrene named Simon. They forced him to carry Jesus’ cross. 33 They came to a place called Golgotha, which means “The place of the skull.” 34 They offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. 35 After they had crucified him, they divided his clothing among themselves by casting lots. 36 Then they sat down and were keeping watch over him there. 37 Above his head they posted the written charge against him: “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”
38 At the same time two criminals were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39 People who passed by kept insulting him, shaking their heads, 40 and saying, “You who were going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross!”
41 In the same way the chief priests, experts in the law, and elders kept mocking him. They said, 42 “He saved others, but he cannot save himself. If he’s the King of Israel, let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now, if he wants him, because he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44 In the same way even the criminals who were crucified with him kept insulting him.
Jesus’ Death
45 From the sixth hour until the ninth hour,[c] there was darkness over all the land. 46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”[d]
47 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “This fellow is calling for Elijah.”
48 Immediately one of them ran, took a sponge, and soaked it with sour wine. Then he put it on a stick and gave him a drink. 49 The rest said, “Leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”
50 After Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. 51 Suddenly, the temple curtain was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and rocks were split. 52 Tombs were opened, and many bodies of saints who had fallen asleep were raised to life. 53 Those who came out of the tombs went into the holy city after Jesus’ resurrection and appeared to many people. 54 When the centurion and those who were guarding Jesus with him saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they were terrified and said, “Truly this was the Son of God.”
55 Many women who had followed Jesus from Galilee and who had served him were there, watching from a distance. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.
Jesus’ Burial
57 When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus. 58 He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 59 Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and laid it in his own new tomb that he had cut in the rock. He rolled a large stone over the tomb’s entrance and left. 61 Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there sitting opposite the tomb.
The Guard
62 On the next day, which was the day after the Preparation Day, the chief priests and Pharisees gathered in the presence of Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remembered what that deceiver said while he was still alive: ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give a command that the tomb be made secure until the third day. Otherwise his disciples might steal his body and tell the people, ‘He is risen from the dead.’ And this last deception will be worse than the first.”
65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard. Go, make it as secure as you know how.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and posting a guard.
4 When Mordecai became aware of everything that had happened, he ripped his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, went out into the middle of the city, and let out a loud, bitter cry. 2 He went right up to the king’s gate, even though no one clothed with sackcloth was allowed to enter it.
3 In every single province that was reached by the proclamation of the king and where his decree was posted, there was great mourning, fasting, weeping, and lamenting among the Jews. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
4 When Esther’s female attendants and her eunuchs came and told her what had happened, the queen agonized over it. She sent garments to clothe Mordecai so that he could take off his sackcloth, but he did not accept them. 5 Esther summoned Hathak, who had been assigned from among the king’s eunuchs to attend to her. She ordered him to go to Mordecai to learn what was happening and why.
6 Hathak went out to Mordecai in the public square in front of the king’s gate. 7 Mordecai told him everything that had happened and the exact amount of silver that Haman had said he would put into the treasuries of the king to destroy the Jews. 8 Mordecai also gave Hathak a copy of the written decree which had been issued in Susa to destroy the Jews, so that he could show it to Esther. Hathak was to place the responsibility upon her to go to the king to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people.
9 So Hathak went and told Esther what Mordecai had said.
10 Esther spoke to Hathak and gave him directions to pass on to Mordecai: 11 “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces know that it is the law that any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned will be put to death, unless the king holds out the golden scepter to him. Then he will live. But I have not been called to go to the king for thirty days.”
12 They told Mordecai what Esther had said.
13 Mordecai responded, “Take this message to Esther: Do not imagine that of all the Jews, you alone will escape because you are part of the king’s household. 14 If at this time you keep totally silent, relief and deliverance for the Jews will spring up from somewhere, but you and the house of your father will perish. Who knows whether you have become queen for a time like this!”
15 Esther responded to Mordecai, 16 “Go. Gather all the Jews who are found in Susa. Fast on my behalf. Do not eat and drink for three days and nights. I and my young women also will fast in the same way. After that I will go to the king, contrary to the law. And then, if I perish, I perish!”
17 Mordecai went away and did everything Esther had ordered him to do.
Paul Sails for Rome
27 When it was decided that we[a] would sail for Italy, Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a centurion named Julius, of the Imperial Regiment. 2 After boarding a ship from Adramyttium, which was going to sail for ports along the coast of the province of Asia, we put out to sea. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, was with us.
3 The next day, we put in at Sidon, and Julius treated Paul kindly and allowed him to go to his friends to receive their care. 4 From there we put out to sea and sailed on the sheltered side of Cyprus, because the winds were against us. 5 We crossed the open sea along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia and landed at Myra in Lycia. 6 There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy, and he put us on board. 7 We sailed slowly for a number of days and arrived with difficulty off Cnidus. Since the wind did not permit us to go further, we sailed on the sheltered side of Crete, off Salmone. 8 With difficulty we sailed along its coast and came to a place called Fair Havens, near the city of Lasea.
9 Since so much time had passed and the voyage was now dangerous because the Fast[b] was already over, Paul advised them, 10 “Men, it looks to me as if the voyage is going to end with disaster and great loss, not only of the cargo and the ship but also of our lives.” 11 But the centurion paid more attention to the pilot and the owner of the ship than to what Paul was saying. 12 Since that harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided to put out to sea from there, hoping somehow to reach Phoenix and winter there. (Phoenix is a harbor on Crete, facing both southwest and northwest.) 13 When a gentle south wind began to blow, they thought they could carry out their plan. They raised the anchor and sailed close to the shore of Crete.
The Storm
14 But before long, a hurricane-like wind, called the “northeaster,” rushed down from the island. 15 Since the ship was caught in it and could not head into the wind, we gave way to it and were driven along. 16 As we sailed on the sheltered side of a small island called Cauda, we were barely able to secure the skiff.[c] 17 After hoisting it on board, the men tied ropes around the ship to reinforce it. Then, fearing that they would run aground on the sandbars of Syrtis, they lowered the sea anchor and in this way were driven along. 18 Because we were tossed around so violently by the storm, the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard. 19 On the third day, they threw the ship’s gear overboard with their own hands. 20 When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the violent storm kept pressing down on us, finally all hope that we would be saved was disappearing.
21 After they had gone a long time without food, Paul stood up among them and said, “Men, you should have followed my advice and not set sail from Crete and avoided this damage and loss. 22 But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because there will be no loss of life among you. Only the ship will be lost. 23 In fact, last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me 24 and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. And surely God has graciously given you all those who are sailing with you.’ 25 So keep up your courage, men, because I believe God that it will be exactly the way I have been told. 26 However, we must run aground on some island.”
The Shipwreck
27 When the fourteenth night came, while we were being driven back and forth in the Adriatic Sea,[d] about midnight the sailors suspected that they were approaching some land. 28 They took soundings and found it to be one hundred twenty feet deep.[e] After sailing a little farther, they took soundings again and found it was ninety feet deep.[f] 29 Fearing that we would run aground on the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daybreak.
30 The sailors tried to escape from the ship and had let down the skiff into the sea, pretending they were going to put out anchors from the bow. 31 Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “If these men do not stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.” 32 Then the soldiers cut the ropes holding the skiff and let it fall away.
33 Just before daybreak, Paul urged them all to eat some food. He said, “This is the fourteenth day you have waited in suspense and have gone without food. You have eaten nothing. 34 Therefore I urge you to take some food because this is important for your rescue. In fact, not a hair from any of your heads will be lost.” 35 After he said these things and had taken some bread, he gave thanks to God in front of them all. Then he broke it and began to eat. 36 They were all encouraged and took some food themselves. 37 In all there were 276 of us on the ship. 38 When they had eaten all they wanted, they lightened the ship by throwing the grain overboard into the sea.
39 At daybreak, they did not recognize the land, but they noticed a bay with a beach, where they planned to run the ship aground if they could. 40 They cut off the anchors, leaving them in the sea, and at the same time untied the ropes that held the rudders. Then, after hoisting the foresail to the wind, they headed for the beach. 41 But they struck a sandbar and ran the ship aground. The bow stuck fast and would not move, while the stern began to break up from the pounding of the waves.
42 The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners so that no one would swim away and escape. 43 But the centurion wanted to save Paul and kept them from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and make their way to land. 44 The rest were to follow, some on planks, and some on other pieces from the ship. In this way, all of them were brought safely onto land.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.