M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Second Plague: Frogs
8 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to Pharaoh, and tell him that this is what the Lord says: Let my people go so that they may serve me.[a] 2 If you refuse to let them go, watch out. I will send a plague of frogs on your entire territory. 3 The Nile will teem with frogs. They will come up and enter into your palace, into your bedroom, onto your bed, into your servants’ houses, on your people, into your ovens, and into your kneading troughs. 4 The frogs will come up on you, your people, and all your servants.”
5 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Stretch out your hand with your staff over the rivers, streams, and ponds, and bring frogs up onto the land of Egypt.’” 6 So Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt. The frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. 7 But the magicians did the same thing by their occult practices and brought frogs up onto the land of Egypt.
8 Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Plead with the Lord to take the frogs away from me and my people, and I will let the people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.”
9 Moses said to Pharaoh, “I give you the honor of setting the time when I should plead for you, your servants, and your people so that the Lord will rid you and your houses of the frogs. They will remain only in the Nile.”
10 Pharaoh said, “Tomorrow.”
Moses replied, “It will take place just as you have said, so that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God. 11 The frogs will leave you and your houses, your servants, and your people. They will remain only in the Nile.”
12 Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh, and Moses cried out to the Lord about the frogs, which he had brought upon Pharaoh. 13 The Lord did as Moses said: The frogs from the houses, courtyards, and fields died. 14 The people piled them up into heaps, and the land stank. 15 But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he made his heart unyielding and did not listen to them, just as the Lord had said.
The Third Plague: Lice
16 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron: ‘Stretch out your staff, and strike the dust of the ground, and it will become lice[b] in the entire land of Egypt.’” 17 They did so. When Aaron stretched out his hand with his staff and struck the dust of the ground, there were lice on the people and animals. All the dust of the ground became lice in the entire land of Egypt. 18 The magicians tried to produce lice by their occult practices, but they could not. So there were lice on the people and on the animals. 19 The magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God.” But Pharaoh’s heart was hard, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had said.
The Fourth Plague: Swarms of Flies
20 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh as he is going out to the water. Tell him this is what the Lord says: Let my people go so that they may serve me. 21 For if you will not let my people go, watch out. I will send swarms of flies[c] on you, your servants, and your people, and into your houses. The houses of the Egyptians will be full of flies. They will even cover the ground. 22 But on that day, I will deal differently with the land of Goshen, where my people are living. There will not be swarms of flies in Goshen. In this way, you will know that I am the Lord on the earth. 23 I will make a distinction[d] between my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign will take place.”
24 So that is what the Lord did. Thick swarms of flies went into Pharaoh’s palace and his officials’ houses. Throughout Egypt, the land was ruined because of the swarms of flies.
25 Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, offer sacrifices to your God in the land!”
26 But Moses said, “It is not right to do that, because the sacrifices which we will offer to the Lord our God would be detestable to the Egyptians. If we offer sacrifices that are detestable to the Egyptians right in front of them, won’t they stone us? 27 We will go on a three-day journey into the wilderness and offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, just as he tells us.”
28 Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God in the wilderness, but do not go very far away. Plead for me.”
29 Moses said, “All right. As soon as I leave you, I will plead to the Lord so that tomorrow the swarms of flies will depart from Pharaoh, his servants, and his people. Only do not let Pharaoh act deceitfully again by not letting the people go to offer sacrifices to the Lord.”
30 Moses went out from Pharaoh and pleaded to the Lord. 31 The Lord did as Moses said, and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, his servants, and his people. Not a fly remained. 32 Pharaoh made his heart unyielding[e] this time also, and he did not let the people go.
The Lord’s Prayer
11 On another occasion, Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John also taught his disciples.”
2 He said to them, “When you pray, say, ‘Our Father in heaven,[a] hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.[b] 3 Give us each day our daily bread. 4 Forgive us our sins, as we also forgive everyone who sins against us.[c] And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.’”[d]
Keep Praying
5 He said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and tell him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, 6 because a friend of mine who is on a journey has come to me, and I do not have anything to set before him.’ 7 And the one inside replies, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give it to you.’ 8 I tell you, even if he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his bold persistence, he will get up and give him as much as he needs.
9 “I tell you, keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep seeking, and you will find. Keep knocking, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives. The one who seeks finds. And to the one who knocks, it will be opened.
11 “What father among you, if your son asks for bread, would give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, would give him a snake instead of a fish? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, would give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?”
Jesus Drives Out Demons
14 Jesus drove out a demon, which was mute. After the demon had gone out, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowds were amazed. 15 But some of them said, “He drives out demons by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” 16 Others were testing him by demanding of him a sign from heaven. 17 But he knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is destroyed. And a house divided against itself falls. 18 If Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? You say that I drive out demons by Beelzebul. 19 But if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons drive them out? So they will be your judges. 20 Yet if I drive out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
21 “When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. 22 But when someone stronger attacks him and defeats him, he takes away that man’s full armor, in which he had trusted, and divides up his plunder.
23 “The one who is not with me is against me. The one who does not gather with me scatters. 24 When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places, seeking rest, but does not find any. Then it says, ‘I will return to my house, the one I left.’ 25 When it returns, it finds the house swept and put in order. 26 Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and dwell there. The last condition of that man becomes worse than the first.”
The Sign of Jonah
27 While he was saying these things, a woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that carried you, and the breasts at which you nursed!”
28 But he said, “Even more blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”
29 As the crowds were increasing, he began to say, “This generation is an evil generation. It is seeking a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah. 30 For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation. 31 The Queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation, and she will condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon. But look, one greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah. But look, one greater than Jonah is here.
A Lamp and a Lampstand
33 “No one lights a lamp and puts it in a hidden place or under a basket, but on a stand so that those who come in may see the light. 34 Your eye is the lamp of the body. When your eye is good, your whole body is full of light. But when it is bad, your body is full of darkness. 35 Therefore, see to it that the light that is in you is not darkness. 36 So if your whole body is full of light, without any dark part, it will be completely full of light, as when a lamp shines on you with bright light.”
Woes and Warnings
37 After Jesus spoke, a Pharisee invited him to have a meal with him. He went in and reclined at the table. 38 When the Pharisee saw this, he was amazed that he did not first wash[e] before the meal. 39 But the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. 40 Fools! Didn’t the one who made the outside also make the inside? 41 But give those things that are inside as a gift to the poor, and see, everything will be clean for you. 42 But woe to you Pharisees, because you give a tenth of mint and rue and every herb, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have done these things without neglecting the others. 43 Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the best seat in the synagogues and the greetings in the marketplaces. 44 Woe to you, because you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without realizing it.”
45 One of the legal experts answered him, “Teacher, by saying these things you are insulting us too.”
46 But Jesus said, “Woe to you legal experts too, because you load people down with burdens too difficult to carry, and you yourselves do not touch these burdens with one of your fingers. 47 Woe to you because you build monuments for the prophets, but your fathers killed them. 48 So you are witnesses and agree with what your fathers did, because they killed them, and you build their monuments. 49 For this reason the wisdom of God also said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles. Some of them they will kill and persecute, 50 so that this generation may be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed from the foundation of the world, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary.’ Yes, I tell you, it will be charged against this generation. 52 Woe to you legal experts, because you took away the key of knowledge. You yourselves did not enter, and you hindered those who were trying to enter.”
53 When he went away from there, the experts in the law and the Pharisees began to oppose him fiercely and to question him closely about many things. 54 They were plotting against him to trap him in something he said.[f]
Round Three: Bildad’s Speech
25 Bildad the Shuhite responded:
2 The power to rule and to inspire fear belongs to him.
He makes peace on high.
3 Can anyone count his troops?
Is there anyone on whom his light does not rise?
4 How then can a man be righteous with God?
How can one born of a woman be pure?
5 If even the moon does not shine brightly for him,
and if the stars are not pure in his eyes,
6 how much less a man, who is a maggot,
and a son of man, who is a worm?
Round Three: Job’s Second Speech
26 Then Job responded:
2 How marvelously you have helped the helpless!
How wonderfully you have saved the arm that has no strength!
3 What great advice you have given to the one who lacks wisdom!
What great insight you have revealed!
4 Who helped you proclaim these words?
Whose breath[a] came out of your mouth?
5 The spirits of the dead writhe in pain underneath the waters,
along with all those who dwell there.
6 Hell[b] is naked before God,
and there is nowhere to hide in the place of destruction.[c]
7 He stretches out the northern sky across the emptiness.
He suspends the earth on nothing.
8 He encloses water in his clouds,
but the clouds are not broken apart by its weight.
9 He dims the face of the full moon by veiling it with his clouds.
10 He drew a circle around the surface of the waters.
It marks the boundary of light and darkness.
11 The pillars of the heavens shake.
They are stunned by his rebuke.
12 By his power he calmed[d] the sea.
By his understanding he smashed Rahab.[e]
13 By his breath the skies became beautiful.
His hand pierced the fleeing serpent.[f]
14 But all these are just the fringe of his ways!
How faint a whisper we hear of him!
Who understands his power, which is displayed in the thunder?
All the Gifts of the Spirit Are Beneficial
12 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans, you were deceived and somehow led away to mute idols. 3 Therefore I am informing you that no one speaking by God’s Spirit says, “A curse be upon Jesus,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4 There are various kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are different kinds of ministries, and yet the same Lord. 6 There are various kinds of activity, but the same God, who produces all of them in everyone.
7 Each person is given a manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 To one person a message of wisdom is given by the Spirit; to another, a message of knowledge, as the same Spirit provides it; 9 by the same Spirit, faith is given to someone else; and to another, the same[a] Spirit gives healing gifts. 10 Another is given powers to do miracles; another, the gift of prophecy; another, the evaluating of spirits; someone else, different kinds of tongues;[b] and another, the interpretation of tongues. 11 One and the same Spirit produces all of these, distributing them to each one individually as he desires.
The Diversity of the Gifts Enhances the Unity of the Body of Christ
12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by[c] one Spirit we all were baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free people, and we were all caused to drink one Spirit. 14 Furthermore, the body is not one member, but many. 15 If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not part of the body,” it does not on that account cease to be part of the body. 16 If the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not part of the body,” it does not on that account cease to be part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has arranged the members in the body, each and every one of them, as he desired. 19 If they were all one member, where would the body be? 20 But as it is, there are many members, yet one body.
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need for you,” or again the head to the feet, “I have no need for you.” 22 On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are much more necessary. 23 As for the parts of the body we consider less honorable, these we provide with more honor. We treat our unpresentable parts with more modesty, 24 whereas our presentable parts have no such need. But God put the body together in a way that gave more honor to the parts that lack it. 25 He did it so that there might not be any division in the body, but that the members might all have the same concern for one another. 26 So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it, or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.
27 You are the body of Christ, and individually you are members of it. 28 And God appointed in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then miracles, healing gifts, helpful acts, leadership abilities, kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all miracle workers? 30 Do all have healing gifts? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31 But eagerly seek the greater gifts. And now, I am going to show you a more excellent way.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.