M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Joseph Tells His Brothers Who He Is
45 (A) Since Joseph could no longer control his feelings in front of his servants, he sent them out of the room. When he was alone with his brothers, he told them, “I am Joseph.” 2 Then he cried so loudly that the Egyptians heard him and told about it in the king's[a] palace.
3 Joseph asked his brothers if his father was still alive, but they were too frightened to answer. 4 Joseph told them to come closer to him, and when they did, he said:
Yes, I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt. 5 Don't worry or blame yourselves for what you did. God is the one who sent me ahead of you to save lives.
6 There has already been a famine for two years, and for five more years no one will plow fields or harvest grain. 7 But God sent me on ahead of you to keep your families alive and to save you in this wonderful way. 8 After all, you weren't really the ones who sent me here—it was God. He made me the highest official in the king's court and placed me over all Egypt.
9 (B) Now hurry back and tell my father that his son Joseph says, “God has made me ruler of Egypt. Come here as quickly as you can. 10 You will live near me in the region of Goshen with your children and grandchildren, as well as with your sheep, goats, cattle, and everything else you own. 11 I will take care of you there during the next five years of famine. But if you don't come, you and your family and your animals will starve to death.”
12 All of you, including my brother Benjamin, can tell by what I have said that I really am Joseph. 13 Tell my father about my great power here in Egypt and about everything you have seen. Hurry and bring him here.
14 Joseph and Benjamin hugged each other and started crying. 15 Joseph was still crying as he kissed each of his other brothers. After this, they started talking with Joseph.
16 When it was told in the palace that Joseph's brothers had come, the king and his officials were happy. 17 So the king said to Joseph:
Tell your brothers to load their donkeys and return to Canaan. 18 Tell them to bring their father and their families here. I will give them the best land in Egypt, and they can eat and enjoy everything that grows there. 19 Also tell your brothers to take some wagons from Egypt for their wives and children to ride in. And be sure they bring their father. 20 They can leave their possessions behind, because they will be given the best of everything in Egypt.
21 Jacob's sons agreed to do what the king had said. And Joseph gave them wagons and food for their trip home, just as the king had ordered. 22 Joseph gave some new clothes to each of his brothers, but to Benjamin he gave five new outfits and 300 pieces of silver. 23 To his father he sent ten donkeys loaded with the best things in Egypt, and ten other donkeys loaded with grain and bread and other food for the return trip. 24 Then he sent his brothers off and told them, “Don't argue on the way home!”
25 Joseph's brothers left Egypt, and when they arrived in Canaan, 26 they told their father that Joseph was still alive and was the ruler of Egypt. But their father was so surprised that he could not believe them. 27 Then they told him everything Joseph had said. When he saw the wagons Joseph had sent, he felt much better 28 and said, “Now I can believe you! My son Joseph must really be alive, and I will get to see him before I die.”
Pilate Questions Jesus
(Matthew 27.1,2,11-14; Luke 23.1-5; John 18.28-38)
15 Early the next morning the chief priests, the nation's leaders, and the teachers of the Law of Moses met together with the whole Jewish council. They tied up Jesus and led him off to Pilate.
2 He asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”
“Those are your words,” Jesus answered.
3 The chief priests brought many charges against Jesus. 4 Then Pilate questioned him again, “Don't you have anything to say? Don't you hear what crimes they say you have done?” 5 But Jesus did not answer, and Pilate was amazed.
The Death Sentence
(Matthew 27.15-26; Luke 23.13-25; John 18.39—19.16)
6 During Passover, Pilate always freed one prisoner chosen by the people. 7 And at that time there was a prisoner named Barabbas. He and some others had been arrested for murder during a riot. 8 The crowd now came and asked Pilate to set a prisoner free, just as he usually did.
9 Pilate asked them, “Do you want me to free the king of the Jews?” 10 Pilate knew that the chief priests had brought Jesus to him because they were jealous.
11 But the chief priests told the crowd to ask Pilate to free Barabbas.
12 Then Pilate asked the crowd, “What do you want me to do with this man you say is[a] the king of the Jews?”
13 They yelled, “Nail him to a cross!”
14 Pilate asked, “But what crime has he done?”
“Nail him to a cross!” they yelled even louder.
15 Pilate wanted to please the crowd, so he set Barabbas free. Then he ordered his soldiers to beat Jesus with a whip and nail him to a cross.
Soldiers Make Fun of Jesus
(Matthew 27.27-30; John 19.2,3)
16 The soldiers led Jesus inside the courtyard of the fortress[b] and called together the rest of the troops. 17 They put a purple robe[c] on him, and on his head they placed a crown they had made out of thorn branches. 18 They made fun of Jesus and shouted, “Hey, you king of the Jews!” 19 Then they beat him on the head with a stick. They spit on him and knelt down and pretended to worship him.
20 When the soldiers had finished making fun of Jesus, they took off the purple robe. They put his own clothes back on him and led him off to be nailed to a cross. 21 (A) Simon from Cyrene happened to be coming in from a farm, and they forced him to carry Jesus' cross. Simon was the father of Alexander and Rufus.
Jesus Is Nailed to a Cross
(Matthew 27.31-44; Luke 23.27-43; John 19.17-27)
22 The soldiers took Jesus to Golgotha, which means “Place of a Skull.”[d] 23 There they gave him some wine mixed with a drug to ease the pain, but he refused to drink it.
24 (B) They nailed Jesus to a cross and gambled to see who would get his clothes. 25 It was about nine o'clock in the morning when they nailed him to the cross. 26 On it was a sign that told why he was nailed there. It read, “This is the King of the Jews.” 27-28 (C) The soldiers also nailed two criminals on crosses, one to the right of Jesus and the other to his left.[e]
29 (D) People who passed by said terrible things about Jesus. They shook their heads and shouted, “Ha! So you're the one who claimed you could tear down the temple and build it again in three days. 30 Save yourself and come down from the cross!”
31 The chief priests and the teachers of the Law of Moses also made fun of Jesus. They said to each other, “He saved others, but he can't save himself. 32 If he is the Messiah, the king of Israel, let him come down from the cross! Then we will see and believe.” The two criminals also said cruel things to Jesus.
The Death of Jesus
(Matthew 27.45-56; Luke 23.44-49; John 19.28-30)
33 About noon the sky turned dark and stayed that way until around three o'clock. 34 (E) Then about that time Jesus shouted, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?”[f] which means, “My God, my God, why have you deserted me?”
35 Some of the people standing there heard Jesus and said, “He is calling for Elijah.”[g] 36 (F) One of them ran and grabbed a sponge. After he had soaked it in wine, he put it on a stick and held it up to Jesus. He said, “Let's wait and see if Elijah will come[h] and take him down!” 37 Jesus shouted and then died.
38 (G) At once the curtain in the temple[i] tore in two from top to bottom.
39 A Roman army officer was standing in front of Jesus. When the officer saw how Jesus died, he said, “This man really was the Son of God!”
40-41 (H) Some women were looking on from a distance. They and many others had come with Jesus to Jerusalem. But even before this they had been his followers and had helped him while he was in Galilee. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of the younger James and of Joseph were two of these women. Salome was also one of them.
Jesus Is Buried
(Matthew 27.57-61; Luke 23.50-56; John 19.38-42)
42 It was now the evening before the Sabbath, and the Jewish people were getting ready for that sacred day. 43 A man named Joseph from Arimathea was brave enough to ask Pilate for the body of Jesus. Joseph was a highly respected member of the Jewish council, and he was also waiting for God's kingdom to come.
44 Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus was already dead, and he called in the army officer to find out if Jesus had been dead very long. 45 After the officer told him, Pilate let Joseph have Jesus' body.
46 Joseph bought a linen cloth and took the body down from the cross. He had it wrapped in the cloth, and he put it in a tomb that had been cut into solid rock. Then he rolled a big stone against the entrance to the tomb.
47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph were watching and saw where the body was placed.
Zophar's First Speech
So Much Foolish Talk
11 Zophar from Naamah[a] said:
2 So much foolish talk
cannot go unanswered.
3 Your words have silenced others
and made them ashamed;
now it is only right for you
to be put to shame.
4 You claim to be innocent
and argue that your beliefs
are acceptable to God.
5 But I wish God would speak
6 and let you know that wisdom
has many different sides.
You would then discover
that God has punished you
less than you deserve.
7 Can you understand the mysteries
surrounding God All-Powerful?
8 They are higher than the heavens
and deeper than the grave.
So what can you do
when you know so little,
9 and these mysteries outreach
the earth and the ocean?
10 If God puts you in prison
or drags you to court,
what can you do?
11 God has the wisdom to know
when someone is worthless
and sinful,
12 but it's easier to tame
a wild donkey
than to make a fool wise.[b]
Surrender Your Heart to God
13 Surrender your heart to God,
turn to him in prayer,
14 and give up your sins—
even those you do in secret.
15 Then you won't be ashamed;
you will be confident
and fearless.
16 Your troubles will go away
like water beneath a bridge,
17 and your darkest night
will be brighter than noon.
18 You will rest safe and secure,
filled with hope
and emptied of worry.
19 You will sleep without fear
and be greatly respected.
20 But those who are evil
will go blind and lose their way.
Their only escape is death!
Job's Reply to Zophar
You Think You Are So Great
*
Please Others and Not Yourself
15 If our faith is strong, we should be patient with the Lord's followers whose faith is weak. We should try to please them instead of ourselves. 2 We should think of their good and try to help them by doing what pleases them. 3 (A) Even Christ did not try to please himself. But as the Scriptures say, “The people who insulted you also insulted me.” 4 (B) And the Scriptures were written to teach and encourage us by giving us hope. 5 God is the one who makes us patient and cheerful. I pray that he will help you live at peace with each other, as you follow Christ. 6 Then all of you together will praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Good News Is for Jews and Gentiles
7 Honor God by accepting each other, as Christ has accepted you. 8 I tell you that Christ came as a servant of the Jews to show that God has kept the promises he made to their famous ancestors. Christ also came, 9 (C) so that the Gentiles would praise God for being kind to them. It is just as the Scriptures say,
“I will tell the nations
about you,
and I will sing praises
to your name.”
10 (D) The Scriptures also say to the Gentiles, “Come and celebrate with God's people.”
11 (E) Again the Scriptures say,
“Praise the Lord,
all you Gentiles.
All you nations, come
and worship him.”
12 (F) Isaiah says,
“Someone from David's family
will come to power.
He will rule the nations,
and they will put their hope
in him.”
13 I pray that God, who gives hope, will bless you with complete happiness and peace because of your faith. And may the power of the Holy Spirit fill you with hope.
Paul's Work as a Missionary
14 My friends, I am sure that you are very good and that you have all the knowledge you need to teach each other. 15 But I have spoken to you plainly and have tried to remind you of some things. God treated me with undeserved grace! 16 He chose me to be a servant of Christ Jesus for the Gentiles and to do the work of a priest in the service of his good news. God did this so that the Holy Spirit could make the Gentiles into a holy offering, pleasing to him.
17 Because of Christ Jesus, I can take pride in my service for God. 18 In fact, all I will talk about is how Christ let me speak and work, so that the Gentiles would obey him. 19 Indeed, I will tell how Christ worked miracles and wonders by the power of the Holy Spirit. I have preached the good news about him all the way from Jerusalem to Illyricum. 20 But I have always tried to preach where people have never heard about Christ. I am like a builder who doesn't build on someone else's foundation. 21 (G) It is just as the Scriptures say,
“All who haven't been told
about him
will see him,
and those who haven't heard
about him
will understand.”
Paul's Plan To Visit Rome
22 (H) My work has always kept me from coming to see you. 23 Now there is nothing left for me to do in this part of the world, and for years I have wanted to visit you. 24 So I plan to stop off on my way to Spain. Then after a short, but refreshing, visit with you, I hope you will quickly send me on.
25-26 (I) I am now on my way to Jerusalem to deliver the money that the Lord's followers in Macedonia and Achaia collected for God's needy people. 27 (J) This is something they really wanted to do. But sharing their money with the Jews was also like paying back a debt, because the Jews had already shared their spiritual blessings with the Gentiles. 28 After I have safely delivered this money, I will visit you and then go on to Spain. 29 And when I do arrive in Rome, I know it will be with the full blessings of Christ.
30 My friends, by the power of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the love that comes from the Holy Spirit, I beg you to pray sincerely with me and for me. 31 Pray that God will protect me from the unbelievers in Judea, and that his people in Jerusalem will be pleased with what I am doing. 32 Ask God to let me come to you and have a pleasant and refreshing visit. 33 I pray that God, who gives peace, will be with all of you. Amen.
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