M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Jacob Meets Esau
33 Jacob saw Esau coming with 400 men. So he divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two slaves. 2 He put the slaves and their children in front, Leah and her children after them, and Rachel and Joseph last. 3 He went on ahead of them and bowed seven times with his face touching the ground as he came near his brother.
4 Then Esau ran to meet Jacob. Esau hugged him, threw his arms around him, and kissed him. They both cried. 5 When he saw the women and children, Esau asked, “Who are these people here with you?”
“The children God has graciously given me, sir,” Jacob answered.
6 Then the slaves and their children came forward and bowed down. 7 Likewise, Leah and her children came forward and bowed down. Finally, Joseph and Rachel came forward and bowed down.
8 Then Esau asked, “Why did you send this whole group ⌞of people and animals⌟ I met?”
He answered, “To win your favor, sir.”
9 Esau said, “I have enough. Keep what you have, Brother.”
10 Jacob said, “No, please take the gift I’m giving you, because I’ve seen your face as if I were seeing the face of God, and yet you welcomed me so warmly. 11 Please take the present I’ve brought you, because God has been gracious to me and has given me all that I need.” So Esau took it because Jacob insisted.
12 Then Esau said, “Let’s get ready to go, and I’ll go with you.”
13 Jacob said to him, “Sir, you know that the children are frail and that I have to take care of the flocks and cattle that are nursing their young. If they’re driven too hard for even one day, all the flocks will die. 14 Go ahead of me, sir. I will slowly and gently guide the herds that are in front of me at their pace and at the children’s pace until I come to you in Seir.”
15 Esau said, “Then let me leave some of my men with you.”
“Why do that?” Jacob asked. “I only want to win your favor, sir.”
16 That day Esau started back to Seir. 17 But Jacob moved on to Succoth, where he built a house for himself and made shelters for his livestock. That is why the place is named Succoth [Shelters].
18 So having come from Paddan Aram, Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem in Canaan. He camped within sight of the city. 19 Then he bought the piece of land on which he had put up his tents. He bought it from the sons of Hamor, father of Shechem, for 100 pieces of silver. 20 He set up an altar there and named it God Is the God of Israel.
A Story about a Farmer(A)
4 Jesus began to teach again by the Sea of Galilee. A very large crowd gathered around him, so he got into a boat and sat in it. The boat was in the water while the entire crowd lined the shore. 2 He used stories as illustrations to teach them many things.
While he was teaching them, he said, 3 “Listen! A farmer went to plant seed. 4 Some seeds were planted along the road, and birds came and devoured them. 5 Other seeds were planted on rocky ground, where there wasn’t much soil. The plants sprouted quickly because the soil wasn’t deep. 6 When the sun came up, they were scorched. They didn’t have any roots, so they withered. 7 Other seeds were planted among thornbushes. The thornbushes grew up and choked them, and they didn’t produce anything. 8 But other seeds were planted on good ground, sprouted, and produced thirty, sixty, or one hundred times as much as was planted.” 9 He added, “Let the person who has ears listen!”
10 When he was alone with his followers and the twelve apostles, they asked him about the stories.
11 Jesus replied to them, “The mystery about God’s kingdom has been given ⌞directly⌟ to you. To those on the outside, it is given in stories:
12 ‘They see clearly but don’t perceive.
They hear clearly but don’t understand.
They never return to me
and are never forgiven.’ ”
13 Jesus asked them, “Don’t you understand this story? How, then, will you understand any of the stories I use as illustrations?
14 “The farmer plants the word. 15 Some people are like seeds that were planted along the road. Whenever they hear the word, Satan comes at once and takes away the word that was planted in them. 16 Other people are like seeds that were planted on rocky ground. Whenever they hear the word, they accept it at once with joy. 17 But they don’t develop any roots. They last for a short time. When suffering or persecution comes along because of the word, they immediately fall ⌞from faith⌟. 18 Other people are like seeds planted among thornbushes. They hear the word, 19 but the worries of life, the deceitful pleasures of riches, and the desires for other things take over. They choke the word so that it can’t produce anything. 20 Others are like seeds planted on good ground. They hear the word, accept it, and produce crops—thirty, sixty, or one hundred times as much as was planted.”
A Story about a Lamp
21 Jesus said to them, “Does anyone bring a lamp into a room to put it under a basket or under a bed? Isn’t it put on a lamp stand? 22 There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed. There is nothing kept secret that will not come to light. 23 Let the person who has ears listen!”
24 He went on to say, “Pay attention to what you’re listening to! ⌞Knowledge⌟ will be measured out to you by the measure ⌞of attention⌟ you give. This is the way knowledge increases. 25 Those who understand ⌞these mysteries⌟ will be given ⌞more knowledge⌟. However, some people don’t understand ⌞these mysteries⌟. Even what they understand will be taken away from them.”
A Story about Seeds That Grow
26 Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is like a man who scatters seeds on the ground. 27 He sleeps at night and is awake during the day. The seeds sprout and grow, although the man doesn’t know how. 28 The ground produces grain by itself. First the green blade appears, then the head, then the head full of grain. 29 As soon as the grain is ready, he cuts it with a sickle, because harvest time has come.”
A Story about a Mustard Seed(B)
30 Jesus asked, “How can we show what God’s kingdom is like? To what can we compare it? 31 It’s like a mustard seed planted in the ground. The mustard seed is one of the smallest seeds on earth. 32 However, when planted, it comes up and becomes taller than all the garden plants. It grows such large branches that birds can nest in its shade.”
33 Jesus spoke ⌞God’s⌟ word to them using many illustrations like these. In this way people could understand what he taught. 34 He did not speak to them without using an illustration. But when he was alone with his disciples, he explained everything to them.
Jesus Calms the Sea(C)
35 That evening, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side.”
36 Leaving the crowd, they took Jesus along in a boat just as he was. Other boats were with him.
37 A violent windstorm came up. The waves were breaking into the boat so that it was quickly filling up. 38 But he was sleeping on a cushion in the back of the boat.
So they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to die?”
39 Then he got up, ordered the wind to stop, and said to the sea, “Be still, absolutely still!” The wind stopped blowing, and the sea became very calm.
40 He asked them, “Why are you such cowards? Don’t you have any faith yet?”
41 They were overcome with fear and asked each other, “Who is this man? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”
The Jews Defend Themselves
9 On the thirteenth day of Adar, the twelfth month, the king’s command and decree were to be carried out. On that very day, when the enemies of the Jews expected to overpower them, the exact opposite happened: The Jews overpowered those who hated them.
2 The Jews assembled in their cities throughout all the provinces of King Xerxes to kill those who were planning to harm them. No one could stand up against them, because all the people were terrified of them. 3 All the officials of the provinces, the satraps, the governors, and the king’s treasurers assisted the Jews because they were terrified of Mordecai. 4 Mordecai was an important man in the king’s palace. Moreover, his reputation was spreading to all the provinces, since Mordecai was becoming more and more powerful.
5 Then with their swords, the Jews attacked all their enemies, killing them, destroying them, and doing whatever they pleased to those who hated them. 6 In the fortress of Susa the Jews killed and wiped out 500 men. 7 They also killed Parshandatha, Dalphon, Aspatha, 8 Poratha, Adalia, Aridatha, 9 Parmashta, Arisai, Aridai, and Vaizatha. 10 These were the ten sons of Haman, who was the son of Hammedatha and the enemy of the Jews. But the Jews did not seize any of their possessions.
11 On that day the number of those killed in the fortress of Susa was reported to the king. 12 So the king said to Queen Esther, “In the fortress of Susa the Jews have killed and wiped out 500 men and Haman’s 10 sons. What must they have done in the rest of the king’s provinces! Now, what is your request? It will be granted to you. And what else would you like? It, too, will be granted.”
13 Esther said, “If it pleases you, Your Majesty, allow the Jews in Susa to do tomorrow what was decreed for today. Let them hang Haman’s ten sons on poles.”
14 The king commanded this, issuing a decree in Susa. And so they hung Haman’s ten sons ⌞on poles⌟.
15 The Jews in Susa also assembled on the fourteenth day of the month of Adar and killed 300 men in Susa, but they did not seize any of their possessions. 16 The other Jews who were in the king’s provinces had also assembled to defend and free themselves from their enemies. They killed 75,000 of those who hated them, but they did not seize any of their possessions. 17 This was on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar. On the fourteenth they rested and made it a day of feasting and celebration. 18 But the Jews in Susa had assembled on the thirteenth and fourteenth. They rested on the fifteenth and made it a day of feasting and celebration. 19 That is why the Jews who live in the villages and in the unwalled towns make the fourteenth day of the month of Adar a holiday for feasting and celebration. They also send gifts of food to one another.
The Festival of Purim Instituted by Esther and Mordecai
20 Now, Mordecai wrote these things down and sent official letters to all the Jews in all the provinces of King Xerxes, near and far. 21 He established the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar as days they must observe every year. 22 They were to observe them just like the days when the Jews freed themselves from their enemies. In that month their grief turned to joy and their mourning into a holiday. He declared that these days are to be days for feasting and celebrating and for sending gifts of food to one another, especially gifts to the poor.
23 So the Jews accepted as tradition what they had begun, as Mordecai had written to them. 24 It was because Haman, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them. (Haman was the son of Hammedatha and was from Agag.) Haman had the Pur (which means the lot) thrown ⌞in order to determine when⌟ to crush and destroy them. 25 But when this came to the king’s attention, he ordered, in the well-known letter, that the evil plan Haman had plotted against the Jews should turn back on his own head. As a result, they hung Haman and his sons on poles.
26 So the Jews called these days Purim, based on the word Pur. Therefore, because of everything that was said in this letter—both what they had seen and what had happened to them— 27 the Jews established a tradition for themselves and their descendants and for anyone who would join them. The tradition was that a person should never fail to observe these two days every year, as they were described and at their appointed time. 28 So these days must be remembered and observed in every age, family, province, and city. These days of Purim must not be ignored among the Jews, and the importance of these days must never be forgotten by the generations to come.
29 Abihail’s daughter Queen Esther and Mordecai the Jew wrote with full authority in order to establish with this second letter the well-known celebration of Purim. 30 Mordecai sent official documents granting peace and security to all the Jews in the 127 provinces of the kingdom of Xerxes. 31 He did this in order to establish these days of Purim at the appointed time. Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther established them for themselves, as they had established for themselves and their descendants the practices of fasting with sadness. 32 Esther’s command had established these practices of Purim, and they are written in a book.
Mordecai’s Greatness
10 King Xerxes levied a tax on the country and the islands of the sea. 2 All his acts of power and might along with the whole account of the greatness of Mordecai, whom the king had promoted, are recorded in the history of the kings of the Medes and Persians. 3 Mordecai the Jew was ranked second only to King Xerxes. He was greatly respected by, and popular with, all of the other Jews, since he provided for the good of his people and spoke for the welfare of his fellow Jews.
We Have God’s Approval by Faith
4 What can we say that we have discovered about our ancestor Abraham? 2 If Abraham had God’s approval because of something he did, he would have had a reason to brag. But he could not brag to God about it. 3 What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and that faith was regarded as the basis of Abraham’s approval by God.”
4 When people work, their pay is not regarded as a gift but something they have earned. 5 However, when people don’t work but believe God, the one who approves ungodly people, their faith is regarded as the basis of God’s approval. 6 David says the same thing about those who are blessed: God approves of people without their earning it. David said,
7 “Blessed are those whose disobedience is forgiven
and whose sins are pardoned.
8 Blessed is the person whom the Lord no longer considers sinful.”
9 Are only the circumcised people blessed, or are uncircumcised people blessed as well? We say, “Abraham’s faith was regarded as the basis of God’s approval.” 10 How was his faith regarded as the basis of God’s approval? Was he circumcised or was he uncircumcised at that time? He had not been circumcised. 11 Abraham’s faith was the basis of his approval by God while he was still uncircumcised. The mark of circumcision is the seal of that approval. Therefore, he is the father of every believer who is not circumcised, and their faith, too, is regarded as the basis of their approval by God. 12 He is also the father of those who not only are circumcised but also are following in the footsteps of his faith. Our father Abraham had that faith before he was circumcised.
13 So it was not by obeying the laws in Moses’ Teachings that Abraham or his descendants received the promise that he would inherit the world. Rather, he received this promise through God’s approval that comes by faith. 14 If those who obey Moses’ Teachings are the heirs, then faith is useless and the promise is worthless. 15 The laws in Moses’ Teachings bring about anger. But where those laws don’t exist, they can’t be broken. 16 Therefore, the promise is based on faith so that it can be a gift.[a] Consequently, the promise is guaranteed for every descendant, not only for those who are descendants by obeying Moses’ Teachings but also for those who are descendants by believing as Abraham did. He is the father of all of us, 17 as Scripture says: “I have made you a father of many nations.”
Abraham believed when he stood in the presence of the God who gives life to dead people and calls into existence things that don’t even exist. 18 When there was nothing left to hope for, Abraham still hoped and believed. As a result, he became a father of many nations, as he had been told: “That is how many descendants you will have.” 19 Abraham didn’t weaken. Through faith he regarded the facts: His body was already as good as dead now that he was about a hundred years old, and Sarah was unable to have children. 20 He didn’t doubt God’s promise out of a lack of faith. Instead, giving honor to God ⌞for the promise⌟, he became strong because of faith 21 and was absolutely confident that God would do what he promised. 22 That is why Abraham’s faith was regarded as the basis of his approval by God.
23 But the words “his faith was regarded as the basis of his approval by God” were written not only for him 24 but also for us. Our faith will be regarded as the basis of our approval by God—each of us who believe in the one who brought Jesus, our Lord, back to life. 25 Jesus, our Lord, was handed over to death because of our failures and was brought back to life so that we could receive God’s approval.
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