M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Jephthah Sends Messengers to the Ammonite King
12 Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Ammonites, asking, “What have you got against Israel? Why have you come to attack our land?”
13 The king of the Ammonites answered the messengers of Jephthah, “We are fighting Israel because you took our land when you came up from Egypt. You took our land from the Arnon River to the Jabbok River to the Jordan River. Now give our land back to us peacefully.”
14 Jephthah sent the messengers to the Ammonite king again. 15 They said:
“This is what Jephthah says: Israel did not take the land of the people of Moab or Ammon. 16 When the Israelites came out of Egypt, they went into the desert to the Red Sea and then to Kadesh. 17 Israel sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, ‘Let the people of Israel go across your land.’ But the king of Edom refused. We sent the same message to the king of Moab, but he also refused. So the Israelites stayed at Kadesh.
18 “Then the Israelites went into the desert around the borders of the lands of Edom and Moab. Israel went east of the land of Moab and camped on the other side of the Arnon River, the border of Moab. They did not cross it to go into the land of Moab.
19 “Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorites, king of the city of Heshbon, asking, ‘Let the people of Israel pass through your land to go to our land.’ 20 But Sihon did not trust the Israelites to cross his land. So he gathered all of his people and camped at Jahaz and fought with Israel.
21 “But the Lord, the God of Israel, handed Sihon and his army over to Israel. All the land of the Amorites became the property of Israel. 22 So Israel took all the land of the Amorites from the Arnon River to the Jabbok River, from the desert to the Jordan River.
23 “It was the Lord, the God of Israel, who forced out the Amorites ahead of the people of Israel. So do you think you can make them leave? 24 Take the land that your god Chemosh has given you. We will live in the land the Lord our God has given us!
25 “Are you any better than Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab? Did he ever quarrel or fight with the people of Israel? 26 For three hundred years the Israelites have lived in Heshbon and Aroer and the towns around them and in all the cities along the Arnon River. Why have you not taken these cities back in all that time? 27 I have not sinned against you, but you are sinning against me by making war on me. May the Lord, the Judge, decide whether the Israelites or the Ammonites are right.”
28 But the king of the Ammonites ignored this message from Jephthah.
Jephthah’s Promise
29 Then the Spirit of the Lord entered Jephthah. Jephthah passed through Gilead and Manasseh and the city of Mizpah in Gilead to the land of the Ammonites. 30 Jephthah made a promise to the Lord, saying, “If you will hand over the Ammonites to me, 31 I will give you as a burnt offering the first thing that comes out of my house to meet me when I return from the victory. It will be the Lord’s.”
32 Then Jephthah went over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord handed them over to him. 33 In a great defeat Jephthah struck them down from the city of Aroer to the area of Minnith, and twenty cities as far as the city of Abel Keramim. So the Ammonites were defeated by the Israelites.
34 When Jephthah returned to his home in Mizpah, his daughter was the first one to come out to meet him, playing a tambourine and dancing. She was his only child; he had no other sons or daughters. 35 When Jephthah saw his daughter, he tore his clothes to show his sorrow. He said, “My daughter! You have made me so sad because I made a promise to the Lord, and I cannot break it!”
36 Then his daughter said, “Father, you made a promise to the Lord. So do to me just what you promised, because the Lord helped you defeat your enemies, the Ammonites.” 37 She also said, “But let me do one thing. Let me be alone for two months to go to the mountains. Since I will never marry, let me and my friends go and cry together.”
38 Jephthah said, “Go.” So he sent her away for two months. She and her friends stayed in the mountains and cried for her because she would never marry. 39 After two months she returned to her father, and Jephthah did to her what he had promised. Jephthah’s daughter never had a husband.
From this came a custom in Israel that 40 every year the young women of Israel would go out for four days to remember the daughter of Jephthah from Gilead.
The Meeting at Jerusalem
15 Then some people came to Antioch from Judea and began teaching the non-Jewish believers: “You cannot be saved if you are not circumcised as Moses taught us.” 2 Paul and Barnabas were against this teaching and argued with them about it. So the church decided to send Paul, Barnabas, and some others to Jerusalem where they could talk more about this with the apostles and elders.
3 The church helped them leave on the trip, and they went through the countries of Phoenicia and Samaria, telling all about how the other nations had turned to God. This made all the believers very happy. 4 When they arrived in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the apostles, the elders, and the church. Paul, Barnabas, and the others told about everything God had done with them. 5 But some of the believers who belonged to the Pharisee group came forward and said, “The non-Jewish believers must be circumcised. They must be told to obey the law of Moses.”
6 The apostles and the elders gathered to consider this problem. 7 After a long debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God chose me from among you to preach the Good News to the nations. They heard the Good News from me, and they believed. 8 God, who knows the thoughts of everyone, accepted them. He showed this to us by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us. 9 To God, those people are not different from us. When they believed, he made their hearts pure. 10 So now why are you testing God by putting a heavy load around the necks of the non-Jewish believers? It is a load that neither we nor our ancestors were able to carry. 11 But we believe that we and they too will be saved by the grace of the Lord Jesus.”
12 Then the whole group became quiet. They listened to Paul and Barnabas tell about all the miracles and signs that God did through them among the people. 13 After they finished speaking, James said, “Brothers, listen to me. 14 Simon has told us how God showed his love for those people. For the first time he is accepting from among them a people to be his own. 15 The words of the prophets agree with this too:
16 ‘After these things I will return.
The kingdom of David is like a fallen tent.
But I will rebuild its ruins,
and I will set it up.
17 Then those people who are left alive may ask the Lord for help,
and the other nations that belong to me,
says the Lord,
who will make it happen.
18 And these things have been known for a long time.’ Amos 9:11–12
19 “So I think we should not bother the other people who are turning to God. 20 Instead, we should write a letter to them telling them these things: Stay away from food that has been offered to idols (which makes it unclean), any kind of sexual sin, eating animals that have been strangled, and blood. 21 They should do these things, because for a long time in every city the law of Moses has been taught. And it is still read in the synagogue every Sabbath day.”
Letter to Non-Jewish Believers
22 The apostles, the elders, and the whole church decided to send some of their men with Paul and Barnabas to Antioch. They chose Judas Barsabbas and Silas, who were respected by the believers. 23 They sent the following letter with them:
From the apostles and elders, your brothers.
To all the non-Jewish believers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia:
Greetings!
24 We have heard that some of our group have come to you and said things that trouble and upset you. But we did not tell them to do this. 25 We have all agreed to choose some messengers and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— 26 people who have given their lives to serve our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 So we are sending Judas and Silas, who will tell you the same things. 28 It has pleased the Holy Spirit that you should not have a heavy load to carry, and we agree. You need to do only these things: 29 Stay away from any food that has been offered to idols, eating any animals that have been strangled, and blood, and any kind of sexual sin. If you stay away from these things, you will do well.
Good-bye.
30 So they left Jerusalem and went to Antioch where they gathered the church and gave them the letter. 31 When they read it, they were very happy because of the encouraging message. 32 Judas and Silas, who were also prophets, said many things to encourage the believers and make them stronger. 33 After some time Judas and Silas were sent off in peace by the believers, and they went back to those who had sent them [, 34 but Silas decided to remain there].[a]
35 But Paul and Barnabas stayed in Antioch and, along with many others, preached the Good News and taught the people the message of the Lord.
Paul and Barnabas Separate
36 After some time, Paul said to Barnabas, “We should go back to all those towns where we preached the message of the Lord. Let’s visit the believers and see how they are doing.”
37 Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them, 38 but he had left them at Pamphylia; he did not continue with them in the work. So Paul did not think it was a good idea to take him. 39 Paul and Barnabas had such a serious argument about this that they separated and went different ways. Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left. The believers in Antioch put Paul into the Lord’s care, 41 and he went through Syria and Cilicia, giving strength to the churches.
The Good and Bad Figs
24 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon captured Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim and king of Judah, his officers, and all the craftsmen and metalworkers of Judah. He took them away from Jerusalem and brought them to Babylon. It was then that the Lord showed me two baskets of figs arranged in front of the Temple of the Lord. 2 One of the baskets had very good figs in it, like figs that ripen early in the season. But the other basket had figs too rotten to eat.
3 The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”
I answered, “I see figs. The good figs are very good, but the rotten figs are too rotten to eat.”
4 Then the Lord spoke his word to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I sent the people of Judah out of their country to live in the country of Babylon. I think of those people as good, like these good figs. 6 I will look after them and bring them back to the land of Judah. I will not tear them down, but I will build them up. I will not pull them up, but I will plant them so they can grow. 7 I will make them want to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, because they will return to me with their whole hearts.
8 “‘But the bad figs are too rotten to eat.’ So this is what the Lord says: ‘Zedekiah king of Judah, his officers, and all the people from Jerusalem who are left alive, even those who live in Egypt, will be like those rotten figs. 9 I will make those people hated as an evil people by all the kingdoms of the earth. People will make fun of them and tell jokes about them and point fingers at them and curse them everywhere I scatter them. 10 I will send war, hunger, and disease against them. I will attack them until they have all been killed. Then they will no longer be in the land I gave to them and their ancestors.’”
Jesus Teaches About Divorce
10 Then Jesus left that place and went into the area of Judea and across the Jordan River. Again, crowds came to him, and he taught them as he usually did.
2 Some Pharisees came to Jesus and tried to trick him. They asked, “Is it right for a man to divorce his wife?”
3 Jesus answered, “What did Moses command you to do?”
4 They said, “Moses allowed a man to write out divorce papers and send her away.”[a]
5 Jesus said, “Moses wrote that command for you because you were stubborn. 6 But when God made the world, ‘he made them male and female.’[b] 7 ‘So a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife,[c] 8 and the two will become one body.’[d] So there are not two, but one. 9 God has joined the two together, so no one should separate them.”
10 Later, in the house, his followers asked Jesus again about the question of divorce. 11 He answered, “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman is guilty of adultery against her. 12 And the woman who divorces her husband and marries another man is also guilty of adultery.”
Jesus Accepts Children
13 Some people brought their little children to Jesus so he could touch them, but his followers told them to stop. 14 When Jesus saw this, he was upset and said to them, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them, because the kingdom of God belongs to people who are like these children. 15 I tell you the truth, you must accept the kingdom of God as if you were a little child, or you will never enter it.” 16 Then Jesus took the children in his arms, put his hands on them, and blessed them.
A Rich Young Man’s Question
17 As Jesus started to leave, a man ran to him and fell on his knees before Jesus. The man asked, “Good teacher, what must I do to have life forever?”
18 Jesus answered, “Why do you call me good? Only God is good. 19 You know the commands: ‘You must not murder anyone. You must not be guilty of adultery. You must not steal. You must not tell lies about your neighbor. You must not cheat. Honor your father and mother.’”[e]
20 The man said, “Teacher, I have obeyed all these things since I was a boy.”
21 Jesus, looking at the man, loved him and said, “There is one more thing you need to do. Go and sell everything you have, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.”
22 He was very sad to hear Jesus say this, and he left sorrowfully, because he was rich.
23 Then Jesus looked at his followers and said, “How hard it will be for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”
24 The followers were amazed at what Jesus said. But he said again, “My children, it is very hard[f] to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
26 The followers were even more surprised and said to each other, “Then who can be saved?”
27 Jesus looked at them and said, “For people this is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”
28 Peter said to Jesus, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.”
29 Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, all those who have left houses, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, or farms for me and for the Good News 30 will get more than they left. Here in this world they will have a hundred times more homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and fields. And with those things, they will also suffer for their belief. But in this age they will have life forever. 31 Many who are first now will be last in the future. And many who are last now will be first in the future.”
Jesus Talks About His Death
32 As Jesus and the people with him were on the road to Jerusalem, he was leading the way. His followers were amazed, but others in the crowd who followed were afraid. Again Jesus took the twelve apostles aside and began to tell them what was about to happen in Jerusalem. 33 He said, “Look, we are going to Jerusalem. The Son of Man will be turned over to the leading priests and the teachers of the law. They will say that he must die, and they will turn him over to the non-Jewish people, 34 who will laugh at him and spit on him. They will beat him with whips and crucify him. But on the third day, he will rise to life again.”
Two Followers Ask Jesus a Favor
35 Then James and John, sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said, “Teacher, we want to ask you to do something for us.”
36 Jesus asked, “What do you want me to do for you?”
37 They answered, “Let one of us sit at your right side and one of us sit at your left side in your glory in your kingdom.”
38 Jesus said, “You don’t understand what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I must drink? And can you be baptized with the same kind of baptism that I must go through?”[g]
39 They answered, “Yes, we can.”
Jesus said to them, “You will drink the same cup that I will drink, and you will be baptized with the same baptism that I must go through. 40 But I cannot choose who will sit at my right or my left; those places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”
41 When the other ten followers heard this, they began to be angry with James and John.
42 Jesus called them together and said, “The other nations have rulers. You know that those rulers love to show their power over the people, and their important leaders love to use all their authority. 43 But it should not be that way among you. Whoever wants to become great among you must serve the rest of you like a servant. 44 Whoever wants to become the first among you must serve all of you like a slave. 45 In the same way, the Son of Man did not come to be served. He came to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many people.”
Jesus Heals a Blind Man
46 Then they came to the town of Jericho. As Jesus was leaving there with his followers and a great many people, a blind beggar named Bartimaeus son of Timaeus was sitting by the road. 47 When he heard that Jesus from Nazareth was walking by, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
48 Many people warned the blind man to be quiet, but he shouted even more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
49 Jesus stopped and said, “Tell the man to come here.”
So they called the blind man, saying, “Cheer up! Get to your feet. Jesus is calling you.” 50 The blind man jumped up, left his coat there, and went to Jesus.
51 Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?”
The blind man answered, “Teacher, I want to see.”
52 Jesus said, “Go, you are healed because you believed.” At once the man could see, and he followed Jesus on the road.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.