M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

Three Tribes Go Home

22 Then Joshua called a meeting of all the people from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh. ² He said to them, “You have done everything Moses, the Lord’s servant, told you to do. You have also obeyed all my commands. ³ For a long time you have supported the other Israelites. You have been careful to obey the commands the Lord your God gave you. ⁴ The Lord your God promised to give the Israelites peace, and he has kept his promise. Now you may go back to your homes, to the land that Moses, the Lord’s servant, gave you, on the east side of the Jordan River. ⁵ But be careful to obey the teachings and laws Moses, the Lord’s servant, gave you: to love the Lord your God and obey his commands, to continue to follow him and serve him the very best you can.”

⁶ Then Joshua said good-bye to them, and they left and went away to their homes. ⁷ Moses had given the land of Bashan to East Manasseh. Joshua gave land on the west side of the Jordan River to West Manasseh. And he sent them to their homes and he blessed them. ⁸ He said, “Go back to your homes and your riches. You have many animals, silver, gold, bronze, and iron, and many beautiful clothes. Also, you have taken many things from your enemies that you should divide among yourselves.”

⁹ So the people from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh left the other Israelites at Shiloh in Canaan and went back to Gilead. It was their own land, given to them by Moses as the Lord had commanded.

¹⁰ The people of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh went to Geliloth, near the Jordan River in the land of Canaan. There they built a beautiful altar. ¹¹ The other Israelites still at Shiloh heard about the altar these three tribes built at the border of Canaan at Geliloth, near the Jordan River on Israel’s side. ¹² All the Israelites became very angry at these three tribes, so they met together and decided to fight them.

¹³ The Israelites sent Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest to Gilead to talk to the people of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh. ¹⁴ They also sent one leader from each of the ten tribes at Shiloh. Each of them was a leader of his family group of Israelites.

¹⁵ These leaders went to Gilead to talk to the people of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh. They said: ¹⁶ “All the Israelites ask you: ‘Why did you turn against the God of Israel by building an altar for yourselves? You know that this is against God’s law. ¹⁷ Remember what happened at Peor? We still suffer today because of that sin, for which God made many Israelites very sick. ¹⁸ And now are you turning against the Lord and refusing to follow him?

“‘If you don’t stop what you’re doing today, the Lord will be angry with everyone in Israel tomorrow. ¹⁹ If your land is unclean, come over into our land where the Lord’s Tent is. Share it with us. But don’t turn against the Lord and us by building another altar for the Lord our God. ²⁰ Remember how Achan son of Zerah refused to obey the command about what must be completely destroyed. That one man broke God’s law, but all the Israelites were punished. Achan died because of his sin, but others also died.’”

²¹ The people from Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh answered, ²² “The Lord is God of gods! The Lord is God of gods! God knows, and we want you to know also. If we have done something wrong, you may kill us. ²³ If we broke God’s law, we ask the Lord himself to punish us. We did not build this altar to offer burnt offerings or grain and fellowship offerings.

²⁴ “We did not build it for that reason. We feared that someday your people would not accept us as part of your nation. Then they might say, ‘You cannot worship the Lord, the God of Israel. ²⁵ The Lord made the Jordan River a border between us and you people of Reuben and Gad. You cannot worship the Lord.’ So we feared that your children might make our children stop worshiping the Lord.

²⁶ “That is why we decided to build this altar. But it is not for burnt offerings and sacrifices. ²⁷ This altar is proof to you and us and to all our children who will come after us that we worship the Lord with our whole burnt offerings, grain, and fellowship offerings. This was so your children would not say to our children, ‘You are not the Lord’s.’

²⁸ “In the future if your children say that, our children can say, ‘See the altar made by our ancestors. It is exactly like the Lord’s altar, but we do not use it for sacrifices. It shows that we are part of Israel.’

²⁹ “Truly, we don’t want to be against the Lord or to stop following him by building an altar for burnt offerings, grain offerings, or sacrifices. We know the only true altar to the Lord our God is in front of the Holy Tent.”

³⁰ When Phinehas the priest and the ten leaders heard the people of Reuben, Gad, and East Manasseh, they were pleased. ³¹ So Phinehas, son of Eleazar the priest, said, “Now we know the Lord is with us and that you didn’t turn against him. Now the Israelites will not be punished by the Lord.”

³² Then Phinehas and the leaders left the people of Reuben and Gad in Gilead and went back to Canaan where they told the Israelites what had happened. ³³ They were pleased and thanked God. So they decided not to fight the people of Reuben and Gad and destroy those lands.

³⁴ And the people of Reuben and Gad named the altar Proof That We Believe the Lord Is God.

The Coming of the Holy Spirit

2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. ² Suddenly a noise like a strong, blowing wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ They saw something like flames of fire that were separated and stood over each person there. ⁴ They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak different languages^[a] by the power the Holy Spirit was giving them.

⁵ There were some religious Jews staying in Jerusalem who were from every country in the world. ⁶ When they heard this noise, a crowd came together. They were all surprised, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. ⁷ They were completely amazed at this. They said, “Look! Aren’t all these people that we hear speaking from Galilee? ⁸ Then how is it possible that we each hear them in our own languages? We are from different places: ⁹ Parthia, Media, Elam, Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the areas of Libya near Cyrene, Rome ¹¹ (both Jews and those who had become Jews), Crete, and Arabia. But we hear them telling in our own languages about the great things God has done!” ¹² They were all amazed and confused, asking each other, “What does this mean?”

¹³ But others were making fun of them, saying, “They have had too much wine.”

Peter Speaks to the People

¹⁴ But Peter stood up with the eleven apostles, and in a loud voice he spoke to the crowd: “My fellow Jews, and all of you who are in Jerusalem, listen to me. Pay attention to what I have to say. ¹⁵ These people are not drunk, as you think; it is only nine o’clock in the morning! ¹⁶ But Joel the prophet wrote about what is happening here today:

²² “People of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus from Nazareth was a very special man. God clearly showed this to you by the miracles, wonders, and signs he did through Jesus. You all know this, because it happened right here among you. ²³ Jesus was given to you, and with the help of those who don’t know the law, you put him to death by nailing him to a cross. But this was God’s plan which he had made long ago; he knew all this would happen. ²⁴ God raised Jesus from the dead and set him free from the pain of death, because death could not hold him. ²⁵ For David said this about him:

²⁹ “Brothers and sisters, I can tell you truly that David, our ancestor, died and was buried. His grave is still here with us today. ³⁰ He was a prophet and knew God had promised him that he would make a person from David’s family a king just as he was.^{[b] 31} Knowing this before it happened, David talked about the Christ rising from the dead. He said:

³² So Jesus is the One whom God raised from the dead. And we are all witnesses to this. ³³ Jesus was lifted up to heaven and is now at God’s right side. The Father has given the Holy Spirit to Jesus as he promised. So Jesus has poured out that Spirit, and this is what you now see and hear. ³⁴ David was not the one who was lifted up to heaven, but he said:

³⁶ “So, all the people of Israel should know this truly: God has made Jesus—the man you nailed to the cross—both Lord and Christ.”

³⁷ When the people heard this, they felt guilty and asked Peter and the other apostles, “What shall we do?”

³⁸ Peter said to them, “Change your hearts and lives and be baptized, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ This promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away. It is for everyone the Lord our God calls to himself.”

⁴⁰ Peter warned them with many other words. He begged them, “Save yourselves from the evil of today’s people!” ⁴¹ Then those people who accepted what Peter said were baptized. About three thousand people were added to the number of believers that day. ⁴² They spent their time learning the apostles’ teaching, sharing, breaking bread,^[d] and praying together.

The Believers Share

⁴³ The apostles were doing many miracles and signs, and everyone felt great respect for God. ⁴⁴ All the believers were together and shared everything. ⁴⁵ They would sell their land and the things they owned and then divide the money and give it to anyone who needed it. ⁴⁶ The believers met together in the Temple every day. They ate together in their homes, happy to share their food with joyful hearts. ⁴⁷ They praised God and were liked by all the people. Every day the Lord added those who were being saved to the group of believers.

The Agreement Is Broken

11 These are the words that the Lord spoke to Jeremiah: ² “Listen to the words of this agreement and tell them to the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem. ³ Tell them this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Cursed is the person who does not obey the words of this agreement ⁴ that I made with your ancestors when I brought them out of Egypt. Egypt was like a furnace for melting iron!’ I told them, ‘Obey me and do everything I command you. Then you will be my people, and I will be your God. ⁵ Then I will keep the promise I made to your ancestors to give them a fertile land.’ And you are living in that country today.”

I answered, “Amen, Lord.”

⁶ The Lord said to me, “Announce this message in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem: ‘Listen to the words of this agreement and obey them. ⁷ I warned your ancestors to obey me when I brought them out of Egypt. I have warned them again and again to this very day: “Obey me!” ⁸ But your ancestors did not listen to me. They were stubborn and did what their own evil hearts wanted. So I made all the curses of this agreement come upon them. I commanded them to obey the agreement, but they did not.’”

⁹ Then the Lord said to me, “I know the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem have made secret plans. ¹⁰ They have gone back to the same sins their ancestors did. Their ancestors refused to listen to my message and followed and worshiped other gods instead. The families of Israel and Judah have broken the agreement I made with their ancestors. ¹¹ So this is what the Lord says: ‘I will soon bring a disaster on the people of Judah which they will not be able to escape. They will cry to me for help, but I will not listen to them. ¹² The people living in the towns of Judah and the city of Jerusalem will pray to their idols to whom they burn incense. But those idols will not be able to help when disaster comes. ¹³ Look, people of Judah, you have as many idols as there are towns in Judah. You have built as many altars to burn incense to that shameful god Baal as there are streets in Jerusalem.’

¹⁴ “As for you, Jeremiah, don’t pray for these people or cry out for them or ask anything for them. I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their trouble.

¹⁷ The Lord All-Powerful, who planted you, has announced that disaster will come to you. This is because the families of Israel and Judah have done evil and have made him angry by burning incense to Baal.

Evil Plans Against Jeremiah

¹⁸ The Lord showed me that people were making plans against me. Because he showed me what they were doing, I knew they were against me. ¹⁹ Before this, I was like a gentle lamb waiting to be butchered. I did not know they had made plans against me, saying:

²¹ So the Lord speaks about the people from Anathoth who plan to kill Jeremiah and say, “Don’t prophesy in the name of the Lord, or we will kill you!” ²² So this is what the Lord All-Powerful says: “I will soon punish the men from Anathoth. Their young men will die in war. Their sons and daughters will die from hunger. ²³ No one from the city of Anathoth will be left alive, because I will cause a disaster to happen to them that year.”

A Story About Ten Bridesmaids

25 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went to wait for the bridegroom. ² Five of them were foolish and five were wise. ³ The five foolish bridesmaids took their lamps, but they did not take more oil for the lamps to burn. ⁴ The wise bridesmaids took their lamps and more oil in jars. ⁵ Because the bridegroom was late, they became sleepy and went to sleep.

⁶ “At midnight someone cried out, ‘The bridegroom is coming! Come and meet him!’ ⁷ Then all the bridesmaids woke up and got their lamps ready. ⁸ But the foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’ ⁹ The wise bridesmaids answered, ‘No, the oil we have might not be enough for all of us. Go to the people who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’

¹⁰ “So while the five foolish bridesmaids went to buy oil, the bridegroom came. The bridesmaids who were ready went in with the bridegroom to the wedding feast. Then the door was closed and locked.

¹¹ “Later the others came back and said, ‘Sir, sir, open the door to let us in.’ ¹² But the bridegroom answered, ‘I tell you the truth, I don’t want to know you.’

¹³ “So always be ready, because you don’t know the day or the hour the Son of Man will come.

A Story About Three Servants

¹⁴ “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who was going to another place for a visit. Before he left, he called for his servants and told them to take care of his things while he was gone. ¹⁵ He gave one servant five bags of gold, another servant two bags of gold, and a third servant one bag of gold, to each one as much as he could handle. Then he left. ¹⁶ The servant who got five bags went quickly to invest the money and earned five more bags. ¹⁷ In the same way, the servant who had two bags invested them and earned two more. ¹⁸ But the servant who got one bag went out and dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money.

¹⁹ “After a long time the master came home and asked the servants what they did with his money. ²⁰ The servant who was given five bags of gold brought five more bags to the master and said, ‘Master, you trusted me to care for five bags of gold, so I used your five bags to earn five more.’ ²¹ The master answered, ‘You did well. You are a good and loyal servant. Because you were loyal with small things, I will let you care for much greater things. Come and share my joy with me.’

²² “Then the servant who had been given two bags of gold came to the master and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of gold to care for, so I used your two bags to earn two more.’ ²³ The master answered, ‘You did well. You are a good and loyal servant. Because you were loyal with small things, I will let you care for much greater things. Come and share my joy with me.’

²⁴ “Then the servant who had been given one bag of gold came to the master and said, ‘Master, I knew that you were a hard man. You harvest things you did not plant. You gather crops where you did not sow any seed. ²⁵ So I was afraid and went and hid your money in the ground. Here is your bag of gold.’ ²⁶ The master answered, ‘You are a wicked and lazy servant! You say you knew that I harvest things I did not plant and that I gather crops where I did not sow any seed. ²⁷ So you should have put my gold in the bank. Then, when I came home, I would have received my gold back with interest.’

²⁸ “So the master told his other servants, ‘Take the bag of gold from that servant and give it to the servant who has ten bags of gold. ²⁹ Those who have much will get more, and they will have much more than they need. But those who do not have much will have everything taken away from them.’ ³⁰ Then the master said, ‘Throw that useless servant outside, into the darkness where people will cry and grind their teeth with pain.’

The King Will Judge All People

³¹ “The Son of Man will come again in his great glory, with all his angels. He will be King and sit on his great throne. ³² All the nations of the world will be gathered before him, and he will separate them into two groups as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³ The Son of Man will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

³⁴ “Then the King will say to the people on his right, ‘Come, my Father has given you his blessing. Receive the kingdom God has prepared for you since the world was made. ³⁵ I was hungry, and you gave me food. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was alone and away from home, and you invited me into your house. ³⁶ I was without clothes, and you gave me something to wear. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

³⁷ “Then the good people will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and give you food, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you alone and away from home and invite you into our house? When did we see you without clothes and give you something to wear? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and care for you?’

⁴⁰ “Then the King will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, anything you did for even the least of my people here, you also did for me.’

⁴¹ “Then the King will say to those on his left, ‘Go away from me. You will be punished. Go into the fire that burns forever that was prepared for the devil and his angels. ⁴² I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink. ⁴³ I was alone and away from home, and you did not invite me into your house. I was without clothes, and you gave me nothing to wear. I was sick and in prison, and you did not care for me.’

⁴⁴ “Then those people will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or alone and away from home or without clothes or sick or in prison? When did we see these things and not help you?’

⁴⁵ “Then the King will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, anything you refused to do for even the least of my people here, you refused to do for me.’

⁴⁶ “These people will go off to be punished forever, but the good people will go to live forever.”