M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

The Lord’s First Promise to Abram

12 Yahweh said to Abram,

The Lord’s Second Promise to Abram

⁴ So Abram left, as Yahweh had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was 75 years old when he left Haran. ⁵ Abram set out for Canaan. He took along his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the possessions they had accumulated and the servants they had acquired in Haran.

⁶ They arrived in Canaan,^[a] and Abram traveled through the land to the oak tree belonging to Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. ⁷ Then Yahweh appeared to Abram and said, “I’m going to give this land to your descendants.” So he built an altar there to Yahweh, who had appeared to him.

⁸ He moved on to the hills east of Bethel, and he put up his tent—with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. He also built an altar to Yahweh there and worshiped Yahweh. ⁹ Abram kept moving toward the Negev.

Abram Deceives Pharaoh

¹⁰ There was a famine in the land. Abram went to Egypt to stay awhile because the famine was severe. ¹¹ When he was about to enter Egypt, Abram said to his wife Sarai, “I know that you’re a beautiful woman. ¹² When the Egyptians see you, they’ll say, ‘This is his wife!’ Then they’ll kill me but let you live. ¹³ Please say that you’re my sister. Then everything will be alright for me, and because of you I will live.”

¹⁴ When Abram arrived in Egypt, the Egyptians saw how very beautiful his wife was. ¹⁵ When Pharaoh’s officials saw her, they raved about her to Pharaoh, so Sarai was taken to Pharaoh’s palace. ¹⁶ Everything went well for Abram because of her, and he was given sheep, cattle, donkeys, male and female slaves, and camels.

¹⁷ However, Yahweh struck Pharaoh and his household with terrible plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. ¹⁸ Then Pharaoh called for Abram. “What have you done to me?” he asked. “Why didn’t you tell me that she’s your wife? ¹⁹ Why did you say, ‘She’s my sister’ and allow me to take her for my wife? Here’s your wife! Take her and go!” ²⁰ Pharaoh gave his men orders concerning Abram. They sent Abram away with his wife and everything that he had.

11 After Yeshua finished giving his twelve disciples these instructions, he moved on from there to teach his message in their cities.

John Sends Two Disciples^(A)

² When John was in prison, he heard about the things Christ had done. So he sent his disciples ³ to ask Yeshua, “Are you the one who is coming, or should we look for someone else?”

⁴ Yeshua answered John’s disciples, “Go back, and tell John what you hear and see: ⁵ Blind people see again, lame people are walking, those with skin diseases are made clean, deaf people hear again, dead people are brought back to life, and poor people hear the Good News. ⁶ Whoever doesn’t lose his faith in me is indeed blessed.”

Jesus Speaks about John^(B)

⁷ As they were leaving, Yeshua spoke to the crowds about John. “What did you go into the desert to see? Tall grass swaying in the wind? ⁸ Really, what did you go to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? Those who wear fine clothes are in royal palaces.

⁹ “Really, what did you go to see? A prophet? Let me tell you that he is far more than a prophet. ¹⁰ John is the one about whom Scripture says,

¹¹ “I can guarantee this truth: Of all the people ever born, no one is greater than John the Baptizer. Yet, the least important person in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John. ¹² From the time of John the Baptizer until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful people have been seizing it. ¹³ All the Prophets and Moses’ Teachings prophesied up to the time of John. ¹⁴ If you are willing to accept their message, John is the Elijah who was to come. ¹⁵ Let the person who has ears listen!

¹⁶ “How can I describe the people who are living now? They are like children who sit in the marketplaces and shout to other children,

¹⁸ “John came neither eating nor drinking, and people say, ‘There’s a demon in him!’ ¹⁹ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and people say, ‘Look at him! He’s a glutton and a drunk, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’

“Yet, wisdom is proved right by its actions.”

Jesus Warns Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum

²⁰ Then Yeshua denounced the cities where he had worked most of his miracles because they had not changed the way they thought and acted. ²¹ “How horrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How horrible it will be for you, Bethsaida! If the miracles worked in you had been worked in Tyre and Sidon, they would have changed the way they thought and acted long ago in sackcloth and ashes. ²² I can guarantee that judgment day will be better for Tyre and Sidon than for you. ²³ And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to heaven? No, you will go down to hell! If the miracles that had been worked in you had been worked in Sodom, it would still be there today. ²⁴ I can guarantee that judgment day will be better for Sodom than for you.”

Jesus Praises the Father and Invites Disciples to Come to Him

²⁵ At that time Yeshua said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from wise and intelligent people and revealing them to little children. ²⁶ Yes, Father, this is what pleased you.

²⁷ “My Father has turned everything over to me. Only the Father knows the Son. And no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son is willing to reveal him.

²⁸ “Come to me, all who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Place my yoke^[a] over your shoulders, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble. Then you will find rest for yourselves ³⁰ because my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Distressing News

1 These are the words of Nehemiah, son of Hacaliah:

During the month of Chislev, in Artaxerxes’ twentieth year as king, while I was in the fortress at Susa, ² one of my brothers, Hanani, arrived with some men from Judah. I asked them about the Jews who had survived captivity and about Jerusalem. ³ They told me, “Those who survived captivity are in the province. They are enduring serious troubles and being insulted. The wall of Jerusalem has been broken down, and its gates have been destroyed by fire.”

Nehemiah’s Prayer

⁴ When I heard this, I sat down and cried. I mourned for days. I continued to fast and pray to the Elohim of heaven. ⁵ I said,

I was cupbearer^[b] to the king at this time.

Peter Reports That Non-Jewish People Can Belong to the Church

11 The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that people who were not Jewish had accepted God’s word. ² However, when Peter went to Jerusalem, the believers who insisted on circumcision began to argue with him. ³ They said, “You went to visit men who were uncircumcised, and you even ate with them.”

⁴ Then Peter began to explain to them point by point what had happened. He said, ⁵ “I was praying in the city of Joppa when I fell into a trance. I saw something like a large linen sheet being lowered by its four corners from the sky. The sheet came near me. ⁶ I looked into the sheet very closely and saw tame animals, wild animals, reptiles, and birds. ⁷ I also heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter! Kill these animals, and eat them.’

⁸ “But I answered, ‘I can’t do that, Lord! I’ve never put anything impure or unclean^[a] into my mouth.’

⁹ “A voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘Don’t say that the things which God has made clean^[b] are impure.’ ¹⁰ This happened three times. Then everything was pulled back into the sky again.

¹¹ “At that moment three men arrived at the house where we were staying. They had been sent from Caesarea to find me. ¹² The Spirit told me to go with them without any hesitation. Six believers from Joppa went with me, and we visited Cornelius’ home.

¹³ “He told us that he had seen an angel standing in his home. The angel told him, ‘Send messengers to Joppa, and summon a man whose name is Simon Peter. ¹⁴ He will give you a message that will save you and everyone in your home.’

¹⁵ “When I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came to these people. This was the same thing that happened to us in the beginning. ¹⁶ I remembered that the Lord had said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized by the Holy Spirit.’ ¹⁷ When they believed, God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Yeshua Christ. So who was I to interfere with God?”

¹⁸ When the others heard this, they had no further objections. They praised God by saying, “Then God has also led people who are not Jewish to turn to him so that they can change the way they think and act and have eternal life.”

The New Church in Antioch

¹⁹ Some of the believers who were scattered by the trouble that broke out following Stephen’s death went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and the city of Antioch. They spoke God’s word only to Jewish people. ²⁰ But other believers, who were from Cyprus and Cyrene, arrived in Antioch. They started to spread the Good News about the Lord Yeshua to Greeks. ²¹ The Lord’s power was with his followers, and a large number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

²² After the news about Antioch reached the church in Jerusalem, Barnabas was sent to Antioch. ²³ When he arrived there, he was pleased to see what God had done for them out of kindness.^[c] So he encouraged all the people to remain solidly committed to the Lord. ²⁴ Barnabas was a dependable man, and he was full of the Holy Spirit and faith. A large crowd believed in the Lord.

²⁵ Then Barnabas left Antioch to go to the city of Tarsus to look for Saul. ²⁶ After finding Saul, Barnabas brought him back to Antioch. Barnabas and Saul met with the church in Antioch for a whole year and taught a large group of people. The disciples were called Christians for the first time in the city of Antioch.

²⁷ At that time some prophets came from Jerusalem to the city of Antioch. ²⁸ One of them was named Agabus. Through the Spirit Agabus predicted that a severe famine would affect the entire world. This happened while Claudius was emperor. ²⁹ All the disciples in Antioch decided to contribute whatever they could afford to help the believers living in Judea. ³⁰ The disciples did this and sent their contribution with Barnabas and Saul to the leaders in Jerusalem.