M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

Judah and Tamar

38 Judah went away from his brothers at that time. He visited a certain Adullamite whose name was Hirah. ² There Judah saw a daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua. He took her as his wife and lived with her. ³ And she was going to have a child and gave birth to a son. He gave him the name Er. ⁴ Then she was going to have another child and she gave birth to a son. She gave him the name Onan. ⁵ Then she gave birth to another son at Chezib. And she gave him the name Shelah.

⁶ Judah chose a wife for his first-born son Er. Her name was Tamar. ⁷ But Er, Judah’s first-born, was sinful in the eyes of the Lord. So the Lord took his life. ⁸ Then Judah said to Onan, “Go in to your brother’s wife. Do your duty as her brother-in-law. Have children for your brother.” ⁹ But Onan knew that the children would not be his. So when he went in to his brother’s wife, he wasted his seed on the ground to keep his brother from having children. ¹⁰ What he did was sinful in the eyes of the Lord. So the Lord took his life also. ¹¹ Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Stay in your father’s house as a woman whose husband has died, until my son Shelah is grown.” For he thought, “I am afraid that he also may die like his brothers.” So Tamar went and lived in her father’s house.

¹² Now after a long time, Shua’s daughter, the wife of Judah, died. And after the time of sorrow, Judah and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went to the men who cut the wool from his sheep at Timnah. ¹³ It was told to Tamar, “Your father-in-law is going to Timnah to cut the wool from his sheep.” ¹⁴ So she took off the clothes of a woman whose husband has died and put on other clothes and covered her face with cloth. Then she sat in the gate of Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. For she saw that Shelah was grown, and she had not been given to him for a wife. ¹⁵ When Judah saw her, he thought she was a woman who sold the use of her body. For she had covered her face. ¹⁶ He went to her at the side of the road, and said, “Here now, let me come in to you.” He did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. And she said, “What will you give me to come in to me?” ¹⁷ He answered, “I will send you a young goat from the flock.” She asked, “Will you give something as a promise until you send it?” ¹⁸ He said, “What should I give you as a promise?” And she said, “The ring you use to mark your name, and its string, and the stick that is in your hand.” So he gave them to her and went in to her. And she was going to have a baby by him. ¹⁹ Then she got up and left. She took off the cloth that covered her, and put on the clothes worn by a woman whose husband has died.

²⁰ Judah sent his friend the Adullamite to bring the young goat to the woman and take from her the things he had given as a promise. But he did not find her. ²¹ He asked the men of the place, “Where is the woman who was selling the use of her body beside the road at Enaim?” They said, “There has been no woman selling the use of her body here.” ²² So he returned to Judah, and said, “I did not find her. The men of the place said, ‘There has been no woman selling the use of her body here.’” ²³ Then Judah said, “Let her keep the things, or else we will be laughed at. I sent the young goat, and you did not find her.”

²⁴ About three months later, Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has sold the use of her body. She is going to have a baby by doing this sinful thing.” Judah said, “Bring her out and let her be burned!” ²⁵ When she was brought out, she sent word to her father-in-law, “I am going to have a baby by the man who owns these things.” She said, “Look and see, who owns this ring for marking a name, and this string and stick?” ²⁶ Judah saw that they belonged to him. He said, “She is more right than I, because I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not lie with her again.

²⁷ When the time came for Tamar to give birth, there were two babies. ²⁸ While she was giving birth, one put out a hand. The nurse took his hand and tied a red string around it, saying, “This one came out first.” ²⁹ But when he pulled away his hand, his brother was born. Then she said, “What an opening you have made for yourself!” So he was given the name of Perez. ³⁰ After that, his brother came out with the red string around his hand. He was given the name Zerah.

The Feeding of the Four Thousand ^(A)

8 In those days many people were gathered together. They had nothing to eat. Jesus called His followers to Him and said, ² “I pity these people because they have been with Me three days and have nothing to eat. ³ If I send them home without food, they may be too weak as they go. Many of them have come a long way.”

⁴ His followers said to Him, “Where can anyone get enough bread for them here in this desert?” ⁵ He asked them, “How many loaves of bread do you have?” They said, “Seven.” ⁶ Then He told the people to sit down on the ground. Jesus took the seven loaves of bread and gave thanks to God. He broke the loaves and gave them to His followers to give to the people. The followers gave the bread to them. ⁷ They had a few small fish also. He gave thanks to God and told the followers to give the fish to them. ⁸ They all ate and were filled. They picked up seven baskets full of pieces of bread and fish after the people were finished eating. ⁹ About four thousand ate. Then Jesus sent the people away.

The Proud Religious Law-Keepers Ask for Something Special to See ^(B)

¹⁰ At once Jesus got in a boat with His followers and came to the country of Dalmanutha. ¹¹ The proud religious law-keepers came and began to ask Him for something special to see from heaven. They wanted to trap Jesus. ¹² He breathed deep within and said, “Why do the people of this day look for something special to see? For sure, I tell you, the people of this day will have nothing special to see from heaven.” ¹³ Then He left them. He got in the boat and went to the other side of the sea.

Jesus Shows That the Teaching of the Proud Religious Law-Keepers Is Wrong ^(C)

¹⁴ The followers had forgotten to take bread, only one loaf was in the boat. ¹⁵ He said to them, “Look out! Have nothing to do with the yeast of the proud religious law-keepers and of Herod.” ¹⁶ They talked about it among themselves. They said, “He said this because we forgot to bring bread.” ¹⁷ Jesus knew what they were thinking. He said to them, “Why are you talking among yourselves about forgetting to bring bread? Do you not understand? Is it not plain to you? Are your hearts still hard? ¹⁸ You have eyes, do you not see? You have ears, do you not hear? Do you not remember? ¹⁹ When I divided the five loaves of bread among the five thousand, how many baskets full of pieces did you pick up?” They said, “Twelve.” ²⁰ “When I divided the seven loaves of bread among the four thousand, how many baskets full of pieces did you pick up?” They said, “Seven.” ²¹ Then He asked, “Why do you not understand yet?”

Jesus Heals a Blind Man

²² Then they came to the town of Bethsaida. Some people brought a blind man to Jesus. They asked if He would touch him. ²³ He took the blind man by the hand out of town. Then He spit on the eyes of the blind man and put His hands on him. He asked, “Do you see anything?” ²⁴ The blind man looked up and said, “I see some men. They look like trees, walking.” ²⁵ Jesus put His hands on the man’s eyes again and told him to look up. Then he was healed and saw everything well. ²⁶ Jesus sent him to his home and said, “Do not go into the town, *or tell it to anyone there.”

Peter Says Jesus Is the Christ ^(D)

²⁷ Jesus and His followers went from there to the towns of Caesarea Philippi. As they went, He asked His followers, “Who do people say that I am?” ²⁸ They answered, “Some say John the Baptist and some say Elijah and others say one of the early preachers.” ²⁹ He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter said, “You are the Christ.” ³⁰ He told them with strong words that they should tell no one about Him.

Jesus Tells of His Death for the First Time ^(E)

³¹ He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things. He told them that the leaders and the religious leaders of the Jews and the teachers of the Law would have nothing to do with Him. He told them He would be killed and three days later He would be raised from the dead.

³² He had said this in plain words. Peter took Him away from the others and began to speak sharp words to Him. ³³ Jesus turned around. He looked at His followers and spoke sharp words to Peter. He said, “Get behind Me, Satan! Your thoughts are not thoughts from God but from men.”

Giving Up Self and One’s Own Desires

³⁴ Jesus called the people and His followers to Him. He said to them, “If anyone wants to be My follower, he must give up himself and his own desires. He must take up his cross and follow Me. ³⁵ If anyone wants to keep his own life safe, he will lose it. If anyone gives up his life because of Me and because of the Good News, he will save it. ³⁶ For what does a man have if he gets all the world and loses his own soul? ³⁷ What can a man give to buy back his soul? ³⁸ Whoever is ashamed of Me and My Words among the sinful people of this day, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in the shining-greatness of His Father and His holy angels.”

Eliphaz Talks

4 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered, ² “If one speaks with you, will you want him to stop? But who can keep from speaking? ³ See, you have taught many, and you have given strength to weak hands. ⁴ Your words have helped him stand who would have fallen. You have given strength to weak knees. ⁵ But now it has come to you, and you are not happy. It touches you, and you are troubled and sad. ⁶ Is not your fear of God what gives you strength and your good ways that give you hope?

⁷ “Think now, who without guilt was ever destroyed? ⁸ As I have seen, those who plow sin and plant trouble gather the same. ⁹ By the breath of God they are destroyed. They are destroyed by the wind of His anger. ¹⁰ The noise of the lion, the voice of the angry lion, and the teeth of the young lions are broken. ¹¹ The strong lion dies because there is no food to get. And the young of the lioness are sent everywhere.

¹² “Now a word was brought to me in secret. My ear heard it spoken in a quiet voice. ¹³ With troubled thoughts from the dreams of the night, when deep sleep comes upon men, ¹⁴ fear came to me and I shook. It made all my bones shake. ¹⁵ A spirit passed by my face. The hair of my flesh stood up. ¹⁶ The spirit stood still, but I could not understand what I saw. Something was in front of my eyes. All was quiet, then I heard a voice: ¹⁷ ‘Can man be right more than God? Can a man be pure more than his Maker? ¹⁸ He puts no trust even in His servants. He finds mistakes among His angels. ¹⁹ How much more those who live in houses of clay, who build upon the dust, who are crushed like the moth! ²⁰ Between morning and evening they are destroyed. Without anyone seeing it they become lost forever. ²¹ Is not their tent-rope pulled up within them? They die, and have no wisdom.’

8 Now, because of this, those who belong to Christ will not suffer the punishment of sin. ² The power of the Holy Spirit has made me free from the power of sin and death. This power is mine because I belong to Christ Jesus. ³ The Law could not make me free from the power of sin and death. It was weak because it had to work with weak human beings. But God sent His own Son. He came to earth in a body of flesh which could be tempted to sin as we in our bodies can be. He gave Himself to take away sin. By doing that, He took away the power sin had over us. ⁴ In that way, Jesus did for us what the Law said had to be done. We do not do what our sinful old selves tell us to do anymore. Now we do what the Holy Spirit wants us to do. ⁵ Those who let their sinful old selves tell them what to do live under that power of their sinful old selves. But those who let the Holy Spirit tell them what to do are under His power. ⁶ If your sinful old self is the boss over your mind, it leads to death. But if the Holy Spirit is the boss over your mind, it leads to life and peace. ⁷ The mind that thinks only of ways to please the sinful old self is fighting against God. It is not able to obey God’s Laws. It never can. ⁸ Those who do what their sinful old selves want to do cannot please God.

⁹ But you are not doing what your sinful old selves want you to do. You are doing what the Holy Spirit tells you to do, if you have God’s Spirit living in you. No one belongs to Christ if he does not have Christ’s Spirit in him. ¹⁰ If Christ is in you, your spirit lives because you are right with God, and yet your body is dead because of sin. ¹¹ The Holy Spirit raised Jesus from the dead. If the same Holy Spirit lives in you, He will give life to your bodies in the same way.

¹² So then, Christian brothers, we are not to do what our sinful old selves want us to do. ¹³ If you do what your sinful old selves want you to do, you will die in sin. But if, through the power of the Holy Spirit, you destroy those actions to which the body can be led, you will have life. ¹⁴ All those who are led by the Holy Spirit are sons of God. ¹⁵ You should not act like people who are owned by someone. They are always afraid. Instead, the Holy Spirit makes us His sons, and we can call to Him, “My Father.” ¹⁶ For the Holy Spirit speaks to us and tells our spirit that we are children of God. ¹⁷ If we are children of God, we will receive everything He has promised us. We will share with Christ all the things God has given to Him. But we must share His suffering if we are to share His shining-greatness.

¹⁸ I am sure that our suffering now cannot be compared to the shining-greatness that He is going to give us. ¹⁹ Everything that has been made in the world is waiting for the day when God will make His sons known. ²⁰ Everything that has been made in the world is weak. It is not that the world wanted it to be that way. God allowed it to be that way. Yet there is hope. ²¹ Everything that has been made in the world will be set free from the power that can destroy. These will become free just as the children of God become free. ²² We know that everything on the earth cries out with pain the same as a woman giving birth to a child. ²³ We also cry inside ourselves, even we who have received the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the first of God’s gifts to us. We are waiting to become His complete sons when our bodies are made free. ²⁴ We were saved with this hope ahead of us. Now hope means we are waiting for something we do not have. How can a man hope for something he already has? ²⁵ But if we hope for something we do not yet see, we must learn how to wait for it.

²⁶ In the same way, the Holy Spirit helps us where we are weak. We do not know how to pray or what we should pray for, but the Holy Spirit prays to God for us with sounds that cannot be put into words. ²⁷ God knows the hearts of men. He knows what the Holy Spirit is thinking. The Holy Spirit prays for those who belong to Christ the way God wants Him to pray.

²⁸ We know that God makes all things work together for the good of those who love Him and are chosen to be a part of His plan. ²⁹ God knew from the beginning who would put their trust in Him. So He chose them and made them to be like His Son. Christ was first and all those who belong to God are His brothers. ³⁰ He called to Himself also those He chose. Those He called, He made right with Himself. Then He shared His shining-greatness with those He made right with Himself.

³¹ What can we say about all these things? Since God is for us, who can be against us? ³² God did not keep His own Son for Himself but gave Him for us all. Then with His Son, will He not give us all things? ³³ Who can say anything against the people God has chosen? It is God Who says they are right with Himself. ³⁴ Who then can say we are guilty? It was Christ Jesus Who died. He was raised from the dead. He is on the right side of God praying to Him for us. ³⁵ Who can keep us away from the love of Christ? Can trouble or problems? Can suffering wrong from others or having no food? Can it be because of no clothes or because of danger or war? ³⁶ The Holy Writings say, “Because of belonging to Jesus, we are in danger of being killed all day long. We are thought of as sheep that are ready to be killed.” ^{(A) 37} But we have power over all these things through Jesus Who loves us so much. ³⁸ For I know that nothing can keep us from the love of God. Death cannot! Life cannot! Angels cannot! Leaders cannot! Any other power cannot! Hard things now or in the future cannot! ³⁹ The world above or the world below cannot! Any other living thing cannot keep us away from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord.