M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Joseph’s Brothers Go to Egypt for Food
42 When Jacob realized that there was grain in Egypt, Jacob said to his sons, “Why do you look at one another?” 2 Then he said, “Look, I have heard that there is grain in Egypt. Go down there and buy grain for us there that we may live and not die.” 3 And the ten brothers of Joseph went down to buy grain from Egypt. 4 But Jacob did not send Benjamin, the brother of Joseph, for he feared harm would come to him.[a] 5 Then the sons of Israel went to buy grain amid those other people who went as well, for there was famine in the land of Canaan. 6 Now Joseph was the governor over the land. He was the one who sold food to all the people of the land. And the brothers of Joseph came and bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. 7 And Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he pretended to be a stranger to them. And he spoke with them harshly and said to them, “From where have you come?” And they said, “From the land of Canaan to buy food.” 8 And Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him. 9 And Joseph remembered the dreams which he had dreamed concerning them, and he said to them, “You are spies! You have come to see the nakedness of the land!” 10 And they said to him, “No, my lord, but your servants have come to buy food. 11 We all are sons of one man. We are honest men. We, your servants, are not spies.” 12 Then he said to them, “No, but you have come to see the nakedness of the land.” 13 Then they said, “We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan, but behold, the youngest is with our father today, and one is no more.” 14 But Joseph said to them, “It is what I said to you—you are spies. 15 By this you shall be tested. By the life of Pharaoh you will not go out from here unless your youngest brother comes here. 16 Send one of you, and let him bring your brother, but you will be kept in prison so that your words might be tested to see if there is truth with you. And if not, by the life of Pharaoh surely you are spies.” 17 Then he gathered them into the prison for three days. 18 On the third day Joseph said to them, “Do this and you will live; I fear God. 19 If you are honest, let one of your brothers be kept in prison where you are now being kept,[b] but the rest of you go, carry grain for the famine for your households. 20 You must bring your youngest brother to me, and then your words will be confirmed and you will not die.” And they did so. 21 Then each said to his brother, “Surely we are guilty on account of our brother when we saw the anguish of his soul when he pleaded for mercy to us and we would not listen. Therefore this trouble has come to us.” 22 Then Reuben answered them, saying, “Did I not say to you, do not sin against the boy? But you did not listen, and now, behold, his blood has been sought.” 23 Now they did not know that Joseph understood, for the interpreter was between them. 24 And he turned away from them and wept. Then he returned to them and spoke to them, and took Simeon from them and tied him up in front of them. 25 Then Joseph gave orders to fill their bags with grain and to return their money to each sack, and to give them provisions for the journey. Thus he did for them. 26 Then they loaded their grain upon their donkeys and went away from there. 27 And one of them later opened his sack to give fodder to his donkey at the lodging place and saw his money—behold, it was in the mouth of his sack. 28 And he said to his brothers, “My money was returned and moreover, behold, it is in my sack!” Then their hearts failed them[c] and each of them trembled and said, “What is this God has done to us?”
29 And when they came to Jacob their father in the land of Canaan they told him everything that had happened to them, saying, 30 “The man, the lord of the land, spoke harshly to us and treated us as if we were spying out the land. 31 But we said to him, ‘We are honest; we are not spies. 32 We are twelve brothers, the sons of our father. One is no more and the youngest is with our father now in the land of Canaan.’ 33 Then the man, the lord of the land, said to us, ‘By this I will know that you are honest. Leave one brother with me, and take food for the famine in your households and go. 34 And bring your youngest brother to me. Then I will know that you are not spies but you are honest. And I will give your brother back to you, and you will trade in the land.’” 35 And it happened that when they emptied their sacks, behold, each one’s pouch of money was in his sack. And when they and their father saw the pouches of their money, they were greatly distressed. 36 And Jacob their father said to them, “You have bereaved me—Joseph is no more and Simeon is no more, and Benjamin you would take! All of this is against me! 37 Then Reuben said to his father, “You may kill my two sons if I do not bring him back to you. Put him in my hand and I myself will return him to you.” 38 But he said, “My son shall not go down with you, for his brother is dead and he alone remains. If harm meets him on the journey that you would take, you would bring down my gray head in sorrow to Sheol.”
The Parable of the Tenant Farmers in the Vineyard
12 And he began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard, and put a fence around it, and dug a trough for the winepress, and built a watchtower, and leased it to tenant farmers, and went on a journey. 2 And he sent a slave to the tenant farmers at the proper time, so that he could collect some of the fruit of the vineyard from the tenant farmers. 3 And they seized him and[a] beat him[b] and sent him[c] away empty-handed. 4 And again he sent to them another slave, and that one they struck on the head and dishonored. 5 And he sent another, and that one they killed. And he sent[d] many others, some of whom they beat and some of whom they killed. 6 He had one more, a beloved son. Last of all he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those tenant farmers said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and the inheritance will be ours!’ 8 And they seized and[e] killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 What[f] will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenant farmers and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not read this scripture:
‘The stone which the builders rejected,
this has become the cornerstone.[g]
11 This came about from the Lord,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”[h]
12 And they were seeking to arrest him, and they were afraid of the crowd, because they knew that he had told the parable with reference to them. And they left him and[i] went away.
Paying Taxes to Caesar
13 And they sent some of the Pharisees and the Herodians to him so that they could catch him unawares in a statement. 14 And when they[j] came, they said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are truthful and you do not care what anyone thinks,[k] because you do not regard the opinion of people[l] but teach the way of God in truth. Is it permitted to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay or should we not pay?” 15 But because he[m] knew their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why are you testing me? Bring me a denarius so that I can look at it!”[n] 16 So they brought one.[o] And he said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” And they said to him, “Caesar’s.” 17 And Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar the things of Caesar, and to God the things of God!” And they were utterly amazed at him.
A Question About Marriage and the Resurrection
18 And Sadducees—who say there is no resurrection—came up to him and began to ask[p] him, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if someone’s brother dies and he leaves behind a wife and does not leave a child, that his brother should take the wife and father[q] descendants for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers, and the first took a wife. And when he[r] died, he did not leave descendants. 21 And the second took her, and he died without leaving descendants. And the third likewise. 22 And the seven did not leave descendants. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise, whose[s] wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife. 24 Jesus said to them, “Are you not deceived because of this, because you[t] do not know the scriptures or the power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 Now concerning the dead, that they are raised, have you not read in the book of Moses in the passage about the bush[u] how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob’?[v] 27 He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are very much mistaken!”
The Greatest Commandment
28 And one of the scribes came up and[w] heard them debating. When he[x] saw that he answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Listen, Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God from your whole heart and from your whole soul and from your whole mind and from your whole strength.’[y] 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’[z] There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to him, “That is true, Teacher. You have said correctly[aa] that he is one and there is no other except him. 33 And to love him from your[ab] whole heart and from your[ac] whole understanding and from your[ad] whole strength, and to love your[ae] neighbor as yourself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 And Jesus, when he[af] saw that he had answered thoughtfully, said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And no one dared to put a question to him any longer.
David’s Son and Lord
35 And continuing, Jesus said while[ag] teaching in the temple courts,[ah] “How can the scribes say that the Christ is David’s son? 36 David himself said by the Holy Spirit,
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
until I put your enemies
under your feet.”’[ai]
37 David himself calls him ‘Lord,’ and how is he his son?” And the large crowd was listening to him gladly.
Warning to Beware of the Scribes
38 And in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like walking around in long robes and greetings in the marketplaces 39 and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets, 40 who devour the houses of widows and pray lengthy prayers for the sake of appearance. These will receive more severe condemnation!”
A Poor Widow’s Offering
41 And he sat down opposite the contribution box and[aj] was observing how the crowd was putting coins into the contribution box. And many rich people were putting in many coins.[ak] 42 And one poor widow came and[al] put in two small copper coins[am] (that is, a penny).[an] 43 And summoning his disciples, he said to them, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow put in more than all those who put offerings[ao] into the contribution box. 44 For they all contributed[ap] out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in everything she had, her whole means of subsistence.”
Bildad’s First Response to Job
8 Then[a] Bildad the Shuhite answered and said,[b]
2 “How long[c] will you say these things,
and the words of your mouth be a mighty wind?
3 Does God pervert justice,
or[d] Shaddai pervert righteousness?
4 If your children sinned against him,
then[e] he sent them into the power[f] of their transgression.
5 If you yourself[g] would seek God,
then[h] you would plead to Shaddai for grace.
6 If you are pure and upright,
indeed,[i] now he will rouse himself for you,
and he will restore your righteous abode.
7 Though[j] your beginning was small,
your end[k] will be very great.
8 “Indeed,[l] please inquire of former generations,
and consider what their ancestors have found,[m]
9 for we are of yesterday, and we do not know,
for our days on earth are a shadow.
10 Will they themselves[n] not teach you and tell you[o]
and utter[p] words from their heart?
11 Can papyrus grow tall where there is not a marsh?
Will reeds flourish without water?[q]
12 While it is in its flower and is not plucked,
yet[r] it withers before[s] all grass.
13 So are the paths of all who forget God;
and the hope of the godless will perish,
14 whose confidence is cut off
and whose trust[t] is a spider’s house.
15 He will lean himself against his house, but[u] it will not stand;
he will take hold of it, but[v] it will not endure.
16 He is thriving[w] before[x] the sun,
and his plant shoots spread over his garden.
17 His roots twine over a stone heap;
he sees a house of stone.
18 If he destroys him from his place,
then[y] it deceives him, saying, ‘I have never seen you.’
19 Look, this is the joy of his way,
and from dust others will spring up.
20 “Look, God will not reject the blameless,
and he will not uphold the hand of evildoers.
21 Yet he will fill your mouth with laughter
and your lips with a shout of joy.
22 Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,
and the tent of the wicked will be no more.”[z]
A Life Dedicated to God
12 Therefore I exhort you, brothers, through the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may approve what is the good and well-pleasing and perfect will of God.
A Variety of Gifts in the Body of Christ
3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone who is among you not to think more highly of yourself than what one ought to think, but to think sensibly[a], as God has apportioned a measure of faith to each one. 4 For just as in one body we have many members, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 in the same way we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually[b] members of one another, 6 but having different gifts according to the grace given to us: if it is prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; 7 if it is service, by service; if it is one who teaches, by teaching; 8 if it is one who exhorts, by exhortation; one who gives, with sincerity; one who leads, with diligence; one who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
Living in Love
9 Love must be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; be attached to what is good, 10 being devoted to one another in brotherly love, esteeming one another more highly in honor, 11 not lagging in diligence, being enthusiastic in spirit, serving the Lord, 12 rejoicing in hope, enduring in affliction, being devoted to prayer, 13 contributing to the needs of the saints, pursuing hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute,[c] bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep. 16 Think the same thing toward one another; do not think arrogantly[d], but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own sight[e]. 17 Pay back no one evil for evil. Take thought for what is good in the sight of all people. 18 If it is possible on your part, be at peace with all people. 19 Do not take revenge yourselves, dear friends, but give place to God’s wrath, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,”[f] says the Lord. 20 But “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by[g] doing this, you will heap up coals of fire upon his head.”[h] 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
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