M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Tribes East of the Jordan
22 Later, Joshua called together the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh 2 and told them, “You have done everything that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, and you have listened to me in everything that I commanded you. 3 You haven’t abandoned your relatives these past days to the present, and you have met the obligation contained in[a] the commands of the Lord your God. 4 Now the Lord has given peace[b] to your relatives, just as he told them. Therefore, proceed to your tents—to the land that is yours to possess—that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you east of[c] the Jordan River. 5 Only be very careful to keep the commands and the Law that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you—that is,[d] to love the Lord your God, to follow in all of his ways, to keep his commands, to stay close to him, and to serve him with all your heart and soul.” 6 That’s how Joshua blessed them. Then he sent them on their way and they returned to their tents.
7 Now Moses had made an allotment in Bashan to one half-tribe of Manasseh, but Joshua made an allotment west of the Jordan River to the other half-tribe of their relatives. So when Joshua sent them on their way back to their tents, he also blessed them by saying 8 “Return to your tents with great wealth, plenty of livestock, silver, gold, bronze, iron, and lots of clothing. Divide the spoil from your enemies among your relatives.”
9 The descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh went back to the land of Gilead, leaving the Israelis at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, for their territorial possession that they had inherited in accordance with the command of the Lord given through Moses.
An Unauthorized Altar is Constructed
10 After they arrived at an area of the Jordan River that is in the land of Canaan, the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh constructed an altar there by the Jordan River, and it was very large. 11 When the Israelis heard about it, they announced, “Look here, the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh have constructed an altar in Canaan’s frontier district of the Jordan River, on the side apportioned to the Israelis.” 12 When the Israelis heard that announcement,[e] the entire community of the Israelis gathered together at Shiloh in preparation for war.
13 Then the Israelis sent a delegation[f] to the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in the land of Gilead. They sent[g] Eleazar’s son Phinehas the priest, 14 and ten officials with him (one for each of the tribal families of Israel, each one of them a family leader among the tribes[h] of Israel). 15 They approached the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh in the land of Gilead and told them: 16 “This is what the entire community of the Lord has to say: ‘What is this treacherous act by which you have acted deceitfully against the God of Israel by turning away from following the Lord today, and by building yourselves an altar today, so you can rebel against the Lord? 17 Isn’t the evil that happened at Peor enough for us, from which we have yet to be completely cleansed even to this point,[i] and because of which a plague came upon the community of the Lord? 18 Now then, are you turning away from following the Lord today? If you rebel against the Lord today, by tomorrow he will be angry with the entire community of Israel. 19 If the land of your inheritance remains unclean, then cross back over into the land that the Lord possesses, and receive an inheritance among us. Don’t rebel against the Lord and against us by constructing an altar for yourselves besides the altar of the Lord our God. 20 Didn’t Zerah’s son Achan act treacherously with respect to the things banned by God,[j] and as a result God became angry at[k] the entire community of Israel? And that man was not the only one to die because of his iniquity.’”
21 The descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered the officials of the tribes[l] of Israel, 22 “The God of gods, the Lord, the God of gods, the Lord is the one who knows! And may Israel itself be aware that if this[m] was an act of rebellion or an act of treachery against the Lord, may he not deliver us today! 23 If we have built an altar for ourselves intended to turn us away from following the Lord, or to offer burnt offerings, grain offerings, or peace offerings on it, may the Lord himself demand an accounting from us![n] 24 But we did this because we were concerned for a reason, since we thought, ‘Sometime in the future your descendants may say to our descendants, “What do you have in common[o] with the Lord, the God of Israel? 25 The Lord has established the Jordan River to be a territorial border between us and you. Descendants of Reuben and descendants of Gad have no allotment from the Lord.” So your descendants may cause our descendants to stop fearing the Lord.’
26 “That’s why we said, ‘Let’s build an altar for ourselves, not for burnt offerings or sacrifice, 27 but instead it will serve as a reminder[p] between us and you and between our generations after us, that we are to serve the Lord with our burnt offerings, sacrifices, and peace offerings. That way your descendants will not say to our descendants in the future, “You have no allotment from the Lord.”’
28 “That’s also why we said, ‘It may be if they say these things[q] to us and to our descendants in the future, so we will respond, “Look at this replica of the altar of the Lord that our ancestors made, not for burnt offerings or sacrifice, but rather as a reminder[r] between us and you. 29 May we never rebel against the Lord today by building an altar for burnt offerings, for grain offerings, or for sacrifice to replace[s] the altar of the Lord our God which stands before his Tent.”’”
30 When Phinehas the priest, the leaders of the community, and the heads of the families of Israel who were with him heard what the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the descendants of Manasseh said, they were pleased. 31 So Eleazar’s son Phinehas the priest replied to the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and the descendants of Manasseh, “Today we’ve demonstrated[t] that the Lord is among us, because you have not acted treacherously against the Lord. Now you have delivered the Israelis from the anger[u] of the Lord.”
32 So Eleazar’s son Phinehas the priest and the leaders returned from the descendants of Reuben, the descendants of Gad, and from the land of Gilead to the land of Canaan and to the people of Israel, bringing back word to them. 33 What they said pleased the people of Israel, so they[v] blessed God and said no more about going up to attack them in war and to destroy the land where the descendants of Reuben and the descendants of Gad were living. 34 The descendants of Reuben and the descendants of Gad named the altar “Witness,” because they claimed,[w] “It stands as a witness between us that the Lord is God.”
The Coming of the Holy Spirit
2 When the day of Pentecost was being celebrated,[a] all of them were together in one place. 2 Suddenly, a sound like the roar of a mighty windstorm came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw tongues like flames[b] of fire that separated, and one rested on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in foreign[c] languages as the Spirit gave them that ability.
5 Now devout Jews from every nation on earth[d] were living in Jerusalem. 6 When that sound came, a crowd quickly gathered, startled because each one heard the disciples[e] speaking in his own language. 7 Stunned and amazed, they asked, “All of these people who are speaking are Galileans, aren’t they? 8 So how is it that each one of us hears them speaking in his own native language:[f] 9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the district of Libya near Cyrene, Jewish and proselyte visitors from Rome, 11 Cretans, and Arabs, listening to them talk in our own languages about the great deeds of God?”
12 All of them continued to be stunned and puzzled, and they kept asking one another, “What can this mean?”
13 But others kept saying in derision, “They’re drunk on sweet wine!”
Peter Addresses the Crowd
14 Then Peter stood up among the eleven apostles[g] and raised his voice to address them:
“Men of Judea and everyone living in Jerusalem! You must understand something, so pay close attention to my words. 15 These men are not drunk as you suppose, for it’s only nine o’clock in the morning.[h] 16 Rather, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
17 ‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on everyone.[i]
Your sons and your daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
and your old men will dream dreams.
18 In those days I will even pour out my Spirit
on my slaves, men and women alike,
and they will prophesy.
19 I will display wonders in the sky above
and signs on the earth below:
blood, fire, and clouds of smoke.
20 The sun will become dark,
and the moon turn to blood,
before the coming of the great and glorious Day of the Lord.[j]
21 Then whoever calls on the name of the Lord[k] will be saved.’[l]
22 “Fellow Israelis, listen to these words: Jesus from Nazareth[m] was a man authenticated to you by God through miracles, wonders, and signs that God performed through him among you, as you yourselves know. 23 After he was arrested according to the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified this very man and killed him using the hands of lawless men. 24 But God raised him up, putting an end to the suffering of death,[n] since it was impossible for him to be held by it, 25 since David says about him,
‘I always keep my eyes on the Lord,[o]
for he is at my right hand
so that I cannot be shaken.
26 That is why my heart is glad
and my tongue rejoices,
yes, even my body still rests securely in hope.
27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades[p]
or allow your Holy One to experience decay.
28 You have made the ways of life known to me,
and you will fill me with gladness in your presence.’[q]
29 “Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and that his tomb is among us to this day. 30 Therefore, since he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him with an oath to put one of his descendants on his throne, 31 he looked ahead and spoke about the resurrection of the Messiah:[r]
32 “It was this very Jesus whom God raised—and we’re all witnesses of that. 33 He has been exalted to the right hand of God, has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit,[u] and has caused you to experience what you are seeing and hearing. 34 After all, David did not go up to heaven, but he said,
36 “Therefore, let all the people[x] of Israel understand beyond a doubt that God made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah!”[y]
37 When the crowd that had gathered[z] heard this, they were pierced to the heart. They asked Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
38 Peter answered them, “Every one of you must repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus the Messiah[aa] for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the Holy Spirit as a gift.[ab] 39 For this promise belongs to you and your children, as well as to all those who are distant, whom the Lord our God may call to himself.”
40 Using many different expressions, Peter[ac] continued to testify and to plead: “Be saved,” he urged them, “from this corrupt generation!” 41 So those who welcomed his message were baptized. That day about 3,000 people were added to their number.
Life among the Believers
42 The believers[ad] continued to devote themselves to what the apostles were teaching, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to times of prayer.[ae] 43 A sense of fear[af] came over everyone, and many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. 44 All the believers were united and shared everything with one another.[ag] 45 They made it their practice to sell their possessions and goods and to distribute the proceeds[ah] to anyone who was in need. 46 United in purpose, they went to the Temple every day, ate at each other’s homes, and shared their food with glad and humble hearts. 47 They were praising God and enjoying the good will of all the people. Every day the Lord was adding to their number those who were being saved.
The Broken Covenant
11 This is the message that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Listen to the words of this covenant, and convey them to the people of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem. 3 You are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God of Israel says: “Cursed is the person who does not listen to the words of this covenant 4 which I commanded to your ancestors on the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace. I said, ‘Obey me and do everything[a] that I commanded you. Then you will be my people and I’ll be your God.’ 5 As a result, I’ll fulfill the oath that I made with your ancestors to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, just as is the case today.”’”
Then I answered, “So be it,[b] Lord.”
6 The Lord told me, “Proclaim all these words in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. You are to say, ‘Listen to the words of this covenant and do them. 7 For I’ve diligently warned your ancestors from the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt until now, regularly warning them,[c] saying, “Obey me!” 8 But they would not listen or turn their ear, and each of them stubbornly followed his own evil desires.[d] So I brought on them all the consequences[e] of this covenant that I commanded them to fulfill, but they did not.’”
9 The Lord told me, “Conspiracy has been found among the people of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem. 10 They have turned back to the iniquities of their ancestors of old[f] who refused to listen to my words. They followed other gods to serve them. The house of Israel and the house of Judah broke my covenant which I made with their ancestors.”
11 Therefore, this is what the Lord says: “I’m about to bring disaster on them from which they won’t be able to escape. They’ll cry out to me, but I won’t listen to them. 12 The towns of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem will go and cry out to the gods to whom they burn incense, but they’ll be no help at all to them[g] in the time of their disaster. 13 Judah, you have as many gods as you have towns, and you have set up as many altars to the shameful idols as there are streets in Jerusalem. You burn incense to Baal on these altars.
14 “Jeremiah,[h] don’t pray for this people and don’t cry or pray for them. I won’t listen when they cry out to me because of their disaster.
15 “What right does my beloved have in my house,
when she has carried out many evil schemes?
Can sacrificial[i] flesh turn disaster away from you,
so you can rejoice?”
16 The Lord once called you a green olive tree,
with beautiful shape and fruit.
With a great roaring sound, he has set fire to it
and its branches will be destroyed.
17 The Lord of the Heavenly Armies who planted you has called for disaster on you because of the evil of the house of Israel and the house of Judah, has provoked me by burning incense to Baal.”
Jeremiah’s Life is Threatened
18 The Lord made it known to me,
and so I understood.
Then you showed me their malicious deeds.
19 I was like a gentle lamb
led to the slaughter.
I didn’t know that they had devised schemes
against me. They told themselves,[j]
“Let’s destroy the tree with its fruit.
Let’s eliminate him from the land of the living,
so his name won’t be remembered again.”
20 Lord of the Heavenly Armies, the righteous judge,
the one who tests feelings and the heart,
let me see your vengeance on them,
for I’ve committed my case to you.
21 Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the men of Anathoth who seek to kill you, all the while threatening you, “Don’t prophesy in the name of the Lord so you won’t die by our hand!” 22 Therefore, this is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: “I’m about to punish them. The young men will die by the sword. Their sons and daughters will die by famine. 23 Not one of them will be left,[k] for I’ll bring disaster on the men of Anathoth when I punish them.”
The Parable about the Ten Bridesmaids
25 “At that time, the kingdom from[a] heaven will be comparable to ten bridesmaids[b] who took their oil lamps and went out to meet the groom.[c] 2 Now five of them were foolish, and five were wise, 3 because when the foolish ones took their lamps, they didn’t take any oil with them. 4 But the wise ones took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 Since the groom was late, all of them became sleepy and lay down. 6 But at midnight there came a shout: ‘The groom is here! Come out to meet him!’ 7 Then all the bridesmaids[d] woke up and got their lamps ready.
8 “But the foolish ones told the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out!’
9 “But the wise ones replied, ‘No! There will never be enough for us and for you. You’d better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’
10 “While they were away buying it, the groom arrived. Those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet, and the door was closed. 11 Later, the other bridesmaids[e] arrived and said, ‘Lord, lord, open up for us!’
12 “But he replied, ‘I tell all of you[f] with certainty, I don’t know you!’ 13 So keep on watching, because you don’t know the day or the hour.”[g]
The Parable about the Talents
14 “Similarly, it is like a man going on a trip, who called his servants and turned his money over to them. 15 To one man he gave five talents,[h] to another two, and to another one, based on their ability. Then he went on his trip.
16 “The one who received five talents[i] went out at once and invested them and earned five more. 17 In the same way, the one who had two talents[j] earned two more. 18 But the one who received one talent[k] went off, dug a hole in the ground, and buried his master’s money.
19 “After a long time, the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. 20 The one who had received five talents came up and brought five more talents. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you gave me five talents. See, I’ve earned five more talents.’
21 “His master told him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy servant! Since you’ve been trustworthy with a small amount, I’ll put you in charge of a large amount. Come and share your master’s joy!’
22 “The one with two talents also came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two talents. See, I’ve earned two more talents.
23 “His master told him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy servant! Since you’ve been trustworthy with a small amount, I’ll put you in charge of a large amount. Come and share your master’s joy!’
24 “Then the one who had received one talent came forward and said, ‘Master, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you haven’t planted and gathering where you haven’t scattered any seed. 25 Since I was afraid, I went off and hid your talent in the ground. Here, take what’s yours!’
26 “His master answered him, ‘You evil and lazy servant! So you knew that I harvested where I haven’t planted and gathered where I haven’t scattered any seed? 27 Then you should’ve invested my money with the bankers. When I returned, I would’ve received my money back with interest.’ 28 Then the master said,[l] ‘Take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the ten talents, 29 because to everyone who has something, more will be given, and he’ll have more than enough. But from the person who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away from him. 30 Throw this useless servant into the darkness outside! In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”[m]
The Judgment of the Nations
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels are with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be assembled in front of him, and he will cull them out, one from another, like a shepherd separates sheep from goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right but the goats on his left.
34 “Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who have been blessed by my Father! Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, 35 because I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger, and you welcomed me. 36 I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you took care of me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’
37 “Then the righteous will say to him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and give you something to eat, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you as a stranger and welcome you, or see you naked and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison, and visit you?’
40 The king will answer them, ‘I tell all of you[n] with certainty, since you did it for one of the least important of these brothers of mine, you did it for me.’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Get away from me, you who are accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the Devil and his angels! 42 Here’s why: I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t welcome me. I was naked, and you didn’t clothe me. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or as a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and didn’t help you?’
45 Then he will say to them, ‘I tell all of you[o] with certainty, since you didn’t do it for one of the least important of these, you didn’t do it for me.’ 46 These people will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go[p] into eternal life.”
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