M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Jephthah’s Dispute with the Tribe of Ephraim
12 A little while later, the army of Ephraim was mustered, and they crossed to Zaphon. They confronted Jephthah and asked, “Why did you cross over to fight the Ammonites without calling us to accompany you? We’re going to burn your house down around you!”
2 But Jephthah replied to them, “My army and I were engaged in a serious fight with the Ammonites. I called for you, but you didn’t deliver me from their control. 3 When I saw that you wouldn’t be delivering me, I took my own life in my hands, crossed over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord gave them into my control. So why have you come here today to fight me?” 4 Then Jephthah mustered all the men of Gilead, fought the tribe of Ephraim, and defeated them, because they had been claiming, “You descendants of Gilead are fugitives in the midst of the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh.”
Shibboleth vs. Sibboleth
5 The descendants of Gilead seized control of the Jordan River’s fords along the border of Ephraim’s territory.[a] Later on, when any fugitive from Ephraim asked them, “Let me cross over,” the men from Gilead would ask him, “Are you an Ephraimite?” If he said “No,” 6 they would order him, “Pronounce the word ‘Shibboleth’ right now.” If he said “Sibboleth,” not being able to pronounce it correctly, they would seize him and slaughter him there at the fords of the Jordan River. During those days 42,000 descendants of Ephraim died that way. 7 Jephthah governed Israel for six years. Then Jephthah died and was buried somewhere in the cities of Gilead.
Ibzan, Israel’s Ninth Judge
8 After he died,[b] Ibzan from Bethlehem governed Israel for ten years. 9 He had 30 sons and 30 daughters, but he gave his daughters[c] in marriage to outsiders and brought in 30 outsiders[d] for his sons. He governed Israel for seven years, 10 then he died and was buried in Bethlehem.
Elon, Israel’s Tenth Judge
11 Elon the Zebulunite governed Israel after him for ten years. 12 Then Elon the Zebulunite died and was buried in Aijalon within the territory of Zebulun.
Abdon, Israel’s Eleventh Judge
13 Hillel the Pirathonite’s son Abdon governed Israel after him. 14 He had 40 sons and 30 grandsons who rode on 70 donkeys. He governed Israel for eight years. 15 Then he died and was buried at Pirathon in the territory of Ephraim, in the mountainous region[e] of the Amalekites.
Timothy Joins Paul in Lystra
16 Paul[a] also went to Derbe and Lystra, where there was a disciple named Timothy, the son of a believing Jewish wife whose husband was a Greek. 2 Timothy[b] was highly regarded by the brothers in Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted this man to go with him, so he took him and had him circumcised because of the Jews who lived in that region, since everyone knew that Timothy’s[c] father was a Greek. 4 As they went from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for them to obey. 5 So the churches continued to be strengthened in the faith and to increase in numbers every day.
Paul Has a Vision
6 Because they had been prevented by the Holy Spirit from speaking the word in Asia, Paul and Timothy[d] went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia. 7 They went as far as Mysia and tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them, 8 so they bypassed Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision. A man from Macedonia was standing there and pleading with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” 10 As soon as he had seen the vision, we immediately looked for a way to go to Macedonia, because we were convinced that God had called us to tell the people there[e] the good news.
Paul and Silas in Philippi
11 Sailing from Troas, we went straight to Samothrace, the next day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, an important city of the district[f] of Macedonia and a Roman[g] colony. We were in this city for several days. 13 On the Sabbath day, we went out the city gate and walked[h] along the river, where we thought there was a place of prayer. We sat down and began talking to the women who had gathered there. 14 A woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a dealer in purple goods, was listening to us. She was a worshiper of God, and the Lord opened her heart to listen carefully to what was being said by Paul. 15 When she and her family were baptized, she urged us, “If you are convinced that I am a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my home.” And she continued to insist that we do so.
The Fortune Teller
16 Once, as we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit of fortune-telling and who had brought her owners a great deal of money by predicting the future. 17 She would follow Paul and us and shout, “These men are servants of the Most High God and are proclaiming to you[i] a way of salvation!”
18 She kept doing this for many days until Paul became annoyed, turned to her[j] and told the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus the Messiah[k] to come out of her!” And it came out that very moment.[l]
19 When her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone, they grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them before the authorities who met together in the public square.[m] 20 They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are stirring up a lot of trouble in our city. They are Jews 21 and are advocating customs that we’re not allowed to accept or practice as Romans.”
22 The crowd joined in the attack against them. Then the magistrates had Paul and Silas[n] stripped of their clothes and ordered them beaten with rods. 23 After giving them a severe beating, they threw them in jail and ordered the jailer to keep them under tight security. 24 Having received these orders, he put them into the inner cell and fastened their feet in leg irons.
25 Around midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly, there was an earthquake so violent that the foundations of the prison were shaken. All the doors immediately flew open, and everyone’s chains were unfastened.
27 When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, since he thought the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul shouted in a loud voice, “Don’t hurt yourself, because we are all here!”
29 The jailer[o] asked for torches and rushed inside. Trembling as he knelt in front of Paul and Silas, 30 he took them outside and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
31 They answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you and your family will be saved.” 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord[p] to him and everyone in his home.
33 At that hour of the night, he took them and washed their wounds. Then he and his entire family were baptized immediately. 34 He brought Paul and Silas[q] upstairs into his house and set food before them. He was thrilled, as was his household, to believe in God.
35 When day came, the magistrates sent guards, who commanded, “Release those men.”
36 The jailer reported these words to Paul, and added, “The magistrates have sent word to release you. So come out now and go in peace.”
37 But Paul told the guards,[r] “The magistrates[s] have had us beaten publicly without a trial and have thrown us into jail, even though we are Roman citizens. Now are they going to throw us out secretly? Certainly not! Have them come and escort us out.”
38 The guards reported these words to the magistrates, and they became afraid when they heard that Paul and Silas[t] were Roman citizens. 39 So the magistrates[u] came, apologized to them, and escorted them out. Then they asked them to leave the city. 40 Leaving the jail, Paul and Silas[v] went to Lydia’s house. They saw the brothers, encouraged them, and then left.
The Irrevocable Judgment on Judah
25 This message from the Lord came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Josiah’s son Jehoiakim, king of Judah. (This was also the first year of the reign of[a] King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.) 2 This is what Jeremiah the prophet told all the people of Judah and all the residents of Jerusalem: 3 “From the thirteenth year of the reign of[b] Ammon’s son Josiah, the king of Judah, until the present time, for 23 years this message from the Lord has come to me, and I’ve spoken to you again and again,[c] but you haven’t listened. 4 Again and again,[d] the Lord sent all his servants, the prophets, to you, but you wouldn’t listen or even turn your ears in my direction to hear. 5 They said, ‘Turn, each one of you, from your[e] evil habits[f] and evil deeds, and live in the land that the Lord gave to you and your ancestors forever and ever. 6 Don’t follow other gods to serve and worship them. Don’t provoke me with the idols[g] you make with your hands, and I won’t bring disaster on you.’ 7 But you didn’t listen to me,” declares the Lord, “so as to provoke me with the idols[h] you make with your hands to your own harm.
8 “Therefore, this is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: ‘Because you haven’t listened to my message, 9 I’m now sending for all the tribes from the north, declares the Lord, and for my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. I’ll bring them against this land, against its inhabitants, and against all these surrounding nations. I’ll utterly destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn,[i] and an everlasting desolation. 10 I’ll destroy the sounds of gladness and rejoicing from them, the sounds of the bridegroom and the bride, the sound of the hand mill and also the light of the lamp. 11 This entire land will be a desolation and a waste, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.
12 ‘Then when the seventy years have passed, I’ll judge the king of Babylon and that nation, declares the Lord, I’ll judge[j] the land of the Chaldeans for their iniquity and I’ll make it a desolation forever. 13 I’ll bring on that land all the things I spoke against it, all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah prophesied about the nations. 14 Indeed many nations and great kings will make slaves even of them, and I’ll repay them according to their deeds, according to what they have done.’”
Judgment on the Nations
15 For this is what the Lord God of Israel says to me, “Take this cup of the wine of burning anger from my hand and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. 16 They’ll drink, stagger, and act like madmen because of the sword I’m sending among them.” 17 So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand, and I made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it: 18 Jerusalem, the cities of Judah, its kings and officials[k] to make them into a ruin, an object of horror and scorn,[l] and a curse, as it is this day; 19 Pharaoh, king of Egypt, his officials,[m] his princes, and all his people; 20 all the various people;[n] all the kings of the land of Uz, all the kings of the land of the Philistines, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and what remains of Ashdod; 21 Edom, Moab, and the people of Ammon; 22 all the kings of Tyre, all the kings of Sidon, and all the kings of the coast lands that are beyond the sea; 23 Dedan, Tema, Buz, and those who shave the corners of their beards;[o] 24 all the kings of Arabia and all the kings of the various people[p] who live in the desert; 25 all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of Media; 26 all the kings of the north near and far, one after another, and all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth. The king of Sheshak[q] will drink after all the others.[r]
27 “You are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Drink, get drunk, and vomit! Fall down and don’t get up because of the sword I’m sending among you.”’ 28 And if they refuse to take the cup from your hand to drink it, say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: “You will surely drink it! 29 Look, I’m beginning to bring disaster on the city that is called by my name, and do you actually think you will avoid punishment? You won’t avoid punishment because I’m summoning the sword against all those who live in the land,” declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.’”
The Lord will Judge the Nations
30 “You are to prophesy all these things against them, and you are to say to them,
‘The Lord roars from his high place,
from his holy dwelling he lifts his voice.
He roars loudly against his flock,[s]
and against all who live on the earth;
he shouts like those treading grapes.[t]
31 A tumult reaches to the ends of the earth
because the Lord is bringing an indictment against the nations.
He judges all flesh.
He has given the wicked over to the sword,’
declares the Lord.
32 ‘This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says:
“Look, disaster is going from nation to nation,
a great storm is being stirred up
from the most distant parts of the earth.
33 “Those slain by the Lord on that day will extend[u] from one end of the earth to the other. They won’t be mourned for or gathered up or buried. They’ll be like dung on the surface of the ground.
34 “Scream, you shepherds! Cry out!
Roll in the dust, you leaders of the flock!
Indeed, the time for your slaughter
and your dispersion has arrived,
and you will break like a choice vessel.
35 Flight will be impossible[v] for the shepherds,
as will be escape for the leaders of the flock.
36 A sound—it’s the cry of the shepherds
and the scream of the leaders of the flock—
because the Lord is destroying their pastures.
37 The peaceful meadows are silent
because of the Lord’s fierce anger.
38 Like a lion, he has left his den.[w]
Indeed, their land has become a waste
because of the anger of the oppressor
and because of the Lord’s[x] fierce anger.”
The King Enters Jerusalem(A)
11 When they came near Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, Jesus[a] sent two of his disciples on ahead 2 and told them, “Go into the village ahead of you. As soon as you go into it, you will find a colt tied up that no one has ever ridden. Untie it, and bring it along. 3 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?,’ say, ‘The Lord needs it,’ and he will send it back here at once.”
4 So they went and found the colt outside in the street tied up next to a doorway. While they were untying it, 5 some men standing there asked them, “What are you doing untying that colt?” 6 The disciples[b] told them what Jesus had said, and the men[c] let them go.
7 They brought the colt to Jesus, threw their coats on it, and he sat on it. 8 Many people spread their coats on the road, while others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. 9 Those who went ahead and those who followed him were shouting,
“Hosanna![d]
How blessed is the one who comes
in the name of the Lord![e]
10 How blessed is the coming kingdom[f]
of our ancestor David!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”[g]
11 Then Jesus went into Jerusalem and into the Temple and looked around at everything. Since it was already late, he went out with the Twelve to Bethany.
Jesus Curses a Fig Tree(B)
12 The next day, as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus[h] became hungry. 13 Seeing in the distance a fig tree covered with leaves, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing except leaves because it wasn’t the season for figs. 14 So he told it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again!” Now his disciples were listening to this.
Confrontation in the Temple over Money(C)
15 When they came to Jerusalem, he went into the Temple and began to throw out those who were selling and those who were buying in the Temple. He overturned the moneychangers’ tables and the chairs of those who sold doves. 16 He wouldn’t even let anyone carry a vessel through the Temple. 17 Then he began to teach them: “It is written, is it not, ‘My house is to be called a house of prayer for all nations’?[i] But you’ve turned it into a hideout[j] for bandits!” 18 When the high priests and elders heard this, they began to look for a way to kill him, because they were afraid of him, since the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching. 19 When evening came, Jesus and his disciples[k] would leave the city.
The Lesson from the Dried Fig Tree(D)
20 While they were walking along early the next morning, they saw the fig tree dried up to its roots. 21 Remembering what Jesus had said,[l] Peter pointed out to him, “Rabbi,[m] look! The fig tree you cursed has dried up!”
22 Jesus told his disciples,[n] “Have faith in God! 23 I tell all of you[o] with certainty, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ if he doesn’t doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. 24 That is why I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received[p] it and it will be yours.
25 “Whenever you stand up to pray, forgive whatever you have against anyone, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins. 26 But if you do not forgive, your Father in heaven will not forgive your sins.”[q]
Jesus’ Authority is Challenged(E)
27 Then they went into Jerusalem again. While Jesus[r] was walking in the Temple, the high priests, the scribes, and the elders came to him 28 and asked him, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority to do them?”
29 Jesus told them, “I’ll ask you one question.[s] Answer me, and then I’ll tell you by what authority I’m doing these things. 30 Was John’s authority to baptize[t] from heaven or from humans? Answer me.”
31 They began discussing this among themselves. “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he’ll say, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 32 But if we say, ‘From humans’…?” They were afraid of the crowd, because everyone really thought John was a prophet.
33 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Then Jesus told them, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I’m doing these things.”
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