M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Plan to capture Ai
8 The Lord said to Joshua, “Don’t be afraid or terrified. Take the entire army with you. Start to go up to Ai. Look! I have given the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land into your power. 2 Do to Ai and its king what you did to Jericho and its king. But you may take its booty and cattle as plunder. Set your ambush behind the city.”
3 So Joshua and the whole army got ready to go up to Ai. Joshua chose thirty thousand brave soldiers. He sent them out by night. 4 He commanded them, “Look. You are to ambush the city from behind. Don’t move too far away from the city. Be ready, all of you. 5 I will approach the city with all the people. When they come out against us the same way as before, we will flee from them. 6 They will come out after us until we have drawn them away from the city. They will think, They are fleeing from us as before. So we will flee from them. 7 But you will rise up from the ambush and take over the city. The Lord your God will give it into your power. 8 As soon as you seize the city, set it on fire. Act according to the Lord’s word. Indeed, I have given you an order!”
9 Joshua sent them off, and they went to set the ambush. They stayed between Bethel and Ai, to the west of Ai. Joshua spent that night among the people. 10 Joshua got up early in the morning and mustered the people. Then he and the elders of Israel went up in front of the people to Ai. 11 The entire army that was with him went up. They moved in close, in front of the city. Then they camped north of Ai, with the valley between them and Ai. 12 He took about five thousand men and positioned them as an ambush between Bethel and Ai to the west of the city. 13 The people positioned the main camp on the north side of the city and its rear guard on its west side. That night, Joshua went into the middle of the valley.
Israel’s successful strategy
14 As soon as the king of Ai saw this, he and all his troops, the men of the city, hurried out early in the morning to meet Israel in battle. They moved out to the battleground on the slopes down toward the Jordan.[a] He didn’t know that there was an ambush set against him behind the city. 15 Then Joshua and all Israel let themselves be beaten before them. They fled in the direction of the desert. 16 Next, all the troops who were still in the city were called out to chase them. They chased after Joshua and so let themselves be drawn away from the city. 17 No one who hadn’t gone out after Israel was left in either Ai or Bethel. They left the city wide open and chased after Israel.
18 The Lord said to Joshua, “Point the dagger in your hand toward Ai, because I will give it into your power.” So Joshua pointed the dagger in his hand toward the city. 19 The ambush quickly rose from its place. As soon as he reached out his hand, it charged. They entered the city and captured it. They set the city on fire at once. 20 Then the men of Ai turned around. They caught sight of the smoke of the city rising toward the sky. They had no chance to flee one way or the other. The troops who were fleeing toward the desert turned against the pursuit. 21 Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had captured the city and that the smoke of the city was rising. So they turned and struck down the men of Ai. 22 When other Israelites came out of the city to confront them, the men of Ai were caught in the middle. Some Israelites were on one side of them and some on the other. The Israelites struck them down until there was no one left to escape. 23 But they seized the king of Ai alive and brought him to Joshua.
24 Israel finished killing the entire population of Ai that had chased them out into the open wasteland. All of them were finished off without mercy. Then all Israel went back to Ai and struck it down without mercy. 25 Twelve thousand men and women died that day, all the people of Ai. 26 Joshua didn’t pull back the hand that was stretched out holding a dagger until he had wiped out the whole population of Ai as something reserved for God. 27 However, Israel did take the cattle and other booty of that city as plunder for themselves, in agreement with the command that the Lord had given Joshua. 28 Then Joshua burned Ai. He made it a permanently deserted mound. That is still the case today. 29 He hanged the king of Ai on a tree until evening. At sundown, Joshua gave an order, and they took his body down from the tree. They threw it down at the opening of the city gate. Then they raised over it a great pile of stones that is still there today.
Joshua reads the Instruction
30 Then Joshua built an altar on Mount Ebal to the Lord, the God of Israel. 31 This was exactly what Moses the Lord’s servant had commanded the Israelites. It is what is written in the Instruction scroll from Moses: “an altar of crude stones against which no iron tool has swung.”[b] On it they offered entirely burned offerings to the Lord and sacrificed well-being offerings. 32 There, in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua wrote on the stones a copy of the Instruction from Moses, which Moses had written earlier. 33 All Israel—with its elders, officers, and judges—were standing on either side of the chest. They were facing the levitical priests who carry the Lord’s chest containing the covenant. They included both immigrants and full citizens. Half stood facing Mount Gerizim and half stood facing Mount Ebal. This was exactly what Moses the Lord’s servant had initially commanded for the blessing of the Israelite people. 34 Afterward, Joshua read aloud all the words of the Instruction, both blessing and curse, in agreement with everything written in the Instruction scroll. 35 There wasn’t a single word of all that Moses had commanded that Joshua failed to read aloud in the presence of the entire assembly of Israel. This assembly included the women and small children, along with the immigrants who lived among them.
Psalm 139
For the music leader. Of David. A song.
139 Lord, you have examined me.
You know me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I stand up.
Even from far away, you comprehend my plans.
3 You study my traveling and resting.
You are thoroughly familiar with all my ways.
4 There isn’t a word on my tongue, Lord,
that you don’t already know completely.
5 You surround me—front and back.
You put your hand on me.
6 That kind of knowledge is too much for me;
it’s so high above me that I can’t reach it.
7 Where could I go to get away from your spirit?
Where could I go to escape your presence?
8 If I went up to heaven, you would be there.
If I went down to the grave,[a] you would be there too!
9 If I could fly on the wings of dawn,
stopping to rest only on the far side of the ocean—
10 even there your hand would guide me;
even there your strong hand would hold me tight!
11 If I said, “The darkness will definitely hide me;
the light will become night around me,”
12 even then the darkness isn’t too dark for you!
Nighttime would shine bright as day,
because darkness is the same as light to you!
13 You are the one who created my innermost parts;
you knit me together while I was still in my mother’s womb.
14 I give thanks to you that I was marvelously set apart.
Your works are wonderful—I know that very well.
15 My bones weren’t hidden from you
when I was being put together in a secret place,
when I was being woven together in the deep parts of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my embryo,
and on your scroll every day was written that was being formed for me,[b]
before any one of them had yet happened.[c]
17 God, your plans are incomprehensible to me!
Their total number is countless!
18 If I tried to count them—they outnumber grains of sand!
If I came to the very end—I’d still be with you.[d]
19 If only, God, you would kill the wicked!
If only murderers would get away from me—
20 the people who talk about you, but only for wicked schemes;
the people who are your enemies,
who use your name as if it were of no significance.[e]
21 Don’t I hate everyone who hates you?
Don’t I despise those who attack you?
22 Yes, I hate them—through and through!
They’ve become my enemies too.
23 Examine me, God! Look at my heart!
Put me to the test! Know my anxious thoughts!
24 Look to see if there is any idolatrous way[f] in me,
then lead me on the eternal path!
God’s people abandon their God
2 The Lord’s word came to me:
2 Go and proclaim to the people of Jerusalem,
The Lord proclaims:
I remember your first love,[a]
your devotion as a young bride,
how you followed me in the wilderness,
in an unplanted land.
3 Israel was devoted to the Lord,
the early produce of the harvest.
Whoever ate from it became guilty;
disaster overtook them,
declares the Lord.
4 Listen to the Lord’s word,
people of Judah,
all you families of the Israelite household.
5 This is what the Lord says:
What wrong did your ancestors find in me
that made them wander so far?
They pursued what was worthless
and became worthless.
6 They didn’t ask,
“Where’s the Lord who brought us up from the land of Egypt,
who led us through the wilderness,
in a land of deserts and ravines,
in a land of drought and darkness,
in a land of no return,
where no one survives?”
7 I brought you into a land of plenty,
to enjoy its gifts and goodness,
but you ruined my land;
you disgraced my heritage.
8 The priests didn’t ask,
“Where’s the Lord?”
Those responsible for the Instruction didn’t know me;
the leaders rebelled against me;
the prophets spoke in the name of Baal,
going after what has no value.
9 That is why I will take you to court
and charge even your descendants,
declares the Lord.
10 Look to the west as far as the shores of Cyprus
and to the east as far as the land of Kedar.
Ask anyone there:
Has anything this odd ever taken place?
11 Has a nation switched gods,
though they aren’t really gods at all?
Yet my people have exchanged their glory
for what has no value.
12 Be stunned at such a thing, you heavens;
shudder and quake,
declares the Lord.
13 My people have committed two crimes:
They have forsaken me, the spring of living water.
And they have dug wells, broken wells that can’t hold water.
14 Is Israel a slave,
a servant by birth?
If not, why then has he become prey?
15 Lions roar at him; they growl.
They destroy his land
and make his towns desolate
until nothing is left.
16 As well, the people of Memphis and Tahpanhes
lay open your scalp.
17 Haven’t you brought this on yourself
by abandoning the Lord your God,
who has directed your paths?
18 So why take the path to Egypt
to drink water from the Nile?
Why travel the path to Assyria
to drink water from the Euphrates?
19 Your wrongdoing will punish you.
Your acts of unfaithfulness will find you out.
Don’t you understand how terribly bitter
it is to abandon the Lord your God
and not fear me?
declares the Lord of heavenly forces.
20 Long ago I broke your yoke;
I shattered your chains.
But even then you said, “I won’t serve you.”
On every high hill and under every lush tree,
you have acted like a prostitute.
21 Yet it was I who planted you, a precious vine of fine quality;
how could you turn into a wild vine
and become good for nothing?
22 Even though you scrub yourself with soap or strong powder,
the stain of your sin is still before me,
declares the Lord God.
23 How can you say,
“I’m not dirty;
I haven’t gone after Baals.”
Look what you have done in the valley;
consider what you have done there.
You are like a frenzied young camel,
racing around,
24 a wild donkey in the wilderness,
lustfully sniffing the wind.
Who can restrain such passion?
Those who desire her need not give up;
with little effort they will find her in heat.
25 Don’t run about until your feet are blistered
and your throat is parched.
But you say, “What’s the use?
I have fallen in love with foreign gods,
and I must pursue them.”
26 As a thief is ashamed when caught in his tracks,
so the people of Israel are ashamed—
their kings, officials, priests, and prophets—
27 when they say to a piece of wood, “You are my father,”
and to a stone, “You gave me birth.”
They have turned their backs to me
and not their faces.
Yet in their time of trouble they say,
“Arise and save us!”
28 Where are the gods
you have made for yourselves?
Let’s see if they will come through for you in your time of trouble.
You have as many gods, Judah,
as you have towns.
29 Why would you bring charges against me?
You have all rebelled against me,
declares the Lord.
30 I have disciplined your children in vain;
they have rejected my correction.
You have devoured your prophets
like a hungry lion.
31 People of this generation, listen closely to the Lord’s word:
Have I been a wasteland to Israel
or a land of dense darkness?
Why then do my people say,
“We have wandered far away;
we’ll come to you no longer”?
32 Does a young woman forget her jewelry
or a bride her wedding dress?
Yet you have forgotten me days without end!
33 So skilled are you at pursuing lovers[b]
that you instruct even the most wicked.[c]
34 Your garments are stained
with the blood of the innocent poor,
even though you didn’t catch them
breaking and entering.
Yet, despite all this,[d] 35 you still insist,
“I’m innocent;
as a result he will turn his anger away from me.”
Because you claim not to have sinned,
I will pass judgment against you.
36 You change sides so casually!
But Egypt will shame you
no less than Assyria.
37 From there you will go out
with your hands on your heads,
because the Lord has rejected those you rely on;
they won’t help you.
Demand for a sign
16 The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus. In order to test him they asked him to show them a sign from heaven.
2 But he replied, “At evening you say, ‘It will be nice weather because the sky is bright red.’ 3 And in the morning you say, ‘There will be bad weather today because the sky is cloudy.’ You know how to make sense of the sky’s appearance. But you are unable to recognize the signs that point to what the time is. 4 An evil and unfaithful generation searches for a sign. But it won’t receive any sign except Jonah’s sign.” Then he left them and went away.
Yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees
5 When the disciples arrived on the other side of the lake, they had forgotten to bring bread. 6 Jesus said to them, “Watch out and be on your guard for the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
7 They discussed this among themselves and said, “We didn’t bring any bread.”
8 Jesus knew what they were discussing and said, “You people of weak faith! Why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you don’t have any bread? 9 Don’t you understand yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves that fed the five thousand and how many baskets of leftovers you gathered? 10 And the seven loaves that fed the four thousand and how many large baskets of leftovers you gathered? 11 Don’t you know that I wasn’t talking about bread? But be on your guard for the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 12 Then they understood that he wasn’t telling them to be on their guard for yeast used in making bread. No, he was telling them to watch out for the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Peter’s declaration about Jesus
13 Now when Jesus came to the area of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Human One[a] is?”
14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”
15 He said, “And what about you? Who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Then Jesus replied, “Happy are you, Simon son of Jonah, because no human has shown this to you. Rather my Father who is in heaven has shown you. 18 I tell you that you are Peter.[b] And I’ll build my church on this rock. The gates of the underworld won’t be able to stand against it. 19 I’ll give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Anything you fasten on earth will be fastened in heaven. Anything you loosen on earth will be loosened in heaven.” 20 Then he ordered the disciples not to tell anybody that he was the Christ.
First prediction of Jesus’ death and resurrection
21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he had to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and legal experts, and that he had to be killed and raised on the third day. 22 Then Peter took hold of Jesus and, scolding him, began to correct him: “God forbid, Lord! This won’t happen to you.” 23 But he turned to Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan. You are a stone that could make me stumble, for you are not thinking God’s thoughts but human thoughts.”
Saving and losing life
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me. 25 All who want to save their lives will lose them. But all who lose their lives because of me will find them. 26 Why would people gain the whole world but lose their lives? What will people give in exchange for their lives? 27 For the Human One[c] is about to come with the majesty of his Father with his angels. And then he will repay each one for what that person has done. 28 I assure you that some standing here won’t die before they see the Human One[d] coming in his kingdom.”
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible