M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
20 Then the Eternal One spoke to Joshua.
Eternal One: 2 Tell the Israelites, “You must set apart cities of refuge, as I directed you through Moses, 3 so that anyone who accidentally or unintentionally kills a person may flee there. These cities shall be set up as a refuge from anyone seeking blood revenge. 4 If the slayer flees to one of these cities, he can stand at the entrance of the gate of the city and explain the case to the elders of that city; then the fugitive will be taken into the city and given a place, and he will live among them. 5 If the person seeking to avenge in blood comes after him, the people of the city may not give up the slayer since the neighbor was killed by mistake and there was no premeditation or prior hatred. 6 The slayer may remain in that city until there is a trial before the congregation. And when the high priest who currently holds the office dies, then the slayer may return home to the town from which he fled.”
God asks the people to set aside places of sanctuary. This is a violent time, and people often take justice into their own hands. But these cities of refuge are set aside as places where those who have accidentally killed someone might be safe from avenging relatives until a determination of guilt might be made.
7 So they set apart and consecrated Kedesh in Galilee (in the hill country of Naphtali), Shechem (in the hill country of Ephraim), and Kiriath-arba (Hebron, in the hill country of Judah). 8 Beyond the Jordan, east of Jericho, they appointed Bezer (in the desert plateau from the tribe of Reuben), Ramoth in Gilead (from the tribe of Gad), and Golan in Bashan (from the tribe of Manasseh). 9 These, then, were the cities set aside to be sanctuaries for all the Israelites and for the foreigners residing among them, so that anyone who killed a person accidentally could flee there and not die at the hands of someone seeking blood revenge until there was a trial before the congregation.
21 It was at this time that the heads of the leaders of the Levites came before the priest Eleazar and Joshua, son of Nun, and the other leaders of the tribes of the Israelites 2 at Shiloh in the land of Canaan.
Levite Leaders: The Eternal gave orders through Moses that we of the tribe of Levi be given towns to live in, along with pasturelands for our livestock and cattle.
The Kohathites are given land in the areas around what will be Jerusalem, where it will be convenient for them to later serve in the temple.
3 So in obedience to the Eternal’s command, the Israelites allotted to the Levites towns with their surrounding pasturelands, from out of their inheritances, 4 and lots were drawn for the clans of the descendants of Kohath. To those Levites who were descendants of Aaron the priest went 13 towns from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin. 5 The other descendants of Kohath were given 10 towns from the clans of the tribes of Ephraim and Dan and the half-tribe of Manasseh. 6 The descendants of Gershon were allotted 13 towns from the clans of the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and the half-tribe of Manasseh that lived in Bashan. 7 The descendants of Merari and their clans were granted 12 towns from the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun. 8 This, then, was the land granted by drawing lots for the Levites, by the other people of Israel as the Eternal had commanded through Moses—these towns with their surrounding pastures. 9 From the tribes of the Judahites and the Simeonites came the following towns mentioned by name, 10 which were granted to the descendants of Aaron, of the clans of the descendants of Kohath who were Levites, since they were chosen first: 11 the city of Kiriath-arba (Arba was the father of Anak), that is Hebron, in the highlands of Judah, as well as the pasturelands around it. 12 The fields and villages of the town had already been granted to Caleb, son of Jephunneh, for his inheritance.
13-16 So to the descendants of Aaron the priest they gave Hebron, the city of refuge for a slayer, and Libnah; Jattir, Eshtemoa, Holon, Debir, Ain, Juttah, and Beth-shemesh, all with their villages—9 cities with their pastures given by these two tribes.
17-19 These cities were given by the tribe of Benjamin: Gibeon, Geba, Anathoth, and Almon, all with their villages—4 cities. So the cities granted to the descendants of Aaron—the priests—totaled 13, with their pastures and their villages.
20-22 As for the remaining clans of the people of Kohath of the Levites, the cities allotted to them were given by the tribe of Ephraim: Shechem (the city of refuge in the highlands of Ephraim) Gezer, Kibzaim, and Beth-horon, all with their villages—4 cities with their pastures. 23-24 Out of the tribe of Dan they were given Elteke, Gibbethon, Aijalon, and Gath-rimmon, all with their pasturelands—4 cities. 25 And out of the half-tribe of Manasseh they received Taanach with its villages and Gath-rimmon with its villages and their pastures—2 cities. 26 So the cities given to the clans of the rest of the Kohathites totaled 10, with their pasturelands.
27 The Gershonites, another of the clans of the Levites, received from the half-tribe of Manasseh: Golan in Bashan (the city of refuge), with its villages and pastures, and Beeshterah with its villages and pastures—2 cities. 28-29 From the tribe of Issachar they received Kishion, Daberath, Jarmuth, and En-gannim, all with their villages—4 cities.
30-31 From the tribe of Asher came Mishal, Abdon, Helkath, and Rehob, all with their villages and pastures—4 cities. 32 From the tribe of Naphtali: Kedesh in Galilee (the city of refuge), Hammoth-dor, and Kartan, all with their villages and their pastures—3 cities. 33 In all, the cities granted to the clans of the Gershonites totaled 13, along with their villages and their pastures.
34-35 The rest of the Levites—the clans of the Merarites—received from the tribe of Zebulun: Jokneam, Kartah, Dimnah, and Nahalal, all with their villages and pastures—4 cities. 36-37 From the tribe of Reuben they were given Bezer, Jahzah, Kedemoth, and Mephaath, all with their villages and their pastures—4 cities. 38-39 From the tribe of Gad: Ramoth in Gilead (the city of refuge), Mahanaim, Heshbon, and Jazer, all with their villages and their pastures—4 cities in all. 40 So the cities of the Merarite clans, that is, the remaining clans of Levi, totaled 12. 41 The Levites were granted 48 cities, each with villages around them and the pasturelands, within the holdings of the Israelites. 42 So it was that they received these cities, their villages, and their pastures.
43 That is how the Eternal gave to the people of Israel all the land He had promised to their ancestors; and when they had taken possession of the land, the Israelites settled upon it. 44 So He gave them rest from war on every side as He had sworn to their ancestors; none of their enemies still stood against them, for the Eternal had delivered them all into their hands. 45 Not a single one of all the good promises that He had made to the house of Israel went unfulfilled; all of them came to pass.
Luke, in this his second volume concerning the genesis of the Christian movement, doesn’t preserve Jesus’ teachings during those mysterious meetings with His emissaries after His death. Surely they are filled with joy, curiosity, and amazement as His followers hang on His every word and gaze on the reality of His bodily resurrection as He describes the kingdom of God. His words are undoubtedly intended to prepare each of them for this journey, a journey with a clear destination in sight—the kingdom of God.
An integral part of this kingdom is the activity of the Holy Spirit to empower the people of God as they expand the kingdom beyond the region of Palestine. Luke records surprisingly little about the day-to-day life of these early Christians, about how they integrated their faith into their culture; but he does emphasize the work of the Spirit who empowers miracles and gives believers the means to testify of their faith before Jews and the outsiders.
1 To a lover of God, Theophilus: In my first book, I recounted the events of Jesus’ life—His actions, His teachings— 2-3 from the beginning of His life until He was taken up into heaven. After His great suffering and vindication, He showed His apostles that He was alive—appearing to them repeatedly over a period of 40 days, giving them many convincing proofs of His resurrection. As before, He spoke constantly of the kingdom of God. During these appearances, He had instructed His chosen messengers through the Holy Spirit, 4 prohibiting them from leaving Jerusalem, but rather requiring them to wait there until they received what He called “the promise of the Father.”
Jesus: This is what you heard Me teach— 5 that just as John ritually cleansed people with water through baptism,[a] so you will be washed with the Holy Spirit very soon.
6 When they had gathered just outside Jerusalem at the Mount of Olives, they asked Jesus,
Disciples: Is now the time, Lord—the time when You will reestablish Your kingdom in our land of Israel?
Jesus: 7 The Father, on His own authority, has determined the ages and epochs of history, but you have not been given this knowledge. 8 Here’s the knowledge you need: you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you. And you will be My witnesses, first here in Jerusalem, then beyond to Judea and Samaria, and finally to the farthest places on earth.
9 As He finished this commission, He began to rise from the ground before their eyes until the clouds obscured Him from their vision. 10 As they strained to get one last glimpse of Him going into heaven, the Lord’s emissaries[b] realized two men in white robes were standing among them.
Two Men: 11 You Galileans, why are you standing here staring up into the sky? This Jesus who is leaving you and ascending to heaven will return in the same way you see Him departing.
12 Then the disciples returned to Jerusalem—their short journey from the Mount of Olives was an acceptable Sabbath Day’s walk.
13-14 Back in the city, they went to the room where they were staying—a second-floor room. This whole group devoted themselves to constant prayer with one accord: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James (son of Alphaeus), Simon (the Zealot), Judas (son of James), a number of women including Mary (Jesus’ mother), and some of Jesus’ brothers.
15 As the disciples prayed, Peter stood among the group of about 120 people and made this proposal:
The Creator of heaven and earth is orchestrating a redemptive story that will radically change the course of history. The most significant supernatural event in the history of this newly formed church will be the filling of the Holy Spirit. Through the Holy Spirit, God will direct the church’s growth. But how does the early church make important decisions before the Holy Spirit descends on them?
The company of disciples turns to the practice of “drawing lots,” a practice used by saints for centuries to discover God’s providential leading. After much prayer, Joseph and Matthias most likely write their names on scraps; then someone draws the replacement’s name out of a bag. What seems like a 50/50 chance is, in fact, God’s way of imparting His will. The disciples aren’t putting their faith in “chance”; they are putting their faith in a God who lives. This living God isn’t distant; He is a player in their lives, active when His people seek Him and His will. They know God directs the process, start to finish, and determines whose name is drawn to join the eleven.
Peter: 16-17 My friends, everything in the Hebrew Scriptures had to be fulfilled, including what the Holy Spirit foretold through David about Judas. As you know, Judas was one of us and participated in our ministry until he guided the authorities to arrest Jesus. 18 (He was paid handsomely for his betrayal, and he bought a field with the blood money. But he died on that land—falling so that his abdomen burst and his internal organs gushed out. 19 News of this death spread to everyone in Jerusalem, so Judas’s property is known as Hakeldama, which means “field of blood.”) 20 In this way, one of David’s psalms was fulfilled: “May their camps be bleak, with not one left in any tent.”[c] But the psalms also include these words: “Let his position of oversight be given to another.”[d] 21 So we need to determine his replacement from among the men who have been with us during all of the Lord Jesus’ travels among us— 22 from His baptism[e] by John until His ascension. We need someone to join us as a witness of Jesus’ resurrection.
23 The group put forward two men: Joseph (who was also known as Barsabbas or Justus) and Matthias.
Disciples: 24 Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Make it clear to us which of these two is Your choice 25 to take on this ministry as Your apostle, replacing Judas who went his own way to his own destination.
26 Then they drew lots, and the lot fell to Matthias, so he was added to the eleven apostles to reconstitute the twelve.
Circumcision is supposed to be a sign of God’s covenant with the people of Israel, but it has become a mark on the body that has little to no effect on how God’s people live. Now God speaks a rather shocking message. Judgment is coming on all nations—those inside and those outside the covenant—whose people are not distinguished by a mark that truly matters. God calls this judgment the circumcision of the heart—a strange phrase indeed. The difference is between the inside and the outside, the superficial and the real. God has had enough, the prophet says, of those who go through the motions, confident in their wisdom, strength, and wealth. God wants a people who are truly devoted to knowing and honoring Him.
10 This message is for all of Israel. Listen to what the Eternal is saying to you.
2 Eternal One: Don’t learn the strange practices and beliefs of other nations.
Don’t be terrified by signs in the sky
just because the other nations are.
3 For their traditions and customs are useless; there is nothing to them.
A tree is cut down in the forest;
then an artisan takes out a tool and carves it into an image.
4 They dress it up with gold and silver to make it more impressive.
Then they nail it down so it won’t fall over!
5 This is what they worship? The idol just stands there—
lifeless, powerless like a scarecrow in a cucumber patch.
It cannot speak. It cannot move. They must pick the thing up and bring it along.
Do you see why there’s nothing to fear from these dead pieces of wood?
They cannot harm you, and they cannot help you either.
6 O Eternal One, there is no comparison.
You are great; even Your name is powerful.
7 Who wouldn’t worship You? It is only right;
You are the King of all kingdoms.
The wise and powerful men of all nations in their realms
are still nothing compared to You.
8 They are stupid fools for taking their cues from blocks of wood,
as if that idol could lead them anywhere.
9 Beaten silver from Tarshish, and hammered gold from Uphaz—
materials made by artisans and goldsmiths—
Draped with royal blue and purple,
even with the work of craftsmen—still a lifeless object!
10 Just look at the contrast! The Eternal is the True God:
He is the living God and eternal King, not some lifeless idol.
The whole earth trembles when He is angry; nations crumble beneath His wrath.
11 Say this to anyone still worshiping idols: The so-called gods you worship did not make the earth and starry sky above it. And one day, they will all be blotted from the earth beneath those stars.
12 Know whom you’re dealing with!
God alone is powerful enough to create the earth.
He alone is wise enough to put the world together.
He alone understands enough to stretch out the heavens.
13 His voice thunders through the heavens, and the waters gush from the sky;
He summons the clouds to build up over the earth.
As the rain falls, the lightning flashes at His command;
the wind rushes in from where He alone can store it.
14 All of humanity is stupid and bankrupt of knowledge.
Those who make idols are shamed by their creations.
What they fashion out of gold are imposters—
breathless, lifeless frauds.
15 Their idols are worthless, the work of their hands an embarrassing mockery.
They are doomed to perish under God’s judgment.
16 The portion of Jacob, the Eternal One, is not like any of these.
He was not fashioned out of human hands.
Instead, it is He who made all things and appointed Israel to inherit it all.
His name is the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies.
These words are directed at a nation that cannot remember the beauty and power of true worship; instead, her people are always drifting toward profane and useless practices that leave them empty and far from the God who loves them so. The warnings against idolatry, no matter how many times or how loudly they are offered, always seem to fall on deaf ears. But now the judgment is close at hand. The enemy first seen in Jeremiah’s visions is drawing closer. The dreaded hour of judgment is coming.
17 Pack up what you have; take what you can from the land.
You’ll soon be under siege!
18 The word I have from the Eternal is clear:
Eternal One: Look, I will pitch out these people who live in the land of promise.
Now is the time for Me to bring hardship on them, so they may be found.
19 When I think of what is about to happen,
I can’t begin to express my hurt; the wound is so deep, so painful.
But I keep telling myself,
“This sickness is mine to bear.”
20 Like a tent, my nation has collapsed, all the ropes cut apart.
My sons are gone,
And there is no one left to help me put things back together.
So I am exposed, with no tent and no shelter.
21 The shepherds of my people have lost their senses;
they never thought to ask what the Eternal would have them do.
So now they are in trouble,
and all their flocks are scattered.
22 Listen! The news we’ve dreaded is finally here:
Rumblings are being heard in the north; an army is moving into our land.
The villages of Judah will be laid to waste;
their rubble will be the haunt of jackals.
23 Jeremiah: O Eternal One, I know our lives are in Your hands.
It is not in us to direct our own steps—we need You.
24 Discipline me, Eternal One, but do so fairly.
Hold back Your wrath, or I’ll be destroyed completely.
25 O God, pour out Your wrath on those nations that do not acknowledge You,
on those peoples who never call on Your name.
For they have ravaged the land of Jacob and devoured it completely.
They have made sure nothing is left of our land.
24 Jesus left the temple. As He was walking away, His disciples came up to Him and asked what He thought about the temple buildings.
Jesus: 2 Look around you. All of it will become rubble. I tell you this: not one stone will be left standing.
3 Later, as Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately.
Disciples: We don’t understand Your predictions. Tell us, when will these things happen: When will the temple be destroyed? What will be the sign that You are returning? How will we know that the end of the age is upon us?
In this, the last of the five major sermons, Jesus focuses on prophetic and apocalyptic themes of judgment and the end times. The disciples have been listening to the prophetic judgment Jesus has issued on the religious leaders. They have images of collapsing temple buildings, of prophets pursued from town to town, of floggings, and of blood-soaked garments. They can imagine themselves blood-soaked. When will this all happen, and what does it mean?
Jesus: 4 Take care that you are not deceived. 5 For many will come in My name claiming they are the Anointed One, and many poor souls will be taken in. 6 You will hear of wars, and you will hear rumors of wars, but you should not panic. It is inevitable, this violent breaking apart of the sinful world, but remember, the wars are not the end. The end is still unfolding. 7 Nations will do battle with nations, and kingdoms will fight neighboring kingdoms, and there will be famines and earthquakes. 8 But these are not the end. These are the birth pangs, the beginning. The end is still unfolding.
9 They will hand you over to your enemies, who will torture you and then kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of Me. 10 And many who have followed Me and claimed to love Me and sought God’s kingdom will turn away—they will abandon the faith and betray and hate one another. 11-12 The love that they had for one another will grow cold because few will obey the law. False prophets will appear, many will be taken in by them, and the only thing that will grow is wickedness. There will be no end to the increase of wickedness. 13 But those who do not waver from our path and do not follow those false prophets—those among you will be saved. 14 And this good news of God’s kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, a testimony to all people and all nations. Then, beloved, the end, the consummation of all things, will come.
15 You will remember that the prophet Daniel predicted this—predicted the abomination that causes desolation[a]—when you see the prophesied desolation of the holy place. (Reader, take notice; it is important that you understand this.) 16 When you see this, let those in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 If you are relaxing on your rooftop one evening and the signs of the temple’s destructions come, don’t return to your house to rescue a book or a pet or a scrap of clothing. 18 If you are in the field when the great destruction begins, don’t return home for a cloak. 19 Pregnant women and nursing mothers will have the worst of it. 20 And as for you, pray that your flight to the hills will not come on the Sabbath or in the cold of winter. 21 For the tribulation will be unparalleled—hardships of a magnitude that has not been seen since creation and that will not be seen again. 22 Indeed the Lord God your merciful judge will cut this time of trial short, and this will be done for the benefit of the elect that some might indeed be saved—for no one could survive the depravity for very long.
23 I cannot say this clearly enough: during this time, someone will say to you, “Look, here is the Anointed One!” or “Aren’t you relieved? Haven’t you seen the Savior down there, around the bend, over the hill and dale?” Do not believe them. 24 False liberators and false prophets will appear, and they will know a few tricks—they will perform great miracles, and they will make great promises. If it were possible, they would even deceive God’s elect. 25 But I am warning you ahead of time: remember—do not fall for their lies or lines or promises. 26 If someone says, “He’s out there in the desert”—do not go. And if someone says, “He’s here at our house, at our table”—do not believe him. 27 When the Son of Man comes, He will be as visible as lightning in the East is visible even in the West. 28 And where the carcass is, there will always be vultures.
29 And as the prophets have foretold it: after the distress of those days,
The sun will grow dark,
and the moon will be hidden.
The stars will fall from the sky,
and all the powers in the heavens will be dislodged and shaken from their places.[b]
30 That is when the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. All the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming; they will see Him powerful and glorious, riding on chariots of clouds in the sky. 31 With a loud trumpet call, He will send out battalions of heavenly messengers; and they will gather His beloved faithful elect from the four corners of creation, from one end of heaven to the other.
32 Now think of the fig tree. As soon as its twigs get tender and greenish, as soon as it begins to sprout leaves, you know to expect summer. 33 In the same way, when you see the wars and the suffering and the false liberators and the desolations, you will know the Son of Man is near—right at the door. 34 I tell you this: this generation will see all these things take place before it passes away. 35 My words are always true and always here with you. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.
36 No one knows the hour or the day, not even the messengers in heaven, not even the Son. Only the Father knows. 37 As it was at the time of Noah, so it will be with the coming of the Son of Man. 38 In the days before the flood, people were busy making lives for themselves: they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, making plans and having children and growing old, until the day Noah entered the ark. 39 Those people had no idea what was coming; they knew nothing about the floods until the floods were upon them, sweeping them all away. That is how it will be with the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be plowing a field: one will be taken, and the other will be left in the field. 41 Two women will be somewhere grinding at a mill: one will be taken, and the other will be left at the mill.
42 So keep watch. You don’t know when your Lord will come. 43 But you should know this: If the owner of a house had known his house was about to be broken into, he would have stayed up all night, vigilantly. He would have kept watch, and he would have thwarted the thief. 44 So you must be ready because you know the Son of Man will come, but you can’t know precisely when.
45 The trustworthy servant is the one whom the master puts in charge of all the servants of his household; it is the trustworthy servant who not only oversees all the work, but also ensures the servants are properly fed and cared for. 46 And it is, of course, crucial that a servant who is given such responsibility performs his responsibility to his master’s standards—so when the master returns he finds his trust has been rewarded. 47 For then the master will put that good servant in charge of all his possessions. 48 But imagine that the master’s trust was misplaced, that the supposedly responsible servant is actually a thief who says to himself, “My master has been gone so long, he is not possibly coming back.” 49 Then he beats his fellow servants and dines and drinks with drunkards. 50 Well, when the master returns—as certainly he will—the servant will be caught unawares. The master will return on a day and at an hour when he isn’t expected. 51 And he will cut his worthless servant into pieces and throw him out into darkness with the hypocrites, where there is weeping and grinding of teeth.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.