M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

The Families from Adam to Noah

5 This is the book of the children of Adam and of their children’s children. When God made man, He made him in the likeness of God. ² He made them male and female, and brought good to them. And He gave them the name Man when they were made. ³ When Adam had lived 130 years, he gave birth to a son in his own likeness. And he gave him the name Seth. ⁴ Adam lived 800 years after he became the father of Seth. He had other sons and daughters. ⁵ So Adam lived 930 years, and he died.

⁶ When Seth had lived 105 years, he became the father of Enosh. ⁷ Seth lived 807 years after the birth of Enosh. He had other sons and daughters. ⁸ So Seth lived 912 years, and he died.

⁹ When Enosh had lived ninety years, he became the father of Kenan. ¹⁰ Enosh lived 815 years after the birth of Kenan. He had other sons and daughters. ¹¹ So Enosh lived 905 years, and he died.

¹² When Kenan had lived seventy years, he became the father of Mahalalel. ¹³ Kenan lived 840 years after the birth of Mahalalel. He had other sons and daughters. ¹⁴ So Kenan lived 910 years, and he died.

¹⁵ When Mahalalel had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of Jared. ¹⁶ Mahalalel lived 830 years after the birth of Jared. He had other sons and daughters. ¹⁷ So Mahalalel lived 895 years, and he died.

¹⁸ When Jared had lived 162 years, he became the father of Enoch. ¹⁹ Jared lived 800 years after the birth of Enoch. He had other sons and daughters. ²⁰ So Jared lived 962 years, and he died.

²¹ When Enoch had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of Methuselah. ²² Enoch walked with God 300 years after the birth of Methuselah. He had other sons and daughters. ²³ So Enoch lived 365 years. ²⁴ Enoch walked with God, and he was seen no more, for God took him.

²⁵ When Methuselah had lived 187 years, he became the father of Lamech. ²⁶ Methuselah lived 782 years after the birth of Lamech. He had other sons and daughters. ²⁷ So Methuselah lived 969 years, and he died.

²⁸ When Lamech had lived 182 years, he became the father of a son. ²⁹ He gave him the name Noah. He said, “This one will give us rest from our work, from the hard work of our hands because the ground was cursed by the Lord.” ³⁰ Lamech lived 595 years after the birth of Noah. He had other sons and daughters. ³¹ So Lamech lived 777 years, and he died.

³² When Noah had lived 500 years, he became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Jesus Teaches on the Mountain ^(A)

5 Jesus saw many people. He went up on the mountain and sat down. His followers came to Him. ² He began to teach them, saying, ³ “Those who know there is nothing good in themselves are happy, because the holy nation of heaven is theirs. ⁴ Those who have sorrow are happy, because they will be comforted. ⁵ Those who have no pride in their hearts are happy, because the earth will be given to them. ⁶ Those who are hungry and thirsty to be right with God are happy, because they will be filled. ⁷ Those who show loving-kindness are happy, because they will have loving-kindness shown to them. ⁸ Those who have a pure heart are happy, because they will see God. ⁹ Those who make peace are happy, because they will be called the sons of God. ¹⁰ Those who have it very hard for doing right are happy, because the holy nation of heaven is theirs. ¹¹ You are happy when people act and talk in a bad way to you and make it very hard for you and tell bad things and lies about you because you trust in Me. ¹² Be glad and full of joy because your reward will be much in heaven. They made it very hard for the early preachers who lived a long time before you.

Jesus Teaches about Salt and Light

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth. If salt loses its taste, how can it be made to taste like salt again? It is no good. It is thrown away and people walk on it. ¹⁴ You are the light of the world. You cannot hide a city that is on a mountain. ¹⁵ Men do not light a lamp and put it under a basket. They put it on a table so it gives light to all in the house. ¹⁶ Let your light shine in front of men. Then they will see the good things you do and will honor your Father Who is in heaven.

Jesus Teaches about the Law

¹⁷ “Do not think that I have come to do away with the Law of Moses or the writings of the early preachers. I have not come to do away with them but to complete them. ¹⁸ I tell you, as long as heaven and earth last, not one small mark or part of a word will pass away of the Law of Moses until it has all been done. ¹⁹ Anyone who breaks even the least of the Law of Moses and teaches people not to do what it says, will be called the least in the holy nation of heaven. He who obeys and teaches others to obey what the Law of Moses says, will be called great in the holy nation of heaven. ²⁰ I tell you, unless you are more right with God than the teachers of the Law and the proud religious law-keepers, you will never get into the holy nation of heaven.

Jesus Teaches about Anger and Killing

²¹ “You have heard that men were told long ago, ‘You must not kill another person. If someone does kill, he will be guilty and will be punished for his wrong-doing.’ ²² But I tell you that whoever is angry with his brother will be guilty and have to suffer for his wrong-doing. Whoever says to his brother, ‘You have no brains,’ will have to stand in front of the court. Whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be sent to the fire of hell. ²³ If you take your gift to the altar and remember your brother has something against you, ²⁴ leave your gift on the altar. Go and make right what is wrong between you and him. Then come back and give your gift. ²⁵ Agree with the one who is against you while you are talking together, or he might take you to court. The court will hand you over to the police. You will be put in prison. ²⁶ For sure, I tell you, you will not be let out of prison until you have paid every piece of money of the fine.

Jesus Teaches about Husband and Wife

²⁷ “You have heard that it was said long ago, ‘You must not do sex sins.’ ²⁸ But I tell you, anyone who even looks at a woman with a sinful desire of wanting her has already sinned in his heart. ²⁹ If your right eye is the reason you sin, take it out and throw it away. It is better to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. ³⁰ If your right hand is the reason you sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go to hell.

Jesus Teaches about Marriage

³¹ “It has been said, ‘Whoever wants to divorce his wife should have it put in writing, telling her he is leaving her.’ ³² But I tell you, whoever divorces his wife except if she has not been faithful to him, makes her guilty of a sex sin. Whoever marries a woman who has been divorced is guilty of a sex sin.

Jesus Teaches about What to Say

³³ “You have heard that it was said long ago, ‘You must not make a promise you cannot keep. You must carry out your promises to the Lord.’ ³⁴ I tell you, do not use strong words when you make a promise. Do not promise by heaven. It is the place where God is. ³⁵ Do not promise by earth. It is where He rests His feet. Do not promise by Jerusalem. It is the city of the great King. ³⁶ Do not promise by your head. You are not able to make one hair white or black. ³⁷ Let your yes be YES. Let your no be NO. Anything more than this comes from the devil.

Jesus Teaches about Fighting

³⁸ “You have heard that it has been said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ ³⁹ But I tell you, do not fight with the man who wants to fight. Whoever hits you on the right side of the face, turn so he can hit the other side also. ⁴⁰ If any person takes you to court to get your shirt, give him your coat also. ⁴¹ Whoever makes you walk a short way, go with him twice as far. ⁴² Give to any person who asks you for something. Do not say no to the man who wants to use something of yours.

Jesus Teaches about Loving Those Who Hate You

⁴³ “You have heard that it has been said, ‘You must love your neighbor and hate those who hate you.’ ⁴⁴ But I tell you, love those who hate you. (*Respect and give thanks for those who say bad things to you. Do good to those who hate you.) Pray for those who do bad things to you and who make it hard for you. ⁴⁵ Then you may be the sons of your Father Who is in heaven. His sun shines on bad people and on good people. He sends rain on those who are right with God and on those who are not right with God. ⁴⁶ If you love those who love you, what reward can you expect from that? Do not even the tax-gatherers do that? ⁴⁷ If you say hello only to the people you like, are you doing any more than others? The people who do not know God do that much. ⁴⁸ You must be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect.

Work on the House of God Starts Again

5 Now the men who spoke for God, Haggai and Zechariah the son of Iddo, spoke for God to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem. They spoke in the name of the God of Israel Who was over them. ² Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak began to build again the house of God in Jerusalem. The men who spoke for God were with them and helped them. ³ Then Tattenai, the leader over the land on the other side of the River, and Shethar-bozenai, and their friends, came to them and said, “Who told you to build on this house and to finish the building?” ⁴ They also asked, “What are the names of the men who are building this building?” ⁵ But the eye of their God was on the leaders of the Jews. They did not stop them until a letter was sent to Darius about it, and a written answer received from him.

⁶ This is what was said in the letter sent to King Darius from Tattenai, the leader over the land on the other side of the River, and Shethar-bozenai and his important friends. ⁷ It said: “To Darius the king, all peace. ⁸ Let it be known to the king that we have gone to the land of Judah, to the house of the great God. It is being built with very large stones, and heavy pieces of wood are being laid in the walls. This work is being done with much care and is going well in their hands. ⁹ We asked those leaders, ‘Who told you to build this house of worship and to finish the building?’ ¹⁰ We also asked them their names, that we might write down the names of their leaders and let you know. ¹¹ They answered, ‘We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth. We are building again the house of God that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished. ¹² But because our fathers had made the God of heaven angry, He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Chaldean. Nebuchadnezzar destroyed this house of God, and carried the people away to Babylon. ¹³ But in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus told us to build again this house of God. ¹⁴ Nebuchadnezzar had taken the gold and silver objects of the house of God from the house in Jerusalem, and brought them to the house of worship at Babylon. But King Cyrus took them from the house of worship at Babylon and they were given to Sheshbazzar, whom he had chosen as leader over the land. ¹⁵ He said to him, “Go, take these objects to Jerusalem and carry them into the place of worship. And let the house of God be built again in its place.” ¹⁶ Then Sheshbazzar came and began building the house of God in Jerusalem. The building has been going on from then until now, and it is not yet finished.’ ¹⁷ So now, if it pleases the king, have men look through the books kept there in Babylon to see if King Cyrus had told them to build again this house of God at Jerusalem. Let the king send us word on what is decided about this.”

The Sin of Ananias and Sapphira

5 A man by the name of Ananias and his wife, Sapphira, sold some land. ² He kept back part of the money for himself. His wife knew it also. The other part he took to the missionaries. ³ Peter said to Ananias, “Why did you let Satan fill your heart? He made you lie to the Holy Spirit. You kept back part of the money you got from your land. ⁴ Was not the land yours before you sold it? After it was sold, you could have done what you wanted to do with the money. Why did you allow your heart to do this? You have lied to God, not to men.”

⁵ When Ananias heard these words, he fell down dead. Much fear came on all those who heard what was done. ⁶ The young men got up and covered his body and carried him out and buried him.

⁷ About three hours later his wife came in. She did not know what had happened. ⁸ Peter said to her, “Tell me, did you sell the land for this amount of money?” She said, “Yes.” ⁹ Then Peter said to her, “How could you two have talked together about lying to the Holy Spirit? See! Those who buried your husband are standing at the door and they will carry you out also.” ¹⁰ At once she fell down at his feet and died. When the young men came in, they found that she was dead. They took her out and buried her beside her husband. ¹¹ Much fear came on all the church and on all who heard it.

The First Church Grows

¹² The missionaries did many powerful works among the people. They gathered together on Solomon’s Porch. ¹³ No one from outside their own group came in with them because they were afraid. But those outside the church had respect for the followers. ¹⁴ Many more men and women put their trust in Christ and were added to the group. ¹⁵ They brought the sick people and laid them on the streets hoping that if Peter walked by, his shadow would fall on some of them. ¹⁶ Many people went into Jerusalem from towns nearby. They took with them their sick people and all who were troubled with demons. All of them were healed.

The Missionaries Are Put in Prison

¹⁷ The head religious leader heard this. Some of the religious group who believe no one will be raised from the dead also heard of the people being healed. They became very jealous. ¹⁸ They took hold of the missionaries and put them in prison. ¹⁹ An angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison in the night and let them out. The angel said to them, ²⁰ “Go, stand where you have been standing in the house of God. Keep on telling the people about this new life.”

²¹ When Peter and John heard this, they went in the house of God early in the morning and began to teach. When the head religious leader and those with him had come, they gathered the men of the court and the leaders of the Jews together. Then they sent to have the missionaries brought to them from the prison. ²² When the soldiers got there, they did not find them in prison. They went back and told the court. ²³ The soldiers said, “We found the door of the prison locked and the soldiers watching the doors. When we opened the door, we found no one inside.”

²⁴ When the religious leaders and the leader of the house of God heard this, they were much troubled as to what might happen. ²⁵ Then someone came and told them, “The men you put in prison are now standing in the house of God and teaching the people.” ²⁶ The leader of the house of God took his men and got them. They did not hurt the missionaries because they were afraid the people would throw stones at them.

²⁷ They brought the missionaries in and made them stand in front of the court. The head religious leader said, ²⁸ “We told you not to teach about Christ! See! You are spreading this teaching over all Jerusalem. Now you are making it look as if we are guilty of killing this Man.”

The Missionaries Speak the Truth

²⁹ Then Peter and the missionaries said, “We must obey God instead of men! ³⁰ The God of our early fathers raised up Jesus, the One you killed and nailed to a cross. ³¹ God raised this Man to His own right side as a leader and as the One Who saves from the punishment of sin. He makes it possible for the Jews to be sorry for their sins. Then they can turn from them and be forgiven. ³² We have seen these things and are telling about them. The Holy Spirit makes these things known also. God gives His Spirit to those who obey Him.”

Gamaliel Speaks in Court

³³ The religious leaders became angry when they heard this. They planned to kill the missionaries. ³⁴ Gamaliel was a man of the religious leaders’ court. He was a proud religious law-keeper and a teacher of the Law. He was respected by all the people. He stood up and said that the missionaries should be sent outside for a short time.

³⁵ Then Gamaliel said to the court, “Jewish men, be careful what you plan to do with these men. ³⁶ Remember that many years ago a man called Theudas made himself out to be someone great. He had about 400 followers. He was killed. His followers were divided and nothing came of his teaching. ³⁷ After him, Judas of the country of Galilee gathered many followers. It was the time for every person to have his name written in the books of the nation. This Judas was killed also. All his followers were divided and went away. ³⁸ I say to you now, stay away from these men and leave them alone. If this teaching and work is from men, it will come to nothing. ³⁹ If it is from God, you will not be able to stop it. You may even find yourselves fighting against God.”

⁴⁰ The court agreed with Gamaliel. So they called the missionaries in and beat them. They told them they must not speak in the name of Jesus. Then they were sent away.

⁴¹ So the missionaries went away from the court happy that they could suffer shame because of His Name. ⁴² Every day in the house of God and in the homes, they kept teaching and preaching about Jesus Christ.