M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
God Calls Abram
12 The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your country and your people. Leave your father’s family and go to the country that I will show you.
2 I will build a great nation from you.
I will bless you
and make your name famous.
People will use your name
to bless other people.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
and I will curse those who curse you.
I will use you to bless
all the people on earth.”
Abram Goes to Canaan
4 So Abram left Haran just like the Lord said, and Lot went with him. Abram was 75 years old when he left Haran. 5 He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the slaves, and all the other things he had gotten in Haran. Then he and his group moved to the land of Canaan. 6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the town of Shechem and then to the big tree at Moreh. The Canaanites were living in the land at that time.
7 The Lord appeared[a] to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your descendants.”
Abram built an altar to honor the Lord who appeared to him there. 8 Then he left that place and traveled to the mountains east of Bethel. He set up his tent there. Bethel was to the west, and Ai[b] was to the east. Abram built another altar at that place to honor the Lord, and he worshiped the Lord there. 9 Then he moved on toward the Negev, stopping for a time at several places on the way.
Abram in Egypt
10 During this time there was not enough food in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt to live. 11 Just before they arrived in Egypt, Abram told Sarai, “Look, I know that you are a very beautiful woman. 12 When the Egyptian men see you, they will say, ‘This woman is his wife.’ Then they will kill me and keep you alive because they want you. 13 So tell them that you are my sister. Then they will be good to me because of you. In this way you will save my life.”
14 So when Abram went into Egypt, the Egyptian men saw that Sarai was a very beautiful woman. 15 Even some of Pharaoh’s officials noticed her and told Pharaoh how beautiful she was. So they took her to Pharaoh’s house. 16 Pharaoh was kind to Abram because he thought Abram was Sarai’s brother. He gave Abram sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, and men and women servants.
17 Pharaoh took Abram’s wife, so the Lord caused Pharaoh and all the people in his house to have very bad diseases. 18 Pharaoh called Abram and said to him, “You have done a very bad thing to me! Why didn’t you tell me Sarai was your wife? 19 You said, ‘She is my sister.’ Why did you say that? I took her so that she could be my wife, but now I give your wife back to you. Take her and go!” 20 Then Pharaoh commanded his men to lead Abram out of Egypt. So Abram and his wife left that place and took everything they had with them.
John Sends Men to Ask Jesus a Question(A)
11 When Jesus finished these instructions for his twelve followers, he left there. He went to the towns in Galilee to teach the people and tell them God’s message.
2 When John was in prison, he heard about the things that were happening—things the Messiah would do. So he sent some of his followers to Jesus. 3 They asked him, “Are you the one we have been expecting, or should we wait for someone else?”
4 Jesus answered, “Go tell John what you have heard and seen: 5 The blind can see. The crippled can walk. People with leprosy are healed. The deaf can hear. The dead are brought back to life. And the Good News is being told to the poor. 6 Great blessings belong to those who don’t have a problem accepting me.”
7 When John’s followers left, Jesus began talking to the people about John. He said, “What did you people go out to the desert to see? Someone who is weak, like a stem of grass[a] blowing in the wind? 8 Really, what did you expect to see? Someone dressed in fine clothes? Of course not. People who wear fine clothes are all in kings’ palaces. 9 So what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, John is a prophet. But I tell you, he is more than that. 10 This Scripture was written about him:
‘Listen! I will send my messenger ahead of you.
He will prepare the way for you.’ (B)
11 “The truth is that John the Baptizer is greater than anyone who has ever come into this world. But even the least important person in God’s kingdom is greater than John. 12 Since the time John the Baptizer came until now, God’s kingdom has been going forward strongly.[b] And people have been trying to take control of it by force. 13 Before John came, the Law of Moses and all the prophets told about the things that would happen. 14 And if you believe what they said, then John is Elijah.[c] He is the one they said would come. 15 You people who hear me, listen!
16 “What can I say about the people who live today? What are they like? The people today are like children sitting in the marketplace. One group of children calls to the other group,
17 ‘We played flute music for you,
but you did not dance;
we sang a funeral song,
but you were not sad.’
18 Why do I say people are like that? Because John came, not eating like other people or drinking wine, and people say, ‘He has a demon inside him.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and people say, ‘Look at him! He eats too much and drinks too much wine. He’s a friend of tax collectors and other sinners.’ But wisdom is shown to be right by what it does.”
Jesus Warns People Who Refuse to Believe(C)
20 Then Jesus criticized the cities where he did most of his miracles. He criticized these cities because the people there did not change their lives and stop sinning. 21 Jesus said, “It will be bad for you Chorazin! It will be bad for you Bethsaida! I did many miracles in you. If these same miracles had happened in Tyre and Sidon, the people there would have changed their lives a long time ago. They would have worn sackcloth and put ashes on themselves to show that they were sorry for their sins. 22 But I tell you, on the day of judgment it will be worse for you than for Tyre and Sidon.
23 “And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No! You will be thrown down to the place of death. I did many miracles in you. If these same miracles had happened in Sodom, the people there would have stopped sinning, and it would still be a city today. 24 But I tell you, it will be worse for you in the day of judgment than for Sodom.”
Jesus Offers Rest to His People(D)
25 Then Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth. I am thankful that you have hidden these things from those who are so wise and so smart. But you have shown them to people who are like little children. 26 Yes, Father, you did this because it’s what you really wanted to do.
27 “My Father has given me everything. No one knows the Son—only the Father knows the Son. And no one knows the Father—only the Son knows the Father. And the only people who will know about the Father are those the Son chooses to tell.
28 “Come to me all of you who are tired from the heavy burden you have been forced to carry. I will give you rest. 29 Accept my teaching.[d] Learn from me. I am gentle and humble in spirit. And you will be able to get some rest. 30 Yes, the teaching that I ask you to accept is easy. The load I give you to carry is light.”
Nehemiah’s Prayer
1 These are the words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah: I, Nehemiah, was in the capital city of Susa in the month of Kislev. This was in the 20th year[a] that Artaxerxes was king. 2 While I was in Susa, one of my brothers named Hanani and some other men came from Judah. I asked them about the Jews who had escaped captivity and still lived in Judah. I also asked them about the city of Jerusalem.
3 They answered, “Nehemiah, the Jews who escaped captivity and are in the land of Judah are in much trouble. They are having many problems and are full of shame because the wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.”
4 When I heard this about the people of Jerusalem and about the wall, I sat down and cried. I was very sad. I fasted and prayed to the God of heaven for several days. 5 Then I prayed this prayer:
“Lord, God of heaven, you are the great and powerful God. You are the God who keeps his agreement of love with people who love you and obey your commands.
6 “Please open your eyes and ears and listen to the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night. I am praying for your servants, the Israelites. I confess the sins we Israelites have done against you. I am confessing that I have sinned against you and that the other people in my father’s family have sinned against you. 7 We Israelites have been very bad to you. We have not obeyed the commands, rules, and laws you gave your servant Moses.
8 “Please remember the teaching you gave your servant Moses. You said to him, ‘If you Israelites are not faithful, I will force you to be scattered among the other nations. 9 But if you Israelites come back to me and obey my commands, this is what I will do: Even if your people have been forced to leave their homes and go to the ends of the earth, I will gather them from there. And I will bring them back to the place I have chosen to put my name.’
10 “The Israelites are your servants and your people. You used your great power and rescued them. 11 So, Lord, please listen to my prayer. And listen to the prayers of all your other servants who are happy to honor you. Help me today as I ask the king for help. Make him pleased with me so that he will be kind and give me what I ask for.”
At that time, I was the king’s wine servant.[b]
Peter Returns to Jerusalem
11 The apostles and the believers in Judea heard that non-Jewish people had accepted God’s teaching too. 2 But when Peter came to Jerusalem, some Jewish believers[a] argued with him. 3 They said, “You went into the homes of people who are not Jews and are not circumcised, and you even ate with them!”
4 So Peter explained the whole story to them. 5 He said, “I was in the city of Joppa. While I was praying, I had a vision. I saw something coming down from heaven. It looked like a big sheet being lowered to the ground by its four corners. It came down close to me, 6 and I looked inside. I saw all kinds of animals, including wild ones, as well as reptiles and birds. 7 I heard a voice say to me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill anything here and eat it!’
8 “But I said, ‘I can’t do that, Lord! I have never eaten anything that is not pure or fit to be used for food.’
9 “But the voice from heaven answered again, ‘God has made these things pure. Don’t say they are unfit to eat!’
10 “This happened three times. Then the whole thing was taken back into heaven. 11 Suddenly there were three men standing outside the house where I was staying. They had been sent from Caesarea to get me. 12 The Spirit told me to go with them without wondering if it was all right. These six brothers here also went with me, and we went to the house of Cornelius. 13 He told us about the angel he had seen standing in his house. The angel said, ‘Send some men to Joppa to get Simon, the one who is also called Peter. 14 He will speak to you, and what he tells you will save you and everyone living in your house.’
15 “After I began speaking, the Holy Spirit came on them just as he came on us at the beginning.[b] 16 Then I remembered the words of the Lord Jesus: ‘John baptized people in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit.’ 17 God gave these people the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ. So how could I object to what God wanted to do?”
18 When the Jewish believers heard this, they stopped arguing. They praised God and said, “So God is also allowing even those who are not Jews to change their hearts so that they can have the life he gives!”
The Good News Comes to Antioch
19 The believers were scattered by the persecution[c] that began when Stephen was killed. Some of them went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch. They told the Good News in these places, but only to Jews. 20 Some of these believers were men from Cyprus and Cyrene. When these men came to Antioch, they began speaking to people who were not Jews.[d] They told them the Good News about the Lord Jesus. 21 The Lord was helping these men, and a large number of people believed and decided to follow the Lord.
22 When the church in Jerusalem heard about this, they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23-24 Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith. When he went to Antioch and saw how God had blessed the believers there, he was very happy. He encouraged them all, saying, “Always be faithful to the Lord. Serve him with all your heart.” Many more people became followers of the Lord.
25 Then Barnabas went to the city of Tarsus to look for Saul. 26 When he found him, he brought him to Antioch. They stayed there a whole year. Every time the church came together, Barnabas and Saul met with them and taught many people. It was in Antioch that the followers of the Lord Jesus were called “Christ-followers” for the first time.
27 About that same time some prophets went from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and spoke with the help of the Spirit. He said, “A very bad time is coming to the whole world. There will be no food for people to eat.” (This time of famine happened when Claudius was emperor.) 29 The Lord’s followers decided that they would each send as much as they could to help their brothers and sisters who lived in Judea. 30 They gathered the money and gave it to Barnabas and Saul, who took it to the elders in Judea.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International