M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Abram and Lot Separate
13 So Abram went up from Egypt to (A)the [a]Negev, he and his wife and all that belonged to him, and Lot with him.
2 Now Abram was (B)very rich in livestock, in silver and in gold. 3 And he went [b]on his journeys from the [c]Negev as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, (C)between Bethel and Ai, 4 to the place of the (D)altar which he had made there formerly; and there Abram called upon the name of Yahweh.
5 Now (E)Lot, who was going with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. 6 And (F)the land could not [d]sustain them [e]while living together, (G)for their possessions were so abundant that they were not able to live together. 7 (H)And there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. Now (I)the Canaanite and the Perizzite were living then in the land.
8 (J)So Abram said to Lot, “Please let there be no strife between you and me, nor between my herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we are brothers. 9 Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me; if to the left, then I will go to the right; or if to the right, then I will go to the left.” 10 Then Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the [f](K)valley of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere—this was before Yahweh (L)destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah—like (M)the garden of Yahweh, (N)like the land of Egypt as you go to (O)Zoar. 11 So Lot chose for himself all the [g]valley of the Jordan, and Lot journeyed eastward. Thus they separated from each other. 12 Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived in (P)the cities of the [h]valley and moved his tents as far as Sodom. 13 Now (Q)the men of Sodom were evil and (R)sinners, exceedingly so, against Yahweh.
14 And Yahweh said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “(S)Now lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, (T)northward and southward and eastward and westward; 15 (U)for all the land which you see, (V)I will give it to you and to your seed forever. 16 And I will make your seed (W)as the dust of the earth, so that if anyone can number the dust of the earth, then your seed can also be numbered. 17 Arise, (X)walk about the land through its length and breadth; for (Y)I will give it to you.” 18 Then Abram moved his tent and came and lived by the [i](Z)oaks of Mamre, which are in Hebron, and there he built (AA)an altar to Yahweh.
Lord of the Sabbath
12 (A)At that [a]time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples became hungry and began to (B)pick the heads of grain and eat. 2 But when the Pharisees saw this, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples do what (C)is not lawful to do on a Sabbath.” 3 But He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he became hungry, he and his companions, 4 how he entered the house of God, and (D)they ate the [b]consecrated bread, which was not lawful for him to eat nor for those with him, but for the priests alone? 5 Or have you not read in the Law, that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple [c]break the Sabbath and are innocent? 6 But I say to you that something (E)greater than the temple is here. 7 But if you had known what this [d]means, ‘(F)I desire [e]compassion, and not a sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent. 8 For (G)the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
Jesus Heals a Man on the Sabbath
9 (H)And departing from there, He went into their synagogue. 10 And behold, a man was there whose hand was withered. And they questioned [f]Jesus, saying, “(I)Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—so that they might accuse Him. 11 And He said to them, “(J)What man [g]is there among you who has a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out? 12 (K)How much more valuable then is a man than a sheep! So then, it is lawful to do [h]good on the Sabbath.” 13 Then He *said to the man, “Stretch out your hand!” (L)He stretched it out, and it was restored to [i]normal, like the other. 14 But going out, the Pharisees (M)took counsel together against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.
15 But Jesus, [j]aware of this, withdrew from there. Many followed Him, and (N)He healed them all, 16 and (O)warned them not to make Him known, 17 in order that what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet would be fulfilled, saying,
18 “(P)Behold, My [k]Servant whom I [l]have chosen;
(Q)My Beloved in whom My soul [m]is well-pleased;
(R)I will put My Spirit upon Him,
(S)And He shall proclaim [n]justice to the [o]Gentiles.
19 (T)He will not quarrel, nor cry out;
Nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets.
20 (U)A battered reed He will not break off,
And a smoldering wick He will not put out,
Until He [p]leads [q]justice to victory.
21 (V)And in His name the [r]Gentiles will hope.”
A Kingdom Divided
22 (W)Then a (X)demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to [s]Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. 23 And all the crowds were astounded, and were saying, “Can this man really be the (Y)Son of David?” 24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man does not (Z)cast out demons except by [t]Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”
25 (AA)And (AB)knowing their thoughts He said to them, “[u]Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and [v]any city or house divided against itself will not stand. 26 And if (AC)Satan casts out Satan, he [w]is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27 And if I (AD)by [x]Beelzebul cast out demons, (AE)by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges. 28 But (AF)if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 Or how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.
Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit
30 (AG)He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.
31 “(AH)Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. 32 (AI)And whoever [y]speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever [z]speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in (AJ)this age or in the age to come.
The Heart Is Revealed by Words
33 “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for (AK)the tree is known by its fruit. 34 (AL)You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak [aa]what is good? (AM)For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. 35 (AN)The good man brings out of his good treasure [ab]what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure [ac]what is evil. 36 But I tell you that every [ad]careless word that people [ae]speak, they shall give an accounting for it in (AO)the day of judgment. 37 For [af]by your words you will be justified, and [ag]by your words you will be condemned.”
The Sign of Jonah
38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered and said to Him, “Teacher, (AP)we want to see [ah]a sign from You.” 39 But He answered and said to them, “(AQ)An evil and adulterous generation eagerly seeks for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; 40 for just as (AR)Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will (AS)the Son of Man be (AT)three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 (AU)The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because (AV)they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, (AW)something greater than Jonah is here. 42 (AX)The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, (AY)something greater than Solomon is here.
43 “(AZ)Now when the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and does not find it. 44 Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came’; and when it comes, it finds it unoccupied, swept, and put in order. 45 Then it goes and takes along with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there; and (BA)the last state of that man becomes worse than the first. That is the way it will also be with this evil generation.”
Jesus’ Mother and Brothers
46 (BB)While He was still speaking to the crowds, behold, His (BC)mother and (BD)brothers were standing outside, seeking to speak to Him. 47 [ai]Now someone said to Him, “Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside seeking to speak to You.” 48 But [aj]Jesus answered the one who was telling Him and said, “Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” 49 And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Behold My mother and My brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother.”
God’s Hand Was on Nehemiah
2 Now it happened in the month Nisan, (A)in the twentieth year of King (B)Artaxerxes, that wine was before him, and (C)I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence. 2 So the king said to me, “Why is your face sad though you are not sick? (D)This is nothing but sadness of heart.” Then I was very much afraid. 3 I said to the king, “(E)Let the king live forever. Why should my face not be sad (F)when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies waste and its gates have been consumed by fire?” 4 Then the king said to me, “What would you request?” (G)So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 I said to the king, “If it is good for the king, and if your servant is good before you, send me to Judah, to the city of my fathers’ tombs, that I may rebuild it.” 6 Then the king said to me, the queen sitting beside him, “How long will your journey be, and when will you return?” So it was good to the king to send me, and (H)I gave him a set time. 7 And I said to the king, “If it is good to the king, let letters be given me (I)for the governors of the provinces beyond the [a]River, that they may allow me to pass through until I come to Judah, 8 and a letter to Asaph the keeper of the king’s (J)forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of (K)the fortress which is by the house of God, for the wall of the city and for the house to which I will go.” And the king granted them to me because (L)the good hand of my God was on me.
9 Then I came to (M)the governors of the provinces beyond the River and gave them the king’s letters. Now (N)the king had sent with me commanders of the military force and horsemen. 10 Then (O)Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite [b]official heard about it, and it was a very great evil to them that someone had come to seek the good of the sons of Israel.
Nehemiah Inspects Jerusalem’s Walls
11 So I (P)came to Jerusalem and was there three days. 12 And I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. I did not tell anyone what my God was putting into my heart to do for Jerusalem; and there was no animal with me except the animal on which I was riding. 13 So I went out at night by (Q)the Valley Gate in the direction of the Dragon’s Spring and on to the [c]Dung Gate, inspecting the walls of Jerusalem (R)which were broken down and its (S)gates which were consumed by fire. 14 Then I passed on to (T)the Spring Gate and (U)the King’s Pool, but there was no place for [d]my animal to pass. 15 So I went up at night by the (V)ravine and inspected the wall. Then I turned and entered the Valley Gate and turned around. 16 Now the officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing; nor had I as yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the rest who were doing the work.
17 Then I said to them, “You see the calamity we are in, that (W)Jerusalem lies waste and its gates burned by fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem so that we will no longer be a reproach.” 18 And I told them how the hand of my God had been good to me and also about the king’s words which he had said to me. Then they said, “Let us arise and build.” (X)So they strengthened their hands for the good work. 19 But Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite [e]official and (Y)Geshem the Arab heard it. And (Z)they mocked us and despised us and said, “What is this thing you are doing? (AA)Are you rebelling against the king?” 20 So I responded to them with a word and said to them, “(AB)The God of heaven will give us success; therefore we His slaves will arise and build, (AC)but you have no portion, right, or remembrance in Jerusalem.”
An Angel Frees Peter from Prison
12 Now about that time [a]Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to harm them. 2 And he (A)had James the brother of John (B)put to death with a sword. 3 And when he saw that it (C)pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now [b]it was during (D)the days of Unleavened Bread. 4 When he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him to four [c](E)squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after (F)the Passover to bring him out before the people. 5 So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God.
6 Now on [d]the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, (G)bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. 7 And behold, (H)an angel of the Lord suddenly (I)appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying, “Rise up quickly.” And (J)his chains fell off his hands. 8 And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and [e]put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he *said to him, “Wrap your garment around yourself and follow me.” 9 And he went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but was thinking he was seeing (K)a vision. 10 And when they had passed the first and second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which (L)opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him. 11 When Peter (M)came [f]to himself, he said, “Now truly I know that (N)the Lord has sent His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all [g]that the Jewish people were expecting.” 12 And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of (O)John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and (P)were praying. 13 And when he knocked at the door of the gate, (Q)a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer. 14 And when she recognized Peter’s voice, (R)because of her joy she did not open the gate. But she ran in and reported that Peter was standing in front of the gate. 15 And they said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. They kept saying, “It is (S)his angel.” 16 But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened the door, they saw him and were astounded. 17 But (T)motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he recounted to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to (U)James and (V)the brothers.” Then he left and went to another place.
18 Now when day came, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to what [h]had become of Peter. 19 And when Herod had searched for him and had not found him, he examined the guards and ordered that they (W)be led away to execution. Then he went down from Judea to (X)Caesarea and was spending time there.
The Death of Herod
20 Now he was very angry with the people of (Y)Tyre and Sidon; and with one accord they came to him, and having won over Blastus the king’s chamberlain, they were asking for peace, because (Z)their country was fed by the king’s country. 21 And on an appointed day Herod, having put on his royal apparel and sitting on the judgment seat, began delivering an address to them. 22 And the assembly kept crying out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” 23 And immediately (AA)an angel of the [i]Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.
24 But (AB)the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied.
25 And (AC)Barnabas and (AD)Saul [j]returned [k]to Jerusalem, (AE)fulfilling their ministry, taking along with them (AF)John, who was also called Mark.
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