M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Lot’s Visitors
19 That evening the two angels came to the city of Sodom. Lot was sitting near the city gates and saw them. He got up and went to them. He bowed to show respect and said, “Sirs, please come to my house, and I will serve you. There you can wash your feet and stay the night. Then tomorrow you can continue your journey.”
The angels answered, “No, we will stay the night in the city square.”
3 But Lot continued to ask them to come to his house, so they agreed and went with him. Lot gave them something to drink. He baked some bread for them, and they ate it.
4 That evening, just before bedtime, men from every part of town came to Lot’s house. They stood around the house and called to Lot. They said, 5 “Where are the two men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us. We want to have sex with them.”
6 Lot went outside and closed the door behind him. 7 He said to the men, “No, my friends, I beg you, please don’t do this evil thing! 8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man before. I will give my daughters to you. You can do anything you want with them. But please don’t do anything to these men. They have come to my house, and I must protect them.”[a]
9 The men surrounding the house answered, “Get out of our way!” They said to themselves, “This man Lot came to our city as a visitor. Now he wants to tell us how we should live!” Then the men said to Lot, “We will do worse things to you than to them.” So the men started moving closer and closer to Lot. They were about to break down the door.
10 But the two men staying with Lot opened the door, pulled him back inside the house, and closed the door. 11 Then they did something to the men outside the door—they caused all these evil men, young and old, to become blind. So the men trying to get in the house could not find the door.
The Escape From Sodom
12 The two men said to Lot, “Are there any other people from your family living in this city? Do you have any sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or any other people from your family here? If so, you should tell them to leave now. 13 We are going to destroy this city. The Lord heard how evil this city is, so he sent us to destroy it.”
14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, the men who had married his other daughters. He said, “Hurry and leave this city! The Lord will soon destroy it!” But they thought he was joking.
15 The next morning at dawn, the angels were trying to make Lot hurry. They said, “This city will be punished, so take your wife and your two daughters who are still with you and leave this place. Then you will not be destroyed with the city.”
16 When Lot did not move fast enough, the two men grabbed his hand. They also took the hands of his wife and his two daughters. The two men led Lot and his family safely out of the city. The Lord was kind to Lot and his family. 17 So after the two men brought Lot and his family out of the city, one of the men said, “Now run to save your life! Don’t look back at the city, and don’t stop anywhere in the valley. Run until you are in the mountains. If you stop, you will be destroyed with the city!”
18 But Lot said to the two men, “Sirs, please don’t force me to run so far! 19 You have been very kind to me, your servant. You have been very kind to save me, but I cannot run all the way to the mountains. What if I am too slow and something happens? I will be killed! 20 Look, there is a very small town near here. Let me run to that town. I can run there and be safe.”
21 The angel said to Lot, “Very well, I’ll let you do that. I will not destroy that town. 22 But run there quickly. I cannot destroy Sodom until you are safely in that town.” (That town is named Zoar,[b] because it is a small town.)
Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed
23 Lot was entering the town as the sun came up, 24 and the Lord began to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. He caused fire and burning sulfur to fall from the sky. 25 He destroyed the whole valley—all the cities, the people living in the cities, and all the plants in the valley.
26 Lot’s wife was following behind him and looked back at the city. When she did, she became a block of salt.
27 Early the next morning, Abraham got up and went to the place where he stood before the Lord. 28 Abraham looked down into the valley toward the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. He saw clouds of smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.
29 God destroyed the cities in the valley, but he remembered what Abraham had said. So God sent Lot away from those cities before destroying them.
Lot and His Daughters
30 Lot was afraid to stay in Zoar, so he and his two daughters went to live in the mountains in a cave. 31 One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Everywhere on the earth, men and women marry and have a family. But our father is old, and there are no men around here to give us children. 32 So let’s get our father drunk with wine. Then we can have sex with him. That way we can use our father to keep our family alive!”
33 That night the two girls went to their father and got him drunk with wine. Then the older daughter went and had sexual relations with him. He did not even know when she came to bed or when she got up.
34 The next day the older daughter said to the younger daughter, “Last night I went to bed with my father. Let’s get him drunk with wine again tonight. Then you can go and have sex with him. In this way we can use our father to have children, and our family will not come to an end.” 35 So that night the two girls got their father drunk with wine. Then the younger daughter went and had sexual relations with him. Again, Lot did not know when she came to bed or when she got up.
36 Both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant. Their father was the father of their babies. 37 The older daughter gave birth to a son. She named him Moab.[c] Moab is the ancestor of all the Moabites living today. 38 The younger daughter also gave birth to a son. She named him Ben-Ammi.[d] Ben-Ammi is the ancestor of all the Ammonites living today.
Who Is the Greatest?(A)
18 About that time the followers came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in God’s kingdom?”
2 Jesus called a little child to come to him. He stood the child in front of the followers. 3 Then he said, “The truth is, you must change your thinking and become like little children. If you don’t do this, you will never enter God’s kingdom. 4 The greatest person in God’s kingdom is the one who makes himself humble like this child.
5 “Whoever accepts a little child like this in my name is accepting me.
Jesus Warns About Causes of Sin(B)
6 “If one of these little children believes in me, and someone causes that child to sin, it will be very bad for that person. It would be better for them to have a millstone tied around their neck and be drowned in the deep sea. 7 I feel sorry for the people in the world because of the things that make people sin. These things must happen, but it will be very bad for anyone who causes them to happen.
8 “If your hand or your foot makes you sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose part of your body and have eternal life than to have two hands and two feet and be thrown into the fire that burns forever. 9 If your eye makes you sin, take it out and throw it away. It is better for you to have only one eye and have eternal life than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.
Jesus Uses a Story About a Lost Sheep(C)
10 “Be careful. Don’t think these little children are not important. I tell you that these children have angels in heaven. And those angels are always with my Father in heaven. 11 [a]
12 “If a man has 100 sheep, but one of the sheep is lost, what will he do? He will leave the other 99 sheep on the hill and go look for the lost sheep. Right? 13 And if he finds the lost sheep, he is happier about that one sheep than about the 99 sheep that were never lost. I can assure you, 14 in the same way your Father in heaven does not want any of these little children to be lost.
When Someone Hurts You(D)
15 “If your brother or sister in God’s family does something wrong, go and tell them what they did wrong. Do this when you are alone with them. If they listen to you, then you have helped them to be your brother or sister again. 16 But if they refuse to listen, go to them again and take one or two people with you. Then there will be two or three people who will be able to tell all that happened.[b] 17 If they refuse to listen to them, tell the church. And if they refuse to listen to the church, treat them as you would treat someone who does not know God or who is a tax collector.
18 “I can assure you that when you speak judgment here on earth, it will be God’s judgment. And when you promise forgiveness here on earth, it will be God’s forgiveness.[c] 19 To say it another way, if two of you on earth agree on anything you pray for, my Father in heaven will do what you ask. 20 Yes, if two or three people are together believing in me, I am there with them.”
A Story About Forgiveness
21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, when someone[d] won’t stop doing wrong to me, how many times must I forgive them? Seven times?”
22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, you must forgive them more than seven times. You must continue to forgive them even if they do wrong to you seventy-seven times.[e]
23 “So God’s kingdom is like a king who decided to collect the money his servants owed him. 24 The king began to collect his money. One servant owed him several thousand pounds[f] of silver. 25 He was not able to pay the money to his master, the king. So the master ordered that he and everything he owned be sold, even his wife and children. The money would be used to pay the king what the servant owed.
26 “But the servant fell on his knees and begged, ‘Be patient with me. I will pay you everything I owe.’ 27 The master felt sorry for him. So he told the servant he did not have to pay. He let him go free.
28 “Later, that same servant found another servant who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him around the neck and said, ‘Pay me the money you owe me!’
29 “The other servant fell on his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me. I will pay you everything I owe.’
30 “But the first servant refused to be patient. He told the judge that the other servant owed him money, and that servant was put in jail until he could pay everything he owed. 31 All the other servants saw what happened. They felt very sorry for the man. So they went and told their master everything that happened.
32 “Then the master called his servant in and said, ‘You evil servant. You begged me to forgive your debt, and I said you did not have to pay anything! 33 So you should have given that other man who serves with you the same mercy I gave you.’ 34 The master was very angry, so he put the servant in jail to be punished. And he had to stay in jail until he could pay everything he owed.
35 “This king did the same as my heavenly Father will do to you. You must forgive your brother or sister with all your heart, or my heavenly Father will not forgive you.”
Ezra Reads the Law
8 So all the Israelites met together in the seventh month of the year. They were united and in complete agreement. They all met together in the open place in front of the Water Gate. All the people asked Ezra the teacher to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had given to the Israelites. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the law before those who had met together. This was on the first day of the month.[a] It was the seventh month of the year. Men, women, and anyone old enough to listen and understand were at the meeting. 3 Ezra read in a loud voice from the Book of the Law from early morning until noon. He was facing the open place that was in front of the Water Gate. He read to all the men and women, and to everyone old enough to listen and understand. All the people listened carefully and paid attention to the Book of the Law.
4 Ezra stood on a high wooden stage. It had been built just for this special time. On his right side stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah. And on his left side stood Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam.
5 So Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because he was standing above them on the high stage. As he opened the Book of the Law, all the people stood up. 6 Ezra praised the Lord, the great God, and all the people held up their hands and said, “Amen! Amen!” Then all the people bowed down and put their faces low to the ground and they worshiped the Lord.
7 These men from the tribe of Levi taught the people about the law as they were all standing there. The Levites were Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah. 8 They read the Book of the Law of God. They made it easy to understand, and explained what it meant. They did this so that the people could understand what was being read.
9 Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and teacher, and the Levites who were teaching the people spoke. They said, “Today is a special day[b] to the Lord your God. Don’t be sad and cry.” They said that because all the people had begun to cry as they were listening to the messages of God in the law.
10 Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy the good food and sweet drinks. Give some food and drinks to those who didn’t prepare any food. Today is a special day to our Lord. Don’t be sad, because the joy of the Lord will make you strong.”
11 The Levites helped the people to calm down. They said, “Be quiet, calm down, this is a special day. Don’t be sad.”
12 Then all the people went to eat the special meal. They shared their food and drinks. They celebrated that special day. They were happy that they could hear the reading of God’s law and were now able to understand it.
13 Then on the second day of the month,[c] the leaders of all the families went to meet with Ezra, the priests, and the Levites. They all gathered around Ezra the teacher to study the words of the law.
14-15 They studied and found these commands in the law. The Lord gave this command to the people through Moses: In the seventh month of the year, the Israelites must go to Jerusalem to celebrate a special festival. They must live in temporary shelters. And the people are supposed to go through all of their towns and Jerusalem and say this: “Go out into the hill country and get branches from different kinds of olive trees. Get branches from myrtle trees, palm trees, and shade trees. Use the branches to make temporary shelters. Do what the law says.”
16 So the people went out and got tree branches. Then they built temporary shelters for themselves. They built shelters on their own roofs and in their own yards. And they built shelters in the Temple yard, in the open place near the Water Gate, and near Ephraim Gate. 17 The whole group that had come back from captivity built shelters. They lived in the shelters they had built. Since the days of Joshua son of Nun up until that day, the Israelites had not celebrated the Festival of Shelters like this. Everyone was very happy!
18 Ezra read to them from the Book of the Law every day of the festival from the first day of the festival to the last day. The Israelites celebrated the festival for seven days. Then on the eighth day, the people met together for a special meeting, as the law says.
Paul in Corinth
18 Later, Paul left Athens and went to the city of Corinth. 2 There he met a Jewish man named Aquila, who was born in the country of Pontus. But he and his wife, Priscilla, had recently moved to Corinth from Italy. They left Italy because Claudius had given an order for all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to visit Aquila and Priscilla. 3 They were tentmakers, the same as Paul, so he stayed with them and worked with them.
4 Every Sabbath day Paul went to the synagogue and talked with both Jews and Greeks, trying to persuade them to believe in Jesus. 5 But after Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul spent all his time telling God’s message to the Jews, trying to convince them that Jesus is the Messiah. 6 But they disagreed with what Paul was teaching and started insulting him. So Paul shook the dust from his clothes.[a] He said to them, “If you are not saved, it will be your own fault! I have done all I can do. After this I will go only to the non-Jewish people.”
7 Paul left the synagogue and moved into the home of Titius Justus, a man who was a worshiper of the true God. His house was next to the synagogue. 8 Crispus was the leader of that synagogue. He and all the people living in his house believed in the Lord Jesus. Many other people in Corinth also listened to Paul. They, too, believed and were baptized.
9 During the night, Paul had a vision. The Lord said to him, “Don’t be afraid, and don’t stop talking to people. 10 I am with you, and no one will be able to hurt you. Many of my people are in this city.” 11 Paul stayed there for a year and a half teaching God’s message to the people.
Paul Is Brought Before Gallio
12 During the time that Gallio was the governor of Achaia, some of the Jews came together against Paul. They took him to court. 13 They said to Gallio, “This man is teaching people to worship God in a way that is against our law!”
14 Paul was ready to say something, but Gallio spoke to the Jews. He said, “I would listen to you if your complaint was about a crime or other wrong. 15 But it is only about words and names—arguments about your own law. So you must solve this problem yourselves. I don’t want to be a judge of these matters.” 16 So Gallio made them leave the court.
17 Then they all grabbed Sosthenes, the leader of the synagogue. They beat him before the court. But this did not bother Gallio.
Paul Returns to Antioch
18 Paul stayed with the believers for many days. Then he left and sailed for Syria. Priscilla and Aquila were also with him. At Cenchrea Paul cut off his hair,[b] because he had made a promise to God. 19 Then they went to the city of Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. While Paul was in Ephesus, he went into the synagogue and talked with the Jews. 20 They asked him to stay longer, but he refused. 21 He left them and said, “I will come back to you again if God wants me to.” And so he sailed away from Ephesus.
22 When Paul arrived at Caesarea, he went to Jerusalem and visited the church there. After that he went to Antioch. 23 Paul stayed in Antioch for a while. Then he left there and went through the countries of Galatia and Phrygia. He traveled from town to town in these countries, helping all the followers of Jesus grow stronger in their faith.
Apollos in Ephesus and Corinth
24 A Jew named Apollos came to Ephesus. Born in the city of Alexandria, he was an educated man who knew the Scriptures well. 25 He had been taught about the Lord and was always excited[c] to talk to people about Jesus. What he taught was right, but the only baptism he knew about was the baptism that John taught. 26 Apollos began to speak very boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him speak, they took him to their home and helped him understand the way of God better.
27 Apollos wanted to go to Achaia. So the believers in Ephesus helped him. They wrote a letter to the Lord’s followers in Achaia and asked them to accept Apollos. When he arrived there, he was a great help to those who had believed in Jesus because of God’s grace. 28 He argued very strongly against the Jews before all the people. He clearly proved that the Jews were wrong. He used the Scriptures and showed that Jesus is the Messiah.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International