M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Abraham Goes to Gerar
20 Abraham left that place and traveled to the Negev. He settled in the city of Gerar, between Kadesh and Shur. While in Gerar, 2 Abraham told people that Sarah was his sister. King Abimelech of Gerar heard this. Abimelech wanted Sarah, so he sent some servants to take her. 3 But one night God spoke to Abimelech in a dream and said, “You will die. The woman you took is married.”
4 But Abimelech had not yet slept with Sarah, so he said, “Lord, I am not guilty. Would you kill an innocent man? 5 Abraham himself told me, ‘This woman is my sister,’ and she also said, ‘This man is my brother.’ I am innocent. I did not know what I was doing.”
6 Then God said to Abimelech in a dream, “Yes, I know that you are innocent and that you did not know what you were doing. I saved you. I did not allow you to sin against me. I was the one who did not allow you to sleep with her. 7 So give Abraham his wife again. He is a prophet. He will pray for you, and you will live. But if you don’t give Sarah back to him, I promise that you will die. And all your family will die with you.”
8 So very early the next morning, Abimelech called all his servants and told them about the dream. The servants were very afraid. 9 Then Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, “Why have you done this to us? What wrong did I do to you? Why did you lie and say that she was your sister? You brought great trouble to my kingdom. You should not have done this to me. 10 What were you afraid of? Why did you do this to me?”
11 Then Abraham said, “I thought no one in this place respected God. I thought someone would kill me to get Sarah. 12 She is my wife, but she is also my sister. She is the daughter of my father but not the daughter of my mother. 13 God led me away from my father’s house. He led me to wander to many different places. When that happened, I told Sarah, ‘Do something for me. Wherever we go, tell people you are my sister.’”
14 So Abimelech gave Sarah back to Abraham. Abimelech also gave Abraham some sheep, cattle, and slaves. 15 And Abimelech said, “Look all around you. This is my land. You may live any place you want.”
16 Abimelech said to Sarah, “I gave your brother Abraham 1000 pieces of silver. I did this to show that I am very sorry. I want everyone to see that I did the right thing.”
17-18 The Lord made all the women in Abimelech’s family not able to have children. God did this because Abimelech had taken Sarah, Abraham’s wife. But Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, his wife, and his servant girls.
Jesus Teaches About Divorce(A)
19 After Jesus said all these things, he left Galilee. He went into the area of Judea on the other side of the Jordan River. 2 Many people followed him. Jesus healed the sick people there.
3 Some Pharisees came to Jesus. They tried to make him say something wrong. They asked him, “Is it right for a man to divorce his wife for any reason he chooses?”
4 Jesus answered, “Surely you have read this in the Scriptures: When God made the world, ‘he made people male and female.’[a] 5 And God said, ‘That is why a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife. And the two people will become one.’[b] 6 So they are no longer two, but one. God has joined them together, so no one should separate them.”
7 The Pharisees asked, “Then why did Moses give a command allowing a man to divorce his wife by writing a certificate of divorce[c]?”
8 Jesus answered, “Moses allowed you to divorce your wives because you refused to accept God’s teaching. But divorce was not allowed in the beginning. 9 I tell you that whoever divorces his wife, except for the problem of sexual sin, and marries another woman is guilty of adultery.”
10 The followers said to Jesus, “If that is the only reason a man can divorce his wife, it is better not to marry.”
11 He answered, “This statement is true for some, but not for everyone—only for those who have been given this gift. 12 There are different reasons why some men don’t marry.[d] Some were born without the ability to produce children. Others were made that way later in life. And others have given up marriage because of God’s kingdom. This is for anyone who is able to accept it.”
Jesus Welcomes Children(B)
13 Then the people brought their little children to Jesus so that he could lay his hands on them to bless them and pray for them. When the followers saw this, they told the people to stop bringing their children to him. 14 But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them, because God’s kingdom belongs to people who are like these children.” 15 After Jesus blessed the children, he left there.
A Rich Man Refuses to Follow Jesus(C)
16 A man came to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to have eternal life?”
17 Jesus answered, “Why do you ask me about what is good? Only God is good. But if you want to have eternal life, obey the law’s commands.”
18 The man asked, “Which ones?”
Jesus answered, “‘You must not murder anyone, you must not commit adultery, you must not steal, you must not tell lies about others, 19 you must respect your father and mother,’[e] and ‘love your neighbor[f] the same as you love yourself.’[g]”
20 The young man said, “I have obeyed all these commands. What else do I need?”
21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, then go and sell all that you own. Give the money to the poor, and you will have riches in heaven. Then come and follow me!”
22 But when the young man heard Jesus tell him to give away his money, he was sad. He didn’t want to do this, because he was very rich. So he left.
23 Then Jesus said to his followers, “The truth is, it will be very hard for a rich person to enter God’s kingdom. 24 Yes, I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter God’s kingdom.”
25 The followers were amazed to hear this. They asked, “Then who can be saved?”
26 Jesus looked at them and said, “This is something that people cannot do. But God can do anything.”
27 Peter said to him, “We left everything we had and followed you. So what will we have?”
28 Jesus said to them, “When the time of the new world comes, the Son of Man will sit on his great and glorious throne. And I can promise that you who followed me will sit on twelve thrones, and you will judge the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 Everyone who has left houses, brothers, sisters, father, mother, children, or farms to follow me will get much more than they left. And they will have eternal life. 30 Many people who are first now will be last in the future. And many who are last now will be first in the future.
The People of Israel Confess Their Sins
9 Then on the 24th day of that same month, the Israelites gathered together for a day of fasting. They wore sackcloth and put ashes on their heads to show they were sad and upset. 2 Those people who were true Israelites separated themselves from foreigners. The Israelites stood and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors. 3 They stood there for about three hours, and the people read the Book of the Law of the Lord their God. Then for three more hours they confessed their sins and bowed down to worship the Lord their God.
4 Then these Levites stood on the stairs: Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Kenani. They called out to the Lord their God with loud voices. 5 Then these Levites spoke again: Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah. They said, “Stand up and praise the Lord your God! God has always lived and will live forever.
“People should praise your glorious name.
May your name be lifted above all blessing and praise.
6 You are God.
Lord, only you are God.
You made the sky and the highest heavens
and everything in them.
You made the earth
and everything on it.
You made the seas
and everything in them.
You give life to everything.
All the heavenly angels bow down and worship you.
7 You are the Lord,
the God who chose Abram.
You led him from Ur in Babylonia.
You changed his name to Abraham.
8 You saw he was true and loyal to you,
and you made an agreement with him.
You promised to give him the land
of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites, and Girgashites.
But you promised to give that land to Abraham’s descendants.
And you kept your promise because you are good.
9 You saw our ancestors suffering in Egypt
and heard them call for help by the Red Sea.
10 You showed the miracles to Pharaoh.
You did amazing things to his officials and his people.
You knew that the Egyptians thought
they were better than our ancestors.
But you proved how great you are,
and they remember that even today.
11 You split the Red Sea in front of them,
and they walked through on dry land.
The Egyptian soldiers were chasing them,
but you threw that enemy into the sea.
And they sank like a rock into the sea.
12 With the tall cloud, you led them by day,
and at night you used the column of fire.
That is the way you lit their path
and showed them where to go.
13 Then you came down to Mount Sinai.
You spoke to them from heaven.
You gave them good laws.
You gave them true teachings.
You gave them laws and commands that were very good.
14 You told them about your special day of rest—the Sabbath.
Through your servant Moses,
you gave them commands, laws, and teachings.
15 They were hungry,
so you gave them food from heaven.
They were thirsty,
so you gave them water from a rock.
You told them,
‘Come, take this land.’
You used your power,
and took the land for them.
16 But our ancestors became proud and stubborn.
They refused to obey your commands.
17 They refused to listen.
They forgot the amazing things you did with them.
They became stubborn.
They decided to return to Egypt and become slaves again.
“But you are a forgiving God!
You are kind and full of mercy.
You are patient and full of love.
So you didn’t leave them!
18 You didn’t leave them even when they made golden calves and said,
‘These are the gods that led us out of Egypt.’
19 You are very kind,
so you didn’t leave them in the desert.
You didn’t take the tall cloud
away from them by day.
You continued to lead them.
You didn’t take the column of fire
away from them at night.
You continued to light their path
and to show them which way to go.
20 You gave them your good Spirit to make them wise.
You gave them manna for food.
You gave them water for their thirst.
21 You took care of them for 40 years.
They had all they needed in the desert.
Their clothes didn’t wear out,
and their feet didn’t swell and hurt.
22 You gave them kingdoms and nations,
and you gave them faraway places where few people live.
They got the land of King Sihon of Heshbon.
They got the land of King Og of Bashan.
23 You made their descendants
as many as the stars in the sky.
You brought them to the land
you promised to give their ancestors.
They went in and took that land.
24 Their children took the land.
They defeated the Canaanites living there.
You let them defeat those people.
You let them do whatever they wanted
to those nations, people, and kings.
25 They defeated powerful cities.
They took the fertile land.
They got houses filled with good things.
They got wells that were already dug.
They got vineyards, olive trees, and plenty of fruit trees.
They ate until they were full and fat.
They enjoyed all the wonderful things you gave them.
26 And then they turned against you.
They threw away your teachings.
They killed your prophets.
Those prophets warned the people.
They tried to bring them back to you.
But our ancestors said terrible things against you.
27 So you let their enemies have them.
The enemy caused them much trouble.
When trouble came, our ancestors called to you for help.
And in heaven, you heard them.
You are very kind,
so you sent people to save them.
And they rescued them from their enemies.
28 Then as soon as our ancestors were rested,
they started doing terrible things again!
So you let the enemy defeat them
and punish them.
They called to you for help,
and in heaven you heard them and helped them.
You are so kind.
That happened so many times.
29 You warned them.
You told them to come back,
but they were too proud.
They refused to listen to your commands.
If people obey your laws, they will live.
But our ancestors broke your laws.
They were stubborn.
They turned their backs on you.
They refused to listen.
30 “You were very patient with our ancestors.
You let them mistreat you for many years.
You warned them with your Spirit.
You sent the prophets to warn them.
But our ancestors didn’t listen.
So you gave them to people in other countries.
31 “But you are so kind!
You didn’t completely destroy them.
You didn’t leave them.
You are such a kind and merciful God!
32 Our God, you are the great God,
the awesome, powerful soldier!
You are kind and loyal.
You keep your agreement.
We have had many troubles,
and our troubles are important to you.
Bad things happened to all our people,
and to our kings and leaders,
and to our priests and prophets.
Those terrible things have happened
from the days of the king of Assyria until today!
33 But God, you were right about everything that happened to us.
You were right, and we were wrong.
34 Our kings, leaders, priests, and fathers did not obey your law.
They didn’t listen to your commands.
They ignored your warnings.
35 Our ancestors didn’t serve you even when they were living in their own kingdom.
They didn’t stop doing evil.
They enjoyed all the wonderful things you gave them.
They enjoyed the rich land and had plenty of room,
but they didn’t stop their evil ways.
36 And now, we are slaves.
We are slaves in this land,
the land you gave our ancestors
so they could enjoy its fruit
and all the good things that grow here.
37 The harvest is big in this land.
But we sinned, so that harvest goes to the kings you put over us.
They control us and our cattle.
They do anything they want.
We are in a lot of trouble.
38 “Because of all these things, we are making an agreement that cannot be changed. We are putting this agreement in writing. Our leaders, Levites, and priests are signing their names to this agreement and sealing it with a seal.”
Paul in Ephesus
19 While Apollos was in the city of Corinth, Paul was visiting some places on his way to Ephesus. In Ephesus he found some other followers of the Lord. 2 He asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”
These followers said to him, “We have never even heard of a Holy Spirit!”
3 Paul asked them, “So what kind of baptism did you have?”
They said, “It was the baptism that John taught.”
4 Paul said, “John told people to be baptized to show they wanted to change their lives. He told people to believe in the one who would come after him, and that one is Jesus.”
5 When these followers heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 Then Paul laid his hands on them, and the Holy Spirit came on them. They began speaking different languages and prophesying. 7 There were about twelve men in this group.
8 Paul went into the synagogue and spoke very boldly. He continued doing this for three months. He talked with the Jews, trying to persuade them to accept what he was telling them about God’s kingdom. 9 But some of them became stubborn and refused to believe. In front of everyone, they said bad things about the Way. So Paul left these Jews and took the Lord’s followers with him. He went to a place where a man named Tyrannus had a school. There Paul talked with people every day. 10 He did this for two years. Because of this work, everyone in Asia, Jews and Greeks, heard the word of the Lord.
The Sons of Sceva
11 God used Paul to do some very special miracles. 12 Some people carried away handkerchiefs and clothes that Paul had used and put them on those who were sick. The sick people were healed, and evil spirits left them.
13-14 Some Jews also were traveling around forcing evil spirits out of people. The seven sons of Sceva, one of the leading priests, were doing this. These Jews tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus to make the evil spirits go out of people. They all said, “By the same Jesus that Paul talks about, I order you to come out!”
15 But one time an evil spirit said to these Jews, “I know Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?”
16 Then the man who had the evil spirit inside him jumped on these Jews. He was much stronger than all of them. He beat them up and tore their clothes off. They all ran away from that house.
17 All the people in Ephesus, Jews and Greeks, learned about this. They were all filled with fear and gave great honor to the Lord Jesus. 18 Many of the believers began to confess, telling about all the evil things they had done. 19 Some of them had used magic. These believers brought their magic books and burned them before everyone. These books were worth about 50,000 silver coins.[a] 20 This is how the word of the Lord was spreading in a powerful way, causing more and more people to believe.
Paul Plans a Trip
21 After this, Paul made plans to go to Jerusalem. He planned to go through the regions of Macedonia and Achaia, and then go to Jerusalem. He thought, “After I visit Jerusalem, I must also visit Rome.” 22 Timothy and Erastus were two of his helpers. Paul sent them ahead to Macedonia. But he stayed in Asia for a while.
Trouble in Ephesus
23 But during that time there was some trouble in Ephesus about the Way. This is how it all happened: 24 There was a man named Demetrius. He worked with silver. He made little silver models that looked like the temple of the goddess Artemis. The men who did this work made a lot of money.
25 Demetrius had a meeting with these men and some others who did the same kind of work. He told them, “Men, you know that we make a lot of money from our business. 26 But look at what this man Paul is doing. Listen to what he is saying. He has convinced many people in Ephesus and all over Asia to change their religion. He says the gods that people make by hand are not real. 27 I’m afraid this is going to turn people against our business. But there is also another problem. People will begin to think that the temple of the great goddess Artemis is not important. Her greatness will be destroyed. And Artemis is the goddess that everyone in Asia and the whole world worships.”
28 When the men heard this, they became very angry. They shouted, “Great is Artemis, the goddess of Ephesus!” 29 The whole city was thrown into confusion. The people grabbed Gaius and Aristarchus, men from Macedonia who were traveling with Paul, and rushed all together into the stadium. 30 Paul wanted to go in and talk to the people, but the Lord’s followers did not let him go. 31 Also, some leaders of the country who were friends of Paul sent him a message telling him not to go into the stadium.
32 Some people were shouting one thing and others were shouting something else. The meeting was very confused. Most of the people did not know why they had come there. 33 Some Jews made a man named Alexander stand before the crowd, and they told him what to say. Alexander waved his hand, trying to explain things to the people. 34 But when the people saw that Alexander was a Jew, they all began shouting the same thing. For two hours they continued shouting, “Great is Artemis of Ephesus! Great is Artemis of Ephesus! Great is Artemis …!”
35 Then the city clerk persuaded the people to be quiet. He said, “Men of Ephesus, everyone knows that Ephesus is the city that keeps the temple of the great goddess Artemis. Everyone knows that we also keep her holy rock.[b] 36 No one can deny this, so you should be quiet. You must stop and think before you do anything else.
37 “You brought these men[c] here, but they have not said anything bad against our goddess. They have not stolen anything from her temple. 38 We have courts of law and there are judges. Do Demetrius and those men who work with him have a charge against anyone? They should go to the courts. Let them argue with each other there.
39 “Is there something else you want to talk about? Then come to the regular town meeting of the people. It can be decided there. 40 I say this because someone might see this trouble today and say we are rioting. We could not explain all this trouble, because there is no real reason for this meeting.” 41 After the city clerk said this, he told the people to go home.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International