M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Isaac Calls to Bless Esau
27 Now it happened that when Isaac was old and (A)his eyes were too dim to see, that he called his (B)older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” And he said to him, “Here I am.” 2 [a](C)And Isaac said, “Behold now, I am old, and I do not know the day of my death. 3 So now, please take up your gear, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and (D)hunt game for me; 4 and prepare a savory dish for me such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, so that (E)my soul may bless you before I die.”
5 Now Rebekah was listening while Isaac was speaking to his son Esau. Then Esau went to the field to hunt for game to bring to Isaac. 6 (F)But Rebekah spoke to her son Jacob, saying, “Behold, I heard your father speaking to your brother Esau, saying, 7 ‘Bring me some game and prepare a savory dish for me, that I may eat and bless you in the presence of Yahweh before my death.’ 8 So now, my son, (G)listen to my voice [b]as I command you. 9 Go now to the flock and [c]get for me two choice [d]young goats from there, that I may prepare them as a savory dish for your father, such as he loves. 10 Then you shall bring it to your father, that he may eat, so that he may bless you before his death.” 11 Then Jacob [e]answered his mother Rebekah, “Behold, Esau my brother is a (H)hairy man, and I am a smooth man. 12 (I)Perhaps my father will feel me, then I will be as a mocker in his sight, and I will bring upon myself a curse and not a blessing.” 13 But his mother said to him, “Your curse be on me, my son; only (J)listen to my voice, and go, get them for me.” 14 So he went and got them and brought them to his mother; and his mother made a savory dish such as his father loved. 15 Then Rebekah took the [f]best (K)garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and she put them on Jacob her younger son. 16 And she put the skins of the [g]young goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. 17 She also gave the savory dish and the bread, which she had prepared into the hand of her son Jacob.
Isaac Blesses Jacob and Esau
18 Then he came to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?” 19 And Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn; I have done as you told me. (L)Rise up, please, sit and eat of my game, that (M)your soul may bless me.” 20 Then Isaac said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?” And he said, “(N)Because Yahweh your God caused it to happen to me.” 21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that (O)I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.” 22 So Jacob came near to Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.” 23 And he did not recognize him because his hands were (P)hairy like his brother Esau’s hands; so he blessed him. 24 And he said, “Are you really my son Esau?” And he said, “I am.” 25 So he said, “Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s game, that (Q)my soul may bless you.” And he brought it near to him, and he ate; he also brought him wine, and he drank. 26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Please come near and kiss me, my son.” 27 So he came near and kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his garments, and then he (R)blessed him and said,
“See, (S)the smell of my son
Is like the smell of a field (T)which Yahweh has blessed;
28 Now may (U)God give you of the dew of heaven,
And of the (V)fatness of the earth,
And an abundance of grain and new wine;
29 (W)May peoples serve you,
And nations bow down to you;
(X)Be master of your brothers,
(Y)And may your mother’s sons bow down to you.
(Z)Cursed be those who curse you,
And blessed be those who bless you.”
30 Now it happened that as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had hardly gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. 31 Then he also made a savory dish and brought it to his father; and he said to his father, “(AA)Let my father arise and eat of his son’s game, that (AB)your soul may bless me.” 32 And Isaac his father said to him, “(AC)Who are you?” And he said, “I am your son, (AD)your firstborn, Esau.” 33 Then Isaac [h]trembled exceedingly violently and said, “(AE)Who was he then that hunted game and brought it to me, so that I ate of all of it before you came and blessed him? (AF)Indeed, he shall be blessed.” 34 As Esau heard the words of his father, (AG)he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me, me also, O my father!” 35 And he said, “(AH)Your brother came deceitfully and has taken away your blessing.” 36 Then he said, “[i]Is he not rightly named (AI)Jacob, for he has supplanted me these two times? He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?” 37 But Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Behold, I have made him (AJ)your master, and all his fellow brothers I have given to him [j]as servants; and with grain and new wine I have sustained him. Now as for you then, what can I do, my son?” 38 And Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” So Esau lifted his voice and (AK)wept.
39 Then (AL)Isaac his father answered and said to him,
“Behold, [k](AM)away from the fatness of the earth shall be your habitation,
And [l]away from the dew of heaven from above.
40 By your sword you shall live,
And your brother (AN)you shall serve;
But it shall be (AO)when you become restless,
That you will [m]break his yoke from your neck.”
41 So Esau (AP)bore a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him; and Esau said in his heart, “(AQ)The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” 42 Then the words of her elder son Esau were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called her younger son Jacob and said to him, “Behold, your brother Esau is consoling himself concerning you by planning to kill you. 43 So now, my son, (AR)listen to my voice, and arise, [n]flee to (AS)Haran, to my brother (AT)Laban! 44 Stay with him (AU)a few days, until your brother’s wrath [o]subsides, 45 until your brother’s anger [p]against you subsides and he forgets (AV)what you did to him. Then I will send and get you from there. Why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?”
46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am tired of [q]living because of (AW)the daughters of Heth; (AX)if Jacob takes a wife from the daughters of Heth, like these, from the daughters of the land, what good will my life be to me?”
The Plot to Kill Jesus
26 [a](A)Now it happened that when Jesus had finished all these words, He said to His disciples, 2 “(B)You know that after two days (C)the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man is to be (D)delivered over for crucifixion.”
3 (E)Then the chief priests and the elders of the people were gathered together in (F)the court of the high priest, named (G)Caiaphas; 4 and they (H)plotted together to seize Jesus by stealth and kill Him. 5 But they were saying, “Not during the festival, (I)lest a riot occur among the people.”
The Costly Perfume
6 (J)Now when Jesus was in (K)Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper, 7 (L)a woman came to Him with an alabaster jar of very costly perfume, and she poured it on His head as He reclined at the table. 8 But when the disciples saw this, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? 9 For this perfume might have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor.” 10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you bother the woman? For she has done a good work to Me. 11 For you always have (M)the poor with you; but you do not always have Me. 12 For when she poured this perfume on My body, she did it (N)to prepare Me for burial. 13 Truly I say to you, (O)wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her.”
Judas Looks to Betray Jesus
14 (P)Then one of the twelve, named (Q)Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, “What are you willing to give me [b]to (R)deliver Him to you?” And (S)they weighed out [c]thirty pieces of silver to him. 16 And from then on he began looking for a good opportunity to [d]betray [e]Jesus.
The Passover Meal
17 (T)Now on the first day of (U)Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?” 18 And He said, “Go into the city to (V)a certain man, and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, “(W)My time is near; I am keeping the Passover at your house with My disciples.”’” 19 And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them; and they prepared the Passover.
20 (X)Now when evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the twelve disciples. 21 And as they were eating, He said, “(Y)Truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me.” 22 And being deeply grieved, they [f]each one began to say to Him, “Surely not I, Lord?” 23 And He answered and said, “(Z)He who dipped his hand with Me in the bowl is the one who will betray Me. 24 The Son of Man is going, (AA)just as it is written of Him; but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! (AB)It would have been good [g]for that man if he had not been born.” 25 And (AC)Judas, who was betraying Him, answered and said, “Surely not I, (AD)Rabbi?” Jesus *said to him, “(AE)You yourself said it.”
The Lord’s Supper
26 (AF)Now while they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and [h](AG)after a blessing, He broke it. And giving it to the disciples, He said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” 27 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; 28 for (AH)this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for (AI)many for forgiveness of sins. 29 But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”
30 (AJ)And after singing a hymn, they went out to (AK)the Mount of Olives.
31 Then Jesus *said to them, “You will all [i](AL)fall away because of Me this night, for it is written, ‘(AM)I will strike down the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be (AN)scattered.’ 32 But after I have been raised, (AO)I will go ahead of you to Galilee.” 33 But Peter answered and said to Him, “Even though all may [j]fall away because of You, I will never fall away.” 34 Jesus said to him, “(AP)Truly I say to you that (AQ)this very night, before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” 35 Peter *said to Him, “(AR)Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You.” All the disciples said the same thing too.
Jesus Prays in Gethsemane
36 (AS)Then Jesus *came with them to a place called (AT)Gethsemane, and *said to His disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 And He took with Him (AU)Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and distressed. 38 Then He *said to them, “(AV)My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and (AW)keep watch with Me.”
39 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let (AX)this cup pass from Me; (AY)yet not as I will, but as You will.” 40 And He *came to the disciples and *found them sleeping, and *said to Peter, “So, you men could not (AZ)keep watch with Me for one hour? 41 (BA)Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; (BB)the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
42 He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, “My Father, if this (BC)cannot pass away unless I drink it, (BD)Your will be done.” 43 And again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. 44 And He left them again, and went away and prayed a third time, saying the same thing once more. 45 Then He *came to the disciples and *said to them, “[k]Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, (BE)the hour is at hand and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Get up, let us go; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!”
The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus
47 (BF)And while He was still speaking, behold, (BG)Judas, one of the twelve, came up, and with him was a large crowd with swords and clubs, who came from the chief priests and elders of the people. 48 Now he who was betraying Him gave them a sign, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him.” 49 And immediately Judas went to Jesus and said, “Greetings, (BH)Rabbi!” and kissed Him. 50 And Jesus said to him, “(BI)Friend, do what you have come for.” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and seized Him.
51 And behold, (BJ)one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew out his (BK)sword and struck the (BL)slave of the high priest and [l]cut off his ear. 52 Then Jesus *said to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for (BM)all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. 53 Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve [m](BN)legions of (BO)angels? 54 Therefore, how will (BP)the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?”
55 At that time Jesus said to the crowds, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would against a robber? (BQ)Every day I used to sit in the temple teaching and you did not seize Me. 56 But all this has taken place in order that (BR)the Scriptures of the prophets would be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left Him and fled.
Jesus Before Caiaphas
57 (BS)Now those who had seized Jesus led Him away to (BT)Caiaphas, the high priest, where the scribes and the elders were gathered together. 58 But (BU)Peter was following Him at a distance as far as the (BV)courtyard of the high priest, and entered in, and sat down with the [n](BW)officers to see the outcome.
59 Now the chief priests and the whole (BX)Sanhedrin kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus, so that they might put Him to death. 60 And they did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward. But later on (BY)two came forward, 61 and said, “This man stated, ‘(BZ)I am able to destroy the [o]sanctuary of God and to rebuild it [p]in three days.’” 62 And the high priest stood up and said to Him, “Do You not answer? What are these men testifying against You?” 63 But (CA)Jesus kept silent. (CB)And the high priest said to Him, “(CC)I put You under oath by (CD)the living God, that You tell us whether You are the [q]Christ, (CE)the Son of God.” 64 Jesus *said to him, “(CF)You yourself said it; nevertheless I tell you, [r]hereafter you will see (CG)the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power and (CH)coming on the clouds of heaven.”
65 Then the high priest (CI)tore his garments and said, “He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy; 66 what do you think?” They answered and said, “(CJ)He deserves death!”
67 (CK)Then they (CL)spat in His face and beat Him with their fists; and others [s]slapped Him, 68 and said, “(CM)Prophesy to us, O [t]Christ; who is the one who hit You?”
Peter’s Denials
69 (CN)Now Peter was sitting outside in the (CO)courtyard, and a servant-girl came to him and said, “You too were with Jesus the Galilean.” 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about.” 71 And when he had gone out to the gateway, another servant-girl saw him and *said to those who were there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 And again he denied it with an oath, “I do not know the man.” 73 A little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Surely you too are one of them; (CP)for even the way you talk [u]gives you away.” 74 Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” And immediately a rooster crowed. 75 And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, “(CQ)Before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and cried bitterly.
Haman Seeks to Destroy the Jews
3 After these things, King Ahasuerus (A)magnified Haman, the son of Hammedatha (B)the Agagite, and (C)advanced him and set his seat above all the princes who were with him. 2 And all the king’s servants who were at the king’s gate were bowing down and prostrating themselves before Haman, for so the king had commanded concerning him. But (D)Mordecai would not bow down or prostrate himself. 3 So the king’s servants who were at (E)the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “(F)Why do you trespass against the king’s command?” 4 Now it happened when they had spoken daily to him and he would not listen to them, that they told Haman to see whether Mordecai’s words would stand; for he had told them that he was a Jew. 5 Then Haman saw that (G)Mordecai was not bowing down or prostrating himself before him. So Haman was filled with wrath. 6 But he despised in his eyes to send forth his hand against Mordecai alone, for they had told him who the people of Mordecai were; therefore Haman (H)sought to destroy all the Jews, the people of Mordecai, who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus.
7 In the first month, which is the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, [a]Pur, that is the lot, was (I)cast before Haman from day to day and from month to month, [b]until the twelfth month, that is (J)the month Adar. 8 Then Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered and separated among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom; (K)their laws are different from those of all other people, and they do not do the king’s laws, so it is not worth it for the king to let them remain. 9 If it seems good to the king, let it be written down that they should perish, and I will pay [c]10,000 talents of silver into the hands of those who do this work, to bring into the king’s treasuries.” 10 Then (L)the king removed his signet ring from his hand and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha (M)the Agagite, (N)the adversary of the Jews. 11 And the king said to Haman, “The silver is [d]yours, and the people also, to do with them according to what is good in your eyes.”
12 (O)Then the king’s scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and it was written just as Haman commanded to (P)the king’s satraps, to the governors who were over each province, and to the princes of each people, each province according to its script, each people according to its tongue, being written (Q)in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the king’s signet ring. 13 And letters were sent by the hand of (R)couriers to all the king’s provinces (S)to destroy, to kill, and to cause all the Jews to perish, both young and old, little ones and women, (T)in one day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to (U)plunder their spoil. 14 (V)A copy of that which was written down to be given as law in every province was revealed to all the peoples so that they should be ready for this day. 15 The couriers went out, hastened by the word of the king. And the law was given at the citadel in Susa. Now the king and Haman sat down to drink, but (W)the city of Susa was in confusion.
26 (A)Now Agrippa said to Paul, “You are permitted to speak for yourself.” Then Paul, stretching out his hand, began to make his defense:
2 “Concerning all the things of which I am accused by the Jews, I regard myself blessed, King Agrippa, that I am about to make my defense before you today; 3 [a]especially because you are an expert in all (B)customs and [b]questions among the Jews; therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.
4 “So then, all Jews know (C)my manner of life from my youth, which from the beginning was spent among my own nation and at Jerusalem; 5 since they have known about me for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that I lived as a (D)Pharisee (E)according to the strictest (F)sect of our religion. 6 And now I am standing here being tried (G)for the hope of (H)the promise made by God to our fathers; 7 the promise (I)to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly serve God night and day. And for this (J)hope, O King, I am being (K)accused by Jews. 8 Why is it considered unbelievable among all of you (L)if God does raise the dead?
9 “So then, (M)I thought to myself that I had to do many things hostile to (N)the name of Jesus the Nazarene. 10 And this is [c]just what I (O)did in Jerusalem; not only did I lock up many of the [d]saints in prisons, having (P)received authority from the chief priests, but also when they were being put to death I (Q)cast my vote against them. 11 And (R)as I punished them often in all the synagogues, I tried to force them to blaspheme; and being (S)furiously enraged at them, I kept pursuing them (T)even to [e]foreign cities.
Paul Tells of His Conversion
12 “[f]While so engaged (U)as I was journeying to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests, 13 at midday, O King, I saw on the way a light from heaven, [g]brighter than the sun, shining all around me and those who were journeying with me. 14 And when we had (V)all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the [h](W)Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? [i]It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ 15 And I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16 But rise up and (X)stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to (Y)appoint you a (Z)servant and (AA)a witness not only to the things which you have [j]seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you; 17 (AB)rescuing you (AC)from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, 18 to (AD)open their eyes so that they may turn from (AE)darkness to light and from the authority of (AF)Satan to God, that they may receive (AG)forgiveness of sins and an (AH)inheritance among those who have been sanctified by (AI)faith in Me.’
19 “So, King Agrippa, I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision, 20 but kept declaring both (AJ)to those of Damascus first, and also (AK)at Jerusalem and then throughout all the region of Judea, and even (AL)to the Gentiles, that they should (AM)repent and turn to God, practicing deeds (AN)appropriate to repentance. 21 For this reason some Jews (AO)seized me in the temple and were trying (AP)to put me to death. 22 Therefore, having obtained help from God to this day, I stand here (AQ)bearing witness both to small and great, stating nothing but what (AR)the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; 23 [k](AS)that the [l]Christ was [m]to suffer, and [n]that (AT)as first of the resurrection from the dead, He was going to proclaim (AU)light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.”
24 Now while [o]Paul was saying this in his defense, Festus *said in a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind! [p]Great (AV)learning is driving you out of your mind.” 25 But Paul *said, “I am not out of my mind, (AW)most excellent Festus, but I utter words [q]of sober truth. 26 For the king [r](AX)knows about these matters, and I speak to him also with confidence, since I am persuaded that none of these things escape his notice; for this has not been done in a [s]corner. 27 King Agrippa, do you believe the Prophets? I know you believe.” 28 But Agrippa replied to Paul, “[t]In such short time [u]are you persuading me to become a (AY)Christian?” 29 And Paul said, “I would pray to God, that whether [v]in a short or long time, not only you, but also all who hear me this day, might become such as I am, except for these (AZ)chains.”
30 (BA)And the king stood up and the governor and Bernice, and those who were sitting with them, 31 and when they had gone aside, they began talking to one another, saying, “(BB)This man is not doing anything worthy of death or [w]imprisonment.” 32 And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been (BC)set free if he had not (BD)appealed to Caesar.”
Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.