M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

28 So Isaac called Jacob and prayed that good would come to him. He said to him, “Do not marry one of the daughters of Canaan. ² Get ready, and go to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel in Paddan-aram. Take a wife for yourself from the daughters of your mother’s brother Laban. ³ May the All-powerful God bring good to you and give you many children until you become many nations. ⁴ May He give you and your children after you the same gift that He gave Abraham. May He give you the land that He gave Abraham, the land where you are now a stranger.” ⁵ Then Isaac sent Jacob away. And he went to Paddan-aram, to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob and Esau’s mother.

⁶ Now Esau saw that Isaac had prayed for good to come to Jacob and that he had sent him away to Paddan-aram to find a wife. Esau knew that his father had prayed for good to come to Jacob and said, “Do not marry one of the daughters of Canaan,” ⁷ and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan-aram. ⁸ Esau knew that the daughters of Canaan did not please his father Isaac. ⁹ So Esau went to Ishmael, and married Mahalath the daughter of Abraham’s son Ishmael, the sister of Nebaioth. He added her to the wives he already had.

Jacob’s Dream

¹⁰ Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. ¹¹ He came to a certain place and stayed the night there, because the sun had gone down. He took one of the stones there and put it under his head for a pillow. ¹² And he had a dream. He saw steps going up from the earth to heaven. He saw the angels of God going up and down these steps. ¹³ And he saw the Lord standing above them. He said, “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham, and the God of Isaac. I will give to you and your children after you the land where you are lying. ¹⁴ They will be like the dust of the earth. You will spread out to the west and the east and the north and the south. Good will come to all the families of the earth because of you and your children. ¹⁵ See, I am with you. I will care for you everywhere you go. And I will bring you again to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done all the things I promised you.” ¹⁶ Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “For sure the Lord is in this place and I did not know it.” ¹⁷ He was afraid and said, “This place is so different! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

¹⁸ So Jacob got up early in the morning. He took the stone he had used as a pillow, and set it up as a pillar. He poured oil on the top of it. ¹⁹ He gave that place the name Bethel. Its name had been Luz before. ²⁰ Then Jacob made a promise. He said, “If God will be with me and take care of me as I go, and if He will give me food to eat and clothes to wear, ²¹ so that I return in peace to my father’s house, then the Lord will be my God. ²² I have set up this stone as a pillar to be God’s house. And I will give You a tenth part of all You give to me.”

Jesus Stands in Front of Pilate ^(A)

27 Early in the morning all the head religious leaders of the Jews and the leaders of the people gathered together and talked about how they could put Jesus to death. ² They tied Him and took Him away. Then they handed Him over to Pilate who was the leader of the country.

³ Then Judas was sorry he had handed Jesus over when he saw that Jesus was going to be killed. He took back the thirty pieces of silver and gave it to the head religious leaders and the other leaders. ⁴ He said, “I have sinned because I handed over a Man Who has done no wrong.” And they said, “What is that to us? That is your own doing.” ⁵ He threw the money down in the house of God and went outside. Then he went away and killed himself by hanging from a rope.

⁶ The head religious leaders took the money. They said, “It is against the Law to put this money in the house of God. This money has bought blood.” ⁷ They talked about what to do with the money. Then they decided to buy land to bury strangers in. ⁸ Because of this, that land is called the Field of Blood to this day. ⁹ It happened as the early preacher Jeremiah said it would happen. He said, “And they took the thirty pieces of silver which was the price the Jews said they would pay for Him. ¹⁰ And they bought land to bury strangers in, as the Lord told me.” ^(B)

¹¹ Then Jesus stood in front of the leader of the country. The leader asked Jesus, “Are You the King of the Jews?” Jesus said to him, “What you say is true.” ¹² When the head religious leaders and the other leaders spoke against Him, He said nothing. ¹³ Then Pilate said to Him, “Do You not hear all these things they are saying against You?” ¹⁴ Jesus did not say a word. The leader was much surprised and wondered about it.

Jesus or Barabbas Is to Go Free ^(C)

¹⁵ At the special supper each year the leader of the country would always let one person who was in prison go free. It would be the one the people wanted. ¹⁶ They had a man who was known by all the people whose name was Barabbas. ¹⁷ When they were gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to let go free? Should it be Barabbas or Jesus Who is called Christ?” ¹⁸ For the leader of the country knew the religious leaders had given Jesus over to him because they were jealous.

¹⁹ While Pilate was sitting in the place where he judges, his wife sent him this word, “Have nothing to do with that good Man. I have been troubled today in a dream about Him.”

²⁰ The head religious leaders and the other leaders talked the many people into asking for Barabbas to go free and for Jesus to be put to death. ²¹ The leader of the country said to them, “Which one of the two do you want me to let go free?” They said, “Barabbas.” ²² Pilate said to them, “Then what am I to do with Jesus Who is called Christ?” They all said to him, “Nail Him to a cross!” ²³ Then Pilate said, “Why, what bad thing has He done?” But they cried out all the more, “Nail Him to a cross!”

²⁴ Pilate saw that he could do nothing. The people were making loud calls and there was much pushing around. He took water and washed his hands in front of the many people. He said, “I am not guilty of the blood of this good Man. This is your own doing.” ²⁵ Then all the people said, “Let His blood be on us and on our children!” ²⁶ Pilate let Barabbas go free but he had men whip Jesus. Then he handed Him over to be nailed to a cross.

The Crown of Thorns ^(D)

²⁷ Then the soldiers of Pilate took Jesus into a large room. A big group of soldiers gathered around Him. ²⁸ They took off His clothes and put a purple coat on Him. ²⁹ They put a crown of thorns on His head. They put a stick in His right hand. They got on their knees before Him and made fun of Him. They said, “Hello, King of the Jews!” ³⁰ They spit on Him. They took a stick and hit Him on the head. ³¹ After they had made fun of Him, they took the coat off and put His own clothes on Him. Then they led Him away to be nailed to a cross. ³² As they were on the way, they came to a man called Simon from the country of Cyrene. They made him carry the cross for Jesus.

Jesus on the Cross ^(E)

³³ They came to a place called Golgotha. This name means the place of a skull. ³⁴ They gave Him wine with something in it to take away the pain. After tasting it, He took no more. ³⁵ When they had nailed Him to the cross, they divided His clothes by drawing names. *It happened as the early preacher said it would happen. He said, “They divided My clothes among them by drawing names to see who would get My coat.” ^{(F) 36} Then they sat down and watched Him. ³⁷ Over His head they put in writing what they had against Him, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

The Two Robbers ^(G)

³⁸ They nailed two robbers to crosses beside Him. One was on His right side. The other was on His left side. ³⁹ Those who walked by shook their heads and laughed at Him. ⁴⁰ They said, “You are the One Who could destroy the house of God and build it up again in three days. Now save Yourself. If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.”

⁴¹ The head religious leaders and the teachers of the Law and the other leaders made fun of Him also. They said, ⁴² “He saved others but He cannot save Himself. If He is the King of the Jews, let Him come down from the cross. Then we will believe in Him. ⁴³ He trusts God. Let God save Him now, if God cares for Him. He has said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” ⁴⁴ And the robbers who were nailed to crosses beside Him made fun of Him the same way also.

The Death of Jesus ^(H)

⁴⁵ From noon until three o’clock it was dark over all the land. ⁴⁶ About three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “My God, My God, why have You left Me alone?” ⁴⁷ When some of those who stood by heard that, they said, “This Man is calling for Elijah.” ⁴⁸ At once one of them ran and took a sponge and filled it with sour wine. He put it on a stick and gave it to Him to drink. ⁴⁹ The others said, “Let Him alone. Let us see if Elijah will come and save Him.” ⁵⁰ Then Jesus gave another loud cry and gave up His spirit and died.

The Powerful Works at the Time of His Death ^(I)

⁵¹ At once the curtain in the house of God was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks fell apart. ⁵² Graves were opened. Bodies of many of God’s people who were dead were raised. ⁵³ After Jesus was raised from the grave, these arose from their graves and went into Jerusalem, the Holy City. These were seen by many people.

⁵⁴ The captain of the soldiers and those with him who were watching Jesus, saw all the things that were happening. They saw the earth shake and they were very much afraid. They said, “For sure, this Man was the Son of God.”

The Women at the Cross ^(J)

⁵⁵ Many women were looking on from far away. These had followed Jesus from the country of Galilee. They had cared for Him. ⁵⁶ Among them was Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

The Grave of Jesus ^(K)

⁵⁷ When it was evening, a rich man came from the city of Arimathea. His name was Joseph. He was a follower of Jesus also. ⁵⁸ He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate said that the body should be given to him. ⁵⁹ Joseph took the body and put clean linen cloth around it. ⁶⁰ He laid it in his own new grave. This grave had been cut out in the side of a rock. He pushed a big stone over the door of the grave and went away. ⁶¹ Mary Magdalene and the other Mary stayed there. They were sitting near the grave.

⁶² The next day, the day after Jesus was killed, the head religious leaders and the proud religious law-keepers gathered together in front of Pilate. ⁶³ They said, “Sir, we remember what that Man Who fooled people said when He was living, ‘After three days I am to rise from the dead.’ ⁶⁴ Speak the word to have the grave watched for three days. Then His followers cannot come at night and take Him away and say to the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead.’ The last mistake would be worse than the first.” ⁶⁵ Pilate said to them, “Take the soldiers. Go and watch the grave.” ⁶⁶ Then they went and made the soldiers stand by the grave. They put a lock on the big stone door.

Mordecai Asks for Esther’s Help

4 When Mordecai learned all that had been done, he tore his clothes. He dressed in cloth made from hair and put on ashes, and went out into the city and cried with loud cries. ² He went as far as the king’s gate, for no one was to go through the king’s gate wearing cloth made from hair. ³ There was much sorrow among the Jews in each and every part of the nation where the king’s law was made known. They went without food and cried with sounds of sorrow. Many lay in cloth made from hair and in ashes.

⁴ Then Esther’s women and men servants came and told her, and the queen was very troubled. She sent clothes for Mordecai to wear, that he might take off his clothes made from hair. But he would not take them. ⁵ Then Esther called Hathach from the king’s servants whom the king had chosen to help her. She told him to go to Mordecai and find out what was wrong and why. ⁶ So Hathach went out to Mordecai at the king’s gate in the open space of the city. ⁷ And Mordecai told him all that had happened to him. He told him just how much money Haman had promised to pay to the king’s store-houses to have the Jews destroyed. ⁸ He also gave him one of the letters of the law that was sent out from Susa to destroy the Jews, that he might show it to Esther and let her know. And he said that she should go in to the king and beg him to show favor to her people.

⁹ Hathach went and told Esther what Mordecai had said. ¹⁰ Then Esther told Hathach to say to Mordecai, ¹¹ “All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s nation know that he has one law for any man or woman who comes to him in his room who has not been called: They will be put to death, unless the king holds out his special golden stick to him so that he may live. And I have not been called to come to the king for these thirty days.” ¹² Then Mordecai was told what Esther had said.

¹³ Mordecai answered, “Do not think that you in the king’s special house will live any more than all the other Jews. ¹⁴ For if you keep quiet at this time, help will come to the Jews from another place. But you and your father’s house will be destroyed. Who knows if you have not become queen for such a time as this?” ¹⁵ Then Esther told them to say to Mordecai, ¹⁶ “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and have them all go without food so they can pray better for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my women servants will go without food in the same way. Then I will go in to the king, which is against the law. And if I die, I die.” ¹⁷ So Mordecai went away and did just as Esther had told him.

Paul Is Sent to Rome

27 It was decided that we should go to the country of Italy by ship. Then they put Paul and some other men in chains. Julius, a captain of Caesar’s army, was to watch them. ² We went on a ship that was from the city of Adramyttian. It was going to stop at the towns along the sea-shore of Asia. Aristarchus was with us. He was a man from the city of Thessalonica in the country of Macedonia. ³ The next day we stopped in the city of Sidon. Julius was kind to Paul. He let him visit friends who cared for him.

⁴ After leaving Sidon we were blown by the wind along the south side of the island of Cyprus. The wind was against us. ⁵ We crossed the sea along the countries of Cilicia and Pamphylia and got to the city of Myra in the country of Lycia. ⁶ The captain found a ship from the city of Alexandria that was going to the country of Italy. He put us on it. ⁷ For many days the ship did not move fast. It was hard to get to the city of Cnidus. The wind would not let us go on. So we went along the south shore of the island of Crete and passed the end of the island called Salome. ⁸ The wind was against us, and we did not sail very fast. Then we came to a place called Fair Havens. It was near the city of Lasea.

⁹ Much time had been lost. To keep going that late in the year would mean danger. Paul spoke with strong words, ¹⁰ “Sirs, it looks to me as if this ship and its freight will be lost. We are in danger of being lost also.”

¹¹ The captain of the soldiers listened to what the captain of the ship said and not to what Paul said. ¹² It was not a good place to spend the winter. Most of those on the ship wanted to go on and try to get to Phoenix. Crete was a good place to tie up the ship. They wanted to spend the winter there. ¹³ When a south wind started to blow, they thought their plan was right. They pulled up the anchor and went close to the shore of Crete.

¹⁴ Later a bad wind storm came down from the land. It was called a northeaster. ¹⁵ The ship was stopped by the wind. After awhile we gave up and let it go with the wind. ¹⁶ We went behind a small island called Claudia. It was hard work but we were able to make the ship’s boat safe. ¹⁷ They pulled it up and tied ropes around it and the ship. They were afraid of going on the Syrtis sands. So they took the sail down and let the ship go with the wind.

¹⁸ The storm was so bad the high waves were beating against the ship. The next day the men threw some of the freight over into the sea. ¹⁹ On the third day, with their own hands, they threw part of the sails and ropes into the sea. ²⁰ We did not see the sun or stars for many days. A very bad storm kept beating against us. We lost all hope of being saved.

Paul Shows His Faith

²¹ No one had eaten for a long time. Then Paul stood up and said to them, “Men, you should have listened to me and not left Crete. You would not have had this trouble and loss. ²² But now I want you to take hope. No one will lose his life. Only the ship will be lost. ²³ I belong to God and I work for Him. Last night an angel of God stood by me ²⁴ and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand in front of Caesar. God has given you the lives of all the men on this ship.’ ²⁵ So take hope, men. I believe my God will do what He has told me. ²⁶ But the ship will be lost on some island.”

²⁷ It was now the fourteenth night. We were going with the wind on the Adriatic Sea. At midnight the sailors thought land was near. ²⁸ They let down the lead weight and found the water was not very deep. After they had gone a little farther, they found there was not as much water. ²⁹ They were afraid we might be thrown against the rocks on the shore. So they put out four anchors from the back of the ship. Then they waited for morning to come.

³⁰ The sailors were thinking of leaving the ship. They let down a boat as if they were going to put out anchors from the front of the ship. ³¹ But Paul said to the captain and the soldiers, “These men must stay on the ship or you cannot be safe!” ³² Then the soldiers cut the ropes and let the boat fall into the sea.

³³ Just before the light of day came, Paul told all of them to eat. He said, “Today is the fourteenth day you have not eaten. ³⁴ You must eat. It will give you strength. Not one of you will lose a hair from your head.”

³⁵ After he said this, he took some bread. He gave thanks to God in front of them all. He broke it in pieces and started to eat. ³⁶ They all were comforted. Each one ate some food. ³⁷ All together there were 276 of us on the ship. ³⁸ After they had eaten, they threw the wheat into the sea so the ship would not be as heavy.

³⁹ In the morning they could not see what land they were near. Later they could see a river. Near its mouth there was a shore of sand. They planned to run the ship onto the sand if they could. ⁴⁰ The anchors were cut loose and left in the sea. Then they took the ropes off that were holding the rudder. When they put up the sail, the wind took the ship toward shore. ⁴¹ But the ship hit a place where the water was low. It was made from where two seas meet. The front of the ship did not move but the back part broke in pieces by the high waves.

⁴² The soldiers planned to kill the men in chains. They were afraid they would swim to shore and get away, ⁴³ but the captain wanted to save Paul. He kept them from their plan. Calling out to those who could swim, he told them to jump into the sea and swim to shore. ⁴⁴ The others should use wood or anything from the ship. In this way, they all got to shore without getting hurt.