M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Moses and Aaron Before Pharaoh
5 After Moses and Aaron talked to the people, they went to Pharaoh and said, “The Lord,[a] the God of Israel, says, ‘Let my people go into the desert so that they can have a festival to honor me.’”
2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord? Why should I obey him? Why should I let Israel go? I don’t even know who this Lord is, so I refuse to let Israel go.”
3 Then Aaron and Moses said, “The God of the Hebrews[b] has talked with us. So we beg you to let us travel three days into the desert. There we will offer a sacrifice to the Lord our God. If we don’t do this, he might become angry and destroy us. He might make us die from sickness or war.”
4 But Pharaoh said to them, “Moses and Aaron, you are bothering the workers. Let them do their work. Go back to your own work! 5 There are very many workers, and you are keeping them from doing their jobs.”
Pharaoh Punishes the People
6 That same day Pharaoh gave a command to the slave masters and Hebrew foremen. 7 He said, “You have always given the people straw to use to make bricks. But now, tell them they have to go and find their own straw to make bricks. 8 But they must still make the same number of bricks as they did before. They have gotten lazy. That is why they are asking me to let them go. They don’t have enough work to do. That is why they asked me to let them make sacrifices to their God. 9 So make these people work harder. Keep them busy. Then they will not have enough time to listen to the lies of Moses.”
10 So the Egyptian slave masters and the Hebrew foremen went to the Israelites and said, “Pharaoh has decided that he will not give you straw for your bricks. 11 You must go and get the straw for yourselves. So go and find straw, but you must still make as many bricks as you made before.”
12 So the people went everywhere in Egypt looking for straw. 13 The slave masters forced the people to work even harder. They forced the people to make as many bricks as before. 14 The Egyptian slave masters had chosen the Hebrew foremen and had made them responsible for the work the people did. The Egyptian slave masters beat these foremen and said to them, “Why aren’t you making as many bricks as you made in the past? If you could do it then, you can do it now!”
15 Then the Hebrew foremen went to Pharaoh. They complained and said, “We are your servants. Why are you treating us like this? 16 You give us no straw, but you tell us to make as many bricks as before. And now our masters are beating us. Your people are wrong for doing this.”
17 Pharaoh answered, “You are lazy, and you don’t want to work! That is why you ask me to let you go. And that is why you want to leave here and make sacrifices to the Lord. 18 Now, go back to work! We will not give you any straw. And you must still make as many bricks as you did before.”
19 The Hebrew foremen knew they were in trouble, because the Pharaoh had told them, “You must still make as many bricks as you made before.”
20 When they were leaving the meeting with Pharaoh, they passed Moses and Aaron. Moses and Aaron were waiting for them. 21 So they said to Moses and Aaron, “May the Lord judge and punish you for what you did! You made Pharaoh and his rulers hate us. You have given them an excuse to kill us.”
Moses Complains to God
22 Then Moses prayed to the Lord and said, “Lord, why have you done this terrible thing to your people? Why did you send me here? 23 I went to Pharaoh and said what you told me to say. But since that time he has made the people suffer, and you have done nothing to help them!”
The Group With Jesus
8 The next day, Jesus traveled through some cities and small towns. Jesus told the people a message from God, the Good News about God’s kingdom. The twelve apostles were with him. 2 There were also some women with him. Jesus had healed these women of sicknesses and evil spirits. One of them was Mary, who was called Magdalene. Seven demons had come out of her. 3 Also with these women were Joanna, the wife of Chuza (the manager of Herod’s property), Susanna, and many other women. These women used their own money to help Jesus and his apostles.
A Story About a Farmer Sowing Seed(A)
4 A large crowd came together. People came to Jesus from every town, and he told them this story:
5 “A farmer went out to sow seed. While he was scattering the seed, some of it fell beside the road. People walked on the seed, and the birds ate it all. 6 Other seed fell on rock. It began to grow but then died because it had no water. 7 Some other seed fell among thorny weeds. This seed grew, but later the weeds stopped the plants from growing. 8 The rest of the seed fell on good ground. This seed grew and made 100 times more grain.”
Jesus finished the story. Then he called out, “You people who hear me, listen!”
9 Jesus’ followers asked him, “What does this story mean?”
10 He said, “You have been chosen to know the secret truths about God’s kingdom. But I use stories to speak to other people. I do this so that
‘They will look,
but they will not see,
and they will listen,
but they will not understand.’ (B)
Jesus Explains the Story About Seed(C)
11 “This is what the story means: The seed is God’s teaching. 12 Some people are like the seed that fell beside the path. They hear God’s teaching, but then the devil comes and causes them to stop thinking about it. This keeps them from believing it and being saved. 13 Others are like the seed that fell on rock. That is like the people who hear God’s teaching and gladly accept it. But they don’t have deep roots. They believe for a while. But when trouble comes, they turn away from God.
14 “What about the seed that fell among the thorny weeds? That is like the people who hear God’s teaching, but they let the worries, riches, and pleasures of this life stop them from growing. So they never produce a crop.[a] 15 And what about the seed that fell on the good ground? That is like the people who hear God’s teaching with a good, honest heart. They obey it and patiently produce a good crop.
Use the Understanding You Have(D)
16 “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. Instead, they put the lamp on a lampstand so that the people who come in will have enough light to see. 17 Everything that is hidden will become clear. Every secret thing will be made known, and everyone will see it. 18 So think carefully about what you are hearing. The people who have some understanding will receive more. But those who do not have understanding will lose even what they think they have.”
Jesus’ Followers Are His True Family(E)
19 Jesus’ mother and brothers came to visit him. But they could not get close to him, because there were so many people. 20 Someone said to Jesus, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside. They want to see you.”
21 Jesus answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who listen to God’s teaching and obey it.”
Jesus’ Followers See His Power(F)
22 One day Jesus and his followers got into a boat. He said to them, “Come with me across the lake.” And so they started across. 23 While they were sailing, Jesus slept. A big storm blew across the lake, and the boat began to fill with water. They were in danger. 24 The followers went to Jesus and woke him. They said, “Master! Master! We will drown!”
Jesus got up. He gave a command to the wind and the waves. The wind stopped, and the lake became calm. 25 He said to his followers, “Where is your faith?”
They were afraid and amazed. They said to each other, “What kind of man is this? He commands the wind and the water, and they obey him.”
Jesus Frees a Man From Evil Spirits(G)
26 Jesus and his followers sailed on across the lake. They sailed to the area where the Gerasene people live, across from Galilee. 27 When Jesus got out of the boat, a man from that town came to him. This man had demons inside him. For a long time he had worn no clothes. He did not live in a house but in the caves where the dead are buried.
28-29 The demon inside the man had often seized him, and he had been put in jail with his hands and feet in chains. But he would always break the chains. The demon inside him would force him to go out to the places where no one lived. Jesus commanded the evil spirit to come out of the man. When the man saw Jesus, he fell down before him, shouting loudly, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Please, don’t punish me!”
30 Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”
The man answered, “Legion.”[b] (He said his name was “Legion” because many demons had gone into him.) 31 The demons begged Jesus not to send them into the bottomless pit.[c] 32 On that hill there was a big herd of pigs eating. The demons begged Jesus to allow them to go into the pigs. So he allowed them to do this. 33 Then the demons came out of the man and went into the pigs. The herd of pigs ran down the hill into the lake, and all were drowned.
34 The men who were caring for the pigs ran away and told the story in the fields and in the town. 35 People went out to see what had happened. They came to Jesus and found the man sitting there at the feet of Jesus. The man had clothes on and was in his right mind again; the demons were gone. This made the people afraid. 36 The men who saw these things happen told the others all about how Jesus made the man well. 37 All those who lived in the area around Gerasa asked Jesus to go away because they were afraid.
So Jesus got into the boat to go back to Galilee. 38 The man he had healed begged to go with him. But Jesus sent him away, saying, 39 “Go back home and tell people what God did for you.”
So the man went all over town telling what Jesus had done for him.
Jesus Gives Life to a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman(H)
40 When Jesus went back to Galilee, the people welcomed him. Everyone was waiting for him. 41-42 A man named Jairus came to him. He was a leader of the synagogue. He had only one daughter. She was twelve years old, and she was dying. So Jairus bowed down at the feet of Jesus and begged him to come to his house.
While Jesus was going to Jairus’ house, the people crowded all around him. 43 A woman was there who had been bleeding for twelve years. She had spent all her money on doctors,[d] but no doctor was able to heal her. 44 The woman came behind Jesus and touched the bottom of his coat. At that moment, her bleeding stopped. 45 Then Jesus said, “Who touched me?”
They all said they had not touched him. And Peter said, “Master, people are all around you, pushing against you.”
46 But Jesus said, “Someone touched me. I felt power go out from me.” 47 When the woman saw that she could not hide, she came forward, shaking. She bowed down before Jesus. While everyone listened, she told why she touched him. Then she said that she was healed immediately when she touched him. 48 Jesus said to her, “My daughter, you are made well because you believed. Go in peace.”
49 While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of the synagogue leader and said, “Your daughter has died! Don’t bother the Teacher anymore.”
50 Jesus heard this and said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid! Just believe and your daughter will be well.”
51 Jesus went to the house. He let only Peter, John, James, and the girl’s father and mother go inside with him. 52 Everyone was crying and feeling sad because the girl was dead. But Jesus said, “Don’t cry. She is not dead. She is only sleeping.”
53 The people laughed at him, because they knew that the girl was dead. 54 But Jesus held her hand and called to her, “Little girl, stand up!” 55 Her spirit came back into her, and she stood up immediately. Jesus said, “Give her something to eat.” 56 The girl’s parents were amazed. He told them not to tell anyone about what happened.
Eliphaz Answers Job
22 Then Eliphaz from Teman answered:
2 “Does God need our help?
Even the wisest of us is not really useful to him.
3 Does your living right benefit him?
Does God All-Powerful gain anything if you follow him?
4 Why does God blame and punish you?
Is it because you worship him?
5 No, it is because you sin so much.
You never stop sinning.
6 Maybe to guarantee loans you took things from people for no reason.
Maybe you took a poor man’s clothes to make sure he paid you back.[a]
7 Maybe you failed to give water or food
to people who were tired or hungry.
8 You have a lot of farmland,
and people respect you.
9 But maybe you sent widows away without giving them anything.
And maybe you took advantage of orphans.
10 That is why traps are all around you,
and sudden trouble makes you afraid.
11 That is why it is so dark you cannot see,
and why a flood of water covers you.
12 “God lives in the highest part of heaven
and looks down on the highest stars.
13 But you might say, ‘What does God know?
Can he see through the dark clouds to judge us?
14 Thick clouds hide us from his eyes,
so he cannot see us as he walks around the edge of the sky.’
15 “Job, you are walking on the old path
that evil people walked on long ago.
16 They were destroyed before it was their time to die.
They were washed away by the flood.
17 They told God, ‘Leave us alone!’
and said, ‘God All-Powerful cannot do anything to us!’
18 And it was God who filled their houses with good things.
No, I would never follow the advice of evil people.
19 Those who do what is right are happy to see them destroyed.
The innocent laugh at them and say,
20 ‘Surely our enemies are destroyed!
Their wealth burned up in the fire!’
21 “Now, Job, give yourself to God and make peace with him.
Do this, and you will get many good things.
22 Accept his teaching.
Pay attention to what he says.
23 If you return to God All-Powerful, you will be restored.
But remove the evil from your house.
24 Think of your gold as nothing but dirt.
Think of your finest gold as rocks from a stream.
25 And let God All-Powerful be your gold.
Let him be your pile of silver.
26 Then you will enjoy God All-Powerful,
and you will look up to him.
27 When you pray, he will hear you.
And you will be able to do all that you promised him.
28 If you decide to do something, it will be successful.
And your future will be very bright!
29 When people are brought down and you ask God to help them,
he will rescue those who have been humbled.
30 Even those who are guilty will be forgiven.
They will be saved because you did what was right.”
Rights That Paul Has Not Used
9 I am a free man. I am an apostle. I have seen Jesus our Lord. You people are an example of my work in the Lord. 2 Others may not accept me as an apostle, but surely you do. You are proof that I am an apostle in the Lord.
3 Some people want to judge me. So this is the answer I give them: 4 We have the right to eat and drink, don’t we? 5 We have the right to bring a believing wife with us when we travel, don’t we? The other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Peter all do this. 6 And are Barnabas and I the only ones who must work to earn our living? 7 No soldier ever serves in the army and pays his own salary. No one ever plants a vineyard without eating some of the grapes himself. No one takes care of a flock of sheep without drinking some of the milk himself.
8 These aren’t just my own thoughts. God’s law says the same thing. 9 Yes, it is written in the Law of Moses: “When a work animal is being used to separate grain, don’t keep it from eating the grain.”[a] When God said this, was he thinking only about work animals? No. 10 He was really talking about us. Yes, that was written for us. The one who plows and the one who separates the grain should both expect to get some of the grain for their work. 11 We planted spiritual seed among you, so we should be able to harvest from you some things for this life. Surely that is not asking too much. 12 Others have this right to get things from you. So surely we have this right too. But we don’t use this right. No, we endure everything ourselves so that we will not stop anyone from obeying the Good News of Christ. 13 Surely you know that those who work at the Temple get their food from the Temple. And those who serve at the altar get part of what is offered at the altar. 14 It is the same with those who have the work of telling the Good News. The Lord has commanded that those who tell the Good News should get their living from this work.
15 But I have not used any of these rights, and I am not trying to get anything from you. That is not my purpose for writing this. I would rather die than to have someone take away what for me is a great source of pride. 16 It’s not my work of telling the Good News that gives me any reason to boast. That is my duty—something I must do. If I don’t tell people the Good News, I am in real trouble. 17 If I did it because it was my own choice, I would deserve to be paid. But I have no choice. I must tell the Good News. So I am only doing the duty that was given to me. 18 So what do I get for doing it? My reward is that when I tell people the Good News I can offer it to them for free and not use the rights that come with doing this work.
19 I am free. I belong to no other person, but I make myself a slave to everyone. I do this to help save as many people as I can. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew so that I could help save Jews. I myself am not ruled by the law, but to those who are ruled by the law I became like someone who is ruled by the law. I did this to help save those who are ruled by the law. 21 To those who are without the law I became like someone who is without the law. I did this to help save those who are without the law. (But really, I am not without God’s law—I am ruled by the law of Christ.) 22 To those who are weak, I became weak so that I could help save them. I have become all things to all people. I did this so that I could save people in any way possible. 23 I do all this to make the Good News known. I do it so that I can share in the blessings of the Good News.
24 You know that in a race all the runners run, but only one runner gets the prize. So run like that. Run to win! 25 All who compete in the games use strict training. They do this so that they can win a prize—one that doesn’t last. But our prize is one that will last forever. 26 So I run like someone who has a goal. I fight like a boxer who is hitting something, not just the air. 27 It is my own body I fight to make it do what I want. I do this so that I won’t miss getting the prize myself after telling others about it.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International