M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

He exhorts to rejoice in trouble, to be fervent in prayer with steadfast belief, to look for all good things from above, to forsake all vice, and thankfully to receive the word of God, not only hearing it and speaking of it, but to do thereafter in deed. True religion or devotion: what it is.

1 James, the servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, sends greeting to the twelve tribes which are scattered here and there. 

² My brethren, count it exceeding joy when you fall into various trials, ³ seeing as you know that the trying of your faith brings patience. ⁴ And let patience have her perfect work, so that you may be perfect and sound, lacking nothing.

⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all impartially, and casts no man in the teeth, and it shall be given him. ⁶ But let him ask in faith, and waver not. For he who doubts is like the waves of the sea, tossed with the wind and carried about. ⁷ Neither let that person think that he will receive anything from the Lord. ⁸ A wavering-minded man is unstable in all his ways.

⁹ Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted, ¹⁰ and the rich in that he is made low. For like the flower of the grass, he will vanish away. ¹¹ The sun rises with heat, and the grass withers, and its flower falls away, and the beauty of the appearance of it perishes; even so shall the rich man perish with his abundance.

¹² Happy is the man who endures in temptation, for when he is proved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love him.

¹³ Let no one say when he is tempted, that he is tempted by God. For God tempts not to evil, nor does he tempt anyone, ¹⁴ but every person is tempted, drawn away, and enticed by his own fleshly nature and evil desire. ¹⁵ Then when desire has conceived, she brings forth sin, and sin when it is full-grown brings forth death.

¹⁶ Do not be mistaken, my dear brethren. ¹⁷ Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of light, with whom is no variableness nor turning to darkness. ¹⁸ Of his own will he begat us with the word of life, that we should be the first fruits of his creatures.

¹⁹ Therefore, dear brethren, let everyone be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger. ²⁰ For the wrath of man does not work that which is righteous before God. ²¹ Therefore lay apart all uncleanness, and all lingering evil and vice, and receive with meekness the word that is grafted in you, which is able to save your souls. ²² And see that you be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves with sophistry. ²³ For if anyone hears the word and does it not, he is like a man that looks at his bodily face in a mirror. ²⁴ For as soon as he has looked at himself, he goes his way and forgets immediately what his appearance was. ²⁵ But whoever looks in the perfect law of liberty and continues in it (if he is not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work), this one shall be happy in his deed.

²⁶ If anyone among you seems devout, yet refrains not his tongue, but betrays his own heart into mischief, this one’s devotion is in vain. ²⁷ Pure devotion, and undefiled before God the Father, is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their adversity, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.

The preaching, baptism, and imprisonment of John. The baptism of Christ. A recital of the lineage of the fathers.

3 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius the Emperor (Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch in Iturea and in the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene), ² when Annas and Caiaphas were the high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. ³ And he came into all the country about the Jordan River preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, ⁴ as it is written in the book of the sayings of Isaiah the prophet, which says: The voice of a crier in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of the Lord; make his paths straight! ⁵ Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low. And crooked things shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth. ⁶ And all flesh shall see the saviour sent by God.

⁷ Then he said to the people who came to be baptized by him, O offspring of vipers, who has taught you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Bring forth the due fruits of repentance, and do not begin to say in yourselves, We have Abraham for our father. For I say to you, God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. ⁹ And now also is the axe laid to the root of the trees, so that every tree that does not bring forth good fruit shall be hewn down and cast into the fire.

¹⁰ And the people asked him, saying, What should we do then? ¹¹ He answered and said to them, He who has two coats, let him share with him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.

¹² Then there came publicans to be baptized, who asked him, Master, what should we do? ¹³ And he said to them, Require no more than that which is appointed to you.

¹⁴ The soldiers likewise enquired of him, saying, And what should we do? And he said to them, Do violence to no man, neither trouble any man wrongfully, but be content with your wages.

¹⁵ And as the people were in expectation, and all musing in their hearts about John, whether he was the Christ, ¹⁶ John answered and said to them all, I baptize you with water, but one stronger than I is coming after me, whose shoe latchet I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. ¹⁷ He has his fan in his hand, and will purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his barn; but the chaff he will burn with fire that never shall be quenched.

¹⁸ And with many other exhortations, John preached to the people.

¹⁹ Then Herod the tetrarch (when he was rebuked by him concerning Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, and for all the evils that Herod had done) ²⁰ added this above all, and shut up John in prison.

²¹ And it came to pass, as all the people were receiving baptism, and when Jesus was baptized and did pray, that heaven was opened, ²² and the Holy Spirit came down in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven saying, You are my dear Son; in you I do delight.

²³ And Jesus himself was about thirty years of age when he began, being as men supposed the son of Joseph, who was the son of Heli, ²⁴ who was the son of Matthat, who was the son of Levi, who was the son of Melchi, who was the son of Janna, who was the son of Joseph, ²⁵ who was the son of Mattathiah, who was the son of Amos, who was the son of Nahum, who was the son of Esli, who was the son of Naggai, ²⁶ who was the son of Maath,  who was the son of Mattathiah, who was the son of Semei, who was the son of Joseph, who was the son of Judah, ²⁷ who was the son of Joannas, who was the son of Rhesa, who was the son of Zerubbabel, who was the son of Shealtiel, who was the son of Neri, ²⁸ who was the son of Melchi, who was the son of Addi, who was the son of Cosam, who was the son of Elmodam, who was the son of Er, ²⁹ who was the son of Jose, who was the son of Eliezer, who was the son of Jorim, who was the son of Matthat, who was the son of Levi, ³⁰ who was the son of Simeon, who was the son of Judah, who was the son of Joseph, who was the son of Jonan, who was the son of Eliakim, ³¹ who was the son of  Melea, who was the son of Menan, who was the son of Mattathah, who was the son of Nathan, who was the son of David, ³² who was the son of Jesse, who was the son of Obed, who was the son of Boaz, who was the son of Salmon, who was the son of Nahshon, ³³ who was the son of Amminadab, who was the son of Ram, who was the son of Hezron, who was the son of Perez, who was the son of Judah, ³⁴ who was the son of Jacob, who was the son of Isaac, who was the son of Abraham, who was the son of Terah, who was the son of Nahor, ³⁵ who was the son of Serug, who was the son of Reu, who was the son of Peleg, who was the son of Eber, who was the son of Shelah, ³⁶ who was the son of Cainan, who was the son of Arphaxad, who was the son of Shem, who was the son of Noah, who was the son of Lamech, ³⁷ who was the son of Methuselah, who was the son of Enoch, who was the son of Jared, who was the son of Mahalalel, who was the son of Cainan, ³⁸ who was the son of Enos, who was the son of Seth, who was the son of Adam, who was the son of God.