M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

He exhorts them to beware of such as say the day of the Lord is slack in coming. He urges them to lead a godly life, and to expect the Lord’s coming, whose long delay is salvation, because he would have none lost, but receive all to repentance.

3 This is the second epistle that I now write to you, beloveds, with which I stir up and warn your pure minds, ² to call to remembrance the words that were spoken before by the holy prophets, and also the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Saviour.

³ This first understand: that there will come in the last days mockers, who will walk after their own lusts ⁴ and say, Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers died, all things continue in the same estate that they were in at the beginning. ⁵ This they are ignorant of (and that willingly): that the heavens a great while ago were, and the earth that was in the water appeared up out of the water by the word of God – ⁶ by which things the world that then was perished, overflowing with water. ⁷ But the heavens and earth which are now, are kept by the same word in store, and reserved for fire at the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

⁸ Dearly beloveds, be not ignorant of this one thing: that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. ⁹ The Lord is not slack to fulfil his promise, as some count slackness, but is patient toward us, and would have no one lost, but would receive all to repentance. ¹⁰ Nevertheless, the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which day the heavens shall perish with terrible noise, and the elements shall melt with heat, and the earth with the works that are in it shall burn.

¹¹ If all these things will perish, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy living and godliness, ¹² looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, in which the heavens shall perish with fire and the elements shall be consumed with heat? ¹³ Nevertheless, we look for a new heaven and a new earth according to his promise, wherein righteousness dwells.

¹⁴ Therefore, dearly beloveds, seeing that you look for such things, be diligent to be found by him in peace, without spot and undefiled. ¹⁵ And count the longsuffering of the Lord to be salvation, even as our dearly beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, wrote to you – ¹⁶ yea, in almost every epistle speaking of such things, among which are many things hard to understand, which those who are unlearned and unstable pervert, as they do other scriptures, to their own destruction.

¹⁷ You therefore, beloveds, seeing you know it beforehand, beware lest you also be plucked away with the error of the wicked and fall from your own steadfastness; ¹⁸ but grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

To whom be glory both
now and forever.
Amen.

The loving mercy of God is openly seen in the parables of the hundredth sheep and of the son that was lost.

15 Then all the publicans and sinners sought him out, in order to hear him. ² And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, He receives sinners into his company, and eats with them. ³ Then Jesus put forth this similitude to them, saying, ⁴ What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the countryside and go after the one that is lost until he finds him? ⁵ And when he has found him, he puts him on his shoulders with joy. ⁶ And as soon as he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbours, saying to them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost! ⁷ I say to you that likewise there will be joy in heaven over one sinner that repents more than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.

⁸ Or what woman who has ten drachmas, if she loses one, does not light a lamp, and sweep the house, and search diligently till she finds it? ⁹ And when she has found it, she calls her friends and her neighbours, saying, Rejoice with me, for I have found the drachma that I had lost. ¹⁰ Likewise I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repents.

¹¹ And he said, A certain man had two sons, ¹² and the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the part of the goods that belongs to me. And he divided the substance of his wealth between them. ¹³ And not long after, the younger son gathered all that he had together, and took his journey into a far country. And there he wasted his goods with riotous living. ¹⁴ And when he had spent all that he had, there arose a great dearth throughout all that same land, and he began to be in want. ¹⁵ And he went and attached himself to a citizen of that same country, who sent him to his field to keep his swine. ¹⁶ And he would gladly have filled his belly with the pods that the swine ate, but no man gave to him.

¹⁷ Then he came to himself and said, How many hired servants at my father’s have bread enough, and I am dying of hunger? ¹⁸ I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, ¹⁹ and am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.

²⁰ And he arose and went to his father. And when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. ²¹ And the son said to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son. ²² But his father said to his servants, Bring forth that best garment and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet. ²³ And bring here the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and be merry. ²⁴ For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is now found. And they began to be merry.

²⁵ The elder brother was in the field, and when he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing, ²⁶ and called one of his servants and asked what those things meant. ²⁷ And the servant said to him, Your brother is come, and your father had the fatted calf killed, because he has received him safe and sound.

²⁸ And the elder brother was angry and would not go in. Then his father came out and entreated him. ²⁹ He answered and said to his father, Lo, these many years I have served you, and not once broken your commandment, and yet you never gave me so much as a kid to make merry with my friends. ³⁰ But as soon as this your son comes, who has devoured your goods with harlots, you have for his pleasure killed the fatted calf!

³¹ And the father said to him, Son, you were always with me, and all that I have is yours. ³² It was right to make merry and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive again, and was lost, and is found.