M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Languages Confused
11 At this time the whole world spoke one language. Everyone used the same words. 2 As people moved from the East, they found a plain in the land of Babylonia. They settled there to live.
3 They said to each other, “Let’s make bricks and bake them to make them hard.” So they used bricks instead of stones, and tar instead of mortar. 4 Then they said to each other, “Let’s build for ourselves a city and a tower. And let’s make the top of the tower reach high into the sky. We will become famous. If we do this, we will not be scattered over all the earth.”
5 The Lord came down to see the city and the tower that the people had built. 6 The Lord said, “Now, these people are united. They all speak the same language. This is only the beginning of what they will do. They will be able to do anything they want. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language. Then they will not be able to understand each other.”
8 So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth. And they stopped building the city. 9 That is where the Lord confused the language of the whole world. So the place is called Babel.[a] So the Lord caused them to spread out from there over all the whole world.
The Story of Shem’s Family
10 This is the family history of Shem. Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, his son Arphaxad was born. 11 After that, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.
12 When Arphaxad was 35 years old, his son Shelah was born. 13 After that, Arphaxad lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.
14 When Shelah was 30 years old, his son Eber was born. 15 After that, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.
16 When Eber was 34 years old, his son Peleg was born. 17 After that, Eber lived 430 years and had other sons and daughters.
18 When Peleg was 30 years old, his son Reu was born. 19 After that, Peleg lived 209 years and had other sons and daughters.
20 When Reu was 32 years old, his son Serug was born. 21 After that, Reu lived 207 years and had other sons and daughters.
22 When Serug was 30 years old, his son Nahor was born. 23 After that, Serug lived 200 years and had other sons and daughters.
24 When Nahor was 29 years old, his son Terah was born. 25 After that, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters.
26 After Terah was 70 years old, his sons Abram, Nahor and Haran were born.
The Story of Terah’s Family
27 This is the family history of Terah. Terah was the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. Haran was the father of Lot. 28 Haran died while his father, Terah, was still alive. This happened in Ur in Babylonia, where he was born. 29 Abram and Nahor both married. Abram’s wife was named Sarai. Nahor’s wife was named Milcah. She was the daughter of Haran. Haran was the father of Milcah and Iscah. 30 Sarai was not able to have children.
31 Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot (Haran’s son) and his daughter-in-law Sarai (Abram’s wife). They moved out of Ur of Babylonia. They had planned to go to the land of Canaan. But when they reached the city of Haran, they settled there.
32 Terah lived to be 205 years old. Then he died in Haran.
Jesus Sends Out His Apostles
10 Jesus called his 12 followers together. He gave them power to drive out evil spirits and to heal every kind of disease and sickness. 2 These are the names of the 12 apostles: Simon (also called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew, the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot. Judas is the one who turned against Jesus.
5 These 12 men he sent out with the following order: “Don’t go to the non-Jewish people. And don’t go into any town where the Samaritans live. 6 But go to the people of Israel. They are like sheep that are lost. 7 When you go, preach this: ‘The kingdom of heaven is coming soon.’ 8 Heal the sick. Give dead people life again. Heal those who have harmful skin diseases. Force demons to leave people. I give you these powers freely. So help other people freely. 9 Don’t carry any money with you—gold or silver or copper. 10 Don’t carry a bag. Take for your trip only the clothes and sandals you are wearing. Don’t take a walking stick. A worker should be given the things he needs.
11 “When you enter a city or town, find some worthy person there and stay in his home until you leave. 12 When you enter that home, say, ‘Peace be with you.’ 13 If the people there welcome you, let your peace stay there. But if they don’t welcome you, take back the peace you wished for them. 14 And if a home or town refuses to welcome you or listen to you, then leave that place. Shake its dust off your feet.[a] 15 I tell you the truth. On the Judgment Day it will be worse for that town than for the towns of Sodom and Gomorrah.[b]
Jesus Warns His Apostles
16 “Listen! I am sending you out, and you will be like sheep among wolves. So be as smart as snakes. But also be like doves and do nothing wrong. 17 Be careful of people. They will arrest you and take you to court. They will whip you in their synagogues. 18 Because of me you will be taken to stand before governors and kings. You will tell them and the non-Jewish people about me. 19 When you are arrested, don’t worry about what to say or how you should say it. At that time you will be given the things to say. 20 It will not really be you speaking. The Spirit of your Father will be speaking through you.
21 “Brothers will turn against their own brothers and give them over to be killed. Fathers will turn against their own children and give them to be killed. Children will fight against their own parents and have them killed. 22 All people will hate you because you follow me. But the person who continues strong until the end will be saved. 23 When you are treated badly in one city, go to another city. I tell you the truth. You will not finish going through all the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
24 “A student is not better than his teacher. A servant is not better than his master. 25 A student should be satisfied to become like his teacher. A servant should be satisfied to become like his master. If the head of the family is called Beelzebul, then the other members of the family will be called worse names!
Fear God, Not People
26 “So don’t be afraid of those people. Everything that is hidden will be shown. Everything that is secret will be made known. 27 I tell you these things in the dark, but I want you to tell them in the light. I speak these things only to you, but you should tell them to everyone. 28 Don’t be afraid of people. They can only kill the body. They cannot kill the soul. The only one you should fear is the One who can destroy the body and the soul in hell. 29 When birds are sold, two small birds cost only a penny. But not even one of the little birds can die without your Father’s knowing it. 30 God even knows how many hairs are on your head. 31 So don’t be afraid. You are worth much more than many birds.
Tell People About Your Faith
32 “If anyone stands before other people and says he believes in me, then I will say that he belongs to me. I will say this before my Father in heaven. 33 But if anyone stands before people and says he does not believe in me, then I will say that he does not belong to me. I will say this before my Father in heaven.
34 “Don’t think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 I have come to make this happen:
‘A son will be against his father,
a daughter will be against her mother,
a daughter-in-law will be against her mother-in-law.
36 A person’s enemies will be members of his own family.’ Micah 7:6
37 “Whoever loves his father or mother more than he loves me is not worthy to be my follower. Whoever loves his son or daughter more than he loves me is not worthy to be my follower. 38 Whoever is not willing to die on a cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever tries to hold on to his life will give up true life. Whoever gives up his life for me will hold on to true life. 40 Whoever accepts you also accepts me. And whoever accepts me also accepts the One who sent me. 41 Whoever meets a prophet and accepts him will receive the reward of a prophet. And whoever accepts a good man because that man is good will receive the reward of a good man. 42 Whoever helps one of these little ones because they are my followers will truly get his reward. He will get his reward even if he only gave my follower a cup of cold water.”
The People Confess Sin
10 Ezra was praying and confessing. He was crying and throwing himself down in front of the Temple. A large group of Israelite men, women and children gathered around him. They were also crying loudly. 2 Then Shecaniah son of Jehiel the Elamite spoke to Ezra. Shecaniah said, “We have been unfaithful to our God. We have been marrying women from the peoples around us. But even so, there is still hope for Israel. 3 Now let us make an agreement before our God. We will send away all these women and their children. This is your advice. It is also the advice of those who respect the commands of our God. Let it be done to obey his Teachings. 4 Get up, Ezra. You are in charge. But we will support you. So have courage and do it.”
5 So Ezra got up. He made these people make a promise: the priests, the Levites and all the people of Israel. They promised to do what was suggested. 6 Then Ezra left the Temple. He went to the room of Jehohanan son of Eliashib. While Ezra was there, he did not eat or drink. He was still sad about the unfaithfulness of the captives who had returned.
7 Then an order was sent everywhere in Judah and Jerusalem. All the captives who had returned had to meet together in Jerusalem. 8 Whoever did not come to Jerusalem within three days would lose his property. And he would no longer be a member of the community of the returned captives. That was the decision of the officers and elders.
9 So within three days all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered in Jerusalem. It was the twentieth day of the ninth month. All the people were sitting in the open place in front of the Temple. They were upset because of the meeting and because it was raining. 10 Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have been unfaithful. You have married non-Jewish women. You have made Israel more guilty. 11 Now, confess it to the Lord, the God of your ancestors. Do the Lord’s will. Separate yourselves from the people living around you and from your non-Jewish wives.”
12 Then the whole group answered Ezra. They shouted, “Ezra, you’re right! We must do what you say. 13 But there are many people here. It’s the rainy season. We can’t stand outside. Also, this problem can’t be solved in a day or two. We have sinned badly. 14 Let our officers make a decision for the whole group. Then let everyone in our towns who has married a non-Jewish woman meet with the elders and judges of each town. Let them meet at a planned time. Then the hot anger of our God will turn away from us.” 15 Only these men were against the plan: Jonathan son of Asahel, Jahzeiah son of Tikvah, Meshullam and Shabbethai the Levite.
16 So the returned captives did what was suggested. Ezra the priest chose men who were leaders of the family groups. He named one from each family division. On the first day of the tenth month they sat down to study each case. 17 By the first day of the first month, they had finished. They had dealt with all the men who had married non-Jewish women.
Those Guilty of Marrying Non-Jewish Women
18 These are the descendants of the priests who had married foreign women:
From the descendants of Jeshua son of Jozadak and Jeshua’s brothers, there were Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib and Gedaliah. 19 (They all promised to divorce their wives. Then each one brought a male sheep from the flock as a penalty offering.)
20 From the descendants of Immer, there were Hanani and Zebadiah.
21 From the descendants of Harim, there were Maaseiah, Elijah, Shemaiah, Jehiel and Uzziah.
22 From the descendants of Pashhur, there were Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad and Elasah.
23 Among the Levites, there were Jozabad, Shimei, Kelaiah (also called Kelita), Pethahiah, Judah and Eliezer.
24 Among the singers, there was Eliashib.
Among the gatekeepers, there were Shallum, Telem and Uri.
25 And among the other Israelites, these married non-Jewish women:
From the descendants of Parosh, there were Ramiah, Izziah, Malkijah, Mijamin, Eleazar, Malkijah and Benaiah.
26 From the descendants of Elam, there were Mattaniah, Zechariah, Jehiel, Abdi, Jeremoth and Elijah.
27 From the descendants of Zattu, there were Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, Jeremoth, Zabad and Aziza.
28 From the descendants of Bebai, there were Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai and Athlai.
29 From the descendants of Bani, there were Meshullam, Malluch, Adaiah, Jashub, Sheal and Jeremoth.
30 From the descendants of Pahath-Moab, there were Adna, Kelal, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui and Manasseh.
31 From the descendants of Harim, there were Eliezer, Ishijah, Malkijah, Shemaiah, Shimeon, 32 Benjamin, Malluch and Shemariah.
33 From the descendants of Hashum, there were Mattenai, Mattattah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh and Shimei.
34 From the descendants of Bani, there were Maadai, Amram, Uel, 35 Benaiah, Bedeiah, Keluhi, 36 Vaniah, Meremoth, Eliashib, 37 Mattaniah, Mattenai and Jaasu.
38 From the descendants of Binnui, there were Shimei, 39 Shelemiah, Nathan, Adaiah, 40 Macnadebai, Shashai, Sharai, 41 Azarel, Shelemiah, Shemariah, 42 Shallum, Amariah and Joseph.
43 From the descendants of Nebo, there were Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, Joel and Benaiah.
44 All these men had married non-Jewish women. And some of them had children by these wives.
Peter and Cornelius
10 At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius. He was an officer in the Italian group of the Roman army. 2 Cornelius was a religious man. He and all the other people who lived in his house worshiped the true God. He gave much of his money to the poor and prayed to God often. 3 One afternoon about three o’clock, Cornelius saw a vision clearly. In the vision an angel of God came to him and said, “Cornelius!”
4 Cornelius stared at the angel. He became afraid and said, “What do you want, Lord?”
The angel said, “God has heard your prayers. He has seen what you give to the poor. And God remembers you. 5 Send some men now to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon. Simon is also called Peter. 6 Simon is staying with a man, also named Simon, who is a leatherworker. He has a house beside the sea.” 7 Then the angel who spoke to Cornelius left. Cornelius called two of his servants and a soldier. The soldier was a religious man who worked for Cornelius. 8 Cornelius explained everything to these three men and sent them to Joppa.
9 The next day as they came near Joppa, Peter was going up to the roof[a] to pray. It was about noon. 10 Peter was hungry and wanted to eat. But while the food was being prepared, he had a vision. 11 He saw heaven opened and something coming down. It looked like a big sheet being lowered to earth by its four corners. 12 In it were all kinds of animals, reptiles, and birds. 13 Then a voice said to Peter, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat.”
14 But Peter said, “No, Lord! I have never eaten food that is unholy or unclean.”
15 But the voice said to him again, “God has made these things clean. Don’t call them ‘unholy’!” 16 This happened three times. Then the sheet was taken back to heaven.
17 While Peter was wondering what this vision meant, the men Cornelius sent had found Simon’s house. They were standing at the gate. 18 They asked, “Is Simon Peter staying here?”
19 Peter was still thinking about the vision. But the Spirit said to him, “Listen! Three men are looking for you. 20 Get up and go downstairs. Go with them and don’t ask questions. I have sent them to you.”
21 So Peter went down to the men. He said, “I am the man you are looking for. Why did you come here?”
22 They said, “A holy angel spoke to Cornelius, an army officer. He is a good man; he worships God. All the Jewish people respect him. The angel told Cornelius to ask you to his house so that he can hear what you have to say.” 23 Peter asked the men to come in and spend the night.
The next day Peter got ready and went with them. Some of the brothers from Joppa joined him. 24 On the following day they came to Caesarea. Cornelius was waiting for them. He had called together his relatives and close friends. 25 When Peter entered, Cornelius met him. He fell at Peter’s feet and worshiped him. 26 But Peter helped him up, saying, “Stand up! I too am only a man.” 27 Peter went on talking with Cornelius as they went inside. There Peter saw many people together. 28 He said, “You people understand that it is against our Jewish law for a Jew to associate with or visit anyone who is not a Jew. But God has shown me that I should not call any person ‘unholy’ or ‘unclean.’ 29 That is why I did not argue when I was asked to come here. Now, please tell me why you sent for me.”
30 Cornelius said, “Four days ago, I was praying in my house. It was at this same time—three o’clock in the afternoon. Suddenly, there was a man standing before me wearing shining clothes. 31 He said, ‘Cornelius! God has heard your prayer. He has seen what you give to the poor. And God remembers you. 32 So send some men to Joppa and ask Simon Peter to come. Peter is staying in the house of a man, also named Simon, who is a leatherworker. His house is beside the sea.’ 33 So I sent for you immediately, and it was very good of you to come. Now we are all here before God to hear everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.”
Peter’s Speech
34 Peter began to speak: “I really understand now that to God every person is the same. 35 God accepts anyone who worships him and does what is right. It is not important what country a person comes from. 36 You know that God has sent his message to the people of Israel. That message is the Good News that peace has come through Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Lord of all people! 37 You know what has happened all over Judea. It began in Galilee after John[b] preached to the people about baptism. 38 You know about Jesus from Nazareth. God made him the Christ by giving him the Holy Spirit and power. You know how Jesus went everywhere doing good. He healed those who were ruled by the devil, for God was with Jesus. 39 We saw all the things that Jesus did in Judea and in Jerusalem. But they killed him by nailing him to a cross. 40 Yet, on the third day, God raised Jesus to life and caused him to be seen. 41 But he was not seen by all the people. Only the witnesses that God had already chosen saw him, and we are those witnesses. We ate and drank with him after he was raised from death. 42 He told us to preach to the people and to tell them that he is the one whom God chose to be the judge of the living and the dead. 43 Everyone who believes in Jesus will be forgiven. God will forgive his sins through Jesus. All the prophets say this is true.”
Non-Jews Receive the Holy Spirit
44 While Peter was still saying this, the Holy Spirit came down on all those who were listening. 45 The Jewish believers who came with Peter were amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been given even to the non-Jewish people. 46 These Jewish believers heard them speaking in different languages and praising God. Then Peter said, 47 “Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we did!” 48 So Peter ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.