M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Joseph’s Brothers Visit Egypt
42 Eventually, Jacob observed that there was grain in Egypt, so he asked his sons, “Why do you keep on staring at one another? 2 Pay attention now! I’ve heard that there is grain in Egypt, so go down there and buy some grain for us, so we can live, instead of dying.”
3 So ten of Joseph’s brothers left to buy grain from Egypt. 4 Jacob would not send Joseph’s brother Benjamin to accompany them, because he was saying, “I’m afraid that he’ll come to some kind of harm.” 5 Israel’s sons went in a caravan that included others who were going to Egypt to buy grain, because the famine pervaded the land of Canaan, too.
Joseph’s Brothers Encounter Joseph
6 Meanwhile, Joseph continued to be ruler over the land, in charge of selling to everyone in the land. Joseph’s brothers appeared and bowed down to him, face down.[a] 7 As soon as Joseph saw his brothers, he knew who they were, but he remained disguised and asked them gruffly, “Where are you from?”
“From the land of Canaan,” they replied. “We’re here[b] to buy food.”
8 But Joseph had already recognized his brothers, even though they had not recognized him. 9 Furthermore, Joseph remembered the dreams that he had about them. So he accused them, “You’re spies! You’ve come here to spy on our undefended territories!”[c]
10 “No, your majesty,” they replied. “Your servants have come here to buy food. 11 We’re all sons of a common father. We’re honest men, your majesty. We’re[d] not spies!”
12 But Joseph[e] kept insisting, “It’s just as I’ve said—you’ve come here to spy on our unguarded[f] territories!”
13 “But your majesty,” they pleaded, “your servants include twelve brothers, the sons of a common father back in the land of Canaan. Please! Our youngest brother[g] remains with our father, and the other one[h] is no longer alive.”
14 “I’m right!” Joseph insisted. “Just as I said, you’re spies! 15 So here’s how we’ll test you. You can bet the life of Pharaoh that you’re not leaving here until your youngest brother comes here! 16 One of you is to be sent back so he can get your brother while the rest of[i] you remain in custody. That way, we’ll test whether or not you’re telling the truth. If you’re not, as surely as the Pharaoh lives, you’re spies!”
17 Then Joseph locked them all together in prison for three days. 18 Three days later, Joseph told them, “I fear God, so do this and you’ll live. 19 If you’re honest men, leave one of your brothers here in custody, then the rest of[j] you can leave and take some grain with you[k] to alleviate the famine that’s affecting your households. 20 Just be sure to bring your youngest brother back to me so what you’ve claimed can be verified. That way, you won’t die.”
Joseph’s Brothers Mull over Their Predicament
21 “We’re all guilty because of what we did to[l] our brother!” they told each other. “We kept on watching his suffering while he pleaded with us! We’re in this mess because we wouldn’t listen!”
22 “Didn’t I tell you!” Reuben replied. “‘Don’t wrong the kid!’ I said, but would you listen? No! Now it’s payback time!”
23 Meanwhile, they had no idea that Joseph could understand them, since he was talking to them through an interpreter. 24 He turned away from them and began to weep.
Joseph Arrests Simeon
When he returned, he spoke with them, but then he took Simeon away from them and had him placed under arrest[m] right in front of them. 25 After this, Joseph gave orders to fill up their sacks with grain, to return each man’s money to his own sack, and to supply each of them with provisions for their return journey. All of this was done for them.
Joseph’s Brothers Leave for Canaan
26 Then they each mounted up, their donkeys having been loaded with grain, and left from there. 27 Later on, one of them opened up his sack to give his donkey some fodder after they had stopped at the place where they intended to lodge for the night. There, in the mouth of his sack, was all of his money! 28 He reported to his brothers, “My money has been returned! It’s right here in my sack!”
Trembling with mounting consternation, each of them asked one another, “What is God doing to us?”
Jacob Learns What Happened in Egypt
29 As soon as they had returned to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, they told him everything that had happened to them. 30 “The man who was in charge[n] of the land spoke harshly to us,” they said. “He accused us of being spies![o] 31 But we told him, ‘No! We’re honest men! We’re not spies! 32 Our father has twelve sons, but one of us isn’t alive anymore, and our youngest brother is with our father today back home in[p] Canaan.’ 33 But the man who was in charge of the land responded, ‘I’m going to test your honesty. Leave one of your brothers with me, take some grain for the famine that’s afflicting your households, and leave. 34 But bring your youngest brother back to me so I can be sure that you’re honest men, and not spies. Then I’ll return your brother to you, and you’ll be allowed to trade anywhere in the land.’”
35 Later on, as they went about unloading their sacks, each man’s bundle of money was found in each man’s sack. When they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were greatly distressed. 36 Their father Jacob told them, “You’re causing me to lose my children! Joseph is gone. Now Simeon is gone, and you’re planning to take Benjamin, too. Everything’s going against me!”
37 “Feel free to put my own two sons to death,” Reuben responded to his father, “if I don’t bring him back to you. Trust me—I’ll bring him back to you.”
38 But Jacob replied, “My son isn’t going back with you, since his brother is dead and he’s the only one left. If something should harm him as you travel, then it’ll be death for me and my sad, gray hair!”[q]
The Parable about the Tenant Farmers(A)
12 Then Jesus[a] began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the wine press, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went abroad. 2 At the right time, he sent a servant to the farmers to collect from them a share of the produce from the vineyard. 3 But the farmers[b] grabbed the servant,[c] beat him, and sent him back empty-handed. 4 Again, the man[d] sent another servant to them. They beat the servant[e] over the head and treated him shamefully. 5 Then the man[f] sent another, and that one they killed. So it was with many other servants.[g] Some of these they beat, and others they killed. 6 He still had one more person to send,[h] a son whom he loved. Finally, he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those farmers told one another, ‘This is the heir. Come on, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!’ 8 So they grabbed him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.
9 “Now what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come, execute the farmers, and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you ever read this Scripture:
‘The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.[i]
11 This was the Lord’s[j] doing,
and it is amazing in our eyes’?”[k]
12 They were trying to arrest him but were afraid of the crowd. Realizing that he had spoken this parable against them, they left him alone and went away.
A Question about Paying Taxes(B)
13 Then they sent some Pharisees and some Herodians[l] to him, intending to trap him in what he said. 14 They came and told him, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere. You don’t favor any individual, because you pay no attention to external appearance. Instead, you teach the way of God truthfully. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay them or shouldn’t we?”
15 Seeing through their hypocrisy, Jesus[m] replied to them, “Why are you testing me? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.”
16 So they brought one. Then he asked them, “Whose face and name are on this?”
They told him, “Caesar’s.”
17 So Jesus told them, “Give back to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at him.
A Question about the Resurrection(C)
18 Then some Sadducees, who claim there is no resurrection, came to Jesus[n] and asked him, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no child, he should marry the widow and have children for his brother.[o] 20 There were seven brothers. The first one married and died without having children. 21 Then the second married her and died without having children, and so did the third. 22 None of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died, too. 23 In the resurrection, whose wife will she be, since all seven had married her?”[p]
24 Jesus answered them, “Aren’t you mistaken because you don’t know the Scriptures or God’s power? 25 When people[q] rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like the angels in heaven. 26 As for the dead being raised, haven’t you read in the book of Moses, in the story about the bush, how God said, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?[r] 27 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”
The Greatest Commandment(D)
28 Then one of the scribes came near and heard the Sadducees[s] arguing with one another. He saw how well Jesus[t] answered them, so he asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of them all?”
29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord[u] our God is one Lord,[v] 30 and you must love the Lord[w] your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’[x] 31 The second is this: ‘You must love your neighbor as yourself.’[y] No other commandment is greater than these.”
32 Then the scribe told him, “Well said,[z] Teacher! You have told the truth that ‘God[aa] is one, and there is no other besides him.’[ab] 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
34 When Jesus saw how wisely the man[ac] answered, he told him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” After that, no one dared to ask him another question.
A Question about David’s Son(E)
35 While Jesus was teaching in the Temple, he asked, “How can the scribes say that the Messiah[ad] is David’s son? 36 David himself said by the Holy Spirit,
37 David himself calls him ‘Lord,’ so how can he be his son?” And the large crowd kept listening to him with delight.
Jesus Denounces the Scribes(F)
38 As he taught, he said, “Beware of the scribes! They like to walk around in long robes, to be greeted in the marketplaces, 39 and to have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They devour widows’ houses[ag] and say long prayers to cover it up. They will receive greater condemnation!”
The Widow’s Offering(G)
41 As Jesus[ah] sat facing the offering box, he watched how the crowd was dropping their money into it.[ai] Many rich people were dropping in large amounts. 42 Then a destitute widow came and dropped in two small copper coins,[aj] worth about a cent.[ak] 43 He called his disciples and told them, “I tell all of you[al] with certainty, this destitute widow has dropped in more than everyone who is contributing to the offering box, 44 because all of them contributed out of their surplus, but out of her poverty she has given everything she had to live on.”
Bildad: God Rewards the Godly
8 Then in response, Bildad from Shuah said:
2 “How long will you keep talking like this?
How long will you keep talking like a wind storm?
3 Does God pervert justice?
Does the Almighty pervert what’s right?
4 “If your children sin against him,
he’ll make them a prisoner[a] of their sins.
5 If you seek God,
if you ask the Almighty for mercy,
6 if you are clean and upright,
surely then, he’ll act on your behalf
and restore your rightful[b] place.
7 Your beginning may be small,
but later years[c] will be very great.
8 “Inquire of the previous generation, won’t you please?
Consider what their forefathers searched out.
9 Because we are of yesterday and we know nothing,
for our time on earth is only a shadow.
10 Won’t they instruct you, and tell you,
and bring out words from the heart?
11 “Can papyrus grow where there’s no marsh?
Can reeds flourish without water?
12 While they are still green
and not yet ready to be harvested,
they wither before any plant.
13 Such are the paths of everyone who forgets God—
the hope of the godless will be destroyed:
14 his confidence is shattered;
his trust is in a spider’s web.
15 He leans against his house,
but it won’t stand;
he grabs hold of it firmly,
but it doesn’t last.
16 He is a fresh sapling planted in the sunlight,
spreading out its branches over its garden.
17 Its roots weave around a pile of stones,
seeking to entrench itself among the rocks.
18 If he is uprooted[d] from his place,
then it will deny him:
‘I never saw you.’
19 “Indeed, this is the benefit of God’s[e] way:
from the soil other plants[f] will sprout.
20 Surely God won’t reject those who are blameless
or hold hands with those who practice evil.
21 He will soon fill your mouth with laughter,
and your lips will shout with joy.
22 Those who hate you will be clothed with shame,
and the tent of the wicked will no longer exist.
Dedicate Your Lives to God
12 I therefore urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercies, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices that are holy and pleasing to God, for this is the reasonable way for you to worship.[a] 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but continuously be transformed by the renewing of your minds so that you may be able to determine what God’s will is—what is proper,[b] pleasing, and perfect.
3 For by the grace given to me I ask every one of you not to think of yourself more highly than you should think, rather to think of yourself with sober judgment on the measure of faith that God has assigned each of you. 4 For we have many parts in one body, but these parts do not all have the same function. 5 In the same way, even though we are many people, we are one body in the Messiah[c] and individual parts connected to each other. 6 We have different gifts based on the grace that was given to us. So if your gift is prophecy, use your gift[d] in proportion to your faith. 7 If your gift is serving, devote yourself to serving others.[e] If it is teaching, devote yourself to teaching others.[f] 8 If it is encouraging, devote yourself to encouraging others.[g] If it is sharing, share generously.[h] If it is leading, lead enthusiastically.[i] If it is helping, help cheerfully.[j]
9 Your love must be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to each other with mutual affection. Excel at showing respect for each other. 11 Never be lazy in showing such devotion. Be on fire with the Spirit. Serve the Lord.[k] 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in trouble, and persistent in prayer. 13 Supply the needs of the saints. Extend hospitality to strangers.
14 Bless those who persecute you. Keep on blessing them, and never curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who are rejoicing. Cry with those who are crying. 16 Live in harmony with each other. Do not be arrogant, but associate with humble people. Do not think that you are wiser than you really are.
17 Do not pay anyone back evil for evil, but[l] focus your thoughts on what is right in the sight of all people. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live in peace with all people. 19 Do not take revenge, dear friends, but leave room for God’s[m] wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me. I will pay them back, declares the Lord.”[n] 20 But “if your enemy is hungry, feed him. For if he is thirsty, give him a drink. If you do this, you will pile burning coals on his head.”[o] 21 Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.
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