M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Moses puts up the tabernacle
40 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 ‘On the first day of the first month, put up the tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting.[a] 3 Put the Covenant Box in the tabernacle and hide it behind the special curtain. 4 Bring in the special table and put the dishes on it. Then bring in the lampstand. Fix its lamps on it. 5 Put the gold altar for incense in front of the Covenant Box. Hang the curtain that will be at the entrance to the tabernacle.
6 Put the altar for burnt offerings in front of the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 7 Put the large bowl for water between the Tent of Meeting and the altar. Put water in the bowl. 8 Hang the curtains around the yard of the tabernacle, as well as the curtain at the entrance to the yard.
9 Take the special oil that makes things holy. Pour some oil on the tabernacle and on everything that is in it. Offer the tabernacle and all its things to God, and then it will be holy. 10 Then pour some oil on the altar for burnt offerings and all its tools. Offer it all to God, and then it will be completely holy. 11 Pour some oil on the large bowl for water and on its base to offer them to God.
12 Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. Wash them with water. 13 Then dress Aaron in the special clothes for the priest. Pour some of the special oil on his head. Offer him to me to serve me as my priest. 14 Also bring his sons and dress them in the special long shirts. 15 Pour some oil on their heads, as you did to their father. Then they too may serve me as my priests. In this way, they and their descendants will always continue to serve me as priests.’
16 Moses did all these things, as the Lord had commanded him.
17 So they put up the tabernacle on the first day of the first month. It was in the second year after they had left Egypt. 18 When Moses put up the tabernacle, he first put the metal bases in their right places. Then he put up the boards, the bars to hold them, and the poles. 19 Then he covered the tabernacle with the tent and he put the leather covers over the tent. He did this in the way that the Lord had commanded him.
20 Moses took the two flat stones with God's special commands on them. He put them inside the Covenant Box. He put the poles through the rings on the box. He put the special lid on top of the box. 21 Then he brought the Covenant Box into the tabernacle. He hung the special curtain to hide it, so that nobody could see it. He did this in the way that the Lord had commanded him.
22 Moses put the special table inside the Tent of Meeting. He put it outside the curtain, on the north side of the Holy Place. 23 He put the special bread on the table as an offering to the Lord, as the Lord had commanded him.
24 He also put the lampstand in the Tent of Meeting. He put it on the south side of the Holy Place, opposite the table. 25 Then he put the lamps in their places in front of the Lord, as the Lord had commanded him.
26 Moses put the gold altar in the Tent of Meeting, outside the curtain that hid the Covenant Box. 27 He burned sweet incense on it, as the Lord had commanded him. 28 Then he hung the curtain at the entrance of the tent.
29 He put the altar for burnt offerings outside the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. He offered a burnt offering and a grain offering on it, as the Lord had commanded him.
30 Moses put the large bowl for water between the Tent of Meeting and the altar. He put water in it for the priests to wash themselves. 31 Moses and Aaron and Aaron's sons used the water to wash their hands and their feet. 32 They washed themselves every time that they went into the Tent of Meeting. They also washed themselves before they went to offer sacrifices at the altar. They did what the Lord had commanded Moses to do.
33 Moses also made the yard around the tabernacle and round the altar. He hung the curtain at the entrance of the yard.
In that way, Moses finished the work.
The glory of the Lord
34 Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting. The glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 Moses could not go into the Tent of Meeting because of the cloud and the bright glory of the Lord.
36 The Israelites followed the cloud during all their journeys. Every time that the cloud rose up from the tabernacle, they would continue on their journey. 37 But if the cloud remained on the tabernacle, the Israelites did not travel. They stayed where they were until the day when the cloud rose up. 38 So the cloud stayed over the tabernacle during the day, to show that the Lord was with them. During the night, there was fire in the cloud. All the Israelites could see the cloud during all their journeys.
19 Then Pilate told the soldiers to take Jesus outside. He told them to hit Jesus many times with a whip.
2 The soldiers used some branches with thorns to make a crown for Jesus. They put it on his head. Then put a dark red coat on him too. They did all this as if he was a king. 3 They came to him many times and they were saying to him, ‘Hello, King of the Jews, you are great!’ At the same time they slapped his face with their hands.
4 Pilate went outside once more. He said to the crowd, ‘Listen to me. I will bring Jesus out here to you. You should know this: I do not say that this man is guilty of anything wrong. I have no reason to punish him.’ 5 Then Jesus came out. He was still wearing the hat of thorns on his head and the dark red coat. Pilate said to them, ‘Look. Here is the man!’ 6 When the leaders of the priests and their officers saw Jesus, they shouted, ‘Kill him! Kill him on a cross!’ Pilate said to them, ‘Take him for yourselves and kill him on a cross. I can find no reason why I should punish him.’ 7 The Jews answered, ‘We have a law which says that he must die. He must die because he said, “I am the Son of God.” ’
8 When Pilate heard that, he was even more afraid. 9 He went back into the house. He asked Jesus, ‘Where are you really from?’ But Jesus did not answer him. 10 Pilate said to him, ‘Are you refusing to speak to me? Remember that I have authority. I can let you go free, or I can let them kill you on a cross.’ 11 Jesus answered, ‘You could have no power against me unless God had given it to you. So the man who sold me to you has done a worse thing than you have done.’ 12 From that moment, Pilate tried to let Jesus go free. But the Jewish leaders shouted back, ‘If you let him go, you are not Caesar's friend. Nobody should say that he himself is a king. That shows that he is against Caesar!’
13 When Pilate heard those words, he brought Jesus outside. Pilate sat down on a special seat for the judge. The seat was in a place called ‘Gabbatha’ in the Jewish language. There were large flat stones there, which covered the ground. 14 It was about noon on the day when they prepared the Passover meal. Pilate said to the Jews, ‘Here is your king!’ 15 But they shouted, ‘Take him away! Take him away! Kill him on a cross!’ Pilate asked them, ‘Do you want me to kill your king on a cross?’ The leaders of the priests answered, ‘Caesar is the only ruler that we call king.’ 16 Then Pilate gave Jesus to them, so that they could kill him on a cross.
They fix Jesus to a cross
The soldiers took hold of Jesus. 17 He was carrying the cross on which they would kill him. He went out to the place called ‘The Place of the Skull’.[a] This place is called ‘Golgotha’ in the Jewish language.[b]
18 When they arrived there, the soldiers fixed Jesus to the cross. They put two other men on crosses near to him. They were on each side of him and Jesus was between them.
19 Pilate wrote a notice. Then the soldiers put it on the cross. It said: ‘Jesus from Nazareth, the King of the Jews’. 20 The place where they put Jesus on the cross was near to the city. So many of the Jews read this notice. They could read it because Pilate had written the words in three languages. He had written it in the Jewish language and in the languages of the Roman people and the Greek people. 21 The leaders of the Jewish priests said to Pilate, ‘Do not write, “The King of the Jews”. Instead, write, “This man said that he is the King of the Jews.” ’ 22 Pilate answered, ‘I will not change what I have written.’
23 After the soldiers had put Jesus on the cross, they took his clothes. They made them into four parts, one part for each soldier. They also took his long shirt, which was one single piece of cloth. 24 So they said to each other, ‘We will not tear it. Instead, we will play a game with dice. The person who wins the game will have the shirt.’ This happened in the way that the Bible had already said:
‘Each of them took some of my clothes.
They played a game with dice to win what I was wearing.’
And that is what the soldiers did.[c]
25 Some women stood near to Jesus while he was on the cross. They were his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleopas, and Mary from Magdala. 26 Jesus saw his mother there. He also saw the disciple that he loved. That disciple was standing there, near Jesus' mother. So Jesus said to his mother, ‘Woman, look! There is your son.’ 27 Then he said to the disciple, ‘Look! There is your mother.’ From that time, the disciple took Jesus' mother to live in his own home.
Jesus dies
28 After this, Jesus knew that everything was now finished. Then he said, ‘I am thirsty.’ He said this so that things would happen in the way the Bible already said.[d] 29 There was a pot full of cheap wine there. So someone put a piece of cloth into the wine. They fixed the cloth to the end of a branch. The branch was from a plant called hyssop. Then they lifted the cloth up to Jesus' mouth. 30 Jesus drank the wine. Then he said, ‘Everything is finished.’ He bent his head down and he let his spirit go.
A soldier puts a spear into Jesus
31 It was the day when the Jews prepare everything for their day of rest. The next day was the day for the Passover meal, so it was a very important day. The Jews did not want the men's bodies to stay on the crosses during that day of rest.[e] So they asked Pilate to tell the soldiers to break the legs of those men.[f] Then they could take the dead bodies down from the crosses.
32 So the soldiers went there. They broke the legs of the two men who were on the crosses next to Jesus. 33 Then they went to Jesus. They saw that he was dead already. So they did not break his legs. 34 But one of the soldiers put a spear into Jesus' side. Immediately, blood and water came out of his body. 35 The man who saw these things has spoken about them. What he says is true. He knows that it really happened. He is telling you the truth so that you can believe. 36 The Bible already said how it would happen. It says:
‘Nobody will break any of his bones.’[g]
37 In another place, the Bible says:
‘People will push a spear into that man's body,
and then they will look at him.’[h]
And that is how it really happened.
Joseph buries Jesus
38 There was a man called Joseph who came from the town of Arimathea. He was one of Jesus' disciples, but he was afraid of the Jewish leaders. So he had not told people that he was a disciple of Jesus. Joseph went to Pilate and asked if he could take Jesus' dead body away. Pilate agreed. So Joseph went there and he took the body away. 39 Nicodemus went with Joseph. He was the man who had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought about 33 kilograms of spices called myrrh and aloes.[i] 40 The two men covered Jesus' dead body with these spices. And they tied long pieces of linen cloth around it many times. That is how the Jewish people prepare a dead body before they bury it. 41 There was a garden near the place where they had killed Jesus on the cross. In that garden there was a place where they could put the bodies of dead people. It was a new hole in the rock, where nobody had ever put a dead body before. 42 The next day was the Jewish day of rest. So they put Jesus in that hole in the rock, because it was near.
16 People make plans in their minds,
but the Lord gives them the right words to say.
2 You may think that everything you do is right,
but the Lord knows exactly why you are doing it.
3 Put your plans in front of the Lord,
so that what you want to do will go well.
4 The Lord causes everything to have its proper result.
Even wicked people will come to bad trouble in the end.
5 The Lord hates everyone who boasts.
Be sure of this: They will receive the punishment that they deserve.
6 If you love the Lord faithfully,
he will forgive your sins.
If you respect and obey him,
you will not do evil things.
7 If you live in a way that pleases the Lord,
even your enemies will become your friends.
8 If you do what is right but you are not rich,
that is better than to be rich because you cheat people.
9 People make plans for what they will do,
but it is the Lord who leads them in the right way.
10 A king speaks with God's authority.
He must judge people in a fair way.
11 The Lord wants people to use true weights and measures.
He knows all the weights that a trader uses.
12 Kings hate all wicked acts,
because justice makes their government strong.
13 Kings are happy to hear honest advice.
They love people who speak true words.
14 Someone may die if the king becomes angry with him.
So a wise person will try to stop the king's anger.
15 If the king smiles at you, your life will go well.
If he is pleased with you, that is like a cloud which gives rain in the spring.
16 It is better to have wisdom than gold or silver.
You should want to understand what is right.
17 Honest people follow a straight road that keeps them away from evil things.
If you want to keep your life safe, watch where you are going.
18 If you are proud, you will soon come to an end.
Anyone who boasts will soon fall down.
19 You may be humble and have poor people as your friends.
But that is better than if you have proud friends
who give you things that they have robbed from others.
20 If you listen carefully to good teaching, you will do well.
If you trust in the Lord, you are in a happy place.
21 If you have wise thoughts,
people will say that you know what is right.
If you speak kind words,
people will accept your teaching.
22 Wisdom is like a spring of fresh water that gives life to those who have it.
But the silly things that fools do brings them punishment.
23 Wise people think carefully and they speak wise words.
Then other people will accept their teaching.
24 Kind words are as sweet as honey.
They also bring health and strength.
25 You may think that you are on a good, straight road.
But in the end, that road may lead you to death.
26 When a worker feels hungry, it causes him to work more.
So it helps him to get food to eat.
27 Wicked people look for ways to hurt other people.
The cruel things that they say are like flames of fire.
28 People who tell lies cause arguments.
If you tell people's secrets, you will lose all your friends.
29 Violent people deceive their friends.
They lead their friends to do wrong things.
30 If someone sends secret messages with his eyes,
he has a plan to hurt someone.
If he squeezes his lips together,
he is ready to do an evil thing.
31 Grey hair is like a beautiful crown on your head!
People who live in a righteous way may wear it.
32 A person who is patient is better than a brave soldier.
If you can control your anger, you can win any battle.
33 People throw dice to choose what is right.
But it is the Lord who decides the answer.
Christ is more important than anything
3 My Christian friends, there are a few more things that I want to say. You belong to the Lord, so be happy! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again. And it will help to keep you safe.
2 Be very careful! Some people are teaching bad things. They say that you must cut your bodies. They are like dangerous dogs. Do not believe them! 3 But we are truly God's people. And it is not because someone has circumcised us. It is God's own Spirit that leads us to worship God. We thank God because of what Christ Jesus has done for us. We know that it is not human ideas that can save us.[a]
4 For myself, I could have trusted those human ideas. Perhaps somebody may think that they could trust in those things to save them. Then I would have an even better reason to trust in them. 5 I belong to Israel's people, to Benjamin's tribe. I am a true Jew. They circumcised me when I was eight days old. I was a Pharisee, and I obeyed the Jewish rules very carefully. 6 I tried very much to please God. So I caused a lot of trouble and pain for the Christians. I obeyed the rules of God's Law, and nobody could say that I did anything wrong.
7 All those ideas seemed very important to me then. But now they are worth nothing to me, because I trust in Christ. 8 Yes, now that I know Christ Jesus as my Lord, that is the most valuable thing. Nothing else is important at all. I have thrown everything else away, so that I can serve Christ. All those other things are like dirt to me. I think about them like that, so that I can have Christ. 9 I want to be united with him. Because I believe in Christ, God accepts me as right with him. I know that I cannot become right in any other way, even if I obey all of God's Law. When I trust in Christ, God accepts me as right because of my faith.
10 Yes, I want to know Christ better and better. I want to know the power which God showed when Christ rose from death. I want to have the same kind of troubles that he did. I want to obey God like he did in his death. 11 Then I hope that I also will become alive again after death.
Christians do not belong to this world
12 I am not saying that I have already reached that place in my life. I have not yet completely become the person that God wants me to be. But I am trying very hard to reach that place. That was Christ's purpose when he first made me his own. 13 My Christian friends, I do not think that I have reached that place yet. But this is what I do: I do not think about past things that have already happened. Instead, I try hard to reach the things that are in front of me. 14 I am like a runner who wants to reach the end of the race. I run straight towards that place, so that I can win God's gift. Because I belong to Christ Jesus, God has called me to live with him in heaven. That is God's gift to me at the end of the race.
15 All of us should agree to live like that, if we properly understand God's message. If you think differently about these things, God will show you clearly what is right. 16 But we should continue to live in the way that we already know is right.
17 My Christian friends, you should try to live in the way that I do. Carefully watch other people who live like that. We have shown you what is right. 18 Many people live in a way that shows they do not agree with God's message. I have told you about these people many times before. And now I am crying when I tell you about them. I am very sad, because they speak against Christ's death on the cross. 19 In the end, God will destroy them. Their stomach is what they worship. They are proud of things that should make them ashamed. Their thoughts are full of things that belong to this world. 20 But as for us, the home where we belong is in heaven. We are waiting for the Lord Jesus Christ to come from there. He is the one who will come from heaven and save us. 21 He will change these weak bodies that we have now on this earth. He will make them become strong and beautiful, like his own body that he has in heaven. Christ will use his great power to do this. That is the power that he uses to rule over everything.
EasyEnglish Bible Copyright © MissionAssist 2019 - Charitable Incorporated Organisation 1162807. Used by permission. All rights reserved.