M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Israel’s Enemies Become Discouraged
5 All the Amorite kings who lived across the Jordan River to the west and all the Canaanite kings by the Mediterranean[a] Sea became discouraged as soon as they heard that the Lord had dried up the water of the Jordan River for the people of Israel until they had crossed it. They no longer had a will to fight[b] because of the people of Israel.
A New Generation is Circumcised
2 At that time the Lord told Joshua, “Make for yourselves some flint knives and circumcise the Israelis who haven’t been circumcised yet.”[c]
3 So Joshua made some flint knives and circumcised the Israelis at Gibeath-haaraloth.[d] 4 Joshua circumcised them because all of the males among the people who came out of Egypt—that is, all the warriors—had died during their journey through the wilderness following their departure from Egypt. 5 Although everyone who had left Egypt had been circumcised, nevertheless all the people born during the journey after their departure from Egypt had not been circumcised. 6 The Israelis traveled 40 years in the wilderness until the entire nation—that is, the warriors who had departed from Egypt—had perished because they hadn’t listened to the voice of the Lord. The Lord had promised them that he would not let them see the land that he had sworn to give us, a land that flows with milk and honey. 7 As a result, it was their descendants, whom he raised up to take their place, that Joshua circumcised. They had remained uncircumcised, because they had not been circumcised during their journey. 8 When the circumcision of the entire nation was complete, they remained in their places within the camp until they were healed.
9 Then the Lord told Joshua, “Today I have rolled the disgrace of Egypt away from you.” That’s why that place is called “Gilgal”[e] to this day.
The Manna Ceases
10 While the Israelis remained encamped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, they observed the Passover during the evening of the fourteenth day of the month. 11 On the day following Passover—on that exact day—they ate the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain. 12 The manna ceased on the day they ate the produce of the land. Since the Israelis no longer received manna, they ate crops from the land of Canaan that year.
Joshua is Visited by the Lord
13 Now it happened that while Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and much to his amazement, he saw a man standing in front of him, holding a drawn sword in his hand! Joshua approached him and asked him, “Are you one of us, or are you with our enemies?”
14 “Neither,” he answered. “I have come as commander of the Lord’s Army.”
Joshua immediately fell on his face to the earth and worshipped, saying to him, “Lord, what do you have for your servant by way of command?”
15 The commander of the Lord’s Army replied to Joshua, “Remove your sandals from your feet, because the place where you’re standing is holy.” So Joshua did so.
Instructions for Joshua
6 Meanwhile, Jericho was fortified inside and out because of the Israelis. Nobody could leave or enter.
2 The Lord told Joshua, “Look! I have given Jericho over to your control,[f] along with its kings and valiant soldiers. 3 March around the city, all the soldiers circling the city once. Do this for six days, 4 with seven priests carrying in front of the ark seven trumpets made from rams’ horns. On the seventh day march around the city seven times while the priests blow their trumpets. 5 When they sound a long blast with the ram’s horn, as soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then the entire army is to cry out loud, the city wall will collapse, and then all of the soldiers are to charge straight ahead.”
A Song of Ascents
The Lord Lives in Zion
132 Lord, remember in David’s favor
all of his troubles;
2 how he swore an oath to the Lord,
vowing to the Mighty One of Jacob,
3 “I will not enter[a] my house,
or lie down on[b] my bed,
4 or let myself go to sleep[c]
or even take a nap,[d]
5 until I locate a place for the Lord,
a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”
6 We heard about it[e] in Ephrata;[f]
we found it in the fields of Jaar.[g]
7 Let’s go to his dwelling place
and worship at his footstool.
8 Arise, Lord,
and go to your resting place,
you and the ark of your strength.
9 May your priests be clothed with righteousness
and may your godly ones shout for joy.
10 For the sake of your servant David,
don’t turn away the face of your anointed one.
11 The Lord made an oath to David
from which he will not retreat:
“One of your sons
I will set in place on your throne.
12 If your sons keep my covenant
and my statutes that I will teach them,
then their sons will also sit on your throne forever.”
13 For the Lord has chosen Zion,
desiring it as his dwelling place.
14 “This is my resting place forever.
Here I will live,
because I desire to do so.
15 I will bless its provisions abundantly;
I will satiate its poor with food.[h]
16 I will clothe its priests with salvation
and its godly ones will shout for joy.
17 There I will create a power base[i] for David—
I have prepared a lamp for my anointed one.
18 I will clothe his enemies with disgrace,
but on him his crown will shine.”
A Davidic Song of Ascents
The Significance of Unity
133 Look how good and how pleasant it is
when brothers live together in unity!
2 It is like precious oil on the head,
descending to the beard—
even to Aaron’s beard—
and flowing down to the edge of his robes.
3 It is like the dew of Hermon
falling on Zion’s mountains.
For there the Lord commanded his blessing—
life everlasting.
A Song of Ascents
Praise to the Creator
134 Now bless the Lord,
all you servants of the Lord
who serve[j] nightly in the Lord’s Temple.
2 Lift up your hands to the Holy Place
and bless the Lord.
3 May the Lord who fashions heaven and earth
bless you from Zion.
God’s Response
65 “I let myself be sought by those who didn’t ask for me;[a]
I let myself be found by those who didn’t seek me.
I said, ‘Here I am! Here I am!’
to a nation that didn’t call on my name.
2 I held out my hands all day long
to a disobedient[b] people,
who walk in a way that isn’t good,
following their own inclinations—
3 a people who continually provoke me to my face;
they[c] keep sacrificing in gardens
and waving their hands[d] over stone[e] altars;
4 who sit among graves,
and spend the night in secret places;
who eat pigs’ meat,
with the broth[f] of detestable things in[g] their pots;
5 who say, ‘Keep to yourself!’
‘Don’t touch[h] me!’ and ‘I am[i] too holy for you!’
“Such people are smoke in my nostrils,
a fire that keeps burning all day long.
6 Watch out! It stands written before me:
‘I won’t keep silent, but I will pay back in full;
I’ll indeed repay into[j] their laps
7 both your iniquities and your ancestors’[k] iniquities together,’’
says the Lord.
“Because they offered incense on the mountains
and insulted me on hills,[l]
I’ll measure into[m] their laps
full payment for their earlier actions.”
A Remnant will be Preserved
8 This is what the Lord says:
“Just as new wine is found in the cluster,
and people have said,[n] ‘Don’t destroy it,
for there is a gift in it,’
so I’ll act for my servants’ sake,
by not destroying them all.
9 I’ll bring forth descendants from Jacob,
and from Judah they[o] will inherit[p] my mountains;
my chosen people will inherit it,
and my servants will live there.
10 Sharon will become a pasture for flocks,
and the Valley of Achor a fold for herds,[q]
for my people who have sought me.
11 But as for you who forsake the Lord,
who forget my holy mountain,
who spread a table for Fortune[r]
and[s] fill drink offerings[t] for Destiny,[u]
12 I’ll consign[v] you to the sword,
and all of you will bend down for the slaughter—
because when I called, you didn’t answer,
when I spoke, you didn’t listen;
but you did what was evil in my sight,
and chose what I took no pleasure in.”
The Righteous and Wicked Contrasted
13 Therefore, this is what the Lord[w] says:
“See, my servants will eat,
but you’ll go hungry;
my servants will drink,
but you’ll go thirsty;
my servants will rejoice,
but you’ll be put to shame.
14 My servants will sing in gladness[x] of heart,
but you’ll cry for help[y] from anguish of heart,
and you’ll howl from brokenness of spirit.
15 You’ll leave your name to my chosen ones as a curse,
and the Lord God will put you to death permanently.[z]
16 Then whoever takes an oath[aa] by the God of faithfulness,
and whoever takes an oath in the land,
will swear by the God of faithfulness,
because the former troubles are forgotten
and are hidden from my eyes.
A New Universe
17 Take notice! I’m about to create new heavens
and a new earth;
the former things won’t be remembered,
nor will they come to mind.
18 But be glad[ab] and rejoice[ac] forever
in what I am creating,
for I am about to create Jerusalem as a joy,
and its people as a delight.
19 I’ll rejoice over Jerusalem,
and take delight in my people;
no longer will the sound of weeping be heard in it,
nor the cry of distress.
20 “And[ad] there will no longer be in it
a young boy[ae] who lives only a few days,
or an old person who does not live out his days;
for one who dies at a hundred years will be thought a mere youth,
and one who falls short of a hundred years will be considered accursed.
21 People[af] will build houses and live in them;
They’ll plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22 They won’t build for others to inhabit;
they won’t plant for others to eat—
for like the lifetime[ag] of a tree,[ah] so will the lifetime[ai] of my people be,
and my chosen ones will long enjoy[aj] the work of their hands.
23 They won’t toil in vain
nor bear children doomed to misfortune,
for they will be offspring blessed[ak] by the Lord,
they and their descendants with them.
24 Before they call, I will answer,
while they are still speaking, I’ll hear.
25 “The wolf and the lamb will feed together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox;
but as for the serpent—
its food will be dust!
They won’t harm or destroy
on my entire holy mountain,”
says the Lord.
The Parable about a Farmer(A)
13 That day Jesus left the house and sat down beside the sea. 2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down, while the entire crowd stood on the shore. 3 Then he began to tell them many things in parables. He said, “Listen! A farmer went out to sow. 4 As he was sowing, some seeds fell along the path, and birds came and ate them up. 5 Other seeds fell on stony ground, where they did not have a lot of soil. They sprouted at once because the soil wasn’t deep. 6 But when the sun came up, they were scorched. Since they did not have any roots, they dried up. 7 Other seeds fell among thorn bushes, and the thorn bushes grew higher and choked them out. 8 But other seeds fell on good soil and produced a crop, some 100, some 60, and some 30 times what was sown.[a] 9 Let the person who has ears[b] listen!”
The Purpose of the Parables(B)
10 Then the disciples came and asked Jesus,[c] “Why do you speak to people[d] in parables?”
11 He answered them, “You have been given knowledge about the secrets of the kingdom from[e] heaven, but it hasn’t been given to them, 12 because to anyone who has something, more will be given, and he will have more than enough. But from the one who doesn’t have anything, even what he has will be taken away from him. 13 That’s why I speak to them in parables, because
‘they look but don’t see,
and they listen but don’t hear or understand.’
14 “With them the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says:
‘You will listen and listen but never understand.
You will look and look but never comprehend,
15 for this people’s heart has become dull,
and their ears are hard of hearing.[f]
They have shut their eyes
so that they might not see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears,
and understand with their heart and turn,
and I would heal them.’[g]
16 “How blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear! 17 I tell all of you[h] with certainty, many prophets and righteous people longed to see the things you see but did not see them, and to hear the things you hear but did not hear them.”
Jesus Explains the Parable about the Farmer(C)
18 “Listen, then, to the parable about the farmer. 19 When anyone hears the word about the kingdom yet doesn’t understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. 20 As for what was sown on the stony ground, this is the person who hears the word and accepts it joyfully at once, 21 but since he doesn’t have any root in himself, he lasts for only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes along because of the word, he immediately falls away. 22 As for what was sown among the thorn bushes, this is the person who hears the word, but the worries of life and the deceitful pleasures of wealth choke the word so that it can’t produce a crop. 23 But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the person who hears the word, understands it, and produces a crop that yields 100, 60, or 30 times what was sown.”[i]
The Parable about the Weeds among the Wheat
24 He presented another parable to them: “The kingdom from[j] heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 While people were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 26 When the crop came up and bore grain, the weeds appeared, too.
27 “The owner’s servants came and asked him, ‘Master, you sowed good seed in your field, didn’t you? Then where did these weeds come from?’
28 “He told them, ‘An enemy did this!’
“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them out?’
29 “He said, ‘No! If you pull out the weeds, you might pull out the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and tie them in bundles for burning, but bring the wheat into my barn.”’”
The Parables about a Mustard Seed and Yeast(D)
31 He presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom from[k] heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in his field. 32 Although it is the smallest of[l] all seeds, when it is fully grown it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, and the birds in the sky come and nest in its branches.”
33 He told them another parable: “The kingdom from[m] heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with[n] three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”
Why Jesus Used Parables(E)
34 Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables. He did not tell them anything without using[o] a parable. 35 This was to fulfill what was declared by the prophet[p] when he said,
“I will open my mouth to speak[q] in parables.
I will declare what has been hidden
since the creation of the world.”[r]
Jesus Explains the Parable about the Weeds
36 Then Jesus[s] left the crowds and went into the house. His disciples came to him and asked, “Explain to us the parable about the weeds in the field.”
37 He answered, “The person who sowed good seed is the Son of Man, 38 while the field is the world. The good seed are those who belong to[t] the kingdom, while the weeds are those who belong to[u] the evil one. 39 The enemy who sowed them is the Devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. 40 Just as weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so it will be at end of the[v] age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather from his kingdom everything that causes others to sin and those who practice lawlessness 42 and they will throw them into a blazing furnace. In that place there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.[w] 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their Father’s kingdom. Let the person who has ears[x] listen!”
The Parable about a Hidden Treasure
44 “The kingdom from[y] heaven is like treasure hidden in a field that a man found and hid. In his excitement he went and sold everything he had and bought that field.”
The Parable about a Valuable Pearl
45 “Again, the kingdom from[z] heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. 46 When he found a very valuable pearl, he went and sold everything he had and bought it.”
The Parable about a Net
47 “Again, the kingdom from[aa] heaven is like a large net thrown into the sea that gathered all kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen[ab] hauled it ashore. Then they sat down, sorted the good fish into containers, and threw the bad ones away. 49 That is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out, cull out the evil people from among the righteous ones, 50 and will throw them into a blazing furnace. In that place there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”[ac]
New and Old Treasures
51 “Do you understand all these things?”
They told him, “Yes.”
52 Then he told them, “That is why every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom from[ad] heaven is like the master of a household who brings both new and old things out of his treasure chest.”
Jesus is Rejected at Nazareth(F)
53 When Jesus had finished these parables, he left that place. 54 He went to his hometown and began teaching the people[ae] in their synagogue in such a way that they were amazed and asked, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miracles? 55 This is the builder’s[af] son, isn’t it? His mother is named Mary, isn’t she? His brothers are James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas, aren’t they? 56 And his sisters are all with us, aren’t they? So where did this man get all these things?” 57 And they were offended by him.
But Jesus told them, “A prophet is without honor only in his hometown and in his own home.” 58 He did not perform many miracles there because of their unbelief.
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