M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Joseph Reveals Himself
45 At this point, Joseph could not control his emotions any longer, so he cried out to everyone who was standing nearby, “Everybody! Leave me!” As a result, none of his staff[a] was anywhere near[b] him when he revealed himself to his brothers. 2 He cried so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, including Pharaoh’s household.
3 Joseph blurted out, “I’m Joseph! Is my father really alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, because they had become terrified[c] to be in his presence.
4 Joseph implored his brothers, “Please come close to me.” So they did.
“I’m your brother Joseph, whom you sold into slavery in[d] Egypt!” he told them. 5 “But[e] don’t be distressed or angry at yourselves because you sold me here, because God sent me ahead of you all in order to deliver us.[f] 6 That’s because this famine has been going on for two years now in this region, and there are still five years left, during which there won’t be any plowing or harvesting. 7 God sent me ahead of you to keep you alive on the earth, and to save you all in a magnificent way. 8 As a result, it wasn’t you who sent me here, but God himself! He established me as a father-figure to Pharaoh himself! I’m in charge of his entire palace and ruler over the entire land of Egypt. 9 So hurry up, go back to my father, and tell him that his son Joseph tells him, ‘God has made me master of all of Egypt. Hurry up! Come live with me!’ 10 You are to live in the land of Goshen, near where I am—you, your children, your grandchildren, your flocks, your herds, and everything that you own. 11 I’ll provide for you there, since there are still five years of famine left to go, and you, your households, and everything you own would have otherwise become impoverished.
12 “Look, now! All of you can see me! And my own brother Benjamin can tell that it’s really me[g] speaking to you! 13 So go tell my father about all of my splendor in Egypt. Tell him about everything that you’ve seen. Be quick about it, and bring my father down here!”
14 Then he threw his arms around Benjamin[h] and wept as they embraced.[i] 15 He kissed all of his brothers and wept with them, too, and then his brothers were able to talk with him.
Pharaoh is Pleased
16 As soon as the news reached Pharaoh’s palace that Joseph’s brothers had arrived, Pharaoh and his servants were ecstatic. 17 Pharaoh told Joseph, “Be sure to tell your brothers, ‘Do this: load up your livestock, go back to the land of Canaan, 18 get your father and your households, and come back to me. I’ll give you the best of the land of Egypt and you can live off the abundance of the land.’ 19 In addition,” Pharaoh ordered, “Do this: take some transport wagons from the land of Egypt for your little ones to ride in, along with your wives, and bring your father and come! 20 Don’t worry about your household goods, because the best of all the land of Egypt is yours.”
Joseph’s Brothers Go Back Home
21 So Israel’s sons did what they were asked to do, and Joseph provided wagons for them, as Pharaoh had commanded. He also gave them provisions for the journey. 22 He gave each of them some changes of clothes, but he also gave Benjamin 300 pieces of silver and five changes of clothes. 23 He sent his father ten male donkeys loaded with the best of Egyptian goods and ten female donkeys loaded with grain, bread, and provisions for his father during the journey. 24 Then Joseph[j] sent his brothers away, and they left for home.[k] As they were leaving, Joseph admonished them, “Don’t quarrel on the way back!”
25 So Joseph’s brothers[l] left Egypt and returned to the land of Canaan and to their father Jacob, 26 where they informed their father, “Joseph is still alive! As a matter of fact, he’s ruling the entire land of Egypt.” But Jacob didn’t believe them, because he had become cynical.[m] 27 However, as soon as his sons[n] had told him everything Joseph had said, and after he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent along to carry him, their father Jacob’s spirit was encouraged.
28 “It’s enough,” Israel replied. “My son Joseph is still alive. I’m going to go see him before I die!”
Jesus is Taken to Pilate(A)
15 As soon as it was morning, the high priests convened a meeting with the elders and scribes and the whole Council.[a] They bound Jesus with chains, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate. 2 Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”
Jesus[b] answered him, “You say so.”
3 The high priests kept accusing him of many things. 4 So Pilate asked him again, “Don’t you have any answer? Look how many accusations they’re bringing against you!” 5 But since Jesus no longer answered, Pilate was astonished.
Jesus is Sentenced to Death(B)
6 At every festival,[c] Pilate[d] would release any one prisoner whom the people[e] requested. 7 Now there was a man in prison named Barabbas. He had been with the insurgents who had committed murder during the rebellion. 8 So the crowd came and began to request that Pilate[f] do for them what he always did.[g] 9 Pilate answered them, “Do you want me to release the king of the Jews for you?” 10 because he knew that the high priests had handed him over due to jealousy.
11 But the high priests stirred up the crowd to get him to release Barabbas for them instead. 12 So Pilate asked them again, “Then what should I do with the man you call[h] ‘the King of the Jews’?”
13 “Crucify him!” they shouted back.
14 “Why?” Pilate asked them. “What has he done wrong?”
But they shouted even louder, “Crucify him!”
15 So Pilate, wanting to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas for them, but he had Jesus whipped and handed over to be crucified.
The Soldiers Make Fun of Jesus(C)
16 The soldiers led Jesus[i] into the courtyard of the palace (that is, the governor’s headquarters)[j] and called out the whole guard. 17 They dressed him in a purple robe, twisted some thorns into a victor’s crown, and placed it on his head.[k] 18 They began to greet him, “Long live the king of the Jews!” 19 They kept hitting him on the head with a stick, spitting on him, kneeling in front of him, and worshiping him. 20 When they had finished making fun of him, they stripped him of the purple robe, put his own clothes back on him, and led him away to crucify him.
Jesus is Crucified(D)
21 They forced a certain passer-by named[l] Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus, who happened to be coming in from the country, to carry Jesus’[m] cross. 22 They took Jesus[n] to a place called Golgotha, which means Skull Place. 23 They tried to give him wine mixed with myrrh, but he wouldn’t accept it. 24 Then they crucified him. They divided his clothes among themselves by throwing dice to see what each one would get. 25 It was nine in the morning[o] when they crucified him. 26 The written notice of the charge against him read, “The king of the Jews.” 27 They crucified two bandits[p] with him, one on his right and the other on his left.[q] 29 Those who passed by kept insulting[r] him, shaking their heads, and saying, “Ha! You who were going to destroy the sanctuary and rebuild it in three days— 30 save yourself and come down from the cross!”
31 In the same way, the high priests, along with the scribes, were also making fun of him among themselves. They kept saying, “He saved others, but can’t save himself! 32 Let the Messiah,[s] the king of Israel, come down from the cross now, since seeing is believing!” Even the men who were crucified with him kept insulting him.
Jesus Dies on the Cross(E)
33 At noon,[t] darkness came over the whole land[u] until three in the afternoon.[v] 34 At three o’clock,[w] Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, eloi,[x] lema sabachthani?”[y] (which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”)[z]
35 When some of the people standing there heard this, they said, “Listen! He’s calling for Elijah!”[aa]
36 So someone ran and soaked a sponge in some sour wine. Then he put it on a stick and offered Jesus[ab] a drink, saying, “Wait! Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down!”
37 Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 The curtain[ac] in the sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom. 39 When the centurion[ad] who stood facing Jesus[ae] saw how he had cried out and[af] breathed his last, he said, “This man certainly was the Son of God!”
40 Now there were women watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene,[ag] Mary the mother of young James and Joseph, and Salome. 41 They used to accompany him and care for him while he was in Galilee. Many other women who had come up to Jerusalem with him were there, too.
Jesus is Buried(F)
42 It was the Day of Preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath. Since it was already evening, 43 Joseph of Arimathea, a highly respected member of the Council,[ah] who was waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. 44 Pilate was amazed to hear[ai] that Jesus[aj] had already died, so he summoned the centurion to ask him if he was in fact dead. 45 When he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he let Joseph have the corpse. 46 Joseph[ak] bought some linen cloth, took the body[al] down, wrapped it in the cloth, laid it in a tomb that had been cut out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. 47 Now Mary Magdalene[am] and Mary the mother of Joseph observed where the body[an] had been laid.
Zophar Accuses Job
11 Zophar from Naamath had this to say:
2 “Shouldn’t a multitude of words be answered,
or a person who talks too much[a] be vindicated?
3 Will your irrational babble silence people,
and when you mock them,
will you escape without being shamed?[b]
4 You’ve said, ‘My teaching is flawless;
I’m clean[c] in God’s[d] sight.’
5 “But what if God were to speak?
What if he were[e] to talk[f] with you,
6 and disclose his wise secrets?
After all, there’s so much more[g] to understanding.
So be aware that God will exact from you
less than your sin deserves.”
God’s Wisdom is Unfathomable
7 “Can you search through God’s complex things?
Can you uncover the limits of the Almighty?
8 These things are higher than the heavens,
so what can you do?
They are deeper than Sheol,[h]
so what can you know?
9 They are longer than the earth’s circumference,[i]
and broader than the ocean.
10 “If he bypasses, or imprisons, or convenes a court,[j]
who can stop[k] him?
11 For he knows mankind’s[l] deceitfulness;
when he sees iniquity, won’t he himself consider it?
12 An empty-headed person will gain understanding
when a wild donkey is born a human being!”
Zophar Counsels Job to Repent
13 “Now for you, if you will prepare your heart,
spread out your hands to him.
14 If you have any iniquity, throw it far away.
Don’t let evil[m] live in your residence.[n]
15 Then your confidence will be flawless,
and your security will keep you from terror.
16 You’ll forget your suffering;
you’ll remember it like water that has evaporated.[o]
17 Your life will be brighter than noonday.
Even its darkness will be like dawn.
18 You’ll be secure, because there is hope;
you’ll see that you’re at rest and safe.
19 When you sleep, there’ll be nothing to fear;
and many will court your favor.[p]
20 But what the wicked look for will fail;
their way of escape will be taken away[q] from them;
their only hope is to take their final breath.”[r]
Please Others, Not Yourselves
15 Now we who are strong ought to be patient with the weaknesses of those who are not strong and must stop pleasing ourselves. 2 Each of us must please our neighbor for the good purpose of building him up. 3 For even the Messiah[a] did not please himself. Instead, as it is written, “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.”[b] 4 For everything that was written long ago was written to instruct us, so that we might have hope through the endurance and encouragement that the Scriptures give us.[c]
5 Now may God, the source of endurance and encouragement, allow you to live in harmony with each other as you follow the Messiah[d] Jesus,[e] 6 so that with one mind and one voice you might glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah.[f]
7 Therefore, accept one another, just as the Messiah[g] accepted you,[h] for the glory of God. 8 For I tell you that the Messiah[i] became a servant of the circumcised on behalf of God’s truth in order to confirm the promises given to our ancestors, 9 so that the gentiles may glorify God for his mercy. As it is written,
10 Again he says,[l]
“Rejoice, you gentiles, with his people!”[m]
11 And again,
12 And again, Isaiah says,
“There will be a Root[q] from Jesse.
He will rise up to rule the gentiles,
and the gentiles will hope in him.”[r]
13 Now may God, the source of hope, fill you with all joy and peace as you believe, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Paul’s Desire to Take the Gospel to the Whole World
14 I myself am convinced,[s] my brothers, that you yourselves are filled with goodness and full of all the knowledge you need to be able to instruct each other. 15 However, on some points I have written to you rather boldly, both as a reminder to you and because of the grace given me by God 16 to be a minister of the Messiah[t] Jesus to the gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering brought by gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
17 Therefore, in the Messiah[u] Jesus I have the right to boast about my work for God. 18 For I am bold enough to tell you only about what the Messiah[v] has accomplished through me in bringing gentiles to obedience. By my words and actions, 19 by the power of signs and wonders, and by the power of God’s Spirit,[w] I have fully proclaimed the gospel of the Messiah[x] from Jerusalem as far as Illyricum. 20 My one ambition is to proclaim the gospel where the name of the Messiah[y] is not known, so I don’t[z] build on someone else’s foundation. 21 Rather, as it is written,
“Those who were never told about him will see,
and those who have never heard will understand.”[aa]
Paul’s Plan to Visit Rome
22 This is why I have so often been hindered from coming to you. 23 But now, having no further opportunities in these regions, I want to come to you, as I’ve desired to do for many years. 24 Now that I am on my way to Spain, I hope to see you when I come your way and, after I have enjoyed your company for a while, to be sent on by you.
25 Right now, however, I’m going to Jerusalem to minister to the saints, 26 because the believers in[ab] Macedonia and Achaia have been eager to share their resources with the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. 27 Yes, they were eager to do this, and in fact they are obligated to help them, for if the gentiles have shared in their spiritual blessings, they are obligated to be of service to them in material things.
28 So when I have completed this task and have put my seal on this contribution of theirs, I will visit you on my way to Spain. 29 And I know that when I come to you I will come with the full blessing of the Messiah.[ac]
30 Now I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus, the Messiah,[ad] and by the love that the Spirit produces, to join me in my struggle, earnestly praying to God for me 31 that I may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea, that my ministry to Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, 32 and that if it’s God’s will, I may come to you with joy and be refreshed together with you.
Doxology
33 Now may the God who grants[ae] peace be with all of you! Amen.
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