M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Moses and Aaron Before the King
5 After Moses and Aaron talked to the people, they went to the king of Egypt. They said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘Let my people go so they may hold a feast for me in the desert.’”
2 But the king of Egypt said, “Who is the Lord? Why should I obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord. And I will not let Israel go.”
3 Then Aaron and Moses said, “The God of the Hebrews has talked with us. Now let us travel three days into the desert. There we will offer sacrifices to the Lord our God. If we don’t do this, he may kill us with a disease or in war.”
4 But the king said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their work? Go back to your hard work! 5 There are very many Hebrews. And now you want them to quit their hard work!”
6 That same day the king gave a command to the slave masters and foremen. 7 He said, “Don’t give the people straw to make bricks as you used to do. Let them gather their own straw. 8 But they must still make the same number of bricks as they did before. Do not accept fewer. They have become lazy. That is why they are asking me, ‘Let us go to offer sacrifices to our God.’ 9 Make these people work harder. Keep them busy. Then they will not have time to listen to the lies of Moses.”
10 So the slave masters and foremen went to the Israelites and said, “This is what the king says: I will no longer give you straw. 11 Go and get your own straw wherever you can find it. But you must make as many bricks as you made before.” 12 So the people went everywhere in Egypt looking for dry stalks to use for straw. 13 The slave masters kept forcing the people to work harder. They said, “You must make just as many bricks as you did when you were given straw.” 14 The king’s slave masters had chosen the Israelite foremen. They had made them responsible for the work the people did. The Egyptian slave masters beat these men and asked them, “Why aren’t you making as many bricks as you made in the past?”
15 Then the Israelite foremen went to the king. They complained and said, “Why are you treating us, your servants, this way? 16 You give us no straw. But we are commanded to make bricks. Our slave masters beat us. But it is your own people’s fault.”
17 The king answered, “You are lazy! You don’t want to work! That is why you ask to leave here and make sacrifices to the Lord. 18 Now, go back to work! We will not give you any straw. But you must make just as many bricks as you did before.”
19 The Israelite foremen knew they were in trouble. This was because the king had told them: “You must make just as many bricks each day as you did before.” 20 As they were leaving the meeting with the king, they met Moses and Aaron. Moses and Aaron were waiting for them. 21 So they said to Moses and Aaron, “May the Lord punish you. You caused the king and his officers to hate us. You have given them an excuse to kill us.”
Moses Complains to God
22 Then Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Lord, why have you brought this trouble on your people? Is this why you sent me here? 23 I went to the king and said what you told me to say. But ever since that time he has made the people suffer. And you have done nothing to save them.”
The Group with Jesus
8 The next day, while Jesus was traveling through some cities and small towns, he preached and told the Good News about God’s kingdom. The 12 apostles were with him. 2 There were also some women with him who had been healed of sicknesses and evil spirits. One of the women was Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out. 3 Also among the women were Joanna, the wife of Chuza (Herod’s helper), Susanna, and many other women. These women used their own money to help Jesus and his apostles.
A Story About Planting Seed
4 A great crowd gathered. People were coming to Jesus from every town. He told them this story:
5 “A farmer went out to plant his seed. While he was planting, some seed fell beside the road. People walked on the seed, and the birds ate all this seed. 6 Some seed fell on rock. It began to grow but then died because it had no water. 7 Some seed fell among thorny weeds. This seed grew, but later the weeds choked the good plants. 8 And some seed fell on good ground. This seed grew and made 100 times more grain.”
Jesus finished the story. Then he called out, “Let those with ears use them and listen!”
9 Jesus’ followers asked him, “What does this story mean?”
10 Jesus said, “You have been chosen to know the secret truths of the kingdom of God. But I use stories to speak to other people. I do this so that:
‘They will look, but they may not see.
They will listen, but they may not understand.’ Isaiah 6:9
11 “This is what the story means: The seed is God’s teaching. 12 What is the seed that fell beside the road? It is like the people who hear God’s teaching, but then the devil comes and takes it away from their hearts. So they cannot believe the teaching and be saved. 13 What is the seed that fell on rock? It is like those who hear God’s teaching and accept it gladly. But they don’t have deep roots. They believe for a while, but then trouble comes. They stop believing and turn away from God. 14 What is the seed that fell among the thorny weeds? It is like those who hear God’s teaching, but they let the worries, riches, and pleasures of this life keep them from growing. So they never produce good fruit. 15 And what is the seed that fell on the good ground? That is like those who hear God’s teaching with a good, honest heart. They obey God’s teaching and patiently produce good fruit.
Use What You Have
16 “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. Instead, he puts the lamp on a lampstand so that those who come in will have enough light to see. 17 Everything that is hidden will become clear. Every secret thing will be made known. 18 So be careful how you listen. The person who has something will be given more. But to the person who has nothing, this will happen: Even what he thinks he has will be taken away from him.”
Jesus’ True Family
19 Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him. There was such a crowd that they could not get to him. 20 Someone said to Jesus, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside. They want to see you.”
21 Jesus answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who listen to God’s teaching and obey it!”
Jesus Stops a Storm
22 One day Jesus and his followers got into a boat. He said to them, “Come with me across the lake.” And so they started across. 23 While they were sailing, Jesus fell asleep. A big storm blew up on the lake. The boat began to fill with water, and they were in danger.
24 The followers went to Jesus and woke him. They said, “Master! Master! We will drown!”
Jesus got up and gave a command to the wind and the waves. The wind stopped, and the lake became calm. 25 Jesus said to his followers, “Where is your faith?”
The followers were afraid and amazed. They said to each other, “What kind of man is this? He commands the wind and the water, and they obey him!”
A Man with Demons Inside Him
26 Jesus and his followers sailed across the lake from Galilee to the area where the Gerasene[a] people live. 27 When Jesus got out of the boat, a man from the town came to Jesus. This man had demons inside him. For a long time he had worn no clothes. He lived in the burial caves, not in a house. 28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him. The man said with a loud voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Please don’t punish me!” 29 He said this because Jesus had commanded the evil spirit to come out of him. Many times it had taken hold of him. He had been kept under guard and chained hand and foot. But he had broken his chains and had been driven by the demon out into the desert.
30 Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”
The man answered, “Legion.”[b] (He said his name was “Legion” because many demons were in him.) 31 The demons begged Jesus not to send them into eternal darkness.[c] 32 On the hill there was a large herd of pigs eating. The demons begged Jesus to allow them to go into the pigs. So Jesus allowed them to do this. 33 Then the demons came out of the man and went into the pigs. The herd of pigs ran down the hill and into the lake. All the pigs drowned.
34 The men who took care of the pigs ran away. They told about this in the town and the countryside. 35 And people went to see what had happened. They came to Jesus and found the man sitting there at Jesus’ feet. The man was clothed and in his right mind because the demons were gone. But the people were frightened. 36 The men who saw these things happen told the others all about how Jesus had made the man well. 37 All the people of the Gerasene country asked Jesus to go away. They were all very afraid. So Jesus got into the boat and went back across the lake.
38 The man that Jesus had healed begged to go with him. But Jesus sent him away, saying, 39 “Go back home and tell people what God did for you.” So the man went all over town telling how much Jesus had done for him.
Jesus Gives Life to a Dead Girl and Heals a Sick Woman
40 When Jesus got back to the other side of the lake, a crowd welcomed him. Everyone was waiting for him. 41 A man named Jairus came to Jesus. Jairus was a ruler of the synagogue. He bowed down at Jesus’ feet and begged him to come to his house. 42 Jairus had only one daughter. She was 12 years old, and she was dying.
While Jesus was on his way to Jairus’ house, the people were crowding all around him. 43 A woman was there who had been bleeding for 12 years. She had spent all her money on doctors, but no doctor was able to heal her. 44 The woman came up behind Jesus and touched the edge of his coat. At that moment, her bleeding stopped. 45 Then Jesus said, “Who touched me?”
All the people said they had not touched Jesus. Peter said, “Master, the people are all around you and are pushing against you.”
46 But Jesus said, “Someone did touch me! I felt power go out from me.” 47 When the woman saw that she could not hide, she came forward, shaking. She bowed down before Jesus. While all the people listened, she told why she had touched him. Then, she said, she was healed immediately. 48 Jesus said to her, “Dear woman, you are healed because you believed. Go in peace.”
49 While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of the synagogue ruler and said to the ruler, “Your daughter has died! Don’t bother the teacher now.”
50 When Jesus heard this, he said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid. Just believe, and your daughter will be well.”
51 Jesus went to the house. He let only Peter, John, James, and the girl’s father and mother go inside with him. 52 All the people were crying and feeling sad because the girl was dead. But Jesus said, “Don’t cry. She is not dead; she is only sleeping.”
53 The people laughed at Jesus because they knew that the girl was dead. 54 But Jesus took her by the hand and called to her, “My child, stand up!” 55 Her spirit came back into her, and she stood up immediately. Jesus said, “Give her something to eat.” 56 The girl’s parents were amazed. Jesus told them not to tell anyone about what happened.
Eliphaz Answers
22 Then Eliphaz the Temanite answered:
2 “A man cannot be of any real use to God.
Even a wise man does him no good.
3 It does not help God All-Powerful for you to be good.
He gains nothing if you are innocent.
4 God does not punish you for respecting him.
He does not bring you into court for this.
5 No! It is because your evil is without limits.
And your sins have no end.
6 You took your brothers’ things to pay a debt they didn’t owe.
You took clothes from people and left them naked.
7 You did not give water to tired people.
And you kept food away from the hungry.
8 You were a powerful man who owned land.
You were honored and lived in the land.
9 But you sent widows away without giving them anything.
You even mistreated orphans.
10 That is why traps are all around you.
That is why sudden danger frightens you.
11 That is why it is so dark you cannot see.
And that is why a flood of water covers you.
12 “God is in the highest part of heaven.
See how high the highest stars are!
13 But you say, ‘God knows nothing.
He cannot judge us through the dark clouds.
14 Thick clouds cover him so he cannot see us.
He walks around high up in the sky.’
15 Are you going to stay on the old path
where evil people walk?
16 They were carried away before their time was up.
Their foundations were washed away by a flood.
17 They said to God, ‘Leave us alone!
God All-Powerful can do nothing to us.’
18 But it was God who filled their houses with good things.
He did this even though their way of thinking was not godly.
19 “Good people can watch and be glad.
Innocent people can laugh at them and say,
20 ‘Surely our enemies are destroyed.
And fire burns up their wealth.’
21 “Obey God, and then you will be at peace with him.
This way you can be happy.
22 Accept teaching from his mouth.
Keep his words in your heart.
23 If you return to God All-Powerful, you will be blessed again.
Remove evil from your house.
24 Throw your gold nuggets into the dust.
Throw your fine gold to the rocks in the ravines.
25 Then God All-Powerful will be your gold.
He will be the best silver for you.
26 You will find pleasure in God All-Powerful.
And you will look up to him.
27 You will pray to him, and he will hear you.
And you will keep your promises to him.
28 Anything you decide will be done.
And light will shine on your ways.
29 When terrible things happen to people, you will say, ‘Have courage.’
Then those who are humble will be saved.
30 Even the guilty will escape.
They will be saved because your hands are clean.”
Paul Is Like the Other Apostles
9 I am a free man. I am an apostle. I have seen Jesus our Lord. You people are all an example of my work in the Lord. 2 Others may not accept me as an apostle, but surely you accept me. You are proof that I am an apostle in the Lord.
3 Some people want to judge me. So this is the answer I give them: 4 Do we not have the right to eat and drink? 5 Do we not have the right to bring a believing wife with us when we travel? The other apostles, the Lord’s brothers, and Peter all do this. 6 And are Barnabas and I the only ones who must work to earn our living? 7 No soldier ever serves in the army and pays his own salary. No one ever plants a vineyard without eating some of the grapes himself. No person takes care of a flock of sheep without drinking some of the milk himself.
8 This is not only what men think. God’s law says the same thing. 9 Yes, it is written in the law of Moses: “When an ox is working in the grain, do not cover its mouth and keep it from eating.”[a] When God said this, was he thinking only about oxen? No. 10 He was really talking about us. Yes, that Scripture was written for us. The one who plows and the one who works in the grain should hope to get some of the grain for their work. 11 We planted spiritual seed among you. So we should be able to harvest from you some things for this life. Surely this is not asking too much. 12 Other men have the right to get something from you. So surely we have this right, too. But we do not use this right. No, we put up with everything ourselves so that we will not stop anyone from obeying the Good News of Christ. 13 Surely you know that those who work at the Temple get their food from the Temple. And those who serve at the altar get part of what is offered at the altar. 14 It is the same with those who tell the Good News. The Lord has commanded that those who tell the Good News should get their living from this work.
15 But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this now to get anything from you. I would rather die than to have my reason for bragging taken away. 16 Telling the Good News is not my reason for bragging. Telling the Good News is my duty—something I must do. And how bad it will be for me if I do not tell the Good News. 17 If I preach because it is my own choice, I should get a reward. But I have no choice. I must tell the Good News. I am only doing the duty that was given to me. 18 So what reward do I get? This is my reward: that when I tell the Good News I can offer it freely. In this way I do not use my right to be paid in my work for the Good News.
19 I am free. I belong to no man. But I make myself a slave to all people. I do this to help save as many people as I can. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew. I did this to help save the Jews. I myself am not ruled by the law. But to those who are ruled by the law I became like a person who is ruled by the law. I did this to help save those who are ruled by the law. 21 To those who are without the law I became like a person who is without the law. I did this to help save those people who are without the law. (But really, I am not without God’s law—I am ruled by Christ’s law.) 22 To those who are weak, I became weak so that I could help save them. I have become all things to all people. I did this so that I could save some of them in any way possible. 23 I do all this because of the Good News. I do it so that I can share in the blessings of the Good News.
24 You know that in a race all the runners run. But only one gets the prize. So run like that. Run to win! 25 All those who compete in the games use strict training. They do this so that they can win a crown. That crown is an earthly thing that lasts only a short time. But our crown will continue forever. 26 So I do not run without a goal. I fight like a boxer who is hitting something—not just the air. 27 It is my own body that I hit. I make it my slave. I do this so that I myself will not be rejected after I have preached to others.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.