M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Census and Plague
21 Satan stood up against Israel and incited David to count the people of Israel.(A) 2 So David said to Joab and the commanders of the army, “Go, number Israel, from Beer-sheba to Dan, and bring me a report, so that I may know their number.”(B) 3 But Joab said, “May the Lord increase the number of his people a hundredfold! Are they not, my lord the king, all of them my lord’s servants? Why then should my lord require this? Why should he bring guilt on Israel?”(C) 4 But the king’s word prevailed against Joab. So Joab departed and went throughout all Israel and came back to Jerusalem. 5 Joab gave the total count of the people to David. In all Israel there were one million one hundred thousand men who drew the sword, and in Judah four hundred seventy thousand who drew the sword.(D) 6 But he did not include Levi and Benjamin in the numbering, for the king’s command was abhorrent to Joab.(E)
7 But God was displeased with this thing, and he struck Israel. 8 David said to God, “I have sinned greatly in that I have done this thing. But now, please remove the guilt of your servant, for I have done very foolishly.”(F) 9 The Lord spoke to Gad, David’s seer, saying, 10 “Go and say to David: Thus says the Lord: Three things I offer you; choose one of them, so that I may do it to you.”(G) 11 So Gad came to David and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: Take your choice: 12 either three years of famine; or three months of devastation by your foes, while the sword of your enemies overtakes you; or three days of the sword of the Lord, pestilence on the land, and the angel of the Lord destroying throughout all the territory of Israel. Now decide what answer I shall return to the one who sent me.”(H) 13 Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress; let me fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is very great, but let me not fall into human hands.”(I)
14 So the Lord sent a pestilence on Israel, and seventy thousand persons fell in Israel.(J) 15 And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it, but when he was about to destroy it, the Lord took note and relented concerning the calamity; he said to the destroying angel, “Enough! Stay your hand.” The angel of the Lord was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.(K) 16 David looked up and saw the angel of the Lord standing between earth and heaven and in his hand a drawn sword stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell on their faces.(L) 17 And David said to God, “Was it not I who gave the command to count the people? It is I who have sinned and done very wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Let your hand, I pray, O Lord my God, be against me and against my father’s house, but do not let your people be plagued!”(M)
David’s Altar and Sacrifice
18 Then the angel of the Lord commanded Gad to tell David that he should go up and erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.(N) 19 So David went up following Gad’s instructions, which he had spoken in the name of the Lord. 20 Ornan turned and saw the king,[a] and while his four sons who were with him hid themselves, Ornan continued to thresh wheat. 21 As David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David; he went out from the threshing floor and prostrated himself before David with his face to the ground.(O) 22 David said to Ornan, “Give me the site of the threshing floor that I may build on it an altar to the Lord—give it to me at its full price—so that the plague may be averted from the people.” 23 Then Ornan said to David, “Take it, and let my lord the king do what seems good to him; see, I present the oxen for burnt offerings and the threshing sledges for the wood and the wheat for a grain offering. I give it all.” 24 But King David said to Ornan, “No, but I will buy them for the full price. I will not take for the Lord what is yours nor offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” 25 So David paid Ornan six hundred shekels of gold by weight for the site.(P) 26 David built there an altar to the Lord and presented burnt offerings and offerings of well-being. He called upon the Lord, and he answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering.(Q) 27 Then the Lord commanded the angel, and he put his sword back into its sheath.
The Place Chosen for the Temple
28 At that time, when David saw that the Lord had answered him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, he made his sacrifices there. 29 For the tabernacle of the Lord that Moses had made in the wilderness and the altar of burnt offering were at that time in the high place at Gibeon,(R) 30 but David could not go before it to inquire of God, for he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the Lord.
The Living Stone and a Chosen People
2 Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice and all guile, insincerity, envy, and all slander.(A) 2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation(B)— 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.[a](C)
4 Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and 5 like living stones let yourselves be built[b] into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.(D) 6 For it stands in scripture:
“See, I am laying in Zion a stone,
a cornerstone chosen and precious,
and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”(E)
7 This honor, then, is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe,[c]
“The stone that the builders rejected
has become the very head of the corner,”(F)
8 and
“A stone that makes them stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.”
They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.(G)
9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people,[d] in order that you may proclaim the excellence of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.(H)
10 Once you were not a people,
but now you are God’s people;
once you had not received mercy,
but now you have received mercy.(I)
Live as Servants of God
11 Beloved, I urge you as aliens and exiles to abstain from the desires of the flesh that wage war against the soul.[e](J) 12 Conduct yourselves honorably among the gentiles, so that, though they malign you as evildoers, they may see your honorable deeds and glorify God when he comes to judge.[f](K)
13 For the Lord’s sake be subject to every human authority,[g] whether to the emperor as supreme(L) 14 or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right. 15 For it is God’s will that by doing right you should silence the ignorance of the foolish. 16 As servants of God, live as free people, yet do not use your freedom as a pretext for evil.(M) 17 Honor everyone. Love the family of believers.[h] Fear God. Honor the emperor.(N)
The Example of Christ’s Suffering
18 Slaves, be subject to your masters with all respect,[i] not only those who are good and gentle but also those who are dishonest. 19 For it is a commendable thing if, being aware of God, a person endures pain while suffering unjustly. 20 If you endure when you are beaten for doing wrong, what credit is that? But if you endure when you do good and suffer for it, this is a commendable thing before God.(O) 21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps.(P)
22 “He committed no sin,
and no deceit was found in his mouth.”
23 When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly.(Q) 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross,[j] so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds[k] you have been healed.(R) 25 For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.[l](S)
Jonah’s Anger
4 But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry.(A) 2 He prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning, for I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from punishment.(B) 3 And now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.”(C) 4 And the Lord said, “Is it right for you to be angry?”(D) 5 Then Jonah went out of the city and sat down east of the city and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, waiting to see what would become of the city.(E)
6 The Lord God appointed a bush and made it come up over Jonah, to give shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort, so Jonah was very happy about the bush. 7 But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the bush, so that it withered. 8 When the sun rose, God prepared a sultry east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint and asked that he might die. He said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”
Jonah Is Reproved
9 But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the bush?” And he said, “Yes, angry enough to die.” 10 Then the Lord said, “You are concerned about the bush, for which you did not labor and which you did not grow; it came into being in a night and perished in a night. 11 And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left and also many animals?”(F)
The Mission of the Twelve
9 Then Jesus[a] called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases,(A) 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.(B) 3 He said to them, “Take nothing for your journey: no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money—not even an extra tunic.(C) 4 Whatever house you enter, stay there, and leave from there. 5 Wherever they do not welcome you, as you are leaving that town shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.”(D) 6 So they departed and went through the villages, bringing the good news and curing diseases everywhere.
Herod’s Perplexity
7 Now Herod the ruler heard about all that had taken place, and he was perplexed because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead,(E) 8 by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the ancient prophets had arisen.(F) 9 Herod said, “John I beheaded, but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And he tried to see him.(G)
Feeding the Five Thousand
10 On their return the apostles told Jesus[b] all they had done. Then, taking them along, he slipped quietly into a city called Bethsaida.(H) 11 When the crowds found out about it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God and healed those who needed to be cured.
12 The day was drawing to a close, and the twelve came to him and said, “Send the crowd away, so that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside to lodge and get provisions, for we are here in a deserted place.” 13 But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” They said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.”(I) 14 For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 15 They did so and had them all sit down. 16 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and blessed and broke them and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd.(J) 17 And all ate and were filled, and what was left over was gathered up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.
Peter’s Declaration about Jesus
18 Once when Jesus[c] was praying alone, with only the disciples near him, he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?”(K) 19 They answered, “John the Baptist; but others, Elijah; and still others, that one of the ancient prophets has arisen.”(L) 20 Then he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered, “The Messiah[d] of God.”(M)
Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection
21 He sternly ordered and commanded them not to tell anyone,(N) 22 saying, “The Son of Man must undergo great suffering and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes and be killed and on the third day be raised.”(O)
23 Then he said to them all, “If any wish to come after me, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.(P) 24 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it.(Q) 25 For what does it profit them if they gain the whole world but lose or forfeit themselves?(R) 26 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words, of them the Son of Man will be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.(S) 27 Indeed, truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.”(T)
The Transfiguration
28 Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus[e] took with him Peter and John and James and went up on the mountain to pray.(U) 29 And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. 31 They appeared in glory and were speaking about his exodus, which he was about to fulfill in Jerusalem.(V) 32 Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep, but as they awoke they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him.(W) 33 Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us set up three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah,” not realizing what he was saying.(X) 34 While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them, and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. 35 Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen;[f] listen to him!”(Y) 36 When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.(Z)
Jesus Heals a Boy with a Demon
37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 Just then a man from the crowd shouted, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son; he is my only child. 39 Suddenly a spirit seizes him, and all at once he[g] shrieks. It convulses him until he foams at the mouth; it mauls him and will scarcely leave him. 40 I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.” 41 Jesus answered, “You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.” 42 While he was being brought forward, the demon dashed him to the ground in convulsions. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43 And all were astounded at the greatness of God.
Jesus Again Foretells His Death
While everyone was amazed at all that he was doing, he said to his disciples,(AA) 44 “Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands.”(AB) 45 But they did not understand this saying; its meaning remained concealed from them, so that they could not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying.(AC)
True Greatness
46 An argument arose among them concerning which one of them was the greatest. 47 But Jesus, aware of their inner thoughts, took a little child and put it by his side 48 and said to them, “Whoever welcomes this child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me, for the least among all of you is the greatest.”(AD)
Another Exorcist
49 John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him because he does not follow with us.”(AE) 50 But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for whoever is not against you is for you.”(AF)
A Samaritan Village Refuses to Receive Jesus
51 When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.(AG) 52 And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to prepare for his arrival,(AH) 53 but they did not receive him because his face was set toward Jerusalem. 54 When his disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”[h](AI) 55 But he turned and rebuked them. 56 Then[i] they went on to another village.
Would-Be Followers of Jesus
57 As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” 59 To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”(AJ) 60 And Jesus[j] said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61 Another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” 62 And Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.