M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Hagar and Ishmael
16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not borne him children. But she had an Egyptian slave-girl—her name was Hagar. 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Look now, Adonai has prevented me from having children. Go, please, to my slave-girl. Perhaps I’ll get a son by her.”
Abram listened to Sarai’s voice. 3 So Sarai, Abram’s wife, took her slave-girl Hagar the Egyptian—after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan—and gave her to Abram her husband to be his wife. 4 Then he went to Hagar and she became pregnant. When she saw that she was pregnant, in her eyes her mistress was belittled.
5 So Sarai said to Abram, “The wrong done to me is because of you! I myself placed my slave-girl in your embrace. Now that she saw that she became pregnant, so in her eyes I am belittled. May Adonai judge between you and me!”
6 Abram said to Sarai, “Look! Your slave-girl is in your hand. Do to her what is good in your eyes.”
So Sarai afflicted her, and she fled from her presence. 7 Then the angel of Adonai[a] found her by the spring of water in the wilderness, next to the spring on the way to Shur. 8 He said, “Hagar, Sarai’s slave-girl, where have you come from and where are you going?”
She said, “I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.”
9 The angel of Adonai said, “Return to your mistress and humble yourself under her hand.” 10 Then the angel of Adonai said to her, “I will bountifully multiply your seed, and they will be too many to count.” 11 Then the angel of Adonai said to her,
Behold, you are pregnant
and about to bear a son,
and you shall name him Ishmael—
for Adonai has heard your affliction.
12 He will be a wild donkey of a man.
His hand will be against everyone,
and everyone’s hand against him,
and away from all his brothers will he dwell.
13 So she called Adonai who was speaking to her, “You are the God who sees me.” For she said, “Would I have gone here indeed looking for Him who looks after me?” 14 That is why the well is named, the Well of the Living One Who Sees Me. (Behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.)
15 Then Hagar gave birth to a son for Abram, and Abram named his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. 16 Abram was 86 years old when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael for Abram.
Religious Leaders Quiz Yeshua
15 Then some Pharisees and Torah scholars came to Yeshua from Jerusalem. They said, 2 “Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not do the ritual handwashing when they eat bread.”
3 And answering, He said to them, “Why do you also transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’[a] and ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death.’ [b] 5 But you say, ‘Whoever tells his father or mother, “Whatever you might have gained from me is a gift to God,” [c] 6 he need not honor his father.’ On account of your tradition, you made void the word of God. 7 Hypocrites! Rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying,
8 ‘This people honors Me with their lips,
but their heart is far from Me.
9 And in vain they worship Me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”[d]
10 Then Yeshua called the crowd and said to them, “Hear and understand. 11 It’s not what goes into the mouth that makes the man unholy; but what comes out of the mouth, this makes the man unholy.”[e]
12 Then the disciples came and said to Him, “Do You know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard this saying?”
13 But He replied, “Every plant that My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. 14 Leave them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”
15 Then Peter answered and said to Him, “Explain this parable to us.”
16 “Are you also still lacking understanding?” Yeshua said. 17 “Don’t you grasp that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and then is ejected into the sewer? 18 But the things that proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart, and those things make the man unholy. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, and slander. [f] 20 These are the things that make the man unholy; but to eat with unwashed hands does not make the man unholy.”
A Reward for a Humble Woman
21 Now Yeshua left from there and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that district came out and started shouting, “Have mercy on me, O Master, Ben-David! My daughter is severely tormented by a demon.”
23 But He did not answer her a word. And when His disciples came, they were urging Him, saying, “Send her away, because she keeps shouting at us.”
24 But He responded, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
25 So she came and got down on her knees before Him, saying, “Master, help me!”
26 And answering, He said, “It’s not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”
27 But she said, “Yes, Master, but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
28 Then answering, Yeshua said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed in that very hour.
29 After Yeshua left there, He went along the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up on a mountainside and was sitting there. 30 And large crowds came to Him, bringing with them the lame, blind, disabled, mute, and many others. And they laid them at His feet, and He healed them. 31 So the crowd marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the disabled made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing.[g] And they praised the God of Israel.
Feeding More Hungry Followers
32 Yeshua called His disciples and said, “I have compassion for the crowd, because they’ve stayed with Me for three days now and have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry, because they might pass out on the way.”
33 The disciples said to Him, “Where in this wasteland is enough bread to satisfy such a large crowd?”
34 Yeshua said to them, “How many loaves do you have?”
“Seven,” they said, “and a few small fish.”
35 After directing the crowd to recline on the ground, 36 He took the seven loaves and the fish; and after giving thanks, He broke them. And He began giving them to the disciples, and the disciples to the crowds. 37 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they picked up the broken pieces left over—seven baskets full. 38 And those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And after sending away the crowds, Yeshua got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.
Considering the Poor
5 Then there was a great outcry from the people and their wives to their fellow Jews. 2 There were those who said, “We and our sons and our daughters are numerous. We must take grain, so we may eat and live.”
3 There were others who said, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards and our houses in order to obtain grain during the famine.”
4 Still others were saying, “We have borrowed money to pay the king’s tax on our fields and vineyards. 5 And now, though we share the same flesh as our brothers, and our children are just like their children, still we subject our sons and our daughters to slavery. Some of our daughters have already been enslaved but our hands are tied since our fields and vineyards belong to others.”
6 I was very angry when I heard their outcry and these words. 7 I pondered them in my heart and then I opposed the nobles and the officials, saying to them, “Usury! Each of you is putting his brother in debt!”
So I convened a great assembly to deal with them. 8 I said to them, “As much as possible, we have bought back our fellow Jews who had been sold to the nations. Now you also are selling your brothers so that they will be sold back to us?” Then they became silent and could not find anything to say.
9 Then I said, “The thing that you are doing is not good! Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God, in order to avoid the reproach of our Gentile enemies? 10 Even I, my brothers, and my servants are lending them money and grain. Let this usury stop, now! 11 Now, return to them this very day, their fields, their vineyards, their olive groves and their houses, as well as the hundredth that you have extracted from them on the money, the grain, the new wine, and the fresh oil.”
12 Then they said, “We will restore these and require nothing from them. We will do just as you say.”
Then I summoned the kohanim and I made them swear to do according to this promise. 13 Also I shook out my garment, and said, “In this way may God shake out from His house and from His property every one that does not keep this promise. In this way may he be shaken out and emptied!”
And all the assembly replied, “Amen!” and they praised Adonai. So the people did according to this promise.
Nehemiah’s Unselfishness
14 Moreover, from the day when I was appointed to be the governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year to the thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes—twelve years—neither I, nor my relatives have eaten the bread allocated to the governor. 15 The earlier governors, those preceding me, placed heavy burdens on the people, and took bread and wine from them, in addition to forty shekels of silver. Their attendants also lorded over the people. But I did not do so, out of fear of God. 16 Instead, I devoted myself to the work on this wall, without even buying a field. All my attendants were gathered there for the work.
17 Furthermore, 150 Judeans and officials, as well as those that came to us from the nations around us, were at my table. 18 Now, each day one ox and six choice sheep, as well as some fowl, were prepared for me, and every ten days an abundance of every kind of wine was prepared. Despite all this, I did not require the governor’s food allowance, because the work was already heavy on this people.
19 Remember me for good, O my God, for all that I have done for this people.
Jerusalem Council Rules on Circumcision
15 Now some men coming down from Judea were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 When Paul and Barnabas had a big argument and debate with them, the brothers appointed Paul and Barnabas with some others from among them to go up to Jerusalem to the emissaries and elders about this issue.
3 So they were sent on their way by the Antioch community. They were passing through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and they were bringing great joy to all the brothers and sisters. 4 When they arrived in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the community and the emissaries and the elders. They reported all that God had done in helping them.
5 But some belonging to the party of the Pharisees who had believed stood up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to command them to keep the Torah of Moses.”
6 The emissaries and elders were gathered together to examine this issue. 7 After much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God chose from among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the message of the Good News and believe. 8 And God, who knows the heart, testified to them by giving them the Ruach ha-Kodesh—just as He also did for us. 9 He made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts through faith. 10 Why then do you put God to the test by putting a yoke on the neck of the disciples—which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? 11 But instead, we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Yeshua, in the same way as they are.”
12 Then the whole group became silent and were listening to Barnabas and Paul as they were describing in detail all the signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles. 13 After they finished speaking, Jacob answered, “Brothers, listen to me. 14 Simon has described how God first showed His concern by taking from the Gentiles a people for His Name. 15 The words of the Prophets agree, as it is written:
16 ‘After this I will return
and rebuild the fallen tabernacle of David.
I will rebuild its ruins
and I will restore it,
17 so that the rest of humanity may seek the Lord—
namely all the Gentiles who are called by My name—
says Adonai,
who makes these things [a] 18 known from of old.’[b]
19 Therefore, I judge not to trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God— 20 but to write to them to abstain from the contamination of idols, and from sexual immorality, and from what is strangled, and from blood. [c] 21 For Moses from ancient generations has had in every city those who proclaim him, since he is read in all the synagogues every Shabbat.”
Letter to Diaspora Communities
22 Then it seemed good to the emissaries and elders, with the whole community, to choose men from among themselves to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judah (also called Barsabbas) and Silas, leading men among the brethren, 23 and this letter along with them:
“The emissaries and the elders, your brothers,
To the Gentile brothers of Antioch, Syria,
and Cilicia:
Greetings!
24 Since we have heard that some from among us have troubled you with words disturbing to your souls,[d] although we gave them no such authorization, 25 it seemed good to us, having come to one accord, to select men to send to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul— 26 men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah. 27 We therefore have sent to you Judah and Silas, who themselves will report to you the same things by word of mouth. 28 It seemed good to the Ruach ha-Kodesh and to us not to place on you any greater burden than these essentials: 29 that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. By keeping away from these things, you will do well.
Shalom!”
30 So when they were sent off, they went down to Antioch; and when they had gathered the whole group together, they delivered the letter. 31 The people read it and rejoiced over its encouragement. 32 Judah and Silas, prophets themselves, encouraged the brothers and sisters with a long message and strengthened them.
33 After spending some time there, they were sent off with shalom by the brothers and sisters to those who had sent them. 34 [e] 35 But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, teaching and proclaiming the word of the Lord with many others.
New Teams Strengthen Communities
36 After some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let’s return and visit the brothers and sisters in every city where we have proclaimed the word of the Lord, to see how they are.” 37 Barnabas was planning to take along John, called Mark. 38 But Paul was insisting that they shouldn’t take him along—the one who had deserted them in Pamphylia, not accompanying them in the work. 39 A sharp disagreement took place, so that they split off from one another. Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus. 40 But Paul selected Silas and went out, being entrusted by the brothers and sisters to the gracious care of the Lord. 41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the communities.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.