M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Birth of Isaac
21 The Lord came to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised.(A) 2 Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the appointed time God had told him.(B) 3 Abraham named his son who was born to him—the one Sarah bore to him—Isaac.(C) 4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God had commanded him.(D) 5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.(E)
6 Sarah said, “God has made me laugh, and everyone who hears will laugh with me.”[a](F) 7 She also said, “Who would have told Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne a son for him[b] in his old age.”
Hagar and Ishmael Sent Away
8 The child grew and was weaned, and Abraham held a great feast on the day Isaac was weaned. 9 But Sarah saw the son mocking—the one Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham.(G) 10 So she said to Abraham, “Drive out this slave with her son, for the son of this slave will not be a coheir with my son Isaac!” (H)
11 This was very distressing to[c] Abraham because of his son. 12 But God said to Abraham, “Do not be distressed[d] about the boy and about your slave. Whatever Sarah says to you, listen to her, because your offspring will be traced through Isaac,(I) 13 and I will also make a nation of the slave’s son(J) because he is your offspring.”
14 Early in the morning Abraham got up, took bread and a waterskin, put them on Hagar’s shoulders, and sent her and the boy away. She left and wandered in the Wilderness of Beer-sheba. 15 When the water in the skin was gone, she left the boy under one of the bushes 16 and went and sat at a distance, about a bowshot away, for she said, “I can’t bear to watch the boy die!” While she sat at a distance, she[e] wept loudly.(K)
17 God heard the boy crying, and the[f] angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What’s wrong, Hagar? Don’t be afraid, for God has heard the boy crying from the place where he is. 18 Get up, help the boy up, and grasp his hand, for I will make him a great nation.” 19 Then God opened her eyes,(L) and she saw a well. So she went and filled the waterskin and gave the boy a drink. 20 God was with the boy, and he grew; he settled in the wilderness and became an archer. 21 He settled in the Wilderness of Paran, and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
Abraham’s Covenant with Abimelech
22 At that time Abimelech, accompanied by Phicol the commander of his army,(M) said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do.(N) 23 Swear to me by God here and now, that you will not break an agreement with me or with my children and descendants. As I have been loyal to you, so you will be loyal to me and to the country where you are a resident alien.”
24 And Abraham said, “I swear it.” 25 But Abraham complained to Abimelech because of the well that Abimelech’s servants had seized.(O)
26 Abimelech replied, “I don’t know who did this thing. You didn’t report anything to me, so I hadn’t heard about it until today.”
27 Abraham took flocks and herds and gave them to Abimelech, and the two of them made a covenant.(P) 28 Abraham separated seven ewe lambs from the flock. 29 And Abimelech said to Abraham, “Why have you separated these seven ewe lambs?”
30 He replied, “You are to accept the seven ewe lambs from me so that this act[g] will serve as my witness that I dug this well.” 31 Therefore that place was called Beer-sheba[h](Q) because it was there that the two of them swore an oath. 32 After they had made a covenant at Beer-sheba, Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, left and returned to the land of the Philistines.
33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beer-sheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God.(R) 34 And Abraham lived as an alien in the land of the Philistines for many days.
The Parable of the Vineyard Workers
20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.(A) 2 After agreeing with the workers on one denarius,[a] he sent them into his vineyard for the day. 3 When he went out about nine in the morning,[b] he saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4 He said to them, ‘You also go into my vineyard, and I’ll give you whatever is right.’ So off they went. 5 About noon and about three,[c] he went out again and did the same thing. 6 Then about five[d] he went and found others standing around[e] and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day doing nothing?’
7 “‘Because no one hired us,’ they said to him.
“‘You also go into my vineyard,’ he told them.[f] 8 When evening came, the owner of the vineyard told his foreman, ‘Call the workers and give them their pay,(B) starting with the last and ending with the first.’
9 “When those who were hired about five came, they each received one denarius. 10 So when the first ones came, they assumed they would get more, but they also received a denarius each. 11 When they received it, they began to complain to the landowner: 12 ‘These last men put in one hour, and you made them equal to us who bore the burden of the day’s work and the burning heat.’(C)
13 “He replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I’m doing you no wrong. Didn’t you agree with me on a denarius?(D) 14 Take what’s yours and go. I want to give this last man the same as I gave you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with what is mine? Are you jealous[g] because I’m generous?’[h](E)
16 “So the last will be first, and the first last.”[i](F)
The Third Prediction of His Death
17 While going up to Jerusalem,(G) Jesus took the twelve disciples aside privately and said to them on the way, 18 “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. The Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death.(H) 19 They will hand him over to the Gentiles(I) to be mocked, flogged,[j] and crucified, and on the third day he will be raised.”[k]
Suffering and Service
20 Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons approached him with her sons.(J) She knelt down to ask him for something.(K) 21 “What do you want?” he asked her.
“Promise,”[l] she said to him, “that these two sons of mine may sit, one on your right and the other on your left, in your kingdom.”(L)
22 Jesus answered, “You don’t know what you’re asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?”[m](M)
“We are able,” they said to him.
23 He told them, “You will indeed drink my cup,[n] but to sit at my right and left is not mine to give; instead, it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”(N)
24 When the ten disciples heard this, they became indignant with the two brothers. 25 Jesus called them over and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those in high positions act as tyrants over them. 26 It must not be like that among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,(O) 27 and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave; 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve,(P) and to give his life as a ransom for many.”(Q)
Two Blind Men Healed
29 As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him.(R) 30 There were two blind men sitting by the road. When they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” 31 The crowd demanded that they keep quiet, but they cried out all the more, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” (S)
32 Jesus stopped, called them, and said, “What do you want me to do for you?”
33 “Lord,” they said to him, “open our eyes.” 34 Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes. Immediately they could see, and they followed him.
10 Those whose seals were on the document were
the governor Nehemiah(A) son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah,
2 Seraiah,(B) Azariah, Jeremiah,
3 Pashhur,(C) Amariah, Malchijah,
4 Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch,
5 Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah,
6 Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch,
7 Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin,
8 Maaziah, Bilgai, and Shemaiah.
These were the priests.
9 The Levites(D) were
Jeshua son of Azaniah,
Binnui of the sons of Henadad, Kadmiel,
10 and their brothers
Shebaniah, Hodiah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan,
11 Mica, Rehob, Hashabiah,
12 Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah,
13 Hodiah, Bani, and Beninu.
14 The heads of the people(E) were
Parosh, Pahath-moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani,
15 Bunni, Azgad, Bebai,
16 Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin,(F)
17 Ater, Hezekiah, Azzur,
18 Hodiah, Hashum, Bezai,
19 Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai,
20 Magpiash, Meshullam, Hezir,
21 Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua,
22 Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah,
23 Hoshea, Hananiah,(G) Hasshub,
24 Hallohesh, Pilha, Shobek,
25 Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah,
26 Ahijah, Hanan, Anan,
27 Malluch, Harim, Baanah.
28 The rest of the people—the priests, Levites, gatekeepers, singers, and temple servants, along with their wives, sons, and daughters, everyone who is able to understand(H) and who has separated themselves from the surrounding peoples(I) to obey the law of God— 29 join with their noble brothers and commit themselves with a sworn oath[a](J) to follow the law of God given through God’s servant Moses(K) and to obey carefully all the commands, ordinances, and statutes of the Lord our Lord.
Details of the Vow
30 We will not give our daughters in marriage to the surrounding peoples and will not take their daughters as wives for our sons.(L)
31 When the surrounding peoples bring merchandise or any kind of grain to sell on the Sabbath day, we will not buy from them on the Sabbath or a holy day.(M) We will also leave the land uncultivated in the seventh year(N) and will cancel every debt.(O)
32 We will impose the following commands on ourselves:
To give an eighth of an ounce of silver[b] yearly for the service of the house of our God:(P) 33 the bread displayed before the Lord,[c](Q) the daily grain offering, the regular burnt offering, the Sabbath and New Moon offerings,(R) the appointed festivals, the holy things, the sin offerings to atone for Israel,(S) and for all the work of the house of our God.
34 We have cast lots(T) among the priests, Levites, and people for the donation of wood by our ancestral families[d] at the appointed times each year. They are to bring the wood to our God’s house to burn on the altar of the Lord our God,(U) as it is written in the law.
35 We will bring the firstfruits of our land and of every fruit tree to the Lord’s house year by year.(V) 36 We will also bring the firstborn of our sons and our livestock, as prescribed by the law, and will bring the firstborn of our herds and flocks to the house of our God,(W) to the priests who serve in our God’s house. 37 We will bring a loaf from our first batch of dough(X) to the priests at the storerooms of the house of our God. We will also bring the firstfruits of our grain offerings, of every fruit tree, and of the new wine and fresh oil.(Y) A tenth of our land’s produce belongs to the Levites, for the Levites are to collect the one-tenth offering in all our agricultural towns.(Z) 38 A priest from Aaron’s descendants is to accompany the Levites when they collect the tenth,(AA) and the Levites are to take a tenth of this offering to the storerooms of the treasury in the house of our God.(AB) 39 For the Israelites and the Levites are to bring the contributions of grain, new wine, and fresh oil to the storerooms where the articles of the sanctuary are kept(AC) and where the priests who minister are, along with the gatekeepers and singers. We will not neglect the house of our God.(AD)
Paul in Macedonia
20 After the uproar was over, Paul sent for the disciples, encouraged them, and after saying farewell, departed to go to Macedonia.(A) 2 And when he had passed through those areas and offered them many words of encouragement, he came to Greece 3 and stayed three months. The Jews plotted against him when he was about to set sail for Syria, and so he decided to go back through Macedonia.(B) 4 He was accompanied[a] by Sopater son of Pyrrhus[b] from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy,(C) and Tychicus(D) and Trophimus(E) from the province of Asia. 5 These men went on ahead and waited for us in Troas,(F) 6 but we sailed away from Philippi after the Festival of Unleavened Bread.(G) In five days we reached them at Troas, where we spent seven days.
Eutychus Revived at Troas
7 On the first day of the week, we assembled to break bread.(H) Paul spoke to them, and since he was about to depart the next day, he kept on talking until midnight. 8 There were many lamps in the room upstairs where we were assembled, 9 and a young man named Eutychus was sitting on a window sill and sank into a deep sleep as Paul kept on talking. When he was overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was picked up dead. 10 But Paul went down, bent over him, embraced him, and said, “Don’t be alarmed, because he’s alive.”(I) 11 After going upstairs, breaking the bread, and eating, Paul talked a long time until dawn. Then he left. 12 They brought the boy home alive and were greatly comforted.
From Troas to Miletus
13 We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul on board, because these were his instructions, since he himself was going by land. 14 When he met us at Assos, we took him on board and went on to Mitylene. 15 Sailing from there, the next day we arrived off Chios. The following day we crossed over to Samos, and[c] the day after, we came to Miletus.(J) 16 For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, because he was hurrying to be in Jerusalem, if possible, for the day of Pentecost.(K)
Farewell Address to the Ephesian Elders
17 Now from Miletus, he sent to Ephesus and summoned the elders of the church. 18 When they came to him, he said to them, “You know, from the first day I set foot in Asia, how I was with you the whole time,(L) 19 serving the Lord with all humility, with tears, and during the trials that came to me through the plots of the Jews.(M) 20 You know that I did not hesitate to proclaim anything to you that was profitable and to teach you publicly and from house to house. 21 I testified to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God(N) and faith in our Lord Jesus.(O)
22 “And now I am on my way to Jerusalem, compelled by the Spirit,[d] not knowing what I will encounter there,(P) 23 except that in every town the Holy Spirit warns me that chains and afflictions are waiting for me.(Q) 24 But I consider my life of no value to myself; my purpose is to finish my course[e] and the ministry(R) I received from the Lord Jesus,(S) to testify to the gospel of God’s grace.
25 “And now I know that none of you, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, will ever see me again. 26 Therefore I declare to you this day that I am innocent[f] of the blood of all of you,(T) 27 because I did not avoid declaring to you the whole plan of God.(U) 28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock(V) of which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers,(W) to shepherd the church of God,[g] which he purchased with his own blood.(X) 29 I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Men will rise up even from your own number and distort the truth to lure the disciples into following them.(Y) 31 Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for three years I never stopped warning each one of you with tears.(Z)
32 “And now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace,(AA) which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance(AB) among all who are sanctified. 33 I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing.(AC) 34 You yourselves know that I worked with my own hands to support myself and those who are with me.(AD) 35 In every way I’ve shown you that it is necessary to help the weak by laboring like this and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, because he said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
36 After he said this, he knelt down and prayed with all of them.(AE) 37 There were many tears shed by everyone. They embraced Paul and kissed him, 38 grieving most of all over his statement that they would never see his face again. And they accompanied him to the ship.(AF)
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