M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
40 The Lord now said to Moses, 2 “Put together the Tabernacle on the first day of the first month. 3 In it place the Ark containing the Ten Commandments; and install the veil to enclose the Ark within the Holy of Holies. 4 Then bring in the table and place the utensils on it, and bring in the lampstand and light the lamps.
5 “Place the gold altar for the incense in front of the Ark. Set up the drapes at the entrance of the Tabernacle, 6 and place the altar for burnt offerings in front of the entrance. 7 Set the washbasin between the Tabernacle-tent and the altar, and fill it with water. 8 Then make the courtyard around the outside of the tent, and hang the curtain-door at the entrance to the courtyard.
9 “Take the anointing oil and sprinkle it here and there upon the Tabernacle and everything in it, upon all of its utensils and parts, and all the furniture, to hallow it; and it shall become holy. 10 Sprinkle the anointing oil upon the altar of burnt offering and its utensils, sanctifying it; for the altar shall then become most holy. 11 Then anoint the washbasin and its pedestal, sanctifying it.
12 “Now bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the Tabernacle and wash them with water; 13 and clothe Aaron with the holy garments and anoint him, sanctifying him to minister to me as a priest. 14 Then bring his sons and put their robes upon them, 15 and anoint them as you did their father, that they may minister to me as priests; their anointing shall be permanent from generation to generation: all their children and children’s children shall forever be my priests.”
16 So Moses proceeded to do all as the Lord had commanded him. 17 On the first day of the first month, in the second year, the Tabernacle was put together. 18 Moses erected it by setting its frames into their bases and attaching the bars. 19 Then he spread the coverings over the framework and put on the top layers, just as the Lord had commanded him.
20 Inside the Ark he placed the stones with the Ten Commandments engraved on them, and attached the carrying poles to the Ark and installed the gold lid, the place of mercy. 21 Then he brought the Ark into the Tabernacle and set up the curtain to screen it, just as the Lord had commanded.
22 Next he placed the table at the north side of the room outside the curtain 23 and set the Bread of the Presence upon the table before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded.
24 And he placed the lampstand next to the table, on the south side of the Tabernacle. 25 Then he lighted the lamps before the Lord, following all the instructions, 26 and placed the gold altar in the Tabernacle next to the curtain, 27 and burned upon it the incense made from sweet spices, just as the Lord had commanded.
28 He attached the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle, 29 and placed the outside altar for the burnt offerings near the entrance, and offered upon it a burnt offering and a meal offering, just as the Lord had commanded him.
30 Next he placed the washbasin between the tent and the altar and filled it with water so that the priests could use it for washing. 31 Moses and Aaron and Aaron’s sons washed their hands and feet there. 32 Whenever they walked past the altar to enter the Tabernacle, they stopped and washed, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
33 Then he erected the enclosure surrounding the tent and the altar, and set up the curtain-door at the entrance of the enclosure. So at last Moses finished the work.
34 Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle and the glory of the Lord filled it. 35 Moses was not able to enter because the cloud was standing there, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. 36 Whenever the cloud lifted and moved, the people of Israel journeyed onward, following it. 37 But if the cloud stayed, they stayed until it moved. 38 The cloud rested upon the Tabernacle during the daytime, and at night there was fire in the cloud so that all the people of Israel could see it.
This continued throughout all their journeys.
19 Then Pilate laid open Jesus’ back with a leaded whip, 2 and the soldiers made a crown of thorns and placed it on his head and robed him in royal purple. 3 “Hail, ‘King of the Jews’!” they mocked, and struck him with their fists.
4 Pilate went outside again and said to the Jews, “I am going to bring him out to you now, but understand clearly that I find him not guilty.”
5 Then Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said, “Behold the man!”
6 At sight of him the chief priests and Jewish officials began yelling, “Crucify! Crucify!”
“You crucify him,” Pilate said. “I find him not guilty.”
7 They replied, “By our laws he ought to die because he called himself the Son of God.”
8 When Pilate heard this, he was more frightened than ever. 9 He took Jesus back into the palace again and asked him, “Where are you from?” but Jesus gave no answer.
10 “You won’t talk to me?” Pilate demanded. “Don’t you realize that I have the power to release you or to crucify you?”
11 Then Jesus said, “You would have no power at all over me unless it were given to you from above. So those[a] who brought me to you have the greater sin.”
12 Then Pilate tried to release him, but the Jewish leaders told him, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar’s. Anyone who declares himself a king is a rebel against Caesar.”
13 At these words Pilate brought Jesus out to them again and sat down at the judgment bench on the stone-paved platform.[b] 14 It was now about noon of the day before Passover.
And Pilate said to the Jews, “Here is your king!”
15 “Away with him,” they yelled. “Away with him—crucify him!”
“What? Crucify your king?” Pilate asked.
“We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests shouted back.
16 Then Pilate gave Jesus to them to be crucified.
17 So they had him at last, and he was taken out of the city, carrying his cross to the place known as “The Skull,” in Hebrew, “Golgotha.” 18 There they crucified him and two others with him, one on either side, with Jesus between them. 19 And Pilate posted a sign over him reading, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” 20 The place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and the signboard was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek, so that many people read it.
21 Then the chief priests said to Pilate, “Change it from ‘The King of the Jews’ to ‘He said, I am King of the Jews.’”
22 Pilate replied, “What I have written, I have written. It stays exactly as it is.”
23-24 When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they put his garments into four piles, one for each of them. But they said, “Let’s not tear up his robe,” for it was seamless. “Let’s throw dice to see who gets it.” This fulfilled the Scripture that says,
“They divided my clothes among them and cast lots for my robe.”[c]
25 So that is what they did.
Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, Mary, his aunt, the wife of Cleopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside me, his close friend,[d] he said to her, “He is your son.”
27 And to me[e] he said, “She is your mother!” And from then on I took her into my home.
28 Jesus knew that everything was now finished, and to fulfill the Scriptures said, “I’m thirsty.” 29 A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so a sponge was soaked in it and put on a hyssop branch and held up to his lips.
30 When Jesus had tasted[f] it, he said, “It is finished,” and bowed his head and dismissed his spirit.
31 The Jewish leaders didn’t want the victims hanging there the next day, which was the Sabbath (and a very special Sabbath at that, for it was the Passover), so they asked Pilate to order the legs of the men broken to hasten death; then their bodies could be taken down. 32 So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the two men crucified with Jesus; 33 but when they came to him, they saw that he was dead already, so they didn’t break his. 34 However, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and blood and water flowed out. 35 I saw all this myself and have given an accurate report so that you also can believe.[g] 36-37 The soldiers did this in fulfillment of the Scripture that says, “Not one of his bones shall be broken,” and, “They shall look on him whom they pierced.”
38 Afterwards Joseph of Arimathea, who had been a secret disciple of Jesus for fear of the Jewish leaders, boldly asked Pilate for permission to take Jesus’ body down; and Pilate told him to go ahead. So he came and took it away. 39 Nicodemus, the man who had come to Jesus at night,[h] came too, bringing a hundred pounds of embalming ointment made from myrrh and aloes. 40 Together they wrapped Jesus’ body in a long linen cloth saturated with the spices, as is the Jewish custom of burial. 41 The place of crucifixion was near a grove of trees,[i] where there was a new tomb, never used before. 42 And so, because of the need for haste before the Sabbath, and because the tomb was close at hand, they laid him there.
16 We can make our plans, but the final outcome is in God’s hands.
2 We can always “prove” that we are right, but is the Lord convinced?
3 Commit your work to the Lord, then it will succeed.
4 The Lord has made everything for his own purposes—even the wicked for punishment.
5 Pride disgusts the Lord. Take my word for it—proud men shall be punished.
6 Iniquity is atoned for by mercy and truth; evil is avoided by reverence for God.
7 When a man is trying to please God, God makes even his worst enemies to be at peace with him.
8 A little gained honestly is better than great wealth gotten by dishonest means.
9 We should make plans—counting on God to direct us.
10 God will help the king to judge the people fairly; there need be no mistakes.
11 The Lord demands fairness in every business deal.[a] He established this principle.
12 It is a horrible thing for a king to do evil. His right to rule depends upon his fairness.[b]
13 The king rejoices when his people are truthful and fair.
14 The anger of the king is a messenger of death, and a wise man will appease it.
15 Many favors are showered on those who please the king.
16 How much better is wisdom than gold, and understanding than silver!
17 The path of the godly leads away from evil; he who follows that path is safe.
18 Pride goes before destruction and haughtiness before a fall.
19 Better poor and humble than proud and rich.
20 God blesses those who obey him; happy the man who puts his trust in the Lord.
21 The wise man is known by his common sense, and a pleasant teacher is the best.
22 Wisdom is a fountain of life to those possessing it, but a fool’s burden is his folly.
23 From a wise mind comes careful and persuasive speech.
24 Kind words are like honey—enjoyable and healthful.
25 Before every man there lies a wide and pleasant road he thinks is right, but it ends in death.
26 Hunger is good—if it makes you work to satisfy it!
27 Idle hands are the devil’s workshop; idle lips are his mouthpiece.[c]
28 An evil man sows strife; gossip separates the best of friends.
29 Wickedness loves company—and leads others into sin.[d]
30 The wicked man stares into space with pursed lips, deep in thought, planning his evil deeds.
31 White hair is a crown of glory and is seen most among the godly.
32 It is better to be slow-tempered than famous; it is better to have self-control than to control an army.
33 We toss the coin,[e] but it is the Lord who controls its decision.
3 Whatever happens, dear friends, be glad in the Lord. I never get tired of telling you this, and it is good for you to hear it again and again.
2 Watch out for those wicked men—dangerous dogs, I call them—who say you must be circumcised to be saved. 3 For it isn’t the cutting of our bodies that makes us children of God; it is worshiping him with our spirits. That is the only true “circumcision.” We Christians glory in what Christ Jesus has done for us and realize that we are helpless to save ourselves.
4 Yet if anyone ever had reason to hope that he could save himself, it would be I. If others could be saved by what they are, certainly I could! 5 For I went through the Jewish initiation ceremony when I was eight days old, having been born into a pure-blooded Jewish home that was a branch of the old original Benjamin family. So I was a real Jew if there ever was one! What’s more, I was a member of the Pharisees who demand the strictest obedience to every Jewish law and custom. 6 And sincere? Yes, so much so that I greatly persecuted the Church; and I tried to obey every Jewish rule and regulation right down to the very last point.
7 But all these things that I once thought very worthwhile—now I’ve thrown them all away so that I can put my trust and hope in Christ alone. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have put aside all else, counting it worth less than nothing, in order that I can have Christ, 9 and become one with him, no longer counting on being saved by being good enough or by obeying God’s laws, but by trusting Christ to save me; for God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith—counting on Christ alone. 10 Now I have given up everything else—I have found it to be the only way to really know Christ and to experience the mighty power that brought him back to life again, and to find out what it means to suffer and to die with him. 11 So whatever it takes, I will be one who lives in the fresh newness of life of those who are alive from the dead.
12 I don’t mean to say I am perfect. I haven’t learned all I should even yet, but I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ saved me for and wants me to be.
13 No, dear brothers, I am still not all I should be, but I am bringing all my energies to bear on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God is calling us up to heaven because of what Christ Jesus did for us.
15 I hope all of you who are mature Christians will see eye-to-eye with me on these things, and if you disagree on some point, I believe that God will make it plain to you— 16 if you fully obey the truth you have.
17 Dear brothers, pattern your lives after mine, and notice who else lives up to my example. 18 For I have told you often before, and I say it again now with tears in my eyes, there are many who walk along the Christian road who are really enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their future is eternal loss, for their god is their appetite: they are proud of what they should be ashamed of; and all they think about is this life here on earth. 20 But our homeland is in heaven, where our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, is; and we are looking forward to his return from there. 21 When he comes back, he will take these dying bodies of ours and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same mighty power that he will use to conquer all else everywhere.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.