M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
2 One day the Angel of the Lord arrived at Bochim, coming from Gilgal, and announced to the people of Israel, “I brought you out of Egypt into this land that I promised to your ancestors, and I said that I would never break my covenant with you, 2 if you, on your part, would make no peace treaties with the people living in this land; I told you to destroy their heathen altars. Why have you not obeyed? 3 And now since you have broken the contract, it is no longer in effect, and I no longer promise to destroy the nations living in your land; rather, they shall be thorns in your sides, and their gods will be a constant temptation to you.”
4 The people broke into tears as the Angel finished speaking; 5 so the name of that place was called “Bochim” (meaning, “the place where people wept”). Then they offered sacrifices to the Lord.
6 When Joshua finally disbanded the armies of Israel, the tribes moved into their new territories and took possession of the land. 7-9 Joshua, the man of God, died at the age of 110 and was buried at the edge of his property in Timnath-heres, in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. The people had remained true to the Lord throughout Joshua’s lifetime, and as long afterward as the old men of his generation were still living—those who had seen the mighty miracles the Lord had done for Israel.
10 But finally all that generation died; and the next generation did not worship Jehovah as their God and did not care about the mighty miracles he had done for Israel. 11 They did many things that the Lord had expressly forbidden, including the worshiping of heathen gods. 12-14 They abandoned Jehovah, the God loved and worshiped by their ancestors—the God who had brought them out of Egypt. Instead, they were worshiping and bowing low before the idols of the neighboring nations. So the anger of the Lord flamed out against all Israel. He left them to the mercy of their enemies, for they had departed from Jehovah and were worshiping Baal and the Ashtaroth idols.
15 So now when the nation of Israel went out to battle against its enemies, the Lord blocked their path. He had warned them about this, and in fact had vowed that he would do it. But when the people were in this terrible plight, 16 the Lord raised up judges to save them from their enemies.
17 Yet even then Israel would not listen to the judges, but broke faith with Jehovah by worshiping other gods instead. How quickly they turned away from the true faith of their ancestors, for they refused to obey God’s commands. 18 Each judge rescued the people of Israel from their enemies throughout his lifetime, for the Lord was moved to pity by the groaning of his people under their crushing oppressions; so he helped them as long as that judge lived. 19 But when the judge died, the people turned from doing right and behaved even worse than their ancestors had. They prayed to heathen gods again, throwing themselves to the ground in humble worship. They stubbornly returned to the evil customs of the nations around them.
20 Then the anger of the Lord would flame out against Israel again. He declared, “Because these people have violated the treaty I made with their ancestors, 21 I will no longer drive out the nations left unconquered by Joshua when he died. 22 Instead, I will use these nations to test my people, to see whether or not they will obey the Lord as their ancestors did.”
23 So the Lord left those nations in the land and did not drive them out, nor let Israel destroy them.
6 But with the believers multiplying rapidly, there were rumblings of discontent. Those who spoke only Greek complained that their widows were being discriminated against, that they were not being given as much food in the daily distribution as the widows who spoke Hebrew. 2 So the Twelve called a meeting of all the believers.
“We should spend our time preaching, not administering a feeding program,” they said. 3 “Now look around among yourselves, dear brothers, and select seven men, wise and full of the Holy Spirit, who are well thought of by everyone; and we will put them in charge of this business. 4 Then we can spend our time in prayer, preaching, and teaching.”
5 This sounded reasonable to the whole assembly, and they elected the following: Stephen (a man unusually full of faith and the Holy Spirit), Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, Nicolaus of Antioch (a Gentile convert to the Jewish faith, who had become a Christian).
6 These seven were presented to the apostles, who prayed for them and laid their hands on them in blessing.
7 God’s message was preached in ever-widening circles, and the number of disciples increased vastly in Jerusalem; and many of the Jewish priests were converted too.
8 Stephen, the man so full of faith and the Holy Spirit’s power,[a] did spectacular miracles among the people.
9 But one day some of the men from the Jewish cult of “The Freedmen” started an argument with him, and they were soon joined by Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria in Egypt, and the Turkish provinces of Cilicia, and Asia Minor. 10 But none of them was able to stand against Stephen’s wisdom and spirit.
11 So they brought in some men to lie about him, claiming they had heard Stephen curse Moses, and even God.
12 This accusation roused the crowds to fury against Stephen, and the Jewish leaders[b] arrested him and brought him before the Council. 13 The lying witnesses testified again that Stephen was constantly speaking against the Temple and against the laws of Moses.
14 They declared, “We have heard him say that this fellow Jesus of Nazareth will destroy the Temple and throw out all of Moses’ laws.” 15 At this point everyone in the Council chamber saw Stephen’s face become as radiant as an angel’s!
15 Then the Lord said to me, Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me pleading for these people, even then I wouldn’t help them—away with them! Get them out of my sight! 2 And if they say to you, But where can we go? Tell them the Lord says: Those who are destined for death, to death; those who must die by the sword, to the sword; those doomed to starvation, to famine; and those for captivity, to captivity. 3 I will appoint over them four kinds of destroyers, says the Lord: the sword to kill, the dogs to tear, and the vultures and wild animals to finish up what’s left. 4 Because of the wicked things Manasseh, son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, did in Jerusalem, I will punish you so severely that your fate will horrify the peoples of the world.
5 Who will feel sorry for you, Jerusalem? Who will weep for you? Who will even bother to ask how you are? 6 You have forsaken me and turned your backs upon me. Therefore, I will clench my fists against you to destroy you. I am tired of always giving you another chance. 7 I will sift you at the gates of your cities and take from you all that you hold dear, and I will destroy my own people because they refuse to turn back to me from all their evil ways. 8 There shall be countless widows; at noontime I will bring death to the young men and sorrow to their mothers. I will cause anguish and terror to fall upon them suddenly. 9 The mother of seven sickens and faints, for all her sons are dead. Her sun is gone down while it is yet day. She sits childless now, disgraced, for all her children have been killed.
10 Then Jeremiah said, “What sadness is mine, my mother; oh, that I had died at birth. For I am hated everywhere I go. I am neither a creditor soon to foreclose nor a debtor refusing to pay—yet they all curse me. 11 Well, let them curse! Lord, you know how I have pled with you on their behalf—how I have begged you to spare these enemies of mine.”
12-13 Can a man break bars of northern iron or bronze? This people’s stubborn will can’t be broken either. So, because of all your sins against me, I will deliver your wealth and treasures as loot to the enemy. 14 I will have your enemies take you as slaves to a land where you have never been before, for my anger burns like fire, and it shall consume you.
15 Then Jeremiah replied, “Lord, you know it is for your sake that I am suffering. They are persecuting me because I have proclaimed your word to them. Don’t let them kill me! Rescue me from their clutches, and give them what they deserve! 16 Your words are what sustain me; they are food to my hungry soul. They bring joy to my sorrowing heart and delight me. How proud I am to bear your name, O Lord. 17-18 I have not joined the people in their merry feasts. I sit alone beneath the hand of God. I burst with indignation at their sins. Yet you have failed me in my time of need! You have let them keep right on with all their persecutions. Will they never stop hurting me? Your help is as uncertain as a seasonal mountain brook—sometimes a flood, sometimes as dry as a bone.”
19 The Lord replied: “Stop this foolishness and talk some sense! Only if you return to trusting me will I let you continue as my spokesman. You are to influence them, not let them influence you! 20 They will fight against you like a besieging army against a high city wall. But they will not conquer you, for I am with you to protect and deliver you, says the Lord. 21 Yes, I will certainly deliver you from these wicked men and rescue you from their ruthless hands.”
1 Here begins the wonderful story of Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.
2 In the book written by the prophet Isaiah, God announced that he would send his Son[a] to earth, and that a special messenger would arrive first to prepare the world for his coming.
3 “This messenger will live out in the barren wilderness,” Isaiah said,[b] “and will proclaim that everyone must straighten out his life to be ready for the Lord’s arrival.”
4 This messenger was John the Baptist. He lived in the wilderness and taught that all should be baptized as a public announcement of their decision to turn their backs on sin, so that God could forgive them.[c] 5 People from Jerusalem and from all over Judea traveled out into the Judean wastelands to see and hear John, and when they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River. 6 His clothes were woven from camel’s hair and he wore a leather belt; locusts and wild honey were his food. 7 Here is a sample of his preaching:
“Someone is coming soon who is far greater than I am, so much greater that I am not even worthy to be his slave.[d] 8 I baptize you with water[e] but he will baptize you with God’s Holy Spirit!”
9 Then one day Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and was baptized by John there in the Jordan River. 10 The moment Jesus came up out of the water, he saw the heavens open and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descending on him, 11 and a voice from heaven said, “You are my beloved Son; you are my Delight.”
12-13 Immediately the Holy Spirit urged Jesus into the desert. There, for forty days, alone except for desert animals, he was subjected to Satan’s temptations to sin. And afterwards[f] the angels came and cared for him.
14 Later on, after John was arrested by King Herod,[g] Jesus went to Galilee to preach God’s Good News.
15 “At last the time has come!” he announced. “God’s Kingdom is near! Turn from your sins and act on this glorious news!”
16 One day as Jesus was walking along the shores of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew fishing with nets, for they were commercial fishermen.
17 Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me! And I will make you fishermen for the souls of men!” 18 At once they left their nets and went along with him.
19 A little farther up the beach, he saw Zebedee’s sons, James and John, in a boat mending their nets. 20 He called them too, and immediately they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and went with him.
21 Jesus and his companions now arrived at the town of Capernaum and on Saturday morning went into the Jewish place of worship—the synagogue—where he preached. 22 The congregation was surprised at his sermon because he spoke as an authority and didn’t try to prove his points by quoting others—quite unlike what they were used to hearing![h]
23 A man possessed by a demon was present and began shouting, 24 “Why are you bothering us, Jesus of Nazareth—have you come to destroy us demons? I know who you are—the holy Son of God!”
25 Jesus curtly commanded the demon to say no more and to come out of the man. 26 At that the evil spirit screamed and convulsed the man violently and left him. 27 Amazement gripped the audience and they began discussing what had happened.
“What sort of new religion is this?” they asked excitedly. “Why, even evil spirits obey his orders!”
28 The news of what he had done spread quickly through that entire area of Galilee.
29-30 Then, leaving the synagogue, he and his disciples went over to Simon and Andrew’s home, where they found Simon’s mother-in-law sick in bed with a high fever. They told Jesus about her right away. 31 He went to her bedside, and as he took her by the hand and helped her to sit up, the fever suddenly left, and she got up and prepared dinner for them!
32-33 By sunset the courtyard was filled with the sick and demon-possessed, brought to him for healing; and a huge crowd of people from all over the city of Capernaum gathered outside the door to watch. 34 So Jesus healed great numbers of sick folk that evening and ordered many demons to come out of their victims. (But he refused to allow the demons to speak, because they knew who he was.)
35 The next morning he was up long before daybreak and went out alone into the wilderness to pray.
36-37 Later, Simon and the others went out to find him, and told him, “Everyone is asking for you.”
38 But he replied, “We must go on to other towns as well, and give my message to them too, for that is why I came.”
39 So he traveled throughout the province of Galilee, preaching in the synagogues and releasing many from the power of demons.
40 Once a leper came and knelt in front of him and begged to be healed. “If you want to, you can make me well again,” he pled.
41 And Jesus, moved with pity, touched him and said, “I want to! Be healed!” 42 Immediately the leprosy was gone—the man was healed!
43-44 Jesus then told him sternly, “Go and be examined immediately by the Jewish priest. Don’t stop to speak to anyone along the way. Take along the offering prescribed by Moses for a leper who is healed, so that everyone will have proof that you are well again.”
45 But as the man went on his way he began to shout the good news that he was healed; as a result, such throngs soon surrounded Jesus that he couldn’t publicly enter a city anywhere, but had to stay out in the barren wastelands. And people from everywhere came to him there.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.