M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
God Tests Abraham
22 After these things God tested Abraham’s faith. God said to him, “Abraham!”
And he answered, “Here I am.”
2 Then God said, “Take your only son, Isaac, the son you love. Go to the land of Moriah. There kill him and offer him as a whole burnt offering. Do this on one of the mountains there. I will tell you which one.”
3 Early in the morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took Isaac and two servants with him. He cut the wood for the sacrifice. Then they went to the place God had told them to go. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey. My son and I will go over there and worship. Then we will come back to you.”
6 Abraham took the wood for the sacrifice and gave it to his son to carry. Abraham took the knife and the fire. So Abraham and his son went on together.
7 Isaac said to his father Abraham, “Father!”
Abraham answered, “Yes, my son.”
Isaac said, “We have the fire and the wood. But where is the lamb we will burn as a sacrifice?”
8 Abraham answered, “God will give us the lamb for the sacrifice, my son.”
So Abraham and his son went on together. 9 They came to the place God had told him about. There, Abraham built an altar. He laid the wood on it. Then he tied up his son Isaac. And he laid Isaac on the wood on the altar. 10 Then Abraham took his knife and was about to kill his son.
11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven. The angel said, “Abraham! Abraham!”
Abraham answered, “Yes.”
12 The angel said, “Don’t kill your son or hurt him in any way. Now I can see that you respect God. I see that you have not kept your son, your only son, from me.”
13 Then Abraham looked up and saw a male sheep. Its horns were caught in a bush. So Abraham went and took the sheep and killed it. He offered it as a whole burnt offering to God. Abraham’s son was saved. 14 So Abraham named that place The Lord Gives. Even today people say, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be given.”
15 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time. 16 The angel said, “The Lord says, ‘You did not keep back your son, your only son, from me. Because you did this, I make you this promise by my own name: 17 I will surely bless you and give you many descendants. They will be as many as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. And they will capture the cities of their enemies. 18 Through your descendants all the nations on the earth will be blessed. This is because you obeyed me.’”
19 Then Abraham returned to his servants. They all traveled back to Beersheba, and Abraham stayed there.
20 After these things happened, someone told Abraham: “Your brother Nahor and his wife Milcah have children now. 21 The first son is Uz. The second son is Buz. The third son is Kemuel (the father of Aram). 22 Then there are Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph and Bethuel.” 23 Bethuel became the father of Rebekah. Milcah was the mother of these eight sons, and Nahor was the father. Nahor was Abraham’s brother. 24 Also Nahor had four other sons by his slave woman Reumah. Their names were Tebah, Gaham, Tahash and Maacah.
Jesus Enters Jerusalem as a King
21 Jesus and his followers were coming closer to Jerusalem. But first they stopped at Bethphage at the hill called the Mount of Olives. From there Jesus sent two of his followers into the town. 2 He said to them, “Go to the town you can see there. When you enter it, you will find a donkey tied there with its colt. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone asks you why you are taking the donkeys, tell him, ‘The Master needs them. He will send them back soon.’” 4 This was to make clear the full meaning of what the prophet said:
5 “Tell the people of Jerusalem,
‘Your king is coming to you.
He is gentle and riding on a donkey.
He is on the colt of a donkey.’” Isaiah 62:11; Zechariah 9:9
6 The followers went and did what Jesus told them to do. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt to Jesus. They laid their coats on the donkeys, and Jesus sat on them. 8 Many people spread their coats on the road before Jesus. Others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 Some of the people were walking ahead of Jesus. Others were walking behind him. All the people were shouting,
“Praise[a] to the Son of David!
God bless the One who comes in the name of the Lord! Psalm 118:26
Praise to God in heaven!”
10 Then Jesus went into Jerusalem. The city was filled with excitement. The people asked, “Who is this man?”
11 The crowd answered, “This man is Jesus. He is the prophet from the town of Nazareth in Galilee.”
Jesus Goes to the Temple
12 Jesus went into the Temple. He threw out all the people who were buying and selling there. He turned over the tables that belonged to the men who were exchanging different kinds of money. And he upset the benches of those who were selling doves. 13 Jesus said to all the people there, “It is written in the Scriptures, ‘My Temple will be a house where people will pray.’[b] But you are changing God’s house into a ‘hideout for robbers.’”[c]
14 The blind and crippled people came to Jesus in the Temple, and Jesus healed them. 15 The leading priests and the teachers of the law saw that Jesus was doing wonderful things. They saw the children praising him in the Temple. The children were saying, “Praise[d] to the Son of David.” All these things made the priests and the teachers of the law very angry.
16 They asked Jesus, “Do you hear the things these children are saying?”
Jesus answered, “Yes. Haven’t you read in the Scriptures, ‘You have taught children and babies to sing praises’?”[e]
17 Then Jesus left and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.
The Power of Faith
18 Early the next morning, Jesus was going back to the city. He was very hungry. 19 He saw a fig tree beside the road. Jesus went to it, but there were no figs on the tree. There were only leaves. So Jesus said to the tree, “You will never again have fruit!” The tree immediately dried up.
20 His followers saw this and were amazed. They asked, “How did the fig tree dry up so quickly?”
21 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth. If you have faith and do not doubt, you will be able to do what I did to this tree. And you will be able to do more. You will be able to say to this mountain, ‘Go, mountain, fall into the sea.’ And if you have faith, it will happen. 22 If you believe, you will get anything you ask for in prayer.”
Leaders Doubt Jesus’ Authority
23 Jesus went to the Temple. While he was teaching there, the leading priests and the elders of the people came to Jesus. They said to him, “Tell us! What authority do you have to do these things? Who gave you this authority?”
24 Jesus answered, “I will ask you a question, too. If you answer me, then I will tell you what authority I have to do these things. 25 Tell me: When John baptized people, did that come from God or from man?”
The priests and the leaders argued about Jesus’ question. They said to each other, “If we answer, ‘John’s baptism was from God,’ then Jesus will say, ‘Then why didn’t you believe John?’ 26 But if we say, ‘It was from man,’ we are afraid of what the people will do because they all believe that John was a prophet.”
27 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Then Jesus said, “Then I won’t tell you what authority I have to do these things!
A Story About Two Sons
28 “Tell me what you think about this: There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first son and said, ‘Son, go and work today in my vineyard.’ 29 The son answered, ‘I will not go.’ But later the son decided he should go, and he went. 30 Then the father went to the other son and said, ‘Son, go and work today in my vineyard.’ The son answered, ‘Yes, sir, I will go and work.’ But he did not go. 31 Which of the two sons obeyed his father?”
The priests and leaders answered, “The first son.”
Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth. The tax collectors and the prostitutes will enter the kingdom of God before you do. 32 John came to show you the right way to live. And you did not believe him. But the tax collectors and prostitutes believed John. You saw this, but you still refused to change and believe him.
God Sends His Son
33 “Listen to this story: There was a man who owned a vineyard. He put a wall around the vineyard and dug a hole for a winepress. Then he built a tower. He leased the land to some farmers and left for a trip. 34 Later, it was time for the grapes to be picked. So the man sent his servants to the farmers to get his share of the grapes. 35 But the farmers grabbed the servants, beat one, killed another, and then killed a third servant with stones. 36 So the man sent some other servants to the farmers. He sent more servants than he sent the first time. But the farmers did the same thing to the servants that they had done before. 37 So the man decided to send his son to the farmers. He said, ‘The farmers will respect my son.’ 38 But when the farmers saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the owner’s son. This vineyard will be his. If we kill him, then his vineyard will be ours!’ 39 So the farmers grabbed the son, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 So what will the owner of the vineyard do to these farmers when he comes?”
41 The priests and leaders said, “He will surely kill those evil men. Then he will lease the vineyard to some other farmers. They will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”
42 Jesus said to them, “Surely you have read this in the Scriptures:
‘The stone that the builders did not want
became the cornerstone.
The Lord did this,
and it is wonderful to us.’ Psalm 118:22-23
43 “So I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you. It will be given to people who do the things God wants in his kingdom. 44 The person who falls on this stone will be broken. But if the stone falls on him, he will be crushed.”[f]
45 The leading priests and the Pharisees heard these stories that Jesus told. They knew he was talking about them. 46 They wanted to arrest him. But they were afraid of the people, because the people believed that Jesus was a prophet.
New People Move into Jerusalem
11 The leaders of Israel lived in Jerusalem. The rest of the people threw lots. One person out of every ten was to come and live in Jerusalem. It was the holy city. The other nine could stay in their own cities. 2 The people blessed those who volunteered to live in Jerusalem.
3 These are the area leaders who lived in Jerusalem. (Some people lived on their own land in the cities of Judah. These included Israelites, priests, Levites, Temple servants and descendants of Solomon’s servants. 4 Others from the families of Judah and Benjamin lived in Jerusalem.)
These are descendants of Judah who moved into Jerusalem. There was Athaiah son of Uzziah. (Uzziah was the son of Zechariah, who was the son of Amariah. Amariah was the son of Shephatiah, who was the son of Mahalalel. Mahalalel was a descendant of Perez.) 5 There was also Maaseiah son of Baruch. (Baruch was the son of Col-Hozeh, who was the son of Hazaiah. Hazaiah was the son of Adaiah, who was the son of Joiarib. Joiarib was the son of Zechariah, who was a descendant of Shelah.) 6 All the descendants of Perez who lived in Jerusalem totaled 468 men. They were soldiers.
7 These are descendants of Benjamin who moved into Jerusalem. There was Sallu son of Meshullam. (Meshullam was the son of Joed, who was the son of Pedaiah. Pedaiah was the son of Kolaiah, who was the son of Maaseiah. Maaseiah was the son of Ithiel, who was the son of Jeshaiah.) 8 Following him were Gabbai and Sallai. All together there were 928 men. 9 Joel son of Zicri was appointed over them. And Judah son of Hassenuah was second in charge of the new area of the city.
10 These are the priests who moved into Jerusalem. There was Jedaiah son of Joiarib, Jakin 11 and Seraiah son of Hilkiah. (Hilkiah was the son of Meshullam, who was the son of Zadok. Zadok was the son of Meraioth, who was the son of Ahitub. Seraiah was the supervisor in the Temple.) 12 And there were others with them who did the work for the Temple. All together there were 822 men. Also there was Adaiah son of Jeroham. (Jeroham was the son of Pelaliah, who was the son of Amzi. Amzi was the son of Zechariah, who was the son of Pashhur. Pashhur was the son of Malkijah.) 13 And there were family heads with him. All together there were 242 men. Also there was Amashsai son of Azarel. (Azarel was the son of Ahzai, who was the son of Meshillemoth. Meshillemoth was the son of Immer.) 14 And there were brave men with Amashsai. All together there were 128 men. Zabdiel son of Haggedolim was appointed over them.
15 These are the Levites who moved into Jerusalem. There was Shemaiah son of Hasshub. (Hasshub was the son of Azrikam, who was the son of Hashabiah. Hashabiah was the son of Bunni.) 16 And there were Shabbethai and Jozabad. They were two of the leaders of the Levites. They were in charge of the work outside the Temple. 17 There was Mattaniah son of Mica. (Mica was the son of Zabdi, who was the son of Asaph.) Mattaniah was the director. He led the people in thanksgiving and prayer. There was Bakbukiah, who was second in charge over his fellow Levites. And there was Abda son of Shammua. (Shammua was the son of Galal, who was the son of Jeduthun.) 18 All together 284 Levites lived in the holy city of Jerusalem.
19 These are the gatekeepers who moved into Jerusalem. There were Akkub, Talmon and others with them. There was a total of 172 men. They guarded the city gates.
20 The other Israelites, priests and Levites lived on their own land. They were in all the cities of Judah.
21 The Temple servants lived on the hill of Ophel. Ziha and Gishpa were in charge of them.
22 Uzzi son of Bani was appointed over the Levites in Jerusalem. (Bani was the son of Hashabiah, who was the son of Mattaniah. Mattaniah was the son of Mica.) Uzzi was one of Asaph’s descendants. They were the singers. They were responsible for the service of the Temple. 23 The singers took orders from the king. Those orders told the singers what to do each day.
24 Pethahiah son of Meshezabel was the king’s spokesman. Meshezabel was a descendant of Zerah, the son of Judah.
25 Some of the people of Judah lived in villages with their surrounding fields. Some lived in Kiriath Arba and its surroundings. Some lived in Dibon and its surroundings. Some lived in Jekabzeel and its surroundings. 26 Others lived in Jeshua, Moladah, Beth Pelet, 27 Hazar Shual, Beersheba and its surroundings. 28 Others were in Ziklag and Meconah and its surroundings. 29 Some people lived in En Rimmon, Zorah, Jarmuth, 30 Zanoah, Adullam and their villages. Some were in Lachish and the fields around it. Some lived in Azekah and its surroundings. So they settled from Beersheba all the way to the Valley of Hinnom.
31 The descendants of the Benjaminites from Geba lived in Micmash, Aija, Bethel and its surroundings. 32 They lived in Anathoth, Nob, Ananiah, 33 Hazor, Ramah and Gittaim. 34 They lived in Hadid, Zeboim, Neballat, 35 Lod, Ono and in the Valley of the Craftsmen.
36 Some groups of the Levites from Judah settled in the land of Benjamin.
Paul Goes to Jerusalem
21 We all said good-bye to them and left. We sailed straight to Cos island. The next day, we reached Rhodes, and from Rhodes we went to Patara. 2 There we found a ship that was going to Phoenicia. We went aboard and sailed away. 3 We sailed near the island of Cyprus. We could see it to the north, but we sailed on to Syria. We stopped at Tyre because the ship needed to unload its cargo there. 4 We found some followers in Tyre, and we stayed with them for seven days. Through the Holy Spirit they warned Paul not to go to Jerusalem. 5 When we finished our visit, we left and continued our trip. All the followers, even the women and children, came outside the city with us. We all knelt down on the beach and prayed. 6 Then we said good-bye and got on the ship. The followers went back home.
7 We continued our trip from Tyre and arrived at Ptolemais. We greeted the believers there and stayed with them for a day. 8 We left Ptolemais and went to the city of Caesarea. There we went into the home of Philip and stayed with him. Philip had the work of telling the Good News. He was one of the seven helpers.[a] 9 He had four unmarried daughters who had the gift of prophesying. 10 After we had been there for some time, a prophet named Agabus arrived from Judea. 11 He came to us and borrowed Paul’s belt. Then he used the belt to tie his own hands and feet. He said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘This is how the Jews in Jerusalem will tie up the man who wears this belt. Then they will give him to the non-Jewish people.’”
12 We all heard these words. So we and the people there begged Paul not to go to Jerusalem. 13 But he said, “Why are you crying and making me so sad? I am ready to be tied up in Jerusalem. And I am ready to die for the Lord Jesus!”
14 We could not persuade him to stay away from Jerusalem. So we stopped begging him and said, “We pray that what the Lord wants will be done.”
15 After this, we got ready and started on our way to Jerusalem. 16 Some of the followers from Caesarea went with us. They took us to the home of Mnason, a man from Cyprus. Mnason was one of the first followers. They took us to his home so that we could stay with him.
Paul Visits James
17 In Jerusalem the believers were glad to see us. 18 The next day, Paul went with us to visit James. All the elders were there, too. 19 Paul greeted them and told them everything that God had done among the non-Jewish people through him. 20 When they heard this, they praised God. Then they said to Paul, “Brother, you can see that many thousands of Jews have become believers. But they think it is very important to obey the law of Moses. 21 These Jews have heard about your teaching. They heard that you tell the Jews who live among non-Jews to leave the law of Moses. They heard that you tell them not to circumcise their children and not to obey Jewish customs. 22 What should we do? The Jewish believers here will learn that you have come. 23 So we will tell you what to do: Four of our men have made a promise to God. 24 Take these men with you and share in their cleansing ceremony.[b] Pay their expenses. Then they can shave their heads.[c] Do this and it will prove to everyone that what they have heard about you is not true. They will see that you follow the law of Moses in your own life. 25 We have already sent a letter to the non-Jewish believers. The letter said: ‘Do not eat food that has been offered to idols. Do not taste blood. Do not eat animals that have been strangled. Do not take part in any kind of sexual sin.’”
26 Then Paul took the four men with him. The next day, he shared in the cleansing ceremony. Then he went to the Temple. Paul announced the time when the days of the cleansing ceremony would be finished. On the last day an offering would be given for each of the men.
27 The seven days were almost over. But some Jews from Asia saw Paul at the Temple. They caused all the people to be upset, and they grabbed Paul. 28 They shouted, “Men of Israel, help us! This is the man who goes everywhere teaching things that are against the law of Moses, against our people, and against this Temple. And now he has brought some Greek men into the Temple. He has made this holy place unclean!” 29 (The Jews said this because they had seen Trophimus with Paul in Jerusalem. Trophimus was a man from Ephesus. The Jews thought that Paul had brought him into the Temple.)
30 All the people in Jerusalem became very upset. They ran and took Paul and dragged him out of the Temple. The Temple doors were closed immediately. 31 The people were about to kill Paul. Now the commander of the Roman army in Jerusalem learned that there was trouble in the whole city. 32 Immediately he ran to the place where the crowd was gathered. He brought officers and soldiers with him, and the people saw them. So they stopped beating Paul. 33 The commander went to Paul and arrested him. He told his soldiers to bind Paul with two chains. Then he asked, “Who is this man? What has he done wrong?” 34 Some in the crowd were yelling one thing, and some were yelling another. Because of all this confusion and shouting, the commander could not learn what had happened. So he ordered the soldiers to take Paul to the army building. 35-36 The whole mob was following them. When the soldiers came to the steps, they had to carry Paul. They did this because the people were ready to hurt him. They were shouting, “Kill him!”
37 The soldiers were about to take Paul into the army building. But he spoke to the commander, “May I say something to you?”
The commander said, “Do you speak Greek? 38 I thought you were the Egyptian who started some trouble against the government not long ago. He led 4,000 killers out to the desert.”
39 Paul said, “No, I am a Jew from Tarsus in the country of Cilicia. I am a citizen of that important city. Please, let me speak to the people.”
40 The commander gave permission, so Paul stood on the steps. He waved with his hand so that the people would be quiet. When there was silence, Paul spoke to them in the Jewish language.[d]
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.