M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
A Bride for Isaac
24 Now (A)Abraham was old, advanced in age; and the Lord had (B)blessed Abraham in every way. 2 Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his household, who had (C)charge of all that he owned, “(D)Please place your hand under my thigh, 3 and I will make you swear by the Lord, (E)the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you (F)shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of (G)the Canaanites, among whom I live, 4 but you will go to (H)my country and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” 5 The servant said to him, “Suppose the woman is not willing to follow me to this land; should I take your son back to the land from where you came?” 6 Then Abraham said to him, “(I)Beware that you do not take my son back there! 7 (J)The Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my birth, and who spoke to me and who swore to me, saying, ‘(K)To your [a]descendants I will give this land,’ He will send (L)His angel before you, and you will take a wife for my son from there. 8 But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will (M)be free from this my oath; (N)only do not take my son back there.” 9 So the servant (O)placed his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter.
10 Then the servant took ten camels from the camels of his master, and set out with a variety of (P)good things of his master’s in his hand; and he arose and went to [b]Mesopotamia, to (Q)the city of Nahor. 11 He made the camels kneel down outside the city by (R)the well of water at evening time, (S)the time when women go out to draw water. 12 He said, “(T)O Lord, the God of my master Abraham, please [c](U)grant me success today, and show lovingkindness to my master Abraham. 13 Behold, (V)I am standing by the [d]spring, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water; 14 now may it be that the girl to whom I say, ‘Please let down your jar so that I may drink,’ and [e]who answers, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels also’—may she be the one whom You have appointed for Your servant Isaac; and by this I will know that You have shown lovingkindness to my master.”
Rebekah Is Chosen
15 (W)Before he had finished speaking, behold, (X)Rebekah who was born to Bethuel the son of (Y)Milcah, the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor, came out with her jar on her shoulder. 16 The girl was (Z)very beautiful, a virgin, and no man had [f]had relations with her; and she went down to the spring and filled her jar and came up. 17 Then the servant ran to meet her, and said, “(AA)Please let me drink a little water from your jar.” 18 (AB)She said, “Drink, my lord”; and she quickly lowered her jar to her hand, and gave him a drink. 19 Now when she had finished giving him a drink, (AC)she said, “I will draw also for your camels until they have finished drinking.” 20 So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, and ran back to the well to draw, and she drew for all his camels. 21 (AD)Meanwhile, the man was gazing at her [g]in silence, to know whether the Lord had made his journey successful or not.
22 When the camels had finished drinking, the man took a (AE)gold ring weighing a half-shekel and two bracelets for her [h]wrists weighing ten shekels in gold, 23 and said, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room for us to lodge in your father’s house?” 24 She said to him, “(AF)I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, whom she bore to Nahor.” 25 Again she said to him, “We have plenty of both straw and feed, and room to lodge in.” 26 Then the man (AG)bowed low and worshiped the Lord. 27 He said, “(AH)Blessed be the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken (AI)His lovingkindness and His truth toward my master; as for me, (AJ)the Lord has guided me in the way to the house of my master’s brothers.”
28 Then (AK)the girl ran and told her mother’s household about these things. 29 Now Rebekah had a brother whose name was (AL)Laban; and Laban ran outside to the man at the spring. 30 When he saw the ring and the bracelets on his sister’s [i]wrists, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, “[j]This is what the man said to me,” he went to the man; and behold, he was standing by the camels at the spring. 31 And he said, “(AM)Come in, (AN)blessed of the Lord! Why do you stand outside since (AO)I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels?” 32 So the man entered the house. Then [k](AP)Laban unloaded the camels, and he gave straw and feed to the camels, and water to wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him. 33 But when food was set before him to eat, he said, “I will not eat until I have told my business.” And he said, “Speak on.” 34 So he said, “I am (AQ)Abraham’s servant. 35 The Lord has greatly (AR)blessed my master, so that he has become [l]rich; and He has given him (AS)flocks and herds, and silver and gold, and servants and maids, and camels and donkeys. 36 Now (AT)Sarah my master’s wife bore a son to my master [m]in her old age, and (AU)he has given him all that he has. 37 (AV)My master made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I [n]live; 38 but you shall go to my father’s house and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son.’ 39 (AW)I said to my master, ‘Suppose the woman does not follow me.’ 40 He said to me, ‘(AX)The Lord, before whom I have (AY)walked, will send (AZ)His angel with you to make your journey successful, and you will take a wife for my son from my relatives and from my father’s house; 41 (BA)then you will be free from my oath, when you come to my relatives; and if they do not give her to you, you will be free from my oath.’
42 “So (BB)I came today to the spring, and said, ‘O Lord, the God of my master Abraham, if now You will make my journey on which I go (BC)successful; 43 behold, (BD)I am standing by the [o]spring, and may it be that the maiden who comes out to draw, and to whom I say, “(BE)Please let me drink a little water from your jar”; 44 and she will say to me, “You drink, and I will draw for your camels also”; let her be the woman whom the Lord has appointed for my master’s son.’
45 “Before I had finished (BF)speaking in my heart, behold, (BG)Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder, and went down to the spring and drew, and (BH)I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ 46 She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder, and said, ‘(BI)Drink, and I will water your camels also’; so I drank, and she watered the camels also. 47 (BJ)Then I asked her, and said, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ And she said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, Nahor’s son, whom Milcah bore to him’; and I put the (BK)ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her [p]wrists. 48 And I (BL)bowed low and worshiped the Lord, and blessed the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, (BM)who had guided me in the right way to take the daughter of my master’s [q]kinsman for his son. 49 So now if you are going to [r](BN)deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me; and if not, let me know, that I may turn to the right hand or the left.”
50 Then Laban and Bethuel replied, “(BO)The matter comes from the Lord; (BP)so we cannot speak to you bad or good. 51 Here is Rebekah before you, take her and go, and let her be the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has spoken.”
52 When Abraham’s servant heard their words, he (BQ)bowed himself to the ground [s]before the Lord. 53 The servant brought out (BR)articles of silver and articles of gold, and garments, and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave precious things to her brother and to her mother. 54 Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank and spent the night. When they arose in the morning, he said, “(BS)Send me away to my master.” 55 But her brother and her mother said, “(BT)Let the girl stay with us a few days, say ten; afterward she may go.” 56 He said to them, “Do not delay me, since (BU)the Lord has prospered my way. Send me away that I may go to my master.” 57 And they said, “We will call the girl and [t]consult her wishes.” 58 Then they called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will go.” 59 Thus they sent away their sister Rebekah and (BV)her nurse with Abraham’s servant and his men. 60 They blessed Rebekah and said to her,
“May you, our sister,
(BW)Become thousands of ten thousands,
And may (BX)your [u]descendants possess
The gate of those who hate them.”
61 Then Rebekah arose with her maids, and they mounted the camels and followed the man. So the servant took Rebekah and departed.
Isaac Marries Rebekah
62 Now Isaac had come from going to (BY)Beer-lahai-roi; for he [v]was living in (BZ)the [w]Negev. 63 Isaac went out (CA)to [x]meditate in the field toward evening; and (CB)he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, camels were coming. 64 Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac she dismounted from the camel. 65 She said to the servant, “Who is that man walking in the field to meet us?” And the servant said, “He is my master.” Then she took her [y]veil and covered herself. 66 The servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. 67 Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and (CC)he took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and (CD)he loved her; thus Isaac was comforted after (CE)his mother’s death.
Pharisaism Exposed
23 (A)Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2 saying: “(B)The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; 3 therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. 4 (C)They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. 5 But they do all their deeds (D)to be noticed by men; for they (E)broaden their [a]phylacteries and lengthen (F)the tassels of their garments. 6 They (G)love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called (H)Rabbi by men. 8 But (I)do not be called (J)Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for (K)One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 Do not be called [b]leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. 11 (L)But the greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 (M)Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.
Eight Woes
13 “(N)But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, (O)because you shut off the kingdom of heaven [c]from [d]people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. 14 [[e]Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because (P)you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.]
15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one [f](Q)proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of [g](R)hell as yourselves.
16 “Woe to you, (S)blind guides, who say, ‘(T)Whoever swears by the [h]temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the [i]temple is obligated.’ 17 You fools and blind men! (U)Which is [j]more important, the gold or the [k]temple that sanctified the gold? 18 And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the [l]offering on it, he is obligated.’ 19 You blind men, (V)which is [m]more important, the [n]offering, or the altar that sanctifies the [o]offering? 20 Therefore, [p]whoever swears by the altar, swears both by [q]the altar and by everything on it. 21 And [r]whoever swears by the [s]temple, swears both by [t]the temple and by Him who (W)dwells within it. 22 And [u]whoever swears by heaven, (X)swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.
23 “(Y)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and [v]cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. 24 You (Z)blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For (AA)you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full [w]of robbery and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee, first (AB)clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.
27 “(AC)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28 So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
29 “(AD)Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, 30 and say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves, that you (AE)are [x]sons of those who murdered the prophets. 32 Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. 33 You serpents, (AF)you brood of vipers, how [y]will you escape the [z]sentence of [aa](AG)hell?
34 “(AH)Therefore, behold, (AI)I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will (AJ)scourge in your synagogues, and (AK)persecute from city to city, 35 so that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous (AL)Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the (AM)son of Berechiah, whom (AN)you murdered between the [ab]temple and the altar. 36 Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon (AO)this generation.
Lament over Jerusalem
37 “(AP)Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who (AQ)kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, (AR)the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. 38 Behold, (AS)your house is being left to you desolate! 39 For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘(AT)Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’”
Foreigners Excluded
13 On that day (A)they read aloud from the book of Moses in the hearing of the people; and there was found written in it that (B)no Ammonite or Moabite should ever enter the assembly of God, 2 because they did not meet the sons of Israel with bread and water, but (C)hired Balaam against them to curse them. However, (D)our God turned the curse into a blessing. 3 So when they heard the law, (E)they excluded (F)all foreigners from Israel.
Tobiah Expelled and the Temple Cleansed
4 Now prior to this, Eliashib the priest, (G)who was appointed over the chambers of the house of our God, being [a]related to (H)Tobiah, 5 had prepared a large [b]room for him, where formerly they put the grain offerings, the frankincense, the utensils and the tithes of grain, wine and oil (I)prescribed for the Levites, the singers and the gatekeepers, and the [c]contributions for the priests. 6 But during all this time I was not in Jerusalem, for in (J)the thirty-second year of (K)Artaxerxes king of Babylon I had gone to the king. After some time, however, I asked leave from the king, 7 and I came to Jerusalem and [d]learned about the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah, (L)by preparing a [e]room for him in the courts of the house of God. 8 It was very displeasing to me, so I (M)threw all of Tobiah’s household goods out of the room. 9 Then I gave an order and (N)they cleansed the rooms; and I returned there the utensils of the house of God with the grain offerings and the frankincense.
Tithes Restored
10 I also [f]discovered that (O)the portions of the Levites had not been given them, so that the Levites and the singers who performed the service had [g]gone away, (P)each to his own field. 11 So I [h](Q)reprimanded the officials and said, “(R)Why is the house of God forsaken?” Then I gathered them together and restored them to their posts. 12 All Judah then brought (S)the tithe of the grain, wine and oil into the storehouses. 13 In charge of the storehouses I appointed Shelemiah the priest, Zadok the scribe, and Pedaiah of the Levites, and in addition to them was Hanan the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah; for (T)they were considered reliable, and it was [i]their task to distribute to their [j]kinsmen. 14 (U)Remember me for this, O my God, and do not blot out my loyal deeds which I have performed for the house of my God and its services.
Sabbath Restored
15 In those days I saw in Judah some who were treading wine presses (V)on the sabbath, and bringing in sacks of grain and loading them on donkeys, as well as wine, grapes, figs and all kinds of loads, (W)and they brought them into Jerusalem on the sabbath day. So (X)I admonished them on the day they sold food. 16 Also men of Tyre were living [k]there who imported fish and all kinds of merchandise, and sold them to the sons of Judah on the sabbath, even in Jerusalem. 17 Then (Y)I [l]reprimanded the nobles of Judah and said to them, “What is this evil thing you are doing, [m]by profaning the sabbath day? 18 (Z)Did not your fathers do the same, so that our God brought on us and on this city all this trouble? Yet you are adding to the wrath on Israel by profaning the sabbath.”
19 (AA)It came about that just as it grew dark at the gates of Jerusalem before the sabbath, I commanded that the doors should be shut [n]and that they should not open them until after the sabbath. Then I stationed some of my servants at the gates so that no load would enter on the sabbath day. 20 Once or twice the traders and merchants of every kind of merchandise spent the night outside Jerusalem. 21 Then (AB)I [o]warned them and said to them, “Why do you spend the night in front of the wall? If you do so again, I will [p]use force against you.” From that time on they did not come on the sabbath. 22 And I commanded the Levites that (AC)they should purify themselves and come as gatekeepers to sanctify the sabbath day. For this also (AD)remember me, O my God, and have compassion on me according to the greatness of Your lovingkindness.
Mixed Marriages Forbidden
23 In those days I also saw that the Jews had [q](AE)married women from (AF)Ashdod, (AG)Ammon and Moab. 24 As for their children, half spoke in the language of Ashdod, and none of them was able to speak the language of Judah, but [r]the language of his own people. 25 So (AH)I contended with them and cursed them and (AI)struck some of them and pulled out their hair, and (AJ)made them swear by God, “You shall not give your daughters to their sons, nor take of their daughters for your sons or for yourselves. 26 (AK)Did not Solomon king of Israel sin regarding these things? (AL)Yet among the many nations there was no king like him, and (AM)he was loved by his God, and God made him king over all Israel; nevertheless the foreign women caused even him to sin. 27 [s]Do we then hear about you that you have committed all this great evil (AN)by acting unfaithfully against our God by [t]marrying foreign women?” 28 Even one of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib the high priest, was a son-in-law of (AO)Sanballat the Horonite, so I drove him away from me. 29 (AP)Remember them, O my God, [u]because they have defiled the priesthood and the (AQ)covenant of the priesthood and the Levites.
30 (AR)Thus I purified them from everything foreign and appointed duties for the priests and the Levites, each in his task, 31 and I arranged (AS)for the supply of wood at appointed times and for the first fruits. (AT)Remember me, O my God, for good.
Paul before the Council
23 Paul, looking intently at (A)the [a]Council, said, “(B)Brethren, (C)I have [b]lived my life with a perfectly good conscience before God up to this day.” 2 The high priest (D)Ananias commanded those standing beside him (E)to strike him on the mouth. 3 Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, (F)you whitewashed wall! Do you (G)sit to try me according to the Law, and in violation of the Law order me to be struck?” 4 But the bystanders said, “Do you revile God’s high priest?” 5 And Paul said, “I was not aware, brethren, that he was high priest; for it is written, ‘(H)You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’”
6 But perceiving that one group were (I)Sadducees and the other Pharisees, Paul began crying out in (J)the [c]Council, “(K)Brethren, (L)I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees; I am on trial for (M)the hope and resurrection of the dead!” 7 As he said this, there occurred a dissension between the Pharisees and Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. 8 For (N)the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor an angel, nor a spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all. 9 And there occurred a great uproar; and some of (O)the scribes of the Pharisaic party stood up and began to argue heatedly, saying, “(P)We find nothing wrong with this man; (Q)suppose a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?” 10 And as a great dissension was developing, the [d]commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them and ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force, and bring him into (R)the barracks.
11 But on (S)the night immediately following, the Lord stood at his side and said, “(T)Take courage; for (U)as you have (V)solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also.”
A Conspiracy to Kill Paul
12 When it was day, (W)the Jews formed a [e]conspiracy and (X)bound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul. 13 There were more than forty who formed this plot. 14 They came to the chief priests and the elders and said, “We have (Y)bound ourselves under a solemn oath to taste nothing until we have killed Paul. 15 Now therefore, you [f]and (Z)the [g]Council notify the [h]commander to bring him down to you, as though you were going to determine his case by a more thorough investigation; and we for our part are ready to slay him before he comes near the place.”
16 But the son of Paul’s sister heard of their ambush, [i]and he came and entered (AA)the barracks and told Paul. 17 Paul called one of the centurions to him and said, “Lead this young man to the [j]commander, for he has something to report to him.” 18 So he took him and led him to the [k]commander and *said, “Paul (AB)the prisoner called me to him and asked me to lead this young man to you since he has something to tell you.” 19 The [l]commander took him by the hand and stepping aside, began to inquire of him privately, “What is it that you have to report to me?” 20 And he said, “(AC)The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down tomorrow to (AD)the [m]Council, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more thoroughly about him. 21 So do not [n]listen to them, for more than forty of them are (AE)lying in wait for him who have (AF)bound themselves under a curse not to eat or drink until they slay him; and now they are ready and waiting for the promise from you.” 22 So the [o]commander let the young man go, instructing him, “Tell no one that you have notified me of these things.”
Paul Moved to Caesarea
23 And he called to him two of the centurions and said, “Get two hundred soldiers ready by [p]the third hour of the night to proceed to (AG)Caesarea, [q]with seventy horsemen and two hundred [r]spearmen.” 24 They were also to provide mounts to put Paul on and bring him safely to (AH)Felix the governor. 25 And he wrote a letter having this form:
26 “Claudius Lysias, to the (AI)most excellent governor Felix, (AJ)greetings.
27 “When this man was arrested by the Jews and was about to be slain by them, (AK)I came up to them with the troops and rescued him, (AL)having learned that he was a Roman. 28 “And (AM)wanting to ascertain the charge for which they were accusing him, I (AN)brought him down to their [s](AO)Council; 29 and I found him to be accused over (AP)questions about their Law, but [t]under (AQ)no accusation deserving death or [u]imprisonment.
30 “When I was (AR)informed that there would be (AS)a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once, also instructing (AT)his accusers to [v]bring charges against him before you.”
31 So the soldiers, in accordance with their orders, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. 32 But the next day, leaving (AU)the horsemen to go on with him, they returned to (AV)the barracks. 33 When these had come to (AW)Caesarea and delivered the letter to (AX)the governor, they also presented Paul to him. 34 When he had read it, he asked from what (AY)province he was, and when he learned that (AZ)he was from Cilicia, 35 he said, “I will give you a hearing after your (BA)accusers arrive also,” giving orders for him to be (BB)kept in Herod’s [w]Praetorium.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.