M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Sons of Jacob
30 Now when Rachel saw that (A)she bore Jacob no children, [a]she became jealous of her sister; and she said to Jacob, “(B)Give me children, or else I die.” 2 Then Jacob’s anger burned against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God, who has (C)withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” 3 She said, “(D)Here is my maid Bilhah, go in to her that she may (E)bear on my knees, that [b](F)through her I too may have children.” 4 So (G)she gave him her maid Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob went in to her. 5 Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. 6 Then Rachel said, “God has [c](H)vindicated me, and has indeed heard my voice and has given me a son.” Therefore she named him [d]Dan. 7 Rachel’s maid Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 So Rachel said, “With [e]mighty wrestlings I have [f]wrestled with my sister, and I have indeed prevailed.” And she named him Naphtali.
9 When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing, she took her maid Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10 Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 Then Leah said, “[g]How fortunate!” So she named him [h]Gad. 12 Leah’s maid Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 Then Leah said, “[i]Happy am I! For women (I)will call me happy.” So she named him [j]Asher.
14 Now in the days of wheat harvest Reuben went and found (J)mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 15 But she said to her, “Is it a small matter for you to take my husband? And would you take my son’s mandrakes also?” So Rachel said, “Therefore he may lie with you tonight in return for your son’s mandrakes.” 16 When Jacob came in from the field in the evening, then Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come in to me, for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he lay with her that night. 17 God gave heed to Leah, and she conceived and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Then Leah said, “God has given me my [k]wages because I gave my maid to my husband.” So she named him Issachar. 19 Leah conceived again and bore a sixth son to Jacob. 20 Then Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good gift; now my husband [l]will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun. 21 Afterward she bore a daughter and named her Dinah.
22 Then (K)God remembered Rachel, and God gave heed to her and (L)opened her womb. 23 So she conceived and bore a son and said, “God has (M)taken away my reproach.” 24 She named him Joseph, saying, “(N)May the Lord [m]give me another son.”
Jacob Prospers
25 Now it came about when Rachel had borne Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, “(O)Send me away, that I may go to my own place and to my own country. 26 Give me my wives and my children (P)for whom I have served you, and let me depart; for you yourself know my service which I have [n]rendered you.” 27 But Laban said to him, “If now [o]it pleases you, stay with me; I have divined (Q)that the Lord has blessed me on your account.” 28 He [p]continued, “(R)Name me your wages, and I will give it.” 29 But he said to him, “(S)You yourself know how I have served you and how your cattle have [q]fared with me. 30 For you had little before [r]I came and it has [s]increased to a multitude, and the Lord has blessed you [t]wherever I turned. But now, when shall I provide for my own household also?” 31 So he said, “What shall I give you?” And Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this one thing for me, I will again pasture and keep your flock: 32 let me pass through your entire flock today, removing from there every (T)speckled and spotted sheep and every black [u]one among the lambs and the spotted and speckled among the goats; and such shall be my wages. 33 So my [v]honesty will answer for me later, when you come concerning my [w]wages. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats and black among the lambs, if found with me, will be considered stolen.” 34 Laban said, “[x]Good, let it be according to your word.” 35 So he removed on that day the striped and spotted male goats and all the speckled and spotted female goats, every one with white in it, and all the black ones among the sheep, and gave them into the [y]care of his sons. 36 And he put a distance of three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.
37 Then Jacob [z]took fresh rods of poplar and almond and plane trees, and peeled white stripes in them, exposing the white which was [aa]in the rods. 38 He set the rods which he had peeled in front of the flocks in the gutters, even in the watering troughs, where the flocks came to drink; and they [ab]mated when they came to drink. 39 So the flocks [ac]mated by the rods, and the flocks brought forth striped, speckled, and spotted. 40 Jacob separated the lambs, and [ad]made the flocks face toward the striped and all the black in the flock of Laban; and he put his own herds apart, and did not put them with Laban’s flock. 41 Moreover, whenever the [ae]stronger of the flock [af]were mating, Jacob would place the rods in the sight of the flock in the gutters, so that they might [ag]mate by the rods; 42 but when the flock was feeble, he did not put them in; so the feebler were Laban’s and the [ah]stronger Jacob’s. 43 So (U)the man [ai]became exceedingly prosperous, and had large flocks and female and male servants and camels and donkeys.
Preaching of John the Baptist
1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, (A)the Son of God.
2 (B)As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
“(C)Behold, I send My messenger [a]ahead of You,
Who will prepare Your way;
3 (D)The voice of one crying in the wilderness,
‘Make ready the way of the Lord,
Make His paths straight.’”
4 John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness [b](E)preaching a baptism of repentance for the (F)forgiveness of sins. 5 And all the country of Judea was going out to him, and all the people of Jerusalem; and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. 6 John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore (G)a leather belt around his waist, and [c]his diet was locusts and wild honey. 7 And he was [d]preaching, and saying, “After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals. 8 I baptized you [e]with water; but He will baptize you [f]with the Holy Spirit.”
The Baptism of Jesus
9 (H)In those days Jesus (I)came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens [g]opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him; 11 and a voice came out of the heavens: “(J)You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”
12 (K)Immediately the Spirit *impelled Him to go out into the wilderness. 13 And He was in the wilderness forty days being tempted by (L)Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to Him.
Jesus Preaches in Galilee
14 (M)Now after John had been [h]taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, [i](N)preaching the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “(O)The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God [j]is at hand; (P)repent and [k]believe in the gospel.”
16 (Q)As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” 18 Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. 19 Going on a little farther, He saw [l]James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets. 20 Immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went away [m]to follow Him.
21 (R)They *went into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath (S)He entered the synagogue and began to teach. 22 (T)They were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. 23 Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, 24 saying, “(U)What [n]business do we have with each other, Jesus [o]of (V)Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—(W)the Holy One of God!” 25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” 26 Throwing him into convulsions, the unclean spirit cried out with a loud voice and came out of him. 27 They were all (X)amazed, so that they debated among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.” 28 Immediately the news about Him spread everywhere into all the surrounding district of Galilee.
Crowds Healed
29 (Y)And immediately after they came (Z)out of the synagogue, they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with [p]James and John. 30 Now Simon’s mother-in-law was lying sick with a fever; and immediately they *spoke to [q]Jesus about her. 31 And He came to her and raised her up, taking her by the hand, and the fever left her, and she [r]waited on them.
32 (AA)When evening came, (AB)after the sun had set, they began bringing to Him all who were ill and those who were (AC)demon-possessed. 33 And the whole (AD)city had gathered at the door. 34 And He (AE)healed many who were ill with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He was not permitting the demons to speak, because they knew who He was.
35 (AF)In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and (AG)was praying there. 36 Simon and his companions searched for Him; 37 they found Him, and *said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.” 38 He *said to them, “Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may [s]preach there also; for that is what I came for.” 39 (AH)And He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, [t]preaching and casting out the demons.
40 (AI)And a leper *came to Jesus, beseeching Him and (AJ)falling on his knees before Him, and saying, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” 41 Moved with compassion, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, and *said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed. 43 And He sternly warned him and immediately sent him away, 44 and He *said to him, “(AK)See that you say nothing to anyone; but (AL)go, show yourself to the priest and (AM)offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” 45 But he went out and began to (AN)proclaim it freely and to (AO)spread the news around, to such an extent that [u]Jesus could no longer publicly enter a city, but [v]stayed out in unpopulated areas; and (AP)they were coming to Him from everywhere.
The King Plans to Honor Mordecai
6 During that night [a]the king (A)could not sleep so he gave an order to bring (B)the book of records, the chronicles, and they were read before the king. 2 It was found written what (C)Mordecai had reported concerning Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s eunuchs who were doorkeepers, that they had sought to lay hands on King Ahasuerus. 3 The king said, “What honor or dignity has been bestowed on Mordecai for this?” Then the king’s servants who attended him said, “Nothing has been done for him.” 4 So the king said, “Who is in the court?” Now Haman had just (D)entered the outer court of the king’s palace in order to speak to the king about (E)hanging Mordecai on the gallows which he had prepared for him. 5 The king’s servants said to him, “Behold, Haman is standing in the court.” And the king said, “Let him come in.” 6 So Haman came in and the king said to him, “What is to be done for the man (F)whom the king desires to honor?” And Haman said [b]to himself, “Whom would the king desire to honor more than me?” 7 Then Haman said to the king, “For the man whom the king desires to honor, 8 let them bring a royal robe which the king has worn, and (G)the horse on which the king has ridden, and on whose head (H)a royal crown has been placed; 9 and let the robe and the horse be handed over to one of the king’s most noble princes and let them array the man whom the king desires to honor and lead him on horseback through the city square, (I)and proclaim before him, ‘Thus it shall be done to the man whom the king desires to honor.’”
Haman Must Honor Mordecai
10 Then the king said to Haman, “Take quickly the robes and the horse as you have said, and do so for Mordecai the Jew, who is sitting at the king’s gate; do not fall short in anything of all that you have said.” 11 So Haman took the robe and the horse, and arrayed Mordecai, and led him on horseback through the city square, and proclaimed before him, “Thus it shall be done to the man whom the king desires to honor.”
12 Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate. But Haman hurried home, mourning, (J)with his head covered. 13 Haman recounted (K)to Zeresh his wife and all his friends everything that had happened to him. Then his wise men and Zeresh his wife said to him, “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is [c]of Jewish origin, you will not overcome him, but will surely fall before him.”
14 While they were still talking with him, the king’s eunuchs arrived and hastily (L)brought Haman to the banquet which Esther had prepared.
The Gospel Exalted
1 Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, [a](A)called as an apostle, (B)set apart for (C)the gospel of God, 2 which He (D)promised beforehand through His (E)prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was born (F)of a [b]descendant of David (G)according to the flesh, 4 who was declared (H)the Son of God with power [c]by the resurrection from the dead, according to the [d]Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and (I)apostleship [e]to bring about the (J)obedience of faith among (K)all the Gentiles for His name’s sake, 6 among whom you also are the (L)called of Jesus Christ;
7 to all who are (M)beloved of God in Rome, called as [f](N)saints: (O)Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
8 First, (P)I thank my God through Jesus Christ [g]for you all, because (Q)your faith is being proclaimed throughout the whole world. 9 For (R)God, whom I (S)serve in my spirit in the preaching of the gospel of His Son, is my witness as to how unceasingly (T)I make mention of you, 10 always in my prayers making request, if perhaps now at last by (U)the will of God I may succeed in coming to you. 11 For (V)I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be [h]established; 12 that is, that I may be encouraged together with you while among you, each of us by the other’s faith, both yours and mine. 13 (W)I do not want you to be unaware, (X)brethren, that often I (Y)have planned to come to you (and have been prevented so far) so that I may obtain some (Z)fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles. 14 (AA)I am [i]under obligation both to Greeks and to (AB)barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish. 15 So, for my part, I am eager to (AC)preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16 For I am not (AD)ashamed of the gospel, for (AE)it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the (AF)Jew first and also to (AG)the Greek. 17 For in it (AH)the righteousness of God is revealed [j]from faith to faith; as it is written, “[k](AI)But the righteous man shall live by faith.”
Unbelief and Its Consequences
18 For (AJ)the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who (AK)suppress the truth [l]in unrighteousness, 19 because (AL)that which is known about God is evident [m]within them; for God made it evident to them. 20 For (AM)since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, (AN)being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. 21 For even though they knew God, they did not [n]honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became (AO)futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 (AP)Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and (AQ)exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and [o]crawling creatures.
24 Therefore (AR)God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be (AS)dishonored among them. 25 For they exchanged the truth of God for [p]a (AT)lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, (AU)who is blessed [q]forever. Amen.
26 For this reason (AV)God gave them over to (AW)degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is [r]unnatural, 27 and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, (AX)men with men committing [s]indecent acts and receiving in [t]their own persons the due penalty of their error.
28 And just as they did not see fit [u]to acknowledge God any longer, (AY)God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are (AZ)gossips, 30 slanderers, [v](BA)haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, (BB)disobedient to parents, 31 without understanding, untrustworthy, (BC)unloving, unmerciful; 32 and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of (BD)death, they not only do the same, but also (BE)give hearty approval to those who practice them.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.