M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Naomi the Matchmaker
3 Naomi her mother-in-law said to her “My daughter, should I not be seeking a resting place for you, so it may go well for you? 2 Now, is Boaz, with whose female workers you have been, not our relative? Look, he will be winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor. 3 So bathe and perfume yourself, put on your cloak and go down to the threshing floor. But do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. 4 Let it be that when he lies down and you know the place where he lies down, go uncover his feet and lie down there. He will tell you what to do.”
5 Ruth answered her, “I will do everything you say.” 6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did everything her mother-in-law had said.
7 After Boaz ate, drank, and was in a good mood, he went to lie down at the far side of the grain pile. So she came to the grain pile quietly, uncovered his feet, and lay down. 8 Now in the middle of the night, the man was startled and pulled back—and to his surprise, a woman was lying at his feet!
9 “Who are you?” he asked.
“I am Ruth, your handmaid,” she answered. “Spread the corner of your garment over your handmaid, for you are a goel.”
10 “May you be blessed by Adonai, my daughter!” he replied. “You have made the latter act of loyalty greater than the first, by not running after the young men, whether rich or poor. 11 Now my daughter, do not be afraid! Everything you propose, I will do for you, for everyone in town knows that you are a woman of valor. 12 Although it is true that I am a goel, there is one who is a closer goel than me. 13 Stay here tonight, and in the morning, if he will be your goel—good! Let him do so. But if he is not willing to be your goel, then I will be your goel myself, as surely as Adonai lives. Lie down until morning.”
14 So she lay at his feet until morning, but got up before one person could be distinguished from another, for he said, “Do not let it be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” 15 Then he said, “Bring the cloak you are wearing and hold it out.” She held it out and he poured six measures of barley into it and put it on her. Then he returned to town.
16 When Ruth came back to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked, “How did it go, my daughter?”
So Ruth told her all that the man had done for her. 17 She said “He gave me six measures of barley, for he said, ‘You shouldn’t go back to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’”
18 “Wait, my daughter,” Naomi said, “until you find out how the matter turns out, for he will not rest until he has settled the matter today.”
Who Will Redeem?
4 Meanwhile Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And all of a sudden, the goel about whom Boaz had spoken passed by. “Come over,” he called, “and sit down here, my friend.” So he came over and sat down.
2 Then Boaz took ten of the town’s elders and said, “Sit down here,” so they sat down. 3 Then he said to the goel, “Naomi, who has returned from the region of Moab, is selling the parcel of land that belongs to our brother Elimelech. 4 I thought I should inform you saying, ‘Buy it in the presence of the people sitting here, and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you want to redeem it, redeem it. But if it will not be redeemed, then tell me, so that I can know, because there is no one else in line to redeem it. I am after you.’”
“I will redeem it,” he said.
5 Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from Naomi’s hand, you will also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the deceased, in order to raise up the name of the deceased over his inheritance.”
6 The kinsman said, “Then I cannot redeem it for myself, or else I might endanger my own inheritance. You, take my right of redemption for yourself, for I cannot redeem it.”
7 Now in the past in Israel, one removed his sandal and gave it to another, in order to finalize the redemption and transfer of a matter. This was a legal transaction in Israel.
8 So the kinsman said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” then took off his shoe.
9 Boaz announced to the elders and all the people: “You are witnesses today that I have bought from Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and Mahlon. 10 Moreover, I have acquired Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon to be my wife in order to raise up the name of the deceased over his inheritance, so that the name of the deceased will not be cut off from his brothers or from the gate of his town. You are witnesses today.”
11 All the people at the gate and the elders said, “We are witnesses. May Adonai make the woman who has come into your house like Rachel and like Leah, who both built up the house of Israel. May you prosper in Ephrath and be renowned in Bethlehem. 12 May your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah,[a] through the seed that Adonai will give you by this young woman.”
13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. When he went to her, Adonai enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. 14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be Adonai, who has not left you without a goel today. May his name be famous throughout Israel. 15 Moreover, He will be to you a renewer of life and a sustainer of your old age, for your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”
16 Naomi took the child and held it to her bosom, and took care of him. 17 The neighboring women gave him a name saying “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they called him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
18 These are the generations of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron, 19 Hezron fathered Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab, 20 Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, 21 Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed, 22 Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.
From Malta to Rome
28 Once safely ashore, we learned that the island was called Malta. 2 The natives showed us unusual kindness. Because it had started raining and it was cold, they kindled a fire and welcomed us all.
3 But when Paul had gathered a bundle of brushwood and placed it on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened on his hand. 4 When the natives saw the snake hanging from his hand, they began saying to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer! Though he has been saved from the sea, Justice[a] has not allowed him to live.”
5 However, Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no harm. 6 They were expecting him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead—but after they waited a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and began to say he was a god.
7 Now in the vicinity around that place were lands belonging to the most prominent man of the island, named Publius. He welcomed us and hosted us warmly for three days. 8 It so happened that the father of Publius was lying in bed sick with a fever and dysentery. Paul visited him and, when he had prayed and laid hands on him, he healed him. 9 After this happened, the rest of the sick on the island started coming and getting healed. 10 They also heaped honors on us; and when we sailed, they put on board all the supplies we needed.
11 After three months, we set sail in a ship from Alexandria that had wintered at the island, with the Twin Brothers[b] as its figurehead. 12 Setting down at Syracuse, we stayed there three days. 13 From there we got underway[c] and reached Rhegium; and a day later a south wind came up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli. 14 There we found some brothers and sisters, and we were invited to stay with them for seven days. And in this way we came to Rome.
15 Now the brothers there, when they heard about us, came as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. When Paul saw them, he gave thanks to God and took courage. 16 When we entered Rome, Paul was permitted to remain in his own quarters, with a soldier guarding him.
Paul Keeps Spreading the Good News
17 It happened that after three days, Paul called together those who were the prominent Jewish leaders. When they had gathered he said to them, “Brothers, although I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. 18 When they examined me, they wanted to release me because there was no basis for the death penalty. 19 But when the Judean leaders protested, I was forced to appeal to Caesar—not that I had any charge to bring against my own nation. 20 For this reason, therefore, I have requested to see you and to speak with you—since it is for the hope of Israel that I am bearing this chain.”
21 They said to him, “We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brothers coming here has reported or spoken any evil about you. 22 But we think it appropriate to hear from you about what you think. For indeed, it is known to us that regarding this sect, it is spoken against everywhere.”
23 They set a day to meet Paul and came to him at his quarters in large numbers. From morning until evening he was explaining everything to them, testifying about the kingdom of God and trying to persuade them about Yeshua from both the Torah of Moses and the Prophets. 24 Some were convinced by what he said, while others refused to believe. 25 So when they disagreed among themselves, they began leaving after Paul had said one last statement: “The Ruach ha-Kodesh rightly spoke through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers, 26 saying,
‘Go to this people and say,
“You will keep on hearing but will never understand;
you will keep looking, but will never see.
27 For the heart of this people has become dull,
their ears can barely hear,
and they have shut their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
and understand with their hearts.
Then they would turn back,
and I would heal them.”’[d]
28 Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!” 29 [e]
30 Paul remained two whole years in his own rented quarters and continued to welcome all who came to him— 31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Yeshua the Messiah with all boldness and without hindrance.
In a Miry Cistern-Pit
38 Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah spoke to all the people, saying, 2 thus says Adonai: “He that remains in this city will die by the sword, by famine, and by plague, but anyone who goes out to the Chaldeans will live—so he will keep his life like the spoils of war, and will live.” 3 Thus says Adonai: “This city will surely be given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.”
4 Then the officials said to the king: “This man should now be put to death, since he demoralizes the men of war remaining in this city as well as all the people, by speaking such words to them. For this man is not seeking the shalom of this people, but calamity.”
5 Then King Zedekiah said: “Here he is in your hand. For the king cannot do anything against you.”
6 So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the cistern-pit of Malchiah the king’s son, which was in the courtyard of the guard, lowering Jeremiah down with ropes. Now in the pit there was no water, but only mud, and Jeremiah sank into the mud.
7 Now Ebed-melech[a]—an Ethiopian official in the king’s palace—heard they had put Jeremiah in the pit. While the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate, 8 Ebed-melech went out from the king’s palace and spoke to the king, saying: 9 “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they cast into the pit. He is likely to die right where he is from hunger, for there is no more bread in the city.”
10 Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying: “Take thirty men from here with you, and bring the prophet Jeremiah up out of the cistern, before he dies.”
11 So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went into the king’s palace under the storehouse, from there he took worn-out clothes and worn-out rags, and lowered them by ropes into the cistern-pit to Jeremiah. 12 And Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah: “Now put these worn-out clothes and rags under your armpits under the ropes.”
Jeremiah did so. 13 Then they pulled Jeremiah up with the ropes, and lifted him up out of the pit. But Jeremiah remained in the courtyard of the guard.
14 Then Zedekiah the king sent for the prophet Jeremiah and received him at the third entrance in the House of Adonai. The king said to Jeremiah: “I am going to ask you something—hide nothing from me.”
15 Jeremiah said to Zedekiah: “If I tell you, won’t you surely put me to death? Besides, if I give you counsel, you won’t listen to me.”
16 So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah, saying: “As Adonai lives, that gave us life, I will not put you to death, nor will I give you into the hand of these men seeking your life.”
17 Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah: Thus says Adonai, Elohim-Tzva’ot, the God of Israel: “If you will go out to the officers of the king of Babylon, then your soul will live, this city will not be burned with fire; and you and your household will survive. 18 But if you do not go out to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be handed over to the Chaldeans; they will burn it with fire, and you will not escape out of their hand.”
19 Zedekiah the king said to Jeremiah: “I am afraid of the Judeans who have deserted to the Chaldeans, lest they hand me over to them and they abuse me.”
20 But Jeremiah said: “They will not hand you over. Please, obey the voice of Adonai, in what I am speaking to you, so it will go well for you, and your soul will live! 21 But if you keep refusing to go out, this is the word that Adonai has shown me: 22 ‘Soon, all the women who are left in the palace of the king of Judah will be brought out to the officers of the king of Babylon, and those women will say:
“Your close friends have misled you,
and prevailed over you.
Your feet are sunk in the mire,
and they deserted you.’”
23 “Then they will bring out all your wives and your children to the Chaldeans, and you shall not escape out of their hand, but shall be seized by the hand of the king of Babylon, and this city will be burned down with fire.”
24 Then said Zedekiah to Jeremiah: “Let no one know of these words, and you will not die.
25 “But if the officials hear that I have talked with you, and they come to you and say to you: ‘Tell us now what you have said to the king—hide nothing from us and we will not put you to death. And what did the king say to you?’ 26 Then you will tell them, ‘I was presenting my petition before the king, not to make me return to Jonathan’s house to die there.’”
27 When all the officials came to Jeremiah and questioned him, he told them with just these words that the king had commanded. So they stopped speaking with him, since the matter was not overheard.
28 Then Jeremiah stayed in the guard’s courtyard until the day that Jerusalem was captured.
Judgment from Heaven
Psalm 11
1 For the music director, a psalm of David.
In Adonai I have taken shelter.
How can you say to my soul:
“Fly like a bird to your mountain?
2 For look, the wicked bend the bow.
They fix their arrow on the bowstring
so they can shoot from the shadows
at those who are upright in heart.
3 If our foundations are destroyed,
what should the righteous do?”
4 Adonai is in His holy Temple.
Adonai’s throne is in heaven.[a]
His eyes are watching.
His eyelids observe the children of men.
5 Adonai examines the righteous.
But the wicked and one loving violence His soul hates.
6 On the wicked He will rain down fire, brimstone
and scorching wind as the portion of their cup!
7 For Adonai is righteous—He loves justice.
The upright will see His face.
Silence the Flattering Lips
Psalm 12
1 For the music director, on the eight-string lyre, a psalm of David.
2 Help, Adonai! For no one godly exists.
For the faithful have vanished from the children of men.
3 Everyone tells a lie to his neighbor,
talking with flattering lips and a divided heart.
4 May Adonai cut off all flattering lips—
a tongue bragging big things.
5 They say: “With our tongue we’ll prevail.
We own our lips—who can master us?”
6 “Because of the oppression of the poor,
because of the groaning of the needy,
now will I arise,” says Adonai.
“I will put him in the safe place—he pants for it.”
7 The words of Adonai are pure words—
like silver refined in an earthly crucible,
purified seven times.
8 You will keep us safe, Adonai.
You will protect us from this generation forever.
9 The wicked strut all around,
while vileness is exalted by mankind.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.