M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

Abraham and Abimelek

20 Abraham moved south into the Negev Desert. He lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar. ² There Abraham said about his wife Sarah, “She’s my sister.” Then Abimelek, the king of Gerar, sent for Sarah and took her.

³ So God appeared to Abimelek in a dream one night. He said to him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken. She is already married.”

⁴ But Abimelek hadn’t gone near her. So he said, “Lord, will you destroy a nation that hasn’t done anything wrong? ⁵ Didn’t Abraham say to me, ‘She’s my sister’? And didn’t she also say, ‘He’s my brother’? I had no idea I was doing anything wrong.”

⁶ Then God spoke to him in the dream. He said, “Yes, I know you had no idea you were doing anything wrong. So I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. ⁷ Now return the man’s wife to him. He is a prophet. So he will pray for you, and you will live. But what if you do not return her? Then you can be sure that you and all your people will die.”

⁸ Early the next morning Abimelek sent for all his officials. When he told them everything that had happened, they were really afraid. ⁹ Then Abimelek called Abraham in. Abimelek said, “What have you done to us? Have I done something wrong to you? Why have you brought so much guilt on me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.” ¹⁰ Abimelek also asked Abraham, “Why did you do this?”

¹¹ Abraham replied, “I thought, ‘There is no respect for God in this place. They will kill me because of my wife.’ ¹² Besides, she really is my sister. She’s the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother. And she became my wife. ¹³ God had me wander away from my father’s house. So I said to her, ‘Here is how you can show your love to me. Everywhere we go, say about me, “He’s my brother.” ’ ”

¹⁴ Then Abimelek gave Abraham sheep and cattle and male and female slaves. He also returned his wife Sarah to him. ¹⁵ Abimelek said, “Here is my land. Live anywhere you want to.”

¹⁶ He said to Sarah, “I’m giving your brother 25 pounds of silver. This will show everyone with you that I am sorry for what I did to you. You haven’t done anything wrong.”

¹⁷ Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelek. He also healed his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again. ¹⁸ The Lord had kept all the women in Abimelek’s house from having children. He had done it because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.

Jesus Teaches About Divorce

19 When Jesus finished saying these things, he left Galilee. He went into the area of Judea on the other side of the Jordan River. ² Large crowds followed him. He healed them there.

³ Some Pharisees came to test Jesus. They asked, “Does the Law allow a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?”

⁴ Jesus replied, “Haven’t you read that in the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female’? (Genesis 1:27) ⁵ He said, ‘That’s why a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife. The two will become one.’ (Genesis 2:24) ⁶ They are no longer two, but one. So no one should separate what God has joined together.”

⁷ They asked, “Then why did Moses command that a man can give his wife a letter of divorce and send her away?”

⁸ Jesus replied, “Moses let you divorce your wives because you were stubborn. But it was not this way from the beginning. ⁹ Here is what I tell you. Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery. A man may divorce his wife only if she has not been faithful to him.”

¹⁰ Here is what the disciples said to him. “If that’s the way it is between a husband and wife, it is better not to get married.”

¹¹ Jesus replied, “Not everyone can accept the idea of staying single. Only those who have been helped to live without getting married can accept it. ¹² Some men are not able to have children because they were born that way. Some have been made that way by other people. Others have chosen to live that way in order to serve the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it.”

Little Children Are Brought to Jesus

¹³ Some people brought little children to Jesus. They wanted him to place his hands on the children and pray for them. But the disciples told them not to do it.

¹⁴ Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t keep them away. The kingdom of heaven belongs to people like them.” ¹⁵ Jesus placed his hands on them to bless them. Then he went on from there.

Rich People and the Kingdom of God

¹⁶ Just then, a man came up to Jesus. He asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to receive eternal life?”

¹⁷ “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only one who is good. If you want to enter the kingdom, obey the commandments.”

¹⁸ “Which ones?” the man asked.

Jesus said, “ ‘Do not murder. Do not commit adultery. Do not steal. Do not be a false witness. ¹⁹ Honor your father and mother.’ (Exodus 20:12–16; Deuteronomy 5:16–20) And ‘love your neighbor as you love yourself.’ ” (Leviticus 19:18)

²⁰ “I have obeyed all those commandments,” the young man said. “What else do I need to do?”

²¹ Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell everything you have. Give the money to those who are poor. You will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.”

²² When the young man heard this, he went away sad. He was very rich.

²³ Then Jesus said to his disciples, “What I’m about to tell you is true. It is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. ²⁴ Again I tell you, it is hard for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. But it is even harder for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

²⁵ When the disciples heard this, they were really amazed. They asked, “Then who can be saved?”

²⁶ Jesus looked at them and said, “With people, this is impossible. But with God, all things are possible.”

²⁷ Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you! What reward will be given to us?”

²⁸ “What I’m about to tell you is true,” Jesus said to them. “When all things are made new, the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne. Then you who have followed me will also sit on 12 thrones. You will judge the 12 tribes of Israel. ²⁹ Suppose anyone has left houses, brothers or sisters, father or mother, husband or wife, children or fields because of me. Anyone who has done that will receive 100 times as much. They will also receive eternal life. ³⁰ But many who are first will be last. And many who are last will be first.

The Israelites Admit They Have Sinned

9 It was the 24th day of the seventh month. The Israelites gathered together again. They didn’t eat any food. They wore the rough clothing people wear when they’re sad. They put dust on their heads. ² The Israelites separated themselves from everyone else. They stood and admitted they had sinned. They also admitted that their people before them had sinned. ³ They stood where they were. They listened while the Levites read parts of the Book of the Law of the Lord their God. They listened for a fourth of the day. They spent another fourth of the day admitting their sins. They also worshiped the Lord their God. ⁴ Some people were standing on the stairs of the Levites. They included Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani and Kenani. With loud voices they called out to the Lord their God. ⁵ Then some Levites spoke up. They included Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah and Pethahiah. They said to the people, “Stand up. Praise the Lord your God. He lives for ever and ever!”

So the people said, “Lord, may your glorious name be praised. May it be lifted high above every other name that is blessed and praised. ⁶ You are the one and only Lord. You made the heavens. You made even the highest heavens. You created all the stars in the sky. You created the earth and everything on it. And you made the oceans and everything in them. You give life to everything. Every living being in heaven worships you.

⁷ “You are the Lord God. You chose Abram. You brought him out of Ur in the land of Babylon. You named him Abraham. ⁸ You knew that his heart was faithful to you. And you made a covenant with him. You promised to give to his children after him a land of their own. It was the land of the Canaanites, Hittites and Amorites. The Perizzites, Jebusites and Girgashites also lived there. You have kept your promise. That’s because you always do what is right and fair.

⁹ “You saw how our people of long ago suffered in Egypt. You heard them cry out to you at the Red Sea. ¹⁰ You sent signs and wonders against Pharaoh. You sent plagues on all his officials. In fact, you sent them on all the people of Egypt. You knew how they treated our people. They looked down on them. But you made a name for yourself. That name remains to this very day. ¹¹ You parted the waters of the Red Sea for the Israelites. They passed through it on dry ground. But you threw into the sea those who chased them. They sank down like a stone into the mighty waters. ¹² By day you led the Israelites with a pillar of cloud. At night you led them with a pillar of fire. It gave them light to show them the way you wanted them to go.

¹³ “You came down on Mount Sinai. From heaven you spoke to our people. You gave them rules and laws. Those laws are right and fair. You gave them orders and commands that are good. ¹⁴ You taught them about your holy Sabbath day. You gave them commands, orders and laws. You did it through your servant Moses. ¹⁵ When the people were hungry, you gave them bread from heaven. When they were thirsty, you brought them water out of a rock. You told them to go into the land of Canaan. You told them to take it as their own. It was the land you had promised to give them.

¹⁶ “But our people before us became proud and stubborn. They didn’t obey your commands. ¹⁷ They refused to listen to you. They forgot the miracles you had done among them. So they became stubborn. When they refused to obey you, they appointed a leader for themselves. They wanted to go back to being slaves in Egypt. But you are a God who forgives. You are gracious. You are tender and kind. You are slow to get angry. You are full of love. So you didn’t desert them. ¹⁸ They made for themselves a metal statue of a god that looked like a calf. They said to one another, ‘Here is your god. He brought you up out of Egypt.’ And they did evil things that dishonored you. But you still didn’t desert them.

¹⁹ “Because you loved them so much, you didn’t leave them in the desert. During the day the pillar of cloud didn’t stop guiding them on their path. At night the pillar of fire didn’t stop shining on the way you wanted them to go. ²⁰ You gave them your good Spirit to teach them. You didn’t hold back your manna from their mouths. And you gave them water when they were thirsty. ²¹ For 40 years you took good care of them in the desert. They had everything they needed. Their clothes didn’t wear out. And their feet didn’t swell up.

²² “You gave them kingdoms and nations. You even gave them lands far away. They took over the country of Sihon. He was the king of Heshbon. They also took over the country of Og. He was the king of Bashan. ²³ You gave them as many children as there are stars in the sky. You told their parents to enter the land. You told them to take it over. And you brought their children into it. ²⁴ Their children went into the land. They took it as their own. You brought the Canaanites under Israel’s control. The Canaanites lived in the land. But you handed them over to Israel. You also handed over their kings and the other nations in the land to Israel. You allowed Israel to deal with them just as they wanted to. ²⁵ Your people captured cities that had high walls around them. They also took over the rich land in Canaan. They took houses filled with all kinds of good things. They took over wells that had already been dug. They took many vineyards, olive groves and fruit trees. They ate until they were very full and satisfied. They were filled with joy because you were so good to them.

²⁶ “But they didn’t obey you. Instead, they turned against you. They turned their backs on your law. They killed your prophets. The prophets had warned them to return to you. But they did very evil things that dishonored you. ²⁷ So you handed them over to their enemies, who treated them badly. Then they cried out to you. From heaven you heard them. You loved them very much. So you sent leaders to help them. The leaders saved them from the power of their enemies.

²⁸ “Then the people were enjoying peace and rest again. That’s when they did what you did not want them to do. Then you handed them over to their enemies. So their enemies ruled over them. When they cried out to you again, you heard them from heaven. You loved them very much. So you saved them time after time.

²⁹ “You warned them so that they would obey your law again. But they became proud. They didn’t obey your commands. They sinned against your rules. You said, ‘Anyone who obeys my rules will live by them.’ But the people didn’t care about that. They turned their backs on you. They became very stubborn. They refused to listen to you. ³⁰ For many years you put up with them. By your Spirit you warned them through your prophets. In spite of that, they didn’t pay any attention. So you handed them over to the nations that were around them. ³¹ But you loved them very much. So you didn’t put an end to them. You didn’t desert them. That’s because you are a gracious God. You are tender and kind.

³² “Our God, you are the great God. You are mighty and wonderful. You keep the covenant you made with us. You show us your love. So don’t let all our suffering seem like a small thing to you. We’ve suffered greatly. So have our kings and leaders. So have our priests and prophets. Our people who lived long ago also suffered. And all your people are suffering right now. In fact, we’ve been suffering from the time of the kings of Assyria until today. ³³ In spite of everything that has happened to us, you have been fair. You have been faithful in what you have done. But we did what was evil. ³⁴ Our kings and leaders didn’t follow your law. Our priests and our people before us didn’t follow it either. They didn’t pay any attention to your commands or rules that you warned them to keep. ³⁵ They didn’t serve you. They didn’t turn from their evil ways. They didn’t obey you even when they had a kingdom. You were very good to them. And they enjoyed it. You gave them a rich land. It had plenty of room in it. But they still didn’t serve you.

³⁶ “Now look at us. We are slaves today. We’re slaves in the land you gave our people of long ago. You gave it to them so they could eat its fruit and the other good things it produces. ³⁷ But we have sinned against you. So its great harvest goes to the kings of Persia. You have placed them over us. They rule over our bodies and cattle just as they please. And we are suffering terribly.

The People Agree to Obey God’s Law

³⁸ “So we are making a firm agreement. We’re writing it down. Our leaders are putting their official marks on it. And so are our Levites and priests.”

Paul Goes to Ephesus

19 While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road to Ephesus. When he arrived, he found some believers there. ² He asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?”

“No,” they answered. “We haven’t even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”

³ So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?”

“John’s baptism,” they replied.

⁴ Paul said, “John baptized people, calling them to turn away from their sins. He told them to believe in the one who was coming after him. Jesus is that one.” ⁵ After hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ⁶ Paul placed his hands on them. Then the Holy Spirit came on them. They spoke in languages they had not known before. They also prophesied. ⁷ There were about 12 men in all.

⁸ Paul entered the synagogue. There he spoke boldly for three months. He gave good reasons for believing the truth about God’s kingdom. ⁹ But some of them wouldn’t listen. They refused to believe. In public they said evil things about the Way of Jesus. So Paul left them. He took the believers with him. Each day he talked with people in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. ¹⁰ This went on for two years. So all the Jews and Greeks who lived in Asia Minor heard the word of the Lord.

¹¹ God did amazing miracles through Paul. ¹² Even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to those who were sick. When this happened, their sicknesses were healed and evil spirits left them.

¹³ Some Jews went around driving out evil spirits. They tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus to set free those who were controlled by demons. They said, “In Jesus’ name I command you to come out. He is the Jesus that Paul is preaching about.” ¹⁴ Seven sons of Sceva were doing this. Sceva was a Jewish chief priest. ¹⁵ One day the evil spirit answered them, “I know Jesus. And I know about Paul. But who are you?” ¹⁶ Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on Sceva’s sons. He overpowered them all. He gave them a terrible beating. They ran out of the house naked and bleeding.

¹⁷ The Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus heard about this. They were all overcome with fear. They held the name of the Lord Jesus in high honor. ¹⁸ Many who believed now came and openly admitted what they had done. ¹⁹ A number of those who had practiced evil magic brought their scrolls together. They set them on fire out in the open. They added up the value of the scrolls. The scrolls were worth more than someone could earn in two lifetimes. ²⁰ The word of the Lord spread everywhere. It became more and more powerful.

²¹ After all this had happened, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem. He went through Macedonia and Achaia. “After I have been to Jerusalem,” he said, “I must visit Rome also.” ²² He sent Timothy and Erastus, two of his helpers, to Macedonia. But he stayed a little longer in Asia Minor.

Trouble in Ephesus

²³ At that time many people became very upset about the Way of Jesus. ²⁴ There was a man named Demetrius who made things out of silver. He made silver models of the temple of the goddess Artemis. He brought in a lot of business for the other skilled workers there. ²⁵ One day he called them together. He also called others who were in the same kind of business. “My friends,” he said, “you know that we make good money from our work. ²⁶ You have seen and heard what this fellow Paul is doing. He has talked to large numbers of people here in Ephesus. Almost everywhere in Asia Minor he has led people away from our gods. He says that the gods made by human hands are not gods at all. ²⁷ Our work is in danger of losing its good name. People’s faith in the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be weakened. Now she is worshiped all over Asia Minor and the whole world. But soon she will be robbed of her greatness.”

²⁸ When they heard this, they became very angry. They began shouting, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” ²⁹ Soon people were making trouble in the whole city. They all rushed into the theater. They dragged Gaius and Aristarchus along with them. These two men had come with Paul from Macedonia. ³⁰ Paul wanted to appear in front of the crowd. But the believers wouldn’t let him. ³¹ Some of the officials in Asia Minor were friends of Paul. They sent him a message, begging him not to go into the theater.

³² The crowd didn’t know what was going on. Some were shouting one thing and some another. Most of the people didn’t even know why they were there. ³³ The Jews in the crowd pushed Alexander to the front. They tried to tell him what to say. But he motioned for them to be quiet. He was about to give the people reasons for his actions. ³⁴ But then they realized that he was a Jew. So they all shouted the same thing for about two hours. “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” they yelled.

³⁵ The city clerk quieted the crowd down. “People of Ephesus!” he said. “The city of Ephesus guards the temple of the great Artemis. The whole world knows this. They know that Ephesus guards her statue, which fell from heaven. ³⁶ These facts can’t be questioned. So calm down. Don’t do anything foolish. ³⁷ These men haven’t robbed any temples. They haven’t said evil things against our female god. But you have brought them here anyhow. ³⁸ Demetrius and the other skilled workers may feel they have been wronged by someone. Let them bring charges. The courts are open. We have our governors. ³⁹ Is there anything else you want to bring up? Settle it in a court of law. ⁴⁰ As it is, we are in danger of being charged with a crime. We could be charged with causing all this trouble today. There is no reason for it. So we wouldn’t be able to explain what has happened.” ⁴¹ After he said this, he sent the people away.