M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

28 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. Then he commanded him, “Don’t get married to a Canaanite woman. ² Go at once to Paddan Aram. Go to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel. Find a wife for yourself there. Take her from among the daughters of your mother’s brother Laban. ³ May the Mighty God bless you. May he give you children. May he make your family larger until you become a community of nations. ⁴ May he give you and your children after you the blessing he gave to Abraham. Then you can take over the land where you now live as an outsider. It’s the land God gave to Abraham.” ⁵ Isaac sent Jacob on his way. Jacob went to Paddan Aram. He went to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean. Laban was Rebekah’s brother. And Rebekah was the mother of Jacob and Esau.

⁶ Esau found out that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent him to Paddan Aram. Isaac wanted him to get a wife from there. Esau heard that when Isaac blessed Jacob, he commanded him, “Don’t get married to a woman from Canaan.” ⁷ Esau also learned that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram. ⁸ Then Esau realized how much his father Isaac disliked Canaanite women. ⁹ So he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath. She was the sister of Nebaioth and the daughter of Abraham’s son Ishmael. Esau added her to the wives he already had.

Jacob Has a Dream at Bethel

¹⁰ Jacob left Beersheba and started out for Harran. ¹¹ He reached a certain place and stopped for the night. The sun had already set. He took one of the stones there and placed it under his head. Then he lay down to sleep. ¹² In a dream he saw a stairway standing on the earth. Its top reached to heaven. The angels of God were going up and coming down on it. ¹³ The Lord stood beside the stairway. He said, “I am the Lord. I am the God of your grandfather Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your children after you the land you are lying on. ¹⁴ They will be like the dust of the earth that can’t be counted. They will spread out to the west and to the east. They will spread out to the north and to the south. All nations on earth will be blessed because of you and your children after you. ¹⁵ I am with you. I will watch over you everywhere you go. And I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

¹⁶ Jacob woke up from his sleep. Then he thought, “The Lord is surely in this place. And I didn’t even know it.” ¹⁷ Jacob was afraid. He said, “How holy this place is! This must be the house of God. This is the gate of heaven.”

¹⁸ Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head. He set it up as a sacred stone. And he poured olive oil on top of it. ¹⁹ He named that place Bethel. But the city used to be called Luz.

²⁰ Then Jacob made a promise. He said, “May God be with me. May he watch over me on this journey I’m taking. May he give me food to eat and clothes to wear. ²¹ May he do as he has promised so that I can return safely to my father’s home. Then you, Lord, will be my God. ²² This stone I’ve set up as a sacred stone will be God’s house. And I’ll give you a tenth of everything you give me.”

Judas Hangs Himself

27 It was early in the morning. All the chief priests and the elders of the people planned how to put Jesus to death. ² So they tied him up and led him away. Then they handed him over to Pilate, who was the governor.

³ Judas, who had handed him over, saw that Jesus had been sentenced to die. He felt deep shame and sadness for what he had done. So he returned the 30 silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. ⁴ “I have sinned,” he said. “I handed over a man who is not guilty.”

“What do we care?” they replied. “That’s your problem.”

⁵ So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

⁶ The chief priests picked up the coins. They said, “It’s against the law to put this money into the temple fund. It is blood money. It has paid for a man’s death.” ⁷ So they decided to use the money to buy a potter’s field. People from other countries would be buried there. ⁸ That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day. ⁹ Then the words spoken by Jeremiah the prophet came true. He had said, “They took the 30 silver coins. That price was set for him by the people of Israel. ¹⁰ They used the coins to buy a potter’s field, just as the Lord commanded me.” (Zechariah 11:12,13; Jeremiah 19:1–13; 32:6–9)

Jesus Is Brought to Pilate

¹¹ Jesus was standing in front of the governor. The governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“Yes. You have said so,” Jesus replied.

¹² But when the chief priests and the elders brought charges against him, he did not answer. ¹³ Then Pilate asked him, “Don’t you hear the charges they are bringing against you?” ¹⁴ But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge. The governor was really amazed.

¹⁵ It was the governor’s practice at the Passover Feast to let one prisoner go free. The people could choose the one they wanted. ¹⁶ At that time they had a well-known prisoner named Jesus Barabbas. ¹⁷ So when the crowd gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to set free? Jesus Barabbas? Or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” ¹⁸ Pilate knew that the leaders wanted to get their own way. He knew this was why they had handed Jesus over to him.

¹⁹ While Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him a message. It said, “Don’t have anything to do with that man. He is not guilty. I have suffered a great deal in a dream today because of him.”

²⁰ But the chief priests and the elders talked the crowd into asking for Barabbas and having Jesus put to death.

²¹ “Which of the two do you want me to set free?” asked the governor.

“Barabbas,” they answered.

²² “Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” Pilate asked.

They all answered, “Crucify him!”

²³ “Why? What wrong has he done?” asked Pilate.

But they shouted even louder, “Crucify him!”

²⁴ Pilate saw that he wasn’t getting anywhere. Instead, the crowd was starting to get angry. So he took water and washed his hands in front of them. “I am not guilty of this man’s death,” he said. “You are accountable for that!”

²⁵ All the people answered, “Put the blame for his death on us and our children!”

²⁶ Pilate let Barabbas go free. But he had Jesus whipped. Then he handed him over to be nailed to a cross.

The Soldiers Make Fun of Jesus

²⁷ The governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the palace, which was called the Praetorium. All the rest of the soldiers gathered around him. ²⁸ They took off his clothes and put a purple robe on him. ²⁹ Then they twisted thorns together to make a crown. They placed it on his head. They put a stick in his right hand. Then they fell on their knees in front of him and made fun of him. “We honor you, king of the Jews!” they said. ³⁰ They spit on him. They hit him on the head with the stick again and again. ³¹ After they had made fun of him, they took off the robe. They put his own clothes back on him. Then they led him away to nail him to a cross.

Jesus Is Nailed to a Cross

³² On their way out of the city, they met a man from Cyrene. His name was Simon. They forced him to carry the cross. ³³ They came to a place called Golgotha. The word Golgotha means the Place of the Skull. ³⁴ There they mixed wine with bitter spices and gave it to Jesus to drink. After tasting it, he refused to drink it. ³⁵ When they had nailed him to the cross, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. ³⁶ They sat down and kept watch over him there. ³⁷ Above his head they placed the written charge against him. It read,

This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.

³⁸ Two rebels against Rome were crucified with him. One was on his right and one was on his left. ³⁹ Those who passed by shouted at Jesus and made fun of him. They shook their heads ⁴⁰ and said, “So you are going to destroy the temple and build it again in three days? Then save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” ⁴¹ In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders made fun of him. ⁴² “He saved others,” they said. “But he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross! Then we will believe in him. ⁴³ He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him. He’s the one who said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ” ⁴⁴ In the same way the rebels who were being crucified with Jesus also made fun of him.

Jesus Dies

⁴⁵ From noon until three o’clock, the whole land was covered with darkness. ⁴⁶ About three o’clock, Jesus cried out in a loud voice. He said, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” This means “My God, my God, why have you deserted me?” (Psalm 22:1)

⁴⁷ Some of those standing there heard Jesus cry out. They said, “He’s calling for Elijah.”

⁴⁸ Right away one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar and put it on a stick. He offered it to Jesus to drink. ⁴⁹ The rest said, “Leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

⁵⁰ After Jesus cried out again in a loud voice, he died.

⁵¹ At that moment the temple curtain was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook. The rocks split. ⁵² Tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. ⁵³ They came out of the tombs. After Jesus was raised from the dead, they went into the holy city. There they appeared to many people.

⁵⁴ The Roman commander and those guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened. They were terrified. They exclaimed, “He was surely the Son of God!”

⁵⁵ Not very far away, many women were watching. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to take care of his needs. ⁵⁶ Mary Magdalene was among them. Mary, the mother of James and Joseph, was also there. So was the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

Jesus Is Buried

⁵⁷ As evening approached, a rich man came from the town of Arimathea. His name was Joseph. He had become a follower of Jesus. ⁵⁸ He went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate ordered that it be given to him. ⁵⁹ Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth. ⁶⁰ He placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb. Then he went away. ⁶¹ Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there across from the tomb.

The Guards at the Tomb

⁶² The next day was the day after Preparation Day. The chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. ⁶³ “Sir,” they said, “we remember something that liar said while he was still alive. He claimed, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ ⁶⁴ So give the order to make the tomb secure until the third day. If you don’t, his disciples might come and steal the body. Then they will tell the people that Jesus has been raised from the dead. This last lie will be worse than the first.”

⁶⁵ “Take some guards with you,” Pilate answered. “Go. Make the tomb as secure as you can.” ⁶⁶ So they went and made the tomb secure. They put a royal seal on the stone and placed some guards on duty.

Mordecai Talks Esther Into Helping the Jews

4 Mordecai found out about everything that had been done. So he tore his clothes. He put on the rough clothing people wear when they’re sad. He sat down in ashes. Then he went out into the city. He wept out loud. He cried bitter tears. ² But he only went as far as the palace gate. That’s because no one dressed in that rough clothing was allowed to go through it. ³ All the Jews were very sad. They didn’t eat anything. They wept and cried. Many of them put on the rough clothing people wear when they’re sad. They were lying down in ashes. They did all these things in every territory where the king’s order and law had been sent.

⁴ Esther’s male and female attendants came to her. They told her about Mordecai. So she became very troubled. She wanted him to take off his rough clothing. So she sent him other clothes to wear. But he wouldn’t accept them. ⁵ Then Esther sent for Hathak. He was one of the king’s officials. He had been appointed to take care of her. She ordered him to find out what was troubling Mordecai. She wanted to know why he was so upset.

⁶ So Hathak went out to see Mordecai. He was in the open area in front of the palace gate. ⁷ Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him. He told him about the exact amount of money Haman had promised to add to the royal treasures. He said Haman wanted it to be used to pay some men to destroy the Jews. ⁸ Mordecai also gave Hathak a copy of the order. It commanded people to wipe out the Jews. The order had been sent from Susa. Mordecai told Hathak to show the order to Esther. He wanted Hathak to explain it to her. Mordecai told him to tell her to go and beg the king for mercy. Mordecai wanted her to make an appeal to the king for her people.

⁹ Hathak went back and reported to Esther what Mordecai had said. ¹⁰ Then Esther directed him to give an answer to Mordecai. She told him to say, ¹¹ “There is a certain law that everyone knows about. All the king’s officials know about it. The people in the royal territories know about it. It applies to any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner courtyard without being sent for. It says they must be put to death. But there is a way out. Suppose the king reaches out his gold scepter toward them. Then their lives will be spared. But 30 days have gone by since the king sent for me.”

¹² Esther’s words were reported to Mordecai. ¹³ Then he sent back an answer. He said, “You live in the king’s palace. But don’t think that just because you are there you will be the only Jew who will escape. ¹⁴ What if you don’t say anything at this time? Then help for the Jews will come from another place. But you and your family will die. Who knows? It’s possible that you became queen for a time just like this.”

¹⁵ Then Esther sent a reply to Mordecai. She said, ¹⁶ “Go. Gather together all the Jews who are in Susa. And fast for my benefit. Don’t eat or drink anything for three days. Don’t do it night or day. I and my attendants will fast just as you do. Then I’ll go to the king. I’ll do it even though it’s against the law. And if I have to die, I’ll die.”

¹⁷ So Mordecai went away. He carried out all Esther’s directions.

Paul Sails for Rome

27 It was decided that we would sail for Italy. Paul and some other prisoners were handed over to a Roman commander named Julius. He belonged to the Imperial Guard. ² We boarded a ship from Adramyttium. It was about to sail for ports along the coast of Asia Minor. We headed out to sea. Aristarchus was with us. He was a Macedonian from Thessalonica.

³ The next day we landed at Sidon. There Julius was kind to Paul. He let Paul visit his friends so they could give him what he needed. ⁴ From there we headed out to sea again. We passed the calmer side of Cyprus because the winds were against us. ⁵ We sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia. Then we landed at Myra in Lycia. ⁶ There the commander found a ship from Alexandria sailing for Italy. He put us on board. ⁷ We moved along slowly for many days. We had trouble getting to Cnidus. The wind did not let us stay on course. So we passed the calmer side of Crete, opposite Salmone. ⁸ It was not easy to sail along the coast. Then we came to a place called Fair Havens. It was near the town of Lasea.

⁹ A lot of time had passed. Sailing had already become dangerous. By now it was after the Day of Atonement, a day of fasting. So Paul gave them a warning. ¹⁰ “Men,” he said, “I can see that our trip is going to be dangerous. The ship and everything in it will be lost. Our own lives will be in danger also.” ¹¹ But the commander didn’t listen to what Paul said. Instead, he followed the advice of the pilot and the ship’s owner. ¹² The harbor wasn’t a good place for ships to stay during winter. So most of the people decided we should sail on. They hoped we would reach Phoenix. They wanted to spend the winter there. Phoenix was a harbor in Crete. It faced both southwest and northwest.

The Storm

¹³ A gentle south wind began to blow. The ship’s crew thought they saw their chance to leave safely. So they pulled up the anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete. ¹⁴ Before very long, a wind blew down from the island. It had the force of a hurricane. It was called the Northeaster. ¹⁵ The ship was caught by the storm. We could not keep it sailing into the wind. So we gave up and were driven along by the wind. ¹⁶ We passed the calmer side of a small island called Cauda. We almost lost the lifeboat that was tied to the side of the ship. ¹⁷ So the men lifted the lifeboat on board. Then they tied ropes under the ship itself to hold it together. They were afraid it would get stuck on the sandbars of Syrtis. So they lowered the sea anchor and let the ship be driven along. ¹⁸ We took a very bad beating from the storm. The next day the crew began to throw the ship’s contents overboard. ¹⁹ On the third day, they even threw the ship’s tools and supplies overboard with their own hands. ²⁰ The sun and stars didn’t appear for many days. The storm was terrible. So we gave up all hope of being saved.

²¹ The men had not eaten for a long time. Paul stood up in front of them. “Men,” he said, “you should have taken my advice not to sail from Crete. Then you would have avoided this harm and loss. ²² Now I beg you to be brave. Not one of you will die. Only the ship will be destroyed. ²³ I belong to God and serve him. Last night his angel stood beside me. ²⁴ The angel said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must go on trial in front of Caesar. God has shown his grace by sparing the lives of all those sailing with you.’ ²⁵ Men, continue to be brave. I have faith in God. It will happen just as he told me. ²⁶ But we must run the ship onto the beach of some island.”

The Ship Is Destroyed

²⁷ On the 14th night the wind was still pushing us across the Adriatic Sea. About midnight the sailors had a feeling that they were approaching land. ²⁸ They measured how deep the water was. They found that it was 120 feet deep. A short time later they measured the water again. This time it was 90 feet deep. ²⁹ They were afraid we would crash against the rocks. So they dropped four anchors from the back of the ship. They prayed that daylight would come. ³⁰ The sailors wanted to escape from the ship. So they let the lifeboat down into the sea. They pretended they were going to lower some anchors from the front of the ship. ³¹ But Paul spoke to the commander and the soldiers. “These men must stay with the ship,” he said. “If they don’t, you can’t be saved.” ³² So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the lifeboat. They let it drift away.

³³ Just before dawn Paul tried to get them all to eat. “For the last 14 days,” he said, “you have wondered what would happen. You have gone without food. You haven’t eaten anything. ³⁴ Now I am asking you to eat some food. You need it to live. Not one of you will lose a single hair from your head.” ³⁵ After Paul said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God. He did this where they all could see him. Then he broke it and began to eat. ³⁶ All of them were filled with hope. So they ate some food. ³⁷ There were 276 of us on board. ³⁸ They ate as much as they wanted. They needed to make the ship lighter. So they threw the rest of the grain into the sea.

³⁹ When daylight came, they saw a bay with a sandy beach. They didn’t recognize the place. But they decided to run the ship onto the beach if they could. ⁴⁰ So they cut the anchors loose and left them in the sea. At the same time, they untied the ropes that held the rudders. They lifted the sail at the front of the ship to the wind. Then they headed for the beach. ⁴¹ But the ship hit a sandbar. So the front of it got stuck and wouldn’t move. The back of the ship was broken to pieces by the pounding of the waves.

⁴² The soldiers planned to kill the prisoners. They wanted to keep them from swimming away and escaping. ⁴³ But the commander wanted to save Paul’s life. So he kept the soldiers from carrying out their plan. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and swim to land. ⁴⁴ The rest were supposed to get there on boards or other pieces of the ship. That is how everyone reached land safely.