M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Isaac Blesses Jacob
27 Isaac was old and almost blind, when he called in his first-born son Esau, who asked him, “Father, what can I do for you?”
2 Isaac replied, “I am old and might die at any time. 3 So go hunting with your bow and arrows and kill a wild animal. 4 Cook some of that tasty food that I love so much and bring it to me. I want to eat it once more and give you my blessing before I die.”
5 Rebekah had been listening, and as soon as Esau left to go hunting, 6 she said to Jacob, “I heard your father tell Esau 7 to kill a wild animal and cook some tasty food for him before he dies. Your father said this because he wants to bless your brother with the Lord as his witness. 8 Now, my son, listen carefully to what I want you to do. 9 Go and kill two of your best young goats and bring them to me. I'll cook the tasty food that your father loves so much. 10 Then you can take it to him, so he can eat it and give you his blessing before he dies.”
11 “My brother Esau is a hairy man,” Jacob reminded her. “And I am not. 12 If my father touches me and realizes I am trying to trick him, he will put a curse on me instead of giving me a blessing.”
13 Rebekah insisted, “Let his curse fall on me! Just do what I say and bring me the meat.” 14 So Jacob brought the meat to his mother, and she cooked the tasty food that his father liked. 15 Then she took Esau's best clothes and put them on Jacob. 16 She also covered the smooth part of his hands and neck with goatskins 17 and gave him some bread and the tasty food she had cooked.
18 Jacob went to his father and said, “Father, here I am.”
“Which one of my sons are you?” his father asked.
19 Jacob replied, “I am Esau, your first-born, and I have done what you told me. Please sit up and eat the meat I have brought. Then you can give me your blessing.”
20 Isaac asked, “My son, how did you find an animal so quickly?”
“The Lord your God was kind to me,” Jacob answered.
21 “My son,” Isaac said, “come closer, where I can touch you and find out if you really are Esau.” 22 Jacob went closer. His father touched him and said, “You sound like Jacob, but your hands feel hairy like Esau's.” 23 And so Isaac blessed Jacob, thinking he was Esau.
24 Isaac asked, “Are you really my son Esau?”
“Yes, I am,” Jacob answered.
25 So Isaac told him, “Serve me the wild meat, and I can give you my blessing.”
Jacob gave him some meat, and he ate it. He also gave him some wine, and he drank it. 26 Then Isaac said, “Son, come over here and kiss me.” 27 (A) While Jacob was kissing him, Isaac caught the smell of his clothes and said:
“The smell of my son
is like a field
the Lord has blessed.
28 God will bless you, my son,
with dew from heaven
and with fertile fields,
rich with grain and grapes.
29 (B) Nations will be your servants
and bow down to you.
You will rule over your brothers,
and they will kneel
at your feet.
Anyone who curses you
will be cursed;
anyone who blesses you
will be blessed.”
30 Right after Isaac had given Jacob his blessing and Jacob had gone, Esau came back from hunting. 31 He cooked the tasty food, brought it to his father, and said, “Father, please sit up and eat the meat I have brought you, so you can give me your blessing.”
32 “Who are you?” Isaac asked.
“I am Esau, your first-born son.”
33 Isaac started trembling and said, “Then who brought me some wild meat right before you came in? I ate it and gave him a blessing that cannot be taken back.”
34 Esau cried out in great distress, “Father, give me a blessing too!”
35 Isaac answered, “Your brother tricked me and stole your blessing.”
36 (C) Esau replied, “My brother deserves the name Jacob,[a] because he has already cheated me twice. The first time he cheated me out of my rights as the first-born son, and now he has cheated me out of my blessing.” Then Esau asked his father, “Don't you have any blessing left for me?”
37 “My son,” Isaac answered, “I have made Jacob the ruler over you and your brothers, and all of you will be his servants. I have also promised him all the grain and grapes that he needs. There's nothing left that I can do for you.”
38 (D) “Father,” Esau asked, “don't you have more than one blessing? You can surely give me a blessing too!” Then Esau started crying again.
39 (E) So his father said:
“Your home will be far
from that fertile land,
where dew comes down
from the heavens.
40 (F) You will live by the power
of your sword
and be your brother's slave.
But when you decide to be free,
you will break loose.”
41 Esau hated his brother Jacob because he had stolen the blessing that was supposed to be his. So he said to himself, “Just as soon as my father dies, I'll kill Jacob.”
42 (G) When Rebekah found out what Esau planned to do, she sent for Jacob and told him, “Son, your brother Esau is just waiting for a chance to kill you. 43 Now listen carefully and do what I say. Go to the home of my brother Laban in Haran 44 and stay with him for a while. When Esau stops being angry 45 and forgets what you have done to him, I'll send for you to come home. Why should I lose both of my sons on the same day?”[b]
46 Rebekah later told Isaac, “Those Hittite wives of Esau are making my life miserable! If Jacob marries a Hittite woman, I'd be better off dead.”
The Plot To Kill Jesus
(Mark 14.1,2; Luke 22.1,2; John 11.45-53)
26 When Jesus had finished teaching, he told his disciples, 2 (A) “You know two days from now will be Passover. This is when the Son of Man will be handed over to his enemies and nailed to a cross.”
3 At that time the chief priests and the nation's leaders were meeting at the home of Caiaphas the high priest. 4 They planned how they could sneak around and have Jesus arrested and put to death. 5 But they said, “We must not do it during Passover, because the people will riot.”
At Bethany
(Mark 14.3-9; John 12.1-8)
6 Jesus was in the town of Bethany, eating at the home of Simon, who had leprosy.[a] 7 (B) A woman came in with a bottle of expensive perfume and poured it on Jesus' head. 8 But when his disciples saw this, they became angry and complained, “Why such a waste? 9 We could have sold this perfume for a lot of money and given it to the poor.”
10 Jesus knew what they were thinking, and he said:
Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing for me. 11 (C) You will always have the poor with you, but you won't always have me. 12 She has poured perfume on my body to prepare it for burial.[b] 13 You may be sure that wherever the good news is told all over the world, people will remember what she has done. And they will tell others.
Judas and the Chief Priests
(Mark 14.10,11; Luke 22.3-6)
14 Judas Iscariot[c] was one of the twelve disciples. He went to the chief priests 15 (D) and asked, “How much will you give me if I help you arrest Jesus?” They paid Judas 30 silver coins, 16 and from then on he started looking for a good chance to betray Jesus.
Jesus Eats the Passover Meal with His Disciples
(Mark 14.12-21; Luke 22.7-13; John 13.21-30)
17 On the first day of the Festival of Thin Bread, Jesus' disciples came to him and asked, “Where do you want us to prepare the Passover meal?”
18 Jesus told them to go to a certain man in the city and tell him, “Our teacher says, ‘My time has come! I want to eat the Passover meal with my disciples in your home.’ ” 19 They did as Jesus told them and prepared the meal.
20-21 When Jesus was eating with his twelve disciples that evening, he said, “One of you will surely hand me over to my enemies.”
22 The disciples were very sad, and each one said to Jesus, “Lord, you can't mean me!”
23 (E) He answered, “One of you men who has eaten with me from this dish will betray me. 24 The Son of Man will die, as the Scriptures say. But it's going to be terrible for the one who betrays me! That man would be better off if he had never been born.”
25 Judas said, “Teacher, you surely don't mean me!”
“That's what you say!” Jesus replied. But later, Judas did betray him.
The Lord's Supper
(Mark 14.22-26; Luke 22.14-23; 1 Corinthians 11.23-25)
26 During the meal Jesus took some bread in his hands. He blessed the bread and broke it. Then he gave it to his disciples and said, “Take this and eat it. This is my body.”
27 Jesus picked up a cup of wine and gave thanks to God. He then gave it to his disciples and said, “Take this and drink it. 28 (F) This is my blood, and with it God makes his agreement with you. It will be poured out, so that many people will have their sins forgiven. 29 From now on I am not going to drink any wine, until I drink new wine with you in my Father's kingdom.” 30 Then they sang a hymn and went out to the Mount of Olives.
Peter's Promise
(Mark 14.27-31; Luke 22.31-34; John 13.36-38)
31 (G) Jesus said to his disciples, “During this very night, all of you will reject me, as the Scriptures say,
‘I will strike down
the shepherd,
and the sheep
will be scattered.’
32 (H) But after I am raised to life, I will go ahead of you to Galilee.”
33 Peter spoke up, “Even if all the others reject you, I never will!”
34 Jesus replied, “I promise you before a rooster crows tonight, you will say three times that you don't know me.” 35 But Peter said, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never say I don't know you.”
All the others said the same thing.
Jesus Prays
(Mark 14.32-42; Luke 22.39-46)
36 Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane. When they got there, he told them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”
37 Jesus took along Peter and the two brothers, James and John.[d] He was very sad and troubled, 38 and he said to them, “I am so sad that I feel as if I am dying. Stay here and keep awake with me.”
39 Jesus walked on a little way. Then he knelt with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, don't make me suffer by drinking from this cup.[e] But do what you want, and not what I want.”
40 He came back and found his disciples sleeping. So he said to Peter, “Can't any of you stay awake with me for just one hour? 41 Stay awake and pray that you won't be tested. You want to do what is right, but you are weak.”
42 Again Jesus went to pray and said, “My Father, if there is no other way, and I must suffer, I will still do what you want.”
43 Jesus came back and found them sleeping again. They simply could not keep their eyes open. 44 He left them and prayed the same prayer once more.
45 Finally, Jesus returned to his disciples and said, “Are you still sleeping and resting?[f] The time has come for the Son of Man to be handed over to sinners. 46 Get up! Let's go. The one who will betray me is already here.”
Jesus Is Arrested
(Mark 14.43-50; Luke 22.47-53; John 18.3-12)
47 Jesus was still speaking, when Judas the betrayer came up. He was one of the twelve disciples, and a large mob armed with swords and clubs was with him. They had been sent by the chief priests and the nation's leaders. 48 Judas had told them ahead of time, “Arrest the man I greet with a kiss.”[g]
49 Judas walked right up to Jesus and said, “Hello, teacher.” Then Judas kissed him.
50 Jesus replied, “My friend, do what you came for.”[h]
The men grabbed Jesus and arrested him. 51 One of Jesus' followers pulled out a sword. He struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.
52 But Jesus told him, “Put your sword away. Anyone who lives by fighting will die by fighting. 53 Don't you know that I could ask my Father, and he would at once send me more than twelve armies of angels? 54 But then, how could the words of the Scriptures come true, which say this must happen?”
55 (I) Jesus said to the mob, “Why do you come with swords and clubs to arrest me like a criminal? Day after day I sat and taught in the temple, and you didn't arrest me. 56 But all this happened, so that what the prophets wrote would come true.”
All Jesus' disciples left him and ran away.
Jesus Is Questioned by the Council
(Mark 14.53-65; Luke 22.54,55,63-71; John 18.13,14,19-24)
57 After Jesus had been arrested, he was led off to the house of Caiaphas the high priest. The nation's leaders and the teachers of the Law of Moses were meeting there. 58 But Peter followed along at a distance and came to the courtyard of the high priest's palace. He went in and sat down with the guards to see what was going to happen.
59 The chief priests and the whole council wanted to put Jesus to death. So they tried to find some people who would tell lies about him in court.[i] 60 But they could not find any, even though many did come and tell lies. At last, two men came forward 61 (J) and said, “This man claimed he could tear down God's temple and build it again in three days.”
62 The high priest stood up and asked Jesus, “Why don't you say something in your own defense? Don't you hear the charges they are making against you?” 63 But Jesus did not answer. So the high priest said, “With the living God looking on, you must tell the truth. Are you the Messiah, the Son of God?”[j]
64 (K) “That is what you say!” Jesus answered. “But I tell all of you,
‘Soon you will see
the Son of Man
sitting at the right side[k]
of God All-Powerful
and coming on the clouds
of heaven.’ ”
65 (L) The high priest then tore his robe and said, “This man claims to be God! We don't need any more witnesses! You have heard what he said. 66 What do you think?”
They answered, “He is guilty and deserves to die!” 67 (M) Then they spit in his face and hit him with their fists. Others slapped him 68 and said, “You think you are the Messiah! So tell us who hit you!”
Peter Says He Doesn't Know Jesus
(Mark 14.66-72; Luke 22.56-62; John 18.15-18,25-27)
69 While Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, a servant girl came up to him and said, “You were with Jesus from Galilee.”
70 But in front of everyone Peter said, “That isn't so! I don't know what you are talking about!”
71 When Peter had gone out to the gate, another servant girl saw him and said to some people there, “This man was with Jesus from Nazareth.”
72 Again Peter denied it, and this time he swore, “I don't even know that man!”
73 A little while later some people standing there walked over to Peter and said, “We know you are one of them. We can tell it because you talk like someone from Galilee.”
74 Peter began to curse and swear, “I don't know that man!”
Right then a rooster crowed, 75 and Peter remembered that Jesus had said, “Before a rooster crows, you will say three times you don't know me.” Then Peter went out and cried bitterly.
Haman Plans To Destroy the Jews
3 Later, King Xerxes promoted Haman the son of Hammedatha to the highest position in his kingdom. Haman was a descendant of Agag,[a] 2 and the king had given orders for his officials at the royal gate to honor Haman by kneeling down to him. All of them obeyed except Mordecai. 3 When the other officials asked Mordecai why he disobeyed the king's command, 4 he said, “Because I am a Jew.” They spoke to him for several days about kneeling down, but he still refused to obey. Finally, they reported this to Haman, to find out if he would let Mordecai get away with it.
5 Haman was furious to learn that Mordecai refused to kneel down and honor him. 6 And when he found out that Mordecai was a Jew, he knew that killing only Mordecai was not enough. Every Jew in the whole kingdom had to be killed.
7 It was now the twelfth year of the rule of King Xerxes. During Nisan,[b] the first month of the year, Haman said, “Find out the best time for me to do this.”[c] The time chosen was Adar,[d] the twelfth month.
8 (A) Then Haman went to the king and said:
Your Majesty, there are some people who live all over your kingdom and won't have a thing to do with anyone else. They have customs that are different from everyone else's, and they refuse to obey your laws. We would be better off to get rid of them! 9 Why not give orders for all of them to be killed? I can promise that you will get tons of silver for your treasury.
10 The king handed his official ring to Haman, who hated the Jews, and the king told him, 11 “Do what you want with those people! You can keep their money.”
12 On the thirteenth day of Nisan, Haman called in the king's secretaries and ordered them to write letters in every language used in the kingdom. The letters were written in the name of the king and sealed by using the king's own ring.[e] At once they were sent to the king's highest officials, the governors of each province, and the leaders of the different nations in the kingdom of Xerxes.
13 The letters were taken by messengers to every part of the kingdom, and this is what was said in the letters:
On the thirteenth day of Adar, the twelfth month, all Jewish men, women, and children are to be killed. And their property is to be taken.
14-15 King Xerxes gave orders for these letters to be posted where they could be seen by everyone all over the kingdom. The king's command was obeyed, and one of the letters was read aloud to the people in the walled city of Susa. Then the king and Haman sat down to drink together, but no one in the city[f] could figure out what was going on.
Paul's Defense before Agrippa
26 Agrippa told Paul, “You may now speak for yourself.”
Paul stretched out his hand and said:
2 King Agrippa, I am glad for this chance to defend myself before you today on all these charges my own people have brought against me. 3 You know a lot about our religious customs and the beliefs that divide us. So I ask you to listen patiently to me.
4-5 (A) All the Jews have known me since I was a child. They know what kind of life I have lived in my own country and in Jerusalem. And if they were willing, they could tell you I was a Pharisee, a member of a group that is stricter than any other. 6 Now I am on trial because I believe the promise God made to our people long ago.
7 Day and night our twelve tribes have earnestly served God, waiting for his promised blessings. King Agrippa, because of this hope, some of our leaders have brought charges against me. 8 (B) Why should any of you doubt that God raises the dead to life?
9 (C) I once thought that I should do everything I could to oppose Jesus from Nazareth. 10 I did this first in Jerusalem, and with the authority of the chief priests I put many of God's people in jail. I even voted for them to be killed. 11 I often had them punished in our synagogues, and I tried to make them give up their faith. In fact, I was so angry with them, that I went looking for them in foreign cities.
12 King Agrippa, one day I was on my way to Damascus with the authority and permission of the chief priests. 13 About noon I saw a light brighter than the sun. It flashed from heaven on me and on everyone traveling with me. 14 We all fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice say to me in Aramaic,[a] “Saul, Saul, why are you so cruel to me? It's foolish to fight against me!”
15 “Who are you?” I asked.
Then the Lord answered, “I am Jesus! I am the one you are so cruel to. 16 Now stand up. I have appeared to you, because I have chosen you to be my servant. You are to tell others what you have learned about me and what I will show you later.”
17 The Lord also said, “I will protect you from the Jews and from the Gentiles that I am sending you to. 18 I want you to open their eyes, so they will turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. Then their sins will be forgiven, and by faith in me they will become part of God's holy people.”
19 King Agrippa, I obeyed this vision from heaven. 20 (D) First I preached to the people in Damascus, and then I went to Jerusalem and all over Judea. Finally, I went to the Gentiles and said, “Stop sinning and turn to God! Then prove what you have done by the way you live.”
21 That is why some men grabbed me in the temple and tried to kill me. 22 But all this time God has helped me, and I have preached both to the rich and to the poor. I have told them only what the prophets and Moses said would happen. 23 (E) I told them how the Messiah would suffer and be the first to be raised from death, so he could bring light to his own people and to the Gentiles.
24 Before Paul finished defending himself, Festus shouted, “Paul, you're crazy! Too much learning has driven you out of your mind.”
25 But Paul replied, “Honorable Festus, I am not crazy. What I am saying is true, and it makes sense. 26 None of these things happened off in a corner somewhere. I am sure that King Agrippa knows what I am talking about. That's why I can speak so plainly to him.”
27 Then Paul said to Agrippa, “Do you believe what the prophets said? I know you do.”
28 Agrippa asked Paul, “In such a short time do you think you can talk me into being a Christian?”
29 Paul answered, “Whether it takes a short time or a long time, I wish you and everyone else who hears me today would become just like me! Except, of course, for these chains.”
30 Then King Agrippa, Governor Festus, Bernice, and everyone who was with them got up. 31 But before they left, they said, “This man isn't guilty of anything. He doesn't deserve to die or to be put in jail.”
32 Agrippa told Festus, “Paul could have been set free, if he had not asked to be tried by the Roman Emperor.”
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