M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Chapter 15
The Covenant Guarantee of the Promise.[a] 1 Some time later the Lord communicated these words to Abram in a vision,
“Do not fear, Abram.
I am your shield;
your reward shall be very great.”
2 Abram answered, “My Lord God, what will you give me? I will pass away without children and my heir will be Eliezer of Damascus.” 3 Abram continued, “Behold, you have not given me descendants, and my servant will be my heir.”
4 Then the word of the Lord came unto him, “He will not be your heir; your own child will be your heir.” 5 Then he led him outside and told him, “Look into the heavens and count the stars, if you can count them. Such,” he continued, “will your descendants be.”
6 Abraham believed the Lord, who credited it to him as righteousness.[b]
7 And he said, “I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to take possession of this land.”
8 He answered, “O Lord God, how will I know that I am to possess it?”
9 He said, “Take a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old she-goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
10 He took all these animals and split them in two and placed each half opposite the other (except for the birds). 11 Birds of prey landed upon the carcasses, but Abram chased them away.
12 As the sun was setting, a trance fell upon Abram, and a fearful darkness descended upon him. 13 The Lord said to Abram, “Know that your descendants shall be foreigners in a land that is not their own. They shall be made slaves and oppressed for four hundred years. 14 But I will execute my judgment upon the nation that they will have served. They will leave it with great riches. 15 As for you, you will go in peace to your fathers, and you will be buried at a happy old age. 16 In the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites has not yet come to full measure.”
17 When the sun set, it was dark, and a smoking brazier and a flaming torch passed between the carcasses of the animals that had been split in two.[c] 18 On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, “To your descendants I will give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates, 19 the dwelling place of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
Chapter 14
John the Baptist, Herod, and Jesus.[a] 1 At that time Herod the tetrarch[b] heard reports about Jesus, 2 and he said to his servants, “This man is John the Baptist. He has risen from the dead. That is why such powers are at work in him.”
3 Now Herod had ordered the arrest of John, put him in chains, and imprisoned him on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. 4 For John had told him, “It is against the law for you to have her.”
5 Herod wanted to put John to death, but he was afraid of the people because they regarded John as a prophet. 6 But at a birthday celebration for Herod, the daughter of Herodias[c] danced in front of the guests, and she pleased Herod so much 7 that he promised with an oath to give her anything she asked for. 8 Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me here the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”
9 The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and the guests present there, he ordered that her request be granted. 10 He had John beheaded in the prison.[d] 11 The head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who took it to her mother. 12 John’s disciples came and removed the body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus.
13 Jesus Feeds Five Thousand Men.[e]When Jesus received this news, he withdrew from there in a boat by himself to a deserted place, but when the people learned of it, they followed him on foot from the towns.[f] 14 When he came ashore and saw the vast crowd, he had compassion on them and healed those who were sick.
15 When evening approached, the disciples came up to him and said, “This is a deserted place and the hour is now late. Send the people away now so that they can go to the villages to buy some food for themselves.” 16 Jesus replied, “There is no need for them to depart. Give them something to eat yourselves.” 17 But they answered, “All we have here are five loaves of bread and two fish.” 18 Jesus said, “Bring them here to me.”
19 Then he ordered the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.[g] 20 They all ate and were satisfied. Then they gathered up the fragments that were left over—twelve full baskets. 21 Those who had eaten numbered about five thousand men, in addition to women and children.[h]
22 Jesus Walks on the Water.[i] Then Jesus instructed the disciples to get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side while he dismissed the crowds. 23 After he sent them away, he went by himself up on the mountain to pray. When evening came, he was there alone. 24 Meanwhile, the boat was already some distance from the shore, battered by waves and a strong wind.
25 During the fourth watch[j] of the night, Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the water they were terrified, and they cried out in their fright, “It is a ghost!” 27 But Jesus immediately spoke to them, saying, “Have courage! It is I. Do not be afraid.”
28 Peter answered, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you across the water.” 29 He said, “Come!” Then Peter got out of the boat and started walking on the water toward Jesus. 30 But when he realized the force of the wind, he became frightened. As he began to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught hold of him, saying, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 After they got into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Those in the boat fell to their knees in worship, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”[k]
34 Jesus Heals the Sick at Gennesaret. After they had completed the crossing, they landed at Gennesaret.[l] 35 When the people there recognized him, they sent word of his presence throughout the region. They also brought him all those who were sick 36 and begged him to let them touch only the edge of his cloak. All who touched it were completely healed.
Chapter 4
1 When Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites[a] heard that the repairs to the walls of Jerusalem were proceeding according to plan and that the gaps were beginning to be closed, they became infuriated. 2 As a result, they all plotted together to launch an attack against Jerusalem and throw all of us into panic and confusion. 3 Therefore, we prayed to our God and posted guards against them day and night in an attempt to foil their plans.
4 Meanwhile, the Judahites were saying: “The strength of the laborers is beginning to falter, and the rubbish is so extensive that we will not be able to rebuild the wall.” 5 However, our enemies, who were adamant in their belief that we would not know or see anything before they came into our midst, prepared to kill us and put a stop to the work.
6 When the Jews who lived near them came to us, they warned us ten times over: “Whichever way you turn, they will be prepared to attack us.” 7 Therefore, I commanded men to position themselves in the lowest places behind the wall, and near them I stationed the people by families with their swords, spears, and bows.
8 After I made a thorough inspection, I addressed the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people, saying: “Have no fear of them! Remember the Lord, who is great and awe-inspiring, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.” 9 When our enemies realized that we were forewarned and that God had thwarted their plans, they withdrew, and we all went back to the wall, each one to his particular task.
10 From that time on, however, half of my men did the construction work, while the other half posted themselves behind the whole house of Judah as they rebuilt the wall. 11 Those who carried the building materials did their work with one hand while holding a spear with the other. 12 Moreover, every worker involved in the task of building had his sword strapped to his side at all times. In addition, a trumpeter stood beside me.
13 [b]I then said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people: “Our work is extensive and spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. 14 Whenever you hear the sound of a trumpet, come to our side to support us immediately. Our God will fight for us.”
15 Therefore, we continued to labor at the work, from the break of dawn until the stars came out. 16 At the same time I also told the people: “Let every man with his servant remain each night in Jerusalem, so that they may spend the night as a guard for us and be at work during the day.” 17 Therefore, neither I, nor my brothers, nor my servants, nor any of the bodyguards who accompanied me ever took off our clothes. In addition, each one kept his spear in his right hand.
Chapter 14
Jews and Gentiles at Iconium.[a] 1 In Iconium, they went into the Jewish synagogue and spoke so effectively that a great number of both Jews and Greeks became believers. 2 However, the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brethren. 3 Therefore, they stayed there for a considerable period of time, speaking boldly on behalf of the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to work signs and wonders.
4 However, the people in the city were divided, some siding with the Jews, others with the apostles. 5 Eventually, a plot was hatched by both the Gentiles and the Jews, together with their leaders, to attack and stone them. 6 When they became aware of this, they fled to the Lycaonian cities[b] of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding area. 7 There they preached the good news.
At Lystra Paul and Barnabas Are Taken for Gods.[c] 8 At Lystra, there was a man who was crippled. Lame from birth, he had never once been able to walk. 9 He listened to Paul speaking. Paul looked intently at him, and, seeing that he had the faith to be healed, 10 called out to him in a loud voice, “Stand up on your feet.” The man sprang up and began to walk.
11 [d]When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in Lycaonian, “The gods have come down to us in human form!” 12 They called Barnabas Zeus, and since Paul was the chief speaker, they called him Hermes. 13 And the priest of Zeus, who was on the outskirts of the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates, since he and the people intended to offer sacrifice.
14 However, when the apostles Barnabas and Paul learned about this, they tore their clothes[e] and rushed into the crowd, shouting, 15 “Men, why are you doing this? We are only human beings, just like you. We proclaim to you the good news so that you may turn from these idols to the living God who made heaven and earth and the sea and all that is in them.
16 “In the past, God allowed all the Gentiles to go their own way. 17 However, even then he did not leave you without a witness in doing good, for he sends you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons, and he provides you with food and fills your hearts with joy.” 18 Yet, even with these words, they were barely able to prevent the crowds from offering sacrifice to them.
19 End of the First Mission.[f] Shortly thereafter, some Jews arrived on the scene from Antioch and Iconium, and they won over the crowds. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the town, believing that he was dead. 20 But when the disciples gathered around him, he got up and entered the city. On the next day, he and Barnabas departed for Derbe.
21 After they had proclaimed the good news in that city and gained a considerable number of disciples, they returned to Lystra and then moved on to Iconium and Antioch. 22 They strengthened the disciples and encouraged them to persevere in the faith, saying, “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships in order to enter the kingdom of God.” 23 In each Church, they appointed presbyters for them, and with prayer and fasting they commended them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.
24 Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. 25 After proclaiming the word at Perga, they went down to Attalia,[g] 26 and from there they sailed to Antioch,[h] where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had completed. 27 When they arrived, they called the church together and related all that God had accomplished through them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 And they stayed there with the disciples for some time.
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