The Bible Reading Plan

Genesis Chapter 16

¹Now Sarai, Abram's wife, bore him no children. She had a handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. ²Sarai said to Abram, "See now, Yahweh has restrained me from bearing. Please go in to my handmaid. It may be that I will obtain children by her." Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. ³Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her handmaid, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to Abram her husband to be his wife. ⁴He went in to Hagar, and she conceived. When she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes. ⁵Sarai said to Abram, "This wrong is your fault. I gave my handmaid into your bosom, and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes. May Yahweh judge between me and you."

⁶But Abram said to Sarai, "Behold, your maid is in your hand. Do to her whatever is good in your eyes." Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her face.

⁷Yahweh's angel met her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain on the way to Shur. ⁸He said, "Hagar, Sarai's handmaid, where did you come from? Where are you going?" She said, "I am fleeing from the face of my mistress Sarai."

⁹Yahweh's angel said to her, "Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hands." ¹⁰Yahweh's angel said to her, "I will greatly multiply your offspring, so they can't be counted for multitude." ¹¹Yahweh's angel said to her, "Behold, you are pregnant, and will bear a son. Call his name Ishmael, because Yahweh has heard your affliction. ¹²He will be like a wild donkey among men. His hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him. He will live in opposition to all of his brothers."

¹³She called the name of Yahweh who spoke to her, "You are a God who sees," for she said, "Can I have stayed alive after seeing him?" ¹⁴Therefore the well was called Beer Lahai Roi. Behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.

¹⁵Hagar bore a son for Abram. Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. ¹⁶Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.

Joshua Chapter 21

³⁴To the families of the children of Merari, the rest of the Levites, out of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam with its suburbs, Kartah with its suburbs, ³⁵Dimnah with its suburbs, and Nahalal with its suburbs; four cities. ³⁶Out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer with its suburbs, Jahaz with its suburbs, ³⁷Kedemoth with its suburbs, and Mephaath with its suburbs; four cities. ³⁸Out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead with its suburbs, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Mahanaim with its suburbs, ³⁹Heshbon with its suburbs, Jazer with its suburbs; four cities in all. ⁴⁰All these were the cities of the children of Merari according to their families, even the rest of the families of the Levites. Their lot was twelve cities.

⁴¹All the cities of the Levites in the midst of the possession of the children of Israel were forty-eight cities with their suburbs. ⁴²Each of these cities included their suburbs around them. It was this way with all these cities.

⁴³So Yahweh gave to Israel all the land which he swore to give to their fathers. They possessed it, and lived in it. ⁴⁴Yahweh gave them rest all around, exactly as he swore to their fathers. Not a man of all their enemies stood before them. Yahweh delivered all their enemies into their hand. ⁴⁵Nothing failed of any good thing which Yahweh had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.

Joshua Chapter 22

¹Then Joshua called the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, ²and said to them, "You have kept all that Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded you, and have listened to my voice in all that I commanded you. ³You have not left your brothers these many days to this day, but have performed the duty of the commandment of Yahweh your God. ⁴Now Yahweh your God has given rest to your brothers, as he spoke to them. Therefore now return and go to your tents, to the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of Yahweh gave you beyond the Jordan. ⁵Only take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded you, to love Yahweh your God, to walk in all his ways, to keep his commandments, to hold fast to him, and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul."

⁶So Joshua blessed them, and sent them away; and they went to their tents. ⁷Now to the one half-tribe of Manasseh Moses had given inheritance in Bashan; but to the other half gave Joshua among their brothers beyond the Jordan westward. Moreover when Joshua sent them away to their tents, he blessed them, ⁸and spoke to them, saying, "Return with much wealth to your tents, with very much livestock, with silver, with gold, with bronze, with iron, and with very much clothing. Divide the plunder of your enemies with your brothers."

⁹The children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the land of Gilead, to the land of their possession, which they owned, according to the commandment of Yahweh by Moses. ¹⁰When they came to the region about the Jordan, that is in the land of Canaan, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh built there an altar by the Jordan, a great altar to look at. ¹¹The children of Israel heard this, "Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar in the forefront of the land of Canaan, in the region about the Jordan, on the side that pertains to the children of Israel." ¹²When the children of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the children of Israel gathered themselves together at Shiloh, to go up against them to war. ¹³The children of Israel sent to the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, ¹⁴and with him ten princes, one prince of a fathers' house for each of the tribes of Israel; and they were everyone of them head of their fathers' houses among the thousands of Israel.

1 Chronicles Chapter 9

²⁸Certain of them were in charge of the vessels of service; for by count were these brought in and by count were these taken out. ²⁹Some of them also were appointed over the furniture, and over all the vessels of the sanctuary, and over the fine flour, and the wine, and the oil, and the frankincense, and the spices.

³⁰Some of the sons of the priests prepared the confection of the spices. ³¹Mattithiah, one of the Levites, who was the firstborn of Shallum the Korahite, had the office of trust over the things that were baked in pans. ³²Some of their brothers, of the sons of the Kohathites, were over the show bread, to prepare it every Sabbath.

³³These are the singers, heads of fathers' [households] of the Levites, [who lived] in the rooms [and were] free [from other service]; for they were employed in their work day and night. ³⁴These were heads of fathers' [households] of the Levites, throughout their generations, chief men: these lived at Jerusalem.

³⁵In Gibeon there lived the father of Gibeon, Jeiel, whose wife's name was Maacah: ³⁶and his firstborn son Abdon, and Zur, and Kish, and Baal, and Ner, and Nadab, ³⁷and Gedor, and Ahio, and Zechariah, and Mikloth. ³⁸Mikloth fathered Shimeam. They also lived with their brothers in Jerusalem, over against their brothers. ³⁹Ner fathered Kish; and Kish fathered Saul; and Saul fathered Jonathan, and Malchishua, and Abinadab, and Eshbaal. ⁴⁰The son of Jonathan was Merib Baal; and Merib Baal fathered Micah. ⁴¹The sons of Micah were Pithon, Melech, Tahrea [and Ahaz]. ⁴²Ahaz fathered Jarah; and Jarah fathered Alemeth, and Azmaveth, and Zimri; and Zimri fathered Moza; ⁴³and Moza fathered Binea; and Rephaiah his son, Eleasah his son, Azel his son. ⁴⁴Azel had six sons, whose names are these: Azrikam, Bocheru, and Ishmael, and Sheariah, and Obadiah, and Hanan: these were the sons of Azel.

1 Chronicles Chapter 10

¹Now the Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slaughtered on Mount Gilboa. ²The Philistines followed hard after Saul and after his sons; and the Philistines killed Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul. ³The battle went hard against Saul, and the archers overtook him; and he was distressed by reason of the archers. ⁴Then Saul said to his armor bearer, "Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me." But his armor bearer would not; for he was terrified. Therefore Saul took his sword, and fell on it. ⁵When his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he likewise fell on his sword, and died. ⁶So Saul died, and his three sons; and all his house died together. ⁷When all the men of Israel who were in the valley saw that they fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and lived in them.

Matthew Chapter 14

⁹The king was grieved, but for the sake of his oaths and of those who sat at the table with him, he commanded it to be given, ¹⁰and he sent and beheaded John in the prison. ¹¹His head was brought on a platter and given to the young lady; and she brought it to her mother. ¹²His disciples came, took the body, and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus. ¹³Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place apart. When the multitudes heard it, they followed him on foot from the cities.

¹⁴Jesus went out, and he saw a great multitude. He had compassion on them and healed their sick. ¹⁵When evening had come, his disciples came to him, saying, "This place is deserted, and the hour is already late. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves food."

¹⁶But Jesus said to them, "They don't need to go away. You give them something to eat."

¹⁷They told him, "We only have here five loaves and two fish."

¹⁸He said, "Bring them here to me." ¹⁹He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass; and he took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he praised [God for the food], broke and gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes. ²⁰They all ate and were filled. They took up twelve baskets full of what remained left over from the broken pieces. ²¹Those who ate were about five thousand men, in addition to women and children.

²²Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. ²³After he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into the mountain by himself to pray. When evening had come, he was there alone. ²⁴But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, distressed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. ²⁵In the fourth watch of the night, Jesus came to them, walking on the sea. ²⁶When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, "It's a ghost!" and they cried out for fear. ²⁷But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Cheer up! It is I! Don't be afraid."

²⁸Peter answered him and said, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the waters."

²⁹He said, "Come!"

Peter stepped down from the boat and walked on the waters to come to Jesus. ³⁰But when he saw that the wind was strong, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!"

³¹Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand, took hold of him, and said to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" ³²When they got up into the boat, the wind ceased. ³³Those who were in the boat came and worshiped him, saying, "You are truly the Son of God!"