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Bible Reading Plan

Daily Bible Reading

January 19 - Bible-in-a-Year
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Genesis 26

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Chapter 26

The Promise Reaffirmed to Isaac

1 There was another famine in the land in addition to the one that had occurred in Abraham's time.(a) And Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines, at Gerar.(b) 2 The Lord appeared to him and said, "Do not go down to Egypt. Live in the land that I tell you about; 3 stay in this land as a foreigner, and I will be with you and bless you.(c) For I will give all these lands to you and your offspring,(d) and I will confirm the oath that I swore to your father Abraham.(e) 4 I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky, I will give your offspring all these lands, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed[a] by your offspring,(f) 5 because Abraham listened to My voice and kept My mandate, My commands, My statutes, and My instructions."(g) 6 So Isaac settled in Gerar.

Isaac's Deception

7 When the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, "She is my sister,"(h) for he was afraid to say "my wife," thinking,(i) "The men of the place will kill me on account of Rebekah, for she is a beautiful woman."(j) 8 When Isaac had been there for some time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked down from the window and was surprised to see[b] Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah.

9 Abimelech sent for Isaac and said, "So she is really your wife! How could you say, ‘She is my sister'?"

Isaac answered him, "Because I thought I might die on account of her."

10 Then Abimelech said, "What is this you've done to us? One of the people could easily have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt on us."(k) 11 So Abimelech warned all the people with these words: "Whoever harms this man or his wife will certainly die."

Conflicts over Wells

12 Isaac sowed seed in that land, and in that year he reaped[c] a hundred times what was sown. The Lord blessed him,(l) 13 and the man became rich and kept getting richer until he was very wealthy. 14 He had flocks of sheep, herds of cattle, and many slaves, and the Philistines were envious of him. 15 The Philistines stopped up all the wells that his father's slaves had dug in the days of his father Abraham,(m) filling them with dirt. 16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, "Leave us, for you are much too powerful for us."[d]

17 So Isaac left there, camped in the Valley of Gerar, and lived there. 18 Isaac reopened the water wells that had been dug in the days of his father Abraham and that the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died. He gave them the same names his father had given them. 19 Then Isaac's slaves dug in the valley and found a well of spring[e] water there. 20 But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's herdsmen and said, "The water is ours!" So he named the well Quarrel[f] because they quarreled with him.(n) 21 Then they dug another well and quarreled over that one also, so he named it Hostility.[g] 22 He moved from there and dug another, and they did not quarrel over it. He named it Open Spaces[h] and said, "For now the Lord has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land."

The Lord Appears to Isaac

23 From there he went up to Beer-sheba, 24 and the Lord appeared to him that night and said, "I am the God of your father Abraham.(o) Do not be afraid, for I am with you.(p) I will bless you and multiply your offspring because of My servant Abraham."

25 So he built an altar there,(q) called on the name of Yahweh, and pitched his tent there. Isaac's slaves also dug a well there.(r)

Covenant with Abimelech

26 Now Abimelech came to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his adviser and Phicol the commander of his army.(s) 27 Isaac said to them, "Why have you come to me? You hated me and sent me away from you."

28 They replied, "We have clearly seen how the Lord has been with you. We think there should be an oath between two parties—between us and you. Let us make a covenant with you: 29 You will not harm us, just as we have not harmed you but have only done what was good to you, sending you away in peace. You are now blessed by the Lord ."(t)

30 So he prepared a banquet for them, and they ate and drank. 31 They got up early in the morning and swore an oath to each other.[i](u) Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they left him in peace. 32 On that same day Isaac's slaves came to tell him about the well they had dug, saying to him, "We have found water!"(v) 33 He called it Sheba.[j] Therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheba[k](w) to this day.

Esau's Wives

34 When Esau was 40 years old, he took as his wives Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite.(x) 35 They made life bitter[l] for Isaac and Rebekah.(y)

Psalms 19

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Chapter 19

Psalm 19

The Witness of Creation and Scripture

For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.

1 The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky[a] proclaims the work of His hands.(a)
2 Day after day they pour out speech;
night after night they communicate knowledge.[b]
3 There is no speech; there are no words;
their voice is not heard.
4 Their message[c] has gone out to all the earth,
and their words to the ends of the world.(b)

In the heavens[d] He has pitched a tent for the sun.(c)
5 It is like a groom coming from the[e] bridal chamber;
it rejoices like an athlete running a course.
6 It rises from one end of the heavens
and circles[f] to their other end;(d)
nothing is hidden from its heat.

7 The instruction of the Lord is perfect,
renewing one's life;(e)
the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy,
making the inexperienced wise.(f)
8 The precepts of the Lord are right,
making the heart glad;(g)
the command of the Lord is radiant,
making the eyes light up.(h)
9 The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever;(i)
the ordinances of the Lord are reliable
and altogether righteous.(j)
10 They are more desirable than gold—
than an abundance of pure gold;(k)
and sweeter than honey,
which comes from the honeycomb.(l)
11 In addition, Your servant is warned by them;
there is great reward in keeping them.(m)

12 Who perceives his unintentional sins?
Cleanse me from my hidden faults.(n)
13 Moreover, keep Your servant from willful sins;(o)
do not let them rule over me.(p)
Then I will be innocent
and cleansed from blatant rebellion.(q)
14 May the words of my mouth
and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable to You,(r)
Lord , my rock and my Redeemer.(s)

Luke 14:25-35

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Chapter 14

25 Now(t) great crowds were traveling with Him. So He turned and said to them: 26 "If anyone comes to Me(u) and does not hate(v) his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, and even his own life—he cannot be My disciple. 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross(w) and come after Me cannot be My disciple.

28 "For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn't first sit down and calculate the cost(x) to see if he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, after he has laid the foundation and cannot finish it, all the onlookers will begin to make fun of him, 30 saying, ‘This man started to build and wasn't able to finish.'

31 "Or what king, going to war against another king, will not first sit down and decide if he is able with 10,000 to oppose the one who comes against him with 20,000? 32 If not, while the other is still far off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, therefore, every one of you who does not say good-bye to[f] all his possessions(y) cannot be My disciple.

34 "Now,(z) salt(aa) is good, but if salt should lose its taste, how will it be made salty? 35 It isn't fit for the soil or for the manure pile; they throw it out. Anyone who has ears to hear should listen!" (ab)

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