the Third Week after Easter
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Bible Reading Plan
Daily Bible Reading
January 8 - Bible-in-a-Year
niv
Genesis 15
Chapter 15
The Lord's Covenant With Abram
1 After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram(a) in a vision:(b)
"Do not be afraid,(c) Abram.
I am your shield,[a](d)
your very great reward.[b](e)"
2 But Abram said, "Sovereign Lord ,(f) what can you give me since I remain childless(g) and the one who will inherit[c] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?(h)" 3 And Abram said, "You have given me no children; so a servant(i) in my household(j) will be my heir."
4 Then the word of the Lord came to him: "This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.(k)" 5 He took him outside and said, "Look up at the sky and count the stars(l)—if indeed you can count them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring[d] be."(m)
6 Abram believed the Lord , and he credited it to him as righteousness.(n)
7 He also said to him, "I am the Lord , who brought you out(o) of Ur of the Chaldeans(p) to give you this land to take possession of it."(q)
8 But Abram said, "Sovereign Lord ,(r) how can I know(s) that I will gain possession of it?"(t)
9 So the Lord said to him, "Bring me a heifer,(u) a goat and a ram, each three years old,(v) along with a dove and a young pigeon.(w)"
10 Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other;(x) the birds, however, he did not cut in half.(y) 11 Then birds of prey came down on the carcasses,(z) but Abram drove them away.
12 As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep,(aa) and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. 13 Then the Lord said to him, "Know for certain that for four hundred years(ab) your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved(ac) and mistreated there. 14 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out(ad) with great possessions.(ae) 15 You, however, will go to your ancestors(af) in peace and be buried at a good old age.(ag) 16 In the fourth generation(ah) your descendants will come back here,(ai) for the sin of the Amorites(aj) has not yet reached its full measure."
17 When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch(ak) appeared and passed between the pieces.(al) 18 On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram(am) and said, "To your descendants I give this land,(an) from the Wadi[e] of Egypt(ao) to the great river, the Euphrates(ap)— 19 the land of the Kenites,(aq) Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20 Hittites,(ar) Perizzites,(as) Rephaites,(at) 21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites."(au)
Psalms 8
Chapter 8
Psalm 8[a]
For the director of music. According to gittith.[b] A psalm of David.
1
Lord
, our Lord,
how majestic is your name(a) in all the earth!
You have set your glory(b)
in the heavens.(c)
2 Through the praise of children and infants
you have established a stronghold(d) against your enemies,
to silence the foe(e) and the avenger.
3 When I consider your heavens,(f)
the work of your fingers,(g)
the moon and the stars,(h)
which you have set in place,
4 what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
human beings that you care for them?[c](i)
5 You have made them[d] a little lower than the angels[e](j)
and crowned them[f] with glory and honor.(k)
6 You made them rulers(l) over the works of your hands;(m)
you put everything under their[g] feet:(n)
7 all flocks and herds,(o)
and the animals of the wild,(p)
8 the birds in the sky,
and the fish in the sea,(q)
all that swim the paths of the seas.
9
Lord
, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!(r)
Luke 9:1-27
Chapter 9
Jesus Sends Out the Twelve(a)(b)
1 When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons(c) and to cure diseases,(d) 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God(e) and to heal the sick. 3 He told them: "Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt.(f) 4 Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town. 5 If people do not welcome you, leave their town and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them."(g) 6 So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere.
7 Now Herod(h) the tetrarch heard about all that was going on. And he was perplexed because some were saying that John(i) had been raised from the dead,(j) 8 others that Elijah had appeared,(k) and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had come back to life.(l) 9 But Herod said, "I beheaded John. Who, then, is this I hear such things about?" And he tried to see him.(m)
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand(n)(o)
10 When the apostles(p) returned, they reported to Jesus what they had done. Then he took them with him and they withdrew by themselves to a town called Bethsaida,(q) 11 but the crowds learned about it and followed him. He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God,(r) and healed those who needed healing.
12 Late in the afternoon the Twelve came to him and said, "Send the crowd away so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside and find food and lodging, because we are in a remote place here."
13 He replied, "You give them something to eat."
They answered, "We have only five loaves of bread and two fish—unless we go and buy food for all this crowd." 14 (About five thousand men were there.)
But he said to his disciples, "Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each." 15 The disciples did so, and everyone sat down. 16 Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them.(s) Then he gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people. 17 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
Peter Declares That Jesus Is the Messiah(t)(u)
18 Once when Jesus was praying(v) in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, "Who do the crowds say I am?"
19 They replied, "Some say John the Baptist;(w) others say Elijah; and still others, that one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life."(x)
20 "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"
Peter answered, "God's Messiah."(y)
Jesus Predicts His Death
21 Jesus strictly warned them not to tell this to anyone.(z) 22 And he said, "The Son of Man(aa) must suffer many things(ab) and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law,(ac) and he must be killed(ad) and on the third day(ae) be raised to life."(af)
23 Then he said to them all: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.(ag) 24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.(ah) 25 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? 26 Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them(ai) when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.(aj)
27 "Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God."
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
