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Bible Reading Plan
Daily Bible Reading
March 26 - Bible-in-a-Year
niv
Numbers 21
Chapter 21
Arad Destroyed
1 When the Canaanite king of Arad,(a) who lived in the Negev,(b) heard that Israel was coming along the road to Atharim, he attacked the Israelites and captured some of them. 2 Then Israel made this vow(c) to the Lord : "If you will deliver these people into our hands, we will totally destroy[a](d) their cities." 3 The Lord listened to Israel's plea and gave the Canaanites(e) over to them. They completely destroyed them(f) and their towns; so the place was named Hormah.[b](g)
The Bronze Snake
4 They traveled from Mount Hor(h) along the route to the Red Sea,[c](i) to go around Edom.(j) But the people grew impatient on the way;(k) 5 they spoke against God(l) and against Moses, and said, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt(m) to die in the wilderness?(n) There is no bread! There is no water!(o) And we detest this miserable food!"(p)
6 Then the Lord sent venomous snakes(q) among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died.(r) 7 The people came to Moses(s) and said, "We sinned(t) when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord (u) will take the snakes away from us." So Moses prayed(v) for the people.
8 The Lord said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole;(w) anyone who is bitten can look at it and live." 9 So Moses made a bronze snake(x) and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.(y)
The Journey to Moab
10 The Israelites moved on and camped at Oboth.(z) 11 Then they set out from Oboth and camped in Iye Abarim, in the wilderness that faces Moab(aa) toward the sunrise. 12 From there they moved on and camped in the Zered Valley.(ab) 13 They set out from there and camped alongside the Arnon(ac), which is in the wilderness extending into Amorite territory. The Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites.(ad) 14 That is why the Book of the Wars(ae) of the Lord says:
". . . Zahab[d] in Suphah and the ravines,
the Arnon
15 and[e] the slopes of the ravines
that lead to the settlement of Ar(af)
and lie along the border of Moab."
16 From there they continued on to Beer,(ag) the well where the Lord said to Moses, "Gather the people together and I will give them water."
17 Then Israel sang this song:(ah)
"Spring up, O well!
Sing about it,
18 about the well that the princes dug,
that the nobles of the people sank—
the nobles with scepters and staffs."
Then they went from the wilderness to Mattanah, 19 from Mattanah to Nahaliel, from Nahaliel to Bamoth, 20 and from Bamoth to the valley in Moab where the top of Pisgah(ai) overlooks the wasteland.
Defeat of Sihon and Og
21 Israel sent messengers(aj) to say to Sihon(ak) king of the Amorites:(al)
22 "Let us pass through your country. We will not turn aside into any field or vineyard, or drink water from any well. We will travel along the King's Highway until we have passed through your territory.(am)"
23 But Sihon would not let Israel pass through his territory.(an) He mustered his entire army and marched out into the wilderness against Israel. When he reached Jahaz,(ao) he fought with Israel.(ap) 24 Israel, however, put him to the sword(aq) and took over his land(ar) from the Arnon to the Jabbok,(as) but only as far as the Ammonites,(at) because their border was fortified. 25 Israel captured all the cities of the Amorites(au) and occupied them,(av) including Heshbon(aw) and all its surrounding settlements. 26 Heshbon was the city of Sihon(ax) king of the Amorites,(ay) who had fought against the former king of Moab(az) and had taken from him all his land as far as the Arnon.(ba)
27 That is why the poets say:
"Come to Heshbon and let it be rebuilt;
let Sihon's city be restored.
28 "Fire went out from Heshbon,
a blaze from the city of Sihon.(bb)
It consumed(bc) Ar(bd) of Moab,
the citizens of Arnon's heights.(be)
29 Woe to you, Moab!(bf)
You are destroyed, people of Chemosh!(bg)
He has given up his sons as fugitives(bh)
and his daughters as captives(bi)
to Sihon king of the Amorites.
30 "But we have overthrown them;
Heshbon's dominion has been destroyed all the way to Dibon.(bj)
We have demolished them as far as Nophah,
which extends to Medeba.(bk)"
31 So Israel settled in the land of the Amorites.(bl)
32 After Moses had sent spies(bm) to Jazer,(bn) the Israelites captured its surrounding settlements and drove out the Amorites who were there. 33 Then they turned and went up along the road toward Bashan(bo),(bp) and Og king of Bashan and his whole army marched out to meet them in battle at Edrei.(bq)
34 The Lord said to Moses, "Do not be afraid of him, for I have delivered him into your hands, along with his whole army and his land. Do to him what you did to Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon.(br)"
35 So they struck him down, together with his sons and his whole army, leaving them no survivors.(bs) And they took possession of his land.(bt)
Song of Solomon 1:1-2:7
Chapter 1
1 Solomon's Song of Songs.(a)
She[a]
2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth—
for your love(b) is more delightful than wine.(c)
3 Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes;(d)
your name(e) is like perfume poured out.
No wonder the young women(f) love you!
4 Take me away with you—let us hurry!
Let the king bring me into his chambers.(g)
Friends
We rejoice and delight(h) in you[b];
we will praise your love(i) more than wine.
She
How right they are to adore you!
5 Dark am I, yet lovely,(j)
daughters of Jerusalem,(k)
dark like the tents of Kedar,(l)
like the tent curtains of Solomon.[c]
6 Do not stare at me because I am dark,
because I am darkened by the sun.
My mother's sons were angry with me
and made me take care of the vineyards;(m)
my own vineyard I had to neglect.
7 Tell me, you whom I love,
where you graze your flock
and where you rest your sheep(n) at midday.
Why should I be like a veiled(o) woman
beside the flocks of your friends?
Friends
8 If you do not know, most beautiful of women,(p)
follow the tracks of the sheep
and graze your young goats
by the tents of the shepherds.
He
9 I liken you, my darling, to a mare
among Pharaoh's chariot horses.(q)
10 Your cheeks(r) are beautiful with earrings,
your neck with strings of jewels.(s)
11 We will make you earrings of gold,
studded with silver.
She
12 While the king was at his table,
my perfume spread its fragrance.(t)
13 My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh(u)
resting between my breasts.
14 My beloved(v) is to me a cluster of henna(w) blossoms
from the vineyards of En Gedi.(x)
He
15 How beautiful(y) you are, my darling!
Oh, how beautiful!
Your eyes are doves.(z)
She
16 How handsome you are, my beloved!(aa)
Oh, how charming!
And our bed is verdant.
He
17 The beams of our house are cedars;(ab)
our rafters are firs.
Chapter 2
She[a]
1 I am a rose[b](a) of Sharon,(b)
a lily(c) of the valleys.
He
2 Like a lily among thorns
is my darling among the young women.
She
3 Like an apple[c] tree among the trees of the forest
is my beloved(d) among the young men.
I delight(e) to sit in his shade,
and his fruit is sweet to my taste.(f)
4 Let him lead me to the banquet hall,(g)
and let his banner(h) over me be love.
5 Strengthen me with raisins,
refresh me with apples,(i)
for I am faint with love.(j)
6 His left arm is under my head,
and his right arm embraces me.(k)
7 Daughters of Jerusalem, I charge you(l)
by the gazelles and by the does of the field:
Do not arouse or awaken love
until it so desires.(m)
Matthew 22:1-22
Chapter 22
The Parable of the Wedding Banquet(a)
1 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like(b) a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his servants(c) to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.
4 "Then he sent some more servants(d) and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.'
5 "But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. 6 The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers(e) and burned their city.
8 "Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. 9 So go to the street corners(f) and invite to the banquet anyone you find.' 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good,(g) and the wedding hall was filled with guests.
11 "But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend(h)?' The man was speechless.
13 "Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'(i)
14 "For many are invited, but few are chosen."(j)
Paying the Imperial Tax to Caesar(k)
15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. 16 They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians.(l) "Teacher," they said, "we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren't swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are. 17 Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the imperial tax[a](m) to Caesar or not?"
18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, "You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? 19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax." They brought him a denarius, 20 and he asked them, "Whose image is this? And whose inscription?"
21 "Caesar's," they replied.
Then he said to them, "So give back to Caesar what is Caesar's,(n) and to God what is God's."
22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.(o)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
