This Bible reading plan takes you through most of the Holy Scriptures each weekday of the year. Each day has three Bible readings:
You're welcome to read one, two, or all three of the readings every weekday. And if you fall behind, don't worry! You can either use the weekends to catch up or you can simply dive in to the reading for that day, even if you've missed a few days, weeks, or even months!
16:1 Paul1 came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. 2 He was well spoken of by the brothers2 at Lystra and Iconium. 3 Paul wanted Timothy to accompany him, and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. 4 As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions that had been reached by the apostles and elders who were in Jerusalem. 5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily.
6 And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia. 7 And when they had come up to Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them. 8 So, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. 9 And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing there, urging him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 And when Paul3 had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.
11 So, setting sail from Troas, we made a direct voyage to Samothrace, and the following day to Neapolis, 12 and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the4 district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city some days. 13 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. 14 One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. 15 And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.
16 As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and us, crying out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation.” 18 And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.
19 But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. 20 And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. 21 They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” 22 The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods. 23 And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. 24 Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened. 27 When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” 29 And the jailer5 called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family. 34 Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God.
35 But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.” 36 And the jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, “The magistrates have sent to let you go. Therefore come out now and go in peace.” 37 But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly, uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into prison; and do they now throw us out secretly? No! Let them come themselves and take us out.” 38 The police reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens. 39 So they came and apologized to them. And they took them out and asked them to leave the city. 40 So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed.
[1] 16:1
[2] 16:2
[3] 16:10
[4] 16:12
[5] 16:29
(ESV)
They are some of the most famous words ever spoken in English. Act three, scene one. Hamlet reflects:
To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd.
Although these words are dearly cherished by Shakespeare lovers everywhere, I have never cared for them that much. For Hamlet sings the praises not of his "to be," but of his "not to be." That is, he wishes for death so that his suffering and trouble may end, although later in his soliloquy, he somberly notes that not even death promises certain bliss:
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscover'd country from whose bourn;
No traveller returns, puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus, Hamlet remains ambiguous toward his very life - wavering between the options of "to be" and "not to be."
Hamlet's famous opening line - "To be, or not to be: that is the question" - has become a cliché way of expressing ambiguity toward two competing options. Almost every verb imaginable has been substituted in place of Hamlet's "to be." "To eat or not to eat: that is the question." "To work or not to work: that is the question." I've even come across, in tribute to our technological obsession, "To text or not to text while driving: that is the question."
In our reading for today from Acts 16, we once again find use for Hamlet's famous query. Our text opens:
Paul came to Derbe and then to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived, whose mother was a Jewess and a believer, but whose father was a Greek. The brothers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him. Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek. (verses 1-3)
Now wait a minute! I thought in the previous chapter, the Christian church met in council at Jerusalem and concluded that "we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God" (Acts 15:19). Therefore, circumcision of the uncircumcised was not to be required. Why does Paul here require Timothy to be circumcised? To paraphrase Hamlet: "To circumcise or not to circumcise: that is the question!"
Clearly, Timothy's circumcision is not connected to his salvation. For the church has always believed that "it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved" (Acts 15:11), not by any effort of our own, including that of circumcision. No, Timothy is circumcised not for salvation, but out of consideration - consideration toward those Jews who had long included circumcision as a primary part of their piety. Because Timothy will be ministering among them, out of respect, he becomes like one of them so that they will be maximally open to his sharing of Christ's gospel.
"To be or not to be: that is the question." The Bible's answer is consistently, "to be." As Paul writes:
To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. (1 Corinthians 9:20-22)
Paul is willing to become many things to many people to share the most important thing with all people: the grace of God through Christ.
How about you? Who can you be to share the gospel? Can you be a friend to someone in need? Can you be a listening ear to one who is hurting? Can you be a crier of repentance to someone who is sinning? Who can you be to share the gospel? My prayer for you today is that, moved by deep compassion toward others, you would be all you can be for the sake of the gospel. For Hamlet's "to be or not to be" is not really a question for the Christian. We are called to be ambassadors of Christ's gospel. No question about it.
19 Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was dismayed for a while, and his thoughts alarmed him. The king answered and said, “Belteshazzar, let not the dream or the interpretation alarm you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you and its interpretation for your enemies! 20 The tree you saw, which grew and became strong, so that its top reached to heaven, and it was visible to the end of the whole earth, 21 whose leaves were beautiful and its fruit abundant, and in which was food for all, under which beasts of the field found shade, and in whose branches the birds of the heavens lived—22 it is you, O king, who have grown and become strong. Your greatness has grown and reaches to heaven, and your dominion to the ends of the earth. 23 And because the king saw a watcher, a holy one, coming down from heaven and saying, ‘Chop down the tree and destroy it, but leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field, and let him be wet with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the beasts of the field, till seven periods of time pass over him,’ 24 this is the interpretation, O king: It is a decree of the Most High, which has come upon my lord the king, 25 that you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and you shall be wet with the dew of heaven, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. 26 And as it was commanded to leave the stump of the roots of the tree, your kingdom shall be confirmed for you from the time that you know that Heaven rules. 27 Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you: break off your sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed, that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your prosperity.”
28 All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 At the end of twelve months he was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 and the king answered and said, “Is not this great Babylon, which I have built by my mighty power as a royal residence and for the glory of my majesty?” 31 While the words were still in the king’s mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, “O King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: The kingdom has departed from you, 32 and you shall be driven from among men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. And you shall be made to eat grass like an ox, and seven periods of time shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will.” 33 Immediately the word was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from among men and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles’ feathers, and his nails were like birds’ claws.
(ESV)
The time came for Daniel to offer the interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream but he was reluctant to speak. The king encouraged him to do so, and Daniel expressed his wish that the dream would speak of Nebuchadnezzar's enemies, but in truth Daniel explained that the tree in the dream was indeed the king, whose dominion extended to the ends of the earth. Daniel described how the king would be driven out from among his own people to live like a beast of the field. He would eat grass like an ox and have no shelter to keep the dew off him. God's appointed period of time would pass until Nebuchadnezzar would recognize the sovereignty of the Most High God over even him. The stump remaining would allow for Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom to be restored but only once he recognized that God ruled in Heaven. Then, Daniel boldly issued a call to repentance to the king of Babylon, in hopes that God might lengthen his present reign and prosperity. Twelve months later, as Nebuchadnezzar was walking on the roof of his palace, admiring all of his wealth and power and giving all the glory to himself, God spoke from heaven saying, "The kingdom has departed from you." Immediately, God's Word was fulfilled. His insanity drove the king out from among men to live with the beasts of the field, grazing on grass, his hair growing long and unkempt like the feathers of an eagle, and his nails long and curled like the claws of a bird. As the Virgin Mary sang in her Magnificat: "He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones" (Luke 1:51-52).
20 My son, be attentive to my words;
incline your ear to my sayings.
21 Let them not escape from your sight;
keep them within your heart.
22 For they are life to those who find them,
and healing to all their1 flesh.
23 Keep your heart with all vigilance,
for from it flow the springs of life.
24 Put away from you crooked speech,
and put devious talk far from you.
25 Let your eyes look directly forward,
and your gaze be straight before you.
26 Ponder2 the path of your feet;
then all your ways will be sure.
27 Do not swerve to the right or to the left;
turn your foot away from evil.
5:1 My son, be attentive to my wisdom;
incline your ear to my understanding,
2 that you may keep discretion,
and your lips may guard knowledge.
3 For the lips of a forbidden3 woman drip honey,
and her speech4 is smoother than oil,
4 but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet go down to death;
her steps follow the path to5 Sheol;
6 she does not ponder the path of life;
her ways wander, and she does not know it.
[1] 4:22
[2] 4:26
[3] 5:3
[4] 5:3
[5] 5:5
(ESV)