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!
You can download a foldable bookmark here: 2026
1:1 Paul, a prisoner for Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother,
To Philemon our beloved fellow worker 2 and Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier, and the church in your house:
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, 5 because I hear of your love and of the faith that you have toward the Lord Jesus and for all the saints, 6 and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.1 7 For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you.
8 Accordingly, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do what is required, 9 yet for love’s sake I prefer to appeal to you—I, Paul, an old man and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus—10 I appeal to you for my child, Onesimus,2 whose father I became in my imprisonment. 11 (Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and to me.) 12 I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart. 13 I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel, 14 but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own accord. 15 For this perhaps is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back forever, 16 no longer as a bondservant3 but more than a bondservant, as a beloved brother—especially to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.
17 So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me. 18 If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account. 19 I, Paul, write this with my own hand: I will repay it—to say nothing of your owing me even your own self. 20 Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ.
21 Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say. 22 At the same time, prepare a guest room for me, for I am hoping that through your prayers I will be graciously given to you.
23 Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you, 24 and so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.
25 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
[1] 1:6
[2] 1:10
[3] 1:16
(ESV)
Earlier this week, Melody and I were visiting some friends south of Houston. This couple has two adorable children, Ellie and Ethan. Melody, of course, took an immediate liking to both of them. At one point during our first day there, Melody was holding Ethan and wanted to run upstairs and grab something before we were to go and run some errands. She looked at me and said, "I need to run upstairs and grab something." To which I responded, "Okay." Clearly frustrated by my obvious oblivion, she said, "Fine, I'll just carry Ethan up the stairs with me while I go and get what I need." "But I didn't know you wanted me to hold Ethan!" I protested. "You never asked me to hold him!"
I'm not very good at recognizing non-verbal cues. "Reading between the lines" and "taking hints" are most definitely not my spiritual gifts, often to the frustration of my wife, who expects me to be able to read her glances, gestures, and tone of voice. Although I've gotten slightly better, I admittedly still have a long way to go.
Our reading for today from Philemon is an appeal from the apostle Paul to a slave owner of the same name. Apparently, one of Philemon's slaves, Onesimus, had run away and, by what appears to be an act of divine providence, had met Paul and become a partner with him in ministry. In this short letter, Paul appeals to Philemon for leniency toward Onesimus, since the crime of running away while enslaved carried with it brutal punishments. Walter Elwell and Robert Yarbrough write about these punishments: "[Running away] was a serious crime, which resulted in stern punishment if the offender was caught. Burning, branding, maiming, or even death was possible." (Encountering the New Testament, 2nd ed. [Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2005], p. 321).
Even though Paul's initial appeal for leniency is quite clear, in order to fully understand Paul's letter to Philemon and discern his true intentions, we must "read between the lines," as it were, and "take hints." Paul opens his appeal:
Therefore, although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do, yet I appeal to you on the basis of love. I then, as Paul - an old man and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus - I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains. (verses 8-10)
Paul, in his opening statements, refuses to baldly order Philemon with regard to Onesimus. But he certainly drops plenty of hints. He writes, "Perhaps the reason Onesimus was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back for good - no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother." (verses 15-16). Paul tells Philemon that he should recognize Onesimus not just as his slave, but as his brother in Christ. Paul then continues, expressing his confidence that Philemon will go beyond just recognizing him as a brother to treating him as a brother: "Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I ask" (verse 21). What is Paul here implying? It seems to be emancipation. Paul seems to be arguing that freedom in Christ should be a catalyst toward freedom from slavery. And just in case Philemon may be reticent to accept Paul's subtle urging, Paul adds one final word: "And one thing more: Prepare a guest room for me, because I hope to be restored to you in answer to your prayers" (verse 22). In other words, Paul is telling Philemon, "I'll be by to check up on my friend Onesimus. So, I hope you've 'read between the lines' and have 'taken a hint' from my letter. I hope you've freed Onesimus."
Sometimes, being a Christian can involve a fair amount of "reading between the lines" and "taking hints." For we are called to notice pains, hurts, wounds, and worries that often the rest of the world overlooks in its crush of hurried self-absorption. If someone says they're doing "just fine," but you can tell merely by the tone of their voice that their heart is heavy, do you pry a little deeper? If someone seems to need your assistance, even when you're running a tight schedule, do you pause to offer a helping hand? Do you "read between the lines" and "take hints" to try to distinguish between what people say and what they actually mean... and what they really need? My prayer for you today is that, even if with just one person, you press beyond your normal, everyday surface conversations and "read between the lines" and "take a hint" and discover someone's deeper needs. For this is the place where God's love can ease troubled a heart and sooth a worried a soul.
11 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 12 “Say now to the rebellious house, Do you not know what these things mean? Tell them, behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and took her king and her princes and brought them to him to Babylon. 13 And he took one of the royal offspring1 and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath (the chief men of the land he had taken away), 14 that the kingdom might be humble and not lift itself up, and keep his covenant that it might stand. 15 But he rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt, that they might give him horses and a large army. Will he thrive? Can one escape who does such things? Can he break the covenant and yet escape?
16 “As I live, declares the Lord GOD, surely in the place where the king dwells who made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant with him he broke, in Babylon he shall die. 17 Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in war, when mounds are cast up and siege walls built to cut off many lives. 18 He despised the oath in breaking the covenant, and behold, he gave his hand and did all these things; he shall not escape. 19 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: As I live, surely it is my oath that he despised, and my covenant that he broke. I will return it upon his head. 20 I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will bring him to Babylon and enter into judgment with him there for the treachery he has committed against me. 21 And all the pick2 of his troops shall fall by the sword, and the survivors shall be scattered to every wind, and you shall know that I am the LORD; I have spoken.”
22 Thus says the Lord GOD: “I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar and will set it out. I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I myself will plant it on a high and lofty mountain. 23 On the mountain height of Israel will I plant it, that it may bear branches and produce fruit and become a noble cedar. And under it will dwell every kind of bird; in the shade of its branches birds of every sort will nest. 24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the LORD; I bring low the high tree, and make high the low tree, dry up the green tree, and make the dry tree flourish. I am the LORD; I have spoken, and I will do it.”
18:1 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 “What do you3 mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’? 3 As I live, declares the Lord GOD, this proverb shall no more be used by you in Israel. 4 Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: the soul who sins shall die.
5 “If a man is righteous and does what is just and right—6 if he does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman in her time of menstrual impurity, 7 does not oppress anyone, but restores to the debtor his pledge, commits no robbery, gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with a garment, 8 does not lend at interest or take any profit,4 withholds his hand from injustice, executes true justice between man and man, 9 walks in my statutes, and keeps my rules by acting faithfully—he is righteous; he shall surely live, declares the Lord GOD.
[1] 17:13
[2] 17:21
[3] 18:2
[4] 18:8
(ESV)
Just as Jesus explained the parable of the sower to his wondering disciples, so now Ezekiel explained his parable of the two eagles to his fellow exiles so that they could understand. The kings of Babylon and Egypt were used by God to chasten His rebellious people. Just as they broke the covenant God made with them, so Judah broke the covenant Nebuchadnezzar made with them, and broke the covenant with the LORD once again by reaching out to Egypt for help against Babylon, rather than to God. In reality even Zedekiah's broken covenant with Nebuchadnezzar was a broken covenant with the LORD, because it was God who had sent Babylon to chasten Judah and Jerusalem, so they should have submitted and trusted in the LORD. Zedekiah would die in Babylon because of his rebellion against the LORD and King Nebuchadnezzar. God then used the same allegory that He used to describe Nebuchadnezzar's invasion of Judah in 597 to offer hope. God, not the Babylonian king, would take a sprig from a cedar and plant it, and it would never be uprooted. This was God's promise of salvation through the restored remnant and then, the Messiah, Jesus Christ, and His church. The Kingdom of heaven is described by every sort of bird nesting in this cedar's shade, a picture of people from every tribe and nation coming to faith and being saved. The proverb that had been quoted to Jeremiah in order to challenge God's justice in punishing His people, was now quoted to Ezekiel. "The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge." But God rebuked the people and made it clear that His justice was perfect. Each man was punished for His own sin. God promised that all those who acted faithfully both toward Him and toward other people would surely live. That person's faith was demonstrated by his acting faithfully—and he would be declared righteous by God and live.
116:1 I love the LORD, because he has heard
my voice and my pleas for mercy.
2 Because he inclined his ear to me,
therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
3 The snares of death encompassed me;
the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
I suffered distress and anguish.
4 Then I called on the name of the LORD:
“O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!”
5 Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;
our God is merciful.
6 The LORD preserves the simple;
when I was brought low, he saved me.
7 Return, O my soul, to your rest;
for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.
8 For you have delivered my soul from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling;
9 I will walk before the LORD
in the land of the living.
10 I believed, even when1 I spoke:
“I am greatly afflicted”;
11 I said in my alarm,
“All mankind are liars.”
12 What shall I render to the LORD
for all his benefits to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the LORD,
14 I will pay my vows to the LORD
in the presence of all his people.
15 Precious in the sight of the LORD
is the death of his saints.
16 O LORD, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.
You have loosed my bonds.
17 I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
and call on the name of the LORD.
18 I will pay my vows to the LORD
in the presence of all his people,
19 in the courts of the house of the LORD,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the LORD!
[1] 116:10
(ESV)