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
2:1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands.
2 “‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. 3 I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. 4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. 6 Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’
8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life.
9 “‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander1 of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’
12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: ‘The words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword.
13 “‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith2 even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. 14 But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. 15 So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth. 17 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.’
18 “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: ‘The words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze.
19 “‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. 20 But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. 21 I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. 22 Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, 23 and I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works. 24 But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden. 25 Only hold fast what you have until I come. 26 The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, 27 and he will rule3 them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my Father. 28 And I will give him the morning star. 29 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’
(ESV)
As a pastor, one of the most common questions I receive is, "If God is all-powerful and all-good, why is there so much evil in the world? Why doesn't God simply defeat it and stop it? After all, didn't Jesus win the victory over Satan and sin on the cross?" Indeed, this is a query that has perplexed even the brightest Christian minds. Thus, I would never be so bold or arrogant as to purport that I could cohesively and comprehensively answer such a question, much less answer it in such a brief blog. I can, however, offer some practical guidance on how to live through and in such evil times, for practical and insightful guidance comes to us in our reading for today from Revelation 2.
As the book of Revelation gets underway in earnest, we are introduced to seven first century churches, scattered throughout Asia Minor. This was not an easy time for these churches, as is indicated in the verbiage used by Jesus as he writes letters to these churches: "You have... endured hardships" (verse 3). "I know your afflictions and your poverty" (verse 9). "I know where you live - where Satan has his throne. Yet... you did not renounce your faith in me, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city - where Satan lives" (verse 13). The reference to Antipas in verse 13 is especially interesting. According to the tenth century medieval Greek theologian Symeon Metaphrastes, this martyr Antipas, during the reign of Emperor Domitian, was thrown into a bronze kettle and roasted alive. All of these references paint an unambiguous picture of the evil these churches had to endure.
It is into the midst of such evil that Jesus, time and time again, proffers a call to these seven churches: "Overcome" (cf. verses 7, 11, 17, 26)! When we are faced with abominable iniquity, even though we may not fully understand the reasons why we must endure it, we must overcome it with the goodness and righteousness God. This is Jesus' commission. As Paul reminds us, "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good" (Romans 12:21).
Interestingly, the word for "overcome" in Greek is a present participle, indicating an ongoing and habitual action. That is, it is not that the Christians of these churches must overcome the evil which they face just once, it is that they are to continually and persistently overcome evil again and again. Jesus' call, then, is an ongoing challenge.
But there is a payoff. "To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life in the paradise of God" (verse 7). "He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death" (verse 11). "To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna" (verse 17). "To him who overcomes... I will give authority over the nations" (verse 26). Although the specific references to things like a "hidden manna" and a "second death" in these promises may strike us as somewhat cryptic, finally, these promises all refer to an immutable promise of biblical theology: that of God's salvation. Thus, Jesus' promise to these churches who overcome evil again and again, many times at great personal cost, is that they will receive salvation from God who, on the Last Day, will overcome evil once and for all.
One of the incentives toward good work and behavior that my wife Melody often offers her first graders is that of a party. Sometimes it's a pizza party. Sometime's it's an ice cream party. Sometimes it's a movie. Her first graders don't know exactly what the prize will be, they only know that a glorious gift awaits them if they will only overcome their natural inclinations to be rowdy and inattentive. Indeed, in order to figure out what prize they will receive, Melody will post a "Wheel of Fortune" type puzzle on one of her bulletin boards and, every time her students do something commendable, she will uncover a letter until it finally spells out the precise nature of their coveted prize.
Oftentimes, as we trudge through our lives, the nature of God's final victory over evil on the Last Day can strike us as fuzzy and incomprehensible. Why doesn't God just end evil now? Why would God allow such hideous heinousness to plague even the most faithful of his people? Although I cannot fully answer those questions, I can assure you of this: The letters of God's salvation are slowly but surely being revealed as history marches to its close. God's party of salvation is on its way. But in the mean time, we are called to overcome. We are called to overcome the evil that grieves God's heart and ours. So today, when you see evil, respond with righteousness. And watch another letter of God's salvation be revealed.
15 All who pass along the way
clap their hands at you;
they hiss and wag their heads
at the daughter of Jerusalem:
“Is this the city that was called
the perfection of beauty,
the joy of all the earth?”
16 All your enemies
rail against you;
they hiss, they gnash their teeth,
they cry: “We have swallowed her!
Ah, this is the day we longed for;
now we have it; we see it!”
17 The LORD has done what he purposed;
he has carried out his word,
which he commanded long ago;
he has thrown down without pity;
he has made the enemy rejoice over you
and exalted the might of your foes.
18 Their heart cried to the Lord.
O wall of the daughter of Zion,
let tears stream down like a torrent
day and night!
Give yourself no rest,
your eyes no respite!
19 “Arise, cry out in the night,
at the beginning of the night watches!
Pour out your heart like water
before the presence of the Lord!
Lift your hands to him
for the lives of your children,
who faint for hunger
at the head of every street.”
20 Look, O LORD, and see!
With whom have you dealt thus?
Should women eat the fruit of their womb,
the children of their tender care?
Should priest and prophet be killed
in the sanctuary of the Lord?
21 In the dust of the streets
lie the young and the old;
my young women and my young men
have fallen by the sword;
you have killed them in the day of your anger,
slaughtering without pity.
22 You summoned as if to a festival day
my terrors on every side,
and on the day of the anger of the LORD
no one escaped or survived;
those whom I held and raised
my enemy destroyed.
3:1 I am the man who has seen affliction
under the rod of his wrath;
2 he has driven and brought me
into darkness without any light;
3 surely against me he turns his hand
again and again the whole day long.
4 He has made my flesh and my skin waste away;
he has broken my bones;
5 he has besieged and enveloped me
with bitterness and tribulation;
6 he has made me dwell in darkness
like the dead of long ago.
7 He has walled me about so that I cannot escape;
he has made my chains heavy;
8 though I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer;
9 he has blocked my ways with blocks of stones;
he has made my paths crooked.
10 He is a bear lying in wait for me,
a lion in hiding;
11 he turned aside my steps and tore me to pieces;
he has made me desolate;
12 he bent his bow and set me
as a target for his arrow.
13 He drove into my kidneys
the arrows of his quiver;
14 I have become the laughingstock of all my people,1
the object of their taunts all day long.
15 He has filled me with bitterness;
he has sated me with wormwood.
16 He has made my teeth grind on gravel,
and made me cower in ashes;
17 my soul is bereft of peace;
I have forgotten what happiness2 is;
18 so I say, “My endurance has perished;
so has my hope from the LORD.”
(ESV)
The people of Jerusalem had made a bad trade. They traded the perfection of the One True God for the vanity of idols. As a result they had now traded "the perfection of beauty," and their designation as "the joy of all the earth" for derision and delight at her downfall. The Word of the LORD was proven true when He warned of Jerusalem's destruction through His prophet Jeremiah. Jerusalem's wailing wall truly was a place of weeping and wailing because of her disgrace. Although the people wept and cried out to the LORD in their misery, He would show no mercy. Conditions grew so terrible in the city that a mother would cannibalize her dead child in order to stay alive. Priests and prophets were killed in the very Temple of the LORD where they served. God's wrath had exacted payment in full for the sins of Jerusalem's rebellious people; death was everywhere! The next poem, beginning with chapter three, has a different, more personal, tone. Yes, even Jeremiah felt the rod of God's wrath. His suffering was real and very dark, causing physical pain and spiritual bitterness. Jeremiah, too, felt as though his prayers were not being heard. He felt as though God was persecuting him and making him a laughingstock for everyone. This had to be especially difficult for Jeremiah, since he had been so faithful to deliver the unwelcome message of destruction to God's people. Faithful service to the LORD sometimes involves suffering rather than reward.
103:1 Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
2 Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
6 The LORD works righteousness
and justice for all who are oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his acts to the people of Israel.
8 The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
13 As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.
14 For he knows our frame;1
he remembers that we are dust.
15 As for man, his days are like grass;
he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
and its place knows it no more.
17 But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
and his righteousness to children’s children,
18 to those who keep his covenant
and remember to do his commandments.
19 The LORD has established his throne in the heavens,
and his kingdom rules over all.
20 Bless the LORD, O you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his word,
obeying the voice of his word!
21 Bless the LORD, all his hosts,
his ministers, who do his will!
22 Bless the LORD, all his works,
in all places of his dominion.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
[1] 103:14
(ESV)