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
8:1 When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. 2 Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. 3 And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne, 4 and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel. 5 Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings,1 flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.
6 Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.
7 The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.
8 The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like a great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood. 9 A third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.
10 The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. 11 The name of the star is Wormwood.2 A third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the water, because it had been made bitter.
12 The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of their light might be darkened, and a third of the day might be kept from shining, and likewise a third of the night.
13 Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”
[1] 8:5
[2] 8:11
(ESV)
Yesterday's Tour de France was very exciting, but very disappointing for those who were rooting for Andy Schleck. Just as he was shifting into a different chainring to attack Alberto Contador on the Port de Bales he experienced "chain suck" and locked up his drivetrain. In trying to free it, he dropped his chain and lost 30 seconds trying to get it back in place. That mechanical incident cost him the yellow jersey, as Alberto Contador raced ahead of him and on to the finish line 39 seconds in front of Andy. That left Schleck 8 seconds down on the new wearer of the yellow jersey. But it was just one of a huge number of incidents that have knocked competitor after competitor out of the Tour de France this year. The toll has been staggering, and now, with two days still remaining in the Pyrenees this is beginning to feel like the never ending tour of disasters.
I've been reading the book of Revelation for the past week and I'm beginning to feel that same way about the apocalyptic events portrayed in John's revelation. First there's the seven churches with all of their sins and shortcomings. Then there are the seven seals. And when you get to the seventh one, suddenly there are seven trumpets. The punishments threatened and disasters pictured go on and on and on. It's enough to make you lose hope!
But that's not the purpose of the book of Revelation. It is intended to give hope. First, it's important to remember that John gives us a glimpse of the future from several different prespectives. The accounts of the end are progressive and recapitulative. The most important thing, however, is that they all lead to the ultimate triumph of Christ over Satan, and the victory of the saints who persevere to the end. Yes, Revelation 8:13 does warn us: "Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth." but that is not the end of the story.
The end of this year's Tour de France has not yet come, and there are still six or seven cyclists who have great chance of standing on that podium in Paris if they can avoid disaster and persevere to the end. Revelation makes it clear that the end times will bring much tribulation, but the end will come and Christ's promise from Revelation 2:10 will be fulfilled: "Be faithful even to the point of death and I will give you the crown of life." So just as the riders in the Tour will get on their bikes once again after their rest day tomorrow and pedal on towards Paris, so the saints of God must continue to be faithful even to the point of death, and just as surely as the Tour will end at the Podium in Paris, so too will Christ return and take us to be with him in glory!
4:1 “And you, son of man, take a brick and lay it before you, and engrave on it a city, even Jerusalem. 2 And put siegeworks against it, and build a siege wall against it, and cast up a mound against it. Set camps also against it, and plant battering rams against it all around. 3 And you, take an iron griddle, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city; and set your face toward it, and let it be in a state of siege, and press the siege against it. This is a sign for the house of Israel.
4 “Then lie on your left side, and place the punishment1 of the house of Israel upon it. For the number of the days that you lie on it, you shall bear their punishment. 5 For I assign to you a number of days, 390 days, equal to the number of the years of their punishment. So long shall you bear the punishment of the house of Israel. 6 And when you have completed these, you shall lie down a second time, but on your right side, and bear the punishment of the house of Judah. Forty days I assign you, a day for each year. 7 And you shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem, with your arm bared, and you shall prophesy against the city. 8 And behold, I will place cords upon you, so that you cannot turn from one side to the other, till you have completed the days of your siege.
9 “And you, take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and emmer,2 and put them into a single vessel and make your bread from them. During the number of days that you lie on your side, 390 days, you shall eat it. 10 And your food that you eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels3 a day; from day to day4 you shall eat it. 11 And water you shall drink by measure, the sixth part of a hin;5 from day to day you shall drink. 12 And you shall eat it as a barley cake, baking it in their sight on human dung.” 13 And the LORD said, “Thus shall the people of Israel eat their bread unclean, among the nations where I will drive them.” 14 Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I have never defiled myself.6 From my youth up till now I have never eaten what died of itself or was torn by beasts, nor has tainted meat come into my mouth.” 15 Then he said to me, “See, I assign to you cow’s dung instead of human dung, on which you may prepare your bread.” 16 Moreover, he said to me, “Son of man, behold, I will break the supply7 of bread in Jerusalem. They shall eat bread by weight and with anxiety, and they shall drink water by measure and in dismay. 17 I will do this that they may lack bread and water, and look at one another in dismay, and rot away because of their punishment.
[1] 4:4
[2] 4:9
[3] 4:10
[4] 4:10
[5] 4:11
[6] 4:14
[7] 4:16
(ESV)
Because Ezekiel had been taken into exile before the destruction of Jerusalem, he had the unwelcome task of informing the other exiles of the sad events unfolding in their homeland. God told Ezekiel to illustrate what was happening, just as he had told Jeremiah to undertake symbolic actions to illustrate God's Word. Ezekiel was to carve a picture of Jerusalem under siege on a clay tablet. He was then commanded to place an iron plate between him and the besieged city. That barrier was intended to show that the prayers of the people and their cries for deliverance would not penetrate or be heard by God. Ezekiel was then commanded to lie on his left side for 390 days, one for each year of punishment for the house of Israel. Then he was to switch to his right side for 40 days, one for each year of Judah's punishment. Ezekiel was to be bound with cords each day that he lay down so that he could not turn from one side to the other. 430 years was the length of time that the children of Israel spent in captivity in Egypt. Just as God has previously chastened His people before setting them free, so again He was going to discipline them in exile for many years before they would return to their homeland. Apparently these symbolic acts were undertaken only for a certain period of time each day, for each day Ezekiel was to make bread to eat as he lay on his side. He was to bake the bread using human excrement for fuel, causing spiritual uncleanness, which the residents of Jerusalem would necessarily be subject to because of the conditions of the siege. When Ezekiel pleaded with God to spare him from such uncleanness, God told Ezekiel that he could bake his bread on cow's manure instead. The bread and water were to demonstrate the scarcity of food and drink that the people of Jerusalem would endure, as they wasted away during the time the city was under siege.
37 Then he brought out Israel with silver and gold,
and there was none among his tribes who stumbled.
38 Egypt was glad when they departed,
for dread of them had fallen upon it.
39 He spread a cloud for a covering,
and fire to give light by night.
40 They asked, and he brought quail,
and gave them bread from heaven in abundance.
41 He opened the rock, and water gushed out;
it flowed through the desert like a river.
42 For he remembered his holy promise,
and Abraham, his servant.
43 So he brought his people out with joy,
his chosen ones with singing.
44 And he gave them the lands of the nations,
and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples’ toil,
45 that they might keep his statutes
and observe his laws.
Praise the LORD!
(ESV)