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
28:1 Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he1 lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” 8 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”
11 While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers 13 and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.
16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in2 the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
(ESV)
I have never been very good at math. Reading and writing have always come much more naturally to me which, I guess, explains why I enjoy writing these blogs. I did have an algebra teacher in high school, however, whom I sincerely appreciated. Her name was Mrs. Gutknecht. Mrs. Gutknecht was a kind, soft-spoken, gentle lady who treated all her students with the utmost respect, grace, and love. Her students, however, did not always return the favor. As high schoolers, we would often misuse and abuse Mrs. Gutknecht's good will. She would be trying to teach while we would be passing notes, listening to Walkmans (this was long before iPods, after all), and whispering amongst ourselves. At first, Mrs. Gutknecht would only mildly reprimand our disrespect with an evil eye or a hushed, "Now, you need to listen up." But even Mrs. Gutknecht had a breaking point.
Mrs. Gutknecht's breaking point usually came forty minutes into our class. For at the forty minute mark, she would always assign us our homework for the next day and then give us fifteen minutes to work on it before class was over. And so, as her lesson ended, all of a sudden, her voice would raise, her fists would clench, her face would turn red, and she would exclaim, "Folks! Quiet down and listen up... now! It's homework time!" And it was at that point that we knew Mrs. Gutknecht meant business. There would be no more secret notes because we knew she would read them in front of the class. There would be no more personal entertainment devices because we knew she would confiscate them for herself. There would be no more whispered conversations for we knew she would send us to the administrator's office. Instead, we would sit attentively and expectantly awaiting our algebraic "marching orders" for the next day.
Eventually, Mrs. Gutknecht's call to attention became so self-evident to us that we didn't even wait for her to finish it. She no longer had to say, "Folks! Quiet down and listen up... now! It's homework time!" Instead, she had only to say, "Folks!" and, much like when a captain shouts "Attention!" to his company, we too would snap to hushed attention.
In our reading for today from Matthew 28, Jesus gives his disciples one final commission before ascending into heaven: "Go and make disciples of all nation, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." (verses 19-20). Much like a captain will give his company "marching orders," Jesus here gives "marching orders" to his disciples. And Jesus' "marching orders" are to start a discipleship ROTC program for the world consisting of two primary components: baptism and teaching. For these components are how we are trained as disciples and how we train others to be disciples.
But there's something missing. Something Mrs. Gutknecht would never have forgotten before giving us "marching orders" for homework. Something a captain would never forget before giving his company "marching orders" into a battlefield. There's no "Folks!" There's no "Attention!"
Actually, there is. But rather than coming before Jesus' marching orders, it comes after Jesus' marching orders. The NIV translates it like this: "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (verse 20). The Greek word for "surely" is idou, an interjection which is meant to call a reader's attention to something especially notable or interesting. It is a way to say, "Attention! This is something you don't want to miss!" Indeed, this is the word that an angel uses when he announces to some shepherds near Bethlehem, "Idou! I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:10-11). This is also the word the Jesus himself uses when he gives his disciples some earlier "marching orders" and warns them of the persecution they will encounter because of him: "Idou! I am sending you out as sheep among wolves" (Matthew 10:16). And now, Jesus uses this word again. But not to call attention to a command, but to call attention to a promise: "Idou! I am with you always, to very end of the age." The final "marching order" that Jesus gives his disciples, then, is not a "marching order" at all. Instead, it is a simple recognition, realization, and reliance on his presence. For Jesus desires that we be attentive to the fact that he is always with us.
So today, where do you see Jesus in your life? Maybe it's in a conversation with a friend. Maybe it's in a moment of solitude where you gaze at God's good creation in wonder. Jesus, of course, is always in the pages of Scripture and in the prayers of his saints. So "Attention!" Jesus is here! Jesus is with you.
1:1 How lonely sits the city
that was full of people!
How like a widow has she become,
she who was great among the nations!
She who was a princess among the provinces
has become a slave.
2 She weeps bitterly in the night,
with tears on her cheeks;
among all her lovers
she has none to comfort her;
all her friends have dealt treacherously with her;
they have become her enemies.
3 Judah has gone into exile because of affliction1
and hard servitude;
she dwells now among the nations,
but finds no resting place;
her pursuers have all overtaken her
in the midst of her distress.2
4 The roads to Zion mourn,
for none come to the festival;
all her gates are desolate;
her priests groan;
her virgins have been afflicted,3
and she herself suffers bitterly.
5 Her foes have become the head;
her enemies prosper,
because the LORD has afflicted her
for the multitude of her transgressions;
her children have gone away,
captives before the foe.
6 From the daughter of Zion
all her majesty has departed.
Her princes have become like deer
that find no pasture;
they fled without strength
before the pursuer.
7 Jerusalem remembers
in the days of her affliction and wandering
all the precious things
that were hers from days of old.
When her people fell into the hand of the foe,
and there was none to help her,
her foes gloated over her;
they mocked at her downfall.
8 Jerusalem sinned grievously;
therefore she became filthy;
all who honored her despise her,
for they have seen her nakedness;
she herself groans
and turns her face away.
9 Her uncleanness was in her skirts;
she took no thought of her future;4
therefore her fall is terrible;
she has no comforter.
“O LORD, behold my affliction,
for the enemy has triumphed!”
10 The enemy has stretched out his hands
over all her precious things;
for she has seen the nations
enter her sanctuary,
those whom you forbade
to enter your congregation.
11 All her people groan
as they search for bread;
they trade their treasures for food
to revive their strength.
“Look, O LORD, and see,
for I am despised.”
12 “Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by?
Look and see
if there is any sorrow like my sorrow,
which was brought upon me,
which the LORD inflicted
on the day of his fierce anger.
13 “From on high he sent fire;
into my bones5 he made it descend;
he spread a net for my feet;
he turned me back;
he has left me stunned,
faint all the day long.
14 “My transgressions were bound6 into a yoke;
by his hand they were fastened together;
they were set upon my neck;
he caused my strength to fail;
the Lord gave me into the hands
of those whom I cannot withstand.
15 “The Lord rejected
all my mighty men in my midst;
he summoned an assembly against me
to crush my young men;
the Lord has trodden as in a winepress
the virgin daughter of Judah.
16 “For these things I weep;
my eyes flow with tears;
for a comforter is far from me,
one to revive my spirit;
my children are desolate,
for the enemy has prevailed.”
17 Zion stretches out her hands,
but there is none to comfort her;
the LORD has commanded against Jacob
that his neighbors should be his foes;
Jerusalem has become
a filthy thing among them.
18 “The LORD is in the right,
for I have rebelled against his word;
but hear, all you peoples,
and see my suffering;
my young women and my young men
have gone into captivity.
19 “I called to my lovers,
but they deceived me;
my priests and elders
perished in the city,
while they sought food
to revive their strength.
20 “Look, O LORD, for I am in distress;
my stomach churns;
my heart is wrung within me,
because I have been very rebellious.
In the street the sword bereaves;
in the house it is like death.
21 “They heard7 my groaning,
yet there is no one to comfort me.
All my enemies have heard of my trouble;
they are glad that you have done it.
You have brought8 the day you announced;
now let them be as I am.
22 “Let all their evildoing come before you,
and deal with them
as you have dealt with me
because of all my transgressions;
for my groans are many,
and my heart is faint.”
[1] 1:3
[2] 1:3
[3] 1:4
[4] 1:9
[5] 1:13
[6] 1:14
[7] 1:21
[8] 1:21
(ESV)
The book of Lamentations has traditionally and historically been attributed to the prophet Jeremiah, although no author is named. It contains five poems or psalms that express grief and mourning as a result of the destruction of Jerusalem. Each of these poems contains one (or in one case, three) verse(s) for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet, in order. Because these laments are attributed to Jeremiah, he has been known as "the weeping prophet." The first poem depicts Jerusalem as a pitiful, abandoned widow. The princess has been reduced to slavery, forsaken by her "lovers" (the idols she served) and her "friends" (foreign allies). No longer do any make pilgrimages to Zion, and her virgin daughters, along with all her children have been taken away. While she recalls her former glory, her enemies mock her downfall. Her spiritual adultery has been exposed, to her great shame. Her sanctuary was violated by those forbidden to enter it, and they took away all her precious things. The groaning of her people was the result of their hunger, and food became so scarce that treasure was required to obtain it. Her cry is pitiful: is there "any sorrow like my sorrow?" Like fire from heaven the LORD's judgment fell, and her sins were bound to her like a yoke on her neck. The city weeps like a mourner with none to comfort her, recognizing, "The Lord is in the right, for I have rebelled against his word." All her enemies rejoice that God has done this. The lament ends, however, with a plea for the LORD to deal with the enemies who have afflicted her, "for my groans are many, and my heart is faint," a sign of Zion's repentance before the LORD.
102:1 Hear my prayer, O LORD;
let my cry come to you!
2 Do not hide your face from me
in the day of my distress!
Incline your ear to me;
answer me speedily in the day when I call!
3 For my days pass away like smoke,
and my bones burn like a furnace.
4 My heart is struck down like grass and has withered;
I forget to eat my bread.
5 Because of my loud groaning
my bones cling to my flesh.
6 I am like a desert owl of the wilderness,
like an owl1 of the waste places;
7 I lie awake;
I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop.
8 All the day my enemies taunt me;
those who deride me use my name for a curse.
9 For I eat ashes like bread
and mingle tears with my drink,
10 because of your indignation and anger;
for you have taken me up and thrown me down.
11 My days are like an evening shadow;
I wither away like grass.
12 But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever;
you are remembered throughout all generations.
13 You will arise and have pity on Zion;
it is the time to favor her;
the appointed time has come.
14 For your servants hold her stones dear
and have pity on her dust.
15 Nations will fear the name of the LORD,
and all the kings of the earth will fear your glory.
16 For the LORD builds up Zion;
he appears in his glory;
17 he regards the prayer of the destitute
and does not despise their prayer.
[1] 102:6
(ESV)