The Bible Reading Plan

Readings for May 24:

First, Exodus Chapter 30 verses 1 to 16. Follow that by reading 2 Kings Chapter 3 verses 4 to 27. The third part is from Esther Chapter 2 verse 19 to Chapter 3 verse 9; and lastly John Chapter 7 verses 1 to 31

You can read the passages below. If you're looking to read for a different day or want to use your own Bible, then here’s the entire year’s plan as a list. Enjoy!

For certain interesting words:

Section 1

Exodus 30:1-16

16 verses

Exodus Chapter 30

1"You shall make an altar to burn incense on. You shall make it of acacia wood.

2Its length shall be a cubit, and its breadth a cubit. It shall be square, and its height shall be two cubits. Its horns shall be of one piece with it.

3You shall overlay it with pure gold, its top, its sides around it, and its horns; and you shall make a gold molding around it.

4You shall make two golden rings for it under its molding; on its two ribs, on its two sides you shall make them; and they shall be for places for poles with which to bear it.

5You shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold.

6You shall put it before the veil that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with you.

7Aaron shall burn incense of sweet spices on it every morning. When he tends the lamps, he shall burn it.

8When Aaron lights the lamps at evening, he shall burn it, a perpetual incense before ForeverOne throughout your generations.

9You shall offer no strange incense on it, nor burnt offering, nor meal offering; and you shall pour no drink offering on it.

10Aaron shall make atonement on its horns once in the year; with the blood of the sin offering of atonement once in the year he shall make atonement for it throughout your generations. It is most holy to ForeverOne." 11ForeverOne spoke to Moses, saying, 12"When you take a census of the children of Israel, according to those who are numbered among them, then each man shall give a ransom for his soul to ForeverOne, when you number them; that there be no plague among them when you number them.

13They shall give this, everyone who passes over to those who are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary; (the shekel is twenty gerahs;) half a shekel for an offering to ForeverOne.

14Everyone who passes over to those who are numbered, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the offering to ForeverOne.

15The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when they give the offering of ForeverOne, to make atonement for your souls.

16You shall take the atonement money from the children of Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the Tent of Meeting; that it may be a memorial for the children of Israel before ForeverOne, to make atonement for your souls."

Section 2

2 Kings 3:4-27

24 verses

2 Kings Chapter 3

4Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep breeder; and he rendered to the king of Israel the wool of one hundred thousand lambs, and of one hundred thousand rams.

5But it happened, when Ahab was dead, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.

6King Jehoram went out of Samaria at that time, and mustered all Israel.

7He went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, "The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me against Moab to battle?" He said, "I will go up. I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses." 8He said, "Which way shall we go up?" He answered, "The way of the wilderness of Edom." 9So the king of Israel went, and the king of Judah, and the king of Edom; and they made a circuit of seven days' journey. There was no water for the army, nor for the animals that followed them.

10The king of Israel said, "Alas! For ForeverOne has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab." 11But Jehoshaphat said, "Isn't there here a prophet of ForeverOne, that we may inquire of ForeverOne by him?" One of the king of Israel's servants answered, "Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who poured water on the hands of Elijah." 12Jehoshaphat said, "The word of ForeverOne is with him." So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.

13Elisha said to the king of Israel, "What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father, and to the prophets of your mother." The king of Israel said to him, "No; for ForeverOne has called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab." 14Elisha said, "As ForeverOne of Armies lives, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I respect the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward you, nor see you.

15But now bring me a minstrel." It happened, when the minstrel played, that the hand of ForeverOne came on him.

16He said, "Thus says ForeverOne, 'Make this valley full of trenches.' 17For thus says ForeverOne, 'You will not see wind, neither will you see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, and you will drink, both you and your livestock and your animals.

18This is but a light thing in the sight of ForeverOne. He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand.

19You shall strike every fortified city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all springs of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.'" 20It happened in the morning, about the time of offering the offering, that behold, water came by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.

21Now when all the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to fight against them, they gathered themselves together, all who were able to put on armor, and upward, and stood on the border.

22They rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone on the water, and the Moabites saw the water over against them as red as blood.

23They said, "This is blood. The kings are surely destroyed, and they have struck each other. Now therefore, Moab, to the spoil!" 24When they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and struck the Moabites, so that they fled before them; and they went forward into the land smiting the Moabites.

25They beat down the cities; and on every good piece of land they cast every man his stone, and filled it; and they stopped all the springs of water, and felled all the good trees, until in Kir Hareseth [only] they left its stones; however the men armed with slings went about it, and struck it.

26When the king of Moab saw that the battle was too severe for him, he took with him seven hundred men who drew sword, to break through to the king of Edom; but they could not.

27Then he took his eldest son who would have reigned in his place, and offered him for a burnt offering on the wall. There was great wrath against Israel: and they departed from him, and returned to their own land.

Section 3

Esther 2:19-3:9

14 verses

Esther Chapter 2

19When the virgins were gathered together the second time, Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate.

20Esther had not yet made known her relatives nor her people, as Mordecai had commanded her; for Esther obeyed Mordecai, like she did when she was brought up by him.

21In those days, while Mordecai was sitting in the king's gate, two of the king's eunuchs, Bigthan and Teresh, who were doorkeepers, were angry, and sought to lay hands on the King Ahasuerus.

22This thing became known to Mordecai, who informed Esther the queen; and Esther informed the king in Mordecai's name.

23When this matter was investigated, and it was found to be so, they were both hanged on a tree; and it was written in the book of the chronicles in the king's presence.

Esther Chapter 3

1After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes who were with him.

2All the king's servants who were in the king's gate bowed down, and paid homage to Haman; for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai didn't bow down or pay him homage.

3Then the king's servants, who were in the king's gate, said to Mordecai, "Why do you disobey the king's commandment?" 4Now it came to pass, when they spoke daily to him, and he didn't listen to them, that they told Haman, to see whether Mordecai's reason would stand; for he had told them that he was a Jew.

5When Haman saw that Mordecai didn't bow down, nor pay him homage, Haman was full of wrath.

6But he scorned the thought of laying hands on Mordecai alone, for they had made known to him Mordecai's people. Therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even Mordecai's people.

7In the first month, which is the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast Pur, that is, the lot, before Haman from day to day, and from month to month, and chose the twelfth month, which is the month Adar.

8Haman said to King Ahasuerus, "There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom, and their laws are different than other people's. They don't keep the king's laws. Therefore it is not for the king's profit to allow them to remain.

9If it pleases the king, let it be written that they be destroyed; and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who are in charge of the king's business, to bring it into the king's treasuries."

Section 4

John 7:1-31

31 verses

John Chapter 7

1After these things, Jesus was walking in Galilee, for he wouldn't walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill him.

2Now the feast of the Jews, the Feast of Booths, was at hand.

3So his brothers said to him, "Depart from here and go into Judea, that your disciples also may see your acts which you do.

4For no one does anything in secret while he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, reveal yourself to the world." 5For even his brothers didn't believe in him.

6So Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.

7The world can't hate you, but it hates me, because I testify about it, that its actions are evil.

8You go up to the feast. I am not yet going up to this feast, because my time is not yet fulfilled." 9Having said these things to them, he stayed in Galilee.

10But when his brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly, but as it were in secret.

11So the Jews sought him at the feast, and said, "Where is he?" 12There was much murmuring among the multitudes concerning him. Some said, "He is a good man." Others said, "Not so, but he leads the multitude astray." 13Yet no one spoke openly of him for fear of the Jews.

14But when it was the middle of the feast, Jesus went up into the temple and taught.

15The Jews therefore marveled, saying, "How does this man know letters, having never been educated?" 16So Jesus answered them, "My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me.

17If anyone desires to do his will, he will know about the teaching, whether it is from God, or if I am speaking from myself.

18He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory, but he who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and no unrighteousness is in him.

19Didn't Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keeps the law? Why do you seek to kill me?" 20The multitude answered, "You have a demon! Who seeks to kill you?" 21Jesus answered them, "I did one work and you all marvel because of it.

22Moses has given you circumcision (not that it is of Moses, but of the fathers), and on the Sabbath you circumcise a boy.

23If a boy receives circumcision on the Sabbath, that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me, because I made a man completely healthy on the Sabbath?

24Don't judge according to appearance, but judge righteous judgment." 25So some of them of Jerusalem said, "Isn't this the one they seek to kill?

26Behold, he speaks openly, and they say nothing to him. Can it be that the rulers indeed know that this is truly the AnointedOne?

27However we know where this man comes from, but when the AnointedOne comes, no one will know where he comes from." 28So Jesus cried out in the temple, teaching and saying, "You both know me, and know where I am from. I have not come of myself, but he who sent me is true, whom you don't know.

29I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me." 30So they sought to take him; but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come.

31But of the multitude, many believed in him. They said, "When the AnointedOne comes, he won't do more signs than those which this man has done, will he?"

The Bible text is a minor adaptation of the WEB to include nuanced meanings of particular ancient words for placenames, God and others of special interest.
In general square brackets:[] are used to indicated words not found in the original text.
They also indicate the 5 books of the Psalms, and the letters in Psalm 119;
and a few passages considered by some to be of questionable authenticity, marked with an asterisk(*).