Enter a passage (e.g. Jn 3:16), or word (e.g. salvation) that you want to find.
Language:  English (US)  Version: 
Begin in   end in 
Through the Bible in a Year 
Date:
Reading Plan:



New Living Translation

<< View Previous      View Next >>
Audio includes entire chapter and will
start at the beginning of the chapter.
Please skip forward to today's passage
if necessary.

Old Testament:  Genesis 4-6

Genesis 4

Cain and Abel
 1  Now Adam [1]  had sexual relations with his wife, Eve, and she became pregnant. When she gave birth to Cain, she said, "With the LORD's help, I have produced [1]  a man!"  2  Later she gave birth to his brother and named him Abel.
  When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground.  3  When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the LORD.  4  Abel also brought a gift—the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The LORD accepted Abel and his gift,  5  but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected.
   6  "Why are you so angry?" the LORD asked Cain. "Why do you look so dejected?  7  "You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master."    8  One day Cain suggested to his brother, "Let's go out into the fields." [8]  And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother, Abel, and killed him.
   9  Afterward the LORD asked Cain, "Where is your brother? Where is Abel?"
  "I don't know," Cain responded. "Am I my brother's guardian?"
   10  But the LORD said, "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground!  11  Now you are cursed and banished from the ground, which has swallowed your brother's blood.  12  No longer will the ground yield good crops for you, no matter how hard you work! From now on you will be a homeless wanderer on the earth."
   13  Cain replied to the LORD, "My punishment [13]  is too great for me to bear!  14  You have banished me from the land and from your presence; you have made me a homeless wanderer. Anyone who finds me will kill me!"
   15  The LORD replied, "No, for I will give a sevenfold punishment to anyone who kills you." Then the LORD put a mark on Cain to warn anyone who might try to kill him.  16  So Cain left the LORD's presence and settled in the land of Nod, [16]  east of Eden.

The Descendants of Cain
 17  Cain had sexual relations with his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Then Cain founded a city, which he named Enoch, after his son.  18  Enoch had a son named Irad. Irad became the father of [18]  Mehujael. Mehujael became the father of Methushael. Methushael became the father of Lamech.
   19  Lamech married two women. The first was named Adah, and the second was Zillah.  20  Adah gave birth to Jabal, who was the first of those who raise livestock and live in tents.  21  His brother's name was Jubal, the first of all who play the harp and flute.  22  Lamech's other wife, Zillah, gave birth to a son named Tubal-cain. He became an expert in forging tools of bronze and iron. Tubal-cain had a sister named Naamah.  23  One day Lamech said to his wives,

"Adah and Zillah, hear my voice;
  listen to me, you wives of Lamech.
I have killed a man who attacked me,
  a young man who wounded me.
 24  If someone who kills Cain is punished seven times,
  then the one who kills me will be punished seventy-seven times!"

The Birth of Seth
 25  Adam had sexual relations with his wife again, and she gave birth to another son. She named him Seth, [25]  for she said, "God has granted me another son in place of Abel, whom Cain killed."  26  When Seth grew up, he had a son and named him Enosh. At that time people first began to worship the LORD by name.

Genesis 5

The Descendants of Adam
 1  This is the written account of the descendants of Adam. When God created human beings, [1]  he made them to be like himself.  2  He created them male and female, and he blessed them and called them "human."

 3  When Adam was 130 years old, he became the father of a son who was just like him—in his very image. He named his son Seth.  4  After the birth of Seth, Adam lived another 800 years, and he had other sons and daughters.  5  Adam lived 930 years, and then he died.
 6  When Seth was 105 years old, he became the father of [6]  Enosh.  7  After the birth of [7]  Enosh, Seth lived another 807 years, and he had other sons and daughters.  8  Seth lived 912 years, and then he died.
 9  When Enosh was 90 years old, he became the father of Kenan.  10  After the birth of Kenan, Enosh lived another 815 years, and he had other sons and daughters.  11  Enosh lived 905 years, and then he died.
 12  When Kenan was 70 years old, he became the father of Mahalalel.  13  After the birth of Mahalalel, Kenan lived another 840 years, and he had other sons and daughters.  14  Kenan lived 910 years, and then he died.
 15  When Mahalalel was 65 years old, he became the father of Jared.  16  After the birth of Jared, Mahalalel lived another 830 years, and he had other sons and daughters.  17  Mahalalel lived 895 years, and then he died.
 18  When Jared was 162 years old, he became the father of Enoch.  19  After the birth of Enoch, Jared lived another 800 years, and he had other sons and daughters.  20  Jared lived 962 years, and then he died.
 21  When Enoch was 65 years old, he became the father of Methuselah.  22  After the birth of Methuselah, Enoch lived in close fellowship with God for another 300 years, and he had other sons and daughters.  23  Enoch lived 365 years,  24  walking in close fellowship with God. Then one day he disappeared, because God took him.
 25  When Methuselah was 187 years old, he became the father of Lamech.  26  After the birth of Lamech, Methuselah lived another 782 years, and he had other sons and daughters.  27  Methuselah lived 969 years, and then he died.
 28  When Lamech was 182 years old, he became the father of a son.  29  Lamech named his son Noah, for he said, "May he bring us relief [29]  from our work and the painful labor of farming this ground that the LORD has cursed."  30  After the birth of Noah, Lamech lived another 595 years, and he had other sons and daughters.  31  Lamech lived 777 years, and then he died.
 32  By the time Noah was 500 years old, he was the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Genesis 6

A World Gone Wrong
 1  Then the people began to multiply on the earth, and daughters were born to them.  2  The sons of God saw the beautiful women [2]  and took any they wanted as their wives.  3  Then the LORD said, "My Spirit will not put up with [3]  humans for such a long time, for they are only mortal flesh. In the future, their normal lifespan will be no more than 120 years."
   4  In those days, and for some time after, giant Nephilites lived on the earth, for whenever the sons of God had intercourse with women, they gave birth to children who became the heroes and famous warriors of ancient times.
   5  The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil.  6  So the LORD was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart.  7  And the LORD said, "I will wipe this human race I have created from the face of the earth. Yes, and I will destroy every living thing—all the people, the large animals, the small animals that scurry along the ground, and even the birds of the sky. I am sorry I ever made them."  8  But Noah found favor with the LORD.

The Story of Noah
 9  This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God.  10  Noah was the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
   11  Now God saw that the earth had become corrupt and was filled with violence.  12  God observed all this corruption in the world, for everyone on earth was corrupt.  13  So God said to Noah, "I have decided to destroy all living creatures, for they have filled the earth with violence. Yes, I will wipe them all out along with the earth!
   14  "Build a large boat [14]  from cypress wood [14]  and waterproof it with tar, inside and out. Then construct decks and stalls throughout its interior.  15  Make the boat 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high. [15]   16  Leave an 18-inch opening [16]  below the roof all the way around the boat. Put the door on the side, and build three decks inside the boat—lower, middle, and upper.
   17  "Look! I am about to cover the earth with a flood that will destroy every living thing that breathes. Everything on earth will die.  18  But I will confirm my covenant with you. So enter the boat—you and your wife and your sons and their wives.  19  Bring a pair of every kind of animal—a male and a female—into the boat with you to keep them alive during the flood.  20  Pairs of every kind of bird, and every kind of animal, and every kind of small animal that scurries along the ground, will come to you to be kept alive.  21  And be sure to take on board enough food for your family and for all the animals."
   22  So Noah did everything exactly as God had commanded him.
<<  4:1a Or the man; also in 4:25. 4:1b Or I have acquired. Cain sounds like a Hebrew term that can mean "produce" or "acquire."
<<  4:8 As in Samaritan Pentateuch, Greek and Syriac versions, and Latin Vulgate; Masoretic Text lacks "Let's go out into the fields."
<<  4:13 Or My sin.
<<  4:16 Nod means "wandering."
<<  4:18 Or the ancestor of, and so throughout the verse.
<<  4:25 Seth probably means "granted"; the name may also mean "appointed."
<<  5:1 Or man; Hebrew reads adam; similarly in 5:2.
<<  5:6 Or the ancestor of; also in 5:9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 25.
<<  5:7 Or the birth of this ancestor of; also in 5:10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 26.
<<  5:29 Noah sounds like a Hebrew term that can mean "relief" or "comfort."
<<  6:2 Hebrew daughters of men; also in 6:4.
<<  6:3 Greek version reads will not remain in.
<<  6:14a Traditionally rendered an ark. 6:14b Or gopher wood.
<<  6:15 Hebrew 300 cubits [138 meters] long, 50 cubits [23 meters] wide, and 30 cubits [13.8 meters] high.
<<  6:16 Hebrew an opening of 1 cubit [46 centimeters].

New Testament:  Matthew 2

Matthew 2

Visitors from the East
 1  Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men [1]  from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking,  2  "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him."    3  King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem.  4  He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, "Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?"
   5  "In Bethlehem in Judea," they said, "for this is what the prophet wrote:

 6  `And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah,
  are not least among the ruling cities [6]  of Judah,
for a ruler will come from you
  who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.' [6] "

   7  Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared.  8  Then he told them, "Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!"
   9  After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was.  10  When they saw the star, they were filled with joy!  11  They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.    12  When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.

The Escape to Egypt
 13  After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother," the angel said. "Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him."
   14  That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother,  15  and they stayed there until Herod's death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: "I called my Son out of Egypt." [15] 
   16  Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under, based on the wise men's report of the star's first appearance.  17  Herod's brutal action fulfilled what God had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

 18  "A cry was heard in Ramah—
  weeping and great mourning.
Rachel weeps for her children,
  refusing to be comforted,
  for they are dead." [18] 

The Return to Nazareth
 19  When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.  20  "Get up!" the angel said. "Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead."
   21  So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother.  22  But when he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod's son Archelaus, he was afraid to go there. Then, after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee.  23  So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: "He will be called a Nazarene."
<<  2:1 Or royal astrologers; Greek reads magi; also in 2:7, 16.
<<  2:2 Or star in the east.
<<  2:6a Greek the rulers. 2:6b Mic 5:2; 2 Sam 5:2.
<<  2:15 Hos 11:1.
<<  2:18 Jer 31:15.

Send to a Friend

Please fill out your email address and the email address or addresses separated by commas of the friend(s) you wish to send this passage to.
From:
To:
Message:
You have typed 0 of a maximum 250 characters.
Send Passage      Cancel

Log in or create an account to post a comment.  

Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

New Living, NLT, and the New Living Translation logo are registered trademarks of Tyndale House Publishers.