M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Holy Clothes(A)
28 ⌞The Lord continued,⌟ “Out of all the Israelites, bring your brother Aaron and his sons Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar to you. They will serve me as priests. 2 Make holy clothes for your brother Aaron to give him dignity and honor.
3 “Tell all those who have the skill—those to whom I have given this ability—to make Aaron’s clothes. These clothes will set him apart as holy when he serves me as priest. 4 These are the clothes they will make: a breastplate, an ephod and the robe that is worn with it, another specially woven linen robe, the chief priest’s turban, and a cloth belt. They will make these holy clothes for your brother Aaron and his sons so that they can serve me as priests. 5 They must use gold, violet, purple, and bright red yarn, and fine linen.
The Ephod(B)
6 “Make the ephod out of fine linen yarn. Creatively work gold, violet, purple, and bright red yarn into the fabric. 7 It will have two shoulder straps attached at the ⌞top⌟ corners so that it can be fastened. 8 Make the belt that is attached to the ephod out of the same fabric. 9 Take two onyx stones, and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel 10 in birth order—six of their names on one stone and the remaining six on the other. 11 Engrave the names of the sons of Israel on the two stones the same way a jeweler engraves a signet ring. Mount them in gold settings, 12 and fasten them on the shoulder straps of the ephod as reminders of who the Israelites are. In this way Aaron will carry their names on his shoulders as a reminder in the Lord’s presence. 13 Make gold settings 14 and two chains of pure gold, twisted like ropes, and fasten these chains to the settings.
The Breastplate(C)
15 “Make the breastplate for decision-making as creatively as you make the ephod. Make it out of gold, violet, purple, and bright red yarn and out of fine linen yarn. 16 Fold it in half so that it’s 9 inches square. 17 Fasten four rows of precious stones on it. In the first row put red quartz, topaz, and emerald. 18 In the second row put turquoise, sapphire, and crystal. 19 In the third row put jacinth, agate, and amethyst. 20 In the fourth row put beryl, onyx, and gray quartz. Mount them in gold settings. 21 The stones correspond to the 12 sons of Israel, by name, each stone engraved (like a signet ring) with the name of one of the 12 tribes.
22 “For the breastplate make chains out of pure gold, twisted like ropes. 23 Make two gold rings for the breastplate. Attach them to the two ⌞top⌟ corners of the breastplate. 24 Then fasten the two gold ropes to the rings at the ⌞top⌟ corners of the breastplate. 25 Fasten the other ends of the ropes to the two settings on the shoulder straps of the ephod ⌞so that the breastplate hangs⌟ in front of it. 26 Make two gold rings, and fasten them to the other two corners of the breastplate on the inside edge next to the ephod. 27 Make two ⌞more⌟ gold rings, and fasten them to the bottom of the shoulder straps on the front of the ephod. This will be close to the seam just above the belt of the ephod. 28 Then the breastplate should be fastened by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a violet cord. This will attach it just above the belt of the ephod and will hold the breastplate in place.
29 “Whenever Aaron goes into the holy place, he will be carrying the names of the sons of Israel over his heart as a constant reminder in the Lord’s presence. He must do this by wearing the breastplate for decision-making. 30 Put the Urim and Thummim [a] into the breastplate for decision-making. They, too, will be over Aaron’s heart when he comes into the Lord’s presence. In this way whenever he’s in the Lord’s presence, Aaron will always be carrying over his heart the ⌞means for determining the Lord’s⌟ decisions for the Israelites.
Other Clothes for Aaron and His Sons(D)
31 “Make the robe that is worn with the ephod entirely of violet material. 32 Make an opening for the head in the center with a reinforced edge (like a leather collar) all around it to keep it from tearing. 33 All around the hem of the robe make pomegranates of violet, purple, and bright red yarn with gold bells in between— 34 a gold bell alternating with a pomegranate all around the hem of the robe. 35 Aaron must wear it when he serves as priest. The sound of the bells must be heard when he comes into and goes out of the Lord’s presence in the holy place so that he won’t die.
36 “Make a flower-shaped medallion out of pure gold, and engrave on it (as on a signet ring): Holy to the Lord. 37 Fasten a violet cord to it, and tie it so that it’s on the front of the turban. 38 It will be on Aaron’s forehead. He’s the one to be blamed for anything done wrong when the Israelites bring their holy offerings—whatever their gifts may be. The medallion must always be on Aaron’s forehead so that the Lord will accept their offerings.
39 “Make the specially woven inner robe of fine linen. Make the turban of fine linen, but the belt should be embroidered with colored yarn.
40 “Also make linen robes, belts, and turbans for Aaron’s sons. These clothes will give them dignity and honor. 41 Put these clothes on your brother Aaron and his sons, anoint them, ordain them, and set them apart to serve me as priests.
42 “Make linen undergarments to cover them down to their thighs. 43 Aaron and his sons must wear them when they go into the tent of meeting or when they come near the altar to serve as priests in the holy place. Then they will be blameless and won’t die.
“This is a permanent law for him and his descendants.”
Jesus Goes to the Festival of Booths
7 Jesus later traveled throughout Galilee. He didn’t want to travel in Judea because Jews there wanted to kill him.
2 The time for the Jewish Festival of Booths was near. 3 So Jesus’ brothers told him, “Leave this place, and go to Judea so that your disciples can see the things that you’re doing. 4 No one does things secretly when he wants to be known publicly. If you do these things, you should let the world see you.” 5 Even his brothers didn’t believe in him.
6 Jesus told them, “Now is not the right time for me to go. Any time is right for you. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I say that what everyone does is evil. 8 Go to the festival. I’m not going to this festival right now. Now is not the right time for me to go.”
9 After saying this, Jesus stayed in Galilee. 10 But after his brothers had gone to the festival, Jesus went. He didn’t go publicly but secretly.
11 The Jews were looking for Jesus in the crowd at the festival. They kept asking, “Where is that man?” 12 The crowds argued about Jesus. Some people said, “He’s a good man,” while others said, “No he isn’t. He deceives the people.” 13 Yet, no one would talk openly about him because they were afraid of the Jews.
14 When the festival was half over, Jesus went to the temple courtyard and began to teach. 15 The Jews were surprised and asked, “How can this man be so educated when he hasn’t gone to school?”
16 Jesus responded to them, “What I teach doesn’t come from me but from the one who sent me. 17 Those who want to follow the will of God will know if what I teach is from God or if I teach my own thoughts. 18 Those who speak their own thoughts are looking for their own glory. But the man who wants to bring glory to the one who sent him is a true teacher and doesn’t have dishonest motives. 19 Didn’t Moses give you his teachings? Yet, none of you does what Moses taught you. So why do you want to kill me?”
20 The crowd answered, “You’re possessed by a demon! Who wants to kill you?”
21 Jesus answered them, “I performed one miracle, and all of you are surprised by it. 22 Moses gave you the teaching about circumcision (although it didn’t come from Moses but from our ancestors). So you circumcise a male on a day of rest—a holy day. 23 If you circumcise a male on the day of rest—a holy day, to follow Moses’ Teachings, why are you angry with me because I made a man entirely well on the day of rest—a holy day? 24 Stop judging by outward appearance! Instead, judge correctly.”
25 Some of the people who lived in Jerusalem said, “Isn’t this the man they want to kill? 26 But look at this! He’s speaking in public, and no one is saying anything to him! Can it be that the rulers really know that this man is the Messiah? 27 However, we know where this man comes from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from.”
28 Then, while Jesus was teaching in the temple courtyard, he said loudly, “You know me, and you know where I come from. I didn’t decide to come on my own. The one who sent me is true. He’s the one you don’t know. 29 I know him because I am from him and he sent me.”
30 The Jews tried to arrest him but couldn’t because his time had not yet come.
31 However, many people in the crowd believed in him. They asked, “When the Messiah comes, will he perform more miracles than this man has?”
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd saying things like this about him. So the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest Jesus.
33 Jesus said, “I will still be with you for a little while. Then I’ll go to the one who sent me. 34 You will look for me, but you won’t find me. You can’t go where I’m going.”
35 The Jews said among themselves, “Where does this man intend to go so that we won’t find him? Does he mean that he’ll live with the Jews who are scattered among the Greeks and that he’ll teach the Greeks? 36 What does he mean when he says, ‘You will look for me, but you won’t find me,’ and ‘You can’t go where I’m going’?”
37 On the last and most important day of the festival, Jesus was standing ⌞in the temple courtyard⌟. He said loudly, “Whoever is thirsty must come to me to drink. 38 As Scripture says, ‘Streams of living water will flow from deep within the person who believes in me.’ ” 39 Jesus said this about the Spirit, whom his believers would receive. The Spirit was not yet evident, as it would be after Jesus had been glorified.
40 After some of the crowd heard Jesus say these words, they said, “This man is certainly the prophet.” 41 Other people said, “This man is the Messiah.” Still other people asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee? 42 Doesn’t Scripture say that the Messiah will come from the descendants of David and from the village of Bethlehem, where David lived?” 43 So the people were divided because of Jesus. 44 Some of them wanted to arrest him, but they couldn’t.
45 When the temple guards returned, the chief priests and Pharisees asked them, “Why didn’t you bring Jesus?”
46 The temple guards answered, “No human has ever spoken like this man.”
47 The Pharisees asked the temple guards, “Have you been deceived too? 48 Has any ruler or any Pharisee believed in him? 49 This crowd is cursed because it doesn’t know Moses’ Teachings.”
50 One of those Pharisees was Nicodemus, who had previously visited Jesus. Nicodemus asked them, 51 “Do Moses’ Teachings enable us to judge a person without first hearing that person’s side of the story? We can’t judge a person without finding out what that person has done.”
52 They asked Nicodemus, “Are you saying this because you’re from Galilee? Study ⌞the Scriptures⌟, and you’ll see that no prophet comes from Galilee.” [a]
53 Then each of them went home.
Cherish Wisdom
4 Sons,
listen to ⌞your⌟ father’s discipline,
and pay attention in order to gain understanding.
2 After all, I have taught you well.
Do not abandon my teachings.
3 When I was a boy ⌞learning⌟ from my father,
when I was a tender and only child of my mother,
4 they used to teach me and say to me,
“Cling to my words wholeheartedly.
Obey my commands so that you may live.
5 Acquire wisdom.
Acquire understanding.
Do not forget.
Do not turn away from the words that I have spoken.
6 Do not abandon wisdom, and it will watch over you.
Love wisdom, and it will protect you.
7 The beginning of wisdom is to acquire wisdom.
Acquire understanding with all that you have.
8 Cherish wisdom.
It will raise you up.
It will bring you honor when you embrace it.
9 It will give you a graceful garland for your head.
It will hand you a beautiful crown.”
Stay on the Path of Wisdom
10 My son,
listen and accept my words,
and they will multiply the years of your life.
11 I have taught you the way of wisdom.
I have guided you along decent paths.
12 When you walk, your stride will not be hampered.
Even if you run, you will not stumble.
13 Cling to discipline.
Do not relax your grip on it.
Keep it because it is your life.
14 Do not stray onto the path of wicked people.
Do not walk in the way of evil people.
15 Avoid it.
Do not walk near it.
Turn away from it,
and keep on walking.
16 Wicked people cannot sleep
unless they do wrong,
and they are robbed of their sleep
unless they make someone stumble.
17 They eat food obtained through wrongdoing
and drink wine obtained through violence.
18 But the path of righteous people is like the light of dawn
that becomes brighter and brighter until it reaches midday.
19 The way of wicked people is like deep darkness.
They do not know what makes them stumble.
Stay Focused on Wisdom
20 My son,
pay attention to my words.
Open your ears to what I say.
21 Do not lose sight of these things.
Keep them deep within your heart
22 because they are life to those who find them
and they heal the whole body.
23 Guard your heart more than anything else,
because the source of your life flows from it.
24 Remove dishonesty from your mouth.
Put deceptive speech far away from your lips.
25 Let your eyes look straight ahead
and your sight be focused in front of you.
26 Carefully walk a straight path,
and all your ways will be secure.
27 Do not lean to the right or to the left.
Walk away from evil.
God Approves of Those Who Believe
3 You stupid people of Galatia! Who put you under an evil spell? Wasn’t Christ Jesus’ crucifixion clearly described to you? 2 I want to learn only one thing from you. Did you receive the Spirit by your own efforts to follow the laws in the Scriptures or by believing what you heard? 3 Are you that stupid? Did you begin in a spiritual way only to end up doing things in a human way? 4 Did you suffer so much for nothing? ⌞I doubt⌟ that it was for nothing! 5 Does God supply you with the Spirit and work miracles among you through your own efforts or through believing what you heard?
6 Abraham serves as an example. He believed God, and that faith was regarded as the basis of Abraham’s approval by God. 7 You must understand that people who have faith are Abraham’s descendants. 8 Scripture saw ahead of time that God would give his approval to non-Jewish people who have faith. So Scripture announced the Good News to Abraham ahead of time when it said, “Through you all the people of the world will be blessed.” 9 So people who believe are blessed together with Abraham, the man of faith.
10 Certainly, there is a curse on all who rely on their own efforts because Scripture says, “Whoever doesn’t obey everything that is written in Moses’ Teachings is cursed.” 11 No one receives God’s approval by obeying the laws in Moses’ Teachings since, “The person who has God’s approval will live by faith.” 12 These laws have nothing to do with faith, but, “Whoever obeys laws will live because he obeys them.”
13 Christ paid the price to free us from the curse that the laws in Moses’ Teachings bring by becoming cursed instead of us. Scripture says, “Everyone who is hung on a tree is cursed.” 14 ⌞Christ paid the price⌟ so that the blessing promised to Abraham would come to all the people of the world through Jesus Christ and we would receive the promised Spirit through faith.
The Relationship between Law and Promise
15 Brothers and sisters, let me use an example from everyday life. No one can cancel a person’s will or add conditions to it once that will is put into effect. 16 The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his descendant. Scripture doesn’t say, “descendants,” referring to many, but “your descendant,” referring to one. That descendant is Christ. 17 This is what I mean: The laws ⌞given to Moses⌟ 430 years after God had already put his promise ⌞to Abraham⌟ into effect didn’t cancel the promise ⌞to Abraham⌟. 18 If we have to gain the inheritance by following those laws, then it no longer comes to us because of the promise. However, God freely gave the inheritance to Abraham through a promise.
19 What, then, is the purpose of the laws given to Moses? They were added to identify what wrongdoing is. Moses’ laws did this until the descendant to whom the promise was given came.[a] It was put into effect through angels, using a mediator. 20 A mediator is not used when there is only one person involved, and God has acted on his own.
21 Does this mean, then, that the laws given to Moses contradict God’s promises? That’s unthinkable! If those laws could give us life, then certainly we would receive God’s approval because we obeyed them. 22 But Scripture states that the whole world is controlled by the power of sin. Therefore, a promise based on faith in Jesus Christ could be given to those who believe.
23 We were kept under control by Moses’ laws until this faith came. We were under their control until this faith which was about to come would be revealed.
24 Before Christ came, Moses’ laws served as our guardian. Christ came so that we could receive God’s approval by faith. 25 But now that this faith has come, we are no longer under the control of a guardian. 26 You are all God’s children by believing in Christ Jesus. 27 Clearly, all of you who were baptized in Christ’s name have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There are neither Jews nor Greeks, slaves nor free people, males nor females. You are all the same in Christ Jesus. 29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants and heirs, as God promised.
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