M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

The Religious Leaders Begin Their Work

9 On the eighth day Moses called Aaron and his sons and the leaders of Israel. ² He said to Aaron, “Take a bull calf for a sin gift and a ram for a burnt gift, both of them perfect. And give them to the Lord. ³ Then say to the people of Israel, ‘Take a male goat for a sin gift, and a calf and a lamb, both a year old and perfect, for a burnt gift, ⁴ and a bull and a ram for peace gifts. Give them to the Lord with a grain gift mixed with oil. For today the Lord will show Himself to you.’” ⁵ So they brought to the front of the meeting tent what Moses had told them. All the people came near and stood before the Lord. ⁶ Moses said, “This is what the Lord has told you to do. And the shining-greatness of the Lord will be shown to you.” ⁷ Then Moses said to Aaron, “Come to the altar and give your sin gift and burnt gift to pay for the sins of yourself and for the people. Then give the gift for the people, to pay for their sins, just as the Lord has said.”

⁸ So Aaron came to the altar and killed the calf of the sin gift, which was for himself. ⁹ The sons of Aaron gave the blood to him. He put his finger in the blood and put some on the horns of the altar. He poured out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. ¹⁰ But he burned on the altar the fat and the kidneys and the part that is on the liver from the sin gift, just as the Lord had told Moses. ¹¹ He burned the flesh and the skin away from the tents.

¹² Then he killed the burnt gift. Aaron’s sons handed the blood to him and he put it around on the altar. ¹³ They gave the burnt gift to him in pieces, with the head. And he burned them on the altar. ¹⁴ He washed the inside parts and legs and burned them on the altar with the burnt gift.

¹⁵ Then he gave the people’s gift. He took the goat of the sin gift which was for the people. And he killed it and gave it for sin, like the first sin gift. ¹⁶ He gave the burnt gift. He gave it just the way the Law said. ¹⁷ Next he gave the grain gift. He filled his hand with some of the grain and burned it on the altar beside the burnt gift of the morning.

¹⁸ Then he killed the bull and the ram, the peace gifts which were for the people. Aaron’s sons handed the blood to him and he put it around on the altar. ¹⁹ The fat parts from the bull and ram, the fat tail, the fat around the inside parts, the kidneys and the part that is on the liver, ²⁰ all the fat parts they put on the breasts. And they burned the fat parts on the altar. ²¹ But Aaron gave the breasts and the right thigh as a wave gift before the Lord, just as Moses had said.

²² Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and prayed that good would come to them. After giving the sin gift, the burnt gift and the peace gifts, he came down. ²³ Moses and Aaron went into the meeting tent. When they came out and prayed that good would come to the people, the shining-greatness of the Lord was shown to all the people. ²⁴ Then fire came from the Lord and burned up the burnt gift and the fat parts on the altar. When the people saw it, they cried out and bowed down with their faces to the ground.

Prayer for God to Destroy the Sinful

10 Why do You stand far away, O Lord? Why do You hide Yourself in times of trouble? ² The sinful, in their pride, try to catch the weak. Let them be caught in the plans they have made. ³ The sinful man is proud of the desires of his heart. He praises those who want everything but he speaks against the Lord. ⁴ The sinful man in his pride does not look for God. All his thoughts are that there is no God. ⁵ His ways always go well for him. Your laws are too high for him to see. He laughs at those who hate him. ⁶ He says to himself, “I will not be moved. For all time, I will never have trouble.” ⁷ With his mouth he swears and lies. He makes it hard for other people. Trouble and sin are under his tongue. ⁸ He lies hidden in the towns, waiting to kill those who are not guilty. His eyes are always watching for the weak. ⁹ He lies in wait like a hidden lion. He lies in wait to catch the weak, and they become caught in his net. ¹⁰ The weak are hurt and they fall. They cannot stand under his strength. ¹¹ He says to himself, “God has forgotten. He has hidden His face and will never see it.”

¹² Rise up, O Lord! Lift up Your hand, O God. Do not forget the weak. ¹³ Why does the sinful man turn away from God? He has said to himself, “You will not ask it of me.” ¹⁴ But You have seen it. You look upon trouble and suffering, to take it into Your hands. The suffering man gives himself to You. You are the Helper of the one who has no father. ¹⁵ Break the arm of the bad and sinful man. Find out all his sins until You find no more. ¹⁶ The Lord is King forever and ever. Those who worship false gods will be taken from the land.

¹⁷ O Lord, You have heard the prayers of those who have no pride. You will give strength to their heart, and You will listen to them. ¹⁸ In this way, You will do the right thing for those without a father and those who suffer, so that man who is of the earth will no longer make them afraid.

24 Do not be jealous of sinful men. Do not want to be with them. ² For their hearts make plans to hurt others and their lips talk about trouble.

³ A house is built by wisdom. It is made strong by understanding, ⁴ and by much learning the rooms are filled with all riches that are pleasing and of great worth.

⁵ A wise man is strong. A man of much learning adds to his strength. ⁶ For by wise leading you will make war, and the fight is won when there are many wise men to help you make the plans.

⁷ Wisdom is too hard for a fool to understand. He does not open his mouth in the gate. ⁸ He who plans to do wrong will be called a trouble maker. ⁹ Planning to do foolish things is sin, and the man who laughs at the truth is hated by men.

¹⁰ If you are weak in the day of trouble, your strength is small.

¹¹ Save those who are being taken away to death. Keep them from being killed. ¹² If you say, “See, we did not know this,” does not He Who knows what is in hearts see it? Does not He Who keeps watch over your soul know it? And will He not pay each man for his work?

¹³ My son, eat honey, for it is good. Yes, the honey from the comb is sweet to your taste. ¹⁴ Know that wisdom is like this to your soul. If you find it, there will be a future, and your hope will not be cut off.

¹⁵ O sinful man, do not lie in wait against the house of the man who is right with God. Do not destroy his resting place. ¹⁶ For a man who is right with God falls seven times, and rises again, but the sinful fall in time of trouble.

¹⁷ Do not be full of joy when the one who hates you falls. Do not let your heart be glad when he trips. ¹⁸ The Lord will see it and will not be pleased, and He will turn away His anger from him.

¹⁹ Do not worry yourself because of those who do wrong, and do not be jealous of the sinful. ²⁰ For there will be no future for the sinful man. The lamp of the sinful will be put out.

²¹ My son, fear the Lord and the king. Have nothing to do with those who are given to change. ²² For their trouble will rise up all at once, and who knows how much both of them will destroy?

²³ These also are sayings of the wise. It is not good to show favor in judging. ²⁴ He who says to the sinful, “You are right and good,” will be spoken against by people and hated by nations. ²⁵ But those who speak strong words to the sinful will find joy and good will come upon them. ²⁶ To give the right answer is like a kiss on the lips.

²⁷ Get your work done outside. Make your fields ready. Then after that, build your house.

²⁸ Do not speak against your neighbor without a reason, and do not lie with your lips. ²⁹ Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me. I will pay the man for what he has done.”

³⁰ I passed by the field of the lazy man, by the grape-vines of the man without understanding. ³¹ And see, it was all grown over with thorns. The ground was covered with weeds, and its stone wall was broken down. ³² When I saw it, I thought about it. I looked and received teaching. ³³ “A little sleep, a little rest, a little folding of the hands to rest,” ³⁴ and your being poor will come as a robber, and your need like a man ready to fight.

3 When we could wait no longer, we decided it was best to stay in the city of Athens alone. ² And we sent Timothy to you. He works with us for God, teaching the Good News of Christ. We sent him to give strength and comfort to your faith. ³ We do not want anyone to give up because of troubles. You know that we can expect troubles. ⁴ Even when we were with you, we told you that much trouble would come to us. It has come as you can see. ⁵ For this reason, I could wait no longer. I sent Timothy to find out about your faith. I was afraid the devil had tempted you. Then our work with you would be wasted.

⁶ But Timothy has come to us from you. He brought good news about your faith and love. It is good to know that you think well of us and that you would like to see us. We would like to see you also. ⁷ Christian brothers, word about your faith has made us happy even while we are suffering and are in much trouble. ⁸ It is life to us to know that your faith in the Lord is strong. ⁹ How can we give God enough thanks for you for all the joy you give us? ¹⁰ We keep on praying night and day that we may see you again. We want to help your faith to be complete. ¹¹ May our God and Father Himself and the Lord Jesus Christ take us on our way to you. ¹² May the Lord make you grow in love for each other and for everyone. We have this kind of love for you. ¹³ May our God and Father make your hearts strong and without blame. May your hearts be without sin in God’s sight when our Lord Jesus comes again with all those who belong to Him.