M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Rules About a Person’s Body
15 The Lord also said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Say to the people of Israel: ‘When a fluid comes from a person’s body, the fluid is unclean. 3 It doesn’t matter if the fluid flows freely or if it is blocked from flowing; the fluid will make him unclean. This is the way the fluid makes him unclean:
4 “‘If the person who discharges the body fluid lies on a bed, that bed becomes unclean, and everything he sits on becomes unclean. 5 Anyone who touches his bed must wash his clothes and bathe in water, and the person will be unclean until evening. 6 Whoever sits on something that the person who discharges the fluid sat on must wash his clothes and bathe in water; he will be unclean until evening. 7 Anyone who touches the person who discharges the body fluid must wash his clothes and bathe in water; he will be unclean until evening.
8 “‘If the person who discharges the body fluid spits on someone who is clean, that person must wash his clothes and bathe in water; he will be unclean until evening. 9 Everything on which the person who is unclean sits when riding will become unclean. 10 Anyone who touches something that was under him will be unclean until evening. And anyone who carries these things must wash his clothes and bathe in water; he will be unclean until evening.
11 “‘If the person who discharges a body fluid has not washed his hands in water and touches another person, that person must wash his clothes and bathe in water; he will be unclean until evening.
12 “‘If a person who discharges a body fluid touches a clay bowl, that bowl must be broken. If he touches a wooden bowl, that bowl must be washed in water.
13 “‘When a person who discharges a body fluid is made clean, he must count seven days for himself for his cleansing. He must wash his clothes and bathe his body in fresh water, and he will be clean. 14 On the eighth day he must take two doves or two young pigeons before the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. He will give the two birds to the priest. 15 The priest will offer the birds, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. And the priest will make that person clean so he can belong to the Lord again.
16 “‘If semen[a] goes out from a man, he must bathe in water; he will be unclean until evening. 17 If the fluid gets on any clothing or leather, it must be washed with water; it will be unclean until evening.
18 “‘If a man has sexual relations with a woman and semen comes out, both people must bathe in water; they will be unclean until evening.
Rules About a Woman’s Body
19 “‘When a woman has her monthly period, she is unclean for seven days; anyone who touches her will be unclean until evening. 20 Anything she lies on during this time will be unclean, and everything she sits on during this time will be unclean. 21 Anyone who touches her bed must wash his clothes and bathe in water; that person will be unclean until evening. 22 Anyone who touches something she has sat on must wash his clothes and bathe in water; that person will be unclean until evening. 23 It does not matter if the person touched the woman’s bed or something she sat on; he will be unclean until evening.
24 “‘If a man has sexual relations with a woman and her monthly period touches him, he will be unclean for seven days; every bed he lies on will be unclean.
25 “‘If a woman has a loss of blood for many days and it is not during her regular monthly period, or if she continues to have a loss of blood after her regular period, she will be unclean, as she is during her monthly period. She will be unclean for as long as she continues to bleed. 26 Any bed she lies on during all the time of her bleeding will be like her bed during her regular monthly period. Everything she sits on will be unclean, as during her regular monthly period.
27 “‘Whoever touches those things will be unclean and must wash his clothes and bathe in water; he will be unclean until evening. 28 When the woman becomes clean from her bleeding, she must wait seven days, and after this she will be clean. 29 Then on the eighth day she must take two doves or two young pigeons and bring them to the priest at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. 30 The priest must offer one bird for a sin offering and the other for a whole burnt offering. In this way the priest will make her clean so she can belong to the Lord again.
31 “‘So you must warn the people of Israel to stay separated from things that make them unclean. If you don’t warn the people, they might make my Holy Tent unclean, and then they would have to die!’”
32 These are the teachings for the person who discharges a body fluid and for the man who becomes unclean from semen[b] coming out of his body. 33 These are the teachings for the woman who becomes unclean from her monthly period, for a man or woman who has a discharge, and for a man who becomes unclean by having sexual relations with a woman who is unclean.
A Song of Victory
For the director of music. By the Lord’s servant, David. David sang this song to the Lord when the Lord had saved him from Saul and all his other enemies.
18 I love you, Lord. You are my strength.
2 The Lord is my rock, my protection, my Savior.
My God is my rock.
I can run to him for safety.
He is my shield and my saving strength, my defender.
3 I will call to the Lord, who is worthy of praise,
and I will be saved from my enemies.
4 The ropes of death came around me;
the deadly rivers overwhelmed me.
5 The ropes of death wrapped around me.
The traps of death were before me.
6 In my trouble I called to the Lord.
I cried out to my God for help.
From his temple he heard my voice;
my call for help reached his ears.
7 The earth trembled and shook.
The foundations of the mountains began to shake.
They trembled because the Lord was angry.
8 Smoke came out of his nose,
and burning fire came out of his mouth.
Burning coals went before him.
9 He tore open the sky and came down
with dark clouds under his feet.
10 He rode a creature with wings and flew.
He raced on the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his covering, his shelter around him,
surrounded by fog and clouds.
12 Out of the brightness of his presence came clouds
with hail and lightning.
13 The Lord thundered from heaven;
the Most High raised his voice,
and there was hail and lightning.
14 He shot his arrows and scattered his enemies.
His many bolts of lightning confused them with fear.
15 Lord, you spoke strongly.
The wind blew from your nose.
Then the valleys of the sea appeared,
and the foundations of the earth were seen.
16 The Lord reached down from above and took me;
he pulled me from the deep water.
17 He saved me from my powerful enemies,
from those who hated me, because they were too strong for me.
18 They attacked me at my time of trouble,
but the Lord supported me.
19 He took me to a safe place.
Because he delights in me, he saved me.
20 The Lord spared me because I did what was right.
Because I have not done evil, he has rewarded me.
21 I have followed the ways of the Lord;
I have not done evil by turning away from my God.
22 I remember all his laws
and have not broken his rules.
23 I am innocent before him;
I have kept myself from doing evil.
24 The Lord rewarded me because I did what was right,
because I did what the Lord said was right.
25 Lord, you are loyal to those who are loyal,
and you are good to those who are good.
26 You are pure to those who are pure,
but you are against those who are bad.
27 You save the humble,
but you bring down those who are proud.
28 Lord, you give light to my lamp.
My God brightens the darkness around me.
29 With your help I can attack an army.
With God’s help I can jump over a wall.
30 The ways of God are without fault.
The Lord’s words are pure.
He is a shield to those who trust him.
31 Who is God? Only the Lord.
Who is the Rock? Only our God.
32 God is my protection.
He makes my way free from fault.
33 He makes me like a deer that does not stumble;
he helps me stand on the steep mountains.
34 He trains my hands for battle
so my arms can bend a bronze bow.
35 You protect me with your saving shield.
You support me with your right hand.
You have stooped to make me great.
36 You give me a better way to live,
so I live as you want me to.
37 I chased my enemies and caught them.
I did not quit until they were destroyed.
38 I crushed them so they couldn’t rise up again.
They fell beneath my feet.
39 You gave me strength in battle.
You made my enemies bow before me.
40 You made my enemies turn back,
and I destroyed those who hated me.
41 They called for help,
but no one came to save them.
They called to the Lord,
but he did not answer them.
42 I beat my enemies into pieces, like dust in the wind.
I poured them out like mud in the streets.
43 You saved me when the people attacked me.
You made me the leader of nations.
People I never knew serve me.
44 As soon as they hear me, they obey me.
Foreigners obey me.
45 They all become afraid
and tremble in their hiding places.
46 The Lord lives!
May my Rock be praised.
Praise the God who saves me!
47 God gives me victory over my enemies
and brings people under my rule.
48 He saves me from my enemies.
You set me over those who hate me.
You saved me from violent people.
49 So I will praise you, Lord, among the nations.
I will sing praises to your name.
50 The Lord gives great victories to his king.
He is loyal to his appointed king,
to David and his descendants forever.
29 Whoever is stubborn after being corrected many times
will suddenly be hurt beyond cure.
2 When good people do well, everyone is happy,
but when evil people rule, everyone groans.
3 Those who love wisdom make their parents happy,
but friends of prostitutes waste their money.
4 If a king is fair, he makes his country strong,
but if he takes gifts dishonestly, he tears his country down.
5 Those who give false praise to their neighbors
are setting a trap for them.
6 Evil people are trapped by their own sin,
but good people can sing and be happy.
7 Good people care about justice for the poor,
but the wicked are not concerned.
8 People who make fun of wisdom cause trouble in a city,
but wise people calm anger down.
9 When a wise person takes a foolish person to court,
the fool only shouts or laughs, and there is no peace.
10 Murderers hate an honest person
and try to kill those who do right.
11 Foolish people lose their tempers,
but wise people control theirs.
12 If a ruler pays attention to lies,
all his officers will become wicked.
13 The poor person and the cruel person are alike
in that the Lord gave eyes to both of them.
14 If a king judges poor people fairly,
his government will continue forever.
15 Correction and punishment make children wise,
but those left alone will disgrace their mother.
16 When there are many wicked people, there is much sin,
but those who do right will see them destroyed.
17 Correct your children, and you will be proud;
they will give you satisfaction.
18 Where there is no word from God, people are uncontrolled,
but those who obey what they have been taught are happy.
19 Words alone cannot correct a servant,
because even if they understand, they won’t respond.
20 Do you see people who speak too quickly?
There is more hope for a foolish person than for them.
21 If you spoil your servants when they are young,
they will bring you grief later on.
22 An angry person causes trouble;
a person with a quick temper sins a lot.
23 Pride will ruin people,
but those who are humble will be honored.
24 Partners of thieves are their own worst enemies.
If they have to testify in court, they are afraid to say anything.
25 Being afraid of people can get you into trouble,
but if you trust the Lord, you will be safe.
26 Many people want to speak to a ruler,
but justice comes only from the Lord.
27 Good people hate those who are dishonest,
and the wicked hate those who are honest.
Pray for Us
3 And now, brothers and sisters, pray for us that the Lord’s teaching will continue to spread quickly and that people will give honor to that teaching, just as happened with you. 2 And pray that we will be protected from stubborn and evil people, because not all people believe.
3 But the Lord is faithful and will give you strength and will protect you from the Evil One. 4 The Lord makes us feel sure that you are doing and will continue to do the things we told you. 5 May the Lord lead your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s patience.
The Duty to Work
6 Brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ we command you to stay away from any believer who refuses to work and does not follow the teaching we gave you. 7 You yourselves know that you should live as we live. We were not lazy when we were with you. 8 And when we ate another person’s food, we always paid for it. We worked very hard night and day so we would not be an expense to any of you. 9 We had the right to ask you to help us, but we worked to take care of ourselves so we would be an example for you to follow. 10 When we were with you, we gave you this rule: “Anyone who refuses to work should not eat.”
11 We hear that some people in your group refuse to work. They do nothing but busy themselves in other people’s lives. 12 We command those people and beg them in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and earn their own food. 13 But you, brothers and sisters, never become tired of doing good.
14 If some people do not obey what we tell you in this letter, then take note of them. Have nothing to do with them so they will feel ashamed. 15 But do not treat them as enemies. Warn them as fellow believers.
Final Words
16 Now may the Lord of peace give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.
17 I, Paul, end this letter now in my own handwriting. All my letters have this to show they are from me. This is the way I write.
18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.