M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Other Laws
19 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell all the people of Israel: ‘I am the Lord your God. You must be holy because I am holy.
3 “‘You must respect your mother and father, and you must keep my Sabbaths. I am the Lord your God.
4 “‘Do not worship idols or make statues or gods for yourselves. I am the Lord your God.
5 “‘When you sacrifice a fellowship offering to the Lord, offer it in such a way that will be accepted. 6 You may eat it the same day you offer it or on the next day. But if any is left on the third day, you must burn it up. 7 If any of it is eaten on the third day, it is unclean, and it will not be accepted. 8 Anyone who eats it then will be guilty of sin, because he did not respect the holy things that belong to the Lord. He must be cut off from the people.
9 “‘When you harvest your crops on your land, do not harvest all the way to the corners of your fields. If grain falls onto the ground, don’t gather it up. 10 Don’t pick all the grapes in your vineyards, and don’t pick up the grapes that fall to the ground. You must leave those things for poor people and for people traveling through your country. I am the Lord your God.
11 “‘You must not steal. You must not cheat people, and you must not lie to each other. 12 You must not make a false promise by my name, or you will show that you don’t respect your God. I am the Lord.
13 “‘You must not cheat your neighbor or rob him. You must not keep a hired worker’s salary all night until morning. 14 You must not curse a deaf person or put something in front of a blind person to make him fall. But you must respect your God. I am the Lord.
15 “‘Be fair in your judging. You must not show special favor to poor people or great people, but be fair when you judge your neighbor. 16 You must not spread false stories against other people, and you must not do anything that would put your neighbor’s life in danger. I am the Lord.
17 “‘You must not hate your fellow citizen in your heart. If your neighbor does something wrong, tell him about it, or you will be partly to blame. 18 Forget about the wrong things people do to you, and do not try to get even. Love your neighbor as you love yourself. I am the Lord.
19 “‘Obey my laws. You must not mate two different kinds of cattle or sow your field with two different kinds of seed. You must not wear clothing made from two different kinds of material mixed together.
20 “‘If a man has sexual relations with a slave girl of another man, but this slave girl has not been bought or given her freedom, there must be punishment. But they are not to be put to death, because the woman was not free. 21 The man must bring a male sheep as his penalty offering to the Lord at the entrance to the Meeting Tent. 22 The priest will offer the sheep as a penalty offering before the Lord for the man’s sin, to remove the sins of the man so he will belong to the Lord. Then he will be forgiven for his sin.
23 “‘In the future, when you enter your country, you will plant many kinds of trees for food. After planting a tree, wait three years before using its fruit. 24 In the fourth year the fruit from the tree will be the Lord’s, a holy offering of praise to him. 25 Then in the fifth year, you may eat the fruit from the tree. The tree will then produce more fruit for you. I am the Lord your God.
26 “‘You must not eat anything with the blood in it.
“‘You must not try to tell the future by signs or black magic.
27 “‘You must not cut the hair on the sides of your heads or cut the edges of your beard. 28 You must not cut your body to show sadness for someone who died or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord.
29 “‘Do not dishonor your daughter by making her become a prostitute. If you do this, the country will be filled with all kinds of sin.
30 “‘Obey the laws about Sabbaths, and respect my Most Holy Place. I am the Lord.
31 “‘Do not go to mediums or fortune-tellers for advice, or you will become unclean. I am the Lord your God.
32 “‘Show respect to old people; stand up in their presence. Show respect also to your God. I am the Lord.
33 “‘Do not mistreat foreigners living in your country, 34 but treat them just as you treat your own citizens. Love foreigners as you love yourselves, because you were foreigners one time in Egypt. I am the Lord your God.
35 “‘Do not cheat when you measure the length or weight or amount of something. 36 Your weights and balances should weigh correctly, with your weighing baskets the right size and your jars holding the right amount of liquid. I am the Lord your God. I brought you out of the land of Egypt.
37 “‘Remember all my laws and rules, and obey them. I am the Lord.’”
The Lord the Shepherd
A psalm of David.
23 The Lord is my shepherd;
I have everything I need.
2 He lets me rest in green pastures.
He leads me to calm water.
3 He gives me new strength.
He leads me on paths that are right
for the good of his name.
4 Even if I walk through a very dark valley,
I will not be afraid,
because you are with me.
Your rod and your shepherd’s staff comfort me.
5 You prepare a meal for me
in front of my enemies.
You pour oil of blessing on my head;[a]
you fill my cup to overflowing.
6 Surely your goodness and love will be with me
all my life,
and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.
A Welcome for God into the Temple
A psalm of David.
24 The earth belongs to the Lord, and everything in it—
the world and all its people.
2 He built it on the waters
and set it on the rivers.
3 Who may go up on the mountain of the Lord?
Who may stand in his holy Temple?
4 Only those with clean hands and pure hearts,
who have not worshiped idols,
who have not made promises in the name of a false god.
5 They will receive a blessing from the Lord;
the God who saves them will declare them right.
6 They try to follow God;
they look to the God of Jacob for help. Selah
7 Open up, you gates.
Open wide, you aged doors
and the glorious King will come in.
8 Who is this glorious King?
The Lord, strong and mighty.
The Lord, the powerful warrior.
9 Open up, you gates.
Open wide, you aged doors
and the glorious King will come in.
10 Who is this glorious King?
The Lord All-Powerful—
he is the glorious King. Selah
Does “Having Fun” Bring Happiness?
2 I said to myself, “I will try having fun. I will enjoy myself.” But I found that this is also useless. 2 It is foolish to laugh all the time, and having fun doesn’t accomplish anything. 3 I decided to cheer myself up with wine while my mind was still thinking wisely. I wanted to find a way to enjoy myself and see what was good for people to do during their few days of life.
Does Hard Work Bring Happiness?
4 Then I did great things: I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. 5 I made gardens and parks, and I planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. 6 I made pools of water for myself and used them to water my growing trees. 7 I bought male and female slaves, and slaves were also born in my house. I had large herds and flocks, more than anyone in Jerusalem had ever had before. 8 I also gathered silver and gold for myself, treasures from kings and other areas. I had male and female singers and all the women a man could ever want. 9 I became very famous, even greater than anyone who had lived in Jerusalem before me. My wisdom helped me in all this.
10 Anything I saw and wanted, I got for myself;
I did not miss any pleasure I desired.
I was pleased with everything I did,
and this pleasure was the reward for all my hard work.
11 But then I looked at what I had done,
and I thought about all the hard work.
Suddenly I realized it was useless, like chasing the wind.
There is nothing to gain from anything we do here on earth.
Maybe Wisdom Is the Answer
12 Then I began to think again about being wise,
and also about being foolish and doing crazy things.
But after all, what more can anyone do?
He can’t do more than what the other king has already done.
13 I saw that being wise is certainly better than being foolish,
just as light is better than darkness.
14 Wise people see where they are going,
but fools walk around in the dark.
Yet I saw that
both wise and foolish people end the same way.
15 I thought to myself,
“What happens to a fool will happen to me, too,
so what is the reward for being wise?”
I said to myself,
“Being wise is also useless.”
16 The wise person and the fool
will both die,
and no one will remember either one for long.
In the future, both will be forgotten.
Is There Real Happiness in Life?
17 So I hated life. It made me sad to think that everything here on earth is useless, like chasing the wind. 18 I hated all the things I had worked for here on earth, because I must leave them to someone who will live after me. 19 Someone else will control everything for which I worked so hard here on earth, and I don’t know if he will be wise or foolish. This is also useless. 20 So I became sad about all the hard work I had done here on earth. 21 People can work hard using all their wisdom, knowledge, and skill, but they will die, and other people will get the things for which they worked. They did not do the work, but they will get everything. This is also unfair and useless. 22 What do people get for all their work and struggling here on earth? 23 All of their lives their work is full of pain and sorrow, and even at night their minds don’t rest. This is also useless.
24 The best that people can do is eat, drink, and enjoy their work. I saw that even this comes from God, 25 because no one can eat or enjoy life without him. 26 If people please God, God will give them wisdom, knowledge, and joy. But sinners will get only the work of gathering and storing wealth that they will have to give to the ones who please God. So all their work is useless, like chasing the wind.
A Warning About False Teachers
4 Now the Holy Spirit clearly says that in the later times some people will stop believing the faith. They will follow spirits that lie and teachings of demons. 2 Such teachings come from the false words of liars whose consciences are destroyed as if by a hot iron. 3 They forbid people to marry and tell them not to eat certain foods which God created to be eaten with thanks by people who believe and know the truth. 4 Everything God made is good, and nothing should be refused if it is accepted with thanks, 5 because it is made holy by what God has said and by prayer.
Be a Good Servant of Christ
6 By telling these things to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus. You will be made strong by the words of the faith and the good teaching which you have been following. 7 But do not follow foolish stories that disagree with God’s truth, but train yourself to serve God. 8 Training your body helps you in some ways, but serving God helps you in every way by bringing you blessings in this life and in the future life, too. 9 What I say is true, and you should fully accept it. 10 This is why we work and struggle:[a] We hope in the living God who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.
11 Command and teach these things. 12 Do not let anyone treat you as if you are unimportant because you are young. Instead, be an example to the believers with your words, your actions, your love, your faith, and your pure life. 13 Until I come, continue to read the Scriptures to the people, strengthen them, and teach them. 14 Use the gift you have, which was given to you through prophecy when the group of elders laid their hands on[b] you. 15 Continue to do those things; give your life to doing them so your progress may be seen by everyone. 16 Be careful in your life and in your teaching. If you continue to live and teach rightly, you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.