M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Seven Lamps(A)
8 The Lord told Moses, 2 “Tell Aaron, ‘When you set up the lamps, the seven lamps will illuminate the area in[a] front of the lamp stand.’”[b] 3 So Aaron did so, setting up the lamps to illuminate the area in[c] front of the lamp stand, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 4 This was how the lamp stand was crafted from hammered gold: From its base to its flowers, it was made of hammered gold. Moses crafted the lamp stand just as the Lord had showed him.[d]
Purifying the Descendants of Levi
5 Then the Lord told Moses, 6 “Take the descendants of Levi from the Israelis and purify them. 7 This is what you are to do for them in order to purify them: Sprinkle purifying water over them, have them shave their skin, and then have them wash their garments, and they will be purified. 8 They are to take a young bull along with its meal offering made of flour mixed with oil. Then you are to take a second young bull as a sin offering. 9 Assemble the descendants of Levi in front of the appointed place of meeting, and assemble the whole congregation of Israel, too. 10 Bring the descendants of Levi into the Lord’s presence and have the Israelis lay their hands on the descendants of Levi.
11 “Then Aaron is to present the descendants of Levi as a wave offering before the Lord from the Israelis, because they are to work in the service of the Lord. 12 The descendants of Levi are then to lay their hands on the head of the bulls, offering one for a sin offering and the other one for a burnt offering to the Lord to atone for the descendants of Levi. 13 You are to make the descendants of Levi stand in the presence of Aaron and his sons. Then you are to wave them as wave offerings to the Lord. 14 This is how you are to separate the descendants of Levi from among the Israelis. The descendants of Levi belong to me.
15 “After this, the descendants of Levi are to come to serve at the appointed place of meeting, after you have purified them and presented them as wave offerings, 16 since they’ve been set apart for me from among the Israelis. I’ve taken them for myself instead of the first to open the womb—every firstborn of the Israelis, 17 since every firstborn of Israel belongs to me, from human beings to livestock. On the same day that I destroyed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated them to myself, 18 taking the descendants of Levi instead of every firstborn of the Israelis. 19 I’ve set the descendants of Levi apart from the Israelis so that Aaron and his sons would work in service at the appointed place of meeting, making atonement on behalf of the Israelis so that there won’t be a plague among the Israelis whenever they approach the sanctuary.”
20 So Moses and Aaron and the Israelis did this on behalf of the descendants of Levi. The Israelis did everything that the Lord commanded concerning the descendants of Levi. 21 The descendants of Levi therefore purified themselves, washed their clothes, and then Aaron presented them as wave offerings to the Lord. Aaron provided atonement for them to purify them. 22 After this, the descendants of Levi entered into their work of service at the appointed place, in the presence of Aaron and his sons. They did everything that the Lord commanded Moses concerning the descendants of Levi.
Age Restrictions for the Descendants of Levi
23 Later, the Lord told Moses, 24 “Now regarding a descendant of Levi who is 25 years and above, he is to enter work in the service at the appointed place of meeting, 25 but starting at 50 years of age, he is to retire from service and is no longer to work. 26 He may minister to his brothers at the Tent of Meeting by keeping watch, but he is not to engage in service. This is how you are to act with respect to the obligations of the descendants of Levi.”
To the Director: An instruction[a] of the Sons of Korah.
A Prayer in Times of Defeat
44 God, we heard it with our ears;
our ancestors told us about what you did in their day—
a long time ago.
2 With your hand you expelled the nations
and established our ancestors.[b]
You afflicted nations
and cast them out.
3 It was not with their sword that they inherited the land,
nor did their own arm deliver them.
But it was by your power,[c] your strength,
and by the light of your face;
because you were pleased with them.
4 You are my king, God,
command[d] victories[e] for Jacob.
5 Through you we will knock down our oppressors;
through your name we will tread down those who rise up against us.
6 For I place no confidence in my bow,
nor will my sword deliver me.
7 For you delivered us from our oppressors
and put to shame those who hate us.
8 We will praise God all day long;
and to your name we will give thanks forever.
9 However, you cast us off and made us ashamed!
You did not even march with our armies!
10 You made us retreat from our oppressors.
Our enemies ransacked us.
11 You handed us over to be slaughtered like sheep
and you scattered us among the nations.
12 You sold out your people for nothing,
and made no profit at that price.
13 You made us a laughing stock to our neighbors,
a source of mockery and derision to those around us.
14 You made us an object lesson among the nations;
people shake their heads at us.[f]
15 My dishonor tortures[g] me continuously;[h]
the shame on my face overwhelms[i] me
16 because of the voice of the one who mocks and reviles,
because of the enemy and the avenger.
17 All this came upon us,
yet we did not forsake you,
and we have not dealt falsely with your covenant;
18 Our hearts have not turned away;
our steps have not swerved from your path.
19 Nevertheless, you crushed us in the lair of jackals,
and covered us in deep darkness.[j]
20 If we had forgotten the name of our God
or lifted our hands to a foreign god,
21 wouldn’t God find out
since he knows the secrets of the heart?
22 For your sake we are being killed all day long.
We are thought of as sheep to be slaughtered.
23 Wake up! Why are you asleep, Lord?
Get up! Don’t cast us off forever!
24 Why are you hiding your face?
Why are you ignoring our affliction and oppression?
25 For we[k] have collapsed in the dust;
our bodies cling to the ground.
26 Arise! Deliver us!
Redeem us according to your gracious love!
The Young Women
6 Where did your beloved go,
most beautiful of women?
Where did your beloved turn,
so we may look for him with you?
The Loved One
2 My beloved has gone down to his garden,
to the beds of spices,
to graze his flock[a] in the gardens
and gather lilies.
3 I belong to my beloved, and my beloved belongs to me.
He is the one who grazes his flock[b] among the lilies.
The Lover
4 You are beautiful, my darling, like Tirzah,[c]
lovely like Jerusalem,
as awesome as an army with banners.
5 Turn your eyes from me,
for they excite me.[d]
Your hair is like a flock of goats
coming down from Mt. Gilead.
6 Your teeth are like a flock of ewes
coming up from being washed.[e]
All of them are twins,
not one has lost[f] her young.
7 Your temple[g] behind your veil
is like a slice of pomegranate.
8 There are sixty queens and eighty mistresses,[h]
and too many young women to count,
9 but my dove, my perfect one, is unique.
She’s unique to her mother,
she’s pure to the one who gave birth to her.
Young women see her and call her blessed,
queens and mistresses praise her.
The Young Women
10 Who is this who appears like the dawn,
beautiful as the moon,
bright as the sun,
awesome as an army with banners?
The Loved One
11 I went down to the walnut orchard,
to look at the green sprouts in the valley,
to see whether the vine had budded,
whether the pomegranates had blossomed.
12 Before I knew it,[i] I imagined myself
among the chariots of my noble people.[j]
The Young Women
13 [k]Return, return, Shulammite,
return, return, so we may look at you!
The Lover
The Peril of Immaturity
6 Therefore, leaving behind the elementary teachings about the Messiah,[a] let us continue to be carried along to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead actions, faith toward God, 2 instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And this we will do,[b] if God permits.
4 For it is impossible to keep on restoring to repentance time and again people who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have become partners with the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of God’s word and the powers of the coming age, 6 and who have fallen away, as long as they continue to crucify the Son of God to their own detriment by exposing him to public ridicule. 7 For when the ground soaks up rain that often falls on it and continues producing vegetation useful to those for whom it is cultivated, it receives a blessing from God. 8 However, if it continues to produce thorns and thistles, it is worthless and in danger of being cursed, and in the end will be burned.
Be Diligent
9 Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are convinced of better things in your case, things that point to salvation. 10 For God is not so unjust as to forget your work and the love you have shown him[c] as you have ministered to the saints and continue to minister to them. 11 But we want each of you to continue to be diligent to the very end, in order to give full assurance to your hope. 12 Then, instead of being lazy, you will imitate those who are inheriting the promises through faith and patience.
God’s Promise is Reliable
13 For when God made his promise to Abraham, he swore an oath by himself, since he had no one greater to swear by. 14 He said, “I will certainly bless you and give you many descendants.”[d] 15 And so he obtained what he had been promised, because he patiently waited for it. 16 For people swear by someone greater than themselves, and an oath given as confirmation puts an end to all argument. 17 In the same way, when God wanted to make the unchangeable character of his purpose perfectly clear to the heirs of his promise, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by these two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to prove false, we who have taken refuge in him might be encouraged to seize the hope set before us. 19 That hope,[e] firm and secure like an anchor for our souls, reaches behind the curtain 20 where Jesus, our forerunner, has gone on our behalf, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
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