M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Balak Sends for Balaam
22 Then the people of Israel went to the plains of Moab, and they camped near the Jordan River across from Jericho.
2 Balak son of Zippor saw everything the Israelites had done to the Amorites. 3 And Moab was scared of so many Israelites; truly, Moab was terrified by them.
4 The Moabites said to the elders of Midian, “These people will take everything around us like an ox eating grass.”
Balak son of Zippor was the king of Moab at this time. 5 He sent messengers to Balaam son of Beor at Pethor, near the Euphrates River in his native land. Balak said, “A nation has come out of Egypt that covers the land. They have camped next to me, 6 and they are too powerful for me. So come and put a curse on them. Maybe then I can defeat them and make them leave the area. I know that if you bless someone, the blessings happen, and if you put a curse on someone, it happens.”
7 The elders of Moab and Midian went with payment in their hands. When they found Balaam, they told him what Balak had said.
8 Balaam said to them, “Stay here for the night, and I will tell you what the Lord tells me.” So the Moabite leaders stayed with him.
9 God came to Balaam and asked, “Who are these men with you?”
10 Balaam said to God, “The king of Moab, Balak son of Zippor, sent them to me with this message: 11 ‘A nation has come out of Egypt that covers the land. So come and put a curse on them, and maybe I can fight them and force them out of my land.’”
12 But God said to Balaam, “Do not go with them. Don’t put a curse on those people, because I have blessed them.”
13 The next morning Balaam awoke and said to Balak’s leaders, “Go back to your own country; the Lord has refused to let me go with you.”
14 So the Moabite leaders went back to Balak and said, “Balaam refused to come with us.”
15 So Balak sent other leaders—this time there were more of them, and they were more important. 16 They went to Balaam and said, “Balak son of Zippor says this: Please don’t let anything stop you from coming to me. 17 I will pay you very well, and I will do what you say. Come and put a curse on these people for me.”
18 But Balaam answered Balak’s servants, “King Balak could give me his palace full of silver and gold, but I cannot disobey the Lord my God in anything, great or small. 19 You stay here tonight as the other men did, and I will find out what more the Lord tells me.”
20 That night God came to Balaam and said, “These men have come to ask you to go with them. Go, but only do what I tell you.”
Balaam’s Donkey Speaks
21 Balaam got up the next morning and put a saddle on his donkey. Then he went with the Moabite leaders. 22 But God became angry because Balaam went, so the angel of the Lord stood in the road to stop Balaam. Balaam was riding his donkey, and he had two servants with him. 23 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a sword in his hand, the donkey left the road and went into the field. Balaam hit the donkey to force her back on the road.
24 Later, the angel of the Lord stood on a narrow path between two vineyards, with walls on both sides. 25 Again the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, and she walked close to one wall, crushing Balaam’s foot against it. So he hit her again.
26 The angel of the Lord went ahead again and stood at a narrow place, too narrow to turn left or right. 27 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam. This made him so angry that he hit her with his stick. 28 Then the Lord made the donkey talk, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to make you hit me three times?”
29 Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made me look foolish! I wish I had a sword in my hand! I would kill you right now!”
30 But the donkey said to Balaam, “I am your very own donkey, which you have ridden for years. Have I ever done this to you before?”
“No,” Balaam said.
31 Then the Lord let Balaam see the angel of the Lord, who was standing in the road with his sword drawn. Then Balaam bowed facedown on the ground.
32 The angel of the Lord asked Balaam, “Why have you hit your donkey three times? I have stood here to stop you, because what you are doing is wrong. 33 The donkey saw me and turned away from me three times. If she had not turned away, I would have killed you by now, but I would have let her live.”
34 Then Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, “I have sinned; I did not know you were standing in the road to stop me. If I am wrong, I will go back.”
35 The angel of the Lord said to Balaam, “Go with these men, but say only what I tell you.” So Balaam went with Balak’s leaders.
36 When Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him at Ar in Moab, which was beside the Arnon, at the edge of his country. 37 Balak said to Balaam, “I had asked you before to come quickly. Why didn’t you come to me? I am able to reward you well.”
38 But Balaam answered, “I have come to you now, but I can’t say just anything. I can only say what God tells me to say.”
39 Then Balaam went with Balak to Kiriath Huzoth. 40 Balak offered cattle and sheep as a sacrifice and gave some meat to Balaam and the leaders with him.
41 The next morning Balak took Balaam to Bamoth Baal; from there he could see the edge of the Israelite camp.
Trust Only in God
For the director of music. For Jeduthun. A psalm of David.
62 I find rest in God;
only he can save me.
2 He is my rock and my salvation.
He is my defender;
I will not be defeated.
3 How long will you attack someone?
Will all of you kill that person?
Who is like a leaning wall, like a fence ready to fall?
4 They are planning to make that person fall.
They enjoy telling lies.
With their mouths they bless,
but in their hearts they curse. Selah
5 I find rest in God;
only he gives me hope.
6 He is my rock and my salvation.
He is my defender;
I will not be defeated.
7 My honor and salvation come from God.
He is my mighty rock and my protection.
8 People, trust God all the time.
Tell him all your problems,
because God is our protection. Selah
9 The least of people are only a breath,
and even the greatest are just a lie.
On the scales, they weigh nothing;
together they are only a breath.
10 Do not trust in force.
Stealing is of no use.
Even if you gain more riches,
don’t put your trust in them.
11 God has said this,
and I have heard it over and over:
God is strong.
12 The Lord is loving.
You reward people for what they have done.
Wishing to Be Near God
A psalm of David when he was in the desert of Judah.
63 God, you are my God.
I search for you.
I thirst for you
like someone in a dry, empty land
where there is no water.
2 I have seen you in the Temple
and have seen your strength and glory.
3 Because your love is better than life,
I will praise you.
4 I will praise you as long as I live.
I will lift up my hands in prayer to your name.
5 I will be content as if I had eaten the best foods.
My lips will sing, and my mouth will praise you.
6 I remember you while I’m lying in bed;
I think about you through the night.
7 You are my help.
Because of your protection, I sing.
8 I stay close to you;
you support me with your right hand.
9 Some people are trying to kill me,
but they will go down to the grave.
10 They will be killed with swords
and eaten by wild dogs.
11 But the king will rejoice in his God.
All who make promises in his name will praise him,
but the mouths of liars will be shut.
The King of Peace Is Coming
11 A new branch will grow
from a stump of a tree;
so a new king will come
from the family of Jesse.[a]
2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest upon that king.
The Spirit will give him wisdom and understanding, guidance and power.
The Spirit will teach him to know and respect the Lord.
3 This king will be glad to obey the Lord.
He will not judge by the way things look
or decide by what he hears.
4 But he will judge the poor honestly;
he will be fair in his decisions for the poor people of the land.
At his command evil people will be punished,
and by his words the wicked will be put to death.
5 Goodness and fairness will give him strength,
like a belt around his waist.
6 Then wolves will live in peace with lambs,
and leopards will lie down to rest with goats.
Calves, lions, and young bulls will eat together,
and a little child will lead them.
7 Cows and bears will eat together in peace.
Their young will lie down to rest together.
Lions will eat hay as oxen do.
8 A baby will be able to play near a cobra’s hole,
and a child will be able to put his hand into the nest of a poisonous snake.
9 They will not hurt or destroy each other
on all my holy mountain,
because the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord,
as the sea is full of water.
10 At that time the new king from the family of Jesse will stand as a banner for all peoples. The nations will come together around him, and the place where he lives will be filled with glory. 11 At that time the Lord will again reach out and take his people who are left alive in Assyria, North Egypt, South Egypt, Cush, Elam, Babylonia, Hamath, and all the islands of the sea.
12 God will raise a banner as a sign for all nations,
and he will gather the people of Israel who were forced from their country.
He will gather the scattered people of Judah
from all parts of the earth.
13 At that time Israel will not be jealous anymore,
and Judah will have no more enemies.
Israel will not be jealous of Judah,
and Judah will not hate Israel.
14 But Israel and Judah will attack the Philistines on the west.
Together they will take the riches from the people of the east.
They will conquer Edom and Moab,
and the people of Ammon will be under their control.
15 The Lord will dry up
the Red Sea of Egypt.
He will wave his arm over the Euphrates River
and dry it up with a scorching wind.
He will divide it into seven small rivers
so that people can walk across them with their sandals on.
16 So God’s people who are left alive
will have a way to leave Assyria,
just like the time the Israelites
came out of Egypt.
A Song of Praise to God
12 At that time you will say:
“I praise you, Lord!
You were angry with me,
but you are not angry with me now!
You have comforted me.
2 God is the one who saves me;
I will trust him and not be afraid.
The Lord, the Lord gives me strength and makes me sing.
He has saved me.”
3 You will receive your salvation with joy
as you would draw water from a well.
4 At that time you will say,
“Praise the Lord and worship him.
Tell everyone what he has done
and how great he is.
5 Sing praise to the Lord, because he has done great things.
Let all the world know what he has done.
6 Shout and sing for joy, you people of Jerusalem,
because the Holy One of Israel does great things before your eyes.”
A Warning to the Rich
5 You rich people, listen! Cry and be very sad because of the troubles that are coming to you. 2 Your riches have rotted, and your clothes have been eaten by moths. 3 Your gold and silver have rusted, and that rust will be a proof that you were wrong. It will eat your bodies like fire. You saved your treasure for the last days. 4 The pay you did not give the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the workers have been heard by the Lord All-Powerful. 5 Your life on earth was full of rich living and pleasing yourselves with everything you wanted. You made yourselves fat, like an animal ready to be killed. 6 You have judged guilty and then murdered innocent people, who were not against you.
Be Patient
7 Brothers and sisters, be patient until the Lord comes again. A farmer patiently waits for his valuable crop to grow from the earth and for it to receive the autumn and spring rains. 8 You, too, must be patient. Do not give up hope, because the Lord is coming soon. 9 Brothers and sisters, do not complain against each other or you will be judged guilty. And the Judge is ready to come! 10 Brothers and sisters, follow the example of the prophets who spoke for the Lord. They suffered many hard things, but they were patient. 11 We say they are happy because they did not give up. You have heard about Job’s patience, and you know the Lord’s purpose for him in the end. You know the Lord is full of mercy and is kind.
Be Careful What You Say
12 My brothers and sisters, above all, do not use an oath when you make a promise. Don’t use the name of heaven, earth, or anything else to prove what you say. When you mean yes, say only yes, and when you mean no, say only no so you will not be judged guilty.
The Power of Prayer
13 Anyone who is having troubles should pray. Anyone who is happy should sing praises. 14 Anyone who is sick should call the church’s elders. They should pray for and pour oil on the person[a] in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer that is said with faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will heal that person. And if the person has sinned, the sins will be forgiven. 16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so God can heal you. When a believing person prays, great things happen. 17 Elijah was a human being just like us. He prayed that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years! 18 Then Elijah prayed again, and the rain came down from the sky, and the land produced crops again.
Saving a Soul
19 My brothers and sisters, if one of you wanders away from the truth, and someone helps that person come back, 20 remember this: Anyone who brings a sinner back from the wrong way will save that sinner’s soul from death and will cause many sins to be forgiven.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.