M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Instructions Regarding the Tribal Nations
7 “When the Lord your God brings you into the land that you are entering to possess, he will drive out many nations before you: the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites— seven nations who are more numerous and stronger than you. 2 So when the Lord your God delivers them to you and you have defeated them, then utterly destroy them. You are not to make any covenant with them nor be gracious to them. 3 You are not to intermarry with them. You are not to give your daughters to their sons nor take their daughters for your sons, 4 because they will turn your children from me to serve other gods so that the Lord’s anger blazes against you and swiftly destroys you by fire. 5 This is what you are to do to them: tear down their altars, break their pillars, cut down their ritual pillars, and burn their carved idols in fire, 6 because you are a holy people to the Lord your God. The Lord your God chose you to be his people, his treasured possession from all the nations[a] on the face of the earth.”
The Lord Keeps His Covenant
7 “It wasn’t because you were more numerous than other nations[b] of the earth that the Lord committed himself to you and chose you. In fact, you were the least numerous of all the nations.[c] 8 But the Lord loved you and kept his oath that he made to your ancestors. The Lord brought you out with great power from slavery,[d] from the control of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. 9 Know that the Lord your God is God, the trusted God who faithfully keeps his covenant to the thousandth generation of those who love him and obey his commands. 10 But for the one who hates him, he will repay him by destroying him. He will not delay dealing with someone who hates him. 11 Therefore, keep the commands, decrees, and ordinances that I am instructing you to obey today.”
The Lord Blesses Obedience
12 “If you pay attention to these laws and obey them, then the Lord your God will continue his covenant of gracious love with you that he promised with an oath to your ancestors. 13 He’ll love you and increase your numbers. He’ll bless the fruit of your womb, the fruit of your land (the grain, new wine, and oil), the offspring of your herds, and the lambs of your flock in the land that the Lord promised your ancestors he would give you. 14 You’ll be blessed among all the nations. There’ll be no infertility among you, not even[e] among your herds. 15 The Lord will turn aside every disease from you. He won’t inflict on you the terrible diseases you knew in Egypt, but will inflict them instead on all who hate you. 16 You are to utterly destroy everyone whom the Lord your God will deliver to you. Don’t have pity on them nor serve their gods. Otherwise, they will become a snare for you.”
The Lord will Fight for You
17 “You may say to yourselves, ‘These nations are more numerous than we are. How can we dispossess them?’ 18 But you mustn’t fear them. Be sure to remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and all of Egypt. 19 Your eyes saw the great trials, the signs and wonders, and the awesome power with which[f] the Lord your God brought you out. The Lord your God will do the same to all the people whom you fear. 20 He’ll[g] send plagues against them until the survivors who hide from you have perished. 21 Don’t tremble before them, because the Lord your God, who is among you, is a great and awesome God. 22 He[h] slowly will dislodge these nations before you, but he won’t destroy them quickly, so the wild animals[i] won’t multiply around you. 23 But the Lord your God will deliver them over to you, throwing them into great confusion, until they are destroyed. 24 He will deliver kings into your control and you are to wipe out the memory of them[j] from under heaven. No one will be able to stand before you. You are utterly to destroy them. 25 Burn the images of their gods in the fire. Desire neither the silver nor the gold that adorns them, nor take them for yourselves, so you won’t be ensnared by them, because the gold and silver[k] are detestable to the Lord your God. 26 Don’t bring any detestable thing to your house, because you yourself will be utterly destroyed along with these detestable things. You must absolutely abhor and detest all of[l] it, because it has been devoted to destruction.”
BOOK IV (Psalms 90-106)
A prayer by Moses, the godly man
Life is Short
90 Lord, you’ve been our refuge[a]
from generation to generation.
2 Before the mountains were formed
or the earth and the world were brought forth,
you are God from eternity to eternity.
3 You return people to dust
merely by[b] saying, “Return, you mortals!”
4 One thousand years in your sight are but a single day
that passes by, just like a night watch.
5 You will sweep them away while they are asleep—
by morning they are like growing grass.
6 In the morning it blossoms and is renewed,
but toward evening, it fades and withers.
7 Indeed, we are consumed[c] by your anger
and terrified by your wrath.
8 You have set our iniquities before you,
what we have concealed in the light of your presence.
9 All our days pass[d] away in your wrath;
our years fade away[e] and end like a sigh.
10 We live for 70 years,
or 80 years if we’re healthy,[f]
yet even in the prime years[g] there are troubles and sorrow.
They pass by quickly and we fly away.
11 Who can know the intensity of your anger?
Because our fear of you matches your wrath,
12 teach us to keep account of our days
so we may develop inner wisdom.
13 Please return, Lord! When will it be?
Comfort your servants.
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your gracious love
so we may sing for joy
and rejoice every day.
15 Cause us to rejoice throughout the time when you have afflicted us,
the years when we have known[h] trouble.
16 May your awesome deeds be revealed to your servants,
as well as your splendor to their children.
17 May your favor be on us, Lord our God;
make our endeavors successful;
yes, make our endeavors secure!
The Future of Israel’s Land
35 “The desert and the dry land will rejoice;
the desert will celebrate and blossom. Like crocuses,
2 it will burst into bloom,
and rejoice with gladness and shouts of joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon.
They will see the glory of the Lord,
the splendor of our God.[a]
3 Strengthen the feeble hands,
and support the stumbling knees.
4 Say to those with anxious hearts,
‘Be strong, do not be afraid!
Here is your God—
he will bring[b] vengeance,
he will bring[c] divine retribution,
and he will save you.’
5 “Then the eyes of the blind will be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unblocked;
6 then the lame will leap like deer,
and the tongues of speechless people will sing for joy.
Yes, waters will gush forth in the wilderness,
and streams will run[d] through the desert;
7 the burning sands will become a pool,
and the thirsty ground fountains of water.
In the haunts of jackals there will be
a verdant resting place with[e] reeds and rushes.”
God’s Holy Highway
8 “A highway will be there—yes, there—[f]
and people will call it[g] ‘The Holy Way’.[h]
As for unclean people,
they will not journey on it,
but it will be for whomever[i] is traveling on that Way—
not even fools will get lost.
9 No lions will be there—
no—[j] nor will any ferocious beasts get up on it,
and[k] they will not be found there.
“But the redeemed will walk there,
10 and the Lord’s ransomed ones will return
and enter Zion with singing.
Everlasting joy will rest upon their heads,
gladness and joy will overtake them,[l]
and sorrow and mourning will flee away.”
The Vision of the Scroll with Seven Seals
5 Then I saw in the right hand of the one who sits on the throne a scroll written on the inside and on the outside, sealed with seven seals. 2 I also saw a powerful angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” 3 No one in heaven, on earth, or under the earth could open the scroll or look inside it. 4 I began to cry bitterly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or look inside it.
5 “Stop crying,” one of the elders told me. “Look! The Lion from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered. He can open the scroll and its seven seals.”
The Vision of the Lamb Taking the Scroll
6 Then I saw a lamb standing in the middle of the throne, the four living creatures, and the elders. He looked[a] like he had been slaughtered. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent into all the earth. 7 He went and took the scroll from the right hand of the one who sits on the throne.
8 When the lamb had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders bowed down in front of him. Each held a harp and a gold bowl full of incense, the prayers of the saints. 9 They sang a new song:
“You are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals,
because you were slaughtered.
With your blood you purchased us[b] for God
from every tribe, language, people, and nation.
10 You made us[c] a kingdom and priests for our God,
and they will reign on the earth.”
The Vision of the Song of the Lamb
11 Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels, the living creatures, and the elders surrounding the throne. They numbered 10,000’s times 10,000 and thousands times thousands. 12 They sang with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the lamb who was slaughtered
to receive power, wealth, wisdom, strength, honor, glory, and praise!”
13 I heard every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, and on the sea, and everything that is in them, saying,
“To the one who sits on the throne and to the lamb
be praise, honor, glory, and power forever and ever!”
14 Then the four living creatures said, “Amen!”, and the elders bowed down and worshipped.
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