M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
17 1 You are not to sacrifice to the Lord your God an ox or a sheep that has a defect or any flaw in it, because that is detestable to the Lord your God.”
Death to the Idolater
2 “You may discover that a man or woman living in one of your cities that the Lord your God is about to give you has done evil in the eyes of the Lord your God by transgressing his covenant. 3 He may be following and serving other gods by bowing down to them—that is, to the sun, the moon, or to any of the heavenly host[a] (something I did not command). 4 When it is reported to you or you hear of it, you are to investigate it thoroughly. When the truth has been established that this detestable thing has been done in Israel, 5 summon the man or the woman who did this evil thing to your city gates, and then stone the man or the woman to death. 6 Based on the testimony[b] of two or three witnesses, they must surely die, but they are not to die based on the testimony of one person. 7 Let the witnesses[c] be the first to begin executing them, then the rest of[d] the people are to follow. By doing this you will purge evil from among you.”
Deciding Difficult Cases
8 “If a case is too difficult for you to decide with respect to bloodshed,[e] civil claims,[f] assault and battery,[g] or other matters of dispute within your courts,[h] bring[i] it to the place that the Lord your God will choose. 9 Present the case[j] to the Levitical priest or the judge at that time. When you have inquired and they have announced the verdict, 10 carry out the verdict that was declared to you at the place that the Lord will choose. Carefully observe all of their instructions to you 11 in accordance with what the Law says and in accordance with the verdict that will be handed to you. You must not deviate from the verdict that they declare to you either to the right or to the left. 12 If a man presumptuously disregards the priest who is serving the Lord your God there, or the judge, that person must die so you will purge evil from Israel. 13 Then all the people who hear will be afraid and will not act presumptuously again.”
Duties of the Future King
14 “When you have come to the land that the Lord your God is about to give you, and you have taken possession of it and have settled in it, then you will say, ‘I will appoint a king over me like all the nations around me.’ 15 You will certainly set a king over you, whom the Lord your God will choose from among your relatives, but you must not place a foreign king over you who is not from your relatives. 16 He must not amass horses for himself or cause the people to return to Egypt to obtain more horses, because the Lord said you must never return that way again. 17 Also, he must not accumulate wives for himself (otherwise, his affection will become diverted), nor accumulate for himself excessive quantities of[k] silver and gold. 18 When he occupies his royal throne, he must make a copy of this Law for himself from a scroll used by the Levitical priests. 19 It is to remain with him the rest of his life so he may learn to fear the Lord his God and observe all the words of this Law and these statutes, in order to fulfill them. 20 He is not to exalt himself over his relatives, nor turn aside from the commandment—neither to the right nor to the left—so that he and his sons may reign long in Israel.”
Davidic[a]
Praise God, who Creates
104 Bless the Lord, my soul;
Lord, my God, you are very great.
You are clothed in splendor and majesty;
2 you are wrapped in light like a garment,
stretching out the sky like a curtain.
3 He lays the beams of his roof loft on the water above,[b]
making clouds his chariot,
walking on the wings of the wind.
4 He makes the winds his messengers,
blazing fires his servants.
5 He established the earth on its foundations,
so that it never falters.
6 You covered the primeval ocean like a garment;
the water stood above the mountains.
7 They flee at your rebuke;
they rush away at the sound of your thunders.
8 Mountains rise up and valleys sink
to the place you have ordained for them.
9 You have set a boundary they cannot cross;
they will never again cover the earth.
10 He causes springs to gush forth into rivers
that flow between the[c] mountains.
11 They give water[d] for animals of the field to drink;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 Birds of the sky live beside them
and chirp a song[e] among the foliage.
13 He waters the mountains from his heavenly rooms;
the earth is satisfied from the fruit of your work.
14 He causes grass to sprout for the cattle
and plants for people to cultivate,
to produce food from the land,
15 like wine that makes the heart of people[f] happy,
oil that makes the face glow,
and food[g] that sustains people.[h]
16 The loftiest trees[i] are satisfied,
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted,
17 the birds build their nests there,
and the heron builds[j] its nest among the evergreen.
18 The high mountains are for wild goats;
the cliffs are a refuge for the rock badger.
19 He made the moon to mark time;[k]
the sun knows its setting time.
20 You bring darkness and it becomes night;
when every beast of the forest prowls.
21 Young lions roar for prey,
seeking their food from God.
22 When the sun rises, they[l] gather
and lie down in their dens.
23 People go out to their work
and labor until evening.
24 How numerous are your works, Lord!
You have made them all wisely;
the earth is filled with your creations.[m]
25 There is the deep and wide sea,
teeming with numberless creatures,
living things small and great.
26 There, the ships pass through;
Leviathan, which you created, frolics in it.
27 All of them look to you
to provide them[n] their food at the proper time.
28 They receive what you give them;
when you open your hand,
they are filled with good things.
29 When you withdraw your favor,[o]
they are disappointed;
Take away their breath,
and[p] they die[q] and return to dust.
30 When you send your spirit,[r] they are[s] created,
and you replenish the surface of the earth.
31 May the glory of the Lord last forever;
may the Lord rejoice in his works!
32 He looks at the earth and it shakes;
he touches the mountains and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the Lord with my whole being;[t]
I will sing to my God continually!
34 May my thoughts be pleasing to him;
indeed, I will rejoice in the Lord!
35 May sinners disappear from the land
and the wicked live no longer.
Bless the Lord, my soul! Hallelujah!
God’s Blessing on Israel
44 “But now listen, Jacob my servant
and Israel whom I have chosen:
2 This what the Lord says, the one who made you,
formed you from the womb,
and who will help[a] you:
“Don’t be afraid, Jacob my servant,
and Jeshurun,[b] whom I have chosen.
3 For I’ll pour water upon thirsty ground
and streams on parched land.
So[c] will I pour my Spirit upon your offspring,
and my blessing upon your descendants.
4 They’ll[d] spring up as among[e] the green grass,
like willows by flowing streams.
5 One will say, ‘I belong to the Lord,’
and another will call himself by the name of Jacob;
still another will have written on his hand, ‘the Lord’s,’
and will adopt the name of Israel.”
I am the First and the Last
6 This is what the Lord says, the King of Israel
and its Redeemer—
the Lord of the Heavenly Armies is his name—[f]
“I am the first and I am the last,
and apart from me there is no God.
7 Who is like me? Let him proclaim
and declare it, and lay it out for himself—[g]
since he made[h] an ancient people.
And let him speak[i] future events;
let them tell him what[j] will happen.
8 Don’t tremble, and don’t be afraid.[k]
Didn’t I tell you and announce it long ago?
You are my witnesses.
Is there any God besides me?
There is no other Rock—
I don’t know of any.”
A Rebuke to Idol Worship
9 Now,[l] all the forming of[m] images means nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Their own witnesses cannot see, and they[n] know nothing. So they will be put to shame.
10 Who would shape a god or cast an image that profits nothing? 11 To be sure, all who associate with it will be put to shame; and as for the craftsmen, they are only human. Let them all gather together and[o] take their stand. Then[p] let them be terrified—they will be humiliated together.
12 The blacksmith prepares a tool and works in the coals, then[q] fashions an idol with hammers, working by the strength of his arm. He even becomes hungry and loses his strength; he drinks no water and grows faint.
13 The carpenter measures it[r] with a line; he traces its shape with a stylus, then fashions it with planes and shapes it with a compass. He makes the idol like a human figure, with human beauty, to be at home[s] in a shrine. 14 He cuts down cedars, or chooses a cypress tree or an oak, and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. Or he plants a cedar, and the rain makes it grow. 15 He divides it up[t] for people to burn. Taking part of it, he warms himself, makes a fire, and bakes bread. Or perhaps[u] he constructs a god and worships it. He makes it an idol and bows down to it. 16 Half the wood he burns in the fire, and[v] over[w] that half he places[x] meat so he can eat. He sits by its coals, warms himself,[y] and says, “Ah! I am warm in front of[z] the fire.” 17 And the rest of it he makes into a god. To blocks[aa] of wood he bows down, worships, prays, and says, “Save me, since you are my god.”
18 They don’t realize; they don’t understand, because their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds, too, so they cannot understand. 19 No one stops to think. No one has the knowledge or understanding to think—yes to think!—[ab]“Half of it I burned in the fire. I even baked bread on its coals, and[ac] I roasted meat and ate it. And[ad] am I about to make detestable things[ae] from what is left? Am I about to bow down to blocks[af] of wood?” 20 He tends ashes. A deceived mind has lead him astray. It cannot be his life,[ag] nor can he say, “There’s a lie in my right hand.”[ah]
A Call to Remembrance and Joy
21 “Remember these things, Jacob,
Israel,[ai] for you are my servant.
I have formed you;
you are a servant to me.
Israel,[aj] you must not mislead me.[ak]
22 I’ve wiped away your transgressions like a cloud
and your sins like mist.
Return to me;
because I’ve redeemed you.
23 “Shout for joy, you heavens,
for the Lord has done it!
Shout aloud, you depths of the earth!
Burst out with singing, you mountains,
you forest, and all your trees!
For the Lord has redeemed Jacob
and will display his glory in Israel.
24 “This is what the Lord says, your Redeemer
and the one who formed you in the womb:
‘I am the Lord, who has made everything,
who alone stretched out the heavens,
who spread out the earth—
Who was with me at that time?—[al]
25 who frustrates the omens of idle talkers,
and drives diviners mad,
who turns back the wise,
and makes their knowledge foolish;[am]
26 who carries out the words of his servants,
and fulfills the predictions of his messengers,
who says of Jerusalem, “It will be inhabited,”
and of Judah’s cities, “They will be rebuilt,”
and of her ruins, “I’ll raise them up”;
27 who says to the watery deep, “Be dry—
I will dry up your rivers;”
28 who says about Cyrus, “He’s my shepherd,
and he’ll carry out everything that I please:
He’ll say of Jerusalem, ‘Let it be rebuilt,’
and of my[an] Temple, ‘Let its foundations be laid again.’”’”
The Vision of the New Song on Mount Zion
14 Then I looked, and there was the lamb, standing on Mount Zion! With him were 144,000 people who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.
2 Then I heard a sound from heaven like that of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The sound I heard was like harpists playing on their harps. 3 They were singing a new song in front of the throne, the four living creatures, and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4 They have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins, and they follow the lamb wherever he goes. They have been redeemed from among humanity as the first fruits for God and the lamb. 5 In their mouth no lie was found. They are blameless.
The Vision of Angels Sounding a Warning
6 Then I saw another angel flying overhead with the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live[a] on earth—to every nation, tribe, language, and people. 7 He said in a loud voice,
“Fear God and give him glory,
because the time for him to judge has arrived.
Worship the one who made heaven and earth,
the sea and springs of water.”
8 Then another angel, a second one, followed him, saying,
“Fallen! Babylon the Great has fallen!
She has made all nations drink the wine,
the wrath earned for her sexual sins.”
9 Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying in a loud voice, “Whoever worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or his hand 10 will drink the wine of God’s wrath, which has been poured undiluted into the cup of his anger. He will be tortured with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and the lamb. 11 The smoke from their torture goes up forever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.”
A Call for Endurance
12 Here is a call for[b] the endurance of the saints, who keep the commandments of God and hold fast to their faithfulness in Jesus:
13 I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write this:
How blessed are the dead,
that is, those who die in the Lord from now on!”
“Yes,” says the Spirit.
“Let them rest from their labors,
for their actions follow them.”
The Vision of Earth Harvested
14 Then I looked, and there was a white cloud! On the cloud sat someone who was like the Son of Man, with a gold victor’s crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 Another angel came out of the Temple, crying out in a loud voice to the one who sat on the cloud,
“Swing your sickle,
and gather the harvest,
for the hour has come to gather it,
because the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.”
16 The one who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was harvested.
17 Then another angel came out of the Temple in heaven. He, too, had a sharp sickle. 18 From the altar came another angel who had authority over fire. He called out in a loud voice to the angel[c] who had the sharp sickle,
“Swing your sharp sickle,
and gather the bunches of grapes
from the vine of the earth,
because those grapes are ripe.”
19 So the angel swung his sickle in the earth, gathered the grapes from the earth, and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. 20 The wine press was trampled outside the city, and blood flowed from the wine press as high as a horse’s bridle for about 1,600 stadia.[d]
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