M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Special Seventh Year
15 At the end of every seven years, you must ·tell those who owe you anything that they do not have to pay you back [grant remission of debts; Ex. 23:10–11]. 2 This is ·how you must do it [the manner of remission]: Everyone who has ·loaned money [a claim] must ·cancel [remit] the loan and not make a neighbor or ·relative [or countryman; L brother] pay it back. This is the Lord’s time for ·canceling what people owe [remitting debts]. 3 You may make a foreigner pay what is owed to you, but you must ·not collect [remit] what ·another Israelite [a relative; or a countryman; L a brother] owes you. 4 But there should be no ·poor [needy] people among you, because the Lord your God will richly bless you in the land he is giving you as your ·own [possession]. 5 He will bless you if you obey the Lord your God completely, but you must be careful to obey all the commands I am ·giving [commanding] you today. 6 The Lord your God will bless you as he promised, and you will lend to other nations, but you will not need to borrow from them. You will rule over many nations, but none will rule over you.
7 If there are ·poor [needy] among ·you [your relatives; or your countrymen; L your brothers], in one of the ·towns [L gates] of the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be ·selfish [L hard-hearted] or ·greedy [L tight-fisted] toward them [Prov. 28:27; 29:7, 14]. 8 But ·give freely [L open your hand] to them, and freely lend them whatever they need. 9 Beware of ·evil [useless] thoughts. Don’t think, “The seventh year is near, the year ·to cancel what people owe [of remission].” ·You might be mean to [L Your eye might be evil toward] ·the needy [your needy relative/or countryman/L brother] and not give them anything. Then they will ·complain [call out] to the Lord about you, and he will find you guilty of sin. 10 Give freely to the poor person, and do not ·wish that you didn’t have to give [begrudge him this matter]. The Lord your God will bless your work and everything you ·touch [undertake; L send from your hand]. 11 There will always be poor people in the land, so I command you to ·give freely [L open your hand] to your ·neighbors [or relatives; or countrymen; L brothers] and to the poor and needy in your land.
Letting Slaves Go Free
12 If one of your own ·people [relatives; L brothers] ·sells himself [or is sold] to you as a slave, whether it is a Hebrew man or woman, that person will serve you for six years [Lev. 25:39; Neh. 5:4–5]. But in the seventh year you must let the slave go free. 13 When you let slaves go, don’t send them away ·without anything [empty-handed]. 14 ·Give them [Provide/Outfit them with] some of your flock, your grain, and your wine, giving to them as the Lord has ·given to [L blessed] you. 15 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and the Lord your God ·saved [ransomed; redeemed] you. That is why I am commanding this to you today.
16 But if your slave says to you, “I don’t want to leave you,” because he loves you and your ·family [L house] and has a good life with you, 17 stick an awl [C a pointed tool for making holes] through his ·ear [earlobe] into the door; he will be your slave for life. Also do this to a female slave.
18 Do not think of it as a hard thing when you let your slaves go free. After all, they served you six years and did twice the work of a hired person. The Lord your God will bless you in everything you do [Ex. 21:2–6; Lev. 25:39–46].
Rules About Firstborn Animals
19 Save all the first male animals born to your herds and flocks [Ex. 13:2, 11–16; 22:29; Num. 18:15–18]. They are ·for [consecrated to] the Lord your God. Do not work the first calf born to your oxen, and do not cut off the wool from the first lamb born to your sheep. 20 Each year you and your ·family [L house] are to eat these animals in the presence of the Lord your God, in the place he will choose to be worshiped [C Zion; 12:4–7]. 21 If an animal is crippled or blind or has ·something else wrong [some blemish/defect], do not sacrifice it to the Lord your God. 22 But you may eat that animal in your own ·town [L gate]. Both clean and unclean people [C in a ritual sense] may eat it, as they would eat a gazelle or a deer. 23 But don’t eat its blood; pour it out on the ground like water [12:24].
A Cry for Help
A prayer of a person who is suffering when he is ·discouraged [faint; disturbed] and ·tells the Lord his complaints [L pours out his concerns before the Lord].
102 Lord, listen to my prayer;
let my cry for help come to you.
2 Do not hide your ·presence [L face] from me
in my time of ·trouble [distress].
·Pay attention [L Extend your ear] to me.
·When I cry for help [L On the day I call], answer me quickly.
3 My ·life [L days] is ·passing away [vanishing] like smoke,
and my bones are burned up ·with fire [L like a furnace/oven/or glowing embers].
4 My heart is like grass
that has been ·cut [stricken] and dried.
I forget to eat my ·food [or bread].
5 Because of ·my grief [L the sounds of my groans],
my ·skin hangs on my bones [L bones cling to my flesh].
6 I am like a ·desert [wilderness] owl,
like an owl living among the ·ruins [wastelands; Is. 34:10–15; Zeph. 2:13–15].
7 I ·lie awake [or keep watch].
I am like a lonely bird on a ·housetop [roof].
8 All day long enemies ·insult [scorn; reproach] me;
those who ·make fun of [mock] me use my name as a curse.
9 I eat ashes for ·food [or bread],
and my tears ·fall into [mingle with] my drinks.
10 Because of your ·great anger [L wrath and indignation],
you have picked me up and thrown me away.
11 My days are like a passing shadow;
I am like dried grass.
12 But, Lord, you ·rule [L are enthroned] forever,
and your ·fame [memory] ·goes on and on [L throughout the generations].
13 You will ·come [L rise up] and have ·mercy [compassion] on ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple],
because the time has now come to be ·kind [gracious] to her;
the ·right [appointed] time has come.
14 Your servants ·love even [are pleased/delighted with] her stones;
they even ·care about [L have pity/compassion for] her dust.
15 Nations will fear the name of the Lord,
and all the kings on earth ·will honor you [L your glory; C God’s manifest presence].
16 The Lord will rebuild ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple];
there his glory [C manifest presence] will be seen.
17 He will answer the prayers of the ·needy [lowly; L naked];
he will not ·reject [despise] their prayers.
18 Write these things for ·the future [L a future generation]
so that people who are not yet ·born [created] will praise the Lord.
19 The Lord looked down from his holy place above;
from heaven he ·looked [gazed] down at the earth.
20 He heard the ·moans [groans] of the prisoners,
and he ·freed [released] those sentenced to die.
21 The name of the Lord will be ·heard [recounted] in ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple];
his praise ·will be heard there [L in Jerusalem].
22 People will ·come [gather] together,
and kingdoms will serve the Lord.
23 ·God has made me tired of living [He broke my strength in midcourse/L the way];
he has cut short my ·life [L days].
24 So I said, “My God, do not take me in the middle of my ·life [L days].
Your years ·go on and on [endure for generations].
25 In the beginning you ·made [founded] the earth,
and ·your hands made the skies [L the heavens are the work of your hands; Gen. 1].
26 They will be destroyed, but you will ·remain [endure].
They will all wear out like ·clothes [garments].
And, like clothes, you will change them
and throw them away.
27 But you ·never change [are the same/L he],
and your ·life [L years] will never end.
28 ·Our children [L The children of your servants] will live in your presence,
and their ·children [offspring; L seed] will remain with you.”
The Lord’s Special Servant
42 “Here is my servant [41:8; 43:10; 52:13; 53:11], the one I ·support [strengthen; uphold; C the first of four “servant songs” in Isaiah, concerning Israel, and applied to the mission and suffering of the Messiah; 42:1–7; 49:1–13; 50:4–11; 52:13—53:12].
He is ·the one I chose [my chosen], and ·I am pleased with [my soul delights in] him [Matt. 3:17; 17:5; Luke 9:35].
I have put my Spirit upon him [11:1–9],
and he will bring justice to the nations [Matt. 12:18–20].
2 He will not cry out or yell
or speak loudly in the streets.
3 He will not break a ·crushed blade of grass [bruised reed]
or ·put out [extinguish] even a ·weak flame [dim/smoldering wick; C symbols of care for the weak and oppressed].
He will ·truly [faithfully] bring justice;
4 he will not ·lose hope [falter; or grow dim] or ·give up [be discouraged; or be bruised/crushed]
until he brings justice to the world.
And ·people far away [or the islands; or the coastlands] will ·trust [wait/put hope in] his ·teachings [instruction; law; L Torah].”
5 God, the Lord, said these things.
He created the ·skies [heavens] and stretched them out.
He spread out the earth and ·everything on it [L its offspring].
He gives breath to all people on earth,
and life to everyone who walks on the earth.
6 The Lord says, “I, the Lord, called you ·to do right [or to demonstrate my righteousness/justice; or by my righteous decree; L in righteousness],
and I will hold your hand
and ·protect [keep; guard] you.
·You will be the sign of my agreement with [L I will give/establish you as a covenant/treaty for] the people,
a light to shine for ·all people [the nations/Gentiles; 49:6; Luke 2:32; Acts 13:47].
7 You will ·help the blind to see [L open blind eyes].
You will free those who are in prison,
and you will lead those who live in darkness out of their prison [35:5; 49:9; 61:1; Luke 4:18].
8 “I am the Lord. That is my name.
I will not ·give [share; yield] my glory to another;
I will not let idols take ·the praise that should be mine [L my praise].
9 [L Look; T Behold] The ·things I said would happen [L former things] have happened,
and now I ·tell you about [declare/announce] new things.
Before those things ·happen [spring forth; sprout],
I tell you about them.”
A Song of Praise to the Lord
10 Sing a ·new song [C celebrating victory; Ps. 33:3; 40:3; 96:1; 98:1; 144:9; 149:1; Rev. 5:9; 14:3] to the Lord;
sing his praise ·everywhere on [L from the end of] the earth.
Praise him, you people who ·sail on [go down to] the seas and ·you animals who live in them [L its fullness].
Praise him, you people living in ·faraway places [or islands; or coastlands].
11 The ·deserts [wilderness] and their ·cities [towns] should ·praise him [shout; raise their voices].
The settlements of Kedar [C desert nomads, descended from Ishmael; Gen. 25:13] should praise him.
The people living in Sela [C an Edomite city; 16:1] should sing for joy;
they should shout from the mountaintops.
12 They should give glory to the Lord.
People in ·faraway lands [or the islands; or the coastlands] should praise him.
13 The Lord will march out like a ·strong soldier [mighty man/hero];
he will ·be excited [arouse/stir up zeal] like a man ready to fight a war.
He ·will shout out the battle cry [L shouts, indeed he cries out]
and ·defeat [prevails/triumphs over] his enemies.
14 The Lord says, “For a long time I have ·said nothing [kept silent/still];
I have been ·quiet [still] and held myself back.
But now I will cry out
and ·strain [pant and gasp] like a woman giving birth to a child.
15 I will ·destroy [level; lay waste] the hills and mountains
and dry up all their plants.
I will make the rivers become ·dry land [L islands; or coastlands]
and dry up the pools of water.
16 Then I will lead the blind along a way they never knew;
I will guide them along paths they have not known.
I will make the darkness become light for them,
and the rough ground smooth.
These are the things I will do;
I will not ·leave [abandon; forsake] my people.
17 But those who trust in idols,
who say to their ·statues [idols; carved images],
‘You are our gods’
will be ·rejected [turned away/back] in ·disgrace [shame; humiliations].
Israel Refused to Listen to the Lord
18 “You who are deaf, hear me.
You who are blind, look and see.
19 ·No one [L Who…?] is more blind than my servant Israel
or more deaf than the messenger I send.
·No one [L Who…?] is more blind than ·the person I own [or my covenant people]
or more blind than the servant of the Lord.
20 Israel, you have seen much, but you have not ·obeyed [kept/guarded them].
·You hear [Your ears are open], but you refuse to listen.”
21 The Lord ·made his teachings wonderful [L magnified and made glorious his instruction/law/Torah],
because ·he is good [or of his righteousness].
22 These people have been ·defeated and robbed [plundered and looted].
They are trapped in pits
or ·locked up [hidden] in prison.
·Like robbers, enemies have taken them away [L They have become plunder],
and there is no one to ·save [rescue] them.
·Enemies carried them off [L They have become loot],
and no one said, “Bring them back.”
23 Will any of you listen to this?
Will you ·listen carefully [pay attention] in the future?
24 Who ·let [gave up; handed over] ·the people of Jacob [L Jacob] ·be carried off [to the looter; for plunder]?
Who let ·robbers [plunderers] take Israel away?
·The Lord [L Was it not the Lord who…?] allowed this to happen,
because we sinned against him.
We did not ·live the way he wanted us to live [L walk in his ways]
and did not obey his ·teaching [law; instruction; L Torah].
25 So he ·became very angry with us [L poured out on him his burning anger; C on Jacob/Israel]
and brought ·terrible wars [the violence/L power of war] against ·us [L him].
It ·was as if the people of Israel had fire all around them [L enveloped him in flame],
but they didn’t ·know what was happening [understand].
It ·was as if they were burning [L burned him up],
but they didn’t ·pay any attention [lay/take it to heart].
The Woman and the Dragon
12 And then a great ·wonder [sign; portent; C symbolic descriptions of heavenly/spiritual realities] appeared in heaven: A woman was clothed with the sun, and the moon was under her feet [C indicating authority or victory; Gen. 37:9], and a crown [C a reward of victory] of twelve stars was on her head [C representing the twelve tribes of Israel; the woman is a symbol of the persecuted people of God]. 2 She was ·pregnant [L in the womb] and cried out with [L labor] pain, because she was about to give birth [C to the Messiah]. 3 Then another ·wonder [sign; portent; 12:1] appeared in heaven: There was a giant red dragon with seven heads [C reminiscent of the many-headed Leviathan representing evil and chaos, here representing Satan; Ps. 74:14; Is. 27:1; Dan. 7:1–9] and seven ·crowns [diadems; royal crowns] on each head. He [or It; C the Greek masculine pronoun can refer to a person or thing] also had ten horns [C symbols of strength and power; Dan. 7:7–8, 20, 24]. 4 His tail swept a third of the stars out of ·the sky [or heaven] and ·threw [cast; hurled; Dan. 8:10] them down to the earth [C representing an early victory against God’s people; 12:1]. He stood in front of the woman who was ready to give birth so he could ·eat [devour] her ·baby [child; C Jesus the Messiah] as soon as it was born. 5 Then the woman gave birth to ·a son [L a son, a male child,] who will ·rule [or shepherd] all the nations with an iron ·rod [sceptre; 19:15; Ps. 2:9]. And her child was ·taken up [or snatched away; C probably a symbolic reference to the resurrection, where Satan’s victory was thwarted] to God and to his throne. 6 The woman ·ran away [fled] into the ·desert [wilderness] to a place God prepared for her where she would ·be taken care of [nourished; fed] for one thousand two hundred sixty days [C equal to three and one-half years; see 11:3].
7 Then there was a war in heaven. Michael [C an archangel and protector of God’s people; Dan. 10:13, 21; 12:1; Jude 9] and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But the dragon was not strong enough, and he and his angels lost their place in heaven. 9 The ·giant [great] dragon was ·thrown down [cast; hurled] out of heaven. (He is that ·old snake [ancient serpent] called the devil or Satan [Gen. 3:1, 15], who ·tricks [deceives; leads astray] the whole world.) The dragon with his angels was ·thrown down [cast; hurled] to the earth.
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven saying:
“The salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God
and the ·authority [power] of his ·Christ [Messiah; Anointed One] have now come [Dan. 7:14].
[L For] The accuser [C the name Satan means “Accuser” in Hebrew; Job 1:6–12; 2:1–6; Zech. 3:1–2] of our brothers and sisters,
who accused them day and night before our God,
has been ·thrown [cast; hurled] down.
11 And our brothers and sisters ·defeated [conquered] him
by the blood of the ·Lamb’s death [L Lamb; C by means of Christ’s sacrificial death]
and by the ·message they preached [L word of their witness/testimony].
[L And] They did not love their lives so much
that they ·were afraid of [avoided] death.
12 So rejoice, you heavens
and all who live there!
But ·it will be terrible for [L woe to] the earth and the sea,
because the devil has come down to you!
He is filled with ·anger [wrath],
because he knows he ·does not have much time [L has little time].”
13 When the dragon saw he had been ·thrown [cast; hurled] down to the earth, he ·hunted for [pursued; or persecuted] the woman who had given birth to the ·son [boy; L male]. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of a great ·eagle [or vulture; Ex. 19:4; Deut. 32:10–11; Is. 40:31] so she could fly to the place prepared for her in the ·desert [wilderness]. There she would be ·taken care of [nourished; fed] for ·three and one-half years [L a time, times, and half a time; 11:2, 3; 13:5; Dan. 7:25; 12:7], away from the ·snake [serpent; C God will spiritually nourish his people though they are persecuted]. 15 Then the ·snake [serpent] ·poured [spewed; L threw] water out of its mouth like a river ·toward [after] the woman so the flood would ·carry [sweep] her away [C overwhelming water signifies overwhelming trouble; Ps. 18:4; 69:2]. 16 But the earth ·helped [rescued] the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that ·came [spewed; L was thrown] from the mouth of the dragon. 17 Then the dragon was ·very angry [furious; full of wrath] at the woman, and he went off to make war against ·all her other children [L the rest of her seed/offspring]—those who obey God’s commands and who ·have the message Jesus taught [or hold fast to their testimony about Jesus].
18 And the dragon[a] stood on the ·seashore [L sand of the sea; C some commentators and translations take this verse as the introduction to the episode in chapter 13].
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