M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Guilt Offerings for Other Sins
6 The Lord told Moses these rules for the people: 2 “You are guilty of sin against the Lord when you do any of these things: when you lie about what happened to something you were taking care of for someone else; when you lie about a deposit[a] you received; when you steal something; when you cheat someone; 3 when you find something that was lost and lie about having it; when you fail to keep a promise; or when you do any other bad things like these. 4 If you do any of these things, you are guilty of doing wrong. You must give back whatever you stole or whatever you took by cheating. You must return whatever you took that another person asked you to hold, or whatever you found and lied about having, 5 or whatever you made a false promise about. You must pay the full price and then add one-fifth of that amount as a fine and give it all to the true owner. 6 You must also bring a ram to the Lord that has nothing wrong with it (or the same amount in silver) to the priest. 7 Then the priest will go to the Lord to make you pure, and God will forgive you for whichever of these things you did that made you guilty.”
Burnt Offerings
8 The Lord said to Moses, 9 “Give this command to Aaron and his sons: This is the law of the burnt offering. The burnt offering must stay on the hearth[b] of the altar all night until morning. The altar’s fire must be kept burning. 10 The priest must change clothes and put on the special linen underwear and linen robe. Then he must gather up the ashes from the fire and burnt offerings and set them down by the altar. 11 Then he must take off the special clothes and put on the other clothes and carry the ashes outside the camp to a special place that is pure. 12 The fire that was started on the altar must never be allowed to stop burning. Every morning the priests must put wood on the altar. They must arrange the burnt offerings on the wood, and they must burn the fat of the fellowship offerings on it. 13 That fire must always be kept burning on the altar. It must never be allowed to stop burning.
Grain Offerings
14 “This is the law for the grain offering: The sons of Aaron will bring it to the front of the altar as an offering to the Lord. 15 There must be some oil and frankincense on the grain offering. The priest will take a handful of fine flour from the grain offering and burn it on the altar as a sweet-smelling memorial offering to the Lord.
16 “Aaron and his sons will use the rest of that grain to make bread without yeast. This must be eaten in a holy place—in the courtyard around the Meeting Tent. 17 I have given this part of the grain offering as the priests’ share of the gifts offered to me. Like the sin offering and the guilt offering, it is most holy. It must not be baked with yeast. 18 Any male descendant of Aaron may eat from these gifts to the Lord. This is their share forever throughout your generations. Whatever touches these offerings will be made holy.[c]”
The Priests’ Grain Offering
19 The Lord said to Moses, 20 “This is the offering that Aaron and his sons must bring to the Lord when Aaron is anointed to be the high priest. They must bring 8 cups[d] of fine flour for a grain offering. This will be offered at the times of the daily offering—half of it in the morning and half of it in the evening. 21 The fine flour must be mixed with oil and baked on a pan. After it is cooked, you must bring it in, break it into pieces, and offer it as a sweet-smelling gift to Lord.
22 “In the future, when Aaron’s descendants take their place as the anointed priests,[e] they will continue to make this grain offering to the Lord. This rule will continue forever. The grain offering must be completely burned for the Lord. 23 Every grain offering that a priest gives must be completely burned. It must not be eaten.”
The Law of the Sin Offering
24 The Lord said to Moses, 25 “Tell Aaron and his sons: This is the law of the sin offering. The sin offering must be killed in the place where the burnt offering is killed before the Lord. It is most holy. 26 The priest who offers the sin offering must eat it. But he must eat it in a holy place, in the courtyard around the Meeting Tent. 27 Touching the meat of the sin offering makes a person or a thing holy.
“If any of the sprinkled blood falls on a person’s clothes, you must wash the clothes in a holy place. 28 If the sin offering was boiled in a clay pot, the pot must be broken. If the sin offering was boiled in a bronze pot, the pot must be washed and rinsed in water.
29 “Any male in a priest’s family may eat the sin offering. It is very holy. 30 But if the blood of the sin offering was taken into the Meeting Tent and used in the Holy Place to make people pure, that sin offering must not be eaten. It must be completely burned in the fire.
To the director: With flutes.[a] A song of David.
5 Lord, listen to me
and understand what I am trying to say.
2 My God and King,
listen to my prayer.
3 Every morning, Lord, I lay my gifts before you
and look to you for help.
And every morning you hear my prayers.
4 God, you don’t want evil people near you.
They cannot stay in your presence.[b]
5 Fools[c] cannot come near you.
You hate those who do evil.
6 You destroy those who tell lies.
Lord, you hate those who make secret plans to hurt others.
7 But by your great mercy, I can enter your house.
I can worship in your holy Temple with fear and respect for you.
8 Lord, show me your right way of living,
and make it easy for me to follow.
People are looking for my weaknesses,
so show me how you want me to live.
9 My enemies never tell the truth.
They only want to destroy people.
Their words come from mouths that are like open graves.
They use their lying tongues to deceive others.[d]
10 Punish them, God!
Let them be caught in their own traps.
They have turned against you,
so punish them for their many crimes.
11 But let those who trust in you be happy forever.
Protect and strengthen those who love your name.
12 Lord, when you bless good people,
you surround them with your love, like a large shield that protects them.
To the director: With stringed instruments, on the sheminith. A song of David.
6 Lord, don’t punish me.
Don’t correct me when you are so angry.
2 Lord, be kind to me.
I am sick and weak.
Heal me, Lord!
My bones are shaking.
3 I am trembling all over.
Lord, how long until you heal me?[e]
4 Lord, come back and make me strong again.
Save me because you are so loyal and kind.
5 If I am dead, I cannot sing about you.
Those in the grave don’t praise you.
6 Lord, I am so weak.
I cried to you all night.
My pillow is soaked;
my bed is dripping wet from my tears.
7 My enemies have caused me such sorrow
that my eyes are worn out from crying.
8 Go away, you wicked people,
because the Lord has heard my cries.
9 The Lord has heard my request for mercy.
The Lord has accepted my prayer.
10 All my enemies will be filled with fear and shame.
They will be sorry when disgrace suddenly comes upon them.
21 To the Lord, a king’s mind is like a ditch used to water the fields. He can lead the king wherever he wants him to go.
2 People think that whatever they do is right, but the Lord judges the reasons for everything they do.
3 Do what is right and fair. The Lord loves that more than sacrifices.
4 Proud looks and proud thoughts are sins. They show a person is evil.
5 Careful planning leads to profit. Acting too quickly leads to poverty.
6 Wealth that comes from telling lies disappears quickly and leads to death.
7 The bad things that evil people do will destroy them, because they refuse to do what is right.
8 Criminals cause trouble wherever they go, but good people are honest and fair.
9 It is better to live in a small corner on the roof than to share the house with a woman who is always arguing.
10 Evil people always want to do more evil, and they show no mercy to people around them.
11 When you punish a proud person who laughs at what is right, even fools will learn something.[a] But a little instruction is enough for the wise to learn what they should.
12 God is good. He knows what the wicked are doing, and he will punish them.
13 Those who refuse to help the poor will not receive help when they need it themselves.
14 If anyone is angry with you, give them a gift in private. A gift given in secret will calm even the strongest anger.
15 A decision that is fair makes good people happy, but it makes those who are evil very afraid.
16 Whoever leaves the path of wisdom will be on their way to an early death.
17 Loving pleasure leads to poverty. Wine and luxury will never make you wealthy.
18 The wicked must pay for what happens to good people—the cheaters will be taken in exchange for the honest.
19 It is better to live alone in the desert than with a quick-tempered wife who loves to argue.
20 Wise people save the nice things they have. Fools use up everything as soon as they get it.
21 People who try hard to do good and be faithful will find life, goodness, and honor.
22 A wise person can defeat a city full of warriors and tear down the defenses they trust in.
23 People who are careful about what they say will save themselves from trouble.
24 Proud people think they are better than others. They show they are evil by what they do.
25 Lazy people will cause their own destruction because they refuse to work.
26 Some people are greedy and never have enough. Good people are generous and have plenty.
27 God hates sacrifices from the wicked, especially when their reason for offering them is evil.
28 Witnesses who lie will be caught and punished. A careful listener will always be there to speak up.
29 Good people know they are right, but the wicked have to pretend.
30 There is no one wise enough to make a plan that can succeed if the Lord is against it.
31 You can prepare your horses for battle, but only the Lord can give you the victory.
4 Masters, give what is good and fair to your servants. Remember that you have a Master in heaven.
Some Things to Do
2 Never stop praying. Be ready for anything by praying and being thankful. 3 Also pray for us. Pray that God will give us an opportunity to tell people his message. I am in prison for doing this. But pray that we can continue to tell people the secret truth that God has made known about Christ. 4 Pray that I will say what is necessary to make this truth clear to everyone.
5 Be wise in the way you act with those who are not believers. Use your time in the best way you can. 6 When you talk, you should always be kind and wise. Then you will be able to answer everyone in the way you should.
News About Those With Paul
7 Tychicus is my dear brother in Christ. He is a faithful helper and he serves the Lord with me. He will tell you everything that is happening with me. 8 That is why I am sending him. I want you to know how we are, and I am sending him to encourage you. 9 I am sending him with Onesimus, the faithful and dear brother from your group. They will tell you everything that has happened here.
10 Aristarchus, the one here in prison with me, sends you his greetings. Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, also sends his greetings. (I have already told you what to do about Mark. If he comes, welcome him.) 11 And greetings from Jesus, the one who is also called Justus. These are the only Jewish believers who work with me for God’s kingdom. They have been a great comfort to me.
12 Epaphras, another servant of Jesus Christ from your group, sends his greetings. He constantly struggles for you in prayer. He prays that you will grow to be spiritually mature and have everything that God wants for you. 13 I know that he has worked hard for you and the people in Laodicea and in Hierapolis. 14 Greetings also from Demas and our dear friend Luke, the doctor.
15 Give our greetings to the brothers and sisters in Laodicea. Greetings also to Nympha and to the church that meets in her house. 16 After this letter is read to you, be sure it is also read to the church in Laodicea. And you read the letter that I wrote to them. 17 Tell Archippus, “Be sure to do the work the Lord gave you.”
18 Here’s my greeting in my own handwriting— Paul. Remember me in prison. God’s grace be with you.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International