M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Rules for Those With Skin Diseases
14 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “These are the rules for people who have had a skin disease and have been made well. These rules are for making them clean.
“A priest must look at those who had the skin disease. 3 The priest must go to them outside the camp and look to see if the skin disease is healed. 4 If they are healthy, the priest will tell them to do these things: They must bring two clean birds that are still alive, a piece of cedar wood, a piece of red cloth, and a hyssop plant. 5 Then the priest must order one bird to be killed in a clay bowl over running water. 6 He must take the other bird that is still alive and the piece of cedar wood, the piece of red cloth, and the hyssop plant and dip them in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water. 7 He must sprinkle the blood seven times on those who had the skin disease. Then he must announce that they are clean. After that the priest must go to an open field and let the living bird go free.
8 “The people going through this purification ceremony must wash their clothes, shave off all their hair, and wash with water. Then they will be clean. They may then go into the camp, but they must stay outside their tent for seven days. 9 On the seventh day, they must shave off all their hair. They must shave their head, their beard, and their eyebrows—yes, all their hair. Then they must wash their clothes and bathe their bodies in water. Then they will be clean.
10 “On the eighth day, anyone who had a skin disease must take two male lambs that have nothing wrong with them and a one-year-old female lamb that has nothing wrong with it. They must also take 24 cups[a] of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering and 2/3 of a pint[b] of olive oil. 11 The priest must bring that person and those sacrifices before the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. (This must be the same priest who announced that the person is clean.) 12 The priest will take one of the lambs and the oil as a guilt offering. He will lift them in front of the Lord to show they were presented to God. 13 Then the priest will kill the male lamb in the holy place where they kill the sin offering and the burnt offering. Like the sin offering, the guilt offering belongs to the priest. It is very holy.
14 “The priest will take some of the blood of the guilt offering. He will put some of this blood on the tip of the right ear of the person to be made clean. The priest will put some of this blood on the thumb of the right hand and on the big toe of the right foot of that person. 15 The priest will also take some of the oil and pour it into his own left palm. 16 Then the priest will dip the finger of his right hand into the oil that is in his left palm. He will use his finger to sprinkle some of the oil seven times before the Lord. 17 Then he will put some of the oil that is in his palm on the person to be made clean. He will put that oil on the same places he put the blood of the guilt offering. The priest will put some of the oil on the tip of the person’s right ear, on the thumb of the right hand, and on the big toe of the person’s right foot. 18 He will put the oil that is left in his palm on the head of the person to be made clean. In this way he will make that person pure before the Lord.
19 “Then the priest must offer the sin offering to make that person pure. After that he will kill the animal for the burnt offering. 20 He will then offer up the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar. In this way the priest will make that person pure, and that person will become clean.
21 “A poor person might not be able to afford all these offerings. So that poor person can use one male lamb as a guilt offering. It will be presented to God so that the priest can make that person pure. The poor person must take 8 cups[c] of fine flour mixed with oil. This flour will be used for a grain offering. The poor person must also take 2/3 of a pint of olive oil 22 and two doves or two young pigeons. Even poor people can afford these things. One bird will be a sin offering, and the other will be a burnt offering.
23 “On the eighth day, that person will bring these things to the priest at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. These things will be offered before the Lord so that the person can become clean. 24 The priest will take the lamb for the guilt offering and the oil, and he will lift them up to show they were offered before the Lord. 25 Then he will kill the lamb of the guilt offering, take some of its blood, and put it on the tip of the right ear of the person to be made clean. The priest will put some of this blood on the thumb of the right hand and on the big toe of the right foot of this person. 26 He will also pour some of this oil into his own left palm. 27 He will use the finger of his right hand to sprinkle some of the oil that is in his left palm seven times before the Lord. 28 Then he will put some of the oil that is in his palm on the same places he put the blood from the guilt offering. He will put some of the oil on the tip of the right ear of the person to be made clean. The priest will put some of the oil on the thumb of the right hand and on the big toe of the person’s right foot. 29 He will put the oil that is left in his palm on the head of the person to be made clean. In this way he will make that person pure before the Lord.
30 “Then the priest must offer one of the doves or young pigeons. (He must offer whichever the person can afford.) 31 He must offer one of these birds as a sin offering and the other bird as a burnt offering. He must offer the birds with the grain offering. In this way the priest will make that person pure before the Lord, and that person will become clean.”
32 These are the rules for making people clean after they become well from a skin disease. These are the rules for those who cannot afford the regular sacrifices for becoming clean.
Rules for Mildew in a House
33 The Lord also said to Moses and Aaron, 34 “I am giving the land of Canaan to your people. Your people will enter that land. At that time I might cause mildew to grow in someone’s house. 35 The person who owns that house must come and tell the priest, ‘I see something like mildew in my house.’
36 “Then the priest must order the people to take everything out of the house before he goes in to look at the mildew. Then the priest will not have to say everything in the house is unclean. After the people have taken everything out of the house, the priest will go in to look at the house. 37 He will look at the mildew. If the mildew on the walls of the house has holes that are a green or red color, and if the mildew goes into the wall’s surface, 38 he must go out of the house and lock the house for seven days.
39 “On the seventh day the priest must come back and check the house. If the mildew has spread on the walls of the house, 40 then he must order the people to tear out the stones with the mildew on them and throw them away. They must put these stones at a special unclean place outside the city. 41 Then the priest must have the entire house scraped inside. The people must throw away the plaster that was scraped off the walls. They must put that plaster at a special unclean place outside the city. 42 Then new stones must be put in the walls, and the walls must be covered with new plaster.
43 “Maybe someone took away the old stones and plaster and put in new stones and plaster. And maybe mildew again appears in that house. 44 Then the priest must come in and check the house. If the infection has spread in the house, it is a disease that spreads quickly to other places. So the house is unclean. 45 The house must be torn down. All the stones, plaster, and pieces of wood must be taken to the special unclean place outside the city. 46 Anyone who goes into that house will be unclean until evening. 47 Anyone who eats in that house or lies down in there must wash their clothes.
48 “After new stones and plaster are put in a house, the priest must check the house. If the mildew has not spread through the house, the priest will announce that the house is clean, because the mildew is gone.
49 “Then, to make the house clean, the priest must take two birds, a piece of cedar wood, a piece of red cloth, and a hyssop plant. 50 He will kill one bird in a clay bowl over running water. 51 Then he will take the cedar wood, the hyssop, the piece of red cloth, and the living bird and dip them in the blood of the bird that was killed over running water. Then he will sprinkle that blood on the house seven times. 52 In this way he will use these things to make the house clean. 53 He will go to an open field outside the city and let the living bird go free. In this way the priest will make the house pure. The house will be clean.”
54 These are the rules for any infection of leprosy, 55 for mildew on pieces of cloth or in a house. 56 These are the rules for swellings, rashes, or bright spots on the skin. 57 These rules teach when something is clean and when something is unclean. These are the rules about these kinds of disease.
A prayer of David.[a]
17 Lord, hear my prayer for justice.
I am calling loudly to you.
I am being honest in what I say,
so please listen to my prayer.
2 You will make the right decision,
because you can see the truth.
3 You were with me all night
and looked deep into my heart.
You questioned me and found that
I did not say or do anything wrong.
4 Unlike most people, I have obeyed your commands,
so I have never been like those who are cruel and evil.
5 I have followed your way.
My feet never left your path.
6 Every time I call to you, God, you answer me.
So listen to me now, and hear what I say.
7 Show your amazing kindness
and rescue those who depend on you.
Use your great power
and protect them from their enemies.
8 Protect me like the pupil[b] of your eye.
Hide me in the shadow of your wings.
9 Save me from the wicked people who are trying to destroy me.
Protect me from those who come to hurt me.
10 They think only of themselves
and brag about what they will do.
11 They have been following me,
and now they are all around me.
They watch me, waiting to throw me to the ground.
12 Like hungry lions, they want to kill and eat.
Like young lions, they hide, ready to attack.
13 Lord, get up[c] and face the enemy.
Make them surrender.
Use your sword and save me from these wicked people.
14 Use your power, Lord,
and remove them from this life.
But as for the people you treasure,
fill them with food.
Give them plenty for their children and their grandchildren.
15 I have done only what is right, so I will see your face.
And seeing you,[d] I will be fully satisfied.
28 The wicked are afraid of everything, but those who live right are as brave as lions.
2 A lawless nation will have many bad leaders. But a smart leader will rule for a long time in a land where people obey the law.
3 A leader who takes advantage of the poor is like a hard rain that destroys the crops.[a]
4 Those who refuse to obey the law promote evil. Those who obey the law oppose evil.
5 The wicked don’t understand justice, but those who love the Lord understand it completely.
6 It is better to be poor and honest than rich and evil.
7 A smart son obeys the laws, but a son who spends time with worthless people brings shame to his father.
8 If you get rich by charging high interest rates, your wealth will go to someone who is kind to the poor.
9 When people do not listen to God’s teachings, he does not listen to their prayers.
10 Those who plan to hurt good people will fall into their own traps, but good things will happen to those who are good.
11 The rich always think they are wise, but a poor person who is wise can see the truth.
12 When good people become leaders, everything is great, but when the wicked rise to power, everyone hides.
13 Whoever hides their sins will not be successful, but whoever confesses their sins and stops doing wrong will receive mercy.
14 People who respect others will be blessed, but stubborn people will have plenty of troubles.
15 An evil ruler over those who are helpless is like an angry lion or a charging bear.
16 A foolish ruler hurts the people under him, but a ruler who hates wrong will rule for a long time.
17 A murderer will never have peace. Don’t support such a person.
18 Honest people will be safe, but dishonest people will be ruined.
19 Whoever works hard will have plenty to eat, but whoever wastes their time with dreams will always be poor.
20 People who can be trusted will have many blessings, but those who are just trying to get rich in a hurry will be punished.
21 It is wrong for a judge to support someone simply because he knows them. But some judges will change their decisions for the price of a loaf of bread.
22 Selfish people only want to get rich. They do not realize that they are very close to being poor.
23 Correct someone, and later they will thank you. That is much better than just saying something to be nice.
24 Someone might steal from their parents and say, “I did nothing wrong.” But that person is as bad as an enemy who smashes everything in the house.
25 Greedy people might sue you in court, but those who trust the Lord are rewarded.
26 It is foolish to be too confident. Those who ask for advice are wise and will escape disaster.
27 Whoever gives to the poor will have plenty. Whoever refuses to help them will get nothing but curses.
28 When the wicked rise to power, everyone hides. When they are defeated, good people multiply.
Evil Things Will Happen
2 Brothers and sisters, we have something to say about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We want to talk to you about that time when we will meet together with him. 2 Don’t let yourselves be easily upset or worried if you hear that the day of the Lord has already come. Someone might say that this idea came from us—in something the Spirit told us, or in something we said, or in a letter we wrote. 3 Don’t be fooled by anything they might say. That day of the Lord will not come until the turning away from God happens. And that day will not come until the Man of Evil appears, the one who belongs to hell.[a] 4 He will stand against and put himself above everything that people worship or think is worthy of worship. He will even go into God’s Temple[b] and sit there, claiming that he is God.
5 I told you before that all these things would happen. Remember? 6 And you know what is stopping that Man of Evil now. He is being stopped now so that he will appear at the right time. 7 The secret power of evil is already working in the world now. But there is one who is stopping that secret power of evil. And he will continue to stop it until he is taken out of the way. 8 Then that Man of Evil will appear. But the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath that comes from his mouth. The Lord will come in a way that everyone will see, and that will be the end of the Man of Evil.
9 When that Man of Evil comes, it will be the work of Satan. He will come with great power, and he will do all kinds of false miracles, signs, and wonders. 10 The Man of Evil will use every kind of evil to fool those who are lost. They are lost because they refused to love the truth and be saved. 11 So God will send them something powerful that leads them away from the truth and causes them to believe a lie. 12 They will all be condemned because they did not believe the truth and because they enjoyed doing evil.
You Are Chosen for Salvation
13 Brothers and sisters, you are people the Lord loves. And we always thank God for you. That’s what we should do, because God chose you to be some of the first people[c] to be saved. You are saved by the Spirit making you holy and by your faith in the truth. 14 God chose you to have that salvation. He chose you by using the Good News that we told you. You were chosen so that you can share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 So, brothers and sisters, stand strong and continue to believe the teachings we gave you when we were there and by letter.
16-17 We pray that the Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father will comfort you and strengthen you in every good thing you do and say. God loved us and gave us through his grace a wonderful hope and comfort that has no end.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International