M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Various Laws
24 “If a man chooses to enter into marriage with a woman, but she finds herself displeasing to him because he has found something objectionable[a] about her, he must draw up divorce papers, hand them to her, and then send her out of his house. 2 If she goes out from his house, becomes the wife of another man, 3 and this second husband[b] dislikes her, he, also, must draw up divorce papers, hand them to her, and then send her away from his house. Should the second husband die, 4 her first husband who married her and divorced her earlier must not remarry her,[c] because she was defiled, since this is detestable to the Lord. Don’t defile the land that the Lord your God is about to give you as a possession.
5 “When a man is newly married, he must not be sent out to war or have a related duty placed on him. Let him stay home for one year and be happy with his wife whom he has married.
6 “Don’t take a pair of millstones, especially the upper millstone, as collateral for a loan, because this means taking a man’s[d] livelihood.
7 “If a man is found kidnapping his relative, a fellow Israeli, and mistreats or sells him, that kidnapper must die. By doing this, you will remove this evil from among you.
8 “In cases of leprosy, be very careful to observe exactly what the Levitical priests instructed you. Carefully follow what I have commanded them. 9 Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam along the way as you were coming out of Egypt.”
Respecting the Poor
10 “When you loan something to your neighbor, don’t enter his house to seize what he offered as collateral. 11 Stay outside and let the man to whom you made the loan bring it[e] out to you. 12 If he is a poor man, don’t go to sleep with his collateral in your possession.[f] 13 Be sure to return his garment[g] to him at sunset so that he may sleep with it, and he will bless you. It will be a righteous deed in the presence of the Lord your God. 14 Don’t take advantage of a hired person who is poor and needy, whether he’s your fellow citizen or a foreigner who lives in your city. 15 Pay his wages that same day before the sun sets, because he is poor and his livelihood[h] depends on it. Otherwise, he may cry out to the Lord against you, and you will incur guilt.”
Practicing Justice
16 “Fathers are not to be put to death on account of their children’s sin; nor are children to die on account of their fathers’ sin. Each person is to be put to death for his own sin.
17 “Don’t deny justice to a foreigner or to an orphan, nor take a widow’s garment as collateral for a loan. 18 Remember to observe this because you were slaves in Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you from there. That is why I am commanding you to do this.
19 “When you are reaping in the field, and you overlook a sheaf, don’t return to get it. Let it remain for the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow, in order that the Lord your God may bless everything you undertake. 20 When you harvest the olives from your trees, don’t go back to the branches a second time. What remains is for the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow. 21 When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, don’t go back a second time. What remains is for the foreigner, the orphan, or the widow. 22 Remember to do this because you were slaves in the land of Egypt. That is why I’m commanding you to do this.”
Deliverance of Israel from Egypt
114 When Israel came out of Egypt—
the household of Jacob from a people of foreign speech—
2 Judah became his sanctuary
and Israel his place of dominion.
3 The sea saw this[a] and fled,
the Jordan River[b] ran backwards,
4 the mountains skipped like rams,
and the hills like lambs.
5 What happened to you, sea, that you fled?
Jordan, that you ran backwards?
6 Mountains, that you skipped like rams?
And you hills, that you skipped[c] like lambs?
7 Tremble then, earth, at the presence of the Lord,
at the presence of the God of Jacob,
8 who turned the rock into a pool of water,
the flinty rock into flowing springs.
The Impotence of Idols
115 Not to us, Lord, not to us,
but to your name be given glory
on account of your gracious love and faithfulness.
2 Why should the nations ask
“Where now is their God?”
3 when our God is in the heavens
and he does whatever he desires?
4 Their idols are silver and gold,
crafted by human hands.
5 They have mouths, but cannot speak;
they have eyes, but cannot see.
6 They have ears, but cannot hear;
they have noses, but cannot smell.
7 They have hands, but cannot touch;
feet, but cannot walk;
they cannot even groan with their throats.
8 Those who craft them will become like them,
as will all those who trust in them.
9 Israel, trust in the Lord!
He is their helper and shield.
10 House of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
He is their helper and shield.
11 You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
He is their helper and shield.
12 The Lord remembers and blesses us.
He will indeed bless the house of Israel;
he will bless the house of Aaron.
13 He will bless those who fear the Lord,
both the important and the insignificant together.
14 May the Lord add to your numbers—
to you and to your descendants.
15 May you be blessed by the Lord,
who made the heavens and the earth.
16 The highest heavens[d] belong to the Lord,
but he gave the earth to human beings.
17 Neither can the dead praise the Lord,
nor those who go down into the silence of death.[e]
18 But we will bless the Lord
from now to eternity.
Hallelujah!
Deliverance for Zion
51 “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness,
you who seek the Lord!
Look to the rock from which you were cut,
to the quarry from which you were hewn.
2 Look to Abraham your father,
and to Sarah who gave you birth.
For when he was only one person I called him,
but I made him fruitful[a] and made him many.
3 For the Lord will have compassion on Zion,
have compassion on all her ruins.
He will make her wilderness like Eden,
and her deserts like the garden of the Lord.
Joy and gladness will be found in her,
thanksgiving, and the sound of singing.[b]
Sorrow and sighing will flee away.[c]
4 “Pay attention to me, my people!
Listen to me, my nation!
For instruction[d] will go out from me,
and my justice will become a light for the nations.[e]
I will quickly bring 5 my deliverance near;
my salvation is on the way.
His arm[f] will bring justice to[g] the nations;[h]
the coastlands will hope for him,[i]
and they will wait for his arm.[j]
6 “Lift up your eyes, you[k] heavens
and look to the earth beneath;
and see who created these.[l]
Its inhabitants will die just like this;[m]
but my salvation will be forever,
and my deliverance will never fail.
7 Listen to me, you who know righteousness,
you people who have my instruction[n] in their hearts.
Don’t fear the insults of mortals,
and don’t be dismayed at their hateful words.[o]
8 For moths will eat them up just like a garment,
and worms will devour them like wool;
but my deliverance will last[p] forever,
and my salvation to all generations.
9 “Awake! Awake! Clothe yourself with strength,
you arm[q] of the Lord!
Awake, as in days gone by,
as in generations of long ago.
Was it not you who split apart[r] Rehob,[s]
who pierced that sea monster through?[t]
10 Was it not you who dried up the sea,
the waters of the great deep,
who made a road in[u] the depths of the sea
so that the redeemed could cross over?”
A Promise of Return to the Land
11 “The scattered ones[v] of the Lord will return,
and they will enter Zion with singing.
Everlasting joy will be upon their heads;
they will attain joy and gladness,
and[w] sorrow and sighing will flee away.[x]
12 “I—yes, I—am the one who comforts you.
Who are you, that you are so afraid of humans who will die,
descendants of mere[y] men, who have been made[z] like grass?
13 As a result, you have forgotten the Lord who made you,
who stretched out the heavens
and laid the earth’s foundations,
and you live in constant fear every day
because of the oppressor’s fury,
since he’s ready to destroy.
Now where is the[aa] oppressor’s fury?
14 Distress[ab] will quickly be set free.
He won’t die in the Pit,[ac]
nor will he lack food.”
A Promise of Restoration
15 “For I am the Lord your God,
who churns up the sea, so that its waves roar,
‘The Lord of the Heavenly Armies is his name.’
16 I have put my words in your mouth
and have covered you with the shadow of my hand,
so that I could plant the heavens
and lay the earth’s foundations,
to say to Zion, ‘You are my people.’
17 “Awake, Awake!
Stand up, Jerusalem,
you who have drunk from the Lord’s hand
from the cup that is[ad] his anger.
You have drunk to the dregs
the cup that makes you stagger,[ae]
and have drained it.
18 There is no one to guide you[af]
out of all the children she bore,
no one to take her by the hand
out of all the children she brought up.
19 “These twin things have come upon you
(who can feel sorry for you?):
ruin and destruction,
famine and the sword—
who can console you?
20 Your children have fainted.
They lie at the head of every street,
like antelope caught in a trap,
filled with the anger of the Lord
and the rebuke of your God.
21 Now listen to this, you afflicted one,
made drunk, but not with wine:
22 This is what your Lord, the Lord,[ag] says,
your[ah] God, who defends his people’s cause:
“See, I have taken from your hand the cup that made you stagger.[ai]
And you will never again drink to the dregs the cup that is my anger.
23 But I will put it into the hands of those who tormented and oppressed you,[aj]
those who said to you,
‘Lie down,[ak] so we can step over you,’
so that you had to make your back like the ground,
and like a street for them to walk over.”
The Vision of the New Heaven and the New Earth
21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, because the first heaven and the first earth had disappeared, and the sea was gone. 2 I also saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband.
3 I heard a loud voice from the throne say,
“See, the tent of God is among humans!
He will make his home with them,
and they will be his people.
God himself will be with them,
and he will be their God.[a]
4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes.
There won’t be death anymore.
There won’t be any grief, crying, or pain,
because the first things have disappeared.”
5 The one sitting on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new!”
He said, “Write this: ‘These words are trustworthy and true.’”
6 Then he told me, “It has happened! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will freely give a drink from the spring of the water of life to the one who is thirsty. 7 The person who overcomes[b] will inherit these things. I will be his God, and he will be my son. 8 But people who are cowardly, unfaithful, detestable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars will find themselves[c] in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.”
The Vision of the New Jerusalem
9 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came to me and said, “Come! I will show you the bride, the wife of the lamb.” 10 He carried me away in the Spirit to a large, high mountain and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven. 11 The glory of God was its radiance, and its light was like a valuable gem, like jasper, as clear as crystal. 12 It had a large, high wall with twelve gates. Twelve angels were at the gates, and the names of the twelve tribes of Israel were written on the gates. 13 There were three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west. 14 The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the lamb were written on them.
15 The angel who[d] was talking to me had a gold measuring rod to measure the city, its gates, and its walls. 16 The city was cubic in shape: its length was the same as its width. He measured the city with his rod, and it measured at 12,000 stadia:[e]Its length, width, and height were the same. 17 He also measured its wall. According to the human measurement that the angel was using, it was 144 cubits.[f] 18 Its wall was made of jasper. The city was made of pure gold, as clear as glass.
19 The foundations of the city wall were decorated with all kinds of gems: The first foundation[g] was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian,[h] the seventh chrysolite,[i] the eighth beryl,[j] the ninth topaz,[k] the tenth chrysoprase,[l] the eleventh jacinth[m] and the twelfth amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, and each gate was made of a single pearl. The street of the city was made of pure gold, as clear as glass.
22 I saw no temple in it, because the Lord God Almighty and the lamb are its temple. 23 The city doesn’t need any sun or moon to give it light, because the glory of God gave it light, and the lamb was its lamp. 24 The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. 25 Its gates will never be shut at the end of the[n] day—because there will be no night there. 26 People[o] will bring the glory and wealth[p] of the nations into it. 27 Nothing unclean, or anyone who does anything detestable, and no one who tells lies will ever enter it. Only those whose names[q] are written in the lamb’s Book of Life will enter it.[r]
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