M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Aaron’s Walking Stick Buds
17 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel and get twelve walking sticks from them—one from the leader of each tribe. Write the name of each man on his stick, and 3 on the stick from Levi, write Aaron’s name. There must be one stick for the head of each tribe. 4 Put them in the Meeting Tent in front of the Ark of the Agreement, where I meet with you. 5 I will choose one man whose walking stick will begin to grow leaves; in this way I will stop the Israelites from always complaining against you.”
6 So Moses spoke to the Israelites. Each of the twelve leaders gave him a walking stick—one from each tribe—and Aaron’s walking stick was among them. 7 Moses put them before the Lord in the Tent of the Agreement.
8 The next day, when Moses entered the Tent, he saw that Aaron’s stick (which stood for the family of Levi) had grown leaves. It had even budded, blossomed, and produced almonds. 9 So Moses brought out to the Israelites all the walking sticks from the Lord’s presence. They all looked, and each man took back his stick.
10 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Put Aaron’s walking stick back in front of the Ark of the Agreement. It will remind these people who are always turning against me to stop their complaining against me so they won’t die.” 11 So Moses obeyed what the Lord commanded him.
12 The people of Israel said to Moses, “We are going to die! We are destroyed. We are all destroyed! 13 Anyone who even comes near the Holy Tent of the Lord will die. Will we all die?”
The Work of the Priests and Levites
18 The Lord said to Aaron, “You, your sons, and your family are now responsible for any wrongs done against the Holy Place; you and your sons are responsible for any wrongs done against the priests. 2 Bring with you your fellow Levites from your tribe, and they will help you and your sons serve in the Tent of the Agreement. 3 They are under your control, to do all the work that needs to be done in the Tent. But they must not go near the things in the Holy Place or near the altar. If they do, both you and they will die. 4 They will join you in taking care of the Meeting Tent. They must do the work at the Tent, and no one else may come near you.
5 “You must take care of the Holy Place and the altar so that I won’t become angry with the Israelites again. 6 I myself chose your fellow Levites from among the Israelites as a gift given for you to the Lord, to work at the Meeting Tent. 7 But only you and your sons may serve as priests. Only you may serve at the altar or go behind the curtain. I am giving you this gift of serving as a priest, and anyone else who comes near the Holy Place will be put to death.”
8 Then the Lord said to Aaron, “I myself make you responsible for the offerings given to me. All the holy offerings that the Israelites give to me, I give to you and your sons as your share, your continual portion. 9 Your share of the holy offerings is that part which is not burned. When the people bring me gifts as most holy offerings, whether they are grain or sin or penalty offerings, they will be set apart for you and your sons. 10 You must eat the offering in a most holy place. Any male may eat it, but you must respect it as holy.
11 “I also give you the offerings the Israelites present to me. I give these to you and your sons and daughters as your continual share. Anyone in your family who is clean may eat it.
12 “And I give you all the best olive oil and all the best new wine and grain. This is what the Israelites give to me, the Lord, from the first crops they harvest. 13 When they bring to the Lord all the first things they harvest, they will be yours. Anyone in your family who is clean may eat these things.
14 “Everything in Israel that is given to the Lord is yours. 15 The first one born to any family, whether people or animals, will be offered to the Lord. And that will be yours. But you must make a payment for every firstborn child and every firstborn animal that is unclean. 16 When they are one month old, you must make a payment for them of two ounces of silver, as set by the Holy Place measure.
17 “But you must not make a payment for the firstborn ox or sheep or goat. Those animals are holy. Sprinkle their blood on the altar and burn their fat as an offering made by fire. The smell is pleasing to the Lord. 18 But the meat will be yours, just as the breast that is presented and the right thigh will be yours. 19 Anything the Israelites present as holy gifts I, the Lord, give to you, your sons and daughters as your continual portion. This is a lasting agreement of salt[a] before the Lord for you and your children forever.”
20 The Lord also said to Aaron, “You will not inherit any of the land, and you will not own any land among the other people. I will be yours. Out of all the Israelites, only you will inherit me.
21 “When the people of Israel give me a tenth of what they make, I will give that tenth to the Levites. This is their payment for the work they do serving at the Meeting Tent. 22 But the other Israelites must never go near the Meeting Tent, or they will die for their sin. 23 Only the Levites should work in the Meeting Tent and be responsible for any sins against it. This is a rule from now on. The Levites will not inherit any land among the other Israelites, 24 but when the Israelites give a tenth of everything they make to me, I will give that tenth to the Levites as a reward. That is why I said about the Levites: ‘They will not inherit any land among the Israelites.’”
25 The Lord said to Moses, 26 “Speak to the Levites and tell them: ‘You will receive a tenth of everything the Israelites make, which I will give to you. But you must give a tenth of that back to the Lord. 27 I will accept your offering just as much as I accept the offerings from others, who give new grain or new wine. 28 In this way you will present an offering to the Lord as the other Israelites do. When you receive a tenth from the Israelites, you will give a tenth of that to Aaron, the priest, as the Lord’s share. 29 Choose the best and holiest part from what you are given as the portion you must give to the Lord.’
30 “Say to the Levites: ‘When you present the best, it will be accepted as much as the grain and wine from the other people. 31 You and your families may eat all that is left anywhere, because it is your pay for your work in the Meeting Tent. 32 And if you always give the best part to the Lord, you will never be guilty. If you do not sin against the holy offerings of the Israelites, you will not die.’”
A Prayer About a False Friend
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A maskil of David.
55 God, listen to my prayer
and do not ignore my cry for help.
2 Pay attention to me and answer me.
I am troubled and upset
3 by what the enemy says
and how the wicked look at me.
They bring troubles down on me,
and in anger they attack me.
4 I am frightened inside;
the terror of death has attacked me.
5 I am scared and shaking,
and terror grips me.
6 I said, “I wish I had wings like a dove.
Then I would fly away and rest.
7 I would wander far away
and stay in the desert. Selah
8 I would hurry to my place of escape,
far away from the wind and storm.”
9 Lord, destroy and confuse their words,
because I see violence and fighting in the city.
10 Day and night they are all around its walls,
and evil and trouble are everywhere inside.
11 Destruction is everywhere in the city;
trouble and lying never leave its streets.
12 It was not an enemy insulting me.
I could stand that.
It was not someone who hated me.
I could hide from him.
13 But it is you, a person like me,
my companion and good friend.
14 We had a good friendship
and walked together to God’s Temple.
15 Let death take away my enemies.
Let them die while they are still young
because evil lives with them.
16 But I will call to God for help,
and the Lord will save me.
17 Morning, noon, and night I am troubled and upset,
but he will listen to me.
18 Many are against me,
but he keeps me safe in battle.
19 God who lives forever
will hear me and punish them. Selah
But they will not change;
they do not fear God.
20 The one who was my friend attacks his friends
and breaks his promises.
21 His words are slippery like butter,
but war is in his heart.
His words are smoother than oil,
but they cut like knives.
22 Give your worries to the Lord,
and he will take care of you.
He will never let good people down.
23 But, God, you will bring down
the wicked to the grave.
Murderers and liars will live
only half a lifetime.
But I will trust in you.
Trouble with Aram
7 Now Ahaz was the son of Jotham, who was the son of Uzziah. When Ahaz was king of Judah, Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah, the king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to fight against it. But they were not able to defeat the city.
2 Ahaz king of Judah received a message saying, “The armies of Aram and Israel[a] have joined together.”
When Ahaz heard this, he and the people were frightened. They shook with fear like trees of the forest blown by the wind.
3 Then the Lord told Isaiah, “You and your son Shear-Jashub[b] should go and meet Ahaz at the place where the water flows into the upper pool, on the road where people do their laundry. 4 Tell Ahaz, ‘Be careful. Be calm and don’t worry. Don’t let those two men, Rezin and Pekah son of Remaliah, scare you. Don’t be afraid of their anger or Aram’s anger, because they are like two barely burning sticks that are ready to go out. 5 They have made plans against you, saying, 6 “Let’s fight against Judah and tear it apart. We will divide the land for ourselves and make the son of Tabeel the new king of Judah.” 7 But I, the Lord God, say,
“‘Their plan will not succeed;
it will not happen,
8 because Aram is led by the city of Damascus,
and Damascus is led by its weak king, Rezin.
Within sixty-five years Israel will no longer be a nation.
9 Israel is led by the city of Samaria,
and Samaria is led by its weak king, the son of Remaliah.
If your faith is not strong,
you will not have strength enough to last.’”
Immanuel—God Is with Us
10 Then the Lord spoke to Ahaz again, saying, 11 “Ask for a sign from the Lord your God to prove to yourself that these things are true. It may be a sign from as deep as the place of the dead or as high as the heavens.”
12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask for a sign or test the Lord.”
13 Then Isaiah said, “Ahaz, descendant of David, listen carefully! Isn’t it bad enough that you wear out the patience of people? Do you also have to wear out the patience of my God? 14 The Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin[c] will be pregnant. She will have a son, and she will name him Immanuel.[d] 15 He will be eating milk curds and honey when he learns to reject what is evil and to choose what is good. 16 You are afraid of the kings of Israel and Aram now. But before the child learns to choose good and reject evil, the lands of Israel and Aram will be empty. 17 The Lord will bring troubled times to you, your people, and to the people of your father’s family. They will be worse than anything that has happened since Israel separated from Judah. The Lord will bring the king of Assyria to fight against you.
18 “At that time the Lord will whistle for the Egyptians, and they will come like flies from Egypt’s faraway streams. He will call for the Assyrians, and they will come like bees. 19 These enemies will camp in the deep ravines and in the cliffs, by the thornbushes and watering holes. 20 The Lord will hire Assyria and use it like a razor to punish Judah. It will be as if the Lord is shaving the hair from Judah’s head and legs and removing Judah’s beard.
21 “At that time a person will be able to keep only one young cow and two sheep alive. 22 There will be only enough milk for that person to eat milk curds. All who remain in the land will go back to eating just milk curds and honey. 23 In this land there are now vineyards that have a thousand grapevines, which are worth about twenty-five pounds of silver. But these fields will become full of weeds and thorns. 24 The land will become wild and useful only as a hunting ground. 25 People once worked and grew food on these hills, but at that time people will not go there, because the land will be filled with weeds and thorns. Only sheep and cattle will go to those places.”
1 From James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
To all of God’s people who are scattered everywhere in the world:
Greetings.
Faith and Wisdom
2 My brothers and sisters, when you have many kinds of troubles, you should be full of joy, 3 because you know that these troubles test your faith, and this will give you patience. 4 Let your patience show itself perfectly in what you do. Then you will be perfect and complete and will have everything you need. 5 But if any of you needs wisdom, you should ask God for it. He is generous to everyone and will give you wisdom without criticizing you. 6 But when you ask God, you must believe and not doubt. Anyone who doubts is like a wave in the sea, blown up and down by the wind. 7-8 Such doubters are thinking two different things at the same time, and they cannot decide about anything they do. They should not think they will receive anything from the Lord.
True Riches
9 Believers who are poor should take pride that God has made them spiritually rich. 10 Those who are rich should take pride that God has shown them that they are spiritually poor. The rich will die like a wild flower in the grass. 11 The sun rises with burning heat and dries up the plants. The flower falls off, and its beauty is gone. In the same way the rich will die while they are still taking care of business.
Temptation Is Not from God
12 When people are tempted and still continue strong, they should be happy. After they have proved their faith, God will reward them with life forever. God promised this to all those who love him. 13 When people are tempted, they should not say, “God is tempting me.” Evil cannot tempt God, and God himself does not tempt anyone. 14 But people are tempted when their own evil desire leads them away and traps them. 15 This desire leads to sin, and then the sin grows and brings death.
16 My dear brothers and sisters, do not be fooled about this. 17 Every good action and every perfect gift is from God. These good gifts come down from the Creator of the sun, moon, and stars, who does not change like their shifting shadows. 18 God decided to give us life through the word of truth so we might be the most important of all the things he made.
Listening and Obeying
19 My dear brothers and sisters, always be willing to listen and slow to speak. Do not become angry easily, 20 because anger will not help you live the right kind of life God wants. 21 So put out of your life every evil thing and every kind of wrong. Then in gentleness accept God’s teaching that is planted in your hearts, which can save you.
22 Do what God’s teaching says; when you only listen and do nothing, you are fooling yourselves. 23 Those who hear God’s teaching and do nothing are like people who look at themselves in a mirror. 24 They see their faces and then go away and quickly forget what they looked like. 25 But the truly happy people are those who carefully study God’s perfect law that makes people free, and they continue to study it. They do not forget what they heard, but they obey what God’s teaching says. Those who do this will be made happy.
The True Way to Worship God
26 People who think they are religious but say things they should not say are just fooling themselves. Their “religion” is worth nothing. 27 Religion that God accepts as pure and without fault is this: caring for orphans or widows who need help, and keeping yourself free from the world’s evil influence.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.