M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Lord Commands Israel to Defeat Midian
31 Yahweh said to Moses, 2 “Get even with the Midianites for what they did to the Israelites. After that you will join your ancestors in death.”
3 Moses said to the people, “Some of your men must get ready to go to war against the Midianites. Yahweh will use them to get even with Midian. 4 Send 1,000 men from each of the tribes of Israel.”
5 So 1,000 men from each tribe were supplied from the divisions of Israel—12,000 men ready for war. 6 Then Moses sent them off to war, 1,000 men from each tribe along with Phinehas, son of the priest Eleazar. Phinehas took with him the holy articles and the trumpets for the fanfare.
7 They went to war against Midian, as Yahweh commanded Moses, and killed every man. 8 Among those killed were the five kings of Midian—Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba. They also killed Balaam, son of Beor, in battle. 9 The Israelites took the Midianite women and children as prisoners of war. They also took all their animals, their livestock, and their valuables as loot. 10 They burned all the cities where the Midianites lived and all their settlements. 11 Then they took everything as loot, including all the people and animals, 12 and brought the prisoners of war, the loot, and everything to Moses, the priest Eleazar, and the community of Israel at the camp on the plains of Moab near the Jordan River across from Jericho.
13 Moses, the priest Eleazar, and all the leaders of the community went outside the camp to meet them. 14 Moses was angry with the officers of the army, the commanders of the companies and battalions, who were returning from battle.
15 “Why did you let all the women live?” he asked them. 16 “Remember, they were the ones who followed Balaam’s advice and caused[a] the Israelites to be unfaithful to Yahweh in the incident that took place at Peor. Yahweh’s community experienced a plague at that time. 17 So kill all the Midianite boys and every Midianite woman who has gone to bed with a man. 18 But save for yourselves every girl who has never gone to bed with a man.
19 “Everyone who killed a person or touched a dead body must stay outside the camp seven days. You and your prisoners of war must use the ritual water on the third and seventh days in order to take away your sin. 20 Do the same for all the clothes and everything made of leather, goats’ hair, or wood.”
21 Then the priest Eleazar said to the soldiers who had gone into battle, “This is what Yahweh’s teachings told Moses to do: 22 Any gold, silver, bronze, iron, tin, or lead— 23 anything that won’t burn—must be put through fire in order to make it clean.[b] Then it must also be put through the ritual water in order to take away its sin. Whatever might burn must only be put through the ritual water. 24 On the seventh day wash your clothes, and you will be clean. Then you may come into the camp.”
25 Yahweh said to Moses, 26 “You, the priest Eleazar, and the heads of the families of the community need to count all the loot, including the people and animals you captured. 27 Divide the loot between the soldiers who served in the war and the rest of the community. 28 Collect a tax for Yahweh. From the soldiers who served in the war collect one out of every 500 things. This includes people, cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats. 29 Collect all these things from the soldiers’ half of the loot, and give them to the priest Eleazar as a contribution to Yahweh. 30 From the Israelites’ half of the loot, collect one out of every 50 things. This includes people, cattle, donkeys, sheep, goats, and every other kind of animal. Give them to the Levites who are in charge of the work done at Yahweh’s tent.” 31 Moses and the priest Eleazar did as Yahweh commanded Moses.
32 This is the loot that was left from everything that the troops took: 675,000 sheep and goats, 33 72,000 cattle, 34 61,000 donkeys, and 35 32,000 women who had never gone to bed with a man.
36 Half of it went to the soldiers who served in the war. Of the 337,500 sheep and goats they received, 37 675 went to Yahweh as taxes. 38 Of the 36,000 cattle they received, 72 went to Yahweh as taxes. 39 Of the 30,500 donkeys they received, 61 went to Yahweh as taxes. 40 Of the 16,000 people they received, 32 went to Yahweh as taxes.
41 Moses gave Yahweh’s taxes to the priest Eleazar, as Yahweh had commanded him.
42 Moses took the Israelites’ half of the loot from the soldiers. 43 The community received 337,500 sheep and goats, 44 36,000 cattle, 45 30,500 donkeys, 46 and 16,000 people.
47 From the Israelites’ half Moses collected one out of every 50 things, including people and animals, as Yahweh commanded him. Then he gave all this to the Levites who were in charge of the work done at Yahweh’s tent.
48 Then the officers from the military divisions, the commanders of the companies and battalions of men, came to Moses. 49 They said to him, “Sir, we have counted all the soldiers under our command, and not one of them is missing. 50 So we have brought as gifts to Yahweh the gold jewelry that each of us found—arm bands, bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and pendants. We offer them to make peace with the Lord.”
51 Moses and the priest Eleazar took all the hand-crafted gold articles from them. 52 All the gold contributed to Yahweh by the commanders weighed about 420 pounds. 53 Each soldier kept his own loot. 54 Moses and the priest Eleazar took the gold from the commanders and brought it into Yahweh’s presence at the tent of meeting as a reminder to the Israelites.
Psalm 75
For the choir director; al tashcheth; a psalm by Asaph; a song.
1 We give thanks to you, O Elohim; we give thanks.
You are present, and your miracles confirm that.
2 When I choose the right time,
I will judge fairly.
3 When the earth and everyone who lives on it begin to melt,
I will make its foundations as solid as rock. Selah
4 I said to those who brag, “Don’t brag,”
and to wicked people,
“Don’t raise your weapons.
5 Don’t raise your weapons so proudly
or speak so defiantly.”
6 The authority to reward someone does not come
from the east,
from the west,
or even from the wilderness.
7 Elohim alone is the Shophet.
He punishes one person and rewards another.
8 A cup is in Yahweh’s hand.
(Its foaming wine is thoroughly mixed with spices.)
He will empty it,
and all the wicked people on earth
will have to drink every last drop.
9 But I will speak about your miracles forever.
I will make music to praise the Elohim of Jacob.
10 I will destroy all the weapons of wicked people,
but the weapons of righteous people will be raised proudly.
Psalm 76
For the choir director; on stringed instruments; a psalm by Asaph; a song.
1 Elohim is known in Judah.
His name is great in Israel.
2 His tent is in Salem.
His home is in Zion.
3 There he destroyed flaming arrows,
shields, swords, and weapons of war. Selah
4 You are the radiant one.
You are more majestic than the ancient mountains.[a]
5 Brave people were robbed.
They died.
None of the warriors were able to lift a hand.
6 At your stern warning, O Elohim of Jacob,
chariot riders and horses were put to sleep.
7 You alone must be feared!
Who can stand in your presence when you become angry?
8 From heaven you announced a verdict.
The earth was fearful and silent
9 when you rose to judge, O Elohim,
when you rose to save every oppressed person on earth. Selah
10 Even angry mortals will praise you.
You will wear the remainder of their anger.[b]
11 Make vows to Yahweh your Elohim, and keep them.
Let everyone around him bring gifts to the one who must be feared.
12 He cuts short the lives of influential people.
He terrifies the kings of the earth.
Tyre Will Be Punished
23 This is the divine revelation about Tyre.
Cry loudly, you ships of Tarshish!
Your port at Tyre is destroyed.
Word has come to the ships from Cyprus.
2 Be silent, you inhabitants of the coastland, you merchants from Sidon.
Your messengers have crossed the sea.
3 The grain of Shihor is on the Mediterranean.
The harvest of the Nile River is brought to Tyre.
Tyre became the marketplace for the nations.
4 Be ashamed, Sidon, because the stronghold by the sea has spoken,
“I’ve never been in labor or given birth.
I’ve raised no sons.
I’ve brought up no daughters.”
5 When the news reaches Egypt,
the Egyptians will shudder over the news about Tyre.
6 Travel to Tarshish!
Cry loudly, you inhabitants of the seacoast!
7 Is this your bustling city founded in the distant past?
Is this the city that sent its people to settle in distant lands?
8 Who planned such a thing against Tyre, the city that produced kings?
Its merchants are princes.
Its traders are among the honored people of the world.
9 Yahweh Tsebaoth planned this
in order to dishonor all arrogant people
and to humiliate all the honored people of the world.
10 Travel through your country like the Nile, people of Tarshish.
You no longer have a harbor.
11 Yahweh has stretched his hand over the sea to shake kingdoms.
He has commanded that Canaan’s fortifications be destroyed.
12 He says, “You will no longer be joyful,
my dear abused people Sidon.”
Get up, and travel to Cyprus.
Even there you will find no rest.
13 Look at the land of the Babylonians.
These people will be gone.
Assyria gave this land to the desert animals.
Assyria set up battle towers,
stripped palaces bare,
and turned these places into ruins.
14 Cry loudly, you ships of Tarshish, because your fortress will be destroyed. 15 When that day comes, Tyre will be forgotten for 70 years, the lifetime of one king. At the end of the 70 years, Tyre will be like the prostitute in this song:
16 “Take your lyre.
Go around in the city, you forgotten prostitute.
Make sweet music.
Sing many songs so that you’ll be remembered.”
17 At the end of 70 years Yahweh will come to help Tyre. Then she will go back to earning money as a prostitute. She will become a prostitute for all the world’s kingdoms. 18 Her profits and her earnings will be turned over to Yahweh for his holy purpose. It won’t be stored or hoarded. Her merchandise will belong to those who live in the presence of Yahweh so that they will have plenty of food and expensive clothing.
John’s Reason for Writing
1 The Word of life existed from the beginning. We have heard it. We have seen it. We observed and touched it. 2 This life was revealed to us. We have seen it, and we testify about it. We are reporting to you about this eternal life that was in the presence of the Father and was revealed to us. 3 This is the life we have seen and heard. We are reporting about it to you also so that you, too, can have a relationship with us. Our relationship is with the Father and with his Son Yeshua Christ. 4 We are writing this so that we can be completely filled with joy.
Through Jesus We Have a Relationship with God
5 This is the message we heard from Christ and are reporting to you: God is light, and there isn’t any darkness in him. 6 If we say, “We have a relationship with God” and yet live in the dark, we’re lying. We aren’t being truthful.
7 But if we live in the light in the same way that God is in the light, we have a relationship with each other. And the blood of his Son Yeshua cleanses us from every sin. 8 If we say, “We aren’t sinful” we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 God is faithful and reliable. If we confess our sins, he forgives them and cleanses us from everything we’ve done wrong. 10 If we say, “We have never sinned,” we turn God into a liar and his Word is not in us.
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.