M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Various Laws
23 [a]A man whose testicles are crushed or whose penis is cut off may never join the assembly of the Lord.
2 A man born from an illicit union may not join the assembly of the Lord. No descendant of his may join the assembly of the Lord for ten generations.
3 Ammonites or Moabites may not join the assembly of the Lord. Not one descendant of theirs may join the assembly of the Lord for ten generations. 4 They cannot join because they didn’t greet you with food and water on your trip from Egypt. They even hired Balaam, son of Beor, from Pethor in Aram Naharaim, to curse you. 5 But the Lord your God refused to listen to Balaam. Instead, he turned Balaam’s curse into a blessing for you because the Lord your God loves you. 6 Never offer them peace or friendship as long as you live.
7 Never consider the Edomites disgusting. They’re your relatives. Never consider the Egyptians disgusting. You once were foreigners living in their country. 8 Their grandchildren may join the assembly of the Lord.
9 When you’re at war and have set up camp to fight your enemies, stay away from anything that will make you unclean.[b] 10 If one of your men becomes unclean from a nocturnal emission, he must go outside the camp and stay there. 11 Toward evening he must wash, and at sunset he may come back to camp.
12 Choose a place outside the camp where you can go ⌞to relieve yourself⌟. 13 You must carry a pointed stick as part of your equipment. When you go outside to squat, dig a hole with it. When you’re done, cover up your excrement. 14 The Lord your God moves around in your camp to protect you and hand your enemies over to you. So your camp must always be holy. This way, the Lord will never see anything offensive among you and turn away from you.
15 If a slave escapes from his master and comes to you, don’t return him to his master. 16 Let him stay with you ⌞and live⌟ among your people wherever he chooses, in any of your cities that seems best to him. Never mistreat him.
17 No Israelite man or woman should ever become a temple prostitute. 18 Never bring gifts or money earned by prostitution into the house of the Lord your God as an offering you vowed to give. These earnings are disgusting to the Lord your God.
19 Never charge another Israelite any interest on money, food, or anything else that is borrowed. 20 You may charge a foreigner interest, but not an Israelite. Then the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do once you’ve entered the land and taken possession of it.
21 If you make a vow to the Lord your God, don’t avoid keeping it. The Lord your God expects you to keep it. You would be guilty of a sin if you didn’t. 22 If you didn’t make a vow, you would not be guilty. 23 Make sure you do what you said you would do ⌞in your vow⌟. You freely chose to make your vow to the Lord your God.
24 If you go into your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you like until you’re full. But never put any in your basket. 25 If you go into your neighbor’s grain field, you may pick grain by hand. But never use a sickle to cut your neighbor’s grain.
112 Hallelujah!
Blessed is the person who fears the Lord
and is happy to obey his commands.
2 His descendants will grow strong on the earth.
The family of a decent person will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches will be in his home.
His righteousness continues forever.
4 Light will shine in the dark for a decent person.
He is merciful, compassionate, and fair.
5 All goes well for the person who is generous and lends willingly.
He earns an honest living.
6 He will never fail.
A righteous person will always be remembered.
7 He is not afraid of bad news.
His heart remains secure, full of confidence in the Lord.
8 His heart is steady, and he is not afraid.
In the end he will look triumphantly at his enemies.
9 He gives freely to poor people.
His righteousness continues forever.
His head is raised in honor.
10 The wicked person sees this and becomes angry.
He angrily grits his teeth and disappears.
The hope that wicked people have will vanish.
113 Hallelujah!
You servants of the Lord, praise him.
Praise the name of the Lord.
2 Thank the name of the Lord now and forever.
3 From where the sun rises to where the sun sets,
the name of the Lord should be praised.
4 The Lord is high above all the nations.
His glory is above the heavens.
5 Who is like the Lord our God?
He is seated on his high throne.
6 He bends down to look at heaven and earth.
7 He lifts the poor from the dust.
He lifts the needy from a garbage heap.
8 He seats them with influential people,
with the influential leaders of his people.
9 He makes a woman who is in a childless home
a joyful mother.
Hallelujah!
The Lord’s People Were Sold because of Their Sin
50 This is what the Lord says:
Where are your mother’s divorce papers?
Did I give her any to get rid of her?
To which of my creditors did I sell you?
You were sold because of your sins.
I got rid of your mother because of your rebellion.
2 Why was no one here when I came?
Why was no one here to answer when I called?
Am I too weak to reclaim you?
Don’t I have the power to rescue you?
I dry up the sea with my command,
and I turn rivers into deserts.
Their fish stink because there is no water,
and people die of thirst.
3 I clothe the heavens in darkness
and cover them with sackcloth.
The Lord’s Servant Trusts in the Lord’s Help
4 The Almighty Lord will teach me what to say,
so I will know how to encourage weary people.
Morning after morning he will wake me
to listen like a student.
5 The Almighty Lord will open my ears.
I will not rebel, nor will I turn away ⌞from him⌟.
6 I will offer my back to those who whip me
and my cheeks to those who pluck hairs out of my beard.
I will not turn my face away from those who humiliate me
and spit on me.
7 The Almighty Lord helps me.
That is why I will not be ashamed.
I have set my face like a flint.
I know that I will not be put to shame.
8 The one who pronounces me innocent is near.
Who will bring a case against me?
Let us confront each other!
Who accuses me?
Let him confront me!
9 The Almighty Lord helps me.
Who will find me guilty?
They will all wear out like a garment.
Moths will eat them.
10 Who among you fears the Lord
and obeys his servant?
Let those who walk in darkness and have no light
trust the name of the Lord
and depend upon their God.
11 But all of you light fires
and arm yourselves with flaming torches.
So walk in your own light
and among the torches you have lit.
This is what you will receive from me:
You will be tormented.
An Angel Overpowers the Devil
20 I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key to the bottomless pit and a large chain in his hand. 2 He overpowered the serpent, that ancient snake, named Devil and Satan. The angel chained up the serpent for 1,000 years. 3 He threw it into the bottomless pit. The angel shut and sealed the pit over the serpent to keep it from deceiving the nations anymore until the 1,000 years were over. After that it must be set free for a little while.
4 I saw thrones, and those who sat on them were allowed to judge. Then I saw the souls of those whose heads had been cut off because of their testimony about Jesus and because of God’s word. They had not worshiped the beast or its statue and were not branded on their foreheads or hands. They lived and ruled with Christ for 1,000 years. 5 The rest of the dead did not live until the 1,000 years ended.
This is the first time that people come back to life. 6 Blessed and holy are those who are included the first time that people come back to life. The second death has no power over them. They will continue to be priests of God and Christ. They will rule with him for 1,000 years.
The Final Judgment
7 When 1,000 years are over, Satan will be freed from his prison. 8 He will go out to deceive Gog and Magog, the nations in the four corners of the earth, and gather them for war. They will be as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore. 9 ⌞I saw that⌟ they spread over the broad expanse of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s holy people and the beloved city. Fire came from heaven and burned them up. 10 The devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet were also thrown. They will be tortured day and night forever and ever.
11 I saw a large, white throne and the one who was sitting on it. The earth and the sky fled from his presence, but no place was found for them. 12 I saw the dead, both important and unimportant people, standing in front of the throne. Books were opened, including the Book of Life. The dead were judged on the basis of what they had done, as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up its dead. Death and hell gave up their dead. People were judged based on what they had done. 14 Death and hell were thrown into the fiery lake. (The fiery lake is the second death.) 15 Those whose names were not found in the Book of Life were thrown into the fiery lake.
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