M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Rules About Sexual Relations
18 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel: ‘I am the Lord your God. 3 In the past you lived in Egypt, but you must not do what was done in that country. And you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their customs. 4 You must obey my rules and follow them. I am the Lord your God. 5 Obey my laws and rules; a person who obeys them will live because of them. I am the Lord.
6 “‘You must never have sexual relations with your close relatives. I am the Lord.
7 “‘You must not shame your father by having sexual relations with your mother. She is your mother; do not have sexual relations with her. 8 You must not have sexual relations with your father’s wife; that would shame your father.
9 “‘You must not have sexual relations with your sister, either the daughter of your father or your mother. It doesn’t matter if she was born in your house or somewhere else.
10 “‘You must not have sexual relations with your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter; that would bring shame on you.
11 “‘If your father and his wife have a daughter, she is your sister. You must not have sexual relations with her.
12 “‘You must not have sexual relations with your father’s sister; she is your father’s close relative. 13 You must not have sexual relations with your mother’s sister; she is your mother’s close relative. 14 You must not have sexual relations with the wife of your father’s brother, because this would shame him. She is your aunt.
15 “‘You must not have sexual relations with your daughter-in-law; she is your son’s wife. Do not have sexual relations with her.
16 “‘You must not have sexual relations with your brother’s wife. That would shame your brother.
17 “‘You must not have sexual relations with both a woman and her daughter. And do not have sexual relations with this woman’s granddaughter, either the daughter of her son or her daughter; they are her close relatives. It is evil to do this.
18 “‘While your wife is still living, you must not take her sister as another wife. Do not have sexual relations with her.
19 “‘You must not go near a woman to have sexual relations with her during her monthly period, when she is unclean.
20 “‘You must not have sexual relations with your neighbor’s wife and make yourself unclean with her.
21 “‘You must not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molech, because this would show that you do not respect your God. I am the Lord.
22 “‘You must not have sexual relations with a man as you would a woman. That is a hateful sin.
23 “‘You must not have sexual relations with an animal and make yourself unclean with it. Also a woman must not have sexual relations with an animal; it is not natural.
24 “‘Don’t make yourself unclean by any of these wrong things. I am forcing nations out of their countries because they did these sins, and I am giving their land to you. 25 The land has become unclean, and I punished it for its sins, so the land is throwing out those people who live there.
26 “‘You must obey my laws and rules, and you must not do any of these hateful sins. These rules are for the citizens of Israel and for the people who live with you. 27 The people who lived in the land before you did all these hateful things and made the land unclean. 28 If you do these things, you will also make the land unclean, and it will throw you out as it threw out the nations before you. 29 Anyone who does these hateful sins must be cut off from the people. 30 Keep my command not to do these hateful sins that were done by the people who lived in the land before you. Don’t make yourself unclean by doing them. I am the Lord your God.’”
The Prayer of a Suffering Man
For the director of music. To the tune of “The Doe of Dawn.” A psalm of David.
22 My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
You seem far from saving me,
far away from my groans.
2 My God, I call to you during the day,
but you do not answer.
I call at night;
I am not silent.
3 You sit as the Holy One.
The praises of Israel are your throne.
4 Our ancestors trusted you;
they trusted, and you saved them.
5 They called to you for help
and were rescued.
They trusted you
and were not disappointed.
6 But I am like a worm instead of a man.
People make fun of me and hate me.
7 Those who look at me laugh.
They stick out their tongues and shake their heads.
8 They say, “Turn to the Lord for help.
Maybe he will save you.
If he likes you,
maybe he will rescue you.”
9 You had my mother give birth to me.
You made me trust you
while I was just a baby.
10 I have leaned on you since the day I was born;
you have been my God since my mother gave me birth.
11 So don’t be far away from me.
Now trouble is near,
and there is no one to help.
12 People have surrounded me like angry bulls.
Like the strong bulls of Bashan, they are on every side.
13 Like hungry, roaring lions
they open their mouths at me.
14 My strength is gone,
like water poured out onto the ground,
and my bones are out of joint.
My heart is like wax;
it has melted inside me.
15 My strength has dried up like a clay pot,
and my tongue sticks to the top of my mouth.
You laid me in the dust of death.
16 Evil people have surrounded me;
like dogs they have trapped me.
They have bitten my arms and legs.
17 I can count all my bones;
people look and stare at me.
18 They divided my clothes among them,
and they threw lots for my clothing.
19 But, Lord, don’t be far away.
You are my strength; hurry to help me.
20 Save me from the sword;
save my life from the dogs.
21 Rescue me from the lion’s mouth;
save me from the horns of the bulls.
22 Then I will tell my brothers and sisters about you;
I will praise you in the public meeting.
23 Praise the Lord, all you who respect him.
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him;
fear him, all you Israelites.
24 He does not ignore those in trouble.
He doesn’t hide from them
but listens when they call out to him.
25 Lord, I praise you in the great meeting of your people;
these worshipers will see me do what I promised.
26 Poor people will eat until they are full;
those who look to the Lord will praise him.
May your hearts live forever!
27 People everywhere will remember
and will turn to the Lord.
All the families of the nations
will worship him
28 because the Lord is King,
and he rules the nations.
29 All the powerful people on earth will eat and worship.
Everyone will bow down to him,
all who will one day die.
30 The people in the future will serve him;
they will always be told about the Lord.
31 They will tell that he does what is right.
People who are not yet born
will hear what God has done.
1 These are the words of the Teacher, a son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 The Teacher says,
“Useless! Useless!
Completely useless!
Everything is useless.”
3 What do people really gain
from all the hard work they do here on earth?
Things Never Change
4 People live, and people die,
but the earth continues forever.
5 The sun rises, the sun sets,
and then it hurries back to where it rises again.
6 The wind blows to the south;
it blows to the north.
It blows from one direction and then another.
Then it turns around and repeats the same pattern, going nowhere.
7 All the rivers flow to the sea,
but the sea never becomes full.
8 Everything is boring,
so boring that you don’t even want to talk about it.
Words come again and again to our ears,
but we never hear enough,
nor can we ever really see all we want to see.
9 All things continue the way they have been since the beginning.
What has happened will happen again;
there is nothing new here on earth.
10 Someone might say,
“Look, this is new,”
but really it has always been here.
It was here before we were.
11 People don’t remember what happened long ago,
and in the future people will not remember what happens now.
Even later, other people will not remember what was done before them.
Does Wisdom Bring Happiness?
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I decided to use my wisdom to learn about everything that happens on earth. I learned that God has given us terrible things to face. 14 I looked at everything done on earth and saw that it is all useless, like chasing the wind.
15 If something is crooked,
you can’t make it straight.
If something is missing,
you can’t say it is there.
16 I said to myself, “I have become very wise and am now wiser than anyone who ruled Jerusalem before me. I know what wisdom and knowledge really are.” 17 So I decided to find out about wisdom and knowledge and also about foolish thinking, but this turned out to be like chasing the wind.
18 With much wisdom comes much disappointment;
the person who gains more knowledge also gains more sorrow.
Elders in the Church
3 What I say is true: Anyone wanting to become an overseer desires a good work. 2 An overseer must not give people a reason to criticize him, and he must have only one wife. He must be self-controlled, wise, respected by others, ready to welcome guests, and able to teach. 3 He must not drink too much wine or like to fight, but rather be gentle and peaceable, not loving money. 4 He must be a good family leader, having children who cooperate with full respect. 5 (If someone does not know how to lead the family, how can that person take care of God’s church?) 6 But an elder must not be a new believer, or he might be too proud of himself and be judged guilty just as the devil was. 7 An elder must also have the respect of people who are not in the church so he will not be criticized by others and caught in the devil’s trap.
Deacons in the Church
8 In the same way, deacons must be respected by others, not saying things they do not mean. They must not drink too much wine or try to get rich by cheating others. 9 With a clear conscience they must follow the secret of the faith that God made known to us. 10 Test them first. Then let them serve as deacons if you find nothing wrong in them. 11 In the same way, women[a] must be respected by others. They must not speak evil of others. They must be self-controlled and trustworthy in everything. 12 Deacons must have only one wife and be good leaders of their children and their own families. 13 Those who serve well as deacons are making an honorable place for themselves, and they will be very bold in their faith in Christ Jesus.
The Secret of Our Life
14 Although I hope I can come to you soon, I am writing these things to you now. 15 Then, even if I am delayed, you will know how to live in the family of God. That family is the church of the living God, the support and foundation of the truth. 16 Without doubt, the secret of our life of worship is great:
He[b] was shown to us in a human body,
proved right in spirit,
and seen by angels.
He was proclaimed to the nations,
believed in by the world,
and taken up in glory.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.