M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
22 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell Aaron and his sons: ‘The people of Israel will give offerings to me. These offerings are holy, and they are mine. So you must respect these offerings. This will show that you respect my holy name. I am the Lord. 3 The people of Israel made the offerings holy for me. One of your descendants might be unclean and touch the offerings. From now on, anyone who does must be separated from appearing before me. I am the Lord.
4 “‘One of Aaron’s descendants might have one of the harmful skin diseases. Or he might discharge a body fluid. He cannot eat the holy offerings until he becomes clean. He can become unclean from touching a dead body or from his own semen.[a] 5 He will become unclean if he touches any unclean crawling animal. He will become unclean if he touches an unclean person. It doesn’t matter what made him unclean. 6 Anyone who touches those things will become unclean until evening. That person must not eat the holy offerings. But if he washes with water, he may eat the holy offerings. 7 He will be clean only after the sun goes down. Then he may eat the holy offerings. The offerings are his food.
8 “‘A priest might find an animal that died by itself. Or he might find one that was killed by some other animal. He must not eat that dead animal. If he eats it, he will become unclean. I am the Lord.
9 “‘The priests must keep all the rules I have given. That way they will not become guilty. If they are careful, they will not die. I am the Lord. I have made them holy. 10 Only people in a priest’s family may eat the holy offerings. A visitor staying with the priest must not eat it. A hired worker must not eat it. 11 But the priest might buy a slave with his own money. If he does, that slave may eat the holy offerings. Slaves who were born in the priest’s house may also eat the priest’s food. 12 A priest’s daughter might marry a person who is not a priest. If she does, she must not eat any of the holy offerings. 13 The husband of a priest’s daughter might die. Or the daughter might become divorced. She might not have children to support her. So she might go back to her father’s house where she lived as a child. If this happens, she may eat some of her father’s food. But only people from a priest’s family may eat this food.
14 “‘Someone might eat some of the holy offering by mistake. That person must pay back the priest for that holy food. He must also pay the priest another one-fifth of the price of that food.
15 “‘The people of Israel will give offerings to the Lord. These gifts become holy. So the priest must not treat these holy things as though they were not holy. 16 The priests might allow someone who is not a priest to eat the holy offerings. If they do, they are treating those offerings as though they were not holy. The person who eats will become guilty. He will have to pay for it. I am the Lord. I make them holy.’”
17 The Lord said to Moses, 18 “Tell Aaron and his sons and all the people of Israel: ‘A citizen of Israel or a foreigner living in Israel might want to bring a whole burnt offering. It might be for some special promise he has made. Or it might be a special gift he wanted to give to the Lord. 19 If he does, he must bring a male animal. It must have nothing wrong with it. The gift might be a bull, a sheep or a goat. This is so it might be accepted for him. 20 He must not bring an animal that has something wrong with it. It will not be accepted for him.
21 “‘Someone might bring a fellowship offering to the Lord. That offering might be payment for a special promise the person made. Or it may be a special gift the person wanted to give the Lord. It might be a bull or a sheep. But it must be healthy. There must be nothing wrong with it. This is so it might be accepted for him. 22 You must not offer to the Lord any animal that is blind. It must not have broken bones or be crippled. It must not have running sores or any sort of skin disease. You must not offer any animals like these on the altar. They cannot be used as an offering by fire to the Lord.
23 “‘Sometimes a bull or lamb is smaller than normal. Or it may not be perfectly formed. If someone wants to give that animal as a special gift to the Lord, it will be accepted. But it will not be accepted as payment for a special promise the person made.
24 “‘An animal might have bruised, crushed, torn or cut sex glands. If it does, you must not offer that animal to the Lord in your own land. 25 You must not take such animals from foreigners as sacrifices to the Lord. This is because the animals have been hurt in some way. They have something wrong with them. They will not be accepted for you.’”
26 The Lord said to Moses, 27 “When an ox, a sheep or a goat is born, it must stay seven days with its mother. But from the eighth day on, this animal will be accepted as a sacrifice. It may be offered by fire to the Lord. 28 But you must not kill the animal and its mother on the same day. This rule is the same for an ox or a sheep.
29 “You might want to offer some special offering of thanks to the Lord. But you must do it in a way that pleases the Lord. 30 You must eat the whole animal that same day. You must not leave any of the meat for the next morning. I am the Lord.
31 “Remember my commands and obey them. I am the Lord. 32 Show respect for my holy name. You Israelites must remember that I am holy. I am the Lord. I have made you holy. 33 I brought you out of Egypt. I became your God. I am the Lord.”
A Prayer in Troubled Times
Of David.
28 Lord, my Rock, I call out to you for help.
Do not be deaf to me.
If you are silent,
I will be like those in the grave.
2 Hear the sound of my prayer,
when I cry out to you for help.
I raise my hands
toward your Most Holy Place.
3 Don’t drag me away with the wicked,
with those who do evil.
They say, “Peace” to their neighbors.
But evil is in their hearts.
4 Pay them back for what they have done.
They have done evil.
Pay them back for what they have done.
Give them their reward.
5 They don’t understand what the Lord has done
or what he has made.
So he will knock them down
and not lift them up.
6 Praise the Lord.
He heard my prayer for help.
7 The Lord is my strength and shield.
I trust him, and he helps me.
I am very happy.
And I praise him with my song.
8 The Lord is powerful.
He gives power and victory to his chosen one.
9 Save your people.
Bless those who are your own.
Be their shepherd and carry them forever.
God in the Thunderstorm
A song of David.
29 Praise the Lord, you angels.
Praise the Lord’s glory and power.
2 Praise the Lord for the glory of his name.
Worship the Lord because he is holy.
3 The Lord’s voice is heard over the sea.
The glorious God thunders.
The Lord thunders over the great ocean.
4 The Lord’s voice is powerful.
The Lord’s voice is majestic.
5 The Lord’s voice breaks the trees.
The Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes the land of Lebanon dance like a calf.
He makes Mount Hermon jump like a baby bull.
7 The Lord’s voice makes the lightning flash.
8 The Lord’s voice shakes the desert.
The Lord shakes the Desert of Kadesh.
9 The Lord’s voice shakes the oaks.
The leaves fall off the trees.
In his Temple everyone says, “Glory to God!”
10 The Lord controls the flood.
The Lord will be King forever.
11 The Lord gives strength to his people.
The Lord blesses his people with peace.
Be Careful About Making Promises
5 Be careful when you go to worship at the Temple. It is better to listen than to offer foolish sacrifices. People who do this don’t even know they are doing wrong.
2 Think before you speak.
Be careful about what you promise to God.
God is in heaven,
and you are on the earth.
So say only a few words to God.
3 The saying is true: Bad dreams come from too much worrying.
So too many words come from foolish people.
4 If you make a promise to God, don’t be slow to keep it. God is not happy with foolish people. Give God what you promised. 5 It is better not to promise anything than to promise something and not do it. 6 So don’t let your words cause you to sin. Also, don’t say to the priest at the Temple, “I didn’t mean what I promised!” If you do, God will become angry with your words. He will destroy everything you have worked for. 7 Many empty promises are like many foolish dreams. They mean nothing. You should honor God.
Officers Cheat Each Other
8 In some countries you will see poor people treated badly. They are not treated fairly or given their rights. Don’t be surprised! One officer is cheated by a higher officer. They in turn are cheated by even higher officers. 9 The wealth of the country is divided up among them all. Even the king makes sure he gets his share of the profits.
Wealth Cannot Buy Happiness
10 The person who loves money
will never have all the money he wants.
The person who loves wealth
will not be satisfied when he gets it.
This is also useless.
11 The more wealth a person has,
the more friends he has to help him spend it.
So what does he really gain?
He gains nothing except to look at his riches.
12 A man who works hard sleeps in peace.
It is not important if he has little or much to eat.
But a rich person worries about his wealth.
He cannot sleep.
13 I have seen something unfair here on earth:
A person suffers harm from saving up his money.
14 Then he loses it all in a bad deal.
So he has nothing
to give to his son.
15 A person comes into this world with nothing.
And when he dies, he leaves with nothing.
In spite of all his hard work,
he leaves exactly as he came.
16 This, too, is unfair:
He leaves exactly as he came.
So what does he gain from chasing the wind?
17 All he gets are days filled with sadness and sorrow.
He ends up sick, defeated and angry.
Enjoy Your Life’s Work
18 I have seen what is best for a person to do here on earth. He should eat and drink and enjoy his work. This is because the life God has given him on earth is short. 19 God gives some people the ability to enjoy the wealth and property he gives them. He also gives them the ability to accept their state in life and enjoy their work. 20 Such people do not worry much about how short life is. This is because God keeps them busy with the things they love to do.
Paul Encourages Timothy
1 From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God. God sent me to tell about the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus.
2 To Timothy, a dear son to me. Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
3 I always remember you in my prayers, day and night. And I thank God for you in these prayers. He is the God my ancestors served. And I serve him, doing what I know is right. 4 I remember that you cried for me. And I want very much to see you so that I can be filled with joy. 5 I remember your true faith. That kind of faith first belonged to your grandmother Lois and to your mother Eunice. And I know that you now have that same faith. 6 That is why I remind you to use the gift God gave you. God gave you that gift when I laid my hands on[a] you. Now let it grow, as a small flame grows into a fire. 7 God did not give us a spirit that makes us afraid. He gave us a spirit of power and love and self-control.
8 So do not be ashamed to tell people about our Lord Jesus. And do not be ashamed of me. I am in prison for the Lord. But suffer with me for the Good News. God gives us the strength to do that. 9 God saved us and made us his holy people. That was not because of anything we did ourselves but because of what he wanted and because of his grace. That grace was given to us through Christ Jesus before time began. 10 It was not shown to us until our Savior Christ Jesus came. Jesus destroyed death. And through the Good News, he showed us the way to have life that cannot be destroyed. 11 I was chosen to tell that Good News and to be an apostle and a teacher. 12 And I suffer now because I tell the Good News. But I am not ashamed. I know Jesus, the One I have believed in. And I am sure that he is able to protect what he has trusted me with until that Day.[b] 13 Follow the true teachings you heard from me. Follow them as an example of the faith and love we have in Christ Jesus. 14 Protect the truth that you were given. Protect it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.
15 You know that everyone in Asia has left me, even Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 I pray that the Lord will show mercy to the family of Onesiphorus. He has often helped me and was not ashamed that I was in prison. 17 When he came to Rome, he looked for me until he found me. 18 I pray that the Lord will allow Onesiphorus to have mercy from the Lord on that Day. You know how many ways Onesiphorus helped me in Ephesus.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.