M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Balak Hires Balaam
22 The Israelites traveled on and camped in the plains of Moab near the Jordan across from Jericho. 2 Now Balak(A) son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites.(B) 3 Moab was terrified of the people because they were numerous,(C) and Moab dreaded the Israelites. 4 So the Moabites said to the elders of Midian, “This horde will devour everything around us like an ox eats up the green plants in the field.”
Since Balak son of Zippor was Moab’s king at that time, 5 he sent messengers to Balaam(D) son of Beor at Pethor, which is by the Euphrates in the land of his people.[a][b] Balak said to him, “Look, a people has come out of Egypt; they cover the surface of the land(E) and are living right across from me. 6 Please come and put a curse on these people for me because they are more powerful than I am. I may be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land, for I know that those you bless are blessed and those you curse are cursed.”(F)
7 The elders of Moab and Midian departed with fees for divination(G) in hand.(H) They came to Balaam and reported Balak’s words to him. 8 He said to them, “Spend the night here, and I will give you the answer the Lord tells me.” So the officials of Moab stayed with Balaam.
9 Then God came to Balaam and asked, “Who are these men with you?”
10 Balaam replied to God, “Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, sent this message to me: 11 ‘Look, a people has come out of Egypt, and they cover the surface of the land. Now come and put a curse on them for me. I may be able to fight against them and drive them away.’”
12 Then God said to Balaam, “You are not to go with them. You are not to curse this people, for they are blessed.”
13 So Balaam got up the next morning and said to Balak’s officials, “Go back to your land, because the Lord has refused to let me go with you.”
14 The officials of Moab arose, returned to Balak, and reported, “Balaam refused to come with us.”
15 Balak sent officials again who were more numerous and higher in rank than the others. 16 They came to Balaam and said to him, “This is what Balak son of Zippor says: ‘Let nothing keep you from coming to me, 17 for I will greatly honor you and do whatever you ask me. So please come and put a curse on these people for me!’”
18 But Balaam responded to the servants of Balak, “If Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go against the command of the Lord my God to do anything small or great. 19 Please stay here overnight as the others did, so that I may find out what else the Lord has to tell me.”
20 God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “Since these men have come to summon you, get up and go with them, but you must only do what I tell you.” 21 When he got up in the morning, Balaam saddled his donkey and went with the officials of Moab.
Balaam’s Donkey and the Angel
22 But God was incensed that Balaam was going, and the angel of the Lord(I) took his stand on the path to oppose him. Balaam was riding his donkey, and his two servants were with him. 23 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing on the path with a drawn sword in his hand, she turned off the path and went into the field. So Balaam hit her to return her to the path. 24 Then the angel of the Lord stood in a narrow passage between the vineyards, with a stone wall on either side. 25 The donkey saw the angel of the Lord and pressed herself against the wall, squeezing Balaam’s foot against it. So he hit her once again. 26 The angel of the Lord went ahead and stood in a narrow place where there was no room to turn to the right or the left. 27 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she crouched down under Balaam. So he became furious and beat the donkey with his stick.
28 Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and she asked Balaam, “What have I done to you that you have beaten me these three times?” (J)
29 Balaam answered the donkey, “You made me look like a fool. If I had a sword in my hand, I’d kill you now!”
30 But the donkey said, “Am I not the donkey you’ve ridden all your life until today? Have I ever treated you this way before?”
“No,” he replied.
31 Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the path with a drawn sword in his hand. Balaam knelt low and bowed in worship on his face. 32 The angel of the Lord asked him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? Look, I came out to oppose you, because I consider what you are doing to be evil.[c] 33 The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If she had not turned away from me, I would have killed you by now and let her live.”
34 Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, “I have sinned, for I did not know that you were standing in the path to confront me. And now, if it is evil in your sight, I will go back.”
35 Then the angel of the Lord said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but you are to say only what I tell you.” So Balaam went with Balak’s officials.
36 When Balak heard that Balaam was coming, he went out to meet him at the Moabite city[d] on the Arnon border at the edge of his territory. 37 Balak asked Balaam, “Did I not send you an urgent summons? Why didn’t you come to me? Am I really not able to reward you?”
38 Balaam said to him, “Look, I have come to you, but can I say anything I want? I must speak only the message God puts in my mouth.” 39 So Balaam went with Balak, and they came to Kiriath-huzoth.[e] 40 Balak sacrificed cattle, sheep, and goats and sent for Balaam and the officials who were with him.
41 In the morning, Balak took Balaam and brought him to Bamoth-baal.[f] From there he saw the outskirts of the people’s camp.
Psalm 62
Trust in God Alone
For the choir director: according to Jeduthun.(A) A psalm of David.
1 I am at rest in God alone;
my salvation comes from him.(B)
2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,(C)
my stronghold; I will never be shaken.(D)
3 How long will you threaten a man?
Will all of you attack[a]
as if he were a leaning wall
or a tottering fence?(E)
4 They only plan to bring him down
from his high position.
They take pleasure in lying;
they bless with their mouths,
but they curse inwardly.(F)Selah
5 Rest in God alone, my soul,
for my hope comes from him.(G)
6 He alone is my rock and my salvation,(H)
my stronghold; I will not be shaken.(I)
7 My salvation and glory depend on God, my strong rock.
My refuge is in God.(J)
8 Trust in him at all times, you people;
pour out your hearts before him.
God is our refuge.(K)Selah
9 Common people are only a vapor;
important people, an illusion.
Together on a scale,
they weigh less than[b] a vapor.(L)
10 Place no trust in oppression
or false hope in robbery.(M)
If wealth increases,
don’t set your heart on it.(N)
11 God has spoken once;
I have heard this twice:
strength belongs to God,(O)
12 and faithful love belongs to you, Lord.
For you repay each according to his works.(P)
Psalm 63
Praise God Who Satisfies
A psalm of David. When he was in the Wilderness of Judah.(Q)
1 God, you are my God; I eagerly seek you.
I thirst for you;
my body faints for you
in a land that is dry, desolate, and without water.(R)
2 So I gaze on you in the sanctuary
to see your strength and your glory.(S)
3 My lips will glorify you
because your faithful love is better than life.(T)
4 So I will bless you as long as I live;
at your name, I will lift up my hands.(U)
5 You satisfy me as with rich food;[c](V)
my mouth will praise you with joyful lips.(W)
Reign of the Davidic King
11 Then a shoot will grow from the stump of Jesse,(A)
and a branch(B) from his roots will bear fruit.
2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him(C)—
a Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
a Spirit of counsel and strength,
a Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
3 His delight will be in the fear of the Lord.
He will not judge
by what he sees with his eyes,(D)
he will not execute justice
by what he hears with his ears,
4 but he will judge the poor righteously(E)
and execute justice for the oppressed of the land.
He will strike the land
with a scepter[a] from his mouth,(F)
and he will kill the wicked(G)
with a command[b] from his lips.(H)
5 Righteousness will be a belt around his hips;(I)
faithfulness will be a belt around his waist.
6 The wolf will dwell with the lamb,(J)
and the leopard will lie down with the goat.
The calf, the young lion, and the fattened calf will be together,
and a child will lead them.
7 The cow and the bear will graze,
their young ones will lie down together,
and the lion will eat straw like cattle.
8 An infant will play beside the cobra’s pit,
and a toddler will put his hand into a snake’s den.
9 They will not harm or destroy each other
on my entire holy mountain,
for the land will be as full
of the knowledge of the Lord
as the sea is filled with water.(K)
Israel Regathered
10 On that day the root of Jesse(L)
will stand as a banner for the peoples.(M)
The nations will look to him for guidance,(N)
and his resting place will be glorious.(O)
11 On that day(P) the Lord will extend his hand a second time to recover the remnant of his people who survive—from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and the coasts and islands of the west.(Q)
12 He will lift up a banner for the nations
and gather the dispersed of Israel;(R)
he will collect the scattered of Judah
from the four corners of the earth.(S)
13 Ephraim’s envy will cease;(T)
Judah’s harassing will end.
Ephraim will no longer be envious of Judah,
and Judah will not harass Ephraim.
14 But they will swoop down
on the Philistine flank to the west.
Together they will plunder the people of the east.(U)
They will extend their power over Edom and Moab,
and the Ammonites will be their subjects.(V)
15 The Lord will divide[c][d] the Gulf of Suez.[e]
He will wave his hand over the Euphrates
with his mighty wind(W)
and will split it into seven streams,
letting people walk through on foot.
16 There will be a highway for the remnant of his people
who will survive from Assyria,(X)
as there was for Israel
when they came up from the land of Egypt.(Y)
A Song of Praise
12 On that day you will say:
“I will give thanks to you, Lord,
although you were angry with me.
Your anger has turned away,
and you have comforted me.(Z)
2 Indeed, God is my salvation;
I will trust him and not be afraid,
for the Lord, the Lord himself,
is my strength and my song.
He has become my salvation.”(AA)
3 You will joyfully draw water(AB)
from the springs of salvation,
4 and on that day you will say,
“Give thanks to the Lord; proclaim his name!
Make his works known among the peoples.(AC)
Declare that his name is exalted.
5 Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things.(AD)
Let this be known throughout the earth.
6 Cry out and sing, citizen of Zion,
for the Holy One of Israel(AE) is among you
in his greatness.”
Warning to the Rich
5 Come now, you rich(A) people, weep and wail over the miseries that are coming on you. 2 Your wealth has rotted and your clothes are moth-eaten.(B) 3 Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have stored up treasure in the last days.(C) 4 Look! The pay that you withheld from the workers(D) who mowed your fields cries out, and the outcry of the harvesters has reached the ears of the Lord of Armies.(E) 5 You have lived luxuriously on the earth and have indulged yourselves. You have fattened your hearts(F) in a day of slaughter.(G) 6 You have condemned, you have murdered the righteous, who does not resist you.(H)
Waiting for the Lord
7 Therefore, brothers and sisters, be patient until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth and is patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains.(I) 8 You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, because the Lord’s coming is near.(J)
9 Brothers and sisters, do not complain about one another, so that you will not be judged. Look, the judge stands at the door!(K)
10 Brothers and sisters, take the prophets who spoke in the Lord’s name as an example of suffering and patience. 11 See, we count as blessed those who have endured.[a] You have heard of Job’s endurance(L) and have seen the outcome that the Lord brought about—the Lord is compassionate and merciful.(M)
Truthful Speech
12 Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath.(N) But let your “yes” mean “yes,” and your “no” mean “no,” so that you won’t fall under judgment.[b]
Effective Prayer
13 Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone cheerful? He should sing praises.(O) 14 Is anyone among you sick? He should call for the elders of the church, and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.(P) 15 The prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up; if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.(Q) 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect.(R) 17 Elijah was a human being as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the land.(S) 18 Then he prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the land produced its fruit.(T)
19 My brothers and sisters, if any among you strays from the truth,(U) and someone turns him back,(V) 20 let that person know that whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.(W)
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