M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
III. Third Address
Chapter 29
Past Favors Recalled. 1 Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, You have seen with your own eyes all that the Lord did in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his servants and to all his land, 2 the great testings your own eyes have seen, and those great signs and wonders.(A) 3 But the Lord has not given you a heart to understand, or eyes to see, or ears to hear until this day.(B) 4 (C)I led you for forty years in the wilderness. Your clothes did not fall from you in tatters nor your sandals from your feet; 5 it was not bread that you ate, nor wine or beer that you drank—so that you might know that I, the Lord, am your God. 6 (D)When you came to this place, Sihon, king of Heshbon, and Og, king of Bashan, came out to engage us in battle, but we defeated them 7 and took their land, and gave it as a heritage to the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.(E) 8 Observe carefully the words of this covenant, therefore, in order that you may succeed in whatever you do.(F)
All Israel Bound by Covenant. 9 You are standing today, all of you, in the presence of the Lord, your God—your tribal heads, elders, and officials, all of the men of Israel, 10 your children, your wives, and the resident alien who lives in your camp, from those who cut wood to those who draw water for you— 11 to enter into the covenant of the Lord, your God, which the Lord, your God, is making with you today, with its curse, 12 so that he may establish you today as his people and he may be your God, as he promised you and as he swore to your ancestors, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 13 (G)But it is not with you alone that I am making this covenant, with its curse, 14 but with those who are standing here with us today in the presence of the Lord, our God, and with those who are not here with us[a] today.
Warning Against Idolatry. 15 You know that we lived in the land of Egypt and that we passed through the nations, that you too passed through 16 and saw the loathsome things and idols of wood and stone, of gold and silver, that they possess. 17 There may be among you a man or woman, or a clan or tribe, whose heart is now turning away from the Lord, our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations; there may be among you a root bearing poison and wormwood; 18 if any such persons, after hearing the words of this curse, should congratulate themselves, saying in their hearts, “I am safe, even though I walk in stubbornness of heart,” thereby sweeping away moist and dry alike,[b](H) 19 the Lord will never consent to pardon them. Instead, the Lord’s burning wrath will flare up against them; every curse written in this book will pounce on them, and the Lord will blot out their names from under the heavens.(I) 20 The Lord will single them out from all the tribes of Israel for doom, in keeping with all the curses of the covenant written in this book of the law.
Punishment for Idolatry. 21 (J)Future generations, your descendants who will rise up after you, as well as the foreigners who will come here from distant lands, when they see the calamities of this land and the ills the Lord has inflicted upon it— 22 all its soil burned out by sulphur and salt, unsown and unfruitful, without a blade of grass, like the catastrophe of Sodom and Gomorrah,(K) Admah and Zeboiim,[c] which the Lord overthrew in his furious wrath— 23 (L)they and all the nations will ask, “Why has the Lord dealt thus with this land? Why this great outburst of wrath?” 24 And they will say, “Because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord, the God of their ancestors, which he had made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt, 25 and they went and served other gods and bowed down to them, gods whom they did not know and whom he had not apportioned to them.(M) 26 (N)So the anger of the Lord flared up against this land and brought on it every curse written in this book. 27 The Lord uprooted them from their soil in anger, fury, and great wrath, and cast them out into another land, as they are today.” 28 The hidden things[d] belong to the Lord our God, but the revealed things are for us and for our children forever, to observe all the words of this law.
Zayin
49 Remember your word to your servant
by which you give me hope.
50 This is my comfort in affliction,
your promise that gives me life.
51 Though the arrogant utterly scorn me,
I do not turn from your law.
52 When I recite your judgments of old
I am comforted, Lord.
53 Rage seizes me because of the wicked;
they forsake your law.
54 Your statutes become my songs
wherever I make my home.
55 Even at night I remember your name
in observance of your law, Lord.
56 This is my good fortune,
for I have kept your precepts.
Heth
57 My portion is the Lord;
I promise to observe your words.
58 I entreat you with all my heart:
have mercy on me in accord with your promise.
59 I have examined my ways
and turned my steps to your testimonies.
60 I am prompt, I do not hesitate
in observing your commandments.
61 Though the snares of the wicked surround me,
your law I do not forget.
62 At midnight I rise to praise you
because of your righteous judgments.
63 I am the friend of all who fear you,
of all who observe your precepts.
64 The earth, Lord, is filled with your mercy;(A)
teach me your statutes.
Teth
65 You have treated your servant well,
according to your word, O Lord.
66 Teach me wisdom and knowledge,
for in your commandments I trust.
67 Before I was afflicted I went astray,
but now I hold to your promise.
68 You are good and do what is good;
teach me your statutes.
69 The arrogant smear me with lies,
but I keep your precepts with all my heart.
70 Their hearts are gross and fat;(B)
as for me, your law is my delight.
71 It was good for me to be afflicted,
in order to learn your statutes.
72 The law of your mouth is more precious to me
than heaps of silver and gold.
III. Isaiah 56—66
Chapter 56
Salvation for the Just[a]
1 [b]Thus says the Lord:
Observe what is right, do what is just,
for my salvation is about to come,
my justice, about to be revealed.(A)
2 Happy is the one who does this,
whoever holds fast to it:
Keeping the sabbath without profaning it,
keeping one’s hand from doing any evil.(B)
Obligations and Promises to Share in the Covenant
3 [c]The foreigner joined to the Lord should not say,
“The Lord will surely exclude me from his people”;
Nor should the eunuch say,
“See, I am a dry tree.”(C)
4 For thus says the Lord:
To the eunuchs who keep my sabbaths,
who choose what pleases me,
and who hold fast to my covenant,(D)
5 I will give them, in my house
and within my walls, a monument and a name[d]
Better than sons and daughters;
an eternal name, which shall not be cut off, will I give them.
6 And foreigners who join themselves to the Lord,
to minister to him,
To love the name of the Lord,
to become his servants—
All who keep the sabbath without profaning it
and hold fast to my covenant,
7 [e]Them I will bring to my holy mountain
and make them joyful in my house of prayer;
Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
will be acceptable on my altar,
For my house shall be called
a house of prayer for all peoples.(E)
8 [f]Oracle of the Lord God,
who gathers the dispersed of Israel—
Others will I gather to them
besides those already gathered.(F)
Unworthy Shepherds[g]
9 All you beasts of the field,[h]
come to devour,
all you beasts in the forest!(G)
10 [i]All the sentinels of Israel are blind,
they are without knowledge;
They are all mute dogs,
unable to bark;
Dreaming, reclining,
loving their sleep.
11 Yes, the dogs have a ravenous appetite;
they never know satiety,
Shepherds who have no understanding;
all have turned their own way,
each one covetous for gain:
12 “Come, let me bring wine;
let us fill ourselves with strong drink,
And tomorrow will be like today,
or even greater.”(H)
Chapter 4
The Temptation of Jesus. 1 [a](A)Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. 2 (B)He fasted for forty days and forty nights,[b] and afterwards he was hungry. 3 The tempter approached and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.” 4 [c]He said in reply, “It is written:(C)
‘One does not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.’”
5 [d]Then the devil took him to the holy city, and made him stand on the parapet of the temple, 6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written:
‘He will command his angels concerning you’
and ‘with their hands they will support you,
lest you dash your foot against a stone.’”(D)
7 Jesus answered him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.’”(E) 8 Then the devil took him up to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence, 9 and he said to him, “All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.”[e] 10 At this, Jesus said to him, “Get away, Satan! It is written:
‘The Lord, your God, shall you worship
and him alone shall you serve.’”(F)
11 Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered to him.
The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry.[f] 12 (G)When he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali,(H) 14 that what had been said through Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled:
15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,(I)
the way to the sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles,
16 the people who sit in darkness
have seen a great light,
on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death
light has arisen.”(J)
17 [g]From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say,(K) “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
The Call of the First Disciples.[h] 18 (L)As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. 19 He said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 [i]At once they left their nets and followed him. 21 He walked along from there and saw two other brothers, James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat, with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. He called them, 22 and immediately they left their boat and their father and followed him.
Ministering to a Great Multitude.[j] 23 He went around all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,[k] proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness among the people.(M) 24 [l]His fame spread to all of Syria, and they brought to him all who were sick with various diseases and racked with pain, those who were possessed, lunatics, and paralytics, and he cured them. 25 (N)And great crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis,[m] Jerusalem, and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan followed him.
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