M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Chapter 24
1 When Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not go to seek omens as he did before, but rather faced the wilderness. 2 Balaam raised his eyes and he saw Israel camped tribe by tribe. The Spirit of God came upon him[a] 3 and he took up his oracle:
“The oracle of Balaam, the son of Beor,
the oracle of one whose eye is opened.[b]
4 The oracle of one who hears the words of God,
who sees a vision of the Almighty;
who falls down, with eyes wide open.
5 How pleasant are your tents, O Jacob,
and your dwelling places, O Israel.
6 Like valleys they spread out,
like gardens beside a river;
like aloes that the Lord has planted,
like cedars beside the waters;
7 like water that pours forth from buckets,
their seed will be mighty waters.
Their king will be higher than Agag,[c]
their kingdom will be exalted.
8 God has brought them forth from Egypt,
their strength is that of the wild ox.
They will devour nations,
they will break the bones of their enemies,
they will pierce them through with their arrows.
9 He crouches down, he lay down like a lion; who dare rouse him?
Blessed is the one who blesses him,
but cursed is the one who curses him.”
10 Balak became enraged at Balaam. Balak clasped his hands together and said to Balaam, “I summoned you to curse my enemies, but you have blessed them these three times. 11 Now then, leave and go home. I told you that I would reward you richly, but the Lord has kept you from being paid.”
12 But Balaam said to Balak, “Did I not tell your messengers who sent for me, 13 ‘If Balak were to give me a house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the Lord on my own either for good or for bad. Whatever the Lord proclaims, that I must speak!’ 14 Now I am going back to my own people; come, allow me to let you know what this people will do to your people in the future.”
15 Balaam’s Fourth Oracle. So he took up the oracle and said,
“Balaam, the son of Beor,
the man whose eyes are open says,
16 The oracle of he
who has heard the words of God,
who has knowledge of the Most High,
who sees the vision of the Almighty,
who falls down with his eyes open:
17 [d]I see him, but not now.
I behold him, but not near.
A star comes forth from Jacob,
and a scepter rises out of Israel.
He will crush the brow of Moab,
he will destroy the children of Seth.
18 Edom[e] will become a possession,
and Seir also will become a possession of its enemies,
but Israel will grow strong.
19 A ruler will come out of Jacob,
he will destroy the remnant of the city.”
20 He then looked toward Amalek and said,
“Amalek was the first of the nations,
but he will be the last until he perishes.”
21 He looked upon the Kenites[f] and took up his oracle and said,
“Strong is your dwelling place,
and your nest is in the rock;
22 but Kain will be consumed.
How long until Asshur[g] carries you away as a captive?”
23 He continued his oracle saying,
“Alas, who can live when God does this?
24 Ships will come from Kittim,
and will humble Asshur and Eber.
They, too, will face destruction.”
25 Then Balaam got up and went home, and Balak also went his way.
Psalm 66[a]
Thanksgiving for God’s Deliverance
1 For the director.[b] A song. A psalm.
Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;[c]
2 sing to the glory of his name;[d]
offer to him glorious praise.
3 Say to God: “How awesome are your deeds!
Because of your great power,
your enemies grovel before you.
4 The whole earth bows down in worship before you,
singing praises to you,
singing praises to your name.” Selah
5 Come and behold[e] the works of God,
the awesome deeds he has done for people.
6 He changed the sea into dry land;
they crossed the river[f] on foot.
There we rejoiced in him,
7 for he rules forever by his power.
His eyes keep watch over the nations
so that the rebellious not exalt themselves. Selah
8 [g]Bless our God, all you peoples;
let the sound of his praise be heard.
9 For he has preserved our lives[h]
and has kept our feet from stumbling.
10 For you, O God, have put us to the test;
you have purified us as silver is refined.
11 [i]You allowed us to be snared in the net
and placed heavy burdens on our backs.
12 You let our captors ride over our heads,[j]
and we went through fire and water,
but now you have afforded us relief.
13 [k]I will enter your house with burnt offerings
and carry out my vows to you,
14 the vows that my lips pronounced
and my mouth promised when I was in distress.
15 I will offer burnt offerings of fat animals
with the smoke of burning rams;
I will sacrifice to you bulls and goats. Selah
16 Come and listen, all you who fear God,
while I relate what he has done for me.
17 [l]I lifted up my voice in prayer to him;
his praise[m] was on my tongue.
18 [n]If I had harbored evil in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened.
19 But God truly did listen,
and he was attentive to the words of my prayer.
20 Blessed[o] be God,
because he did not reject my prayer
or withhold his kindness from me.
Psalm 67[p]
Prayer That All May Worship God
1 For the director.[q] With stringed instruments. A psalm. A song.
2 O God, be gracious to us and bless us
and let your face shine upon us.[r] Selah
3 [s]Then your ways will be known on earth
and your salvation among all nations.
4 Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.
5 Let the nations rejoice and exult,
for you judge the peoples fairly
and guide the nations upon the earth.[t] Selah
6 Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.
7 The earth has yielded its harvest;
God, our God, has blessed us.
8 May God continue to bless us
and be revered to the ends of the earth.
Chapter 14
Taunting the King of Babylon. 1 The Lord will have compassion on Jacob, and he will once again choose Israel. He will resettle them on their native soil, where foreigners will join them and attach themselves to the house of Jacob. 2 Nations will take them and escort them to their homeland, and the house of Israel will accept them as male and female slaves in the Lord’s land. The house of Israel will also enslave those who had enslaved them and will rule her oppressors.
3 [a]When that day arrives that the Lord affords you relief from your suffering and trouble and from the cruel servitude that had been imposed upon you, 4 you will take up this taunt-song against the king of Babylon:
Behold how the oppressor has come to an end!
Behold how his arrogance has ceased!
5 The Lord has broken the rod of the wicked,
the scepter of rulers,
6 that struck down the peoples in wrath,
inflicting continuous blows,
and that furiously crushed the nations
with relentless persecution.
7 The entire world is at rest and peaceful;
shouts of joy resound.
8 The cypresses exult over you,
as do the cedars of Lebanon, saying,
“Now that you have been laid low,
no one approaches to cut us down.”[b]
9 The netherworld below is all astir
to greet you upon your arrival.
To welcome you it aroused the departed spirits,
all the rulers of the earth.
It raised from their thrones
all those who were kings of the nations.
10 All of them will speak out
and greet you with these words,
“You too have become as weak as we are.
You have become like us.”
11 Your pomp has descended to the netherworld
along with the music of your harps.
Maggots compose the mattress upon which you lie,
and worms serve as your blanket.
12 To what depths have you fallen from the heavens,
O morning star, son of the dawn!
How you have been cut down to the ground,
you who laid the nations low!
13 You used to say in your heart,
“I will scale the heavens.
I will raise my throne
above the stars of God.
I will sit on the Mountain of Assembly,
in the far recesses of the north.
14 I will ascend above the highest clouds;
I will be like the Most High.”
15 Instead you have been hurled down to the netherworld,
to the depths of the abyss.
16 Those who see you will stare at you,
and as they do so they will wonder,
“Is this the man who made the earth tremble
and overthrew kingdoms,
17 who turned the world into a desert,
laid its cities in ruins,
and refused to let his prisoners return home?”
18 All the kings of the nations lie in honor,
each one in his own tomb.
19 But you have been cast out without burial,
like some loathsome piece of flesh;
you are covered with the dead,
with those pierced by the sword
who descend to the rocks of the abyss.
20 You will never be buried with those kings
because you have destroyed your land
and brought death to your people.
The offspring of the wicked
will never again be mentioned.
21 Make ready to slaughter his sons
because of the guilt of their father.
Let them never again rise to possess the earth
and cover the face of the earth with their cities.
22 I will rise up against them, says the Lord of hosts, and I will deprive Babylon of her name and remnant, her offspring and posterity, says the Lord. 23 I will cause it to become a haunt of the hedgehogs and a marshland; I will sweep it with the broom of destruction, says the Lord of hosts.
Assyria[c]
24 The Lord of hosts has sworn:
As I have resolved, so will it be;
as I have planned, so will it come to pass.
25 I will break the Assyrian in my land
and trample him underfoot on my mountains;
his yoke will be lifted from my people,
and his burden will be removed from their shoulders.
26 This is the plan that the Lord has prepared
for the entire world,
and this is the hand that he has outstretched
over all the nations.
27 For the Lord of hosts has devised this plan;
who can thwart it?
His hand is outstretched;
who can turn it back?
28 Philistia. In the year that King Ahaz died, this oracle was proclaimed:
29 Let not a single one of you rejoice, O Philistia,
that the rod that struck you is broken.
For from the root of a snake will be born a viper,
and its fruit will be a flying serpent.
30 The poor of my people will eat in my pasture,
and the destitute will lie down in safety.
But I will make your offspring die of hunger,
and I will then slay the remnant.
31 Howl, O gate! Cry out, O city!
Let all Philistia be stricken with fear!
For a mighty foe is coming from the north,
without a single straggler in its ranks.
32 What reply will then be given
to the envoys of that nation?
“The Lord has established Zion,
and the afflicted of his people
will find refuge in her.”
Chapter 2
1 Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, and all deceit, hypocrisy, and envy, and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, long for pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may advance on the path to salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
The Mystery of the Church.[a] 4 Come to him, a living stone, rejected by men but chosen by God and precious. 5 You, too, are like living stones, being built up into a spiritual temple and a holy priesthood[b] to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it states in Scripture,
“See, I am laying a stone in Zion,
a cornerstone chosen and precious.
Whoever believes in it
will not be put to shame.”
7 Therefore, it is precious to you who believe. However, for those who do not believe,
“The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone,”
8 and
“A stone that makes them stumble,
and a rock that makes them fall.”
They stumble because they disobey the word—for this they were born.[c]
9 But you are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people claimed by God as his own possession,” so that you may proclaim the praise of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
10 Once you were not a people,
but now you are God’s people.
Once you had not received mercy,
but now you have received mercy.
God’s People in a Hostile World[d]
11 Lead a Good Life amidst Pagans.[e] Beloved, I urge you as aliens and exiles not to succumb to the desires of the flesh that wage war against the soul. 12 Conduct yourselves honorably among the Gentiles so that, although they now malign you as evildoers, they may observe your good works and glorify God on the day of visitation.
13 Christianity Is Not a Subversive Group.[f] For the Lord’s sake, submit to every human institution, whether of the emperor as supreme 14 or of governors as sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do good works. 15 For it is the will of God that by doing right you should silence the ignorant talk of fools.
16 As servants of God, behave as free people, but do not use your freedom as a means to cover up wrongdoing. 17 Give due honor to everyone. Love your fellow believers. Fear God. Honor the emperor.
18 Recommendations for Slaves.[g] Slaves, submit to your masters with due respect, not only to those who are kind and forbearing but also to those who are harsh. 19 It is a sign of grace if you endure the pain of unjust suffering because of your awareness of God.
20 What credit do you deserve if you are patient when you are beaten for doing wrong? However, if you are patient when you do what is right and suffer for it, you have earned merit with God.
21 [h]This, in fact, is what you have been called to do, because Christ himself suffered for you and left an example for you to follow in his footsteps.
22 He committed no sin,[i]
and no deceit was found on his lips.
23 When he was abused, he did not retaliate. When he suffered, he made no threats, but he placed his trust in the one who judges justly. 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live in righteousness.
By his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were like sheep who had gone astray, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.[j]
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