M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Clothes for the Priests
28 “Have your brother Aaron brought to you from among the Israelites. His sons Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar must also be brought. They will serve me as priests. 2 Make sacred clothes for your brother Aaron. When he is wearing them, people will honor him. They will have respect for him. 3 Speak to all the skilled workers. I have given them the skill to do this kind of work. Tell them to make clothes for Aaron. He will wear them when he is set apart to serve me as priest. 4 The workers must make a chest cloth, a linen apron and an outer robe. They must also make an inner robe, a turban and a belt. They must make sacred clothes for your brother Aaron and his sons. Then they will serve me as priests. 5 Have the workers use thin gold wire, and blue, purple and bright red yarn, and fine linen.
The Linen Apron
6 “Make the linen apron out of thin gold wire, and out of blue, purple and bright red yarn, and out of finely twisted linen. Have a skilled worker make it. 7 It must have two shoulder straps joined to two of its corners. 8 Its skillfully made waistband must be like the apron. The waistband must be part of the apron itself. Make the waistband out of thin gold wire, and out of blue, purple and bright red yarn, and out of finely twisted linen.
9 “Get two onyx stones. Carve the names of the sons of Israel on them. 10 Arrange them in the order of their birth. Carve six names on one stone and six on the other. 11 Carve the names of the sons of Israel on the two stones the way a jewel cutter would carve them. Then put the stones in fancy gold settings. 12 Connect them to the shoulder straps of the linen apron. The stones will stand for the sons of Israel. Aaron must carry the names on his shoulders as a constant reminder while he is serving the Lord. 13 Make fancy gold settings. 14 Make two braided chains out of pure gold. Make them like ropes. Join the chains to the settings.
The Chest Cloth
15 “Make a chest cloth that will be used for making decisions. Have a skilled worker make it. Make it like the linen apron. Use thin gold wire, and blue, purple and bright red yarn, and finely twisted linen. 16 Make it nine inches square. Fold it in half. 17 Put four rows of valuable jewels on it. Put carnelian, chrysolite and beryl in the first row. 18 Put turquoise, lapis lazuli and emerald in the second row. 19 Put jacinth, agate and amethyst in the third row. 20 And put topaz, onyx and jasper in the fourth row. Put them in fancy gold settings. 21 Use a total of 12 stones. Use one for each of the names of the sons of Israel. Each stone must be carved with the name of one of the 12 tribes.
22 “Make braided chains out of pure gold for the chest cloth. Make them like ropes. 23 Make two gold rings for the chest cloth. Connect them to two corners of it. 24 Join the two gold chains to the rings at the corners of the chest cloth. 25 Join the other ends of the chains to the two settings. Join them to the shoulder straps on the front of the linen apron. 26 Make two gold rings. Connect them to the other two corners of the chest cloth. Put them on the inside edge next to the apron. 27 Make two more gold rings. Connect them to the bottom of the shoulder straps on the front of the apron. Put them close to the seam. Put them right above the waistband of the apron. 28 The rings of the chest cloth must be tied to the rings of the apron. Tie them to the waistband with blue cord. Then the chest cloth will not swing out from the linen apron.
29 “When Aaron enters the Holy Room, he will carry the names of the sons of Israel over his heart. Their names will be on the chest cloth of decision. They will be a continuing reminder while he is serving the Lord. 30 Also put the Urim and Thummim into the chest cloth. Then they will be over Aaron’s heart when he comes to serve the Lord. In that way, Aaron will always have what he needs to make decisions for the people of Israel. He will carry the Urim and Thummim over his heart while he is serving the Lord.
More Clothes for the Priests
31 “Make the outer robe of the linen apron completely out of blue cloth. 32 In the center of the robe, make an opening for the head of the priest. Make an edge like a collar around the opening. Then it will not tear. 33 Make pomegranates out of blue, purple and bright red yarn. Sew them around the hem of the robe. Sew gold bells between them. 34 Sew a gold bell between every two pomegranates all around the hem of the robe. 35 Aaron must wear the robe when he serves as priest. The bells will jingle when he enters the Holy Room while he is serving the Lord. And they will jingle when he goes out. Then he will not die.
36 “Make a plate out of pure gold. Carve words on it as if it were an official seal. Carve the words
Set Apart for the Lord.
37 Tie the plate to the front of the turban with a blue cord. 38 Aaron must wear this plate on his forehead all the time. He will be held responsible for all the sacred gifts the Israelites set apart. Then the Lord will accept the gifts.
39 “Make the inner robe out of fine linen. And make the turban out of fine linen. The belt must be made by a person who sews skillfully. 40 Make inner robes, belts and caps for Aaron’s sons. When they are wearing them, people will honor his sons. They will also have respect for them. 41 Put all these clothes on your brother Aaron and his sons. Then pour olive oil on them and prepare them to serve me. Set them apart to serve me as priests.
42 “Make linen underwear that reaches from the waist to the thigh. 43 Aaron and the priests in his family line must wear it when they enter the tent of meeting. They must also wear it when they approach the altar to serve in the Holy Room. Then they will not be found guilty and die.
“For all time to come, that will be a law for Aaron and the priests in his family line.
Jesus Goes to the Feast of Booths
7 After this, Jesus went around in Galilee. He didn’t want to travel around in Judea. That was because the Jewish leaders there were looking for a way to kill him. 2 The Jewish Feast of Booths was near. 3 Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave Galilee and go to Judea. Then your disciples there will see the works that you do. 4 No one who wants to be well known does things in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” 5 Even Jesus’ own brothers did not believe in him.
6 So Jesus told them, “The time for me to show who I really am is not here yet. For you, any time would be the right time. 7 The people of the world can’t hate you. But they hate me. This is because I am a witness that their works are evil. 8 You go to the feast. I am not going up to this feast. This is because my time has not yet fully come.” 9 After he said this, he stayed in Galilee.
10 But when his brothers had left for the feast, he went also. But he went secretly, not openly. 11 At the feast the Jewish leaders were watching for Jesus. They were asking, “Where is he?”
12 Many people in the crowd were whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.”
Others replied, “No. He fools the people.” 13 But no one would say anything about him openly. They were afraid of the leaders.
Jesus Teaches at the Feast
14 Jesus did nothing until halfway through the feast. Then he went up to the temple courtyard and began to teach. 15 The Jews there were amazed. They asked, “How did this man learn so much without being taught?”
16 Jesus answered, “What I teach is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. 17 Here is how someone can find out whether my teaching comes from God or from me. That person must choose to do what God wants them to do. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does it to get personal honor. But someone who works for the honor of the one who sent him is truthful. Nothing about him is false. 19 Didn’t Moses give you the law? But not one of you obeys the law. Why are you trying to kill me?”
20 “You are controlled by demons,” the crowd answered. “Who is trying to kill you?”
21 Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle, and you are all amazed. 22 Moses gave you circumcision, and so you circumcise a child on the Sabbath day. But circumcision did not really come from Moses. It came from Abraham. 23 You circumcise a boy on the Sabbath day. You think that if you do, you won’t break the law of Moses. Then why are you angry with me? I healed a man’s entire body on the Sabbath day! 24 Stop judging only by what you see. Judge in the right way.”
People Don’t Agree About Who Jesus Is
25 Then some of the people of Jerusalem began asking questions. They said, “Isn’t this the man some people are trying to kill? 26 Here he is! He is speaking openly. They aren’t saying a word to him. Have the authorities really decided that he is the Messiah? 27 But we know where this man is from. When the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.”
28 Jesus was still teaching in the temple courtyard. He cried out, “Yes, you know me. And you know where I am from. I am not here on my own authority. The one who sent me is true. You do not know him. 29 But I know him. I am from him, and he sent me.”
30 When he said this, they tried to arrest him. But no one laid a hand on him. The time for him to show who he really was had not yet come. 31 Still, many people in the crowd believed in him. They said, “How will it be when the Messiah comes? Will he do more signs than this man?”
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering things like this about him. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him.
33 Jesus said, “I am with you for only a short time. Then I will go to the one who sent me. 34 You will look for me, but you won’t find me. You can’t come where I am going.”
35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man plan to go? Does he think we can’t find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks? Will he go there to teach the Greeks? 36 What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you won’t find me’? And what did he mean when he said, ‘You can’t come where I am going’?”
37 It was the last and most important day of the feast. Jesus stood up and spoke in a loud voice. He said, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Does anyone believe in me? Then, just as Scripture says, rivers of living water will flow from inside them.” 39 When he said this, he meant the Holy Spirit. Those who believed in Jesus would receive the Spirit later. Up to that time, the Spirit had not been given. This was because Jesus had not yet received glory.
40 The people heard his words. Some of them said, “This man must be the Prophet we’ve been expecting.”
41 Others said, “He is the Messiah.”
Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee? 42 Doesn’t Scripture say that the Messiah will come from the family line of David? Doesn’t it say that he will come from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?” 43 So the people did not agree about who Jesus was. 44 Some wanted to arrest him. But no one laid a hand on him.
The Jewish Leaders Do Not Believe
45 Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and the Pharisees. They asked the guards, “Why didn’t you bring him in?”
46 “No one ever spoke the way this man does,” the guards replied.
47 “You mean he has fooled you also?” the Pharisees asked. 48 “Have any of the rulers or Pharisees believed in him? 49 No! But this mob knows nothing about the law. There is a curse on them.”
50 Then Nicodemus, a Pharisee, spoke. He was the one who had gone to Jesus earlier. He asked, 51 “Does our law find a man guilty without hearing him first? Doesn’t it want to find out what he is doing?”
52 They replied, “Are you from Galilee too? Look into it. You will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee.”
53 Then they all went home.
Get Wisdom at Any Cost
4 My sons, listen to a father’s teaching.
Pay attention and gain understanding.
2 I give you good advice.
So don’t turn away from what I teach you.
3 I, too, was once a young boy in my father’s house.
And my mother loved me deeply.
4 Then my father taught me.
He said to me, “Take hold of my words with all your heart.
Keep my commands, and you will live.
5 Get wisdom, and get understanding.
Don’t forget my words or turn away from them.
6 Stay close to wisdom, and she will keep you safe.
Love her, and she will watch over you.
7 To start being wise you must first get wisdom.
No matter what it costs, get understanding.
8 Value wisdom highly, and she will lift you up.
Hold her close, and she will honor you.
9 She will set a beautiful crown on your head.
She will give you a glorious crown.”
10 My son, listen. Accept what I say.
Then you will live for many years.
11 I instruct you in the way of wisdom.
I lead you along straight paths.
12 When you walk, nothing will slow you down.
When you run, you won’t trip and fall.
13 Hold on to my teaching and don’t let it go.
Guard it well, because it is your life.
14 Don’t take the path of evil people.
Don’t live the way sinners do.
15 Stay away from their path and don’t travel on it.
Turn away from it and go on your way.
16 Sinners can’t rest until they do what is evil.
They can’t sleep until they make someone sin.
17 They do evil just as easily as they eat food.
They hurt others as easily as they drink wine.
18 The path of those who do right is like the sun in the morning.
It shines brighter and brighter until the full light of day.
19 But the way of those who do what is wrong is like deep darkness.
They don’t know what makes them trip and fall.
20 My son, pay attention to what I say.
Listen closely to my words.
21 Don’t let them out of your sight.
Keep them in your heart.
22 They are life to those who find them.
They are health to a person’s whole body.
23 Above everything else, guard your heart.
Everything you do comes from it.
24 Don’t speak with twisted words.
Keep evil talk away from your lips.
25 Let your eyes look straight ahead.
Keep looking right in front of you.
26 Think carefully about the paths that your feet walk on.
Always choose the right ways.
27 Don’t turn to the right or left.
Keep your feet from the path of evil.
Faith or Obeying the Law
3 You foolish people of Galatia! Who has put you under an evil spell? When I preached, I clearly showed you that Jesus Christ had been nailed to the cross. 2 I would like to learn just one thing from you. Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law? Or did you receive the Spirit by believing what you heard? 3 Are you so foolish? You began by the Holy Spirit. Are you now trying to finish God’s work in you by your own strength? 4 Have you experienced so much for nothing? And was it really for nothing? 5 So I ask you again, how does God give you his Spirit? How does he work miracles among you? Is it by doing what the law says? Or is it by believing what you have heard? 6 In the same way, Abraham “believed God. God was pleased with Abraham because he believed. So his faith made him right with God.” (Genesis 15:6)
7 So you see, those who have faith are children of Abraham. 8 Long ago, Scripture knew that God would make the Gentiles right with himself. He would do this by their faith in him. He announced the good news ahead of time to Abraham. God said, “All nations will be blessed because of you.” (Genesis 12:3; 18:18; 22:18) 9 So those who depend on faith are blessed along with Abraham. He was the man of faith.
10 All who depend on obeying the law are under a curse. It is written, “May everyone who doesn’t continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law be under God’s curse.” (Deuteronomy 27:26) 11 We know that no one who depends on the law is made right with God. This is because “the one who is right with God will live by faith.” (Habakkuk 2:4) 12 The law is not based on faith. In fact, it is just the opposite. It teaches that “the person who does these things will live by them.” (Leviticus 18:5) 13 Christ set us free from the curse of the law. He did it by becoming a curse for us. It is written, “Everyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse.” (Deuteronomy 21:23) 14 Christ Jesus set us free so that the blessing given to Abraham would come to the Gentiles through Christ. He did it so that we might receive the promise of the Holy Spirit. The promised Spirit comes by believing in Christ.
The Law and the Promise
15 Brothers and sisters, let me give you an example from everyday life. No one can get rid of an official agreement between people. No one can add to it. It can’t be changed after it has been made. It is the same with God’s covenant agreement. 16 The promises were given to Abraham. They were also given to his seed. Scripture does not say, “and to seeds.” That means many people. It says, “and to your seed.” (Genesis 12:7; 13:15; 24:7) That means one person. And that one person is Christ. 17 Here is what I mean. The law came 430 years after the promise. But the law does not get rid of God’s covenant and promise. The covenant had already been made by God. So the law does not do away with the promise. 18 The great gift that God has for us does not depend on the law. If it did, it would no longer depend on the promise. But God gave it to Abraham as a free gift through a promise.
19 Then why was the law given at all? It was added because of human sin. And it was supposed to control us until the promised Seed had come. The law was given through angels, and a go-between was put in charge of it. 20 A go-between means that there is more than one side to an agreement. But God didn’t use a go-between when he made his promise to Abraham.
21 So is the law opposed to God’s promises? Certainly not! What if a law had been given that could give life? Then people could become right with God by obeying the law. 22 But Scripture has locked up everything under the control of sin. It does so in order that what was promised might be given to those who believe. The promise comes through faith in Jesus Christ.
Children of God
23 Before faith in Christ came, we were guarded by the law. We were locked up until this faith was made known. 24 So the law was put in charge of us until Christ came. He came so that we might be made right with God by believing in Christ. 25 But now faith in Christ has come. So the law is no longer in charge of us.
26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God by believing in Christ. 27 This is because all of you who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. You have put him on as if he were your clothes. 28 There is no Jew or Gentile. There is no slave or free person. There is no male or female. That’s because you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 You who belong to Christ are Abraham’s seed. So you will receive what God has promised.
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.