M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
How Priests Must Behave
21 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell these things to Aaron’s sons, the priests: ‘A priest must not make himself unclean by touching a dead person. 2 But if the dead person was one of his close relatives, he may touch him. The priest may make himself unclean if the dead person is his mother or father, son or daughter, brother or 3 unmarried sister. This sister is close to him because she has no husband. So the priest may make himself unclean for her if she dies. 4 But a priest must not make himself unclean if the dead person was only related to him by marriage.
5 “‘Priests must not shave their heads. They must not shave off the edges of their beards. They must not cut their bodies. 6 Priests must be holy to their God. They must show respect for God’s name. This is because they present the offerings made by fire to the Lord. This is the food of their God. So they must be holy.
7 “‘A priest serves God in a special way. So he must not marry an unclean prostitute or a divorced woman. 8 Treat the priest in a special way. Think of him as holy. This is because he offers up the food of your God. I am the Lord. I make you holy. And I am holy.
9 “‘If a priest’s daughter makes herself unclean by becoming a prostitute, she shames her father. She must be burned with fire.
10 “‘The high priest was chosen from among his brothers. The special olive oil used in appointing people and things to the service of the Lord was poured on his head. He was appointed to wear the priestly clothes. So he must not do things to show his sadness in public. He must not let his hair go uncombed. He must not tear his clothes. 11 He must not go into a house where there is a dead body. He must not make himself unclean, even if it is his own father or mother. 12 The high priest must not go out of the Holy Place. If he does and becomes unclean, he would make God’s Holy Place unclean. The special oil used in appointing priests was poured on the high priest’s head. This separated him from the rest of the people. I am the Lord.
13 “‘The high priest must marry a woman who is a virgin. 14 He must not marry a widow, a divorced woman or a prostitute. He must marry a virgin from his own people. 15 This is so the people will respect his children as his own. I am the Lord. I have set the high priest apart for his special job.’”
16 The Lord said to Moses, 17 “Tell Aaron: ‘Some of your descendants might have something wrong with them. If they do, they must never offer the special food of their God. 18 Anyone who has something wrong with him must not serve as priest. And he must not bring sacrifices to me. These people cannot serve as priests: blind men, crippled men, men with damaged faces, deformed men, 19 men with a crippled foot or hand, 20 hunchbacks, dwarfs, men who have something wrong with their eyes, men who have an itching disease or a skin disease or men who have damaged sex glands.
21 “‘One of Aaron’s descendants might have something wrong with him. If he does, he cannot make the offerings made by fire to the Lord. He has something wrong with him. He cannot offer the food of his God. 22 But he is from the family of priests. So he may eat the most holy food. He may also eat the holy food. 23 But he may not go through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. He may not go near the altar. He has something wrong with him. He must not make my Holy Place unfit. I am the Lord. I make these things holy.’”
24 So Moses told these things to Aaron, Aaron’s sons and all the people of Israel.
The Prayer of an Innocent Man
Of David.
26 Lord, defend me.
I have lived an innocent life.
I trusted the Lord and never doubted.
2 Lord, try me and test me.
Look closely into my heart and mind.
3 I see your love.
I live by your truth.
4 I do not spend time with liars.
I do not make friends with people who hide their sin.
5 I hate the company of evil people.
I won’t sit with the wicked.
6 I wash my hands to show I am innocent.
I come to your altar, Lord.
7 I raise my voice in praise.
I tell of all the miracles you have done.
8 Lord, I love the Temple where you live.
It is where your greatness is.
9 Do not kill me with those sinners.
Do not take my life with those murderers.
10 Evil is in their hands.
They do wrong for money.
11 But I have lived an innocent life.
So save me and be kind to me.
12 I stand in a safe place.
Lord, I praise you in the great meeting.
A Song of Trust in God
Of David.
27 The Lord is my light and the one who saves me.
So why should I fear anyone?
The Lord protects my life.
So why should I be afraid?
2 Evil people may try to destroy my body.
My enemies and those who hate me attack me.
But they are overwhelmed and defeated.
3 If an army surrounds me,
I will not be afraid.
If war breaks out,
I will trust the Lord.
4 I ask only one thing from the Lord.
This is what I want:
Let me live in the Lord’s house
all my life.
Let me see the Lord’s beauty.
Let me look around in his Temple.
5 During danger he will keep me safe in his shelter.
He will hide me in his Holy Tent.
Or he will keep me safe on a high mountain.
6 My head is higher
than my enemies around me.
I will offer joyful sacrifices in his Holy Tent.
I will sing and praise the Lord.
7 Lord, hear me when I call.
Be kind and answer me.
8 My heart said of you, “Go, worship him.”
So I come to worship you, Lord.
9 Do not turn away from me.
Do not turn your servant away in anger.
You have helped me.
Do not push me away or leave me alone,
God, my Savior.
10 If my father and mother leave me,
the Lord will take me in.
11 Lord, teach me your ways.
Guide me to do what is right
because I have enemies.
12 Do not let my enemies defeat me.
They tell lies about me.
They say they will hurt me.
13 I truly believe
I will live to see the Lord’s goodness.
14 Wait for the Lord’s help.
Be strong and brave
and wait for the Lord’s help.
Is It Better to Be Dead?
4 Again I saw all the people who were treated badly here on earth.
I saw their tears.
I saw that they had no one to comfort them.
Cruel people had all the power.
There was no one to comfort the people they hurt.
2 I decided that the dead
are better off than the living.
3 But those who have never been born
are better off still.
They have not seen the evil
that is done here on earth.
Why Work So Hard?
4 I realized the reason people work hard and try to succeed: They are jealous of each other. This, too, is useless. It is like chasing the wind.
5 Some say that it is foolish to fold your hands and do nothing.
You will starve to death!
6 Maybe so, but I say it is better to be content
with what little you have.
Otherwise, you will always be struggling for more.
That is like chasing the wind.
7 Again I saw something here on earth that was senseless:
8 I saw a person who had no family.
He had no son or brother.
He always worked hard.
But he was never satisfied with what he had.
He never asked himself, “For whom am I working so hard?
Why don’t I let myself enjoy life?”
This also is very sad and senseless.
Friends and Family Give Strength
9 Two people are better than one.
They get more done by working together.
10 If one person falls,
the other can help him up.
But it is bad for the person who is alone when he falls.
No one is there to help him.
11 If two lie down together, they will be warm.
But a person alone will not be warm.
12 An enemy might defeat one person,
but two people together can defend themselves.
A rope that has three parts wrapped together
is hard to break.
Fame and Power Are Useless
13 A young person may be poor but wise. He is better than a foolish, old king who doesn’t listen to advice. 14 I saw such a young person become king. He had been born poor in the kingdom. He had even gone to prison before becoming king. 15 I watched some of the people who live on earth follow him. They made him their king. 16 Yes, a great many people followed him at first. But later, they did not like him, either. So fame and power are shown to be useless. They are like chasing the wind.
6 All who are slaves should show full respect to their masters. Then no one will speak against God’s name and our teaching. 2 Some slaves have masters who are believers. This means they are all brothers. But the slaves should not show their masters any less respect. They should serve their masters even better, because they are helping believers they love.
False Teaching and True Riches
You must teach and preach these things. 3 If anyone has a different teaching, he does not accept the true teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ. And that teaching shows him the true way to serve God. 4 The person who teaches falsely is full of pride and understands nothing. He is sick with a love for arguing and fighting about words. And that brings jealousy, making trouble, insults, and evil mistrust. 5 And that also brings arguments from men who have evil minds. They have lost the truth. They think that serving God is a way to get rich.
6 It is true that serving God makes a person very rich, if he is satisfied with what he has. 7 When we came into the world, we brought nothing. And when we die, we can take nothing out. 8 So, if we have food and clothes, we will be satisfied with that. 9 Those who want to become rich bring temptation to themselves. They are caught in a trap. They begin to want many foolish things that will hurt them, things that ruin and destroy people. 10 The love of money causes all kinds of evil. Some people have left the true faith because they want to get more and more money. But they have caused themselves much sorrow.
Some Things to Remember
11 But you are a man of God. So you should stay away from all those things. Try to live in the right way, serve God, have faith, love, patience, and gentleness. 12 Keeping your faith is like running a race. Try as hard as you can to win. Be sure you receive the life that continues forever. You were called to have that life. And you confessed the great truth about Christ in a way that many people heard. 13 Before God and Christ Jesus I give you a command. Christ Jesus confessed that same great truth when he stood before Pontius Pilate. And God gives life to everything. Now I tell you: 14 Do the things you were commanded to do. Do them without wrong or blame until the time when our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. 15 God will make that happen at the right time. He is the blessed and only Ruler. He is the King of all kings and the Lord of all lords. 16 God is the only One who never dies. He lives in light so bright that men cannot go near it. No one has ever seen God, or can see him. May honor and power belong to God forever. Amen.
17 Give this command to those who are rich with things of this world. Tell them not to be proud. Tell them to hope in God, not their money. Money cannot be trusted, but God takes care of us richly. He gives us everything to enjoy. 18 Tell the rich people to do good and to be rich in doing good deeds. Tell them to be happy to give and ready to share. 19 By doing that, they will be saving a treasure for themselves in heaven. That treasure will be a strong foundation. Their future life can be built on that treasure. Then they will be able to have the life that is true life.
20 Timothy, God has trusted you with many things. Keep those things safe. Stay away from people who say foolish things that are not from God. Stay away from those who argue against the truth. They use something they call “knowledge,” but it is really not knowledge. 21 They say that they have that “knowledge,” but they have left the true faith.
God’s grace be with you.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.