M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Rewards for Obeying the Lord
26 “ ‘Do not make statues of gods for yourselves. Do not set up a likeness of a god or a sacred stone for yourselves. Do not place a carved stone in your land and bow down in front of it. I am the Lord your God.
2 “ ‘You must always keep my Sabbath days. Have respect for my sacred tent. I am the Lord.
3 “ ‘Follow my rules. Be careful to obey my commands. 4 Then I will send you rain at the right time. The ground will produce its crops. The trees will bear their fruit. 5 You will continue to harvest your grain until you gather your grapes. You will continue to gather your grapes until you plant your crops. You will have all you want to eat. And you will live in safety in your land.
6 “ ‘I will give you peace in the land. You will be able to sleep because no one will make you afraid. I will remove wild animals from the land. There will not be any war in your country. 7 You will hunt down your enemies. You will kill them with your swords. 8 Five of you will chase 100. And 100 of you will chase 10,000. You will kill your enemies with your swords.
9 “ ‘I will bless you. I will give you many children so that there will be many of you. And I will be faithful to the covenant I made with you. 10 You will still be eating last year’s crops when you will have to make room for new crops. 11 I will live among you. I will not turn away from you. 12 I will walk among you. I will be your God. And you will be my people. 13 I am the Lord your God. I brought you out of Egypt. I did not want you to be slaves in Egypt anymore. I threw off your heavy load. I helped you walk with your heads held high.
Punishment for Not Obeying the Lord
14 “ ‘On the other hand, suppose you do not listen to me. Suppose you do not carry out all my commands. 15 Suppose you say no to my rules and turn away from my laws. And suppose you break my covenant by failing to carry out all my commands. 16 Then here is what I will do to you. All at once I will bring terror on you. I will send sicknesses that will make you weak. I will send fever that will destroy your sight. It will slowly take your strength away. When you plant seeds, it will not do you any good. Instead, your enemies will eat what you have planted. 17 I will turn against you. Then your enemies will win the battle over you. Those who hate you will rule over you. You will run away even when no one is chasing you.
18 “ ‘After all that, suppose you still will not listen to me. Then I will punish you for your sins seven times. 19 I will break down your stubborn pride. I will make the sky above you like iron, and it will not rain. I will make the ground under you like bronze, and you will not be able to farm it. 20 You will work with all your strength, but it will not do you any good. That is because your soil will not produce any crops. The trees of your land will not bear any fruit.
21 “ ‘Suppose you continue to be my enemy. And suppose you still refuse to listen to me. Then I will multiply your troubles many times because of your sins. 22 I will send wild animals against you. They will kill your children. They will destroy your cattle. There will be so few of you left that your roads will be deserted.
23 “ ‘After all those things, suppose you still do not accept my warnings. And suppose you continue to be my enemy. 24 Then I myself will be your enemy. I will make you suffer again and again for your sins. 25 I will send war against you to punish you for breaking my covenant. When you go back into your cities, I will send a plague among you. You will be handed over to your enemies. 26 I will cut off your supply of bread. Ten women will need only one oven to bake your bread. They will weigh out the bread piece by piece. Even when you eat all of it, it will not be enough to satisfy you.
27 “ ‘After all that, suppose you still do not listen to me. And suppose you continue to be my enemy. 28 Then I will be angry with you. I will be your enemy. I myself will again punish you for your sins over and over. 29 You will eat the dead bodies of your sons. You will also eat the dead bodies of your daughters. 30 I will destroy the high places where you worship other gods. I will pull down your incense altars. I will pile up your dead bodies on the lifeless statues of your gods. And I will turn away from you. 31 I will completely destroy your cities. I will destroy your places of worship. The pleasant smell of your offerings will not give me any delight. 32 I myself will destroy your land so completely that your enemies who live there will be shocked. 33 I will scatter you among the nations. I will pull out my sword and hunt you down. Your land and your cities will be completely destroyed. 34 Then the deserted land will enjoy its sabbath years. It will rest. It will not be farmed. It will enjoy its sabbaths. But you will become prisoners in the country of your enemies. 35 The land will rest the whole time it is deserted. It was not able to rest during the sabbaths you lived in it.
36 “ ‘Some of you will be left in the lands of your enemies. I will fill your hearts with fear. The sound of a leaf blown by the wind will scare you away. You will run as if you were escaping from swords. You will fall down, even though no one is chasing you. 37 You will trip over one another as if you were running away from the battle. You will run away, even though no one is chasing you. You will not be able to stand and fight against your enemies. 38 While you are still scattered among the nations, you will die. The lands of your enemies will destroy you. 39 You who are left in those lands will become weaker and weaker. You will die because of your sins and the sins of your people who lived before you.
40 “ ‘But suppose you admit that both you and your people who lived before you have sinned. You admit the evil and dishonest things you have done against me. And you admit you have become my enemy. 41 What you did made me become your enemy. I let your enemies take you into their land. But suppose you stop being stubborn. You stop being proud. And you pay for your sin. 42 Then I will remember my covenant with Jacob. I will remember my covenant with Isaac. I will remember my covenant with Abraham. I will remember what I said to them about the land. 43 You will leave the land. It will enjoy its sabbaths while it lies deserted because you are not there. You will pay for your sins because you said no to my laws. You turned away from my rules. 44 But even after all that, I will not say no to you or turn away from you. I will not destroy you completely in the land of your enemies. I will not break my covenant with you. I am the Lord your God. 45 Because of you, I will remember the covenant I made with the people of Israel who lived before you. I brought them out of Egypt to be their God. The nations saw me do it. I am the Lord.’ ”
46 These are the orders, the laws and the rules of the covenant the Lord made on Mount Sinai. He made it between himself and the Israelites through Moses.
33 You who are godly, sing with joy to the Lord.
It is right for honest people to praise him.
2 With the harp, praise the Lord.
With the lyre that has ten strings, make music to him.
3 Sing a new song to him.
Play with skill, and shout with joy.
4 What the Lord says is right and true.
He is faithful in everything he does.
5 The Lord loves what is right and fair.
The earth is full of his faithful love.
6 The heavens were made when the Lord commanded it to happen.
All the stars were created by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathers together the waters of the sea.
He puts the oceans in their places.
8 Let the whole earth have respect for the Lord.
Let all the people in the world honor him.
9 He spoke, and the world came into being.
He commanded, and it stood firm.
10 The Lord blocks the sinful plans of the nations.
He keeps them from doing what they want to do.
11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever.
What he wants to do will last for all time.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.
Blessed are the people he chose to be his own.
13 From heaven the Lord looks down
and sees everyone.
14 From his throne he watches
all those who live on the earth.
15 He creates the hearts of all people.
He is aware of everything they do.
16 A king isn’t saved just because his army is big.
A soldier doesn’t escape just because he is very strong.
17 People can’t trust a horse to save them either.
Though it is very strong, it can’t save them.
18 But the Lord looks with favor on those who respect him.
He watches over those who put their hope in his faithful love.
19 He watches over them to save them from death.
He wants to keep them alive when there is no food in the land.
20 We wait in hope for the Lord.
He helps us. He is like a shield that keeps us safe.
21 Our hearts are full of joy because of him.
We trust in him, because he is holy.
22 Lord, may your faithful love be with us.
We put our hope in you.
Everyone Dies
9 I thought about all these things. I realized that those who are wise and do what is right are under God’s control. What they do is also under his control. But no one knows whether they will be loved or hated. 2 Everyone will die someday. Death comes to godly and sinful people alike. It comes to good and bad people alike. It comes to “clean” and “unclean” people alike. Those who offer sacrifices and those who don’t offer them also die.
A good person dies,
and so does a sinner.
Those who make promises die.
So do those who are afraid to make them.
3 Here’s what is so bad about everything that happens on this earth. Death catches up with all of us. Also, the hearts of people are full of evil. They live in foolish pleasure. After that, they join those who have already died. 4 Anyone who is still living has hope. Even a live dog is better off than a dead lion!
5 People who are still alive know they’ll die.
But those who have died don’t know anything.
They don’t receive any more rewards.
And even their name is forgotten.
6 Their love, hate and jealousy disappear.
They will never share again
in anything that happens on earth.
7 Go and enjoy your food. Be joyful as you drink your wine. God has already approved what you do. 8 Always wear white clothes to show you are happy. Anoint your head with olive oil. 9 You love your wife. So enjoy life with her. Do it all the days of this meaningless life God has given you on earth. That’s what he made you for. That’s what you get for all your hard work on earth. 10 No matter what you do, work at it with all your might. Remember, you are going to the place of the dead. And there isn’t any work or planning or knowledge or wisdom there.
11 Here’s something else I’ve seen on this earth.
Races aren’t always won by those who run fast.
Battles aren’t always won by those who are strong.
Wise people don’t always have plenty of food.
Clever people aren’t always wealthy.
Those who have learned a lot aren’t always successful.
God controls the timing of every event.
He also controls how things turn out.
12 No one knows when trouble will come to them.
Fish are caught in nets.
Birds are taken in traps.
And people are trapped by hard times
that come when they don’t expect them.
Being Wise Is Better Than Being Foolish
13 Here’s something else I saw on this earth. I saw an example of wisdom that touched me deeply. 14 There was once a small city. Only a few people lived there. A powerful king attacked it. He brought in war machines all around it. 15 A certain man lived in that city. He was poor but wise. He used his wisdom to save the city. But no one remembered that poor man. 16 So I said, “It’s better to be wise than to be powerful.” But people look down on the poor man’s wisdom. No one pays any attention to what he says.
17 People should listen to the quiet words
of those who are wise.
That’s better than paying attention to the shouts
of a ruler of foolish people.
18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war.
But one sinner destroys a lot of good.
1 I, Paul, am writing this letter. I serve God, and I am an apostle of Jesus Christ. God sent me to help his chosen people believe in Christ more and more. God sent me to help them understand even more the truth that leads to godly living. 2 That belief and understanding lead to the hope of eternal life. Before time began, God promised to give that life. And he does not lie. 3 Now, at just the right time, he has made his promise clear. He did this through the preaching that he trusted me with. God our Savior has commanded all these things.
4 Titus, I am sending you this letter. You are my true son in the faith we share.
May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior give you grace and peace.
Choosing Elders Who Love What Is Good
5 I left you on the island of Crete. I did this because there were some things that hadn’t been finished. I wanted you to put them in order. I also wanted you to appoint elders in every town. I told you how to do it. 6 An elder must be without blame. He must be faithful to his wife. His children must be believers. They must not give anyone a reason to say that they are wild and don’t obey. 7 A church leader takes care of God’s family. That’s why he must be without blame. He must not look after only his own interests. He must not get angry easily. He must not get drunk. He must not push people around. He must not try to get money by cheating people. 8 Instead, a church leader must welcome people into his home. He must love what is good. He must control his mind and feelings. He must do what is right. He must be holy. He must control the desires of his body. 9 The message as it has been taught can be trusted. He must hold firmly to it. Then he will be able to use true teaching to comfort others and build them up. He will be able to prove that people who oppose it are wrong.
Warning People Who Fail to Do Good
10 Many people refuse to obey God. All they do is talk about things that mean nothing. They try to fool others. No one does these things more than the circumcision group. 11 They must be stopped. They are making trouble for entire families. They do this by teaching things they shouldn’t. They do these things to cheat people. 12 One of Crete’s own prophets has a saying. He says, “People from Crete are always liars. They are evil beasts. They don’t want to work. They live only to eat.” 13 This saying is true. So give a strong warning to people who refuse to obey God. Then they will understand the faith correctly. 14 Then they will pay no attention to Jewish stories that aren’t true. They won’t listen to the mere human commands of people who turn away from the truth. 15 To people who are pure, all things are pure. But to those who have twisted minds and don’t believe, nothing is pure. In fact, their minds and their sense of what is right and wrong are twisted. 16 They claim to know God. But their actions show they don’t know him. They are hated by God. They refuse to obey him. They aren’t fit to do anything good.
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