M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
25 1-3 “If a man is guilty of a crime and the penalty is a beating, the judge shall command him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with up to forty stripes in proportion to the seriousness of the crime; but no more than forty stripes may be given lest the punishment seem too severe, and your brother be degraded in your eyes.
4 “Don’t muzzle an ox as it treads out the grain.
5 “If a man’s brother dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family; instead, her husband’s brother must marry her and sleep with her. 6 The first son she bears to him shall be counted as the son of the dead brother, so that his name will not be forgotten. 7 But if the dead man’s brother refuses to do his duty in this matter, refusing to marry the widow, then she shall go to the city elders and say to them, ‘My husband’s brother refuses to let his brother’s name continue—he refuses to marry me.’ 8 The elders of the city will then summon him and talk it over with him, and if he still refuses, 9 the widow shall walk over to him in the presence of the elders, pull his sandal from his foot, and spit in his face. She shall then say, ‘This is what happens to a man who refuses to build his brother’s house.’ 10 And ever afterwards his house shall be referred to as ‘the home of the man who had his sandal pulled off’!
11 “If two men are fighting and the wife of one intervenes to help her husband by grabbing the testicles of the other man, 12 her hand shall be cut off without pity.
13-15 “In all your transactions you must use accurate scales and honest measurements, so that you will have a long, good life in the land the Lord your God is giving you. 16 All who cheat with unjust weights and measurements are detestable to the Lord your God.
17 “You must never forget what the people of Amalek did to you as you came from Egypt. 18 Remember that they fought with you and struck down those who were faint and weary and lagging behind, with no respect or fear of God. 19 Therefore, when the Lord your God has given you rest from all your enemies in the Promised Land, you are utterly to destroy the name of Amalek from under heaven. Never forget this.
116 I love the Lord because he hears my prayers and answers them. 2 Because he bends down and listens, I will pray as long as I breathe!
3 Death stared me in the face—I was frightened and sad. 4 Then I cried, “Lord, save me!” 5 How kind he is! How good he is! So merciful, this God of ours! 6 The Lord protects the simple and the childlike; I was facing death, and then he saved me. 7 Now I can relax. For the Lord has done this wonderful miracle for me. 8 He has saved me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. 9 I shall live! Yes, in his presence—here on earth!
10-11 In my discouragement I thought, “They are lying when they say I will recover.”[a] 12 But now what can I offer Jehovah for all he has done for me? 13 I will bring him an offering of wine[b] and praise his name for saving me. 14 I will publicly bring him the sacrifice I vowed I would. 15 His loved ones are very precious to him, and he does not lightly let them die.[c]
16 O Lord, you have freed me from my bonds, and I will serve you forever. 17 I will worship you and offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving. 18-19 Here in the courts of the Temple in Jerusalem, before all the people, I will pay everything I vowed to the Lord. Praise the Lord.
52 Wake up, wake up, Jerusalem, and clothe yourselves with strength from God.[a] Put on your beautiful clothes, O Zion, Holy City; for sinners—those who turn from God—will no longer enter your gates. 2 Rise from the dust, Jerusalem; take off the slave bands from your neck, O captive daughter of Zion. 3 For the Lord says: When I sold you into exile, I asked no fee from your oppressors; now I can take you back again and owe them not a cent! 4 My people were tyrannized without cause by Egypt and Assyria, and I delivered them.
5 And now, what is this? asks the Lord. Why are my people enslaved again and oppressed without excuse? Those who rule them shout in exultation, and my name is constantly blasphemed day by day. 6 Therefore I will reveal my name to my people, and they shall know the power in that name. Then at last they will recognize that it is I, yes, I, who speaks to them.
7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those who bring the happy news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns. 8 The watchmen shout and sing with joy, for right before their eyes they see the Lord God bring his people home again. 9 Let the ruins of Jerusalem break into joyous song, for the Lord has comforted his people; he has redeemed Jerusalem. 10 The Lord has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations; the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
11 Go now, leave your bonds and slavery. Put Babylon and all it represents far behind you—it is unclean to you. You are the holy people of the Lord; purify yourselves, all you who carry home the vessels of the Lord. 12 You shall not leave in haste, running for your lives; for the Lord will go ahead of you, and he, the God of Israel, will protect you from behind.
13 See, my Servant[b] shall prosper; he shall be highly exalted. 14-15 Yet many shall be amazed when they see him—yes, even far-off foreign nations and their kings; they shall stand dumbfounded, speechless in his presence. For they shall see and understand what they had not been told before. They shall see my Servant beaten and bloodied, so disfigured one would scarcely know it was a person standing there. So shall he cleanse[c] many nations.
22 And he pointed out to me a river of pure Water of Life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and the Lamb, 2 coursing down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew Trees of Life,[a] bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month; the leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.
3 There shall be nothing in the city that is evil; for the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. 4 And they shall see his face; and his name shall be written on their foreheads. 5 And there will be no night there—no need for lamps or sun—for the Lord God will be their light; and they shall reign forever and ever.
6-7 Then the angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true: ‘I am coming soon!’[b] God, who tells his prophets what the future holds, has sent his angel to tell you this will happen soon. Blessed are those who believe it and all else written in the scroll.”
8 I, John, saw and heard all these things, and fell down to worship the angel who showed them to me; 9 but again he said, “No, don’t do anything like that. I, too, am a servant of Jesus as you are, and as your brothers the prophets are, as well as all those who heed the truth stated in this book. Worship God alone.”
10 Then he instructed me, “Do not seal up what you have written, for the time of fulfillment is near. 11 And when that time comes, all doing wrong will do it more and more; the vile will become more vile; good men will be better; those who are holy will continue on in greater holiness.”
12 “See, I am coming soon, and my reward is with me, to repay everyone according to the deeds he has done. 13 I am the A and the Z, the Beginning and the End, the First and Last. 14 Blessed forever are all who are washing their robes, to have the right to enter in through the gates of the city and to eat the fruit from the Tree of Life.
15 “Outside the city are those who have strayed away from God, and the sorcerers and the immoral and murderers and idolaters, and all who love to lie, and do so.
16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to you to tell the churches all these things. I am both David’s Root and his Descendant. I am the bright Morning Star. 17 The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come.’ Let each one who hears them say the same, ‘Come.’ Let the thirsty one come—anyone who wants to; let him come and drink the Water of Life without charge. 18 And I solemnly declare to everyone who reads this book: If anyone adds anything to what is written here, God shall add to him the plagues described in this book. 19 And if anyone subtracts any part of these prophecies, God shall take away his share in the Tree of Life, and in the Holy City just described.
20 “He who has said all these things declares: Yes, I am coming soon!”
Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen!
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.