M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Sexual Relations
18 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: I am the Lord your God.(A) 3 You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived, and you shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You shall not follow their statutes.(B) 4 My ordinances you shall observe, and my statutes you shall keep, following them: I am the Lord your God. 5 You shall keep my statutes and my ordinances; by doing so one shall live: I am the Lord.(C)
6 “None of you shall approach anyone near of kin to uncover nakedness: I am the Lord. 7 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father, which is the nakedness of your mother; she is your mother; you shall not uncover her nakedness.(D) 8 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife; it is the nakedness of your father. 9 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your sister, your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether born at home or born abroad.(E) 10 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your son’s daughter or of your daughter’s daughter, for their nakedness is your own nakedness. 11 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter, born in your father’s house, since she is your sister. 12 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister; she is your father’s flesh.(F) 13 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s flesh. 14 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother; that is, you shall not approach his wife; she is your aunt.(G) 15 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law: she is your son’s wife; you shall not uncover her nakedness.(H) 16 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife; it is your brother’s nakedness.(I) 17 You shall not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter, and you shall not take[a] her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter to uncover her nakedness; they are your[b] flesh; it is depravity.(J) 18 And you shall not take[c] a woman as a rival to her sister, uncovering her nakedness while her sister is still alive.
19 “You shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness while she is in her menstrual uncleanness.(K) 20 You shall not have sexual relations with your neighbor’s wife and defile yourself with her.(L) 21 You shall not give any of your offspring to sacrifice them[d] to Molech and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.(M) 22 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.(N) 23 You shall not have sexual relations with any animal and defile yourself with it, nor shall any woman give herself to an animal to have sexual relations with it; it is perversion.(O)
24 “Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, for by all these practices the nations I am casting out before you have defiled themselves.(P) 25 Thus the land became defiled, and I punished it for its iniquity, and the land vomited out its inhabitants.(Q) 26 But you shall keep my statutes and my ordinances and commit none of these abominations, either the native-born or the alien who resides among you 27 (for the inhabitants of the land, who were before you, committed all of these abominations, and the land became defiled); 28 otherwise the land will vomit you out for defiling it, as it vomited out the nation that was before you. 29 For whoever commits any of these abominations shall be cut off from their people. 30 So keep my charge not to commit any of these abominations that were done before you and not to defile yourselves by them: I am the Lord your God.”(R)
Psalm 22
Plea for Deliverance from Suffering and Hostility
To the leader: according to The Deer of the Dawn. A Psalm of David.
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?(A)
2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer;
and by night but find no rest.(B)
3 Yet you are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.(C)
4 In you our ancestors trusted;
they trusted, and you delivered them.
5 To you they cried and were saved;
in you they trusted and were not put to shame.(D)
6 But I am a worm and not human,
scorned by others and despised by the people.(E)
7 All who see me mock me;
they sneer at me; they shake their heads;(F)
8 “Commit your cause to the Lord; let him deliver—
let him rescue the one in whom he delights!”(G)
9 Yet it was you who took me from the womb;
you kept me safe on my mother’s breast.(H)
10 On you I was cast from my birth,
and since my mother bore me you have been my God.(I)
11 Do not be far from me,
for trouble is near,
and there is no one to help.
12 Many bulls encircle me;
strong bulls of Bashan surround me;(J)
13 they open wide their mouths at me,
like a ravening and roaring lion.(K)
14 I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like wax;
it is melted within my breast;(L)
15 my mouth[a] is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to my jaws;
you lay me in the dust of death.(M)
16 For dogs are all around me;
a company of evildoers encircles me;
they bound my hands and feet.[b](N)
17 I can count all my bones.
They stare and gloat over me;
18 they divide my clothes among themselves,
and for my clothing they cast lots.(O)
19 But you, O Lord, do not be far away!
O my help, come quickly to my aid!
20 Deliver my soul from the sword,
my life[c] from the power of the dog!(P)
21 Save me from the mouth of the lion!
From the horns of the wild oxen you have rescued[d] me.(Q)
22 I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters;[e]
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:(R)
23 You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him;
stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!(S)
24 For he did not despise or abhor
the affliction of the afflicted;
he did not hide his face from me[f]
but heard when I[g] cried to him.(T)
25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay before those who fear him.(U)
26 The poor[h] shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the Lord.
May your hearts live forever!(V)
27 All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before him.[i](W)
28 For dominion belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.(X)
29 To him,[j] indeed, shall all who sleep in[k] the earth bow down;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,
and I shall live for him.[l](Y)
30 Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord(Z)
31 and[m] proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn,
saying that he has done it.(AA)
Reflections of a Royal Philosopher
1 The words of the Teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.(A)
2 Vanity of vanities, says the Teacher,
vanity of vanities! All is vanity.(B)
3 What do people gain from all the toil
at which they toil under the sun?(C)
4 A generation goes, and a generation comes,
but the earth remains forever.(D)
5 The sun rises, and the sun goes down
and hurries to the place where it rises.(E)
6 The wind blows to the south
and goes around to the north;
round and round goes the wind,
and on its circuits the wind returns.(F)
7 All streams run to the sea,
but the sea is not full;
to the place where the streams flow,
there they continue to flow.
8 All things[a] are wearisome,
more than one can express;
the eye is not satisfied with seeing
or the ear filled with hearing.(G)
9 What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done;
there is nothing new under the sun.(H)
10 Is there a thing of which it is said,
“See, this is new”?
It has already been
in the ages before us.
11 The people of long ago are not remembered,
nor will there be any remembrance
of people yet to come
by those who come after them.
The Futility of Seeking Wisdom
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I applied my mind to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven; it is an unhappy business that God has given to humans to be busy with.(I) 14 I saw all the deeds that are done under the sun, and see, all is vanity and a chasing after wind.(J)
15 What is crooked cannot be made straight,
and what is lacking cannot be counted.(K)
16 I said to myself, “I have acquired great wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me, and my mind has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.”(L) 17 And I applied my mind to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a chasing after wind.(M)
18 For in much wisdom is much vexation,
and those who increase knowledge increase sorrow.(N)
Qualifications of Bishops
3 The saying is sure:[a] whoever aspires to the office of bishop[b] desires a noble task.(A) 2 Now a bishop[c] must be above reproach, married only once,[d] temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, an apt teacher,(B) 3 not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and not a lover of money.(C) 4 He must manage his own household well, keeping his children submissive and respectful in every way, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how can he take care of God’s church? 6 He must not be a recent convert,[e] or he may be puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace and the snare of the devil.(D)
Qualifications of Deacons
8 Deacons likewise must be serious, not double-tongued, not indulging in much wine, not greedy for money;(E) 9 they must hold fast to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. 10 And let them first be tested; then, if they prove themselves blameless, let them serve as deacons. 11 Women[f] likewise must be serious, not slanderers, but temperate, faithful in all things. 12 Let deacons be married only once,[g] and let them manage their children and their households well; 13 for those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
The Mystery of Our Religion
14 I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you so that, 15 if I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.(F) 16 Without any doubt, the mystery of godliness is great:
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.