M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Jehoram Becomes King
3 Ahab’s son Jehoram ascended to the throne of Israel at Samaria during the eighteenth year of the reign of Judah’s King Jehoshaphat. He reigned for twelve years, 2 practicing evil in the Lord’s presence,[a] only not to the extent that his mother and father had done[b]—he forced abolition of the sacred pillar to Baal[c] that his father had crafted. 3 Even so,[d] he kept on committing the sins that Nebat’s son Jeroboam had done, which ensnared Israel in sin—he never abandoned them.
Moab Rebels against Israel
4 Meanwhile, Moab’s King Mesha was a sheep breeder. He used to pay 100,000 lambs and the wool from 100,000 rams to the king of Israel as tribute. 5 After Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. 6 So King Jehoram left Samaria at that time[e] and mustered the entire army of[f] Israel. 7 As he was going out, he sent this message[g] to King Jehoshaphat of Judah: “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight Moab?”
“I’m coming,” Jehoshaphat[h] replied. “I’m like you! My army will act like your army and my cavalry like your cavalry,” Then Jehoshaphat[i] added: 8 “What road do we take?”
Jehoram[j] answered, “We’ll go along the Edom desert road.”
9 So the king of Israel, the king of Judah, and the king of Edom made a complete circuit on the road for seven days, but there was no water for the army or for the livestock that accompanied[k] them.
10 Then the king of Israel remarked, “Oh no! The Lord has summoned us three kings so he can hand us over to Moab, hasn’t he?”
The Kings Seek Elisha’s Counsel
11 Jehoshaphat asked, “Isn’t there a prophet who belongs to the Lord and through whom we can ask the Lord a question?”
One of the king of Israel’s attendants replied, “Shaphat’s son Elisha lives here. He used to be Elijah’s personal attendant.”[l]
12 Jehoshaphat answered, “He receives messages from[m] the Lord.” So the king of Israel, Jehoshaphat, and the king of Edom went to visit Elisha.[n]
13 Elisha asked the king of Israel, “What do I have in common[o] with you? Go visit your parents’ prophets.”[p]
The king of Israel replied, “No! The Lord has summoned these three kings so he can hand them over to Moab!”
14 But Elisha responded, “As the Lord of the Heavenly Armies lives, in whose presence I stand, I would never pay attention to you or even look in your direction were it not for my continuous respect for the presence of King Jehoshaphat of Judah. 15 Now bring me a musician.”
As the musician played, the hand of the Lord rested on Elisha, 16 so he said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Fill this valley with trench after trench!’ 17 This is what the Lord says: ‘Though you won’t see wind or storm, nevertheless that river[q] will overflow with water so that you, your cattle, and your livestock may drink.’ 18 And this is the easy part for the Lord[r]—he’s also going to hand the Moabites over to you! 19 Then you are to attack every fortified city and every significant city. Cut down every significant tree, fill in all of the water springs, and ruin every prime piece of land with stones.”
War with Moab
20 The very next day, about the time of the morning offering, water suddenly appeared, coming from the direction of Edom, and the land overflowed with water! 21 Meanwhile, all the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to attack them, so everyone old enough to wear battle armor was mustered to stand guard at the border. 22 As the Moabites arose early that morning, the sun cast its rays on the water, and to the Moabites, the water across from them appeared to be red like blood. 23 So they concluded,[s] “This must be blood! The kings must have had one mighty big fight and each man killed the other! So let’s go get the battle spoil, Moab!”
24 But when the Moabites arrived at the Israeli encampment, the Israelis got up and attacked them. The Moabites ran away from the Israelis,[t] who followed them into the land as they continued their pursuit against Moab. 25 They destroyed their cities, and all of them threw stones onto every piece of farm[u] land, ruining the fields.[v] Then they filled in all the water wells[w] and chopped down all of the useful[x] trees. Stone walls remained surrounding Kir-hareseth only, until the archers surrounded and attacked that city. 26 When the king of Moab realized that the battle was going strongly against him, he took 700 expert swordsmen to attempt to break through to the king of Edom, but was unable to do so. 27 So he took his firstborn son, whom he intended to reign after him, and offered him up as a burnt offering on the wall. There subsequently came great anger against Israel, so they abandoned the attack and returned to their homeland.
An Example to Follow
3 Finally, brothers, pray for us—that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly, and that it may be honored the way it is among you. 2 Also pray[a] that we may be rescued from worthless and evil people, since not everyone holds to the faith.[b] 3 But the Lord is faithful and will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. 4 We have confidence in the Lord[c] that you are doing and will continue to do what we command. 5 May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the endurance of the Messiah.[d]
6 In the name of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah,[e] we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother who is living in idleness[f] and not living[g] according to the tradition that they received[h] from us. 7 For you yourselves know what you must do to imitate us. We never lived in idleness[i] among you. 8 We did not eat anyone’s food without paying for it. Instead, with toil and labor we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to any of you. 9 It is not as though we did not have that right, but we wanted[j] to give you an example to follow. 10 While we were with you, we gave this order: “If anyone doesn’t want to work, he shouldn’t eat.”
11 We hear that some of you are living in idleness.[k] You are not busy working[l]—you are busy interfering[m] in other people’s lives! 12 We order and encourage such people by the Lord Jesus, the Messiah,[n] to do their work quietly and to earn their own living. 13 Brothers, do not get tired of doing what is right.
14 If anyone does not obey what we say[o] in this letter, take note of him. Have nothing to do with him so that he will feel ashamed. 15 Yet, don’t treat him like an enemy, but warn[p] him like a brother. 16 Now may the Lord of peace give you his peace at all times and in every way. May the Lord be with all of you.
Final Greeting
17 I, Paul, am writing this greeting with my own hand. This is the mark in every letter of mine. It is the way I write. 18 May the grace of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah,[q] be with all of you. Amen.[r]
The Vision of the Four Beasts
7 In the first year of the reign of King Belshazzar of Babylon, Daniel dreamed a dream, receiving visions in his mind while in bed, after which he recorded the dream, relating this summary of events.
2 Daniel said, “I observed the vision during the night. Look! The four winds of the skies were stirring up the Mediterranean[a] Sea. 3 Four magnificent animals were rising from the sea, each different from the other. 4 The first resembled a lion, but it had eagles’ wings. I continued to watch until its wings were plucked off, it was lifted up off the ground, and it was forced to stand on two feet like a man. A human soul[b] was imparted to it.
5 “Then look!—a second animal resembling a bear followed it.[c] It was raised up on one side, with three ribs held between the teeth in its mouth. Therefore people kept telling it, ‘Get up and devour lots of meat!’
6 “After this, I continued to watch—and look!—there was another one, resembling a leopard with four birds’ wings on its back. The animal also had four heads, and authority was imparted to it.
7 “After this, I continued to observe the night visions. And look!—there was a fourth awe-inspiring, terrifying, and viciously strong animal! It had large, iron teeth. It devoured and crushed things,[d] and trampled under its feet whatever remained. Different from all of the other previous animals, it had ten horns.
8 “While I was thinking about the horns—look—another horn, this time[e] a little one, grew up among them. Three of the first horns were yanked up by their roots right in front of it. Look! It had eyes like those of a human being and a mouth that boasted with audacious claims.”
The Vision of the Ancient of Days
9 “I kept on watching until the Ancient of Days was seated. His clothes were white, like snow, and the hair on his head was like pure wool. His throne burned with flaming fire, and its wheels burned with fire. 10 A river of fire flowed out from before him. Thousands upon thousands were serving him, with millions upon millions waiting before him. The court sat in judgment,[f] and record books were unsealed.
11 “I continued watching because of the audacious words that the horn was speaking. I kept observing until the animal was killed and its body destroyed and given over to burning fire. 12 Now as to the other animals, their authority was removed, but they were granted a reprieve from execution[g] for an appointed period of time.”
The Vision of the Son of Man
13 “I continued to observe the night vision—and look!—someone like the Son of Man was coming, accompanied by heavenly clouds. He approached the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. 14 To him dominion was bestowed, along with glory and a kingdom, so that all people, nations, and languages are to serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion—it will never pass away—and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”
The Vision Interpreted
15 “Now as for me, Daniel, I was emotionally troubled, and what I had seen in the visions kept alarming me. 16 So I approached one of those who was standing nearby and began to ask the meaning of all of this. He spoke to me and caused me to understand the interpretation of these things. 17 He said, ‘These four great animals are four kings who will rise to power from the earth. 18 But the saints of the Highest will receive the kingdom forever, inheriting it[h] forever and ever.’
19 “I wanted to learn the precise significance of the fourth animal that was different from all the others, extremely awe-inspiring, with iron teeth and bronze claws, and that had devoured and crushed things,[i] trampling under its feet whatever remained. 20 Also, I wanted to learn the significance of[j] the ten horns on its head and the other horn that had arisen, before which three of them had fallen—that is, the horn with eyes and a mouth that uttered magnificent things and which was greater in appearance than its fellows.
21 “As I continued to watch, that same horn waged war against the saints, and was prevailing against them 22 until the Ancient of Days arrived to pass judgment in favor of the saints of the Highest One and the time came for the saints to take possession of the kingdom. 23 So he said:
‘The fourth animal will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, different from all the kingdoms. It will devour the entire earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 Now as to the ten horns, ten kings will rise to power from this kingdom, and another king[k] will rise to power after them. He will be different from the previous kings,[l] and will defeat three kings. 25 He’ll speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One. He’ll attempt to alter times and laws, and they’ll be given into his control for a time, times, and half a time. 26 Nevertheless, the court will convene, and his authority will be removed, annulled, and destroyed forever. 27 Then the kingdom, authority, and magnificence of all nations of the earth[m] will be given to the people who are the saints of the Highest One. His kingdom will endure forever, and all authorities will serve him and obey him.’
28 “At this point the vision ended. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts continued to alarm me, and I lost my natural color, but I kept quiet about the matter.”[n]
Deliverance of Israel from Egypt
114 When Israel came out of Egypt—
the household of Jacob from a people of foreign speech—
2 Judah became his sanctuary
and Israel his place of dominion.
3 The sea saw this[a] and fled,
the Jordan River[b] ran backwards,
4 the mountains skipped like rams,
and the hills like lambs.
5 What happened to you, sea, that you fled?
Jordan, that you ran backwards?
6 Mountains, that you skipped like rams?
And you hills, that you skipped[c] like lambs?
7 Tremble then, earth, at the presence of the Lord,
at the presence of the God of Jacob,
8 who turned the rock into a pool of water,
the flinty rock into flowing springs.
The Impotence of Idols
115 Not to us, Lord, not to us,
but to your name be given glory
on account of your gracious love and faithfulness.
2 Why should the nations ask
“Where now is their God?”
3 when our God is in the heavens
and he does whatever he desires?
4 Their idols are silver and gold,
crafted by human hands.
5 They have mouths, but cannot speak;
they have eyes, but cannot see.
6 They have ears, but cannot hear;
they have noses, but cannot smell.
7 They have hands, but cannot touch;
feet, but cannot walk;
they cannot even groan with their throats.
8 Those who craft them will become like them,
as will all those who trust in them.
9 Israel, trust in the Lord!
He is their helper and shield.
10 House of Aaron, trust in the Lord!
He is their helper and shield.
11 You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord!
He is their helper and shield.
12 The Lord remembers and blesses us.
He will indeed bless the house of Israel;
he will bless the house of Aaron.
13 He will bless those who fear the Lord,
both the important and the insignificant together.
14 May the Lord add to your numbers—
to you and to your descendants.
15 May you be blessed by the Lord,
who made the heavens and the earth.
16 The highest heavens[d] belong to the Lord,
but he gave the earth to human beings.
17 Neither can the dead praise the Lord,
nor those who go down into the silence of death.[e]
18 But we will bless the Lord
from now to eternity.
Hallelujah!
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