M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Jerusalem Is Captured and Destroyed
(2 Chronicles 36.17-21; Jeremiah 52.3-30)
25 (A) In Zedekiah's ninth year as king, on the tenth day of the tenth month,[a] King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia led his entire army to attack Jerusalem. The troops set up camp outside the city and built ramps up to the city walls.
2-3 After a year and a half, all the food in Jerusalem was gone. Then on the ninth day of the fourth[b] month, 4 (B) the Babylonian troops broke through the city wall.[c] That same night, Zedekiah and his soldiers tried to escape through the gate near the royal garden, even though they knew the enemy had the city surrounded. They headed toward the desert, 5 but the Babylonian troops caught up with them near Jericho. They arrested Zedekiah, but his soldiers scattered in every direction.
6 Zedekiah was taken to Riblah, where Nebuchadnezzar put him on trial and found him guilty. 7 (C) Zedekiah's sons were killed right in front of him. His eyes were then poked out, and he was put in chains and dragged off to Babylon.
8 About a month later,[d] in Nebuchadnezzar's nineteenth year as king, Nebuzaradan, who was his official in charge of the guards, arrived in Jerusalem. 9 (D) Nebuzaradan burned down the Lord's temple, the king's palace, and every important building in the city, as well as all the houses. 10 Then he ordered the Babylonian soldiers to break down the walls around Jerusalem. 11 He led away as prisoners the people left in the city, including those who had become loyal to Nebuchadnezzar. 12 Only some of the poorest people were left behind to work the vineyards and the fields.
13 (E) The Babylonian soldiers took the two bronze columns that stood in front of the temple, the ten movable bronze stands, and the large bronze bowl called the Sea. They broke them into pieces so they could take the bronze to Babylonia. 14 (F) They carried off the bronze things used for worship at the temple, including the pans for hot ashes, and the shovels, snuffers, and also the dishes for incense, 15 as well as the fire pans and the sprinkling bowls. Nebuzaradan ordered his soldiers to take everything made of gold or silver.
16 The pile of bronze from the columns, the stands, and the large bowl that Solomon had made for the temple was too large to be weighed. 17 Each column had been eight meters tall with a bronze cap over one meter high. These caps were decorated with bronze designs—some of them like chains and others like pomegranates.[e]
18 Next, Nebuzaradan arrested Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah his assistant, and three temple officials. 19 Then he arrested one of the army commanders, the king's five personal advisors, and the officer in charge of gathering the troops for battle. He also found 60 more soldiers who were still in Jerusalem. 20 Nebuzaradan led them all to Riblah 21 near Hamath, where Nebuchadnezzar had them killed.
Most of the people of Judah had been carried away as captives from their own country.
Gedaliah Is Made Ruler of the People Left in Judah
(Jeremiah 40.7-9; 41.1-3)
22 (G) King Nebuchadnezzar appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam[f] to rule the few people still living in Judah. 23 When the army officers and troops heard that Gedaliah was their ruler, the officers met with him at Mizpah. These men were Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth from Netophah, and Jaazaniah from Maacah.
24 Gedaliah said to them, “Everything will be fine, I promise. We don't need to be afraid of the Babylonian rulers, if we live here peacefully and do what Nebuchadnezzar says.”
25 (H) Ishmael[g] was from the royal family. And about two months after Gedaliah began his rule,[h] Ishmael and ten other men went to Mizpah. They killed Gedaliah and his officials, including those from Judah and those from Babylonia. 26 (I) After that, the army officers and all the people in Mizpah, whether important or not, were afraid of what the Babylonians might do. So they left Judah and went to Egypt.
Jehoiachin Is Set Free
(Jeremiah 52.31-34)
27 Jehoiachin was a prisoner in Babylon for 37 years. Then Evil-Merodach became king of Babylonia,[i] and in the first year of his rule, on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month,[j] he let Jehoiachin out of prison. 28 Evil-Merodach was kind to Jehoiachin and honored him more than any of the other kings held prisoner there. 29 Jehoiachin was even allowed to wear regular clothes, and he ate at the king's table every day. 30 As long as Jehoiachin lived, he was paid a daily allowance to buy whatever he needed.
The Priestly Family of Melchizedek
7 (A) Melchizedek was both king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He was the one who went out and gave Abraham his blessing, when Abraham returned from killing the kings. 2 Then Abraham gave him a tenth of everything he had.
The meaning of the name Melchizedek is “King of Justice.” But since Salem means “peace,” he is also “King of Peace.” 3 We are not told he had a father or mother or ancestors or beginning or end. He is like the Son of God and will be a priest forever.[a]
4 Notice how great Melchizedek was! Our famous ancestor Abraham gave him a tenth of what he had taken from his enemies. 5 (B) The Law teaches that even Abraham's descendants must give a tenth of what they possess. And they are to give this to their own relatives, who are the descendants of Levi and are priests. 6 Although Melchizedek wasn't a descendant of Levi, Abraham gave him a tenth of what he had. Then Melchizedek blessed Abraham, who had been given God's promise. 7 Everyone agrees a person who gives a blessing is greater than the one who receives the blessing.
8 Priests are given a tenth of what people earn. But all priests die, except Melchizedek, and the Scriptures teach that he is alive. 9 Levi's descendants are now the ones who receive a tenth from people. We could even say that when Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth, Levi also gave him a tenth. 10 This is because Levi was born later into the family of Abraham, who gave a tenth to Melchizedek.
11 Even though the Law of Moses says the priests must be descendants of Levi, those priests cannot make anyone perfect. So there needs to be a priest like Melchizedek, rather than one from the priestly family of Aaron.[b] 12 And when the rules for selecting a priest are changed, the Law must also be changed.
13 The person we are talking about is our Lord, who came from a tribe that had never had anyone to serve as a priest at the altar. 14 Everyone knows he came from the tribe of Judah, and Moses never said priests would come from that tribe.
15 All of this becomes clearer, when someone who is like Melchizedek is appointed to be a priest. 16 That person wasn't appointed because of his ancestors, but because his life can never end. 17 (C) The Scriptures say about him,
“You are a priest forever,
just like Melchizedek.”
18 In this way a weak and useless command was put aside, 19 because the Law cannot make anything perfect. At the same time, we are given a much better hope, and it can bring us close to God.
20-21 (D) God himself made a promise when this priest was appointed. But he did not make a promise like this when the other priests were appointed. The promise he made is,
“I, the Lord, promise that you
will be a priest forever!
And I will never
change my mind!”
22 This means that Jesus guarantees us a better agreement with God. 23 There have been a lot of other priests, and all of them have died. 24 But Jesus will never die, and so he will be a priest forever! 25 He is forever able to save[c] the people he leads to God, because he always lives to speak to God for them.
26 Jesus is the high priest we need. He is holy and innocent and faultless, and not at all like us sinners. Jesus is honored above all beings in heaven, 27 (E) and he is better than any other high priest. Jesus doesn't need to offer sacrifices each day for his own sins and then for the sins of the people. He offered a sacrifice once for all, when he gave himself. 28 The Law appoints priests who have weaknesses. But God's promise, which came later than the Law, appoints his Son. And he is the perfect high priest forever.
1 (A) I am Amos. And I raised sheep near the town of Tekoa[a] when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam[b] son of Jehoash[c] was king of Israel.
Two years before the earthquake,[d] the Lord gave me several messages[e] about Israel, 2 (B) and I said:
When the Lord roars
from Jerusalem,
pasturelands and Mount Carmel
dry up and turn brown.
Judgment on Syria
3 (C) The Lord said:
I will punish Syria[f]
for countless crimes,
and I won't change my mind.
They dragged logs with spikes[g]
over the people of Gilead.
4 Now I will burn down the palaces
and fortresses of King Hazael
and of King Benhadad.[h]
5 I will break through
the gates of Damascus.
I will destroy the people[i]
of Wicked Valley[j]
and the ruler of Beth-Eden.[k]
Then the Syrians will be dragged
as prisoners to Kir.[l]
I, the Lord, have spoken!
Judgment on Philistia
6 (D) The Lord said:
I will punish Philistia[m]
for countless crimes,
and I won't change my mind.
They dragged off my people[n]
from town after town
to sell them as slaves
to the Edomites.
7 That's why I will burn down
the walls and fortresses
of the city of Gaza.
8 I will destroy the king[o] of Ashdod
and the ruler of Ashkelon.
I will strike down Ekron,[p]
and that will be the end
of the Philistines.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
Judgment on Phoenicia
9 (E) The Lord said:
I will punish Phoenicia[q]
for countless crimes,
and I won't change my mind.
They broke their treaty
and dragged off my people[r]
from town after town
to sell them as slaves
to the Edomites.
10 That's why I will send flames
to burn down the city of Tyre
along with its fortresses.
Judgment on Edom
11 (F) The Lord said:
I will punish Edom
for countless crimes,
and I won't change my mind.
They killed their own relatives[s]
and were so terribly furious
that they showed no mercy.
12 Now I will send fire to wipe out
the fortresses of Teman
and Bozrah.[t]
Judgment on Ammon
13 (G) The Lord said:
I will punish Ammon
for countless crimes,
and I won't change my mind.
In Gilead they ripped open
pregnant women,
just to take the land.
14 Now I will send fire to destroy
the walls and fortresses
of Rabbah.[u]
Enemies will shout and attack
like a whirlwind.
15 Ammon's king and leaders
will be dragged away.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
(By David.)
A Prayer for the Nation
1 I praise you, Lord!
You are my mighty rock,[a]
and you teach me
how to fight my battles.
2 You are my friend, my fortress,
where I am safe.
You are my shield,
and you made me the ruler
of our people.[b]
3 (A) Why do we humans mean anything
to you, our Lord?
Why do you care about us?
4 We disappear like a breath;
we last no longer
than a faint shadow.
5 Open the heavens like a curtain
and come down, Lord.
Touch the mountains
and make them send up smoke.
6 Use your lightning as arrows
to scatter my enemies
and make them run away.
7 Reach down from heaven
and set me free.
Save me from the mighty flood
8 of those lying foreigners
who never tell the truth.
9 In praise of you, our God,
I will sing a new song,
while playing my harp.
10 By your power, kings win wars,
and your servant David is saved
from deadly swords.
11 Won't you keep me safe
from those lying foreigners
who never tell the truth?
12 Let's pray that our young sons
will grow like strong plants
and that our daughters
will be as lovely as columns
in the corner of a palace.
13 May our barns be filled
with all kinds of crops.
May our fields be covered
with sheep by the thousands,
14 and every cow have calves.[c]
Don't let our city be captured
or any of us be taken away,
and don't let cries of sorrow
be heard in our streets.
15 Our Lord and our God,
you give these blessings
to all who worship you.
Copyright © 1995 by American Bible Society For more information about CEV, visit www.bibles.com and www.cev.bible.