M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

A Man of God From Judah

13 A man of God went from Judah to Bethel. He had received a message from the Lord. He arrived in Bethel just as Jeroboam was standing by the altar to offer a sacrifice. ² The man cried out. He shouted a message from the Lord against the altar. He said, “Altar! Altar! The Lord says, ‘A son named Josiah will be born into the royal family of David. Altar, listen to me! Josiah will sacrifice the priests of the high places on you. They will be the children of the priests who are offering sacrifices here. So human bones will be burned on you.’ ” ³ That same day the man of God spoke about a miraculous sign. He said, “Here is the sign the Lord has announced. This altar will be broken to pieces. The ashes on it will be spilled out.”

⁴ The man of God announced that message against the altar at Bethel. When King Jeroboam heard it, he reached out his hand from the altar. He said, “Grab him!” But as he reached out his hand toward the man, it dried up. He couldn’t even pull it back. ⁵ Also, the altar broke into pieces. Its ashes spilled out. That happened in keeping with the miraculous sign the man of God had announced. He had received a message from the Lord.

⁶ King Jeroboam spoke to the man of God. He said, “Pray to the Lord your God for me. Pray that my hand will be as good as new again.” So the man of God prayed to the Lord for the king. And the king’s hand became as good as new. It was just as healthy as it had been before.

⁷ The king said to the man of God, “Come home with me for a meal. I’ll give you a gift.”

⁸ But the man of God replied to the king. He said, “What if you were to give me half of what you own? Even then I wouldn’t go with you. I wouldn’t eat bread or drink water here. ⁹ The Lord gave me a command. He said, ‘Do not eat bread or drink water there. Do not return the same way you came.’ ” ¹⁰ So he took another road. He didn’t go back on the same road he had taken when he came to Bethel.

¹¹ An old prophet was living in Bethel. His sons came and spoke to him. They told him everything the man of God had done there that day. They also told their father what the man had said to the king. ¹² Their father asked them, “Which way did he go?” His sons showed him the road the man of God from Judah had taken. ¹³ So he said to his sons, “Put a saddle on the donkey for me.” When they had done it, he got on the donkey. ¹⁴ He traveled on the same road the man of God had taken. He found the man sitting under an oak tree. He asked him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?”

“I am,” he replied.

¹⁵ So the prophet said to him, “Come home with me. I’ll give you something to eat.”

¹⁶ The man of God said, “I can’t go back to Bethel with you. I can’t eat bread or drink water with you there. ¹⁷ I’ve received a message from the Lord. He told me, ‘Do not eat bread or drink water there. Do not return the same way you came.’ ”

¹⁸ The old prophet answered, “I’m also a prophet, just like you. An angel gave me a message from the Lord. The message said, ‘Bring the man of God back with you to your house. Then he can eat bread and drink water with you.’ ” But the old prophet was telling him a lie. ¹⁹ The man of God returned with him. He ate and drank in his house.

²⁰ They were sitting at the table. The Lord gave a message to the old prophet who had brought the man of God back. ²¹ He cried out to the man who had come from Judah. He told him, “The Lord says, ‘You have not done what I told you to do. You have not obeyed the command I gave you. I am the Lord your God. ²² You came back here and ate bread and drank water. You did it in the place where I told you not to. So your body will not be buried in your family tomb.’ ”

²³ The man of God finished eating and drinking. Then the old prophet who had brought him back put a saddle on the man’s donkey for him. ²⁴ And the man went on his way. A lion attacked him on the road and killed him. His body was left lying on the road. The donkey and the lion were standing beside it. ²⁵ Some people passed by. They saw the body lying on the road. They saw the lion standing beside the body. Then they went and reported it in the city where the old prophet lived.

²⁶ The prophet who had brought the man back from his journey heard about what had happened. He said, “It’s the man of God. He didn’t do what the Lord told him to do. So the Lord has given him over to the lion. The lion has attacked him and killed him. Everything has happened just as the Lord’s message had warned him it would.”

²⁷ The old prophet said to his sons, “Put a saddle on the donkey for me.” So they did. ²⁸ Then he went out. He found the body of the man of God lying on the road. The donkey and the lion were standing beside it. The lion hadn’t eaten the body. It hadn’t attacked the donkey either. ²⁹ So the prophet picked up the man’s body. He put it on the donkey. He brought it back to his own city. He wanted to mourn for him and bury him. ³⁰ Then he placed the body in his own tomb. People mourned for him. They said, “Oh, no, my friend! My dear friend!”

³¹ After the old prophet had buried the man of God, he spoke to his sons. He said, “When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried. Put my bones next to his bones. ³² I want you to do that because he announced a message from the Lord. He spoke against the altar in Bethel. He also spoke against all the temples that are on the high places. They are in the towns of Samaria. What the man of God said will certainly come true.”

³³ Even after all of that happened, Jeroboam still didn’t change his evil ways. Once more he appointed priests for the high places. He made priests out of all kinds of people. In fact, he let anyone become a priest who wanted to. He set them apart to serve at the high places. ³⁴ All of that was the great sin the royal family of Jeroboam committed. It led to their fall from power. Because of it, they were destroyed from the face of the earth.

Remain Strong in the Lord

4 My brothers and sisters, in this way remain strong in the Lord. I love you and long for you. Dear friends, you are my joy and my crown.

² Here is what I’m asking Euodia and Syntyche to do. I’m asking them to work together in the Lord. That’s because they both belong to the Lord. ³ My true companion, here is what I ask you to do. Help these women, because they have served at my side. They have worked with me to spread the good news. So have Clement and the rest of those who have worked together with me. Their names are all written in the book of life.

Final Commands

⁴ Always be joyful because you belong to the Lord. I will say it again. Be joyful! ⁵ Let everyone know how gentle you are. The Lord is coming soon. ⁶ Don’t worry about anything. No matter what happens, tell God about everything. Ask and pray, and give thanks to him. ⁷ Then God’s peace will watch over your hearts and your minds. He will do this because you belong to Christ Jesus. God’s peace can never be completely understood.

⁸ Finally, my brothers and sisters, always think about what is true. Think about what is noble, right and pure. Think about what is lovely and worthy of respect. If anything is excellent or worthy of praise, think about those kinds of things. ⁹ Do what you have learned or received or heard from me. Follow my example. The God who gives peace will be with you.

Paul Gives Thanks for the Philippians’ Gifts

¹⁰ At last you are concerned about me again. That makes me very happy. We belong to the Lord. I know that you were concerned. But you had no chance to show it. ¹¹ I’m not saying this because I need anything. I have learned to be content no matter what happens to me. ¹² I know what it’s like not to have what I need. I also know what it’s like to have more than I need. I have learned the secret of being content no matter what happens. I am content whether I am well fed or hungry. I am content whether I have more than enough or not enough. ¹³ I can do all this by the power of Christ. He gives me strength.

¹⁴ But it was good of you to share in my troubles. ¹⁵ And you believers at Philippi know what happened when I left Macedonia. Not one church helped me in the matter of giving and receiving. You were the only one that did. That was in the early days when you first heard the good news. ¹⁶ Even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me help when I needed it. And you did it more than once. ¹⁷ It is not that I want your gifts. What I really want is what is best for you. ¹⁸ I have received my full pay and have more than enough. I have everything I need. That’s because Epaphroditus brought me the gifts you sent. They are a sweet-smelling offering. They are a gift that God accepts. He is pleased with it. ¹⁹ My God will meet all your needs. He will meet them in keeping with his wonderful riches. These riches come to you because you belong to Christ Jesus.

²⁰ Give glory to our God and Father for ever and ever. Amen.

Final Greetings

²¹ Greet all God’s people. They belong to Christ Jesus.

The brothers and sisters who are with me send greetings.

²² All God’s people here send you greetings. Most of all, those who live in the palace of Caesar send you greetings.

²³ May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

The Glory of God Returns to the Temple

43 Then the man brought me to the east gate. ² There I saw the glory of the God of Israel. He was coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of rushing waters. His glory made the land shine brightly. ³ The vision I saw was like the one I had when he came to destroy the city. It was also like the visions I had seen by the Kebar River. I fell with my face toward the ground. ⁴ The glory of the Lord entered the temple through the east gate. ⁵ Then the Spirit lifted me up. He brought me into the inner courtyard. The glory of the Lord filled the temple.

⁶ The man was standing beside me. I heard someone speaking to me from inside the temple. ⁷ He said, “Son of man, this is the place where my throne is. The stool for my feet is also here. I will live here among the people of Israel forever. They will never again treat my name as if it were not holy. They and their kings will not serve other gods anymore. The people will no longer make funeral offerings for their kings. ⁸ The people of Israel placed their own doorway next to my holy doorway. They put their doorposts right beside mine. Nothing but a thin wall separated us. They treated my name as if it were not holy. I hated it when they did that. So I became angry with them and destroyed them. ⁹ Now let them stop serving other gods. Let them stop making funeral offerings for their kings. If they obey me, I will live among them forever.

¹⁰ “Son of man, tell the people of Israel about the temple. Then they will be ashamed of their sins. Let them think carefully about how perfect it is. ¹¹ What if they are ashamed of everything they have done? Then show them all the plans of the temple. Explain to them how it is laid out. Tell them about its exits and entrances. Show them exactly what it will look like. Give them all its rules and laws. Write everything down so they can see it. Then they will be faithful to its plan. And they will obey all its rules.

¹² “Here is the law of the temple. The whole area on top of Mount Zion will be very holy. That is the law of the temple.”

The Great Altar Is Rebuilt

¹³ The man said, “Here is the size of the altar. The standard measurement I am using is 21 inches. The altar has a drain on the ground. The drain is 21 inches deep and 21 inches wide. It has a rim that is nine inches wide around the edge. Here is how high the altar is. ¹⁴ From the drain to the lower ledge is three and a half feet. The lower ledge goes around the altar and is 21 inches wide. From the lower ledge to the upper ledge is seven feet. The upper ledge also goes around the altar and is 21 inches wide. ¹⁵ The top part of the altar is where the sacrifices are burned. It is seven feet high. A horn sticks out from each of its four corners. ¹⁶ The top part of the altar is square. It is 21 feet long and 21 feet wide. ¹⁷ The upper ledge is also square. It is 25 feet long and 25 feet wide. The drain goes all the way around the altar. The rim of the drain is 11 inches wide. The steps leading up to the top of the altar face east.”

¹⁸ Then the man said to me, “Son of man, the Lord and King speaks. He says, ‘Here are the rules for the altar when it is built. Follow them when you sacrifice burnt offerings and splash blood against it. ¹⁹ Give a young bull to the priests as a sin offering. They are Levites from the family of Zadok. They approach me to serve me,’ announces the Lord and King. ²⁰ ‘Get some of the bull’s blood. Put it on the four horns of the altar. Also put it on the four corners of the upper ledge of the altar and all around the rim. That will make the altar pure and “clean.” ²¹ Use the bull for the sin offering. Burn it in the proper place outside the temple.

²² “ ‘On the second day offer a male goat. It must not have any flaws. It is a sin offering to make the altar pure and “clean.” So do the same thing with the goat that you did with the bull. ²³ When you finish making the altar pure, offer a young bull and a ram from the flock. They must not have any flaws. ²⁴ Offer them to me. The priests must sprinkle salt on them. Then they must sacrifice them as a burnt offering to me.

²⁵ “ ‘Provide a male goat each day for seven days. It is a sin offering. Also provide a young bull and a ram from the flock. They must not have any flaws. ²⁶ For seven days the priests must make the altar pure and “clean.” That is how they will set it apart to me. ²⁷ From the eighth day on, the priests must bring your burnt offerings and friendship offerings. They must sacrifice them on the altar. Then I will accept you,’ announces the Lord and King.”