M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
22 The people of Jerusalem made Ahaziah, his youngest son, king in his stead, for the troop that came with the Arabs to the camp had slain all the older sons. So Ahaziah son of Jehoram king of Judah reigned.
2 Forty-two years old was Ahaziah when he began his one-year reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Athaliah, a granddaughter of Omri.(A)
3 He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his counselor to do wickedly.
4 So he did evil in the sight of the Lord like the house of Ahab, for they were his counselors after his father’s death, to his destruction.
5 He followed their counsel and even went with [a]Joram son of Ahab king of Israel to war against Hazael king of Syria at Ramoth-gilead. And the Syrians wounded Joram;(B)
6 And he returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds given him at Ramah when he fought against Hazael king of Syria. Azariah son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Joram son of Ahab in Jezreel because he was sick.
7 But the destruction of Ahaziah was ordained of God in his coming to visit Joram. For when he got there he went out with Joram against Jehu son of Nimshi, whom the Lord had anointed to destroy the house of Ahab.
8 And when Jehu was executing judgment upon the house of Ahab, he met the princes of Judah and the sons of Ahaziah’s slain brothers, who attended Ahaziah, and he slew them.
9 And [Jehu] sought Ahaziah, who was hiding in Samaria; he was captured, brought to Jehu, and slain. They buried him, for they said, After all, he is the grandson of Jehoshaphat, who sought the Lord with all his heart. So the house of Ahaziah had no one left able to rule the kingdom.
10 But when Athaliah mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal family of Judah.
11 But Jehosheba, the daughter of the king, took Joash [infant] son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were to be slain, and she put him and his nurse in a bedchamber. So Jehosheba daughter of King Jehoram, sister of Ahaziah, and wife of Jehoiada the priest, hid [Joash] from [his grandmother] Athaliah, so that she did not slay him.
12 And Joash was with them hidden in the house of God six years, and Athaliah reigned over the land.
23 In the seventh year Jehoiada [the priest] took strength and courage and made a covenant with the captains of hundreds: Azariah son of Jeroham, Ishmael son of Jehohanan, Azariah son of Obed, Maaseiah son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat son of Zichri.
2 And they went about in Judah and gathered the Levites out of all the cities, and the chiefs of the fathers’ houses of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem.
3 And all the assembly made a covenant in the house of God with the king [little Joash, to suddenly proclaim his sovereignty and overthrow Athaliah’s tyranny]. And Jehoiada the priest said to them, Behold, the king’s son shall reign, as the Lord has said of the offspring of David.
4 This is what you shall do: a third of you priests and Levites who are resuming service on the Sabbath shall be doorkeepers,
5 A [second] third shall be at the king’s house, and [the final] third at the Foundation Gate; and all the people shall be in the courts [only] of the house of the Lord.
6 But let none come into the [main] house of the Lord except the priests and those of the Levites who minister; they may go in, for they are holy, but let all the rest of the people carefully observe the law against entering the holy place of the Lord.
7 And the Levites shall surround the young king, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whoever comes into the house [breaking through the ranks of the guard to get near Joash] shall be put to death. But you be with the king when he comes in [from the temple chamber where he is hiding] and when he goes out.
8 So the Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest had commanded; and took every man his men who were to resume duty on the Sabbath, with those who were to go out on the Sabbath, for Jehoiada the priest did not dismiss the divisions [of priests and Levites].
9 Also Jehoiada the priest gave the captains of hundreds spears, bucklers, and shields that had been King David’s, which were in the house of God.
10 And he set all the people as a guard for the king, every man having his weapon (missile) in his hand, from the right side to the left side of the temple, around the altar and the temple.
11 Then they brought out the king’s son and put the crown on him and gave him the testimony or law and made him king. And Jehoiada and his sons anointed him and said, Long live the king!
12 When Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she went into the Lord’s house to the people.
13 And behold, there the king stood by his pillar at the entrance, the captains and the trumpeters beside him; and all the people of the land rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and the singers with musical instruments led in singing of praise. Athaliah rent her clothes and cried, Treason! Treason!
14 Then Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains of hundreds who were over the army, Bring her out between the ranks, and whoever follows her, let him be slain with the sword. For the priest said, Do not slay her in the Lord’s house.
15 So they made way for Athaliah, and she went into the entrance of the Horse Gate of the king’s house; there they slew her.
16 Then Jehoiada made a covenant between himself, all the people, and the king, that they should be the Lord’s people.
17 Then all the people went to the house of Baal, tore it down, and broke its altars and its images in pieces, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars.
18 Also Jehoiada appointed the offices and officers [for the care] of the house of the Lord under the direction of the Levitical priests, whom David had distributed [in his day] in the house of the Lord, to offer the burnt offerings of the Lord as written in the Law of Moses, with rejoicing and singing, as ordered by David.
19 Jehoiada set the gatekeepers at the gates of the house of the Lord so that no one should enter who was in any way unclean.
20 And he took the captains of hundreds and the nobles and governors of the people and all the people of the land and brought down the king from the house of the Lord; and they came through the Upper Gate to the king’s house and set the king upon the throne of the kingdom.
21 So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet after Athaliah had been slain with the sword.
10 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, robed in a cloud, with a [halo like a] rainbow over his head; his face was like the sun, and his feet (legs) were like columns of fire.
2 He had a little book (scroll) open in his hand. He set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land,
3 And he shouted with a loud voice like the roaring of a lion; and when he had shouted, the seven thunders gave voice and uttered their message in distinct words.
4 And when the seven thunders had spoken (sounded), I was going to write [it down], but I heard a voice from heaven saying, Seal up what the seven thunders have said! Do not write it down!
5 Then the [mighty] angel whom I had seen stationed on sea and land raised his right hand to heaven (the [a]sky),(A)
6 And swore in the name of (by) Him Who lives forever and ever, Who created the heavens ([b]sky) and all they contain, and the earth and all that it contains, and the sea and all that it contains. [He swore] that no more time should intervene and there should be no more waiting or delay,
7 But that when the days come when the trumpet call of the seventh angel is about to be sounded, then God’s mystery (His secret design, His hidden purpose), as He had announced the glad tidings to His servants the prophets, should be fulfilled (accomplished, completed).(B)
8 Then the voice that I heard from heaven spoke again to me, saying, Go and take the little book (scroll) which is open on the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.
9 So I went up to the angel and asked him to give me the little book. And he said to me, Take it and eat it. It will embitter your stomach, though in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.(C)
10 So I took the little book from the angel’s hand and ate and swallowed it; it was as sweet as honey in my mouth, but once I had swallowed it, my stomach was embittered.
11 Then they said to me, You are to make a fresh prophecy concerning many peoples and races and nations and languages and kings.(D)
6 And again I lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, four chariots came out from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of firm, immovable bronze.
2 The first chariot had red or bay horses, the second chariot had black horses,
3 The third chariot had white horses, and the fourth chariot had dappled, active, and strong horses.
4 Then I said to the angel who talked with me, What are these, my lord?
5 And the angel answered me, These are the four winds or spirits of the heavens, which go forth from presenting themselves before the Lord of all the earth.(A)
6 The chariot with the black horses is going forth into the north country, and the white ones are going forth after them [because there are two northern powers to overcome], and the dappled ones are going forth toward the south country.
7 And [the chariots with] the strong [horses] went forth and sought to go that they might patrol the earth. And [the Lord] said to them, Go, walk to and fro through the earth and patrol it. So they walked about through the earth [watching and protecting it].
8 Then He summoned me and said to me, Behold, these that go toward the north country have quieted My Spirit [of wrath] and have caused it to rest in the north country.
9 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
10 Accept donations and offerings from these [as representatives of the] exiles, from Heldai, from Tobijah, and from Jedaiah, who have come from Babylon; and come the same day and go to the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah.
11 Yes, take from them silver and gold, and make crowns and set [one] upon the head of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest,
12 And say to him, Thus says the Lord of hosts: [You, Joshua] behold (look at, keep in sight, watch) the Man [the Messiah] whose name is the Branch, for He shall grow up in His place and He shall build the [true] temple of the Lord.(B)
13 Yes, [you are building a temple of the Lord, but] it is He Who shall build the [true] temple of the Lord, and He shall bear the honor and glory [as of the only begotten of the Father] and shall sit and rule upon His throne. And He shall be a [a]Priest upon His throne, and the counsel of peace shall be between the two [offices—Priest and King].(C)
14 And the [other] crown shall be [credited] to Helem (Heldai), to Tobijah, and to Jedaiah, and to the kindness and favor of Josiah the son of Zephaniah, and shall be in the temple of the Lord for a reminder and memorial.(D)
15 And those who are far off shall come and help build the temple of the Lord, and you shall know (recognize and understand) that the Lord sent me [Zechariah] to you. And [your part in this] shall come to pass if you will diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God.
9 As He passed along, He noticed a man blind from his birth.
2 His disciples asked Him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he should be born blind?
3 Jesus answered, It was not that this man or his parents sinned, but he was born blind in order that the workings of God should be manifested (displayed and illustrated) in him.
4 We must work the works of Him Who sent Me and be busy with His business while it is daylight; night is coming on, when no man can work.
5 As long as I am in the world, I am the world’s Light.
6 When He had said this, He spat on the ground and made clay (mud) with His saliva, and He spread it [as ointment] on the man’s eyes.
7 And He said to him, Go, wash in the Pool of Siloam—which means Sent. So he went and washed, and came back seeing.
8 When the neighbors and those who used to know him by sight as a beggar saw him, they said, Is not this the man who used to sit and beg?
9 Some said, It is he. Others said, No, but he looks very much like him. But he said, Yes, I am the man.
10 So they said to him, How were your eyes opened?
11 He replied, The Man called Jesus made mud and smeared it on my eyes and said to me, Go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and I obtained my sight!
12 They asked him, Where is He? He said, I do not know.
13 Then they conducted to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.
14 Now it was on the Sabbath day that Jesus mixed the mud and opened the man’s eyes.
15 So now again the Pharisees asked him how he received his sight. And he said to them, He smeared mud on my eyes, and I washed, and now I see.
16 Then some of the Pharisees said, This Man [Jesus] is not from God, because He does not observe the Sabbath. But others said, How can a man who is a sinner (a bad man) do such signs and miracles? So there was a difference of opinion among them.
17 Accordingly they said to the blind man again, What do you say about Him, seeing that He opened your eyes? And he said, He is [He must be] a prophet!
18 However, the Jews did not believe that he had [really] been blind and that he had received his sight until they called (summoned) the parents of the man.
19 They asked them, Is this your son, whom you reported as having been born blind? How then does he see now?
20 His parents answered, We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind.
21 But as to how he can now see, we do not know; or who has opened his eyes, we do not know. He is of age. Ask him; let him speak for himself and give his own account of it.
22 His parents said this because they feared [the leaders of] the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should acknowledge Jesus to be the Christ, he should be expelled and excluded from the synagogue.
23 On that account his parents said, He is of age; ask him.
24 So the second time they summoned the man who had been born blind, and said to him, Now give God the glory (praise). This [a]Fellow we know is only a sinner (a wicked person).
25 Then he answered, I do not know whether He is a sinner and wicked or not. But one thing I do know, that whereas I was blind before, now I see.
26 So they said to him, What did He [actually] do to you? How did He open your eyes?
27 He answered, I already told you and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Can it be that you wish to become His disciples also?
28 And they stormed at him [they jeered, they sneered, they reviled him] and retorted, You are His disciple yourself, but we are the disciples of Moses.
29 We know for certain that God spoke with Moses, but as for this Fellow, we know nothing about where He hails from.
30 The man replied, Well, this is astonishing! Here a Man has opened my eyes, and yet you do not know where He comes from. [That is amazing!]
31 We know that God does not listen to sinners; but if anyone is God-fearing and a worshiper of Him and does His will, He listens to him.
32 Since the beginning of time it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind.
33 If this Man were not from God, He would not be able to do anything like this.
34 They retorted, You were wholly born in sin [from head to foot]; and do you [presume to] teach us? So they cast him out [threw him clear outside the synagogue].
35 Jesus heard that they had put him out, and meeting him He said, Do you believe in and adhere to the Son of Man [b]or the Son of God?
36 He answered, Who is He, Sir? Tell me, that I may believe in and adhere to Him.
37 Jesus said to him, You have seen Him; [in fact] He is talking to you right now.
38 He called out, Lord, I believe! [I rely on, I trust, I cleave to You!] And he worshiped Him.
39 Then Jesus said, I came into this world for judgment [as a Separator, in order that there may be [c] separation between those who believe on Me and those who reject Me], to make the sightless see and to make those who see become blind.
40 Some Pharisees who were near, hearing this remark, said to Him, Are we also blind?
41 Jesus said to them, If you were blind, you would have no sin; but because you now claim to have sight, your sin remains. [If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but because you insist, We do see clearly, you are unable to escape your guilt.]
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