M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

Achish Sends David Back to Ziklag

29 The Philistines gathered their whole army together at Aphek. Israel’s army camped by the spring of water at Jezreel. ² The Philistine rulers marched out in groups of hundreds and thousands. David and his men were marching with Achish behind the others. ³ The commanders of the Philistines asked, “Why are these Hebrews here?”

Achish replied, “That’s David, isn’t it? Wasn’t he an officer of Saul, the king of Israel? He has already been with me for more than a year. I haven’t found any fault in him. That’s been true from the day he left Saul until now.”

⁴ But the Philistine commanders were angry with Achish. They said, “Send David back. Let him return to the town you gave him. He must not go with us into battle. If he does, he’ll turn against us during the fighting. In fact, he might even cut off the heads of our own men. What better way could he choose to win back his master’s favor? ⁵ Isn’t David the one the Israelites sang about when they danced? They sang,

⁶ So Achish called David over to him. He said, “You have been faithful to me. And that’s just as sure as the Lord is alive. I would be pleased to have you serve with me in the army. I haven’t found any fault in you. That’s been true from the day you came to me until today. But the Philistine rulers aren’t pleased to have you come along. ⁷ So now go back home in peace. Don’t do anything that wouldn’t please the Philistine rulers.”

⁸ “But what have I done?” asked David. “What have you found against me from the day I came to you until now? Why can’t I go and fight against your enemies? After all, you are my king and master.”

⁹ Achish answered, “You have been as pleasing to me as an angel of God. But the Philistine commanders have said, ‘We don’t want David to go up with us into battle.’ ¹⁰ So get up early in the morning. Take with you the men who used to serve Saul. Leave as soon as the sun begins to come up.”

¹¹ So David and his men got up early in the morning. They went back to the land of the Philistines. And the Philistines went up to Jezreel.

David Destroys the Amalekites

30 On the third day David and his men arrived in Ziklag. The Amalekites had attacked the people of the Negev Desert. They had also attacked Ziklag and burned it. ² They had captured the women and everyone else in Ziklag. They had taken as prisoners young people and old people alike. But they didn’t kill any of them. Instead, they carried them off as they went on their way.

³ David and his men reached Ziklag. They saw that it had been destroyed by fire. They found out that their wives and sons and daughters had been captured. ⁴ So David and his men began to weep out loud. They wept until they couldn’t weep anymore. ⁵ David’s two wives had been captured. Their names were Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail from Carmel. Abigail was Nabal’s widow. ⁶ David was greatly troubled. His men were even talking about killing him by throwing stones at him. All of them were very bitter because their sons and daughters had been taken away. But David was made strong by the Lord his God.

⁷ Then David spoke to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelek. He said, “Bring me the linen apron.” Abiathar brought it to him. ⁸ David asked the Lord for advice. He said, “Should I chase after the men who attacked Ziklag? If I do, will I catch up with them?”

“Chase after them,” the Lord answered. “You will certainly catch up with them. You will succeed in saving those who were captured.”

⁹ David and his 600 men came to the Besor Valley. Some of them stayed behind there. ¹⁰ That’s because 200 of them were too tired to go across the valley. But David and the other 400 continued the chase.

¹¹ David’s men found an Egyptian in a field. They brought him to David. They gave him water to drink and food to eat. ¹² They gave him part of a cake of pressed figs. They also gave him two raisin cakes. After he ate them, he felt as good as new. That’s because he hadn’t eaten any food for three days and three nights. He hadn’t drunk any water during that time either.

¹³ David asked him, “Who do you belong to? Where do you come from?”

The man said, “I’m from Egypt. I’m the slave of an Amalekite. My master deserted me when I became ill three days ago. ¹⁴ We attacked the people in the Negev Desert of the Kerethites. We attacked the territory that belongs to Judah. We attacked the people in the Negev Desert of Caleb. And we burned Ziklag.”

¹⁵ David asked him, “Can you lead me down to the men who attacked Ziklag?”

He answered, “Make a promise to me in the name of God. Promise that you won’t kill me. Promise that you won’t hand me over to my master. Then I’ll take you down to them.”

¹⁶ He led David down to where the men were. They were scattered all over the countryside. They were eating and drinking and dancing wildly. That’s because they had taken a large amount of goods from those they had attacked. They had taken it from the land of the Philistines and from the people of Judah. ¹⁷ David fought against them from sunset until the evening of the next day. None of them escaped except 400 young men. They rode off on camels and got away. ¹⁸ David got everything back that the Amalekites had taken. That included his two wives. ¹⁹ Nothing was missing. Not one young person or old person or boy or girl was missing. None of the goods or anything else the Amalekites had taken was missing. David brought everything back. ²⁰ He brought back all the flocks and herds. His men drove them on ahead of the other livestock. They said, “Here’s what David has captured.”

²¹ Then David came to the 200 men who had been too tired to follow him. They had been left behind in the Besor Valley. They came out to welcome David and the men with him. As David and his men approached, he asked them how they were. ²² But some of the men who had gone out with David were evil. They wanted to stir up trouble. They said, “The 200 men didn’t go out into battle with us. So we won’t share with them the goods we brought back. But each man can take his wife and children and go home.”

²³ David replied, “No, my friends. You must not hold back their share of what the Lord has given us. He has kept us safe. He has handed over to us the men who attacked us. ²⁴ So no one will pay any attention to what you are saying. Each man who stayed with the supplies will receive the same share as each man who went down to the battle. Everyone’s share will be the same.” ²⁵ David made that a law and a rule for Israel. It has been followed from that day until now.

²⁶ David reached Ziklag. He sent some of the goods to the elders of Judah. They were his friends. He said, “Here’s a gift for you. It’s part of the things we took from the Lord’s enemies.”

²⁷ David sent some goods to the elders in Bethel, Ramoth Negev and Jattir. ²⁸ He sent some to the elders in Aroer, Siphmoth, Eshtemoa ²⁹ and Rakal. He sent some to the elders in the towns of the Jerahmeelites and Kenites. ³⁰ He sent some to the elders in Hormah, Bor Ashan, Athak ³¹ and Hebron. He also sent some to the elders in all the other places where he and his men had wandered around.

Warnings From Israel’s History

10 Brothers and sisters, I want you to know something about our people who lived long ago. They were all led by the cloud. They all walked through the Red Sea. ² They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. ³ They all ate the same spiritual food. ⁴ They all drank the same spiritual water. They drank from the spiritual rock that went with them. That rock was Christ. ⁵ But God was not pleased with most of them. Their bodies were scattered in the desert.

⁶ Now those things happened as examples for us. They are supposed to keep us from wanting evil things. The people of Israel wanted these evil things. ⁷ So don’t worship statues of gods, as some of them did. It is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink. Then they got up to dance wildly in front of their god.” (Exodus 32:6) ⁸ We should not commit sexual sins, as some of them did. In one day 23,000 of them died. ⁹ We should not test the Messiah, as some of them did. They were killed by snakes. ¹⁰ Don’t speak against God. That’s what some of the people of Israel did. And they were killed by the destroying angel.

¹¹ Those things happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us. That’s because we are living at the time when God’s work is being completed. ¹² So be careful. When you think you are standing firm, you might fall. ¹³ You are tempted in the same way all other human beings are. God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted any more than you can take. But when you are tempted, God will give you a way out. Then you will be able to deal with it.

Sharing in the Lord’s Supper

¹⁴ My dear friends, run away from statues of gods. Don’t worship them. ¹⁵ I’m talking to people who are reasonable. Judge for yourselves what I say. ¹⁶ We give thanks for the cup at the Lord’s Supper. When we do, aren’t we sharing in the blood of Christ? When we break the bread, aren’t we sharing in the body of Christ? ¹⁷ Just as there is one loaf, so we who are many are one body. We all share the one loaf.

¹⁸ Think about the people of Israel. Don’t those who eat the offerings share in the altar? ¹⁹ Do I mean that food sacrificed to a statue of a god is anything? Do I mean that a statue of a god is anything? ²⁰ No! But what is sacrificed by those who worship statues of gods is really sacrificed to demons. It is not sacrificed to God. I don’t want you to be sharing with demons. ²¹ You can’t drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too. You can’t have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. ²² Are we trying to make the Lord jealous? Are we stronger than he is?

The Believer’s Freedom

²³ You say, “I have the right to do anything.” But not everything is helpful. Again you say, “I have the right to do anything.” But not everything builds us up. ²⁴ No one should look out for their own interests. Instead, they should look out for the interests of others.

²⁵ Eat anything sold in the meat market. Don’t ask if it’s right or wrong. ²⁶ Scripture says, “The earth belongs to the Lord. And so does everything in it.” (Psalm 24:1)

²⁷ Suppose an unbeliever invites you to a meal and you want to go. Then eat anything that is put in front of you. Don’t ask if it’s right or wrong. ²⁸ But suppose someone says to you, “This food has been sacrificed to a statue of a god.” Then don’t eat it. Keep in mind the good of the person who told you. And don’t eat because of a sense of what is right and wrong. ²⁹ I’m talking about the other person’s sense of what is right and wrong, not yours. Why is my freedom being judged by what someone else thinks? ³⁰ Suppose I give thanks when I eat. Then why should I be blamed for eating food I thank God for?

³¹ So eat and drink and do everything else for the glory of God. ³² Don’t do anything that causes another person to trip and fall. It doesn’t matter if that person is a Jew or a Greek or a member of God’s church. ³³ Follow my example. I try to please everyone in every way. I’m not looking out for what is good for me. I’m looking out for the interests of others. I do it so that they might be saved.

The People Worship Other Gods in the Temple

8 It was the sixth year since King Jehoiachin had been brought to Babylon as a prisoner. On the fifth day of the sixth month, I was sitting in my house. The elders of Judah were sitting there with me. The power of the Lord and King came on me there. ² I looked up and saw a figure that appeared to be human. From his waist down he looked like fire. From his waist up he looked as bright as glowing metal. ³ He reached out what appeared to be a hand. He took hold of me by the hair of my head. The Spirit of the Lord lifted me up between earth and heaven. In visions God gave me, the Spirit took me to Jerusalem. He brought me to the entrance of the north gate of the inner courtyard. The statue of a god was standing there. It made God very angry. ⁴ There in front of me was the glory of the God of Israel. It looked just as it did in the vision I had seen on the plain.

⁵ Then the Lord said to me, “Son of man, look toward the north.” So I did. I saw a statue that made God angry. It was in the entrance of the gate north of the altar.

⁶ He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what the Israelites are doing here? They are doing things I hate very much. Those things will cause me to go far away from my temple. But you will see things I hate even more.”

⁷ Then he brought me to the entrance to the courtyard. I looked up and saw a hole in the wall. ⁸ He said to me, “Son of man, dig into the wall.” So I did. And I saw a door there.

⁹ He continued, “Go through it. Look at the evil things they are doing here. I hate those things.” ¹⁰ So I went in and looked. All over the walls were pictures of all kinds of crawling things and “unclean” animals. The Lord hates it when people worship those things. There were also carvings of the gods of the people of Israel. ¹¹ In front of them stood 70 elders of Israel. Jaazaniah was standing there among them. He is the son of Shaphan. Each elder was holding a shallow cup. A sweet-smelling cloud of incense was rising from the cups.

¹² The Lord spoke to me. He said, “Son of man, do you see what the elders of Israel are doing in the dark? Each of them is in his own room worshiping his own god. They say, ‘The Lord doesn’t see us. He has deserted the land.’ ” ¹³ He continued, “You will see them doing things I hate even more.”

¹⁴ Then he brought me to the entrance of the north gate of the Lord’s house. I saw women sitting there. They were mourning for the god named Tammuz. ¹⁵ The Lord said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing? You will see things I hate even more.”

¹⁶ Then he brought me into the inner courtyard of the Lord’s house. About 25 men were there. They were at the entrance to the Lord’s temple between the porch and the altar. Their backs were turned toward the temple. Their faces were turned toward the east. And they were bowing down to the sun.

¹⁷ He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen all of this? The people of Judah are doing things here that I hate. This is a very serious matter. They are harming one another all through the land. They continue to make me very angry. Just look at them making fun of me! ¹⁸ So I am angry with them. I will punish them. I will not spare them or feel sorry for them. They might even shout in my ears. But I will not listen to them.”

For the director of music. A song of the Sons of Korah. According to alamoth.

For the director of music. A psalm of the Sons of Korah.