M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
King Josiah Reforms Judah’s Worship(A)
34 Josiah was 8 years old when he began to rule, and he was king for 31 years in Jerusalem. 2 He did what the Lord considered right. He lived in the ways of his ancestor David and never stopped living this way.
3 In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still a boy, he began to dedicate his life to serving the God of his ancestor David. In his twelfth year as king, he began to make Judah and Jerusalem clean [a] by destroying the illegal places of worship, poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah, carved idols, and metal idols. 4 He had the altars of the various Baal gods torn down. He cut down the incense altars that were above them. He destroyed the Asherah poles, carved idols, and metal idols. He ground them into powder and scattered the powder over the tombs of those who had sacrificed to them. 5 He burned the bones of the priests on their altars. So he made Judah and Jerusalem clean. 6 In the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, Simeon, and as far as Naphtali, he removed all their temples, 7 tore down the altars, beat the Asherah poles and idols into powder, and cut down all the incense altars everywhere in Israel. Then he went back to Jerusalem.
King Josiah Rededicates Judah to God’s Promise(B)
8 In the eighteenth year of his reign as he was making the land and the temple clean, Josiah sent Shaphan, son of Azaliah, Maaseiah, the mayor of the city, and Joah, the royal historian and son of Joahaz, to repair the temple of the Lord his God. 9 They came to the chief priest Hilkiah and gave him the money that had been brought to God’s temple, the money that the Levite doorkeepers had collected from the tribes of Manasseh and Ephraim, from all who were left in Israel, from everyone in the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, and from the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 10 They gave the money to the foremen who were in charge of the Lord’s temple. These foremen gave it to the workmen who were restoring and repairing the temple. 11 (These workers included carpenters and builders.) They were to buy quarried stones and wood for the fittings and beams of the buildings that the kings of Judah had allowed to become run-down. 12 The men did their work faithfully under the supervision of Jahath and Obadiah (Levites descended from Merari), and Zechariah and Meshullam (descendants of Kohath). The Levites, who were skilled musicians, 13 also supervised the workers and directed all the workmen on the various jobs. Some of the Levites served as scribes, officials, or gatekeepers.
14 When they brought out the money that had been deposited in the Lord’s temple, the priest Hilkiah found the Book of the Lord’s Teachings written by Moses. 15 Hilkiah told the scribe Shaphan, “I have found the Book of the Teachings in the Lord’s temple.” Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan.
16 Shaphan took the book to the king and reported, “We are doing everything you told us to do. 17 We took the money that was donated in the Lord’s temple and gave it to the supervisors and the workmen.” 18 Then the scribe Shaphan told the king, “The priest Hilkiah has given me a book.” And Shaphan read it to the king.
19 When the king heard what the Teachings said, he tore his clothes ⌞in distress⌟. 20 Then the king gave an order to Hilkiah, Ahikam (son of Shaphan), Abdon (son of Micah), the scribe Shaphan, and the royal official Asaiah. He said, 21 “On behalf of those who are left in Israel and Judah and me, ask the Lord about the words in this book that was found. The Lord’s fierce anger has been poured on us because our ancestors did not obey the Lord’s word by doing everything written in this book.”
22 So Hilkiah and the king’s officials went to talk to the prophet Huldah about this matter. She was the wife of Shallum, son of Tokhath and grandson of Hasrah. Shallum was in charge of the ⌞royal⌟ wardrobe. Huldah was living in the Second Part of Jerusalem.
23 She told them, “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: Tell the man who sent you to me, 24 ‘This is what the Lord says: I’m going to bring disaster on this place and on the people living here according to the curses written in the book that was read to the king of Judah. 25 I will do this because they have abandoned me and sacrificed to other gods in order to make me furious. Therefore, my anger will be poured on this place and will never come to an end.’ ”
26 ⌞Huldah added,⌟ “Tell Judah’s king who sent you to me to ask the Lord a question, ‘This is what the Lord God of Israel says about the words you heard: 27 You had a change of heart and humbled yourself in front of God when you heard my words against this place and those who live here. You humbled yourself, tore your clothes ⌞in distress⌟, and cried in front of me. So I will listen ⌞to you⌟, declares the Lord. 28 That is why I’m going to bring you to your ancestors. I’m going to bring you to your grave in peace, and your eyes will not see any of the disaster I’m going to bring on this place and those who live here.’ ”
So they reported this to the king.
29 Then the king sent for all the respected leaders of Judah and Jerusalem to join him. 30 The king, everyone in Judah, everyone living in Jerusalem, the priests, the Levites, and all the people (young and old) went up to the Lord’s temple. He read everything written in the Book of the Promise [b] found in the Lord’s temple so that they could hear it. 31 The king stood in his place and made a promise to the Lord that he would follow the Lord and obey his commands, instructions, and laws with all his heart and soul. He said he would live by the terms of the promise written in this book. 32 He also made all those found in Jerusalem and Benjamin join with him ⌞in the promise⌟. Then the people of Jerusalem lived according to the promise of God, the God of their ancestors.
33 Josiah got rid of all the disgusting idols throughout Israelite territory. He made all people found in Israel serve the Lord their God. As long as he lived, they didn’t stop following the Lord God of their ancestors.
An Angel Overpowers the Devil
20 I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key to the bottomless pit and a large chain in his hand. 2 He overpowered the serpent, that ancient snake, named Devil and Satan. The angel chained up the serpent for 1,000 years. 3 He threw it into the bottomless pit. The angel shut and sealed the pit over the serpent to keep it from deceiving the nations anymore until the 1,000 years were over. After that it must be set free for a little while.
4 I saw thrones, and those who sat on them were allowed to judge. Then I saw the souls of those whose heads had been cut off because of their testimony about Jesus and because of God’s word. They had not worshiped the beast or its statue and were not branded on their foreheads or hands. They lived and ruled with Christ for 1,000 years. 5 The rest of the dead did not live until the 1,000 years ended.
This is the first time that people come back to life. 6 Blessed and holy are those who are included the first time that people come back to life. The second death has no power over them. They will continue to be priests of God and Christ. They will rule with him for 1,000 years.
The Final Judgment
7 When 1,000 years are over, Satan will be freed from his prison. 8 He will go out to deceive Gog and Magog, the nations in the four corners of the earth, and gather them for war. They will be as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore. 9 ⌞I saw that⌟ they spread over the broad expanse of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s holy people and the beloved city. Fire came from heaven and burned them up. 10 The devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet were also thrown. They will be tortured day and night forever and ever.
11 I saw a large, white throne and the one who was sitting on it. The earth and the sky fled from his presence, but no place was found for them. 12 I saw the dead, both important and unimportant people, standing in front of the throne. Books were opened, including the Book of Life. The dead were judged on the basis of what they had done, as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up its dead. Death and hell gave up their dead. People were judged based on what they had done. 14 Death and hell were thrown into the fiery lake. (The fiery lake is the second death.) 15 Those whose names were not found in the Book of Life were thrown into the fiery lake.
The Priests Do Not Teach the Lord’s Word Correctly
2 “And now, you priests, this warning is for you. 2 If you won’t listen and if you won’t consider giving honor to my name,” says the Lord of Armies, “then I’ll send a curse on you, and I’ll curse the blessings you give. Yes, I’ve already cursed them because you don’t carefully consider this.
3 “I’m going to punish your descendants. I’m going to spread excrement on your faces, the excrement from your festival sacrifices. You will be discarded with it. 4 Then you will know that I sent you this warning so that my promise [a] to Levi will continue,” says the Lord of Armies. 5 “I promised Levi life and peace. I gave them to him so that he would respect me. He respected me and stood in awe of my name. 6 The teaching that came from his mouth was true. Nothing unjust was found on his lips. He lived with me in peace and honesty and turned many people away from sin.
7 “A priest’s lips should preserve knowledge. Then, because he is the messenger for the Lord of Armies, people will seek instruction from his mouth.
8 “But you have turned from the ⌞correct⌟ path and caused many to stumble over my teachings. You have corrupted the promise made to Levi,” says the Lord of Armies. 9 “So I have made you disgusting, and I have humiliated you in front of all the people, because you have not followed my ways. You have been unfair when ⌞applying⌟ my teachings.”
The People Break Their Marriage Vows
10 Don’t all of us have the same father? Hasn’t the same God created us? Why are we unfaithful to each other? And why do we dishonor the promise given to our ancestors? 11 Judah has been unfaithful! A disgusting thing has been done in Israel and Jerusalem. Judah has dishonored the holy place that the Lord loves and has married a woman who worships a foreign god. 12 May the Lord exclude anyone who does this, whoever he may be. May he exclude them from Jacob’s tents and from bringing offerings to the Lord of Armies.
13 Here is another thing you do: You cover the Lord’s altar with tears. You moan and groan because he no longer pays attention to your offerings or accepts them from you.
14 But you ask, “Why ⌞aren’t our offerings accepted⌟?” It is because the Lord is a witness between you and the wife of your youth, to whom you have been unfaithful. Yet, she is your companion, the wife of your marriage vows. 15 Didn’t ⌞God⌟ make you one? Your flesh and spirit belong to him. And what does the same ⌞God⌟ look for but godly descendants? So be careful not to be unfaithful to the wife of your youth.
16 “I hate divorce,” says the Lord God of Israel. “I hate the person who covers himself with violence,” says the Lord of Armies. “Be careful not to be unfaithful.”
17 You have tried the patience of the Lord with your words.
But you ask, “How have we tried his patience?”
When you say, “Everyone who does evil is considered good by the Lord. He is pleased with them,” or “Where is the God of justice?”
The Soldiers Make Fun of Jesus(A)
19 Then Pilate had Jesus taken away and whipped. 2 The soldiers twisted some thorny branches into a crown, placed it on his head, and put a purple cape on him. 3 They went up to him, said, “Long live the king of the Jews!” and slapped his face.
The People Want Jesus Crucified
4 Pilate went outside again and told the Jews, “I’m bringing him out to you to let you know that I don’t find this man guilty of anything.” 5 Jesus went outside. He was wearing the crown of thorns and the purple cape. Pilate said to the Jews, “Look, here’s the man!”
6 When the chief priests and the guards saw Jesus, they shouted, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
Pilate told them, “You take him and crucify him. I don’t find this man guilty of anything.”
7 The Jews answered Pilate, “We have a law, and by that law he must die because he claimed to be the Son of God.”
8 When Pilate heard them say that, he became more afraid than ever. 9 He went into the palace again and asked Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus didn’t answer him.
10 So Pilate said to Jesus, “Aren’t you going to answer me? Don’t you know that I have the authority to free you or to crucify you?”
11 Jesus answered Pilate, “You wouldn’t have any authority over me if it hadn’t been given to you from above. That’s why the man who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”
12 When Pilate heard what Jesus said, he wanted to free him. But the Jews shouted, “If you free this man, you’re not a friend of the emperor. Anyone who claims to be a king is defying the emperor.”
13 When Pilate heard what they said, he took Jesus outside and sat on the judge’s seat in a place called Stone Pavement. (In Hebrew it is called Gabbatha.) 14 The time was about noon on the Friday of the Passover festival.
Pilate said to the Jews, “Look, here’s your king!”
15 Then the Jews shouted, “Kill him! Kill him! Crucify him!”
Pilate asked them, “Should I crucify your king?”
The chief priests responded, “The emperor is the only king we have!”
16 Then Pilate handed Jesus over to them to be crucified.
The Crucifixion(B)
So the soldiers took Jesus. 17 He carried his own cross and went out ⌞of the city⌟ to a location called The Skull. (In Hebrew this place is called Golgotha.) 18 The soldiers crucified Jesus and two other men there. Jesus was in the middle.
19 Pilate wrote a notice and put it on the cross. The notice read, “Jesus from Nazareth, the king of the Jews.” 20 Many Jews read this notice, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city. The notice was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek.
21 The chief priests of the Jewish people told Pilate, “Don’t write, ‘The king of the Jews!’ Instead, write, ‘He said that he is the king of the Jews.’ ”
22 Pilate replied, “I have written what I’ve written.”
23 When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them four ways so that each soldier could have a share. His robe was left over. It didn’t have a seam because it had been woven in one piece from top to bottom. 24 The soldiers said to each other, “Let’s not rip it apart. Let’s throw dice to see who will get it.” In this way the Scripture came true: “They divided my clothes among themselves. They threw dice for my clothing.” So that’s what the soldiers did.
25 Jesus’ mother, her sister, Mary (the wife of Clopas), and Mary from Magdala were standing beside Jesus’ cross. 26 Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing there. He said to his mother, “Look, here’s your son!” 27 Then he said to the disciple, “Look, here’s your mother!”
From that time on she lived with that disciple in his home.
Jesus Dies on the Cross(C)
28 After this, when Jesus knew that everything had now been finished, he said, “I’m thirsty.” He said this so that Scripture could finally be concluded.
29 A jar filled with vinegar was there. So the soldiers put a sponge soaked in the vinegar on a hyssop stick and held it to his mouth.
30 After Jesus had taken the vinegar, he said, “It is finished!”
Then he bowed his head and died.
31 Since it was Friday and the next day was an especially important day of rest—a holy day, the Jews didn’t want the bodies to stay on the crosses. So they asked Pilate to have the men’s legs broken and their bodies removed. 32 The soldiers broke the legs of the first man and then of the other man who had been crucified with Jesus.
33 When the soldiers came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they didn’t break his legs. 34 However, one of the soldiers stabbed Jesus’ side with his spear, and blood and water immediately came out. 35 The one who saw this is an eyewitness. What he says is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth so that you, too, will believe.
36 This happened so that the Scripture would come true: “None of his bones will be broken.” 37 Another Scripture passage says, “They will look at the person whom they have stabbed.”
Jesus Is Placed in a Tomb(D)
38 Later Joseph from the city of Arimathea asked Pilate to let him remove Jesus’ body. (Joseph was a disciple of Jesus but secretly because he was afraid of the Jews). Pilate gave him permission to remove Jesus’ body. So Joseph removed it. 39 Nicodemus, the one who had first come to Jesus at night, went with Joseph and brought 75 pounds of a myrrh and aloe mixture.
40 These two men took the body of Jesus and bound it with strips of linen. They laced the strips with spices. This was the Jewish custom for burial.
41 A garden was located in the place where Jesus was crucified. In that garden was a new tomb in which no one had yet been placed. 42 Joseph and Nicodemus put Jesus in that tomb, since that day was the Jewish day of preparation and since the tomb was nearby.
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