M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
22 David said, “The Temple of the Lord God and the altar for burning offerings for the Israelites will be built here.”
David Makes Plans for the Temple
2 David gave an order for all foreigners living in Israel to be gathered together. He chose stonecutters from that group of foreigners. Their job was to cut stones ready to be used for building God’s Temple. 3 David got iron for making nails and hinges for the gate doors. He also got more bronze than could be weighed 4 and more cedar logs than could be counted. The people from the cities of Sidon and Tyre brought many cedar logs to David.
5 David said, “We should build a very great Temple for the Lord, but my son Solomon is young and does not yet have enough experience to know how to do it well. It should be so great and beautiful that it will be famous among all the nations. So I will prepare what is needed to build it.” So before David died he prepared everything needed to build a great Temple.
6 Then David called for his son Solomon and told him to build the Temple for the Lord, the God of Israel. 7 David said to Solomon, “My son, I wanted to build a temple for the name of the Lord my God. 8 But the Lord said to me, ‘David, you have fought many wars and you have killed many people. So you cannot build a temple for my name. 9 But you have a son who is a man of peace. I will give your son a time of peace. His enemies around him will not bother him. His name is Solomon.[a] And I will give Israel peace and quiet during the time that he is king. 10 Solomon will build a temple for my name. He will be my son, and I will be his Father. I will make his kingdom strong, and someone from his family will rule Israel forever!’”
11 David also said, “Now, son, may the Lord be with you. May you be successful and build the Temple for the Lord your God, as he said you would. 12 He will make you the king of Israel. May the Lord give you wisdom and understanding so that you can lead the people and obey the law of the Lord your God. 13 And you will have success, if you are careful to obey the rules and laws that the Lord gave Moses for Israel. Be strong and brave. Don’t be afraid.
14 “Solomon, I have worked hard making plans for building the Lord’s Temple. I have given 3750 tons[b] of gold and about 37,500 tons[c] of silver. I have given so much bronze and iron that it cannot be weighed. And I have given wood and stone. Solomon, you can add to them. 15 You have many stonecutters and carpenters. You have men skilled in every kind of work. 16 They are skilled in working with gold, silver, bronze, and iron. You have more skilled workers than can be counted. Now begin the work. And may the Lord be with you.”
17 Then David ordered all the leaders of Israel to help his son Solomon. 18 David said to these leaders, “The Lord your God is with you. He has given you a time of peace. He helped me defeat the people living around us. The Lord and his people are now in control of this land. 19 Now give your heart and soul to the Lord your God, and do what he says. Build the holy place of the Lord God. Then bring the Box of the Lord’s Agreement and all the other holy things into the Temple built for the Lord’s name.”
Wives and Husbands
3 In the same way, you wives should be willing to serve your husbands. Then, even those who have refused to accept God’s teaching will be persuaded to believe because of the way you live. You will not need to say anything. 2 Your husbands will see the pure lives that you live with respect for God. 3 It is not fancy hair, gold jewelry, or fine clothes that should make you beautiful. 4 No, your beauty should come from inside you—the beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit. That beauty will never disappear. It is worth very much to God.
5 It was the same with the holy women who lived long ago and followed God. They made themselves beautiful in that same way. They were willing to serve their husbands. 6 I am talking about women like Sarah. She obeyed Abraham, her husband, and called him her master. And you women are true children of Sarah if you always do what is right and are not afraid.
7 In the same way, you husbands should live with your wives in an understanding way, since they are weaker than you. You should show them respect, because God gives them the same blessing he gives you—the grace of true life. Do this so that nothing will stop your prayers from being heard.
Suffering for Doing Right
8 So all of you should live together in peace. Try to understand each other. Love each other like brothers and sisters. Be kind and humble. 9 Don’t do wrong to anyone to pay them back for doing wrong to you. Or don’t insult anyone to pay them back for insulting you. But ask God to bless them. Do this because you yourselves were chosen to receive a blessing. 10 The Scriptures say,
“If you want to enjoy true life
and have only good days,
then avoid saying anything hurtful,
and never let a lie come out of your mouth.
11 Stop doing what is wrong, and do good.
Look for peace, and do all you can to help people live peacefully.
12 The Lord watches over those who do what is right,
and he listens to their prayers.
But he is against those who do evil.” (A)
13 If you are always trying to do good, no one can really harm you. 14 But you may suffer for doing right. If that happens, you have God’s blessing. “Don’t be afraid of the people who make you suffer; don’t be worried.”[a] 15 But keep the Lord Christ holy in your hearts. Always be ready to answer everyone who asks you to explain about the hope you have. 16 But answer them in a gentle way with respect. Keep your conscience clear. Then people will see the good way you live as followers of Christ, and those who say bad things about you will be ashamed of what they said.
17 It is better to suffer for doing good than for doing wrong. Yes, it is better if that is what God wants.
18 Christ himself suffered when he died for you,
and with that one death he paid for your sins.
He was not guilty,
but he died for people who are guilty.
He did this to bring all of you to God.
In his physical form he was killed,
but he was made alive by the Spirit.[b]
19 And by the Spirit he went and preached to the spirits in prison. 20 Those were the spirits who refused to obey God long ago in the time of Noah. God was waiting patiently for people while Noah was building the big boat. And only a few—eight in all—were saved in the boat through the floodwater. 21 And that water is like baptism, which now saves you. Baptism is not the washing of dirt from the body. It is asking God for a clean conscience. It saves you because Jesus Christ was raised from death. 22 Now he has gone into heaven. He is at God’s right side and rules over angels, authorities, and powers.
Samaria and Israel to Be Punished
1 During the time that Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah, the word of the Lord came to Micah. Micah was from Moresheth. He saw these visions about Samaria and Jerusalem.
2 Listen, all you people!
Earth and everyone on it,[a] listen!
The Lord God will be a witness against you.
The Lord will come from his holy temple.
3 See, the Lord is leaving his place
to come down and walk on the high places[b] of the earth.
4 The mountains will melt under him
like wax in a fire.
The valleys will break apart
and slide like water rushing down a hill.
5 This will happen because of Jacob’s sin,
because of the sins of the nation[c] of Israel.
Samaria, the Cause of Sin
What caused Jacob to sin?
It was Samaria.
Where is the high place in Judah?
It is Jerusalem.
6 So I will change Samaria into a pile of rocks in the field,
a place ready for planting grapes.
I will push Samaria’s stones down into the valley,
leaving nothing but the foundations.
7 All her idols will be broken to pieces.
And the offerings to her idols will be burned.
I will destroy all her statues of false gods,
because she got them as pay for being a prostitute.
So those things will be taken away
to be used again for paying prostitutes.
Micah’s Great Sadness
8 I will be very sad about what will happen.
I will go without sandals and clothes.
I will cry like a dog.[d]
I will mourn like a bird.[e]
9 Samaria’s[f] wound cannot be healed.
Her disease has spread to Judah.
It has reached the city gate of my people;
it has spread all the way to Jerusalem.
10 Don’t tell it in Gath.[g]
Don’t cry in Acco.[h]
Roll yourself in the dust
at Beth Ophrah.[i]
11 You people living in Shaphir,[j]
pass on your way, naked and ashamed.
The people living in Zaanan[k]
will not come out.
The people in Beth Ezel[l] will cry
and take their support from you.
12 The people living in Maroth[m]
wait for something good to happen,
even though trouble has come down from the Lord
and has reached the city gate of Jerusalem.
13 You people living in Lachish,[n]
get the horses ready for your chariots.
You are guilty of the same sins Israel[o] committed,
and you brought those sins to Jerusalem.[p]
14 So you must give goodbye gifts
to Moresheth[q] in Gath.
The houses in Aczib[r] will trick
the kings of Israel.
15 You people who live in Mareshah,[s]
I will bring someone against you who will take the things you own.
The Glory of Israel
will come into Adullam.[t]
16 So cut off your hair, make yourself bald,[u]
because you will cry for the children you love.
Make yourself bald like an eagle[v] and show your sadness,
because your children will be taken away from you.
Jesus Sends Out 72 of His Followers
10 After this, the Lord chose 72[a] more followers. He sent them out in groups of two. He sent them ahead of him into every town and place where he planned to go. 2 He said to them, “There is such a big harvest of people to bring in. But there are only a few workers to help harvest them. God owns the harvest. Ask him to send more workers to help bring in his harvest.
3 “You can go now. But listen! I am sending you, and you will be like sheep among wolves. 4 Don’t carry any money, a bag, or sandals. Don’t stop to talk with people on the road. 5 Before you go into a house, say, ‘Peace be with this home.’ 6 If the people living there love peace, your blessing of peace will stay with them. But if not, your blessing of peace will come back to you. 7 Stay in the peace-loving house. Eat and drink what the people there give you. A worker should be given his pay. Don’t leave that house to stay in another house.
8 “If you go into a town and the people welcome you, eat the food they give you. 9 Heal the sick people who live there, and tell them, ‘God’s kingdom is now very near you[b]!’
10 “But if you go into a town and the people don’t welcome you, then go out into the streets of that town and say, 11 ‘Even the dirt from your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. But remember that God’s kingdom is coming soon.’ 12 I tell you, on the judgment day it will be worse for the people of that town than for the people of Sodom.
Jesus Warns People Who Refuse to Believe(A)
13 “It will be bad for you, Chorazin! It will be bad for you, Bethsaida! I did many miracles in you. If those same miracles had happened in Tyre and Sidon, then the people in those cities would have changed their lives and stopped sinning a long time ago. They would have worn sackcloth and sat in ashes to show that they were sorry for their sins. 14 But on the judgment day it will be worse for you than for Tyre and Sidon. 15 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be thrown down to the place of death!
16 “When anyone listens to you my followers, they are really listening to me. But when anyone refuses to accept you, they are really refusing to accept me. And when anyone refuses to accept me, they are refusing to accept the one who sent me.”
Satan Falls
17 When the 72 followers came back from their trip, they were very happy. They said, “Lord, even the demons obeyed us when we used your name!”
18 Jesus said to them, “I saw Satan falling like lightning from the sky. 19 He is the enemy, but know that I have given you more power than he has. I have given you power to crush his snakes and scorpions under your feet. Nothing will hurt you. 20 Yes, even the spirits obey you. And you can be happy, not because you have this power, but because your names are written in heaven.”
Jesus Prays to the Father(B)
21 Then the Holy Spirit made Jesus feel very happy. Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth. I am thankful that you have hidden these things from those who are so wise and so smart. But you have shown them to people who are like little children. Yes, Father, you did this because it’s what you really wanted to do.
22 “My Father has given me all things. No one knows who the Son is—only the Father knows. And only the Son knows who the Father is. The only people who will know about the Father are those the Son chooses to tell.”
23 Then Jesus turned to his followers. They were there alone with him. He said, “It is a great blessing for you to see what you now see! 24 I tell you, many prophets and kings wanted to see what you now see, but they could not. And they wanted to hear what you now hear, but they could not.”
A Story About the Good Samaritan
25 Then an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. He said, “Teacher, what must I do to get eternal life?”
26 Jesus said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you understand from it?”
27 The man answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’[c] Also, ‘Love your neighbor the same as you love yourself.’[d]”
28 Jesus said, “Your answer is right. Do this and you will have eternal life.”
29 But the man wanted to show that the way he was living was right. So he said to Jesus, “But who is my neighbor?”
30 To answer this question, Jesus said, “A man was going down the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Some robbers surrounded him, tore off his clothes, and beat him. Then they left him lying there on the ground almost dead.
31 “It happened that a Jewish priest was going down that road. When he saw the man, he did not stop to help him. He walked away. 32 Next, a Levite came near. He saw the hurt man, but he went around him. He would not stop to help him either. He just walked away.
33 “Then a Samaritan man traveled down that road. He came to the place where the hurt man was lying. He saw the man and felt very sorry for him. 34 The Samaritan went to him and poured olive oil and wine[e] on his wounds. Then he covered the man’s wounds with cloth. The Samaritan had a donkey. He put the hurt man on his donkey, and he took him to an inn. There he cared for him. 35 The next day, the Samaritan took out two silver coins and gave them to the man who worked at the inn. He said, ‘Take care of this hurt man. If you spend more money on him, I will pay it back to you when I come again.’”
36 Then Jesus said, “Which one of these three men do you think was really a neighbor to the man who was hurt by the robbers?”
37 The teacher of the law answered, “The one who helped him.”
Jesus said, “Then you go and do the same.”
Mary and Martha
38 While Jesus and his followers were traveling, he went into a town, and a woman named Martha let him stay at her house. 39 She had a sister named Mary. Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet and listening to him teach. 40 But her sister Martha was busy doing all the work that had to be done. Martha went in and said, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are getting worried and upset about too many things. 42 Only one thing is important. Mary has made the right choice, and it will never be taken away from her.”
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International