M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
13 Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he was king over Israel forty-two years.[a] 2 Saul chose three thousand men from Israel. Two thousand men stayed with him at Micmash in the mountains of Bethel, and one thousand men stayed with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul sent the other men in the army back home.
3 Jonathan attacked the Philistine camp in Geba, and the other Philistines heard about it. Saul said, “Let the Hebrews hear what happened.” So he told the men to blow trumpets through all the land of Israel. 4 All the Israelites heard the news. The men said, “Saul has defeated the Philistine camp. Now the Philistines will really hate us!” Then the Israelites were called to join Saul at Gilgal.
5 The Philistines gathered to fight Israel with three thousand[b] chariots and six thousand men to ride in them. Their soldiers were as many as the grains of sand on the seashore. The Philistines went and camped at Micmash, which is east of Beth Aven. 6 When the Israelites saw that they were in trouble, they went to hide in caves and bushes, among the rocks, and in pits and wells. 7 Some Hebrews even went across the Jordan River to the land of Gad and Gilead.
But Saul stayed at Gilgal, and all the men in his army were shaking with fear. 8 Saul waited seven days, because Samuel had said he would meet him then. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the soldiers began to leave.
9 So Saul said, “Bring me the whole burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” Then Saul offered the whole burnt offering. 10 Just as he finished, Samuel arrived, and Saul went to greet him.
11 Samuel asked, “What have you done?”
Saul answered, “I saw the soldiers leaving me, and you were not here when you said you would be. The Philistines were gathering at Micmash. 12 Then I thought, ‘The Philistines will come against me at Gilgal, and I haven’t asked for the Lord’s approval.’ So I forced myself to offer the whole burnt offering.”
13 Samuel said, “You acted foolishly! You haven’t obeyed the command of the Lord your God. If you had obeyed him, the Lord would have made your kingdom continue in Israel always, 14 but now your kingdom will not continue. The Lord has looked for the kind of man he wants. He has appointed him to rule his people, because you haven’t obeyed his command.”
15 Then Samuel left Gilgal and went to Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul counted the men who were still with him, and there were about six hundred.
Hard Times for Israel
16 Saul and his son Jonathan and the soldiers with him stayed in Gibeah in the land of Benjamin. The Philistines made their camp at Micmash. 17 Three groups went out from the Philistine camp to make raids. One group went on the Ophrah road in the land of Shual. 18 The second group went on the Beth Horon road. The third group went on the border road that overlooks the Valley of Zeboim toward the desert.
19 The whole land of Israel had no blacksmith because the Philistines had said, “The Hebrews might make swords and spears.” 20 So all the Israelites had to go down to the Philistines to have their plows, hoes, axes, and sickles sharpened. 21 The Philistine blacksmiths charged about one-fourth of an ounce of silver for sharpening plows and hoes. And they charged one-eighth of an ounce of silver for sharpening picks, axes, and the sticks used to guide oxen.
22 So when the battle came, the soldiers with Saul and Jonathan had no swords or spears. Only Saul and his son Jonathan had them.
Israel Defeats the Philistines
23 A group from the Philistine army had gone out to the pass at Micmash.
God Shows Mercy to All People
11 So I ask: Did God throw out his people? No! I myself am an Israelite from the family of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God chose the Israelites to be his people before they were born, and he has not thrown his people out. Surely you know what the Scripture says about Elijah, how he prayed to God against the people of Israel. 3 “Lord,” he said, “they have killed your prophets, and they have destroyed your altars. I am the only prophet left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”[a] 4 But what answer did God give Elijah? He said, “But I have left seven thousand people in Israel who have never bowed down before Baal.”[b] 5 It is the same now. There are a few people that God has chosen by his grace. 6 And if he chose them by grace, it is not for the things they have done. If they could be made God’s people by what they did, God’s gift of grace would not really be a gift.
7 So this is what has happened: Although the Israelites tried to be right with God, they did not succeed, but the ones God chose did become right with him. The others were made stubborn and refused to listen to God. 8 As it is written in the Scriptures:
“God gave the people a dull mind so they could not understand.” Isaiah 29:10
“He closed their eyes so they could not see
and their ears so they could not hear.
This continues until today.” Deuteronomy 29:4
9 And David says:
“Let their own feasts trap them and cause their ruin;
let their feasts cause them to stumble and be paid back.
10 Let their eyes be closed so they cannot see
and their backs be forever weak from troubles.” Psalm 69:22–23
11 So I ask: When the Jews fell, did that fall destroy them? No! But their failure brought salvation to those who are not Jews, in order to make the Jews jealous. 12 The Jews’ failure brought rich blessings for the world, and the Jews’ loss brought rich blessings for the non-Jewish people. So surely the world will receive much richer blessings when enough Jews become the kind of people God wants.
13 Now I am speaking to you who are not Jews. I am an apostle to those who are not Jews, and since I have that work, I will make the most of it. 14 I hope I can make my own people jealous and, in that way, help some of them to be saved. 15 When God turned away from the Jews, he became friends with other people in the world. So when God accepts the Jews, surely that will bring them life after death.
16 If the first piece of bread is offered to God, then the whole loaf is made holy. If the roots of a tree are holy, then the tree’s branches are holy too.
17 It is as if some of the branches from an olive tree have been broken off. You non-Jewish people are like the branch of a wild olive tree that has been joined to that first tree. You now share the strength and life of the first tree, the Jews. 18 So do not brag about those branches that were broken off. If you brag, remember that you do not support the root, but the root supports you. 19 You will say, “Branches were broken off so that I could be joined to their tree.” 20 That is true. But those branches were broken off because they did not believe, and you continue to be part of the tree only because you believe. Do not be proud, but be afraid. 21 If God did not let the natural branches of that tree stay, then he will not let you stay if you don’t believe.
22 So you see that God is kind and also very strict. He punishes those who stop following him. But God is kind to you, if you continue following in his kindness. If you do not, you will be cut off from the tree. 23 And if the Jews will believe in God again, he will accept them back. God is able to put them back where they were. 24 It is not natural for a wild branch to be part of a good tree. And you who are not Jews are like a branch cut from a wild olive tree and joined to a good olive tree. But since those Jews are like a branch that grew from the good tree, surely they can be joined to their own tree again.
25 I want you to understand this secret, brothers and sisters, so you will understand that you do not know everything: Part of Israel has been made stubborn, but that will change when many who are not Jews have come to God. 26 And that is how all Israel will be saved. It is written in the Scriptures:
“The Savior will come from Jerusalem;
he will take away all evil from the family of Jacob.[c]
27 And I will make this agreement with those people
when I take away their sins.” Isaiah 59:20–21; 27:9
28 The Jews refuse to accept the Good News, so they are God’s enemies. This has happened to help you who are not Jews. But the Jews are still God’s chosen people, and he loves them very much because of the promises he made to their ancestors. 29 God never changes his mind about the people he calls and the things he gives them. 30 At one time you refused to obey God. But now you have received mercy, because those people refused to obey. 31 And now the Jews refuse to obey, because God showed mercy to you. But this happened so that they also can[d] receive mercy from him. 32 God has given all people over to their stubborn ways so that he can show mercy to all.
Praise to God
33 Yes, God’s riches are very great, and his wisdom and knowledge have no end! No one can explain the things God decides or understand his ways. 34 As the Scripture says,
“Who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been able to give him advice?” Isaiah 40:13
35 “No one has ever given God anything
that he must pay back.” Job 41:11
36 Yes, God made all things, and everything continues through him and for him. To him be the glory forever! Amen.
A Message to Babylon
50 This is the message the Lord spoke to Babylon and the Babylonian people through Jeremiah the prophet.
2 “Announce this to the nations.
Lift up a banner and tell them.
Speak the whole message and say:
‘Babylon will be captured.
The god Bel will be put to shame,
and the god Marduk will be afraid.
Babylon’s gods will be put to shame,
and her idols will be afraid!’
3 A nation from the north will attack Babylon
and make it like an empty desert.
No one will live there;
both people and animals will run away.”
4 The Lord says, “At that time
the people of Israel and Judah will come together.
They will cry and look for the Lord their God.
5 Those people will ask how to go to Jerusalem
and will start in that direction.
They will come and join themselves to the Lord.
They will make an agreement with him that will last forever,
an agreement that will never be forgotten.
6 “My people have been like lost sheep.
Their leaders have led them in the wrong way
and made them wander around in the mountains and hills.
They forgot where their resting place was.
7 Whoever saw my people hurt them.
And those enemies said, ‘We did nothing wrong.
Those people sinned against the Lord, their true resting place,
the God their fathers trusted.’
8 “Run away from Babylon,
and leave the land of the Babylonians.
Be like the goats that lead the flock.
9 I will soon bring against Babylon
many great nations from the north.
They will take their places for war against it,
and it will be captured by people from the north.
Their arrows are like trained soldiers
who do not return from war with empty hands.
10 The enemy will take all the wealth from the Babylonians.
Those enemy soldiers will get all they want,” says the Lord.
11 “Babylon, you are excited and happy,
because you took my land.
You dance around like a young cow in the grain.
Your laughter is like the neighing of male horses.
12 Your mother will be very ashamed;
the woman who gave birth to you will be disgraced.
Soon Babylonia will be the least important of all the nations.
She will be an empty, dry desert.
13 Because of the Lord’s anger,
no one will live there.
She will be completely empty.
Everyone who passes by Babylon will be shocked.
They will shake their heads when they see all her injuries.
14 “Take your positions for war against Babylon,
all you soldiers with bows.
Shoot your arrows at Babylon! Do not save any of them,
because Babylon has sinned against the Lord.
15 Soldiers around Babylon, shout the war cry!
Babylon has surrendered, her towers have fallen,
and her walls have been torn down.
The Lord is giving her people the punishment they deserve.
You nations should give her what she deserves;
do to her what she has done to others.
16 Don’t let the people from Babylon plant their crops
or gather the harvest.
The soldiers treated their captives cruelly.
Now, let everyone go back home.
Let everyone run to his own country.
17 “The people of Israel are like a flock of sheep that are scattered
from being chased by lions.
The first lion to eat them up
was the king of Assyria.
The last lion to crush their bones
was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.”
18 So this is what the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says:
“I will punish the king of Babylon and his country
as I punished the king of Assyria.
19 But I will bring the people of Israel back to their own pasture.
They will eat on Mount Carmel and in Bashan.
They will eat and be full
on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead.”
20 The Lord says,
“At that time people will try to find Israel’s guilt,
but there will be no guilt.
People will try to find Judah’s sins,
but no sins will be found,
because I will leave a few people alive from Israel and Judah,
and I will forgive their sins.
21 “Attack the land of Merathaim.
Attack the people who live in Pekod.
Chase them, kill them, and completely destroy them.
Do everything I commanded you!” says the Lord.
22 “The noise of battle can be heard all over the country;
it is the noise of much destruction.
23 Babylon was the hammer of the whole earth,
but how broken and shattered that hammer is now.
It is truly the most ruined
of all the nations.
24 Babylon, I set a trap for you,
and you were caught before you knew it.
You fought against the Lord,
so you were found and taken prisoner.
25 The Lord has opened up his storeroom
and brought out the weapons of his anger,
because the Lord God All-Powerful has work to do
in the land of the Babylonians.
26 Come against Babylon from far away.
Break open her storehouses of grain.
Pile up her dead bodies like heaps of grain.
Completely destroy Babylon
and do not leave anyone alive.
27 Kill all the young men in Babylon;
let them be killed like animals.
How terrible it will be for them, because the time has come for their defeat;
it is time for them to be punished.
28 Listen to the people running to escape the country of Babylon!
They are telling Jerusalem
how the Lord our God is punishing Babylon as it deserves
for destroying his Temple.
29 “Call for the archers
to come against Babylon.
Tell them to surround the city,
and let no one escape.
Pay her back for what she has done;
do to her what she has done to other nations.
Babylon acted with pride against the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel.
30 So her young men will be killed in her streets.
All her soldiers will die on that day,” says the Lord.
31 “Babylon, you are too proud, and I am against you,”
says the Lord God All-Powerful.
“The time has come
for you to be punished.
32 Proud Babylon will stumble and fall,
and no one will help her get up.
I will start a fire in her towns,
and it will burn up everything around her.”
33 This is what the Lord All-Powerful says:
“The people of Israel
and Judah are slaves.
The enemy took them as prisoners
and won’t let them go.
34 But God is strong and will buy them back.
His name is the Lord All-Powerful.
He will surely defend them with power
so he can give rest to their land.
But he will not give rest to those living in Babylon.”
35 The Lord says,
“Let a sword kill the people living in Babylon
and her officers and wise men!
36 Let a sword kill her false prophets,
and they will become fools.
Let a sword kill her warriors,
and they will be full of terror.
37 Let a sword kill her horses and chariots
and all the soldiers hired from other countries!
Then they will be like frightened women.
Let a sword attack her treasures,
so they will be taken away.
38 Let a sword attack her waters
so they will be dried up.
She is a land of idols,
and the people go crazy with fear over them.
39 “Desert animals and hyenas will live there,
and owls will live there,
but no people will ever live there again.
She will never be filled with people again.
40 God completely destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah
and the towns around them,” says the Lord.
“In the same way no people will live in Babylon,
and no human being will stay there.
41 “Look! An army is coming from the north.
A powerful nation and many kings
are coming together from all around the world.
42 Their armies have bows and spears.
The soldiers are cruel and have no mercy.
As the soldiers come riding on their horses,
the sound is loud like the roaring sea.
They stand in their places, ready for battle.
They are ready to attack you, city of Babylon.
43 The king of Babylon heard about those armies,
and he became helpless with fear.
Distress has gripped him.
His pain is like that of a woman giving birth to a baby.
44 “Like a lion coming up from the thick bushes near the Jordan River
to attack a strong pen for sheep,
I will suddenly chase the people of Babylon from their land.
Who is the one I have chosen to do this?
There is no one like me,
no one who can take me to court.
None of their leaders can stand up against me.”
45 So listen to what the Lord has planned to do against Babylon.
Listen to what he has decided to do to the people in the city of Babylon.
He will surely drag away the young ones of Babylon.
Their hometowns will surely be shocked at what happens to them.
46 At the sound of Babylon’s capture, the earth will shake.
People in all nations will hear Babylon’s cry of distress.
A Prayer in Troubled Times
Of David.
28 Lord, my Rock, I call out to you for help.
Do not be deaf to me.
If you are silent,
I will be like those in the grave.
2 Hear the sound of my prayer,
when I cry out to you for help.
I raise my hands
toward your Most Holy Place.
3 Don’t drag me away with the wicked,
with those who do evil.
They say “Peace” to their neighbors,
but evil is in their hearts.
4 Pay them back for what they have done,
for their evil deeds.
Pay them back for what they have done;
give them their reward.
5 They don’t understand what the Lord has done
or what he has made.
So he will knock them down
and not lift them up.
6 Praise the Lord,
because he heard my prayer for help.
7 The Lord is my strength and shield.
I trust him, and he helps me.
I am very happy,
and I praise him with my song.
8 The Lord is powerful;
he gives victory to his chosen one.
9 Save your people
and bless those who are your own.
Be their shepherd and carry them forever.
God in the Thunderstorm
A psalm of David.
29 Praise the Lord, you angels;
praise the Lord’s glory and power.
2 Praise the Lord for the glory of his name;
worship the Lord because he is holy.
3 The Lord’s voice is heard over the sea.
The glorious God thunders;
the Lord thunders over the ocean.
4 The Lord’s voice is powerful;
the Lord’s voice is majestic.
5 The Lord’s voice breaks the trees;
the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes the land of Lebanon dance like a calf
and Mount Hermon jump like a baby bull.
7 The Lord’s voice makes the lightning flash.
8 The Lord’s voice shakes the desert;
the Lord shakes the Desert of Kadesh.
9 The Lord’s voice shakes the oaks
and strips the leaves off the trees.
In his Temple everyone says, “Glory to God!”
10 The Lord controls the flood.
The Lord will be King forever.
11 The Lord gives strength to his people;
the Lord blesses his people with peace.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.