M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
David Shames Saul
24 After Saul returned from chasing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the ·Desert [Wilderness] of En Gedi.” 2 So he took three thousand ·chosen men [elite soldiers] from all Israel and began looking for David and his men near the ·Rocks [Crags] of the ·Wild [Mountain] Goats.
3 Saul came to the sheep ·pens [folds] ·beside the road [along the way]. A cave was there, and he went in to ·relieve himself [L cover his feet]. Now David and his men were hiding ·far back in [in the inner recesses of] the cave. 4 The men said to David, “Today is the day the Lord spoke of when he said, ‘I will give your enemy ·over to you [L into your hand]. ·Do anything you want with him [Deal with him as you wish/as is good in your eyes].’”
Then David crept up to Saul and ·quietly [secretly; stealthily] cut off ·a corner [the border/edge/hem] of Saul’s robe. 5 Later ·David felt guilty [David’s conscience bothered him; L the heart/mind of David struck him] because he had cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. 6 He said to his men, “May the Lord ·keep [forbid; preserve] me from doing such a thing to my master! Saul is the Lord’s ·appointed king [anointed]. I should not ·do anything [raise/L send my hand] against him, because he is the Lord’s ·appointed king [anointed]!” 7 David used these words to ·stop [restrain; persuade; rebuke; scold] his men; he did not let them attack Saul. Then Saul left the cave and went his way.
8 When David came out of the cave, he ·shouted [called] to Saul, “My ·master [lord] ·and [the] king!” Saul looked back, and David bowed ·facedown [prostrate] on the ground. 9 He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when people say, ‘David wants to harm you’? 10 You have seen ·something with [with] your own eyes today. ·The […how the] Lord ·put you in my power [L gave you into my hand] in the cave. ·They [Some] said I should kill you, but I ·was merciful [pitied/spared you]. I said, ‘I won’t ·harm [raise/L send my hand against] my master, because he is the Lord’s ·appointed king [anointed].’ 11 My father, look at this ·piece [border; edge; hem] of your robe in my hand! I cut off the ·corner [border; edge; hem] of your robe, but I didn’t kill you. ·Now understand and know [This proves] ·I am not planning any evil [there is no wrong or rebellion/treason] against you. I ·did nothing wrong to [have not sinned against] you, but you are hunting me to ·kill me [L take my life]. 12 May the Lord judge between us, and may he ·punish [avenge me on] you for the wrong you have done to me! But I ·am not against you [will not harm you/lay a hand on you]. 13 There is an old ·saying [proverb]: ‘Evil ·things [deeds] come ·from [out of] evil people.’ ·But [So] I ·am not [will not harm/raise my hand] against you. 14 Whom is the king of Israel ·coming out against [attacking]? Whom are you ·chasing [pursuing]? ·It’s as if you are chasing a [A…?] dead dog or a flea. 15 May the Lord be our judge and decide ·between you and me [which of us is right]. May he ·support me [consider/see me] and ·show that I am right [uphold/plead my cause]. May he ·save [rescue; deliver] me from ·you [L your hand/power]!”
16 When David finished saying these words, Saul asked, “Is that your voice, David my son?” And he cried loudly. 17 He said, “You are ·a better man [more righteous] than I am. You have ·been good [behaved well; L repaid good] to me, but I have ·done wrong [behaved badly; L repaid evil] to you. 18 You [L have just] told me what good things you did [L to me]. The Lord handed me over to you, but you did not kill me. 19 ·People don’t normally let an enemy get away like this, do they [L For who has found his enemy and sends him on his way safely]? May the Lord reward you ·because you were good to [or with good for what you have done for] me today. 20 I [L now] know you will surely be king, and ·you will rule [in your hand will be established] the kingdom of Israel. 21 Now swear to me by the Lord that you will not ·kill [L cut off] my ·descendants [L seed] and that you won’t wipe out my name from my father’s ·family [household; C by killing all Saul’s children].”
22 So David ·made the promise [swore] to Saul. Then Saul went back home, and David and his men went up to their ·hideout [stronghold].
Wickedness in the Church
5 It is actually being ·said [reported] that there is sexual sin among you. And it is a kind that ·does not happen [or is not tolerated] even among ·people who do not know God [pagans; Gentiles]. A man there ·has [is living in sin with; is sleeping with] his father’s wife [C probably his stepmother; Lev. 18:7–8; 20:11]. 2 And you are ·proud [arrogant; puffed up]! ·You should [L Should you not…?] have been filled with ·sadness [grief; mourning] so that the man who did this should be put out of your group. 3 I am not there with you in person, but I am with you in spirit. And I have already ·judged [condemned] the man who did that sin as if I were really there. 4 When you meet together in the name of our Lord Jesus, and I meet with you in spirit with the power of our Lord Jesus, 5 then hand this man over to Satan. So his ·sinful self will be destroyed [sinful nature will be purged; or body/flesh will be destroyed; or body will be beaten down by sin], and his spirit will be saved on the day of the Lord.
6 Your ·bragging [boasting] is not good. You know the saying, “Just a little ·yeast [or leaven; C leaven is a small lump of fermented dough used to make a loaf rise, as yeast is today] makes the whole batch of dough rise [C yeast/leaven symbolizes the permeating influence of this man’s sin within the community; Gal. 5:9].” 7 ·Take out all [Cleanse; Purge] the old ·yeast [leaven] so that you will be a new batch of dough without ·yeast [leaven], which you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed [C Christ’s sacrificial death rescued us from spiritual death, just as the blood of the first Passover lambs rescued the children of Israel; Ex. 11—12]. 8 So let us celebrate this feast [C a new kind of Passover feast], but not with the bread that has the old ·yeast [leaven]—the ·yeast [leaven] of ·sin [evil; malice] and wickedness [C unleavened bread was used in the Passover celebration; Ex. 12:15; Deut. 16:3]. Let us celebrate this feast with the bread that has no ·yeast [leaven]—the bread of ·goodness [sincerity] and truth.
9 I wrote you in my earlier letter not to associate with those who sin sexually. 10 But I did not [L at all] mean you should not associate with those of this world who sin sexually, or with the greedy, or ·robbers [or swindlers], or those who worship idols. To get away from them you would have to leave this world. 11 I am writing to tell you that you must not associate with those who call themselves ·believers in Christ [a brother or sister] but who sin sexually, or are greedy, or worship idols, or ·abuse others with words [slander], or get drunk, or ·cheat [swindle] people. Do not even eat with people like that.
3 Then the Lord said to me, “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], eat what ·you find [you see; is before you]; eat this scroll. Then go and speak to the ·people [L house] of Israel.” 2 So I opened my mouth, and he ·gave [fed] me the scroll to eat.
3 He said to me, “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], eat this scroll which I am giving you, and fill your stomach with it.” Then I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth [Jer. 15:16; Rev. 10:9, 10].
4 Then he said to me, “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], go to the ·people [L house] of Israel, and speak my words to them. 5 [L For; Because] You are not being sent to people ·whose speech you can’t understand [of obscure/foreign language; L deep of lip], ·whose language is difficult [L and heavy tongue]. You are being sent to [L the house of] Israel. 6 You are not being sent to many nations ·whose speech you can’t understand [of obscure/foreign language; L deep of lip], ·whose language is difficult [L and heavy tongue], whose words you cannot understand. If I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you. 7 But the ·people [L house] of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, because they are not willing to listen to me. Yes, all the ·people [L house] of Israel are ·stubborn [hardheaded] and ·will not obey [hardhearted]. 8 ·See [T Behold], I now make ·you as stubborn [L your face as strong as their face] and ·as hard as they are [L your forehead as strong as their forehead]. 9 I am making ·you [L your forehead] as hard as ·a diamond [or flint; or the hardest stone], harder than ·stone [or flint]. Don’t be afraid of them or be ·frightened [terrified; dismayed] by them, though they are a ·people who turn against me [L rebellious house].”
10 Also, he said to me, “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], ·believe [L take in your heart] all the words I will speak to you, and ·listen carefully to them [L hear with your ears]. 11 Then go to the ·captives [exiles], ·your own [L the sons of your] people, and say to them, ‘The Lord God says this.’ Tell them this whether they listen or not.”
12 Then ·the Spirit [or the spirit; or a wind] lifted me up, and I heard a loud rumbling ·sound [or voice] behind me, ·saying, “Praise the glory of the Lord [C his manifest presence] in heaven [or as the glory of the Lord rose from its place].” 13 ·I heard [or It was the sound of] the wings of the living creatures touching each other and the sound of the wheels by them. It was a loud rumbling sound. 14 So ·the Spirit [or the spirit; or a wind] lifted me up and took me away. I ·was unhappy and angry [L went in bitterness in the heat/wrath of my spirit], and I felt the great ·power [L hand] of the Lord. 15 I came to the ·captives [exiles] from Judah, who lived by the Kebar ·River [Canal; 1:1] at Tel Abib. I sat there seven days where these people lived, feeling ·shocked [stunned; overwhelmed; distressed].
Israel’s Warning
16 ·After [L At the end of] seven days the ·Lord spoke his word [L word of the Lord came] to me again. He said, 17 “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], I ·now make [or have made] you a watchman for [L the house of] Israel. Any time you hear a word from my mouth, warn them for me. 18 ·When [or If] I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ but you don’t speak out to warn them to stop their evil ways, they will die ·in their sin [for their iniquity]. But I will hold you ·responsible [accountable] for their death. 19 But if you warn the wicked and they do not turn from their wickedness or their ·evil ways [wicked lifestyle], they will die because of their sin. But you will have saved your ·life [soul].
20 “Again, ·those who do right [the righteous] may turn away from ·doing good [righteousness] and ·do evil [commit iniquity/injustice]. If I ·make something bad happen to [L lay a stumbling block before] them, they will die. Because you have not warned them, they will die because of their sin, and the ·good [righteous things] they did will not be remembered. But I will hold you ·responsible [accountable] for their deaths. 21 But if you have warned ·those good people [the righteous] not to sin, and they do not sin, they will surely live, because they ·believed [took; received] the warning. And you will have saved your ·life [soul].”
22 Then I felt the ·power [L hand] of the Lord there. He said to me, “Get up and go out to the ·plain [or valley]. There I will speak to you.” 23 So I got up and went out to the ·plain [or valley]. ·I saw [T And behold] the glory of the Lord [C his manifest presence] standing there, like the glory I saw by the Kebar ·River [Canal; 1:1], and I ·bowed [fell] facedown on the ground.
24 Then the Spirit entered me and ·made me stand [set me] on my feet. He spoke to me and said, “Go, shut yourself up in your house. 25 As for you, ·human [T son of man; 2:1], the people will tie you up with ·ropes [cords] so that you will not be able to go out among them. 26 Also, I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so you will be silent [C Ezekiel would be mute for seven and a half years (see dates in 1:1–3 and 33:21–22), except when the Lord opened his mouth with prophetic revelations; v. 27]. You will not be able to ·argue with [rebuke; reprove] the people, ·even though they turn against me [L for they are a rebellious house]. 27 But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth, and you will say to them, ‘The Lord God says this.’ Those who will listen, let them listen. Those who refuse, let them refuse, because they are a ·people who turn against me [rebellious house].
Life Is Short
For the director of music. For Jeduthun [C Levitical musician; 1 Chr. 16:41–42; 25:1, 6; 2 Chr. 5:12]. A psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will ·be careful how I act [L guard my way]
and will not sin ·by what I say [L with my tongue].
I will ·be careful what I say [L keep a muzzle on my mouth]
around wicked people.”
2 So I kept ·very quiet [silent and still].
I didn’t even say anything good,
but ·I became even more upset [L my agony/sorrow got worse].
3 ·I became very angry inside [L My heart grew hot within me],
and as I ·thought [meditated] about it, ·my anger [L a fire] burned.
So I ·spoke [L said with my tongue]:
4 “Lord, ·tell [inform; reveal to] me when ·the end [or my end] will come
and how long ·I will live [L will be my days].
Let me know how ·long I have [L fleeting I am; 90:1–12].
5 You have given ·me only a short life [L my days a handbreadth; C about four inches];
my lifetime is like nothing to you.
Everyone’s life is only ·a breath [vapor; Eccl. 1:2]. ·
6 People are like shadows moving about.
All their ·work [or wealth; or turmoil] is ·for nothing [a breath/vapor; Luke 12:13–21; James 4:3–17];
they ·collect things [accumulate riches/wealth] but don’t know who will ·get [gather] them.
7 “So, Lord, what ·hope do I have [do I wait for]?
You are my hope.
8 Save me from all my ·sins [transgressions].
Don’t ·let wicked fools make fun of me [L set the scorn of fools on me].
9 I am quiet; I do not open my mouth,
because you are the one who has done this.
10 ·Quit punishing me [L Turn your blows/scourge away from me];
·your beating is about to kill me [L I am exhausted/finished from the hostility/beatings of your hand].
11 You correct and punish people for their sins;
like a moth, you destroy what they ·love [covet; desire].
Everyone’s life is only a ·breath [vapor; Eccl. 1:2]. ·
12 “Lord, hear my prayer,
and listen to my cry.
Do not ignore my tears.
I am like a ·visitor [sojourner; wanderer; resident alien] with you.
Like my ·ancestors [fathers], I’m only ·here a short time [a temporary resident].
13 Leave me alone so I can be happy
before I leave and am no more.”
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