M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
David Can’t Come With Us
29 Meanwhile, the Philistines had gathered all of their army camps at Aphek. The Israelites were camped by the spring near Jezreel. 2 The Philistine rulers were marching in divisions of 100 and 1000 men. David and his men were at the back with Achish.
3 The Philistine captains asked, “What are these Hebrews doing here?”
Achish told the Philistine captains, “This is David. He was one of Saul’s officers, but he has been with me for a long time. I found nothing wrong in David since the time he left Saul and came to me.”
4 But the Philistine captains were angry with Achish. They said, “Send him back. Let him go back to the city you gave him, but he can’t go into battle with us. As long as he is here, we have an enemy in our own camp. He would make his king happy by killing our men. 5 Isn’t David the one the Israelites sing about? They dance and sing this song:
‘Saul has killed thousands of enemies,
but David has killed tens of thousands.’”
6 So Achish called David and said, “As surely as the Lord lives, you are loyal to me. I would be pleased to have you serve in my army. I haven’t found anything wrong with you since the day you came to me. The Philistine rulers also think you are a good man.[a] 7 Go back in peace. Don’t do anything against the Philistine rulers.”
8 David asked, “What have I done wrong? Have you found anything wrong with me since the day I came to you? So why won’t you let me go to fight the enemies of my lord the king?”
9 Achish answered, “I believe that you are a good man. You are like an angel from God. But the Philistine captains still say, ‘David can’t go with us into battle.’ 10 Early in the morning, you and your men should go back to the city I gave you. Don’t pay attention to the bad things the captains say about you. You are a good man, but you must leave as soon as there is enough light in the morning.”
11 So David and his men got up early in the morning and went back to the country of the Philistines, and the Philistines went up to Jezreel.
The Amalekites Attack Ziklag
30 As soon as David and his men arrived at Ziklag on the third day, they saw that the Amalekites had attacked Ziklag. The Amalekites invaded the Negev area, attacked Ziklag, and burned the city. 2 They took all the women in Ziklag, both young and old, as prisoners. They didn’t kill anyone; they only took them as prisoners.
3 When David and his men came to Ziklag, they found the city burning. Their wives, sons, and daughters were all gone. The Amalekites had taken them. 4 David and the other men in his army cried loudly until they were too weak to cry anymore. 5 The Amalekites had taken David’s two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, who had been the wife of Nabal from Carmel.
6 All the men in the army were sad and angry because their sons and daughters were taken as prisoners. The men were talking about killing David with stones. This upset David very much, but he found strength in the Lord his God. 7 David said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod.” So Abiathar brought it.
8 Then David prayed to the Lord. “Should I chase the people who took our families? Will I catch them?”
The Lord answered, “Chase them. You will catch them, and you will save your families.”
David Finds an Egyptian Slave
9-10 David took the 600 men with him and went to Besor Ravine. About 200 of his men stayed there because they were too weak and tired to continue. But David and the other 400 men continued to chase the Amalekites.
11 David’s men found an Egyptian in a field and took him to David. They gave the Egyptian some water to drink and some food to eat. 12 The Egyptian had not had any food or water for three days and nights, so they gave him a piece of fig cake and two clusters of raisins. He felt better after eating.
13 David asked the Egyptian, “Who is your master? Where do you come from?”
The Egyptian answered, “I am an Egyptian, the slave of an Amalekite. Three days ago I got sick, and my master left me behind. 14 We had attacked the Negev area where the Kerethites[b] live. We also attacked Judah and the Negev area where Caleb’s people live. We burned Ziklag.”
15 David asked the Egyptian, “Will you lead me to the people who took our families?”
The Egyptian answered, “If you make a special promise before God, I will help you find them. But you must promise that you will not kill me or give me back to my master.”
David Defeats the Amalekites
16 The Egyptian led David to the Amalekites. They were lying around on the ground, eating and drinking. They were celebrating with the many things they had taken from the Philistines and from Judah. 17 David attacked them and killed them. They fought from sunrise until the evening of the next day. None of the Amalekites escaped, except for 400 young men who jumped onto their camels and rode away.
18 David got back everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. 19 Nothing was missing. They found all the children and old people, all their sons and daughters, and all their valuables. They got back everything the Amalekites had taken. David brought everything back. 20 He took all the sheep and cattle. His men led these animals to the front of the group and said, “This is David’s prize.”
All Men Will Share Equally
21 David came to the 200 men who had stayed at Besor Ravine. These were the men who were too weak and tired to follow David. They came out to meet him and the soldiers who went with him. They greeted David and his army as they approached. 22 There were some troublemakers in the group who went with David who started complaining, “These 200 men didn’t go with us, so why should we give them any of the things we took. These men get nothing but their own wives and children.”
23 David answered, “No, my brothers. Don’t do that! Think about what the Lord gave us. He let us defeat the enemy that attacked us. 24 No one will listen to what you say. The share will be the same for the man who stayed with the supplies and for the man who went into battle. Everyone will share alike.” 25 David made this an order and rule for Israel. This rule continues even today.
26 When David got to Ziklag, he sent some of the things he took from the Amalekites to his friends, the leaders of Judah. David said, “Here is a present for you that we took from the Lord’s enemies.”
27 David sent some of the gifts to the leaders in Bethel, Ramoth in the Negev, Jattir, 28 Aroer, Siphmoth, Eshtemoa, 29 Racal, the cities of the Jerahmeelites and the cities of the Kenites, 30 Hormah, Bor Ashan, Athach, 31 and Hebron, and to all the other places where David and his men had stayed.
Warning From History
10 Brothers and sisters, I want you to know what happened to our ancestors who were with Moses. They were all under the cloud,[a] and they all walked through the sea. 2 They were all baptized[b] into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 They all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and they all drank the same spiritual drink. They drank from that spiritual rock that was with them, and that rock was Christ. 5 But God was not pleased with most of those people, so they were killed in the desert.
6 And these things that happened are examples for us. These examples should stop us from wanting evil things like those people did. 7 Don’t worship idols as some of them did. As the Scriptures say, “The people sat down to eat and drink and then got up to have a wild party.”[c] 8 We should not commit sexual sins as some of them did. In one day 23,000 of them died because of their sin. 9 We should not test Christ[d] as some of them did. Because of that, they were killed by snakes. 10 And don’t complain as some of them did. Because they complained, they were killed by the angel that destroys.
11 The things that happened to those people are examples. They were written to be warnings for us. We live in the time that all those past histories were pointing to. 12 So anyone who thinks they are standing strong should be careful that they don’t fall. 13 The only temptations that you have are the same temptations that all people have. But you can trust God. He will not let you be tempted more than you can bear. But when you are tempted, God will also give you a way to escape that temptation. Then you will be able to endure it.
14 So, my dear friends, stay away from worshiping idols. 15 You are intelligent people. Judge for yourselves the truth of what I say now. 16 The cup of blessing[e] that we give thanks for is a sharing in the blood sacrifice of Christ, isn’t it? And the bread that we break is a sharing in the body of Christ, isn’t it? 17 There is one loaf of bread, so we who are many are one body, because we all share in that one loaf.
18 And think about what the people of Israel do. When they eat the sacrifices,[f] they are united by sharing what was offered on the altar. 19 So, am I saying that sacrifices to idols are the same as those Jewish sacrifices? No, because an idol is nothing, and the things offered to idols are worth nothing. 20 But I am saying that when food is sacrificed to idols, it is an offering to demons, not to God. And I don’t want you to share anything with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and then go drink a cup that honors demons. You cannot share a meal at the Lord’s table and then go share a meal that honors demons. 22 Doing that would make the Lord jealous.[g] Do you really want to do that? Do you think we are stronger than he is?
Use Your Freedom for God’s Glory
23 “All things are allowed,” you say. But not all things are good. “All things are allowed.” But some things don’t help anyone. 24 Try to do what is good for others, not just what is good for yourselves.
25 Eat any meat that is sold in the meat market. Don’t ask questions about it to see if it is something you think is wrong to eat. 26 You can eat it, “because the earth and everything in it belong to the Lord.”[h]
27 Someone who is not a believer might invite you to eat with them. If you want to go, then eat anything that is put before you. Don’t ask questions to see if it is something you think is wrong to eat. 28 But if someone tells you, “That food was offered to idols,” then don’t eat it. That’s because some people think it is wrong, and it might cause a problem for the person who told you that. 29 I don’t mean that you think it is wrong. But the other person might think it is wrong. That’s the only reason not to eat it. My own freedom should not be judged by what another person thinks. 30 I eat the meal with thankfulness. So I don’t want to be criticized because of something I thank God for.
31 So if you eat, or if you drink, or if you do anything, do it for the glory of God. 32 Never do anything that might make other people do wrong—Jews, non-Jews, or anyone in God’s church. 33 I do the same thing. I try to please everyone in every way. I am not trying to do what is good for me. I am trying to do what is good for the most people so that they can be saved.
Sinful Things Done at the Temple
8 One day I, Ezekiel, was sitting in my house, and the elders of Judah were sitting there in front of me. This was on the fifth day of the sixth month of the sixth year of exile.[a] Suddenly, the power of the Lord God came on me. 2 I saw something that looked like fire, like a man’s body. From the waist down, he was like fire. From the waist up, he was bright and shining like hot metal[b] in a fire. 3 Then I saw something that looked like an arm. The arm reached out and grabbed me by the hair on my head. Then the Spirit[c] lifted me into the air, and in a vision from God he took me to Jerusalem. He took me to the inner gate—the gate that is on the north side. The statue that makes God jealous is by that gate. 4 But the Glory of the God of Israel was there. The Glory looked just like the vision I saw in the valley by the Kebar Canal.
5 God spoke to me. He said, “Son of man,[d] look toward the north.” So I looked, and there, north of the Altar Gate by the entrance, was that statue that made God jealous.
6 Then God said to me, “Son of man, do you see what terrible things the people of Israel are doing? They built that thing here, right next to my Temple! And if you come with me, you will see even more terrible things!”
7 So I went to the entrance to the courtyard, and I saw a hole in the wall. 8 God said to me, “Son of man, make a hole in the wall.” So I made a hole in the wall, and there I saw a door.
9 Then God said to me, “Go in and look at the terrible, evil things that the people are doing here.” 10 So I went in and looked. I saw statues of all kinds of reptiles[e] and animals that you hate to think about. The statues were the filthy idols that the people of Israel worshiped. There were pictures of those animals carved all around on every wall!
11 Then I noticed that Jaazaniah son of Shaphan and the 70 elders of Israel were there with the people worshiping in that place. There they were, right at the front of the people, and each leader had his own incense dish in his hand. The smoke from the burning incense was rising into the air. 12 Then God said to me, “Son of man, do you see what the elders of Israel do in the dark? Each man has a special room for his own false god. They say to themselves, ‘The Lord cannot see us. The Lord left this country.’” 13 Then he said to me, “If you come with me, you will see these men doing even more terrible things!”
14 Then God led me to the entrance to the Lord’s Temple. This gate was on the north side. I saw women sitting there and crying. They were sad about the false god Tammuz[f]!
15 God said to me, “Son of man, do you see these terrible things? Come with me and you will see things that are even worse than this!” 16 Then he led me to the inner courtyard of the Lord’s Temple area. There I saw 25 men bowing down and worshiping. They were at the entrance to the Lord’s Temple between the porch and the altar—but they were facing the wrong way. Their backs were to the Holy Place. They were bowing down to worship the sun!
17 Then God said, “Son of man, do you see this? The people of Judah think my Temple is so unimportant that they will do these terrible things here in my Temple! This country is filled with violence, and they constantly do things to make me angry. Look, they are wearing rings in their noses to honor the moon as a false god![g] 18 I will show them my anger! I will not show them any mercy or feel sorry for them! They will shout to me—but I refuse to listen to them!”
To the director: A song from the Korah family. Use the alamoth.[a] A song.
46 God is our protection and source of strength.
He is always ready to help us in times of trouble.
2 So we are not afraid when the earth quakes
and the mountains fall into the sea.
3 We are not afraid when the seas become rough and dark
and the mountains tremble. Selah
4 There is a river whose streams bring happiness to God’s city,
to the holy city of God Most High.
5 God is in that city, so it will never be destroyed.
He is there to help even before sunrise.
6 Nations will shake with fear and kingdoms will fall
when God shouts and makes the earth move.
7 The Lord All-Powerful is with us.
The God of Jacob is our place of safety. Selah
8 Look at the powerful things the Lord has done.
See the awesome things he has done on earth.
9 He stops wars all over the world.
He breaks the soldiers’ bows, shatters their spears, and burns their shields.[b]
10 God says, “Stop fighting and know that I am God!
I am the one who defeats the nations;
I am the one who controls the world.”
11 The Lord All-Powerful is with us.
The God of Jacob is our place of safety. Selah
To the director: A song from the Korah family.
47 Everyone, clap your hands.
Shout with joy to God!
2 The Lord Most High is awesome.
He is the great King over all the earth.
3 He helped us defeat other nations.
He put those people under our control.
4 He chose our land for us.
He chose that wonderful land for Jacob, the one he loved. Selah
5 The Lord God goes up to his throne
at the sound of the trumpet and horn.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises!
Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
7 God is the King of the whole world.
Sing songs of praise![c]
8 God sits on his holy throne;
he rules all the nations.
9 The leaders of the nations have come together
with the people of the God of Abraham.
All the rulers of the world belong to God.
He is over them all!
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International