M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Ahaz rules Judah
16 Ahaz, Jotham’s son, became king of Judah in the seventeenth year of Pekah, Remaliah’s son. 2 Ahaz was 20 years old when he became king, and he ruled for sixteen years in Jerusalem. He didn’t do what was right in the Lord’s eyes, unlike his ancestor David. 3 Instead, he walked in the ways of Israel’s kings. He even burned his own son alive, imitating the detestable practices of the nations that the Lord had driven out before the Israelites. 4 He also sacrificed and burned incense at the shrines on every hill and beneath every shady tree. 5 Then Aram’s King Rezin and Israel’s King Pekah, Remaliah’s son, came up to Jerusalem to fight. They surrounded Ahaz, but they weren’t able to defeat him. 6 At that time Aram’s King Rezin recovered Elath for the Arameans, driving the Judeans out of Elath. The Edomites[a] came to Elath and settled there, and that’s still the case now.
7 Ahaz sent messengers to Assyria’s King Tiglath-pileser, saying, “I’m your servant and your son. Come up and save me from the power of the kings of Aram and Israel. Both of them are attacking me!” 8 And Ahaz took the silver and the gold that was in the Lord’s temple and in the palace treasuries, and sent a gift to Assyria’s king. 9 The Assyrian king heard the request and marched against Damascus. He captured it and sent its citizens into exile to Kir. He also killed Rezin.
10 Then King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet up with Assyria’s King Tiglath-pileser. King Ahaz noticed the altar that was in Damascus, and he sent the altar’s plan and details for its construction to the priest Uriah. 11 Uriah built the altar, following the plans that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus; he had it finished before King Ahaz returned from Damascus.
12 When the king arrived from Damascus, he inspected the altar. He came close to it, then went up on it, 13 burning his entirely burned offering and grain offering, pouring out his drink offering, and sprinkling the blood of his well-being sacrifices on the altar. 14 As for the bronze altar that used to stand before the Lord, Ahaz moved it away from the front of the temple where it had stood between the main altar and the Lord’s temple. He put it on the north side of the new altar. 15 Then King Ahaz ordered the priest Uriah, saying, “Burn the following sacrifices on the main altar:
in the morning, the entirely burned offering;
in the evening, the grain offering;
the king’s entirely burned offering and his grain offering;
the entirely burned offering for all the people of the land, their grain offering, and their drink offerings.
“Sprinkle all the blood of the entirely burned offerings and all the blood of the sacrifices on it. I will use the bronze altar for seeking guidance.”[b] 16 Uriah the priest did everything that King Ahaz commanded. 17 King Ahaz cut off the side panels from the stands and removed the basins from them. He took the Sea down from the bronze bulls that were under it and put it on a stone pavement. 18 He also took away the sabbath canopy that had been built in the temple. He removed the royal entrance outside the Lord’s temple. This was done because of the Assyrian king.
19 The rest of Ahaz’s deeds, aren’t they written in the official records of Judah’s kings? 20 Ahaz died and was buried with his ancestors in David’s City. His son Hezekiah succeeded him as king.
Teaching all people how to be godly
2 But you should talk in a way that is consistent with sound teaching. 2 Tell the older men to be sober, dignified, sensible, and healthy in respect to their faith, love, and patience.
3 Likewise, tell the older women to be reverent in their behavior, teaching what is good, rather than being gossips or addicted to heavy drinking. 4 That way they can mentor young women to love their husbands and children, 5 and to be sensible, morally pure, working at home, kind and submissive to their own husbands, so that God’s word won’t be ridiculed. 6 Likewise, encourage the younger men to be sensible 7 in every way. Offer yourself as a role model of good actions. Show integrity, seriousness, 8 and a sound message that is above criticism when you teach, so that any opponent will be ashamed because they won’t find anything bad to say about us.
9 Tell slaves to submit to their own masters and please them in everything they do. They shouldn’t talk back 10 or steal. Instead, they should show that they are completely reliable in everything so that they might make the teaching about God our savior attractive in every way.
11 The grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people. 12 It educates us so that we can live sensible, ethical, and godly lives right now by rejecting ungodly lives and the desires of this world. 13 At the same time we wait for the blessed hope and the glorious appearance of our great God and savior Jesus Christ. 14 He gave himself for us in order to rescue us from every kind of lawless behavior, and cleanse a special people for himself who are eager to do good actions.
15 Talk about these things. Encourage and correct with complete authority. Don’t let anyone disrespect you.
Arrival of divine judgment
9 Don’t rejoice, Israel!
Don’t celebrate as other nations do;
for as whores you have gone away from your God.
You have loved a prostitute’s pay
on all threshing floors of grain.
2 Threshing floor and wine vat won’t feed them;
the new wine will fail them.
3 They won’t remain in the land of the Lord;
but Ephraim will return to Egypt,
and in Assyria they will eat unclean food.
4 They won’t pour wine as an offering to the Lord;
their sacrifices won’t please him.
Such sacrifices will be like food for those who touch the dead;
all who eat of it will be unclean;
their bread will be for their hunger alone;
it will not come to the Lord’s house.
5 What will you do on the day of appointed festival,
on the day of the Lord’s festival?
6 Even if they escape destruction,
Egypt will gather them,
Memphis will bury them.
Briars will possess their precious things of silver;[a]
thorns will be in their tents.
7 The days of punishment have come;
the days of judgment have arrived;
Israel cries,
“The prophet is a fool,
the spiritual man is mad!”
Because of your great wickedness,
your rejection of me is great.
Tragic consequences
8 The prophet is God’s watchman
looking over Ephraim,
yet a hunter’s trap is set, covering all his ways,
and rejection is in his God’s house.
9 They have corrupted themselves terribly
as in the days of Gibeah;
he will remember their wickedness;
he will punish their sins.
10 Like grapes in the wilderness,
I found Israel.
In its first season,
like the first fruit on the fig tree,
I saw your ancestors.
But they came to Baal-peor,
and worshipped a thing of shame;
they became detestable like the thing they loved.[b]
11 Ephraim’s glory will fly away like a bird—
no birth, no pregnancy, no conception!
12 Though they bring up children,
I will make them childless
until no one is left.
Doom to them indeed when I leave them!
13 When I looked toward Tyre,
Ephraim was planted in a lovely meadow;
but now Ephraim must lead out his children for slaughter.
14 Give them, Lord—
what will you give them?
Give them a womb that miscarries
and breasts that are dried up.
15 Every wickedness of theirs began at Gilgal;
there I came to hate them.
Because of the wickedness of their deeds
I will drive them out of my house.
I will love them no more;
all their officials are rebels.
16 Ephraim is sick,
their root is dried up,
they will bear no fruit.
Even though they give birth,
I will put to death their much-loved little ones.
17 Because they haven’t listened to him,
my God will reject them;
they will wander among the nations.
Psalm 126
A pilgrimage song.
126 When the Lord changed Zion’s circumstances for the better,
it was like we had been dreaming.
2 Our mouths were suddenly filled with laughter;
our tongues were filled with joyful shouts.
It was even said, at that time, among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them!”
3 Yes, the Lord has done great things for us,
and we are overjoyed.
4 Lord, change our circumstances for the better,
like dry streams in the desert waste!
5 Let those who plant with tears
reap the harvest with joyful shouts.
6 Let those who go out,
crying and carrying their seed,
come home with joyful shouts,
carrying bales of grain!
Psalm 127
A pilgrimage song. Of Solomon.
127 Unless it is the Lord who builds the house,
the builders’ work is pointless.
Unless it is the Lord who protects the city,
the guard on duty is pointless.
2 It is pointless that you get up early and stay up late,
eating the bread of hard labor
because God gives sleep to those he loves.
3 No doubt about it: children are a gift from the Lord;
the fruit of the womb is a divine reward.
4 The children born when one is young
are like arrows in the hand of a warrior.
5 The person who fills a quiver full with them is truly happy!
They won’t be ashamed when arguing with their enemies in the gate.
Psalm 128
A pilgrimage song.
128 Everyone who honors the Lord,
who walks in God’s ways, is truly happy!
2 You will definitely enjoy what you’ve worked hard for—
you’ll be happy; and things will go well for you.
3 In your house, your wife will be like a vine full of fruit.
All around your table, your children will be like olive trees, freshly planted.
4 That’s how it goes for anyone who honors the Lord:
they will be blessed!
5 May the Lord bless you from Zion.
May you experience Jerusalem’s goodness your whole life long.
6 And may you see your grandchildren.
Peace be on Israel!
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible