M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Jonathan Attacks the Philistines
14 That day, Saul’s son Jonathan was talking with the young man who carried his weapons. Jonathan said, “Let’s go to the Philistine camp on the other side of the valley.” But Jonathan did not tell his father.
2 Saul was sitting under a pomegranate tree at the threshing floor[a] at the edge of the hill.[b] Saul had about 600 men with him. 3 One of the men was named Ahijah. Ahijah was a son of Ichabod’s brother Ahitub. Ahitub was the son of Phinehas. Phinehas was the son of Eli. Eli had been the Lord’s priest at Shiloh. Now Ahijah was the priest who wore the ephod.
These men did not know that Jonathan had left. 4 Jonathan was planning to go through a pass to get to the Philistine camp. There was a large rock on each side of the pass. The large rock on one side was named Bozez. The large rock on the other side was named Seneh. 5 One of the rocks faced north toward Micmash, and the other faced south toward Geba.
6 Jonathan said to his young helper who carried his weapons, “Come on, let’s go to the camp of those foreigners.[c] Maybe the Lord will use us to defeat them. Nothing can stop the Lord—it doesn’t matter if we have many soldiers or just a few soldiers.”
7 The young man who carried Jonathan’s weapons said to him, “Do what you think is best. Whatever you decide, I am with you all the way.”
8 Jonathan said, “Let’s go! We’ll cross the valley and go to the Philistine guards. We’ll let them see us. 9 If they say to us, ‘Stay there until we come to you,’ we will stay where we are. We won’t go up to them. 10 But if the Philistine men say, ‘Come up here,’ then we will climb up to them. That will be a sign from God. That will mean that the Lord will allow us to defeat them.”
11 So Jonathan and his helper let the Philistines see them. The Philistine guards said, “Look! The Hebrews are coming out of the holes they were hiding in.” 12 The Philistines in the fort shouted to Jonathan and his helper, “Come up here. We’ll teach you a lesson.”
Jonathan said to his helper, “Follow me up the hill. The Lord is letting Israel defeat the Philistines.”
13-14 So Jonathan climbed up the hill with his hands and feet, and his helper was right behind him. Jonathan and his helper attacked them. In the first attack, they killed 20 Philistines in an area about one-half acre in size. Jonathan fought the men who attacked from the front. His helper came behind him and killed the men who were only wounded.
15 Great fear spread among the Philistine soldiers—those in the field, in the camp, and at the fort. Even the bravest soldiers were afraid. The ground began to shake, and they were completely overcome with fear.
16 Saul’s guards at Gibeah in the land of Benjamin saw the Philistine soldiers running away in different ways. 17 Saul said to the army with him, “Count the men. I want to know who left camp.”
They counted the men. Jonathan and his helper were gone.
18 Saul said to Ahijah, “Bring God’s Holy Box!” (At that time God’s Holy Box was there with the Israelites.)[d] 19 Saul was talking to Ahijah the priest waiting for advice from God. But the noise and confusion in the Philistine camp was growing and growing. Saul was becoming impatient. Finally, he said to Ahijah the priest, “That’s enough. Put your hand down and stop praying.”
20 Saul gathered his army together and went to the battle. The Philistine soldiers were very confused. They were even fighting each other with their swords. 21 There were Hebrews who served the Philistines in the past and who stayed in the Philistine camp. But now these Hebrews joined the Israelites with Saul and Jonathan. 22 All the Israelites who had hidden in the hill country of Ephraim heard the Philistine soldiers were running away. So these Israelites also joined in the battle and began chasing the Philistines.
23 So the Lord saved the Israelites that day. The battle moved on past Beth Aven. The whole army was with Saul—he now had about 10,000 men. The battle spread to every city in the hill country of Ephraim.[e]
Saul Makes Another Mistake
24 But Saul made a big mistake that day.[f] He made this oath: “If any man eats food before evening comes, before I finish defeating my enemies, he will be under a curse.” He made the soldiers promise not to eat. So none of them ate anything.
25-26 Because of the fighting, the people went into some woods. Then they saw a honeycomb on the ground. The Israelites went up to the honeycomb, but they didn’t eat any of it. They were afraid to break the promise. 27 But Jonathan didn’t know about the oath. He didn’t hear his father make the soldiers promise not to eat. Jonathan had a stick in his hand, so he dipped the end of the stick into the honeycomb and pulled out some honey. He ate the honey and began to feel much better.
28 One of the soldiers told Jonathan, “Your father forced the soldiers to make a special promise. He said that any man who eats today will be under a curse. So the men have not eaten anything. That’s why they are weak.”
29 Jonathan said, “My father has brought a lot of trouble to the land. See how much better I feel after tasting just a little of this honey. 30 It would have been much better for the men to eat the food that they took from their enemies today. We could have killed more Philistines.”
31 That day the Israelites defeated the Philistines. They fought them all the way from Micmash to Aijalon. So the people were very tired and hungry. 32 They had taken sheep, cattle, and calves from the Philistines. Now they were so hungry that they killed the animals on the ground and ate them. And the blood was still in the animals.
33 Someone said to Saul, “Look, the men are sinning against the Lord. They’re eating meat that still has blood in it!”
Saul said, “You have sinned. Roll a large stone over here now!” 34 Then Saul said, “Go to the men and tell them that each one must bring his bull and sheep to me. Then the men must kill their bulls and sheep here. Don’t sin against the Lord! Don’t eat meat that still has blood in it.”
That night everyone brought their animals and killed them there. 35 Then Saul built an altar for the Lord. Saul himself began building that altar for the Lord.
36 Saul said, “Let’s go after the Philistines tonight. We will take everything from them. We will kill them all!”
The army answered, “Do whatever you think is best.”
But the priest said, “Let’s ask God.”
37 So Saul asked God, “Should I go chase the Philistines? Will you let us defeat the Philistines?” But God did not answer Saul that day.
38 So Saul said, “Bring all the leaders to me! Let’s find who committed the sin today. 39 I swear by the Lord who saves Israel, that even if my own son Jonathan sinned, he must die.” None of the people said a word.
40 Then Saul said to all the Israelites, “You stand on this side. I and my son Jonathan will stand on the other side.”
The soldiers answered, “As you wish, sir.”
41 Then Saul prayed, “Lord, God of Israel, why haven’t you answered me today? Show us who sinned. If it was I or my son Jonathan, give Urim. But if it was your people Israel who sinned, give Thummim.”[g]
Saul and Jonathan were shown to be the ones who sinned, and the people went free. 42 Saul said, “Throw them again to show the guilty one—me or my son Jonathan.” Jonathan was shown to be the one.
43 Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.”
Jonathan told Saul, “I only tasted a little honey from the end of my stick. Should I die for doing that?”
44 Saul said, “I made an oath and asked God to punish me if I didn’t keep it. Jonathan, you must die.”
45 But the soldiers said to Saul, “Jonathan led Israel to a great victory today. Must Jonathan die? Never! As surely as the Lord lives, not one hair of Jonathan’s head will fall to the ground! God helped Jonathan fight against the Philistines today.” So the people saved Jonathan from death.
46 Saul did not chase the Philistines. The Philistines went back to their place.
Saul Fights Israel’s Enemies
47 Saul took full control of Israel and fought all the enemies who lived around Israel. Saul fought Moab, the Ammonites, Edom, the king of Zobah, and the Philistines. He defeated Israel’s enemies wherever he went. 48 Saul was very brave. He saved Israel from all the enemies who tried to take things from the Israelites. He even defeated the Amalekites.
49 Saul’s sons were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malki Shua. Saul’s older daughter was named Merab. Saul’s younger daughter was named Michal. 50 Saul’s wife was named Ahinoam. Ahinoam was the daughter of Ahimaaz.
The commander of Saul’s army was named Abner son of Ner. Ner was Saul’s uncle. 51 Saul’s father Kish and Abner’s father Ner were sons of Abiel.
52 Saul was brave all his life. He fought hard against the Philistines. Any time Saul saw a man who was strong or brave, he took that man and put him into the group of soldiers who stayed near the king and protected him.
Give Your Lives to God
12 So I beg you, brothers and sisters, because of the great mercy God has shown us, offer your lives[a] as a living sacrifice to him—an offering that is only for God and pleasing to him. Considering what he has done, it is only right that you should worship him in this way. 2 Don’t change yourselves to be like the people of this world, but let God change you inside with a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to understand and accept what God wants for you. You will be able to know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect.
3 God has given me a special gift, and that is why I have something to say to each one of you. Don’t think that you are better than you really are. You must see yourself just as you are. Decide what you are by the faith God has given each of us. 4 Each one of us has one body, and that body has many parts. These parts don’t all do the same thing. 5 In the same way, we are many people, but in Christ we are all one body. We are the parts of that body, and each part belongs to all the others.
6 We all have different gifts. Each gift came because of the grace God gave us. Whoever has the gift of prophecy should use that gift in a way that fits the kind of faith they have. 7 Whoever has the gift of serving should serve. Whoever has the gift of teaching should teach. 8 Whoever has the gift of comforting others should do that. Whoever has the gift of giving to help others should give generously. Whoever has the gift of leading should work hard at it. Whoever has the gift of showing kindness to others should do it gladly.
9 Your love must be real. Hate what is evil. Do only what is good. 10 Love each other in a way that makes you feel close like brothers and sisters. And give each other more honor than you give yourself. 11 As you serve the Lord, work hard and don’t be lazy. Be excited about serving him! 12 Be happy because of the hope you have. Be patient when you have troubles. Pray all the time. 13 Share with God’s people who need help. Look for people who need help and welcome them into your homes.
14 Wish only good for those who treat you badly. Ask God to bless them, not curse them. 15 When others are happy, you should be happy with them. And when others are sad, you should be sad too. 16 Live together in peace with each other. Don’t be proud, but be willing to be friends with people who are not important to others. Don’t think of yourself as smarter than everyone else.
17 If someone does you wrong, don’t try to pay them back by hurting them. Try to do what everyone thinks is right. 18 Do the best you can to live in peace with everyone. 19 My friends, don’t try to punish anyone who does wrong to you. Wait for God to punish them with his anger. In the Scriptures the Lord says,
“I am the one who punishes;
I will pay people back.”(A)
20 But you should do this:
“If you have enemies who are hungry,
give them something to eat.
If you have enemies who are thirsty,
give them something to drink.
In doing this you will make them feel ashamed.[b]” (B)
21 Don’t let evil defeat you, but defeat evil by doing good.
51 The Lord says,
“I will cause a powerful, destructive
wind to blow against Babylon and the Babylonians.[a]
2 I will send foreigners to winnow[b] Babylon,
and they will take everything from the city.
Armies will surround the city,
and there will be terrible destruction.
3 The Babylonian soldiers will not get to use their bows and arrows.
They will not even put on their armor.
Don’t feel sorry for the soldiers of Babylon.
Destroy her army completely!
4 Babylon’s soldiers will be killed in the land of the Chaldeans.
They will be badly wounded in the streets of Babylon.”
5 The Lord All-Powerful did not leave Israel and Judah alone, like a widow.
No, they are guilty of leaving the Holy One of Israel.
Their God did not leave them.
They left him!
6 Run away from Babylon.
Run to save your lives!
Don’t stay and be killed because of Babylon’s sins!
It is time for the Lord to punish the Babylonians for the bad things they have done.
Babylon will get the punishment that she should have.
7 Babylon was like a golden cup in the Lord’s hand.
Babylon made the whole world drunk.
The nations drank Babylon’s wine,
so they went crazy.
8 But Babylon will suddenly fall and be broken.
Cry for her!
Get medicine for her pain,
and maybe she can be healed.
9 We tried to heal Babylon,
but she cannot be healed.
So let us leave her,
and let each of us go to our own country.
God in heaven will decide Babylon’s punishment.
He will decide what will happen to Babylon.
10 The Lord got even for us.
Come, let’s tell about that in Zion.
Let’s tell what the Lord our God has done.
11 Sharpen the arrows!
Get your shields!
The Lord has stirred up the kings of the Medes
because he wants to destroy Babylon.
The army from Babylon destroyed his Temple in Jerusalem,
so he will give them the punishment they deserve.
12 Lift up a flag against the walls of Babylon.
Bring more guards.
Put the watchmen in their places.
Get ready for a secret attack.
The Lord will do what he has planned.
He will do what he said he would do against the people of Babylon.
13 Babylon, you live near much water.
You are rich with treasures, but your end as a nation has come.
It is time for you to be destroyed.
14 The Lord All-Powerful used his name to make this promise:
“Babylon, I will fill you with so many enemy soldiers they will be like a cloud of locusts.
They will win their war against you.
They will stand over you shouting their victory cry.”
15 God used his great power and made the earth.
He used his wisdom to build the world
and his understanding to stretch out the skies.
16 When he thunders, the waters in the skies roar.
He sends clouds all over the earth.
He sends lightning with the rain.
He brings out the wind from his storehouses.
17 But people are so stupid.
They don’t understand what God has done.
Skilled workers make statues of false gods.
Those statues are only false gods.
They show how foolish those workers are.
Those statues are not alive.
18 Those idols are worthless.
People made them, and they are nothing but a joke.
Their time of judgment will come,
and those idols will be destroyed.
19 But God, who is Jacob’s Portion, is not like those worthless statues.
People didn’t make God;
God made his people.
He made everything.
His name is the Lord All-Powerful.
20 The Lord says, “Babylon, you are my club.
I used you to smash nations.
I used you to destroy kingdoms.
21 I used you to smash horse and rider.
I used you to smash chariot and driver.
22 I used you to smash men and women.
I used you to smash men, old and young.
I used you to smash young men and young women.
23 I used you to smash shepherds and flocks.
I used you to smash farmers and oxen.
I used you to smash governors and important officials.
24 But I will repay Babylonia and all the Babylonians for all the evil things they did to Zion.
I will pay them back so that you can see it, Judah.”
This is what the Lord said.
25 The Lord says,
“Babylon, you are like a volcano
that destroys the whole country.
But I have turned against you,
and I will turn you into a burned-out mountain.
26 People will not take stones from Babylon to use as the foundation of a building.
That is because they will not find any stones big enough for cornerstones.
Your city will be a pile of broken rocks forever.”
This is what the Lord said.
27 “Lift up the war flag in the land!
Blow the trumpet in all the nations!
Prepare the nations for war against Babylon.
Call these kingdoms to come fight against Babylon:
Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz.
Choose a commander to lead the army against her.
Send so many horses that they are like a swarm of locusts.
28 Get the nations ready for battle against her.
Get the kings of the Medes ready.
Get their governors and all their important officials ready.
Get all the countries they rule ready for battle against Babylon.
29 The land shakes and moves as if it is in pain.
It will shake when the Lord does to Babylon what he plans—
to make the land of Babylon an empty desert,
a place where no one will live.
30 Babylon’s soldiers have stopped fighting.
They stay in their forts.
Their strength is gone.
They have become like frightened women.
Babylon’s houses are burning.
The bars of her gates are broken.
31 One messenger follows another.
Messenger follows messenger.
They announce to the king of Babylon
that his whole city has been captured.
32 The places where people cross the rivers have been captured.
The swamplands are burning.
All of Babylon’s soldiers are afraid.”
33 This is what the Lord All-Powerful, the God of the people of Israel, says:
“Babylon is like a threshing floor,
where people beat the grain at harvest time.
And the time to beat Babylon is coming soon.
34 “King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon destroyed us in the past.
In the past he hurt us.
In the past he took our people away,
and we became like an empty jar.
He took the best we had.
He was like a giant monster that ate everything until it was full.
He took the best we had
and then threw us away.
35 Babylon did terrible things to hurt us.
Now I want those things to happen to Babylon.”
The people living in Zion said,
“The people of Babylon are guilty of killing our people.
Now they are being punished for the bad things they did.”
The city of Jerusalem said those things.
36 So this is what the Lord says:
“I will defend you, Judah.
I will make sure that Babylon is punished.
I will dry up Babylon’s sea.
And I will make her water springs become dry.
37 Babylon will become a pile of ruined buildings,
a place fit only for wild dogs.
People will be shocked and shake their heads at what is left there.
It will be a place where no one lives.
38 “The people of Babylon are like roaring young lions.
They growl like baby lions.
39 They are acting like powerful lions.
I will give a party for them.
I will make them drunk.
They will laugh and have a good time,
and then they will sleep forever.
They will never wake up.”
This is what the Lord said.
40 “Babylon will be like sheep, rams, and goats waiting to be killed.
I will lead them to the slaughter.
41 “Sheshach[c] will be defeated.
The best and proudest country of the whole earth will be taken captive.
People from other nations will look at Babylon,
and what they see will make them afraid.
42 The sea will rise over Babylon.
Its roaring waves will cover her.
43 Babylon will be like a dry, desert land.
Its cities will be empty ruins.
No one will live in those cities.
No one will even travel through them.
44 I will punish the false god Bel in Babylon.
I will make him vomit out the people he swallowed.
The wall around Babylon will fall,
and other nations will stop coming to Babylon.
45 Come out of the city of Babylon, my people.
Run to save your lives.
Run from the Lord’s great anger.
46 “Don’t be sad, my people.
Rumors will spread, but don’t be afraid.
One rumor comes this year.
Another rumor will come next year.
There will be rumors about terrible fighting in the country.
There will be rumors about rulers fighting against other rulers.
47 The time will surely come when I will punish the false gods of Babylon,
and the whole land of Babylon will be put to shame.
There will be many dead people,
lying in the streets of that city.
48 Then heaven and earth and all that is in them
will shout with joy about Babylon.
They will shout because an army came from the north
and fought against Babylon.”
This is what the Lord said.
49 “Babylon killed people from Israel.
Babylon killed people from every place on earth.
So Babylon must fall!
50 You people escaped the swords.
You must hurry and leave Babylon.
Don’t wait!
You are in a faraway land,
but remember the Lord where you are and remember Jerusalem.”
51 “We people of Judah are ashamed.
We have been insulted,
because strangers have gone into
the holy places of the Lord’s Temple.”
52 The Lord says, “The time is coming,
when I will punish the idols of Babylon.
At that time wounded people will cry
with pain everywhere in that country.
53 Babylon might grow until she touches the sky.
Babylon might make her forts strong,
but I will send people to fight against that city.
And they will destroy her.”
This is what the Lord said.
54 “We can hear people crying in Babylon.
We hear the sound of people destroying things in the land of Babylon.
55 The Lord will destroy Babylon very soon.
He will stop the loud noises in that city.
Enemies will come roaring in like ocean waves.
People all around will hear that roar.
56 The army will come and destroy Babylon.
Its soldiers will be captured, and their bows will be broken,
This will happen because the Lord punishes people for the bad things they do.
He gives them the full punishment they deserve.
57 I will make Babylon’s wise men
and important officials drunk.
I will make the governors, officers,
and soldiers drunk too.
Then they will sleep forever.
They will never wake up.”
This is what the King said.
His name is the Lord All-Powerful.
58 This is what the Lord All-Powerful says:
“Babylon’s thick, strong wall will be pulled down.
Her high gates will be burned.
The people of Babylon will work hard,
but it will not help.
They will get very tired trying to save the city.
But they will only be fuel for the flames.”
Jeremiah Sends a Message to Babylon
59 This is the message that Jeremiah gave to the officer Seraiah[d] son of Neriah. Neriah was the son of Mahseiah. Seraiah went to Babylon with King Zedekiah of Judah. This happened in the fourth year that Zedekiah[e] was king of Judah. At that time Jeremiah gave this message to Seraiah, the officer. 60 Jeremiah had written on a scroll all the terrible things that would happen to Babylon. He had written all these things about Babylon.
61 Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “Seraiah, go to Babylon. Be sure to read this message so that all the people can hear you. 62 Then say, ‘Lord, you have said that you will destroy this place, Babylon. You will destroy it so that no people or animals will live in it. This place will be an empty ruin forever.’ 63 After you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates River. 64 Then say, ‘In the same way Babylon will sink. Babylon will rise no more. It will sink because of the terrible things that I will make happen here.’”
The words of Jeremiah end here.
A song of David for the dedication of the Temple.[a]
30 Lord, you lifted me out of my troubles.
You did not give my enemies a reason to laugh,
so I will praise you.
2 Lord my God, I prayed to you,
and you healed me.
3 Lord, you lifted me out of the grave.
I was falling into the place of death, but you saved my life.
4 Praise the Lord, you who are loyal to him!
Praise his holy name[b]!
5 His anger lasts for a little while,
but then his kindness brings life.
The night may be filled with tears,
but in the morning we can sing for joy!
6 When I was safe and secure,
I thought nothing could hurt me.
7 Yes, Lord, while you were kind to me,
I felt that nothing could defeat me.[c]
But when you turned away from me,
I was filled with fear.
8 So, Lord, I turned and prayed to you.
I asked you, Lord, to show me mercy.
9 I said, “What good is it if I die
and go down to the grave?
The dead just lie in the dirt.
They cannot praise you.
They cannot tell anyone how faithful you are.
10 Lord, hear my prayer, and be kind to me.
Lord, help me!”
11 You have changed my sorrow into dancing.
You have taken away my sackcloth
and clothed me with joy.
12 You wanted me to praise you and not be silent.
Lord my God, I will praise you forever!
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International