M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
28 About that time the Philistines mustered their armies for another war with Israel.
“Come and help us fight,” King Achish said to David and his men.
2 “Good,” David agreed. “You will soon see what a help we can be to you.”
“If you are, you shall be my personal bodyguard for life,” Achish told him.
3 (Meanwhile, Samuel had died and all Israel had mourned for him. He was buried in Ramah, his hometown. King Saul had banned all mediums and wizards from the land of Israel.)
4 The Philistines set up their camp at Shunem, and Saul and the armies of Israel were at Gilboa. 5-6 When Saul saw the vast army of the Philistines, he was frantic with fear and asked the Lord what he should do. But the Lord refused to answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim,[a] or by the prophets. 7-8 Saul then instructed his aides to try to find a medium so that he could ask her what to do, and they found one at Endor. Saul disguised himself by wearing ordinary clothing instead of his royal robes. He went to the woman’s home at night, accompanied by two of his men.
“I’ve got to talk to a dead man,” he pleaded. “Will you bring his spirit up?”
9 “Are you trying to get me killed?” the woman demanded. “You know that Saul has had all of the mediums and fortune-tellers executed. You are spying on me.”
10 But Saul took a solemn oath that he wouldn’t betray her.
11 Finally the woman said, “Well, whom do you want me to bring up?”
“Bring me Samuel,” Saul replied.
12 When the woman saw Samuel, she screamed, “You’ve deceived me! You are Saul!”
13 “Don’t be frightened!” the king told her. “What do you see?”
“I see a specter coming up out of the earth,” she said.
14 “What does he look like?”
“He is an old man wrapped in a robe.”
Saul realized that it was Samuel and bowed low before him.
15 “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me back?” Samuel asked Saul.
“Because I am in deep trouble,” he replied. “The Philistines are at war with us, and God has left me and won’t reply by prophets or dreams; so I have called for you to ask you what to do.”
16 But Samuel replied, “Why ask me if the Lord has left you and has become your enemy? 17 He has done just as he said he would and has taken the kingdom from you and given it to your rival, David. 18 All this has come upon you because you did not obey the Lord’s instructions when he was so angry with Amalek. 19 What’s more, the entire Israeli army will be routed and destroyed by the Philistines tomorrow, and you and your sons will be here with me.”
20 Saul now fell full length upon the ground, paralyzed with fright because of Samuel’s words. He was also faint with hunger, for he had eaten nothing all day. 21 When the woman saw how distraught he was, she said, “Sir, I obeyed your command at the risk of my life. 22 Now do what I say, and let me give you something to eat so you’ll regain your strength for the trip back.”
23 But he refused. The men who were with him added their pleas to that of the woman until he finally yielded and got up and sat on the bed. 24 The woman had been fattening a calf, so she hurried out and killed it and kneaded dough and baked unleavened bread. 25 She brought the meal to the king and his men, and they ate it. Then they went out into the night.
9 I am an apostle, God’s messenger, responsible to no mere man. I am one who has actually seen Jesus our Lord with my own eyes. And your changed lives are the result of my hard work for him. 2 If in the opinion of others, I am not an apostle, I certainly am to you, for you have been won to Christ through me. 3 This is my answer to those who question my rights.
4 Or don’t I have any rights at all? Can’t I claim the same privilege the other apostles have of being a guest in your homes? 5 If I had a wife, and if she were a believer,[a] couldn’t I bring her along on these trips just as the other disciples do, and as the Lord’s brothers do, and as Peter does? 6 And must Barnabas and I alone keep working for our living while you supply these others? 7 What soldier in the army has to pay his own expenses? And have you ever heard of a farmer who harvests his crop and doesn’t have the right to eat some of it? What shepherd takes care of a flock of sheep and goats and isn’t allowed to drink some of the milk? 8 And I’m not merely quoting the opinions of men as to what is right. I’m telling you what God’s law says. 9 For in the law God gave to Moses he said that you must not put a muzzle on an ox to keep it from eating when it is treading out the wheat. Do you suppose God was thinking only about oxen when he said this? 10 Wasn’t he also thinking about us? Of course he was. He said this to show us that Christian workers should be paid by those they help. Those who do the plowing and threshing should expect some share of the harvest.
11 We have planted good spiritual seed in your souls. Is it too much to ask, in return, for mere food and clothing? 12 You give them to others who preach to you, and you should. But shouldn’t we have an even greater right to them? Yet we have never used this right but supply our own needs without your help. We have never demanded payment of any kind for fear that, if we did, you might be less interested in our message to you from Christ.
13 Don’t you realize that God told those working in his temple to take for their own needs some of the food brought there as gifts to him? And those who work at the altar of God get a share of the food that is brought by those offering it to the Lord. 14 In the same way the Lord has given orders that those who preach the Gospel should be supported by those who accept it.
15 Yet I have never asked you for one penny. And I am not writing this to hint that I would like to start now. In fact, I would rather die of hunger than lose the satisfaction I get from preaching to you without charge. 16 For just preaching the Gospel isn’t any special credit to me—I couldn’t keep from preaching it if I wanted to. I would be utterly miserable. Woe unto me if I don’t.
17 If I were volunteering my services of my own free will, then the Lord would give me a special reward; but that is not the situation, for God has picked me out and given me this sacred trust, and I have no choice. 18 Under this circumstance, what is my pay? It is the special joy I get from preaching the Good News without expense to anyone, never demanding my rights.
19 And this has a real advantage: I am not bound to obey anyone just because he pays my salary; yet I have freely and happily become a servant of any and all so that I can win them to Christ. 20 When I am with the Jews I seem as one of them so that they will listen to the Gospel and I can win them to Christ. When I am with Gentiles who follow Jewish customs and ceremonies I don’t argue, even though I don’t agree, because I want to help them. 21 When with the heathen I agree with them as much as I can, except of course that I must always do what is right as a Christian. And so, by agreeing, I can win their confidence[b] and help them too.
22 When I am with those whose consciences bother them easily, I don’t act as though I know it all and don’t say they are foolish; the result is that they are willing to let me help them. Yes, whatever a person is like, I try to find common ground with him so that he will let me tell him about Christ and let Christ save him. 23 I do this to get the Gospel to them and also for the blessing I myself receive when I see them come to Christ.
24 In a race everyone runs, but only one person gets first prize. So run your race to win. 25 To win the contest you must deny yourselves many things that would keep you from doing your best. An athlete goes to all this trouble just to win a blue ribbon or a silver cup,[c] but we do it for a heavenly reward that never disappears. 26 So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I fight to win. I’m not just shadow-boxing or playing around. 27 Like an athlete I punish my body, treating it roughly, training it to do what it should, not what it wants to. Otherwise I fear that after enlisting others for the race, I myself might be declared unfit and ordered to stand aside.
7 This further message came to me from God:
2 “Tell Israel, ‘Wherever you look—east, west, north, or south—your land is finished. 3 No hope remains, for I will loose my anger on you for your worshiping of idols. 4 I will turn my eyes away and show no pity; I will repay you in full, and you shall know I am the Lord.’”
5-6 The Lord God says: “With one blow after another I will finish you. The end has come; your final doom is waiting. 7 O Israel, the day of your damnation dawns; the time has come; the day of trouble nears. It is a day of shouts of anguish, not shouts of joy! 8-9 Soon I will pour out my fury and let it finish its work of punishing you for all your evil deeds. I will not spare nor pity you, and you will know that I, the Lord, am doing it. 10-11 The day of judgment has come; the morning dawns, for your wickedness and pride have run their course and reached their climax—none of these rich and wicked men of pride shall live. All your boasting will die away, and no one will be left to bewail your fate.
12 “Yes, the time has come; the day draws near. There will be nothing to buy or sell, for the wrath of God is on the land. 13 And even if a merchant lives, his business will be gone, for God has spoken against all the people of Israel; all will be destroyed. Not one of those whose lives are filled with sin will recover.
14 “The trumpets shout to Israel’s army, ‘Mobilize!’ but no one listens, for my wrath is on them all. 15 If you go outside the walls, there stands the enemy to kill you. If you stay inside, famine and disease will devour you. 16 Any who escape will be lonely as mourning doves hiding on the mountains, each weeping for his sins. 17 All hands shall be feeble, and all knees as weak as water. 18 You shall clothe yourselves with sackcloth, and horror and shame shall cover you; you shall shave your heads in sorrow and remorse.
19 “Throw away your money! Toss it out like worthless rubbish, for it will have no value in that day of wrath. It will neither satisfy nor feed you, for your love of money is the reason for your sin. 20 I gave you gold to use in decorating the Temple, and you used it instead to make idols! Therefore, I will take it all away from you. 21 I will give it to foreigners and to wicked men as booty. They shall defile my Temple. 22 I will not look when they defile it, nor will I stop them. Like robbers, they will loot the treasures and leave the Temple in ruins.
23 “Prepare chains for my people, for the land is full of bloody crimes. Jerusalem is filled with violence, so I will enslave her people. 24 I will crush your pride by bringing to Jerusalem the worst of the nations to occupy your homes, break down your fortifications you are so proud of, and defile your Temple. 25 For the time has come for the cutting off of Israel. You will sue for peace, but you won’t get it. 26-27 Calamity upon calamity will befall you; woe upon woe, disaster upon disaster! You will long for a prophet to guide you, but the priests and elders and the kings and princes will stand helpless, weeping in despair. The people will tremble with fear, for I will do to them the evil they have done and give them all their just deserts. They shall learn that I am the Lord.”
45 My heart is overflowing with a beautiful thought! I will write a lovely poem to the King, for I am as full of words as the speediest writer pouring out his story.
2 You are the fairest of all;
Your words are filled with grace;
God himself is blessing you forever.
3 Arm yourself, O mighty one,
So glorious, so majestic!
4 And in your majesty
Go on to victory,
Defending truth, humility, and justice.
Go forth to awe-inspiring deeds!
5 Your arrows are sharp
In your enemies’ hearts;
They fall before you.
6 Your throne, O God, endures forever.
Justice is your royal scepter.
7 You love what is good
And hate what is wrong.
Therefore God, your God,
Has given you more gladness
Than anyone else.
8 Your robes are perfumed with myrrh, aloes, and cassia. In your palaces of inlaid ivory, lovely music is being played for your enjoyment. 9 Kings’ daughters are among your concubines.[a] Standing beside you is the queen, wearing jewelry of finest gold from Ophir.
10-11 “I advise you, O daughter, not to fret about your parents in your homeland far away. Your royal husband delights in your beauty. Reverence him, for he is your lord. 12 The people of Tyre, the richest people of our day, will shower you with gifts and entreat your favors.”
13 The bride,[b] a princess, waits within her chamber, robed in beautiful clothing woven with gold. 14 Lovely[c] she is, led beside her maids of honor to the king! 15 What a joyful, glad procession as they enter in the palace gates! 16 “Your sons will some day be kings like their father. They shall sit on thrones around the world!
17 “I will cause your name to be honored in all generations; the nations of the earth will praise you forever.”
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.