M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Amnon and Tamar
13 David had a son named Absalom. Absalom had a very beautiful sister named Tamar. Another one of David’s sons, Amnon,[a] was in love with Tamar. 2 She was a virgin. Amnon wanted her very much, but he did not think it was possible for him to have her. He thought about her so much that he made himself sick.[b]
3 Amnon had a friend named Jonadab son of Shimeah. (Shimeah was David’s brother.) Jonadab was a very clever man. 4 He said to Amnon, “You are the king’s son. So why do you always look so sad? Tell me what the trouble is!”
Amnon told Jonadab, “I love Tamar. But she is the sister of my half-brother Absalom.”
5 Jonadab said to Amnon, “Go to bed. Pretend you are sick. Then your father will come to see you. Tell him, ‘Please let my sister Tamar come in and give me food to eat. Let her make the food in front of me. Then I will see it and eat it from her hand.’”
6 So Amnon lay down in bed and pretended to be sick. King David came in to see Amnon. He said to King David, “Please let my sister Tamar come in. Let her make two cakes for me while I watch. Then I can eat from her hands.”
7 David sent messengers to Tamar’s house. They told her, “Go to your brother Amnon’s house and make some food for him.”
8 So Tamar went to the house of her brother Amnon. He was in bed. Tamar took some dough, pressed it together with her hands, and cooked the cakes. She did this while he watched. 9 Then Tamar took the cakes out of the pan and set them out for him. But he refused to eat. He said to his servants, “Get out of here. Leave me alone!” So all of his servants left the room.
Amnon Rapes Tamar
10 Then Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food into the bedroom and feed me by hand.”
So Tamar took the cakes she had made and went into her brother’s bedroom. 11 She started to feed Amnon, but he grabbed her hand. He said to her, “Sister, come and sleep with me.”
12 Tamar said to Amnon, “No, brother! Don’t force me to do this. Don’t do this shameful thing! Terrible things like this should never be done in Israel! 13 I would never get rid of my shame, and people would think that you are just a common criminal. Please, talk with the king. He will let you marry me.”
14 But Amnon refused to listen to Tamar. He was stronger than she was, so he forced her to have sexual relations with him. 15 Then Amnon began to hate Tamar. He hated her much more than he had loved her before. Amnon said to her, “Get up and get out of here!”
16 Tamar said to Amnon, “No! Don’t send me away like this. That would be even worse than what you did before!”
But Amnon refused to listen to Tamar. 17 He called his servant and said, “Get this girl out of this room, now! And lock the door after her.”
18 So Amnon’s servant led Tamar out of the room and locked the door.
Tamar was wearing a long robe with many colors.[c] The king’s virgin daughters wore robes like this. 19 Tamar tore her robe of many colors and put ashes on her head. Then she put her hand on her head and began crying.[d]
20 Then Tamar’s brother Absalom said to her, “Have you been with your brother Amnon? Did he hurt you? Now, calm down sister. Amnon is your brother, so we will take care of this. Don’t let it upset you too much.” So Tamar did not say anything. She quietly went to live at Absalom’s house.[e]
21 King David heard the news and became very angry, but he did not want to say anything to upset Amnon, because he loved him since he was his firstborn son.[f] 22 Absalom began to hate Amnon. Absalom did not say one word, good or bad, to Amnon, but he hated him because Amnon had raped his sister Tamar.
Absalom’s Revenge
23 Two years later, Absalom had some men come to Baal Hazor to cut the wool from his sheep. He invited all the king’s sons to come and watch. 24 Absalom went to the king and said, “I have some men coming to cut the wool from my sheep. Please come with your servants and watch.”
25 King David said to Absalom, “No, son. We will not all go. It will be too much trouble for you.”
Absalom begged David to go. David did not go, but he did give his blessing.
26 Absalom said, “If you don’t want to go, please let my brother Amnon go with me.”
King David asked Absalom, “Why should he go with you?”
27 Absalom kept begging David. Finally, David let Amnon and all the king’s other sons go with Absalom.
Amnon Is Murdered
28 Then Absalom gave this command to his servants, “Watch Amnon. When he is drunk and feeling good from the wine, I will give you the command. You must attack Amnon and kill him. Don’t be afraid of being punished. After all, you will only be obeying my command. Now, be strong and brave.”
29 So Absalom’s young soldiers did what he said. They killed Amnon. But all of David’s other sons escaped. Each son got on his mule and escaped.
David Hears About Amnon’s Death
30 The king’s sons were still on their way into town. But King David got a message about what happened. But the message was, “Absalom has killed all the king’s sons! Not one of the sons was left alive.”
31 King David tore his clothes and lay on the ground.[g] All of David’s officers standing near him also tore their clothes.
32 But then Jonadab, the son of David’s brother Shimeah, said, “Don’t think that all the king’s sons were killed! Only Amnon is dead. Absalom has been planning this from the day that Amnon raped his sister Tamar. 33 My lord and king, don’t think that all of your sons are dead. Only Amnon is dead.”
34 Absalom ran away.
There was a guard standing on the city wall. He saw many people coming from the other side of the hill, and went to tell the king. 35 So Jonadab said to King David, “Look, I was right! The king’s sons are coming.”
36 The king’s sons came in just after Jonadab said that. They were crying loudly. David and all of his officers began crying. They all cried very hard. 37 David cried for his son every day.
Absalom Escapes to Geshur
Absalom ran away to Talmai son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur.[h] 38 After Absalom had run away to Geshur, he stayed there for three years. 39 King David was comforted after Amnon died, but he missed Absalom very much.
6 We are workers together with God. So we beg you: Don’t let the grace that you received from God be for nothing. 2 God says,
“I heard you at the right time,
and I gave you help on the day of salvation.” (A)
I tell you that the “right time” is now. The “day of salvation” is now.
3 We don’t want people to find anything wrong with our work. So we do nothing that will be a problem to others. 4 But in every way we show that we are servants of God. We never give up, even though we face troubles, difficulties, and problems of every kind. 5 We are beaten and thrown into prison. People get upset at us and fight against us. We work hard, and sometimes we get no sleep or food. 6 We show that we are God’s servants by our pure lives, by our understanding, by our patience, and by our kindness. We show it by the Holy Spirit, by genuine love, 7 by speaking the truth, and by depending on God’s power. This right way of living has prepared us to defend ourselves against every kind of attack.
8 Some people honor us, but others shame us. Some people say good things about us, but others say bad things. Some people say we are liars, but we speak the truth. 9 To some people we are not known, but we are well known. We seem to be dying, but look! We continue to live. We are punished, but we are not killed. 10 We have much sadness, but we are always rejoicing. We are poor, but we are making many people rich in faith. We have nothing, but really we have everything.
11 We have spoken freely to you people in Corinth. We have opened our hearts to you. 12 Our feelings of love for you have not stopped. It is you who have stopped your feelings of love for us. 13 I speak to you as if you were my children. Do the same as we have done—open your hearts also.
We Are God’s Temple
14 You are not the same as those who don’t believe. So don’t join yourselves to them. Good and evil don’t belong together. Light and darkness cannot share the same room. 15 How can there be any unity between Christ and the devil[a]? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? 16 God’s temple[b] cannot have anything to do with idols, and we are the temple of the living God. As God said,
“I will live with them
and walk with them;
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.” (B)
17 “So come away from those people
and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord.
Don’t touch anything that is not clean,
and I will accept you.” (C)
18 “I will be your father,
and you will be my sons and daughters,
says the Lord All-Powerful.” (D)
Israel Turned Away From God
20 One day some of the elders of Israel came to me to ask the Lord for advice. This was on the tenth day of the fifth month of the seventh year of exile.[a] The elders sat down in front of me.
2 Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, 3 “Son of man,[b] speak to the elders of Israel. Tell them ‘This is what the Lord God says: Have you come to ask me what you should do? I, the Lord God, tell you that, as surely as I live, I will not listen to you.’ 4 Should you judge them? Will you judge them, son of man? You must tell them about the terrible things their fathers have done. 5 You must tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: On the day I chose Israel, I raised my hand to Jacob’s family and made a promise to them in Egypt. When I let them know who I was, I raised my hand and said, “I am the Lord your God.” 6 On that day I promised to take you out of Egypt and lead you to the land I was giving to you. That was a good land filled with many good things.[c] It was the most beautiful of all countries!
7 “‘I told the family of Israel to throw away their horrible idols. I told them not to become filthy with those filthy statues from Egypt. I said, “I am the Lord your God.” 8 But they turned against me and refused to listen to me. They did not throw away their horrible idols. They did not leave their filthy statues in Egypt. So I decided to destroy them in Egypt—to let them feel the full force of my anger. 9 But I did not destroy them. I had already told the Egyptians that I would bring my people out of Egypt. I did not want to ruin my good name, so I did not destroy Israel in front of those other people. 10 I brought the family of Israel out of Egypt. I led them into the desert. 11 Then I gave them my laws and told them all my rules. All those who obey them will live. 12 I also told them about all the special days of rest, which were a special sign between us. They showed that I am the Lord and that I was making them special to me.
13 “‘But the family of Israel turned against me in the desert. They did not follow my laws. They refused to obey my rules—even though people who obey my laws live because of them. They treated my special days of rest as if they were not important. They worked on those days many times. I decided to destroy them in the desert—to let them feel the full force of my anger. 14 But I did not destroy them. The other nations saw me bring Israel out of Egypt. I did not want to ruin my good name, so I did not destroy Israel in front of those other people. 15 I made another promise to those people in the desert. I promised that I would not bring them into the land I was giving them. That was a good land filled with many good things. It was the most beautiful of all countries!
16 “‘The people of Israel refused to obey my rules or to follow my laws. They treated my days of rest as if they were not important. They did all these things because their hearts belonged to their filthy idols. 17 But I felt sorry for them, so I did not destroy them. I did not completely destroy them in the desert. 18 I spoke to their children and told them, “Don’t be like your parents. Don’t make yourselves filthy with their filthy idols. Don’t follow their laws or obey their commands. 19 I am the Lord. I am your God. Obey my laws and keep my commands. Do the things I tell you. 20 Show that my days of rest are important to you. Remember, they are a special sign between us. I am the Lord, and these days show you that I am your God.”
21 “‘But the children turned against me and did not obey my laws. They did not keep my commands—even though people who obey my laws live because of them. They treated my special days of rest as though they were not important. So I decided to destroy them completely in the desert—to let them feel the full force of my anger. 22 But I stopped myself. The other nations saw me bring Israel out of Egypt. I did not want to ruin my good name, so I did not destroy Israel in front of those other people. 23 So I made another promise to those people in the desert. I promised to scatter them among the nations, to send them to many different countries.
24 “‘The people of Israel did not obey my commands. They refused to obey my laws. They treated my special days of rest as though they were not important, and they worshiped the filthy idols of their fathers. 25 So I gave them laws that were not good. I gave them commands that would not bring life. 26 I let them make themselves filthy with their gifts. They even began to sacrifice their own firstborn children. In this way I would destroy them. Then they would know that I am the Lord.’ 27 So now, son of man, speak to the family of Israel. Tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: The people of Israel said bad things about me and made evil plans against me. 28 But I still brought them to the land I promised to give them. They saw all the hills and green trees, so they went to all those places to worship. They took their sacrifices and anger offerings[d] to all those places. They offered their sacrifices that made a sweet smell, and they offered their drink offerings at those places. 29 I asked the people of Israel why they were going to the high places. But that high place is still there today.[e]’
30 “Since Israel did those things, speak to them and tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: You people have made yourselves filthy by doing the things your ancestors did. You have acted like a prostitute. You have left me to be with the horrible gods your ancestors worshiped. 31 You are giving the same kind of gifts. You are putting your children in the fire as a gift to your false gods. You are still making yourself filthy with these filthy idols today! Do you really think that I should let you come to me and ask me for advice? I am the Lord God. By my life, I swear that I will not answer your questions or give you advice! 32 You keep saying you want to be like the other nations. You live like the people in other nations. You serve pieces of wood and stone idols!’”
33 The Lord God says, “By my life, I swear that I will rule over you as king. But I will raise my powerful arm and punish you. I will show my anger against you! 34 I will bring you out of these other nations. I scattered you among these nations, but I will gather you together and bring you back from these countries. But I will raise my powerful arm and punish you. I will show my anger against you! 35 I will lead you into a desert as I did before, but this will be a place where other nations live. We will stand face to face, and I will judge you. 36 I will judge you as I judged your ancestors in the desert near Egypt.” This is what the Lord God said.
37 “I will judge you guilty and punish you according to the agreement. 38 I will remove all those who turned against me and sinned against me. I will remove them from your homeland. They will never again come to the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”
39 Now, family of Israel, this is what the Lord God says: “Whoever wants to worship their filthy idols, let them go and worship them. But later, don’t think you will get any advice from me. You will not ruin my name anymore—not when you continue to give your gifts to your filthy idols!”
40 The Lord God says, “People must come to my holy mountain—the high mountain in Israel—to serve me! The whole family of Israel will be on their land; they will be there in their country. There you can come to ask me for advice, and you must come there to bring me your offerings. You must bring the first part of your crops to me there. You must bring all your holy gifts to me in that place. 41 Then I will be pleased with the sweet smell of your sacrifices. That will happen when I bring you back. I scattered you among many nations, but I will gather you together and make you my special people again. And all the nations will see it. 42 Then you will know that I am the Lord. You will know this when I bring you back to the land of Israel, the land I promised to give to your ancestors. 43 In that country you will remember all the evil things you did that made you filthy, and you will be ashamed. 44 Family of Israel, you did many evil things, and you should be destroyed because of them. But to protect my good name, I will not give you the punishment you really deserve. Then you will know that I am the Lord.” This is what the Lord God said.
45 Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, 46 “Son of man, look toward the Negev, the southern part of Judah. Speak against the Negev Forest.[f] 47 Say to the Negev Forest, ‘Listen to the word of the Lord. This is what the Lord God said: Look, I am ready to start a fire in your forest. The fire will destroy every green tree and every dry tree. The flame that burns will not be put out. All the land from south to north will be burned by the fire. 48 Then all people will see that I, the Lord, have started the fire. The fire will not be put out!’”
49 Then I said, “Oh, Lord God! If I say this, the people will say that I am only telling them stories.”
To the director: A song of praise.
66 Everything on earth, shout with joy to God!
2 Praise his glorious name!
Honor him with songs of praise!
3 Tell God, “Your works are wonderful!
Your great power makes your enemies bow down in fear before you.
4 Let the whole world worship you.
Let everyone sing praises to your name.” Selah
5 Look at what God has done!
These things amaze us.
6 He changed the sea to dry land,[a]
and his people went across the water[b] on foot.
So let’s celebrate because of what he has done!
7 He rules the world with his great power.
He watches people everywhere.
No one can rebel against him. Selah
8 People, praise our God.
Sing loud songs of praise to him.
9 He continues to give us life,
and he keeps us from falling.
10 God, you have tested us, as people test silver with fire.
11 You let us be trapped.
You put heavy burdens on us.
12 You let our enemies run over us.
We went through fire and water,
but you brought us to a safe place.
13-14 So I bring sacrifices to your Temple.
When I was in trouble, I asked for help
and made promises to you.
Now I am giving you what I promised.
15 I bring my best sheep as burnt offerings.
I offer the smoke from them up to you.
I give you sacrifices of bulls and goats. Selah
16 All you people who worship God,
come and I will tell you what he has done for me.
17-18 I cried out to him for help,
and I praised him.
If I had been hiding sin in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened to me.
19 But God did listen to me;
he heard my prayer.
20 Praise God!
He did not turn away from me—he listened to my prayer.
He continues to show his love to me!
To the director: With instruments. A song of praise.
67 God, show mercy to us and bless us.
Please accept us! Selah
2 Let everyone on earth learn about you.
Let every nation see how you save people.
3 May people praise you, God!
May all people praise you.
4 May all nations rejoice and be happy
because you judge people fairly.
You rule over every nation.
5 May the people praise you, God!
May all people praise you.
6 God, our God, bless us.
Let our land give us a great harvest.
7 May God bless us,
and may all people on earth fear and respect him.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International