M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
14 ¶ Now Joab, the son of Zeruiah, perceived that the king’s heart was toward Absalom.
2 And Joab sent to Tekoa and brought an astute woman from there and said unto her, I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner and put on mourning apparel and do not anoint thyself with oil, but be as a woman that has mourned for a long time for someone who is dead
3 and come to the king and speak on this manner unto him. So Joab put the words in her mouth.
4 And when the woman of Tekoa spoke to the king, she fell on her face to the ground and did obeisance and said, Save me, O king.
5 And the king said unto her, What ails thee? And she answered, I am a widow woman, and my husband is dead.
6 And thy handmaid had two sons, and the two strove together in the field, and there was no one to part them, but the one smote the other and slew him.
7 And, behold, the whole family is risen against thy handmaid, and they said, Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him for the life of his brother whom he slew, and we will destroy the heir also. So they shall quench my coal which is left and shall not leave to my husband neither name nor remainder upon the earth.
8 And the king said unto the woman, Go to thy house, and I will give a command concerning thee.
9 And the woman of Tekoa said unto the king, My lord, O king, the iniquity be on me and on my father’s house; and the king and his throne be guiltless.
10 And the king said, Whoever speaks against thee, bring him to me, and he shall not touch thee any more.
11 Then she said, I pray thee, let the king remember the LORD thy God, that thou will not allow the avengers {Heb. redeemers} of blood to increase the damage by destroying my son. And he said, As the LORD lives, not one hair of thy son shall fall to the earth.
12 Then the woman said, Let thine handmaid, I pray thee, speak one word unto my lord the king. And he said, Say on.
13 And the woman said, Why then hast thou thought such a thing against the people of God? For the king speaks this word as one who is guilty in that the king does not bring home again his banished.
14 For it is certain that we die and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither does God respect any person; yet he does devise means that his outcasts not be expelled from him.
15 Now, therefore, that I have come to speak of this thing unto my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. But thy handmaid said to herself, I will now speak unto the king; it may be that the king will perform the word of his handmaid.
16 For the king will hear, to deliver his handmaid out of the hand of the man that would destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God.
17 Then thy handmaid said, Let the word of my lord the king bring rest; for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and evil; and let the LORD thy God be with thee.
18 Then the king answered and said unto the woman, Hide not from me, I pray thee, the thing that I shall ask thee. And the woman said, Let my lord the king now speak.
19 And the king said, Is not the hand of Joab with thee in all this? And the woman answered and said, By the life of thy soul, my lord the king, I can not turn to the right hand or to the left from all that my lord the king has spoken; for thy slave Joab, he commanded me, and he put all these words in the mouth of thy handmaid;
20 to bring about this form of speech thy slave Joab has done this thing; but my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know that which is done in the earth.
21 ¶ Then the king said unto Joab, Behold now, I have done this thing; go, therefore, bring the young man Absalom again.
22 And Joab fell to the ground on his face and worshipped and blessed the king, and Joab said, Today thy slave knows that I have found grace in thy sight, my lord, O king, in that the king has fulfilled the word of his slave.
23 So Joab arose and went to Geshur and brought Absalom to Jerusalem.
24 But the king said, Let him go to his own house and let him not see my face. So Absalom returned to his own house, and did not see the king’s face.
25 And in all Israel there was no one to be so greatly praised as Absalom for his beauty; from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.
26 And when he shaved his head (for it was at every year’s end that he shaved it: because the hair was heavy on him, therefore, he shaved it), the hair of his head weighed two hundred shekels after the king’s weight.
27 And unto Absalom there were born three sons and one daughter, whose name was Tamar, who was a beautiful woman to behold.
28 ¶ So Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem and did not see the king’s face.
29 Therefore, Absalom sent for Joab, to have sent him to the king; but he would not come to him; and when he sent again the second time, he would not come.
30 Therefore, he said unto his slaves, See, Joab’s field is near mine, and he has barley there; go and set it on fire. And Absalom’s slaves set the field on fire.
31 Then Joab arose and came to Absalom unto his house and said unto him, Why have thy slaves set my field on fire?
32 And Absalom answered Joab, Behold, I have sent for thee, saying, Come here, that I may send thee to the king, to say, Why have I come from Geshur? It would have been better for me to have been there still. Now, therefore, let me see the king’s face; and if there is any iniquity in me, let him kill me.
33 So Joab came to the king and told him. Then he called Absalom, who came to the king and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king; and the king kissed Absalom.
7 ¶ Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
2 Receive us; we have wronged no man, we have corrupted no man, we have defrauded no man.
3 I speak this not to condemn you, for I have said before that ye are in our hearts to die and live together with us.
4 Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying of you; I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation.
5 ¶ For, when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side; without were fightings, within were fears.
6 Nevertheless God, who comforts the humble, comforted us by the coming of Titus;
7 and not by his coming only, but by the consolation with which he was comforted in you when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your zeal for me so that I rejoiced the more.
8 For though I made you sorry with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent; for I perceive that the same epistle has made you sorry, though it were but for a season.
9 Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance; for ye were made sorry by God that ye might suffer no loss by us.
10 For godly sorrow works repentance to salvation, of which there is no need to repented; but the sorrow of the world works death.
11 For behold this same thing, that when ye were made sorry by God, what carefulness it wrought in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things ye have shown yourselves to be clean in this matter.
12 ¶ So that, though I wrote unto you, I did it not only for his cause that had done the wrong, nor for his cause that suffered wrong, but that our care for you in the sight of God might appear unto you.
13 Therefore we were comforted in your comfort; yea, and we rejoiced even more exceedingly for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all.
14 For if I have gloried of anything to him of you, I am not ashamed; but as we spoke all things to you in truth, even so our glorying, which I made before Titus, was found true.
15 And his inward affection is more abundant toward you while he remembers the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling ye received him.
16 I rejoice therefore that I have confidence in you in all things.
21 ¶ And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying:
2 Son of man, set thy face against Jerusalem, and drop my word upon the sanctuaries, and prophesy over the land of Israel,
3 and thou shalt say to the land of Israel, Thus hath the LORD said: Behold, I am against thee, and will draw forth my sword out of its sheath and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked.
4 Seeing then that I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked therefore shall my sword go forth out of its sheath against all flesh from the south to the north:
5 that all flesh may know that I the LORD have drawn forth my sword out of its sheath; it shall not return any more.
6 Cry out therefore, thou son of man, with the breaking of thy loins; and with bitterness cry out before their eyes.
7 And it shall be, when they say unto thee, Why criest thou? that thou shalt answer, For the tidings that come; and every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be feeble, and every spirit shall faint; and all knees shall be weak as water: behold, it comes and shall be brought to pass, said the Lord GOD.
8 ¶ Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
9 Son of man, prophesy and say, Thus hath the LORD said: Say, A sword, a sword is sharpened, and also furbished:
10 it is sharpened to slay victims; it is furbished that it may glitter; should we then make mirth? it despises the rod of my son, as every tree.
11 And he has given it to be furbished, that it may be handled; this sword is sharpened, and it is furbished, to give it into the hand of the slayer.
12 Cry and howl, son of man, for it shall be upon my people; it shall be upon all the princes of Israel; fear of the sword shall be upon my people; therefore smite the thigh
13 because it shall be a trial. What shall be if it does not despise the rod? said the Lord GOD.
14 Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy and smite thine hands together, and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the slain; this is the sword of great slaughter that shall pierce them.
15 I have set the fear of the sword in all their gates, that their heart may faint and their ruins be multiplied; ah! it is made so that it might shine; it is prepared for the slaughter.
16 Go one way or other, either on the right hand or on the left, wherever thy face is set.
17 I will also smite my hands together, and I will cause my fury to rest; I the LORD have spoken.
18 ¶ The word of the LORD came unto me again, saying,
19 Also, thou son of man, show two ways from where the sword of the king of Babylon comes: both shall come forth out of the same land and draw an army; at the head of the way to the city thou shalt do this.
20 Show the way that the sword will come to Rabbath of the Ammonites and to Judah against Jerusalem, the defenced.
21 For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way at the head of the two ways to use divination; he made his arrows bright; he consulted with images; he looked in the liver.
22 The divination was to his right hand upon Jerusalem, to appoint captains, to open the mouth for the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to appoint battering rams against the gates, to cast a mount, and to build a fort.
23 And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, to those that have sworn oaths; but he will call to remembrance the iniquity that they may be taken.
24 Therefore thus hath the Lord GOD said: Because ye have made your iniquity to be remembered, manifesting your betrayals and uncovering your sins in all your doings; for which ye are come to remembrance, ye shall be taken with the hand.
25 And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come in the time when the iniquity shall be brought to an end,
26 thus hath the Lord GOD said: Remove the diadem and take off the crown; it shall no longer be like this; I will exalt the one that is low and abase the one that is high.
27 I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it, and it shall be no more until he comes whose right it is; and I will give it unto him.
28 ¶ And thou, son of man, prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning the Ammonites and concerning their reproach; even say thou, The sword, the sword is drawn for the slaughter; it is furbished to consume with brightness:
29 They prophesy vanity unto thee; they divine a lie unto thee, to give thee over among the necks of the wicked who are sentenced to death, whose day is come in the time when the iniquity shall be brought to an end.
30 Shall I cause it to return into its sheath? I must judge thee in the place where thou wast raised, in the land of where thou hast lived.
31 And I will pour out my indignation upon thee; I will blow against thee in the fire of my wrath and deliver thee into the hand of fearful men who are skilful to destroy.
32 Thou shalt be for fuel to the fire; thy blood shall be in the midst of the land; thou shalt no longer be remembered: for I the LORD have spoken.
To the Overcomer, A Psalm or Song of David.
1 ¶ Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered; let those that hate him flee before him.
2 As smoke is driven away; so drive them away: as wax melts before the fire, so shall the wicked perish at the presence of God.
3 But the righteous shall be glad; they shall rejoice before God; they shall dance with joy.
4 Sing unto God, sing psalms unto his name; extol him that rides upon the heavens by his name JAH and rejoice before him.
5 A father of the fatherless and a defender of the widows is God in his holy habitation.
6 God sets the solitary in families; he brings out those who are bound with chains, but the rebellious dwell in a dry land.
7 ¶ O God, when thou didst go forth before thy people, when thou didst march through the wilderness; Selah:
8 The earth shook, the heavens also dropped their rain at the presence of God; even Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
9 Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful rain, by which thou didst confirm thine inheritance, when it was weary.
10 Thy presence was in thy congregation; thou, O God, by thy goodness thou hast provided for the poor.
11 The Lord shall give a word; great shall be the host of the evangelists thereof.
12 Kings of armies fled apace, and she that dwells in the house divided the spoil.
13 Though ye be cast among the pots, yet shall ye be as the wings of a dove covered with silver and her feathers with yellow gold.
14 When the Almighty scattered the kings that were in her, she became white as the snow in Salmon.
15 ¶ The mountain of Bashan is the mountain of God; the mountain of Bashan is a high mountain.
16 Why leap ye, ye high mountains? This is the mountain which God desires to dwell in; yea, the LORD will dwell in it for ever.
17 The chariots of God are two thousand, thousands of angels; the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the sanctuary.
18 Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive; thou hast received gifts for men, yea, for the rebellious also that the LORD God might dwell among them.
19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily lades us with benefits, even the God of our saving health. Selah.
20 He that is our God is the God of salvation, and unto GOD the Lord belongs the way of escape from death.
21 Surely God shall smite the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of such a one as goes on still in his trespasses.
22 ¶ The Lord said, I will bring again from Bashan, I will bring my people again from the depths of the sea:
23 Thy foot shall be dipped in the blood of thine enemies and the tongue of thy dogs in the same.
24 They have seen thy ways, O God, even the ways of my God, my King, in the sanctuary.
25 The singers went before, the players on instruments followed after; in between them were the virgins playing with timbrels.
26 Bless ye God in the congregations, even the Lord, ye of the lineage of Israel.
27 There was little Benjamin as their ruler, the princes of Judah in their congregation, the princes of Zebulun and the princes of Naphtali.
28 Thy God has commanded thy strength; confirm, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.
29 From thy temple in Jerusalem shall kings bring presents unto thee.
30 Reprehend the company of spearmen, the multitude of the strong, with the lords of the peoples, trampling them underfoot with their pieces of silver; Destroy thou the peoples that delight in war.
31 Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.
32 ¶ Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth; O sing praises unto the Lord, Selah:
33 To him that rides upon the heavens of the heavens which were of old; behold, he shall send forth his voice, his mighty voice.
34 Ascribe ye strength unto God; his excellency is over Israel, and his strength is in the clouds.
35 O God, thou art terrible out of thy sanctuaries; the God of Israel is he that gives strength and power unto his people. Blessed be God.
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