M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Adonijah Seeks Kingship
1 Now King David was old and advanced in years, and they covered him with clothes, but he could not get warm. 2 Therefore his servants said to him, “Let a young virgin be found for my lord the king, and let her stand before the king and care for him, and let her lie by your side so that my lord the king may keep warm.”
3 So they searched for a beautiful young woman throughout the land of Israel and found Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4 She was very beautiful and cared for the king and ministered to him, but the king did not know her intimately.
5 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king,” and he assembled chariots and horsemen and fifty men to run before him. 6 His father had not confronted him at any time by asking, “Why have you done this?” He also was a very attractive man, and he was born next after Absalom.
7 He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest, and they agreed to help him. 8 But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and David’s mighty men did not join Adonijah.
9 Adonijah slaughtered sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the Stone of Zoheleth, which is by En Rogel, and invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants. 10 But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mighty men, or his brother Solomon.
11 Therefore Nathan spoke to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, “Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith reigns and David our lord does not know it? 12 Now please come and let me give you some advice, so that you may save your own life as well as that of your son Solomon. 13 Go to King David and say to him, ‘Did not you, my lord, O king, swear to your handmaid, saying: Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? Why then does Adonijah reign?’ 14 Then while you are still there talking with the king, I will come in and confirm your words.”
15 So Bathsheba went to the king’s chamber. Now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite ministered to him. 16 Bathsheba bowed and prostrated herself before the king.
And the king said, “What do you want?”
17 And she said to him, “My lord, you swore by the Lord your God to your handmaid, saying: Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne. 18 But Adonijah reigns, and now, my lord, O king, you are unaware. 19 He has slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance and has invited all the sons of the king and Abiathar the priest and Joab the commander of the army, but he has not invited your servant Solomon. 20 And you, my lord, O king, all the eyes of Israel are upon you that you should tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21 Otherwise it shall be that when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, I and my son Solomon shall be considered offenders.”
22 While she was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet also came in. 23 The king was told, “Nathan the prophet is here,” and when he entered the king’s presence, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground.
24 Nathan said, “My lord, O king, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne’? 25 For he has gone down this day and has slain oxen, fat cattle, and sheep in abundance and has invited all the king’s sons, the commanders of the guard, and Abiathar the priest, and they eat and drink with him, saying, ‘God save King Adonijah!’ 26 But he has not invited me, your servant, or Zadok the priest or Benaiah the son of Jehoiada or your servant Solomon. 27 Is this thing done by my lord the king, and you have not let your servants know who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
Solomon Becomes King(A)
28 Then King David answered and said, “Call Bathsheba to me.” And she came into the king’s presence and stood before the king.
29 The king vowed, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all distress, 30 even as I swore to you by the Lord God of Israel, saying, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead,’ even so will I certainly do this day.”
31 Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground in reverence to the king and said, “Let my lord King David live forever.”
32 King David said, “Call Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada for me.” So they came before the king. 33 And the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. 34 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint him king over Israel, and blow the trumpet and say, ‘God save King Solomon!’ 35 Then you shall come up after him. And he shall come and sit on my throne, for he will be king in my place as I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.”
36 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king and said, “Amen! May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, also say so! 37 As the Lord has been with my lord the king, may He also be with Solomon and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.”
38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Kerethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule and brought him to Gihon. 39 Zadok the priest took a horn of oil out of the tabernacle and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, “God save King Solomon!” 40 All the people came up to see him and played flutes and greatly rejoiced, so that the earth shook at the sound.
41 Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard the commotion as they were finishing their meal, and when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “Why is the city so loud and in an uproar?”
42 While he was speaking, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came. Adonijah said to him, “Come in, for you are a valiant man and bring good tidings.”
43 Jonathan answered Adonijah, saying, “Surely our lord King David has made Solomon king. 44 The king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Kerethites, and the Pelethites. And they had him ride on the king’s mule. 45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon, and they have come up from their rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you heard. 46 Also Solomon sits on the throne of the kingdom. 47 Moreover, the king’s servants came to bless our lord King David, saying, ‘May God make the name of Solomon better than your name and make his throne greater than your throne.’ And the king bowed himself upon the bed. 48 The king also said, ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who has given one to sit on my throne this day so that I could see with my own eyes.’ ”
49 All the guests that were with Adonijah were afraid and rose up and went on their way. 50 Adonijah feared Solomon. So he got up and went to the altar and held on to its horns. 51 Then Solomon was told, “Adonijah fears King Solomon, for he has caught hold of the horns on the altar, saying ‘Let King Solomon swear to me today that he will not slay his servant with the sword.’ ”
52 And Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, not one of his hairs will fall to the ground, but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” 53 So King Solomon sent for him, and they brought him down from the altar, and he came and bowed himself to King Solomon. And Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”
5 For freedom Christ freed us. Stand fast therefore and do not be entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
Christian Freedom
2 Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. 3 I testify again to every man who is circumcised that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You have been cut off from Christ, whoever of you are justified by law; you have fallen from grace. 5 For we, through the Spirit, by faith, eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith which works through love.
7 You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? 8 This persuasion does not come from Him who calls you. 9 A little yeast leavens the whole batch. 10 I have confidence in you through the Lord that you will not think otherwise. But he who is troubling you shall bear his judgment, whoever he is. 11 Brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why do I still suffer persecution? Then the offense of the cross has ceased. 12 I wish that those who are troubling you would castrate themselves!
13 You, brothers, have been called to liberty. Only do not use liberty to give an opportunity to the flesh, but by love serve one another. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”[a] 15 But if you bite and devour one another, take heed that you are not consumed by one another.
Spiritual Fruit and Fleshly Works
16 I say then, walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh. These are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 Now the works of the flesh are revealed, which are these: adultery, sexual immorality, impurity, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, strife, jealousy, rage, selfishness, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I previously warned you, that those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 meekness, and self-control; against such there is no law. 24 Those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 26 Let us not be conceited, provoking one another and envying one another.
A Lament for Pharaoh and Egypt
32 In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying: 2 Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him:
You likened yourself to a young lion of the nations,
but you are as the monster in the seas;
and you burst forth in your rivers,
and muddied the waters with your feet,
and made foul their rivers.
3 Thus says the Lord God:
I will therefore spread out My net over you
with a company of many peoples,
and they shall bring you up in My net.
4 Then I will leave you upon the land;
I will cast you out on the open field,
and I will cause all the fowl of the heavens to remain upon you.
And I will fill the beasts of the whole earth with you.
5 I will lay your flesh upon the mountains,
and fill the valleys with your refuse.
6 I will also water the land with your blood,
as far as the mountains;
and the rivers shall be full of you.
7 When I put you out, I will cover the heavens
and make their stars dark;
I will cover the sun with a cloud,
and the moon shall not give its light.
8 All the bright lights in the heavens
I will make dark over you,
and set darkness upon your land,
says the Lord God.
9 I will also vex the hearts of many peoples when I bring your destruction among the nations, into the countries which you have not known. 10 Indeed, I will make many peoples amazed at you, and their kings shall be horribly afraid for you when I brandish My sword before them. And they shall tremble at every moment, every man for his own life, on the day of your fall.
11 For thus says the Lord God:
The sword of the king of Babylon
shall come upon you.
12 By the swords of the mighty,
I will cause your multitude to fall.
All of them are tyrants of the nations;
they shall destroy the pride of Egypt,
and all its multitude shall be destroyed.
13 I also will destroy all the beasts
from beside many waters;
nor shall the foot of man muddy them anymore,
nor the hoofs of beasts muddy them.
14 Then I will make their waters settle,
and cause their rivers to run like oil,
says the Lord God.
15 When I make the land of Egypt desolate,
and the country is destitute of that by which it was full,
when I smite all those who dwell in it,
then shall they know that I am the Lord.
16 This is the lamentation, and they shall chant it. The daughters of the nations shall chant it. They shall chant it over Egypt and over all her multitude, says the Lord God.
A Dirge for Egypt
17 In the twelfth year, on the fifteenth day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying: 18 Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt and cast it down, her and the daughters of the powerful nations, to the nether parts of the earth, with those who go down into the pit. 19 “Whom do you surpass in beauty? Descend and make your bed with the uncircumcised.” 20 They shall fall in the midst of those who are slain by the sword. She is delivered to the sword. They have drawn her and all her multitudes away. 21 The strong among the mighty shall speak to him and those who help him out of the midst of Sheol: “They have gone down, they lie still, uncircumcised, slain by the sword.”
22 Assyria is there and all her company. Her graves are around her. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword, 23 whose graves are set in the sides of the pit and her company is all around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword, who cause terror in the land of the living.
24 There is Elam and all her multitude all around her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who descended uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth, who caused their terror in the land of the living and bore their shame with those who went down to the pit. 25 They have set a bed for her in the midst of the slain with all her multitude. Her graves are all around it. All of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; though their terror was caused in the land of the living, yet they have borne their shame with those who go down to the pit. They were put in the midst of those who are slain.
26 There is Meshek, Tubal, and all her multitude. Their graves are all around them. All of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword, though they caused their terror in the land of the living. 27 They shall not lie with the mighty who are fallen of the uncircumcised, who have gone down to Sheol with their weapons of war and whose swords were laid under their heads. But the punishment for their iniquity rested upon their bones, though the terror of these mighty ones was once in the land of the living.
28 Indeed, you shall be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised and shall lie with those who are slain with the sword.
29 There is Edom also, its kings and all its officials, who for all their might are laid by those who were slain by the sword. They shall lie with the uncircumcised and with those who go down to the pit.
30 There are also the officials of the north, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who in spite of the terror from their might have gone down in shame with the slain. So they lie down uncircumcised with those who are slain by the sword, and bear their shame with those who go down to the pit.
31 Pharaoh shall see them, and shall be comforted over all his multitude slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his army, says the Lord God. 32 Though I have caused a terror of him in the land of the living, yet he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with those who are slain with the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord God.
Psalm 80
For the Music Director. To the melody of “Lilies of the Testimony.” A Psalm of Asaph.
1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
You who lead Joseph like a flock;
You who are enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth.
2 In the sight of Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh,
stir up Your strength,
and come and rescue us.
3 Restore us again, O God,
and cause Your face to shine,
and we shall be delivered.
4 O Lord God of Hosts,
how long will You be angry
against the prayers of Your people?
5 You have fed them with the bread of tears
and have given them tears to drink in great measure.
6 You make us contention for our neighbors,
and our enemies laugh among themselves.
7 Restore us again, O God of Hosts,
and cause Your face to shine,
and we shall be delivered.
8 You have brought a vine out of Egypt;
You have cast out the nations and planted it.
9 You cleared the ground for it;
it took deep root and filled the land.
10 The mountains were covered with its shadow
and the mighty cedars with its branches.
11 It sent out its branches to the sea
and its shoots to the River.
12 Why have You then broken down its walls,
so that all those who pass by the way pluck its fruit?
13 The boar from the woods ravages it,
and the insects of the field devour it.
14 Return again, O God of Hosts;
look down from heaven, and behold,
have regard for this vine
15 and the root that Your right hand has planted,
and the shoots that You made strong for Yourself.
16 It is burned with fire; it is cut down;
may they perish at the rebuke from Your presence.
17 Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand,
the son of man whom You made strong for Yourself.
18 So we will not turn back from You;
give us life, and we will call upon Your name.
19 Restore us again, O Lord God of Hosts;
cause Your face to shine,
and we shall be delivered.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.