M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Chapter 23
1 The king then had all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem summoned before him. 2 The king went up to the house of the Lord with all the people of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem: priests, prophets, and all the people, great and small. He read aloud to them all the words of the book of the covenant that had been found in the house of the Lord.(A) 3 The king stood by the column and made a covenant in the presence of the Lord to follow the Lord and to observe his commandments, statutes, and decrees with his whole heart and soul, and to re-establish the words of the covenant written in this book. And all the people stood by the covenant.
Josiah’s Religious Reform. 4 Then the king commanded the high priest Hilkiah, his assistant priests, and the doorkeepers to remove from the temple of the Lord all the objects that had been made for Baal, Asherah, and the whole host of heaven. These he burned outside Jerusalem on the slopes of the Kidron; their ashes were carried to Bethel.(B) 5 He also put an end to the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had appointed to burn incense on the high places in the cities of Judah and in the vicinity of Jerusalem, as well as those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun, moon, and signs of the zodiac, and to the whole host of heaven.(C) 6 From the house of the Lord he also removed the Asherah to the Wadi Kidron, outside Jerusalem; he burned it and beat it to dust, in the Wadi Kidron, and scattered its dust over the graveyard of the people of the land.[a](D) 7 He tore down the apartments of the cult prostitutes in the house of the Lord, where the women wove garments for the Asherah.(E) 8 He brought in all the priests from the cities of Judah, and then defiled, from Geba to Beer-sheba, the high places where they had offered incense. He also tore down the high places of the gates, which were at the entrance of the Gate of Joshua, governor of the city, north of the city gate. 9 (The priests of the high places could not function at the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem; but they, along with their relatives, ate the unleavened bread.)
10 The king also defiled Topheth in the Valley of Ben-hinnom, so that there would no longer be any immolation of sons or daughters by fire[b] in honor of Molech.(F) 11 He did away with the horses which the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun; these were at the entrance of the house of the Lord, near the chamber of Nathan-melech the official, which was in the large building. The chariots of the sun he destroyed by fire. 12 He also demolished the altars made by the kings of Judah on the roof (the roof terrace of Ahaz), and the altars made by Manasseh in the two courts of the Lord’s house. He pulverized them and threw the dust into the Wadi Kidron.(G) 13 The king defiled the high places east of Jerusalem, south of the Mount of the Destroyer,[c] which Solomon, king of Israel, had built in honor of Astarte, the Sidonian horror, of Chemosh, the Moabite horror, and of Milcom, the Ammonites’ abomination.(H) 14 He broke to pieces the pillars, cut down the asherahs, and filled the places where they had been with human bones.(I)
15 Likewise the altar which was at Bethel, the high place built by Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin—this same altar and high place he tore down and burned, grinding the high place to powder and burning the asherah.(J) 16 When Josiah turned and saw the graves there on the mountainside, he ordered the bones taken from the graves and burned on the altar, and thus defiled it, according to the Lord’s word proclaimed by the man of God as Jeroboam stood by the altar on the feast day. When the king looked up and saw the grave of the man of God who had proclaimed these words, 17 he asked, “What is that marker I see?” The people of the city replied, “The grave of the man of God who came from Judah and proclaimed the very things you have done to the altar in Bethel.” 18 “Let him be,” he said, “let no one move his bones.” So they left his bones undisturbed together with the bones of the prophet who had come from Samaria.[d] 19 Josiah also removed all the temples on the high places in the cities of Samaria which the kings of Israel had built, provoking the Lord; he did the very same to them as he had done in Bethel. 20 He slaughtered upon the altars all the priests of the high places that were there, and burned human bones upon them. Then he returned to Jerusalem.
21 The king issued a command to all the people: “Observe the Passover of the Lord, your God, as it is written in this book of the covenant.”(K) 22 No Passover such as this had been observed during the period when the judges ruled Israel, or during the entire period of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah, 23 until the eighteenth year of King Josiah, when this Passover of the Lord was kept in Jerusalem.
24 Further, Josiah purged the consultation of ghosts and spirits, with the household gods, idols,[e] and all the other horrors to be seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, so that he might carry out the words of the law that were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest had found in the house of the Lord.(L)
25 Before him there had been no king who turned to the Lord as he did, with his whole heart, his whole being, and his whole strength, in accord with the entire law of Moses; nor did any king like him arise after him.(M) 26 Yet the Lord did not turn from his fiercely burning anger against Judah, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had given. 27 The Lord said: Even Judah will I put out of my sight as I did Israel. I will reject this city, Jerusalem, which I chose, and the house of which I said: There shall my name be.
28 The rest of the acts of Josiah, with all that he did, are recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah. 29 In his time Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, went up toward the Euphrates River against the king of Assyria.[f] King Josiah set out to meet him, but was slain at Megiddo at the first encounter. 30 His servants brought his body on a chariot from Megiddo to Jerusalem, where they buried him in his own grave. Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz, son of Josiah, anointed him, and proclaimed him king to succeed his father.
Reign of Jehoahaz. 31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal, daughter of Jeremiah, from Libnah.(N)
32 He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, just as his ancestors had done. 33 Pharaoh Neco took him prisoner at Riblah in the land of Hamath, thus ending his reign in Jerusalem. He imposed a fine upon the land of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.[g] 34 Pharaoh Neco then made Eliakim, son of Josiah, king in place of Josiah his father; he changed his name to Jehoiakim. Jehoahaz he took away with him to Egypt, where he died. 35 Jehoiakim gave the silver and gold to Pharaoh, but taxed the land to raise the amount Pharaoh demanded. He exacted the silver and gold from the people of the land, from each proportionately, to pay Pharaoh Neco.
Reign of Jehoiakim. 36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zebidah, daughter of Pedaiah, from Rumah.
37 He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, just as his ancestors had done.
Chapter 5
1 [a]Every high priest is taken from among men and made their representative before God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.[b] 2 He is able to deal patiently[c] with the ignorant and erring, for he himself is beset by weakness 3 and so, for this reason, must make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people.(A) 4 No one takes this honor upon himself but only when called by God, just as Aaron was.(B) 5 In the same way, it was not Christ who glorified himself in becoming high priest, but rather the one who said to him:
“You are my son;
this day I have begotten you”;(C)
6 just as he says in another place:[d]
“You are a priest forever
according to the order of Melchizedek.”(D)
7 In the days when he was in the flesh, he offered prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears to the one who was able to save him from death,[e] and he was heard because of his reverence.(E) 8 Son though he was,[f] he learned obedience from what he suffered;(F) 9 and when he was made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him,(G) 10 declared by God high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.(H)
IV. Jesus’ Eternal Priesthood and Eternal Sacrifice
Exhortation to Spiritual Renewal. 11 [g]About this we have much to say, and it is difficult to explain, for you have become sluggish in hearing. 12 Although you should be teachers by this time, you need to have someone teach you again the basic elements of the utterances of God. You need milk, [and] not solid food.(I) 13 Everyone who lives on milk lacks experience of the word of righteousness, for he is a child. 14 But solid food is for the mature, for those whose faculties are trained by practice to discern good and evil.
II. The Day of the Lord
Chapter 2
The Day Approaches
1 [a]Blow the horn in Zion,
sound the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord is coming!(A)
Yes, it approaches,
2 a day of darkness and gloom,
a day of thick clouds!
Like dawn[b] spreading over the mountains,
a vast and mighty army!
Nothing like it has ever happened in ages past,
nor will the future hold anything like it,
even to the most distant generations.(B)
3 Before it,[c] fire devours,
behind it flame scorches.
The land before it is like the garden of Eden,
and behind it, a desolate wilderness;
from it nothing escapes.(C)
4 Their appearance is that of horses;
like war horses they run.
5 Like the rumble of chariots
they hurtle across mountaintops;
Like the crackling of fiery flames
devouring stubble;
Like a massive army
in battle formation.(D)
6 Before them peoples tremble,
every face turns pale.(E)
7 Like warriors they run,
like soldiers they scale walls,
Each advancing in line,
without swerving from the course.
8 No one crowds the other;
each advances in its own track;
They plunge through the weapons;
they are not checked.
9 They charge the city,
they run upon the wall,
they climb into the houses;
Through the windows
they enter like thieves.
10 Before them the earth trembles;
the heavens shake;
Sun and moon are darkened,
and the stars withhold their brightness.(F)
11 The Lord raises his voice
at the head of his army;
How immense is his host!
How numerous those who carry out his command!
How great is the day of the Lord!
Utterly terrifying! Who can survive it?(G)
Return to the Lord
12 Yet even now—oracle of the Lord—
return to me with your whole heart,
with fasting, weeping, and mourning.
13 Rend your hearts, not your garments,
and return to the Lord, your God,
For he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love,
and relenting in punishment.(H)
14 Perhaps he will again relent
and leave behind a blessing,[d]
Grain offering and libation
for the Lord, your God.(I)
15 Blow the horn in Zion!
Proclaim a fast,
call an assembly!(J)
16 Gather the people,
sanctify the congregation;
Assemble the elderly;
gather the children,
even infants nursing at the breast;
Let the bridegroom leave his room,
and the bride[e] her bridal tent.
17 Between the porch and the altar[f]
let the priests weep,
let the ministers of the Lord weep and say:
“Spare your people, Lord!
do not let your heritage become a disgrace,
a byword among the nations!
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”(K)
The Lord Relents. 18 Then the Lord grew jealous[g] for his land and took pity on his people. 19 In response the Lord said to his people:
I am sending you
grain, new wine, and oil,
and you will be satisfied by them;
Never again will I make you
a disgrace among the nations.
20 The northerner[h] I will remove far from you,
driving them out into a dry and desolate land,
Their vanguard to the eastern sea,
their rearguard to the western sea,
And their stench will rise,
their stink will ascend,
What great deeds the Lord has done!
21 Do not fear, O land!
delight and rejoice,
for the Lord has done great things!(L)
22 Do not fear, you animals in the wild,
for the wilderness pastures sprout green grass.
The trees bear fruit,
the fig tree and the vine produce their harvest.
23 Children of Zion, delight
and rejoice in the Lord, your God!
For he has faithfully given you the early rain,[i]
sending rain down on you,
the early and the late rains as before.(M)
24 The threshing floors will be full of grain,
the vats spilling over with new wine and oil.
25 I will repay you double
what the swarming locust has eaten,
The hopper, the consuming locust, and the cutter,
my great army I sent against you.(N)
26 You will eat until you are fully satisfied,
then you will praise the name of the Lord, your God,
Who acts so wondrously on your behalf!
My people will never again be put to shame.
27 Then you will know that I am in the midst of Israel:
I, the Lord, am your God, and there is no other;
my people will never again be put to shame.(O)
Psalm 142[a]
A Prayer in Time of Trouble
1 A maskil of David, when he was in the cave.[b] A prayer.
2 With my own voice I cry to the Lord;
with my own voice I beseech the Lord.
3 Before him I pour out my complaint,
tell of my distress in front of him.
4 When my spirit is faint within me,(A)
you know my path.(B)
As I go along this path,
they have hidden a trap for me.(C)
5 I look to my right hand to see(D)
that there is no one willing to acknowledge me.
My escape has perished;
no one cares for me.
6 I cry out to you, Lord,
I say, You are my refuge,(E)
my portion in the land of the living.(F)
7 Listen to my cry for help,
for I am brought very low.(G)
Rescue me from my pursuers,
for they are too strong for me.
8 Lead my soul from prison,
that I may give thanks to your name.
Then the righteous shall gather around me[c]
because you have been good to me.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.