M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

Hezekiah Reforms Judah’s Worship

31 When this was over, all the Israelites who were there went to the cities in Judah. They crushed the sacred stones, cut down the poles dedicated to the goddess Asherah, and tore down the illegal places of worship and the altars throughout Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh. The Israelites destroyed all of these things. Then all the Israelites returned to their own cities. Each person went to his own property.

² Hezekiah assigned the priests and the Levites to divisions. Each priest or Levite was put in a division based on the service he performed: sacrificing burnt offerings, sacrificing fellowship offerings, serving, giving thanks, or praising within the gates of Yahweh’s camp.

³ He set aside part of the king’s property for burnt offerings, the morning and evening offerings, burnt offerings on the weekly worship days, the New Moon Festivals, and the annual festivals, as it is written in Yahweh’s Teachings. ⁴ He told the people living in Jerusalem to give the priests and Levites the portions they were due so that they could devote themselves to Yahweh’s Teachings. ⁵ As soon as the word spread, the Israelites brought plenty of offerings from the first of their produce: grain, new wine, fresh olive oil, honey, and every crop from the fields. They brought large quantities, a tenth of everything. ⁶ The people of Israel and Judah who were living in the cities of Judah brought a tenth of their cattle and sheep and a tenth of the holy things they had dedicated to Yahweh their Elohim. They piled these holy things in heaps. ⁷ In the third month they started piling them up, and in the seventh month they finished. ⁸ When Hezekiah and the leaders saw the heaps, they praised Yahweh and his people Israel.

⁹ Hezekiah asked the priests and the Levites about the heaps. ¹⁰ The chief priest Azariah from Zadok’s family said, “Since the people started to bring the offerings to Yahweh’s temple, we have had all we wanted to eat and plenty to spare. Yahweh has blessed his people, and there’s a lot left over.”

¹¹ Then Hezekiah told them to prepare storerooms in Yahweh’s temple. After they had prepared them, ¹² they faithfully brought in the contributions, the offerings of one-tenth of the crops, and the gifts dedicated to God. The Levite Conaniah was in charge of these things, and his brother Shimei was his assistant. ¹³ King Hezekiah and Azariah, who was in charge of Elohim’s temple, appointed Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah to serve under Conaniah and his brother Shimei. ¹⁴ Kore, son of Imnah the Levite, was the gatekeeper at East Gate and had to take care of the freewill offerings made to Elohim. His responsibility was to distribute the offerings made to Yahweh and the holy gifts dedicated to God. ¹⁵ Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah served under him in the cities belonging to the priests. They were to distribute the offerings faithfully to all their relatives, young and old, by their divisions. ¹⁶ They were appointed to distribute them to males who were at least three years old. The way they were enrolled in the genealogical records did not matter. The six men who served under Kore were to distribute the offerings to everyone who went to Yahweh’s temple to perform the daily service that each division was responsible for. ¹⁷ They were to distribute offerings to the priests who were enrolled by families and to the Levites who were at least 20 years old. Distribution was based on the way they served in their divisions. ¹⁸ The priests and Levites were enrolled with their wives, sons, daughters, and other people who depended on them—the whole community. The priests and Levites had to be faithful in keeping themselves holy for the holy work. ¹⁹ Men were appointed to give a portion of the offerings to all the males in the priestly families and to everyone listed in the genealogies of the Levites. These men were Aaron’s descendants, priests who lived in the pasturelands of every Levite city.

²⁰ This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah. He did what was good and right and true to Yahweh his Elohim. ²¹ Hezekiah incorporated Moses’ Teachings and commands into worship and dedicated his life to serving Elohim. Whatever he did for the worship in Elohim’s temple, he did wholeheartedly, and he succeeded.

Babylon the Great

17 One of the seven angels who held the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of that notorious prostitute who sits on raging waters. ² The kings of the earth had sex with her, and those living on earth became drunk on the wine of her sexual sins.” ³ Then the angel carried me by his power into the wilderness.

I saw a woman sitting on a bright red beast covered with insulting names. It had seven heads and ten horns. ⁴ The woman wore purple clothes, bright red clothes, gold jewelry, gems, and pearls. In her hand she was holding a gold cup filled with detestable and evil things from her sexual sins. ⁵ A name was written on her forehead. The name was Mystery: Babylon the Great, the Mother of Prostitutes and Detestable Things of the Earth. ⁶ I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people and of those who testify about Yeshua. I was very surprised when I saw her.

⁷ The angel asked me, “Why are you surprised? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and the beast with the seven heads and the ten horns that carries her.

⁸ “You saw the beast which once was, is no longer, and will come from the bottomless pit and go to its destruction. Those living on earth, whose names were not written in the Book of Life when the world was created, will be surprised when they see the beast because it was, is no longer, and will come again.

⁹ “In this situation a wise mind is needed. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is sitting. ¹⁰ They are also seven kings. Five of them have fallen, one is ruling now, and the other has not yet come. When he comes, he must remain for a little while. ¹¹ The beast that was and is no longer is the eighth king. It belongs with the seven kings and goes to its destruction.

¹² “The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet started to rule. They will receive authority to rule as kings with the beast for one hour. ¹³ They have one purpose—to give their power and authority to the beast. ¹⁴ They will go to war against the lamb. The lamb will conquer them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings. Those who are called, chosen, and faithful are with him.”

¹⁵ The angel also said to me, “The waters you saw, on which the prostitute is sitting, are people, crowds, nations, and languages. ¹⁶ The ten horns and the beast you saw will hate the prostitute. They will leave her abandoned and naked. They will eat her flesh and burn her up in a fire. ¹⁷ God has made them do what he wants them to do. So they will give their kingdom to the beast until God’s words are carried out. ¹⁸ The woman you saw is the important city which dominates the kings of the earth.”

False Prophets Will Be Judged

² “On that day,” declares Yahweh Tsebaoth, “I will wipe away the names of the idols from the land. They will no longer be remembered. I will also remove the false prophets and the unclean^[a] spirit from the land.

³ “If a man still prophesies, his father and his mother, who gave birth to him, will say, ‘You don’t deserve to live because you speak lies in the name of Yahweh.’ Then his father and his mother, who gave birth to him, will stab him when he prophesies.

⁴ “On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies. He won’t deceive people by dressing like a prophet in a coat made of hair. ⁵ He will say, ‘I am not a prophet. I’m a farmer. I’ve owned this land since I was a child.’

⁶ “When someone asks him, ‘What are these scars on your chest?’ he will answer, ‘I was hurt at my friend’s house.’

The Shepherd Struck, the Sheep Scattered

⁸ Yahweh declares,

Sadness Will Turn to Joy

16 Yeshua continued, “I have said these things to you so that you won’t lose your faith. ² You will be thrown out of synagogues. Certainly, the time is coming when people who murder you will think that they are serving God. ³ They will do these things to you because they haven’t known the Father or me. ⁴ But I’ve told you this so that when it happens you’ll remember what I’ve told you. I didn’t tell you this at first, because I was with you.

⁵ “Now I’m going to the one who sent me. Yet, none of you asks me where I’m going. ⁶ But because I’ve told you this, you’re filled with sadness. ⁷ However, I am telling you the truth: It’s good for you that I’m going away. If I don’t go away, the helper won’t come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸ He will come to convict the world of sin, to show the world what has God’s approval, and to convince the world that God judges it. ⁹ He will convict the world of sin, because people don’t believe in me. ¹⁰ He will show the world what has God’s approval, because I’m going to the Father and you won’t see me anymore. ¹¹ He will convince the world that God judges it, because the ruler of this world has been judged.

¹² “I have a lot more to tell you, but that would be too much for you now. ¹³ When the Spirit of Truth comes, he will guide you into the full truth. He won’t speak on his own. He will speak what he hears and will tell you about things to come. ¹⁴ He will give me glory, because he will tell you what I say. ¹⁵ Everything the Father says is also what I say. That is why I said, ‘He will take what I say and tell it to you.’

¹⁶ “In a little while you won’t see me anymore. Then in a little while you will see me again.”

¹⁷ Some of his disciples said to each other, “What does he mean? He tells us that in a little while we won’t see him. Then he tells us that in a little while we will see him again and that he’s going to the Father.” ¹⁸ So they were asking each other, “What does he mean when he says, ‘In a little while’? We don’t understand what he’s talking about.”

¹⁹ Yeshua knew they wanted to ask him something. So he said to them, “Are you trying to figure out among yourselves what I meant when I said, ‘In a little while you won’t see me, and in a little while you will see me again’? ²⁰ I can guarantee this truth: You will cry because you are sad, but the world will be happy. You will feel pain, but your pain will turn to happiness. ²¹ A woman has pain when her time to give birth comes. But after the child is born, she doesn’t remember the pain anymore because she’s happy that a child has been brought into the world.

²² “Now you’re in a painful situation. But I will see you again. Then you will be happy, and no one will take that happiness away from you. ²³ When that day comes, you won’t ask me any more questions. I can guarantee this truth: If you ask the Father for anything in my name, he will give it to you. ²⁴ So far you haven’t asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive so that you can be completely happy.

²⁵ “I have used examples to illustrate these things. The time is coming when I won’t use examples to speak to you. Rather, I will speak to you about the Father in plain words. ²⁶ When that day comes, you will ask for what you want in my name. I’m telling you that I won’t have to ask the Father for you. ²⁷ The Father loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. ²⁸ I left the Father and came into the world. Again, as I’ve said, I’m going to leave the world and go back to the Father.”

²⁹ His disciples said, “Now you’re talking in plain words and not using examples. ³⁰ Now we know that you know everything. You don’t need to wait for questions to be asked. Because of this, we believe that you have come from God.”

³¹ Yeshua replied to them, “Now you believe. ³² The time is coming, and is already here, when all of you will be scattered. Each of you will go your own way and leave me all alone. Yet, I’m not all alone, because the Father is with me. ³³ I’ve told you this so that my peace will be with you. In the world you’ll have trouble. But cheer up! I have overcome the world.”