M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
12 1 so the Lord sent Nathan to David.
Nathan’s Rebuke
Nathan[a] approached David[b] and said, “There are two men in the city. One is rich and one is poor. 2 The rich man has many flocks and herds, 3 but the poor man had nothing except for one little ewe lamb that he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It used to share his food and drink from his own cup. It even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him. 4 A traveler arrived to visit the rich man. Because he was unwilling to take an animal from one of his own flocks or herds to prepare for the guest who had come to visit him, he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to visit him.”
5 David flew into a rage at the man and told Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves to die! 6 He will restore the lamb four times its value, because he did this thing, and because he did it without compassion.”
7 But Nathan replied to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord God of Israel says:
“‘I anointed you king—and you became king over Israel.
“‘I delivered you from Saul’s control.
8 “‘I gave you your former[c] master’s household.
“‘I placed your former[d] master’s wives right in your arms.
“‘I gave you[e] Israel and Judah.
“‘And if this had been too little, I would have added much more than that to you!
9 “‘Why did you despise what the Lord has promised by doing what is detestable in his sight?
“‘You struck down Uriah the Hittite with a battle sword.
“‘You took his wife to be your own.[f]
“‘You killed him with the sword of the Ammonite army.
10 “‘Therefore the sword will never leave your household, because you have despised me by taking the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’[g]
11 “This is what the Lord says:
“‘Listen very carefully!
“‘I’m raising up evil against you right out of your own household.
“‘I’m going to take your wives away from you right before your eyes.
“‘Then I’ll give them to your neighbor.
“‘And then he’s going to have sex with your wives in broad daylight!
12 “‘What you did in secret I’m going to do right in front of all Israel and in broad daylight as well!’”
13 At this point, David told Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”
Nathan responded to David, “There’s one other thing: the Lord has forgiven your sin.[h] You won’t die. 14 Nevertheless, because you have despised the Lord’s enemies with utter contempt,[i] the son born to you will most certainly die.” 15 Then Nathan went home.
David’s Infant Son Dies
After this, the Lord afflicted the child that Uriah’s wife had born to David, and the child[j] became very ill. 16 David begged God on behalf of the youngster. He[k] fasted, went inside, and spent the night lying on the ground. 17 His closest advisors at the palace[l] got up, remained with him, and tried to help him get up from the ground, but he would not do so. He also wouldn’t eat with them.
18 A week later, the child died, and David’s staff was afraid to tell him that the child had died. They were telling themselves, “Look, when the child was still alive, we talked to him but he wouldn’t listen to what we said. Now what kind of trouble will he bring on himself if we tell him that the child has died?”
19 But as David observed his staff whispering together, he perceived that the child had died, so he asked his staff, “Is the child dead?”
They replied, “He has died.”
20 At this, David got up from the ground, washed, anointed himself, changed his clothes, and went into the Lord’s tent[m] to worship. Then he went back to his palace where, at his request, they served him food and he ate.
21 His staff asked him, “What’s this about? When the child was alive, you fasted and cried. Now that the child has died, you get up and eat!”
22 He answered, “When the child was alive, I fasted and cried. I asked myself, ‘Who knows? Maybe the Lord will show grace to me and the child will live.’ 23 But now that he has died, what’s the point of fasting? Can I bring him back again? I’ll be going to be with him, but he won’t be returning to me.”
The Birth of Solomon
24 Then David consoled his wife Bathsheba. He went in and had sex with her, and she bore a son whom he named Solomon. The Lord loved him, 25 and sent a message written by Nathan the prophet to call his name Jedidiah,[n] for the Lord’s sake.
The Ammonites are Defeated
26 Meanwhile, Joab attacked the Ammonite city of[o] Rabbah and captured its stronghold. 27 Then Joab sent messengers to David to tell him, “I just attacked Rabbah and captured its municipal water supply, 28 so call out the rest of the army, attack the city, and capture it. Otherwise, I’ll take the city myself and name it after me.” 29 So David mustered his entire army and marched on Rabbah, attacked it, and captured it. 30 He confiscated the crown of their king[p] from his head—it weighed one talent[q] in gold and was set with precious stones—and it was placed on David’s head. He confiscated a great amount of war booty that had been plundered from the city, 31 brought back the people who had lived in it, placing them under conscripted labor with saws, iron picks, and axes. He did this to every Ammonite city, and then David and his entire army[r] returned to Jerusalem.
5 We know that if the earthly tent we live in is torn down, we have a building in heaven that comes from God, an eternal house not built by human[a] hands. 2 For in this one we sigh, since we long to put on our heavenly dwelling. 3 Of course, if we do put it on, we will not be found without a body.[b] 4 So while we are still in this tent, we sigh under our burdens, because we do not want to put it off but to put it on, so that our dying bodies may be swallowed up by life. 5 God has prepared us for this and has given us his Spirit as a guarantee.
6 Therefore, we are always confident, and we know that as long as we are at home in this body we are away from the Lord. 7 For we live by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, then, and would prefer to be away from this body and to live with the Lord. 9 So whether we are at home or away from home, our goal is to be pleasing to him. 10 For all of us must appear before the judgment seat of the Messiah,[c] so that each of us may receive what he deserves for what he has done in his body, whether good or worthless.[d]
The Messiah’s Love Controls Us
11 Therefore, since we know what it means to fear the Lord, we try to persuade people. We ourselves are perfectly known to God. I hope we are also really known to your consciences. 12 We are not recommending ourselves to you again but are giving you a reason to be proud of us, so that you can answer those who are proud of outward things rather than inward character.[e] 13 So if we were crazy, it was for God; if we are sane, it is for you. 14 The love of the Messiah[f] controls us, for we are convinced of this: that one person died for all people; therefore, all people have died. 15 He died for all people, so that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for the one who died and rose for them.
16 So then, from now on we do not think of anyone from a human point of view.[g] Even if we did think of the Messiah[h] from a human point of view,[i] we don’t think of him that way anymore. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in the Messiah,[j] he is a new creation. Old things have disappeared, and—look!—all things have become new!
18 All of this comes from God, who has reconciled us to himself through the Messiah[k] and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 for through the Messiah,[l] God was reconciling the world to himself by not counting their sins against them. He has committed his message of reconciliation to us. 20 Therefore, we are the Messiah’s[m] representatives, as though God were pleading through us. We plead on the Messiah’s[n] behalf: “Be reconciled to God!” 21 God[o] made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that God’s righteousness would be produced in us.[p]
A Prophecy against Israel’s Nobles
19 “Now as for you, publish[a] this mourning psalm about Israel’s leaders. 2 Tell them:
‘What a lioness your mother was among lions!
She reared her cubs in the midst of fierce young males.
3 She raised one cub in particular,
teaching that fierce lion to become a hunter-prowler—
to eat human beings.
4 The nations heard about him.
He had become caught in their trap.[b]
They brought him with hooks
to the land of Egypt.
5 When she learned that her plans had been frustrated
and that her hopes were dashed,
she took another of her cubs
and turned him into a fierce lion.
6 He prowled around among the lions,
became a strong, young lion,
and learned to become a hunter-prowler—
to eat human beings.
7 He raped[c] the women,
devastating their towns.
The land was made desolate,
and all the while the land was filled
with the sound of his roaring.
8 The surrounding nations attacked.
They tossed their net over him,
and he was caught in their trap.[d]
9 They imprisoned him in a cage with hooks
and brought him to the king of Babel.
Then they placed him in their dungeon
where his voice would no longer be heard
on the mountains of Israel.
10 ‘Your mother was like a vine
entwining a pomegranate,[e]
planted by water, full of fruit,
and full of branches
because it had been watered generously.
11 Strong were its boughs,
suitable for use in the scepter of a ruler.
It reached to the clouds,
noticeable because of its height
and its abundant branches.
12 Yet in anger it was uprooted
and cast down to the earth.
An east wind desiccated its fruit;
its strong branches broke off and withered,
and a fire consumed them.
13 Now it is planted in the desert,
in a dry and thirsty land!
14 Fire had burned through its branches,
consuming its shoots and fruits.
No strong branches remain in it,
and there is no scepter to rule!’
“This is a lamentation, and it is to be used in mourning.”
To the Director: A Davidic Psalm.
A Prayer for Protection
64 Hear, God, as I express my concern;
protect me[a] from fear of the enemy.
2 Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked,
from the mob of those who practice evil,
3 who sharpen their tongues like swords,
and aim their bitter words like arrows,
4 shooting at the innocent from concealment.
Suddenly they shoot, fearing nothing.
5 They concoct an evil scheme for themselves;
they enumerate their hidden snares;
they say, “Who will see them?”[b]
6 They devise wicked schemes, saying,
“We have completed our plans,
hiding them deep in our hearts.”
7 But God shot an arrow at them,
and they were wounded immediately.
8 They tripped over their own tongues,
and everyone who was watching ran away.
9 Everyone was gripped with fear
and acknowledged God’s deeds,
understanding what he had done.
10 The righteous rejoiced in the Lord,
because they had fled to him for refuge.
Let all the upright in heart exult.
To the Director: A song. Lyrics[c] by David.
A Song of Praise to God
65 In Zion, God, praise silently awaits you,
and vows will be paid to you.
2 Since you hear prayer,
everybody will come to you.
3 My acts of iniquity—they overwhelm me!
Our transgressions—you blot them out!
4 How blessed is the one you choose,
the one you cause to live in your courts.
We will be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
yes, even with the holiness of your Temple.
5 With awesome deeds of justice[d]
you will answer us, God our Deliverer;
you are[e] the confidence for everyone at the ends of the earth,
even for those far away overseas.
6 The One who established the mountains by his strength
is clothed with omnipotence.
7 He calmed the roar of seas,
the roaring of the waves,
and the turmoil of the peoples.
8 Those living at the furthest ends of the earth[f] are seized by fear because of your miraculous deeds.
You make the going forth of the morning and the evening shout for joy.
9 You take care of the earth,
you water it,
and you enrich it greatly with the river of God that overflows with water.
You provide grain for them,
for you have ordained it this way.
10 You fill the furrows of the field with water
so that their ridges overflow.
You soften them with rain showers;
their sprouts you have blessed.
11 You crown the year with your goodness;
your footsteps drop prosperity behind them.
12 The wilderness pastures drip with dew,[g]
and the hills wrap themselves with joy.
13 The meadows are clothed with flocks of sheep,
and the valleys are covered with grain.
They shout for joy;
yes, they burst out in song!
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