M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Nathan Rebukes David
12 Then the Lord sent (A)Nathan to David. And (B)he came to him and [a]said,
“There were two men in one city, the one rich and the other poor.
2 “The rich man had a great many flocks and herds.
3 “But the poor man had nothing except (C)one little ewe lamb
Which he bought and nourished;
And it grew up together with him and his children.
It would eat of his [b]bread and drink of his cup and lie in his bosom,
And was like a daughter to him.
4 “Now a traveler came to the rich man,
And he [c]was unwilling to take from his own flock or his own herd,
To prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him;
Rather he took the poor man’s ewe lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”
5 Then David’s anger burned greatly against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, surely the man who has done this [d](D)deserves to die. 6 He must make restitution for the lamb (E)fourfold, because he did this thing and had no compassion.”
7 Nathan then said to David, “(F)You are the man! Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘(G)It is I who anointed you king over Israel and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 I also gave you (H)your master’s house and your master’s wives into your [e]care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added to you many more things like these! 9 Why (I)have you despised the word of the Lord by doing evil in His sight? (J)You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, (K)have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the sons of Ammon. 10 Now therefore, (L)the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ 11 Thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I will raise up evil against you from your own household; (M)I will even take your wives before your eyes and give them to your companion, and he will lie with your wives in [f]broad daylight. 12 Indeed (N)you did it secretly, but (O)I will do this thing before all Israel, and [g]under the sun.’” 13 Then David said to Nathan, “(P)I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has [h](Q)taken away your sin; you shall not die. 14 However, because by this deed you have (R)given occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born to you shall surely die.” 15 So Nathan went to his house.
Loss of a Child
Then the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s [i]widow bore to David, so that he was very sick. 16 David therefore inquired of God for the child; and David (S)fasted and went and (T)lay all night on the ground. 17 (U)The elders of his household stood beside him in order to raise him up from the ground, but he was unwilling and would not eat food with them. 18 Then it happened on the seventh day that the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, “Behold, while the child was still alive, we spoke to him and he did not listen to our voice. How then can we tell him that the child is dead, since he might do himself harm!” 19 But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, David perceived that the child was dead; so David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” And they said, “He is dead.” 20 So David arose from the ground, (V)washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he came into the house of the Lord and (W)worshiped. Then he came to his own house, and when he requested, they set food before him and he ate.
21 Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done? [j]While the child was alive, you fasted and wept; but when the child died, you arose and ate food.” 22 He said, “While the child was still alive, (X)I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘(Y)Who knows, the Lord may be gracious to me, that the child may live.’ 23 But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? (Z)I will go to him, but (AA)he will not return to me.”
Solomon Born
24 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and went in to her and lay with her; and she gave birth to a son, and [k](AB)he named him Solomon. Now the Lord loved him 25 and sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he named him [l]Jedidiah for the Lord’s sake.
War Again
26 (AC)Now Joab fought against (AD)Rabbah of the sons of Ammon and captured the royal city. 27 Joab sent messengers to David and said, “I have fought against Rabbah, I have even captured the city of waters. 28 Now therefore, gather the rest of the people together and camp against the city and capture it, or I will capture the city myself and it will be named after me.” 29 So David gathered all the people and went to Rabbah, fought against it and captured it. 30 Then (AE)he took the crown of [m]their king from his head; and its weight was a talent of gold, and in it [n]was a precious stone; and it was placed on David’s head. And he brought out the spoil of the city in great amounts. 31 He also brought out the people who were in it, and (AF)set them under saws, sharp iron instruments, and iron axes, and made them pass through the brickkiln. And thus he did to all the cities of the sons of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.
The Temporal and Eternal
5 For we know that if [a]the (A)earthly (B)tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house (C)not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For indeed in this house we (D)groan, longing to be (E)clothed with our dwelling from heaven, 3 inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. 4 For indeed while we are in this tent, we (F)groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be (G)clothed, so that what is (H)mortal will be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who (I)gave to us the Spirit as a [b]pledge.
6 Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that (J)while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— 7 for (K)we walk by faith, not by [c]sight— 8 we are of good courage, I say, and (L)prefer rather to be absent from the body and (M)to be at home with the Lord. 9 Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be (N)pleasing to Him. 10 For we must all appear before (O)the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for [d]his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
11 Therefore, knowing the (P)fear of the Lord, we persuade men, but we are made manifest to God; and I hope that we are (Q)made manifest also in your consciences. 12 We are not (R)again commending ourselves to you but are giving you an (S)occasion to be proud of us, so that you will have an answer for those who take pride in appearance and not in heart. 13 For if we [e]are (T)beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are of sound mind, it is for you. 14 For the love of Christ (U)controls us, having concluded this, that (V)one died for all, therefore all died; 15 and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer (W)live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.
16 Therefore from now on we recognize no one [f](X)according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ [g]according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. 17 Therefore if anyone is (Y)in Christ, [h]he is (Z)a new creature; (AA)the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 18 Now (AB)all these things are from God, (AC)who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the (AD)ministry of reconciliation, 19 namely, that (AE)God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, (AF)not counting their trespasses against them, and [i]He has [j]committed to us the word of reconciliation.
20 Therefore, we are (AG)ambassadors for Christ, (AH)as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be (AI)reconciled to God. 21 He made Him who (AJ)knew no sin to be (AK)sin on our behalf, so that we might become the (AL)righteousness of God in Him.
Lament for the Princes of Israel
19 “As for you, take up a (A)lamentation for the (B)princes of Israel 2 and say,
‘[a]What was your mother?
A lioness among lions!
She lay down among young lions,
She reared her cubs.
3 ‘When she brought up one of her cubs,
He became a lion,
And he learned to tear his prey;
He devoured men.
4 ‘Then nations heard about him;
He was captured in their pit,
And they (C)brought him with hooks
To the land of Egypt.
5 ‘When she saw, as she waited,
That her hope was lost,
She took [b]another of her cubs
And made him a young lion.
6 ‘And he (D)walked about among the lions;
He became a young lion,
He learned to tear his prey;
He devoured men.
7 ‘He [c]destroyed their [d]fortified towers
And laid waste their cities;
And the land and its fullness were appalled
Because of the sound of his roaring.
8 ‘Then (E)nations set against him
On every side from their provinces,
And they spread their net over him;
He was captured in their pit.
9 ‘(F)They put him in a cage with hooks
And (G)brought him to the king of Babylon;
They brought him in hunting nets
So that his voice would be heard no more
On the mountains of Israel.
10 ‘Your mother was (H)like a vine in your [e]vineyard,
Planted by the waters;
It was fruitful and full of branches
Because of abundant waters.
11 ‘And it had [f](I)strong branches fit for scepters of rulers,
And its (J)height was raised above the clouds
So that it was seen in its height with the mass of its branches.
12 ‘But it was (K)plucked up in fury;
It was (L)cast down to the ground;
And the (M)east wind dried up its fruit.
Its [g](N)strong branch [h]was torn off
So that [i]it withered;
The fire consumed it.
13 ‘And now it is planted in the (O)wilderness,
In a dry and thirsty land.
14 ‘And (P)fire has gone out from its branch;
It has consumed its shoots and fruit,
So that there is not in it a [j]strong branch,
A scepter to rule.’”
This is a lamentation, and has become a lamentation.
Prayer for Deliverance from Secret Enemies.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
64 Hear my voice, O God, in (A)my [a]complaint;
(B)Preserve my life from dread of the enemy.
2 Hide me from the (C)secret counsel of evildoers,
From the tumult of (D)those who do iniquity,
3 Who (E)have sharpened their tongue like a sword.
They (F)aimed bitter speech as their arrow,
4 To (G)shoot [b]from concealment at the blameless;
Suddenly they shoot at him, and (H)do not fear.
5 They [c]hold fast to themselves an evil purpose;
They [d]talk of (I)laying snares secretly;
They say, “(J)Who can see them?”
6 They [e]devise injustices, saying,
“We are [f]ready with a well-conceived plot”;
For the [g](K)inward thought and the heart of a man are [h]deep.
7 But (L)God [i]will shoot at them with an arrow;
Suddenly [j]they will be wounded.
8 So [k]they [l]will (M)make him stumble;
(N)Their own tongue is against them;
All who see them will (O)shake the head.
9 Then all men [m]will (P)fear,
And they [n]will (Q)declare the work of God,
And [o]will consider [p]what He has done.
10 The righteous man will be (R)glad in the Lord and will (S)take refuge in Him;
And all the upright in heart will glory.
God’s Abundant Favor to Earth and Man.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David. A Song.
65 There will be silence [q]before You, and praise in Zion, O God,
And to You the (T)vow will be performed.
2 O You who hear prayer,
To You (U)all [r]men come.
3 [s](V)Iniquities prevail against me;
As for our transgressions, You [t](W)forgive them.
4 How (X)blessed is the one whom You (Y)choose and bring near to You
To dwell in Your courts.
We will be (Z)satisfied with the goodness of Your house,
Your holy temple.
5 By (AA)awesome deeds You answer us in righteousness, O (AB)God of our salvation,
You who are the trust of all the (AC)ends of the earth and of the farthest [u](AD)sea;
6 Who (AE)establishes the mountains by His strength,
Being (AF)girded with might;
7 Who (AG)stills the roaring of the seas,
The roaring of their waves,
And the (AH)tumult of the peoples.
8 They who dwell in the (AI)ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs;
You make the [v]dawn and the sunset shout for joy.
9 You visit the earth and (AJ)cause it to overflow;
You greatly (AK)enrich it;
The [w](AL)stream of God is full of water;
You prepare their (AM)grain, for thus You prepare [x]the earth.
10 You water its furrows abundantly,
You [y]settle its ridges,
You soften it (AN)with showers,
You bless its growth.
11 You have crowned the year [z]with Your [aa](AO)bounty,
And Your [ab]paths (AP)drip with fatness.
12 (AQ)The pastures of the wilderness drip,
And the (AR)hills gird themselves with rejoicing.
13 The meadows are (AS)clothed with flocks
And the valleys are (AT)covered with grain;
They (AU)shout for joy, yes, they sing.
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