M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Azariah Becomes King of Judah
15 Amaziah’s son Azariah began reigning during the twenty-seventh year of the reign of[a] Jeroboam, king of Israel. 2 He was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 52 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoliah; she was[b] from Jerusalem. 3 He did what the Lord considered to be right, just as his father Amaziah had done in everything, 4 except that the high places were never removed, and the people kept on sacrificing and burning incense on the high places.
5 The Lord struck the king so that he was afflicted with leprosy until the day he died. He lived in a separate house while his son Jotham managed the household and ruled[c] the people who lived in the land. 6 Now the rest of Azariah’s activities, including everything he did, are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not? 7 Later, Azariah died, as had[d] his ancestors, and they buried him with his ancestors in the City of David. His son Jotham then reigned in his place.
Zachariah’s Reign over Israel
8 During the thirty-eighth year of the reign of[e] Azariah, king of Judah, Jeroboam’s son Zachariah began a six-month reign in Samaria. 9 He did what the Lord considered to be evil, just as his ancestors had done. He never abandoned the sins of Nebat’s son Jeroboam, who caused Israel to sin. 10 So Jabesh’s son Shallum conspired against him and attacked him in full view of the people, killed him, and reigned in his place. 11 The rest of Zachariah’s activities are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
Shallum’s Reign over Israel
12 This is what the Lord told Jehu: “Your children will sit on Israel’s throne for the next four generations.”[f] And that is what happened:[g] 13 Jabesh’s son Shallum began his reign in the thirty-ninth year of the reign of Uzziah,[h] king of Judah. He reigned a full month[i] in Samaria, 14 then Gadi’s son Menahem approached Samaria from Tirzah and attacked Jabesh’s son Shallum, executed him, and reigned in his place. 15 The rest of Shallum’s activities, including the conspiracy that he carried out, are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel, are they not?
Menahem’s Reign over Israel
16 At another time, Menahem attacked Tiphsah and all of its inhabitants, including its coastlands from Tirzah, because they would not open the city gate for him. After defeating them, he ripped open all of their pregnant women. 17 In the thirty-ninth year of the reign of[j] Azariah, king of Judah, Gadi’s son Menahem began a ten-year reign over Israel from Samaria. 18 He did what the Lord considered to be evil by never abandoning the sins of Nebat’s son Jeroboam, who caused Israel to sin, as long as he lived.
19 Later on, King Pul of Aram attacked the land, and Menahem paid Pul 1,000 silver talents[k] so Pul[l] would join forces with Menahem[m] to secure his hold on the kingdom. 20 Menahem exacted the money from all of Israel’s powerful and wealthy men, 50 shekels[n] from each, to pay the king of Aram. As a result, the king of Aram retreated and did not remain there in the land. 21 The rest of Menahem’s activities, including everything that he did, are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel, are they not? 22 Then Menahem died, as did[o] his ancestors, and his son Pekahiah reigned in his place.
Pekahiah’s Reign over Israel
23 Menahem’s son Pekahiah became king over Israel for two years during the fiftieth year of the reign of[p] King Azariah of Judah. 24 He did what the Lord considered to be evil. Just as Nebat’s son Jeroboam had led Israel into sin, so also Pekahiah did not stop doing the same thing. 25 Then Remaliah’s son Pekah, Pekahiah’s[q] officer, conspired against him with Argob and Arieh. Accompanied by 50 Gileadite men, Pekah attacked Pekahiah inside the palace of the king’s compound[r] in Samaria, executed him, and reigned as king in his place. 26 The rest of Pekahiah’s activities, including everything he did, are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
Pekah’s Reign over Israel
27 Remaliah’s son Pekah began a 20-year reign as Israel’s king during the fifty-second year of King Azariah of Judah. 28 He did what the Lord considered to be evil by never abandoning the sins of Nebat’s son Jeroboam, by which he caused Israel to sin. 29 During the lifetime of King Pekah of Israel, King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria attacked. He captured the cities of Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, and Hazor. He also captured Gilead, Galilee, and the entire territory of Naphtali, and carried its people off to Assyria. 30 So during the twentieth year of the reign of[s] Uzziah’s son Jotham, Elah’s son Hoshea conspired against Remaliah’s son Pekah, attacked him, executed him, and became king in his place. 31 The rest of Pekah’s activities, including everything that he accomplished, are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
Jotham’s Reign over Judah
32 Uzziah’s son Jotham became king over Judah during the second year of the reign of[t] Remaliah’s son Pekah, king of Israel. 33 He was 25 years old when he became king. He reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. Zadok’s daughter Jerusha was his mother. 34 He did what the Lord considered to be right, following everything his father Uzziah had done, 35 except the high places were not torn down, and the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. But he rebuilt the upper gate of the Lord’s Temple. 36 The rest of Jotham’s activities, including everything that he accomplished, are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not?
37 Right about that time, the Lord began to send King Rezin of Aram and Remaliah’s son Pekah against Judah. 38 Meanwhile, Jotham died, as did[u] his ancestors, and was buried with them[v] in the City of David, his ancestor. Then Jotham’s son Ahaz reigned in his place.
Greetings
1 From:[a] Paul, a servant of God, and also an apostle of Jesus the Messiah,[b] to bring the faith to those chosen by God, along with full knowledge of the truth that leads to[c] godliness, 2 which is based on the hope of eternal life that God, who cannot lie, promised before the world[d] began. 3 At the right time he revealed his message through the proclamation that was entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior.
4 To: Titus, a genuine child in the faith that we share.
May grace and peace[e] from God the Father and the Messiah,[f] Jesus our Savior, be yours!
Qualifications for Leaders in the Church
5 The reason I left you in Crete was to complete what still needed to be done and to appoint elders in every city, as I myself commanded you. 6 An elder must be[g] blameless. He must be the husband of one wife[h] and have children who are believers and who are not accused of having wild lifestyles or of being rebellious. 7 Because an overseer is God’s servant manager, he must be blameless. He must not be arrogant or irritable. He must not drink too much, be a violent person, or make money in shameful ways. 8 Instead, he must be hospitable to strangers, must appreciate what is good, and be sensible, honest, moral, and self-controlled. 9 He must be devoted to the trustworthy message that agrees with what we teach, so that he may be able to encourage others with healthy doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
Guard What is True
10 For there are many people who are rebellious, especially those who are converts from Judaism.[i] They speak utter nonsense and deceive people. 11 They must be silenced, because they are the kind of people who ruin whole families by teaching what they should not teach in order to make money in a shameful way. 12 One of their very own prophets said,
“Liars ever, men of Crete,
savage brutes that live to eat.”[j]
13 That statement is true. For this reason, refute them sharply so that they may become healthy in the faith 14 and not pay attention to Jewish myths or commands given by people who reject the truth. 15 Everything is clean to those who are clean, but nothing is clean to those who are corrupt and unbelieving. Indeed, their very way of thinking and their consciences have been corrupted. 16 They claim to know God, but they deny him by their actions. They are detestable, disobedient, and disqualified to do anything good.
Reaping the Wind Storm
8 “Sound the ram’s horn!
Like a vulture[a] the enemy[b] will come against the Temple of the Lord,
because Israel[c] violated my covenant,
transgressing my Law.
2 They cry out to me,
‘God, we of Israel acknowledge you.’
3 “Israel has discarded what is good.
The enemy will pursue them.[d]
4 They set kings in place,
but not by me.
They established princes,
whom I did not recognize.
They crafted idols for themselves from their silver and gold;
as a result, they will be destroyed.
5 Your calf,[e] Samaria, has been thrown away.
My anger is burning against them.
How long until they become pure again?
6 Because from Israel it was fashioned by craftsmen,
it is not God;
therefore Samaria’s calf will be broken in pieces.
7 “Because they sow the wind,
they will reap the wind storm.
The plant has no stalk
and its bud yields no grain.
Even if there’s a harvest,
foreigners will gobble it up.
8 Israel has been devoured;
now they will live among the nations
like a worthless container.
9 “Because they went over to Assyria,
they are like a wild donkey alone by itself.
Ephraim has hired some lovers.
10 Even though they sold themselves to the nations,
I will gather them.
They will mourn for a while
for the burden they were to the king and princes.[f]
11 “The more altars Ephraim builds for sin,
the more altars there will be for sin.
12 I prescribed great things from my Law for them,[g]
but they considered them profane.
13 They offer me meat from the sacrifices of my offerings,
and they eat from it,
but the Lord does not accept them.
He will now remember their transgression
and pay them back for their sins;
to Egypt they will return.
14 “Israel has neglected its maker in building palaces.
Judah has multiplied its fortified cities,
but I will send fire to their cities,
and it will consume their fortresses.”
A Song of Ascents
A Prayer for Relief
123 To you, who sit enthroned in heaven,
I lift up my eyes.
2 Consider this: as the eyes of a servant focus
on what his master provides,[a]
and as the eyes of a female servant focus[b]
on what her mistress provides,[c]
so our eyes focus on the Lord our God,
until he has mercy on us.
3 Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy,
for we have had more than enough of contempt.
4 Our lives overflow
with scorn from those who live at ease,
with contempt from those who are proud.
A Davidic Song of Ascents
God is for Us
124 If the Lord had not been on our side—
let Israel now say—
2 if the Lord had not been on our side,
when men came against us,
3 then they would have devoured us alive,
when their anger burned against us.
4 Then the flood waters would have overwhelmed us,
the torrent would have flooded over us;
5 the swollen waters would have swept us away.
6 Blessed be the Lord,
who did not give us as prey to their teeth.
7 We have escaped like a bird from the hunter’s trap.
The trap has been broken,
and we have escaped.
8 Our help is in the name of the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth.
A Song of Ascents
God is Secure
125 Those who are trusting in the Lord
are like Mount Zion, which cannot be overthrown.
They remain forever.
2 Just as mountains encircle Jerusalem,
so the Lord encircles his people,
from now to eternity.
3 For evil’s scepter will not rest
on the land that has been allotted to the righteous,
and so the righteous will not direct themselves[d] to do wrong.
4 Lord, do good to those who are good,
and to those who are upright in heart.[e]
5 But for those who choose their own devious paths,
the Lord will lead them away,
along with those who practice evil.
Peace be upon Israel.
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