M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The First Book of the Kings
1 3 Abishag keepeth David in his extreme age. 5 Adonijah usurpeth the kingdom. 30 Solomon is anointed king, 50 Adonijah fleeth to the altar.
1 Now when King David was [a]old, and stricken in years, they covered him with clothes, but no [b]heat came unto him.
2 Wherefore his servants said unto him, Let there be sought for my lord the king a young virgin, and let her [c]stand before the king, and cherish him: and let her lie in thy bosom, that my lord the King may get heat.
3 So they sought for a fair young maid throughout all the coasts of Israel, and found one Abishag [d]a Shunammite, and brought her to the king.
4 And the maid was exceedingly fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to him, but the king knew her not.
5 ¶ Then Adonijah the son of Haggith, exalted himself, saying, I will be king. And he got him chariots and horsemen, and [e]fifty men to run before him.
6 And his father would not displease him from his [f]childhood, to say, Why hast thou done so? And he was a very goodly man, and his mother bare him next after Absalom.
7 And he [g]took counsel of Joab the son of Zeruiah, and of Abiathar the Priest: and they [h]helped forward Adonijah.
8 But Zadok the Priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the Prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the men of might, which were with David, were not with Adonijah.
9 Then Adonijah sacrificed sheep and oxen, and fat cattle by the stone of Zoheleth, which is by [i]En Rogel, and called all his brethren the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah the king’s servants.
10 But Nathan the Prophet, and Benaiah, and [j]the mighty men, and Solomon his brother he called not.
11 Wherefore Nathan spake unto Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, Hast thou not heard that Adonijah the son of (A)Haggith doth reign, and David our lord knoweth it not?
12 Now therefore come, and I will now give thee counsel, how to save thine own [k]life, and the life of thy son Solomon.
13 Go, and get thee in unto King David, and say unto him, Didst not thou, my lord, O King, swear unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly, Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? why is then Adonijah King?
14 Behold, while thou yet talkest there with the King, I also will come in after thee, and [l]confirm thy words.
15 ¶ So Bathsheba went in unto the King into the chamber, and the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite ministered unto the King.
16 And Bathsheba bowed and made obeisance unto the king. And the king said, What is thy matter?
17 And she answered him, My lord, thou swearest by the Lord thy God unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne.
18 And behold, now is Adonijah king, and now my lord, O King, thou knowest [m]it not.
19 And he hath offered many oxen, and fat cattle, and sheep, and hath called all the sons of the King, and Abiathar the Priest, and Joab the Captain of the host: but Solomon thy servant hath he not bidden.
20 And thou, my lord, O King, knowest that the eyes of all Israel are on thee, that thou shouldest tell them, who should sit on the throne of my lord the King after him.
21 For else when my lord the King shall sleep with his fathers, I and my son Solomon shall be [n]reputed [o]vile.
22 And lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan also the Prophet came in.
23 And they told the King, saying, Behold, Nathan the Prophet. And when he was come in to the King, he made obeisance before the king upon his face [p]to the ground.
24 And Nathan said, My lord, O king, hast thou said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne?
25 For he is gone down this day, and hath slain many oxen, and fat cattle, and sheep, and hath called all the king’s sons, and the captains of the host, and Abiathar the Priest: and behold, they eat and drink before him, and say, [q]God save king Adonijah.
26 But me thy servant, and Zadok the Priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and thy servant Solomon hath he not called.
27 Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast not showed it unto thy [r]servant, who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?
28 ¶ Then king David answered, and said, Call me Bathsheba. And she came into the king’s presence, and stood before the King.
29 And the King sware, saying, As the Lord liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
30 That as I [s]sware unto thee by the Lord God of Israel, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my place, so will I certainly do this day.
31 Then Bathsheba bowed her face to the earth, and did reverence unto the king, and said, God save my lord king David forever.
32 ¶ And king David said, Call me Zadok the Priest, and Nathan the Prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the King.
33 Then the king said unto them, Take with you the [t]servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and carry him down to Gihon.
34 And let Zadok the Priest and Nathan the Prophet anoint him there king over Israel, and blow ye the trumpet, and say, God save King Solomon.
35 Then come up after him, that he may come and sit upon my throne: and he shall be King in my stead: for I have [u]appointed him to be prince over Israel, and over Judah.
36 Then Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said, So be it, and the Lord God of my lord the king [v]ratify it.
37 As the Lord hath been with my lord the king, so be he with Solomon, and exalt his throne above the throne of my lord king David.
38 So Zadok the Priest, and Nathan the Prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites went down and caused Solomon to ride upon king David’s mule, and brought him to Gihon.
39 And Zadok the Priest took an horn of [w]oil out of the Tabernacle, and anointed Solomon: and they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, God save king Solomon.
40 And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth [x]rang with the sound of them.
41 ¶ And Adonijah and all the guests that were with him, heard it: (and they had made an end of eating) and when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, What meaneth this noise and uproar in the city?
42 And as he yet spake, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the Priest came: and Adonijah said, Come in: for thou art a [y]worthy man, and bringest [z]good tidings.
43 And Jonathan answered, and said to Adonijah, Verily our lord king David hath made Solomon king.
44 And the king hath sent with him Zadok the Priest, and Nathan the Prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to ride upon the king’s mule.
45 And Zadok the Priest, and Nathan the Prophet have anointed him king in Gihon: and they are gone up from thence with joy, and the city is moved: this is the noise that ye have heard.
46 And Solomon also sitteth on the throne of the kingdom.
47 And moreover the king’s servants came [aa]to bless our lord king David, saying, God make the name of Solomon more famous than thy name, and exalt his throne above thy throne: therefore the king worshipped upon the [ab]bed.
48 And thus said the king also, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who hath made one to sit on my throne this day, even in my sight.
49 Then all the guests that were with Adonijah, were afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way.
50 ¶ And Adonijah fearing the presence of Solomon, arose and went, and took hold on the horns of the [ac]altar.
51 And one told Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah doth fear king Solomon: for lo, he hath caught hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let King Solomon swear unto me this day, that he will not slay his servant with the sword.
52 Then Solomon said, If he will show himself a worthy man, there shall not an hair of him fall to the earth, but if wickedness be found in him, he shall die.
53 Then king Solomon sent, and they brought him from the altar, and he came and did obeisance unto King Solomon. And Solomon said unto him, Go to thine house.
5 1 Having declared that we came of the free woman, he showeth the price of that freedom, 13 and how we should use the same, 16 that we may obey the Spirit, 19 and resist the flesh.
1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
2 (A)[a]Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be [b]circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
3 For I testify again to every man, which is circumcised, that he is bound to keep the whole Law.
4 Ye are (B)[c]abolished from Christ: whosoever are [d]justified by the Law, ye are fallen from grace.
5 [e]For we through the [f]Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness through faith.
6 [g]For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, neither [h]uncircumcision, [i]but [j]faith which worketh by love.
7 [k]Ye did run well: who did let you, that ye did not obey the truth?
8 [l]It is not the persuasion of [m]him that calleth you.
9 (C)[n]A little leaven doth leaven the whole lump.
10 [o]I have trust in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you, shall bear his condemnation, whosoever he be.
11 [p]And brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? Then is the slander of the cross abolished.
12 [q]Would to God they were even cut off which do [r]disquiet you.
13 For brethren, ye have been called unto liberty: [s]only use not your liberty as an occasion unto the flesh, but by love serve one another.
14 [t]For [u]all the Law is fulfilled in one word, which is this, (D)Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
15 [v]If ye bite and devour one another, take heed lest ye be consumed one of another.
16 [w]Then I say, (E)Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.
17 For the [x]flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary one to another, so that ye cannot do the same things that ye would.
18 And if ye be led by the Spirit, ye are not under the Law.
19 [y]Moreover the works of the flesh are manifest, which are adultery, fornication, uncleanness, wantonness,
20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, debate, emulations, wrath, contentions, seditions, heresies,
21 Envy, murders, drunkenness, gluttony, and such like, whereof I tell you before, as I also have told you before, that they which do such things, shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the [z]fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23 Meekness, temperancy: [aa]against such there is no law.
24 For they that are Christ’s, have crucified the flesh with the affections and the lusts.
25 If we [ab]live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
26 [ac]Let us not be desirous of vainglory, provoking one another, envying one another.
32 2 The Prophet is commanded to bewail Pharaoh King of Egypt. 12 He prophesieth that destruction shall come unto Egypt through the King of Babylon.
1 And in the [a]twelfth year in the twelfth month, and in the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, Thou art like a [b]lion of the nations, and art as a [c]dragon in the sea: thou castedst out thy rivers [d]and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and stampedst in their rivers.
3 Thus saith the Lord God, (A)I will therefore spread my net over thee a great multitude of people, and they shall make thee come up into my net,
4 Then will I leave thee upon the land, and I will cast thee upon the open field, and I will cause all the fowls of the heaven to remain upon thee, and I will fill all the beasts of the field with thee.
5 And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains, and fill the valleys [e]with thine height.
6 I will also water with thy blood the land wherein thou [f]swimmest, even to the mountains, and the rivers shall be full of thee.
7 And when I shall [g]put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark: (B)I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light.
8 All the lights of heaven will I make dark for thee, and bring [h]darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord God.
9 I will also trouble the hearts of many people, when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations, and upon the countries which thou hast not known.
10 Yea, I will make many people amazed at thee, and their kings shall be astonished with fear for thee, when I shall make my sword to glitter against their faces, and they shall be afraid at every moment: every man for his own life in the day of thy fall.
11 For thus saith the Lord God, The sword of the king of Babel shall come upon thee.
12 By the swords of the mighty will I cause thy multitude to fall: they all shall be terrible nations, and they shall destroy the [i]pomp of Egypt, and all the multitude thereof shall be consumed.
13 I will destroy also all the beasts thereof from the great watersides, neither shall the foot of man trouble them anymore, nor the hooves of beasts trouble them.
14 Then will I make [j]their waters deep, and cause their rivers to run like oil, saith the Lord God.
15 When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate, and the country with all that is therein, shall be laid waste: when I shall smite all them which dwell therein, then shall they know that I am the Lord.
16 This is the mourning wherewith they shall lament her: the daughters of the nations shall lament her: they shall lament for Egypt, and for all her multitude, saith the Lord God.
17 ¶ In the twelfth year also in the fifteenth day of the month, came the word of the Lord unto me, saying,
18 Son of man, lament for the multitude of Egypt, and [k]cast them down, even them and the daughters of the mighty nations under the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down into the pit.
19 Whom dost thou pass [l]in beauty? go down and sleep with the uncircumcised.
20 They shall fall in the midst of them that are slain by the sword: [m]she is delivered to the sword: draw her down, and all her multitude.
21 The most mighty and strong shall speak to [n]him out of the midst of hell with them that help her: they are gone down, and sleep with the uncircumcised that be slain by the sword.
22 Assyria is there and all his company: their graves are about him: all they are slain and fallen by the sword.
23 Whose graves are made in the side of the pit, and his multitude are round about his grave: all they are slain and fallen by the sword, which caused fear to be in the land of the living.
24 There is [o]Elam and all his multitude round about his grave: all they are slain and fallen by the sword, which are gone down with the uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth, which caused themselves to be feared in the land of the [p]living, yet have they borne their shame with them that are gone down to the pit.
25 They have made his bed in the midst of the slain with all his multitude: their graves are round about him: all these uncircumcised are slain by the sword: though they have caused their fear in the land of the living, yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit: they are laid in the midst of them that be slain.
26 There is [q]Meshech, Tubal, and all their multitude: their graves are round about them: all these uncircumcised were slain by the sword, though they caused their fear to be in the land of the living.
27 And they shall not lie with the valiant [r]of the uncircumcised, that are fallen, which are gone down to the grave with their weapons of war, and have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquity shall be upon their bones: because they were the fear of the mighty in the land of the living.
28 Yea, thou shalt be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised, and lie with them that are slain by the sword.
29 There is Edom, his kings, and all his princes, which with their strength are laid by them that were slain by the sword: they shall sleep with the uncircumcised, and with them that go down to the pit.
30 There be all the princes of the [s]North, with all the Sidonians, which are gone down with the slain, with their fear: they are ashamed of their strength, and the uncircumcised sleep with them that be slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit.
31 Pharaoh shall see them, and he shall be [t]comforted over all his multitude: Pharaoh, and all his army shall be slain by the sword, saith the Lord God.
32 For I have caused my [u]fear to be in the land of the living: and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with them, that are slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord God.
80 1 A lamentable prayer to God to help the miseries of his Church, 8 Desiring him to consider their first estate, when his favor shined toward them, to the intent that he might finish that work which he had begun.
To him that excelleth on Shoshannim Eduth, A Psalm committed to Asaph.
1 Hear, [a]O thou shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like sheep: show thy brightness, thou that sittest between the [b]Cherubims.
2 Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh stir up thy strength, and come to help us.
3 [c]Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine that we may be saved.
4 O Lord God of hosts, how long wilt thou be [d]angry against the prayer of thy people?
5 Thou hast fed them with the bread of tears, and given them tears to drink with great measure.
6 Thou hast made us a [e]strife unto our neighbors, and our enemies laugh at us among themselves.
7 [f]Turn us again, O God of hosts: cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved.
8 Thou hast brought a [g]vine out of Egypt: thou hast cast out the heathen, and planted it.
9 Thou madest room for it, and didst cause it to take root, and it filled the land.
10 The mountains were covered with the shadow of it, and the boughs thereof were like the [h]goodly cedars.
11 She stretched out her branches unto the Sea, and her boughs unto the [i]river.
12 Why hast thou then broken down her hedges, so that all they, which pass by the way, have plucked her?
13 The wild [j]boar out of the wood hath destroyed it, and the wild beasts of the field have eaten it up.
14 Return, we beseech thee, O God of hosts: look down [k]from heaven and behold, and visit this vine,
15 And the vineyard, that thy right hand hath planted, and the young vine, which thou madest [l]strong for thyself.
16 It is burnt with fire, and cut down: and they perish at the [m]rebuke of thy countenance.
17 Let thine hand be upon the [n]man of thy right hand, and upon the son of man, whom thou madest strong for thine own self.
18 So will not we go back from thee, [o]revive thou us, and we shall call upon thy Name.
19 Turn us again, O Lord God of hosts: cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved.
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