M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Josiah King of Judah
22 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he ruled thirty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jedidah daughter of Adaiah, who was from Bozkath. 2 Josiah did what the Lord said was right. He lived as his ancestor David had lived, and he did not stop doing what was right.
3 In Josiah’s eighteenth year as king, he sent Shaphan to the Temple of the Lord. Shaphan son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, was the royal secretary. Josiah said, 4 “Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, and have him empty out the money the gatekeepers have gathered from the people. This is the money they have brought into the Temple of the Lord. 5 Have him give the money to the supervisors of the work on the Temple of the Lord. They must pay the workers who repair the Temple of the Lord— 6 the carpenters, builders, and bricklayers. Also use the money to buy timber and cut stone to repair the Temple. 7 They do not need to report how they use the money given to them, because they are working honestly.”
The Book of the Teachings Is Found
8 Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the royal secretary, “I’ve found the Book of the Teachings in the Temple of the Lord.” He gave it to Shaphan, who read it.
9 Then Shaphan the royal secretary went to the king and reported to Josiah, “Your officers have paid out the money that was in the Temple of the Lord. They have given it to the workers and supervisors at the Temple.” 10 Then Shaphan the royal secretary told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read from the book to the king.
11 When the king heard the words of the Book of the Teachings, he tore his clothes to show how upset he was. 12 He gave orders to Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Acbor son of Micaiah, Shaphan the royal secretary, and Asaiah the king’s servant. These were the orders: 13 “Go and ask the Lord about the words in the book that was found. Ask for me, for all the people, and for all Judah. The Lord’s anger is burning against us, because our ancestors did not obey the words of this book; they did not do all the things written for us to do.”
14 So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Acbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to talk to Huldah the prophetess. She was the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, who took care of the king’s clothes. Huldah lived in Jerusalem, in the new area of the city.
15 She said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Tell the man who sent you to me, 16 ‘This is what the Lord says: I will bring trouble to this place and to the people living here, as it is written in the book which the king of Judah has read. 17 The people of Judah have left me and have burned incense to other gods. They have made me angry by all that they have done. My anger burns against this place like a fire, and it will not be put out.’ 18 Tell the king of Judah, who sent you to ask the Lord, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says about the words you heard: 19 When you heard my words against this place and its people, you became sorry for what you had done and humbled yourself before me. I said they would be cursed and would be destroyed. You tore your clothes to show how upset you were, and you cried in my presence. This is why I have heard you, says the Lord. 20 So I will let you die, and you will be buried in peace. You won’t see all the trouble I will bring to this place.’”
So they took her message back to the king.
4 Now, since God has left us the promise that we may enter his rest, let us be very careful so none of you will fail to enter. 2 The Good News was preached to us just as it was to them. But the teaching they heard did not help them, because they heard it but did not accept it with faith.[a] 3 We who have believed are able to enter and have God’s rest. As God has said,
“I was angry and made a promise,
‘They will never enter my rest.’” Psalm 95:11
But God’s work was finished from the time he made the world. 4 In the Scriptures he talked about the seventh day of the week: “And on the seventh day God rested from all his works.”[b] 5 And again in the Scripture God said, “They will never enter my rest.”
6 It is still true that some people will enter God’s rest, but those who first heard the way to be saved did not enter, because they did not obey. 7 So God planned another day, called “today.” He spoke about that day through David a long time later in the same Scripture used before:
“Today listen to what he says.
Do not be stubborn.” Psalm 95:7–8
8 We know that Joshua[c] did not lead the people into that rest, because God spoke later about another day. 9 This shows that the rest[d] for God’s people is still coming. 10 Anyone who enters God’s rest will rest from his work as God did. 11 Let us try as hard as we can to enter God’s rest so that no one will fail by following the example of those who refused to obey.
12 God’s word is alive and working and is sharper than a double-edged sword. It cuts all the way into us, where the soul and the spirit are joined, to the center of our joints and bones. And it judges the thoughts and feelings in our hearts. 13 Nothing in all the world can be hidden from God. Everything is clear and lies open before him, and to him we must explain the way we have lived.
Jesus Is Our High Priest
14 Since we have a great high priest, Jesus the Son of God, who has gone into heaven, let us hold on to the faith we have. 15 For our high priest is able to understand our weaknesses. He was tempted in every way that we are, but he did not sin. 16 Let us, then, feel very sure that we can come before God’s throne where there is grace. There we can receive mercy and grace to help us when we need it.
Locusts Destroy the Crops
1 The Lord spoke his word to Joel son of Pethuel:
2 Elders, listen to this message.
Listen to me, all you who live in the land.
Nothing like this has ever happened during your lifetime
or during your ancestors’ lifetimes.
3 Tell your children about these things,
let your children tell their children,
and let your grandchildren tell their children.
4 What the cutting locusts have left,
the swarming locusts have eaten;
what the swarming locusts have left,
the hopping locusts have eaten,
and what the hopping locusts have left,
the destroying locusts[a] have eaten.
5 Drunks, wake up and cry!
All you people who drink wine, cry!
Cry because your wine
has been taken away from your mouths.
6 A powerful nation has come into my land
with too many soldiers to count.
It has teeth like a lion,
jaws like a female lion.
7 It has made my grapevine a waste
and made my fig tree a stump.
It has stripped all the bark off my trees
and left the branches white.
8 Cry as a young woman cries
when the man she was going to marry has died.
9 There will be no more grain or drink offerings
to offer in the Temple of the Lord.
Because of this, the priests,
the servants of the Lord, are sad.
10 The fields are ruined;
the ground is dried up.
The grain is destroyed,
the new wine is dried up,
and the olive oil runs out.
11 Be sad, farmers.
Cry loudly, you who grow grapes.
Cry for the wheat and the barley.
Cry because the harvest of the field is lost.
12 The vines have become dry,
and the fig trees are dried up.
The pomegranate trees, the date palm trees, the apple trees—
all the trees in the field have died.
And the happiness of the people has died, too.
13 Priests, put on your rough cloth and cry to show your sadness.
Servants of the altar, cry out loud.
Servants of my God,
keep your rough cloth on all night to show your sadness.
Cry because there will be no more grain or drink offerings
to offer in the Temple of your God.
14 Call for a day when everyone fasts!
Tell everyone to stop work!
Bring the elders
and everyone who lives in the land
to the Temple of the Lord your God,
and cry out to the Lord.
15 What a terrible day it will be!
The Lord’s day of judging is near,
when punishment will come
like a destroying attack from the Almighty.
16 Our food is taken away
while we watch.
Joy and happiness are gone
from the Temple of our God.
17 Though we planted fig seeds,
they lie dry and dead in the dirt.
The barns are empty and falling down.
The storerooms for grain have been broken down,
because the grain has dried up.
18 The animals are groaning!
The herds of cattle wander around confused,
because they have no grass to eat;
even the flocks of sheep suffer.
19 Lord, I am calling to you for help,
because fire has burned up the open pastures,
and flames have burned all the trees in the field.
20 Wild animals also need your help.
The streams of water have dried up,
and fire has burned up the open pastures.
A Prayer for Protection
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
140 Lord, rescue me from evil people;
protect me from cruel people
2 who make evil plans,
who always start fights.
3 They make their tongues sharp as a snake’s;
their words are like snake poison. Selah
4 Lord, guard me from the power of wicked people;
protect me from cruel people
who plan to trip me up.
5 The proud hid a trap for me.
They spread out a net beside the road;
they set traps for me. Selah
6 I said to the Lord, “You are my God.”
Lord, listen to my prayer for help.
7 Lord God, my mighty savior,
you protect me in battle.
8 Lord, do not give the wicked what they want.
Don’t let their plans succeed,
or they will become proud. Selah
9 Those around me have planned trouble.
Now let it come to them.
10 Let burning coals fall on them.
Throw them into the fire
or into pits from which they cannot escape.
11 Don’t let liars settle in the land.
Let evil quickly hunt down cruel people.
12 I know the Lord will get justice for the poor
and will defend the needy in court.
13 Good people will praise his name;
honest people will live in his presence.
A Prayer Not to Sin
A psalm of David.
141 Lord, I call to you. Come quickly.
Listen to me when I call to you.
2 Let my prayer be like incense placed before you,
and my praise like the evening sacrifice.
3 Lord, help me control my tongue;
help me be careful about what I say.
4 Take away my desire to do evil
or to join others in doing wrong.
Don’t let me eat tasty food
with those who do evil.
5 If a good person punished me, that would be kind.
If he corrected me, that would be like perfumed oil on my head.
I shouldn’t refuse it.
But I pray against those who do evil.
6 Let their leaders be thrown down the cliffs.
Then people will know that I have spoken correctly:
7 “The ground is plowed and broken up.
In the same way, our bones have been scattered at the grave.”
8 God, I look to you for help.
I trust in you, Lord. Don’t let me die.
9 Protect me from the traps they set for me
and from the net that evil people have spread.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
but let me pass by safely.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.