M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

The Death of Saul

31 The Philistines fought against Israel, and the Israelites ran away from them. Many Israelites were killed on Mount Gilboa. ² The Philistines fought hard against Saul and his sons, killing his sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malki-Shua. ³ The fighting was heavy around Saul. The archers shot him, and he was badly wounded. ⁴ He said to the officer who carried his armor, “Pull out your sword and kill me. Then those uncircumcised men won’t make fun of me and kill me.” But Saul’s officer refused, because he was afraid. So Saul took his own sword and threw himself on it. ⁵ When the officer saw that Saul was dead, he threw himself on his own sword, and he died with Saul. ⁶ So Saul, his three sons, and the officer who carried his armor died together that day.

⁷ When the Israelites who lived across the Jezreel Valley and those who lived across the Jordan River saw how the Israelite army had run away, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they left their cities and ran away. Then the Philistines came and lived there.

⁸ The next day when the Philistines came to take all the valuable things from the dead soldiers, they found Saul and his three sons dead on Mount Gilboa. ⁹ They cut off Saul’s head and took off his armor. Then they sent messengers through all the land of the Philistines to tell the news in the temple of their idols and to their people. ¹⁰ They put Saul’s armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths and hung his body on the wall of Beth Shan.

¹¹ When the people living in Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, ¹² the brave men of Jabesh marched all night and came to Beth Shan. They removed the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth Shan and brought them to Jabesh. There they burned the bodies. ¹³ They took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh. Then the people of Jabesh fasted for seven days.

11 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.

Being Under Authority

² I praise you because you remember me in everything, and you follow closely the teachings just as I gave them to you. ³ But I want you to understand this: The head of every man is Christ, the head of a woman is the man,^[a] and the head of Christ is God. ⁴ Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered brings shame to his head. ⁵ But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered brings shame to her head. She is the same as a woman who has her head shaved. ⁶ If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off. But since it is shameful for a woman to cut off her hair or to shave her head, she should cover her head. ⁷ But a man should not cover his head, because he is the likeness and glory of God. But woman is man’s glory. ⁸ Man did not come from woman, but woman came from man. ⁹ And man was not made for woman, but woman was made for man. ¹⁰ So that is why a woman should have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.

¹¹ But in the Lord women are not independent of men, and men are not independent of women. ¹² This is true because woman came from man, but also man is born from woman. But everything comes from God. ¹³ Decide this for yourselves: Is it right for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? ¹⁴ Even nature itself teaches you that wearing long hair is shameful for a man. ¹⁵ But long hair is a woman’s glory. Long hair is given to her as a covering. ¹⁶ Some people may still want to argue about this, but I would add that neither we nor the churches of God have any other practice.

The Lord’s Supper

¹⁷ In the things I tell you now I do not praise you, because when you come together you do more harm than good. ¹⁸ First, I hear that when you meet together as a church you are divided, and I believe some of this. ¹⁹ (It is necessary to have differences among you so that it may be clear which of you really have God’s approval.) ²⁰ When you come together, you are not really eating the Lord’s Supper.^{[b] 21} This is because when you eat, each person eats without waiting for the others. Some people do not get enough to eat, while others have too much to drink. ²² You can eat and drink in your own homes! You seem to think God’s church is not important, and you embarrass those who are poor. What should I tell you? Should I praise you? I do not praise you for doing this.

²³ The teaching I gave you is the same teaching I received from the Lord: On the night when the Lord Jesus was handed over to be killed, he took bread ²⁴ and gave thanks for it. Then he broke the bread and said, “This is my body; it is^[c] for you. Do this to remember me.” ²⁵ In the same way, after they ate, Jesus took the cup. He said, “This cup is the new agreement that is sealed with the blood of my death. When you drink this, do it to remember me.” ²⁶ Every time you eat this bread and drink this cup you are telling others about the Lord’s death until he comes.

²⁷ So a person who eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in a way that is not worthy of it will be guilty of sinning against the body and the blood of the Lord. ²⁸ Look into your own hearts before you eat the bread and drink the cup, ²⁹ because all who eat the bread and drink the cup without recognizing the body eat and drink judgment against themselves. ³⁰ That is why many in your group are sick and weak, and some of you have died. ³¹ But if we judged ourselves in the right way, God would not judge us. ³² But when the Lord judges us, he disciplines us so that we will not be destroyed along with the world.

³³ So my brothers and sisters, when you come together to eat, wait for each other. ³⁴ Anyone who is too hungry should eat at home so that in meeting together you will not bring God’s judgment on yourselves. I will tell you what to do about the other things when I come.

Vision of the Angels

9 Then he shouted with a loud voice in my ears, “You who are chosen to punish this city, come near with your weapon in your hand.” ² Then six men came from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with his powerful weapon in his hand. Among them was a man dressed in linen with a writing case at his side. The men went in and stood by the bronze altar.

³ Then the glory of the God of Israel went up from above the creatures with wings, where it had been, to the place in the Temple where the door opened. He called to the man dressed in linen who had the writing case at his side. ⁴ He said to the man, “Go through Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of the people who groan and cry about all the hateful things being done among them.”

⁵ As I listened, he said to the other men, “Go through the city behind the man dressed in linen and kill. Don’t pity anyone, and don’t show mercy. ⁶ Kill and destroy old men, young men and women, little children, and older women, but don’t touch any who have the mark on them. Start at my Temple.” So they started with the elders who were in front of the Temple.

⁷ Then he said to the men, “Make the Temple unclean, and fill the courtyards with those who have been killed. Go out!” So the men went out and killed the people in the city. ⁸ While the men were killing the people, I was left alone. I bowed facedown on the ground and I cried out, “Oh, Lord God! Will you destroy everyone left alive in Israel when you turn loose your anger on Jerusalem?”

⁹ Then he said to me, “The sin of the people of Israel and Judah is very great. The land is filled with people who murder, and the city is full of people who are not fair. The people say, ‘The Lord has left the land, and the Lord does not see.’ ¹⁰ But I will have no pity, nor will I show mercy. I will bring their evil back on their heads.”

¹¹ Then the man dressed in linen with the writing case at his side reported, “I have done just as you commanded me.”

Jerusalem, the City of God

A psalm of the sons of Korah.