M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
David Is Made King of Judah
2 Later, David prayed to the Lord, saying, “Should I go up to any of the cities of Judah?”
The Lord said to David, “Go.”
David asked, “Where should I go?”
The Lord answered, “To Hebron.”
2 So David went up to Hebron with his two wives: Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal from Carmel. 3 David also brought his men and their families, and they all made their homes in the cities of Hebron. 4 Then the men of Judah came to Hebron and appointed David king over Judah.
They told David that the men of Jabesh Gilead had buried Saul. 5 So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead and said to them, “The Lord bless you. You have shown loyalty to your master Saul by burying him. 6 May the Lord now be loyal and true to you. I will also treat you well because you have done this. 7 Now be strong and brave. Saul your master is dead, and the people of Judah have appointed me their king.”
War Between Judah and Israel
8 Abner son of Ner was the commander of Saul’s army. Abner took Saul’s son Ish-Bosheth to Mahanaim 9 and made him king of Gilead, Ashuri, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and all Israel. 10 Saul’s son Ish-Bosheth was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he ruled two years. But the people of Judah followed David. 11 David was king in Hebron for seven years and six months.
12 Abner son of Ner and the servants of Ish-Bosheth son of Saul left Mahanaim and went to Gibeon. 13 Joab son of Zeruiah and David’s men also went there and met Abner and Ish-Bosheth’s men at the pool of Gibeon. Abner’s group sat on one side of the pool; Joab’s group sat on the other.
14 Abner said to Joab, “Let the young men have a contest here.”
Joab said, “Yes, let them have a contest.”
15 Then the men got up and were counted—twelve from the people of Benjamin for Ish-Bosheth son of Saul, and twelve from David’s men. 16 Each man grabbed the one opposite him by the head and stabbed him in the side with a knife. So the men fell down together. For that reason, that place in Gibeon is called the Field of Knives. 17 That day there was a terrible battle, and David’s men defeated Abner and the Israelites.
Abner Kills Asahel
18 Zeruiah’s three sons, Joab, Abishai, and Asahel, were there. Now Asahel was a fast runner, as fast as a deer in the field. 19 Asahel chased Abner, going straight toward him. 20 Abner looked back and asked, “Is that you, Asahel?”
Asahel said, “Yes, it is.”
21 Then Abner said to Asahel, “Turn to your right or left and catch one of the young men and take his armor.” But Asahel refused to stop chasing him.
22 Abner again said to Asahel, “Stop chasing me! If you don’t stop, I’ll have to kill you! Then I won’t be able to face your brother Joab again!”
23 But Asahel refused to stop chasing Abner. So using the back end of his spear, Abner stabbed Asahel in the stomach, and the spear came out of his back. Asahel died right there, and everyone stopped when they came to the place where Asahel’s body lay.
24 But Joab and Abishai continued chasing Abner. As the sun was going down, they arrived at the hill of Ammah, near Giah on the way to the desert near Gibeon. 25 The men of Benjamin came to Abner, and all stood together at the top of the hill.
26 Abner shouted to Joab, “Must the sword kill forever? Surely you must know this will only end in sadness! Tell the people to stop chasing their own brothers!”
27 Then Joab said, “As surely as God lives, if you had not said anything, the people would have chased their brothers until morning.” 28 Then Joab blew a trumpet, and his people stopped chasing the Israelites. They did not fight them anymore.
29 Abner and his men marched all night through the Jordan Valley. They crossed the Jordan River, and after marching all day, arrived at Mahanaim.
30 After he had stopped chasing Abner, Joab came back and gathered the people together. Asahel and nineteen of David’s men were missing. 31 But David’s men had killed three hundred sixty Benjaminites who had followed Abner. 32 David’s men took Asahel and buried him in the tomb of his father at Bethlehem. Then Joab and his men marched all night. The sun came up as they reached Hebron.
13 I may speak in different languages[a] of people or even angels. But if I do not have love, I am only a noisy bell or a crashing cymbal. 2 I may have the gift of prophecy. I may understand all the secret things of God and have all knowledge, and I may have faith so great I can move mountains. But even with all these things, if I do not have love, then I am nothing. 3 I may give away everything I have, and I may even give my body as an offering to be burned.[b] But I gain nothing if I do not have love.
4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. 5 Love is not rude, is not selfish, and does not get upset with others. Love does not count up wrongs that have been done. 6 Love takes no pleasure in evil but rejoices over the truth. 7 Love patiently accepts all things. It always trusts, always hopes, and always endures.
8 Love never ends. There are gifts of prophecy, but they will be ended. There are gifts of speaking in different languages, but those gifts will stop. There is the gift of knowledge, but it will come to an end. 9 The reason is that our knowledge and our ability to prophesy are not perfect. 10 But when perfection comes, the things that are not perfect will end. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I stopped those childish ways. 12 It is the same with us. Now we see a dim reflection, as if we were looking into a mirror, but then we shall see clearly. Now I know only a part, but then I will know fully, as God has known me. 13 So these three things continue forever: faith, hope, and love. And the greatest of these is love.
Prophecies Against Evil Leaders
11 The Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the front gate of the Temple of the Lord, which faces east. I saw twenty-five men where the gate opens, among them Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, who were leaders of the people. 2 Then the Lord said to me, “Human, these are the men who plan evil and give wicked advice in this city of Jerusalem. 3 They say, ‘It is almost time for us to build houses. This city is like a cooking pot, and we are like the best meat.’ 4 So prophesy against them, prophesy, human.”
5 Then the Spirit of the Lord entered me and told me to say: “This is what the Lord says: You have said these things, people of Israel, and I know what you are thinking. 6 You have killed many people in this city, filling its streets with their bodies.
7 “So this is what the Lord God says: Those people you have killed and left in the middle of the city are like the best meat, and this city is like the cooking pot. But I will force you out of the city. 8 You have feared the sword, but I will bring a sword against you, says the Lord God. 9 I will force you out of the city and hand you over to strangers and punish you. 10 You will die by the sword. I will punish you at the border of Israel so you will know that I am the Lord. 11 This city will not be your cooking pot, and you will not be the best meat in the middle of it. I will punish you at the border of Israel. 12 Then you will know that I am the Lord. You did not live by my rules or obey my laws. Instead, you did the same things as the nations around you.”
13 As I prophesied, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. Then I bowed facedown on the ground and shouted with a loud voice, “Oh no, Lord God! Will you completely destroy the Israelites who are left alive?”
Promise to Those Remaining
14 The Lord spoke his word to me, saying, 15 “Human, the people still in Jerusalem have spoken about your own relatives and all the people of Israel who are captives with you, saying, ‘They are far from the Lord. This land has been given to us as our property.’
16 “So say, ‘This is what the Lord God says: I sent the people far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries. But for a little while I have become a Temple to them in the countries where they have gone.’
17 “So say: ‘This is what the Lord God says: I will gather you from the nations and bring you together from the countries where you have been scattered. Then I will give you back the land of Israel.’
18 “When they come to this land, they will remove all the evil idols and all the hateful images. 19 I will give them a desire to respect me completely, and I will put inside them a new way of thinking. I will take out the stubborn heart of stone from their bodies, and I will give them an obedient heart of flesh. 20 Then they will live by my rules and obey my laws and keep them. They will be my people, and I will be their God. 21 But those who want to serve their evil statues and hateful idols, I will pay back for their evil ways, says the Lord God.”
Ezekiel’s Vision Ends
22 Then the living creatures lifted their wings with the wheels beside them, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them. 23 The glory of the Lord went up from inside Jerusalem and stopped on the mountain on the east side of the city. 24 The Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the captives who had been taken from Judah to Babylonia. This happened in a vision given by the Spirit of God, and then the vision I had seen ended. 25 And I told the captives from Judah all the things the Lord had shown me.
God Wants True Worship
A psalm of Asaph.
50 The God of gods, the Lord, speaks.
He calls the earth from the rising to the setting sun.
2 God shines from Jerusalem,
whose beauty is perfect.
3 Our God comes, and he will not be silent.
A fire burns in front of him,
and a powerful storm surrounds him.
4 He calls to the sky above and to the earth
that he might judge his people.
5 He says, “Gather around, you who worship me,
who have made an agreement with me, using a sacrifice.”
6 God is the judge,
and even the skies say he is right. Selah
7 God says, “My people, listen to me;
Israel, I will testify against you.
I am God, your God.
8 I do not scold you for your sacrifices.
You always bring me your burnt offerings.
9 But I do not need bulls from your stalls
or goats from your pens,
10 because every animal of the forest is already mine.
The cattle on a thousand hills are mine.
11 I know every bird on the mountains,
and every living thing in the fields is mine.
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you,
because the earth and everything in it are mine.
13 I don’t eat the meat of bulls
or drink the blood of goats.
14 Give an offering to show thanks to God.
Give God Most High what you have promised.
15 Call to me in times of trouble.
I will save you, and you will honor me.”
16 But God says to the wicked,
“Why do you talk about my laws?
Why do you mention my agreement?
17 You hate my teachings
and turn your back on what I say.
18 When you see a thief, you join him.
You take part in adultery.
19 You don’t stop your mouth from speaking evil,
and your tongue makes up lies.
20 You speak against your brother
and lie about your mother’s son.
21 I have kept quiet while you did these things,
so you thought I was just like you.
But I will scold you
and accuse you to your face.
22 “Think about this, you who forget God.
Otherwise, I will tear you apart,
and no one will save you.
23 Those people honor me
who bring me offerings to show thanks.
And I, God, will save those who do that.”
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.