M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

The Shunammite Regains Her Land

8 Elisha talked to the woman whose son he had brought back to life. He said, “Get up and go with your family. Stay any place you can. This is because the Lord has called for a time of hunger. It will last seven years.” ² So the woman got up and did as the man of God said. She left with her family. And they stayed in the land of the Philistines for seven years. ³ After seven years she came back from the land of the Philistines. She went to beg the king for her house and land back. ⁴ The king was talking with Gehazi. He was the servant of the man of God. The king had said to Gehazi, “Please tell me all the great things Elisha has done.” ⁵ Now Gehazi was telling the king how Elisha had brought a dead person back to life. Just then the woman whose son Elisha had brought back to life came and begged the king for her house and land.

Gehazi said, “My master and king, this is the woman. And this is the son Elisha brought back to life.”

⁶ The king asked the woman, and she told him about it. Then the king chose an officer to help her. The king said, “Give the woman everything that is hers. Give her all the money made from her land from the day she left until now.”

Ben-Hadad Is Killed

⁷ Elisha went to Damascus. Now Ben-Hadad king of Aram was sick. Someone told him, “The man of God has come here.”

⁸ Then the king said to Hazael, “Take a gift in your hand and go meet him. Ask the Lord through him if I will get well from my sickness.”

⁹ So Hazael went to meet Elisha. He took with him a gift. It was 40 camels loaded with every good thing in Damascus. He came and stood before Elisha. Hazael said, “Your son Ben-Hadad king of Aram sent me to you. He asks if he will get well from his sickness.”

¹⁰ Then Elisha said to Hazael, “Go and tell Ben-Hadad, ‘You will surely get well.’ But the Lord has told me he will really die.” ¹¹ Elisha stared at Hazael until Hazael felt ashamed. Then Elisha cried.

¹² Hazael asked, “Why are you crying, master?”

Elisha answered, “Because I know what evil you will do to the Israelites. You will burn their strong, walled cities with fire. You will kill their young men with swords. You will throw their babies to the ground. You will split open their pregnant women.”

¹³ Hazael said, “I, your servant, am only a dog. How could I do such things?”

Elisha answered, “The Lord has shown me that you will be king over Aram.”

¹⁴ Then Hazael left Elisha and came to his master. Ben-Hadad said to Hazael, “What did Elisha say to you?”

Hazael answered, “He told me that you will surely get well.” ¹⁵ But the next day Hazael took a blanket and dipped it in water. Then he put it over Ben-Hadad’s face, and he died. So Hazael became king in Ben-Hadad’s place.

Jehoram King of Judah

¹⁶ Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat became king of Judah. This was during Joram’s fifth year as king of Israel. Joram was the son of Ahab. ¹⁷ Jehoram was 32 years old when he began to rule. He ruled eight years in Jerusalem. ¹⁸ But Jehoram followed the ways of the kings of Israel. This was just as the family of Ahab had done. It was because Ahab’s daughter was Jehoram’s wife. Jehoram did what the Lord said was wrong. ¹⁹ But the Lord would not destroy Judah because of his servant David. The Lord had promised that David and his children would always have a kingdom.

²⁰ In Jehoram’s time Edom broke away from Judah’s rule. The people of Edom chose their own king. ²¹ So Jehoram and all his chariots went to Zair. At night the Edomites came around him and his chariot commanders. Jehoram got up and attacked the Edomites. But his army ran away to their tents. ²² So the Edomites broke away from the rule of Judah. And they are still separate today. At the same time Libnah also broke away from Judah’s rule.

²³ The other acts of Jehoram and all the things he did are written down. They are in the book of the history of the kings of Judah. ²⁴ Jehoram died and was buried with his ancestors in Jerusalem. Jehoram’s son Ahaziah ruled in his place.

²⁵ Ahaziah son of Jehoram became king of Judah. This was during Joram’s twelfth year as king of Israel. Joram was the son of Ahab. ²⁶ Ahaziah was 22 years old when he became king. He ruled one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athaliah. She was a granddaughter of Omri king of Israel. ²⁷ Ahaziah followed the ways of Ahab’s family. He did what the Lord said was wrong, as Ahab’s family had done. He did this because he was a son-in-law in Ahab’s family.

²⁸ Ahaziah went with Joram son of Ahab to Ramoth in Gilead. There they fought against Hazael king of Aram. The Arameans wounded Joram. ²⁹ So King Joram returned to Jezreel to heal from the injuries. (He had been wounded by the Arameans at Ramoth. This was when he fought Hazael king of Aram.) And Ahaziah son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Joram. He went to see Joram son of Ahab at Jezreel because he had been wounded.

Rules for Living with Others

5 Do not speak angrily to an older man, but talk to him as if he were your father. Treat younger men like brothers. ² Treat older women like mothers, and younger women like sisters. Always treat them in a pure way.

³ Take care of widows who are all alone. ⁴ But if a widow has children or grandchildren, the first thing they need to learn is to do their duty to their own family. When they do this, they will be repaying their parents or grandparents. That pleases God. ⁵ If a widow is all alone and without help, then she puts her hope in God and prays night and day for God’s help. ⁶ But the widow who uses her life to please herself is really dead while she is still living. ⁷ Tell the believers there to do these things so that no one can say they are doing wrong. ⁸ A believer should take care of his own relatives, especially his own family. If he does not do that, he has turned against the faith. He is worse than a person who does not believe in God.

⁹ To be on your list of widows, a woman must be 60 years old or older. She must have been faithful to her husband. ¹⁰ She must be known as a woman who has done good works. By this, I mean good works such as raising her children, accepting visitors in her home, washing the feet of God’s people, helping those in trouble, and using her life to do all kinds of good deeds.

¹¹ But do not put younger widows on that list. After they give themselves to Christ, they are often pulled away from him by their physical desires. And then they want to marry again. ¹² And they will be judged for not doing what they first promised to do. ¹³ Also, those younger widows begin to waste their time going from house to house. They begin to gossip and busy themselves with other people’s lives. They say things that they should not say. ¹⁴ So I want the younger widows to marry, have children, and take care of their homes. If they do this, then no enemy will have any reason to criticize them. ¹⁵ But some of the younger widows have already turned away to follow Satan.

¹⁶ If any woman who is a believer has widows in her family, then she should care for them herself. The church should not have to care for them. Then the church will be able to care for the widows who have no living family.

¹⁷ The elders who lead the church well should receive great honor. Those who work hard by speaking and teaching especially should receive great honor. ¹⁸ For the Scripture says, “When an ox is working in the grain, do not cover its mouth to keep it from eating.”^[a] And the Scripture also says, “A worker should be given his pay.”^[b]

¹⁹ Do not listen to someone who accuses an elder, unless there are two or three other persons who say he did wrong. ²⁰ Tell those who keep on sinning that they are wrong. Do this in front of the whole church so that the others will have a warning.

²¹ Before God and Jesus Christ and the chosen angels, I command you to do these things. Be careful to do them without showing favor to anyone.

²² Think carefully before you lay your hands on^[c] anyone for the Lord’s service. Do not share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure.

²³ Timothy, you stop drinking only water and drink a little wine. This will help your stomach, and you will not be sick so often.

²⁴ The sins of some people are easy to see even before they are judged. But the sins of others are seen only later. ²⁵ So also good deeds are easy to see. But even when they are not easy to see, they cannot stay hidden.

The Time of the End

12 “Daniel, at that time Michael, the great prince, will stand up. (He is the one who protects your people.) There will be a time of much trouble. It will be the worst time since nations have been on earth. But your people will be saved. Everyone whose name is written in God’s book will be saved. ² Many people who have already died will live again. Some of them will wake up to have life forever. But some will wake up to find shame and disgrace forever. ³ The wise people will shine like the brightness of the sky. Those who teach others to live right will shine like stars forever and ever.

⁴ “But you, Daniel, close up the book and seal it. These things will happen at the time of the end. Many people will go here and there to find true knowledge.”

⁵ Then I, Daniel, looked, and I saw two other men. One was standing on my side of the river. And the other was standing on the far side. ⁶ The man who was dressed in linen was standing over the water in the river. One of the two men spoke to him. He asked, “How long will it be before these amazing things come true?”

⁷ The man dressed in linen who stood over the water raised his hands toward heaven. And I heard him make a promise. He used the name of God who lives forever. He said, “It will be for three and one-half years. The power of the holy people will finally be broken. Then all these things will come true.”

⁸ I heard the answer, but I did not really understand. So I asked, “Master, what will happen after all these things come true?”

⁹ He answered, “Go your way, Daniel. The message is closed up and sealed until the time of the end. ¹⁰ Many people will be made clean, pure and spotless. But the wicked will continue to be wicked. And those wicked people will not understand these things. But the wise people will understand them.

¹¹ “The daily sacrifice will be stopped. There will be 1,290 days from that time. Then the horrible thing that destroys will be set up. ¹² Those who wait for the end of the 1,335 days will be happy.

¹³ “As for you, Daniel, go your way till the end. You will get your rest when you die. And at the end you will rise from the dead to get your reward.”