M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
19 Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, returned safely to his palace in Jerusalem. 2 Jehu the prophet went out to meet him. He was the son of Hanani. Jehu said to the king, “You shouldn’t help evil people. You shouldn’t love those who hate the Lord. The Lord is angry with you. 3 But there’s some good in you. You have removed all the poles in the land used to worship the female god named Asherah. And you have worshiped God with all your heart.”
Jehoshaphat Appoints Judges
4 Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem. He went out again among the people. He went from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim. He turned the people back to the Lord, the God of Israel. 5 Jehoshaphat appointed judges in the land. He put them in all the cities of Judah that had high walls around them. 6 He told the judges, “Think carefully about what you do. After all, you aren’t judging for human beings. You are judging for the Lord. He’s with you every time you make a decision. 7 Have respect for the Lord. Judge carefully. He is always right. He treats everyone the same. Our God doesn’t want his judges to take money from people who want special favors.”
8 In Jerusalem, Jehoshaphat chose some Levites and priests. He also chose some leaders of Israelite families. He appointed all of them to apply the law of the Lord fairly. He wanted them to decide cases. He wanted them to settle matters between people. All those judges lived in Jerusalem. 9 Here are the orders Jehoshaphat gave them. He said, “Have respect for the Lord. Serve him faithfully. Do it with all your heart. 10 Cases will come to you from your people who live in the other cities. The cases might be about murder or other matters dealt with by the law, commands, directions and rules. Warn the people not to sin against the Lord. If you don’t warn them, he will be angry with you and your people. Do what I say. Then you won’t sin.
11 “Amariah the chief priest will be over you in any matter that concerns the Lord. Zebadiah is the leader of the tribe of Judah. He is the son of Ishmael. Zebadiah will be over you in any matter that concerns the king. The Levites will serve as your officials. Be brave. And may the Lord be with those of you who do well.”
Jehoshaphat Wins the Battle Over Moab and Ammon
20 After that, the Moabites, Ammonites and some Meunites went to war against Jehoshaphat.
2 Some people came and told him, “A huge army is coming from Edom to fight against you. They have come across the Dead Sea. They are already in Hazezon Tamar.” Hazezon Tamar is also called En Gedi. 3 Jehoshaphat was alarmed. So he decided to ask the Lord for advice. He told all the people of Judah to go without eating. 4 The people came together to ask the Lord for help. In fact, they came from every town in Judah to pray to him.
5 Then Jehoshaphat stood up among the people of Judah and Jerusalem. He was in front of the new courtyard at the Lord’s temple. 6 He said,
“Lord, you are the God of our people who lived long ago. You are the God who is in heaven. You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. You are strong and powerful. No one can fight against you and win. 7 Our God, you drove out the people who lived in this land. You drove them out to make room for your people Israel. You gave this land forever to those who belong to the family line of your friend Abraham. 8 They have lived in this land. They’ve built a temple here for your Name. They have said, 9 ‘Suppose trouble comes on us. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a punishing sword, or plague or hunger. We’ll serve you. We’ll stand in front of this temple where your Name is. We’ll cry out to you when we’re in trouble. Then you will hear us. You will save us.’
10 “But here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir. You wouldn’t allow Israel to march in and attack their territory when the Israelites came from Egypt. So Israel turned away from them. They didn’t destroy them. 11 See how they are paying us back. They are coming to drive us out. They want to take over the land you gave us as our share. 12 Our God, won’t you please judge them? We don’t have the power to face this huge army that’s attacking us. We don’t know what to do. But we’re looking to you to help us.”
13 All the men of Judah stood there in front of the Lord. Their wives, children and little ones were with them.
14 Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel. He was standing among the people of Israel. He was the son of Zechariah. Zechariah was the son of Benaiah. Benaiah was the son of Jeiel. Jeiel was the son of Mattaniah. Jahaziel was a Levite. He was from the family line of Asaph.
15 Jahaziel said, “King Jehoshaphat, listen! All you who live in Judah and Jerusalem, listen! The Lord says to you, ‘Do not be afraid. Do not lose hope because of this huge army. The battle is not yours. It is God’s. 16 Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the valley in the Desert of Jeruel. 17 You will not have to fight this battle. Take your positions. Stand firm. You will see how the Lord will save you. Judah and Jerusalem, do not be afraid. Do not lose hope. Go out and face them tomorrow. The Lord will be with you.’ ”
18 Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face toward the ground. All the people of Judah and Jerusalem also bowed down. They worshiped the Lord. 19 Then some Levites from the families of Kohath and Korah stood up. They praised the Lord, the God of Israel. They praised him with very loud voices.
20 Early in the morning all the people left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they started out, Jehoshaphat stood up. He said, “Judah, listen to me! People of Jerusalem, listen to me! Have faith in the Lord your God. He’ll take good care of you. Have faith in his prophets. Then you will have success.” 21 Jehoshaphat asked the people for advice. Then he appointed men to sing to the Lord. He wanted them to praise the Lord because of his glory and holiness. They marched out in front of the army. They said,
“Give thanks to the Lord.
His faithful love continues forever.”
22 They began to sing and praise him. Then the Lord hid some men and told them to wait. He wanted them to attack the people of Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir. They had gone into Judah and attacked it. But they lost the battle. 23 The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir. They destroyed them. They put an end to them. When they finished killing the men from Seir, they destroyed one another.
24 The men of Judah came to the place that looks out over the desert. They turned to look down at the huge army. But all they saw was dead bodies lying there on the ground. No one had escaped. 25 So Jehoshaphat and his men went down there to carry off anything of value. Among the dead bodies they found a large amount of supplies, clothes and other things of value. There was more than they could take away. There was so much it took three days to collect all of it. 26 On the fourth day they gathered together in the Valley of Berakah. There they praised the Lord. That’s why it’s called the Valley of Berakah to this day.
27 Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned to Jerusalem. They were filled with joy. Jehoshaphat led them. The Lord had made them happy because all their enemies were dead. 28 They entered Jerusalem and went to the Lord’s temple. They were playing harps, lyres and trumpets.
29 All the surrounding kingdoms began to have respect for God. They had heard how the Lord had fought against Israel’s enemies. 30 The kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace. His God had given him peace and rest on every side.
Jehoshaphat’s Rule Comes to an End
31 So Jehoshaphat ruled over Judah. He was 35 years old when he became Judah’s king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 25 years. His mother’s name was Azubah. She was the daughter of Shilhi. 32 Jehoshaphat followed the ways of his father Asa. He didn’t wander away from them. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. 33 But the high places weren’t removed. The people still hadn’t worshiped the God of Israel with all their hearts.
34 The other events of Jehoshaphat’s rule from beginning to end are written down. They are written in the official records of Jehu, the son of Hanani. They are written in the records of the kings of Israel.
35 Jehoshaphat king of Judah and Ahaziah king of Israel agreed to be friends. Ahaziah did what was evil. 36 Jehoshaphat agreed with him to build a lot of ships. They were built at Ezion Geber. They carried goods that were traded for other goods. 37 Eliezer was the son of Dodavahu from Mareshah. Eliezer prophesied against Jehoshaphat. He said, “You have joined forces with Ahaziah. So the Lord will destroy what you have made.” The ships were wrecked. They were never able to sail or trade goods.
The Seventh Seal and the Gold Cup
8 The Lamb opened the seventh seal. Then there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
2 I saw the seven angels who stand in front of God. Seven trumpets were given to them.
3 Another angel came and stood at the altar. He had a shallow gold cup for burning incense. He was given a lot of incense to offer on the golden altar. The altar was in front of the throne. With the incense he offered the prayers of all God’s people. 4 The smoke of the incense rose up from the angel’s hand. The prayers of God’s people rose up together with it. The smoke and the prayers went up in front of God. 5 Then the angel took the gold cup and filled it with fire from the altar. He threw it down on the earth. There were rumblings and thunder, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.
The Trumpets
6 Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets got ready to blow them.
7 The first angel blew his trumpet. Hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up. A third of the trees were burned up. All the green grass was burned up.
8 The second angel blew his trumpet. Something that looked like a huge mountain on fire was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood. 9 A third of the living creatures in the sea died. A third of the ships were destroyed.
10 The third angel blew his trumpet. Then a great star fell from the sky. It looked like a blazing torch. It fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. 11 The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the water turned bitter. Many people died from it.
12 The fourth angel blew his trumpet. Then a third of the sun was struck. A third of the moon was struck. A third of the stars were struck. So a third of each of them turned dark. Then a third of the day had no light. The same thing happened to a third of the night.
13 As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying high in the air. It called out in a loud voice, “How terrible! How terrible it will be for those living on the earth! How terrible! They will suffer as soon as the next three angels blow their trumpets!”
A Vision of the Gold Lampstand and Two Olive Trees
4 Then the angel who was talking with me returned. He woke me up. It was as if I had been asleep. 2 “What do you see?” he asked me.
“I see a solid gold lampstand,” I answered. “It has a bowl on top of it. There are seven lamps on it. Seven tubes lead to the lamps. 3 There are two olive trees by the lampstand. One is on its right side. The other is on its left.”
4 I asked the angel who was talking with me, “Sir, what are these?”
5 He answered, “Don’t you know what they are?”
“No, sir,” I replied.
6 So he said to me, “A message from the Lord came to Zerubbabel. The Lord said, ‘Your strength will not get my temple rebuilt. Your power will not do it either. Only the power of my Spirit will do it,’ says the Lord who rules over all.
7 “So nothing can stop Zerubbabel from completing the temple. Even a mountain of problems will be smoothed out by him. When the temple is finished, he will put its most important stone in place. Then the people will shout, ‘God bless it! God bless it!’ ”
8 Then a message from the Lord came to me. His angel said, 9 “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple. His hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord who rules over all has sent me to you.
10 “Do not look down on the small amount of work done on the temple so far. The seven eyes of the Lord look over the whole earth. They will see Zerubbabel holding the most important stone. They will be filled with joy when they see it.”
11 Then I said to the angel, “I see two olive trees. One is on the right side of the lampstand. The other is on the left. What are these trees?”
12 I continued, “I also see two olive branches. They are next to the two gold pipes that pour out golden olive oil. What are these branches?”
13 He answered, “Don’t you know what they are?”
“No, sir,” I said.
14 So he told me, “They are Zerubbabel and Joshua. The Lord of the whole earth has anointed them to serve him.”
Jesus Goes to the Feast of Booths
7 After this, Jesus went around in Galilee. He didn’t want to travel around in Judea. That was because the Jewish leaders there were looking for a way to kill him. 2 The Jewish Feast of Booths was near. 3 Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave Galilee and go to Judea. Then your disciples there will see the works that you do. 4 No one who wants to be well known does things in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” 5 Even Jesus’ own brothers did not believe in him.
6 So Jesus told them, “The time for me to show who I really am is not here yet. For you, any time would be the right time. 7 The people of the world can’t hate you. But they hate me. This is because I am a witness that their works are evil. 8 You go to the feast. I am not going up to this feast. This is because my time has not yet fully come.” 9 After he said this, he stayed in Galilee.
10 But when his brothers had left for the feast, he went also. But he went secretly, not openly. 11 At the feast the Jewish leaders were watching for Jesus. They were asking, “Where is he?”
12 Many people in the crowd were whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.”
Others replied, “No. He fools the people.” 13 But no one would say anything about him openly. They were afraid of the leaders.
Jesus Teaches at the Feast
14 Jesus did nothing until halfway through the feast. Then he went up to the temple courtyard and began to teach. 15 The Jews there were amazed. They asked, “How did this man learn so much without being taught?”
16 Jesus answered, “What I teach is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. 17 Here is how someone can find out whether my teaching comes from God or from me. That person must choose to do what God wants them to do. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does it to get personal honor. But someone who works for the honor of the one who sent him is truthful. Nothing about him is false. 19 Didn’t Moses give you the law? But not one of you obeys the law. Why are you trying to kill me?”
20 “You are controlled by demons,” the crowd answered. “Who is trying to kill you?”
21 Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle, and you are all amazed. 22 Moses gave you circumcision, and so you circumcise a child on the Sabbath day. But circumcision did not really come from Moses. It came from Abraham. 23 You circumcise a boy on the Sabbath day. You think that if you do, you won’t break the law of Moses. Then why are you angry with me? I healed a man’s entire body on the Sabbath day! 24 Stop judging only by what you see. Judge in the right way.”
People Don’t Agree About Who Jesus Is
25 Then some of the people of Jerusalem began asking questions. They said, “Isn’t this the man some people are trying to kill? 26 Here he is! He is speaking openly. They aren’t saying a word to him. Have the authorities really decided that he is the Messiah? 27 But we know where this man is from. When the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.”
28 Jesus was still teaching in the temple courtyard. He cried out, “Yes, you know me. And you know where I am from. I am not here on my own authority. The one who sent me is true. You do not know him. 29 But I know him. I am from him, and he sent me.”
30 When he said this, they tried to arrest him. But no one laid a hand on him. The time for him to show who he really was had not yet come. 31 Still, many people in the crowd believed in him. They said, “How will it be when the Messiah comes? Will he do more signs than this man?”
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering things like this about him. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him.
33 Jesus said, “I am with you for only a short time. Then I will go to the one who sent me. 34 You will look for me, but you won’t find me. You can’t come where I am going.”
35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man plan to go? Does he think we can’t find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks? Will he go there to teach the Greeks? 36 What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you won’t find me’? And what did he mean when he said, ‘You can’t come where I am going’?”
37 It was the last and most important day of the feast. Jesus stood up and spoke in a loud voice. He said, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Does anyone believe in me? Then, just as Scripture says, rivers of living water will flow from inside them.” 39 When he said this, he meant the Holy Spirit. Those who believed in Jesus would receive the Spirit later. Up to that time, the Spirit had not been given. This was because Jesus had not yet received glory.
40 The people heard his words. Some of them said, “This man must be the Prophet we’ve been expecting.”
41 Others said, “He is the Messiah.”
Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee? 42 Doesn’t Scripture say that the Messiah will come from the family line of David? Doesn’t it say that he will come from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?” 43 So the people did not agree about who Jesus was. 44 Some wanted to arrest him. But no one laid a hand on him.
The Jewish Leaders Do Not Believe
45 Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and the Pharisees. They asked the guards, “Why didn’t you bring him in?”
46 “No one ever spoke the way this man does,” the guards replied.
47 “You mean he has fooled you also?” the Pharisees asked. 48 “Have any of the rulers or Pharisees believed in him? 49 No! But this mob knows nothing about the law. There is a curse on them.”
50 Then Nicodemus, a Pharisee, spoke. He was the one who had gone to Jesus earlier. He asked, 51 “Does our law find a man guilty without hearing him first? Doesn’t it want to find out what he is doing?”
52 They replied, “Are you from Galilee too? Look into it. You will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee.”
53 Then they all went home.
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