M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
King Ahaz of Judah
(2 Chronicles 28.1-27)
16 Ahaz son of Jotham became king of Judah in the seventeenth year of Pekah's rule in Israel. 2 He was 20 years old at the time, and he ruled from Jerusalem for 16 years.
Ahaz wasn't like his ancestor David. Instead, he disobeyed the Lord 3 (A) and was even more sinful than the kings of Israel. He sacrificed his own son, which was a disgusting custom of the nations that the Lord had forced out of Israel. 4 Ahaz offered sacrifices at the local shrines, as well as on every hill and in the shade of large trees.
5-6 (B) While Ahaz was ruling Judah, the king of Edom recaptured the town of Elath from Judah and forced out the people of Judah. Edomites[a] then moved into Elath, and they still live there.
About the same time, King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah of Israel marched to Jerusalem and attacked, but they could not capture it.
7 Ahaz sent a message to King Tiglath Pileser of Assyria that said, “Your Majesty, King Rezin and King Pekah are attacking me, your loyal servant. Please come and rescue me.” 8 Along with the message, Ahaz sent silver and gold from the Lord's temple and from the palace treasury as a gift for the Assyrian king.
9 As soon as Tiglath Pileser received the message, he and his troops marched to Syria. He captured the capital city of Damascus, then he took the people living there to the town of Kir as prisoners and killed King Rezin.[b]
10 Later, Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath Pileser. And while Ahaz was there, he saw an altar and sent a model of it back to Uriah the priest, along with the plans for building one. 11 Uriah followed the plans and built an altar exactly like the one in Damascus, finishing it just before Ahaz came back.
12 When Ahaz returned, he went to see the altar and to offer sacrifices on it. He walked up to the altar 13 and poured wine over it. Then he offered sacrifices to please the Lord, to give him thanks, and to ask for his blessings.[c] 14 (C) After that, he had the bronze altar moved aside,[d] so his new altar would be right in front of the Lord's temple. 15 He told Uriah the priest:
From now on, the morning and evening sacrifices as well as all gifts of grain and wine are to be offered on this altar. The sacrifices for the people and for the king must also be offered here. Sprinkle the blood from all the sacrifices on it, but leave the bronze altar for me to use for prayer and finding out what God wants me to do.
16 Uriah did everything Ahaz told him.
17 (D) Ahaz also had the side panels and the small bowls taken off the movable stands in the Lord's temple. He had the large bronze bowl, called the Sea, removed from the bronze bulls on which it rested and had it placed on a stand made of stone. 18 He took down the special tent that was used for worship on the Sabbath[e] and closed up the private entrance that the kings of Judah used for going into the temple. He did all these things to please Tiglath Pileser.
19 Everything else Ahaz did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. 20 (E) Ahaz died and was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem,[f] and his son Hezekiah became king.
Instructions for Different Groups of People
2 Titus, you must teach only what is correct. 2 Tell the older men to have self-control and to be serious and sensible. Their faith, love, and patience must never fail.
3 Tell the older women to behave as those who love the Lord should. They must not gossip about others or be slaves of wine. They must teach what is proper, 4 so the younger women will be loving wives and mothers. 5 Each of the younger women must be sensible and kind, as well as a good homemaker, who puts her own husband first. Then no one can say insulting things about God's message.
6 Tell the young men to have self-control in everything.
7 Always set a good example for others. Be sincere and serious when you teach. 8 Use clean language that no one can criticize. Do this, and your enemies will be too ashamed to say anything against you.
9 Tell slaves always to please their owners by obeying them in everything. Slaves must not talk back to their owners 10 or steal from them. They must be completely honest and trustworthy. Then everyone will show great respect for what is taught about God our Savior.
God's Kindness and the New Life
11 God has shown us undeserved grace by coming to save all people. 12 He taught us to give up our wicked ways and our worldly desires and to live decent and honest lives in this world. 13 We are filled with hope, as we wait for the glorious return of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ.[a] 14 (A) He gave himself to rescue us from everything evil and to make our hearts pure. He wanted us to be his own people and to be eager to do right.
15 Teach these things, as you use your full authority to encourage and correct people. Make sure you earn everyone's respect.
Israel Will Be Punished
9 Israel, don't celebrate
or make noisy shouts[a]
like other nations.
You have been unfaithful
to your God.
Wherever grain is threshed,
you behave like prostitutes
because you enjoy
the money you receive.[b]
2 But you will run short
of grain and wine,
3 and you will have to leave
the land of the Lord.
Some of you will go to Egypt;
others will go to Assyria
and eat unclean food.
4 You won't be able to offer
sacrifices of wine
to the Lord.
None of your sacrifices
will please him—
they will be unclean
like food offered to the dead.
Your food will only be used
to satisfy your hunger;
none of it will be brought
to the Lord's temple.
5 You will no longer be able
to celebrate the festival
of the Lord.[c]
6 Even if you escape alive,
you will end up in Egypt
and be buried in Memphis.[d]
Your silver treasures
will be lost among weeds;[e]
thorns will sprout in your tents.
7 (A) Israel, the time has come.
You will get what you deserve,
and you will know it.
“Prophets are fools,” you say.
“And God's messengers
are crazy.”
Your terrible guilt
has filled you with hatred.
8 Israel, the Lord sent me
to look after you.[f]
But you trap his prophets
and flood his temple
with your hatred.
9 (B) You are brutal and corrupt,
as were the men of Gibeah.[g]
But God remembers your sin,
and you will be punished.
Sin's Terrible Results
10 (C) Israel, when I, the Lord,
found you long ago
it was like finding
grapes in a barren desert
or tender young figs.
Then you worshiped Baal Peor,
that disgusting idol,
and you became as disgusting
as the idol you loved.
11 And so, Israel, your glory
will fly away like birds—
your women will no longer
be able to give birth.
12 Even if you do have children,
I will take them all
and leave you to mourn.
I will turn away,
and you will sink down
in deep trouble.
13 Israel, when I first met you,
I thought of you as palm trees
growing in fertile ground.[h]
Now you lead your people out,
only to be slaughtered.
Hosea's Advice
14 Our Lord, do just one thing
for your people—
make their women unable
to have children
or to nurse their babies.
The Lord's Judgment on Israel
15 Israel, I first began
to hate you because
you did evil at Gilgal.[i]
Now I will chase you
out of my house.
No longer will I love you;
your leaders betrayed me.
16 Israel, you are a vine
with dried-up roots
and fruitless branches.
Even if you had more children
and loved them dearly,
I would slaughter them all.
Hosea Warns Israel
17 Israel, you disobeyed my God.
Now he will force you to roam
from nation to nation.
(A song for worship.)
Celebrating the Harvest
1 It seemed like a dream
when the Lord brought us back
to the city of Zion.[a]
2 We celebrated with laughter
and joyful songs.
In foreign nations it was said,
“The Lord has worked miracles
for his people.”
3 And so we celebrated
because the Lord had indeed
worked miracles for us.
4 Our Lord, we ask you to bless
our people again,
and let us be like streams
in the Southern Desert.
5 We cried as we went out
to plant our seeds.
Now let us celebrate
as we bring in the crops.
6 We cried on the way
to plant our seeds,
but we will celebrate and shout
as we bring in the crops.
(A song by Solomon for worship.)
Only the Lord Can Bless a Home
1 Without the help of the Lord
it is useless to build a home
or to guard a city.
2 It is useless to get up early
and stay up late
in order to earn a living.
God takes care of his own,
even while they sleep.[b]
3 Children are a blessing
and a gift from the Lord.
4 Having a lot of children
to take care of you
in your old age
is like a warrior
with a lot of arrows.
5 The more you have,
the better off you will be,
because they will protect you
when your enemies
attack you in court.
(A song for worship.)
The Lord Rewards His Faithful People
1 The Lord will bless you
if you respect him
and obey his laws.
2 Your fields will produce,
and you will be happy—
all will go well.
3 Your wife will be as fruitful
as a grapevine,
and just as an olive tree
is rich with olives,
your home will be rich
with healthy children.
4 This is how the Lord will bless
everyone who respects him.
5 I pray that the Lord
will bless you from Zion
and let Jerusalem prosper
as long as you live.
6 May you live long enough
to see your grandchildren.
Let's pray for peace in Israel!
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