M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
14 2 Absalom is reconciled to his father by the subtlety of Joab. 24 Absalom may not see the King’s face. 25 The beauty of Absalom. 30 He causeth Joab’s corn to be burnt, and is brought to his father’s presence.
1 Then Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived, that the king’s [a]heart was toward Absalom,
2 And Joab sent to Tekoa, and brought thence a [b]subtle woman, and said unto her, I pray thee, feign thyself to mourn, and now put on mourning apparel, and [c]anoint not thyself with oil: but be as a woman that had now long time mourned for the dead.
3 And come to the king, and speak on this manner unto him, (for Joab [d]taught her what she should say).
4 ¶ Then the woman of Tekoa spake unto the king, and fell down on her face to the ground, and did obeisance, and said, [e]Help, O King.
5 Then the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, I am indeed a [f]widow, and mine husband is dead:
6 And thine handmaid had two [g]sons, and they two strove together in the field, (and there was none to part them) so the one smote the other, and slew him.
7 And behold the whole family is risen against thine handmaid, and they said, Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him for the [h]soul of his brother whom he slew, that we may destroy the heir also: so they shall quench my sparkle which is left, and shall not leave to mine husband neither name nor posterity upon the earth.
8 And the king said unto the woman, Go to thine house, and I will give a charge for thee.
9 Then the woman of Tekoa said unto the King, My lord, O King, this [i]trespass be on me, and on my father’s house, and the King and his throne be [j]guiltless.
10 And the King said, Bring him to me that speaketh against thee, and he shall touch thee no more.
11 Then said she, I pray thee, let the king [k]remember the Lord thy God, that thou wouldest not suffer many revengers of blood to destroy, lest they slay my son. And he answered, As the Lord liveth, there shall not one hair of thy son fall to the earth.
12 Then the woman said, I pray thee, let thine handmaid speak a word to my lord the King. And he said, Say on.
13 Then the woman said, Wherefore then hast thou [l]thought such a thing against the people of God? or why doth the King, as one which is faulty, speak this thing, that he will not bring again his banished?
14 For we must needs die, and we are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again: neither doth God [m]spare any person, yet doth he appoint [n]means, not to cast out from him, him that is expelled.
15 Now therefore, that I am come to speak of this thing unto my lord the King, the cause is that the people [o]have made me afraid: therefore thine handmaid said, Now will I speak unto the King: it may be that the king will perform the request of his handmaid.
16 For the king will hear, to deliver his handmaid out of the hand of the man that would destroy me, and also my son from the inheritance of God.
17 Therefore thine handmaid said, The word of my lord the king shall now be [p]comfortable: for my lord the King is even as an [q]Angel of God in hearing of good and bad: therefore the Lord thy God be with thee.
18 Then the king answered, and said unto the woman, Hide not from me, I pray thee, the thing that I shall ask thee. And the woman said, Let my lord the king now speak.
19 And the king said, Is not [r]the hand of Joab with thee in all this? Then the woman answered, and said, As thy soul liveth, my lord the King, I will not turn to the right hand nor to the left, from ought that my lord the king hath spoken: for even thy servant Joab bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of thine handmaid.
20 For to the intent that I [s]should change the form of speech, thy servant Joab hath done this thing: but [t]my lord is wise according to the wisdom of an Angel of God, to understand all things that are in the earth.
21 ¶ And the king said unto Joab, Behold now, I have [u]done this thing: go then, and bring the young man Absalom again.
22 And Joab fell to the ground on his face, and bowed himself and [v]thanked the King. Then Joab said, This day thy servant knoweth, that I have found grace in thy sight, my lord the king, in that the king hath fulfilled the request of his servant.
23 ¶ And Joab arose, and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem.
24 And the King said, Let him [w]turn to his own house, and not see my face. So Absalom turned to his own house, and saw not the king’s face.
25 Now in all Israel there was none to be so much praised for beauty as Absalom: from the sole of his foot even to the top of his head there was no blemish in him.
26 And when he polled his head, (for at every year’s end he polled it: because it was too heavy for him, therefore he polled it) he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred [x]shekels by the king’s weight.
27 And Absalom had three sons, and one daughter named Tamar, which was a fair woman to look upon.
28 ¶ So Absalom dwelt the space of two years in Jerusalem, and saw not the king’s face.
29 Therefore Absalom sent for Joab to send him to the King, but he would not come to him: and when he sent again, he would not come.
30 Therefore he said unto his servants, Behold, Joab hath a [y]field by my place, and hath barley therein: go, and set it [z]on fire: and Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.
31 Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom unto his house, and said unto him, Wherefore have thy servants burnt my field with fire?
32 And Absalom answered Joab, Behold, I sent for thee, saying, Come thou hither, and I will send thee to the king for to say, Wherefore am I come from Geshur? It had been better for me to have been there still: now therefore let me see the king’s face: and [aa]if there be any trespass in me, let him kill me.
33 Then Joab came to the king, and told him: and he called for Absalom, who came to the king, and bowed himself to the ground on his face before the king, and the king kissed Absalom.
7 1 Lest by overmuch urging them he should dismay their tender minds, 2 he proveth that all that he said, 4 proceeded of the great good will he bare unto them: 8 and therefore they should not be offended, that he made them sorry, 10 and brought them to repentance not to be repented of.
1 Seeing then we have these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the [a]flesh and spirit, and finish our sanctification in the fear of God.
2 [b][c]Receive us: we have done wrong to no man: we have corrupted no man: we have defrauded no man.
3 I speak it not to your [d]condemnation: for I have said before, that ye are in our hearts, to die and live together.
4 I use great boldness of speech toward you: I rejoice greatly in you: I am filled with comfort, and am exceeding joyous in all our tribulation.
5 For when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side, fightings without, and terrors within.
6 But God, that comforteth the [e]abject, comforted us at the [f]coming of Titus:
7 And not by his coming only, but also by the consolation wherewith he was comforted of you, when he told us your great desire, your mourning, your fervent mind to me-ward, so that I rejoiced much more.
8 [g]For though I made you sorry with a letter, I repent not, though I did repent: for I perceive that the same Epistle made you sorry, though it were but for a season.
9 I now rejoice, not that ye were sorry, but that ye sorrowed to [h]repentance: for ye sorrowed godly, so that in nothing ye were hurt by us.
10 For [i]godly sorrow causeth repentance unto salvation, not to be repented of: but the worldly sorrow causeth death.
11 For behold, this thing that ye have been godly sorry, what great care hath it wrought in you: yea, what clearing of yourselves: yea, what indignation: yea, what fear: yea, how great desire: yea, what a zeal: yea, what revenge: in all things ye have showed yourselves, that ye are pure in this matter.
12 Wherefore, though I wrote unto you, I did not it for his cause that had done the wrong, neither for his cause that had the injury, but that our care toward you in the [j]sight of God might appear unto you.
13 Therefore we were comforted, because ye were comforted: but rather we rejoiced much more for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all.
14 For if that I have boasted anything to him of you, I have not been ashamed: but as I have spoken unto you all things in truth, even so our boasting unto Titus was true.
15 And his inward affection is more abundant toward you, when he remembereth the obedience of you all, and how with fear and trembling ye received him.
16 I rejoice therefore that I may put my confidence in you in all things.
21 3 He threateneth the sword and destruction to Jerusalem. 25 He showeth the fall of king Zedekiah. 29 He is commanded to prophesy the destruction of the children of Ammon. 30 The Lord threateneth to destroy Nebuchadnezzar.
1 The word of the Lord came to me again, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, [a]and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel,
3 And say to the land of Israel, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I come against thee, and will draw my sword out of his sheath, and cut off from thee both the [b]righteous and the wicked.
4 Seeing then that I will cut off from thee both the righteous and wicked, therefore shall my sword go out of his sheath against all flesh from the South to the [c]North,
5 That all flesh may know that I the Lord have drawn my sword out of his sheath, and it shall not return anymore.
6 Mourn therefore thou son of man, as in the pain of thy [d]reins, and mourn bitterly before them.
7 And if they say unto thee, Wherefore mournest thou? Then answer, Because [e]of the bruit: for it cometh, and every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be weak, and all minds shall faint, and all knees shall fall away as water: behold, it cometh, and shall be done, saith the Lord God.
8 ¶ Again, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
9 Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord God, say, A sword, a sword both sharp and furbished.
10 It is sharpened to make a sore slaughter, and it is furbished that it may [f]glitter: how shall we rejoice? for it contemneth the [g]rod of my son, as [h]all other trees.
11 And he hath given it to be furbished, that he may handle it: this sword is sharp, and is furbished that he may give it into the hand of the [i]slayer.
12 Cry and howl, son of man: for this shall come to my people, and it shall come unto all the princes of Israel: the terrors of the sword shall be upon my people, [j]smite therefore upon thy thigh.
13 For it is a trial, [k]and what shall this be, if the sword contemn even the rod? It shall be no more, saith the Lord God.
14 Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy and smite [l]hand to hand, and let the sword be doubled: let the sword that hath killed, return the third time: it is the sword of the great slaughter entering into their privy chambers.
15 I have brought the fear of the sword into all their gates to make their heart to faint, and to multiply their ruins. Ah, it is made bright, and it is dressed for the slaughter.
16 Get thee [m]alone: go to the right hand, or get thyself to the left hand, whithersoever thy face turneth.
17 I will also smite mine hands together, and will cause my wrath to cease. I the Lord have said it.
18 ¶ The word of the Lord came unto me again, saying,
19 Also thou son of man, appoint thee [n]two ways, that the sword of the King of Babel may come: both twain shall come out of one land, and choose a place, and choose it in the corner of the way of the city.
20 Appoint a way, that the sword may come to Rabbah of the Ammonites, and [o]to Judah in Jerusalem the strong city.
21 And the King of Babel stood at the [p]parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, consulting by divination, and made his arrows bright: he consulted with idols, and looked in [q]the liver.
22 At his right hand was the divination for Jerusalem to appoint captains to open their mouth in the slaughter, and to lift up their voice with shouting, to lay engines of war against the gates, to cast a mount, and to build a fortress.
23 And it shall be unto them [r]as a false divination in their sight for the oaths made unto them: [s]but he will call to remembrance their iniquity, to the intent they should be taken.
24 Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Because ye have made your iniquity to be remembered in discovering your rebellion, that in all your works your sins might appear: because, I say, that ye are come to remembrance, ye shall be taken with the hand.
25 And thou [t]Prince of Israel polluted, and wicked, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end,
26 Thus saith the Lord God, I will take away the [u]diadem, and take off the crown: this shall be no more the same: I will exalt the humble, and will abase him that is high.
27 I will overturn, overturn, overturn it, and it shall be no more until he [v]come, whose right it is, and I will give it him.
28 ¶ And thou, son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord God to the children of Ammon, and to their blasphemy: say thou, I say, The sword, the sword is drawn forth and furbished to the slaughter, to consume, because of the glittering,
29 While they see [w]vanity unto thee, and prophesied a lie unto thee to bring thee upon the necks of the wicked that are slain, whose day is come, when their iniquity shall have an end.
30 Shall I cause it to return into his sheath? I will judge thee in the place where thou wast created, even in the land of thine habitation.
31 And I will pour out mine indignation upon thee, and will blow against thee in the fire of my wrath, and deliver thee into the hand of beastly men, and skillful to destroy.
32 Thou shalt be in the fire to be devoured: thy blood shall be in the midst of the land, and thou shalt be no more remembered: for I the Lord have spoken it.
68 1 In this Psalm David setteth forth as in a glass the wonderful mercies of God toward his people: 5 Who by all means and most strange sorts declared himself to them. 15 And therefore God’s Church by reason of his promises, graces, and victories, doth excel without comparison all worldly things. 34 He exhorteth therefore all men to praise God forever.
To him that excelleth. A Psalm or song of David.
1 God [a]will arise, and his enemies shall be scattered: they also that hate him, shall flee before him.
2 As the smoke vanisheth, so shalt thou drive them away: and as wax melteth before the fire, so shall the wicked perish at the presence of God.
3 [b]But the righteous shall be glad, and rejoice before God: yea, they shall leap for joy.
4 Sing unto God, and sing praises unto his name: exalt him that rideth upon the heavens, in his Name [c]Jah, and rejoice before him.
5 He is a Father of the fatherless, and a Judge of the widows, even God in his holy habitation.
6 God [d]maketh the solitary to dwell in families, and delivereth them that were prisoners in stocks: but the rebellious shall dwell in a [e]dry land.
7 [f]O God, when thou wentest forth before thy people: when thou wentest through the wilderness, (Selah.)
8 The earth shook, and the heavens dropped at the presence of this God: even Sinai was moved at the presence of God, even the God of Israel.
9 Thou, O God, sentest a gracious rain upon thine inheritance, and thou didst refresh it when it was weary.
10 Thy Congregation dwelled therein: for thou, O God, hast of thy [g]goodness prepared it for the poor.
11 The Lord gave matter to the [h]women to tell of the great army.
12 Kings of the armies did flee: they did flee, and [i]she that remained in the house, divided the spoil.
13 Though ye have lain among [j]pots, yet shall ye be as the wings of a dove that is covered with silver, and whose feathers are like yellow gold.
14 When the Almighty scattered kings [k]in it, it was white as the snow in Zalmon.
15 [l]The mountain of God is like the mountain of Bashan: it is an high mountain, as mount Bashan.
16 [m]Why leap ye, ye high mountains? as for this Mountain, God delighteth to dwell in it: yea, the Lord will dwell in it forever.
17 The chariots of God are twenty thousand thousand Angels, and the Lord is among them, as in the Sanctuary of Sinai.
18 Thou art gone up on high: thou hast [n]led captivity captive, and received gifts for men: yea, even the rebellious hast thou led, that the Lord God might dwell there.
19 Praised be the Lord, even the God of our salvation, which ladeth us daily with benefits. Selah.
20 This is our God, even the God that saveth us: and to the Lord God belong the [o]issues of death.
21 Surely God will wound the head of his enemies, and the hairy pate of him that walketh in his sins.
22 The Lord hath said, I will bring my people again from [p]Bashan: I will bring them again from the depths of the Sea:
23 That thy foot may be dipped in blood, and the tongue of thy dogs in the blood of the enemies, even in [q]it.
24 They have seen, O God, thy [r]goings, the goings of my God, and my king, which art in the Sanctuary.
25 The [s]singers went before, the players of instruments after: in the midst were the maids playing with timbrels.
26 Praise ye God in the assemblies, and the Lord, ye that are of the fountain [t]of Israel.
27 There was [u]little Benjamin with their [v]ruler, and the Princes of Judah with their assembly, the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.
28 Thy GOD hath appointed thy strength: establish, O God, that which thou first wrought in us,
29 [w]Out of thy Temple upon Jerusalem, and kings shall bring presents unto thee.
30 Destroy the company of the spearmen, and multitude of the mighty bulls with the calves of the people, that [x]tread under feet pieces of silver: scatter the people that delight in war.
31 Then shall the princes come out [y]of Egypt: Ethiopia shall haste to stretch her hands unto God.
32 Sing unto God, O ye kingdoms of the earth: sing praise unto the Lord, (Selah)
33 To him that rideth upon the most high heavens, which were from the beginning: behold, he will send out by his [z]voice a mighty sound.
34 Ascribe the power to God: for his majesty is upon Israel, and his strength is in the clouds.
35 O God, thou art [aa]terrible out of thine holy [ab]places: the God of Israel is he that giveth strength and power unto the people: praised be God.
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