M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Rivalry for the Throne
1 Now King David was old, advanced in years. Though they covered him with clothes, he could not keep warm. 2 So his servants said to him: “Let them seek a young virgin for my lord the king, and let her attend the king and be his nurse; and let her lie by your side, so my lord the king may keep warm.”
3 So they sought for a beautiful girl throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4 The girl was very beautiful. So she became the king’s nurse and served him, but the king was not intimate with her.
5 Now Adonijah son of Haggith exalted himself, saying: “I’ll be king!” So he prepared for himself chariots, horsemen and 50 men to run before him. 6 His father had not scolded him at any time by asking: “Why have you behaved this way?” He was also a very handsome man; and he was born after Absalom.
7 So he conferred with Joab son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the kohen. Following Adonijah, they supported him. 8 But Zadok the kohen, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei and David’s mighty men, were not on Adonijah’s side.
9 Then Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen and fattened cattle by the stone of Zoheleth[a], which is beside En-rogel, and invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants, 10 but he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mighty men, or Solomon. 11 But Nathan spoke to Bath-sheba, Solomon’s mother, saying: “Haven’t you heard that Adonijah son of Haggith has assumed the kingship—and our lord David doesn’t know it? 12 Now come, please let me give you advice. Save your own life and the life of your son Solomon! 13 Go at once to King David, and say to him: ‘My lord the king, haven’t you sworn to your handmaid, saying: “Surely your son Solomon will become king after me, and he will sit on my throne”? Then why does Adonijah reign?’ 14 Behold, while you are still there talking with the king, I will come in after you and confirm your words.”
15 So Bath-sheba went to the king into the chamber. Now the king was very old, with Abishag the Shunammite serving the king. 16 Bath-sheba bowed and prostrated herself to the king. The king asked, “What troubles you?”
17 She said to him: “My lord, you swore by Adonai your God to your handmaid: ‘Surely, Solomon your son will be king after me, and he will sit on my throne.’ 18 Yet now, behold, Adonijah reigns, though you do not know it—my lord the king. 19 He has sacrificed oxen, fattened cattle and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the king’s sons, Abiathar the kohen and Joab the commander of the army, but he has not invited Solomon your servant. 20 As for you, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, to tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21 Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be considered traitors.”
22 Then behold, while she was still talking with the king, the prophet Nathan came in, 23 and they informed the king, saying: “Behold the prophet Nathan is here.” When he came in before the king, he prostrated himself before the king with his face to the ground.
24 Then Nathan said: “My lord the king, did you say: ‘Adonijah shall be king after me, and he shall sit on my throne?’ 25 For he has gone down today, slain oxen, fattened cattle and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the king’s sons, the captains of the army and Abiathar the kohen—and behold, they are eating and drinking with him, and they are saying: ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ 26 But he did not invite me, your servant, Zadok the kohen, Benaiah son of Jehoiada or your servant Solomon. 27 Was this thing done by my lord the king, without letting your servants know who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
28 Then King David answered and said: “Summon Bath-sheba to me.” So she came into the king’s presence, and stood before the king. 29 Then the king swore an oath: “As Adonai lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all distress, 30 as surely as I swore to you by Adonai, the God of Israel, saying that your son Solomon will be king after me and will sit on my throne in my place. Thus I will surely fulfill it this day!”
31 Then Bath-sheba bowed with her face to the ground and prostrated herself before the king, and said: “Let my lord King David live forever!”
32 Then King David said: “Summon to me Zadok the kohen, Nathan the prophet and Benaiah son of Jehoiada.” When they came before the king, 33 the king said to them: “Take with you the servants of your lord, and have my son Solomon ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. 34 There let Zadok the kohen and Nathan the prophet anoint him as king over Israel, blow the shofar and say: ‘Long live King Solomon!’ 35 Then you shall come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne. For he shall be king in my place, as I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and Judah.”
36 Benaiah son of Jehoiada answered the king and said: “Amen! Thus says Adonai, the God of my lord the king. 37 As Adonai has been with my lord the king, so will He be with Solomon and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David!”
38 So Zadok the kohen, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down, and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule, and brought him to Gihon. 39 Then Zadok the kohen took the horn of oil out of the Tent and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the shofar, and all the people said: “Long live King Solomon!” 40 All the people went up after him, while the people were playing on flutes and rejoicing with great joy, so that the ground shook at their noise.
41 Now Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it, just as they finished eating. When Joab heard the sound of the shofar, he said: “Why is the city in an uproar?”
42 While he was still speaking, behold, Jonathan son of Abiathar the kohen came, and Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a valiant man, and surely bringing good news.”
43 But Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah: “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king. 44 Also the king has sent with him Zadok the kohen, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites and the Pelethites, and they had him ride on the king’s mule. 45 Zadok the kohen and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at Gihon. From there they have come up rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar—that’s the noise that you heard. 46 Also Solomon has taken his seat on the royal throne. 47 Moreover, the king’s courtiers came to bless our lord King David, saying: ‘May God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and his throne greater than your throne!’ Then the king bowed down on the bed. 48 Furthermore the king said, ‘Blessed be Adonai, God of Israel, who this day has given one to sit on my throne, while my eyes are seeing it.’”
49 Trembling, all the guests of Adonijah got up and each went his own way. 50 Adonijah was afraid of Solomon, so he arose, went, and grasped the horns of the altar. 51 So it was reported to Solomon: “Behold, Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon, for look, he grasped the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.’”
52 Then Solomon said, “If he shows himself a worthy man, then not a hair of him will fall to the ground. But if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.”
53 So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. He came and prostrated himself before King Solomon, and Solomon said to him: “Go to your home.”
Freedom Based on Favor
5 For freedom, Messiah set us free—so stand firm, and do not be burdened by a yoke of slavery again. 2 Listen—I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Messiah will be of no benefit to you. 3 Again I testify to every man who lets himself be circumcised, that he is obligated to keep the whole Torah. 4 You who are trying to be justified by Torah[a] have been cut off from Messiah; you have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Ruach, by faith, we eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Messiah Yeshua, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any meaning—but only trust and faithfulness expressing itself through love.
7 You were running a great race! Who blocked you from following the truth? 8 This detour doesn’t come from the One who calls you. 9 A little hametz works its way through the whole batch of dough! 10 I am confident in the Lord that you will not think otherwise. But the one who is confusing you will pay the penalty, whoever he is. 11 As for me, brothers and sisters, if I still proclaim circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case, the stumbling block of the cross has been eliminated. 12 I only wish those who are agitating you would castrate themselves![b]
Walking by the Ruach
13 Brothers and sisters, you were called to freedom—only do not let your freedom become an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole Torah can be summed up in a single saying: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” [c] 15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not destroyed by one another.
16 But I say, walk by the Ruach, and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh sets its desire against the Ruach, but the Ruach sets its desire against the flesh—for these are in opposition to one another, so that you cannot do what you want. 18 But if you are led by the Ruach, you are not under law. 19 Now the deeds of the flesh are clear: sexual immorality, impurity, indecency, 20 idolatry, witchcraft, hostility, strife, jealousy, rage, selfish ambition, dissension, factions, 21 envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, just as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit God’s kingdom. 22 But the fruit of the Ruach is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control—against such things there is no law. 24 Now those who belong to Messiah[d] have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
25 If we live by the Ruach, let us also walk by the Ruach. 26 Let us not become conceited—provoking one another, envying one another.
Lamentations for Pharaoh
32 On the first day of the twelfth month of the twelfth year, the word of Adonai came to me saying: 2 “Son of man, lift up a lament for Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him:
‘You compare yourself to a young lion of the nations,
but you are a crocodile in the waters.
You thrash about in your rivers
and muddy the water with your feet
and foul their streams.’”
3 Thus says Adonai Elohim:
“I will throw My net over you
with a host of many peoples.
They will haul you up in My net.
4 I will leave you on the land.
I will hurl you on an open field.
I will cause all the birds of the sky to settle upon you.
I will gorge the beasts of the whole earth with you.
5 I will strew your flesh on the mountains
and fill the valleys with your refuse.
6 I will drench the land with the flow of your blood up to the hills.
The ravines will be full of you.
7 When I extinguish you,
I will cover the sky and darken the stars.
I will cover the sun with cloud,
and the moon will not give her light.[a]
8 I will darken all of heaven’s bright lights over you
and set darkness on your land.”
It is a declaration of Adonai.
9 “I will disturb the hearts of many peoples
when I bring about your destruction among the nations,
into lands you have not known.
10 I will make many people appalled at you.
Their kings will be totally aghast at you
when I brandish My sword over you.
They will shudder every moment,
every man for his own life,
on the day of your downfall.”
11 For thus says Adonai Elohim:
“The sword of the king of Babylon
will come upon you.
12 By the swords of the mighty
I will cause your multitude to fall.
They are all ruthless among the nations.
They will devastate the pride of Egypt.
All of its multitude will be annihilated.
13 I will destroy all the beasts from beside plentiful water.
No human foot will muddy them again,
nor will hoofs of beasts muddy them.
14 Then I will make their waters settle
and make their streams flow like oil.”
It is a declaration of Adonai.
15 “When I make the land of Egypt desolate
and waste when it was previously full,
when I strike all that live there,
they will know that I am Adonai.
16 This is the funeral song—chant it,
daughters of the nations, chant for Egypt.
All her multitude will chant it.”
It is a declaration of Adonai.
17 On the fifteenth day of the month in the twelfth year, the word of Adonai came to me saying:
18 “Son of man, wail over Egypt’s throng.
Bring them down
—her and the daughters of lofty nations,
to the underworld,
to those who go down to the pit.
19 Who do you surpass in beauty?
Go down, lie with the uncircumcised.
20 They fall among those slain by the sword.
She is given over to the sword.
They drag her down with all her throng.
21 The strongest warriors will speak of him
and his allies from the midst of Sheol.
They have gone down,
they lie still, the uncircumcised,
slain by the sword.
22 “Assyria is there and all her company,
their graves surround them
—all of them slain,
fallen by the sword.
23 Her graves are set in the deepest parts of the Pit.
Her company surrounds her grave
—all of them slain, fallen by the sword
—who put terror in the land of the living.
24 “There is Elam and all her multitude surrounding her grave
—all of them slain, fallen by the sword
—who went down uncircumcised into
the underworld, who caused terror in the land of the living.
They bear their disgrace with those who go down to the Pit.
25 They have made her a bed among
the slain with all her throng,
her graves about them
—all of them uncircumcised, slain, fallen by the sword—
though they caused terror in the land of the living.
So they bear their disgrace with those who go down to the Pit.
They are laid among the slain.
26 “Meshech-Tubal is there and all her throng,
her graves around them
—all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword,
though they spread their terror in the land of the living.
27 They do not lie with the mighty,
the fallen from among the uncircumcised,
who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war.
They put their swords under their heads.
Their iniquities rest on their bones because the terror of the mighty ones was in the land of the living.
28 You also will be shattered and lie among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword.
29 “Edom is there, her kings and all her princes,
who for all their might are laid with those slain by the sword.
They lie with the uncircumcised,
with those who go down to the Pit.
30 “The princes of the north are there,
all of them, all the Zidonians, who have gone down with the slain,
ashamed for all the terror that they caused by their might.
They lie uncircumcised with those slain by the sword.
They bear their disgrace with those who go down to the pit.
31 When Pharaoh sees them,
he will be comforted for all his throng,
Pharaoh and all his army,
slain by the sword.”
It is a declaration of Adonai.
32 “For I have put My terror in the land of the living.
He will lie among the uncircumcised,
with those slain by the sword,
Pharaoh and all his multitude.”
It is a declaration of Adonai.
Restore Us, Revive Us
Psalm 80
1 For the music director, on “Lilies,”[a] a testimony: a psalm of Asaph.
2 Give ear, Shepherd of Israel,
You who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who are enthroned upon the cheruvim, shine forth!
3 Before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh,
stir up Your might, and come to save us.
4 O God, restore us, make Your face shine,
and we will be saved.
5 Adonai-Tzva’ot, how long will You be angry
with the prayer of Your people?
6 You have fed them the bread of tears
and made them drink a measure of tears.
7 You make us a contention to our neighbors,
and our enemies mock as they please.
8 Elohei-Tzva’ot, restore us, and make Your face shine,
and we will be saved.
9 You pulled out a vine from Egypt.
You drove out nations and planted it.
10 You cleared a place for it,
and it took deep root and filled the land.
11 The mountains were covered by its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
12 It sent out its branches to the sea,
and its shoots to the river.
13 Why have You broken down its fences,
so all who pass by the way pick its fruit?
14 A boar from the forest ravages it,
whatever moves in the field feeds on it.
15 Elohei-Tzva’ot, please return!
Look down from heaven and see!
Now take care of this vine—
16 the shoot Your right hand planted—
the son You strengthened for Yourself.
17 It is burned with fire, it is cut down.
They perish from the rebuke of Your face.
18 Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand—
the son of man
You made strong for Yourself.
19 Then we will not turn away from You.
Revive us, and we will call on Your Name.
20 Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot, restore us.
Make Your face shine, and we will be saved.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.