M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
36 1 The people of the land went and got Jehoahaz. He was the son of Josiah. The people made Jehoahaz king in Jerusalem in place of his father.
Jehoahaz King of Judah
2 Jehoahaz was 23 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for three months. 3 The king of Egypt removed him from his throne in Jerusalem. The king of Egypt made the people of Judah pay him a huge tax. The tax was almost four tons of silver and 75 pounds of gold. 4 Necho, the king of Egypt, made Eliakim king over Judah and Jerusalem. Eliakim was a brother of Jehoahaz. Necho changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. But Necho took Eliakim’s brother Jehoahaz with him to Egypt.
Jehoiakim King of Judah
5 Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 11 years. He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord his God. 6 Nebuchadnezzar attacked him. Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. He put Jehoiakim in bronze chains. And he took him to Babylon. 7 Nebuchadnezzar also took to Babylon objects from the Lord’s temple. He put them in his own temple there.
8 The other events of Jehoiakim’s rule are written in the records of the kings of Israel and Judah. He did things the Lord hated. Those things and everything that happened to him are also written in those records. Jehoiakim’s son Jehoiachin became the next king after him.
Jehoiachin King of Judah
9 Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for three months and ten days. He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord. 10 In the spring, King Nebuchadnezzar sent for him. He brought him to Babylon. He also brought things of value from the Lord’s temple. He made Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem. Zedekiah was Jehoiachin’s uncle.
Zedekiah King of Judah
11 Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 11 years. 12 He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord his God. He didn’t pay any attention to the message the Lord spoke through Jeremiah the prophet. 13 Zedekiah also refused to remain under the control of King Nebuchadnezzar. The king had forced Zedekiah to make a promise in God’s name. But Zedekiah’s heart became very stubborn. He wouldn’t turn to the Lord, the God of Israel. 14 And that’s not all. The people and all the leaders of the priests became more and more unfaithful. They followed all the practices of the nations. The Lord hated those practices. The people and leaders made the Lord’s temple “unclean.” The Lord had set the temple in Jerusalem apart in a special way for himself.
The Fall of Jerusalem
15 The Lord, the God of Israel, sent word to his people through his messengers. He sent it to them again and again. He took pity on his people. He also took pity on the temple where he lived. 16 But God’s people made fun of his messengers. They hated his words. They laughed at his prophets. Finally the Lord’s great anger was stirred up against his people. Nothing could save them. 17 The Lord brought the king of the Babylonians against them. The Babylonian army killed their young people with their swords at the temple. They didn’t spare young men or young women. They didn’t spare the old people or weak people either. God handed all of them over to Nebuchadnezzar. 18 Nebuchadnezzar carried off to Babylon all the objects from God’s temple. Some of those things were large. Others were small. He carried off the treasures of the temple. He also carried off the treasures that belonged to the king and his officials. 19 The Babylonians set God’s temple on fire. They broke down the wall of Jerusalem. They burned all the palaces. They destroyed everything of value there.
20 Nebuchadnezzar took the rest of the people to Babylon as prisoners. They had escaped from being killed by swords. They served him and those who ruled after him. That lasted until the kingdom of Persia came to power. 21 The land of Israel enjoyed its sabbath years. It rested. That deserted land wasn’t farmed for a full 70 years. What the Lord had spoken through Jeremiah came true.
22 It was the first year of the rule of Cyrus. He was king of Persia. The Lord inspired him to send a message all through his kingdom. It happened so that what the Lord had spoken through Jeremiah would come true. The message was written down. It said,
23 “Cyrus, the king of Persia, says,
“ ‘The Lord is the God of heaven. He has given me all the kingdoms on earth. He has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem. And may the Lord their God be with them.’ ”
The Earth Is Made Like New Again
22 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life. It was as clear as crystal. It flowed from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 It flowed down the middle of the city’s main street. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing 12 crops of fruit. Its fruit was ripe every month. The leaves of the tree bring healing to the nations. 3 There will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city. God’s servants will serve him. 4 They will see his face. His name will be on their foreheads. 5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun. The Lord God will give them light. They will rule for ever and ever.
John and the Angel
6 The angel said to me, “You can trust these words. They are true. The Lord is the God who gives messages to the prophets. He sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”
7 “Look! I am coming soon! Words of prophecy are written in this book. Blessed is the person who obeys them.”
8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. After that, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel. He is the one who had been showing me these things. 9 But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I serve God, just as you do. I am God’s servant, just like the other prophets. And I serve God along with all who obey the words of this book. Worship God!”
10 Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy in this book. These things are about to happen. 11 Let the person who does wrong keep on doing wrong. Let the evil person continue to be evil. Let the person who does right keep on doing what is right. And let the holy person continue to be holy.”
The Revelation Ends With Warnings and Blessings
12 “Look! I am coming soon! I bring my rewards with me. I will reward each person for what they have done. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega. I am the First and the Last. I am the Beginning and the End.
14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes. They will have the right to come to the tree of life. They will be allowed to go through the gates into the city. 15 Outside the city are those who are impure. These people include those who practice witchcraft. Outside are also those who commit sexual sins and murder. Outside are those who worship statues of gods. And outside is everyone who loves and does what is false.
16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this witness for the churches. I am the Root and the Son of David. I am the bright Morning Star.”
17 The Holy Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And the person who hears should say, “Come!” Anyone who is thirsty should come. Anyone who wants to take the free gift of the water of life should do so.
18 I am warning everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book. Suppose someone adds anything to them. Then God will add to that person the plagues told about in this book. 19 Suppose someone takes away any words from this book of prophecy. Then God will take away from that person the blessings told about in this book. God will take away their share in the tree of life. God will also take away their place in the Holy City.
20 Jesus is a witness about these things. He says, “Yes. I am coming soon.”
Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21 May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.
The Day of the Lord Is Coming
4 “You can be sure the day of the Lord is coming. My anger will burn like a furnace. All those who are proud will be like straw. So will all those who do what is evil. The day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord who rules over all. “Not even a root or a branch will be left to them. 2 But here is what will happen for you who have respect for me. The sun that brings life will rise. Its rays will bring healing to my people. You will go out and leap for joy like calves that have just been fed. 3 Then you will stomp on sinful people. They will be like ashes under your feet. That will happen on the day I judge,” says the Lord.
4 “Remember the law my servant Moses gave you. Remember the rules and laws I gave him at Mount Horeb. They were for the whole nation of Israel.
5 “I will send the prophet Elijah to you. He will come before the day of the Lord arrives. It will be a great and terrifying day. 6 Elijah will bring peace between parents and their children. He will also bring peace between children and their parents. If that does not happen, I will come. And I will completely destroy the land.”
Jesus and the Miracle of Many Fish
21 After this, Jesus appeared to his disciples again. It was by the Sea of Galilee. Here is what happened. 2 Simon Peter and Thomas, who was also called Didymus, were there together. Nathanael from Cana in Galilee and the sons of Zebedee were with them. So were two other disciples. 3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them. They said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat. That night they didn’t catch anything.
4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore. But the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 He called out to them, “Friends, don’t you have any fish?”
“No,” they answered.
6 He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat. There you will find some fish.” When they did, they could not pull the net into the boat. There were too many fish in it.
7 Then the disciple Jesus loved said to Simon Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Peter heard that, he put his coat on. He had taken it off earlier. Then he jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat. They were towing the net full of fish. The shore was only about 100 yards away. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals. There were fish on it. There was also some bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat. He dragged the net to shore. It was full of large fish. There were 153 of them. But even with that many fish the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them. He did the same thing with the fish. 14 This was the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Jesus Gives Peter His Task
15 When Jesus and the disciples had finished eating, Jesus spoke to Simon Peter. He asked, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these others do?”
“Yes, Lord,” he answered. “You know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
16 Again Jesus asked, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord. You know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
17 Jesus spoke to him a third time. He asked, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Peter felt bad because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He answered, “Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. 18 What I’m about to tell you is true. When you were younger, you dressed yourself. You went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands. Someone else will dress you. Someone else will lead you where you do not want to go.” 19 Jesus said this to point out how Peter would die. His death would bring glory to God. Then Jesus said to him, “Follow me!”
20 Peter turned around. He saw that the disciple Jesus loved was following them. He was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper. He had said, “Lord, who is going to hand you over to your enemies?” 21 When Peter saw that disciple, he asked, “Lord, what will happen to him?”
22 Jesus answered, “Suppose I want him to remain alive until I return. What does that matter to you? You must follow me.” 23 Because of what Jesus said, a false report spread among the believers. The story was told that the disciple Jesus loved wouldn’t die. But Jesus did not say he would not die. He only said, “Suppose I want him to remain alive until I return. What does that matter to you?”
24 This is the disciple who is a witness about these things. He also wrote them down. We know that what he says is true.
25 Jesus also did many other things. What if every one of them were written down? I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.
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