M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

The Israelites Punish the Tribe of Benjamin

20 Then all the Israelites came out. They came from the whole land between Dan and Beersheba. They also came from the land of Gilead. All of them gathered together in front of the Lord at Mizpah. ² The leaders of all the tribes of Israel came. They took their places among the people of God gathered together. There were 400,000 men carrying swords. ³ The tribe of Benjamin heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah. The Israelites said, “Tell us how this awful thing happened.”

⁴ So the Levite spoke. He was the husband of the woman who had been murdered. He said, “I and my concubine went to Gibeah in Benjamin. We spent the night there. ⁵ During the night the men of Gibeah came after me. They surrounded the house. They were planning to kill me. They raped my concubine, and she died. ⁶ I took my concubine and cut her into pieces. I sent one piece to each part of Israel’s territory. I did it because the men of Gibeah had done a very terrible thing in Israel. ⁷ All you men of Israel, speak up now. Tell me what you have decided to do.”

⁸ All the men got up together. They said, “None of us will go home. Not one of us will return to his house. ⁹ Here is what we’ll do to Gibeah. We’ll cast lots to tell us how to attack the city. ¹⁰ We’ll take ten men out of every 100 from all the tribes of Israel. We’ll take 100 from every 1,000. We’ll take 1,000 from every 10,000. The men we take will get supplies for the army. Then the army will go to Gibeah in Benjamin. They’ll give Gibeah exactly what they should get because of the terrible thing they did in Israel.” ¹¹ So all the men of Israel came together to fight against the city.

¹² The tribes of Israel sent people to carry a message through the whole tribe of Benjamin. They said, “What about this awful crime that was committed among you? ¹³ Hand over to us those evil men of Gibeah. We’ll put them to death. In that way we’ll get rid of those evil people.”

But the people of Benjamin wouldn’t listen to the other Israelites. ¹⁴ They came together at Gibeah from their towns. They came to fight against the other Israelites. ¹⁵ Right away the people of Benjamin gathered together 26,000 men from their towns. They were carrying swords. These men were added to the 700 capable young men from Gibeah. ¹⁶ Among all these men there were 700 who were left-handed. Each of them could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.

¹⁷ Israel gathered 400,000 men together. They were carrying swords. All of them were trained for battle. That number didn’t include the tribe of Benjamin.

¹⁸ The Israelites went up to Bethel. There they asked God, “Who should go up first and fight against the people of Benjamin?”

The Lord answered, “The tribe of Judah will go first.”

¹⁹ The next morning the Israelites got up. They set up camp near Gibeah. ²⁰ The Israelites went out to fight against the men of Benjamin. They took up their battle positions against them at Gibeah. ²¹ The men of Benjamin came out of Gibeah. They killed 22,000 Israelites on the field of battle that day. ²² But the Israelites cheered one another on. They again took up their positions in the places where they had been the first day. ²³ The Israelites went and wept in front of the Lord until evening. They asked the Lord, “Should we go up again to fight against the men of Benjamin? They are our fellow Israelites.”

The Lord answered, “Go up and fight against them.”

²⁴ The Israelites came near the men of Benjamin on the second day. ²⁵ The men of Benjamin came out from Gibeah to oppose them. That time they killed 18,000 more Israelites. All the men who died had been carrying swords.

²⁶ Then all the Israelites, the whole army, went up to Bethel. They sat there and wept in front of the Lord. They didn’t eat anything that day until evening. Then they brought burnt offerings and friendship offerings to the Lord. ²⁷ Again the Israelites spoke to the Lord. In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there. ²⁸ Phinehas was serving as priest at the ark. He was the son of Eleazar. Eleazar was the son of Aaron. The Israelites asked, “Should we go up again to fight against the men of Benjamin? They are our fellow Israelites.”

The Lord answered, “Go. Tomorrow I will hand them over to you.”

²⁹ Then Israel hid some men and had them wait all around Gibeah. ³⁰ They went up to fight against the men of Benjamin on the third day. They took up their positions against Gibeah, just as they had done before. ³¹ The men of Benjamin came out to fight against them. They were drawn away from the city. They began to wound and kill the Israelites just as they had done before. About 30 men fell in battle. They fell in the open fields and on the roads. One of the roads led to Bethel. The other led to Gibeah. ³² The men of Benjamin said, “We’re winning the battle over them, just as we did before.” But the men of Israel said, “Let’s pull back. Let’s draw them away from the city to the roads.”

³³ All the men of Israel moved away from their places. They took up new battle positions at Baal Tamar. The men who had been hiding charged out. They came from west of Gibeah. ³⁴ Then 10,000 of Israel’s capable young men attacked Gibeah. The men of Benjamin didn’t realize they were about to be destroyed. The fighting was very heavy. ³⁵ The Lord helped Israel win the battle over Benjamin. On that day the Israelites struck down 25,100 men of Benjamin. All the men who died had been carrying swords. ³⁶ Then the men of Benjamin saw that they had lost the battle.

The men of Israel had moved away from their positions in front of Benjamin. They had depended on the men they had hidden near Gibeah. ³⁷ Suddenly those men who had been hiding rushed into Gibeah. They spread out. Then they killed everyone in the city with their swords. ³⁸ The Israelites had made a plan with those who had been hiding. They had told them to send up a large cloud of smoke from the city. ³⁹ Then the Israelites would turn around and attack.

The men of Benjamin had begun to wound and kill the men of Israel. They had struck down about 30 of them. They had said, “We’re winning the battle over them, just as we did the first time.” ⁴⁰ But a large cloud of smoke began to go up from the city. The men of Benjamin turned around. They saw the whole city going up in smoke. ⁴¹ Then the Israelites turned around and attacked them. The men of Benjamin were terrified. They realized they were going to be destroyed. ⁴² So they ran away from the men of Israel. They ran toward the desert. But they couldn’t escape the battle. Other Israelites came out of the towns. There they struck down the men of Benjamin. ⁴³ Here’s how it happened. The Israelites had surrounded them. They had chased them and easily caught up with them east of Gibeah. ⁴⁴ So 18,000 men of Benjamin fell in battle. All of them were brave fighters. ⁴⁵ Some men of Benjamin turned back. They ran toward the desert to the rock of Rimmon. As they did, the Israelites struck down 5,000 of them along the roads. They kept chasing the men of Benjamin all the way to Gidom. Along the way they struck down 2,000 more.

⁴⁶ On that day 25,000 men of Benjamin fell in battle. They had been carrying swords. All of them were brave fighters. ⁴⁷ But 600 of them turned back. They ran into the desert to the rock of Rimmon. They stayed there for four months. ⁴⁸ The men of Israel went back to Benjamin. In all the towns they killed the people with their swords. They even killed the animals. So they killed everything they found. They set on fire all the towns they came to.

Paul’s Trial in Front of Felix

24 Five days later Ananias the high priest went down to Caesarea. Some elders and a lawyer named Tertullus went with him. They brought their charges against Paul to the governor. ² So Paul was called in. Tertullus began to bring the charges against Paul. He said to Felix, “We have enjoyed a long time of peace while you have been ruling. You are a wise leader. You have made this a better nation. ³ Most excellent Felix, we gladly admit this everywhere and in every way. And we are very thankful. ⁴ I don’t want to bother you. But would you be kind enough to listen to us for a short time?

⁵ “We have found that Paul is a troublemaker. This man stirs up trouble among Jews all over the world. He is a leader of those who follow Jesus of Nazareth. ^6-7 He even tried to make our temple impure. So we arrested him. ⁸ Question him yourself. Then you will learn the truth about all these charges we are bringing against him.”

⁹ The other Jews said the same thing. They agreed that the charges were true.

¹⁰ The governor motioned for Paul to speak. Paul said, “I know that you have been a judge over this nation for quite a few years. So I am glad to explain my actions to you. ¹¹ About 12 days ago I went up to Jerusalem to worship. You can easily check on this. ¹² Those bringing charges against me did not find me arguing with anyone at the temple. I wasn’t stirring up a crowd in the synagogues or anywhere else in the city. ¹³ They can’t prove to you any of the charges they are making against me. ¹⁴ It is true that I worship the God of our people. I am a follower of the Way of Jesus. Those bringing charges against me call it a cult. I believe everything that is in keeping with the Law. I believe everything that is in keeping with what is written in the Prophets. ¹⁵ I have the same hope in God that these men themselves have. I believe that both the godly and the ungodly will rise from the dead. ¹⁶ So I always try not to do anything wrong in the eyes of God or in the eyes of people.

¹⁷ “I was away for several years. Then I came to Jerusalem to bring my people gifts for those who were poor. I also came to offer sacrifices. ¹⁸ They found me doing this in the temple courtyard. I had already been made pure and ‘clean’ in the usual way. There was no crowd with me. I didn’t stir up any trouble. ¹⁹ But there are some other Jews who should be here in front of you. They are from Asia Minor. They should bring charges if they have anything against me. ²⁰ Let the Jews who are here tell you what crime I am guilty of. After all, I was put on trial by the Sanhedrin. ²¹ Perhaps they blame me for what I said when I was on trial. I shouted, ‘I believe that people will rise from the dead. That is why I am on trial here today.’ ”

²² Felix knew all about the Way of Jesus. So he put off the trial for the time being. “Lysias the commanding officer will come,” he said. “Then I will decide your case.” ²³ He ordered the commander to keep Paul under guard. He told him to give Paul some freedom. He also told him to allow Paul’s friends to take care of his needs.

²⁴ Several days later Felix came with his wife Drusilla. She was a Jew. Felix sent for Paul and listened to him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. ²⁵ Paul talked about how to live a godly life. He talked about how people should control themselves. He also talked about the time when God will judge everyone. Then Felix became afraid. “That’s enough for now!” he said. “You may leave. When I find the time, I will send for you.” ²⁶ He was hoping that Paul would offer him some money to let him go. So he often sent for Paul and talked with him.

²⁷ Two years passed. Porcius Festus took the place of Felix. But Felix wanted to do the Jews a favor. So he left Paul in prison.

Zedekiah Is Warned

34 Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and all his armies were fighting against Jerusalem. They were also fighting against all the towns around it. All the kingdoms and nations Nebuchadnezzar ruled over were helping him. At that time a message from the Lord came to Jeremiah. The Lord said, ² “I am the Lord, the God of Israel. Go to Zedekiah, the king of Judah. Tell him, ‘The Lord says, “I am about to hand this city over to the king of Babylon. He will burn it down. ³ You will not escape from his power. You will certainly be captured. You will be handed over to him. You will see the king of Babylon with your own eyes. He will speak with you face to face. And you will go to Babylon.

⁴ “ ‘ “But listen to the Lord’s promise to you, Zedekiah king of Judah. I say that you will not be killed by a sword. ⁵ You will die in a peaceful way. People made fires to honor the kings who died before you. In the same way, they will make a fire in your honor. They will mourn for you. They will say, ‘My poor master!’ I myself make this promise,” announces the Lord.’ ”

⁶ Then Jeremiah the prophet told all this to King Zedekiah in Jerusalem. ⁷ At that time Nebuchadnezzar’s armies were fighting against Jerusalem. They were also fighting against Lachish and Azekah. These two cities were still holding out. They were the only cities left in Judah that had high walls around them.

The People Set Their Slaves Free

⁸ A message from the Lord came to Jeremiah. King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem. He had told them to set their Hebrew slaves free. ⁹ All of them had to do this. That applied to male and female slaves alike. No one was allowed to hold another Hebrew as a slave. ¹⁰ So all the officials and people entered into this covenant. They agreed to set their male and female slaves free. They agreed not to hold them as slaves anymore. Instead, they set them free. ¹¹ But later they changed their minds. They took back the people they had set free. They made them slaves again.

¹² Then a message from the Lord came to Jeremiah. ¹³ The Lord is the God of Israel. He says, “I made a covenant with your people of long ago. I brought them out of Egypt. That is the land where they were slaves. I said, ¹⁴ ‘Every seventh year you must set your people free. Each of you must set free all the Hebrews who have sold themselves to you. Let them serve you for six years. Then you must let them go free.’ (Deuteronomy 15:12) But your people of long ago did not listen to me. They did not pay any attention to me. ¹⁵ Recently you turned away from your sins. You did what is right in my eyes. Each of you set your Hebrew slaves free. You even made a covenant in front of me. You did it in the house where I have put my Name. ¹⁶ But now you have turned around. You have treated my name as if it were not holy. Each of you has taken back your male and female slaves. You had set them free to go where they wished. But now you have forced them to become your slaves again.”

¹⁷ So the Lord says, “You have not obeyed me. You have not set your Hebrew slaves free. So now I will set you free,” announces the Lord. “I will set you free to be destroyed by war, plague and hunger. I will make all the kingdoms on earth displeased with you. ¹⁸ Those people who have broken my covenant will be punished. They have not lived up to the terms of the covenant they made in front of me. When you made that covenant, you cut a calf in two. Then you walked between its pieces. Now I will cut you to pieces. ¹⁹ That includes all of you who walked between the pieces of the calf. It includes the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials and the priests. It also includes some of the people of the land. ²⁰ So I will hand over all those people to their enemies who want to kill them. Their dead bodies will become food for the birds and the wild animals.

²¹ “I will hand over King Zedekiah and his officials to their enemies. I will hand them over to those who want to kill them. I will hand them over to the armies of the king of Babylon. They have now pulled back from you. ²² But I am going to give an order,” announces the Lord. “I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against it. They will capture it and burn it down. And I will completely destroy the towns of Judah. No one will be able to live there.”

For the director of music. A psalm of David to be played on flutes.

For the director of music. According to sheminith. A psalm of David to be played on stringed instruments.