M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Responses to Saul’s Death
1 After the death of Saul,(A) David returned from defeating the Amalekites(B) and stayed at Ziklag two days. 2 On the third day a man with torn clothes and dust on his head(C) came from Saul’s camp. When he came to David, he fell to the ground and paid homage. 3 David asked him, “Where have you come from?”
He replied to him, “I’ve escaped from the Israelite camp.”
4 “What was the outcome? Tell me,” David asked him.
“The troops fled from the battle,” he answered. “Many of the troops have fallen and are dead. Also, Saul and his son Jonathan are dead.”(D)
5 David asked the young man who had brought him the report, “How do you know Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?”
6 “I happened to be on Mount Gilboa,”(E) he replied, “and there was Saul, leaning on his spear. At that very moment the chariots and the cavalry were closing in on him. 7 When he turned around and saw me, he called out to me, so I answered: I’m at your service. 8 He asked me, ‘Who are you?’ I told him: I’m an Amalekite.(F) 9 Then he begged me, ‘Stand over me and kill me, for I’m mortally wounded,[a] but my life still lingers.’(G) 10 So I stood over him and killed him because I knew that after he had fallen he couldn’t survive. I took the crown that was on his head and the armband that was on his arm, and I’ve brought them here to my lord.”
11 Then David took hold of his clothes and tore them,(H) and all the men with him did the same. 12 They mourned, wept, and fasted until the evening(I) for those who died by the sword—for Saul, his son Jonathan, the Lord’s people, and the house of Israel.
13 David inquired of the young man who had brought him the report, “Where are you from?”
“I’m the son of a foreigner,” he said. “I’m an Amalekite.”
14 David questioned him, “How is it that you were not afraid to lift your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?”(J) 15 Then David summoned one of his servants and said, “Come here and kill him!” The servant struck him, and he died.(K) 16 For David had said to the Amalekite, “Your blood is on your own head(L) because your own mouth testified against you by saying, ‘I killed the Lord’s anointed.’”
17 David sang the following lament(M) for Saul and his son Jonathan, 18 and he ordered that the Judahites be taught The Song of the Bow. It is written in the Book of Jashar:[b](N)
19 The splendor of Israel lies slain on your heights.
How the mighty have fallen!
20 Do not tell it in Gath,
don’t announce it in the marketplaces of Ashkelon,
or the daughters of the Philistines will rejoice,(O)
and the daughters of the uncircumcised will gloat.
21 Mountains of Gilboa,
let no dew or rain be on you,
or fields of offerings,[c]
for there the shield of the mighty was defiled(P)—
the shield of Saul, no longer anointed with oil.(Q)
22 Jonathan’s bow never retreated,
Saul’s sword never returned unstained,[d]
from the blood of the slain,
from the bodies of the mighty.
23 Saul and Jonathan,
loved and delightful,
they were not parted in life or in death.
They were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions.
24 Daughters of Israel, weep for Saul,
who clothed you in scarlet, with luxurious things,
who decked your garments with gold ornaments.(R)
25 How the mighty have fallen in the thick of battle!
Jonathan lies slain on your heights.
26 I grieve for you, Jonathan, my brother.
You were such a friend to me.
Your love for me was more wonderful
than the love of women.(S)
27 How the mighty have fallen
and the weapons of war have perished!
Diversity of Spiritual Gifts
12 Now concerning what comes from the Spirit:[a] brothers, I do not want you to be unaware. 2 You know that when you were pagans, you used to be led off to the idols(A) that could not speak.(B) 3 Therefore I am informing you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
4 Now there are different gifts,(C) but the same Spirit. 5 There are different ministries, but the same Lord. 6 And there are different activities, but the same God activates each gift in each person.[b] 7 A demonstration of the Spirit is given to each person(D) to produce what is beneficial:
8 to one(E) is given a message of wisdom(F)
through the Spirit,
to another, a message of knowledge
by the same Spirit,
9 to another, faith by the same Spirit,
to another, gifts of healing(G) by the one Spirit,
10 to another, the performing of miracles,(H)
to another, prophecy,(I)
to another, distinguishing between spirits,(J)
to another, different kinds of languages,
to another, interpretation of languages.
11 But one and the same Spirit is active in all these, distributing to each person as He wills.
Unity Yet Diversity in the Body
12 For as the body is one(K) and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ.(L) 13 For we were all baptized by[c] one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.(M) 14 So the body is not one part but many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I’m not a hand, I don’t belong to the body,” in spite of this it still belongs to the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I’m not an eye, I don’t belong to the body,” in spite of this it still belongs to the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has placed each one of the parts in one body just as He wanted.(N) 19 And if they were all the same part, where would the body be? 20 Now there are many parts, yet one body.
21 So the eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” Or again, the head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 But even more, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are necessary. 23 And those parts of the body that we think to be less honorable,(O) we clothe these with greater honor, and our unpresentable parts have a better presentation. 24 But our presentable parts have no need of clothing. Instead, God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the less honorable, 25 so that there would be no division(P) in the body, but that the members would have the same concern for each other. 26 So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.
27 Now you are the body of Christ,(Q) and individual members of it. 28 And God has placed these in the church:(R)
first apostles, second prophets,
third teachers,(S) next miracles,(T)
then gifts of healing,(U) helping,
managing, various kinds of languages.
29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets?
Are all teachers? Do all do miracles?
30 Do all have gifts of healing?
Do all speak in other languages?
Do all interpret?(V)
31 But desire(W) the greater gifts. And I will show you an even better way.
God’s Glory Leaves the Temple
10 Then I looked, and there above the expanse over the heads(A) of the cherubim was something like sapphire[a] stone resembling the shape of a throne that appeared above them. 2 The Lord spoke to the man clothed in linen and said, “Go inside the wheelwork beneath the cherubim. Fill your hands with hot coals from among the cherubim and scatter them over the city.”(B) So he went in as I watched.
3 Now the cherubim were standing to the south of the temple when the man went in, and the cloud(C) filled the inner court.(D) 4 Then the glory of the Lord rose from above the cherub to the threshold of the temple.(E) The temple was filled with the cloud,(F) and the court was filled with the brightness of the Lord’s glory.(G) 5 The sound of the cherubim’s wings could be heard as far as the outer court; it was like the voice of God Almighty when He speaks.
6 After the Lord commanded the man clothed in linen, saying, “Take fire from inside the wheelwork, from among the cherubim,” the man went in and stood beside a wheel. 7 Then the cherub reached out his hand to the fire that was among them. He took some, and put it into the hands of the man clothed in linen, who took it and went out. 8 The cherubim appeared to have the form of human hands under their wings.(H)
9 I looked, and there were four wheels beside the cherubim,(I) one wheel beside each cherub. The luster of the wheels was like the gleam of beryl.(J) 10 In appearance, all four had the same form, like a wheel within a wheel. 11 When they moved, they would go in any of the four directions,(K) without pivoting as they moved. But wherever the head faced, they would go in that direction,[b] without pivoting as they went. 12 Their entire bodies,(L) including their backs, hands, wings, and the wheels that the four of them had, were full of eyes all around.(M) 13 As I listened the wheels were called “the wheelwork.” 14 Each one had four faces:(N) the first face was that of a cherub, the second that of a man, the third that of a lion, and the fourth that of an eagle.
15 The cherubim ascended; these were the living creatures I had seen by the Chebar Canal.(O) 16 When the cherubim moved, the wheels moved beside them, and when they lifted their wings to rise from the earth, even then the wheels did not veer away from them. 17 When the cherubim stood still,(P) the wheels stood still, and when they ascended, the wheels ascended with them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in them.
18 Then the glory of the Lord moved away from the threshold of the temple(Q) and stood above the cherubim.(R) 19 The cherubim lifted their wings and ascended from the earth right before my eyes;(S) the wheels were beside them as they went. The glory of the God of Israel was above them, and it stood at the entrance to the eastern gate of the Lord’s house.
20 These were the living creatures I had seen(T) beneath the God of Israel by the Chebar Canal,(U) and I recognized that they were cherubim. 21 Each had four faces and each had four wings,(V) with the form of human hands under their wings. 22 Their faces looked like the same faces I had seen(W) by the Chebar Canal. Each creature went straight ahead.
Psalm 49
Misplaced Trust in Wealth
For the choir director. A psalm of the sons of Korah.
1 Hear this, all you peoples;
listen, all who inhabit the world,(A)
2 both low and high,[a]
rich and poor together.(B)
3 My mouth speaks wisdom;
my heart’s meditation brings understanding.(C)
4 I turn my ear to a proverb;
I explain my riddle with a lyre.(D)
5 Why should I fear in times of trouble?
The iniquity of my foes surrounds me.(E)
6 They trust in their wealth
and boast of their abundant riches.(F)
7 Yet these cannot redeem a person[b]
or pay his ransom to God(G)—
8 since the price of redeeming him is too costly,
one should forever stop trying[c](H)—
9 so that he may live forever
and not see the Pit.(I)
10 For one can see that wise men die;
foolish and stupid men also pass away.(J)
Then they leave their wealth to others.(K)
11 Their graves are their eternal homes,[d]
their homes from generation to generation,
though they have named estates after themselves.(L)
12 But despite his assets,[e] man will not last;
he is like the animals that perish.(M)
13 This is the way of those who are arrogant,
and of their followers,
who approve of their words.[f](N)
14 Like sheep they are headed for Sheol;
Death will shepherd them.
The upright will rule over them in the morning,(O)
and their form will waste away in Sheol,[g]
far from their lofty abode.(P)
15 But God will redeem my life
from the power of Sheol,
for He will take me.(Q)
16 Do not be afraid when a man gets rich,
when the wealth[h] of his house increases.(R)
17 For when he dies, he will take nothing at all;
his wealth[i] will not follow him down.(S)
18 Though he praises himself during his lifetime—
and people praise you when you do well for yourself(T)—
19 he will go to the generation of his fathers;
they will never see the light.(U)
20 A man with valuable possessions[j]
but without understanding
is like the animals that perish.(V)
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