M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
16 David moved a little beyond the summit. There Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, met him with a string of saddled donkeys. On them there were two hundred loaves of bread, one hundred cakes of raisins, one hundred cakes of summer fruit, and a container[a] of wine.
2 The king said to Ziba, “Why do you have these?”
Ziba said, “The donkeys are for the household of the king to ride on. The bread and fruit are for the young men to eat. The wine is to provide something to drink for those who become exhausted in the wilderness.”
3 The king said, “So where is the grandson of your master?”
Ziba said to the king, “Well, he is staying in Jerusalem because he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will return the kingdom of my grandfather to me.’”
4 The king said to Ziba, “All right then. Everything that was Mephibosheth’s belongs to you.”
Ziba said, “I bow down before you. May I find favor in your sight, my lord the king.”
5 King David came to Bahurim. There he was confronted by a man from the family of the house of Saul. His name was Shimei son of Gera. He was rushing out and calling down curses. 6 He threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David, as well as at all the people and all the warriors on David’s right and on his left. 7 This is what Shimei said as he cursed: “Get out! Get out, you bloody, worthless man! 8 The Lord has avenged upon you all the blood of the house of Saul, whom you replaced as king. The Lord has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. Just look at you now, sunk in disaster, because you are a bloody man.”
9 Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please let me go over and take off his head.”
10 The king said, “What do you and I have in common, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the Lord has told him, ‘Curse David,’ then who can say, ‘Why have you done this?’” 11 Then David said to Abishai and to all his followers, “Listen to me! My son, who came from my own body, is seeking my life. How much more now, this Benjaminite! Leave him alone. Let him curse. Perhaps the Lord has told him to do so. 12 Perhaps the Lord will look on my misery and will return something good to me in exchange for his cursing this day.”
13 So David and his men kept traveling down the road, and Shimei kept following along, on the side of the hill opposite him, walking along, cursing, throwing stones, and flinging dirt at him.
14 The king and all the people who were with him traveled until they became exhausted, and then they stopped in order to recover.
Absalom’s Plans
15 Absalom and all the people, the men of Israel, arrived at Jerusalem. Ahithophel was with him.
16 When Hushai the Arkite, David’s confidant, came to Absalom, Hushai said to Absalom, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”
17 Absalom said to Hushai, “Is this your loyalty for your friend? Why didn’t you go with your friend?”
18 Hushai said to Absalom, “No. The person who has been chosen by the Lord, by this people, and by all the men of Israel—this is the one with whom I will be and with whom I will remain. 19 Besides, whom should I serve if not the king’s son? As I have served your father, so I will serve you.”
20 Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give us your advice. What should we do?”
21 Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go to your father’s concubines, whom he has left to watch over the palace. Let all Israel hear that you have become disgusting to your father, so that the hands of all who are with you may be strengthened.”
22 So they pitched a tent on the roof for Absalom, and Absalom went to[b] his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.
23 In those days the advice that Ahithophel gave was viewed as if it had come from God. All the advice of Ahithophel was viewed that way, both by David and also by Absalom.
Christian Giving
9 It is really not necessary for me to write to you about the service to the saints, 2 because I know your eagerness. I am boasting about it on your behalf to the Macedonians, saying that Achaia has been ready since last year. Your zeal has stirred up many of them. 3 But I am sending the brothers so that our boasting on your behalf will not prove to be empty in this case, but that you will be prepared just as I have been saying. 4 Otherwise, if any Macedonians come along with me and find you unprepared, we (to say nothing of you) would be ashamed of this confidence.[a] 5 That is why I considered it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you in advance, and to arrange ahead of time the expression of praise that you previously promised, so that it may be ready as an expression of praise, not of grudging selfishness.
6 This is what I mean: The one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. The one who sows generously[b] will also reap generously. 7 Each one should give as he has determined in his heart, not reluctantly or under pressure, for God loves a cheerful giver.
God Provides
8 God is able to make all grace overflow to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will overflow in every good work. 9 As it is written:
He scattered; he gave to the poor.
His righteousness remains forever.[c]
10 And he who provides seed to the sower and bread for food will provide and multiply your seed for sowing, and will increase the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be made rich in every way so that you may be generous[d] in every way, which produces thanksgiving to God through us.
12 To be sure, the administration of this service is not only making up for what is lacking among the saints, but it is also overflowing in many prayers of thanksgiving to God. 13 By proving yourselves in this service, many people are glorifying God, as they see the obedience shown in your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity[e] shown in your sharing with them and all people. 14 At the same time as they pray for you, they also express their longing for you, because of the extraordinary measure of God’s grace given to you. 15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
Two Lewd Sisters Act Like Prostitutes
23 The word of the Lord came to me.
2 Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother. 3 They acted like prostitutes in Egypt, where they were prostitutes during their youth. There they let their breasts be fondled. There they let men caress their virgin nipples.[a]
4 The older sister was named Oholah, and her sister was named Oholibah.[b] They became mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. (As for their names, Samaria is Oholah and Jerusalem is Oholibah.)
5 Oholah acted like a prostitute instead of being faithful to me. She lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians—bodyguards 6 clothed in purple, governors and commanders, all of them desirable young men, cavalrymen riding horses.[c] 7 She bestowed her favors upon all the elite of the Assyrians, and along with all those for whom she lusted, she defiled herself with all their filthy idols. 8 She did not give up the whoring she had practiced since Egypt, when men lay down with her during her youth. They caressed her virgin nipples and poured out their lust upon her. 9 Therefore, I delivered her into the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the Assyrians, after whom she had lusted. 10 They exposed her nakedness. They took away her sons and her daughters and killed her with the sword. She became notorious among women because of the punishments they inflicted upon her.
11 Although her sister Oholibah saw this, she behaved even more obscenely and lustfully than her sister, and her lustful whoring was even worse than her sister’s whoring. 12 She lusted after the Assyrians—governors, commanders, bodyguards in full uniform, and cavalrymen riding horses, all of them desirable young men. 13 Then I saw that she too had defiled herself. Both of them had gone the same way. 14 In fact, Oholibah intensified her whoring by looking at figures of men engraved on the wall, images of Chaldeans incised in bright red, 15 with belts around their waists and flowing turbans on their heads. All of them looked like elite officers, like Babylonians whose native land was Chaldea. 16 At the mere sight of them she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea. 17 The Babylonians came to her bed to make love, and they defiled her by acting like whores themselves. But after she had been defiled by them, she tore herself away from them in disgust. 18 Because she had acted like a whore so openly and exposed her nakedness, I tore myself away from her in disgust, just as I had turned away from her sister in disgust. 19 Yet she increased her whoring. She remembered the days of her youth when she acted like a prostitute in the land of Egypt. 20 She lusted after her paramours, whose genitals[d] were like the genitals of donkeys and whose ejaculation was like the ejaculation of horses. 21 So you revisited the lewdness of your youth when your nipples were caressed in Egypt, and your young breasts were fondled.[e]
22 Therefore, Oholibah, this is what the Lord God says. Hear this loud and clear! I am about to rouse your lovers against you, those you had turned away from in disgust. I will bring them against you from all sides: 23 the sons of the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, Pekod, Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them, desirable young men, governors and commanders all of them, elite officers and men of high rank, all of them riding on horses. 24 They will come against you with weapons, chariots, and wagons, and with a horde of people. With shields, armor,[f] and helmets they will take up positions against you on all sides.
I will give you up to them for judgment, and they will judge you according to their own standards. 25 I will turn my jealousy against you, and they will deal with you in wrath. They will cut off your nose and your ears, and your survivors will fall by the sword. They will take away your sons and your daughters, and your survivors will be devoured by fire. 26 They will strip you of your clothing and take away your beautiful jewelry. 27 I will put an end to your depravity and to the whoring you began in the land of Egypt. You will not lift up your eyes to them or remember Egypt anymore. 28 For this is what the Lord God says. Listen! I am about to deliver you into the hands of those you hate, into the hands of those you turned away from in disgust. 29 They will treat you hatefully. They will take away everything you have worked for and leave you completely naked. Your whorish nakedness will be exposed. Your depravity and your acts of prostitution 30 have brought those things upon you because of your whoring after the nations, because you defiled yourself with their filthy idols. 31 Because you walked in the way of your sister, I will put her cup into your hand.
32 This is what the Lord God says. You will drink your sister’s cup, a cup deep and wide. It will cause you derision and ridicule because it is so full. 33 You will be filled with drunkenness and grief by the cup of horror and devastation, the cup of your sister Samaria. 34 You will drink it and drain it. You will gnaw its broken pieces and tear your breasts. For I have spoken, declares the Lord God. 35 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says. Because you have forgotten me and cast me behind your back, you yourself must also bear the penalty of your depravity and your whoring.
36 The Lord also said this to me:
Son of man, will you bring charges against Oholah and Oholibah? Make their abominations known to them.
37 They have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands. They have committed adultery with their filthy idols. They have even offered up their children, whom they bore for me, to the idols as food.
38 What is more, they have done this to me: They defiled my sanctuary on the same day they desecrated my Sabbaths. 39 When they slaughtered their children for their filthy idols, they entered my sanctuary on that same day to defile it. Just look! This is what they did in my own house.
40 They even sent for men to come from far away, men to whom they had sent a messenger, and those men did come.
For them you[g] bathed. You applied eye shadow and put on your jewelry. 41 You sat on an expensive couch. In front of it you set a table, on which you placed my incense and my perfumed oil.
42 The noise of a carefree crowd surrounded her. In addition to the large throng of all kinds of men, they even brought drunkards[h] from the desert. They put bracelets on their arms and beautiful crowns on their heads. 43 Then I said about the woman worn out with adulteries, “Let them keep using her as a whore because that is what she is.”[i] 44 So they used her the way one uses a whore. So they used Oholah and Oholibah, those depraved women. 45 But righteous men will punish them with the punishment due to adulteresses, and the punishment due to murderers, for they are adulteresses, and blood is on their hands.
46 So this is what the Lord God says. I will bring an army against them and hand them over to terror and plunder. 47 The army will stone them and cut them down with their swords. They will slaughter their sons and daughters and burn down their houses with fire.
48 In this way I will remove depravity from the land, so that all women may take warning not to act in such a depraved way as you do. 49 They will impose upon you the penalty for your depravity, and you will bear the punishment for your sinful worship of your filthy idols. Then you will know that I am the Lord God.
Psalm 70
Hurry to Save Me
(Psalm 40:13-17)
Heading
For the choir director. By David. To bring to remembrance.
Hurry to Help Me
1 Hurry, God! Rescue me!
Lord, hurry to help me!
2 May those who seek my life be put to shame and disgrace.
May all who desire to harm me be turned back and disgraced.
3 May those who say, “Aha! We got you!” be dismayed,
because they have been put to shame.
4 But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you.
May those who love your salvation always say, “Let God be exalted!”
5 Yet I am oppressed and poor.
God, hurry to me. You are my help and my deliverer.
O Lord, do not delay.
Psalm 71
Do Not Throw Me Away When I Am Old
Opening Prayer
1 In you, Lord, I have taken refuge.
May I not be put to shame forever.
2 In your righteousness rescue me and deliver me.
Turn your ear to me and save me.
3 Be my rock and my refuge to which I can always go.
You give the command to save me,
because you are my high ridge and my stronghold.
4 My God, deliver me from the hand of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and the ruthless.
Remembrance of Past Help
5 For you have been my hope, Lord God,
my confidence since my youth.
6 I have depended on[a] you since I was in the womb.
You separated me from my mother’s body.
My praise to you is continuous.
Statement of Present Need
7 I am like an evil omen to many,
but you are my strong refuge.
8 My mouth is filled with praise for you
and with your splendor all day long.
Plea for Help in Present Trouble
9 Do not throw me away in old age.
As my strength fails, do not forsake me.
10 For my enemies speak against me,
and those who seek my life conspire together.
11 They say, “God has forsaken him.
Pursue him and seize him,
because there is no one to rescue him.”
12 God, do not be far from me.
My God, hurry to help me.
13 Let them be ashamed.
Let my murderous accusers be consumed.
Let those who seek to harm me be covered
with shame and disgrace.
Present and Future Praise
14 But as for me, I will always keep hoping.
I will keep adding to my praise for you.
15 My mouth will tell about your righteousness,
about your salvation all day long,
although I do not know how to tell all about it.
16 I will come and tell about your mighty deeds, Lord God.
I will commemorate[b] your righteousness, yours alone.
17 God, you have taught me since my youth,
and even now I still declare your marvelous deeds.
18 Even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me,
till I declare the strength of your arm to the next generation,
your power to all who are to come.
Closing Confidence
19 Your righteousness, God, reaches to the heights.
You have done great things.
God, who is like you,
20 you who have made us see many troubles and disasters?
You will give us life again.
From the depths of the earth you will bring me up again.
21 You will increase my greatness and comfort me once again.
Closing Praise
22 Yes, I will praise you, my God, for your faithfulness.
I will praise you with an instrument, with the harp.
I will make music to you with the lyre, O Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips will shout with joy when I make music to you.
Even my soul, which you have redeemed, will shout.
24 Indeed, my tongue will tell of your righteousness all day long.
How ashamed, how disgraced they are—
those who are trying to harm me.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.