M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Isaiah’s Message to Hezekiah
19 When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth. Then he went into the House of the Lord. 2 He sent Eliakim the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary, and the elders of the priests, dressed in sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz.
3 They said to him, “This is what Hezekiah says. Today is a day of distress and rebuke and humiliation because children have come to the point of birth, but there is no strength to deliver them. 4 Perhaps the Lord your God will hear all the words of the herald,[a] whom his lord, the king of Assyria, sent to mock the living God, and he will rebuke him for the words which the Lord your God has heard, and you will lift up a prayer on behalf of the remnant who are left.”
5 When the servants of King Hezekiah went to Isaiah, 6 Isaiah said to them, “Say this to your lord: This is what the Lord says. Do not be afraid of these words which you heard, with which the lackeys[b] of the king of Assyria blasphemed me. 7 See, I am going to put him into such a frame of mind that when he hears a certain report, he will return to his country, and I will make him fall by the sword in his own land.”
Hezekiah’s Prayer
8 Because the herald heard that the king of Assyria had withdrawn from Lachish, he went back and found the king fighting against Libnah. 9 For he had heard this report about Tirhakah king of Cush: “Watch out! He has come out to fight with you.” So he again sent messengers to Hezekiah 10 to say this to Hezekiah king of Judah: “Don’t let your God, whom you trust, deceive you, saying, ‘Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.’ 11 Listen, you have heard what the kings of Assyria did to all the lands which they completely destroyed. And you expect to be saved? 12 Did the gods of the nations which my fathers destroyed save them—Gozen and Haran and Rezeph and the people of Eden, who are in Tel Assar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath and the king of Arpad and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, and Hena and Ivvah?”
14 Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the House of the Lord, and Hezekiah spread it out before the Lord. 15 Then Hezekiah prayed before the Lord:
O Lord, God of Israel, you are seated above the cherubim. You alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth. 16 Bend your ear, O Lord, and hear. Open your eyes, Lord, and see. Hear Sennacherib’s words, which he sent to taunt the living God. 17 It is true, Lord, that the kings of Assyria have destroyed these nations and their lands. 18 They have burned their gods, because they were not gods but only the works of human hands, just wood and stone, so they destroyed them. 19 But now, O Lord our God, please save us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth will know that you, O Lord, are God, you alone.
God’s Answer to Hezekiah
20 Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah:
This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says. I have heard what you have prayed to me about Sennacherib, the king of Assyria. 21 This is the message which the Lord has spoken about him:
The Virgin Daughter Zion despises you. She jeers at you.
The Daughter Jerusalem tosses her head at you.
22 Whom have you taunted and blasphemed?
Against whom have you lifted up your voice and raised your eyes
to heaven?
Against the Holy One of Israel!
23 By your messengers you have taunted the Lord.
You have said, “With my many chariots I have gone up
to the heights of the mountains,
to the most remote part of Lebanon.
I cut down its tall cedars and the best of its fir trees.
I went in to its farthest dwelling place, the most lush of its forests.
24 I dug wells and drank water in foreign lands.
I dried up all the streams of Egypt with the soles of my feet.”
25 Have you not heard?
From long ago I, the Lord, did this.
From days of eternity I formed it,
and now I have brought it about
that fortified cities crash into piles of ruined stones.
26 Their inhabitants, powerless, are dismayed and ashamed.
They are like plants in the field and fresh green grass,
like grass on the roof, scorched before it becomes a full-grown stalk.
27 I know when you sit down, and when you go out,
and when you come in again, and how you rage against me.
28 Because you rage against me,
because your arrogance has reached my ears,
I will put my hook in your nose and my bit in your mouth,
and I will make you go back by the way you came.
29 This will be a sign for you:
This year you will eat what grows naturally,
next year what grows naturally from that,
but in the third year, you will sow and harvest.
You will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
30 The surviving remnant of the house of Judah
will again take root below and produce fruit above.
31 For a remnant will go out from Jerusalem,
and survivors from Mt. Zion.
The zeal of the Lord will do this.
32 Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria:
He will not come into this city.
He will not shoot an arrow there.
He will not advance against it with a shield,
and he will not build up a siege ramp against it.
33 By the same way he came he will go back,
but he will not come into this city.
A declaration of the Lord:
34 I will protect and save this city for my own sake
and for the sake of my servant David.
The Destruction of Sennacherib
35 That night, the angel of the Lord went out and struck down one hundred eighty-five thousand men in the camp of Assyria. When it was time to wake up in the morning, there they were—all the dead bodies! 36 Then Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and returned and lived in Nineveh. 37 One day when he was worshipping in the house of his god Nisrok, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword. They fled to the land of Ararat, and his son Esarhaddon became king in his place.
God Speaks to Us By His Son
1 In the past, God spoke to our forefathers by the prophets at many times and in many ways. 2 In these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact imprint of the divine nature. He sustains all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins,[a] he took his seat at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
The Son Is Superior to the Angels
4 The Son became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. 5 For to which of the angels did God ever say:
You are my Son. Today I have begotten you?[b]
And again:
I will be his Father, and he will be my Son.[c]
6 And again, when he brought his firstborn into the world, he said:
Let all God’s angels worship him.[d]
7 About the angels he says:
He makes his messengers winds and his ministers flaming fire.[e]
8 But about the Son he says:
God, your throne is forever and ever,
and the scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom.
9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness.
Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of joy
beyond your companions.[f]
10 And he says:
In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the works of your hands.
11 They will perish, but you remain.
They will all become old like a garment.
12 You will roll them up like a robe,
and they will be changed like a garment.[g]
But you are the same,
and your years will never end.[h]
13 To which of the angels has he ever said:
Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool under your feet?[i]
14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent out to serve for the benefit of those who are going to inherit salvation?
12 Ephraim feeds on wind
and chases the east wind all day.
He multiplies lies and violence.
They make a treaty with Assyria,
and olive oil is carried to Egypt.
2 The Lord has a case against Judah.
He will deal with Jacob according to his ways.
According to his deeds he will repay him.
3 In the womb Jacob grasped his brother by the heel,
and when he was a grown man, he struggled with God.
4 He wrestled with the Angel and prevailed.
He wept and sought his favor.
He found him at Bethel, and there he spoke with him,[a]
5 namely, with the Lord, the God of Armies.
The Lord is the name by which he is to be remembered!
6 So return to your God.
Observe mercy and justice,
and wait for your God continually.
7 A merchant has fraudulent scales in his hand.
He loves to defraud others.
8 Ephraim said, “Surely I have become rich.
I have secured wealth for myself.
Among all my possessions no one will find anything that makes me guilty of sin.”
9 But I have been the Lord your God from the time you left the land of Egypt.
I will make you dwell in tents again,
as in the days of the appointed festival.[b]
10 I have spoken to the prophets.
I have given numerous visions.
I taught meaningful lessons through the prophets.
11 Since Gilead is wicked,
it is certain that they are worthless.
In Gilgal they sacrifice bulls.
Yes, their altars are like piles of stones in the furrows of a field.
12 Jacob fled to the territory of Aram.
Israel worked as a servant to get a wife,
and for a wife, he took care of sheep.
13 By a prophet, the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt,
and by a prophet he took care of Israel.
14 Ephraim has provoked bitter anger.
Therefore his Lord will leave him bloodied by his guilt
and bring his disgrace back on him.
Psalm 135
Israel, Praise the Lord
Introduction
1 Praise the Lord.[a]
Praise the name of the Lord.
Praise him, you servants of the Lord,
2 who stand in the house of the Lord,
in the courtyards of the house of our God.
3 Praise the Lord,[b] for the Lord is good.
Make music to his name, for it is pleasant.
4 Yes, the Lord chose Jacob for himself.
He chose Israel as his special treasure.
The Superiority of the Lord
5 Yes, I know that the Lord is great.
Our Lord is greater than all gods.
6 The Lord does whatever he pleases
in the heavens and on the earth,
in the seas and in all the depths.
7 He makes clouds rise from the end of the earth.
He sends lightning for the rainstorm.
He releases the wind from his storehouses.
8 He is the one who struck down
the firstborn of Egypt, both men and animals.
9 Egypt! He sent warning signs into your midst,
against Pharaoh and against all his officials.
10 He is the one who struck down many nations.
He killed mighty kings—
11 Sihon king of the Amorites,
and Og king of Bashan,
and all the kingdoms of Canaan.
12 He gave their land as a possession,
a possession to Israel, his people.
13 Lord, your name stands forever.
Lord, your reputation remains through all generations.
14 For the Lord will judge in favor of his people.
He will have pity on his servants.
15 The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands.
16 They have a mouth, but they cannot speak.
They have eyes, but they cannot see.
17 They have ears, but cannot hear.
There is not even any breath in their mouths.
18 Those who make them will be like them.
So will all who trust in them.
Conclusion
19 House of Israel, bless the Lord.
House of Aaron, bless the Lord.
20 House of Levi, bless the Lord.
You who fear the Lord, bless the Lord.
21 The Lord, who dwells in Jerusalem, will be blessed from Zion.
Praise the Lord.
Psalm 136
His Mercy Endures Forever
Introduction
1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
For his mercy endures forever.
2 Give thanks to the God of Gods.
For his mercy endures forever.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of Lords.
For his mercy endures forever.
His Creating Love
4 To him who alone does great wonders—[c]
For his mercy endures forever.
5 To him who by his understanding made the heavens—
For his mercy endures forever.
6 To him who spread out the earth on the waters—
For his mercy endures forever.
7 To him who made the great lights,
For his mercy endures forever.
8 the sun to rule by day,
For his mercy endures forever.
9 the moon and stars to rule by night—
For his mercy endures forever.
His Redeeming Love
10 To him who struck Egypt by killing their firstborn,
For his mercy endures forever.
11 and brought Israel out from their midst,
For his mercy endures forever.
12 with a mighty hand and outstretched arm—
For his mercy endures forever.
13 To him who cut the Red Sea in two,
For his mercy endures forever.
14 and brought Israel through the middle of it,
For his mercy endures forever.
15 but brushed off Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea—
For his mercy endures forever.
16 To him who made his people travel through the wilderness—
For his mercy endures forever.
17 To him who struck down great kings,
For his mercy endures forever.
18 and killed mighty kings,
For his mercy endures forever.
19 Sihon king of the Amorites,
For his mercy endures forever.
20 and Og king of Bashan,
For his mercy endures forever.
21 and gave their land as a possession,
For his mercy endures forever.
22 a possession to his servant Israel.
For his mercy endures forever.
His Continuing Love
23 Who remembered us in our low condition,
For his mercy endures forever.
24 and tore us out of the hands of our oppressors.
For his mercy endures forever.
25 He gives food to all living creatures.[d]
For his mercy endures forever.
26 Give thanks to the God of the heavens.
For his mercy endures forever.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.