M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
King Sennacherib attacks Judah
32 After King Hezekiah had done all these good things, King Sennacherib of Assyria attacked Judah. He put his soldiers in camps around all the strong cities in Judah. He wanted to take the cities for himself.
2 Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come to attack Judah. He realized that Sennacherib had decided to attack Jerusalem. 3 So Hezekiah talked with his advisors and his army officers about what they should do. They decided to stop all the water that came from springs around the city. They all agreed that this was a good idea. 4 A big group of people came to help. They stopped the water that came from the springs and from the stream that went through that region. They said, ‘When the kings of Assyria arrive here, we do not want them to find plenty of water.’
5 King Hezekiah's men worked hard to repair the city's walls where they had broken. Hezekiah built towers on the walls. He also built another wall outside the first wall. He made the Millo around the City of David stronger, too. He also made many weapons and shields.
6 Hezekiah chose some men as captains to lead the men of his army. He told them to meet together in the open place near the city's gate. He said to them, 7 ‘Be strong and brave. Do not be afraid of the king of Assyria and his large army. Do not worry! We have much greater power than he has. 8 He has only the strength of human soldiers to help him. But we have the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles!’
After King Hezekiah of Judah said that to his men, they felt brave and strong.
King Sennacherib warns the people of Jerusalem
9 King Sennacherib of Assyria and his army were ready to attack Lachish.[a] While he was there, he sent some men to Jerusalem with a message. The message was for King Hezekiah and all Judah's people who were in Jerusalem with him. The message said this:
10 ‘King Sennacherib of Assyria says this to you: My soldiers have made their camp around Jerusalem. So why do you remain in the city? Why are you so sure that someone will rescue you? 11 Hezekiah tells you, “The Lord our God will save us from the power of Assyria's king.” But he is deceiving you. You will die because you will have no food or water. 12 Remember that it was Hezekiah who removed the altars and the special places where you worship the Lord your God. He told the people of Judah and Jerusalem, “You must worship God only at the altar here in Jerusalem. That is the only place that you may offer sacrifices. ”
13 You surely know what my ancestors and I have done to all the other nations. The gods of the nations around you could not save their people from my power. 14 Look at all the nations that my ancestors completely destroyed. None of their gods could rescue any of them. So do not think that your God can save you from my power. 15 Do not let Hezekiah deceive you with his lies. Do not believe him. No god of any nation or kingdom has been able to save his people from me or from my ancestors. So your God certainly cannot save you from my power! ’
16 King Sennacherib's men continued to insult the Lord God and his servant Hezekiah. 17 Sennacherib also wrote letters to insult the Lord, Israel's God, and to laugh at him. He wrote, ‘The gods of the other nations around you could not save their people from my power. So Hezekiah's God cannot rescue his people from me either.’
18 Then Sennacherib's men shouted loudly to the people who were standing on Jerusalem's walls. They spoke in the language of Judah's people.[b] They wanted to make the people very afraid so that they could take the city for themselves. 19 They insulted the God of Jerusalem's people, as they insulted the gods of other nations. They spoke about him as if he was only a god that people had made for themselves.
Hezekiah and Isaiah pray to the Lord
20 King Hezekiah and Amoz's son, Isaiah the prophet, prayed to God in heaven. They asked him to help. 21 The Lord God sent an angel to destroy Assyria's army. The angel killed all the soldiers and the army officers in their camp. So the king of Assyria had to return home to his own country. He was very ashamed. He went into the temple of his god. There some of his own sons used their swords to kill him.
22 That is how the Lord saved Hezekiah and Jerusalem's people from King Sennacherib of Assyria. The Lord also saved them from all their other enemies. So all Judah had a time of peace. 23 Many people brought gifts to Jerusalem to offer to the Lord. They also brought valuable gifts for King Hezekiah. From that time, all the other nations respected Hezekiah as a great king.
24 Soon after that, Hezekiah became very ill. He nearly died. He prayed to the Lord and the Lord answered him. The Lord did a miracle to show that Hezekiah would get better.[c] 25 But Hezekiah did not thank the Lord for the kind thing that he had done for him. The king was too proud to do that. So the Lord became angry with him, and with the people of Judah and Jerusalem. 26 But then Hezekiah and the people who lived in Jerusalem made themselves humble. They stopped being proud, so the Lord did not punish them. He was not angry with them while Hezekiah continued to be king.
27 Hezekiah was very rich. People gave him great honour. He built rooms to store all his valuable things. They included silver, gold, jewels, spices and shields. 28 He built rooms to store grain, wine and olive oil. He also made buildings to keep all his cows, sheep and goats. 29 He built special cities for himself. He put lots of sheep and cows in them, because God had given him very many things.
30 Hezekiah had stopped the water coming out from the higher spring at Gihon. Instead, he caused the water to go down to the west side of the City of David. Hezekiah was successful in all the things that he did. 31 After that, the rulers of Babylon sent some officers to visit Hezekiah. They wanted to ask him about the miracle that had happened in Judah. God let Hezekiah decide what to tell them. He wanted to test Hezekiah, to see if he would be faithful.
King Hezekiah dies
32 The other things that happened while Hezekiah was king are written in a book. They include his faithful love for the Lord. The prophet Isaiah, Amoz's son, wrote down these things in the book of his visions. It is part of ‘The history of the kings of Judah and Israel’.
33 Hezekiah died and his people buried him beside the graves of King David's descendants, near the top of the hill.[d] At his death, all the people of Judah and those who lived in Jerusalem gave him great honour.
Hezekiah's son Manasseh became king after him.
The end of Babylon
18 After these things happened, I saw another angel. He was coming down from heaven. He had great authority. He was beautiful and he shone brightly. He gave light to the whole world. 2 He shouted with a very loud voice:
‘God has destroyed the great city of Babylon!
She has become a place where demons live.
She is a home for every disgusting spirit.
She is a home for every unclean bird.
She is a home for every unclean and disgusting animal.
3 She has been like a prostitute who makes men become drunk.
Then she leads them to have sex in a wrong way.
She has caused people from every nation to turn away from God.
It is like all the kings of the earth have had sex with that bad woman.
All the traders of the earth have become rich,
because she has bought things from them to enjoy a wicked life.’
4 Then I heard another voice which spoke from heaven. It said:
‘My people, leave the city! Come out!
Do not do the bad things that the people of that city have done.
Then you will not receive the terrible troubles that God sends to them.
5 They have done very many bad things.
Their sins have reached as high as heaven.
God has remembered to punish them.
6 Yes, punish the people of that city.
Do to them the same things that they have done to others.
Punish them with twice the bad things that they themselves have done.
She caused people to drink pain from her cup.
Now make her drink twice as much pain for herself!
7 She liked to receive honour.
She bought expensive things to enjoy a wicked life.
So now give her the trouble and pain that she deserves.
She has said to herself, “I rule people like a queen.
I do not live like a widow.
I will never need to be sad.”
8 Because she speaks like that,
she will receive many troubles in one single day.
Her people will become very ill.
They will be very sad.
They will have no food to eat.
Fire will destroy the city,
The Lord God is powerful.
So he will punish her with these troubles.’
9 When all that happens, the kings on the earth will be very sad. They enjoyed the bad things that people did in that city. They had many expensive things so that they were happy. Now they will see the smoke from the fire that burns the city. As a result, they will cry and they will weep. 10 They will stand a long way from the city because they are afraid. They do not want to suffer in the same way. They will say,
‘Terrible trouble has come to you, Babylon!
Great city! Powerful city! It is very bad for you!
In one single hour God has destroyed you!’
11 The traders of this world will also be very sad. They will weep because nobody will buy their things any more. 12 They sold many expensive things like these:
Things made from gold and silver.
Valuable stones and pearls.
Good linen and other kinds of expensive cloth that is red or purple.
Things made from wood that has a nice smell.
Many different things that are made from ivory.
Many kinds of things that people had made from expensive wood, from different metals and from stone.
13 Different kinds of spice and incense, like myrrh and frankincense.
Wine, olive oil, expensive flour and wheat.
Cows and sheep.
Horses and chariots.
Human slaves.
14 The people who sold these things will say to the city, ‘You have now lost all the good things that you wanted so much. You have lost all those expensive things that made you beautiful. You will never have them again.’
15 The traders had become rich because of the city. But now they will stand a long way from the city because they are afraid. They do not want to suffer in the same way themselves. They will weep and they will be very sad. 16 They will say,
‘Bad trouble has come to you, Babylon!
Great city! It is very bad for you!
You wore beautiful clothes that were made from good linen.
You wore bright things that made you look beautiful.
You shone with gold, valuable stones and pearls.
17 But in one single hour God has destroyed all those valuable things.’
All the sailors and the people who travel on ships will also be sad. They include every ship's captain, and everyone who works on ships on the sea. They will stand a long way from the city. 18 They will see the smoke from the fire that burns the city. Then they will shout, ‘There is no other city like this great city!’ 19 They will throw dirt from the ground on their heads because they are so sad. They will weep and they will shout,
‘Bad trouble has come to you, Babylon!
Great city! It is very bad for you!
Everyone who had ships on the sea became rich because of you.
You used your money to buy their expensive things.
But in one single hour God has destroyed that city.’
20 Yes, you who live in heaven, be happy!
Be happy because God has punished Babylon!
God's people and his apostles and his prophets, be happy!
God has punished the city because of what she did to you.
21 Then a powerful angel picked up a very big, heavy stone. He threw it into the sea. He said,
‘God will throw you down, Babylon!
You are a great city, but God will throw you down like this stone.
Nobody will ever see you again!
22 Nobody will ever hear music in the city again.
Nobody will sing there.
Nobody will make music with harps, or with flutes, or with trumpets.
There will never be workers who make things in the city.
Nobody will ever hear the sound of people who make flour again.
23 No light from people's lamps will ever shine in the city again.
Nobody will ever hear the happy voices of a man and a woman when they marry.
Your traders were the most powerful people on the earth.
You used your magic to deceive people from all nations.
24 Your people killed God's people and his prophets.
Their blood lies on the ground in the city.
The blood of everyone on earth that people have killed is also there.
This shows that you are guilty of their murder.’[a]
The Lord comes
14 There will be a day when your enemies will take away everything. They will take away everything that is yours. They will each have some of your things.
2 I will bring soldiers from all countries to fight against Jerusalem. They will go into the city and they will rob the houses. They will have sex with the women. They will lead away half the people to other countries. They will let the other half stay in Jerusalem.
3 Then the Lord will go out. And he will fight against the people from those countries as in past years.
4 On that day, the Lord's feet will stand on the Mount of Olives. This mountain is east of Jerusalem. It will break in two from east to west and it will make a wide valley. Half of the mountain will move north and half of the mountain will move south.
5 In the time of Uzziah, king of Judah, you ran away when the earth moved. You will do this again. Then the Lord will come. And all those who are holy will come with him.[a]
6 On that day, it will not be light in some places and dark in other places.
7 It will be a day like no other day. There will be no night. When it is evening, there will still be light. Only the Lord himself will know that day.
8 On that day, water will come out from Jerusalem. Half of this water will go towards the sea in the east. Half of this water will go towards the sea in the west. This will go on during summer and winter.
9 The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day, there will be only one Lord and he will have only one name.
10 All the land, from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem, will become flat. But Jerusalem will rise and it will be high in its place. The city will be from the Gate of Benjamin to the Corner Gate and to the High Building of Hananel. The place where the servants of the king make his wine will be in it too.
11 Jerusalem will be safe. People will live there. Nobody will destroy Jerusalem ever again.
12 The Lord will make the people sick that fought against Jerusalem. Their bodies will become bad as they stand on their feet. Their eyes will become bad and they will fall out. And their tongues will become bad in their mouths.
13 On that day, the Lord will make men so afraid that each man will attack the man next to him.
14 Judah also will go to Jerusalem and they will fight. They will take every good thing from all the countries. There will be a lot of expensive metals and many rich clothes.
15 The horses and all the other animals will be sick. And they will die as the soldiers died.
16 Some of the soldiers from the countries that attacked Jerusalem will not die. They will go to Jerusalem year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty. They will worship him at the Feast of Huts.[b]
17 All the people on the earth will have to go to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord Almighty. If any people on the earth do not go, they will have no rain.
18 If the people from Egypt do not go to Jerusalem to worship the Lord, they will have no rain. And the Lord will make them sick. If the people from other countries will not go to Jerusalem, the Lord will make them sick. They will die.
19 This will happen to the people from Egypt. This will happen to the people from all the countries that do not go up to Jerusalem at that time.
20 On that day, men will write the words, ‘This is for the Lord’ on the bells of the horses. The pots that anyone uses to cook with in the house of the Lord will be special. They will be as special as the dishes in front of the altar.
21 Every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be for the Lord Almighty. All the people who come to offer animals to the Lord will cook in those pots. On that day, nobody who sells things will come into the house of the Lord Almighty.
Jesus prays for himself
17 After Jesus said this, he looked up to heaven. He said, ‘Father, the time has now arrived. Show everyone how great your Son is. So then I, the Son, can show how great you are. 2 You gave me authority over all people. You did this so that I could give people life for ever. Those are the people that you gave to me. 3 What does it mean for people to live with you for ever? It means that they know you, the one who is the only true God. They also know me, Jesus Christ, the one that you have sent. 4 I have shown people here on the earth how great you are. In that way, I have finished the work that you gave to me to do. 5 So, Father, now that I return to you, show people how great I am. Before the world began, I had great glory with you. Show again that I am great like that.’
Jesus prays for his disciples
6 ‘You gave some people to me who were from this world.[a] I have shown them who you are. They were yours and you gave them to me. They have obeyed your message. 7 Everything that I have comes from you. Now they know that you gave me everything. 8 I gave to them the message that you gave to me. They accepted that message. They know certainly that I came from you. They believe that you sent me.
9 I pray for them. I am not praying for the people who belong to this world. No, I am praying for those people that you have given to me. I am praying for them because they are yours. 10 Everything that I have is yours. And everything that you have is mine. These people have shown how great I am. 11 I will not remain in the world any longer. I will return to you now. But they will still be here in the world. Holy Father, please keep them safe in your name. That is the powerful name that you gave to me. Then they can be united in the same way that you and I are united. 12 While I was with them, I kept them safe in the power of your name. That is the name that you gave to me. I kept them safe so that only one of them turned away from you. That was the man who had to become lost. The Bible already said that it would happen in that way.[b]
13 Now, Father, I will come to you. I am saying these things while I am still in the world. Then these people, my disciples, can be completely happy. I want them to be completely happy in the same way that I am happy. 14 I have given your message to them. The world's people have hated them because they do not belong to the world. They do not belong to the world, in the same way that I do not belong to the world. 15 I am not asking that you will take them out of the world. But I ask you to keep them safe from the Devil. 16 They do not belong to the world, in the same way that I do not belong to the world. 17 Help them to belong completely to you, as they follow the truth. Your message is the truth. 18 I have sent them into the world, in the same way that you sent me into the world. 19 On their behalf I give myself to you, so that I belong completely to you. Then they also can completely belong to you, as they follow the truth.’
Jesus prays for everyone who will believe in him
20 ‘I do not pray only for these people, my disciples. I pray also for those people who will believe in me because of my disciples' message. 21 I pray that all of them will become united. You, Father, are in me and I am in you. I pray that they also will be united in us. Then the world's people will believe that you sent me. 22 I have given to them the same honour that you gave to me. Now they can be united in the same way that you and I are united. 23 I will be in them, and you will be in me, so that they can be completely united. As a result, the world's people will know that you sent me. They will also know that you love my own people as you love me.
24 Father, you have given these people to me. I want them to be with me where I am. Then they will see how great I am. You made me great because you loved me. You loved me even before the world began. 25 Father, you always do what is right. The world's people do not know you, but I know you. These disciples know that you have sent me. 26 I have shown them what you are like. And I will continue to show them what you are like. Then they will love other people, in the same way that you love me. And I myself will be in them.’
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