M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Summary of the Genealogies
9 All of Israel was enumerated by genealogy and recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel[a] as[b] Judah was being taken captive into exile to Babylon due to their disobedience.[c] 2 The first to settle on their own property in their own towns of Israel were priests, descendants of Levi, and the Temple Servants.[d]
Jerusalem after the Exile
3 In Jerusalem there lived some of the people of Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh including[e] 4 Ammihud’s son Uthai, who was the grandson of Omri, who was the great-grandson of Imri, who was fathered by Bani from the descendants of Judah’s son Perez. 5 From the descendants of Shilon there was[f] Asaiah the firstborn, along with his descendants. 6 From the descendants of Zerah there was Jeuel, along with 690 of their relatives. 7 From the descendants of Benjamin there was Meshullam’s son Sallu, who was also the grandson of Hodaviah and great-grandson of Hassenuah, 8 Jeroham’s son Ibneiah, Uzzi’s son Elah, who was also Michri’s grandson, and Shephatiah’s son Meshullam, who was the grandson of Reuel and great-grandson of Ibnijah, 9 along with 956 of their relatives according to their generations. All of these were leaders of families according to their ancestral households.
Priests in Service
10 From the priests there were Jedaiah, Jehoiarib, Jachin, 11 and Hilkiah’s son Azariah, who was fathered by Meshullam, who was fathered by Zadok, who was fathered by Meraioth, who was fathered by Ahitub, the Chief Operating Officer[g] of the Temple of God. 12 There was[h] Jeroham’s son Adaiah, who was fathered by Pashhur, who was fathered by Malchijah, and Adiel’s son Maasai, who was fathered by Jahzerah, who was fathered by Meshullam, who was fathered by Meshillemith, who was fathered by Immer, 13 along with 1,760 of their relatives, who were leaders of their ancestral households, valiant and qualified to serve in the Temple of God.
Levitical Families
14 From the descendants of Levi there was Hasshub’s son Shemaiah, who was the grandson of Azrikam, who was fathered by Hashabiah, from the descendants of Merari; 15 along with Bakbakkar, Heresh, Galal, and Mica’s son Mattaniah, who was the grandson of Zichri and great-grandson of Asaph, 16 and Shemaiah’s son Obadiah, who was the grandson of Galal, who was fathered by Jeduthun, and Asa’s son Berechiah, who was the grandson of Elkanah, who lived in the villages of the Netophathites.
17 The gatekeepers included[i] Shallum, Akkub, Talmon, Ahiman, and other[j] relatives. Shallum was the leader. 18 He used to be stationed in the King’s Gate on the east side as one of[k] the gatekeepers of the camp belonging to the descendants of Levi. 19 Kore’s son Shallum, who was the grandson of Ebiasaph and the great-grandson of Korah, and the descendants of Korah (who were relatives of his ancestral house) were over the service responsibilities and served as guardians of the entrances of the Tent, just as their ancestors had been in charge of the camp of the Lord and guardians of the entrance. 20 Eleazar’s son Phinehas used to be Commander-in-Chief[l] over them—the Lord was with him. 21 Meshelemiah’s son Zechariah was gatekeeper at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 22 All these, who had been set apart as gatekeepers at the entrances, numbered 212 and had been enrolled by genealogies in their villages.
David and Samuel the seer installed them in their positions of trust, 23 so they and their descendants were in charge of the gates of the house of the Lord, that is, the House of the Tent, as guardians. 24 The guardians were stationed on four sides—east, west, north, and south. 25 Their relatives who lived in their villages were required to visit every seven days to be with them in turn, 26 because the four senior gatekeepers (who were descendants of Levi) had been placed in charge of the chambers and the treasury of the Temple of God. 27 They spent the night near the Temple of God, since they had been entrusted to guard it. They were in charge of opening it every morning.
28 Some were responsible for the service utensils, and they were required to take an inventory of them when they were brought in and out. 29 Others were responsible for the furniture and for all of the holy utensils, including the flour, wine, oil, incense, and spices. 30 Other descendants of the priests prepared the mixed spices. 31 Mattithiah, a descendant of Levi and firstborn of Shallum the Korahite, was in charge of making the offering[m] cakes. 32 Some of their Kohathite relatives were responsible to prepare the rows of bread for each Sabbath. 33 These singers, leaders of ancestral households of the descendants of Levi, were living in the chambers of the Temple. Freed from other service responsibilities, they were on duty day and night. 34 These leaders of the descendants of Levi, enrolled according to their genealogies, lived in Jerusalem.
Genealogy of King Saul
35 Jeiel, who fathered Gibeon, lived in the city of[n] Gibeon. His wife was named Maacah. 36 His firstborn son was Abdon, followed by[o] Zur, Kish, Baal, Ner, Nadab, 37 Gedor, Ahio, Zechariah, and Mikloth. 38 Mikloth fathered Shimeam. They lived across town from[p] their relatives in Jerusalem. 39 Ner fathered Kish, Kish fathered Saul, and Saul fathered Jonathan, Malchi-shua, Abinadab, and Esh-baal. 40 Jonathan fathered Merib-baal, and Merib-baal fathered Micah.
41 Micah’s descendants included Pithon, Melech, Tahrea, and Ahaz. 42 Ahaz fathered Jarah, and Jarah fathered Alemeth, Azmaveth, and Zimri. Zimri fathered Moza, and 43 Moza fathered Binea, and Rephaiah was his son, Eleasah his son, and Azel his son. 44 Azel had six descendants with these names: Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, and Hanan—these were the descendants of Azel.
The Death of Saul and His Sons(A)
10 The Philistines were fighting against Israel, and each[q] soldier[r] of Israel fled before the Philistines. They fell slain on the mountain of Gilboa. 2 The Philistines followed after Saul and after his sons, and the Philistines struck down Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchi-shua, Saul’s sons. 3 The heaviest fighting was against Saul,[s] and when the archers who were shooting located Saul, he was gravely wounded by them.[t]
4 Saul ordered his armor bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through with it, or these uncircumcised people will come and abuse me.”
But his armor bearer did not want to do it[u] because he was very frightened, so Saul took the sword and fell on it. 5 When his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his[v] sword and died. 6 Therefore Saul, his three sons, and all his entire household died together. 7 When that part of the army[w] of Israel that was in the valley saw that the rest of the[x] army of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled, and the Philistines came and occupied them.
The Philistines Desecrate Saul’s Body(B)
8 The Philistines came to strip the dead the next day, and they found Saul dead on Gilboa mountain, along with his sons. 9 They stripped him, took his head and armor, and sent messengers throughout the territory of the Philistines to report the news to their idols and to the people. 10 Then they put Saul’s[y] armor in the temple of their gods and fastened his skull to the wall of[z] the temple of Dagon.
The People of Jabesh-gilead Give Saul a Proper Burial(C)
11 When all the residents of[aa] Jabesh-gilead heard everything that the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 every valiant soldier[ab] got up, removed the bodies of Saul and his sons, took them to Jabesh, and buried their bones under the tamarisk[ac] tree in Jabesh. Then they fasted for seven days. 13 So Saul died for his transgressions; that is, he acted unfaithfully to the Lord by transgressing the message from the Lord (which he did not keep), by consulting a medium for advice, 14 and by not seeking counsel[ad] from the Lord, who therefore put him to death and turned the kingdom over to Jesse’s son David.
We Must Look Off to Jesus
12 Therefore, having so vast a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, and throwing off everything that hinders us and especially the sin that so easily entangles[a] us, let us keep running with endurance the race set before us, 2 fixing our attention on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of the faith, who, in view of[b] the joy set before him, endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
The Father Disciplines Us
3 Think about the one who endured such hostility from sinners, so that you may not become tired and give up. 4 In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your[c] blood. 5 You have forgotten the encouragement that is addressed to you as sons:
“My son, do not think lightly of the Lord’s[d] discipline
or give up when you are corrected by him.
6 For the Lord[e] disciplines the one he loves,
and he punishes[f] every son he accepts.”[g]
7 What you endure disciplines you: God is treating you as sons. Is there a son whom his father does not discipline? 8 Now if you are without any discipline, in which all sons share, then you are illegitimate and not God’s[h] sons. 9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them for it. We should submit even more to the Father of our spirits and live, shouldn’t we? 10 For a short time they disciplined us as they thought best, but God[i] does it for our good, so that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, for those who have been trained by it, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace.
Live as God’s People
12 Therefore, strengthen your tired arms and your weak knees, 13 and straighten the paths of your life,[j] so that your lameness may not become worse, but instead may be healed.
14 Pursue peace with everyone, as well as holiness, without which no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up and causes you trouble, or many of you will become defiled. 16 No one should be immoral or godless like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that afterwards, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected because he could not find any opportunity to repent, even though he begged to repent[k] with tears.
18 You have not come to something[l] that can be touched, to a blazing fire, to darkness, to gloom, 19 to a trumpet’s blast, or to a voice that made the hearers beg that not another word be spoken to them. 20 For they could not endure the command that was given: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.”[m] 21 Indeed, the sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”[n] 22 Instead, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, to tens of thousands of angels joyfully gathered together, 23 to the assembly[o] of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, to a judge who is the God of all, to the spirits of righteous people who have been made perfect, 24 to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better message than Abel’s.
25 See to it that you do not ignore the one who is speaking. For if the hearers[p] did not escape when they ignored the one who warned them on earth, how much less will we escape[q] if we turn away from the one who is from heaven! 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also heaven.”[r] 27 The expression “once more”[s] signifies the removal of what can be shaken, that is, what he has made, so that what cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful and worship God in reverence and fear in a way that pleases him. 29 For “our God is an all-consuming fire.”[t]
Mourning for the House of Israel
6 “Woe to those who are at ease in Zion,
to those who rest on the mountain of Samaria—
the famous men of the nations
to whom the house of Israel came!
2 Cross over to Calneh[a] and look around,
then go on to that great city of[b] Hamath,
and from there go down to Gath of the Philistines.
Are you better than these kingdoms?
Or is their territory more extensive than yours?
3 “Disbelieving that a day of evil will come,[c]
embracing opportunities to commit violence,[d]
4 lying on ivory beds,
stretching out on your couches,
eating lambs from the flock,
and fattened calves from the stall,
5 chanting to the sound of stringed instruments as if they were David,
composing songs to themselves as if they were musicians,
6 drinking wine from bowls,
anointing themselves with the choicest of oils,
but not grieving on the occasion of Joseph’s ruin—
7 therefore you will be the first to go into exile,
and the celebrations of those who are lounging will end.”
The Lord Swears an Oath
8 “The Lord God has sworn by himself,”
declares the Lord, the God of the Heavenly Armies,
“I utterly detest the arrogance of Jacob;
I hate his fortresses;
and I will deliver up the city,
along with everyone in it.
9 “And if there are ten men remaining in one house,
they will die.
10 One’s relative will pick up the corpse[e]
to carry them from the house for burning,[f]
saying to whomever remains inside the house,
‘Is there anyone still with you?’
And he will say, ‘No.’
He will respond, ‘Be quiet,
because we do not mention the name “Lord”.’
11 For indeed, the Lord is giving the command—
and he will smash the large house to rubble
and the small house into bits.
12 “Horses don’t run over bare rock, do they?
One doesn’t plow rock[g] with oxen, does he?
But you have turned justice to gall,
and the fruit of righteousness into bitterness.[h]
13 You rejoice in nothing worth mentioning—
that is, you keep on saying,
‘We captured Karnaim by our own strength of will
and by our own effort, didn’t we?’
14 “So look, house of Israel! I will raise up a nation against you,”
declares the Lord, the God of the Heavenly Armies,
“and they will harass you from the entrance of Hamath
to the wadi[i] of the wilderness.”
Mary Visits Elizabeth
39 Later on,[a] Mary set out for a Judean city in the hill country. 40 She went into Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby jumped in her womb. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42 and she loudly exclaimed, “How blessed are you among women, and how blessed is the infant in[b] your womb! 43 Why should this happen to me, to have the mother of my Lord visit me? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 How blessed is this woman who believed that what the Lord told her would be fulfilled!”
Mary’s Song of Praise
46 Then Mary said,
“My soul praises the greatness of the Lord!
47 My spirit exults in God, my Savior,
48 because he has looked favorably on his humble servant.
From now on, all generations will call me blessed,
49 because the Almighty has done great things for me.
His name is holy.
50 His mercy lasts from generation to generation
for those who fear him.
51 He displayed his mighty power with his arm.
He scattered people who were proud in mind and heart.[c]
52 He pulled powerful rulers from their thrones
and lifted up humble people.
53 He filled hungry people with good things
and sent rich people away with nothing.
54 He helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful,
55 according to the promise he made[d] to our ancestors—
to Abraham and his descendants forever.”
56 Now Mary stayed with Elizabeth[e] about three months and then went back home.
The Birth of John the Baptist
57 When the time came for Elizabeth to have her child, she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.
59 On the eighth day they went to circumcise the child. They were going to name him Zechariah after his father, 60 but his mother said, “Absolutely not! He must be named John.”
61 Their friends[f] told her, “None of your relatives has that name.”
62 So they motioned to the baby’s[g] father to see what he wanted to name him. 63 He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And everyone was amazed.
64 Suddenly, Zechariah could open his mouth,[h] his tongue was set free, and he began to speak and to praise God. 65 Fear came over all their neighbors, and throughout the hill country of Judea all these things were being discussed. 66 Everyone who heard about it kept thinking what had happened and asked, “What will this child become?” because it was obvious that the hand of the Lord was with him.
The Prophecy of Zechariah
67 Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:
68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel!
He has taken care of his people and has set them free.
69 He has raised up a mighty Savior[i] for us
from the family of his servant David,
70 just as he promised long ago
through the mouth of his holy prophets
71 that he would save us from our enemies
and from the grip of all who hate us.
72 He has shown mercy to our ancestors
and remembered his holy covenant,
73 the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham.
He granted us 74 deliverance from our enemies’ grip
so that we could serve him without fear
75 and be holy and righteous before him all of our days.
76 And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High,
because you will go ahead of the Lord to prepare his way
77 and to give his people knowledge of salvation
through forgiveness of their sins.
78 Because of the tender mercy of our God,
his light[j] from on high has visited us,
79 to shine on those who sit in darkness and in death’s shadow,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
80 Now the child continued to grow and to become spiritually strong.[k] He lived in the wilderness until the day he appeared in Israel.
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.