M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Chapter 17
Zeal of Jehoshaphat for the Law. 1 Asa was succeeded as king by his son Jehoshaphat, and immediately thereafter he set out to strengthen his position against Israel. 2 He stationed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah, and he placed garrisons throughout Judah and in the cities of Ephraim which his father Asa had captured.
3 The Lord was with Jehoshaphat[a] because he had followed the example of his father from his earliest years and did not consult the Baals. 4 Rather, he sought the God of his father, observing his commandments, and refused to follow the practices of Israel. 5 As a result of this, the Lord made secure Jehoshaphat’s control of the kingdom. All Judah brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, and his wealth and glory were exceedingly great. 6 He took enormous pride in following the ways of the Lord, and he ordered the removal of the high places and the sacred poles from Judah.
7 In the third year of his reign Jehoshaphat sent his most learned officials—Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah—to teach in the cities of Judah. 8 [b]With them he also sent the Levites—Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, and Tobijah. Accompanying those Levites were the priests Elishama and Jehoram. 9 They taught in Judah, having with them the book of the law of the Lord. They traveled through all the cities of Judah, instructing the people.
10 The Power of Jehoshaphat. The fear of the Lord seized all the kingdoms of the countries surrounding Judah, and as a result, they did not make war against Jehoshaphat. 11 Some of the Philistines brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, as well as silver as a tribute, while the Arabs also brought him a flock of seven thousand seven hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred he-goats.
12 Jehoshaphat grew steadily more powerful. He built fortresses and storage cities in Judah. 13 He also supervised great works in the cities of Judah, and he stationed soldiers, valiant warriors, in Jerusalem. 14 The soldiers were classified by ancestral houses. Of Judah, the commanders of thousands: Adnah was the highest-ranking commander, with three hundred thousand mighty warriors. 15 Next in line under him was Jehohanan the commander, with two hundred and eighty thousand mighty warriors, 16 and next to him was Amasiah, the son of Zichri, who had volunteered for the service of the Lord, with two hundred thousand mighty warriors.
17 Of Benjamin: Eliada, a mighty warrior with two hundred thousand men armed with bow and shield, 18 and next in line to him was Jehozabad with one hundred and eighty thousand men equipped for war. 19 These were the men in the service of the king, apart from those whom the king had stationed in fortified cities throughout all Judah.
Prelude to the End of Times: Israel and the Church[a]
Chapter 6
The First Four Seals and the Horsemen.[b]1 Then, in my vision, I saw the Lamb break open the first of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures shout in a voice like thunder, “Come!” 2 I looked, and before my eyes I saw a white horse, and its rider was holding a bow. He was given a crown, and he rode forth as a victor to amass still further conquests.
3 When he broke open the second seal, I heard the second living creature shout, “Come!” 4 And another horse came forth; it was red. Its rider was empowered to take away peace from the earth so that people would slay each other. He was given a large sword.[c]
5 When he broke open the third seal, I heard the third living creature shout, “Come!” I looked, and there was a black horse, and its rider was holding a pair of scales[d] in his hand. 6 Then I heard what sounded like a voice emanating from the midst of the four living creatures, saying, “A quart of wheat costs a day’s wages, and three quarts of barley cost a day’s wages. But do not damage the olive oil or the wine.”
7 When he broke open the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature shout, “Come!” 8 I looked, and there was a pale green horse. Its rider was named Death, and Hades[e] followed close behind. They were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, famine, and plague, and by means of wild beasts.
The Fifth Seal: Vision of the Martyrs.[f] 9 When he broke open the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain on account of the word of God and for witnessing to it. 10 They shouted in a loud voice, “How long is it to be, holy and true Master, before you judge the inhabitants of the earth[g] and avenge our death?”
11 Each of them was given a white robe,[h] and they were instructed to be patient for a little longer until the roll was completed of their fellow servants and brethren who were still to be killed as they themselves had been.
12 The Sixth Seal: the Universe Disturbed.[i] In my vision, when he broke open the sixth seal, there was a violent earthquake. The sun turned as black as coarse sackcloth, the moon became as red as blood, 13 and the stars in the sky fell to earth like unripe figs dislodged from a tree when shaken by a strong wind. 14 The heavens were torn apart like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was dislodged from its place.
15 Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, and the commanders, the rich and the powerful, and the whole population, both slaves and free, hid themselves in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16 They shouted to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the one who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb. 17 For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can endure it?”
Chapter 2
Vision of the Four Horns and the Workers.[a] 1 I looked up and beheld four horns. 2 I inquired of the angel who was conversing with me what these were. He answered me, “These are the horns that scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”
3 Then the Lord showed me four blacksmiths. And I said, “What are these coming to do?” 4 He replied, “Those horns scattered Judah so completely that no one dared to raise his head. However, those blacksmiths have come to terrify them and to strike down the horns of the nations that raised their horns against the land of Judah in order to scatter its people.”
The New Jerusalem.[b] 5 Following this, I raised my eyes and observed a man with a measuring line in his hand. 6 When I asked him, “Where are you going?” he replied, “To measure Jerusalem, to discover what is its width and what is its length.”
7 When the angel who was talking to me walked away, another angel came out to meet him 8 and said to him, “Run and tell that young man: Jerusalem will remain without walls because of the great multitude of men and animals dwelling there. 9 But I will be a wall of fire all around it, says the Lord. And I will be the glory within it.”
10 Up, up! Flee from the land of the north,
says the Lord.
For I have scattered you to the four winds of heaven,
says the Lord.
11 Away, away! Escape to Zion,
you who presently live in daughter Babylon.
12 For thus said the Lord of hosts
after he sent me forth,
in regard to the nations that plundered you:
Whoever touches you
touches the apple of my eye.
13 Behold, I will wave my hand over them,
and they will be plunder
for those they have enslaved.
Thus you will know
that the Lord of hosts has sent me.
14 Sing and rejoice, O daughter Zion.
For I am coming to dwell in your midst,
says the Lord.
15 On that day
many nations will be converted to the Lord.
Yes, they will become his people,
and he will dwell among you.
Then you will know that the Lord of hosts
has sent me to you.
16 The Lord will claim Judah
as his portion in the holy land,
and once again he will choose Jerusalem.
17 Let all people be silent
in the presence of the Lord.
For he has roused himself
from his holy dwelling.
Jesus Restores the Work of God[a]
Chapter 5
The Sign Given on a Sabbath.[b] 1 Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish feasts. 2 Now in Jerusalem, by the Sheep Gate, there is a pool that in Hebrew is called Bethesda.[c] It has five porticos, 3 and in these a large number of invalids used to lie, people who were blind, lame, and paralyzed, waiting for the movement of the water.[d] [ 4 For occasionally an angel of the Lord would come down into the pool and stir up the water. The first one into the pool after each such disturbance would be cured of whatever disease he had.][e]
5 A man who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and was aware that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to get well?” 7 The invalid answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up. While I am still on my way, someone else steps into the pool ahead of me.” 8 Jesus said to him, “Rise! Take up your mat and walk!” 9 Immediately, the man was cured, and he took up his mat and began to walk.
Now that day was a Sabbath. 10 Therefore, the Jews said to the man who had been cured, “Today is the Sabbath. It is not lawful for you to carry your mat.” 11 He replied, “The man who cured me said to me, ‘Take up your mat and walk!’ ” 12 They asked him, “Who is the man who told you to take it up and walk?” 13 But the man who had been cured did not know who it was, for Jesus had disappeared into the crowd that was there.
14 Later, Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you have been made well. Do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.” 15 The man went away and told the Jews that Jesus was the man who had made him well. 16 Therefore, the Jews began to harass Jesus because he was doing such things on the Sabbath. 17 However, Jesus responded to them, saying,
“My Father is still working,
and I am at work as well.”
18 For this reason, the Jews became even more determined to kill him, because he was not only breaking the Sabbath but also calling God his own Father, making himself equal to God.
19 The Work of the Son.[f] Jesus replied to them, saying,
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
the Son can do nothing by himself;
he can do only what he sees the Father doing.
For whatever the Father does,
the Son also does.
20 For the Father loves the Son
and shows him everything
that he himself is doing.
And he will show him
even greater works than these,
so that you might be astonished.
21 “Indeed, just as the Father raises the dead
and gives them life,
so does the Son give life
to anyone he chooses.
22 The Father judges no one,
for he has entrusted all judgment to the Son,
23 so that all may honor the Son
as they honor the Father.
Anyone who does not honor the Son
does not honor the Father who sent him.
24 “Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever hears my words
and believes in the one who sent me
possesses eternal life.
He will not come to judgment
but has passed from death to life.
25 “Amen, amen, I say to you,
the hour is coming,
indeed it is already here,
when the dead will hear
the voice of the Son of God,
and all those who hear it will live.
26 For just as the Father has life in himself,
so also he has granted the Son to have life in himself.
27 And he has also granted him
the power to pass judgment,
because he is the Son of Man.
28 “Do not be astonished at this,
for the hour is coming
when all those who are in their graves
will hear his voice
29 and will come forth from their graves.
Those who have done good deeds
will rise to life,
while those who have done evil
will rise to judgment.
30 “I can do nothing on my own.
As I hear, I judge,
and my judgment is just,
because I seek to do
not my own will
but the will of him who sent me.
A Witness to Jesus
31 [g]“If I were to testify about myself,
my testimony would not be true.
32 However, there is another who testifies about me,
and I know that his testimony is true,
the testimony he bore concerning me.
33 You sent messengers to John,
and he has testified to the truth.
34 Not that I accept such human testimony,
but I say these things
so that you may be saved.
35 “John was a burning and shining lamp,
and for a time you were willing
to exult in his light.
36 But I have testimony that is greater than John’s.
The works that my Father
has given me to accomplish,
the very works that I am doing,
testify about me,
that the Father has sent me.
37 “And the Father who sent me
has himself testified about me.
You have not heard his voice
or seen his form,
38 and you do not have his word
abiding in you,
because you do not believe
him whom he has sent.
39 “Search the Scriptures carefully
because you believe that through them
you will gain eternal life.
Even they testify on my behalf.
40 Yet you refuse to come to me
to receive that life.
Unbelief of Jesus’ Hearers
41 “I do not accept the praise of men.
42 Moreover, I know that you do not have
the love of God in your hearts.
43 I have come in the name of my Father,
yet you do not accept me.
But if another should come in his own name,
you will accept him.
44 How can you believe
when you accept praise from one another,
yet you do not seek
the praise that comes from
the only God?
45 “Do not think that I will accuse you
before the Father.
You have placed your hope in Moses,
and he is the one who will accuse you.
46 If you truly believed Moses,
you would have believed in me,
for it is about me that he wrote.
47 But since you do not believe what he wrote,
how will you believe what I say?”
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