M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Chapter 25
1 It was during the ninth year of his reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, that Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and all his army came up against Jerusalem. He camped and made siege-works all around it.[a] 2 The city was under siege until the eleventh year of the reign of King Zedekiah. 3 By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe that there was no food left for the people of the land.
4 There was a breach in the city wall, and all of the warriors fled at night by way of the gate between the two walls by the king’s garden, even though the Chaldeans surrounded the city. They went toward the Arabah.
5 The Chaldean army chased after them and caught up with the king in the plains of Jericho, scattering his entire army. 6 They captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon who was at Riblah where he pronounced his judgment. 7 They killed Zedekiah’s sons before his eyes, and then they put out his eyes, bound him in brass fetters, and carried him off to Babylon.
Destruction of Jerusalem. 8 On the seventh day of the fifth month of the ninth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard and a servant of the king of Babylon, came up to Jerusalem. 9 He burned down the temple of the Lord, the royal palace, all of the buildings of Jerusalem. He burned down every large building. 10 All of the Chaldean army that was with the captain of the guard broke down all of the walls surrounding Jerusalem. 11 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, carried off the rest of the people who remained in the city, those who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the multitude.
12 But the captain of the guard left the poorest of the people who were to be vinedressers and herdsmen.
13 The Chaldeans broke into pieces the bronze pillars in the temple of the Lord and the bronze sea and its base in the temple of the Lord. They carried the bronze off to Babylon. 14 They took away the pots, the shovels, the snuffers, the spoons, and all of the bronze vessels that were used for ministry there. 15 The captain of the guard also took away the censers and the bowls, and everything that was made with gold or silver. 16 One could not even measure the weight of the bronze from all these things: the two pillars, the sea, and its base that were made by Solomon for the temple of the Lord. 17 Each bronze pillar with its capital was eighteen cubits tall. The capital was three cubits high, along with a bronze network and pomegranates upon the capital. The other pillar was identical with its network.
18 The captain of the guard took away Seraiah, the chief priest, Zephaniah, the second priest, as well as three of the doormen. 19 He also took the officer who was in charge of the fighting men out of the city as well as five of the king’s advisors who were caught in the city. He took the scribe assigned to the leader of the army, the one who would muster the people of the land. He also took sixty of the people of the land who were found in the city.
20 Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, took them and brought them to the king of Babylon in Riblah. 21 The king of Babylon struck them down and killed them in Riblah in the land of Hamath. Thus, Judah was carried away from their land into exile.
22 Gedaliah Governs Judah.[b] As for the rest of the people who had remained in the land of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, appointed Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, over them.
23 When all of the captains of the army (they and their men) heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, they came to Gedaliah in Mizpah. They were Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, Johanan, the son of Kareah, Seraiah, the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah, the son of the Maachathite, and their men.
24 Gedaliah swore to them and to their men, saying to them, “Do not be afraid of the servants of the Chaldeans. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and everything will be all right with you.”
25 But during the seventh month, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, a member of the royal family, came with ten men and struck down Gedaliah. He died along with the Jews and Chaldeans who were with him in Mizpah.
26 All of the people then rose up, the small and the great, and the captains of the army, and they went to Egypt because they were afraid of the Chaldeans.
27 Jehoiachin’s Release from Prison.[c] In the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month, Evil-merodach who had become king that year, released Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, from prison. 28 He spoke kindly to him and he set him upon his throne which was above the thrones of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 He changed his prison clothes, and he ate his meals with him for the rest of his life. 30 He was given a regular allowance from the king, a portion for each day of the rest of his life.
A Different Kind of High Priest[a]
Chapter 7
Melchizedek.[b] 1 This Melchizedek, the king of Salem and a priest of God Most High, met Abraham as he was returning from his defeat of the kings, and he blessed him. 2 Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. His name first means “king of righteousness,” and then “king of Salem,” that is, “king of peace.” 3 Without father, or mother, or genealogy, and without beginning of days or end of life, thus bearing a resemblance to the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.
4 Just consider now how great this man must have been for the patriarch Abraham to give him a tenth of his spoils. 5 The descendants of Levi who succeed to the priestly office are required by the Law to collect tithes from the people, that is, from their fellow countrymen, although they too are descended from Abraham. 6 However, Melchizedek, who was not of the same ancestry, received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had received the promises.
7 It is indisputable that a lesser person is blessed by one who is greater. 8 In the one case, it is ordinary mortal men who receive tithes; in the other, the recipient is one of whom it is attested that he is alive. 9 One could even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, actually paid tithes through Abraham, 10 inasmuch as he was still in his father’s loins when Melchizedek met Abraham.
11 Another High Priest according to the Order of Melchizedek.[c] If perfection was therefore achieved through the Levitical priesthood, on the basis of which the Law was given to the people, what need would there have been for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchizedek rather than one according to the order of Aaron? 12 For when there is any change in the priesthood, there must also be a change in the Law.
13 Now the one about whom these things were said belonged to a different tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. 14 For it is clear that our Lord was descended from Judah, a tribe about which Moses said nothing in regard to priests.
15 This becomes even more obvious now that another priest has arisen, one like Melchizedek, 16 who was one not through a legal requirement concerning physical descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. 17 For it is attested of him:
“You are a priest forever,
according to the order of Melchizedek.”
18 The earlier commandment is abrogated because of its weakness and ineffectiveness, 19 since the Law brought nothing to perfection. On the other hand, a better hope is introduced through which we draw nearer to God.
20 This was confirmed by an oath. When others became priests, no oath was required, 21 but this one became a priest with the swearing of an oath by the one who said to him,
“The Lord has sworn, and he will not repent:
‘You are a priest forever.’ ”
22 Accordingly, Jesus has also become the guarantee of a better covenant.
23 Furthermore, the former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from remaining in office. 24 However, Jesus holds a perpetual priesthood because he remains forever. 25 Therefore, he has the full power to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to intercede for them.
26 The High Priest That We Needed.[d] It was fitting that we should have such a high priest—holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners, and raised high above the heavens. 27 Unlike the other high priests, he has no need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins and then for those of the people. He accomplished this once for all when he offered himself. 28 The Law appoints as high priests those who are subject to weakness, but the word of the oath, which came later than the Law, appointed the Son who has been made perfect forever.
The Judgment Is Near
Judgment of the Nations
Chapter 1
Title and Introduction.[a] 1 These are the words of Amos, a shepherd of Tekoa, concerning visions in regard to Israel during the reigns of Uzziah, king of Judah, and Jeroboam, son of Joash, king of Israel, two years prior to the earthquake. 2 He said:
“The Lord roars from Zion,
and his name thunders forth from Jerusalem.
The pastures of the shepherds will wither
and the summit of Carmel will be arid.”
For Three Crimes of Damascus
3 [b]These are the words of the Lord:
For three crimes of Damascus, and for four,
I will not revoke my decree.
Because they threshed Gilead
with threshing-sledges of iron,
4 I will send fire on the house of Hazael,
and it will devour the palaces of Ben-hadad.[c]
5 I will demolish the gate bars of Damascus
and destroy the inhabitants in the Valley of Aven,
as well as the sceptered ruler of Beth-eden;[d]
the people of Aram will be exiled to Kir,
says the Lord.
For Three Crimes of Gaza
6 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Gaza, and for four,
I will not revoke my decree.
Because they deported entire communities
and sent them in exile to Edom,
7 I will send fire down on the walls of Gaza
to devour its palaces.
8 I will destroy the inhabitants of Ashdod
and the sceptered ruler at Ashkelon.
I will turn my hand against Ekron,
and the remnant of the Philistines will perish,
says the Lord God.
For Three Crimes of Tyre
9 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Tyre, and for four,
I will not revoke my decree.
Because they delivered entire communities to slavery in Edom
and ignored the covenant of brotherhood,
10 I will send fire down on the walls of Tyre
to devour its palaces.
For Three Crimes of Edom
11 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of Edom, and for four,
I will not revoke my decree.
Because he pursued his brother with the sword
and stifled any semblance of pity,
because he was unceasing in his anger
and constantly nurtured his wrath,
12 I will send down fire on Teman
to devour the palaces of Bozrah.
For Three Crimes of Ammon
13 Thus says the Lord:
For three crimes of the Ammonites, and for four,
I will not revoke my decree.
Because they ripped open the pregnant women in Gilead
in their determination to enlarge their territory,
14 I will send down fire upon the walls of Rabbah[e]
to devour its palaces
amid war cries on the day of battle
and violent storms on the day of the whirlwind.
15 Then their king will go into exile,
accompanied by his chief advisors,
says the Lord.
Psalm 144[a]
Prayer for Victory and Peace
1 [b]Of David.
Blessed be the Lord,[c] my Rock,
who trains my hands for war
and my fingers for battle.
2 You are my safeguard[d] and my fortress,
my stronghold and my deliverer,
my shield in whom I take refuge,
the one who subdues nations under me.
3 O Lord, what is man that you care for him,
or the son of man that you think of him?[e]
4 Man is nothing more than a breath;
his days are like a fleeting shadow.[f]
5 [g]Part the heavens, O Lord, and descend;
touch the mountains so that they smoke.[h]
6 Flash forth lightning bolts and scatter my foes;
rout them with your arrows.[i]
7 Reach forth your hand[j] from on high;
deliver me and rescue me
from the mighty waters
and from the power of foreign foes
8 whose mouths utter lies[k]
and whose right hands are raised to swear to untruths.
9 [l]I will sing a new song to you, my God;
on a ten-stringed lyre I will play music for you.[m]
10 You grant victory to kings
and deliverance to your servant David from the cruel sword.[n]
11 Deliver me and rescue me
from the hands of foreign foes
whose mouths utter lies
and whose right hands are raised to swear to untruths.[o]
12 [p]May our sons in their youth
be like carefully nurtured plants,
and may our daughters be like pillars
designed to adorn a palace.[q]
13 May our barns be filled
with every kind of crop.
May our sheep increase by thousands,
by tens of thousands in our fields,[r]
14 and may our cattle be well fed.[s]
May there be no breach in our walls,
no going into exile,
no cries of distress in our streets.
15 Blessed are the people for whom this is true;
blessed[t] are the people whose God is the Lord.
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