M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
David’s Military Campaigns
18 After this,(A) David defeated the Philistines, subdued them, and took Gath and its surrounding villages from Philistine control. 2 He also defeated the Moabites, and they became David’s subjects and brought tribute.
3 David also defeated King Hadadezer of Zobah at Hamath when he went to establish his control at the Euphrates River. 4 David captured one thousand chariots, seven thousand horsemen, and twenty thousand foot soldiers from him, hamstrung all the horses, and kept a hundred chariots.[a]
5 When the Arameans of Damascus came to assist King Hadadezer of Zobah,(B) David struck down twenty-two thousand Aramean men. 6 Then he placed garrisons[b](C) in Aram of Damascus, and the Arameans became David’s subjects and brought tribute. The Lord made David victorious wherever he went.
7 David took the gold shields carried by Hadadezer’s officers and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 From Tibhath and Cun, Hadadezer’s cities, David also took huge quantities of bronze, from which Solomon made the bronze basin,[c] the pillars, and the bronze articles.(D)
9 When King Tou of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of King Hadadezer of Zobah, 10 he sent his son Hadoram to King David to greet him and to congratulate him because David had fought against Hadadezer and defeated him, for Tou and Hadadezer had fought many wars. Hadoram brought all kinds of gold, silver, and bronze items. 11 King David also dedicated these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold he had carried off from all the nations—from Edom, Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, and the Amalekites.
12 Abishai son of Zeruiah struck down eighteen thousand Edomites in the Salt Valley. 13 He put garrisons in Edom, and all the Edomites were subject to David. The Lord made David victorious wherever he went.
14 So David reigned over all Israel,(E) administering justice and righteousness for all his people.
15 Joab(F) son of Zeruiah was over the army;
Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was court historian;
16 Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech[d](G) son of Abiathar were priests;
Shavsha was court secretary;
17 Benaiah son of Jehoiada(H) was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites;
and David’s sons were the chief officials at the king’s side.
Warning to the Rich
5 Come now, you rich(A) people, weep and wail over the miseries that are coming on you. 2 Your wealth has rotted and your clothes are moth-eaten.(B) 3 Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have stored up treasure in the last days.(C) 4 Look! The pay that you withheld from the workers(D) who mowed your fields cries out, and the outcry of the harvesters has reached the ears of the Lord of Armies.(E) 5 You have lived luxuriously on the earth and have indulged yourselves. You have fattened your hearts(F) in a day of slaughter.(G) 6 You have condemned, you have murdered the righteous, who does not resist you.(H)
Waiting for the Lord
7 Therefore, brothers and sisters, be patient until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth and is patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains.(I) 8 You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, because the Lord’s coming is near.(J)
9 Brothers and sisters, do not complain about one another, so that you will not be judged. Look, the judge stands at the door!(K)
10 Brothers and sisters, take the prophets who spoke in the Lord’s name as an example of suffering and patience. 11 See, we count as blessed those who have endured.[a] You have heard of Job’s endurance(L) and have seen the outcome that the Lord brought about—the Lord is compassionate and merciful.(M)
Truthful Speech
12 Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath.(N) But let your “yes” mean “yes,” and your “no” mean “no,” so that you won’t fall under judgment.[b]
Effective Prayer
13 Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone cheerful? He should sing praises.(O) 14 Is anyone among you sick? He should call for the elders of the church, and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.(P) 15 The prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up; if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.(Q) 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect.(R) 17 Elijah was a human being as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the land.(S) 18 Then he prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the land produced its fruit.(T)
19 My brothers and sisters, if any among you strays from the truth,(U) and someone turns him back,(V) 20 let that person know that whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.(W)
Jonah’s Prayer
2 Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish:(A)
2 I called to the Lord in my distress,(B)
and he answered me.
I cried out for help from deep inside[a] Sheol;(C)
you heard my voice.(D)
3 When you threw me into the depths,(E)
into the heart of the seas,(F)
the current[b] overcame me.
All your breakers and your billows swept over me.(G)
4 And I said, “I have been banished(H)
from your sight,(I)
yet I will look[c] once more
toward your holy temple.”(J)
5 The water engulfed me up to the neck;[d](K)
the watery depths overcame me;
seaweed was wrapped around my head.(L)
6 I sank to the foundations of the mountains,(M)
the earth’s gates shut behind me forever!(N)
Then you raised my life(O) from the Pit, Lord my God!(P)
7 As my life was fading away,(Q)
I remembered the Lord,(R)
and my prayer came to you,(S)
to your holy temple.(T)
8 Those who cherish worthless idols(U)
abandon their faithful love,(V)
9 but as for me, I will sacrifice(W) to you
with a voice of thanksgiving.(X)
I will fulfill(Y) what I have vowed.
Salvation[e] belongs to the Lord.(Z)
10 Then the Lord commanded the fish,(AA) and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
A Centurion’s Faith
7 When he had concluded saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum.(A) 2 A centurion’s servant, who was highly valued by him, was sick and about to die. 3 When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to him, requesting him to come and save the life of his servant. 4 When they reached Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy for you to grant this, 5 because he loves our nation and has built us a synagogue.”(B)
6 Jesus went with them, and when he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to tell him, “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, since I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. 7 That is why I didn’t even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed.[a](C) 8 For I too am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under my command. I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
9 Jesus heard this and was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found so great a faith even in Israel.” 10 When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant in good health.
A Widow’s Son Raised to Life
11 Afterward he was on his way to a town called Nain. His disciples and a large crowd were traveling with him. 12 Just as he neared the gate of the town, a dead man was being carried out. He was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow.(D) A large crowd from the town was also with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her(E) and said, “Don’t weep.” 14 Then he came up and touched the open coffin, and the pallbearers stopped. And he said, “Young man, I tell you, get up!”(F)
15 The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.(G) 16 Then fear[b] came over everyone,(H) and they glorified God,(I) saying, “A great prophet has risen among us,”(J) and “God has visited[c] his people.”(K) 17 This report about him went throughout Judea and all the vicinity.
In Praise of John the Baptist
18 Then John’s disciples told him about all these things.(L) So John summoned two of his disciples 19 and sent them to the Lord, asking, “Are you the one(M) who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”
20 When the men reached him, they said, “John the Baptist sent us to ask you, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?’”
21 At that time Jesus healed many people of diseases,(N) afflictions, and evil spirits,(O) and he granted sight to many blind people.(P) 22 He replied to them, “Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, those with leprosy[d] are cleansed, the deaf hear,(Q) the dead are raised, and the poor are told the good news,(R) 23 and blessed is the one who isn’t offended by me.”
24 After John’s messengers left, he began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swaying in the wind? 25 What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothes? See, those who are splendidly dressed and live in luxury are in royal palaces. 26 What then did you go out to see? A prophet?(S) Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 27 This is the one about whom it is written:
28 I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John,[f] but the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”
29 (And when all the people, including the tax collectors, heard this, they acknowledged God’s way of righteousness, because they had been baptized with John’s baptism.(U) 30 But since the Pharisees and experts in the law(V) had not been baptized by him, they rejected the plan of God for themselves.(W))
An Unresponsive Generation
31 “To what then should I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to each other:
We played the flute for you,
but you didn’t dance;
we sang a lament,
but you didn’t weep!
33 For John the Baptist did not come eating bread or drinking wine,(X) and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ 34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’(Y) 35 Yet wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”
Much Forgiveness, Much Love
36 Then one of the Pharisees invited him to eat with him. He entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table.(Z) 37 And a woman in the town who was a sinner found out that Jesus was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house.(AA) She brought an alabaster jar of perfume 38 and stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to wash his feet with her tears. She wiped his feet with her hair, kissing them and anointing them with the perfume.(AB)
39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “This man, if he were a prophet, would know who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him—she’s a sinner!” (AC)
40 Jesus replied to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”
He said, “Say it, teacher.”
41 “A creditor had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii,[g](AD) and the other fifty. 42 Since they could not pay it back,(AE) he graciously forgave them both. So, which of them will love him more?”
43 Simon answered, “I suppose the one he forgave more.”
“You have judged correctly,” he told him. 44 Turning to the woman, he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet,(AF) but she, with her tears, has washed my feet and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss,(AG) but she hasn’t stopped kissing my feet since I came in. 46 You didn’t anoint my head with olive oil,(AH) but she has anointed my feet with perfume. 47 Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; that’s why she loved much. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little.” 48 Then he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”(AI)
49 Those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this man who even forgives sins?” (AJ)
50 And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you.(AK) Go in peace.”(AL)
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