M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
3 During the 18th year of Jehoshaphat’s reign in Judah, Jehoram (Ahab’s son) took over the throne of Israel at Samaria for 12 years. 2 The Eternal saw that he did wicked things, but not to the same degree his parents did. He tore down and had nothing to do with the pillar honoring Baal that his father had crafted. 3 But still, he walked the wicked path of Jeroboam (Nebat’s son) that caused the Israelites to live sinful lives. He never repented from his wickedness.
4 Mesha (Moab’s king) bred sheep and, as payment, he would give Israel’s king 100,000 lambs and the fleece of 100,000 rams. 5 But when Ahab died, Mesha (Moab’s king) turned against Israel’s king. 6 King Jehoram left Samaria and assembled the entire community of Israel. 7 He sent a message to Jehoshaphat (Judah’s king).
Jehoram’s Message: Moab’s king is no longer on Israel’s side. He has turned against me. Will you accompany us in battle against him?
Jehoshaphat’s Reply: Yes, I will fight beside you. What is mine is yours—my people, my horses, everything.
Jehoram’s Second Message: 8 What path do you want to take?
Jehoshaphat’s Reply: We will travel through the desert of Edom.
Since David defeated the nation of Moab (2 Samuel 8:2), it has been a vassal state to Israel; but under their new king Mesha, the Moabites are ready to revolt. Mesha has fortified the entire country, building a temple, palace, walls, and reservoirs. Most importantly, he fortifies the northern entrance to Moab, so Israel is forced to find another way to attack. Unfortunately, the only other option is for Israel to enter from the south, and that requires marching through Judah and Edom, something that would be perceived as an act of war. By securing Judah’s and Edom’s cooperation in the attack, Israel does not have to worry about being attacked while traveling through their nations, and she gains allies against the impressively strong Moab.
9 Israel’s king traveled with Judah’s king and Edom’s king. It was a difficult trip that lasted for seven days, a circular route around the territory held by Moab. By then there wasn’t any water for the army or for the livestock.
Jehoram: 10 This is terrible! The Eternal intends to hand the three of us over to Moab.
Jehoshaphat: 11 Surely there is a prophet of the Eternal One among us. If so, let him come forth so that we can talk with the Eternal through him.
Jehoram’s Servant: Yes, there is a prophet of the Lord among us! Elisha (Shaphat’s son)! He used to serve the great Elijah by pouring water on his hands!
Jehoshaphat: 12 The message and power of the Eternal One accompany him.
So Israel’s king (Jehoram), Jehoshaphat (Judah’s king), and Edom’s king went to find Elisha.
Elisha (to Jehoram): 13 What business do I have with you? Why don’t you go to the prophets of your parents’ god?
Jehoram: I can’t because the Eternal called the three of us together in order to hand us over to Moab.
Elisha: 14 As certain as the life of the Eternal One, Commander of heavenly armies, to whom I offer my life, I would pay you no attention except that I have such great respect for Jehoshaphat, king of Judah. But I have no regard for you! I will not even look at you! 15 But now, bring me a musician!
While the musician was playing, Elisha was empowered by the Eternal.
Elisha: 16 This is the Eternal’s message: “Dig trenches throughout this entire valley.”
17 This is the Eternal’s message: “You will not see rain fall from the sky or feel wind blow across your skin, but you will see this valley filled with water. You and your livestock will have plenty of water to quench your thirst!” 18 And that’s not all! It is indeed a small thing for the Eternal One: He is also going to hand the Moabites over to you. 19 Then you will attack every fortified and prosperous city, chop down every decent tree, plug up every water hole, and use stones to destroy every healthy piece of land along your way.
20 In the morning, water coming from the higher ground in Edom filled the entire land around the time that sacrifices were offered.
21 The Moabites heard a rumor that the kings were about to wage war against them, so every man who could wear armor—from young men to old men—was called to battle and waited at the border. 22 They woke up at dawn, as the fiery glow of the sunrise was kissing the water. From the view of the Moabites, the water was blood red.
Moabites: 23 Look! Blood! The kings have fought and killed each other, and now their blood fills the country. Go forth, Moab, and collect the spoil!
24 But when the Moabite warriors arrived at the Israelite encampment, the Israelites jumped up and killed the Moabites. The surviving Moabites ran away, but the Israelites ran after them and killed them all. 25 Then the Israelites destroyed every city, chopped down every decent tree, plugged up every water hole, and filled all the healthy land with stones along their way. Only the stone walls of Kir-hareseth remained after they were finished with it, but the men with slings later took care of these rocks as well. 26 When Moab’s king perceived how dangerous the battle was, he gathered up 700 of his swordsmen who tried to make their way through to Edom’s king. But it was impossible.
27 Desperate to survive, Moab’s king offered his own son, his oldest son who was next in line for the throne, as a burnt offering to Moab’s god Chemosh on the wall.
Unlike the Lord, who does not allow child sacrifice (Genesis 22), the Moabites believe their god, Chemosh, responds favorably to the sacrifice of children. Seeing that he is about to lose the war, Mesha makes the greatest sacrifice he can imagine: he offers his oldest son and heir. Not only does Mesha sacrifice the future of his nation and his son’s life, he believes he also sacrifices the boy’s afterlife, since burnt offerings are totally consumed and no body would remain for burial. Mesha’s action gives his army courage to fight, but it is the military engagement that saves his nation. Moab defeats Israel and her allies.
Then a fierce wrath swept against Israel, so they fled from Moab’s king and went back to their own country.
Paul brings the situation to life for them: on one side, the rebellious one opposes God by corrupting God’s world, telling lies, and instigating fear; but on the other side, there’s Jesus, who comes from above and rains mercy over the world with His blood. He stands ready to return to face these enemies. Paul is trying to explain this epic battle with eternal consequences to his friends who have been led astray by false revelations. While this spiritual battle will occur in the future, skirmishes representing the two sides are already taking place in the church; so remain diligent and faithful in service of the Lord.
3 Brothers and sisters, having shared all this, let me ask you to pray for us. Pray that this message of the Lord will spread quickly and receive the praise and respect it deserves from others as it has with you. 2 Pray also that we would all be rescued from the snares of harmful, wicked people—after all, not all people are believing. 3 Still, the Lord is true to His promises; He will hold you up and guard you against the evil one. 4 We do not doubt the Lord’s intentions for you; we are confident that you are carrying out, and will continue to carry out, the commands we are sending your way. 5 May the Lord guide your hearts into God’s pure love and keep you headed straight into the strong and sure grip of the Anointed One.
6 For the sake of the church, brothers and sisters, we insist in the name of our Lord Jesus the Anointed that you withdraw from any brother or sister who is out of order and unwilling to work, who is straying from the line of teaching we passed on to all of you. 7 You know how essential it is to imitate us in the way we live life. We were never undisciplined 8 nor did we take charity from anyone while we were with you. Instead, you saw how we worked very hard day and night so we wouldn’t be a burden to even one person in the community. 9 We had the right to depend on your help and hospitality, as you know; but we wanted to give you a model you could follow, to lay a path of footprints for you to walk in. 10 This is exactly why, while with you, we commanded you: “Anyone not willing to work shouldn’t get to eat!” 11 You see, we are hearing that some folks in the community are out of step with our teaching; they are idle, not working, but really busy doing nothing—and yet still expect to be fed! 12 If this is you or someone else in the community, we insist and urge you in the Lord Jesus the Anointed that you go to work quietly, earn your keep, put food on your own table, and supply your own necessities. 13 And to the rest of you, brothers and sisters, never grow tired of doing good.
14 If someone disregards the instructions of this letter, make a note of who it is and don’t have anything to do with that person so that this one may be shamed. 15 Don’t consider someone like this an enemy (he is an enemy only to himself) but warn him as if you were redirecting your own brother.
Work is part of the ongoing work of creation, an aspect of God’s image in us. Those who do not work will be unfulfilled and a burden to those around them.
16 And now, dear friends, may the Lord of peace Himself grace you with peace always and in everything. May the Lord be present with all of you.
17 This final greeting is by me, Paul, written by my own hand. This is my signature, letting you know that this is a genuine letter from me, and so I write to you:
18 May the grace of our Lord Jesus the Anointed be with all of you.
7 In the first year of Belshazzar’s reign over Babylon, Daniel had a dream and saw visions as he slept in his bed. When he got up, he remembered the dream and wrote it down. This is the beginning of his record:
These events most likely take place in 554 b.c. They are a flashback to before the feast in chapter 5.
Daniel: 2 As I dreamed that night, I saw a vision: I was looking and saw the four winds of heaven blow in from all directions and sweep across the surface of the Mediterranean Sea,[a] whipping up waves and turmoil within the deep. 3 Four great beasts rose up from the churning waters, each one different from the other. 4 The first to surface was like a lion. It had giant wings like an eagle’s protruding from its shoulders. I watched as suddenly its feathers were plucked and its wings removed. The great beast was lifted up from the earth so that it could stand on two feet like a human being. Then it was given human intellect. 5 After this I looked and saw a second beast rising from the sea, this one resembling a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and in its mouth, gripped tightly between its teeth, were three ribs. And the bear was told to get up and devour even more flesh. 6 After witnessing this, I continued to look and saw another beast appear from beneath the waves. This one was fierce and fast like a leopard. It had a bird’s wings like the lion, but two pairs instead of one coming out of its back. It had four heads, and men bowed to this beast, and it was permitted to rule over them. 7 While I continued to gaze at this vision that night, a fourth beast arose. As if from a nightmare, it was terrifying, more awful and more powerful than anything I had ever seen. Its enormous iron teeth devoured and shattered its prey. Everything was crushed beneath its massive feet. And this fourth beast was unlike the previous three, having ten horns protruding from its head. 8 As I stared at the creature and wondered about the ten horns, suddenly another horn grew out of its head, smaller than the rest. Three of the first horns were pushed up from their roots to make room for the little horn. It appeared to have eyes like a human and a mouth that boasted and bragged of its great exploits.
9 As I watched the vision unfold,
thrones were set in place,
And the Ancient of Days took His throne above all.
His clothes were the purest white, as white as snow,
and the hair of His head was like the finest wool.
His throne was a flaming fire,
set on wheels that blazed like the sun.
10 A stream of fire emerged and flowed from His presence.
Thousands upon thousands of heavenly beings were there to serve Him;
millions upon millions stood by to attend Him.
The heavenly court sat to hear a case,
and the books of judgment were opened.
11 I continued to look on the scene and heard the clatter of arrogant words spoken by that smaller horn. And as I watched, the verdict was given, and the sentence enacted: the fourth beast was slain, and its body was destroyed, delivered over to the consuming fire. 12 As for the other beasts, their power and position were taken away, but they were allowed to live for a little while longer.
13 I saw another spectacle in the night visions:
I looked and saw someone like a son of man
coming with the clouds of heaven.[b]
He approached the Ancient of Days
and was ushered into His presence.
14 To Him was given authority, honor, and a kingdom
so that all people of every heritage, nationality, and language might serve Him.
His dominion will last forever,
His throne will never pass away,
and His kingdom will never be destroyed.
15 As for me, Daniel, I was deeply disturbed by all that I saw; these night visions terrified me. 16 So I approached one of the heavenly beings standing before the flaming throne and asked him to explain exactly what had happened. So he did. And this is what he told me it all meant, the interpretation he gave me to all I had seen and heard:
Heavenly Being: 17 The four great beasts you saw that rose from the wind-whipped sea are four kings who will rise from the earth and come to rule vast empires. 18 But the holy ones of the Most High God will receive that kingdom which will last for all the ages to come, forever and ever.
Daniel: 19 But I wanted to know more. I wanted to understand the whole truth about the fourth beast. It was different from the other three, so fearsome with its iron teeth and bronze claws devouring and shattering its prey and trampling everything in its path beneath its massive feet.
The beasts can be identified by a careful study of history. The lion, bear, leopard, and fourth terrifying beast represent Babylon, Media, Persia, and Greece. Persia had four kings, so the leopard had four heads. The ten horns of the fourth beast with iron teeth represent the ten dominant Seleucid kings after Alexander the Great’s empire splintered into four regions. The smaller horn is Antiochus IV who put down three potential Seleucid leaders (horns) before him.
Just because a prophecy has been fulfilled once, it doesn’t mean the prophecy is no longer instructive. Daniel’s prophecies are excellent examples of this idea. Written from the perspective of the Babylonian exile, these prophecies describe the coming suffering of God’s people under foreign rule and look forward to a time when God will liberate them. During the next 300 years, the Jews watch Daniel’s prophecies unfold. The Persian Empire is conquered by a Greek, Alexander the Great, in 333 b.c. Alexander’s short reign is followed by the division of the empire into four districts governed by his politically inexperienced generals; Israel is ruled by a string of cruel men—culminating in the reign of Antiochus IV who attempts to turn Jerusalem into a Greek city, bans the Torah, and even builds an altar to Zeus in God’s temple. In the face of such pagan influence, God instigates the Maccabean Revolt of 167-165 b.c. At that time, Jerusalem’s God-fearing traditions return, and Israel is ruled by the Jews. But these historical facts are not the end of God’s message. Within Daniel’s prophecies is a description of the end of the age, a time when evil will be punished and the Liberator will reign.
Daniel: 20 I was intrigued with the 10 horns on the beast’s head and that 11th horn that grew up and uprooted the other 3 horns, that horn with eyes like human eyes and a mouth that uttered arrogant words, that horn that looked greater than the rest. 21 I looked on as that 11th horn waged war against the holy ones; for a while it seemed it might triumph over them, that is, 22 until the Ancient of Days arrived and ruled in favor of the holy ones of the Most High. Now the appointed time had come when the holy ones took possession of the eternal kingdom. 23 The heavenly being told me,
“The fourth beast, like the other three,
represents a fourth kingdom that will rule on earth.
This kingdom will be different from the rest;
it will devour the whole earth
And crush everything beneath its feet
and shatter it all to pieces.
24 The 10 horns are 10 kings
that will arise from this fourth kingdom.
After these another king will come to power
who will be very different from the kings before him,
seizing power until he subdues three kings.
25 This king will speak out against the Most High,
and try to wear down His holy ones;
He will seek to alter the sacred times and special law God gave them,
and they will be under his control
for time, times, and half a time.
26 After this, the heavenly court will sit in judgment,
his authority will be taken from him,
and his supremacy over the earth will come to a permanent end.
27 Then the great ruling authority
of the kingdoms under the heavens
Shall be handed over to the covenant people,
the holy ones of the Most High;
Their kingdom will last forever,
and all the remaining kingdoms will worship and serve Him.”
28 This is the end of his record.
Daniel: My thoughts on these matters upset me greatly. My face grew pale, but I kept it all to myself.
Psalm 114
1 When the time came for Israel to leave Egypt—
for Jacob’s family to be free of those who spoke another language—
2 God chose to make Judah His sacred place,
and Israel became His realm.
3 And the waters of the sea witnessed God’s actions and ran away;
the Jordan, too, turned around and ran back to where it came from.
4 All of the mountains leapt with the strength of mighty rams,
and all of the hills danced with the joy of little lambs.
5 Why do you retreat, O sea?
Why do you roll back your waters, O Jordan?
6 Why, O mountains, do you leap with the strength of rams?
Why, O hills, do you dance with joy like little lambs?
7 Shudder and quake, O you earth, at the sight of the Lord.
The God of Jacob comes,
8 Who turns rock into pools of refreshing water
and flint into fountains of life-giving streams!
Psalm 115
1 Not for us, O Eternal One; this glory is not for us—but for Your name
because of Your loyal love and truth.
2 Why should the nations ask,
“Where is their God now?”
3 Our God is in heaven
doing whatever He chooses.
4 Those nations worship idols of silver and gold,
crafted by human hands:
5 They have given their gods mouths, but they cannot speak;
eyes, but they cannot see.
6 They have provided their idols with ears, but they cannot hear;
noses, but they cannot smell.
7 They have fashioned hands, but the idols cannot reach out and touch;
feet, but they cannot walk.
Their idols cannot make a sound in their finely crafted throats.
8 The people who make idols will become useless like them,
like all who trust in idols.
9 O Israel, put your trust in the Eternal.
He is their helper and defender.
10 O family of Aaron, put your trust in the Eternal.
He is their helper and defender.
11 All who fear and know the Eternal, put your trust in Him.
He is their helper and defender.
12 The Eternal has remembered us, and He will bless us.
He will bless the people of Israel.
He will bless the priestly family of Aaron.
13 The Eternal will bless those who worship and stand in awe of Him,
from the least to the greatest.
14 May the Eternal prosper your family,
growing both you and your descendants.
15 May the blessings of the Eternal,
maker of heaven and earth, be on you.
16 The heavens above belong to the Eternal,
and yet earth in all of its beauty has been given to humanity by Him.
17 The dead do not praise the Eternal,
nor do any who descend into the silent grave.
18 But we will praise and bless You—our Eternal One—
today and forever.
Praise the Eternal!
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.