M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Chapter 23
David Rescues Keilah. 1 Some people then spoke to David saying, “Look, the Philistines are attacking Keilah and they are robbing the threshing floors.” 2 David inquired of the Lord saying, “Shall I go to attack these Philistines?” The Lord said to David, “Go attack the Philistines and rescue Keilah.” 3 David’s men said to him, “Look, we are afraid here in Judah. How much more would we be if we went to Keilah to fight against the armies of the Philistines?” 4 David inquired of the Lord once again, and the Lord said, “Rise, go down to Keilah, for I will deliver the Philistines into your hands.”
5 David and his men went to Keilah and they fought with the Philistines. They slaughtered many of them, and they brought away their livestock. Thus David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.
6 When Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, fled to David at Keilah, he went down with an ephod in his hand.
Saul Chases David.[a] 7 Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah. Saul said, “God has delivered him into my hands for he has trapped himself behind gates and bars.” 8 Then Saul assembled all of the people for war, to go down to Keilah and lay siege to David and his men.
9 David knew that Saul was plotting evil against him, so he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod here.” 10 David said, “O Lord, the God of Israel, your servant has truly heard that Saul is seeking to come to Keilah to destroy the city on account of me. 11 Will the men of Keilah deliver me into his hands? Will Saul come down here as your servant has heard? O Lord, the God of Israel, I beg you to tell your servant.” The Lord said, “He will come down.” 12 Then David said, “Will the men of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hands of Saul?” The Lord answered, “They will deliver you over.”
13 So David and his men (there were around six hundred of them) left Keilah and went wherever they could go. Saul heard that David had left Keilah, so he halted the pursuit.
14 David stayed in the wilderness strongholds, and he remained in the hill country of the Desert of Ziph. Saul sought him every single day, but God did not deliver him into his hands. 15 David realized that Saul was coming out to seek his life while he was in the Desert of Ziph at Horesh.
16 Jonathan, Saul’s son, arose and went to David in Horesh and encouraged him in God. 17 This is what he said to him, “Do not be afraid, for the hand of Saul, my father, is not going to find you. You will be the king over Israel, and I will be next to you. Even my father Saul knows that.” 18 The two of them made a covenant before the Lord. David stayed in the woods, and Jonathan returned home.
19 The Ziphites then came up to Saul in Gibeah saying, “Is David not hiding with us in strongholds in the woods, on the hill of Hachilah which is to the south of Jeshimon? 20 Therefore, come down as you wish to, O king, come down, and for our part we will deliver him into the king’s hands.” 21 Saul said, “May you be blessed by the Lord, for you have had compassion on me. 22 Go, please, and prepare yourselves. Investigate and reconnoiter where he is hidden and find out who has seen him there, for I have been told that he is very clever. 23 See, therefore, and find out about all the places where he is hiding, then come back to me with certain information. Then I will go with you, and if he is in the land, I will search for him all throughout the thousands of Judah.”
24 Escape from Saul. They rose up and preceded Saul to Ziph. David and his men were in the Desert of Maon, in the Arabah to the south of Jeshimon. 25 Saul and his men were searching, and when David was told about it, he went down to the rock and stayed in the Desert of Maon. Saul heard about this and pursued David in the Desert of Maon.
26 Saul was on one side of the mountain, and David and his men were on the other side of the mountain. David, out of fear, hurried to get away. Saul and his men were trying to surround David and his men to capture them.
27 A messenger came to Saul saying, “Come quickly, for the Philistines have invaded the land.” 28 Saul broke off his pursuit of David and he left to fight against the Philistines. This is why they called that place the Rock of Escape.
Chapter 4
Do Not Judge before the Appointed Time. 1 People should regard us as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Now it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy. 3 It is of no importance to me if I am to be judged by you or by any human court. I do not even judge myself.
4 I personally have nothing on my conscience, but that does not mean that I am innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore, do not pronounce judgment before the appointed time, until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will disclose the motives of all hearts. Then each one will receive the proper praise from God.
Fools for Christ. 6 Brethren, I have applied all this to Apollos and myself for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, “Do not go beyond what has been written.”[a] None of you should become inflated with pride against anyone else. 7 Who made you so important? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you have received it, why do you boast as though you had not received it?
8 You already have everything! You have already become rich! You have become kings without our help! How I wish that you truly reigned so that we might reign with you![b]
9 It seems to me that God has designated us apostles as the last of all, like men sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men. 10 We are fools for the sake of Christ, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we are in disrepute.
11 To this very hour, we endure hunger and thirst. We are poorly clad and beaten and homeless, 12 and we exhaust ourselves working with our hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we suffer persecution, we endure it; 13 when we are slandered, we respond gently. We are regarded as the rubbish of the world, the dregs of humanity, to this very day.
14 The Authority of a Father in Christ. I am writing all this not to make you ashamed but to admonish you as my beloved children. 15 Even though you have ten thousand tutors in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
16 I appeal to you then to be imitators of me. 17 For this reason I have sent you Timothy, who is my beloved and faithful son in the Lord. He will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every Church.
18 Some of you have become arrogant, on the assumption that I am not coming to you. 19 However, I will come to you soon, if it is the Lord’s will, and then I will ascertain the actual power of these arrogant people as opposed to their words. 20 For the kingdom of God[c] is not a matter of words but of power. 21 What would you prefer? Am I to come to you with a whip or with love and a spirit of gentleness?
Chapter 2
The Vison of the Scroll. 1 He said to me: Stand up, son of man.[a] I wish to speak with you. 2 As he spoke to me, a Spirit entered into me and stood me on my feet, and I listened to him speaking.
3 He said to me: Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me. They and their ancestors have been in revolt against me to this very day. 4 Because they are obstinate and stubborn, I am sending you to them. You shall say to them, “Thus says the Lord God.” 5 Whether they listen to you or whether in their rebelliousness they refuse to listen, they will know that there is a prophet among them.
6 But as for you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or of what they say, even though they resist and reject you and you find yourself sitting on scorpions. Do not be afraid of their words or be alarmed by their looks, for they are a rebellious tribe. 7 You will deliver my words to them whether they listen or whether in their rebelliousness, they refuse to listen. 8 But as for you, son of man, listen to what I say to you and do not be rebellious like that rebellious tribe. Open your mouth and eat what I am about to give you.
9 I saw a hand stretched out to me, and in it was a written scroll. 10 He unrolled it in front of me. It had writing on the front and on the back, and written on it were words, of lamentation and dirges and woe.
Psalm 38[a]
Prayer of a Sinner in Great Peril
1 A psalm of David. For remembrance.[b]
2 O Lord, do not punish me in your anger
or chastise me in your wrath.
3 For your arrows[c] have pierced me deeply,
and your hand has come down upon me.
4 No portion of my body[d] has been unscathed
as a result of your anger;
my bones have become weak
as a result of my sins.
5 My iniquities tower far above my head;[e]
they are a burden too heavy to bear.
6 My wounds are fetid and fester
because of my folly.
7 I am bowed down and bent over,
as I spend each day in sorrow.
8 My loins are filled with searing pain;
no part of my body[f] is unafflicted.
9 I am numb and completely crushed,
and I groan in anguish of heart.[g]
10 O Lord, all my longing is known to you,
and my sighs are not hidden from you.
11 My heart throbs, and my strength is spent;
even the light has faded from my eyes.
12 My friends and companions stay away from my affliction,
and my neighbors keep their distance.
13 Those who seek my life set traps;
those who wish me harm threaten violence
and plot treachery all day long.[h]
14 [i]But I am like a man who cannot hear,
like one who cannot open his mouth.
15 I am like one who hears nothing
and has no answer to offer.
16 I place my hope in you, O Lord;
you, O Lord, my God, will answer for me.
17 For I prayed, “Never let them gloat over me
or exult should my foot slip.”
18 I am at the point of exhaustion,
and my grief is with me constantly.
19 I acknowledge my iniquity,
and I sincerely grieve for my sin.
20 [j]Numerous and strong are my enemies without cause;
many are those who hate me without good reason.[k]
21 Those who repay my good deeds with evil
oppose me because I follow a path of righteousness.
22 Do not abandon me, O Lord;
my God, do not remain far from me.
23 Come quickly to my aid,
O Lord, my Savior.
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