Bible Reading Plan

2 Chronicles 36

Chapter 36

Joahaz, Jehoiakim, Then Jehoiachin Rule

^1 (C1)Then the people of the land took ^(F1)(C2)Joahaz the son of Josiah and made him king in place of his father in Jerusalem.² Joahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem.³ Then the king of Egypt deposed him in Jerusalem, and imposed a fine on the land of ^(F1)a hundred talents of silver and ^(F2)one talent of gold.⁴ The king of Egypt made ^(F1)Joahaz's brother Eliakim king over Judah and Jerusalem, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But ^(C1)Neco took his brother Joahaz and brought him to Egypt.

^5 (C1)Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem; and he did evil in the sight of the LORD his God.⁶ Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up ^(C1)against him and ^(C2)bound him with bronze chains to take him to Babylon.^7 (C1)Nebuchadnezzar also brought some of the articles of the house of the LORD to Babylon, and he put them in his temple in Babylon.^8 (C1)Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim and ^(F1)the abominations which he committed, and what was found against him, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. And his son Jehoiachin became king in his place.

^9 (C1)Jehoiachin was ^(F1)eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned for three months and ten days in Jerusalem. He did evil in the sight of the LORD.

Captivity in Babylon Begun

Zedekiah Rules in Judah

^11 (C1)Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem.¹² He did evil in the sight of the LORD his God; ^(C1)he did not humble himself ^(C2)before Jeremiah the prophet ^(F1)who spoke for the LORD.^13 (C1)He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear allegiance by God. But ^(C2)he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD God of Israel.¹⁴ Furthermore, all the officials of the priests and the people were very unfaithful, following all the abominations of the nations; and they defiled the house of the LORD which He had sanctified in Jerusalem.

¹⁵ Yet the LORD, the God of their fathers, ^(C1)sent word to them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place;¹⁶ but they continually ^(C1)mocked the messengers of God, ^(C2)despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, ^(C3)until the wrath of the LORD rose against His people, until there was no remedy.^17 (C1)So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or frail; He handed them all over to him.^18 (C1)He brought all the articles of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king and his officers, to Babylon.¹⁹ Then ^(C1)they burned the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burned all its fortified buildings with fire and destroyed all its valuable articles.²⁰ He ^(C1)took into exile those who had escaped from the sword to Babylon; and ^(C2)they were servants to him and to his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia,^21 (C1)to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until ^(C2)the land had enjoyed its Sabbaths. ^(C3)All the days of its desolation it kept the Sabbath ^(F1)(C4)until seventy years were complete.

Cyrus Permits Return

^22 (C1)Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia—in order to fulfill the word of the LORD ^(C2)by the mouth of Jeremiah—the LORD ^(C3)stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia so that he sent a proclamation throughout his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying,²³ "This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: 'The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has appointed me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all His people, may the LORD his God be with him; ^(F1)go up then!'"

Psalms 90

Chapter 90

God's Eternity and the Brevity of Human Life.

¹ Lord, You have been our ^(F1)(C1)dwelling place in all generations.

² Before ^(C1)the mountains were born
^(F1)Or You ^(C2)gave birth to the earth and the world,
Even ^(C3)from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.

³ You ^(C1)turn mortals back into dust
And say, "Return, you sons of mankind."

⁴ For ^(C1)a thousand years in Your sight
Are like ^(C2)yesterday when it passes by,
^(F1)Or like a ^(C3)watch in the night.

⁵ You ^(C1)have ^(F1)swept them away like a flood, they ^(F2)(C2)fall asleep;
In the morning they are like ^(C3)grass that ^(F3)sprouts anew.

⁶ In the morning it ^(C1)flourishes and ^(F1)sprouts anew;
Toward evening it ^(C2)wilts and ^(C3)withers away.

⁷ For we have been ^(C1)consumed by Your anger,
And we have been terrified by Your wrath.

⁸ You have ^(C1)placed our guilty deeds before You,
Our ^(C2)hidden sins in the light of Your presence.

⁹ For ^(C1)all our days have dwindled away in Your fury;
We have finished our years like a ^(F1)sigh.

¹⁰ As for the days of our ^(F1)life, ^(F2)they contain seventy years,
Or if due to strength, ^(C1)eighty years,
Yet their pride is only ^(C2)trouble and tragedy;
For it quickly passes, and we ^(C3)disappear.

¹¹ Who ^(F1)understands the ^(C1)power of Your anger
And Your fury, according to the ^(C2)fear ^(F2)that is due You?

¹² So ^(C1)teach us to number our days,
That we may ^(F1)(C2)present to You a heart of wisdom.

¹³ Do ^(C1)return, LORD; ^(C2)how long will it be?
And ^(F1)be ^(C3)sorry for Your servants.

^14 (C1)Satisfy us in the morning with Your graciousness,
That we may ^(C2)sing for joy and rejoice all our days.

^15 (C1)Make us glad ^(F1)according to the days You have afflicted us,
And the ^(C2)years we have seen ^(F2)evil.

¹⁶ Let Your ^(C1)work appear to Your servants
And Your ^(C2)majesty ^(F1)to their children.

¹⁷ May the ^(C1)kindness of the Lord our God be upon us;
And ^(F1)(C2)confirm for us the work of our hands;
Yes, ^(F1)confirm the work of our hands.

1 John 3

Chapter 3

Children of God Love One Another

¹ See ^(F1)(C1)how great a love the Father has given us, that we would be called ^(C2)children of God; and in fact we are. For this reason the world does not know us: because ^(C3)it did not know Him.^2 (C1)Beloved, now we are ^(C2)children of God, and ^(C3)it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He ^(C4)appears, we will be ^(C5)like Him, because we will ^(C6)see Him just as He is.³ And everyone who has this ^(C1)hope set on Him ^(C2)purifies himself, just as He is pure.

⁴ Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and ^(C1)sin is lawlessness.⁵ You know that He ^(C1)appeared in order to ^(C2)take away sins; and ^(C3)in Him there is no sin.⁶ No one who remains in Him ^(C1)sins continually; no one who sins continually has seen Him or ^(F1)(C2)knows Him.^7 (C1)Little children, make sure no one ^(C2)deceives you; ^(C3)the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous;⁸ the one who practices sin is ^(C1)of the devil; for the devil ^(F1)has been sinning from the beginning. ^(C2)The Son of God ^(C3)appeared for this purpose, ^(C4)to destroy the works of the devil.⁹ No one who has been ^(C1)born of God practices sin, because His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin continually, because he has been born of God.¹⁰ By this the ^(C1)children of God and the ^(C2)children of the devil are obvious: ^(F1)anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who ^(C3)does not love his ^(C4)brother and sister.

^11 (C1)For this is the message ^(C2)which you have heard from the beginning, ^(C3)that we are to love one another;¹² not as ^(C1)Cain, who was of ^(C2)the evil one and murdered his brother. And for what reason did he murder him? Because ^(C3)his own deeds were evil, but his brother's were righteous.

¹³ Do not be surprised, brothers and sisters, if ^(C1)the world hates you.¹⁴ We know that we have ^(C1)passed out of death into life, ^(C2)because we love the brothers and sisters. The one who does not love remains in death.¹⁵ Everyone who ^(C1)hates his brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that ^(C2)no murderer has eternal life remaining in him.¹⁶ We know love by this, that ^(C1)He laid down His life for us; and ^(C2)we ought to lay down our lives for the ^(C3)brothers and sisters.¹⁷ But ^(C1)whoever has worldly goods and sees his brother or sister in need, and ^(C2)closes his ^(F1)heart ^(F2)against him, ^(C3)how does the love of God remain in him?^18 (C1)Little children, let's not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and ^(C2)truth.¹⁹ We will know by this that we are ^(C1)of the truth, and will set our heart at ease before Him,²⁰ that if our heart condemns us, that God is greater than our heart, and He knows all things.^21 (C1)Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have ^(C2)confidence ^(F1)before God;²² and ^(C1)whatever we ask, we receive from Him, because we ^(C2)keep His commandments and do ^(C3)the things that are pleasing in His sight.

²³ This is His commandment, that we ^(F1)(C1)believe in ^(C2)the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as ^(C3)He ^(F2)commanded us.²⁴ The one who ^(C1)keeps His commandments ^(C2)remains in Him, and He in him. ^(C3)We know by this that ^(C4)He remains in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.