ESV: Chronological

Reading: 1 Chronicles 23-25 Reading: 1 Chronicles 23-25 1 Chronicles 23-25 Back to top 1 Chronicles 23-25 David Organizes the Levites 23 When David was old and full of days, he made Solomon his son king over Israel. David1 assembled all the leaders of Israel and the priests and the Levites. The Levites, thirty years old and upward, were numbered, and the total was 38,000 men. “Twenty-four thousand of these,” David said,2 “shall have charge of the work in the house of the LORD, 6,000 shall be officers and judges, 4,000 gatekeepers, and 4,000 shall offer praises to the LORD with the instruments that I have made for praise.” And David organized them in divisions corresponding to the sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. The sons of Gershon3 were Ladan and Shimei. The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the chief, and Zetham, and Joel, three. The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the heads of the fathers' houses of Ladan. And the sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina, and Jeush and Beriah. These four were the sons of Shimei. Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second; but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, therefore they became counted as a single father's house. The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four. The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart to dedicate the most holy things, that he and his sons forever should make offerings before the LORD and minister to him and pronounce blessings in his name forever. But the sons of Moses the man of God were named among the tribe of Levi. The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer. The sons of Gershom: Shebuel the chief. The sons of Eliezer: Rehabiah the chief. Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. The sons of Izhar: Shelomith the chief. The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the chief, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. The sons of Uzziel: Micah the chief and Isshiah the second. The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. Eleazar died having no sons, but only daughters; their kinsmen, the sons of Kish, married them. The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth, three. These were the sons of Levi by their fathers' houses, the heads of fathers' houses as they were listed according to the number of the names of the individuals from twenty years old and upward who were to do the work for the service of the house of the LORD. For David said, “The LORD, the God of Israel, has given rest to his people, and he dwells in Jerusalem forever. And so the Levites no longer need to carry the tabernacle or any of the things for its service.” For by the last words of David the sons of Levi were numbered from twenty years old and upward. For their duty was to assist the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the LORD, having the care of the courts and the chambers, the cleansing of all that is holy, and any work for the service of the house of God. Their duty was also to assist with the showbread, the flour for the grain offering, the wafers of unleavened bread, the baked offering, the offering mixed with oil, and all measures of quantity or size. And they were to stand every morning, thanking and praising the LORD, and likewise at evening, and whenever burnt offerings were offered to the LORD on Sabbaths, new moons, and feast days, according to the number required of them, regularly before the LORD. Thus they were to keep charge of the tent of meeting and the sanctuary, and to attend the sons of Aaron, their brothers, for the service of the house of the LORD. David Organizes the Priests 24 The divisions of the sons of Aaron were these. The sons of Aaron: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. But Nadab and Abihu died before their father and had no children, so Eleazar and Ithamar became the priests. With the help of Zadok of the sons of Eleazar, and Ahimelech of the sons of Ithamar, David organized them according to the appointed duties in their service. Since more chi

Reading: Psalm 108-110 Reading: Psalm 108-110 Psalm 108-110 Back to top Psalms 108-110 With God We Shall Do Valiantly A Song. A Psalm of David. 108   My heart is steadfast, O God!     I will sing and make melody with all my being!1   Awake, O harp and lyre!     I will awake the dawn!   I will give thanks to you, O LORD, among the peoples;     I will sing praises to you among the nations.   For your steadfast love is great above the heavens;     your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.   Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!     Let your glory be over all the earth!   That your beloved ones may be delivered,     give salvation by your right hand and answer me!   God has promised in his holiness:2     “With exultation I will divide up Shechem     and portion out the Valley of Succoth.   Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine;     Ephraim is my helmet,     Judah my scepter.   Moab is my washbasin;     upon Edom I cast my shoe;     over Philistia I shout in triumph.”   Who will bring me to the fortified city?     Who will lead me to Edom?   Have you not rejected us, O God?     You do not go out, O God, with our armies.   Oh grant us help against the foe,     for vain is the salvation of man!   With God we shall do valiantly;     it is he who will tread down our foes. Help Me, O Lord My God To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. 109   Be not silent, O God of my praise!   For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me,     speaking against me with lying tongues.   They encircle me with words of hate,     and attack me without cause.   In return for my love they accuse me,     but I give myself to prayer.3   So they reward me evil for good,     and hatred for my love.   Appoint a wicked man against him;     let an accuser stand at his right hand.   When he is tried, let him come forth guilty;     let his prayer be counted as sin!   May his days be few;     may another take his office!   May his children be fatherless     and his wife a widow!   May his children wander about and beg,     seeking food far from the ruins they inhabit!   May the creditor seize all that he has;     may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil!   Let there be none to extend kindness to him,     nor any to pity his fatherless children!   May his posterity be cut off;     may his name be blotted out in the second generation!   May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD,     and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!   Let them be before the LORD continually,     that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth!   For he did not remember to show kindness,     but pursued the poor and needy     and the brokenhearted, to put them to death.   He loved to curse; let curses come4 upon him!     He did not delight in blessing; may it be far5 from him!   He clothed himself with cursing as his coat;     may it soak6 into his body like water,     like oil into his bones!   May it be like a garment that he wraps around him, &nbs

Reading: 2 Samuel 24 Reading: 1 Chronicles 21-22 Reading: Psalm 30 Reading: 2 Samuel 24 2 Samuel 24 Back to top 2 Samuel 24 David's Census 24 Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.” So the king said to Joab, the commander of the army,1 who was with him, “Go through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and number the people, that I may know the number of the people.” But Joab said to the king, “May the LORD your God add to the people a hundred times as many as they are, while the eyes of my lord the king still see it, but why does my lord the king delight in this thing?” But the king's word prevailed against Joab and the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to number the people of Israel. They crossed the Jordan and began from Aroer,2 and from the city that is in the middle of the valley, toward Gad and on to Jazer. Then they came to Gilead, and to Kadesh in the land of the Hittites;3 and they came to Dan, and from Dan4 they went around to Sidon, and came to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites; and they went out to the Negeb of Judah at Beersheba. So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. And Joab gave the sum of the numbering of the people to the king: in Israel there were 800,000 valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were 500,000. The Lord's Judgment of David's Sin But David's heart struck him after he had numbered the people. And David said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O LORD, please take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have done very foolishly.” And when David arose in the morning, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying, “Go and say to David, ‘Thus says the LORD, Three things I offer5 you. Choose one of them, that I may do it to you.’” So Gad came to David and told him, and said to him, “Shall three6 years of famine come to you in your land? Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days' pestilence in your land? Now consider, and decide what answer I shall return to him who sent me.” Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man.” So the LORD sent a pestilence on Israel from the morning until the appointed time. And there died of the people from Dan to Beersheba 70,000 men. And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was working destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. Then David spoke to the LORD when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Behold, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please let your hand be against me and against my father's house.” David Builds an Altar And Gad came that day to David and said to him, “Go up, raise an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” So David went up at Gad's word, as the LORD commanded. And when Araunah looked down, he saw the king and his servants coming on toward him. And Araunah went out and paid homage to the king with his face to the ground. And Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the LORD, that the plague may be averted from the people.” Then Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him. Here are the oxen for the burnt offering and the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. All this, O king, Araunah gives to the king.”

Reading: Psalm 95 Reading: Psalm 97-99 Reading: Psalm 95 Psalm 95 Back to top Psalm 95 Let Us Sing Songs of Praise 95   Oh come, let us sing to the LORD;     let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!   Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;     let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!   For the LORD is a great God,     and a great King above all gods.   In his hand are the depths of the earth;     the heights of the mountains are his also.   The sea is his, for he made it,     and his hands formed the dry land.   Oh come, let us worship and bow down;     let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!   For he is our God,     and we are the people of his pasture,     and the sheep of his hand.   Today, if you hear his voice,     do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah,     as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,   when your fathers put me to the test     and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.   For forty years I loathed that generation     and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart,     and they have not known my ways.”   Therefore I swore in my wrath,     “They shall not enter my rest.” (ESV) Reading: Psalm 97-99 Psalm 97-99 Back to top Psalms 97-99 The Lord Reigns 97   The LORD reigns, let the earth rejoice;     let the many coastlands be glad!   Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;     righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.   Fire goes before him     and burns up his adversaries all around.   His lightnings light up the world;     the earth sees and trembles.   The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,     before the Lord of all the earth.   The heavens proclaim his righteousness,     and all the peoples see his glory.   All worshipers of images are put to shame,     who make their boast in worthless idols;     worship him, all you gods!   Zion hears and is glad,     and the daughters of Judah rejoice,     because of your judgments, O LORD.   For you, O LORD, are most high over all the earth;     you are exalted far above all gods.   O you who love the LORD, hate evil!     He preserves the lives of his saints;     he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.   Light is sown1 for the righteous,     and joy for the upright in heart.   Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous,     and give thanks to his holy name! Make a Joyful Noise to the Lord A Psalm. 98   Oh sing to the LORD a new song,     for he has done marvelous things!   His right hand and his holy arm     have worked salvation for him.   The LORD has made known his salvation;     he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.   He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness     to the house of Israel.   All the ends of the earth have seen     the salvation of our God.   Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth;     break forth into joyous song and sing praises!   Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre,     with the lyre and th

Reading: Psalm 5 Reading: Psalm 38 Reading: Psalm 41-42 Reading: Psalm 5 Psalm 5 Back to top Psalm 5 Lead Me in Your Righteousness To the choirmaster: for the flutes. A Psalm of David. 5   Give ear to my words, O LORD;     consider my groaning.   Give attention to the sound of my cry,     my King and my God,     for to you do I pray.   O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;     in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you1 and watch.   For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;     evil may not dwell with you.   The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;     you hate all evildoers.   You destroy those who speak lies;     the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.   But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,     will enter your house.   I will bow down toward your holy temple     in the fear of you.   Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness     because of my enemies;     make your way straight before me.   For there is no truth in their mouth;     their inmost self is destruction;   their throat is an open grave;     they flatter with their tongue.   Make them bear their guilt, O God;     let them fall by their own counsels;   because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,     for they have rebelled against you.   But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;     let them ever sing for joy,   and spread your protection over them,     that those who love your name may exult in you.   For you bless the righteous, O LORD;     you cover him with favor as with a shield. Footnotes [1] 5:3 Or I direct my prayer to you (ESV) Reading: Psalm 38 Psalm 38 Back to top Psalm 38 Do Not Forsake Me, O Lord A Psalm of David, for the memorial offering. 38   O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,     nor discipline me in your wrath!   For your arrows have sunk into me,     and your hand has come down on me.   There is no soundness in my flesh     because of your indignation;   there is no health in my bones     because of my sin.   For my iniquities have gone over my head;     like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me.   My wounds stink and fester     because of my foolishness,   I am utterly bowed down and prostrate;     all the day I go about mourning.   For my sides are filled with burning,     and there is no soundness in my flesh.   I am feeble and crushed;     I groan because of the tumult of my heart.   O Lord, all my longing is before you;     my sighing is not hidden from you.   My heart throbs; my strength fails me,     and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me.   My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague,     and my nearest kin stand far off.   Those who seek my life lay their snares;     those who seek my hurt speak of ruin     and meditate treachery all day long.   But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear,     like a mute man who does not open his mouth.   I have become like a man who does not hear,     and in whose mouth are no rebukes.   But for you, O LORD, do I wait; &nbsp

Reading: 2 Samuel 19-21 Reading: 2 Samuel 19-21 2 Samuel 19-21 Back to top 2 Samuel 19-21 Joab Rebukes David 19 It was told Joab, “Behold, the king is weeping and mourning for Absalom.” So the victory that day was turned into mourning for all the people, for the people heard that day, “The king is grieving for his son.” And the people stole into the city that day as people steal in who are ashamed when they flee in battle. The king covered his face, and the king cried with a loud voice, “O my son Absalom, O Absalom, my son, my son!” Then Joab came into the house to the king and said, “You have today covered with shame the faces of all your servants, who have this day saved your life and the lives of your sons and your daughters and the lives of your wives and your concubines, because you love those who hate you and hate those who love you. For you have made it clear today that commanders and servants are nothing to you, for today I know that if Absalom were alive and all of us were dead today, then you would be pleased. Now therefore arise, go out and speak kindly to your servants, for I swear by the LORD, if you do not go, not a man will stay with you this night, and this will be worse for you than all the evil that has come upon you from your youth until now.” Then the king arose and took his seat in the gate. And the people were all told, “Behold, the king is sitting in the gate.” And all the people came before the king. David Returns to Jerusalem Now Israel had fled every man to his own home. And all the people were arguing throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, “The king delivered us from the hand of our enemies and saved us from the hand of the Philistines, and now he has fled out of the land from Absalom. But Absalom, whom we anointed over us, is dead in battle. Now therefore why do you say nothing about bringing the king back?” And King David sent this message to Zadok and Abiathar the priests: “Say to the elders of Judah, ‘Why should you be the last to bring the king back to his house, when the word of all Israel has come to the king?1 You are my brothers; you are my bone and my flesh. Why then should you be the last to bring back the king?’ And say to Amasa, ‘Are you not my bone and my flesh? God do so to me and more also, if you are not commander of my army from now on in place of Joab.’” And he swayed the heart of all the men of Judah as one man, so that they sent word to the king, “Return, both you and all your servants.” So the king came back to the Jordan, and Judah came to Gilgal to meet the king and to bring the king over the Jordan. David Pardons His Enemies And Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjaminite, from Bahurim, hurried to come down with the men of Judah to meet King David. And with him were a thousand men from Benjamin. And Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, with his fifteen sons and his twenty servants, rushed down to the Jordan before the king, and they crossed the ford to bring over the king's household and to do his pleasure. And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king, as he was about to cross the Jordan, and said to the king, “Let not my lord hold me guilty or remember how your servant did wrong on the day my lord the king left Jerusalem. Do not let the king take it to heart. For your servant knows that I have sinned. Therefore, behold, I have come this day, the first of all the house of Joseph to come down to meet my lord the king.” Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered, “Shall not Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed the LORD's anointed?” But David said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah, that you should this day be as an adversary to me? Shall anyone be put to death in Israel this day? For do I not know that I am this day king over Israel?” And the king said to Shimei, “You shall not die.” And the king gave him his oath. And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king. He had neither taken care of his feet nor trimmed his beard nor

Reading: Psalm 26 Reading: Psalm 40 Reading: Psalm 58 Reading: Psalm 61-62 Reading: Psalm 64 Reading: Psalm 26 Psalm 26 Back to top Psalm 26 I Will Bless the Lord Of David. 26   Vindicate me, O LORD,     for I have walked in my integrity,     and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.   Prove me, O LORD, and try me;     test my heart and my mind.1   For your steadfast love is before my eyes,     and I walk in your faithfulness.   I do not sit with men of falsehood,     nor do I consort with hypocrites.   I hate the assembly of evildoers,     and I will not sit with the wicked.   I wash my hands in innocence     and go around your altar, O LORD,   proclaiming thanksgiving aloud,     and telling all your wondrous deeds.   O LORD, I love the habitation of your house     and the place where your glory dwells.   Do not sweep my soul away with sinners,     nor my life with bloodthirsty men,   in whose hands are evil devices,     and whose right hands are full of bribes.   But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;     redeem me, and be gracious to me.   My foot stands on level ground;     in the great assembly I will bless the LORD. Footnotes [1] 26:2 Hebrew test my kidneys and my heart (ESV) Reading: Psalm 40 Psalm 40 Back to top Psalm 40 My Help and My Deliverer To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. 40   I waited patiently for the LORD;     he inclined to me and heard my cry.   He drew me up from the pit of destruction,     out of the miry bog,   and set my feet upon a rock,     making my steps secure.   He put a new song in my mouth,     a song of praise to our God.   Many will see and fear,     and put their trust in the LORD.   Blessed is the man who makes     the LORD his trust,   who does not turn to the proud,     to those who go astray after a lie!   You have multiplied, O LORD my God,     your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;     none can compare with you!   I will proclaim and tell of them,     yet they are more than can be told.   In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,     but you have given me an open ear.1   Burnt offering and sin offering     you have not required.   Then I said, “Behold, I have come;     in the scroll of the book it is written of me:   I delight to do your will, O my God;     your law is within my heart.”   I have told the glad news of deliverance2     in the great congregation;   behold, I have not restrained my lips,     as you know, O LORD.   I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart;     I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;   I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness     from the great congregation.   As for you, O LORD, you will not restrain     your mercy from me;   your steadfast love and your faithfulness will     ever preserve me!   For evils have encompassed me     beyond number;   my iniquities have overtaken me,     and I cannot see;   they are more than the hairs of my head; &nbsp

Reading: 2 Samuel 16-18 Reading: 2 Samuel 16-18 2 Samuel 16-18 Back to top 2 Samuel 16-18 David and Ziba 16 When David had passed a little beyond the summit, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth met him, with a couple of donkeys saddled, bearing two hundred loaves of bread, a hundred bunches of raisins, a hundred of summer fruits, and a skin of wine. And the king said to Ziba, “Why have you brought these?” Ziba answered, “The donkeys are for the king's household to ride on, the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat, and the wine for those who faint in the wilderness to drink.” And the king said, “And where is your master's son?” Ziba said to the king, “Behold, he remains in Jerusalem, for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will give me back the kingdom of my father.’” Then the king said to Ziba, “Behold, all that belonged to Mephibosheth is now yours.” And Ziba said, “I pay homage; let me ever find favor in your sight, my lord the king.” Shimei Curses David When King David came to Bahurim, there came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera, and as he came he cursed continually. And he threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David, and all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left. And Shimei said as he cursed, “Get out, get out, you man of blood, you worthless man! The LORD has avenged on you all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned, and the LORD has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. See, your evil is on you, for you are a man of blood.” Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and take off his head.” But the king said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the LORD has said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who then shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’” And David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “Behold, my own son seeks my life; how much more now may this Benjaminite! Leave him alone, and let him curse, for the LORD has told him to. It may be that the LORD will look on the wrong done to me,1 and that the LORD will repay me with good for his cursing today.” So David and his men went on the road, while Shimei went along on the hillside opposite him and cursed as he went and threw stones at him and flung dust. And the king, and all the people who were with him, arrived weary at the Jordan.2 And there he refreshed himself. Absalom Enters Jerusalem Now Absalom and all the people, the men of Israel, came to Jerusalem, and Ahithophel with him. And when Hushai the Archite, David's friend, came to Absalom, Hushai said to Absalom, “Long live the king! Long live the king!” And Absalom said to Hushai, “Is this your loyalty to your friend? Why did you not go with your friend?” And Hushai said to Absalom, “No, for whom the LORD and this people and all the men of Israel have chosen, his I will be, and with him I will remain. And again, whom should I serve? Should it not be his son? As I have served your father, so I will serve you.” Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give your counsel. What shall we do?” Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go in to your father's concubines, whom he has left to keep the house, and all Israel will hear that you have made yourself a stench to your father, and the hands of all who are with you will be strengthened.” So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the roof. And Absalom went in to his father's concubines in the sight of all Israel. Now in those days the counsel that Ahithophel gave was as if one consulted the word of God; so was all the counsel of Ahithophel esteemed, both by David and by Absalom. Hushai Saves David 17 Moreover, Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me choose twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue David tonight. I will come upon him while he is weary and discouraged and throw him into a panic, and all the people who are with him will fl

Reading: Psalm 3-4 Reading: Psalm 12-13 Reading: Psalm 28 Reading: Psalm 55 Reading: Psalm 3-4 Psalm 3-4 Back to top Psalms 3-4 Save Me, O My God A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son. 3   O LORD, how many are my foes!     Many are rising against me;   many are saying of my soul,     there is no salvation for him in God. Selah1   But you, O LORD, are a shield about me,     my glory, and the lifter of my head.   I cried aloud to the LORD,     and he answered me from his holy hill. Selah   I lay down and slept;     I woke again, for the LORD sustained me.   I will not be afraid of many thousands of people     who have set themselves against me all around.   Arise, O LORD!     Save me, O my God!   For you strike all my enemies on the cheek;     you break the teeth of the wicked.   Salvation belongs to the LORD;     your blessing be on your people! Selah Answer Me When I Call To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. A Psalm of David. 4   Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!     You have given me relief when I was in distress.     Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!   O men,2 how long shall my honor be turned into shame?     How long will you love vain words and seek after lies? Selah   But know that the LORD has set apart the godly for himself;     the LORD hears when I call to him.   Be angry,3 and do not sin;     ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent. Selah   Offer right sacrifices,     and put your trust in the LORD.   There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?     Lift up the light of your face upon us, O LORD!”   You have put more joy in my heart     than they have when their grain and wine abound.   In peace I will both lie down and sleep;     for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety. Footnotes [1] 3:2 The meaning of the Hebrew word Selah, used frequently in the Psalms, is uncertain. It may be a musical or liturgical direction [2] 4:2 Or O men of rank [3] 4:4 Or Be agitated (ESV) Reading: Psalm 12-13 Psalm 12-13 Back to top Psalms 12-13 The Faithful Have Vanished To the choirmaster: according to The Sheminith.1 A Psalm of David. 12   Save, O LORD, for the godly one is gone;     for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.   Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;     with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.   May the LORD cut off all flattering lips,     the tongue that makes great boasts,   those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,     our lips are with us; who is master over us?”   “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,     I will now arise,” says the LORD;     “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”   The words of the LORD are pure words,     like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,     purified seven times.   You, O LORD, will keep them;     you will guard us2 from this generation forever.   On every side the wicked prowl,     as vileness is exalted among the children of man. How Long, O Lord? To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. 13   How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?     How long will you hide your face from me?   H

Reading: 2 Samuel 13-15 Reading: 2 Samuel 13-15 2 Samuel 13-15 Back to top 2 Samuel 13-15 Amnon and Tamar 13 Now Absalom, David's son, had a beautiful sister, whose name was Tamar. And after a time Amnon, David's son, loved her. And Amnon was so tormented that he made himself ill because of his sister Tamar, for she was a virgin, and it seemed impossible to Amnon to do anything to her. But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, David's brother. And Jonadab was a very crafty man. And he said to him, “O son of the king, why are you so haggard morning after morning? Will you not tell me?” Amnon said to him, “I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister.” Jonadab said to him, “Lie down on your bed and pretend to be ill. And when your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘Let my sister Tamar come and give me bread to eat, and prepare the food in my sight, that I may see it and eat it from her hand.’” So Amnon lay down and pretended to be ill. And when the king came to see him, Amnon said to the king, “Please let my sister Tamar come and make a couple of cakes in my sight, that I may eat from her hand.” Then David sent home to Tamar, saying, “Go to your brother Amnon's house and prepare food for him.” So Tamar went to her brother Amnon's house, where he was lying down. And she took dough and kneaded it and made cakes in his sight and baked the cakes. And she took the pan and emptied it out before him, but he refused to eat. And Amnon said, “Send out everyone from me.” So everyone went out from him. Then Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food into the chamber, that I may eat from your hand.” And Tamar took the cakes she had made and brought them into the chamber to Amnon her brother. But when she brought them near him to eat, he took hold of her and said to her, “Come, lie with me, my sister.” She answered him, “No, my brother, do not violate1 me, for such a thing is not done in Israel; do not do this outrageous thing. As for me, where could I carry my shame? And as for you, you would be as one of the outrageous fools in Israel. Now therefore, please speak to the king, for he will not withhold me from you.” But he would not listen to her, and being stronger than she, he violated her and lay with her. Then Amnon hated her with very great hatred, so that the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her. And Amnon said to her, “Get up! Go!” But she said to him, “No, my brother, for this wrong in sending me away is greater than the other that you did to me.”2 But he would not listen to her. He called the young man who served him and said, “Put this woman out of my presence and bolt the door after her.” Now she was wearing a long robe3 with sleeves, for thus were the virgin daughters of the king dressed. So his servant put her out and bolted the door after her. And Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the long robe that she wore. And she laid her hand on her head and went away, crying aloud as she went. And her brother Absalom said to her, “Has Amnon your brother been with you? Now hold your peace, my sister. He is your brother; do not take this to heart.” So Tamar lived, a desolate woman, in her brother Absalom's house. When King David heard of all these things, he was very angry.4 But Absalom spoke to Amnon neither good nor bad, for Absalom hated Amnon, because he had violated his sister Tamar. Absalom Murders Amnon After two full years Absalom had sheepshearers at Baal-hazor, which is near Ephraim, and Absalom invited all the king's sons. And Absalom came to the king and said, “Behold, your servant has sheepshearers. Please let the king and his servants go with your servant.” But the king said to Absalom, “No, my son, let us not all go, lest we be burdensome to you.” He pressed him, but he would not go but gave him his blessing. Then Absalom said, “If not, please let my brother Amnon go with us.” And the king said to him, “Why should he go with you?” But Absalom pressed

Reading: Psalm 32 Reading: Psalm 51 Reading: Psalm 86 Reading: Psalm 122 Reading: Psalm 32 Psalm 32 Back to top Psalm 32 Blessed Are the Forgiven A Maskil1 of David. 32   Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,     whose sin is covered.   Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity,     and in whose spirit there is no deceit.   For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away     through my groaning all day long.   For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;     my strength was dried up2 as by the heat of summer. Selah   I acknowledged my sin to you,     and I did not cover my iniquity;   I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,”     and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah   Therefore let everyone who is godly     offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found;   surely in the rush of great waters,     they shall not reach him.   You are a hiding place for me;     you preserve me from trouble;     you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah   I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;     I will counsel you with my eye upon you.   Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding,     which must be curbed with bit and bridle,     or it will not stay near you.   Many are the sorrows of the wicked,     but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD.   Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, O righteous,     and shout for joy, all you upright in heart! Footnotes [1] 32:1 Probably a musical or liturgical term [2] 32:4 Hebrew my vitality was changed (ESV) Reading: Psalm 51 Psalm 51 Back to top Psalm 51 Create in Me a Clean Heart, O God To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. 51   Have mercy on me,1 O God,     according to your steadfast love;   according to your abundant mercy     blot out my transgressions.   Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,     and cleanse me from my sin!   For I know my transgressions,     and my sin is ever before me.   Against you, you only, have I sinned     and done what is evil in your sight,   so that you may be justified in your words     and blameless in your judgment.   Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,     and in sin did my mother conceive me.   Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,     and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.   Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;     wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.   Let me hear joy and gladness;     let the bones that you have broken rejoice.   Hide your face from my sins,     and blot out all my iniquities.   Create in me a clean heart, O God,     and renew a right2 spirit within me.   Cast me not away from your presence,     and take not your Holy Spirit from me.   Restore to me the joy of your salvation,     and uphold me with a willing spirit.   Then I will teach transgressors your ways,     and sinners will return to you.   Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,     O God of my salvation,     and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousnes

Reading: 2 Samuel 11-12 Reading: 1 Chronicles 20 Reading: 2 Samuel 11-12 2 Samuel 11-12 Back to top 2 Samuel 11-12 David and Bathsheba 11 In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem. It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was walking on the roof of the king's house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. And David sent and inquired about the woman. And one said, “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?” So David sent messengers and took her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she had been purifying herself from her uncleanness.) Then she returned to her house. And the woman conceived, and she sent and told David, “I am pregnant.” So David sent word to Joab, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah to David. When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab was doing and how the people were doing and how the war was going. Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” And Uriah went out of the king's house, and there followed him a present from the king. But Uriah slept at the door of the king's house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. When they told David, “Uriah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “Have you not come from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?” Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah dwell in booths, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field. Shall I then go to my house, to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.” Then David said to Uriah, “Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. And David invited him, and he ate in his presence and drank, so that he made him drunk. And in the evening he went out to lie on his couch with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house. In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. In the letter he wrote, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.” And as Joab was besieging the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew there were valiant men. And the men of the city came out and fought with Joab, and some of the servants of David among the people fell. Uriah the Hittite also died. Then Joab sent and told David all the news about the fighting. And he instructed the messenger, “When you have finished telling all the news about the fighting to the king, then, if the king's anger rises, and if he says to you, ‘Why did you go so near the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? Who killed Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Did not a woman cast an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?’ then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’” So the messenger went and came and told David all that Joab had sent him to tell. The messenger said to David, “The men gained an advantage over us and came out against us in the field, but we drove them back to the entrance of the gate. Then the archers shot at your servants from the wall. Some of the king's servants are dead, and your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.” David said to the messenger, “Thus shall you say to Joab, ‘Do not let this matter displease you, for the sword devours now one and now another. Strengthen your attack against the city and overthrow it.’ And encourage him.” When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she lamented over her husband. And when the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became

Reading: Psalm 65-67 Reading: Psalm 69-70 Reading: Psalm 65-67 Psalm 65-67 Back to top Psalms 65-67 O God of Our Salvation To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. A Song. 65   Praise is due to you,1 O God, in Zion,     and to you shall vows be performed.   O you who hear prayer,     to you shall all flesh come.   When iniquities prevail against me,     you atone for our transgressions.   Blessed is the one you choose and bring near,     to dwell in your courts!   We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,     the holiness of your temple!   By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness,     O God of our salvation,   the hope of all the ends of the earth     and of the farthest seas;   the one who by his strength established the mountains,     being girded with might;   who stills the roaring of the seas,     the roaring of their waves,     the tumult of the peoples,   so that those who dwell at the ends of the earth are in awe at your signs.   You make the going out of the morning and the evening to shout for joy.   You visit the earth and water it;2     you greatly enrich it;   the river of God is full of water;     you provide their grain,     for so you have prepared it.   You water its furrows abundantly,     settling its ridges,   softening it with showers,     and blessing its growth.   You crown the year with your bounty;     your wagon tracks overflow with abundance.   The pastures of the wilderness overflow,     the hills gird themselves with joy,   the meadows clothe themselves with flocks,     the valleys deck themselves with grain,     they shout and sing together for joy. How Awesome Are Your Deeds To the choirmaster. A Song. A Psalm. 66   Shout for joy to God, all the earth;     sing the glory of his name;     give to him glorious praise!   Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!     So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you.   All the earth worships you     and sings praises to you;     they sing praises to your name.” Selah   Come and see what God has done:     he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man.   He turned the sea into dry land;     they passed through the river on foot.   There did we rejoice in him,     who rules by his might forever,   whose eyes keep watch on the nations—     let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah   Bless our God, O peoples;     let the sound of his praise be heard,   who has kept our soul among the living     and has not let our feet slip.   For you, O God, have tested us;     you have tried us as silver is tried.   You brought us into the net;     you laid a crushing burden on our backs;   you let men ride over our heads;     we went through fire and through water;   yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.   I will come into your house with burnt offerings;     I will perform my vows to you,   that which my lips uttered     and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.   I will offer

Reading: 2 Samuel 10 Reading: 1 Chronicles 19 Reading: Psalm 20 Reading: 2 Samuel 10 2 Samuel 10 Back to top 2 Samuel 10 David Defeats Ammon and Syria 10 After this the king of the Ammonites died, and Hanun his son reigned in his place. And David said, “I will deal loyally1 with Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father dealt loyally with me.” So David sent by his servants to console him concerning his father. And David's servants came into the land of the Ammonites. But the princes of the Ammonites said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think, because David has sent comforters to you, that he is honoring your father? Has not David sent his servants to you to search the city and to spy it out and to overthrow it?” So Hanun took David's servants and shaved off half the beard of each and cut off their garments in the middle, at their hips, and sent them away. When it was told David, he sent to meet them, for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, “Remain at Jericho until your beards have grown and then return.” When the Ammonites saw that they had become a stench to David, the Ammonites sent and hired the Syrians of Beth-rehob, and the Syrians of Zobah, 20,000 foot soldiers, and the king of Maacah with 1,000 men, and the men of Tob, 12,000 men. And when David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the host of the mighty men. And the Ammonites came out and drew up in battle array at the entrance of the gate, and the Syrians of Zobah and of Rehob and the men of Tob and Maacah were by themselves in the open country. When Joab saw that the battle was set against him both in front and in the rear, he chose some of the best men of Israel and arrayed them against the Syrians. The rest of his men he put in the charge of Abishai his brother, and he arrayed them against the Ammonites. And he said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come and help you. Be of good courage, and let us be courageous for our people, and for the cities of our God, and may the LORD do what seems good to him.” So Joab and the people who were with him drew near to battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him. And when the Ammonites saw that the Syrians fled, they likewise fled before Abishai and entered the city. Then Joab returned from fighting against the Ammonites and came to Jerusalem. But when the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they gathered themselves together. And Hadadezer sent and brought out the Syrians who were beyond the Euphrates.2 They came to Helam, with Shobach the commander of the army of Hadadezer at their head. And when it was told David, he gathered all Israel together and crossed the Jordan and came to Helam. The Syrians arrayed themselves against David and fought with him. And the Syrians fled before Israel, and David killed of the Syrians the men of 700 chariots, and 40,000 horsemen, and wounded Shobach the commander of their army, so that he died there. And when all the kings who were servants of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and became subject to them. So the Syrians were afraid to save the Ammonites anymore. Footnotes [1] 10:2 Or kindly; twice in this verse [2] 10:16 Hebrew the River (ESV) Reading: 1 Chronicles 19 1 Chronicles 19 Back to top 1 Chronicles 19 The Ammonites Disgrace David's Men 19 Now after this Nahash the king of the Ammonites died, and his son reigned in his place. And David said, “I will deal kindly with Hanun the son of Nahash, for his father dealt kindly with me.” So David sent messengers to console him concerning his father. And David's servants came to the land of the Ammonites to Hanun to console him. But the princes of the Ammonites said to Hanun, “Do you think, because David has sent comforters to you, that he is honoring your father? Have not his servants come to you to search and to overthrow and to spy out the land?” So Hanun took David's serva

Reading: Psalm 50 Reading: Psalm 53 Reading: Psalm 60 Reading: Psalm 75 Reading: Psalm 50 Psalm 50 Back to top Psalm 50 God Himself Is Judge A Psalm of Asaph. 50   The Mighty One, God the LORD,     speaks and summons the earth     from the rising of the sun to its setting.   Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,     God shines forth.   Our God comes; he does not keep silence;1     before him is a devouring fire,     around him a mighty tempest.   He calls to the heavens above     and to the earth, that he may judge his people:   “Gather to me my faithful ones,     who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!”   The heavens declare his righteousness,     for God himself is judge! Selah   “Hear, O my people, and I will speak;     O Israel, I will testify against you.     I am God, your God.   Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you;     your burnt offerings are continually before me.   I will not accept a bull from your house     or goats from your folds.   For every beast of the forest is mine,     the cattle on a thousand hills.   I know all the birds of the hills,     and all that moves in the field is mine.   “If I were hungry, I would not tell you,     for the world and its fullness are mine.   Do I eat the flesh of bulls     or drink the blood of goats?   Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,2     and perform your vows to the Most High,   and call upon me in the day of trouble;     I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”   But to the wicked God says:     “What right have you to recite my statutes     or take my covenant on your lips?   For you hate discipline,     and you cast my words behind you.   If you see a thief, you are pleased with him,     and you keep company with adulterers.   “You give your mouth free rein for evil,     and your tongue frames deceit.   You sit and speak against your brother;     you slander your own mother's son.   These things you have done, and I have been silent;     you thought that I3 was one like yourself.   But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you.   “Mark this, then, you who forget God,     lest I tear you apart, and there be none to deliver!   The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me;     to one who orders his way rightly     I will show the salvation of God!” Footnotes [1] 50:3 Or May our God come, and not keep silence [2] 50:14 Or Make thanksgiving your sacrifice to God [3] 50:21 Or that the I am (ESV) Reading: Psalm 53 Psalm 53 Back to top Psalm 53 There Is None Who Does Good To the choirmaster: according to Mahalath. A Maskil1 of David. 53   The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”     They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity;     there is none who does good.   God looks down from heaven     on the children of man   to see if there are any who understand,2     who seek after God.   They have all fallen away;     together they have become corrupt;   there is none who does good,     not even one.   Have those who work evil no knowledge,     who