M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Solomon’s Officials and Governors
4 So King Solomon ruled over the whole nation of Israel.
2 Here are the names of his chief officials.
Azariah was the priest. He was the son of Zadok.
3 Elihoreph and Ahijah were secretaries. They were the sons of Shisha.
Jehoshaphat kept the records. He was the son of Ahilud.
4 Benaiah was the commander in chief. He was the son of Jehoiada.
Zadok and Abiathar were priests.
5 Azariah was in charge of the local governors. He was the son of Nathan.
Zabud was a priest. He was also the king’s adviser. He was the son of Nathan.
6 Ahishar was in charge of the palace.
Adoniram was in charge of those who were forced to work for the king. He was the son of Abda.
7 Solomon had 12 local governors over the whole land of Israel. They provided supplies for the king and the royal family. Each governor had to provide supplies for one month out of each year.
8 Here are their names and areas.
Ben-Hur’s area was the hill country of Ephraim.
9 Ben-Deker’s area was Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh and Elon Bethhanan.
10 Ben-Hesed’s area was Arubboth. Sokoh and the whole land of Hepher were included in his area.
11 Ben-Abinadab’s area was Naphoth Dor. He married Solomon’s daughter Taphath.
12 Baana’s area was Taanach, Megiddo and the whole territory of Beth Shan. Beth Shan was next to Zarethan below Jezreel. Baana’s area reached from Beth Shan all the way to Abel Meholah. It also went across to Jokmeam. Baana was the son of Ahilud.
13 Ben-Geber’s area was Ramoth Gilead. The settlements of Jair, the son of Manasseh, were included in his area in Gilead. The area of Argob in Bashan was also included. That area had 60 large cities that had high walls around them. The city gates were made secure with heavy bronze bars.
14 Ahinadab’s area was Mahanaim. He was the son of Iddo.
15 Ahimaaz’s area was Naphtali. He had married Basemath. She was Solomon’s daughter.
16 Baana’s area was Asher and Aloth. He was the son of Hushai.
17 Jehoshaphat’s area was Issachar. He was the son of Paruah.
18 Shimei’s area was Benjamin. He was the son of Ela.
19 Geber’s area was Gilead. He was the only governor over the area. He was the son of Uri. Gilead had been the country of Sihon and Og. Sihon had been king of the Amorites. Og had been king of Bashan.
Solomon’s Daily Supplies
20 There were many people in Judah and Israel. In fact, they were as many as the grains of sand on the seashore. They ate, drank and were happy. 21 Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River to the land of the Philistines. He ruled as far as the border of Egypt. All those countries brought the gifts he required them to bring him. And Solomon ruled over those countries for his whole life.
22 Here are the supplies Solomon required every day.
five and a half tons of the finest flour
11 tons of meal
23 ten oxen that had been fed by hand
20 oxen that had been fed on grasslands
100 sheep and goats
deer, antelopes and roebucks
the finest birds
24 Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms that were west of the Euphrates River. He ruled from Tiphsah all the way to Gaza. And he had peace and rest on every side. 25 While Solomon was king, Judah and Israel lived in safety. They were secure from Dan all the way to Beersheba. Everyone had their own vine and their own fig tree.
26 Solomon had 4,000 spaces where he kept his chariot horses. He had a total of 12,000 horses.
27 The local governors provided supplies for King Solomon. They provided them for all who ate at the king’s table. Each governor provided supplies for one month every year. The governors made sure the king had everything he needed. 28 They also brought barley and straw for the chariot horses and the other horses. Each of the governors brought the amounts required of them. They brought them to the proper places.
God Makes Solomon Very Wise
29 God made Solomon very wise. His understanding couldn’t even be measured. It was like the sand on the seashore. People can’t measure that either. 30 Solomon’s wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the people of the east. It was greater than all the wisdom of Egypt. 31 Solomon was wiser than anyone else. He was wiser than Ethan, the Ezrahite. He was wiser than Heman, Kalkol and Darda. They were the sons of Mahol. Solomon became famous in all the nations around him. 32 He spoke 3,000 proverbs. He wrote 1,005 songs. 33 He spoke about plants. He knew everything about them, from the cedar trees in Lebanon to the hyssop plants that grow out of walls. He spoke about animals and birds. He also spoke about reptiles and fish. 34 The kings of all the world’s nations heard about how wise Solomon was. So they sent their people to listen to him.
Solomon Prepares to Build the Temple
5 Hiram was the king of Tyre. He heard that Solomon had been anointed as king. He heard that Solomon had become the next king after his father David. Hiram had always been David’s friend. So Hiram sent his messengers to Solomon. 2 Then Solomon sent a message back to Hiram. Solomon said,
3 “As you know, my father David had to fight many battles. His enemies attacked him from every side. So he couldn’t build a temple where the Lord his God would put his Name. That wouldn’t be possible until the Lord had put his enemies under his control. 4 But now the Lord my God has given me peace and rest on every side. We don’t have any enemies. And we don’t have any other major problems either. 5 So I’m planning to build a temple. I want to build it for the Name of the Lord my God. That’s what he told my father David he wanted me to do. He said, ‘I will put your son on the throne in your place. He will build a temple. I will put my Name there.’
6 “So give your men orders to cut down cedar trees in Lebanon for me. My men will work with yours. I’ll pay you for your men’s work. I’ll pay any amount you decide on. As you know, we don’t have anyone as skilled in cutting down trees as the men of Sidon are.”
7 When Hiram heard Solomon’s message, he was very pleased. He said, “May the Lord be praised today. He has given David a wise son to rule over that great nation.”
8 So Hiram sent a message to Solomon. Hiram said,
“I have received the message you sent me. I’ll do everything you want me to. I’ll provide the cedar and juniper logs. 9 My men will bring them from Lebanon down to the Mediterranean Sea. I’ll make them into rafts. I’ll float them to the place you want me to. When the rafts arrive, I’ll separate the logs from each other. Then you can take them away. And here’s what I want in return. Provide food for all the people in my palace.”
10 So Hiram supplied Solomon with all the cedar and juniper logs he wanted. 11 Solomon gave Hiram 3,600 tons of wheat as food for the people in his palace. He also gave him 120,000 gallons of oil made from pressed olives. He did that for Hiram year after year. 12 The Lord made Solomon wise, just as he had promised him. There was peace between Hiram and Solomon. The two of them made a peace treaty.
13 King Solomon forced men from all over Israel to work hard for him. There were 30,000 of them. 14 He sent them off to Lebanon in groups of 10,000 each month. They spent one month in Lebanon. Then they spent two months at home. Adoniram was in charge of the people who were forced to work. 15 Solomon had 70,000 people who carried things. He had 80,000 who cut stones in the hills. 16 He had 3,300 men in charge of the project. They also directed the workers. 17 The people did what the king commanded. They removed large blocks of the best quality stone from a rock pit. They used them to provide a foundation for the temple. 18 The skilled workers of Solomon and Hiram cut and prepared the logs and stones. They would later be used in building the temple. Workers from Byblos also helped.
God Has Given Us New Life Through Christ
2 You were living in your sins and lawless ways. But in fact you were dead. 2 You used to live as sinners when you followed the ways of this world. You served the one who rules over the spiritual forces of evil. He is the spirit who is now at work in those who don’t obey God. 3 At one time we all lived among them. Our desires were controlled by sin. We tried to satisfy what they wanted us to do. We followed our desires and thoughts. God was angry with us like he was with everyone else. That’s because of the kind of people we all were. 4 But God loves us deeply. He is full of mercy. 5 So he gave us new life because of what Christ has done. He gave us life even when we were dead in sin. God’s grace has saved you. 6 God raised us up with Christ. He has seated us with him in his heavenly kingdom. That’s because we belong to Christ Jesus. 7 He has done it to show the riches of his grace for all time to come. His grace can’t be compared with anything else. He has shown it by being kind to us. He was kind to us because of what Christ Jesus has done. 8 God’s grace has saved you because of your faith in Christ. Your salvation doesn’t come from anything you do. It is God’s gift. 9 It is not based on anything you have done. No one can brag about earning it. 10 We are God’s creation. He created us to belong to Christ Jesus. Now we can do good works. Long ago God prepared these works for us to do.
God’s New Family of Jews and Gentiles
11 You who are not Jews by birth, here is what I want you to remember. You are called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “circumcised.” But they have only been circumcised in their bodies by human hands. 12 Before you believed in Christ, you were separated from him. You were not considered to be citizens of Israel. You were not included in what the covenants promised. You were without hope and without God in the world. 13 At one time you were far away from God. But now you belong to Christ Jesus. He spilled his blood for you. This has brought you near to God.
14 Christ himself is our peace. He has made Jews and Gentiles into one group of people. He has destroyed the hatred that was like a wall between us. 15 Through his body on the cross, Christ set aside the law with all its commands and rules. He planned to create one new people out of Jews and Gentiles. He wanted to make peace between them. 16 He planned to bring both Jews and Gentiles back to God as one body. He planned to do this through the cross. On that cross, Christ put to death their hatred toward one another. 17 He came and preached peace to you who were far away. He also preached peace to those who were near. 18 Through Christ we both come to the Father by the power of one Holy Spirit.
19 So you are no longer outsiders and strangers. You are citizens together with God’s people. You are also members of God’s family. 20 You are a building that is built on the apostles and prophets. They are the foundation. Christ Jesus himself is the most important stone in the building. 21 The whole building is held together by him. It rises to become a holy temple because it belongs to the Lord. 22 And because you belong to him, you too are being built together. You are being made into a house where God lives through his Spirit.
A Prophecy Against Edom
35 A message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, 2 “Son of man, turn your attention to Mount Seir. Prophesy against it. 3 Tell it, ‘The Lord and King says, “Mount Seir, I am against you. I will reach out my powerful hand against you. I will turn you into a dry and empty desert. 4 I will destroy your towns. Your land will become empty. Then you will know that I am the Lord.
5 “ ‘ “People of Edom, you have been Israel’s enemies for a long time. You let many Israelites be killed by swords when they were in great trouble. At that time I used Nebuchadnezzar to punish them and destroy them completely. 6 Now I will hand you over to murderers. They will hunt you down. You murdered others. So murderers will chase you. And that is just as sure as I am alive,” announces the Lord and King. 7 “I will turn Mount Seir into a dry and empty desert. No one will be able to go anywhere or do anything there. 8 I will fill your mountains with dead bodies. Some of those who are killed by swords will fall down dead on your hills. Others will die in your valleys and in all your canyons. 9 I will make your land empty forever. No one will live in your towns. Then you will know that I am the Lord.
10 “ ‘ “You said, ‘The nations of Israel and Judah will belong to us. We will take them over.’ You said that, even though I was there. I am the Lord. 11 You were full of anger, jealousy and hatred toward my people. So I will punish you. When I judge you, they will know that I am the Lord. And that is just as sure as I am alive,” announces the Lord and King. 12 “You will know that I have heard all the terrible things you said. You said them about those who live in the mountains of Israel. You made fun of them. You said, ‘They have been destroyed. They’ve been handed over to us. Let’s wipe them out.’ 13 You bragged that you were better than I am. You spoke against me. You did not hold anything back. But I heard it.” ’ ” 14 The Lord and King says, “The whole earth will be glad. But I will make your land empty. 15 You were happy when the land of Israel became empty. So I will treat you in the same way. Mount Seir, you will be empty. So will the whole land of Edom. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”
For the director of music. A psalm of the Sons of Korah.
85 Lord, you were good to your land.
You blessed the people of Jacob with great success again.
2 You forgave the evil things your people did.
You took away all their sins.
3 You stopped being angry with them.
You turned your great anger away from them.
4 God our Savior, make us new again.
Stop being unhappy with us.
5 Will you be angry with us forever?
Will you be angry for all time to come?
6 Won’t you give us new life again?
Then we’ll be joyful because of what you have done.
7 Lord, show us your faithful love.
Save us.
8 I will listen to what God the Lord says.
He promises peace to his faithful people.
But they must not turn to foolish ways.
9 I know he’s ready to save those who have respect for him.
Then his glory can be seen in our land.
10 God’s truth and faithful love join together.
His peace and holiness kiss each other.
11 His truth springs up from the earth.
His holiness looks down from heaven.
12 The Lord will certainly give what is good.
Our land will produce its crops.
13 God’s holiness leads the way in front of him.
It prepares the way for his coming.
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