M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan

The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon

10 When the queen of Sheba heard about the wisdom Solomon had from the Lord, she came to test him with hard questions. ² She came to Jerusalem and many people came with her. She brought camels carrying spices and much gold and stones of much worth. When she came to Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind. ³ And Solomon answered all her questions. There was nothing hidden from the king which he could not make plain to her. ⁴ The queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon, the house he had built, ⁵ the food on his table, and his many servants seated to eat. She saw those who brought the food and how they were dressed, and those who carried his cups. She saw the steps by which he went up to the house of the Lord. And there was no more spirit in her. ⁶ She said to the king, “The news was true that I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. ⁷ But I did not believe the news until I came. Now my eyes have seen it. And half of it was not told to me. You have more wisdom and riches than I heard you had. ⁸ How happy are your men! How happy are these your servants who stand in front of you always and hear your wisdom! ⁹ Thanks be to the Lord your God Who was pleased with you and set you on the throne of Israel. Because the Lord loved Israel forever, He has made you king, to do what is fair and right and good.” ¹⁰ Then she gave the king gold weighing as much as 120 small men. She gave him a very large amount of spices and stones of much worth. Never again did so much spices come in as that which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

¹¹ The ships of Hiram brought from Ophir gold and very many almug trees and stones of much worth. ¹² The king used the almug trees to make pillars for the house of the Lord and for the king’s house. And he used them to make different kinds of harps for the singers. No such almug trees have come in again or have been seen to this day.

¹³ King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all she wanted, whatever she asked, as well as his gifts to her from the king’s riches. Then she and her servants returned to her own land.

Solomon’s Riches

¹⁴ The gold which came in to Solomon in one year weighed as much as 666 small men, ¹⁵ besides all the gold that came from the traders and all the kings of the Arabs and the leaders of the country. ¹⁶ King Solomon made 200 large body coverings for battle of beaten gold. For each covering he used 600 pieces of gold. ¹⁷ And he made 300 coverings of beaten gold, using 150 pieces of gold on each covering. The king put them in the house among the trees of Lebanon. ¹⁸ Then the king made a large throne of ivory and covered it with fine gold. ¹⁹ The throne had six steps, and a round top at its back. There were arms on each side of the seat, and two lions standing beside the arms. ²⁰ Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one on each end. Nothing like it was made for any other king. ²¹ All of King Solomon’s cups were made of gold. And all the cups of the house among the trees of Lebanon were made of pure gold. None of them were made of silver. Silver was not thought of as being of much worth in the days of Solomon. ²² For the king had a group of ships of Tarshish at sea with the ships of Hiram. Every three years the ships of Tarshish came bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes and peacocks.

²³ So King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. ²⁴ They came from all over the earth to see Solomon, to hear his wisdom which God had put in his heart. ²⁵ Every one of them brought his gift. They brought objects of silver and gold, clothing, objects for fighting in battle, spices, horses and donkeys, so much year by year.

²⁶ Solomon gathered war-wagons and horsemen. He had 1,400 war-wagons and 12,000 horsemen. He kept them in the war-wagon cities and with the king in Jerusalem. ²⁷ The king made silver as easy to find as stones in Jerusalem. He made cedar trees as easy to find as the sycamore trees of the valley. ²⁸ Solomon had horses brought from Egypt and Kue. The king’s traders bought them from Kue, each for a price. ²⁹ A war-wagon could be brought from Egypt for 600 pieces of silver, and a horse for 150 pieces of silver. They got them in the same way for all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.

1 This letter is from Paul and Timothy. We are servants owned by Jesus Christ. This letter is to all who belong to Christ Jesus who are living in the city of Philippi and to the church leaders and their helpers also. ² May you have loving-favor and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul Gives Thanks For the True Christians

³ I thank God for you whenever I think of you. ⁴ I always have joy as I pray for all of you. ⁵ It is because you have told others the Good News from the first day you heard it until now. ⁶ I am sure that God Who began the good work in you will keep on working in you until the day Jesus Christ comes again. ⁷ It is right for me to feel like this about all of you. It is because you are very dear to me. While I was in prison and when I was proving that the Good News is true, you all shared God’s loving-favor with me. ⁸ God knows what I am saying. He knows how much I love you all with a love that comes from Jesus Christ. ⁹ And this is my prayer: I pray that your love will grow more and more. I pray that you will have better understanding and be wise in all things. ¹⁰ I pray that you will know what is the very best. I pray that you will be true and without blame until the day Christ comes again. ¹¹ And I pray that you will be filled with the fruits of right living. These come from Jesus Christ, with honor and thanks to God.

Paul’s Being in Prison Has Turned Out to Be a Good Thing

¹² Christian brothers, I want you to know that what has happened to me has helped spread the Good News. ¹³ Everyone around here knows why I am in prison. It is because I preached about Jesus Christ. All the soldiers who work for the leader of the country know why I am here. ¹⁴ Because of this, most of my Christian brothers have had their faith in the Lord made stronger. They have more power to preach the Word of God without fear.

¹⁵ Some are preaching because they are jealous and want to make trouble. Others are doing it for the right reason. ¹⁶ These do it because of love. They know that I am put here to prove the Good News is true. ¹⁷ The others preach about Christ for what they get out of it. Their hearts are not right. They want to make me suffer while I am in prison. ¹⁸ What difference does it make if they pretend or if they are true? I am happy, yes, and I will keep on being happy that Christ is preached.

¹⁹ Because of your prayers and the help the Holy Spirit gives me, all of this will turn out for good. ²⁰ I hope very much that I will have no reason to be ashamed. I hope to honor Christ with my body if it be by my life or by my death. I want to honor Him without fear, now and always. ²¹ To me, living means having Christ. To die means that I would have more of Him. ²² If I keep on living here in this body, it means that I can lead more people to Christ. I do not know which is better. ²³ There is a strong pull from both sides. I have a desire to leave this world to be with Christ, which is much better. ²⁴ But it is more important for you that I stay. ²⁵ I am sure I will live to help you grow and be happy in your faith. ²⁶ This will give you reason to give more thanks to Christ Jesus when I come to visit you again.

Fight for the Faith

²⁷ Live your lives as the Good News of Christ says you should. If I come to you or not, I want to hear that you are standing true as one. I want to hear that you are working together as one, preaching the Good News. ²⁸ Do not be afraid of those who hate you. Their hate for you proves they will be destroyed. It proves you have life from God that lasts forever. ²⁹ You are not only to put your trust in Him, but you are to suffer for Him also. ³⁰ You know what the fight is like. Now it is time for you to have a part in it as I have.

A New House of God

40 It was the twenty-fifth year since the people of Israel were taken away to a strange land, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth of the month, and fourteen years since Jerusalem was taken in battle. On that day the hand of the Lord was upon me and He brought me there. ² In a special way God brought me into the land of Israel and set me on a very high mountain. There were some buildings on its south side that looked like a city. ³ He took me there, and I saw a man who looked like he was made of brass. In his hand was a linen rope and a stick to find how long something is. He was standing at the gate. ⁴ And the man said to me, “Son of man, look with your eyes, hear with your ears, and think about all I am going to show you. For you have been brought here so that I may show it to you. Tell the people of Israel everything you see.”

The East Gate

⁵ I saw a wall all around the outside of the house of the Lord. The stick in the man’s hand was six cubits long (with the width of a hand being added to the length of each arm). And with it he showed that the wall was one stick wide and one stick high. ⁶ Then he went up the steps of the east gate, and showed me with his stick that the gateway was one stick wide, and the other gate was also one stick wide. ⁷ The rooms for the watchmen were each one stick long and one stick wide, and they were five cubits apart. And the gateway next to the porch toward the Lord’s house was one stick wide. ⁸ Then he showed me with his stick that the porch of the inside gate was one-tenth stick wide. ⁹ The porch of the gate was eight cubits and its side pillars two cubits wide. The porch of the gate was on the inside. ¹⁰ There were three rooms for the watchmen on each side of the east gate. They all had the same length and width. And the pillars on each side were the same in width. ¹¹ Then he showed me that the opening of the gateway was ten cubits wide and thirteen cubits long. ¹² There was a wall one-tenth cubit wide in front of the watchmen’s rooms on each side. And the watchmen’s rooms were six cubits wide and six cubits long. ¹³ Then he showed me that it was twenty-five cubits from the roof of one room to the roof of the room across from it. ¹⁴ He showed me that it was twenty cubits around the walls inside the gateway, up to the porch facing the open space. ¹⁵ It was fifteen cubits from the front of the outer gate to the front of the porch of the inner gate. ¹⁶ There were narrow windows looking toward the watchmen’s rooms and toward their side pillars, all around inside the gate and also in the porches. And pictures of palm trees were cut on each side pillar.

The Outside Open Space

¹⁷ Then he brought me into the outer open space, and I saw rooms and a stone floor all around it. Thirty rooms were around the stone floor. ¹⁸ The lower stone floor was beside the gates, and was as wide as the gates. ¹⁹ Then he showed me how far it was from the inside of the lower gate to the outside of the inner open space. Both east and north sides were 100 cubits each.

The North Gate

²⁰ He then showed me the length and width of the north gate of the outer open space. ²¹ It had three rooms on each side for the watchmen. Its side pillars and porches were as long and as wide as the first gate. It was as long as fifty cubits, and as wide as twenty-five cubits. ²² Its windows, its porches, and palm tree pictures were the same length and width as those of the east gate. Seven steps led up to it, and its porch was in front of them. ²³ Across from the north gate was another gate leading to the inner open space, just as there was for the east gate. He showed me that it was 100 cubits from gate to gate.

The South Gate

²⁴ Then he led me to the south, and I saw a gate toward the south. He showed me the length and width of its side pillars and its porches, and they were the same as the others. ²⁵ The gate and its porches had windows like the others all around and was as long as fifty cubits and as wide as twenty-five cubits. ²⁶ Seven steps led up to it, and its porches were in front of them. And it had pictures of palm trees on its side pillars, one on each side. ²⁷ The open space had a gate toward the south. He showed me that it was 100 cubits from gate to gate toward the south.

The Inside Open Space

²⁸ Then he brought me to the inner open space by the south gate, and showed me that this gate had the same width as the others. ²⁹ Its watchmen’s rooms, side pillars and porches were also the same as the others and had windows all around. It was as long as fifty cubits and as wide as twenty-five cubits. ³⁰ (There were porches all around, as long as twenty-five cubits and five cubits wide) ³¹ and its porches were toward the outer open space. Pictures of palm trees were on its side pillars, and leading up to it were eight steps.

³² Then he brought me to the inner open space toward the east. He showed me that it was as wide as the others. ³³ Its watchmen’s rooms, side pillars and porches were also the same as the others and, there were windows all around which were as long as fifty cubits and as wide as twenty-five cubits. ³⁴ Its gateway was toward the outer open space. Pictures of palm trees were on its side pillars, on each side. And going up to it were eight steps.

³⁵ Then he brought me to the north gate, and showed me that it was the same width as the others. ³⁶ Its watchmen’s rooms, side pillars and porches were also the same as the others. There were windows all around and it was as long as fifty cubits and as wide as twenty-five cubits. ³⁷ Its side pillars were toward the outer open space. Pictures of palm trees were on its side pillars, on each side. And going up to it were eight steps.

Where the Burnt Gifts Were Made Ready

³⁸ There was a room with its door by the side pillars, where the burnt gifts were washed. ³⁹ And there were two tables on each side of the porch. On these tables the animals were killed for the burnt gifts, the sin gifts, and the guilt gifts. ⁴⁰ On the outer side of the gateway, by the north gate, were two tables. And there were two tables on the other side of the gate. ⁴¹ So there were four tables on each side of the gateway, eight tables in all, where they killed the animals for the altar. ⁴² There were four tables for the burnt gifts. They were made of cut stone, and were one-and-a-half cubits long, one-and-a-half cubits wide, and one cubit high. The objects used for killing the animals for the burnt gifts were kept on these stone tables. ⁴³ Hooks as long as a man’s hand hung on the wall all around. The tables were for the meat of the burnt gifts.

⁴⁴ Then he brought me from the outside into the inner open space and there were two rooms for the singers. One was at the side of the north gate which faced the south, and the other was at the side of the south gate which faced the north. ⁴⁵ And he said to me, “This room which faces the south is for the religious leaders who take care of the Lord’s house. ⁴⁶ The room which faces the north is for the religious leaders who take care of the altar. These are the sons of Zadok, who are the only Levites who may come near the Lord to do His work.”

The Inside Open Space and the House of God

⁴⁷ He showed me that the inner open space was as long as 100 cubits and as wide as 100 cubits, the same on all four sides. And the altar was in front of the Lord’s house.

⁴⁸ Then he brought me to the porch of the Lord’s house. He showed me that each side pillar of the porch was five cubits wide. And each side of the gate was three cubits wide. ⁴⁹ The porch was as long as twenty cubits, and six steps wide. Ten steps led up to it, and there was one pillar on each side.

The Lord—the One We Trust

91 He who lives in the safe place of the Most High will be in the shadow of the All-powerful. ² I will say to the Lord, “You are my safe and strong place, my God, in Whom I trust.” ³ For it is He Who takes you away from the trap, and from the killing sickness. ⁴ He will cover you with His wings. And under His wings you will be safe. He is faithful like a safe-covering and a strong wall.

⁵ You will not be afraid of trouble at night, or of the arrow that flies by day. ⁶ You will not be afraid of the sickness that walks in darkness, or of the trouble that destroys at noon. ⁷ A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand. But it will not come near you. ⁸ You will only look on with your eyes, and see how the sinful are punished. ⁹ Because you have made the Lord your safe place, and the Most High the place where you live, ¹⁰ nothing will hurt you. No trouble will come near your tent.

¹¹ For He will tell His angels to care for you and keep you in all your ways. ¹² They will hold you up in their hands. So your foot will not hit against a stone. ¹³ You will walk upon the lion and the snake. You will crush under your feet the young lion and the snake.

¹⁴ Because he has loved Me, I will bring him out of trouble. I will set him in a safe place on high, because he has known My name. ¹⁵ He will call upon Me, and I will answer him. I will be with him in trouble. I will take him out of trouble and honor him. ¹⁶ I will please him with a long life. And I will show him My saving power.