M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Chapter 10
Solomon’s Listening Heart: The Queen of Sheba.[a] 1 (A)The queen of Sheba,[b] having heard a report of Solomon’s fame, came to test him with subtle questions. 2 She arrived in Jerusalem with a very numerous retinue, and with camels bearing spices, a large amount of gold, and precious stones. She came to Solomon and spoke to him about everything that she had on her mind. 3 King Solomon explained everything she asked about, and there was nothing so obscure that the king could not explain it to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba witnessed Solomon’s great wisdom, the house he had built, 5 the food at his table, the seating of his ministers, the attendance and dress of his waiters, his servers, and the burnt offerings he offered in the house of the Lord, it took her breath away. 6 “The report I heard in my country about your deeds and your wisdom is true,” she told the king. 7 “I did not believe the report until I came and saw with my own eyes that not even the half had been told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report I heard. 8 Happy are your servants, happy these ministers of yours, who stand before you always and listen to your wisdom. 9 Blessed be the Lord, your God, who has been pleased to place you on the throne of Israel. In his enduring love for Israel, the Lord has made you king to carry out judgment and justice.” 10 Then she gave the king one hundred and twenty gold talents, a very large quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again did anyone bring such an abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 Hiram’s fleet, which used to bring gold from Ophir, also brought from there a very large quantity of almug[c] wood and precious stones. 12 With this wood the king made supports for the house of the Lord and for the house of the king, and harps and lyres for the singers. Never again was any such almug wood brought or seen to the present day.
13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she desired and asked for, besides what King Solomon gave her from Solomon’s royal bounty. Then she returned with her servants to her own country.
Solomon’s Riches: Domestic Affairs.[d] 14 (B)The gold that came to Solomon in one year weighed six hundred and sixty-six gold talents, 15 in addition to what came from the tolls on travelers, from the traffic of merchants, and from all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the country. 16 (C)King Solomon made two hundred shields of beaten gold (six hundred shekels of gold went into each shield) 17 and three hundred bucklers of beaten gold (three minas of gold went into each buckler); and the king put them in the house of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 The king made a large ivory throne, and overlaid it with refined gold. 19 The throne had six steps, a back with a round top, and an arm on each side of the seat, with two lions standing next to the arms, 20 and twelve other lions standing there on the steps, two to a step, one on either side of each step. Nothing like this was made in any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were gold, and all the utensils in the house of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. There was no silver, for in Solomon’s time silver was reckoned as nothing. 22 For the king had a fleet of Tarshish ships[e] at sea with Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the fleet of Tarshish ships would come with a cargo of gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
Solomon’s Renown. 23 Thus King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. 24 And the whole world sought audience with Solomon, to hear the wisdom God had put into his heart. 25 They all brought their yearly tribute: vessels of silver and gold, garments, weapons, spices, horses and mules—what was due each year.
Solomon’s Riches: Chariots and Horses. 26 (D)Solomon amassed chariots and horses; he had one thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses; these he allocated among the chariot cities and to the king’s service in Jerusalem. 27 (E)The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars as numerous as the sycamores of the Shephelah. 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Cilicia, where the king’s merchants purchased them. 29 A chariot imported from Egypt cost six hundred shekels of silver, a horse one hundred and fifty shekels; they were exported at these rates to all the Hittite and Aramean kings.
I. Address
Chapter 1
Greeting.[a] 1 Paul and Timothy, slaves[b] of Christ Jesus, to all the holy ones in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the overseers and ministers:(A) 2 (B)grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.[c]
Thanksgiving.[d] 3 I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you,(C) 4 praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, 5 because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now. 6 (D)I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.[e] 7 It is right that I should think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart, you who are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.(E) 9 And this is my prayer: that your love may increase ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception,(F) 10 to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,(G) 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.(H)
II. Progress of the Gospel[f]
12 (I)I want you to know, brothers, that my situation has turned out rather to advance the gospel, 13 so that my imprisonment has become well known in Christ throughout the whole praetorium[g] and to all the rest,(J) 14 [h]and so that the majority of the brothers, having taken encouragement in the Lord from my imprisonment, dare more than ever to proclaim the word fearlessly.
15 Of course, some preach Christ from envy and rivalry, others from good will. 16 The latter act out of love, aware that I am here for the defense of the gospel; 17 the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not from pure motives, thinking that they will cause me trouble in my imprisonment. 18 What difference does it make, as long as in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed?(K) And in that I rejoice.[i]
Indeed I shall continue to rejoice, 19 [j]for I know that this will result in deliverance for me[k] through your prayers and support from the Spirit of Jesus Christ.(L) 20 My eager expectation and hope is that I shall not be put to shame in any way, but that with all boldness, now as always, Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.(M) 21 For to me life is Christ, and death is gain.(N) 22 If I go on living in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which I shall choose.(O) 23 I am caught between the two. I long to depart this life and be with Christ, [for] that is far better.(P) 24 Yet that I remain [in] the flesh is more necessary for your benefit. 25 And this I know with confidence, that I shall remain and continue in the service of all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that your boasting in Christ Jesus may abound on account of me when I come to you again.
III. Instructions for the Community
Steadfastness in Faith.[l] 27 Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear news of you, that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind struggling together for the faith of the gospel,(Q) 28 not intimidated in any way by your opponents. This is proof to them of destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God’s doing. 29 For to you has been granted, for the sake of Christ, not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him.(R) 30 Yours is the same struggle(S) as you saw in me and now hear about me.[m]
V. The New Israel[a]
The New Temple
Chapter 40
The Man with a Measure. 1 In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, fourteen years after the city had been captured, on that very day the hand of the Lord came upon me and brought me back there.(A) 2 In a divine vision he brought me to the land of Israel, where he set me down on a very high mountain. In front of me, there was something like a city built on it.(B) 3 He brought me there, and there standing in the gateway was a man whose appearance was like bronze! He held in his hand a linen cord and a measuring rod.(C) 4 The man said to me, “Son of man, look carefully and listen intently. Pay strict attention to everything I show you, for you have been brought here so that I might show it to you. Then you must tell the house of Israel everything you see.” 5 There an outer wall completely surrounded the temple. The measuring rod in the man’s hand was six cubits long, each cubit being a cubit plus a handbreadth;[b] he measured the width of the structure, one rod, and its height, one rod.
The East Gate.[c] 6 Going to the gate facing east, he climbed its steps and measured the threshold of the outer gateway as one rod wide.(D) 7 Each cell was one rod long and one rod wide, and there were five cubits between the cells; the threshold of the inner gateway adjoining the vestibule of the gate facing the temple was one rod wide. 8 He also measured the vestibule of the inner gate, 9 eight cubits, and its posts, two cubits each. The vestibule faced the inside. 10 On each side of the east gatehouse were three cells, all the same size; their posts were all the same size. 11 He measured the width of the gate’s entryway, ten cubits, and the length of the gate itself, thirteen cubits. 12 The borders in front of the cells on both sides were one cubit, while the cells themselves measured six cubits by six cubits from one opening to the next. 13 Next he measured the gatehouse from the back wall of one cell to the back wall of the cell on the opposite side through the openings facing each other, a width of twenty-five cubits. 14 All around the courtyard of the gatehouse were posts six cubits high. 15 From the front of the gatehouse at its outer entry to the gateway of the porch facing inward, the length was fifty cubits. 16 There were recessed windows in the cells on all sides and in the posts on the inner side of the gate. Posts and windows were all around the inside, with palm trees decorating the posts.(E)
The Outer Court. 17 Then he brought me to the outer court,[d] where there were chambers and pavement laid all around the courtyard: thirty chambers facing the pavement.(F) 18 The pavement lay alongside the gatehouses, the same length as the gates; this was the lower pavement. 19 He measured the length of the pavement from the front of the lower gate to the outside of the inner gate, one hundred cubits. He then moved from the east to the north side.
The North Gate. 20 He measured the length and width of the north gate of the outer courtyard. 21 Its cells, three on each side, its posts, and its vestibule had the same measurements as those of the first gate, fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. 22 Its windows, its vestibule, and its palm decorations had the same proportions as those of the gate facing east. Seven steps led up to it, and its vestibule faced the inside. 23 The inner court had a gate opposite the north gate, just as at the east gate; he measured one hundred cubits from one gate to the other.
The South Gate. 24 Then he led me to the south. There, too, facing south, was a gate! He measured its posts and vestibule; they were the same size as the others. 25 The gate and its vestibule had windows on both sides, like the other windows, fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. 26 Seven steps led up to it, its vestibule faced inside; and palms decorated each of the posts opposite one another. 27 The inner court also had a gate facing south. He measured it from gate to gate, facing south, one hundred cubits.
Gates of the Inner Court.[e] 28 Then he brought me to the inner courtyard by the south gate, where he measured the south gateway; its measurements were the same as the others. 29 Its cells, posts, and vestibule were the same size as the others, fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. 30 [f]The vestibules all around were twenty-five cubits long and five cubits wide. 31 Its vestibule faced the outer court; palms decorated its posts, and its stairway had eight steps. 32 Then he brought me to the inner courtyard on the east and measured the gate there; its dimensions were the same as the others. 33 Its cells, posts, and vestibule were the same size as the others. The gate and its vestibule had windows on both sides, fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. 34 Its vestibule faced the outer court, palms decorated the posts opposite each other, and it had a stairway of eight steps. 35 Then he brought me to the north gate,(G) where he measured the dimensions 36 of its cells, posts, and vestibule; they were the same. The gate and its vestibule had windows on both sides, fifty cubits long and twenty-five cubits wide. 37 Its vestibule faced the outer court; palm trees decorated its posts opposite each other, and it had a stairway of eight steps.
Side Rooms. 38 There was a chamber opening off the vestibule of the gate where burnt offerings were washed.(H) 39 In the vestibule of the gate there were two tables on either side for slaughtering the burnt offerings, purification offerings, and reparation offerings.(I) 40 Two more tables stood along the wall of the vestibule by the entrance of the north gate, and two tables on the other side of the vestibule of the gate. 41 There were thus four tables on one side of the gate and four tables on the other side, eight tables in all, for slaughtering. 42 The four tables for burnt offerings were made of cut stone, one and a half cubits long, one and a half cubits wide, and one cubit high; the instruments used for slaughtering burnt offerings and other sacrifices were kept 43 on shelves the width of one hand, fixed all around the room; but on the tables themselves was the meat for the sacrifices. 44 Outside the inner gatehouse there were two rooms on the inner courtyard, one beside the north gate, facing south, and the other beside the south gate, facing north. 45 He said to me, “This chamber facing south is reserved for the priests who have charge of the temple area, 46 while this chamber facing north is reserved for the priests who have charge of the altar; they are the sons of Zadok,[g] the only Levites who may come near to minister to the Lord.” 47 He measured the courtyard, a square one hundred cubits long and a hundred cubits wide, with the altar standing in front of the temple.(J)
The Temple Building.[h] 48 (K)Then he brought me into the vestibule of the temple and measured the posts, five cubits on each side. The gateway was fourteen cubits wide, its side walls three cubits. 49 The vestibule was twenty cubits long and twelve cubits wide; ten steps led up to it, and there were columns by the posts, one on each side.
Psalm 91[a]
Security Under God’s Protection
I
1 You who dwell in the shelter of the Most High,[b]
who abide in the shade of the Almighty,
2 Say to the Lord, “My refuge and fortress,
my God in whom I trust.”(A)
3 He will rescue you from the fowler’s snare,
from the destroying plague,
4 He will shelter you with his pinions,
and under his wings you may take refuge;(B)
his faithfulness is a protecting shield.
5 You shall not fear the terror of the night
nor the arrow that flies by day,(C)
6 Nor the pestilence that roams in darkness,
nor the plague that ravages at noon.(D)
7 Though a thousand fall at your side,
ten thousand at your right hand,
near you it shall not come.
8 You need simply watch;
the punishment of the wicked you will see.(E)
9 Because you have the Lord for your refuge
and have made the Most High your stronghold,
10 No evil shall befall you,
no affliction come near your tent.(F)
11 [c]For he commands his angels with regard to you,(G)
to guard you wherever you go.(H)
12 With their hands they shall support you,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.(I)
13 You can tread upon the asp and the viper,
trample the lion and the dragon.(J)
II
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.