M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Ark Is Brought into the Temple
8 King Solomon called for the elders of Israel, the heads of the tribes, and the leaders of the families to come to him in Jerusalem. He wanted them to bring the Ark of the Agreement with the Lord from the older part of the city. 2 So all the Israelites came together with King Solomon during the festival in the month of Ethanim, the seventh month.
3 When all the elders of Israel arrived, the priests lifted up the Ark. 4 They carried the Ark of the Lord, the Meeting Tent, and the holy utensils; the priests and the Levites brought them up. 5 King Solomon and all the Israelites gathered before the Ark and sacrificed so many sheep and cattle no one could count them all. 6 Then the priests put the Ark of the Agreement with the Lord in its place inside the Most Holy Place in the Temple, under the wings of the golden creatures. 7 The wings of these creatures were spread out over the place for the Ark, covering it and its carrying poles. 8 The carrying poles were so long that anyone standing in the Holy Place in front of the Most Holy Place could see the ends of the poles, but no one could see them from outside the Holy Place. The poles are still there today. 9 The only things inside the Ark were two stone tablets[a] that Moses had put in the Ark at Mount Sinai. That was where the Lord made his agreement with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.
10 When the priests left the Holy Place, a cloud filled the Temple of the Lord. 11 The priests could not continue their work, because the Temple was filled with the glory of the Lord.
Solomon Speaks to the People
12 Then Solomon said, “The Lord said he would live in a dark cloud. 13 Lord, I have truly built a wonderful Temple for you—a place for you to live forever.”
14 While all the Israelites were standing there, King Solomon turned to them and blessed them.
15 Then he said, “Praise the Lord, the God of Israel. He has done what he promised to my father David. The Lord said, 16 ‘Since the time I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel where a temple will be built for me. But I have chosen David to lead my people Israel.’
17 “My father David wanted to build a temple for the Lord, the God of Israel. 18 But the Lord said to my father David, ‘It was good that you wanted to build a temple for me. 19 But you are not the one to build it. Your son, who comes from your own body, is the one who will build my temple.’
20 “Now the Lord has kept his promise. I am the king now in place of David my father. Now I rule Israel as the Lord promised, and I have built the Temple for the Lord, the God of Israel. 21 I have made a place there for the Ark, in which is the Agreement the Lord made with our ancestors when he brought them out of Egypt.”
Solomon’s Prayer
22 Then Solomon stood facing the Lord’s altar, and all the Israelites were standing behind him. He spread out his hands toward the sky 23 and said:
“Lord, God of Israel, there is no god like you in heaven above or on earth below. You keep your agreement of love with your servants who truly follow you. 24 You have kept the promise you made to your servant David, my father. You spoke it with your own mouth and finished it with your hands today. 25 Now Lord, God of Israel, keep the promise you made to your servant David, my father. You said, ‘If your sons are careful to obey me as you have obeyed me, there will always be someone from your family ruling Israel.’ 26 Now, God of Israel, please continue to keep that promise you made to your servant David, my father.
27 “But, God, can you really live here on the earth? The sky and the highest place in heaven cannot contain you. Surely this house which I have built cannot contain you. 28 But please listen to my prayer and my request, because I am your servant. Lord my God, hear this prayer your servant prays to you today. 29 Night and day please watch over this Temple where you have said, ‘I will be worshiped there.’ Hear the prayer I pray facing this Temple. 30 Hear my prayers and the prayers of your people Israel when we pray facing this place. Hear from your home in heaven, and when you hear, forgive us.
31 “If someone wrongs another person, he will be brought to the altar in this Temple. If he swears an oath that he is not guilty, 32 then hear in heaven. Judge the case, punish the guilty, but declare that the innocent person is not guilty.
33 “When your people, the Israelites, sin against you, their enemies will defeat them. But if they come back to you and praise you and pray to you in this Temple, 34 then hear them in heaven. Forgive the sins of your people Israel, and bring them back to the land you gave to their ancestors.
35 “When they sin against you, you will stop the rain from falling on their land. Then they will pray, facing this place and praising you; they will stop sinning when you make them suffer. 36 When this happens, please hear their prayer in heaven, and forgive the sins of your servants, the Israelites. Teach them to do what is right. Then please send rain to this land you have given particularly to them.
37 “At times the land will become so dry that no food will grow, or a great sickness will spread among the people. Sometimes all the crops will be destroyed by locusts or grasshoppers. Your people will be attacked in their cities by their enemy or will become sick. 38 When any of these things happen, the people will become truly sorry. If your people spread their hands in prayer toward this Temple, 39 then hear their prayers from your home in heaven. Forgive and treat each person as he should be treated because you know what is in a person’s heart. Only you know what is in everyone’s heart. 40 Then your people will respect you as long as they live in this land you gave to our ancestors.
41-42 “People who are not Israelites, foreigners from other lands, will hear about your greatness and power. They will come from far away to pray at this Temple. 43 Then hear from your home in heaven, and do whatever they ask you. Then people everywhere will know you and respect you, just as your people in Israel do. Then everyone will know I built this Temple as a place to worship you.
44 “When your people go out to fight their enemies along some road on which you send them, your people will pray to you, facing the city which you have chosen and the Temple I have built for you. 45 Then hear in heaven their prayers, and do what is right.
46 “Everyone sins, so your people will also sin against you. You will become angry with them and hand them over to their enemies. Their enemies will capture them and take them away to their countries far or near. 47 Your people will be sorry for their sins when they are held as prisoners in another country. They will be sorry and pray to you in the land where they are held as prisoners, saying, ‘We have sinned. We have done wrong and acted wickedly.’ 48 They will truly turn back to you in the land of their enemies. They will pray to you, facing this land you gave their ancestors, this city you have chosen, and the Temple I have built for you. 49 Then hear their prayers from your home in heaven, and do what is right. 50 Forgive your people of all their sins and for turning against you. Make those who have captured them show them mercy. 51 Remember, they are your special people. You brought them out of Egypt, as if you were pulling them out of a blazing furnace.
52 “Give your attention to my prayers and the prayers of your people Israel. Listen to them anytime they ask you for help. 53 You chose them from all the nations on earth to be your very own people. This is what you promised through Moses your servant when you brought our ancestors out of Egypt, Lord God.”
54 Solomon prayed this prayer to the Lord, kneeling in front of the altar with his arms raised toward heaven. When he finished praying, he got up. 55 Then, in a loud voice, he stood and blessed all the people of Israel, saying: 56 “Praise the Lord! He promised he would give rest to his people Israel, and he has given us rest. The Lord has kept all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses. 57 May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors. May he never leave us, 58 and may he turn us to himself so we will follow him. Let us obey all the laws and commands he gave our ancestors. 59 May the Lord our God remember this prayer day and night and do what is right for his servant and his people Israel day by day. 60 Then all the people of the world will know the Lord is the only true God. 61 You must fully obey the Lord our God and follow all his laws and commands. Continue to obey in the future as you do now.”
Sacrifices Are Offered
62 Then King Solomon and all Israel with him offered sacrifices to the Lord. 63 Solomon killed twenty-two thousand cattle and one hundred twenty thousand sheep as fellowship offerings. So the king and all the people gave the Temple to the Lord.
64 On that day King Solomon made holy the middle part of the courtyard which is in front of the Temple of the Lord. There he offered whole burnt offerings, grain offerings, and the fat of the fellowship offerings. He offered them in the courtyard, because the bronze altar before the Lord was too small to hold all the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat of the fellowship offerings.
65 Solomon and all the Israelites celebrated the other festival that came at that time. People came from as far away as Lebo Hamath and the brook of Egypt. A great many people celebrated before the Lord for seven days, then seven more days, for a total of fourteen days. 66 On the following day Solomon sent the people home. They blessed the king as they went, happy because of all the good things the Lord had done for his servant David and his people Israel.
Living in the Light
5 You are God’s children whom he loves, so try to be like him. 2 Live a life of love just as Christ loved us and gave himself for us as a sweet-smelling offering and sacrifice to God.
3 But there must be no sexual sin among you, or any kind of evil or greed. Those things are not right for God’s holy people. 4 Also, there must be no evil talk among you, and you must not speak foolishly or tell evil jokes. These things are not right for you. Instead, you should be giving thanks to God. 5 You can be sure of this: No one will have a place in the kingdom of Christ and of God who sins sexually, or does evil things, or is greedy. Anyone who is greedy is serving a false god.
6 Do not let anyone fool you by telling you things that are not true, because these things will bring God’s anger on those who do not obey him. 7 So have nothing to do with them. 8 In the past you were full of darkness, but now you are full of light in the Lord. So live like children who belong to the light. 9 Light brings every kind of goodness, right living, and truth. 10 Try to learn what pleases the Lord. 11 Have nothing to do with the things done in darkness, which are not worth anything. But show that they are wrong. 12 It is shameful even to talk about what those people do in secret. 13 But the light makes all things easy to see, 14 and everything that is made easy to see can become light. This is why it is said:
“Wake up, sleeper!
Rise from death,
and Christ will shine on you.”
15 So be very careful how you live. Do not live like those who are not wise, but live wisely. 16 Use every chance you have for doing good, because these are evil times. 17 So do not be foolish but learn what the Lord wants you to do. 18 Do not be drunk with wine, which will ruin you, but be filled with the Spirit. 19 Speak to each other with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music in your hearts to the Lord. 20 Always give thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Wives and Husbands
21 Yield to obey each other as you would to Christ.
22 Wives, yield to your husbands, as you do to the Lord, 23 because the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ is the head of the church. And he is the Savior of the body, which is the church. 24 As the church yields to Christ, so you wives should yield to your husbands in everything.
25 Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it 26 to make it belong to God. Christ used the word to make the church clean by washing it with water. 27 He died so that he could give the church to himself like a bride in all her beauty. He died so that the church could be pure and without fault, with no evil or sin or any other wrong thing in it. 28 In the same way, husbands should love their wives as they love their own bodies. The man who loves his wife loves himself. 29 No one ever hates his own body, but feeds and takes care of it. And that is what Christ does for the church, 30 because we are parts of his body. 31 The Scripture says, “So a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two will become one body.”[a] 32 That secret is very important—I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 But each one of you must love his wife as he loves himself, and a wife must respect her husband.
Prophecy Against Gog
38 The Lord spoke his word to me, saying, 2 “Human, look toward Gog of the land of Magog, the chief ruler of the nations of Meshech and Tubal. Prophesy against him 3 and say, ‘The Lord God says this: I am against you, Gog, chief ruler of Meshech and Tubal. 4 I will turn you around and put hooks in your jaws. And I will bring you out with all your army, horses, and horsemen, all of whom will be dressed in beautiful uniforms. They will be a large army with large and small shields and all having swords. 5 Persia, Cush, and Put will be with them, all of them having shields and helmets. 6 There will also be Gomer with all its troops and the nation of Togarmah from the far north with all its troops—many nations with you.
7 “‘Be prepared. Be prepared, you and all the armies that have come together to make you their commander. 8 After a long time you will be called for service. After those years you will come into a land that has been rebuilt from war. The people in the land will have been gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which were empty for a long time. These people were brought out from the nations, and they will all be living in safety. 9 You will come like a storm. You, all your troops, and the many nations with you will be like a cloud covering the land.
10 “‘This is what the Lord God says: At that time ideas will come into your mind, and you will think up an evil plan. 11 You will say, “I will march against a land of towns without walls. I will attack those who are at rest and live in safety. All of them live without city walls or gate bars or gates. 12 I will capture treasures and take loot. I will turn my power against the rebuilt ruins that now have people living in them. I will attack these people who have been gathered from the nations, who have become rich with farm animals and property, who live at the center of the world.” 13 Sheba, Dedan, and the traders of Tarshish, with all its villages, will say to you, “Did you come to capture treasure? Did you bring your troops together to take loot? Did you bring them to carry away silver and gold and to take away farm animals and property?”’
14 “So prophesy, human, and say to Gog, ‘This is what the Lord God says: Now that my people Israel are living in safety, you will know about it. 15 You will come with many people from your place in the far north. You will have a large group with you, a mighty army, all riding on horses. 16 You will attack my people Israel like a cloud that covers the land. This will happen in the days to come when I bring you against my land. Gog, then the nations will know me when they see me prove how holy I am in what I do through you.
17 “‘This is what the Lord God says: You are the one about whom I spoke in past days. I spoke through my servants, the prophets of Israel, who prophesied for many years that I would bring you against them. 18 This is what will happen: On the day Gog attacks the land of Israel, I will become very angry, says the Lord God. 19 With jealousy and great anger I tell you that at that time there will surely be a great earthquake in Israel. 20 The fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the wild animals, everything that crawls on the ground, and all the people on the earth will shake with fear before me. Also the mountains will be thrown down, the cliffs will fall, and every wall will fall to the ground. 21 Then I will call for a war against Gog on all my mountains, says the Lord God. Everyone’s sword will attack the soldier next to him. 22 I will punish Gog with disease and death. I will send a heavy rain with hailstones and burning sulfur on Gog, his army, and the many nations with him. 23 Then I will show how great I am. I will show my holiness, and I will make myself known to the many nations that watch. Then they will know that I am the Lord.’
A Song About God’s Loyalty
A maskil of Ethan the Ezrahite.
89 I will always sing about the Lord’s love;
I will tell of his loyalty from now on.
2 I will say, “Your love continues forever;
your loyalty goes on and on like the sky.”
3 You said, “I made an agreement with the man of my choice;
I made a promise to my servant David.
4 I told him, ‘I will make your family continue forever.
Your kingdom will go on and on.’” Selah
5 Lord, the heavens praise you for your miracles
and for your loyalty in the meeting of your holy ones.
6 Who in heaven is equal to the Lord?
None of the angels is like the Lord.
7 When the holy ones meet, it is God they fear.
He is more frightening than all who surround him.
8 Lord God All-Powerful, who is like you?
Lord, you are powerful and completely trustworthy.
9 You rule the mighty sea
and calm the stormy waves.
10 You crushed the sea monster Rahab;
by your power you scattered your enemies.
11 The skies and the earth belong to you.
You made the world and everything in it.
12 You created the north and the south.
Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon sing for joy at your name.
13 Your arm has great power.
Your hand is strong; your right hand is lifted up.
14 Your kingdom is built on what is right and fair.
Love and truth are in all you do.
15 Happy are the people who know how to praise you.
Lord, let them live in the light of your presence.
16 In your name they rejoice
and continually praise your goodness.
17 You are their glorious strength,
and in your kindness you honor our king.
18 Our king, our shield, belongs to the Lord,
to the Holy One of Israel.
19 Once, in a vision, you spoke
to those who worship you.
You said, “I have given strength to a warrior;
I have raised up a young man from my people.
20 I have found my servant David;
I appointed him by pouring holy oil on him.
21 I will steady him with my hand
and strengthen him with my arm.
22 No enemy will make him give forced payments,
and wicked people will not defeat him.
23 I will crush his enemies in front of him;
I will defeat those who hate him.
24 My loyalty and love will be with him.
Through me he will be strong.
25 I will give him power over the sea
and control over the rivers.
26 He will say to me, ‘You are my father,
my God, the Rock, my Savior.’
27 I will make him my firstborn son,
the greatest king on earth.
28 My love will watch over him forever,
and my agreement with him will never end.
29 I will make his family continue,
and his kingdom will last as long as the skies.
30 “If his descendants reject my teachings
and do not follow my laws,
31 if they ignore my demands
and disobey my commands,
32 then I will punish their sins with a rod
and their wrongs with a whip.
33 But I will not hold back my love from David,
nor will I stop being loyal.
34 I will not break my agreement
nor change what I have said.
35 I have promised by my holiness,
I will not lie to David.
36 His family will go on forever.
His kingdom will last before me like the sun.
37 It will continue forever, like the moon,
like a dependable witness in the sky.” Selah
38 But now you have refused and rejected your appointed king.
You have been angry with him.
39 You have abandoned the agreement with your servant
and thrown his crown to the ground.
40 You have torn down all his city walls;
you have turned his strong cities into ruins.
41 Everyone who passes by steals from him.
His neighbors insult him.
42 You have given strength to his enemies
and have made them all happy.
43 You have made his sword useless;
you did not help him stand in battle.
44 You have kept him from winning
and have thrown his throne to the ground.
45 You have cut his life short
and covered him with shame. Selah
46 Lord, how long will this go on?
Will you ignore us forever?
How long will your anger burn like a fire?
47 Remember how short my life is.
Why did you create us? For nothing?
48 What person alive will not die?
Who can escape the grave? Selah
49 Lord, where is your love from times past,
which in your loyalty you promised to David?
50 Lord, remember how they insulted your servant;
remember how I have suffered the insults of the nations.
51 Lord, remember how your enemies insulted you
and how they insulted your appointed king wherever he went.
52 Praise the Lord forever!
Amen and amen.
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.