M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
Solomon’s Sin and God’s Judgment
11 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter, including Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites. 2 They came from the nations about which the Lord had said to the people of Israel, “You must not enter into marriage with them, and they must not enter into marriage with you, or they will turn your hearts after other gods.” Solomon clung to them in love. 3 He had seven hundred wives who held the rank of princess and three hundred concubines. So they turned his heart away.
4 When Solomon became old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, so that his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord as the heart of his father David had been. 5 Then Solomon followed Ashtarte, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom, the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6 So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did not devote himself to the Lord as his father David had done. 7 Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh, the detestable god of Moab, on the hill east of Jerusalem and for Molek,[a] the detestable god of the Ammonites. 8 He did the same for all his foreign wives, who were burning incense and making sacrifices to their gods.
9 So the Lord was angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. 10 The Lord had given him the command not to follow other gods, but Solomon did not keep the Lord’s command.
11 So the Lord said to Solomon, “Because this is your attitude, and because you did not keep my covenant and my statutes which I commanded you, I will surely rip the kingdom out of your hands and give it to your servant. 12 However, I will not do it during your lifetime because of your father David. I will rip it from your son’s hand. 13 But I will not rip away the whole kingdom. One tribe I will give to your son for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”
God Raises Foreign Enemies to Oppose Solomon
14 Then the Lord raised up Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom, as an adversary for Solomon. 15 Earlier, while David was at war with Edom, when Joab the commander of the army went up to bury the dead, he struck down every male in Edom. 16 For six months Joab and all Israel stayed there until he exterminated every male in Edom. 17 But while Hadad was a young boy, he had fled with some Edomites from among his father’s servants to go to Egypt. 18 So they set out from Midian and went to Paran. They took some men with them from Paran and went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt. He gave Hadad a house and decreed an allowance of food for him and gave him land.
19 Hadad found great favor in the eyes of Pharaoh, so Pharaoh gave him the sister of his own wife, the sister of Queen Tahpenes, as his wife. 20 The sister of Tahpenes bore him a son named Genubath. Tahpenes weaned him in the house of Pharaoh, so Genubath was in the house of Pharaoh with Pharaoh’s own sons.
21 Later Hadad heard that David rested with his fathers and that Joab the commander of the army was dead. So Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Send me back to my own country.”
22 Pharaoh said to him, “What are you lacking here with me, so that you want to go back to your own country?”
He said, “Nothing, but please let me go.”
23 God also raised up another adversary for Solomon, Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah. 24 After David had destroyed Zobah’s army, Rezon gathered men around himself and was the commander of a band of raiders. They went to Damascus and lived there and ruled Damascus. 25 He was Israel’s adversary during all the days of Solomon, in addition to all the difficulties which Hadad caused. He was hostile to Israel, and he ruled over Aram.
God Chooses Jeroboam to Be King of Israel
26 Jeroboam son of Nebat was an Ephraimite from Zeredah. His mother’s name was Zeruah. She was a widow. Jeroboam was Solomon’s official, but he rebelled against the king. 27 This is the account of how he rebelled against the king.
When Solomon was rebuilding the Millo and repairing the gap in the wall in the city of his father David, 28 Jeroboam showed that he was a very capable man. When Solomon saw that the young man was a capable worker, he appointed him over all the forced labor of the house of Joseph.[b] 29 At that time, when Jeroboam left Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh met him on the road.[c] Ahijah was wearing a new cloak. The two of them were alone in the field. 30 Ahijah took the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces.
31 He told Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, because this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says.”
The Lord’s Message to Jeroboam
Look, I am tearing the kingdom out of Solomon’s hand, and I will give you ten tribes. 32 But one tribe will remain with him for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel. 33 This is because they have abandoned me and worshipped Ashtarte the goddess of the Sidonians, and Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites. They have not walked in my ways by doing what is upright in my eyes and keeping my commands and judgments as his father David did. 34 I will not take the whole kingdom from his hand because I appointed him leader for all the days of his life for the sake of my servant David, whom I chose and who kept my commands and statutes. 35 However, I will take the kingdom from his son’s hand, and I will give ten tribes to you. 36 To his son I will give one tribe in order that there may be a lamp for my servant David before me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put my Name.
37 But I will take you, and you will be king over all that your soul desires. You will be king over Israel. 38 If you listen to all that I command you, and if you walk in my ways and do what is right in my eyes, keeping my decrees and my statutes, just as my servant David did, then I will be with you, and I will build an enduring house for you, just as I built for David. I will give Israel to you. 39 Now I will humble the seed of David because of this, but not forever.
40 As a result Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam fled to Shishak king of Egypt. He stayed in Egypt until Solomon died.
The Death of King Solomon
41 As for the rest of Solomon’s acts, everything he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the Book of the Acts of Solomon? 42 Solomon was king over all Israel in Jerusalem for forty years.
43 Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David, his father. His son Rehoboam ruled as king in his place.
Live in Harmony
2 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being united in spirit, and having one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty conceit, but in humility consider one another better than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look carefully not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Jesus Humbled Himself
5 Indeed,[a] let this attitude be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. 6 Though he was by nature God,[b] he did not consider equality with God as a prize to be displayed,[c] 7 but he emptied himself by taking the nature[d] of a servant. When he was born in human likeness, and his appearance was like that of any other man,[e] 8 he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Lights in the World
12 So then, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed, not only when I was with you, but also now much more in my absence, continue to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13 In fact, it is God who is working in you, both to will and to work, for the sake of his good pleasure. 14 Do everything without complaining and arguing, 15 so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without blemish among a crooked and perverted generation. You shine among them like lights in the world, 16 as you hold on to[f] the word of life. Then I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17 But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I continue to be glad and rejoice with you all. 18 In the same way, also be glad and rejoice with me.
Two Faithful Workers
19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered when I receive news about you. 20 To be sure, I have no one else like him,[g] who will be genuinely concerned about your welfare. 21 For, the others all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy’s proven character, that as a child for his father, he served with me in the gospel. 23 So he is the one I hope to send just as soon as I see how things go with me. 24 But I have confidence in the Lord that I myself will be coming soon too.
25 I also considered it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, coworker, and fellow soldier, as well as the one you sent to serve me in my need. 26 I sent him because he was longing for[h] all of you and was distressed, because you had heard that he was sick. 27 As a matter of fact, he was sick, nearly to death, but God had mercy on him, and not only on him but also on me, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 Now I am especially eager to send him, so that you may rejoice when you see him again, and I may be relieved. 29 Therefore, receive him in the Lord with all joy, and hold men like him in high regard, 30 because he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life in order to fill in what was lacking in your service to me.
The Rooms of the Temple
41 Then he brought me to the outer room of the sanctuary[a] and measured the doorposts, six cubits[b] wide on either side. This was the width of the Tent.[c] 2 The width of the entrance was ten cubits,[d] and the side walls of the entrance were five cubits[e] on either side. Then he measured the outer room’s length, forty cubits, and its width was twenty cubits.[f]
3 Then he entered the inner room of the sanctuary[g] and measured the doorposts of its entrance, two cubits, and the width of the entrance was six cubits, and the side walls of the entrance were seven cubits on either side.[h] 4 He measured its length, twenty cubits, and its width was twenty cubits,[i] the same as the width of the outer room. Then he said to me, “This is the Holy of Holies.”
5 Next he measured the wall of the temple building. It was six cubits thick, and the width of each side room was four cubits. The side rooms[j] ran all around the temple. 6 The side rooms were stacked on top of one another, in three stories, with thirty rooms in each story. The floors of the side rooms rested on ledges attached to the wall of the temple all the way around, so that the supports for the rooms would not cut into the temple wall itself. 7 The side rooms all around the temple became wider as one went up from story to story, because their supporting ledges in the wall of the temple ascended like steps. Therefore, the width of the interior of the attached structure increased as one went up from the lowest story to the highest by way of the middle story.[k]
The Platform and Courtyard
8 I saw a raised platform all around the temple that served as a foundation for the side rooms. The terrace built on this foundation, measured by a full rod, was six long cubits tall.[l] 9 The thickness of the outer wall of the side rooms was five cubits. The open area[m] between the side rooms attached to the temple 10 and the other rooms on the other side of the inner courtyard was twenty cubits wide[n] all around the temple. 11 There were entrances into the side rooms from the open area, one entrance on the north side, one on the south. The width of the terrace[o] bordering the open area was five cubits all around.[p]
12 The building[q] on the far side of the restricted area[r] on the western side of the temple was seventy cubits wide.[s] The wall of the building was five cubits thick all around, and its length was ninety cubits.[t]
13 Then he measured the temple building. Its length was one hundred cubits.[u] The restricted area and the building with its walls also had a length of one hundred cubits. 14 The width of the area in front of the temple, including the restricted areas east of the temple, was one hundred cubits as well. 15 He also measured the length of the building facing the restricted area at the rear of the temple, along with its balconies on either side. It was one hundred cubits.
The Interior Decoration
The outer and inner rooms of the sanctuary,[v] the vestibules of the courtyard, 16 the thresholds, and the windows with slanting frames, as well as the balconies around the three sides, opposite the threshold, were paneled with wood all the way around, from the floor to the upper windows, and the windows were covered with lattices.[w] 17 The paneling extended up to the space above the entrance, both in the inner and outer sanctuary. On all the walls all around, in both the inner and outer sanctuary, there were geometric patterns,[x] 18 carved cherubim, and decorations like palms. There was a palm decoration between each cherub and its neighbor. Each cherub had two faces: 19 the face of a man turned toward the palm on one side and the face of a lion turned toward the palm on the other side. They were carved all around the whole temple. 20 From the floor up to the space above the entrance, cherubim and palms were carved, even on the walls of the outer room of the sanctuary.[y] 21 As for the outer room of the sanctuary, its doorposts were square, and the front of the Holy of Holies had the same design.
The Altar in the Temple
22 The altar was made of wood, three cubits high. Its length was two cubits, and its width was two cubits.[z] Its corners, its base,[aa] and its sides were also of wood. He said to me, “This is the table that is before the Lord.”
23 Both the outer room of the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies had double doors. 24 The doors had two leaves apiece, two folding leaves—two for one door and two leaves for the other door. 25 Carved on the doors of the outer room there were cherubim and palm decorations, like those carved on the walls. Outside there was a wooden canopy in front of the vestibule. 26 There were also windows narrowing toward the inside and palm decorations on both side walls of the vestibule. The side rooms of the temple also had canopies.
Psalm 92
It Is Good to Praise the Lord
Heading
A psalm. A song. For the Sabbath.
A Call to Praise
1 It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to make music to your name, O Most High,
2 to proclaim your mercy in the morning
and your faithfulness every night,
3 with a ten-stringed instrument and with a harp,
with a melody on a lyre.
The Blessings of Praise
4 Yes, you make me glad by your work, O Lord.
I sing loudly at the works of your hands.
5 How great are your works, O Lord.
Your thoughts are very deep!
The Folly and Fall of the Wicked
6 The senseless man does not know,
and the fool does not understand this—
7 when the wicked spring up like weeds,
and all evildoers bloom like flowers,
they will be destroyed forever.
Central Affirmation
8 But you are exalted forever, O Lord.
The Fall of the Wicked
9 Without a doubt your enemies, O Lord,
without a doubt your enemies will perish.
All evildoers will be scattered.
The Blessing of the Righteous
10 But you have raised my horn like that of a wild ox.[a]
I am drenched with fresh oil.[b]
11 My eyes have looked in triumph over my adversaries.
When evildoers rise against me, my ears hear their defeat.
12 The righteous will shoot up like a palm tree.
They will grow tall like a cedar in Lebanon.
13 Planted in the house of the Lord,
they will shoot up in the courtyards of our God.
14 They will still produce fruit in old age.
They will stay fresh and green.
Closing Praise
15 Yes, they can proclaim, “The Lord is upright.
He is my Rock, and he does no wrong.”
Psalm 93
The Lord Rules the World
1 The Lord reigns. He is clothed in majesty.
The Lord is clothed—he wears strength like a belt.
Yes, the world stands firm. It will not be moved.
2 Your throne was established long ago.
You are from eternity.
3 The waves[c] have lifted up, O Lord,
the waves have lifted up their voice.
The waves roar loudly.
4 Mightier than the thundering of the great waters,
mightier than the breakers of the sea,
the Lord on high is mighty.
5 Your testimonies stand very firm.
Holiness beautifies your house for endless days, O Lord.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.