Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
To the Director: A Davidic Song.[a]
Confident Trust in God
11 I take refuge in the Lord.
So how can you say to me,
“Flee like a bird to the mountains.”?
2 Look, the wicked have bent their bow
and placed their arrow[b] on the string,[c]
to shoot from the darkness[d] at the upright in heart.
3 When the foundations are destroyed,
what can the righteous do?
4 The Lord is in his holy Temple;
the Lord’s throne is in the heavens.
His eyes see,
his glance[e] examines humanity.[f]
5 The Lord examines the righteous,
but the wicked and those who love violence, he hates.
6 He rains on the wicked burning coals and sulfur;
a scorching wind is their destiny.[g]
7 Indeed, the Lord is righteous;
he loves righteousness;
the upright will see him face-to-face.
Temple Construction Begins(A)
6 During the month of Ziv, which was the second month of the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, 480 years after the Israelis left the land of Egypt, Solomon began to build the Lord’s Temple. 2 The Temple for the Lord that Solomon was building was 60 cubits[a] long and 20 cubits[b] wide. 3 A portico extended in front of the Temple for 20 cubits[c] outward, corresponding to the width of the Temple. Along the front of the Temple its depth was ten cubits.[d] 4 Solomon[e] also constructed windows in the Temple with specially designed[f] frames.
5 Against the wall of the Temple he built a series of rooms that encompassed the exterior of the Temple walls around the inner sanctuary. He built these side chambers all around the building.[g] 6 The lower structures were five cubits[h] wide, the middle structures were six cubits[i] wide and the third structures were seven cubits[j] wide. Offsets were placed all around the Temple so that beams would not protrude through the walls of the Temple. 7 The Temple was constructed of stone precut at the quarry so that no hammer, axe, or any other iron implement would be heard in the Temple while it was being built. 8 A passageway to the side chamber was constructed on the south side of the Temple by which people[k] could ascend winding stairs to the middle story, then from there to the third story.
Interior Finishing with Gold and Cedar
9 After Solomon[l] built the Temple and finished it, he covered the Temple with beams and planks made of cedar. 10 He constructed this structure to adjoin the entire Temple, five cubits[m] high, and fastened it to the Temple with cedar timbers.
11 Then this message from the Lord came to Solomon: 12 “Concerning[n] this Temple that you’re building, if you live your life[o] according to my statutes, carry out my ordinances, and keep all of my commands, and live according to them, then I will do what I promised to your father David. 13 I will reside among the Israelis and will never abandon my people Israel.”
14 So Solomon kept on building the Temple and finished it.
Final Greeting
21 So that you may know what has happened to me and how I am doing, Tychicus, our dear brother and a faithful minister in service to the Lord, will tell you everything. 22 I am sending him to you for this very reason, so that you may know how we are doing and that he may encourage your hearts.
23 May peace and love, with faith, be with the brothers, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus, the Messiah![a]
24 May grace be with all who sincerely love the Lord Jesus, the Messiah![b]
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.