M’Cheyne Bible Reading Plan
The Reign of Solomon
Chapter 1
Help for King David. 1 Now King David was old, well on in years. They would cover him up, but he could not get warm. 2 So his servants said to him, “My lord, the king, let a young virgin be found for you to attend to you and to care for you. She can lie alongside of you so that my lord, the king, can keep warm.” 3 And so they searched for a beautiful young woman all throughout the territory of Israel, and they found Abishag the Shunamite, and they brought her to the king. 4 The young woman was very beautiful, and she cared for the king. She served the king, but he did not have intimate relations with her.
Adonijah’s Plan. 5 Adonijah, the son of Haggith, exulted himself saying, “I will be king.” He had his own chariots and horsemen, and he had fifty men to run in front of him.[a] 6 His father never rebuked him by saying, “Why have you done this?” He was very handsome, and he had been born after Absalom.
7 Adonijah conferred with Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest, and they helped Adonijah and followed after him. 8 But Zadok the priest, Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, and Shimei and Rei, David’s brave warriors, did not side with Adonijah.
9 [b]Adonijah sacrificed some sheep, oxen, and fatted calves at the stone of Zoheleth in En-rogel. He invited all of his brethren, the king’s sons, and all of the men of Judah, the king’s servants, 10 but he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the king’s brave men, or Solomon, his brother.
11 Solomon Becomes King. Nathan, therefore, spoke to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, saying, “Have you not heard that Adonijah, the son of Haggith, is reigning, and our lord David does not know about it. 12 Come and let me give you counsel, so that I may save my own life and the life of your son Solomon.
13 “Go at once to King David and say to him, ‘Did not my lord, the king, make an oath to your handmaid, saying, “Solomon, your son, will reign after me and will sit upon my throne? Why, then, is Adonijah reigning?” 14 While you are still speaking with the king, I will arrive and confirm your words.’ ”
15 So Bathsheba went into the king’s chamber. Now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunamite served the king.[c] 16 Bathsheba bowed down, paying obeisance to the king, and the king said, “What do you want?” 17 She said to him, “My lord, you made an oath to your handmaid by the Lord, your God, saying, ‘Solomon, your son, will reign after me, and he will sit upon my throne.’ 18 But now Adonijah is reigning, and my king does not know about it. 19 He has sacrificed many oxen, fatted calves, and sheep, and he has invited all of the king’s sons, Abiathar the priest, and Joab the commander of the army, but he did not invite your servant Solomon.
20 “Now, my lord, the king, the eyes of all of Israel are upon you. They want you to tell them who will sit upon your throne, my lord, the king.[d] 21 Otherwise when my lord, the king, sleeps with his fathers, I and Solomon, my son, will be condemned.”
22 While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet entered. 23 They announced to the king, “Nathan the prophet.” He came before the king and bowed down with his face to the ground before the king. 24 Nathan said, “Has my lord, the king, said, ‘Adonijah will rule after me and he will sit upon my throne?’ 25 Today he went down and sacrificed many oxen, fatted calves, and sheep, and he invited all of the king’s sons, the captains of the army, and Abiathar the priest. They are eating and drinking with him, and they are saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ 26 But he did not invite myself, your servant, Zadok the priest, Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, nor Solomon, your servant. 27 Has my lord, the king, done this thing without informing your servant about who is to sit upon your throne after you, O lord, my king?”
28 Then King David said, “Summon Bathsheba.” She came into the king’s presence and stood before the king. 29 The king then swore an oath, saying, “As the Lord lives who has delivered me from all of my adversities, 30 and as I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel saying, ‘Solomon, your son, will reign after me, and he will sit upon my throne in my place,’ I will fulfill it today.” 31 Bathsheba bowed down with her face to the ground and did obeisance saying, “May my lord, King David, live forever.”
32 King David said, “Summon Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, to me.” They came before the king. 33 The king said to them, “Take your lord’s servants and put Solomon, my son, on my own donkey and bring him to Gihon. 34 There, have Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him as king over Israel. Sound your trumpet and proclaim, ‘Long live, King Solomon.’ 35 Then follow him back up so that he might come and sit upon my throne, for he will take my place as king. I have chosen him to be the king over Israel and Judah.”
36 Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, answered the king saying, “Amen! May the Lord, the God of my lord, the king, confirm it. 37 May the Lord be with Solomon just as he has been with my lord, the king. May he make his throne greater than the throne of my lord, king David.”
38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites, and the Pelethites went down. They had Solomon ride upon King David’s donkey, and they brought him to Gihon. 39 Zadok the priest took a horn of oil out from the tabernacle and he anointed Solomon. They sounded the trumpet and all of the people proclaimed, “Long live, King Solomon.” 40 All of the people went up and joined his following, and they played upon flutes and so greatly rejoiced that the ground shook from the noise.
41 Adonijah Acknowledges Solomon. Adonijah and all of those whom he had invited to be with him finished eating and heard it. When Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he asked, “What is this uproar coming from the city?” 42 While he was still speaking, Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest arrived. Adonijah said, “Come in, for a brave man like you must bring good news.” 43 Jonathan answered Adonijah saying, “It is not so! Our Lord, king David, has made Solomon king. 44 The king sent him with Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, 45 and Zadok, the priest, and Nathan the prophet anointed him in Gihon. They are coming up from there rejoicing so that the city resounds with it. This is the noise that you heard. 46 Moreover, Solomon is sitting upon the royal throne.
47 “The king’s servants have come to bless our lord, King David, saying, ‘May God make the name of Solomon greater than your name, and his throne than your throne.’ The king then worshiped in his bed 48 and the king said, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who has allowed me to see with my own eyes the one who will sit upon my throne.’ ”
49 All of those whom Adonijah had invited became frightened, and they rose up and they each went his own way. 50 But Adonijah, because he feared Solomon, got up and went and took hold of the horns of the altar.[e]
51 Solomon was told, “Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon, for he has taken hold of the horns of the altar saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear an oath to me today that he will not harm his servant.’ ” 52 Solomon replied, “If he shows himself to be a man of virtue, then not one of his hairs will fall to the ground. But if he proves to be wicked, he will die!”
53 So King Solomon sent and had him brought down from the altar. He came and bowed down to King Solomon, and Solomon said to him, “Go home.”
There Is No Freedom Except in Christ[a]
Chapter 5
Faith Expressing Itself through Love. 1 It was for freedom that Christ set us free. Therefore, stand firm and refuse to submit again to the yoke of slavery.
2 Listen to me! I, Paul, tell you that if you allow yourselves to be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you. 3 Once again, I testify that every man who accepts circumcision is under obligation to observe the entire Law. 4 Those of you who seek to be justified by the Law have cut yourselves off from Christ and have fallen away from grace. 5 For it is through the Spirit and by faith that we eagerly hope to attain righteousness, 6 since in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor lack of circumcision is worth anything. All that matters is faith expressing itself through love.
Against Being Misled. 7 You were running a good race. Who kept you from obeying the truth? 8 This change did not come from the one who called you. 9 A little yeast leavens the entire batch of dough. 10 I am confident of you in the Lord that none of you will think differently, and that anyone who is trying to confuse you will be condemned, no matter who it is.
11 As for me, brethren, if I were still advocating circumcision,[b] why would I continue to be persecuted? If I were doing that, the cross would no longer be a stumbling block. 12 I wish that those who are confusing you would even castrate themselves!
13 Proper Use of Freedom. Brethren, you were called to freedom. However, make sure that you do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Instead, serve one another in love. 14 For the entire Law can be summed up[c] in a single commandment: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you continue biting and tearing one another to pieces, at least be on your guard lest you be consumed by one another.
16 Hence, I advise you to be guided by the Spirit, so that you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are opposed to the Spirit, and those of the Spirit are opposed to the flesh. They are in conflict with one another, so that you cannot do what you want. 18 But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not subject to the Law.
19 [d]Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, 21 envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you previously, that no one who does such things will inherit the kingdom of God.
22 [e]In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. 26 We should not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be envious of one another.
Chapter 32
Lamentation over Pharaoh.[a] 1 In the twelfth year, on the first day of the twelfth month, this word of the Lord came to me: 2 Son of man, raise a lament for Pharaoh, the king of Egypt:
Lion of the nations, your end has come.
You are like a monster in the seas,
thrashing about in your streams,
churning up the water with your feet
and fouling the streams.
3 Thus says the Lord God:
When many nations are assembled,
I will throw my net over you
and haul you up in my seine.
4 I will throw you on the ground
and fling you onto an open field.
I will let all the birds of the air settle on you,
and I will urge all the beasts of the earth
to eat their fill of you.
5 I will strew your flesh on the mountains
and fill the valleys with your carcass.
6 I will drench the land with your flowing blood
all the way to the mountains,
and the riverbeds will be filled with your blood.
7 [b]When I blot you out,
I will cover the heavens,
and all their stars I will darken.
I will cover the sun with clouds,
and the moon shall not give its light.
8 All the shining lights in the heavens
I will dim because of you,
and I will spread darkness over your land,
says the Lord God.
9 I will grieve the hearts of many peoples
when I lead you as captives among the nations,
into countries unknown to you.
10 I will cause many peoples to be appalled at you,
and their kings will shudder in horror at your fate
when I brandish my sword in their presence.
On the day of your downfall,
each one will tremble for his life.
11 For thus says the Lord God:
The sword of the king of Babylon
will come against you.
12 I will demolish your hordes
with the swords of my warriors,
the most ruthless among the nations.
They shall cause the pride of Egypt to be shattered,
and all its hordes will be destroyed.
13 I will destroy all its livestock
on the shores of abundant waters.
No human foot will cause them further trouble,
nor shall the hooves of cattle disturb them.
14 Then I will make their waters crystal clear
and cause her streams to flow like oil,
says the Lord God.
15 When I have turned the land of Egypt
into a wasteland,
and when the land is stripped
of everything that was in it,
and when I strike down all its inhabitants,
then they shall know that I am the Lord.
16 This is a lamentation and it will be chanted;
the daughters of the nations[c] will chant it.
They shall raise the lamentation
over Egypt and all its hordes,
says the Lord God.
17 Lamentation over Egypt. On the fifteenth day of the first month in the twelfth year, this word of the Lord came to me:
18 Son of man, raise a cry of lament
over the hordes of Egypt
and the daughters of mighty nations
and consign them to the world below
with those who go down to the pit.
19 Say to them, “Whom do you surpass in beauty?
Go down and lie with the uncircumcised.”
20 They shall fall in the midst of those slain by the sword, and room will be made to accommodate them and their hordes. 21 From the depths of Sheol, the mighty leaders will say of Egypt and its allies, “They have come down, they and their allies; they lie there, the uncircumcised dead, slain by the sword.”
22 Assyria is there with all her hordes. Their graves surround her on all sides, all of them slaughtered, victims of the sword. 23 Their graves are located in the farthest depths of the pit, and her army lies around Egypt’s grave, all of them slain by the sword, after spreading terror in the land of the living.
24 Elam is there with all her hordes around Egypt’s grave, all of them slain by the sword. Having spread terror in the land of the living, they descended uncircumcised into the world below. They bear their shame with those who go down to the pit. 25 A bed has been made for Elam among the slain with all her hordes’ graves surrounding it. All of them were uncircumcised, and they were slain by the sword for having spread terror in the land of the living. They bear their shame with those who go down to the pit, and they have been placed among the slain.
26 Meshech and Tubal[d] are there with the graves of their followers all around them. All of them are uncircumcised, slain by the sword, for they spread terror in the land of the living. 27 They do not lie with the fallen warriors of ages past who went down to the netherworld with their weapons of war, whose swords were laid under their heads and whose shields were placed over their bones, since they filled the land of the living with terror. 28 Therefore, you will lie broken among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword.
29 Edom is there, with her kings and all her princes; who, despite their might, have been placed with those slain by the sword. They lie with the uncircumcised, with those who go down to the pit.
30 All of the princes of the north and all the Sidonians are there. They descended in shame with the slain because of all the terror that they caused by their might. They lie uncircumcised with those who were killed by the sword, and they bear their shame with those who descend into the pit.
31 When Pharaoh sees them, he will be comforted for all his hordes slain by the sword—Pharaoh and all his army, says the Lord God. 32 Since he spread terror throughout the land of the living, he will be laid among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword—Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord God.
Psalm 80[a]
Prayer for the Persecuted People
1 For the director.[b] According to “Lilies.” Eduth. A psalm of Asaph.
2 [c]Listen to us, O shepherd of Israel,[d]
you who lead Joseph like a flock.
As you sit enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth
3 over Ephraim,[e] Benjamin, and Manasseh.
Stir up your power
and come to save us.
4 Restore us, O Lord of hosts;
let your face shine[f] upon us,
and we will be saved.
5 O Lord of hosts,[g]
how long will you be angry
at your people’s prayers?
6 You have fed them with the bread of tears
and made them drink tears beyond measure.
7 You have made us an object of contention to our neighbors,
a source of mockery to our enemies.
8 Restore us, O Lord of hosts;
let your face shine upon us,
and we will be saved.
9 [h]You brought a vine[i] out of Egypt;
you dispersed the nations and planted it.
10 You prepared the ground for it;
then it took root and filled the land.
11 The mountains were covered with its shade
and the cedars of God[j] with its shoots.
12 It sent out its boughs as far as the Sea,[k]
its shoots as far as the river.
13 [l]Why have you broken down its walls
so that all who pass by pluck its grapes?[m]
14 The boars from the forest ravage it,
and wild beasts of the field feed on it.
15 Turn once again to us, O Lord of hosts;[n]
look down from heaven and see;
take care of this vine,
16 this shoot[o] that your right hand has planted,
the son that you yourself made strong.
17 Let those who would burn it or cut it down
perish when confronted by your rebuke.
18 Let your hand rest upon the man at your right,[p]
the son of man that you yourself made strong.
19 Then we will never again turn away from you;
give us life and we will call upon your name.[q]
20 Restore us, O Lord of hosts;
let your face shine upon us,
and we will be saved.
Copyright © 2019 by Catholic Book Publishing Corp. All rights reserved.