Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

1 Kings 12-14

12Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all the Israelites had gone there to make him king.

²When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), he returned from Egypt.

³So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel went to Rehoboam and said to him:

⁴“Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”

⁵Rehoboam answered, “Go away for three days and then come back to me.” So the people went away.

⁶Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How would you advise me to answer these people?” he asked.

⁷They replied, “If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants.”

⁸But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him.

⁹He asked them, “What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, ‘Lighten the yoke your father put on us’?”

¹⁰The young men who had grown up with him replied, “Tell these people who have said to you, ‘Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter’-tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist.

¹¹My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.’ “

¹²Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, “Come back to me in three days.”

¹³The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders,

¹⁴he followed the advice of the young men and said, “My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.”

¹⁵So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the Lord , to fulfill the word the Lord had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.

¹⁶When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king: “What share do we have in David, what part in Jesse’s son? To your tents, O Israel! Look after your own house, O David!” So the Israelites went home.

¹⁷But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them.

¹⁸King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram, who was in charge of forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death. King Rehoboam, however, managed to get into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem.

¹⁹So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.

²⁰When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the house of David.

²¹When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mustered the whole house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin-a hundred and eighty thousand fighting men-to make war against the house of Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam son of Solomon.

²²But this word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God:

²³“Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah, to the whole house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people,

²⁴‘This is what the Lord says: Do not go up to fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.’ ” So they obeyed the word of the Lord and went home again, as the Lord had ordered.

²⁵Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel.

²⁶Jeroboam thought to himself, “The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David.

²⁷If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam.”

²⁸After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”

²⁹One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan.

³⁰And this thing became a sin; the people went even as far as Dan to worship the one there.

³¹Jeroboam built shrines on high places and appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites.

³²He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made.

³³On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel. So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings.

13By the word of the Lord a man of God came from Judah to Bethel, as Jeroboam was standing by the altar to make an offering.

²He cried out against the altar by the word of the Lord : “O altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: ‘A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who now make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you.’ “

³That same day the man of God gave a sign: “This is the sign the Lord has declared: The altar will be split apart and the ashes on it will be poured out.”

⁴When King Jeroboam heard what the man of God cried out against the altar at Bethel, he stretched out his hand from the altar and said, “Seize him!” But the hand he stretched out toward the man shriveled up, so that he could not pull it back.

⁵Also, the altar was split apart and its ashes poured out according to the sign given by the man of God by the word of the Lord .

⁶Then the king said to the man of God, “Intercede with the Lord your God and pray for me that my hand may be restored.” So the man of God interceded with the Lord , and the king’s hand was restored and became as it was before.

⁷The king said to the man of God, “Come home with me and have something to eat, and I will give you a gift.”

⁸But the man of God answered the king, “Even if you were to give me half your possessions, I would not go with you, nor would I eat bread or drink water here.

⁹For I was commanded by the word of the Lord : ‘You must not eat bread or drink water or return by the way you came.’ “

¹⁰So he took another road and did not return by the way he had come to Bethel.

¹¹Now there was a certain old prophet living in Bethel, whose sons came and told him all that the man of God had done there that day. They also told their father what he had said to the king.

¹²Their father asked them, “Which way did he go?” And his sons showed him which road the man of God from Judah had taken.

¹³So he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” And when they had saddled the donkey for him, he mounted it

¹⁴and rode after the man of God. He found him sitting under an oak tree and asked, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?” “I am,” he replied.

¹⁵So the prophet said to him, “Come home with me and eat.”

¹⁶The man of God said, “I cannot turn back and go with you, nor can I eat bread or drink water with you in this place.

¹⁷I have been told by the word of the Lord : ‘You must not eat bread or drink water there or return by the way you came.’ “

¹⁸The old prophet answered, “I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the Lord : ‘Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.’ ” (But he was lying to him.)

¹⁹So the man of God returned with him and ate and drank in his house.

²⁰While they were sitting at the table, the word of the Lord came to the old prophet who had brought him back.

²¹He cried out to the man of God who had come from Judah, “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have defied the word of the Lord and have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you.

²²You came back and ate bread and drank water in the place where he told you not to eat or drink. Therefore your body will not be buried in the tomb of your fathers.’ “

²³When the man of God had finished eating and drinking, the prophet who had brought him back saddled his donkey for him.

²⁴As he went on his way, a lion met him on the road and killed him, and his body was thrown down on the road, with both the donkey and the lion standing beside it.

²⁵Some people who passed by saw the body thrown down there, with the lion standing beside the body, and they went and reported it in the city where the old prophet lived.

²⁶When the prophet who had brought him back from his journey heard of it, he said, “It is the man of God who defied the word of the Lord . The Lord has given him over to the lion, which has mauled him and killed him, as the word of the Lord had warned him.”

²⁷The prophet said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me,” and they did so.

²⁸Then he went out and found the body thrown down on the road, with the donkey and the lion standing beside it. The lion had neither eaten the body nor mauled the donkey.

²⁹So the prophet picked up the body of the man of God, laid it on the donkey, and brought it back to his own city to mourn for him and bury him.

³⁰Then he laid the body in his own tomb, and they mourned over him and said, “Oh, my brother!”

³¹After burying him, he said to his sons, “When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones.

³²For the message he declared by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the shrines on the high places in the towns of Samaria will certainly come true.”

³³Even after this, Jeroboam did not change his evil ways, but once more appointed priests for the high places from all sorts of people. Anyone who wanted to become a priest he consecrated for the high places.

³⁴This was the sin of the house of Jeroboam that led to its downfall and to its destruction from the face of the earth.

14At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became ill,

²and Jeroboam said to his wife, “Go, disguise yourself, so you won’t be recognized as the wife of Jeroboam. Then go to Shiloh. Ahijah the prophet is there-the one who told me I would be king over this people.

³Take ten loaves of bread with you, some cakes and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.”

⁴So Jeroboam’s wife did what he said and went to Ahijah’s house in Shiloh. Now Ahijah could not see; his sight was gone because of his age.

⁵But the Lord had told Ahijah, “Jeroboam’s wife is coming to ask you about her son, for he is ill, and you are to give her such and such an answer. When she arrives, she will pretend to be someone else.”

⁶So when Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps at the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why this pretense? I have been sent to you with bad news.

⁷Go, tell Jeroboam that this is what the Lord , the God of Israel, says: ‘I raised you up from among the people and made you a leader over my people Israel.

⁸I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, but you have not been like my servant David, who kept my commands and followed me with all his heart, doing only what was right in my eyes.

⁹You have done more evil than all who lived before you. You have made for yourself other gods, idols made of metal; you have provoked me to anger and thrust me behind your back.

¹⁰” ‘Because of this, I am going to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam. I will cut off from Jeroboam every last male in Israel-slave or free. I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one burns dung, until it is all gone.

¹¹Dogs will eat those belonging to Jeroboam who die in the city, and the birds of the air will feed on those who die in the country. The Lord has spoken!’

¹²“As for you, go back home. When you set foot in your city, the boy will die.

¹³All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. He is the only one belonging to Jeroboam who will be buried, because he is the only one in the house of Jeroboam in whom the Lord , the God of Israel, has found anything good.

¹⁴“The Lord will raise up for himself a king over Israel who will cut off the family of Jeroboam. This is the day! What? Yes, even now.

¹⁵And the Lord will strike Israel, so that it will be like a reed swaying in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land that he gave to their forefathers and scatter them beyond the River, because they provoked the Lord to anger by making Asherah poles.

¹⁶And he will give Israel up because of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit.”

¹⁷Then Jeroboam’s wife got up and left and went to Tirzah. As soon as she stepped over the threshold of the house, the boy died.

¹⁸They buried him, and all Israel mourned for him, as the Lord had said through his servant the prophet Ahijah.

¹⁹The other events of Jeroboam’s reign, his wars and how he ruled, are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel.

²⁰He reigned for twenty-two years and then rested with his fathers. And Nadab his son succeeded him as king.

²¹Rehoboam son of Solomon was king in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel in which to put his Name. His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite.

²²Judah did evil in the eyes of the Lord . By the sins they committed they stirred up his jealous anger more than their fathers had done.

²³They also set up for themselves high places, sacred stones and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every spreading tree.

²⁴There were even male shrine prostitutes in the land; the people engaged in all the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.

²⁵In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem.

²⁶He carried off the treasures of the temple of the Lord and the treasures of the royal palace. He took everything, including all the gold shields Solomon had made.

²⁷So King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and assigned these to the commanders of the guard on duty at the entrance to the royal palace.

²⁸Whenever the king went to the Lord ‘s temple, the guards bore the shields, and afterward they returned them to the guardroom.

²⁹As for the other events of Rehoboam’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah?

³⁰There was continual warfare between Rehoboam and Jeroboam.

³¹And Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the City of David. His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite. And Abijah his son succeeded him as king.

Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

Proverbs 30-31

30The sayings of Agur son of Jakeh-an oracle : This man declared to Ithiel, to Ithiel and to Ucal:

²“I am the most ignorant of men; I do not have a man’s understanding.

³I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the Holy One.

⁴Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Who has gathered up the wind in the hollow of his hands? Who has wrapped up the waters in his cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and the name of his son? Tell me if you know!

⁵“Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.

⁶Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.

⁷“Two things I ask of you, O Lord ; do not refuse me before I die:

⁸Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.

⁹Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord ?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.

¹⁰“Do not slander a servant to his master, or he will curse you, and you will pay for it.

¹¹“There are those who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers;

¹²those who are pure in their own eyes and yet are not cleansed of their filth;

¹³those whose eyes are ever so haughty, whose glances are so disdainful;

¹⁴those whose teeth are swords and whose jaws are set with knives to devour the poor from the earth, the needy from among mankind.

¹⁵“The leech has two daughters. ‘Give! Give!’ they cry. “There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, ‘Enough!’:

¹⁶the grave, the barren womb, land, which is never satisfied with water, and fire, which never says, ‘Enough!’

¹⁷“The eye that mocks a father, that scorns obedience to a mother, will be pecked out by the ravens of the valley, will be eaten by the vultures.

¹⁸“There are three things that are too amazing for me, four that I do not understand:

¹⁹the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a snake on a rock, the way of a ship on the high seas, and the way of a man with a maiden.

²⁰“This is the way of an adulteress: She eats and wipes her mouth and says, ‘I’ve done nothing wrong.’

²¹“Under three things the earth trembles, under four it cannot bear up:

²²a servant who becomes king, a fool who is full of food,

²³an unloved woman who is married, and a maidservant who displaces her mistress.

²⁴“Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise:

²⁵Ants are creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer;

²⁶coneys are creatures of little power, yet they make their home in the crags;

²⁷locusts have no king, yet they advance together in ranks;

²⁸a lizard can be caught with the hand, yet it is found in kings’ palaces.

²⁹“There are three things that are stately in their stride, four that move with stately bearing:

³⁰a lion, mighty among beasts, who retreats before nothing;

³¹a strutting rooster, a he-goat, and a king with his army around him.

³²“If you have played the fool and exalted yourself, or if you have planned evil, clap your hand over your mouth!

³³For as churning the milk produces butter, and as twisting the nose produces blood, so stirring up anger produces strife.”

31The sayings of King Lemuel-an oracle his mother taught him:

²“O my son, O son of my womb, O son of my vows,

³do not spend your strength on women, your vigor on those who ruin kings.

⁴“It is not for kings, O Lemuel- not for kings to drink wine, not for rulers to crave beer,

⁵lest they drink and forget what the law decrees, and deprive all the oppressed of their rights.

⁶Give beer to those who are perishing, wine to those who are in anguish;

⁷let them drink and forget their poverty and remember their misery no more.

⁸“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute.

⁹Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.” Epilogue: The Wife of Noble Character

¹⁰A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.

¹¹Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value.

¹²She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.

¹³She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands.

¹⁴She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar.

¹⁵She gets up while it is still dark; she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls.

¹⁶She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks.

¹⁸She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night.

¹⁹In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers.

²⁰She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.

²¹When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet.

²²She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple.

²³Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.

²⁴She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes.

²⁵She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.

²⁶She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

²⁷She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.

²⁸Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:

²⁹“Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.”

³⁰Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

³¹Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

1 Kings 10-11; 2 Chronicles 9

1 Kings 10-11

10When the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon and his relation to the name of the Lord , she came to test him with hard questions.

²Arriving at Jerusalem with a very great caravan-with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones-she came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had on her mind.

³Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her.

⁴When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built,

⁵the food on his table, the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at the temple of the Lord , she was overwhelmed.

⁶She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true.

⁷But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard.

⁸How happy your men must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!

⁹Praise be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord ‘s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king, to maintain justice and righteousness.”

¹⁰And she gave the king 120 talents of gold, large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

¹¹(Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir; and from there they brought great cargoes of almugwood and precious stones.

¹²The king used the almugwood to make supports for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. So much almugwood has never been imported or seen since that day.)

¹³King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for, besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.

¹⁴The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents,

¹⁵not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the land.

¹⁶King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred bekas of gold went into each shield.

¹⁷He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three minas of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.

¹⁸Then the king made a great throne inlaid with ivory and overlaid with fine gold.

¹⁹The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them.

²⁰Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom.

²¹All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s days.

²²The king had a fleet of trading ships at sea along with the ships of Hiram. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons.

²³King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth.

²⁴The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart.

²⁵Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift-articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules.

²⁶Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses, which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem.

²⁷The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills.

²⁸Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue – the royal merchants purchased them from Kue.

²⁹They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and of the Arameans.

11King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter-Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites.

²They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love.

³He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray.

⁴As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been.

⁵He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites.

⁶So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord ; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.

⁷On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites.

⁸He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.

⁹The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord , the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.

¹⁰Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the Lord ‘s command.

¹¹So the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates.

¹²Nevertheless, for the sake of David your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son.

¹³Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”

¹⁴Then the Lord raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom.

¹⁵Earlier when David was fighting with Edom, Joab the commander of the army, who had gone up to bury the dead, had struck down all the men in Edom.

¹⁶Joab and all the Israelites stayed there for six months, until they had destroyed all the men in Edom.

¹⁷But Hadad, still only a boy, fled to Egypt with some Edomite officials who had served his father.

¹⁸They set out from Midian and went to Paran. Then taking men from Paran with them, they went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house and land and provided him with food.

¹⁹Pharaoh was so pleased with Hadad that he gave him a sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes, in marriage.

²⁰The sister of Tahpenes bore him a son named Genubath, whom Tahpenes brought up in the royal palace. There Genubath lived with Pharaoh’s own children.

²¹While he was in Egypt, Hadad heard that David rested with his fathers and that Joab the commander of the army was also dead. Then Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Let me go, that I may return to my own country.”

²²“What have you lacked here that you want to go back to your own country?” Pharaoh asked. “Nothing,” Hadad replied, “but do let me go!”

²³And God raised up against Solomon another adversary, Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah.

²⁴He gathered men around him and became the leader of a band of rebels when David destroyed the forces of Zobah ; the rebels went to Damascus, where they settled and took control.

²⁵Rezon was Israel’s adversary as long as Solomon lived, adding to the trouble caused by Hadad. So Rezon ruled in Aram and was hostile toward Israel.

²⁶Also, Jeroboam son of Nebat rebelled against the king. He was one of Solomon’s officials, an Ephraimite from Zeredah, and his mother was a widow named Zeruah.

²⁷Here is the account of how he rebelled against the king: Solomon had built the supporting terraces and had filled in the gap in the wall of the city of David his father.

²⁸Now Jeroboam was a man of standing, and when Solomon saw how well the young man did his work, he put him in charge of the whole labor force of the house of Joseph.

²⁹About that time Jeroboam was going out of Jerusalem, and Ahijah the prophet of Shiloh met him on the way, wearing a new cloak. The two of them were alone out in the country,

³⁰and Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces.

³¹Then he said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the Lord , the God of Israel, says: ‘See, I am going to tear the kingdom out of Solomon’s hand and give you ten tribes.

³²But for the sake of my servant David and the city of Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, he will have one tribe.

³³I will do this because they have forsaken me and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Molech the god of the Ammonites, and have not walked in my ways, nor done what is right in my eyes, nor kept my statutes and laws as David, Solomon’s father, did.

³⁴” ‘But I will not take the whole kingdom out of Solomon’s hand; I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David my servant, whom I chose and who observed my commands and statutes.

³⁵I will take the kingdom from his son’s hands and give you ten tribes.

³⁶I will give one tribe to his son so that David my servant may always have a lamp before me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put my Name.

³⁷However, as for you, I will take you, and you will rule over all that your heart desires; you will be king over Israel.

³⁸If you do whatever I command you and walk in my ways and do what is right in my eyes by keeping my statutes and commands, as David my servant did, I will be with you. I will build you a dynasty as enduring as the one I built for David and will give Israel to you.

³⁹I will humble David’s descendants because of this, but not forever.’ “

⁴⁰Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam fled to Egypt, to Shishak the king, and stayed there until Solomon’s death.

⁴¹As for the other events of Solomon’s reign-all he did and the wisdom he displayed-are they not written in the book of the annals of Solomon?

⁴²Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.

⁴³Then he rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son succeeded him as king.

2 Chronicles 9

9When the queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame, she came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions. Arriving with a very great caravan-with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones-she came to Solomon and talked with him about all she had on her mind.

²Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for him to explain to her.

³When the queen of Sheba saw the wisdom of Solomon, as well as the palace he had built,

⁴the food on his table, the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, the cupbearers in their robes and the burnt offerings he made at the temple of the Lord , she was overwhelmed.

⁵She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true.

⁶But I did not believe what they said until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half the greatness of your wisdom was told me; you have far exceeded the report I heard.

⁷How happy your men must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!

⁸Praise be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on his throne as king to rule for the Lord your God. Because of the love of your God for Israel and his desire to uphold them forever, he has made you king over them, to maintain justice and righteousness.”

⁹Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, large quantities of spices, and precious stones. There had never been such spices as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

¹⁰(The men of Hiram and the men of Solomon brought gold from Ophir; they also brought algumwood and precious stones.

¹¹The king used the algumwood to make steps for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. Nothing like them had ever been seen in Judah.)

¹²King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for; he gave her more than she had brought to him. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.

¹³The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents,

¹⁴not including the revenues brought in by merchants and traders. Also all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land brought gold and silver to Solomon.

¹⁵King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred bekas of hammered gold went into each shield.

¹⁶He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three hundred bekas of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.

¹⁷Then the king made a great throne inlaid with ivory and overlaid with pure gold.

¹⁸The throne had six steps, and a footstool of gold was attached to it. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them.

¹⁹Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom.

²⁰All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s day.

²¹The king had a fleet of trading ships manned by Hiram’s men. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons.

²²King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth.

²³All the kings of the earth sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart.

²⁴Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift-articles of silver and gold, and robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules.

²⁵Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horses, which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem.

²⁶He ruled over all the kings from the River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt.

²⁷The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills.

²⁸Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from all other countries.

²⁹As for the other events of Solomon’s reign, from beginning to end, are they not written in the records of Nathan the prophet, in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite and in the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jeroboam son of Nebat?

³⁰Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.

³¹Then he rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son succeeded him as king.

Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

Ecclesiastes 7-12

7A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of death better than the day of birth.

²It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart.

³Sorrow is better than laughter, because a sad face is good for the heart.

⁴The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.

⁵It is better to heed a wise man’s rebuke than to listen to the song of fools.

⁶Like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of fools. This too is meaningless.

⁷Extortion turns a wise man into a fool, and a bribe corrupts the heart.

⁸The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.

⁹Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.

¹⁰Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?” For it is not wise to ask such questions.

¹¹Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing and benefits those who see the sun.

¹²Wisdom is a shelter as money is a shelter, but the advantage of knowledge is this: that wisdom preserves the life of its possessor.

¹³Consider what God has done: Who can straighten what he has made crooked?

¹⁴When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future.

¹⁵In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these: a righteous man perishing in his righteousness, and a wicked man living long in his wickedness.

¹⁶Do not be overrighteous, neither be overwise- why destroy yourself?

¹⁷Do not be overwicked, and do not be a fool- why die before your time?

¹⁸It is good to grasp the one and not let go of the other. The man who fears God will avoid all extremes .

¹⁹Wisdom makes one wise man more powerful than ten rulers in a city.

²⁰There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins.

²¹Do not pay attention to every word people say, or you may hear your servant cursing you-

²²for you know in your heart that many times you yourself have cursed others.

²³All this I tested by wisdom and I said, “I am determined to be wise”- but this was beyond me.

²⁴Whatever wisdom may be, it is far off and most profound- who can discover it?

²⁵So I turned my mind to understand, to investigate and to search out wisdom and the scheme of things and to understand the stupidity of wickedness and the madness of folly.

²⁶I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a trap and whose hands are chains. The man who pleases God will escape her, but the sinner she will ensnare.

²⁷“Look,” says the Teacher, “this is what I have discovered: “Adding one thing to another to discover the scheme of things-

²⁸while I was still searching but not finding- I found one upright man among a thousand, but not one upright woman among them all.

²⁹This only have I found: God made mankind upright, but men have gone in search of many schemes.”

8Who is like the wise man? Who knows the explanation of things? Wisdom brightens a man’s face and changes its hard appearance.

²Obey the king’s command, I say, because you took an oath before God.

³Do not be in a hurry to leave the king’s presence. Do not stand up for a bad cause, for he will do whatever he pleases.

⁴Since a king’s word is supreme, who can say to him, “What are you doing?”

⁵Whoever obeys his command will come to no harm, and the wise heart will know the proper time and procedure.

⁶For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter, though a man’s misery weighs heavily upon him.

⁷Since no man knows the future, who can tell him what is to come?

⁸No man has power over the wind to contain it ; so no one has power over the day of his death. As no one is discharged in time of war, so wickedness will not release those who practice it.

⁹All this I saw, as I applied my mind to everything done under the sun. There is a time when a man lords it over others to his own hurt.

¹⁰Then too, I saw the wicked buried-those who used to come and go from the holy place and receive praise in the city where they did this. This too is meaningless.

¹¹When the sentence for a crime is not quickly carried out, the hearts of the people are filled with schemes to do wrong.

¹²Although a wicked man commits a hundred crimes and still lives a long time, I know that it will go better with God-fearing men, who are reverent before God.

¹³Yet because the wicked do not fear God, it will not go well with them, and their days will not lengthen like a shadow.

¹⁴There is something else meaningless that occurs on earth: righteous men who get what the wicked deserve, and wicked men who get what the righteous deserve. This too, I say, is meaningless.

¹⁵So I commend the enjoyment of life, because nothing is better for a man under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany him in his work all the days of the life God has given him under the sun.

¹⁶When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe man’s labor on earth-his eyes not seeing sleep day or night-

¹⁷then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot discover its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it.

9So I reflected on all this and concluded that the righteous and the wise and what they do are in God’s hands, but no man knows whether love or hate awaits him.

²All share a common destiny-the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the clean and the unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not. As it is with the good man, so with the sinner; as it is with those who take oaths, so with those who are afraid to take them.

³This is the evil in everything that happens under the sun: The same destiny overtakes all. The hearts of men, moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their hearts while they live, and afterward they join the dead.

⁴Anyone who is among the living has hope -even a live dog is better off than a dead lion!

⁵For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten.

⁶Their love, their hate and their jealousy have long since vanished; never again will they have a part in anything that happens under the sun.

⁷Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do.

⁸Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil.

⁹Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun- all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun.

¹⁰Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.

¹¹I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all.

¹²Moreover, no man knows when his hour will come: As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so men are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them.

¹³I also saw under the sun this example of wisdom that greatly impressed me:

¹⁴There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siegeworks against it.

¹⁵Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man.

¹⁶So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded.

¹⁷The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools.

¹⁸Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.

10As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.

²The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left.

³Even as he walks along the road, the fool lacks sense and shows everyone how stupid he is.

⁴If a ruler’s anger rises against you, do not leave your post; calmness can lay great errors to rest.

⁵There is an evil I have seen under the sun, the sort of error that arises from a ruler:

⁶Fools are put in many high positions, while the rich occupy the low ones.

⁷I have seen slaves on horseback, while princes go on foot like slaves.

⁸Whoever digs a pit may fall into it; whoever breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake.

⁹Whoever quarries stones may be injured by them; whoever splits logs may be endangered by them.

¹⁰If the ax is dull and its edge unsharpened, more strength is needed but skill will bring success.

¹¹If a snake bites before it is charmed, there is no profit for the charmer.

¹²Words from a wise man’s mouth are gracious, but a fool is consumed by his own lips.

¹³At the beginning his words are folly; at the end they are wicked madness-

¹⁴and the fool multiplies words. No one knows what is coming- who can tell him what will happen after him?

¹⁵A fool’s work wearies him; he does not know the way to town.

¹⁶Woe to you, O land whose king was a servant and whose princes feast in the morning.

¹⁷Blessed are you, O land whose king is of noble birth and whose princes eat at a proper time- for strength and not for drunkenness.

¹⁸If a man is lazy, the rafters sag; if his hands are idle, the house leaks.

¹⁹A feast is made for laughter, and wine makes life merry, but money is the answer for everything.

²⁰Do not revile the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich in your bedroom, because a bird of the air may carry your words, and a bird on the wing may report what you say.

11Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.

²Give portions to seven, yes to eight, for you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.

³If clouds are full of water, they pour rain upon the earth. Whether a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where it falls, there will it lie.

⁴Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.

⁵As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.

⁶Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well.

⁷Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun.

⁸However many years a man may live, let him enjoy them all. But let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. Everything to come is meaningless.

⁹Be happy, young man, while you are young, and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart and whatever your eyes see, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.

¹⁰So then, banish anxiety from your heart and cast off the troubles of your body, for youth and vigor are meaningless.

12Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, “I find no pleasure in them”-

²before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars grow dark, and the clouds return after the rain;

³when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men stoop, when the grinders cease because they are few, and those looking through the windows grow dim;

⁴when the doors to the street are closed and the sound of grinding fades; when men rise up at the sound of birds, but all their songs grow faint;

⁵when men are afraid of heights and of dangers in the streets; when the almond tree blossoms and the grasshopper drags himself along and desire no longer is stirred. Then man goes to his eternal home and mourners go about the streets.

⁶Remember him-before the silver cord is severed, or the golden bowl is broken; before the pitcher is shattered at the spring, or the wheel broken at the well,

⁷and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

⁸“Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Everything is meaningless!”

⁹Not only was the Teacher wise, but also he imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs.

¹⁰The Teacher searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true.

¹¹The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails-given by one Shepherd.

¹²Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.

¹³Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.

¹⁴For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.

Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

Ecclesiastes 1-6

1The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem:

²“Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”

³What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?

⁴Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever.

⁵The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises.

⁶The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course.

⁷All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again.

⁸All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing.

⁹What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.

¹⁰Is there anything of which one can say, “Look! This is something new”? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time.

¹¹There is no remembrance of men of old, and even those who are yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow.

¹²I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.

¹³I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid on men!

¹⁴I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

¹⁵What is twisted cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted.

¹⁶I thought to myself, “Look, I have grown and increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge.”

¹⁷Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.

¹⁸For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief.

2I thought in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.” But that also proved to be meaningless.

²“Laughter,” I said, “is foolish. And what does pleasure accomplish?”

³I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing folly-my mind still guiding me with wisdom. I wanted to see what was worthwhile for men to do under heaven during the few days of their lives.

⁴I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards.

⁵I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them.

⁶I made reservoirs to water groves of flourishing trees.

⁷I bought male and female slaves and had other slaves who were born in my house. I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem before me.

⁸I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I acquired men and women singers, and a harem as well-the delights of the heart of man.

⁹I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me. In all this my wisdom stayed with me.

¹⁰I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor.

¹¹Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.

¹²Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom, and also madness and folly. What more can the king’s successor do than what has already been done?

¹³I saw that wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness.

¹⁴The wise man has eyes in his head, while the fool walks in the darkness; but I came to realize that the same fate overtakes them both.

¹⁵Then I thought in my heart, “The fate of the fool will overtake me also. What then do I gain by being wise?” I said in my heart, “This too is meaningless.”

¹⁶For the wise man, like the fool, will not be long remembered; in days to come both will be forgotten. Like the fool, the wise man too must die!

¹⁷So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

¹⁸I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me.

¹⁹And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the work into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless.

²⁰So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun.

²¹For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune.

²²What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun?

²³All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless.

²⁴A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God,

²⁵for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?

²⁶To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

3There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:

²a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,

³a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,

⁴a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,

⁵a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

⁶a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,

⁷a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,

⁸a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.

⁹What does the worker gain from his toil?

¹⁰I have seen the burden God has laid on men.

¹¹He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

¹²I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live.

¹³That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil-this is the gift of God.

¹⁴I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.

¹⁵Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before; and God will call the past to account.

¹⁶And I saw something else under the sun: In the place of judgment-wickedness was there, in the place of justice-wickedness was there.

¹⁷I thought in my heart, “God will bring to judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time for every deed.”

¹⁸I also thought, “As for men, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals.

¹⁹Man’s fate is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath ; man has no advantage over the animal. Everything is meaningless.

²⁰All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return.

²¹Who knows if the spirit of man rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?”

²²So I saw that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?

4Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun: I saw the tears of the oppressed- and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors- and they have no comforter.

²And I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive.

³But better than both is he who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.

⁴And I saw that all labor and all achievement spring from man’s envy of his neighbor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

⁵The fool folds his hands and ruins himself.

⁶Better one handful with tranquillity than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.

⁷Again I saw something meaningless under the sun:

⁸There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless- a miserable business!

⁹Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:

¹⁰If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!

¹¹Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?

¹²Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

¹³Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to take warning.

¹⁴The youth may have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in poverty within his kingdom.

¹⁵I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king’s successor.

¹⁶There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

5Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.

²Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.

³As a dream comes when there are many cares, so the speech of a fool when there are many words.

⁴When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow.

⁵It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it.

⁶Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands?

⁷Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore stand in awe of God.

⁸If you see the poor oppressed in a district, and justice and rights denied, do not be surprised at such things; for one official is eyed by a higher one, and over them both are others higher still.

⁹The increase from the land is taken by all; the king himself profits from the fields.

¹⁰Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.

¹¹As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owner except to feast his eyes on them?

¹²The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of a rich man permits him no sleep.

¹³I have seen a grievous evil under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owner,

¹⁴or wealth lost through some misfortune, so that when he has a son there is nothing left for him.

¹⁵Naked a man comes from his mother’s womb, and as he comes, so he departs. He takes nothing from his labor that he can carry in his hand.

¹⁶This too is a grievous evil: As a man comes, so he departs, and what does he gain, since he toils for the wind?

¹⁷All his days he eats in darkness, with great frustration, affliction and anger.

¹⁸Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him-for this is his lot.

¹⁹Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work-this is a gift of God.

²⁰He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.

6I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on men:

²God gives a man wealth, possessions and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires, but God does not enable him to enjoy them, and a stranger enjoys them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil.

³A man may have a hundred children and live many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he cannot enjoy his prosperity and does not receive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he.

⁴It comes without meaning, it departs in darkness, and in darkness its name is shrouded.

⁵Though it never saw the sun or knew anything, it has more rest than does that man-

⁶even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?

⁷All man’s efforts are for his mouth, yet his appetite is never satisfied.

⁸What advantage has a wise man over a fool? What does a poor man gain by knowing how to conduct himself before others?

⁹Better what the eye sees than the roving of the appetite. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

¹⁰Whatever exists has already been named, and what man is has been known; no man can contend with one who is stronger than he.

¹¹The more the words, the less the meaning, and how does that profit anyone?

¹²For who knows what is good for a man in life, during the few and meaningless days he passes through like a shadow? Who can tell him what will happen under the sun after he is gone?

Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

Proverbs 27-29

27Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.

²Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; someone else, and not your own lips.

³Stone is heavy and sand a burden, but provocation by a fool is heavier than both.

⁴Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy?

⁵Better is open rebuke than hidden love.

⁶Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.

⁷He who is full loathes honey, but to the hungry even what is bitter tastes sweet.

⁸Like a bird that strays from its nest is a man who strays from his home.

⁹Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart, and the pleasantness of one’s friend springs from his earnest counsel.

¹⁰Do not forsake your friend and the friend of your father, and do not go to your brother’s house when disaster strikes you- better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.

¹¹Be wise, my son, and bring joy to my heart; then I can answer anyone who treats me with contempt.

¹²The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.

¹³Take the garment of one who puts up security for a stranger; hold it in pledge if he does it for a wayward woman.

¹⁴If a man loudly blesses his neighbor early in the morning, it will be taken as a curse.

¹⁵A quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping on a rainy day;

¹⁶restraining her is like restraining the wind or grasping oil with the hand.

¹⁷As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

¹⁸He who tends a fig tree will eat its fruit, and he who looks after his master will be honored.

¹⁹As water reflects a face, so a man’s heart reflects the man.

²⁰Death and Destruction are never satisfied, and neither are the eyes of man.

²¹The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but man is tested by the praise he receives.

²²Though you grind a fool in a mortar, grinding him like grain with a pestle, you will not remove his folly from him.

²³Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds;

²⁴for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations.

²⁵When the hay is removed and new growth appears and the grass from the hills is gathered in,

²⁶the lambs will provide you with clothing, and the goats with the price of a field.

²⁷You will have plenty of goats’ milk to feed you and your family and to nourish your servant girls.

28The wicked man flees though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

²When a country is rebellious, it has many rulers, but a man of understanding and knowledge maintains order.

³A ruler who oppresses the poor is like a driving rain that leaves no crops.

⁴Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, but those who keep the law resist them.

⁵Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the Lord understand it fully.

⁶Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a rich man whose ways are perverse.

⁷He who keeps the law is a discerning son, but a companion of gluttons disgraces his father.

⁸He who increases his wealth by exorbitant interest amasses it for another, who will be kind to the poor.

⁹If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable.

¹⁰He who leads the upright along an evil path will fall into his own trap, but the blameless will receive a good inheritance.

¹¹A rich man may be wise in his own eyes, but a poor man who has discernment sees through him.

¹²When the righteous triumph, there is great elation; but when the wicked rise to power, men go into hiding.

¹³He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.

¹⁴Blessed is the man who always fears the Lord , but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble.

¹⁵Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked man ruling over a helpless people.

¹⁶A tyrannical ruler lacks judgment, but he who hates ill-gotten gain will enjoy a long life.

¹⁷A man tormented by the guilt of murder will be a fugitive till death; let no one support him.

¹⁸He whose walk is blameless is kept safe, but he whose ways are perverse will suddenly fall.

¹⁹He who works his land will have abundant food, but the one who chases fantasies will have his fill of poverty.

²⁰A faithful man will be richly blessed, but one eager to get rich will not go unpunished.

²¹To show partiality is not good- yet a man will do wrong for a piece of bread.

²²A stingy man is eager to get rich and is unaware that poverty awaits him.

²³He who rebukes a man will in the end gain more favor than he who has a flattering tongue.

²⁴He who robs his father or mother and says, “It’s not wrong”- he is partner to him who destroys.

²⁵A greedy man stirs up dissension, but he who trusts in the Lord will prosper.

²⁶He who trusts in himself is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom is kept safe.

²⁷He who gives to the poor will lack nothing, but he who closes his eyes to them receives many curses.

²⁸When the wicked rise to power, people go into hiding; but when the wicked perish, the righteous thrive.

29A man who remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed-without remedy.

²When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan.

³A man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father, but a companion of prostitutes squanders his wealth.

⁴By justice a king gives a country stability, but one who is greedy for bribes tears it down.

⁵Whoever flatters his neighbor is spreading a net for his feet.

⁶An evil man is snared by his own sin, but a righteous one can sing and be glad.

⁷The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern.

⁸Mockers stir up a city, but wise men turn away anger.

⁹If a wise man goes to court with a fool, the fool rages and scoffs, and there is no peace.

¹⁰Bloodthirsty men hate a man of integrity and seek to kill the upright.

¹¹A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.

¹²If a ruler listens to lies, all his officials become wicked.

¹³The poor man and the oppressor have this in common: The Lord gives sight to the eyes of both.

¹⁴If a king judges the poor with fairness, his throne will always be secure.

¹⁵The rod of correction imparts wisdom, but a child left to himself disgraces his mother.

¹⁶When the wicked thrive, so does sin, but the righteous will see their downfall.

¹⁷Discipline your son, and he will give you peace; he will bring delight to your soul.

¹⁸Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; but blessed is he who keeps the law.

¹⁹A servant cannot be corrected by mere words; though he understands, he will not respond.

²⁰Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for him.

²¹If a man pampers his servant from youth, he will bring grief in the end.

²²An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered one commits many sins.

²³A man’s pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor.

²⁴The accomplice of a thief is his own enemy; he is put under oath and dare not testify.

²⁵Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.

²⁶Many seek an audience with a ruler, but it is from the Lord that man gets justice.

²⁷The righteous detest the dishonest; the wicked detest the upright.

Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

Proverbs 25-26

25These are more proverbs of Solomon, copied by the men of Hezekiah king of Judah:

²It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.

³As the heavens are high and the earth is deep, so the hearts of kings are unsearchable.

⁴Remove the dross from the silver, and out comes material for the silversmith;

⁵remove the wicked from the king’s presence, and his throne will be established through righteousness.

⁶Do not exalt yourself in the king’s presence, and do not claim a place among great men;

⁷it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here,” than for him to humiliate you before a nobleman. What you have seen with your eyes

⁸do not bring hastily to court, for what will you do in the end if your neighbor puts you to shame?

⁹If you argue your case with a neighbor, do not betray another man’s confidence,

¹⁰or he who hears it may shame you and you will never lose your bad reputation.

¹¹A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.

¹²Like an earring of gold or an ornament of fine gold is a wise man’s rebuke to a listening ear.

¹³Like the coolness of snow at harvest time is a trustworthy messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the spirit of his masters.

¹⁴Like clouds and wind without rain is a man who boasts of gifts he does not give.

¹⁵Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, and a gentle tongue can break a bone.

¹⁶If you find honey, eat just enough- too much of it, and you will vomit.

¹⁷Seldom set foot in your neighbor’s house- too much of you, and he will hate you.

¹⁸Like a club or a sword or a sharp arrow is the man who gives false testimony against his neighbor.

¹⁹Like a bad tooth or a lame foot is reliance on the unfaithful in times of trouble.

²⁰Like one who takes away a garment on a cold day, or like vinegar poured on soda, is one who sings songs to a heavy heart.

²¹If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.

²²In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you.

²³As a north wind brings rain, so a sly tongue brings angry looks.

²⁴Better to live on a corner of the roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife.

²⁵Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land.

²⁶Like a muddied spring or a polluted well is a righteous man who gives way to the wicked.

²⁷It is not good to eat too much honey, nor is it honorable to seek one’s own honor.

²⁸Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control.

26Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, honor is not fitting for a fool.

²Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest.

³A whip for the horse, a halter for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools!

⁴Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will be like him yourself.

⁵Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.

⁶Like cutting off one’s feet or drinking violence is the sending of a message by the hand of a fool.

⁷Like a lame man’s legs that hang limp is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

⁸Like tying a stone in a sling is the giving of honor to a fool.

⁹Like a thornbush in a drunkard’s hand is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

¹⁰Like an archer who wounds at random is he who hires a fool or any passer-by.

¹¹As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly.

¹²Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.

¹³The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road, a fierce lion roaming the streets!”

¹⁴As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed.

¹⁵The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.

¹⁶The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who answer discreetly.

¹⁷Like one who seizes a dog by the ears is a passer-by who meddles in a quarrel not his own.

¹⁸Like a madman shooting firebrands or deadly arrows

¹⁹is a man who deceives his neighbor and says, “I was only joking!”

²⁰Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down.

²¹As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.

²²The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to a man’s inmost parts.

²³Like a coating of glaze over earthenware are fervent lips with an evil heart.

²⁴A malicious man disguises himself with his lips, but in his heart he harbors deceit.

²⁵Though his speech is charming, do not believe him, for seven abominations fill his heart.

²⁶His malice may be concealed by deception, but his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.

²⁷If a man digs a pit, he will fall into it; if a man rolls a stone, it will roll back on him.

²⁸A lying tongue hates those it hurts, and a flattering mouth works ruin.

Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

1 Kings 9; 2 Chronicles 8

1 Kings 9

9When Solomon had finished building the temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and had achieved all he had desired to do,

²the Lord appeared to him a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon.

³The Lord said to him: “I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.

⁴“As for you, if you walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws,

⁵I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David your father when I said, ‘You shall never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’

⁶“But if you or your sons turn away from me and do not observe the commands and decrees I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them,

⁷then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. Israel will then become a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples.

⁸And though this temple is now imposing, all who pass by will be appalled and will scoff and say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’

⁹People will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the Lord their God, who brought their fathers out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them-that is why the Lord brought all this disaster on them.’ “

¹⁰At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon built these two buildings-the temple of the Lord and the royal palace-

¹¹King Solomon gave twenty towns in Galilee to Hiram king of Tyre, because Hiram had supplied him with all the cedar and pine and gold he wanted.

¹²But when Hiram went from Tyre to see the towns that Solomon had given him, he was not pleased with them.

¹³“What kind of towns are these you have given me, my brother?” he asked. And he called them the Land of Cabul, a name they have to this day.

¹⁴Now Hiram had sent to the king 120 talents of gold.

¹⁵Here is the account of the forced labor King Solomon conscripted to build the Lord ‘s temple, his own palace, the supporting terraces, the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer.

¹⁶(Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He had set it on fire. He killed its Canaanite inhabitants and then gave it as a wedding gift to his daughter, Solomon’s wife.

¹⁷And Solomon rebuilt Gezer.) He built up Lower Beth Horon,

¹⁸Baalath, and Tadmor in the desert, within his land,

¹⁹as well as all his store cities and the towns for his chariots and for his horses -whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled.

²⁰All the people left from the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites (these peoples were not Israelites),

²¹that is, their descendants remaining in the land, whom the Israelites could not exterminate -these Solomon conscripted for his slave labor force, as it is to this day.

²²But Solomon did not make slaves of any of the Israelites; they were his fighting men, his government officials, his officers, his captains, and the commanders of his chariots and charioteers.

²³They were also the chief officials in charge of Solomon’s projects-550 officials supervising the men who did the work.

²⁴After Pharaoh’s daughter had come up from the City of David to the palace Solomon had built for her, he constructed the supporting terraces.

²⁵Three times a year Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar he had built for the Lord , burning incense before the Lord along with them, and so fulfilled the temple obligations.

²⁶King Solomon also built ships at Ezion Geber, which is near Elath in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea.

²⁷And Hiram sent his men-sailors who knew the sea-to serve in the fleet with Solomon’s men.

²⁸They sailed to Ophir and brought back 420 talents of gold, which they delivered to King Solomon.

2 Chronicles 8

8At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon built the temple of the Lord and his own palace,

²Solomon rebuilt the villages that Hiram had given him, and settled Israelites in them.

³Solomon then went to Hamath Zobah and captured it.

⁴He also built up Tadmor in the desert and all the store cities he had built in Hamath.

⁵He rebuilt Upper Beth Horon and Lower Beth Horon as fortified cities, with walls and with gates and bars,

⁶as well as Baalath and all his store cities, and all the cities for his chariots and for his horses -whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled.

⁷All the people left from the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites (these peoples were not Israelites),

⁸that is, their descendants remaining in the land, whom the Israelites had not destroyed-these Solomon conscripted for his slave labor force, as it is to this day.

⁹But Solomon did not make slaves of the Israelites for his work; they were his fighting men, commanders of his captains, and commanders of his chariots and charioteers.

¹⁰They were also King Solomon’s chief officials-two hundred and fifty officials supervising the men.

¹¹Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter up from the City of David to the palace he had built for her, for he said, “My wife must not live in the palace of David king of Israel, because the places the ark of the Lord has entered are holy.”

¹²On the altar of the Lord that he had built in front of the portico, Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings to the Lord ,

¹³according to the daily requirement for offerings commanded by Moses for Sabbaths, New Moons and the three annual feasts-the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Tabernacles.

¹⁴In keeping with the ordinance of his father David, he appointed the divisions of the priests for their duties, and the Levites to lead the praise and to assist the priests according to each day’s requirement. He also appointed the gatekeepers by divisions for the various gates, because this was what David the man of God had ordered.

¹⁵They did not deviate from the king’s commands to the priests or to the Levites in any matter, including that of the treasuries.

¹⁶All Solomon’s work was carried out, from the day the foundation of the temple of the Lord was laid until its completion. So the temple of the Lord was finished.

¹⁷Then Solomon went to Ezion Geber and Elath on the coast of Edom.

¹⁸And Hiram sent him ships commanded by his own officers, men who knew the sea. These, with Solomon’s men, sailed to Ophir and brought back four hundred and fifty talents of gold, which they delivered to King Solomon.

Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

Psalm 134, 146-150

PSALM 134

¹Praise the Lord , all you servants of the Lord who minister by night in the house of the Lord .

²Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the Lord .

³May the Lord , the Maker of heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.

PSALM 146

¹Praise the Lord . Praise the Lord , O my soul.

²I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

³Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save.

⁴When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing.

⁵Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God,

⁶the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them- the Lord , who remains faithful forever.

⁷He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free,

⁸the Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous.

⁹The Lord watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.

¹⁰The Lord reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the Lord .

PSALM 147

¹Praise the Lord . How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him!

²The Lord builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel.

³He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

⁴He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name.

⁵Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.

⁶The Lord sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.

⁷Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make music to our God on the harp.

⁸He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills.

⁹He provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call.

¹⁰His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man;

¹¹the Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.

¹²Extol the Lord , O Jerusalem; praise your God, O Zion,

¹³for he strengthens the bars of your gates and blesses your people within you.

¹⁴He grants peace to your borders and satisfies you with the finest of wheat.

¹⁵He sends his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.

¹⁶He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes.

¹⁷He hurls down his hail like pebbles. Who can withstand his icy blast?

¹⁸He sends his word and melts them; he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow.

¹⁹He has revealed his word to Jacob, his laws and decrees to Israel.

²⁰He has done this for no other nation; they do not know his laws. Praise the Lord .

PSALM 148

¹Praise the Lord . Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise him in the heights above.

²Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his heavenly hosts.

³Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars.

⁴Praise him, you highest heavens and you waters above the skies.

⁵Let them praise the name of the Lord , for he commanded and they were created.

⁶He set them in place for ever and ever; he gave a decree that will never pass away.

⁷Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths,

⁸lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do his bidding,

⁹you mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars,

¹⁰wild animals and all cattle, small creatures and flying birds,

¹¹kings of the earth and all nations, you princes and all rulers on earth,

¹²young men and maidens, old men and children.

¹³Let them praise the name of the Lord , for his name alone is exalted; his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.

¹⁴He has raised up for his people a horn, the praise of all his saints, of Israel, the people close to his heart. Praise the Lord .

PSALM 149

¹Praise the Lord . Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of the saints.

²Let Israel rejoice in their Maker; let the people of Zion be glad in their King.

³Let them praise his name with dancing and make music to him with tambourine and harp.

⁴For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with salvation.

⁵Let the saints rejoice in this honor and sing for joy on their beds.

⁶May the praise of God be in their mouths and a double-edged sword in their hands,

⁷to inflict vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples,

⁸to bind their kings with fetters, their nobles with shackles of iron,

⁹to carry out the sentence written against them. This is the glory of all his saints. Praise the Lord .

PSALM 150

¹Praise the Lord . Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens.

²Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness.

³Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre,

⁴praise him with tambourine and dancing, praise him with the strings and flute,

⁵praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals.

⁶Let everything that has breath praise the Lord . Praise the Lord .

Welcome to the 2023 King Street Church Bible Reading Plan.  This year we will be following a chronological plan.

In your personal journal, consider answering these questions as part of your devotional time:

 

In this passage…

2 Chronicles 6-7; Psalm 136

2 Chronicles 6-7

6Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud;

²I have built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever.”

³While the whole assembly of Israel was standing there, the king turned around and blessed them.

⁴Then he said: “Praise be to the Lord , the God of Israel, who with his hands has fulfilled what he promised with his mouth to my father David. For he said,

⁵‘Since the day I brought my people out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built for my Name to be there, nor have I chosen anyone to be the leader over my people Israel.

⁶But now I have chosen Jerusalem for my Name to be there, and I have chosen David to rule my people Israel.’

⁷“My father David had it in his heart to build a temple for the Name of the Lord , the God of Israel.

⁸But the Lord said to my father David, ‘Because it was in your heart to build a temple for my Name, you did well to have this in your heart.

⁹Nevertheless, you are not the one to build the temple, but your son, who is your own flesh and blood-he is the one who will build the temple for my Name.’

¹⁰“The Lord has kept the promise he made. I have succeeded David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord promised, and I have built the temple for the Name of the Lord , the God of Israel.

¹¹There I have placed the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with the people of Israel.”

¹²Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel and spread out his hands.

¹³Now he had made a bronze platform, five cubits long, five cubits wide and three cubits high, and had placed it in the center of the outer court. He stood on the platform and then knelt down before the whole assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven.

¹⁴He said: “O Lord , God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven or on earth-you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way.

¹⁵You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it-as it is today.

¹⁶“Now Lord , God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a man to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your sons are careful in all they do to walk before me according to my law, as you have done.’

¹⁷And now, O Lord , God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David come true.

¹⁸“But will God really dwell on earth with men? The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!

¹⁹Yet give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plea for mercy, O Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence.

²⁰May your eyes be open toward this temple day and night, this place of which you said you would put your Name there. May you hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place.

²¹Hear the supplications of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place; and when you hear, forgive.

²²“When a man wrongs his neighbor and is required to take an oath and he comes and swears the oath before your altar in this temple,

²³then hear from heaven and act. Judge between your servants, repaying the guilty by bringing down on his own head what he has done. Declare the innocent not guilty and so establish his innocence.

²⁴“When your people Israel have been defeated by an enemy because they have sinned against you and when they turn back and confess your name, praying and making supplication before you in this temple,

²⁵then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land you gave to them and their fathers.

²⁶“When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, and when they pray toward this place and confess your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them,

²⁷then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach them the right way to live, and send rain on the land you gave your people for an inheritance.

²⁸“When famine or plague comes to the land, or blight or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers, or when enemies besiege them in any of their cities, whatever disaster or disease may come,

²⁹and when a prayer or plea is made by any of your people Israel-each one aware of his afflictions and pains, and spreading out his hands toward this temple-

³⁰then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive, and deal with each man according to all he does, since you know his heart (for you alone know the hearts of men),

³¹so that they will fear you and walk in your ways all the time they live in the land you gave our fathers.

³²“As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm-when he comes and prays toward this temple,

³³then hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.

³⁴“When your people go to war against their enemies, wherever you send them, and when they pray to you toward this city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name,

³⁵then hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.

³⁶“When they sin against you-for there is no one who does not sin-and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes them captive to a land far away or near;

³⁷and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captivity and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong and acted wickedly’;

³⁸and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their captivity where they were taken, and pray toward the land you gave their fathers, toward the city you have chosen and toward the temple I have built for your Name;

³⁹then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their pleas, and uphold their cause. And forgive your people, who have sinned against you.

⁴⁰“Now, my God, may your eyes be open and your ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.

⁴¹“Now arise, O Lord God, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. May your priests, O Lord God, be clothed with salvation, may your saints rejoice in your goodness.

⁴²O Lord God, do not reject your anointed one. Remember the great love promised to David your servant.”

7When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.

²The priests could not enter the temple of the Lord because the glory of the Lord filled it.

³When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the Lord above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord , saying, “He is good; his love endures forever.”

⁴Then the king and all the people offered sacrifices before the Lord .

⁵And King Solomon offered a sacrifice of twenty-two thousand head of cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats. So the king and all the people dedicated the temple of God.

⁶The priests took their positions, as did the Levites with the Lord ‘s musical instruments, which King David had made for praising the Lord and which were used when he gave thanks, saying, “His love endures forever.” Opposite the Levites, the priests blew their trumpets, and all the Israelites were standing.

⁷Solomon consecrated the middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple of the Lord , and there he offered burnt offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings, because the bronze altar he had made could not hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat portions.

⁸So Solomon observed the festival at that time for seven days, and all Israel with him-a vast assembly, people from Lebo Hamath to the Wadi of Egypt.

⁹On the eighth day they held an assembly, for they had celebrated the dedication of the altar for seven days and the festival for seven days more.

¹⁰On the twenty-third day of the seventh month he sent the people to their homes, joyful and glad in heart for the good things the Lord had done for David and Solomon and for his people Israel.

¹¹When Solomon had finished the temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and had succeeded in carrying out all he had in mind to do in the temple of the Lord and in his own palace,

¹²the Lord appeared to him at night and said: “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.

¹³“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people,

¹⁴if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

¹⁵Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.

¹⁶I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.

¹⁷“As for you, if you walk before me as David your father did, and do all I command, and observe my decrees and laws,

¹⁸I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father when I said, ‘You shall never fail to have a man to rule over Israel.’

¹⁹“But if you turn away and forsake the decrees and commands I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them,

²⁰then I will uproot Israel from my land, which I have given them, and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. I will make it a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples.

²¹And though this temple is now so imposing, all who pass by will be appalled and say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’

²²People will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the Lord , the God of their fathers, who brought them out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them-that is why he brought all this disaster on them.’ ”

Psalm 136

¹Give thanks to the Lord , for he is good. His love endures forever.

²Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever.

³Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever.

⁴to him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever.

⁵who by his understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever.

⁶who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever.

⁷who made the great lights- His love endures forever.

⁸the sun to govern the day, His love endures forever.

⁹the moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.

¹⁰to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt His love endures forever.

¹¹and brought Israel out from among them His love endures forever.

¹²with a mighty hand and outstretched arm; His love endures forever.

¹³to him who divided the Red Sea asunder His love endures forever.

¹⁴and brought Israel through the midst of it, His love endures forever.

¹⁵but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea; His love endures forever.

¹⁶to him who led his people through the desert, His love endures forever.

¹⁷who struck down great kings, His love endures forever.

¹⁸and killed mighty kings- His love endures forever.

¹⁹Sihon king of the Amorites His love endures forever.

²⁰and Og king of Bashan- His love endures forever.

²¹and gave their land as an inheritance, His love endures forever.

²²an inheritance to his servant Israel; His love endures forever.

²³to the One who remembered us in our low estate His love endures forever.

²⁴and freed us from our enemies, His love endures forever.

²⁵and who gives food to every creature. His love endures forever.

²⁶Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.