The Queen of Sheba

1 ^yNow when ^zthe queen of ^aSheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came ^bto test him with hard questions. 2 She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels ^cbearing spices and very much gold and precious stones. And when she came to Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind. 3 And Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king that he could not explain to her. 4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, 5 the food of his table, the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his servants, their clothing, his cupbearers, and his burnt offerings that he offered at the house of the Lord, there was no more breath in her.

6 And she said to the king, “The report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and of your wisdom, 7 but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard. 8 ^eHappy are your men! Happy are your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! 9 ^fBlessed be the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! ^gBecause the Lord loved Israel forever, he has made you king, ^hthat you may execute justice and righteousness.” 10 ⁱThen she gave the king 120 talents¹ of gold, and a very great quantity of spices and precious stones. Never again came such an abundance of spices as these that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

11 Moreover, ^jthe fleet of Hiram, which brought ^kgold from Ophir, brought from Ophir a very great amount of almug wood and precious stones. 12 And the king made of the almug wood supports for the house of the Lord and for the king’s house, also lyres and harps for the singers. No such almug wood has come or been seen to this day.

13 And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired, whatever she asked besides what was given her by the bounty of King Solomon. So she turned and went back to her own land with her servants.

Solomon’s Great Wealth

14 ^lNow the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold, 15 besides that which came from the explorers and from the business of the merchants, and from all the kings of the west and from the governors of the land. 16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of beaten gold; 600 shekels² of gold went into each shield. 17 And he made 300 ^mshields of beaten gold; three minas³ of gold went into each shield. And the king put them in ⁿthe House of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 The king also made a great ivory throne and overlaid it with the finest gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and the throne had a round top,⁴ and on each side of the seat were armrests and two lions standing beside the armrests, 20 while twelve lions stood there, one on each end of a step on the six steps. The like of it was never made in any kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of ⁿthe House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. None were of silver; silver was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon. 22 For the king had ^oa fleet of ships of Tarshish at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the fleet of ships of Tarshish used to come bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.⁵

23 ^pThus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. 24 And the whole earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind. 25 Every one of them brought his present, articles of silver and gold, garments, myrrh,⁶ spices, horses, and mules, so much year by year.

26 ^qAnd Solomon gathered together ^rchariots and horsemen. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, whom he stationed in the ^schariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 27 And the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful as ^tthe sycamore of the Shephelah. 28 And Solomon’s ^uimport of horses was from Egypt and Kue, and the king’s traders received them from Kue at a price. 29 A chariot could be imported from Egypt for 600 shekels of silver and a horse for 150, and so through the king’s traders they were exported to all the kings of ^vthe Hittites and the kings of Syria.

Greeting

1 Paul and Timothy, servants¹ of Christ Jesus,

To all the ^asaints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the ^boverseers² and ^cdeacons:³

2 ^dGrace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

3 ^eI thank my God ^fin all my remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, 5 ^gbecause of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 And I am sure of this, that he who began ^ha good work in you ⁱwill bring it to completion at ^jthe day of Jesus Christ. 7 It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you ^kin my heart, for you are all ^lpartakers with me of grace,⁴ both ^min my imprisonment and in ⁿthe defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For ^oGod is my witness, ^phow I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And it is my prayer that ^qyour love may abound more and more, ^rwith knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, ^sand so be pure and blameless ^tfor the day of Christ, 11 filled ^uwith the fruit of righteousness that comes ^vthrough Jesus Christ, ^wto the glory and praise of God.

The Advance of the Gospel

12 I want you to know, brothers,⁵ that what has happened to me has really ^xserved to advance the gospel, 13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard⁶ and ^yto all the rest that ^zmy imprisonment is for Christ. 14 And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold ^ato speak the word⁷ without fear.

15 ^bSome indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. 16 The latter do it out of love, ^cknowing that I am put here for ^dthe defense of the gospel. 17 The former proclaim Christ ^eout of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. 18 What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.

To Live Is Christ

Yes, and I will rejoice, 19 for I know that ^fthrough your prayers and ^gthe help of ^hthe Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20 as it is my eager expectation and hope ⁱthat I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full ^jcourage now as always Christ ^kwill be honored in my body, ^lwhether by life or by death. 21 For to me ^mto live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 ⁿI am hard pressed between the two. My desire is ^oto depart and ^pbe with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 25 ^qConvinced of this, ^rI know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your ^sprogress and ^tjoy in the faith, 26 so that in me ^uyou may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

27 Only ^vlet your manner of life be ^wworthy⁸ of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you ^xthat you are standing firm in one spirit, with ^yone mind ^zstriving side by side for the faith of the gospel, 28 and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is ^aa clear sign to them of their destruction, but ^bof your salvation, and that from God. 29 For ^cit has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also ^bsuffer for his sake, 30 engaged in the same ^dconflict that ^eyou saw I had and now hear that I still have.

Vision of the New Temple

1 ^wIn the twenty-fifth year ^xof our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, ^yin the fourteenth year after the city was struck down, on that very day, ^zthe hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me to the city.¹ 2 In ^avisions of God he brought me to the land of Israel, and set me down on ^ba very high mountain, on which was a structure like a city to the south. 3 When he brought me there, behold, there was ^ca man whose appearance was ^dlike bronze, with ^ea linen cord and ^fa measuring reed in his hand. And he was standing in the gateway. 4 And the man said to me, ^g“Son of man, ^hlook with your eyes, and ^hhear with your ears, and set your heart upon all that I shall show you, for you were brought here in order that I might show it to you. ⁱDeclare all that you see to the house of Israel.”

The East Gate to the Outer Court

5 And behold, there was ^ja wall all around the outside of the temple area, and the length of the measuring reed in the man’s hand was six long cubits, ^keach being a cubit and a handbreadth² in length. So he measured the thickness of the wall, one reed; and the height, one reed. 6 Then he went into ^lthe gateway facing east, ^mgoing up its steps, and measured the threshold of the gate, one reed deep.³ 7 And ⁿthe side rooms, one reed long and one reed broad; and the space between the side rooms, five cubits; and the threshold of the gate by the vestibule of the gate at the inner end, one reed. 8 Then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, on the inside, one reed. 9 Then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, eight cubits; ^oand its jambs, two cubits; and the vestibule of the gate was at the inner end. 10 And there were three side rooms on either side of the east gate. ^pThe three were of the same size, and the jambs on either side were of the same size. 11 Then he measured the width of the opening of the gateway, ten cubits; and the length of the gateway, thirteen cubits. 12 There was a barrier before the side rooms, one cubit on either side. And the side rooms were six cubits on either side. 13 Then he measured the gate from the ceiling of the one side room to the ceiling of the other, a breadth of twenty-five cubits; the openings faced each other. 14 He measured also ^qthe vestibule, sixty cubits. And around the vestibule of the gateway was the court.⁴ 15 From the front of the gate at the entrance to the front of the inner vestibule of the gate was fifty cubits. 16 And the gateway had ^rwindows all around, narrowing inwards toward the side rooms and toward their ^sjambs, and likewise the vestibule had windows all around inside, and on the jambs were ^tpalm trees.

The Outer Court

17 Then he brought me into ^uthe outer court. And behold, there were ^vchambers and a ^wpavement, all around the court. ^xThirty chambers faced the pavement. 18 And the pavement ran along the side of the gates, corresponding to the length of the gates. This was the lower pavement. 19 Then he measured the distance from the inner front of the lower gate to the outer front of the inner court,⁵ a hundred cubits on the east side and on the north side.⁶

The North Gate

20 As for ^ythe gate that faced toward the north, belonging to ^uthe outer court, he measured its length and its breadth. 21 Its ⁿside rooms, three on either side, and its jambs and its vestibule were of the same size as those of ^zthe first gate. Its length was ^afifty cubits, and its breadth ^btwenty-five cubits. 22 And ^cits windows, its vestibule, and ^cits palm trees were of the same size as those of the gate that faced toward the east. And by seven steps ^dpeople would go up to it, and find its vestibule before them. 23 And opposite the gate on the north, as on the east, was a gate to ^ethe inner court. And ^fhe measured from gate to gate, a hundred cubits.

The South Gate

24 And he led me toward the south, and behold, there was a gate on the south. And ^ghe measured its jambs and its vestibule; they had the same size as the others. 25 Both it and its vestibule ^hhad windows all around, like the windows of the others. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 26 And there were seven steps leading up to it, and its vestibule was before them, and it had ⁱpalm trees on its jambs, one on either side. 27 And there was a gate on the south of ^jthe inner court. And he measured from gate to gate toward the south, a hundred cubits.

The Inner Court

28 Then he brought me to ^jthe inner court through the south gate, and ^khe measured the south gate. It was of the same size as the others. 29 Its ^lside rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others, and both it and its vestibule ^mhad windows all around. ^mIts length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 30 And there were vestibules all around, twenty-five cubits long and five cubits broad. 31 Its vestibule faced the outer court, and ⁱpalm trees were on its jambs, and ⁿits stairway had eight steps.

32 Then he brought me to the inner court on the east side, and ^ohe measured the gate. It was of the same size as the others. 33 Its side rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others, and both it and its vestibule had windows all around. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 34 ^pIts vestibule faced the outer court, and it had palm trees on its jambs, on either side, and its stairway had eight steps.

35 Then he brought me to ^qthe north gate, and ^rhe measured it. It had the same size as the others. 36 Its side rooms, its jambs, and its vestibule were of the same size as the others,⁷ and it had windows all around. Its length was fifty cubits, and its breadth twenty-five cubits. 37 Its vestibule⁸ faced the outer court, and it had palm trees on its jambs, on either side, and its stairway had eight steps.

38 There was ^sa chamber with its door in the vestibule of the gate,^{9 t}where the burnt offering was to be washed. 39 And in the vestibule of the gate were two ^utables on either side, on which the ^vburnt offering and the ^wsin offering and the ^xguilt offering were to be slaughtered. 40 And off to the side, on the outside as one goes up to the entrance of the north gate, were two tables; and off to the other side of the vestibule of the gate were two tables. 41 ^yFour tables were on either side of the gate, eight tables, ^zon which to slaughter. 42 And there were four tables ^aof hewn stone for the burnt offering, a cubit and a half long, and a cubit and a half broad, and one cubit high, on which the instruments were to be laid with which the ^vburnt offerings and the sacrifices were slaughtered. 43 And hooks,¹⁰ a handbreadth long, were fastened all around within. And on the tables the flesh of the offering was to be laid.

Chambers for the Priests

44 On the outside of the inner gateway there were two ^bchambers¹¹ in the ^cinner court, one¹² at the side of the north gate facing south, the other at the side of the south¹³ gate facing north. 45 And he said to me, “This chamber that faces south is for the priests ^dwho have charge of the temple, 46 and the chamber that faces north is for the priests ^ewho have charge of the altar. These are ^fthe sons of Zadok, who alone¹⁴ among the sons of Levi may come ^gnear to the Lord to minister to him.” 47 And he measured the court, ^ha hundred cubits long and ^ha hundred cubits broad, a square. And ⁱthe altar was in front of the temple.

The Vestibule of the Temple

48 Then he brought me to ^jthe vestibule of the temple and measured the ^kjambs of the vestibule, five cubits on either side. And the breadth of the gate was fourteen cubits, and the sidewalls of the gate¹⁵ were three cubits on either side. 49 ^lThe length of the vestibule was twenty cubits, and the breadth twelve¹⁶ cubits, and people would go up to it by ten steps.¹⁷ And there were pillars beside the jambs, one on either side.

My Refuge and My Fortress