⁹ When they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask me what I should do for you before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said, “Please let a ^(A)double portion of your spirit be upon me.” ¹⁰ He said, “You have asked a hard thing. Nevertheless, if you ^(B)see me when I am taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if not, it shall not be so.” ¹¹ And as they were walking along and talking, behold, ^(C)a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and they separated the two of them. Then Elijah went up by a ^[a]whirlwind to heaven. ¹² And Elisha was watching it and he was crying out, “^(D)My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen!” And he did not see ^[b]Elijah again. Then ^(E)he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces. ¹³ He also took up the coat of Elijah that had fallen from him, and he went back and stood by the bank of the Jordan. ¹⁴ Then he took the coat of Elijah that had fallen from him and struck the waters, and said, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” And when he also had ^(F)struck the waters, they were divided here and there; and Elisha crossed over.

Elisha Succeeds Elijah

¹⁵ Now when ^(G)the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho opposite him saw him, they said, “The spirit of Elijah has settled on Elisha.” And they came to meet him and bowed down to the ground before him. ¹⁶ Then they said to him, “Behold now, there are with your servants fifty strong men; please let them go and search for your master, in case ^(H)the Spirit of the Lord has taken him up and cast him on some mountain or into some valley.” But he said, “You shall not send anyone.” ¹⁷ Yet when ^(I)they urged him until he was ashamed to refuse, he said, “Send them.” So they sent fifty men; and they searched for three days, but did not find him. ¹⁸ They returned to him while he was staying in Jericho; and he said to them, “Did I not say to you, ‘Do not go’?”

¹⁹ Then the men of the city said to Elisha, “Behold now, the site of the city is pleasant, as my lord sees; but the water is bad and the land ^[c]is unfruitful.” ²⁰ And he said, “Bring me a new jar, and put salt ^[d]in it.” So they brought it to him. ²¹ Then he went out to the spring of water and ^(J)threw salt ^[e]in it and said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘I have ^[f]purified these waters; there shall not come from there death or ^[g]unfruitfulness any longer.’” ²² So the waters have been ^[h]purified to this day, in accordance with the word of Elisha which he spoke.

The Lord Surrounds His People.

A Song of Ascents.

¹⁷ “And now, brothers, I know that you acted ^(A)in ignorance, just as your ^(B)rulers also did. ¹⁸ But the things which ^(C)God previously announced by the mouths of all the prophets, ^(D)that His ^[a]Christ would suffer, He has fulfilled in this way. ¹⁹ Therefore ^(E)repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that ^(F)times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; ²⁰ and that He may send Jesus, the ^[b]Christ appointed for you, ^21 (G)whom heaven must receive until the ^[c]period of ^(H)restoration of all things, about which ^(I)God spoke by the mouths of His holy prophets from ancient times. ²² Moses said, ‘^(J)The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your countrymen; to Him you shall listen regarding everything He says to you. ^23 (K)And it shall be that every ^(L)soul that does not listen to that prophet ^(M)shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.’ ²⁴ And likewise, ^(N)all the prophets who have spoken from Samuel and his successors onward, have also announced these days. ²⁵ It is you who are ^(O)the sons of the prophets and of the ^(P)covenant which God ordained with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘^(Q)And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ ²⁶ God ^(R)raised up His ^[d]Servant for you ^(S)first, and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.”

Peter and John Arrested

4 As they were speaking to the people, the priests and ^(T)the captain of the temple guard and ^(U)the Sadducees ^(V)came up to them, ² being greatly disturbed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming ^[e](W)in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. ³ And they laid hands on them and ^(X)put them in prison until the next day, for it was already evening. ⁴ But many of those who had heard the ^[f]message believed; and ^(Y)the number of the men came to be about five thousand.