Book of Common Prayer

Psalm 93^[a]

Glory of the Lord’s Kingdom

Psalm 96^[a]

God, Sovereign and Judge of the Universe

Psalm 34^[a]

Presence of God, Protector of the Righteous

¹ Of David. When he pretended to be mad before Abimelech, who forced him to depart.^[b]

Elisha and the Shunammite.^{[a] 8} One day Elisha traveled to Shunem.^[b] There was an important woman there, and she insisted that he stop to eat. Whenever he passed by there, he would stop to eat.

⁹ She said to her husband, “Behold, this man who often visits us is a holy man of God. ¹⁰ We should prepare a small room on the roof, and place a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp in it for him. Then he can stay there when he visits us.”

¹¹ One day he arrived, and he went into the room to lie down. ¹² He said to Gehazi, his servant, “Call the Shunammite.” So he called her, and she stood before him. ¹³ He said to him, “Say to her, ‘You have put yourself through all this trouble for us. What could be done for you? Should we speak to the king or the commander of the army for you?’ ” She answered, “I dwell among my own people.”

¹⁴ He said, “Then what can be done for her?” Gehazi answered, “She and her husband are old, and they have no children.” ¹⁵ Elisha said, “Summon her.” He called her and she stood in the doorway. ¹⁶ He said, “You will embrace a son around this time next year.” She said, “No, my lord, O man of God. Do not lie to your servant.”

¹⁷ The woman became pregnant, and she had a son that time the next year, just as Elisha had predicted. ¹⁸ The child grew up, and one day he went out to his father who was with the reapers. ¹⁹ He said to his father, “My head! My head!” He said to a young man, “Carry him to his mother.” ²⁰ He picked him up and brought him to his mother. He sat on her lap until noon when he died.

²¹ She went up and laid him on the bed belonging to the man of God. She closed him in the room and went out. ²² She called to her husband and said, “Please send me one of the young men and one of the donkeys so that I can hurry to the man of God and return.” ²³ He said, “Why would you go today? It is not a new moon or the Sabbath.” But she said, “It is all right.”^[c]

²⁴ She saddled the donkey and said to her servant, “Lead on, and do not slow down for me unless I tell you.” ²⁵ So she departed and came to the man of God on Mount Carmel.

When the man of God saw her from a distance, he said to Gehazi his servant, “Behold, it is the Shunammite. ²⁶ Run to her and say to her, ‘Is everything all right? Is your husband well? Is your child well?’ ” She answered, “It is all right.”

²⁷ When she reached the man of God on the mountain, she took hold of his feet. Gehazi approached to push her away, but the man of God said, “Leave her alone. Her spirit is in despair, but the Lord had hidden it from me and did not tell me.”

²⁸ She said, “Did I ask for a son from my lord? Did I not say, ‘Do not lie to me.’ ”

²⁹ Elisha said to Gehazi, “Gird up your loins, and take my staff in your hands, and go! If you meet anyone, do not greet him. And if anyone greets you, do not answer. Lay my staff upon the child’s face.”^{[d] 30} But the boy’s mother said, “As the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So he got up and followed her.

³¹ Gehazi went on before them, and he laid the staff upon the child’s face, but there was no sound or response. He went out to meet him, and he said to him, “The child did not wake up.”

³² When Elisha arrived at the house, the child was lying dead upon his bed. ³³ He went in, and he shut the door on the two of them, and then he prayed to the Lord. ³⁴ He got up and lay upon the child, mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, and hands to hands. He stretched himself out upon the child, and the child’s flesh grew warm. ³⁵ He turned and walked back and forth in the room, and then he went and stretched himself out again. The boy sneezed seven times, and then the boy opened his eyes.

³⁶ Elisha called for Gehazi, and he said, “Call this Shunammite.” He called her, and she came, and he said to her, “Take your son.” ³⁷ She came in and bowed down, falling to the ground at Elisha’s feet. She then took her son and left.

¹⁰ Saul’s Baptism. There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias. In a vision, the Lord said to him, “Ananias.” He answered, “Here I am, Lord.” ¹¹ The Lord said to him, “Get up and go to the Street called Straight,^[a] to the house of Judas, and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul. He is praying, ¹² and in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he may regain his sight.”

¹³ Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many people about this man and how much harm he has done to your saints^[b] in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ Now he has come here with authority from the chief priests to imprison all who invoke your name.”

¹⁵ However, the Lord said to him, “Go, for this is the man I have chosen as a vessel to bring my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. ¹⁶ I myself will show him how much he will have to suffer for the sake of my name.”

¹⁷ And so Ananias went forth and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on your way has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”^{[c] 18} Immediately, something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. He got up and was baptized; ¹⁹ then, after taking some food, he regained his strength.

Saul Preaches in Damascus. For several days, Saul stayed with the disciples in Damascus, ²⁰ and he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. ²¹ All those who heard him were astounded, and they said, “Is not this the man who in Jerusalem was persecuting those who invoked this name? And did he not come here for the specific purpose of arresting them so that they might be taken to the chief priests?” ²² But Saul’s strength continued to increase, and he confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by showing that Jesus is indeed the Christ.

²³ After some time had passed, the Jews devised a plan to kill him, ²⁴ but their plot became known to Saul. They were keeping watch on the city gates day and night so that they might kill him, ²⁵ but his disciples took him one night and let him down in a basket over the wall.

²⁶ Saul in Jerusalem and Tarsus. When he arrived in Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him because they did not believe that he had become a disciple. ²⁷ However, Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He related to them how on his journey Saul had seen the Lord who had spoken to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus.

²⁸ Saul then moved about with them in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. ²⁹ He also engaged in debate with the Hellenists^[d] but they began planning to kill him. ³⁰ When the brethren learned of this, they brought him to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.^[e]

³¹ Period of Peace for the Church.^[f]Meanwhile, the Church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria enjoyed peace, building up strength and living in the fear of the Lord. Encouraged by the Holy Spirit,^[g] the Church grew in numbers.

⁷ He admonished the crowds who came out to be baptized by him: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Produce good fruits as proof of your repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones. ⁹ Even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰ When the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?” ¹¹ he said to them in reply, “Anyone who has two coats must share with the person who has none, and whoever has food must do likewise.” ¹² Even tax collectors were coming to him to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?” ¹³ He answered them, “Cease collecting more than the amount prescribed.” ¹⁴ Some soldiers also asked him, “What about us? What should we do?” He replied, “Do not extort money from anyone, do not falsely accuse or threaten anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.”

¹⁵ As the people began to experience a feeling of expectancy, they all wondered in their hearts whether John might be the Christ. ¹⁶ John answered, telling them all: “I baptize you with water, but there is one coming who is more powerful than I am. I am not worthy to loosen the straps of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷ His winnowing fan is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” ¹⁸ And with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people.