Book of Common Prayer

Yahweh Reigns Forevermore

Ascribe to Yahweh Glory and Strength

Taste and See That Yahweh Is Good

Of David. When he feigned madness before ^[a]Abimelech, so that he drove him away and he departed.

Aleph

Beth

Gimel

Daleth

He / Vav

Zayin

Heth

Teth

Yodh

Kaph

Lamedh

Mem

Nun

Samekh

Ayin

Pe

Tsadhe

Qoph

Resh

Shin

Tav

The Shunammite Woman Will Bear a Son

⁸ Now there came a day when Elisha passed over to ^(A)Shunem, where there was a ^[a]prominent woman, and she prevailed upon him to eat ^[b]food. Now it happened, as often as he passed by, that he turned in there to eat ^[c]food. ⁹ And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I know that this is a holy ^(B)man of God passing by us continually. ¹⁰ Please, let us ^(C)make a little walled upper chamber and let us set a bed for him there, and a table and a chair and a lampstand; and it will be, when he comes to us, that he can turn in there.”

¹¹ Now it happened that one day he came there and turned in to the upper chamber, and there he ^[d]lay down. ¹² Then he said to ^(D)Gehazi his young man, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her, and she stood before him. ¹³ And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘Behold, you have been ^[e]careful for us with all this ^[f]care; what can I do for you? Would you be spoken for to the king or to the commander of the army?’” And she ^[g]answered, “I live among my own people.” ¹⁴ So he said, “What then is to be done for her?” And Gehazi ^[h]answered, “Truly she has no son, and her husband is old.” ¹⁵ And he said, “Call her.” So he called her, and she stood in the doorway. ¹⁶ Then he said, “^(E)At this season ^[i]next year you will embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord, O man of God, ^(F)do not lie to your servant-woman.”

¹⁷ Then the woman conceived and bore a son at that season ^[j]the next year, as Elisha had said to her.

A Dead Boy Opens His Eyes

¹⁸ Then the child was grown. And the day came that he went out to his father to the reapers. ¹⁹ And he said to his father, “My head, my head.” And he said to ^[k]his young man, “Carry him to his mother.” ²⁰ Then he carried him and brought him to his mother, and he sat on her knees until noon, and then died. ²¹ Then she went up and ^(G)laid him on the bed of ^(H)the man of God and shut the door behind him and went out. ²² And she called to her husband and said, “Please send me one of the young men and one of the donkeys, that I may run to the man of God and return.” ²³ And he said, “Why will you go to him today? It is neither ^(I)new moon nor sabbath.” And she said, “It is well.” ²⁴ Then she saddled a donkey and said to her young man, “Drive and go; do not hold back the pace of the ride for me unless I tell you.” ²⁵ So she went and came to the man of God to ^(J)Mount Carmel.

Now it happened that when the man of God saw her at a distance, he said to Gehazi his young man, “Behold, ^[l]there is the Shunammite. ²⁶ Please run now to meet her and say to her, ‘Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with the child?’” And she ^[m]answered, “It is well.” ²⁷ Then she came to the man of God ^(K)to the hill and took hold of his feet. And Gehazi came near to push her away; but the man of God said, “Let her alone, for her soul is bitter within her; and Yahweh has hidden it from me and has not told me.” ²⁸ Then she said, “Did I ask for a son from my lord? Did I not say, ‘^(L)Do not deceive me’?”

²⁹ Then he said to Gehazi, “^(M)Gird up your loins and ^(N)take my staff in your hand, and go; if you meet anyone, do not ^[n](O)greet him, and if anyone ^[o]greets you, do not answer him; and ^(P)lay my staff on the boy’s face.” ³⁰ But the mother of the boy said, “^(Q)As Yahweh lives and as your soul lives, I will not forsake you.” And he arose and followed her. ³¹ Now Gehazi passed on before them and laid the staff on the boy’s face, but there was no sound or ^[p]response. So he returned to meet him and told him, saying, “The boy ^(R)has not awakened.”

³² Then Elisha came into the house, and behold, the boy was dead and laid on his bed. ³³ So he entered and ^(S)shut the door behind them both and prayed to Yahweh. ³⁴ And ^(T)he went up and lay on the child and put his mouth on his mouth and his eyes on his eyes and his hands on his hands, and he stretched himself on him; and the flesh of the child became warm. ³⁵ Then he returned and walked in the house once back and forth, and went up and ^(U)stretched himself on him; and the boy sneezed seven times and the boy opened his eyes. ³⁶ Then he called Gehazi and said, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her. Then she came in to him, and he said, “Take up your son.” ³⁷ Then she came in and fell at his feet and bowed herself to the ground, and ^(V)she took up her son and went out.

¹⁰ Now there was a disciple at ^(A)Damascus named ^(B)Ananias, and the Lord said to him in ^(C)a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” ¹¹ And the Lord said to him, “Rise up and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for a man from ^(D)Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, ¹² and he has seen ^[a]in a vision a man named Ananias come in and ^(E)lay his hands on him, so that he might regain his sight.” ¹³ But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, ^(F)how much harm he did to ^(G)Your ^[b]saints at Jerusalem. ¹⁴ And here he ^(H)has authority from the chief priests to bind all who ^(I)call on Your name.” ¹⁵ But the Lord said to him, “Go, for ^(J)he is a chosen ^[c]instrument of Mine, to bear My name before ^(K)the Gentiles and ^(L)kings and the sons of Israel; ¹⁶ for ^(M)I will show him how much he must suffer for My name.” ¹⁷ So Ananias departed and entered the house. And he ^(N)laid his hands on him and said, “^(O)Brother Saul, the Lord sent me—that is Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming—so that you may regain your sight and be ^(P)filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸ And immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he regained his sight, and he rose up and was baptized; ¹⁹ and he took food and was strengthened.

Saul Begins to Preach Christ

Now ^(Q)for several days he was with ^(R)the disciples who were at Damascus, ²⁰ and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus ^(S)in the synagogues, ^[d]saying, “He is ^(T)the Son of God.” ²¹ And all those hearing him continued to be astounded, and were saying, “Is this not the one who in Jerusalem ^(U)destroyed those that ^(V)called on this name, and who had come here for the purpose of bringing them bound before the chief priests?” ²² But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this One is the ^[e]Christ.

²³ And when ^(W)many days had elapsed, ^(X)the Jews plotted together to put him to death, ²⁴ but ^(Y)their plot became known to Saul. ^(Z)They were also watching the gates day and night so that they might put him to death; ²⁵ but his disciples took him by night and let him down through the wall, lowering him in a large basket.

^26 (AA)And when he came to Jerusalem, he was trying to associate with the disciples, ^[f]but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. ²⁷ But ^(AB)Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and recounted to them how he had ^(AC)seen the Lord on the road, and that He had talked to him, and how ^(AD)at Damascus he had ^(AE)spoken out boldly in the name of Jesus. ²⁸ So he was with them, ^[g]moving about freely in Jerusalem, ^(AF)speaking out boldly in the name of the Lord. ²⁹ And he was talking and arguing with the ^[h](AG)Hellenistic Jews, but they were attempting to put him to death. ³⁰ But when ^(AH)the brothers learned of it, they brought him down to ^(AI)Caesarea and ^(AJ)sent him away to ^(AK)Tarsus.

³¹ So ^(AL)the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria was having peace, being built up. And going on in the fear of the Lord and in the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, it continued to multiply.

⁷ So he was saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “^(A)You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and ^(B)do not begin to say ^[a]to yourselves, ‘^(C)We have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham. ⁹ But indeed the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore, ^(D)every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰ And the crowds were questioning him, saying, “^(E)Then what should we do?” ¹¹ And he would answer and say to them, “The man who has two ^[b]tunics is to ^(F)share with him who has none; and he who has food is to do likewise.” ¹² And ^(G)tax collectors also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?” ¹³ And he said to them, “^[c]Collect no more than what you have been ordered to.” ¹⁴ And soldiers were also questioning him, saying, “What should we also do?” And he said to them, “Do not take money from anyone by force, or ^(H)extort anyone, and ^(I)be content with your wages.”

¹⁵ Now while the people were in a state of expectation and all were reasoning in their hearts about John, ^(J)as to whether he was the ^[d]Christ, ^16 (K)John answered, saying to them all, “As for me, I baptize you with water, but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the strap of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷ His ^(L)winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor and to gather the wheat into His barn, but He will burn up the chaff with ^(M)unquenchable fire.”

¹⁸ So with many other exhortations he proclaimed the gospel to the people.