Book of Common Prayer

By David; when he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he departed.

⁸ One day Elisha went to Shunem, where there was a prominent woman; and she persuaded him to eat bread. So it was, that as often as he passed by, he turned in there to eat bread. ⁹ She said to her husband, “See now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God who passes by us continually. ¹⁰ Please, let’s make a little room on the roof. Let’s set a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp stand for him there. When he comes to us, he can stay there.”

¹¹ One day he came there, and he went to the room and lay there. ¹² He said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite.” When he had called her, she stood before him. ¹³ He said to him, “Say now to her, ‘Behold, you have cared for us with all this care. What is to be done for you? Would you like to be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the army?’”

She answered, “I dwell among my own people.”

¹⁴ He said, “What then is to be done for her?”

Gehazi answered, “Most certainly she has no son, and her husband is old.”

¹⁵ He said, “Call her.” When he had called her, she stood in the door. ¹⁶ He said, “At this season next year, you will embrace a son.”

She said, “No, my lord, you man of God, do not lie to your servant.”

¹⁷ The woman conceived, and bore a son at that season when the time came around, as Elisha had said to her. ¹⁸ When the child was grown, one day he went out to his father to the reapers. ¹⁹ He said to his father, “My head! My head!”

He said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.”

²⁰ When he had taken him and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees until noon, and then died. ²¹ She went up and laid him on the man of God’s bed, and shut the door on him, and went out. ²² She called to her husband and said, “Please send me one of the servants, and one of the donkeys, that I may run to the man of God and come again.”

²³ He said, “Why would you want to go to him today? It is not a new moon or a Sabbath.”

She said, “It’s all right.”

²⁴ Then she saddled a donkey, and said to her servant, “Drive, and go forward! Don’t slow down for me, unless I ask you to.”

²⁵ So she went, and came to the man of God to Mount Carmel. When the man of God saw her afar off, he said to Gehazi his servant, “Behold, there is the Shunammite. ²⁶ Please run now to meet her, and ask her, ‘Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with your child?’”

She answered, “It is well.”

²⁷ When she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught hold of his feet. Gehazi came near to thrust her away; but the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for her soul is troubled within her; and Yahweh has hidden it from me, and has not told me.”

²⁸ Then she said, “Did I ask you for a son, my lord? Didn’t I say, ‘Do not deceive me’?”

²⁹ Then he said to Gehazi, “Tuck your cloak into your belt, take my staff in your hand, and go your way. If you meet any man, don’t greet him; and if anyone greets you, don’t answer him again. Then lay my staff on the child’s face.”

³⁰ The child’s mother said, “As Yahweh lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you.”

So he arose, and followed her.

³¹ Gehazi went ahead of them, and laid the staff on the child’s face; but there was no voice and no hearing. Therefore he returned to meet him, and told him, “The child has not awakened.”

³² When Elisha had come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and lying on his bed. ³³ He went in therefore, and shut the door on them both, and prayed to Yahweh. ³⁴ 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. He stretched himself on him; and the child’s flesh grew warm. ³⁵ Then he returned, and walked in the house once back and forth, then went up and stretched himself out on him. Then the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. ³⁶ He called Gehazi, and said, “Call this Shunammite!” So he called her.

When she had come in to him, he said, “Take up your son.”

³⁷ Then she went in, fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground; then she picked up her son, and went out.

¹⁰ Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias!”

He said, “Behold, it’s me, Lord.”

¹¹ The Lord said to him, “Arise and go to the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judah^[a] for one named Saul, a man of Tarsus. For behold, he is praying, ¹² and in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and laying his hands on him, that he might receive his sight.”

¹³ But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he did to your saints at Jerusalem. ¹⁴ Here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.”

¹⁵ But the Lord said to him, “Go your way, for he is my chosen vessel to bear my name before the nations and kings, and the children of Israel. ¹⁶ For I will show him how many things he must suffer for my name’s sake.”

¹⁷ Ananias departed and entered into the house. Laying his hands on him, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord, who appeared to you on the road by which you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸ Immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he received his sight. He arose and was baptized. ¹⁹ He took food and was strengthened.

Saul stayed several days with the disciples who were at Damascus. ²⁰ Immediately in the synagogues he proclaimed the Christ, that he is the Son of God. ²¹ All who heard him were amazed, and said, “Isn’t this he who in Jerusalem made havoc of those who called on this name? And he had come here intending to bring them bound before the chief priests!”

²² But Saul increased more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived at Damascus, proving that this is the Christ. ²³ When many days were fulfilled, the Jews conspired together to kill him, ²⁴ but their plot became known to Saul. They watched the gates both day and night that they might kill him, ²⁵ but his disciples took him by night and let him down through the wall, lowering him in a basket.

²⁶ When Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join himself to the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. ²⁷ But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles, and declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. ²⁸ He was with them entering into^[b] Jerusalem, ²⁹ preaching boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus.^[c] He spoke and disputed against the Hellenists,^[d] but they were seeking to kill him. ³⁰ When the brothers^[e] knew it, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.

³¹ So the assemblies throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were built up. They were multiplied, walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.

⁷ He said therefore to the multitudes who went out to be baptized by him, “You offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Therefore produce fruits worthy of repentance, and don’t begin to say among yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father;’ for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones! ⁹ Even now the ax also lies at the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰ The multitudes asked him, “What then must we do?”

¹¹ He answered them, “He who has two coats, let him give to him who has none. He who has food, let him do likewise.”

¹² Tax collectors also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what must we do?”

¹³ He said to them, “Collect no more than that which is appointed to you.”

¹⁴ Soldiers also asked him, saying, “What about us? What must we do?”

He said to them, “Extort from no one by violence, neither accuse anyone wrongfully. Be content with your wages.”

¹⁵ As the people were in expectation, and all men reasoned in their hearts concerning John, whether perhaps he was the Christ, ¹⁶ John answered them all, “I indeed baptize you with water, but he comes who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to loosen. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷ His winnowing fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor, and will gather the wheat into his barn; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

¹⁸ Then with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people,