Book of Common Prayer

For the director of music. A maskil of the Sons of Korah. A wedding song to the tune of “Lilies.”

For the director of music. A psalm of the Sons of Korah.

A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah.

David, Nabal and Abigail

25 When Samuel died, the whole nation of Israel gathered together. They were filled with sorrow because he was dead. They buried him at his home in Ramah. Then David went down into the Desert of Paran.

² A certain man in Maon was very wealthy. He owned property there at Carmel. He had 1,000 goats and 3,000 sheep. He was clipping the wool off the sheep in Carmel. ³ His name was Nabal. His wife’s name was Abigail. She was a wise and beautiful woman. But her husband was rude and mean in the way he treated others. He was from the family of Caleb.

⁴ David was staying in the Desert of Paran. While he was there, he heard that Nabal was clipping the wool off his sheep. ⁵ So he sent for ten young men. He said to them, “Go up to Nabal at Carmel. Greet him for me. ⁶ Say to him, ‘May you live a long time! May everything go well with you and your family! And may things go well with everything that belongs to you!

⁷ “ ‘I hear that you are clipping the wool off your sheep. When your shepherds were with us, we treated them well. The whole time they were at Carmel nothing that belonged to them was stolen. ⁸ Ask your own servants. They’ll tell you. We’ve come to you now at a happy time of the year. Please be kind to my men. Please give me and my men anything you can find for us.’ ”

⁹ When David’s men arrived, they gave Nabal the message from David. Then they waited.

¹⁰ Nabal answered David’s servants, “Who is this David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants are running away from their masters these days. ¹¹ Why should I give away my bread and water? Why should I give away the meat I’ve prepared for those who clip the wool off my sheep? Why should I give food to men who come from who knows where?”

¹² So David’s men turned around and went back. When they arrived, they reported to David every word Nabal had spoken. ¹³ David said to his men, “Each of you put on your swords!” So they did. David put his sword on too. About 400 men went up with David. Two hundred men stayed behind with the supplies.

¹⁴ One of the servants warned Abigail, Nabal’s wife. He said, “David sent some messengers from the desert to give his greetings to our master. But Nabal shouted at them and was rude to them. ¹⁵ David’s men had been very good to us. They treated us well. The whole time we were near them out in the fields, nothing was stolen. ¹⁶ We were taking care of our sheep near them. During that time, they were like a wall around us night and day. They kept us safe. ¹⁷ Now think it over. See what you can do. Horrible trouble will soon come to our master and his whole family. He’s such an evil man that no one can even talk to him.”

¹⁸ Abigail didn’t waste any time. She got 200 loaves of bread and two bottles of wine. The bottles were made out of animal skins. She got five sheep that were ready to be cooked. She got a bushel of grain that had been cooked. She got 100 raisin cakes. And she got 200 cakes of pressed figs. She loaded all of it on the backs of donkeys. ¹⁹ Then she told her servants, “Go on ahead. I’ll follow you.” But she didn’t tell her husband Nabal about it.

²⁰ Abigail rode her donkey into a mountain valley. There she saw David and his men. They were coming down toward her. ²¹ David had just said, “Everything we’ve done hasn’t been worth a thing! I watched over that fellow’s property in the desert. I made sure none of it was stolen. But he has paid me back evil for good. ²² I won’t leave even one of his men alive until morning. If I do, may God punish me greatly!”

Paul and Barnabas Preach in Iconium

14 At Iconium, Paul and Barnabas went into the Jewish synagogue as usual. They spoke there with great power. Large numbers of Jews and Greeks became believers. ² But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up some of the Gentiles who were there. They turned them against the two men and the new believers. ³ So Paul and Barnabas spent a lot of time there. They spoke boldly for the Lord. He gave them the ability to do signs and wonders. In this way the Lord showed that they were telling the truth about his grace. ⁴ The people of the city did not agree with one another. Some were on the side of the Jews. Others were on the side of the apostles. ⁵ Jews and Gentiles alike planned to treat Paul and Barnabas badly. Their leaders agreed. They planned to kill them by throwing stones at them. ⁶ But Paul and Barnabas found out about the plan. They escaped to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding area. ⁷ There they continued to preach the good news.

Paul Preaches in Lystra

⁸ In Lystra there sat a man who couldn’t walk. He hadn’t been able to use his feet since the day he was born. ⁹ He listened as Paul spoke. Paul looked right at him. He saw that the man had faith to be healed. ¹⁰ So he called out, “Stand up on your feet!” Then the man jumped up and began to walk.

¹¹ The crowd saw what Paul had done. They shouted in the Lycaonian language. “The gods have come down to us in human form!” they exclaimed. ¹² They called Barnabas Zeus. Paul was the main speaker. So they called him Hermes. ¹³ Just outside the city was the temple of the god Zeus. The priest of Zeus brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates. He and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas.

¹⁴ But the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard about this. So they tore their clothes. They rushed out into the crowd. They shouted, ¹⁵ “Friends, why are you doing this? We are only human, just like you. We are bringing you good news. Turn away from these worthless things. Turn to the living God. He is the one who made the heavens and the earth and the sea. He made everything in them. ¹⁶ In the past, he let all nations go their own way. ¹⁷ But he has given proof of what he is like. He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven. He gives you crops in their seasons. He provides you with plenty of food. He fills your hearts with joy.” ¹⁸ Paul and Barnabas told them all these things. But they had trouble keeping the crowd from offering sacrifices to them.

A Lamp on a Stand

²¹ Jesus said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a large bowl or a bed? Don’t you put it on its stand? ²² What is hidden is meant to be seen. And what is put out of sight is meant to be brought out into the open. ²³ Whoever has ears should listen.”

²⁴ “Think carefully about what you hear,” he said. “As you give, so you will receive. In fact, you will receive even more. ²⁵ Whoever has something will be given more. Whoever has nothing, even what they have will be taken away from them.”

The Story of the Growing Seed

²⁶ Jesus also said, “Here is what God’s kingdom is like. A farmer scatters seed on the ground. ²⁷ Night and day the seed comes up and grows. It happens whether the farmer sleeps or gets up. He doesn’t know how it happens. ²⁸ All by itself the soil produces grain. First the stalk comes up. Then the head appears. Finally, the full grain appears in the head. ²⁹ Before long the grain ripens. So the farmer cuts it down, because the harvest is ready.”

The Story of the Mustard Seed

³⁰ Again Jesus said, “What can we say God’s kingdom is like? What story can we use to explain it? ³¹ It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. ³² But when you plant the seed, it grows. It becomes the largest of all garden plants. Its branches are so big that birds can rest in its shade.”

³³ Using many stories like these, Jesus spoke the word to them. He told them as much as they could understand. ³⁴ He did not say anything to them without using a story. But when he was alone with his disciples, he explained everything.