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Elijah Denounces Ahaziah
1 After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel.(A)
2 Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria and was injured, so he sent messengers, telling them, “Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury.”(B) 3 But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Get up, go to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and say to them: Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? 4 Now therefore thus says the Lord: You shall not leave the bed to which you have gone, but you shall surely die.” So Elijah went.(C)
5 The messengers returned to the king, who said to them, “Why have you returned?” 6 They answered him, “There came a man to meet us, who said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you and say to him: Thus says the Lord: Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not leave the bed to which you have gone but shall surely die.’ ” 7 He said to them, “What sort of man was he who came to meet you and told you these things?” 8 They answered him, “A hairy man with a leather belt around his waist.” He said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”(D)
9 Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill and said to him, “O man of God, the king says: Come down.” 10 But Elijah answered the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.(E)
11 Again the king sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty. He went up[a] and said to him, “O man of God, this is the king’s order: Come down quickly!” 12 But Elijah answered him,[b] “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
13 Again the king sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. So the third captain of fifty went up and came and fell on his knees before Elijah and entreated him, “O man of God, please let my life and the life of these fifty servants of yours be precious in your sight.(F) 14 Look, fire came down from heaven and consumed the two former captains of fifty men with their fifties, but now let my life be precious in your sight.” 15 Then the angel of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he set out and went down with him to the king(G) 16 and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word?—therefore you shall not leave the bed to which you have gone, but you shall surely die.”(H)
Death of Ahaziah
17 So he died according to the word of the Lord that Elijah had spoken. His brother[c] Jehoram succeeded him as king in the second year of King Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat of Judah, because Ahaziah had no son.(I) 18 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Annals of the Kings of Israel?
Elijah Ascends to Heaven
2 Now when the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal.(J) 2 Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here, for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel.(K) 3 The company of prophets who were in Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take your master away from you?” And he said, “Yes, I know; keep silent.”(L)
4 Elijah said to him, “Elisha, stay here, for the Lord has sent me to Jericho.” But he said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they came to Jericho.(M) 5 The company of prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take your master away from you?” And he answered, “Yes, I know; keep silent.”(N)
6 Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.” But he said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on.(O) 7 Fifty men of the company of prophets also went and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan.(P) 8 Then Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up and struck the water; the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and the two of them crossed on dry ground.(Q)
9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me what I may do for you before I am taken from you.” Elisha said, “Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit.” 10 He responded, “You have asked a hard thing, yet if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not.” 11 As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven.(R) 12 Elisha kept watching and crying out, “Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.(S)
Elisha Succeeds Elijah
13 He picked up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. 14 He took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him and struck the water. He said, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah? Where is he?” He struck the water again, and the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha crossed over.(T)
15 When the company of prophets who were at Jericho saw him at a distance, they declared, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” They came to meet him and bowed to the ground before him.(U) 16 They said to him, “See now, we have fifty strong men among your servants; please let them go and seek your master; it may be that the spirit of the Lord has caught him up and thrown him down on some mountain or into some valley.” He responded, “No, do not send them.”(V) 17 But when they urged him to the point of embarrassment, he said, “Send them.” So they sent fifty men who searched for three days but did not find him.(W) 18 When they came back to him (he had remained at Jericho), he said to them, “Did I not say to you, ‘Do not go’?”
Elisha Performs Miracles
19 Now the people of the city said to Elisha, “The location of this city is good, as my lord sees, but the water is bad, and the land is unfruitful.” 20 He said, “Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him. 21 Then he went to the spring of water and threw the salt into it and said, “Thus says the Lord: I have made this water wholesome; from now on neither death nor miscarriage shall come from it.”(X) 22 So the water has been wholesome to this day, according to the word that Elisha spoke.
23 He went up from there to Bethel, and while he was going up on the way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him, saying, “Go away, baldhead! Go away, baldhead!” 24 When he turned around and saw them, he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two she-bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys.(Y) 25 From there he went on to Mount Carmel and then returned to Samaria.(Z)
42 As Paul and Barnabas[a] were going out, the people urged them to speak about these things again the next Sabbath. 43 When the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who spoke to them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.(A)
44 The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.[b] 45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and blaspheming, they contradicted what was spoken by Paul.(B) 46 Then both Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken first to you. Since you reject it and judge yourselves to be unworthy of eternal life, we are now turning to the gentiles.(C) 47 For so the Lord has commanded us, saying,
‘I have set you to be a light for the gentiles,
so that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”(D)
48 When the gentiles heard this, they were glad and praised the word of the Lord, and as many as had been destined for eternal life became believers. 49 Thus the word of the Lord spread throughout the region. 50 But the Jews incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city and stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and drove them out of their region. 51 So they shook the dust off their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium.(E) 52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.(F)
Paul and Barnabas in Iconium
14 The same thing occurred in Iconium, where Paul[c] and Barnabas[d] went into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks became believers. 2 But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. 3 So they remained for a long time speaking boldly for the Lord, who testified to the word of his grace by granting signs and wonders to be done through them.(G) 4 But the residents of the city were divided: some sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles.(H) 5 And when an attempt was made by both gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to mistreat them and to stone them,(I) 6 the apostles[e] learned of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding region,(J) 7 and there they continued proclaiming the good news.
Psalm 139
The Inescapable God
To the leader. Of David. A Psalm.
1 O Lord, you have searched me and known me.(A)
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from far away.(B)
3 You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.(C)
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
O Lord, you know it completely.(D)
5 You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.(E)
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is so high that I cannot attain it.(F)
7 Where can I go from your spirit?
Or where can I flee from your presence?(G)
8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.(H)
9 If I take the wings of the morning
and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
10 even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me fast.(I)
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and night wraps itself around me,”[a](J)
12 even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is as bright as the day,
for darkness is as light to you.(K)
13 For it was you who formed my inward parts;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.(L)
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
that I know very well.(M)
15 My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.(N)
16 Your eyes beheld my unformed substance.
In your book were written
all the days that were formed for me,
when none of them as yet existed.[b]
17 How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!(O)
18 I try to count them—they are more than the sand;
I come to the end[c]—I am still with you.
19 O that you would kill the wicked, O God,
and that the bloodthirsty would depart from me—(P)
20 those who speak of you maliciously
and lift themselves up against you for evil
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?(R)
22 I hate them with perfect hatred;
I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my thoughts.(S)
24 See if there is any wicked[e] way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.[f](T)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.