Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

A Song of Trust in God

Of David.

²⁷ As Saul, his servant, and Samuel were getting near the edge of the city, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us, but you stay, because I have a message from God for you.”

Samuel Appoints Saul

10 Samuel took a jar of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head. He kissed Saul and said, “The Lord has appointed you to lead his people. ² After you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel’s tomb on the border of Benjamin at Zelzah. They will say to you, ‘The donkeys you were looking for have been found. But now your father has stopped thinking about his donkeys and is worrying about you. He is asking, “What will I do about my son?”’

³ “Then you will go on until you reach the big tree at Tabor. Three men on their way to worship God at Bethel will meet you there. One man will be carrying three goats. Another will be carrying three loaves of bread. And the third will have a leather bag full of wine. ⁴ They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you must accept. ⁵ Then you will go to Gibeah of God, where a Philistine camp is. When you approach this town, a group of prophets will come down from the place of worship. They will be playing harps, tambourines, flutes, and lyres, and they will be prophesying. ⁶ Then the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you with power. You will prophesy with these prophets, and you will be changed into a different man. ⁷ After these signs happen, do whatever you find to do, because God will help you.

⁸ “Go ahead of me to Gilgal. I will come down to you to offer whole burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. But you must wait seven days. Then I will come and tell you what to do.”

Other Apostles Accepted Paul

2 After fourteen years I went to Jerusalem again, this time with Barnabas. I also took Titus with me. ² I went because God showed me I should go. I met with the believers there, and in private I told their leaders the Good News that I preach to the non-Jewish people. I did not want my past work and the work I am now doing to be wasted. ³ Titus was with me, but he was not forced to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. ⁴ We talked about this problem because some false believers had come into our group secretly. They came in like spies to overturn the freedom we have in Christ Jesus. They wanted to make us slaves. ⁵ But we did not give in to those false believers for a minute. We wanted the truth of the Good News to continue for you.

⁶ Those leaders who seemed to be important did not change the Good News that I preach. (It doesn’t matter to me if they were “important” or not. To God everyone is the same.) ⁷ But these leaders saw that I had been given the work of telling the Good News to those who are not Jewish, just as Peter had the work of telling the Jews. ⁸ God gave Peter the power to work as an apostle for the Jewish people. But he also gave me the power to work as an apostle for those who are not Jews. ⁹ James, Peter, and John, who seemed to be the leaders, understood that God had given me this special grace, so they accepted Barnabas and me. They agreed that they would go to the Jewish people and that we should go to those who are not Jewish. ¹⁰ The only thing they asked us was to remember to help the poor—something I really wanted to do.