Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

God’s People Are Safe

125 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved but stands forever. ² The Lord is around His people like the mountains are around Jerusalem, now and forever. ³ For the sinful will not rule over the land of those who are right with God. So those who are right and good may not use their hands to do wrong.

⁴ O Lord, do good to those who are good, and to those who are right in their hearts. ⁵ But the Lord will let all those who turn aside to their sinful ways go with those who are sinners. Peace be upon Israel.

⁹ When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask what I should do for you before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said, “I ask you, let twice the share of your spirit be upon me.” ¹⁰ Elijah said, “You have asked a hard thing. But if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be given to you. But if not, it will not be so.” ¹¹ As they went on and talked, a war-wagon of fire and horses of fire came between them. And Elijah went up by a wind-storm to heaven. ¹² Elisha saw it and cried out, “My father, my father, the war-wagon of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw Elijah no more. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces. ¹³ He picked up Elijah’s coat that had fallen from him. And he returned and stood by the side of the Jordan. ¹⁴ He took Elijah’s coat that fell from him, and hit the water and said, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” When he hit the water, it was divided to one side and to the other, and Elisha crossed the Jordan.

¹⁵ The sons of the men who tell what will happen in the future at Jericho saw him. And they said, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” They came to meet him and bowed to the ground in front of him. ¹⁶ They said to him, “Now see, there are fifty strong men with your servants. Let them go and look for your teacher. It might be that the Spirit of the Lord has taken him up and put him down on some mountain or into some valley.” And Elisha said, “Do not send them.” ¹⁷ But they talked to him until he was ashamed, and he said, “Send them.” So they sent fifty men to look for Elijah. But after three days they did not find him. ¹⁸ They returned to Elisha while he was staying at Jericho. And he said to them, “Did I not tell you, ‘Do not go’?”

Powerful Works of Elisha

¹⁹ Then the men of the city said to Elisha, “See, it is pleasing to live in this city, as my lord sees. But the water is bad. And the land does not bring fruit.” ²⁰ Elisha said, “Bring me a new jar, and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him. ²¹ Then he went out to the well of water and threw salt into it, and said, “This is what the Lord says, ‘I have made this water pure. It will not cause death or loss of fruit any more.’” ²² So the water has been pure to this day, just as Elisha said.

¹⁷ “Brothers, I know you and your leaders did this without knowing what you were doing. ¹⁸ In this way, God did what He said He would do through all the early preachers. He said that Christ must suffer many hard things. ¹⁹ But you must be sorry for your sins and turn from them. You must turn to God and have your sins taken away. Then many times your soul will receive new strength from the Lord. ²⁰ He will send Jesus back to the world. He is the Christ Who long ago was chosen for you. ²¹ But for awhile He must stay in heaven until the time when all things are made right. God said these things would happen through His holy early preachers.

²² “Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up from among your brothers One Who speaks for God, as He raised me. You must listen to everything He says. ²³ Everyone among the people who will not listen to that One Who speaks for God will be put to death.’ ^{(A) 24} All the early preachers who have spoken from Samuel until now have told of these days. ²⁵ You are of the family of the early preachers and of the promise that God made with our early fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘All the families of the earth will receive God’s favor through your children.’ ²⁶ God has raised up His Son Jesus and has sent Him to you first to give God’s favor to each of you who will turn away from his sinful ways.”

Peter and John Are Put in Prison

4 The religious leaders and the leader of the house of God and some of the religious group who believe no one will be raised from the dead came to Peter and John while they were talking to the people. ² They were angry because Peter and John had been teaching the people and preaching that Jesus had been raised from the dead. ³ So they took them and put them in prison until the next day because it was evening. ⁴ But many of those who heard what Peter and John said put their trust in Christ. The group of followers was now about 5,000 men.