Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
74 1 The faithful complain of the destruction of the Church and true religion, 2 Under the Name of Zion, and the Temple destroyed: 11 and trusting in the might and free mercies of God, 20 by his covenant , 21 they require help and succor for the glory of God’s holy Name, for the salvation of his poor afflicted servants, 23 and the confusion of his proud enemies.
A Psalm to give instruction, committed to Asaph.
1 O God, [a]why hast thou put us away forever? why is thy wrath kindled against the sheep of thy pasture?
2 Think upon the congregation, which thou hast possessed of old, and on the [b]rod of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed, and on this mount Zion, wherein thou hast dwelt.
3 Lift up thy [c]strokes, that thou mayest forever destroy every enemy that doeth evil to the Sanctuary.
4 Thine adversaries roar in the midst of thy congregation, and [d]set up their banners for signs.
5 He that [e]lifted the axes upon the thick trees, was renowned as one that brought a thing to perfection:
6 But now they break down the carved work thereof with axes and hammers.
7 They have cast thy Sanctuary into the fire, and razed it to the ground, and have defiled the dwelling place of thy Name.
8 They said in their [f]hearts, Let us destroy them altogether: they have burnt all the Synagogues of God in the land.
9 We see not our signs: there is not one Prophet more, nor any with us that knoweth [g]how long.
10 O God, how long shall the adversary reproach thee? shall the enemy blaspheme thy Name forever?
11 Why withdrawest thou thine hand, even thy right hand? draw it out of thy bosom, and [h]consume them.
12 Even God is my king of old, working salvation [i]in the midst of the earth.
13 Thou didst divide the sea by thy power: thou brakest the heads of the [j]dragons in the waters.
14 Thou brakest the head of [k]Leviathan in pieces, and gavest him to be [l]meat for the people in wilderness.
15 Thou brakest up the fountain and river: thou driest up mighty rivers.
16 The [m]day is thine, and the night is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun.
17 Thou hast set all the borders of the earth: thou hast made Summer and Winter.
18 Remember this, that the enemy hath reproached the Lord, and the foolish people hath blasphemed thy Name.
19 Give not the soul of thy [n]turtle dove unto the beast, and forget not the Congregation of thy poor forever.
20 Consider thy covenant: for [o]the dark places of the earth are full of the habitations of the cruel.
21 O let not the oppressed return ashamed, but let the poor and needy praise thy Name.
22 Arise, O God: maintain thy [p]own cause: remember thy daily reproach by the foolish man.
23 Forget not the voice of thine enemies: for the tumult of them that rise against thee, [q]ascendeth continually.
17 And when Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?
18 And he answered, I have not troubled Israel, but [a]thou and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baal.
19 Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel’s table.
20 ¶ So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel.
21 And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long [b]halt ye between two opinions? If the Lord be God, follow him, but if Baal be he, then go after him. And the people answered him not a word.
22 Then said Elijah unto the people, I only remain a Prophet of the Lord: but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.
23 Let them therefore give us two bullocks, and let them choose the one, and cut him in pieces, and lay him on the wood, but put no fire under, and I will prepare the other bullock, and lay him on the wood, and will put no fire under.
24 Then call ye on the name of your god, and I will call on the Name of the Lord: and then the God that answereth [c]by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered, and said, It is well spoken.
25 And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you a bullock, and prepare him first, (for ye are many) and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under.
26 So they took the one bullock that was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning to noon, saying, O Baal, hear us: but there was no voice, nor any to answer: and they [d]leapt upon the altar that was made.
27 And at noon Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a [e]god: either he talketh or pursueth his enemies, or is in his journey, or it may be that he sleepeth, and must be [f]awaked.
28 And they cried loud, and cut themselves as their manner was, with knives and lancers, till the blood gushed out upon them.
29 And when midday was passed, and they had prophesied until the offering of the evening sacrifice, there was neither voice, nor one to answer, nor any that regarded.
30 And Elijah said unto all the people, Come to me. And all the people came to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down.
31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, (unto whom the word of the Lord came, saying, (A)Israel shall be thy name)
32 And with the stones he built an altar in the Name of the Lord: and he made a ditch round about the altar, as great as would contain two [g]measures of seed.
33 And he put the wood in order, and hewed the bullock in pieces, and laid him in the wood:
34 And said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour it upon the burnt offering and on the wood. Again he said, Do so again. And they did so the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time.
35 And the water ran round about the altar: and he [h]filled the ditch with water also.
36 And when they should offer the evening sacrifice, Elijah the Prophet came and said, Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day, that thou art the God of Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy commandment.
37 Hear me, O Lord, hear me, and let this people know that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart again [i]at the last.
38 Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the ditch.
39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces, and said, The Lord is God, the Lord is God.
40 And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal, let not [j]a man of them escape: and they took them, and Elijah brought them to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.
7 [a]And when the [b]thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
8 [c]And shall go out to deceive the people, which are in the four quarters of the earth: even (A)Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the Sea.
9 And they went up into the [d]plain of the earth, and they compassed the tents of the Saints about, and the beloved city: but [e]fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
10 [f]And the devil that deceived them, was cast into a lake of fire and brimstone, where that beast and that false prophet are, and shall be tormented even day and night for evermore.
11 [g]And I saw a great [h]white throne, and one that sat on it, [i]from whose face fled away both the earth and heaven, and their place was no more found.
12 And I saw the dead, both great and small stand before [j]God: and the [k]books were opened, and (B)another book was opened, which is the book [l]of life, and the dead were judged of those things, which were written in the books, according to their works.
13 [m]And the sea gave up her dead, which were in her, and death and hell delivered up the dead, which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
14 [n]And death, and hell were cast into the lake of fire: this is the second death.
15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life, was cast into the lake of fire.
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.