Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

A Davidic Psalm.

Praise to the Majestic Lord

² Then Solomon called Israel’s elders together, including all the leaders of the tribes and families of Israel. They met in Jerusalem to transfer the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord from Zion, the City of David. ³ All the men of Israel assembled in front of the king during the Festival of Tents^[a] that takes place in the seventh month^[b] of the year.^[c]

⁴ As soon as all of Israel’s elders had arrived, the descendants of Levi lifted the ark ⁵ and carried it, the tent where God met with his people,^[d] and all of the sacred implements that belonged in the tent. The Levitical priests carried these up to the City of David.^{[e] 6} King Solomon and all the Israelis who had assembled together proceeded ahead of the ark and sacrificed more sheep and oxen than could be counted or recorded due to the number of sacrifices.^[f]

⁷ The priests transported the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord to the place created for it within the inner sanctuary of the Temple, into the Most Holy Place under the wings of the cherubim. ⁸ The wings of the cherubim extended over where the ark and its carrying poles^[g] had been placed, ⁹ but the poles were long enough for their ends to extend to the front of the inner sanctuary, even though they could not be seen from outside. They remain there to this day. ¹⁰ There was nothing in the ark except for the two tablets that Moses had placed there while Israel was encamped^[h] at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelis after he had brought them out of the land of Egypt.

¹¹ After this, the priests vacated the Holy Place. (Meanwhile, all the priests who were participating consecrated themselves, irrespective of their Levitical divisions. ¹² All the musicians who were descendants of Levi, including Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and their sons and relatives wore linen and played cymbals and stringed instruments as they stood east of the altar. Accompanied by 120 priests who played trumpets, ¹³ the trumpeters and musicians played in union, praising and giving thanks to the Lord. They praised the Lord loudly and sang, “He is good, and his gracious love is eternal,” accompanied by the trumpets, cymbals, and other musical instruments.) As they did this,^[i] a cloud filled the Temple, that is, the Lord’s Temple, ¹⁴ and the priests were unable to complete their duties because of the cloud, since the glory of the Lord had filled God’s Temple.

¹⁹ “And so, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision. ²⁰ Instead, I first told the people in Damascus and Jerusalem, then all the people in Judea—and after that the gentiles—to repent, turn to God, and perform deeds that are consistent with such repentance. ²¹ For this reason the Jewish leaders^[a] grabbed me in the Temple and kept trying to kill me. ²² I’ve had help from God to this day, and so I stand here to testify to both the powerful and the lowly alike, stating only what the prophets and Moses said would happen— ²³ that the Messiah^[b] would suffer and be the first to rise from the dead and would bring light both to our people and to the gentiles.”

²⁴ As he continued his defense, Festus shouted, “You’re out of your mind, Paul! Too much education is driving you crazy!”

²⁵ But Paul said, “I’m not out of my mind, Your Excellency Festus. I’m reporting what is absolutely true. ²⁶ Indeed, the king knows about these things, and I can speak to him freely. For I’m certain that none of these things has escaped his notice, since this wasn’t done in a corner. ²⁷ King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you believe them!”

²⁸ Agrippa asked Paul, “Can you so quickly persuade me to become a Christian?”

²⁹ Paul replied, “Whether quickly or not, I wish to God that not only you but everyone listening to me today would become what I am—except for these chains!”