Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
29 Praise the Lord, you angels of his; praise his glory and his strength. 2 Praise him for his majestic glory, the glory of his name. Come before him clothed in sacred garments.
3 The voice of the Lord echoes from the clouds. The God of glory thunders through the skies. 4 So powerful is his voice; so full of majesty. 5-6 It breaks down the cedars. It splits the giant trees of Lebanon. It shakes Mount Lebanon and Mount Sirion. They leap and skip before him like young calves! 7 The voice of the Lord thunders through the lightning. 8 It resounds through the deserts and shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. 9 The voice of the Lord spins and topples the mighty oaks.[a] It strips the forests bare. They whirl and sway beneath the blast. But in his Temple all are praising, “Glory, glory to the Lord.”
10 At the Flood the Lord showed his control of all creation. Now he continues to unveil his power. 11 He will give his people strength. He will bless them with peace.
10 And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!”
And Samuel replied, “Yes, I’m listening.”
11 Then the Lord said to Samuel, “I am going to do a shocking thing in Israel. 12 I am going to do all of the dreadful things I warned Eli about. 13 I have continually threatened him and his entire family with punishment because his sons are blaspheming God, and he doesn’t stop them. 14 So I have vowed that the sins of Eli and of his sons shall never be forgiven by sacrifices and offerings.”
15 Samuel stayed in bed until morning, then opened the doors of the Temple as usual, for he was afraid to tell Eli what the Lord had said to him. 16-17 But Eli called him.
“My son,” he said, “what did the Lord say to you? Tell me everything. And may God punish you if you hide anything from me!”
18 So Samuel told him what the Lord had said.
“It is the Lord’s will,” Eli replied; “let him do what he thinks best.”
19 As Samuel grew, the Lord was with him and people listened carefully to his advice. 20 And all Israel from one end of the land to the other knew that Samuel was going to be a prophet of the Lord. 21 Then the Lord began to give messages to him there at the Tabernacle in Shiloh, 4 1 and he passed them on to the people of Israel.
At that time Israel was at war with the Philistines. The Israeli army was camped near Ebenezer, the Philistines at Aphek.
10 Now there was in Damascus a believer named Ananias. The Lord spoke to him in a vision, calling, “Ananias!”
“Yes, Lord!” he replied.
11 And the Lord said, “Go over to Straight Street and find the house of a man named Judas and ask there for Paul of Tarsus. He is praying to me right now, for 12 I have shown him a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and laying his hands on him so that he can see again!”
13 “But Lord,” exclaimed Ananias, “I have heard about the terrible things this man has done to the believers in Jerusalem! 14 And we hear that he has arrest warrants with him from the chief priests, authorizing him to arrest every believer in Damascus!”
15 But the Lord said, “Go and do what I say. For Paul is my chosen instrument to take my message to the nations and before kings, as well as to the people of Israel. 16 And I will show him how much he must suffer for me.”
17 So Ananias went over and found Paul and laid his hands on him and said, “Brother Paul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road, has sent me so that you may be filled with the Holy Spirit and get your sight back.”
18 Instantly (it was as though scales fell from his eyes) Paul could see and was immediately baptized. 19 Then he ate and was strengthened.
He stayed with the believers in Damascus for a few days
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.