Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

⁴ Mesha king of Moab raised sheep. He had to give 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 male sheep to the king of Israel. ⁵ But when Ahab died, the king of Moab turned against the king of Israel. ⁶ So King Joram went out from Samaria and gathered all Israel. ⁷ He sent messengers to Jehoshaphat king of Judah. He said, “The king of Moab has turned against me. Will you go with me against Moab in battle?”

Jehoshaphat said, “I will go with you. I am ready to join you. My soldiers and my horses are ready to join with your army.”

⁸ Jehoshaphat asked, “Which way should we go to attack?”

Joram answered, “Through the Desert of Edom.”

⁹ So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom. They marched seven days. There was no more water for the army or for their animals that were with them. ¹⁰ The king of Israel said, “How terrible this is! Has the Lord called us three kings together so the Moabites can defeat us?”

¹¹ But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there a prophet of the Lord here? We can ask the Lord through a prophet.”

An officer of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He was Elijah’s servant.”

¹² Jehoshaphat said, “He speaks the Lord’s truth.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to see Elisha.

¹³ Elisha spoke to the king of Israel. He said, “I have nothing to do with you! Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother!”

The king of Israel said to Elisha, “No. The Lord has called us three kings together to let the Moabites defeat us.”

¹⁴ Elisha said, “I serve the Lord of heaven’s armies. As surely as he lives, I tell you the truth. I wouldn’t even look at you or notice you if Jehoshaphat king of Judah were not here. I respect him! ¹⁵ Now bring me someone who plays the harp.”

While the harp was being played, the Lord gave Elisha power. ¹⁶ Then Elisha said, “The Lord says to dig holes in the valley. ¹⁷ He says that you won’t see wind or rain. But the valley will be filled with water. Then you, your cattle and other animals will drink. ¹⁸ This is easy for the Lord to do. He will also let you defeat Moab. ¹⁹ You will destroy every strong, walled city and every important town. You will cut down every good tree. You will stop up all springs of water. You will ruin every good field with rocks.”

²⁰ The next morning, about the time the sacrifice was offered, there was water! It came from the direction of Edom and filled the valley.

¹² God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So always do these things: Show mercy to others; be kind, humble, gentle, and patient. ¹³ Do not be angry with each other, but forgive each other. If someone does wrong to you, then forgive him. Forgive each other because the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴ Do all these things; but most important, love each other. Love is what holds you all together in perfect unity. ¹⁵ Let the peace that Christ gives control your thinking. You were all called together in one body^[a] to have peace. Always be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the teaching of Christ live in you richly. Use all wisdom to teach and strengthen each other. Sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. ¹⁷ Everything you say and everything you do should all be done for Jesus your Lord. And in all you do, give thanks to God the Father through Jesus.