Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Prayer of an Old Man for Deliverance.

Josiah Succeeds Amon in Judah

34 ^(A)Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. ^2 (B)He did right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of his father David and did not turn aside to the right or to the left. ³ For in the eighth year of his reign while he was still a youth, he began to ^(C)seek the God of his father David; and in the twelfth year he began ^(D)to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherim, the carved images and the molten images. ⁴ They tore down the altars of the Baals in his presence, and ^(E)the incense altars that were high above them he chopped down; also the Asherim, the carved images and the molten images he broke in pieces and ^(F)ground to powder and scattered it on the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. ⁵ Then ^(G)he burned the bones of the priests on their altars and purged Judah and Jerusalem. ^6 (H)In the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, Simeon, even as far as Naphtali, in their surrounding ruins, ⁷ he also tore down the altars and ^(I)beat the Asherim and the carved images into powder, and chopped down all the incense altars throughout the land of Israel. Then he returned to Jerusalem.

⁴⁴ While Peter was still speaking these words, ^(A)the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the ^[a]message. ^45 (B)All the ^[b]circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been ^(C)poured out on the Gentiles also. ⁴⁶ For they were hearing them ^(D)speaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter answered, ⁴⁷ “^(E)Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who ^(F)have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?” ⁴⁸ And he ^(G)ordered them to be baptized ^(H)in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days.