Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
8 I will hear what God the Lord will speak,
for He will speak peace to His people and to His saints,
but let them not turn again to folly.
9 Surely His salvation is near to them who fear Him,
that glory may dwell in our land.
10 Mercy and truth have met together;
righteousness and peace have kissed.
11 Truth springs from the ground,
and righteousness looks down from the sky.
12 Yes, the Lord gives that which is good,
and our land shall yield its increase.
13 Righteousness shall go before Him
and prepare a way for His footsteps.
Elijah Confronts Ahab
18 After many days, in the third year, the word of the Lord came to Elijah, saying, “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the earth.” 2 Elijah went to show himself to Ahab.
And there was a great famine in Samaria. 3 Ahab called Obadiah, who was the governor of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly. 4 When Jezebel killed the prophets of the Lord, Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them in groups of fifty in a cave and fed them with bread and water.) 5 And Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go into the land, to all the springs of water and to all the brooks. Perhaps we will find grass to save the horses and mules, so that we do not lose all the beasts.” 6 So they divided the land between them to search throughout it. Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
7 As Obadiah was going along, he met Elijah, and he recognized him and fell on his face and said, “Is that you, my lord Elijah?”
8 And he answered him, “I am. Go, tell your lord, ‘Elijah is here.’ ”
9 He said, “What evil have I done that you would hand your servant into the hand of Ahab to put me to death? 10 As the Lord your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my lord has not looked for you, and when they said, ‘He is not here,’ he made the kingdom and nation swear that they could not find you, 11 and now you say, ‘Go, tell your lord, “Elijah is here!” ’ 12 As soon as I am gone from you, the Spirit of the Lord will carry you to a place I do not know, and so when I come and tell Ahab and he cannot find you, he will execute me. But I, your servant, have feared the Lord since my youth. 13 Were you not told what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of the Lord, how I hid a hundred men of the Lord’s prophets in groups of fifty in a cave and fed them with bread and water? 14 And now you say, ‘Go, tell your lord, “Elijah is here,” ’ and he will execute me.”
15 Elijah said, “As the Lord of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today.”
Elijah and the Prophets of Baal
16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him. And Ahab went to meet Elijah.
The Apostles in Berea
10 The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. 11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with all eagerness, daily examining the Scriptures, to find out if these things were so. 12 Therefore many of them believed, including honorable Greek women and many Greek men.
13 But when the Jews of Thessalonica learned that the word of God was preached by Paul at Berea, they came there also, stirring up the crowds. 14 The brothers immediately sent Paul away to the sea. But Silas and Timothy remained there. 15 Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and departed with instructions for Silas and Timothy to come to him quickly.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.