Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

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Obadiah Meets Elijah

18 Now it happened ^(A)after many days that the word of Yahweh came to Elijah in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab, and ^(B)I will send rain on the face of the earth.” ² So Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samaria. ³ And Ahab called Obadiah ^(C)who was over the household. (Now Obadiah ^[a](D)feared Yahweh greatly. ⁴ And it happened that ^(E)when Jezebel was cutting down the prophets of Yahweh, Obadiah took one hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave, and ^(F)sustained them with bread and water.) ⁵ Then Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go through the land to all the springs of water and to all the valleys; perhaps we will find grass and keep the horses and mules alive, and not have to cut down some of the cattle.” ⁶ So they divided the land between them to pass through it; Ahab went one way by himself and Obadiah went another way by himself.

⁷ Now it happened that as Obadiah was on the way, behold, Elijah ^[b]met him, ^(G)and he recognized him and fell on his face and said, “Is this you, Elijah my master?” ⁸ And he said to him, “It is I. Go, say to your master, ‘Behold, Elijah is here.’” ⁹ And he said, “What ^[c]sin have I committed, that you are giving your servant into the hand of Ahab to put me to death? ^10 (H)As Yahweh your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent to search for you; and if they said, ‘He is not here,’ he made the kingdom or nation swear that they could not find you. ¹¹ And now you are saying, ‘Go, say to your master, “Behold, Elijah is here.”’ ¹² And it will be that when I leave you, ^(I)the Spirit of Yahweh will carry you where I do not know; and I will come and tell Ahab, and he will not find you, and he will kill me, although I your servant have ^[d]feared Yahweh from my youth. ^13 (J)Has it not been told to my master what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of Yahweh, that I hid ^[e]one hundred prophets of Yahweh by fifties in a cave, and sustained them with bread and water? ¹⁴ So now you are saying, ‘Go, say to your master, “Behold, Elijah is here”’; he will then kill me.” ¹⁵ And Elijah said, “^(K)As Yahweh of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today.” ¹⁶ So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.

¹⁷ Now it happened when Ahab saw Elijah, that ^(L)Ahab said to him, “Is this you, you troubler of Israel?” ¹⁸ And he said, “I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, because ^(M)you have forsaken the commandments of Yahweh and ^(N)you have followed the Baals. ¹⁹ So now then send and gather to me all Israel at ^(O)Mount Carmel, ^(P)together with 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of ^(Q)the Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

Jesus Casts Out an Unclean Demon

³¹ And ^(A)He came down to ^(B)Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and He was teaching them on the Sabbath; ³² and ^(C)they were amazed at His teaching, for ^(D)His ^[a]message was with authority. ³³ And in the synagogue there was a man ^[b]possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, ³⁴ “^[c]Let us alone! ^[d](E)What do we have to do with You, Jesus the ^(F)Nazarene? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—^(G)the Holy One of God!” ³⁵ But Jesus ^(H)rebuked it, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst of the people, it came out of him without doing him any harm. ³⁶ And amazement came upon them all, and they were talking with one another saying, “What is ^[e]this message? For ^(I)with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits and they come out.” ³⁷ And ^(J)the report about Him was spreading into every place in the surrounding district.