Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

³ Sh’mu’el addressed all the people of Isra’el; he said: “If you are returning to Adonai with all your heart, then be done with the foreign gods and ‘ashtarot that you have with you, and direct your hearts to Adonai. If you will serve only him, he will rescue you from the power of the P’lishtim.” ⁴ So the people of Isra’el banished the ba‘alim and the ‘ashtarot and served only Adonai.

⁵ Sh’mu’el said, “Gather all Isra’el to Mitzpah, and I will pray for you to Adonai.” ⁶ So they gathered together at Mitzpah, drew water and poured it out before Adonai, fasted that day, and said there, “We have sinned against Adonai.” Sh’mu’el began serving as judge over the people of Isra’el at Mitzpah.

⁷ When the P’lishtim heard that the people of Isra’el had gathered together at Mitzpah, the leaders of the P’lishtim marched up against Isra’el; and when the people of Isra’el heard about this, they were afraid of the P’lishtim. ⁸ The people of Isra’el said to Sh’mu’el, “Don’t stop crying out to Adonai our God for us, to save us from the power of the P’lishtim.” ⁹ Sh’mu’el took a baby lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to Adonai. Then Sh’mu’el cried to Adonai for Isra’el, and Adonai answered him. ¹⁰ As Sh’mu’el was presenting the burnt offering, the P’lishtim advanced to attack Isra’el. But this time, Adonai thundered violently over the P’lishtim, throwing them into such confusion that they were struck down before Isra’el. ¹¹ The men of Isra’el went out from Mitzpah, pursuing the P’lishtim and attacking them all the way to Beit-Kar.

¹² Sh’mu’el took a stone, placed it between Mitzpah and Shen, and gave it the name Even-‘Ezer [stone of help], explaining, “Adonai has helped us until now.” ¹³ Thus the P’lishtim were humbled, so that they no longer entered Isra’el’s territory; and the hand of Adonai was against the P’lishtim as long as Sh’mu’el lived. ¹⁴ The cities between ‘Ekron and Gat which the P’lishtim had captured from Isra’el were restored to Isra’el, and Isra’el rescued all this territory from the power of the P’lishtim. There was also peace between Isra’el and the Emori.

¹⁵ Sh’mu’el continued in office as judge of Isra’el as long as he lived. ¹⁶ Year by year he would travel in a circuit that included Beit-El, Gilgal and Mitzpah; and in all these places he served as judge over Isra’el. ¹⁷ Then he would return to Ramah, because that’s where his home was, and he would judge Isra’el there too. He also built an altar there to Adonai.

¹⁹ then he ate some food and regained his strength.

Sha’ul spent some days with the talmidim in Dammesek, ²⁰ and immediately he began proclaiming in the synagogues that Yeshua is the Son of God. ²¹ All who heard him were amazed. They asked, “Isn’t he the man who in Yerushalayim was trying to destroy the people who call on this name? In fact, isn’t that why he came here, to arrest them and bring them back to the head cohanim?” ²² But Sha’ul was being filled with more and more power and was creating an uproar among the Jews living in Dammesek with his proofs that Yeshua is the Messiah.

²³ Quite some time later, the non-believing Jews gathered together and made plans to kill him; ²⁴ but their plot became known to Sha’ul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to do away with him; ²⁵ but under cover of night, his talmidim took him and let him down over the city wall, lowering him in a large basket.

²⁶ On reaching Yerushalayim, he tried to join the talmidim; but they were all afraid of him — they didn’t believe he was a talmid. ²⁷ However, Bar-Nabba got hold of him and took him to the emissaries. He told them how Sha’ul had seen the Lord while traveling, that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Dammesek Sha’ul had spoken out boldly in the name of Yeshua. ²⁸ So he remained with them and went all over Yerushalayim continuing to speak out boldly in the name of the Lord. ²⁹ He talked and debated with the Greek-speaking Jews, but they began making attempts to kill him. ³⁰ When the brothers learned of it, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him away to Tarsus.

³¹ Then the Messianic community throughout Y’hudah, the Galil and Shomron enjoyed peace and was built up. They lived in the fear of the Lord, with the counsel of the Ruach HaKodesh; and their numbers kept multiplying.