Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

148 Praise ye the Lord from the heavens: praise ye him in the high places.

² Praise ye him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts.

³ Praise ye him, O sun and moon: praise him, all ye stars and light.

⁴ Praise him, ye heavens of heavens: and let all the waters that are above the heavens

⁵ Praise the name of the Lord. For he spoke, and they were made: he commanded, and they were created.

⁶ He hath established them for ever, and for ages of ages: he hath made a decree, and it shall not pass away.

⁷ Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons, and all ye deeps:

⁸ Fire, hail, snow, ice, stormy winds which fulfill his word:

⁹ Mountains and all hills, fruitful trees and all cedars:

¹⁰ Beasts and all cattle: serpents and feathered fowls:

¹¹ Kings of the earth and all people: princes and all judges of the earth:

¹² Young men and maidens: let the old with the younger, praise the name of the Lord:

¹³ For his name alone is exalted.

¹⁴ The praise of him is above heaven and earth: and he hath exalted the horn of his people. A hymn to all his saints: to the children of Israel, a people approaching to him. Alleluia.

¹⁷ And after the death of Joiada, the princes of Juda went in, and worshipped the king: and he was soothed by their services and hearkened to them.

¹⁸ And they forsook the temple of the Lord the God of their fathers, and served groves and idols, and wrath came upon Juda and Jerusalem for this sin.

¹⁹ And he sent prophets to them to bring them back to the Lord, and they would not give ear when they testified against them.

²⁰ The spirit of God then came upon Zacharias the son of Joiada the priest, and he stood in the sight of the people, and said to them: Thus saith the Lord God: Why transgress you the commandment of the Lord which will not be for your good, and have forsaken the Lord, to make him forsake you?

²¹ And they gathered themselves together against him, and stoned him at the king's commandment in the court of the house of the Lord.

²² And king Joas did not remember the kindness that Joiada his father had done to him, but killed his son. And when he died, he said: The Lord see, and require it.

²³ And when a year was come about, the army of Syria came up against him: and they came to Juda and Jerusalem, and killed all the princes of the people, and they sent all the spoils to the king of Damascus.

²⁴ And whereas there came a very small number of the Syrians, the Lord delivered into their hands an infinite multitude, because they had forsaken the Lord the God of their fathers: and on Joas they executed shameful judgments.

6 And in those days, the number of the disciples increasing, there arose a murmuring of the Greeks against the Hebrews, for that their widows were neglected in the daily ministration.

² Then the twelve calling together the multitude of the disciples, said: It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables.

³ Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.

⁴ But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.

⁵ And the saying was liked by all the multitude. And they chose Stephen, a man full of faith, and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas, a proselyte of Antioch.

⁶ These they set before the apostles; and they praying, imposed hands upon them.

⁷ And the word of the Lord increased; and the number of the disciples was multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly: a great multitude also of the priests obeyed the faith.

⁵¹ You stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do you also.

⁵² Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? And they have slain them who foretold of the coming of the Just One; of whom you have been now the betrayers and murderers:

⁵³ Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.

⁵⁴ Now hearing these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed with their teeth at him.

⁵⁵ But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looking up steadfastly to heaven, saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God. And he said: Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.

⁵⁶ And they crying out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and with one accord ran violently upon him.

⁵⁷ And casting him forth without the city, they stoned him; and the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man, whose name was Saul.

⁵⁸ And they stoned Stephen, invoking, and saying: Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.

⁵⁹ And falling on his knees, he cried with a loud voice, saying: Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep in the Lord. And Saul was consenting to his death.