Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

A Psalm of Fearless Trust in God.

A Psalm of David.

Elkanah and His Wives

1 Now there was a certain man from ^(A)Ramathaim-zophim from the ^(B)hill country of Ephraim, and his name was ^(C)Elkanah the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. ² He had ^(D)two wives: the name of one was ^(E)Hannah and the name of the other Peninnah; and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.

³ Now this man would go up from his city ^(F)yearly ^(G)to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts in ^(H)Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests to the Lord there. ⁴ When the day came that Elkanah sacrificed, he ^(I)would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and her daughters; ⁵ but to Hannah he would give a double portion, for he loved Hannah, ^(J)but the Lord had closed her womb. ⁶ Her rival, however, ^(K)would provoke her bitterly to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. ⁷ It happened year after year, as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she would provoke her; so she wept and would not eat. ⁸ Then Elkanah her husband said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep and why do you not eat and why is your heart sad? ^(L)Am I not better to you than ten sons?”

⁹ Then Hannah rose after eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost of ^(M)the temple of the Lord. ¹⁰ She, ^[a]greatly distressed, prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. ¹¹ She ^(N)made a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed ^(O)look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a ^[b]son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and ^(P)a razor shall never come on his head.”

¹² Now it came about, as she ^[c]continued praying before the Lord, that Eli was watching her mouth. ¹³ As for Hannah, ^(Q)she was speaking in her heart, only her lips were moving, but her voice was not heard. So Eli thought she was drunk. ¹⁴ Then Eli said to her, “^(R)How long will you make yourself drunk? Put away your wine from you.” ¹⁵ But Hannah replied, “No, my lord, I am a woman ^[d]oppressed in spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I ^(S)have poured out my soul before the Lord. ¹⁶ Do not ^[e]consider your maidservant as a worthless woman, for I have spoken until now out of my great concern and ^[f]provocation.” ¹⁷ Then Eli answered and said, “^(T)Go in peace; and may the God of Israel ^(U)grant your petition that you have asked of Him.” ¹⁸ She said, “^(V)Let your maidservant find favor in your sight.” So the woman went her way and ate, and ^(W)her face was no longer sad.

Samuel Is Born to Hannah

¹⁹ Then they arose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord, and returned again to their house in ^(X)Ramah. And Elkanah ^[g]had relations with Hannah his wife, and ^(Y)the Lord remembered her. ²⁰ It came about ^[h]in due time, after Hannah had conceived, that she gave birth to a son; and she named him Samuel, saying, “^(Z)Because I have asked him of the Lord.”

Paul Defends His Ministry

¹¹ For ^(A)I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is ^(B)not according to man. ¹² For ^(C)I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a ^(D)revelation of Jesus Christ.

¹³ For you have heard of ^(E)my former manner of life in Judaism, how I ^(F)used to persecute ^(G)the church of God beyond measure and ^(H)tried to destroy it; ¹⁴ and I ^(I)was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries among my ^[a]countrymen, being more extremely zealous for my ^(J)ancestral traditions. ¹⁵ But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and ^(K)called me through His grace, was pleased ¹⁶ to reveal His Son in me so that I might ^(L)preach Him among the Gentiles, ^(M)I did not immediately consult with ^[b](N)flesh and blood, ^17 (O)nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to ^(P)Damascus.

¹⁸ Then ^(Q)three years later I went up ^(R)to Jerusalem to ^[c]become acquainted with ^(S)Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days. ¹⁹ But I did not see any other of the apostles except ^[d](T)James, the Lord’s brother. ²⁰ (Now in what I am writing to you, ^[e]I assure you ^(U)before God that I am not lying.) ²¹ Then ^(V)I went into the regions of ^(W)Syria and ^(X)Cilicia. ²² I was still unknown by ^[f]sight to ^(Y)the churches of Judea which were ^(Z)in Christ; ²³ but only, they kept hearing, “He who once persecuted us is now preaching ^(AA)the faith which he once ^(AB)tried to destroy.” ²⁴ And they ^(AC)were glorifying God ^[g]because of me.