Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
17 Yet they still continued to sin against Him,
To (A)rebel against the Most High in the desert.
18 And in their heart they (B)put God to the test
By asking (C)food according to their desire.
19 Then they spoke against God;
They said, “(D)Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?
20 “Behold, He (E)struck the rock so that waters gushed out,
And streams were overflowing;
Can He give bread also?
Will He provide [a](F)meat for His people?”
Elijah at Horeb
9 Then he came there to a cave and lodged there; and behold, (A)the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 He said, “(B)I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, (C)torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And (D)I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”
11 So He said, “(E)Go forth and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by! And (F)a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire (G)a sound of a gentle blowing. 13 When Elijah heard it, (H)he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, (I)a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 14 Then he said, “(J)I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I alone am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”
15 The Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus, and when you have arrived, (K)you shall anoint Hazael king over Aram; 16 and (L)Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint king over Israel; and (M)Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place. 17 It shall come about, the (N)one who escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu (O)shall put to death, and the one who escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall put to death. 18 (P)Yet I will leave 7,000 in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not (Q)kissed him.”
Israel Is Not Cast Away
11 I say then, God has not (A)rejected His people, has He? (B)May it never be! For (C)I too am an Israelite, [a]a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God (D)has not rejected His people whom He (E)foreknew. (F)Or do you not know what the Scripture says in the passage about Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? 3 “Lord, (G)they have killed Your prophets, they have torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they are seeking my life.” 4 But what [b]is the divine response to him? “(H)I have kept for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” 5 In the same way then, there has also come to be at the present time (I)a remnant according to God’s [c]gracious choice. 6 But (J)if it is by grace, it is no longer [d]on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace.
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