Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

125 A Song of the Ascents. Those trusting in Jehovah [are] as Mount Zion, It is not moved -- to the age it abideth.

² Jerusalem! mountains [are] round about her, And Jehovah [is] round about His people, From henceforth even unto the age.

³ For the rod of wickedness resteth not On the lot of the righteous, That the righteous put not forth on iniquity their hands.

⁴ Do good, O Jehovah, to the good, And to the upright in their hearts.

⁵ As to those turning [to] their crooked ways, Jehovah causeth them to go with workers of iniquity. Peace on Israel!

⁹ And it cometh to pass, at their passing over, that Elijah hath said unto Elisha, `Ask, what do I do for thee before I am taken from thee?' and Elisha saith, `Then let there be, I pray thee, a double portion of thy spirit unto me;'

¹⁰ and he saith, `Thou hast asked a hard thing; if thou dost see me taken from thee, it is to thee so; and if not, it is not.'

¹¹ And it cometh to pass, they are going, going on and speaking, and lo, a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and they separate between them both, and Elijah goeth up in a whirlwind, to the heavens.

¹² And Elisha is seeing, and he is crying, `My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and its horsemen;' and he hath not seen him again; and he taketh hold on his garments, and rendeth them into two pieces.

¹³ And he taketh up the robe of Elijah, that fell from off him, and turneth back and standeth on the edge of the Jordan,

¹⁴ and he taketh the robe of Elijah that fell from off him, and smiteth the waters, and saith, `Where [is] Jehovah, God of Elijah -- even He?' and he smiteth the waters, and they are halved, hither and thither, and Elisha passeth over.

¹⁵ And they see him -- the sons of the prophets who [are] in Jericho -- over-against, and they say, `Rested hath the spirit of Elijah on Elisha;' and they come to meet him, and bow themselves to him to the earth,

¹⁶ and say unto him, `Lo, we pray thee, there are with thy servants fifty men, sons of valour: let them go, we pray thee, and they seek thy lord, lest the Spirit of Jehovah hath taken him up, and doth cast him on one of the hills, or into one of the valleys;' and he saith, `Ye do not send.'

¹⁷ And they press upon him, till he is ashamed, and he saith, `Send ye;' and they send fifty men, and they seek three days, and have not found him;

¹⁸ and they turn back unto him -- and he is abiding in Jericho -- and he saith unto them, `Did I not say unto you, Do not go?'

¹⁹ And the men of the city say unto Elisha, `Lo, we pray thee, the site of the city [is] good, as my lord seeth, and the waters [are] bad, and the earth sterile.'

²⁰ And he saith, `Bring to me a new dish, and place there salt;' and they bring [it] unto him,

²¹ and he goeth out unto the source of the waters, and casteth there salt, and saith, `Thus said Jehovah, I have given healing to these waters; there is not thence any more death and sterility.'

²² And the waters are healed unto this day, according to the word of Elisha, that he spake.

¹⁷ `And now, brethren, I have known that through ignorance ye did [it], as also your rulers;

¹⁸ and God, what things before He had declared through the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ should suffer, He did thus fulfil;

¹⁹ reform ye, therefore, and turn back, for your sins being blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,

²⁰ and He may send Jesus Christ who before hath been preached to you,

²¹ whom it behoveth heaven, indeed, to receive till times of a restitution of all things, of which God spake through the mouth of all His holy prophets from the age.

²² `For Moses, indeed, unto the fathers said -- A prophet to you shall the Lord your God raise up out of your brethren, like to me; him shall ye hear in all things, as many as he may speak unto you;

²³ and it shall be, every soul that may not hear that prophet shall be utterly destroyed out of the people;

²⁴ and also all the prophets from Samuel and those following in order, as many as spake, did also foretell of these days.

²⁵ `Ye are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant that God made unto our fathers, saying unto Abraham: And in thy seed shall be blessed all the families of the earth;

²⁶ to you first, God, having raised up His child Jesus, did send him, blessing you, in the turning away of each one from your evil ways.'

4 And as they are speaking unto the people, there came to them the priests, and the magistrate of the temple, and the Sadducees --

² being grieved because of their teaching the people, and preaching in Jesus the rising again out of the dead --

³ and they laid hands upon them, and did put them in custody unto the morrow, for it was evening already;

⁴ and many of those hearing the word did believe, and the number of the men became, as it were, five thousand.