Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

2 When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were going from Gilgal.

² And Elijah said to Elisha, Tarry here, I pray you, for the Lord has sent me to Bethel. But Elisha replied, As the Lord lives and as your soul lives, I will not leave you. So they went down to Bethel.

³ The prophets’ sons who were at Bethel came to Elisha and said, Do you know that the Lord will take your master away from you today? He said, Yes, I know it; hold your peace.

⁴ Elijah said to him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray you, for the Lord has sent me to Jericho. But he said, As the Lord lives and as your soul lives, I will not leave you. So they came to Jericho.

⁵ The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho came to Elisha and said, Do you know that the Lord will take your master away from you today? And he answered, Yes, I know it; hold your peace.

⁶ Elijah said to him, Tarry here, I pray you, for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan. But he said, As the Lord lives and as your soul lives, I will not leave you. And the two of them went on.

⁷ Fifty men of the sons of the prophets also went and stood [to watch] afar off; and the two of them stood by the Jordan.

⁸ And Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up and struck the waters, and they divided this way and that, so that the two of them went over on dry ground.

⁹ And when they had gone over, Elijah said to Elisha, Ask what I shall do for you before I am taken from you. And Elisha said, I pray you, let a double portion of your spirit be upon me.

¹⁰ He said, You have asked a hard thing. However, if you see me when I am taken from you, it shall be so for you—but if not, it shall not be so.

¹¹ As they still went on and talked, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire parted the two of them, and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

¹² And Elisha saw it and he cried, My father, my father! The chariot of Israel and its horsemen! And he saw him no more. And he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.

Psalm 50

A Psalm of ^[a]Asaph.

¹ The Mighty One, God, the Lord, speaks and calls the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.

² Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth.

³ Our God comes and does not keep silence; a fire devours before Him, and round about Him a mighty tempest rages.

⁴ He calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that He may judge His people:

⁵ Gather together to Me My saints [those who have found grace in My sight], those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.

⁶ And the heavens declare His righteousness (rightness and justice), for God, He is judge. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!

³ But even if our Gospel (the glad tidings) also be hidden (obscured and covered up with a veil that hinders the knowledge of God), it is hidden [only] to those who are perishing and obscured [only] to those who are spiritually dying and veiled [only] to those who are lost.

⁴ For the god of this world has blinded the unbelievers’ minds [that they should not discern the truth], preventing them from seeing the illuminating light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ (the Messiah), Who is the Image and Likeness of God.

⁵ For what we preach is not ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves [merely] as your servants (slaves) for Jesus’ sake.

⁶ For God Who said, Let light shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts so as [to beam forth] the Light for the illumination of the knowledge of the majesty and glory of God [as it is manifest in the Person and is revealed] in the face of Jesus Christ (the Messiah).^(A)

² Six days after this, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John and led them up on a high mountain apart by themselves. And He was transfigured before them and became resplendent with divine brightness.

³ And His garments became glistening, intensely white, as no fuller (cloth dresser, launderer) on earth could bleach them.

⁴ And Elijah appeared [there] to them, accompanied by Moses, and they were ^[a]holding [a protracted] conversation with Jesus.

⁵ And ^[b]Peter took up the conversation, saying, Master, it is good and suitable and beautiful for us to be here. Let us make three booths (tents)—one for You and one for Moses and one for Elijah.

⁶ For he did not [really] know what to say, for they were in a violent fright (^[c]aghast with dread).

⁷ And a cloud threw a shadow upon them, and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is My Son, the [^[d]most dearworthy] Beloved One. Be ^[e]constantly listening to and obeying Him!

⁸ And looking around, they suddenly no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus only.

⁹ And as they were coming back down the mountain, He admonished and ^[f]expressly ordered them to tell no one what they had seen until the Son of Man should rise from among the dead.