Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 132[a]
A song of ascents.[b]
132 O Lord, for David’s sake remember
all his strenuous effort,[c]
2 and how he made a vow to the Lord,
and swore an oath to the Powerful One of Jacob.
3 He said,[d] “I will not enter my own home,[e]
or get into my bed.[f]
4 I will not allow my eyes to sleep,
or my eyelids to slumber,
5 until I find a place for the Lord,
a fine dwelling place[g] for the Powerful One of Jacob.”[h]
6 Look, we heard about it[i] in Ephrathah;[j]
we found it in the territory of Jaar.[k]
7 Let us go to his dwelling place.
Let us worship[l] before his footstool.
8 Ascend, O Lord, to your resting place,
you and the ark of your strength.
9 May your priests be clothed with integrity.[m]
May your loyal followers shout for joy.
10 For the sake of David, your servant,
do not reject your chosen king.[n]
11 The Lord made a reliable promise to David;[o]
he will not go back on his word.[p]
He said,[q] “I will place one of your descendants[r] on your throne.
12 If your sons keep my covenant
and the rules I teach them,
their sons will also sit on your throne forever.”
13 Certainly[a] the Lord has chosen Zion;
he decided to make it his home.[b]
14 He said,[c] “This will be my resting place forever;
I will live here, for I have chosen it.[d]
15 I will abundantly supply what she needs;[e]
I will give her poor all the food they need.[f]
16 I will protect her priests,[g]
and her godly people will shout exuberantly.[h]
17 There I will make David strong;[i]
I have determined that my chosen king’s dynasty will continue.[j]
18 I will humiliate his enemies,[k]
and his crown will shine.”
Josiah Repents
22 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned for thirty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother[a] was Jedidah, daughter of Adaiah, from Bozkath. 2 He did what the Lord approved[b] and followed in his ancestor David’s footsteps;[c] he did not deviate to the right or the left.
3 In the eighteenth year of King Josiah’s reign, the king sent the scribe Shaphan son of Azaliah, son of Meshullam, to the Lord’s temple with these orders:[d] 4 “Go up to Hilkiah the high priest and have him melt down[e] the silver that has been brought by the people to the Lord’s temple and has been collected by the guards at the door. 5 Have them hand it over to the construction foremen[f] assigned to the Lord’s temple. They in turn should pay the temple workers to repair it,[g] 6 including craftsmen, builders, and masons, and should buy wood and chiseled stone for the repair work.[h] 7 Do not audit the foremen who disburse the silver, for they are honest.”[i]
8 Hilkiah the high priest informed Shaphan the scribe, “I found the scroll of the law in the Lord’s temple.” Hilkiah gave the scroll to Shaphan and he read it. 9 Shaphan the scribe went to the king and reported,[j] “Your servants melted down the silver in the temple[k] and handed it over to the construction foremen assigned to the Lord’s temple.” 10 Then Shaphan the scribe told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a scroll.” Shaphan read it out loud before the king.
Stephen is Killed
54 When they heard these things, they became furious[a] and ground their teeth[b] at him. 55 But Stephen,[c] full[d] of the Holy Spirit, looked intently[e] toward heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing[f] at the right hand of God. 56 “Look!” he said.[g] “I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” 57 But they covered their ears,[h] shouting out with a loud voice, and rushed at him with one intent. 58 When[i] they had driven him out of the city, they began to stone him,[j] and the witnesses laid their cloaks[k] at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 They[l] continued to stone Stephen while he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” 60 Then he fell[m] to his knees and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!”[n] When[o] he had said this, he died.[p] 8 1 And Saul agreed completely with killing[q] him.
Saul Begins to Persecute the Church
Now on that day a great[r] persecution began[s] against the church in Jerusalem, and all[t] except the apostles were forced to scatter throughout the regions[u] of Judea and Samaria.
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