Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Peter's Report to the Church at Jerusalem

11 The apostles and the other believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. ² When Peter went to Jerusalem, those who were in favor of circumcising Gentiles criticized him, saying, ³ “You were a guest in the home of uncircumcised Gentiles, and you even ate with them!” ⁴ So Peter gave them a complete account of what had happened from the very beginning:

⁵ “While I was praying in the city of Joppa, I had a vision. I saw something coming down that looked like a large sheet being lowered by its four corners from heaven, and it stopped next to me. ⁶ I looked closely inside and saw domesticated and wild animals, reptiles, and wild birds. ⁷ Then I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat!’ ⁸ But I said, ‘Certainly not, Lord! No ritually unclean or defiled food has ever entered my mouth.’ ⁹ The voice spoke again from heaven, ‘Do not consider anything unclean that God has declared clean.’ ¹⁰ This happened three times, and finally the whole thing was drawn back up into heaven. ¹¹ At that very moment three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea arrived at the house where I was^[a] staying. ¹² The Spirit told me to go with them without hesitation. These six fellow believers from Joppa accompanied me to Caesarea, and we all went into the house of Cornelius. ¹³ He told us how he had seen an angel standing in his house, who said to him, ‘Send someone to Joppa for a man whose full name is Simon Peter. ¹⁴ He will speak words to you by which you and all your family will be saved.’ ¹⁵ And when I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came down on them just as on us at the beginning. ^16 (A)Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ ¹⁷ It is clear that God gave those Gentiles the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ; who was I, then, to try to stop God!”

¹⁸ When they heard this, they stopped their criticism and praised God, saying, “Then God has given to the Gentiles also the opportunity to repent and live!”

A Call for the Universe to Praise God

The New Heaven and the New Earth

21 ^(A)Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The first heaven and the first earth disappeared, and the sea vanished. ^2 (B)And I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared and ready, like a bride dressed to meet her husband. ^3 (C)I heard a loud voice speaking from the throne: “Now God's home is with people! He will live with them, and they shall be his people. God himself will be with them, and he will be their God. ^4 (D)He will wipe away all tears from their eyes. There will be no more death, no more grief or crying or pain. The old things have disappeared.”

⁵ Then the one who sits on the throne said, “And now I make all things new!” He also said to me, “Write this, because these words are true and can be trusted.” ^6 (E)And he said, “It is done! I am the first and the last, the beginning and the end. To anyone who is thirsty I will give the right to drink from the spring of the water of life without paying for it.

The New Commandment

³¹ After Judas had left, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man's glory is revealed; now God's glory is revealed through him. ³² And if God's glory is revealed through him, then God will reveal the glory of the Son of Man in himself, and he will do so at once. ^33 (A)My children, I shall not be with you very much longer. You will look for me; but I tell you now what I told the Jewish authorities, ‘You cannot go where I am going.’ ^34 (B)And now I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. ³⁵ If you have love for one another, then everyone will know that you are my disciples.”