Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
V
24 How varied are your works, Lord!
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.(A)
25 There is the sea, great and wide!
It teems with countless beings,
living things both large and small.(B)
26 There ships ply their course
and Leviathan,[a] whom you formed to play with.(C)
VI
27 All of these look to you
to give them food in due time.(D)
28 When you give it to them, they gather;
when you open your hand, they are well filled.
29 [b]When you hide your face, they panic.
Take away their breath, they perish
and return to the dust.(E)
30 Send forth your spirit, they are created
and you renew the face of the earth.
VII
31 May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
may the Lord be glad in his works!
32 Who looks at the earth and it trembles,
touches the mountains and they smoke!(F)
33 I will sing to the Lord all my life;
I will sing praise to my God while I live.(G)
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him;
I will rejoice in the Lord.
35 May sinners vanish from the earth,
and the wicked be no more.
Bless the Lord, my soul! Hallelujah![a]
VI. Elisha Succeeds Elijah[a]
Chapter 2
Elijah’s Journey. 1 When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, he and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal.[b]
2 Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here, please. The Lord has sent me on to Bethel.” Elisha replied, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. 3 The guild prophets who were in Bethel went out to Elisha and asked him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take your master from you?” He replied, “Yes, I know that. Be still.”
4 Elijah said to him, “Elisha, stay here, please. The Lord has sent me on to Jericho.” Elisha replied, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they came to Jericho. 5 The guild prophets who were in Jericho approached Elisha and asked him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take your master from you?” He replied, “Yes, I know that. Be still.”
6 Elijah said to him, “Stay here, please. The Lord has sent me on to the Jordan.” Elisha replied, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two went on together. 7 Fifty of the guild prophets followed and stood facing them at a distance, while the two of them stood next to the Jordan.
Elisha Succeeds Elijah. 8 Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up and struck the water: it divided, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground.(A)
9 (B)When they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha, “Request whatever I might do for you, before I am taken from you.” Elisha answered, “May I receive a double portion of your spirit.”[c] 10 He replied, “You have asked something that is not easy. Still, if you see me taken up from you, your wish will be granted; otherwise not.” 11 As they walked on still conversing, a fiery chariot and fiery horses came between the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind,(C) 12 and Elisha saw it happen. He cried out, “My father! my father![d] Israel’s chariot and steeds!” Then he saw him no longer.
He gripped his own garment, tore it into two pieces, 13 and picked up the mantle which had fallen from Elijah. Then he went back and stood at the bank of the Jordan. 14 Wielding the mantle which had fallen from Elijah, he struck the water and said, “The Lord, the God of Elijah—where is he now?”[e] He struck the water: it divided, and he crossed over.
Elisha’s Journey. 15 The guild prophets in Jericho, who were on the other side, saw him and said, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” They went to meet him, bowing to the ground before him.(D)
II. The Infancy Narrative[a]
Announcement of the Birth of John. 5 In the days of Herod, King of Judea,[b] there was a priest named Zechariah of the priestly division of Abijah; his wife was from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.(A) 6 Both were righteous in the eyes of God, observing all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. 7 But they had no child,[c] because Elizabeth was barren and both were advanced in years.(B) 8 Once when he was serving as priest in his division’s turn before God, 9 according to the practice of the priestly service, he was chosen by lot to enter the sanctuary of the Lord to burn incense.(C) 10 Then, when the whole assembly of the people was praying outside at the hour of the incense offering, 11 the angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right of the altar of incense. 12 Zechariah was troubled by what he saw, and fear came upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid,[d] Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall name him John.(D) 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 15 for he will be great in the sight of [the] Lord. He will drink neither wine nor strong drink.[e] He will be filled with the holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb,(E) 16 and he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah[f] to turn the hearts of fathers toward children and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous, to prepare a people fit for the Lord.”(F)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.