Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Prayer for Mercy in Time of Trouble.

For the music director; with stringed instruments, ^[a]upon an eight-string lyre. A Psalm of David.

Gehazi’s Greed

¹⁵ Then he returned to the man of God ^[a]with all his company, and came and stood before him. And he said, “Behold now, ^(A)I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel; so please ^(B)accept a ^[b]gift from your servant now.” ¹⁶ But he said, “^(C)As surely as the Lord lives, before whom I stand, ^(D)I will accept nothing.” And he urged him to accept it, but he refused. ¹⁷ Then Naaman said, “If not, please let your servant be given two mules’ load of ^(E)earth; for your servant will no longer offer a burnt offering nor a sacrifice to other gods, but to the Lord. ¹⁸ Regarding this matter may the Lord forgive your servant: when my master goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and ^(F)he leans on my hand and I bow down in the house of Rimmon, when I bow down in the house of Rimmon, may the Lord please forgive your servant in this matter.” ¹⁹ He said to him, “^(G)Go in peace.” So he went some distance from him.

²¹ Now after these things were finished, Paul resolved in ^[a]the Spirit to ^(A)go to Jerusalem ^(B)after he had passed through ^(C)Macedonia and ^(D)Achaia, saying, “After I have been there, ^(E)I must also see Rome.” ²² And after he sent into ^(F)Macedonia two of ^(G)those who assisted him, ^(H)Timothy and ^(I)Erastus, he himself stayed in ^[b](J)Asia for a while.

²³ About that time ^[c]a major disturbance occurred in regard to ^[d](K)the Way. ²⁴ For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of ^[e]Artemis, ^(L)was bringing ^[f]considerable ^[g]business to the craftsmen; ²⁵ he gathered these men together with the workmen of similar trades, and said, “Men, you know that our prosperity ^[h]depends upon this business. ²⁶ You see and hear that not only in ^(M)Ephesus, but in almost all of ^[i](N)Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a considerable number of people, saying that ^[j](O)gods made by hands are not gods at all. ²⁷ Not only is there danger that this trade of ours will fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess ^[k]Artemis will be regarded as worthless, and that she whom all of ^[l](P)Asia and ^(Q)the ^[m]world worship will even be dethroned from her magnificence.”