Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
The Voice of Yahweh
A Psalm of David.
29 (A)Ascribe to Yahweh, O [a]sons of the mighty,
Ascribe to Yahweh glory and strength.
2 Ascribe to Yahweh the glory of His name;
Worship Yahweh (B)in the splendor of holiness.
3 The (C)voice of Yahweh is upon the waters;
The God of glory (D)thunders,
Yahweh is over [b](E)many waters.
4 The voice of Yahweh is (F)powerful,
The voice of Yahweh is full of splendor.
5 The voice of Yahweh breaks the cedars;
Indeed, Yahweh breaks in pieces (G)the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He makes Lebanon (H)skip like a calf,
And (I)Sirion like a young wild ox.
7 The voice of Yahweh hews out [c]flames of fire.
8 The voice of Yahweh causes the wilderness to tremble;
Yahweh causes the wilderness of (J)Kadesh to tremble.
9 The voice of Yahweh makes (K)the deer to calve
And strips the forests bare;
And (L)in His temple everything says, “Glory!”
Samuel Judges Israel
3 Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “(A)If you are to return to Yahweh with all your heart, then (B)remove the foreign gods and the (C)Ashtaroth from among you and (D)set your hearts toward Yahweh and (E)serve Him alone; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.” 4 So the sons of Israel removed the Baals and the Ashtaroth and served Yahweh alone.
5 Then Samuel said, “Gather all Israel to (F)Mizpah, and (G)I will pray to Yahweh for you.” 6 And they gathered to Mizpah and drew water and (H)poured it out before Yahweh and (I)fasted on that day and said there, “(J)We have sinned against Yahweh.” And Samuel judged the sons of Israel at Mizpah.
7 Then the Philistines heard that the sons of Israel had gathered to Mizpah. And the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. Then the sons of Israel heard it and (K)were afraid of the Philistines. 8 So the sons of Israel said to Samuel, “(L)Do not cease to cry out to Yahweh our God for us, that He may save us from the hand of the Philistines.” 9 And Samuel took (M)a suckling lamb and offered it for a whole burnt offering to Yahweh; and Samuel cried out to Yahweh for Israel, and (N)Yahweh answered him. 10 Now Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, and the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel. But (O)Yahweh thundered with a great [a]thunder on that day against the Philistines and (P)confused them, so that they were [b]defeated before Israel. 11 So the men of Israel went out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines and struck them down as far as below Beth-car.
12 Then Samuel (Q)took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and he named it [c]Ebenezer. And he said, “Thus far Yahweh has helped us.” 13 (R)So the Philistines were subdued, and (S)they did not come anymore within the border of Israel. And the hand of Yahweh was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. 14 And the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron even to Gath; and Israel delivered their territory from the hand of the Philistines. So there was peace between Israel and (T)the Amorites.
15 Thus Samuel (U)judged Israel all the days of his life. 16 And he used to go annually on circuit to (V)Bethel and (W)Gilgal and (X)Mizpah, and he judged Israel in all these places. 17 But his return would be to (Y)Ramah, for his house was there, and there he judged Israel; and he (Z)built there an altar to Yahweh.
19 and he took food and was strengthened.
Saul Begins to Preach Christ
Now (A)for several days he was with (B)the disciples who were at Damascus, 20 and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus (C)in the synagogues, [a]saying, “He is (D)the Son of God.” 21 And all those hearing him continued to be astounded, and were saying, “Is this not the one who in Jerusalem (E)destroyed those that (F)called on this name, and who had come here for the purpose of bringing them bound before the chief priests?” 22 But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this One is the [b]Christ.
23 And when (G)many days had elapsed, (H)the Jews plotted together to put him to death, 24 but (I)their plot became known to Saul. (J)They were also watching the gates day and night so that they might put him to death; 25 but his disciples took him by night and let him down through the wall, lowering him in a large basket.
26 (K)And when he came to Jerusalem, he was trying to associate with the disciples, [c]but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. 27 But (L)Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and recounted to them how he had (M)seen the Lord on the road, and that He had talked to him, and how (N)at Damascus he had (O)spoken out boldly in the name of Jesus. 28 So he was with them, [d]moving about freely in Jerusalem, (P)speaking out boldly in the name of the Lord. 29 And he was talking and arguing with the [e](Q)Hellenistic Jews, but they were attempting to put him to death. 30 But when (R)the brothers learned of it, they brought him down to (S)Caesarea and (T)sent him away to (U)Tarsus.
31 So (V)the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria was having peace, being built up. And going on in the fear of the Lord and in the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, it continued to multiply.
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