Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Blessing on Those Who Fear God

Psalm 128

6 Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of Bnei-Yisrael—no one going out and no one coming in. ² Then Adonai said to Joshua, “Look, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and mighty warriors. ³ Now you are to march around the city, all the men of war circling the city once. So you are to do for six days. ⁴ Seven kohanim will carry seven shofarot of rams’ horns before the ark. Then on the seventh day you are to circle the city seven times while the kohanim blow the shofarot. ⁵ It will be when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, when you hear the sound of the shofar, have all the people shout a loud shout—then the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people will go up, everyone straight ahead.”

⁶ So Joshua son of Nun summoned the kohanim and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant. Let seven kohanim carry seven shofarot of rams’ horns before the ark of Adonai.” ⁷ Then he said to the people, “Move forward, march around the city, and let the armed force march ahead of the ark of Adonai.”

⁸ And it was so. After Joshua had spoken to the people, seven kohanim carrying the seven shofarot of rams’ horns before Adonai went forward and blew the shofarot, and the ark of the covenant of Adonai followed them. ⁹ Also the armed force went before the kohanim who blew the shofarot, and the rear guard came behind the ark, while the shofarot continued to blow. ¹⁰ But Joshua ordered the people saying: “You must not shout nor let your voice be heard nor let a word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I tell you ‘shout!’ Then you will shout.” ¹¹ So he had the ark of Adonai go around the city, circling it once. Then they came into the camp and spent the night there.

¹² The next day Joshua rose early in the morning. The kohanim took up the ark of Adonai, ¹³ and the seven kohanim carrying the seven shofarot of rams’ horns marched in front of the ark of Adonai and blew the shofarot, with the armed force marching before them and the rear guard marching behind the ark of Adonai, while the shofarot continued to blow. ¹⁴ So the second day they circled the city once and returned to the camp. So they did for six days.

Jericho’s Walls Come Down

¹⁵ Now on the seventh day they rose early, at dawn, and marched around the city in the same way seven times. Only on that day did they march around the city seven times. ¹⁶ Then on the seventh time, when the kohanim blew the shofarot, Joshua ordered the people, “Shout! For Adonai has given you the city!

²⁰ So when the shofarot blew, the people shouted. When the people heard the sound of the shofar, the people shouted a loud shout—and the wall fell down flat! So the people went up into the city, everyone straight ahead, and they captured the city.

Sent Out from Antioch

13 Now in the Antioch community, there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius the Cyrenian, Manaen (brought up since childhood with Herod the Tetrarch), and Saul. ² While they were serving the Lord and fasting, the Ruach ha-Kodesh said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” ³ Then after fasting, praying, and laying hands on them, they sent them off.

⁴ So, sent out by the Ruach ha-Kodesh, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. ⁵ When they arrived at Salamis, they began to proclaim the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. They also had John^[a] as a helper.

⁶ When they had gone throughout the whole island as far as Paphos, they found a man who was a magician—a Jewish false prophet, whose name was Bar-Yeshua. ⁷ He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. ⁸ But Elymas the magician (for so his name is translated) was opposing them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. ⁹ But Saul, who is also Paul, filled with the Ruach ha-Kodesh, fixed his gaze on him ¹⁰ and said, “O you, full of all deceit and trickery, son of the devil, enemy of all righteousness—will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? ^{[b] 11} Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you,^[c] and you shall be blind and not see the sun for awhile.” Immediately, cloudiness and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand. ¹² When he saw what had happened, the proconsul believed, because he was astonished at the teaching about the Lord.