Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 132(A)
A Song of Ascents.
1 O Lord, remember David
and all his afflictions,
2 how he swore unto the Lord,
and vowed unto the mighty God of Jacob:
3 “I will not come into my house,
nor go up to my bed;
4 I will not give sleep to my eyes,
or slumber to my eyelids,
5 until I find a place for the Lord,
a dwelling for the mighty God of Jacob.”
6 We heard of it in Ephrathah;
we found it in the fields of Jaar.
7 “We will go to His dwelling place,
we will worship at His footstool.”
8 Arise, O Lord, go to Your resting place,
You and the ark of Your strength.
9 Let Your priests be clothed with righteousness,
and let Your godly ones shout for joy.
10 For Your servant David’s sake,
do not turn away Your anointed king.
11 The Lord has sworn with a sure oath to David
that He will not turn from it:
“From the fruit of your body
I will set a son on your throne.
12 If your children will keep My covenant
and My testimonies that I shall teach them,
then their children shall also sit
upon your throne forever.”
13 For the Lord has chosen Zion;
He has desired it for His dwelling:
14 “This is My resting place forever;
here I will dwell, for I have chosen it.
15 I will abundantly bless her provisions;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation,
and her godly ones shall shout for joy.
17 “There I will make a horn sprout for David;
I have prepared a lamp for My anointed one.
18 His enemies I will clothe with shame,
but on him his crown will shine.”
Josiah, King of Judah(A)
22 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jedidah daughter of Adaiah from Bozkath. 2 He did what was right in the sight of the Lord and walked in all the ways of David his father. He did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.
The Book of the Law Found
3 In the eighteenth year of King Josiah the king sent Shaphan son of Azaliah, son of Meshullam, the scribe, to the house of the Lord, saying, 4 “Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, and have him prepare the money that has been brought to the house of the Lord, which the keepers of the threshold have gathered from the people. 5 Let them deliver it to the hand of the appointed workers of the house of the Lord, and let them give it to the workers who are in the house of the Lord to repair the damages to the house, 6 that is, to the carpenters, the builders, and the masons to buy timber and cut stone to repair the house. 7 But there need be no settling of accounts with them concerning the money that was given to their hand, because they are behaving honestly.”
8 Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.” Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. 9 Then Shaphan the scribe came to the king and brought the king a report. He said, “Your servants have emptied the money that was found in the house and have given it into the hand of the appointed workers of the house of the Lord.” 10 Shaphan the scribe informed the king, saying, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” So Shaphan read it before the king.
The Stoning of Stephen
54 When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed their teeth at him. 55 But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, 56 and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
57 Then they cried out with a loud voice, closed their ears, and rushed at him in unison. 58 And they threw him out of the city and stoned him. The witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59 They stoned Stephen as he was calling on God, praying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he knelt down and cried with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” Having said this, he fell asleep.
8 And Saul was consenting to his death.
Saul Persecutes the Church
On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem. And they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.