2 KINGS 3:1- 4:17
ACTS 14:8- 28
PSALM 140:1- 13
PROVERBS 17:22
Ahab's son Joram began to rule over Israel in the eighteenth year of King Jehoshaphat's reign in Judah. He reigned in Samaria twelve years. 2 He did what was evil in the LORD's sight, but he was not as wicked as his father and mother. He at least tore down the sacred pillar of Baal that his father had set up. 3 Nevertheless he continued in the sins of idolatry that Jeroboam son of Nebat had led the people of Israel to commit. 4 King Mesha of Moab and his people were sheep breeders. They used to pay the king of Israel an annual tribute of 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams. 5 But after Ahab's death, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. 6 So King Joram mustered the army of Israel and marched from Samaria. 7 On the way, he sent this message to King Jehoshaphat of Judah:"The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you help me fight him?" And Jehoshaphat replied, "Why, of course! You and I are brothers, and my troops are yours to command. Even my horses are at your service." 8 Then Jehoshaphat asked, "What route will we take?" "We will attack from the wilderness of Edom," Joram replied. 9 The king of Edom and his troops joined them, and all three armies traveled along a roundabout route through the wilderness for seven days. But there was no water for the men or their pack animals. 10 "What should we do?" the king of Israel cried out. "The LORD has brought the three of us here to let the king of Moab defeat us." 11 But King Jehoshaphat of Judah asked, "Is there no prophet of the LORD with us? If there is, we can ask the LORD what to do." One of King Joram's officers replied, "Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He used to be Elijah's personal assistant." 12 Jehoshaphat said, "Then the LORD will speak through him." So the kings of Israel, Judah, and Edom went to consult with Elisha. 13 "I want no part of you," Elisha said to the king of Israel. "Go to the pagan prophets of your father and mother!" But King Joram said, "No! For it was the LORD who called us three kings here to be destroyed by the king of Moab!" 14 Elisha replied, "As surely as the LORD Almighty lives, whom I serve, I would not bother with you except for my respect for King Jehoshaphat of Judah. 15 Now bring me someone who can play the harp." While the harp was being played, the power of the LORD came upon Elisha, 16 and he said, "This is what the LORD says:This dry valley will be filled with pools of water! 17 You will see neither wind nor rain, says the LORD, but this valley will be filled with water. You will have plenty for yourselves and for your cattle and your other animals. 18 But this is only a simple thing for the LORD, for he will make you victorious over the army of Moab! 19 You will conquer the best of their cities, even the fortified ones. You will cut down all their trees, stop up all their springs, and ruin all their good land with stones." 20 And sure enough, the next day at about the time when the morning sacrifice was offered, water suddenly appeared! It was flowing from the direction of Edom, and soon there was water everywhere. 21 Meanwhile, when the people of Moab heard about the three armies marching against them, they mobilized every man who could fight, young and old, and stationed themselves along their border. 22 But when they got up the next morning, the sun was shining across the water, making it look as red as blood. 23 "It's blood!" the Moabites exclaimed. "The three armies have attacked and killed each other! Let's go and collect the plunder!" 24 When they arrived at the Israelite camp, the army of Israel rushed out and attacked the Moabites, who turned and ran. The army of Israel chased them into the land of Moab, destroying everything as they went. 25 They destroyed the cities, covered their good land with stones, stopped up the springs, and cut down the good trees. Finally, only Kir- hareseth was left, but even that came under attack. 26 When the king of Moab saw that he was losing the battle, he led seven hundred of his warriors in a desperate attempt to break through the enemy lines near the king of Edom, but they failed to escape. 27 So he took his oldest son, who would have been the next king, and sacrificed him as a burnt offering on the wall. As a result, the anger against Israel was great, so they withdrew and returned to their own land. 4:1 ONE day the widow of one of Elisha's fellow prophets came to Elisha and cried out to him, "My husband who served you is dead, and you know how he feared the LORD. But now a creditor has come, threatening to take my two sons as slaves." 2 "What can I do to help you?" Elisha asked. "Tell me, what do you have in the house?" "Nothing at all, except a flask of olive oil," she replied. 3 And Elisha said, "Borrow as many empty jars as you can from your friends and neighbors. 4 Then go into your house with your sons and shut the door behind you. Pour olive oil from your flask into the jars, setting the jars aside as they are filled." 5 So she did as she was told. Her sons brought many jars to her, and she filled one after another. 6 Soon every container was full to the brim! "Bring me another jar," she said to one of her sons. "There aren't any more!" he told her. And then the olive oil stopped flowing. 7 When she told the man of God what had happened, he said to her, "Now sell the olive oil and pay your debts, and there will be enough money left over to support you and your sons." 8 One day Elisha went to the town of Shunem. A wealthy woman lived there, and she invited him to eat some food. From then on, whenever he passed that way, he would stop there to eat. 9 She said to her husband, "I am sure this man who stops in from time to time is a holy man of God. 10 Let's make a little room for him on the roof and furnish it with a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp. Then he will have a place to stay whenever he comes by." 11 One day Elisha returned to Shunem, and he went up to his room to rest. 12 He said to his servant Gehazi, "Tell the woman I want to speak to her." When she arrived, 13 Elisha said to Gehazi, "Tell her that we appreciate the kind concern she has shown us. Now ask her what we can do for her. Does she want me to put in a good word for her to the king or to the commander of the army?" "No," she replied, "my family takes good care of me." 14 Later Elisha asked Gehazi, "What do you think we can do for her?" He suggested, "She doesn't have a son, and her husband is an old man." 15 "Call her back again," Elisha told him. When the woman returned, Elisha said to her as she stood in the doorway, 16 "Next year at about this time you will be holding a son in your arms!" "No, my lord!" she protested. "Please don't lie to me like that, O man of God." 17 But sure enough, the woman soon became pregnant. And at that time the following year she had a son, just as Elisha had said.
While they were at Lystra, Paul and Barnabas came upon a man with crippled feet. He had been that way from birth, so he had never walked. 9 He was listening as Paul preached, and Paul noticed him and realized he had faith to be healed. 10 So Paul called to him in a loud voice, "Stand up!" And the man jumped to his feet and started walking. 11 When the listening crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in their local dialect, "These men are gods in human bodies!" 12 They decided that Barnabas was the Greek god Zeus and that Paul, because he was the chief speaker, was Hermes. 13 The temple of Zeus was located on the outskirts of the city. The priest of the temple and the crowd brought oxen and wreaths of flowers, and they prepared to sacrifice to the apostles at the city gates. 14 But when Barnabas and Paul heard what was happening, they tore their clothing in dismay and ran out among the people, shouting, 15 "Friends, why are you doing this? We are merely human beings like yourselves! We have come to bring you the Good News that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. 16 In earlier days he permitted all the nations to go their own ways, 17 but he never left himself without a witness. There were always his reminders, such as sending you rain and good crops and giving you food and joyful hearts." 18 But even so, Paul and Barnabas could scarcely restrain the people from sacrificing to them. 19 Now some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and turned the crowds into a murderous mob. They stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, apparently dead. 20 But as the believers stood around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he left with Barnabas for Derbe. 21 After preaching the Good News in Derbe and making many disciples, Paul and Barnabas returned again to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch of Pisidia, 22 where they strengthened the believers. They encouraged them to continue in the faith, reminding them that they must enter into the Kingdom of God through many tribulations. 23 Paul and Barnabas also appointed elders in every church and prayed for them with fasting, turning them over to the care of the Lord, in whom they had come to trust. 24 Then they traveled back through Pisidia to Pamphylia. 25 They preached again in Perga, then went on to Attalia. 26 Finally, they returned by ship to Antioch of Syria, where their journey had begun and where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work they had now completed. 27 Upon arriving in Antioch, they called the church together and reported about their trip, telling all that God had done and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles, too. 28 And they stayed there with the believers in Antioch for a long time.
For the choir director:A psalm of David.
1 O LORD, rescue me from evil people.
Preserve me from those who are violent,
2 those who plot evil in their hearts
and stir up trouble all day long.
3 Their tongues sting like a snake;
the poison of a viper drips from their lips.
Interlude4 O LORD, keep me out of the hands of the wicked.
Preserve me from those who are violent,
for they are plotting against me.
5 The proud have set a trap to catch me;
they have stretched out a net;
they have placed traps all along the way.
Interlude6 I said to the LORD, "You are my God!"
Listen, O LORD, to my cries for mercy!
7 O Sovereign LORD, my strong savior,
you protected me on the day of battle.
8 LORD, do not give in to their evil desires.
Do not let their evil schemes succeed, O God.
Interlude9 Let my enemies be destroyed
by the very evil they have planned for me.
10 Let burning coals fall down on their heads,
or throw them into the fire,
or into deep pits from which they can't escape.
11 Don't let liars prosper here in our land.
Cause disaster to fall with great force on the violent.
12 But I know the LORD will surely help those they persecute;
he will maintain the rights of the poor.
13 Surely the godly are praising your name,
for they will live in your presence.
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person's strength
ACTS 14:8- 28
PSALM 140:1- 13
PROVERBS 17:22
Ahab's son Joram began to rule over Israel in the eighteenth year of King Jehoshaphat's reign in Judah. He reigned in Samaria twelve years. 2 He did what was evil in the LORD's sight, but he was not as wicked as his father and mother. He at least tore down the sacred pillar of Baal that his father had set up. 3 Nevertheless he continued in the sins of idolatry that Jeroboam son of Nebat had led the people of Israel to commit. 4 King Mesha of Moab and his people were sheep breeders. They used to pay the king of Israel an annual tribute of 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams. 5 But after Ahab's death, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. 6 So King Joram mustered the army of Israel and marched from Samaria. 7 On the way, he sent this message to King Jehoshaphat of Judah:"The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you help me fight him?" And Jehoshaphat replied, "Why, of course! You and I are brothers, and my troops are yours to command. Even my horses are at your service." 8 Then Jehoshaphat asked, "What route will we take?" "We will attack from the wilderness of Edom," Joram replied. 9 The king of Edom and his troops joined them, and all three armies traveled along a roundabout route through the wilderness for seven days. But there was no water for the men or their pack animals. 10 "What should we do?" the king of Israel cried out. "The LORD has brought the three of us here to let the king of Moab defeat us." 11 But King Jehoshaphat of Judah asked, "Is there no prophet of the LORD with us? If there is, we can ask the LORD what to do." One of King Joram's officers replied, "Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He used to be Elijah's personal assistant." 12 Jehoshaphat said, "Then the LORD will speak through him." So the kings of Israel, Judah, and Edom went to consult with Elisha. 13 "I want no part of you," Elisha said to the king of Israel. "Go to the pagan prophets of your father and mother!" But King Joram said, "No! For it was the LORD who called us three kings here to be destroyed by the king of Moab!" 14 Elisha replied, "As surely as the LORD Almighty lives, whom I serve, I would not bother with you except for my respect for King Jehoshaphat of Judah. 15 Now bring me someone who can play the harp." While the harp was being played, the power of the LORD came upon Elisha, 16 and he said, "This is what the LORD says:This dry valley will be filled with pools of water! 17 You will see neither wind nor rain, says the LORD, but this valley will be filled with water. You will have plenty for yourselves and for your cattle and your other animals. 18 But this is only a simple thing for the LORD, for he will make you victorious over the army of Moab! 19 You will conquer the best of their cities, even the fortified ones. You will cut down all their trees, stop up all their springs, and ruin all their good land with stones." 20 And sure enough, the next day at about the time when the morning sacrifice was offered, water suddenly appeared! It was flowing from the direction of Edom, and soon there was water everywhere. 21 Meanwhile, when the people of Moab heard about the three armies marching against them, they mobilized every man who could fight, young and old, and stationed themselves along their border. 22 But when they got up the next morning, the sun was shining across the water, making it look as red as blood. 23 "It's blood!" the Moabites exclaimed. "The three armies have attacked and killed each other! Let's go and collect the plunder!" 24 When they arrived at the Israelite camp, the army of Israel rushed out and attacked the Moabites, who turned and ran. The army of Israel chased them into the land of Moab, destroying everything as they went. 25 They destroyed the cities, covered their good land with stones, stopped up the springs, and cut down the good trees. Finally, only Kir- hareseth was left, but even that came under attack. 26 When the king of Moab saw that he was losing the battle, he led seven hundred of his warriors in a desperate attempt to break through the enemy lines near the king of Edom, but they failed to escape. 27 So he took his oldest son, who would have been the next king, and sacrificed him as a burnt offering on the wall. As a result, the anger against Israel was great, so they withdrew and returned to their own land. 4:1 ONE day the widow of one of Elisha's fellow prophets came to Elisha and cried out to him, "My husband who served you is dead, and you know how he feared the LORD. But now a creditor has come, threatening to take my two sons as slaves." 2 "What can I do to help you?" Elisha asked. "Tell me, what do you have in the house?" "Nothing at all, except a flask of olive oil," she replied. 3 And Elisha said, "Borrow as many empty jars as you can from your friends and neighbors. 4 Then go into your house with your sons and shut the door behind you. Pour olive oil from your flask into the jars, setting the jars aside as they are filled." 5 So she did as she was told. Her sons brought many jars to her, and she filled one after another. 6 Soon every container was full to the brim! "Bring me another jar," she said to one of her sons. "There aren't any more!" he told her. And then the olive oil stopped flowing. 7 When she told the man of God what had happened, he said to her, "Now sell the olive oil and pay your debts, and there will be enough money left over to support you and your sons." 8 One day Elisha went to the town of Shunem. A wealthy woman lived there, and she invited him to eat some food. From then on, whenever he passed that way, he would stop there to eat. 9 She said to her husband, "I am sure this man who stops in from time to time is a holy man of God. 10 Let's make a little room for him on the roof and furnish it with a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp. Then he will have a place to stay whenever he comes by." 11 One day Elisha returned to Shunem, and he went up to his room to rest. 12 He said to his servant Gehazi, "Tell the woman I want to speak to her." When she arrived, 13 Elisha said to Gehazi, "Tell her that we appreciate the kind concern she has shown us. Now ask her what we can do for her. Does she want me to put in a good word for her to the king or to the commander of the army?" "No," she replied, "my family takes good care of me." 14 Later Elisha asked Gehazi, "What do you think we can do for her?" He suggested, "She doesn't have a son, and her husband is an old man." 15 "Call her back again," Elisha told him. When the woman returned, Elisha said to her as she stood in the doorway, 16 "Next year at about this time you will be holding a son in your arms!" "No, my lord!" she protested. "Please don't lie to me like that, O man of God." 17 But sure enough, the woman soon became pregnant. And at that time the following year she had a son, just as Elisha had said.
While they were at Lystra, Paul and Barnabas came upon a man with crippled feet. He had been that way from birth, so he had never walked. 9 He was listening as Paul preached, and Paul noticed him and realized he had faith to be healed. 10 So Paul called to him in a loud voice, "Stand up!" And the man jumped to his feet and started walking. 11 When the listening crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in their local dialect, "These men are gods in human bodies!" 12 They decided that Barnabas was the Greek god Zeus and that Paul, because he was the chief speaker, was Hermes. 13 The temple of Zeus was located on the outskirts of the city. The priest of the temple and the crowd brought oxen and wreaths of flowers, and they prepared to sacrifice to the apostles at the city gates. 14 But when Barnabas and Paul heard what was happening, they tore their clothing in dismay and ran out among the people, shouting, 15 "Friends, why are you doing this? We are merely human beings like yourselves! We have come to bring you the Good News that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. 16 In earlier days he permitted all the nations to go their own ways, 17 but he never left himself without a witness. There were always his reminders, such as sending you rain and good crops and giving you food and joyful hearts." 18 But even so, Paul and Barnabas could scarcely restrain the people from sacrificing to them. 19 Now some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and turned the crowds into a murderous mob. They stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, apparently dead. 20 But as the believers stood around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he left with Barnabas for Derbe. 21 After preaching the Good News in Derbe and making many disciples, Paul and Barnabas returned again to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch of Pisidia, 22 where they strengthened the believers. They encouraged them to continue in the faith, reminding them that they must enter into the Kingdom of God through many tribulations. 23 Paul and Barnabas also appointed elders in every church and prayed for them with fasting, turning them over to the care of the Lord, in whom they had come to trust. 24 Then they traveled back through Pisidia to Pamphylia. 25 They preached again in Perga, then went on to Attalia. 26 Finally, they returned by ship to Antioch of Syria, where their journey had begun and where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work they had now completed. 27 Upon arriving in Antioch, they called the church together and reported about their trip, telling all that God had done and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles, too. 28 And they stayed there with the believers in Antioch for a long time.
For the choir director:A psalm of David.
1 O LORD, rescue me from evil people.
Preserve me from those who are violent,
2 those who plot evil in their hearts
and stir up trouble all day long.
3 Their tongues sting like a snake;
the poison of a viper drips from their lips.
Interlude4 O LORD, keep me out of the hands of the wicked.
Preserve me from those who are violent,
for they are plotting against me.
5 The proud have set a trap to catch me;
they have stretched out a net;
they have placed traps all along the way.
Interlude6 I said to the LORD, "You are my God!"
Listen, O LORD, to my cries for mercy!
7 O Sovereign LORD, my strong savior,
you protected me on the day of battle.
8 LORD, do not give in to their evil desires.
Do not let their evil schemes succeed, O God.
Interlude9 Let my enemies be destroyed
by the very evil they have planned for me.
10 Let burning coals fall down on their heads,
or throw them into the fire,
or into deep pits from which they can't escape.
11 Don't let liars prosper here in our land.
Cause disaster to fall with great force on the violent.
12 But I know the LORD will surely help those they persecute;
he will maintain the rights of the poor.
13 Surely the godly are praising your name,
for they will live in your presence.
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person's strength
