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¹⁸ One day while the boy was still young, he was out in the fields with his father, where the workers were harvesting the crops. ¹⁹ Suddenly he shouted, “My head hurts. It hurts a lot!”

“Carry him back to his mother,” the father said to his servant. ²⁰ The servant picked up the boy and carried him to his mother. The boy lay on her lap all morning, and by noon he was dead. ²¹ She carried him upstairs to Elisha’s room and laid him across the bed. Then she walked out and shut the door behind her.

²² The woman called to her husband, “I need to see the prophet. Let me use one of the donkeys. Send a servant along with me, and let me leave now, so I can get back quickly.”

²³ “Why do you need to see him today?” her husband asked. “It’s not the Sabbath or time for the New Moon Festival.”

“That’s all right,” she answered. ²⁴ She saddled the donkey and said to her servant, “Let’s go. And don’t slow down unless I tell you to.” ²⁵ She left at once for Mount Carmel to talk with Elisha.^[a]

When Elisha saw her coming, he said, “Gehazi, look! It’s the woman from Shunem. ²⁶ Run and meet her. And ask her if everything is all right with her and her family.”

“Everything is fine,” she answered Gehazi. ²⁷ But as soon as she got to the top of the mountain, she went over and grabbed Elisha by the feet.

Gehazi started toward her to push her away, when Elisha said, “Leave her alone! Don’t you see how sad she is? But the Lord hasn’t told me why.”

²⁸ The woman said, “Sir, I begged you not to get my hopes up, and I didn’t even ask you for a son.”

²⁹ “Gehazi, get ready and go to her house,” Elisha said. “Take along my walking stick, and when you get there, lay it on the boy’s face. Don’t stop to talk to anyone, even if they try to talk to you.”

³⁰ But the boy’s mother said to Elisha, “I swear by the living Lord and by your own life that I won’t leave without you.” So Elisha got up and went with them.

³¹ Gehazi ran on ahead and laid Elisha’s walking stick on the boy’s face, but the boy didn’t move or make a sound. Gehazi ran back to Elisha and said, “The boy didn’t wake up.”

³² Elisha arrived at the woman’s house and went straight to his room, where he saw the boy’s body on his bed. ³³ He walked in, shut the door, and prayed to the Lord. ³⁴ Then he got on the bed and stretched out over the dead body, with his mouth on the boy’s mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hand on his hands. As he lay there, the boy’s body became warm. ³⁵ Elisha got up and walked back and forth in the room, then he went back and leaned over the boy’s body. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes.

³⁶ Elisha called out to Gehazi, “Have the boy’s mother come here.” Gehazi did, and when she was at the door, Elisha said, “You can take your son.”

³⁷ She came in and bowed down at Elisha’s feet. Then she picked up her son and left.

Elisha Makes Some Stew Taste Better

³⁸ Later, Elisha went back to Gilgal, where there was almost nothing to eat, because the crops had failed.

One day while the prophets who lived there were meeting with Elisha, he said to his servant, “Fix a big pot of stew for these prophets.”

³⁹ One of them went out into the woods to gather some herbs. He found a wild vine and picked as much of its fruit as he could carry, but he didn’t know that the fruit was very sour. When he got back, he cut up the fruit and put it in the stew.

⁴⁰ The stew was served, and when the prophets started eating it, they shouted, “Elisha, this stew tastes terrible! We can’t eat it.”

⁴¹ “Bring me some flour,” Elisha said. He sprinkled the flour in the stew and said, “Now serve it to them.” And the stew tasted fine.

Elisha Feeds One Hundred People

⁴² A man from the town of Baal-Shalishah^[b] brought Elisha some freshly cut grain and twenty loaves of bread made from the first barley that was harvested. Elisha said, “Give it to the people so they can eat.”

⁴³ “There’s not enough here for a hundred people,” his servant said.

“Just give it to them,” Elisha replied. “The Lord has promised there will be more than enough.”

⁴⁴ So the servant served the bread and grain to the people. They ate and still had some left over, just as the Lord had promised.

Elisha Heals Naaman

5 Naaman was the commander of the Syrian army. The Lord had helped him and his troops defeat their enemies, so the king of Syria respected Naaman very much. Naaman was a brave soldier, but he had leprosy.^[c]

² One day while the Syrian troops were raiding Israel, they captured a girl, and she became a servant of Naaman’s wife. ³ Some time later the girl said, “If your husband Naaman would go to the prophet in Samaria, he would be cured of his leprosy.”

⁴ When Naaman told the king what the girl had said, ⁵ the king replied, “Go ahead! I will give you a letter to take to the king of Israel.”

Naaman left and took along seven hundred fifty pounds of silver, one hundred fifty pounds of gold, and ten new outfits. ⁶ He also carried the letter to the king of Israel. It said, “I am sending my servant Naaman to you. Would you cure him of his leprosy?”

⁷ When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes in fear and shouted, “That Syrian king believes I can cure this man of leprosy! Does he think I’m God with power over life and death? He must be trying to pick a fight with me.”

⁸ As soon as Elisha the prophet^[d] heard what had happened, he sent the Israelite king this message: “Why are you so afraid? Send the man to me, so that he will know there is a prophet in Israel.”

⁹ Naaman left with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house. ¹⁰ Elisha sent someone outside to say to him, “Go wash seven times in the Jordan River. Then you’ll be completely cured.”

¹¹ But Naaman stormed off, grumbling, “Why couldn’t he come out and talk to me? I thought for sure he would stand in front of me and pray to the Lord his God, then wave his hand over my skin and cure me. ¹² What about the Abana River^[e] or the Pharpar River? Those rivers in Damascus are just as good as any river in Israel. I could have washed in them and been cured.”

¹³ His servants went over to him and said, “Sir, if the prophet had told you to do something difficult, you would have done it. So why don’t you do what he said? Go wash and be cured.”

¹⁴ Naaman walked down to the Jordan; he waded out into the water and stooped down in it seven times, just as Elisha had told him. Right away, he was cured, and his skin became as smooth as a child’s.

¹⁵ Naaman and his officials went back to Elisha. Naaman stood in front of him and announced, “Now I know that the God of Israel is the only God in the whole world. Sir, would you please accept a gift from me?”

¹⁶ “I am a servant of the living Lord,” Elisha answered, “and I swear that I will not take anything from you.”

Naaman kept begging, but Elisha kept refusing. ¹⁷ Finally Naaman said, “If you won’t accept a gift, then please let me take home as much soil as two mules can pull in a wagon. Sir, from now on I will offer sacrifices only to the Lord.^{[f] 18} But I pray that the Lord will forgive me when I go into the temple of the god Rimmon and bow down there with the king of Syria.”

¹⁹ “Go on home, and don’t worry about that,” Elisha replied. Then Naaman left.

Elisha Places a Curse on Gehazi

After Naaman had gone only a short distance, ²⁰ Gehazi said to himself, “Elisha let that Syrian off too easy. He should have taken Naaman’s gift. I swear by the living Lord that I will talk to Naaman myself and get something from him.” ²¹ So he hurried after Naaman.

When Naaman saw Gehazi running after him, he got out of his chariot to meet him. Naaman asked, “Is everything all right?”

²² “Yes,” Gehazi answered. “But my master has sent me to tell you about two young prophets from the hills of Ephraim. They came asking for help, and now Elisha wants to know if you would give them about seventy-five pounds of silver and some new clothes?”

²³ “Sure,” Naaman replied. “But why don’t you take twice that amount of silver?” He convinced Gehazi to take it all, then put the silver in two bags. He handed the bags and the clothes to his two servants, and they carried them for Gehazi.

²⁴ When they reached the hill where Gehazi lived, he took the bags from the servants and placed them in his house, then sent the men away. After they had gone, ²⁵ Gehazi went in and stood in front of Elisha, who asked, “Gehazi, where have you been?”

“Nowhere, sir,” Gehazi answered.

²⁶ Elisha asked, “Don’t you know that my spirit was there when Naaman got out of his chariot to talk with you? Gehazi, you have no right to accept money or clothes, olive orchards or vineyards, sheep or cattle, or servants. ²⁷ Because of what you’ve done, Naaman’s leprosy^[g] will now be on you and your descendants forever!”

Suddenly, Gehazi’s skin became white with leprosy, and he left.

15 Some people came from Judea and started teaching the Lord’s followers that they could not be saved, unless they were circumcised as Moses had taught. ² This caused trouble, and Paul and Barnabas argued with them about this teaching. So it was decided to send Paul and Barnabas and a few others to Jerusalem to discuss this problem with the apostles and the church leaders.

The Church Leaders Meet in Jerusalem

³ The men who were sent by the church went through Phoenicia and Samaria, telling how the Gentiles had turned to God. This news made the Lord’s followers very happy. ⁴ When the men arrived in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church, including the apostles and the leaders. They told them everything God had helped them do. ⁵ But some Pharisees had become followers of the Lord. They stood up and said, “Gentiles who have faith in the Lord must be circumcised and told to obey the Law of Moses.”

⁶ The apostles and church leaders met to discuss this problem about Gentiles. ⁷ They had talked it over for a long time, when Peter got up and said:

¹² Everyone kept quiet and listened as Barnabas and Paul told how God had given them the power to work a lot of miracles and wonders for the Gentiles.

¹³ After they had finished speaking, James^[a] said:

A Letter to Gentiles Who Had Faith in the Lord

²² The apostles, the leaders, and all the church members decided to send some men to Antioch along with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Silas and Judas Barsabbas,^[d] who were two leaders of the Lord’s followers. ²³ They wrote a letter that said:

³⁰ The four men left Jerusalem and went to Antioch. Then they called the church members together and gave them the letter. ³¹ When the letter was read, everyone was pleased and greatly encouraged. ³² Judas and Silas were prophets, and they spoke a long time, encouraging and helping the Lord’s followers.

³³ The men from Jerusalem stayed on in Antioch for a while. And when they left to return to the ones who had sent them, the followers wished them well. ^34-35 But Paul and Barnabas stayed on in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached about the Lord.^[e]

(A psalm by David.)

A Prayer for the Lord’s Protection

King Joram of Israel

3 Joram^[a] son of Ahab became king of Israel in Jehoshaphat’s eighteenth year as king of Judah.^[b] Joram ruled twelve years from Samaria ² and disobeyed the Lord by doing wrong. He tore down the stone image his father had made to honor Baal, and so he wasn’t as sinful as his parents. ³ But he kept doing the sinful things that Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel to do.^[c]

The Country of Moab Rebels against Israel

⁴ For many years the country of Moab had been controlled by Israel and was forced to pay taxes to the kings of Israel. King Mesha of Moab raised sheep, so he paid the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs and the wool from one hundred thousand rams. ⁵ But soon after the death of Ahab, Mesha rebelled against Israel.

⁶ One day, Joram left Samaria and called together Israel’s army. ⁷ He sent this message to King Jehoshaphat of Judah, “The king of Moab has rebelled. Will you go with me to attack him?”

“Yes, I will,” Jehoshaphat answered. “I’m on your side, and my soldiers and horses are at your command. ⁸ But which way should we go?”

“We will march through Edom Desert,” Joram replied.

⁹ So Joram, Jehoshaphat, and the king of Edom led their troops out. But seven days later, there was no drinking water left for them or their animals. ¹⁰ Joram cried out, “This is terrible! The Lord must have led us out here to be captured by Moab’s army.”

¹¹ Jehoshaphat said, “Which of the Lord’s prophets is with us? We can find out from him what the Lord wants us to do.”

One of Joram’s officers answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He was one of Elijah’s closest followers.”

¹² Jehoshaphat replied, “He can give us the Lord’s message.”

The three kings went over to Elisha, ¹³ and he asked Joram, “Why did you come to me? Go talk to the prophets of the foreign gods your parents worshiped.”^[d]

“No,” Joram answered. “It was the Lord who led us out here, so that Moab’s army could capture us.”

¹⁴ Elisha said to him, “I serve the Lord All-Powerful, and as surely as he lives, I swear I wouldn’t even look at you if I didn’t respect King Jehoshaphat.” ¹⁵ Then Elisha said, “Send for someone who can play the harp.”

The harpist began playing, and the Lord gave Elisha this message for Joram:

²⁰ The next morning, while the sacrifice was being offered, water suddenly started flowing from the direction of Edom, and it flooded the land.

²¹ Meanwhile, the people of Moab had heard that the three kings were coming to attack them. They had called together all of their fighting men, from the youngest to the oldest, and these troops were now standing at their border, ready for battle. ²² When they got up that morning, the sun was shining across the water, making it look red. The Moabite troops took one look ²³ and shouted, “Look at that blood! The armies of those kings must have fought and killed each other. Come on, let’s go take what’s left in their camp.”

²⁴ But when they arrived at Israel’s camp, the Israelite soldiers came out and attacked them, until they turned and ran away. Israel’s army chased them all the way back to Moab, and even there they kept up the attack.^{[f] 25} The Israelites destroyed the Moabite towns. They chopped down the good trees and stopped up the springs of water, then covered the fertile fields with rocks.

Finally, the only city left standing was Kir-Hareseth, but soldiers armed with slings surrounded and attacked it. ²⁶ King Mesha of Moab saw that he was about to be defeated. So he took along seven hundred soldiers with swords and tried to break through the front line where the Edomite troops were positioned. But he failed. ²⁷ He then grabbed his oldest son who was to be the next king and sacrificed him as an offering on the city wall. The Israelite troops were so horrified that^[g] they left the city and went back home.

Elisha Helps a Poor Widow

4 One day the widow of one of the Lord’s prophets said to Elisha, “You know that before my husband died, he was a follower of yours and a worshiper of the Lord. But he owed a man some money, and now that man is on his way to take my two sons as his slaves.”

² “Maybe there’s something I can do to help,” Elisha said. “What do you have in your house?”

“Sir, I have nothing but a small bottle of olive oil.”

³ Elisha told her, “Ask your neighbors for their empty jars. And after you’ve borrowed as many as you can, ⁴ go home and shut the door behind you and your sons. Then begin filling the jars with oil and set each one aside as you fill it.” ⁵ The woman left.

Later, when she and her sons were back inside their house, the two sons brought her the jars, and she began filling them.

⁶ At last, she said to one of her sons, “Bring me another jar.”

“We don’t have any more,” he answered, and the oil stopped flowing from the small bottle.

⁷ After she told Elisha what had happened, he said, “Sell the oil and use part of the money to pay what you owe the man. You and your sons can live on what is left.”

Elisha Brings a Rich Woman’s Son Back to Life

⁸ Once, while Elisha was in the town of Shunem,^[h] he met a rich woman who invited him to her home for dinner. After that, whenever he was in Shunem, he would have a meal there with her and her husband.

⁹ Some time later the woman said to her husband, “I’m sure the man who comes here so often is a prophet of God. ¹⁰ Why don’t we build him a small room on the flat roof of our house? We can put a bed, a table and chair, and an oil lamp in it. Then whenever he comes, he can stay with us.”

¹¹ The next time Elisha was in Shunem, he stopped at their house and went up to his room to rest. ^12-13 He said to his servant Gehazi, “This woman has been very helpful. Have her come up here to the roof for a moment.” She came, and Elisha told Gehazi to say to her, “You’ve gone to a lot of trouble for us, and we want to help you. Is there something we can request the king or army commander to do?”^[i]

The woman answered, “With my relatives nearby, I have everything I need.”

¹⁴ “Then what can we do for her?” Elisha asked Gehazi.

Gehazi replied, “I do know that her husband is old, and that she doesn’t have a son.”

¹⁵ “Ask her to come here again,” Elisha told his servant. He called for her, and she came and stood in the doorway of Elisha’s room.

¹⁶ Elisha said to her, “Next year at this time, you’ll be holding your own baby son in your arms.”

“You’re a man of God,” the woman replied. “Please don’t lie to me.”

¹⁷ But a few months later, the woman got pregnant. She gave birth to a son, just as Elisha had promised.

Paul and Barnabas in Lystra

⁸ In Lystra there was a man who had been born with crippled feet and had never been able to walk. ⁹ The man was listening to Paul speak, when Paul saw that he had faith in Jesus and could be healed. So he looked straight at the man ¹⁰ and shouted, “Stand up!” The man jumped up and started walking around.

¹¹ When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they yelled out in the language of Lycaonia, “The gods have turned into humans and have come down to us!” ¹² The people then gave Barnabas the name Zeus, and they gave Paul the name Hermes,^[a] because he did the talking.

¹³ The temple of Zeus was near the entrance to the city. Its priest and the crowds wanted to offer a sacrifice to Barnabas and Paul. So the priest brought some bulls and flowers to the city gates. ¹⁴ When the two apostles found out about this, they tore their clothes in horror and ran to the crowd, shouting:

¹⁸ Even after Paul and Barnabas had said all this, they could hardly keep the people from offering a sacrifice to them.

¹⁹ Some Jewish leaders from Antioch and Iconium came and turned the crowds against Paul. They hit him with stones and dragged him out of the city, thinking he was dead. ²⁰ But when the Lord’s followers gathered around Paul, he stood up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas went to Derbe.

Paul and Barnabas Return to Antioch in Syria

²¹ Paul and Barnabas preached the good news in Derbe and won some people to the Lord. Then they went back to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch in Pisidia. ²² They encouraged the followers and begged them to remain faithful. They told them, “We have to suffer a lot before we can get into God’s kingdom.” ²³ Paul and Barnabas chose some leaders for each of the churches. Then they went without eating^[b] and prayed that the Lord would take good care of these leaders.

²⁴ Paul and Barnabas went on through Pisidia to Pamphylia, ²⁵ where they preached in the town of Perga. Then they went down to Attalia ²⁶ and sailed to Antioch in Syria. It was there that they had been placed in God’s care for the work they had now completed.^[c]

²⁷ After arriving in Antioch, they called the church together. They told the people what God had helped them do and how he had made it possible for the Gentiles to believe. ²⁸ Then they stayed there with the followers for a long time.

(A psalm by David for the music leader.)

A Prayer for the Lord’s Help

The Lord Condemns Ahaziah

1 ^1-2 Soon after King Ahab of Israel died, the country of Moab rebelled against his son King Ahaziah.^[a]

One day, Ahaziah fell through the wooden slats around the porch on the flat roof of his palace in Samaria, and he was badly injured. So he sent some messengers to the town of Ekron^[b] with orders to ask the god Baalzebub if he would get well.

³ About the same time, an angel from the Lord sent Elijah the prophet from Tishbe to say to the king’s messengers, “Ahaziah has rejected Israel’s own God by sending you to ask Baalzebub about his injury. ⁴ Tell him that because he has done this, he’s on his deathbed! And Elijah did what he was told.

⁵ When the messengers returned to Ahaziah, he asked, “Why are you back so soon?”

⁶ “A man met us along the road with a message for you from the Lord,” they answered. “The Lord wants to know why you sent us to ask Baalzebub about your injury and why you don’t believe there’s a God in Israel. The man also told us that the Lord says you’re going to die.”

⁷ “What did the man look like?” Ahaziah asked.

⁸ “He was hairy^[c] and had a leather belt around his waist,” they answered.

“It must be Elijah!” replied Ahaziah. ⁹ So at once he sent an army officer and fifty soldiers to meet Elijah.

Elijah was sitting on top of a hill^[d] at the time. The officer went up to him and said, “Man of God,^[e] the king orders you to come down and talk with him.”

¹⁰ “If I am a man of God,” Elijah answered, “God will send down fire on you and your fifty soldiers.” Fire immediately came down from heaven and burned up the officer and his men.

¹¹ Ahaziah sent another officer and fifty more soldiers to Elijah. The officer said, “Man of God, the king orders you to come see him right now.”

¹² “If I am a man of God,” Elijah answered, “fire will destroy you and your fifty soldiers.” And God sent down fire^[f] from heaven on the officer and his men.

¹³ Ahaziah sent a third army officer and fifty more soldiers. This officer went up to Elijah, then he got down on his knees and begged, “Man of God, please be kind to me and these fifty servants of yours. Let us live! ¹⁴ Fire has already wiped out the other officers and their soldiers. Please don’t let it happen to me.”

¹⁵ The angel from the Lord said to Elijah, “Go with him and don’t be afraid.” So Elijah got up and went with the officer.

¹⁶ When Elijah arrived, he told Ahaziah, “The Lord wants to know why you sent messengers to Ekron to ask Baalzebub about your injury. Don’t you believe there’s a God in Israel? Ahaziah, because you did that, the Lord says you will die.”

¹⁷ Ahaziah died, just as the Lord had said. But since Ahaziah had no sons, Joram^[g] his brother^[h] then became king. This happened in the second year that Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat was king of Judah.^{[i] 18} Everything else Ahaziah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.

The Lord Takes Elijah Away

2 Not long before the Lord took Elijah up into heaven in a strong wind, Elijah and Elisha were leaving Gilgal. ² Elijah said to Elisha, “The Lord wants me to go to Bethel, but you must stay here.”

Elisha replied, “I swear by the living Lord and by your own life that I will stay with you no matter what!” And he went with Elijah to Bethel.

³ A group of prophets who lived there asked Elisha, “Do you know that today the Lord is going to take away your master?”

“Yes, I do,” Elisha answered. “But don’t remind me of it.”

⁴ Elijah then said, “Elisha, now the Lord wants me to go to Jericho, but you must stay here.”

Elisha replied, “I swear by the living Lord and by your own life, that I will stay with you no matter what!” And he went with Elijah to Jericho.

⁵ A group of prophets who lived there asked Elisha, “Do you know that today the Lord is going to take away your master?”

“Yes, I do,” Elisha answered. “But don’t remind me of it.”

⁶ Elijah then said to Elisha, “Now the Lord wants me to go to the Jordan River, but you must stay here.”

Elisha replied, “I swear by the living Lord and by your own life that I will never leave you!” So the two of them walked on together.

⁷ Fifty prophets followed Elijah and Elisha from Jericho, then stood at a distance and watched as the two men walked toward the river. ⁸ When they got there, Elijah took off his coat, then he rolled it up and struck the water with it. At once a path opened up through the river, and the two of them walked across on dry ground.

⁹ After they had reached the other side, Elijah said, “Elisha, the Lord will soon take me away. What can I do for you before that happens?”

Elisha answered, “Please give me twice as much of your power as you give the other prophets, so I can be the one who takes your place as their leader.”

¹⁰ “It won’t be easy,” Elijah answered. “It can happen only if you see me as I am being taken away.”

¹¹ Elijah and Elisha were walking along and talking, when suddenly there appeared between them a flaming chariot pulled by fiery horses. Right away, a strong wind took Elijah up into heaven. ¹² Elisha saw this and shouted, “Israel’s cavalry and chariots have taken my master away!”^[j] After Elijah had gone, Elisha tore his clothes in sorrow.

¹³ Elijah’s coat had fallen off, so Elisha picked it up and walked back to the Jordan River. ¹⁴ He struck the water with the coat and wondered, “Will the Lord perform miracles for me as he did for Elijah?” As soon as Elisha did this, a dry path opened up through the water, and he walked across.

¹⁵ When the prophets from Jericho saw what happened, they said to each other, “Elisha now has Elijah’s power.”

They walked over to him, bowed down, ¹⁶ and said, “There are fifty strong men here with us. Please let them go look for your master. Maybe the Spirit of the Lord carried him off to some mountain or valley.”

“No,” Elisha replied, “they won’t find him.”

¹⁷ They kept begging until he was embarrassed to say no. He finally agreed, and the prophets sent the men out. They looked three days for Elijah but never found him. ¹⁸ They returned to Jericho, and Elisha said, “I told you that you wouldn’t find him.”

Elisha Makes the Water Pure at Jericho

¹⁹ One day the people of Jericho said, “Elisha, you can see that our city is in a good spot. But the water from our spring is so bad that it even keeps our crops from growing.”

²⁰ He replied, “Put some salt in a new bowl and bring it to me.”

They brought him the bowl of salt, ²¹ and he carried it to the spring. He threw the salt into the water and said, “The Lord has made this water pure again. From now on you’ll be able to grow crops, and no one will starve.”

²² The water has been fine ever since, just as Elisha said.

Some Boys Make Fun of Elisha

²³ Elisha left and headed toward Bethel. Along the way some boys started making fun of him by shouting, “Go away, baldy! Get out of here!”

²⁴ Elisha turned around and stared at the boys. Then he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Right away two bears ran out of the woods and ripped to pieces forty-two of the boys.

²⁵ Elisha went up to Mount Carmel, then returned to Samaria.

⁴² As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the meeting, the people begged them to say more about these same things on the next Sabbath. ⁴³ After the service, many Jews and a lot of Gentiles who worshiped God went with them. Paul and Barnabas begged them all to remain faithful to God, who had been so kind to them.

⁴⁴ The next Sabbath almost everyone in town came to hear the message about the Lord.^{[a] 45} When the Jewish people saw the crowds, they were very jealous. They insulted Paul and spoke against everything he said.

⁴⁶ But Paul and Barnabas bravely said:

⁴⁸ This message made the Gentiles glad, and they praised what they had heard about the Lord. ^[b] Everyone who had been chosen for eternal life then put their faith in the Lord.

⁴⁹ The message about the Lord spread all over that region. ⁵⁰ But the Jewish leaders went to some of the important men in the town and to some respected women who were religious. They turned them against Paul and Barnabas and started making trouble for them. They even chased them out of that part of the country.

⁵¹ Paul and Barnabas shook the dust from that place off their feet^[c] and went on to the city of Iconium.

⁵² But the Lord’s followers in Antioch were very happy and were filled with the Holy Spirit.

Paul and Barnabas in Iconium

14 Paul and Barnabas spoke in the Jewish meeting place in Iconium, just as they had done at Antioch, and many Jews and Gentiles^[d] put their faith in the Lord. ² But the Jews who did not have faith in him made the other Gentiles angry and turned them against the Lord’s followers.

³ Paul and Barnabas stayed there for a while, having faith in the Lord and bravely speaking his message. The Lord gave them the power to work miracles and wonders, and he showed that their message about his great kindness was true.

⁴ The people of Iconium did not know what to think. Some of them believed the Jewish group, and others believed the apostles. ⁵ Finally, some Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, decided to make trouble for Paul and Barnabas and to stone them to death.

^6-7 But when the two apostles found out what was happening, they escaped to the region of Lycaonia. They preached the good news there in the towns of Lystra and Derbe and in the nearby countryside.

(A psalm by David for the music leader.)

The Lord Is Always Near

Micaiah Warns Ahab about Disaster

22 For the next three years there was peace between Israel and Syria. ² During the third year King Jehoshaphat of Judah went to visit King Ahab of Israel.

³ Ahab asked his officials, “Why haven’t we tried to get Ramoth in Gilead back from the Syrians? It belongs to us.” ⁴ Then he asked Jehoshaphat, “Would you go to Ramoth with me and attack the Syrians?”

“Just tell me what to do,” Jehoshaphat answered. “My army and horses are at your command. ⁵ But first, let’s ask the Lord.”

⁶ Ahab sent for about four hundred prophets and asked, “Should I attack the Syrians at Ramoth?”

“Yes!” the prophets answered. “The Lord will help you defeat them.”

⁷ But Jehoshaphat said, “Just to make sure, is there another of the Lord’s prophets we can ask?”

⁸ “We could ask Micaiah son of Imlah,” Ahab said. “But I hate Micaiah. He always has bad news for me.”

“Don’t say that!” Jehoshaphat replied. ⁹ Then Ahab sent someone to bring Micaiah as soon as possible.

¹⁰ All this time, Ahab and Jehoshaphat were dressed in their royal robes and were seated on their thrones at the threshing place near the gate of Samaria. They were listening to the prophets tell them what the Lord had said.

¹¹ Zedekiah son of Chenaanah was one of the prophets. He had made some horns out of iron and shouted, “Ahab, the Lord says you will attack the Syrians like a bull with iron horns and wipe them out!”

¹² All the prophets agreed that Ahab should attack the Syrians at Ramoth, and they promised that the Lord would help him defeat them.

¹³ Meanwhile, the messenger who went to get Micaiah whispered, “Micaiah, all the prophets have good news for Ahab. Now go and say the same thing.”

¹⁴ “I’ll say whatever the living Lord tells me to say,” Micaiah replied.

¹⁵ Then Micaiah went to Ahab, and Ahab asked, “Micaiah, should I attack the Syrians at Ramoth?”

“Yes!” Micaiah answered. “The Lord will help you defeat them.”

¹⁶ “Micaiah, I’ve told you over and over to tell me the truth!” Ahab shouted. “What does the Lord really say?”

¹⁷ He answered, “In a vision^[a] I saw Israelite soldiers walking around in the hills like sheep without a shepherd to guide them. The Lord said, ‘This army has no leader. They should go home and not fight.’”

¹⁸ Ahab turned to Jehoshaphat and said, “I told you he would bring bad news!”

¹⁹ Micaiah replied:

²⁴ Zedekiah walked up to Micaiah and slapped him on the face. Then he asked, “Do you really think the Lord would speak to you and not to me?”

²⁵ Micaiah answered, “You’ll find out on the day you have to hide in the back room of some house.”

²⁶ Ahab shouted, “Arrest Micaiah! Take him to Prince Joash and Governor Amon of Samaria. ²⁷ Tell them to put him in prison and to give him nothing but bread and water until I come back safely.”

²⁸ Micaiah said, “If you do come back, I was wrong about what the Lord wanted me to say.” Then he told the crowd, “Don’t forget what I said!”

Ahab Dies at Ramoth

²⁹ Ahab and Jehoshaphat led their armies to Ramoth in Gilead. ³⁰ Before they went into battle, Ahab said, “Jehoshaphat, I’ll disguise myself, but you wear your royal robe.” Then Ahab disguised himself and went into battle.

³¹ The king of Syria had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders to attack only Ahab. ³² So when they saw Jehoshaphat in his robe, they thought he was Ahab and started to attack him. But when Jehoshaphat shouted out to them, ³³ they realized he wasn’t Ahab, and they left him alone.

³⁴ However, during the fighting a soldier shot an arrow without even aiming, and it hit Ahab where two pieces of his armor joined. He shouted to his chariot driver, “I’ve been hit! Get me out of here!”

³⁵ The fighting lasted all day, with Ahab propped up in his chariot so he could see the Syrian troops. He bled so much that the bottom of the chariot was covered with blood, and by evening he was dead.

³⁶ As the sun was going down, someone in Israel’s army shouted to the others, “Retreat! Go back home!”

³⁷ Ahab’s body was taken to Samaria and buried there. ³⁸ Some workers washed his chariot near a spring in Samaria, and prostitutes washed themselves in his blood.^[b] Dogs licked Ahab’s blood off the ground, just as the Lord had warned.

³⁹ Everything else Ahab did while he was king, including the towns he strengthened and the palace he built and furnished with ivory, is written in The History of the Kings of Israel. ⁴⁰ Ahab died, and his son Ahaziah became king.

King Jehoshaphat of Judah

⁴¹ Jehoshaphat son of Asa became king of Judah in Ahab’s fourth year as king of Israel. ⁴² Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he ruled from Jerusalem for twenty-five years. His mother was Azubah daughter of Shilhi.

^43-46 Jehoshaphat obeyed the Lord, just as his father Asa had done, and during his rule he was at peace with the king of Israel.

He got rid of the rest of the prostitutes^[c] from the local shrines, but he did not destroy the shrines, and they were still used as places for offering sacrifices.

Everything else Jehoshaphat did while he was king, including his brave deeds and military victories, is written in The History of the Kings of Judah.

⁴⁷ The country of Edom had no king at the time, so a lower official ruled the land.

⁴⁸ Jehoshaphat had seagoing ships^[d] built to sail to Ophir for gold. But they were wrecked at Ezion-Geber and never sailed. ⁴⁹ Ahaziah son of Ahab offered to let his sailors go with Jehoshaphat’s sailors, but Jehoshaphat refused.

⁵⁰ Jehoshaphat died and was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem,^[e] and his son Jehoram became king.

King Ahaziah of Israel

⁵¹ Ahaziah son of Ahab became king of Israel in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat’s rule in Judah, and he ruled two years from Samaria.

⁵² Ahaziah disobeyed the Lord, just as his father, his mother, and Jeroboam had done. They all led Israel to sin. ⁵³ Ahaziah worshiped Baal and made the Lord God of Israel very angry, just as his father had done.

¹⁶ Paul got up. He motioned with his hand and said:

(By David.)

Praise the Lord with All Your Heart

Syria Attacks Israel

20 King Benhadad of Syria^[a] called his army together. He was joined by thirty-two other kings with their horses and chariots, and together they marched to Samaria and attacked. ² Benhadad sent a messenger to tell King Ahab of Israel, ³ “Ahab, give me your silver and gold, your wives,^[b] and your strongest sons!”

⁴ “Your Majesty,” Ahab replied, “everything I have is yours, including me.”

⁵ Later, Benhadad sent another messenger to say to Ahab, “I already told you to give me your silver and gold, your wives, and your children. ⁶ But tomorrow at this time, I will send my officials into your city to search your palace and the houses of your officials. They will take everything else that you^[c] own.”

⁷ Ahab called a meeting with the leaders of Israel and said, “Benhadad is causing real trouble. He told me to give him my wives and children, as well as my silver and gold. And I agreed.”

⁸ “Don’t listen to him!” they answered. “You don’t have to do what he says.”

⁹ So Ahab sent someone to tell Benhadad, “Your Majesty, I’ll give you my silver and gold, and even my wives and children. But I won’t let you have anything else.”

When Benhadad got his answer, ¹⁰ he replied, “I’ll completely destroy Samaria! There won’t even be enough of it left for my soldiers to carry back in their hands. If I don’t do it, I pray that the gods will punish me terribly.”

¹¹ Ahab then answered, “Benhadad, don’t brag before the fighting even begins. Wait and see if you live through it.”

¹² Meanwhile, Benhadad and the other kings had been drinking in their tents. But when Ahab’s reply came, he ordered his soldiers to prepare to attack Samaria, and they all got ready.

¹³ At that very moment, a prophet ran up to Ahab and said, “You can see that Benhadad’s army is very strong. But the Lord has promised to help you defeat them today. Then you will know that the Lord is in control.”

¹⁴ “Who will fight the battle?” Ahab asked.

The prophet answered, “The young bodyguards who serve the district officials.”

“But who will lead them into battle?” Ahab asked.

“You will!” the prophet replied.

¹⁵ So Ahab called together the two hundred thirty-two young soldiers and the seven thousand troops in Israel’s army, and he got them ready to fight the Syrians.

Israel Defeats the Syrians

^16-17 At noon, King Ahab and his Israelite army marched out of Samaria, with the young soldiers in front.

King Benhadad of Syria and the thirty-two kings with him were drunk when the scouts he had sent out ran up to his tent, shouting, “We just now saw soldiers marching out of Samaria!”

¹⁸ “Take them alive!” Benhadad ordered. “I don’t care if they have come out to fight or to surrender.”

¹⁹ The young soldiers led Israel’s troops into battle, ²⁰ and each of them attacked and killed an enemy soldier. The rest of the Syrian army turned and ran, and the Israelites went after them. Benhadad and some others escaped on horses, ²¹ but Ahab and his soldiers followed them and captured^[d] their horses and chariots.

Ahab and Israel’s army crushed the Syrians.

²² Later, the prophet^[e] went back and warned Ahab, “Benhadad will attack you again next spring. Build up your troops and make sure you have some good plans.”

Syria Attacks Israel Again

²³ Meanwhile, Benhadad’s officials went to him and explained:

Benhadad agreed and did what they suggested.

²⁶ In the spring, Benhadad got his army together, and they marched to the town of Aphek to attack Israel. ²⁷ The Israelites also prepared to fight. They marched out to meet the Syrians, and the two armies camped across from each other. The Syrians covered the whole area, but the Israelites looked like two little flocks of goats.

²⁸ The prophet went to Ahab and said, “The Syrians think the Lord is a god of the hills and not of the valleys. So he has promised to help you defeat their powerful army. Then you will know that the Lord is in control.”

²⁹ For seven days the two armies stayed in their camps, facing each other. Then on the seventh day the fighting broke out, and before sunset the Israelites had killed one hundred thousand Syrian troops. ³⁰ The rest of the Syrian army ran back to Aphek, but the town wall fell and crushed twenty-seven thousand of them.

Benhadad also escaped to Aphek and hid in the back room of a house. ³¹ His officials said, “Your Majesty, we’ve heard that Israel’s kings keep their agreements. We will wrap sackcloth around our waists, put ropes around our heads, and ask Ahab to let you live.”

³² They dressed in sackcloth and put ropes on their heads, then they went to Ahab and said, “Your servant Benhadad asks you to let him live.”

“Is he still alive?” Ahab asked. “Benhadad is like a brother to me.”

³³ Benhadad’s officials were trying to figure out what Ahab was thinking, and when he said “brother,” they quickly replied, “You’re right! You and Benhadad are like brothers.”

“Go get him,” Ahab said.

When Benhadad came out, Ahab had him climb up into his chariot.

³⁴ Benhadad said, “I’ll give back the towns my father took from your father. And you can have shops in Damascus, just as my father had in Samaria.”

Ahab replied, “If you do these things, I’ll let you go free.” Then they signed a peace treaty, and Ahab let Benhadad go.

A Prophet Condemns Ahab

³⁵ About this time the Lord commanded a prophet to say to a friend, “Hit me!” But the friend refused, ³⁶ and the prophet told him, “You disobeyed the Lord, and as soon as you walk away, a lion will kill you.” The friend left, and suddenly a lion killed him.

³⁷ The prophet found someone else and said, “Hit me!” So this man beat him up.

³⁸ The prophet left and put a bandage over his face to disguise himself. Then he went and stood beside the road, waiting for Ahab to pass by.

³⁹ When Ahab went by, the prophet shouted, “Your Majesty, right in the heat of battle, someone brought a prisoner to me and told me to guard him. He said if the prisoner got away, I would either be killed or forced to pay seventy-five pounds of silver. ⁴⁰ But I got busy doing other things, and the prisoner escaped.”

Ahab answered, “You will be punished just as you have said.”

⁴¹ The man quickly tore the bandage off his face, and Ahab saw that he was one of the prophets. ⁴² The prophet said, “The Lord told you to kill Benhadad, but you let him go. Now you will die in his place, and your people will die in place of his people.”

⁴³ Ahab went back to Samaria, angry and depressed.

Jezebel Has Naboth Killed

21 Naboth owned a vineyard in Jezreel near King Ahab’s palace.

² One day, Ahab said, “Naboth, your vineyard is near my palace. Give it to me so I can turn it into a vegetable garden. I’ll give you a better vineyard or pay whatever you want for yours.”

³ Naboth answered, “This vineyard has always been in my family. I won’t let you have it.”

⁴ So Ahab went home, angry and depressed because of what Naboth had told him. He lay on his bed, just staring at the wall and refusing to eat a thing.

⁵ Jezebel his wife came in and asked, “What’s wrong? Why won’t you eat?”

⁶ “I asked Naboth to sell me his vineyard or to let me give him a better one,” Ahab replied. “And he told me I couldn’t have it.”

⁷ “Aren’t you the king of Israel?” Jezebel asked. “Get out of bed and eat something! Don’t worry, I’ll get Naboth’s vineyard for you.”

^8-10 Jezebel wrote a letter to each of the leaders of the town where Naboth lived. In the letters she said:

She signed Ahab’s name to the letters and sealed them with his seal. Then she sent them to the town leaders.

¹¹ After receiving her letters, they did exactly what she had asked. ¹² They told the people that it was a day to go without eating, and when they all came together, they seated Naboth at the front. ¹³ The two liars came in and sat across from Naboth. Then they accused him of cursing God and the king, so the people dragged Naboth outside and stoned him to death.

¹⁴ The leaders of Jezreel sent a message back to Jezebel that said, “Naboth is dead.”

¹⁵ As soon as Jezebel got their message, she told Ahab, “Now you can have the vineyard Naboth refused to sell. He’s dead.” ¹⁶ Ahab got up and went to take over the vineyard.

Elijah Condemns Ahab

¹⁷ The Lord said to Elijah the prophet, ¹⁸ “King Ahab of Israel is in Naboth’s vineyard right now, taking it over. ¹⁹ Go tell him that I say, ‘Ahab, you murdered Naboth and took his property. And so, in the very spot where dogs licked up Naboth’s blood, they will lick up your blood.’”

When Elijah found him, ²⁰ Ahab said, “So, my enemy, you found me at last.”

Elijah answered:

^25-29 When Ahab heard this, he tore his clothes and wore sackcloth day and night. He was depressed and refused to eat.

Some time later, the Lord said, “Elijah, do you see how sorry Ahab is for what he did? I won’t punish his family while he is still alive. I’ll wait until his son is king.”

No one was more determined than Ahab to disobey the Lord. And Jezebel encouraged him. Worst of all, he had worshiped idols, just as the Amorites^[g] had done before the Lord forced them out of the land and gave it to Israel.

²⁴ God’s message kept spreading. ²⁵ And after Barnabas and Saul had done the work they were sent to do, they went back to Jerusalem^[a] with John, whose other name was Mark.

Barnabas and Saul Are Chosen and Sent

13 The church at Antioch had several prophets and teachers. They were Barnabas, Simeon, also called Niger, Lucius from Cyrene, Manaen, who was Herod’s^[b] close friend, and Saul. ² While they were worshiping the Lord and going without eating,^[c] the Holy Spirit told them, “Appoint Barnabas and Saul to do the work for which I have chosen them.” ³ Everyone prayed and went without eating for a while longer. Next, they placed their hands on Barnabas and Saul to show that they had been appointed to do this work. Then everyone sent them on their way.

Barnabas and Saul in Cyprus

⁴ After Barnabas and Saul had been sent by the Holy Spirit, they went to Seleucia. From there they sailed to the island of Cyprus. ⁵ They arrived at Salamis and began to preach God’s message in the Jewish meeting places. They also had John^[d] as a helper.

⁶ Barnabas and Saul went all the way to the city of Paphos on the other end of the island, where they met a Jewish man named Bar-Jesus. He practiced witchcraft and was a false prophet. ⁷ He also worked for Sergius Paulus, who was very smart and was the governor of the island. Sergius Paulus wanted to hear God’s message, and he sent for Barnabas and Saul. ⁸ But Bar-Jesus, whose other name was Elymas, was against them. He even tried to keep the governor from having faith in the Lord.

⁹ Then Saul, better known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit. He looked straight at Elymas ¹⁰ and said, “You son of the devil! You are a liar, a crook, and an enemy of everything that is right. When will you stop speaking against the true ways of the Lord? ¹¹ The Lord is going to punish you by making you completely blind for a while.”

Suddenly the man’s eyes were covered by a dark mist, and he went around trying to get someone to lead him by the hand. ¹² When the governor saw what had happened, he was amazed at this teaching about the Lord. So he put his faith in the Lord.

Paul and Barnabas in Antioch of Pisidia

¹³ Paul and the others left Paphos and sailed to Perga in Pamphylia. But John^[e] left them and went back to Jerusalem. ¹⁴ The rest of them went on from Perga to Antioch in Pisidia. Then on the Sabbath they went to the Jewish meeting place and sat down.

¹⁵ After the reading of the Law and the Prophets,^[f] the leaders sent someone over to tell Paul and Barnabas, “Friends, if you have anything to say that will help the people, please say it.”

A Prayer for Revenge

Elijah Runs Away from Ahab and Jezebel

19 Ahab told his wife Jezebel what Elijah had done and that he had killed the prophets. ² She sent a message to Elijah: “You killed my prophets. Now I’m going to kill you! I pray that the gods will punish me even more severely if I don’t do it by this time tomorrow.”

³ Elijah was afraid when he got her message, and he ran to the town of Beersheba in Judah. He left his servant there, ⁴ then walked another whole day into the desert. Finally, he came to a large bush and sat down in its shade. He begged the Lord, “I’ve had enough. Just let me die! I’m no better off than my ancestors.” ⁵ Then he lay down in the shade and fell asleep.

Suddenly an angel woke him up and said, “Get up and eat.” ⁶ Elijah looked around, and by his head was a jar of water and some baked bread. He sat up, ate and drank, then lay down and went back to sleep.

⁷ Soon the Lord’s angel woke him again and said, “Get up and eat, or else you’ll get too tired to travel.” ⁸ So Elijah sat up and ate and drank.

The food and water made him strong enough to walk forty more days. At last, he reached Mount Sinai,^[a] the mountain of God, ⁹ and he spent the night there in a cave.

The Lord Appears to Elijah

While Elijah was on Mount Sinai, the Lord asked, “Elijah, why are you here?”

¹⁰ He answered, “Lord God All-Powerful, I’ve always done my best to obey you. But your people have broken their solemn promise to you. They have torn down your altars and killed all your prophets, except me. And now they are even trying to kill me!”

¹¹ “Go out and stand on the mountain,” the Lord replied. “I want you to see me when I pass by.”

All at once, a strong wind shook the mountain and shattered the rocks. But the Lord was not in the wind. Next, there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. ¹² Then there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire.

Finally, there was a gentle breeze,^{[b] 13} and when Elijah heard it, he covered his face with his coat. He went out and stood at the entrance to the cave.

The Lord^[c] asked, “Elijah, why are you here?”

¹⁴ Elijah answered, “Lord God All-Powerful, I’ve always done my best to obey you. But your people have broken their solemn promise to you. They have torn down your altars and killed all your prophets, except me. And now they are even trying to kill me!”

¹⁵ The Lord said:

Elisha Becomes Elijah’s Assistant

¹⁹ Elijah left and found Elisha plowing a field with a pair of oxen. There were eleven other men in front of him, and each one was also plowing with a pair of oxen. Elijah went over and put his own coat on Elisha.^[f]

²⁰ Elisha stopped plowing and ran after him. “Let me kiss my parents good-by, then I’ll go with you,” he said.

“You can go,” Elijah said. “But remember what I’ve done for you.”

²¹ Elisha left and took his oxen with him. He killed them and boiled them over a fire he had made with the wood from his plow. He gave the meat to the people who were with him, and they ate it. Then he left with Elijah and became his assistant.

Herod Causes Trouble for the Church

12 At that time King Herod^[a] caused terrible suffering for some members of the church. ² He ordered soldiers to cut off the head of James, the brother of John. ³ When Herod saw that this pleased the Jewish people, he had Peter arrested during the Festival of Thin Bread. ⁴ He put Peter in jail and ordered four squads of soldiers to guard him. Herod planned to put him on trial in public after the festival.

⁵ While Peter was being kept in jail, the church never stopped praying to God for him.

Peter Is Rescued

⁶ The night before Peter was to be put on trial, he was asleep and bound by two chains. A soldier was guarding him on each side, and two other soldiers were guarding the entrance to the jail. ⁷ Suddenly an angel from the Lord appeared, and light flashed around in the cell. The angel poked Peter in the side and woke him up. Then he said, “Quick! Get up!”

The chains fell off his hands, ⁸ and the angel said, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” Peter did what he was told. Then the angel said, “Now put on your coat and follow me.” ⁹ Peter left with the angel, but he thought everything was only a dream. ¹⁰ They went past the two groups of soldiers, and when they came to the iron gate to the city, it opened by itself. They went out and were going along the street, when all at once the angel disappeared.

¹¹ Peter now realized what had happened, and he said, “I am certain that the Lord sent his angel to rescue me from Herod and from everything the Jewish leaders planned to do to me.” ¹² Then Peter went to the house of Mary the mother of John whose other name was Mark. Many of the Lord’s followers had come together there and were praying.

¹³ Peter knocked on the gate, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer. ¹⁴ When she heard Peter’s voice, she was too excited to open the gate. She ran back into the house and said that Peter was standing there.

¹⁵ “You are crazy!” everyone told her. But she kept saying that it was Peter. Then they said, “It must be his angel.”^{[b] 16} But Peter kept on knocking, until finally they opened the gate. They saw him and were completely amazed.

¹⁷ Peter motioned for them to keep quiet. Then he told how the Lord had led him out of jail. He also said, “Tell James^[c] and the others what has happened.” After that, he left and went somewhere else.

¹⁸ The next morning the soldiers who had been on guard were terribly worried and wondered what had happened to Peter. ¹⁹ Herod ordered his own soldiers to search for him, but they could not find him. Then he questioned the guards and had them put to death. After this, Herod left Judea to stay in Caesarea for a while.

Herod Dies

²⁰ Herod and the people of Tyre and Sidon were very angry with each other. But their country got its food supply from the region that he ruled. So a group of them went to see Blastus, who was one of Herod’s high officials. They convinced Blastus that they wanted to make peace between their cities and Herod, ²¹ and a day was set for them to meet with him.

Herod came dressed in his royal robes. He sat down on his throne and made a speech. ²² The people shouted, “You speak more like a god than a man!” ²³ At once an angel from the Lord struck him down because he took the honor that belonged to God. Later, Herod was eaten by worms and died.

God’s Love Never Fails

Elijah Proves He Is the Lord’s Prophet

18 ^1-2 For three years no rain fell in Samaria, and there was almost nothing to eat anywhere. The Lord said to Elijah, “Go and meet with King Ahab. I will soon make it rain.” So Elijah went to see Ahab.

^3-4 At that time Obadiah was in charge of Ahab’s palace, but he faithfully worshiped the Lord. In fact, when Jezebel was trying to kill the Lord’s prophets, Obadiah hid one hundred of them in two caves and gave them food and water.

Ahab sent for Obadiah ⁵ and said, “We have to find something for our horses and mules to eat. If we don’t, we will have to kill them. Let’s look around every creek and spring in the country for some grass. ⁶ You go one way, and I’ll go the other.” Then they left in separate directions.

⁷ As Obadiah was walking along, he met Elijah. Obadiah recognized him, bowed down, and asked, “Elijah, is it really you?”

⁸ “Yes. Go tell Ahab I’m here.”

⁹ Obadiah replied:

¹⁵ Elijah said, “I’m a servant of the living Lord All-Powerful, and I swear in his name that I will meet with Ahab today.”

¹⁶ Obadiah left and told Ahab where to find Elijah.

Ahab went to meet Elijah, ¹⁷ and when he saw him, Ahab shouted, “There you are, the biggest troublemaker in Israel!”

¹⁸ Elijah answered:

²⁰ Ahab got everyone together, then they went to meet Elijah on Mount Carmel. ²¹ Elijah stood in front of them and said, “How much longer will you try to have things both ways? If the Lord is God, worship him! But if Baal is God, worship him!”

The people did not say a word.

²² Then Elijah continued:

“That’s a good idea,” everyone agreed.

²⁵ Elijah said to Baal’s prophets, “There are more of you, so you go first. Pick out a bull and get it ready, but don’t light the fire. Then pray to your god.”

²⁶ They chose their bull, then they got it ready and prayed to Baal all morning, asking him to start the fire. They danced around the altar and shouted, “Answer us, Baal!” But there was no answer.

²⁷ At noon, Elijah began making fun of them. “Pray louder!” he said. “Baal must be a god. Maybe he’s day-dreaming or using the toilet or traveling somewhere. Or maybe he’s asleep, and you have to wake him up.”

²⁸ The prophets kept shouting louder and louder, and they cut themselves with swords and knives until they were bleeding. This was the way they worshiped, ²⁹ and they kept it up all afternoon. But there was no answer of any kind.

³⁰ Elijah told everyone to gather around him while he repaired the Lord’s altar. ^31-32 Then he used twelve stones to build an altar in honor of the Lord. Each stone stood for one of the tribes of Israel, which was the name the Lord had given to their ancestor Jacob. Elijah dug a ditch around the altar, large enough to hold about thirteen quarts. ³³ He placed the wood on the altar, then they cut the bull into pieces and laid the meat on the wood.

He told the people, “Fill four large jars with water and pour it over the meat and the wood.” After they did this, ³⁴ he told them to do it two more times. They did exactly as he said ³⁵ until finally, the water ran down the altar and filled the ditch.

³⁶ When it was time for the evening sacrifice, Elijah prayed:

³⁸ The Lord immediately sent fire, and it burned up the sacrifice, the wood, and the stones. It scorched the ground everywhere around the altar and dried up every drop of water in the ditch. ³⁹ When the crowd saw what had happened, they all bowed down and shouted, “The Lord is God! The Lord is God!”

⁴⁰ Just then, Elijah said, “Grab the prophets of Baal! Don’t let any of them get away.”

So the people captured the prophets and took them to Kishon River, where Elijah killed every one of them.

It Starts To Rain

⁴¹ Elijah told Ahab, “Get something to eat and drink. I hear a heavy rain coming.”

⁴² Ahab left, but Elijah climbed back to the top of Mount Carmel. Then he stooped down with his face almost to the ground ⁴³ and said to his servant, “Look toward the sea.”

The servant left. And when he came back, he said, “I looked, but I didn’t see anything.” Elijah told him to look seven more times.

⁴⁴ After the seventh time the servant replied, “I see a small cloud coming this way. But it’s no bigger than a fist.”

Elijah told him, “Tell Ahab to get his chariot ready and start home now. Otherwise, the rain will stop him.”

^45-46 A few minutes later, it got very cloudy and windy, and rain started pouring down. So Elijah wrapped his coat around himself, and the Lord gave him strength to run all the way to Jezreel. Ahab followed him.

Peter Reports to the Church in Jerusalem

11 The apostles and the followers in Judea heard that Gentiles had accepted God’s message. ² So when Peter came to Jerusalem, some of the Jewish followers started arguing with him. They wanted Gentile followers to be circumcised, and ³ they said, “You stayed in the homes of Gentiles, and you even ate with them!”

⁴ Then Peter told them exactly what had happened:

¹⁸ When they heard Peter say this, they stopped arguing and started praising God. They said, “God has now let Gentiles turn to him, and he has given life to them!”

The Church in Antioch

¹⁹ Some of the Lord’s followers had been scattered because of the terrible trouble that started when Stephen was killed. They went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, but they told the message only to the Jews.

²⁰ Some of the followers from Cyprus and Cyrene went to Antioch and started telling Gentiles^[b] the good news about the Lord Jesus. ²¹ The Lord’s power was with them, and many people turned to the Lord and put their faith in him. ²² News of what was happening reached the church in Jerusalem. Then they sent Barnabas to Antioch.

²³ When Barnabas got there and saw what God had been kind enough to do for them, he was very glad. So he begged them to remain faithful to the Lord with all their hearts. ²⁴ Barnabas was a good man of great faith, and he was filled with the Holy Spirit. Many more people turned to the Lord.

²⁵ Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul. ²⁶ He found Saul and brought him to Antioch, where they met with the church for a whole year and taught many of its people. There in Antioch the Lord’s followers were first called Christians.

²⁷ During this time some prophets from Jerusalem came to Antioch. ²⁸ One of them was Agabus. Then with the help of the Spirit, he told that there would be a terrible famine everywhere in the world. And it happened when Claudius was Emperor.^{[c] 29} The followers in Antioch decided to send whatever help they could to the followers in Judea. ³⁰ So they had Barnabas and Saul take their gifts to the church leaders in Jerusalem.

In Praise of the Lord’s Kindness

King Nadab of Israel

²⁵ In the second year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, King Jeroboam's son Nadab became king of Israel, and he ruled for two years. ²⁶ Like his father before him, he sinned against the Lord and led Israel into sin.

²⁷ Baasha son of Ahijah, of the tribe of Issachar, plotted against Nadab and killed him as Nadab and his army were besieging the city of Gibbethon in Philistia. ²⁸ This happened during the third year of the reign of King Asa of Judah. And so Baasha succeeded Nadab as king of Israel. ^29 (A)At once he began killing all the members of Jeroboam's family. In accordance with what the Lord had said through his servant, the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh, all of Jeroboam's family were killed; not one survived. ³⁰ This happened because Jeroboam aroused the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, by the sins that he committed and that he caused Israel to commit.

³¹ Everything else that Nadab did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. ³² King Asa of Judah and King Baasha of Israel were constantly at war with each other as long as they were in power.

King Baasha of Israel

³³ In the third year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, Baasha son of Ahijah became king of all Israel, and he ruled in Tirzah for twenty-four years. ³⁴ Like King Jeroboam before him, he sinned against the Lord and led Israel into sin.

16 The Lord spoke to the prophet Jehu son of Hanani and gave him this message for Baasha: ² “You were a nobody, but I made you the leader of my people Israel. And now you have sinned like Jeroboam and have led my people into sin. Their sins have aroused my anger, ³ and so I will do away with you and your family, just as I did with Jeroboam. ⁴ Any members of your family who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and any who die in the open country will be eaten by vultures.”

⁵ Everything else that Baasha did and all his brave deeds are recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. ⁶ Baasha died and was buried in Tirzah, and his son Elah succeeded him as king.

⁷ That message from the Lord against Baasha and his family was given by the prophet Jehu because of the sins that Baasha committed against the Lord. He aroused the Lord's anger not only because of the evil he did, just as King Jeroboam had done before him, but also because he killed all of Jeroboam's family.

King Elah of Israel

⁸ In the twenty-sixth year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, Elah son of Baasha became king of Israel, and he ruled in Tirzah for two years. ⁹ Zimri, one of his officers who was in charge of half of the king's chariots, plotted against him. One day in Tirzah, Elah was getting drunk in the home of Arza, who was in charge of the palace. ¹⁰ Zimri entered the house, assassinated Elah, and succeeded him as king. This happened in the twenty-seventh year of the reign of King Asa of Judah.

¹¹ As soon as Zimri became king he killed off all the members of Baasha's family. Every male relative and friend was put to death. ¹² And so, in accordance with what the Lord had said against Baasha through the prophet Jehu, Zimri killed all the family of Baasha. ¹³ Because of their idolatry and because they led Israel into sin, Baasha and his son Elah had aroused the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel. ¹⁴ Everything else that Elah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel.

King Zimri of Israel

¹⁵ In the twenty-seventh year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, Zimri ruled in Tirzah over Israel for seven days. The Israelite troops were besieging the city of Gibbethon in Philistia, ¹⁶ and when they heard that Zimri had plotted against the king and assassinated him, then and there they all proclaimed their commander Omri king of Israel. ¹⁷ Omri and his troops left Gibbethon and went and besieged Tirzah. ¹⁸ When Zimri saw that the city had fallen, he went into the palace's inner fortress, set the palace on fire, and died in the flames. ¹⁹ This happened because of his sins against the Lord. Like his predecessor Jeroboam, he displeased the Lord by his own sins and by leading Israel into sin. ²⁰ Everything else that Zimri did, including the account of his conspiracy, is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel.

King Omri of Israel

²¹ The people of Israel were divided: some of them wanted to make Tibni son of Ginath king, and the others were in favor of Omri. ²² In the end, those in favor of Omri won out; Tibni died and Omri became king. ²³ So in the thirty-first year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, Omri became king of Israel, and he ruled for twelve years. The first six years he ruled in Tirzah, ²⁴ and then he bought the hill of Samaria for six thousand pieces of silver from a man named Shemer. Omri fortified the hill, built a town there, and named it Samaria, after Shemer, the former owner of the hill.

²⁵ Omri sinned against the Lord more than any of his predecessors. ²⁶ Like Jeroboam before him, he aroused the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, by his sins and by leading the people into sin and idolatry. ²⁷ Everything else that Omri did and all his accomplishments are recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. ²⁸ Omri died and was buried in Samaria, and his son Ahab succeeded him as king.

King Ahab of Israel

²⁹ In the thirty-eighth year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for twenty-two years. ³⁰ He sinned against the Lord more than any of his predecessors. ³¹ It was not enough for him to sin like King Jeroboam; he went further and married Jezebel, the daughter of King Ethbaal of Sidon, and worshiped Baal. ³² He built a temple to Baal in Samaria, made an altar for him, and put it in the temple. ³³ He also put up an image of the goddess Asherah. He did more to arouse the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than all the kings of Israel before him. ^34 (B)During his reign Hiel from Bethel rebuilt Jericho. As the Lord had foretold through Joshua son of Nun, Hiel lost his oldest son Abiram when he laid the foundation of Jericho, and his youngest son Segub when he built the gates.

Elijah and the Drought

17 ^(C)A prophet named Elijah, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to King Ahab, “In the name of the Lord, the living God of Israel, whom I serve, I tell you that there will be no dew or rain for the next two or three years until I say so.”

² Then the Lord said to Elijah, ³ “Leave this place and go east and hide yourself near Cherith Brook, east of the Jordan. ⁴ The brook will supply you with water to drink, and I have commanded ravens to bring you food there.”

⁵ Elijah obeyed the Lord's command, and went and stayed by Cherith Brook. ⁶ He drank water from the brook, and ravens brought him bread and meat every morning and every evening. ⁷ After a while the brook dried up because of the lack of rain.

Elijah and the Widow in Zarephath

⁸ Then the Lord said to Elijah, ^9 (D)“Now go to the town of Zarephath, near Sidon, and stay there. I have commanded a widow who lives there to feed you.” ¹⁰ So Elijah went to Zarephath, and as he came to the town gate, he saw a widow gathering firewood. “Please bring me a drink of water,” he said to her. ¹¹ And as she was going to get it, he called out, “And please bring me some bread, too.”

¹² She answered, “By the living Lord your God I swear that I don't have any bread. All I have is a handful of flour in a bowl and a bit of olive oil in a jar. I came here to gather some firewood to take back home and prepare what little I have for my son and me. That will be our last meal, and then we will starve to death.”

¹³ “Don't worry,” Elijah said to her. “Go on and prepare your meal. But first make a small loaf from what you have and bring it to me, and then prepare the rest for you and your son. ¹⁴ For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The bowl will not run out of flour or the jar run out of oil before the day that I, the Lord, send rain.’”

¹⁵ The widow went and did as Elijah had told her, and all of them had enough food for many days. ¹⁶ As the Lord had promised through Elijah, the bowl did not run out of flour nor did the jar run out of oil.

¹⁷ Some time later the widow's son got sick; he got worse and worse, and finally he died. ¹⁸ She said to Elijah, “Man of God, why did you do this to me? Did you come here to remind God of my sins and so cause my son's death?”

¹⁹ “Give the boy to me,” Elijah said. He took the boy from her arms, carried him upstairs to the room where he was staying, and laid him on the bed. ²⁰ Then he prayed aloud, “O Lord my God, why have you done such a terrible thing to this widow? She has been kind enough to take care of me, and now you kill her son!” ^21 (E)Then Elijah stretched himself out on the boy three times and prayed, “O Lord my God, restore this child to life!” ²² The Lord answered Elijah's prayer; the child started breathing again and revived.

²³ Elijah took the boy back downstairs to his mother and said to her, “Look, your son is alive!”

²⁴ She answered, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the Lord really speaks through you!”

²⁴ The following day he arrived in Caesarea, where Cornelius was waiting for him, together with relatives and close friends that he had invited. ²⁵ As Peter was about to go in, Cornelius met him, fell at his feet, and bowed down before him. ²⁶ But Peter made him rise. “Stand up,” he said, “I myself am only a man.” ²⁷ Peter kept on talking to Cornelius as he went into the house, where he found many people gathered. ²⁸ He said to them, “You yourselves know very well that a Jew is not allowed by his religion to visit or associate with Gentiles. But God has shown me that I must not consider any person ritually unclean or defiled. ²⁹ And so when you sent for me, I came without any objection. I ask you, then, why did you send for me?”

³⁰ Cornelius said, “It was about this time three days ago that I was praying^[a] in my house at three o'clock in the afternoon. Suddenly a man dressed in shining clothes stood in front of me ³¹ and said: ‘Cornelius! God has heard your prayer and has taken notice of your works of charity. ³² Send someone to Joppa for a man whose full name is Simon Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner of leather, who lives by the sea.’ ³³ And so I sent for you at once, and you have been good enough to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God, waiting to hear anything that the Lord has instructed you to say.”

Peter's Speech

^34 (A)Peter began to speak: “I now realize that it is true that God treats everyone on the same basis. ³⁵ Those who fear him and do what is right are acceptable to him, no matter what race they belong to. ³⁶ You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, proclaiming the Good News of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. ³⁷ You know of the great event that took place throughout the land of Israel, beginning in Galilee after John preached his message of baptism. ³⁸ You know about Jesus of Nazareth and how God poured out on him the Holy Spirit and power. He went everywhere, doing good and healing all who were under the power of the Devil, for God was with him. ³⁹ We are witnesses of everything that he did in the land of Israel and in Jerusalem. Then they put him to death by nailing him to a cross. ⁴⁰ But God raised him from death three days later and caused him to appear, ⁴¹ not to everyone, but only to the witnesses that God had already chosen, that is, to us who ate and drank with him after he rose from death. ⁴² And he commanded us to preach the gospel to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God has appointed judge of the living and the dead. ⁴³ All the prophets spoke about him, saying that all who believe in him will have their sins forgiven through the power of his name.”

The Gentiles Receive the Holy Spirit

⁴⁴ While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit came down on all those who were listening to his message. ⁴⁵ The Jewish believers who had come from Joppa with Peter were amazed that God had poured out his gift of the Holy Spirit on the Gentiles also. ⁴⁶ For they heard them speaking in strange tongues and praising God's greatness. Peter spoke up: ⁴⁷ “These people have received the Holy Spirit, just as we also did. Can anyone, then, stop them from being baptized with water?” ⁴⁸ So he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay with them for a few days.

A Call to Praise God

⁹ If you want people to like you, forgive them when they wrong you. Remembering wrongs can break up a friendship.

¹⁰ An intelligent person learns more from one rebuke than a fool learns from being beaten a hundred times.

¹¹ Death will come like a cruel messenger to wicked people who are always stirring up trouble.

The Death of Jeroboam's Son

14 At that time King Jeroboam's son Abijah got sick. ² Jeroboam said to his wife, “Disguise yourself so that no one will recognize you, and go to Shiloh, where the prophet Ahijah lives, the one who said I would be king of Israel. ³ Take him ten loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey. Ask him what is going to happen to our son, and he will tell you.”

⁴ So she went to Ahijah's home in Shiloh. Old age had made Ahijah blind. ⁵ The Lord had told him that Jeroboam's wife was coming to ask him about her son, who was sick. And the Lord told Ahijah what to say.

When Jeroboam's wife arrived, she pretended to be someone else. ⁶ But when Ahijah heard her coming in the door, he said, “Come in. I know you are Jeroboam's wife. Why are you pretending to be someone else? I have bad news for you. ⁷ Go and tell Jeroboam that this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to him: ‘I chose you from among the people and made you the ruler of my people Israel. ⁸ I took the kingdom away from David's descendants and gave it to you. But you have not been like my servant David, who was completely loyal to me, obeyed my commands, and did only what I approve of. ⁹ You have committed far greater sins than those who ruled before you. You have rejected me and have aroused my anger by making idols and metal images to worship. ^10 (A)Because of this I will bring disaster on your dynasty and will kill all your male descendants, young and old alike. I will get rid of your family; they will be swept away like dung. ¹¹ Any members of your family who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and any who die in the open country will be eaten by vultures. I, the Lord, have spoken.’”

¹² And Ahijah went on to say to Jeroboam's wife, “Now go back home. As soon as you enter the town, your son will die. ¹³ All the people of Israel will mourn for him and bury him. He will be the only member of Jeroboam's family who will be properly buried, because he is the only one with whom the Lord, the God of Israel, is pleased. ¹⁴ The Lord is going to place a king over Israel who will put an end to Jeroboam's dynasty.^{[a] 15} The Lord will punish Israel, and she will shake like a reed shaking in a stream. He will uproot the people of Israel from this good land which he gave to their ancestors, and he will scatter them beyond the Euphrates River, because they have aroused his anger by making idols of the goddess Asherah. ¹⁶ The Lord will abandon Israel because Jeroboam sinned and led the people of Israel into sin.”

¹⁷ Jeroboam's wife went back to Tirzah. Just as she entered her home, the child died. ¹⁸ The people of Israel mourned for him and buried him, as the Lord had said through his servant, the prophet Ahijah.

The Death of Jeroboam

¹⁹ Everything else that King Jeroboam did, the wars he fought and how he ruled, are all recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. ²⁰ Jeroboam ruled as king for twenty-two years. He died and was buried, and his son Nadab succeeded him as king.

King Rehoboam of Judah^(B)

²¹ Solomon's son Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he became king of Judah, and he ruled seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord had chosen from all the territory of Israel as the place where he was to be worshiped. Rehoboam's mother was Naamah from Ammon.

²² The people of Judah sinned against the Lord and did more to arouse his anger against them than all their ancestors had done. ^23 (C)They built places of worship for false gods and put up stone pillars and symbols of Asherah to worship on the hills and under shady trees. ^24 (D)Worst of all, there were men and women who served as prostitutes at those pagan places of worship. The people of Judah practiced all the shameful things done by the people whom the Lord had driven out of the land as the Israelites advanced into the country.

^25 (E)In the fifth year of Rehoboam's reign King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem. ^26 (F)He took away all the treasures in the Temple and in the palace, including the gold shields Solomon had made. ²⁷ To replace them, King Rehoboam made bronze shields and entrusted them to the officers responsible for guarding the palace gates. ²⁸ Every time the king went to the Temple, the guards carried the shields and then returned them to the guardroom.

²⁹ Everything else that King Rehoboam did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Judah. ³⁰ During all this time Rehoboam and Jeroboam were constantly at war with each other. ³¹ Rehoboam died and was buried in the royal tombs in David's City and his son Abijah succeeded him as king.

King Abijah of Judah^(G)

15 In the eighteenth year of the reign of King Jeroboam of Israel, Abijah became king of Judah, ² and he ruled three years in Jerusalem. His mother was Maacah, the daughter of Absalom. ³ He committed the same sins as his father and was not completely loyal to the Lord his God, as his great-grandfather David had been. ^4 (H)But for David's sake the Lord his God gave Abijah a son to rule after him in Jerusalem and to keep Jerusalem secure. ^5 (I)The Lord did this because David had done what pleased him and had never disobeyed any of his commands, except in the case of Uriah the Hittite. ^6 (J)The war which had begun between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continued throughout Abijah's lifetime. ⁷ And everything else that Abijah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Judah.

⁸ Abijah died and was buried in David's City, and his son Asa succeeded him as king.

King Asa of Judah^(K)

⁹ In the twentieth year of the reign of King Jeroboam of Israel, Asa became king of Judah, ¹⁰ and he ruled forty-one years in Jerusalem. His grandmother was Maacah, the daughter of Absalom. ¹¹ Asa did what pleased the Lord, as his ancestor David had done. ^12 (L)He expelled from the country all the male and female prostitutes serving at the pagan places of worship, and he removed all the idols his predecessors had made. ¹³ He removed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother, because she had made an obscene idol of the fertility goddess Asherah. Asa cut down the idol and burned it in Kidron Valley. ¹⁴ Even though Asa did not destroy all the pagan places of worship, he remained faithful to the Lord all his life. ¹⁵ He placed in the Temple all the objects his father had dedicated to God, as well as the gold and silver objects that he himself dedicated.

¹⁶ King Asa of Judah and King Baasha of Israel were constantly at war with each other as long as they were in power. ¹⁷ Baasha invaded Judah and started to fortify Ramah in order to cut off all traffic in and out of Judah. ¹⁸ So King Asa took all the silver and gold that was left in the Temple and the palace, and sent it by some of his officials to Damascus, to King Benhadad of Syria, the son of Tabrimmon and grandson of Hezion, with this message: ¹⁹ “Let us be allies, as our fathers were. This silver and gold is a present for you. Now break your alliance with King Baasha of Israel, so that he will have to pull his troops out of my territory.”

²⁰ King Benhadad agreed to Asa's proposal and sent his commanding officers and their armies to attack the cities of Israel. They captured Ijon, Dan, Abel Beth Maacah, the area near Lake Galilee, and the whole territory of Naphtali. ²¹ When King Baasha heard what had happened, he stopped fortifying Ramah and went to Tirzah.

²² Then King Asa sent out an order throughout all of Judah requiring everyone, without exception, to help carry away from Ramah the stones and timber that Baasha had been using to fortify it. With this material Asa fortified Mizpah and Geba, a city in the territory of Benjamin.

²³ Everything else that King Asa did, his brave deeds and the towns he fortified, are all recorded in The History of the Kings of Judah. But in his old age he was crippled by a foot disease. ²⁴ Asa died and was buried in the royal tombs in David's City, and his son Jehoshaphat succeeded him as king.

Peter and Cornelius

10 There was a man in Caesarea named Cornelius, who was a captain in the Roman army regiment called “The Italian Regiment.” ² He was a religious man; he and his whole family worshiped God. He also did much to help the Jewish poor people and was constantly praying to God. ³ It was about three o'clock one afternoon when he had a vision, in which he clearly saw an angel of God come in and say to him, “Cornelius!”

⁴ He stared at the angel in fear and said, “What is it, sir?”

The angel answered, “God is pleased with your prayers and works of charity, and is ready to answer you. ⁵ And now send some men to Joppa for a certain man whose full name is Simon Peter. ⁶ He is a guest in the home of a tanner of leather named Simon, who lives by the sea.” ⁷ Then the angel went away, and Cornelius called two of his house servants and a soldier, a religious man who was one of his personal attendants. ⁸ He told them what had happened and sent them off to Joppa.

^9 (A)The next day, as they were on their way and coming near Joppa, Peter went up on the roof of the house about noon in order to pray. ¹⁰ He became hungry and wanted something to eat; while the food was being prepared, he had a vision. ¹¹ He saw heaven opened and something coming down that looked like a large sheet being lowered by its four corners to the earth. ¹² In it were all kinds of animals, reptiles, and wild birds. ¹³ A voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat!”

¹⁴ But Peter said, “Certainly not, Lord! I have never eaten anything ritually unclean or defiled.”

¹⁵ The voice spoke to him again, “Do not consider anything unclean that God has declared clean.” ¹⁶ This happened three times, and then the thing was taken back up into heaven.

¹⁷ While Peter was wondering about the meaning of this vision, the men sent by Cornelius had learned where Simon's house was, and they were now standing in front of the gate. ¹⁸ They called out and asked, “Is there a guest here by the name of Simon Peter?”

¹⁹ Peter was still trying to understand what the vision meant, when the Spirit said, “Listen! Three^[a] men are here looking for you. ²⁰ So get ready and go down, and do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.” ²¹ So Peter went down and said to the men, “I am the man you are looking for. Why have you come?”

²² “Captain Cornelius sent us,” they answered. “He is a good man who worships God and is highly respected by all the Jewish people. An angel of God told him to invite you to his house, so that he could hear what you have to say.” ²³ Peter invited the men in and had them spend the night there.

The next day he got ready and went with them; and some of the believers from Joppa went along with him.

In Praise of Living in Peace^[a]

⁷ Respected people do not tell lies, and fools have nothing worthwhile to say.

⁸ Some people think a bribe works like magic; they believe it can do anything.

²⁰ When the people of Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned from Egypt, they invited him to a meeting of the people and made him king of Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to David's descendants.

Shemaiah's Prophecy^(A)

²¹ When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he called together 180,000 of the best soldiers from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. He intended to go to war and restore his control over the northern tribes of Israel. ²² But God told the prophet Shemaiah ²³ to give this message to Rehoboam and to all the people of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin: ²⁴ “Do not attack your own relatives, the people of Israel. Go home, all of you. What has happened is my will.” They all obeyed the Lord's command and went back home.

Jeroboam Turns Away from God

²⁵ King Jeroboam of Israel fortified the town of Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there for a while. Then he left and fortified the town of Penuel. ^26-27 He said to himself, “As things are now, if my people go to Jerusalem and offer sacrifices to the Lord in the Temple there, they will transfer their allegiance to King Rehoboam of Judah and will kill me.”

^28 (B)After thinking it over, he made two bull-calves of gold and said to his people, “You have been going long enough to Jerusalem to worship. People of Israel, here are your gods who brought you out of Egypt!” ²⁹ He placed one of the gold bull-calves in Bethel and the other in Dan. ³⁰ And so the people sinned, going to worship in Bethel and in Dan.^{[a] 31} Jeroboam also built places of worship on hilltops, and he chose priests from families who were not of the tribe of Levi.

Worship at Bethel Is Condemned

^32 (C)Jeroboam also instituted a religious festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival in Judah. On the altar in Bethel he offered sacrifices to the gold bull-calves he had made, and he placed there in Bethel the priests serving at the places of worship he had built. ³³ And on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, the day that he himself had set, he went to Bethel and offered a sacrifice on the altar in celebration of the festival he had instituted for the people of Israel.

13 At the Lord's command a prophet from Judah went to Bethel and arrived there as Jeroboam stood at the altar to offer the sacrifice. ^2 (D)Following the Lord's command, the prophet denounced the altar: “O altar, altar, this is what the Lord says: A child, whose name will be Josiah, will be born to the family of David. He will slaughter on you the priests serving at the pagan altars who offer sacrifices on you, and he will burn human bones on you.” ³ And the prophet went on to say, “This altar will fall apart, and the ashes on it will be scattered. Then you will know that the Lord has spoken through me.”

⁴ When King Jeroboam heard this, he pointed at him and ordered, “Seize that man!” At once the king's arm became paralyzed so that he couldn't pull it back. ⁵ The altar suddenly fell apart and the ashes spilled to the ground, as the prophet had predicted in the name of the Lord. ⁶ King Jeroboam said to the prophet, “Please pray for me to the Lord your God, and ask him to heal my arm!”

The prophet prayed to the Lord, and the king's arm was healed. ⁷ Then the king said to the prophet, “Come home with me and have something to eat. I will reward you for what you have done.”

⁸ The prophet answered, “Even if you gave me half of your wealth, I would not go with you or eat or drink anything with you. ⁹ The Lord has commanded me not to eat or drink a thing, and not to return home the same way I came.” ¹⁰ So he did not go back the same way he had come, but by another road.

The Old Prophet of Bethel

¹¹ At that time there was an old prophet living in Bethel. His sons^[b] came and told him what the prophet from Judah had done in Bethel that day and what he had said to King Jeroboam. ¹² “Which way did he go when he left?” the old prophet asked them. They showed him^[c] the road ¹³ and he told them to saddle his donkey for him. They did so, and he rode off ¹⁴ down the road after the prophet from Judah and found him sitting under an oak tree. “Are you the prophet from Judah?” he asked.

“I am,” the man answered.

¹⁵ “Come home and have a meal with me,” he said.

¹⁶ But the prophet from Judah answered, “I can't go home with you or accept your hospitality. And I won't eat or drink anything with you here, ¹⁷ because the Lord has commanded me not to eat or drink a thing, and not to return home the same way I came.”

¹⁸ Then the old prophet from Bethel said to him, “I, too, am a prophet just like you, and at the Lord's command an angel told me to take you home with me and offer you my hospitality.” But the old prophet was lying.

¹⁹ So the prophet from Judah went home with the old prophet and had a meal with him. ²⁰ As they were sitting at the table, the word of the Lord came to the old prophet, ²¹ and he cried out to the prophet from Judah, “The Lord says that you disobeyed him and did not do what he commanded. ²² Instead, you returned and ate a meal in a place he had ordered you not to eat in. Because of this you will be killed, and your body will not be buried in your family grave.”

²³ After they had finished eating, the old prophet saddled the donkey for the prophet from Judah, ²⁴ who rode off. On the way a lion met him and killed him. His body lay on the road, and the donkey and the lion stood beside it. ²⁵ Some men passed by and saw the body on the road, with the lion standing near by. They went on into Bethel and reported what they had seen.

²⁶ When the old prophet heard about it, he said, “That is the prophet who disobeyed the Lord's command! And so the Lord sent the lion to attack and kill him, just as the Lord said he would.” ²⁷ Then he said to his sons, “Saddle my donkey for me.” They did so, ²⁸ and he rode off and found the prophet's body lying on the road, with the donkey and the lion still standing by it. The lion had not eaten the body or attacked the donkey. ²⁹ The old prophet picked up the body, put it on the donkey, and brought it back to Bethel to mourn over it and bury it. ³⁰ He buried it in his own family grave, and he and his sons mourned over it, saying, “Oh my brother, my brother!” ³¹ After the burial the prophet said to his sons, “When I die, bury me in this grave and lay my body next to his. ³² The words that he spoke at the Lord's command against the altar in Bethel and against all the places of worship in the towns of Samaria will surely come true.”

Jeroboam's Fatal Sin

³³ King Jeroboam of Israel still did not turn from his evil ways but continued to choose priests from ordinary families to serve at the altars he had built. He ordained as priest anyone who wanted to be one. ³⁴ This sin on his part brought about the ruin and total destruction of his dynasty.

Saul in Jerusalem

²⁶ Saul went to Jerusalem and tried to join the disciples. But they would not believe that he was a disciple, and they were all afraid of him. ²⁷ Then Barnabas came to his help and took him to the apostles. He explained to them how Saul had seen the Lord on the road and that the Lord had spoken to him. He also told them how boldly Saul had preached in the name of Jesus in Damascus. ²⁸ And so Saul stayed with them and went all over Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. ²⁹ He also talked and disputed with the Greek-speaking Jews, but they tried to kill him. ³⁰ When the believers found out about this, they took Saul to Caesarea and sent him away to Tarsus.

³¹ And so it was that the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had a time of peace. Through the help of the Holy Spirit it was strengthened and grew in numbers, as it lived in reverence for the Lord.

Peter in Lydda and Joppa

³² Peter traveled everywhere, and on one occasion he went to visit God's people who lived in Lydda. ³³ There he met a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had not been able to get out of bed for eight years. ³⁴ “Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ makes you well. Get up and make your bed.” At once Aeneas got up. ³⁵ All the people living in Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord.

³⁶ In Joppa there was a woman named Tabitha, who was a believer. (Her name in Greek is Dorcas, meaning “a deer.”) She spent all her time doing good and helping the poor. ³⁷ At that time she got sick and died. Her body was washed and laid in a room upstairs. ³⁸ Joppa was not very far from Lydda, and when the believers in Joppa heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him with the message, “Please hurry and come to us.” ³⁹ So Peter got ready and went with them. When he arrived, he was taken to the room upstairs, where all the widows crowded around him, crying and showing him all the shirts and coats that Dorcas had made while she was alive. ⁴⁰ Peter put them all out of the room, and knelt down and prayed; then he turned to the body and said, “Tabitha, get up!” She opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up. ⁴¹ Peter reached over and helped her get up. Then he called all the believers, including the widows, and presented her alive to them. ⁴² The news about this spread all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. ⁴³ Peter stayed on in Joppa for many days with a tanner of leather named Simon.

In Praise of the Temple

⁶ Grandparents are proud of their grandchildren, just as children are proud of their parents.