Luke 5:12–16; Philippians 1:21–30; Psalm 119:121–128; 2 Kings 6–7

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Luke 5:12–16

Jesus Cleanses a Leper

12 While he was in one of the cities, fthere came a man full of leprosy.1 And when he saw Jesus, he gfell on his face and begged him, Lord, hif you will, you can make me clean. 13 And Jesus2 stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, I will; be clean. And immediately the leprosy left him. 14 And he charged him ito tell no one, but go and show jyourself to the priest, and kmake an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, lfor a proof to them. 15 mBut now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. 16 But nhe would withdraw to desolate places and npray.


Philippians 1:21–30

21 For to me mto live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 nI am hard pressed between the two. My desire is oto depart and pbe with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 25 qConvinced of this, rI know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your sprogress and tjoy in the faith, 26 so that in me uyou may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.

27 Only vlet your manner of life be wworthy1 of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you xthat you are standing firm in one spirit, with yone mind zstriving side by side for the faith of the gospel, 28 and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is aa clear sign to them of their destruction, but bof your salvation, and that from God. 29 For cit has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also bsuffer for his sake, 30 engaged in the same dconflict that eyou saw I had and now hear that I still have.


Psalm 119:121–128

Ayin

121  I have done what is just and right;

do not leave me to my oppressors.

122  Give your servant la pledge of good;

let not mthe insolent oppress me.

123  My neyes long for your salvation

and for the fulfillment of your righteous promise.

124  Deal with your servant according to your steadfast love,

and oteach me your statutes.

125  I am your pservant; qgive me understanding,

that I may know your testimonies!

126  It is time for the Lord to act,

for your law has been broken.

127  Therefore I rlove your commandments

above gold, above fine gold.

128  Therefore I consider all your precepts to be right;

I hate every sfalse way.


2 Kings 6–7

The Axe Head Recovered

Now nthe sons of the prophets said to Elisha, See, the place where we dwell under your charge is too small for us. Let us go to the Jordan and each of us get there a log, and let us make a place for us to dwell there. And he answered, Go. Then one of them said, Be pleased to go with your servants. And he answered, I will go. So he went with them. And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down trees. But as one was felling a log, his axe head fell into the water, and he cried out, Alas, my master! It was borrowed. Then the man of God said, Where did it fall? When he showed him the place, ohe cut off a stick and threw it in there and made the iron float. And he said, Take it up. So he reached out his hand and took it.

Horses and Chariots of Fire

Once when the king of Syria was warring against Israel, he took counsel with his servants, saying, At such and such a place shall be my camp. But the man of God sent word to the king of Israel, Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are going down there. 10 And the king of Israel sent to the place about which the man of God told him. Thus he used to warn him, so that he saved himself there more than once or twice.

11 And the mind of the king of Syria was greatly troubled because of this thing, and he called his servants and said to them, Will you not show me who of us is for the king of Israel? 12 And one of his servants said, None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom. 13 And he said, Go and see where he is, that I may send and seize him. It was told him, Behold, he is in pDothan. 14 So he sent there horses and chariots and a great army, and they came by night and surrounded the city.

15 When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, Alas, my master! What shall we do? 16 He said, Do not be afraid, qfor those who are with us are more than those who are with them. 17 Then Elisha prayed and said, O Lord, please ropen his eyes that he may see. So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of shorses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 18 And when the Syrians came down against him, Elisha prayed to the Lord and said, Please strike this people with blindness. tSo he struck them with blindness in accordance with the prayer of Elisha. 19 And Elisha said to them, This is not the way, and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom you seek. And he led them to Samaria.

20 As soon as they entered Samaria, Elisha said, O Lord, ropen the eyes of these men, that they may see. So the Lord opened their eyes and they saw, and behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. 21 As soon as the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, uMy father, shall I strike them down? Shall I strike them down? 22 He answered, You shall not strike them down. Would you strike down those whom you have taken captive vwith your sword and with your bow? wSet bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink and go to their master. 23 So he prepared for them a great feast, and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the Syrians did not come again xon raids into the land of Israel.

Ben-hadad’s Siege of Samaria

24 Afterward yBen-hadad king of Syria mustered his entire army and went up and besieged Samaria. 25 And there was a great famine in Samaria, as they besieged it, until a donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels of silver, and the fourth part of a kab1 of dove’s dung for five shekels of silver. 26 Now as the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, saying, Help, my lord, O king! 27 And he said, If the Lord will not help you, how shall I help you? From the threshing floor, or from the winepress? 28 And the king asked her, What is your trouble? She answered, This woman said to me, Give your son, that we may eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow. 29 zSo we boiled my son and ate him. And on the next day I said to her, Give your son, that we may eat him. But she has hidden her son. 30 When the king heard the words of the woman, ahe tore his clothesnow he was passing by on the walland the people looked, and behold, ahe had sackcloth beneath on his body 31 and he said, bMay God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat remains on his shoulders today.

32 Elisha was sitting in his house, cand the elders were sitting with him. Now the king had dispatched a man from his presence, but before the messenger arrived Elisha said to the elders, Do you see how this dmurderer has sent to take off my head? Look, when the messenger comes, shut the door and hold the door fast against him. Is not the sound of his master’s feet behind him? 33 And while he was still speaking with them, the messenger came down to him and said, This trouble is from the Lord! eWhy should I wait for the Lord any longer?

Elisha Promises Food

But Elisha said, Hear the word of the Lord: thus says the Lord, fTomorrow about this time a seah2 of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel,3 and two seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria. Then gthe captain on whose hand the king leaned said to the man of God, hIf the Lord himself should make windows in heaven, could this thing be? But he said, You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it.

The Syrians Flee

Now there were four men who were lepers4 iat the entrance to the gate. And they said to one another, Why are we sitting here until we die? If we say, Let us enter the city, the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also. So now come, let us go over to the camp of the Syrians. If they spare our lives we shall live, and if they kill us we shall but die. So they arose at twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians. But when they came to the edge of the camp of the Syrians, behold, there was no one there. For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians jhear the sound of chariots and of horses, the sound of a great army, so that they said to one another, Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us kthe kings of the Hittites and the kings of Egypt to come against us. lSo they fled away in the twilight and abandoned their tents, their horses, and their donkeys, leaving the camp as it was, and fled for their lives. And when these lepers came to the edge of the camp, they went into a tent and ate and drank, and they carried off silver and gold and clothing and went and hid them. Then they came back and entered another tent and carried off things from it and went and hid them.

Then they said to one another, We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come; let us go and tell the king’s household. 10 So they came and called to the gatekeepers of the city and told them, We came to the camp of the Syrians, and behold, there was no one to be seen or heard there, nothing but the horses tied and the donkeys tied and the tents as they were. 11 Then the gatekeepers called out, and it was told within the king’s household. 12 And the king rose in the night and said to his servants, I will tell you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry. Therefore they have gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the open country, thinking, When they come out of the city, we shall take them alive and get into the city. 13 And one of his servants said, Let some men take five of the remaining horses, seeing that those who are left here will fare like the whole multitude of Israel who have already perished. Let us send and see. 14 So they took two horsemen, and the king sent them after the army of the Syrians, saying, Go and see. 15 So they went after them as far as the Jordan, and behold, all the way was littered with garments and equipment that the Syrians had thrown away in their haste. And the messengers returned and told the king.

16 Then the people went out and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a seah of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, maccording to the word of the Lord. 17 Now the king had appointed nthe captain on whose hand he leaned to have charge of the gate. And the people trampled him in the gate, so that he died, as the man of God had said owhen the king came down to him. 18 For when the man of God had said to the king, Two seahs of barley shall be sold for a shekel, and a seah of fine flour for a shekel, about this time tomorrow in the gate of Samaria, 19 nthe captain had answered the man of God, If the Lord himself should make windows in heaven, could such a thing be? And he had said, pYou shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it. 20 And so it happened to him, for the people trampled him in the gate and he died.