07/21 – Exodus 32:21-29 – Pentecost and the 14th of Tammuz

Old Testament: Exodus 32:21-29

Moses asked Aaron, “What did these people do to you that you encouraged them to commit such a serious sin?”

“Don’t be angry, sir,” Aaron answered. “You know that these people are evil. They said to me, ‘We don’t know what has happened to this Moses who brought us out of Egypt. Make gods for us. They will lead us.’ So I told them to take off any gold they were wearing. They gave it to me. I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!”

Aaron had let the people get out of control, and they became an object of ridicule to their enemies. When Moses saw this, he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “If you are on the Lord’s side come over here to me!” Then all the Levites gathered around him. He said to them, “This is what the Lord God of Israel says, ‘Each of you put on your sword. Go back and forth from one end of the camp to the other, and kill your relatives, friends, and neighbors.’”

The Levites did what Moses told them, and that day about 3,000 people died. Moses said, “Today you are ordained as the Lord’s priests. God gave you a blessing today because each of you fought with your own sons and brothers.”

Epistle Reading: Acts 2:1,5-11,14,22-24,36-41

When Pentecost, the fiftieth day after Passover, came, all the believers were together in one place.

Devout Jewish men from every nation were living in Jerusalem. They gathered when they heard the wind. Each person was startled to recognize his own dialect when the disciples spoke. Stunned and amazed, the people in the crowd said, “All of these men who are speaking are Galileans. Why do we hear them speaking in our native dialects? We’re Parthians {PAR-thee-ans}, Medes {Meeds}, and Elamites {EE-lam-ites}. We’re people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia {CAP-ah-doe-see-ah}, Pontus {PON-tus}, the province of Asia, Phrygia {FRIG-ee-ah}, Pamphylia {pam-FILL-ee-ah}, Egypt, and the country near Cyrene {sigh-REEN} in Libya. We’re Jewish people, converts to Judaism, and visitors from Rome, Crete {CREET}, and Arabia. We hear these men in our own languages as they tell about the miracles that God has done.”

Then Peter stood up with the eleven apostles. In a loud voice he said to them, “Men of Judea and everyone living in Jerusalem! You must understand this, so pay attention to what I say. “Men of Israel, listen to what I say: Jesus from Nazareth was a man whom God brought to your attention. You know that through this man God worked miracles, did amazing things, and gave signs. By using men who don’t acknowledge Moses’ Teachings, you crucified Jesus, who was given over to death by a plan that God had determined in advance, but God brought him from death back to life and destroyed the pains of death, because death had no power to hold him… All the people of Israel should know beyond a doubt that God made Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

When the people heard this, they were deeply upset. They asked Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”

Peter answered them, “All of you must turn to God and change the way you think and act, and each of you must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins will be forgiven. Then you will receive the Holy Spirit as a gift. This promise belongs to you and to your children and to everyone who is far away. It belongs to everyone who worships the Lord our God.”

Peter said much more to warn them. He urged, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” Those who accepted what Peter said were baptized. That day about 3,000 people were added to the group.

Holy Gospel: John 1:29-34

John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘A man who comes after me was before me because he existed before I did.’ I didn’t know who he was. However, I came to baptize with water to show him to the people of Israel.”

John said, “I saw the Spirit come down as a dove from heaven and stay on him. I didn’t know who he was, but God, who sent me to baptize with water, had told me, ‘When you see the Spirit come down and stay on someone, you will know that person is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen this and have declared that this is the Son of God.”