Psalms 33

 ¹  Let the godly sing for joy to the LORD;
  it is fitting for the pure to praise him.
 ²  Praise the LORD with melodies on the lyre;
  make music for him on the ten-stringed harp.
 ³  Sing a new song of praise to him;
  play skillfully on the harp, and sing with joy.
 ⁴  For the word of the LORD holds true,
  and we can trust everything he does.
 ⁵  He loves whatever is just and good;
  the unfailing love of the LORD fills the earth.

 ⁶  The LORD merely spoke,
  and the heavens were created.
He breathed the word,
  and all the stars were born.
 ⁷  He assigned the sea its boundaries
  and locked the oceans in vast reservoirs.
 ⁸  Let the whole world fear the LORD,
  and let everyone stand in awe of him.
 ⁹  For when he spoke, the world began!
  It appeared at his command.

 ¹⁰  The LORD frustrates the plans of the nations
  and thwarts all their schemes.
 ¹¹  But the LORD's plans stand firm forever;
  his intentions can never be shaken.

 ¹²  What joy for the nation whose God is the LORD,
  whose people he has chosen as his inheritance.

 ¹³  The LORD looks down from heaven
  and sees the whole human race.
 ¹⁴  From his throne he observes
  all who live on the earth.
 ¹⁵  He made their hearts,
  so he understands everything they do.
 ¹⁶  The best-equipped army cannot save a king,
  nor is great strength enough to save a warrior.
 ¹⁷  Don't count on your warhorse to give you victory—
  for all its strength, it cannot save you.

 ¹⁸  But the LORD watches over those who fear him,
  those who rely on his unfailing love.
 ¹⁹  He rescues them from death
  and keeps them alive in times of famine.

 ²⁰  We put our hope in the LORD. He is our help and our shield.  ²¹  In him our hearts rejoice,
  for we trust in his holy name.
 ²²  Let your unfailing love surround us, LORD, for our hope is in you alone.

Psalms 34

 [1] 
A psalm of David, regarding the time he pretended to be insane in front of Abimelech, who sent him away.
 ¹  I will praise the LORD at all times. I will constantly speak his praises.  ²  I will boast only in the LORD;
  let all who are helpless take heart.
 ³  Come, let us tell of the LORD's greatness;
  let us exalt his name together.

 ⁴  "I prayed to the LORD, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears."  ⁵  Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces.  ⁶  In my desperation I prayed, and the LORD listened;
  he saved me from all my troubles.
 ⁷  For the angel of the LORD is a guard;
  he surrounds and defends all who fear him.

 ⁸  Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!  ⁹  Fear the LORD, you his godly people,
  for those who fear him will have all they need.
 ¹⁰  "Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those who trust in the LORD will lack no good thing."  ¹¹  Come, my children, and listen to me,
  and I will teach you to fear the LORD.
 ¹²  Does anyone want to live a life
  that is long and prosperous?
 ¹³  Then keep your tongue from speaking evil
  and your lips from telling lies!
 ¹⁴  Turn away from evil and do good.
  Search for peace, and work to maintain it.

 ¹⁵  The eyes of the LORD watch over those who do right;
  his ears are open to their cries for help.
 ¹⁶  But the LORD turns his face against those who do evil;
  he will erase their memory from the earth.
 ¹⁷  The LORD hears his people when they call to him for help.
  He rescues them from all their troubles.
 ¹⁸  The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
  he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.

 ¹⁹  The righteous person faces many troubles, but the LORD comes to the rescue each time.  ²⁰  For the LORD protects the bones of the righteous;
  not one of them is broken!

 ²¹  Calamity will surely overtake the wicked,
  and those who hate the righteous will be punished.
 ²²  But the LORD will redeem those who serve him.
  No one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

<<  34 This psalm is a Hebrew acrostic poem; each verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

Acts 24 : 1-26

Paul Appears before Felix
 ¹  Five days later Ananias, the high priest, arrived with some of the Jewish elders and the lawyer [1]  Tertullus, to present their case against Paul to the governor.  ²  When Paul was called in, Tertullus presented the charges against Paul in the following address to the governor:
  "You have provided a long period of peace for us Jews and with foresight have enacted reforms for us.  ³  For all of this, Your Excellency, we are very grateful to you.  ⁴  But I don't want to bore you, so please give me your attention for only a moment.  ⁵  We have found this man to be a troublemaker who is constantly stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the cult known as the Nazarenes.  ⁶  Furthermore, he was trying to desecrate the Temple when we arrested him. [6]   ⁸  You can find out the truth of our accusations by examining him yourself."  ⁹  Then the other Jews chimed in, declaring that everything Tertullus said was true.
   ¹⁰  The governor then motioned for Paul to speak. Paul said, "I know, sir, that you have been a judge of Jewish affairs for many years, so I gladly present my defense before you.  ¹¹  You can quickly discover that I arrived in Jerusalem no more than twelve days ago to worship at the Temple.  ¹²  My accusers never found me arguing with anyone in the Temple, nor stirring up a riot in any synagogue or on the streets of the city.  ¹³  These men cannot prove the things they accuse me of doing.
   ¹⁴  "But I admit that I follow the Way, which they call a cult. I worship the God of our ancestors, and I firmly believe the Jewish law and everything written in the prophets."  ¹⁵  I have the same hope in God that these men have, that he will raise both the righteous and the unrighteous.  ¹⁶  Because of this, I always try to maintain a clear conscience before God and all people.
   ¹⁷  "After several years away, I returned to Jerusalem with money to aid my people and to offer sacrifices to God.  ¹⁸  My accusers saw me in the Temple as I was completing a purification ceremony. There was no crowd around me and no rioting.  ¹⁹  But some Jews from the province of Asia were there—and they ought to be here to bring charges if they have anything against me!  ²⁰  Ask these men here what crime the Jewish high council [20]  found me guilty of,  ²¹  except for the one time I shouted out, `I am on trial before you today because I believe in the resurrection of the dead!'"
   ²²  At that point Felix, who was quite familiar with the Way, adjourned the hearing and said, "Wait until Lysias, the garrison commander, arrives. Then I will decide the case."  ²³  He ordered an officer [23]  to keep Paul in custody but to give him some freedom and allow his friends to visit him and take care of his needs.
   ²⁴  A few days later Felix came back with his wife, Drusilla, who was Jewish. Sending for Paul, they listened as he told them about faith in Christ Jesus.  ²⁵  As he reasoned with them about righteousness and self-control and the coming day of judgment, Felix became frightened. "Go away for now," he replied. "When it is more convenient, I'll call for you again."  ²⁶  He also hoped that Paul would bribe him, so he sent for him quite often and talked with him.

<<  24:1 Greek some elders and an orator.
<<  24:6 Some manuscripts add an expanded conclusion to verse 6, all of verse 7, and an additional phrase in verse 8: We would have judged him by our law, ⁷but Lysias, the commander of the garrison, came and violently took him away from us, ⁸commanding his accusers to come before you.
<<  24:20 Greek Sanhedrin.
<<  24:23 Greek a centurion.