Old/New Testament
Prayer for Help in Trouble.
For the music director. A Psalm of David.
13 How long, Lord? Will You (A)forget me forever?
How long (B)will You hide Your face from me?
2 How long am I to (C)feel anxious in my soul,
With (D)grief in my heart all the day?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?
3 (E)Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
(F)Enlighten my eyes, or I will (G)sleep the sleep of death,
4 And my enemy will (H)say, “I have overcome him,”
And (I)my adversaries will rejoice when I am shaken.
5 But I have (J)trusted in Your faithfulness;
My heart shall (K)rejoice in Your salvation.
6 I will (L)sing to the Lord,
Because He has (M)looked after me.
Foolishness and Wickedness of People.
For the music director. A Psalm of David.
14 The fool has (N)said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they have committed detestable acts;
There is (O)no one who does good.
2 The Lord has (P)looked down from heaven upon the sons of mankind
To see if there are any who [a](Q)understand,
Who (R)seek God.
3 They have all (S)turned aside, together they are corrupt;
There is (T)no one who does good, not even one.
4 Do all the workers of injustice (U)not know,
Who (V)devour my people as they eat bread,
And (W)do not call upon the Lord?
5 There they are in great dread,
For God is with a (X)righteous generation.
6 You would put to shame the plan of the poor,
But the Lord is his (Y)refuge.
7 Oh, that (Z)the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!
When the Lord (AA)restores the fortunes of His people,
Jacob will rejoice, Israel will be glad.
Description of a Citizen of Zion.
A Psalm of David.
15 Lord, who may reside (AB)in Your tent?
Who may settle on Your (AC)holy hill?
2 One who (AD)walks with integrity, practices righteousness,
And (AE)speaks truth in his heart.
3 He (AF)does not slander [b]with his tongue,
Nor (AG)do evil to his neighbor,
Nor (AH)bring shame on his friend;
4 A despicable person is despised in his eyes,
But he (AI)honors those who fear the Lord;
He (AJ)takes an oath to his own detriment, and does not change;
5 He (AK)does not [c]lend his money [d]at interest,
Nor (AL)does he take a bribe against the innocent.
(AM)One who does these things will never be shaken.
21 Now after these things were finished, Paul resolved in [a]the Spirit to (A)go to Jerusalem (B)after he had passed through (C)Macedonia and (D)Achaia, saying, “After I have been there, (E)I must also see Rome.” 22 And after he sent into (F)Macedonia two of (G)those who assisted him, (H)Timothy and (I)Erastus, he himself stayed in [b](J)Asia for a while.
23 About that time [c]a major disturbance occurred in regard to [d](K)the Way. 24 For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of [e]Artemis, (L)was bringing [f]considerable [g]business to the craftsmen; 25 he gathered these men together with the workmen of similar trades, and said, “Men, you know that our prosperity [h]depends upon this business. 26 You see and hear that not only in (M)Ephesus, but in almost all of [i](N)Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a considerable number of people, saying that [j](O)gods made by hands are not gods at all. 27 Not only is there danger that this trade of ours will fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess [k]Artemis will be regarded as worthless, and that she whom all of [l](P)Asia and (Q)the [m]world worship will even be dethroned from her magnificence.”
28 When they heard this and were filled with rage, they began shouting, saying, “Great is [n]Artemis of the (R)Ephesians!” 29 The city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed together into the theater, dragging along (S)Gaius and (T)Aristarchus, Paul’s (U)Macedonian traveling (V)companions. 30 And when Paul wanted to go into the assembly, (W)the disciples would not let him. 31 Also some of the [o]Asiarchs who were friends of his sent word to him and repeatedly urged him not to [p]venture into the theater. 32 (X)So then, some were shouting one thing and some another, for the [q]assembly was in confusion and the majority did not know [r]for what reason they had come together. 33 Some of the crowd [s]concluded it was Alexander, since the Jews had put him forward; and having (Y)motioned with his hand, Alexander was intending to make a defense to the assembly. 34 But when they recognized that he was a Jew, a single outcry arose from them all as they shouted for about two hours, “Great is [t]Artemis of the Ephesians!”
35 After quieting the crowd, the town clerk *said, “Men of (Z)Ephesus, what person is there after all who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is guardian of the temple of the great [u]Artemis and of the image which fell down from [v]the sky? 36 So, since these are undeniable facts, you ought to keep calm and to do nothing rash. 37 For you have brought these men here who are neither (AA)temple robbers nor blasphemers of our goddess. 38 So then, if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are in session and [w](AB)proconsuls are available; have them bring charges against one another. 39 But if you want anything beyond this, it shall be settled in the [x]lawful [y]assembly. 40 For indeed, we are in danger of being accused of a riot in connection with today’s events, since there is no real reason for it, and in this connection we will be unable to account for this disorderly gathering.” 41 After saying this he dismissed the [z]assembly.
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