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Psalm 73
New International Version
Psalm 73
New International Version
BOOK III
Psalms 73–89
Psalm 73
A psalm of Asaph.
1 Surely God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart.(A)
2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped;(B)
I had nearly lost my foothold.(C)
3 For I envied(D) the arrogant
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.(E)
4 They have no struggles;
their bodies are healthy and strong.[a]
5 They are free(F) from common human burdens;
they are not plagued by human ills.
6 Therefore pride(G) is their necklace;(H)
they clothe themselves with violence.(I)
7 From their callous hearts(J) comes iniquity[b];
their evil imaginations have no limits.
8 They scoff, and speak with malice;(K)
with arrogance(L) they threaten oppression.(M)
9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven,
and their tongues take possession of the earth.
10 Therefore their people turn to them
and drink up waters in abundance.[c]
11 They say, “How would God know?
Does the Most High know anything?”
13 Surely in vain(P) I have kept my heart pure
and have washed my hands in innocence.(Q)
14 All day long I have been afflicted,(R)
and every morning brings new punishments.
15 If I had spoken out like that,
I would have betrayed your children.
16 When I tried to understand(S) all this,
it troubled me deeply
17 till I entered the sanctuary(T) of God;
then I understood their final destiny.(U)
18 Surely you place them on slippery ground;(V)
you cast them down to ruin.(W)
19 How suddenly(X) are they destroyed,
completely swept away(Y) by terrors!
20 They are like a dream(Z) when one awakes;(AA)
when you arise, Lord,
you will despise them as fantasies.(AB)
21 When my heart was grieved
and my spirit embittered,
22 I was senseless(AC) and ignorant;
I was a brute beast(AD) before you.
23 Yet I am always with you;
you hold me by my right hand.(AE)
24 You guide(AF) me with your counsel,(AG)
and afterward you will take me into glory.
25 Whom have I in heaven but you?(AH)
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.(AI)
26 My flesh and my heart(AJ) may fail,(AK)
but God is the strength(AL) of my heart
and my portion(AM) forever.
Footnotes
- Psalm 73:4 With a different word division of the Hebrew; Masoretic Text struggles at their death; / their bodies are healthy
- Psalm 73:7 Syriac (see also Septuagint); Hebrew Their eyes bulge with fat
- Psalm 73:10 The meaning of the Hebrew for this verse is uncertain.
Psalm 77-78
New International Version
Psalm 77-78
New International Version
Psalm 77[a]
For the director of music. For Jeduthun. Of Asaph. A psalm.
1 I cried out to God(A) for help;
I cried out to God to hear me.
2 When I was in distress,(B) I sought the Lord;
at night(C) I stretched out untiring hands,(D)
and I would not be comforted.(E)
3 I remembered(F) you, God, and I groaned;(G)
I meditated, and my spirit grew faint.[b](H)
4 You kept my eyes from closing;
I was too troubled to speak.(I)
5 I thought about the former days,(J)
the years of long ago;
6 I remembered my songs in the night.
My heart meditated and my spirit asked:
7 “Will the Lord reject forever?(K)
Will he never show his favor(L) again?
8 Has his unfailing love(M) vanished forever?
Has his promise(N) failed for all time?
9 Has God forgotten to be merciful?(O)
Has he in anger withheld his compassion?(P)”
10 Then I thought, “To this I will appeal:
the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand.(Q)
11 I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your miracles(R) of long ago.
12 I will consider(S) all your works
and meditate on all your mighty deeds.”(T)
13 Your ways, God, are holy.
What god is as great as our God?(U)
14 You are the God who performs miracles;(V)
you display your power among the peoples.
15 With your mighty arm you redeemed your people,(W)
the descendants of Jacob and Joseph.
16 The waters(X) saw you, God,
the waters saw you and writhed;(Y)
the very depths were convulsed.
17 The clouds poured down water,(Z)
the heavens resounded with thunder;(AA)
your arrows(AB) flashed back and forth.
18 Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind,(AC)
your lightning(AD) lit up the world;
the earth trembled and quaked.(AE)
19 Your path(AF) led through the sea,(AG)
your way through the mighty waters,
though your footprints were not seen.
Psalm 78
A maskil[c] of Asaph.
1 My people, hear my teaching;(AK)
listen to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth with a parable;(AL)
I will utter hidden things, things from of old—
3 things we have heard and known,
things our ancestors have told us.(AM)
4 We will not hide them from their descendants;(AN)
we will tell the next generation(AO)
the praiseworthy deeds(AP) of the Lord,
his power, and the wonders(AQ) he has done.
5 He decreed statutes(AR) for Jacob(AS)
and established the law in Israel,
which he commanded our ancestors
to teach their children,
6 so the next generation would know them,
even the children yet to be born,(AT)
and they in turn would tell their children.
7 Then they would put their trust in God
and would not forget(AU) his deeds
but would keep his commands.(AV)
8 They would not be like their ancestors(AW)—
a stubborn(AX) and rebellious(AY) generation,
whose hearts were not loyal to God,
whose spirits were not faithful to him.
9 The men of Ephraim, though armed with bows,(AZ)
turned back on the day of battle;(BA)
10 they did not keep God’s covenant(BB)
and refused to live by his law.(BC)
11 They forgot what he had done,(BD)
the wonders he had shown them.
12 He did miracles(BE) in the sight of their ancestors
in the land of Egypt,(BF) in the region of Zoan.(BG)
13 He divided the sea(BH) and led them through;
he made the water stand up like a wall.(BI)
14 He guided them with the cloud by day
and with light from the fire all night.(BJ)
15 He split the rocks(BK) in the wilderness
and gave them water as abundant as the seas;
16 he brought streams out of a rocky crag
and made water flow down like rivers.
17 But they continued to sin(BL) against him,
rebelling in the wilderness against the Most High.
18 They willfully put God to the test(BM)
by demanding the food they craved.(BN)
19 They spoke against God;(BO)
they said, “Can God really
spread a table in the wilderness?
20 True, he struck the rock,
and water gushed out,(BP)
streams flowed abundantly,
but can he also give us bread?
Can he supply meat(BQ) for his people?”
21 When the Lord heard them, he was furious;
his fire broke out(BR) against Jacob,
and his wrath rose against Israel,
22 for they did not believe in God
or trust(BS) in his deliverance.
23 Yet he gave a command to the skies above
and opened the doors of the heavens;(BT)
24 he rained down manna(BU) for the people to eat,
he gave them the grain of heaven.
25 Human beings ate the bread of angels;
he sent them all the food they could eat.
26 He let loose the east wind(BV) from the heavens
and by his power made the south wind blow.
27 He rained meat down on them like dust,
birds(BW) like sand on the seashore.
28 He made them come down inside their camp,
all around their tents.
29 They ate till they were gorged—(BX)
he had given them what they craved.
30 But before they turned from what they craved,
even while the food was still in their mouths,(BY)
31 God’s anger rose against them;
he put to death the sturdiest(BZ) among them,
cutting down the young men of Israel.
32 In spite of all this, they kept on sinning;(CA)
in spite of his wonders,(CB) they did not believe.(CC)
33 So he ended their days in futility(CD)
and their years in terror.
34 Whenever God slew them, they would seek(CE) him;
they eagerly turned to him again.
35 They remembered that God was their Rock,(CF)
that God Most High was their Redeemer.(CG)
36 But then they would flatter him with their mouths,(CH)
lying to him with their tongues;
37 their hearts were not loyal(CI) to him,
they were not faithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he was merciful;(CJ)
he forgave(CK) their iniquities(CL)
and did not destroy them.
Time after time he restrained his anger(CM)
and did not stir up his full wrath.
39 He remembered that they were but flesh,(CN)
a passing breeze(CO) that does not return.
40 How often they rebelled(CP) against him in the wilderness(CQ)
and grieved him(CR) in the wasteland!
41 Again and again they put God to the test;(CS)
they vexed the Holy One of Israel.(CT)
42 They did not remember(CU) his power—
the day he redeemed them from the oppressor,(CV)
43 the day he displayed his signs(CW) in Egypt,
his wonders(CX) in the region of Zoan.
44 He turned their river into blood;(CY)
they could not drink from their streams.
45 He sent swarms of flies(CZ) that devoured them,
and frogs(DA) that devastated them.
46 He gave their crops to the grasshopper,(DB)
their produce to the locust.(DC)
47 He destroyed their vines with hail(DD)
and their sycamore-figs with sleet.
48 He gave over their cattle to the hail,
their livestock(DE) to bolts of lightning.
49 He unleashed against them his hot anger,(DF)
his wrath, indignation and hostility—
a band of destroying angels.(DG)
50 He prepared a path for his anger;
he did not spare them from death
but gave them over to the plague.
51 He struck down all the firstborn of Egypt,(DH)
the firstfruits of manhood in the tents of Ham.(DI)
52 But he brought his people out like a flock;(DJ)
he led them like sheep through the wilderness.
53 He guided them safely, so they were unafraid;
but the sea engulfed(DK) their enemies.(DL)
54 And so he brought them to the border of his holy land,
to the hill country his right hand(DM) had taken.
55 He drove out nations(DN) before them
and allotted their lands to them as an inheritance;(DO)
he settled the tribes of Israel in their homes.
56 But they put God to the test
and rebelled against the Most High;
they did not keep his statutes.
57 Like their ancestors(DP) they were disloyal and faithless,
as unreliable as a faulty bow.(DQ)
58 They angered him(DR) with their high places;(DS)
they aroused his jealousy with their idols.(DT)
59 When God heard(DU) them, he was furious;(DV)
he rejected Israel(DW) completely.
60 He abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh,(DX)
the tent he had set up among humans.(DY)
61 He sent the ark of his might(DZ) into captivity,(EA)
his splendor into the hands of the enemy.
62 He gave his people over to the sword;(EB)
he was furious with his inheritance.(EC)
63 Fire consumed(ED) their young men,
and their young women had no wedding songs;(EE)
64 their priests were put to the sword,(EF)
and their widows could not weep.
65 Then the Lord awoke as from sleep,(EG)
as a warrior wakes from the stupor of wine.
66 He beat back his enemies;
he put them to everlasting shame.(EH)
67 Then he rejected the tents of Joseph,
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim;(EI)
68 but he chose the tribe of Judah,(EJ)
Mount Zion,(EK) which he loved.
69 He built his sanctuary(EL) like the heights,
like the earth that he established forever.
70 He chose David(EM) his servant
and took him from the sheep pens;
71 from tending the sheep(EN) he brought him
to be the shepherd(EO) of his people Jacob,
of Israel his inheritance.
72 And David shepherded them with integrity of heart;(EP)
with skillful hands he led them.
Footnotes
- Psalm 77:1 In Hebrew texts 77:1-20 is numbered 77:2-21.
- Psalm 77:3 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verses 9 and 15.
- Psalm 78:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
Acts 16
New International Version
Acts 16
New International Version
Timothy Joins Paul and Silas
16 Paul came to Derbe and then to Lystra,(A) where a disciple named Timothy(B) lived, whose mother was Jewish and a believer(C) but whose father was a Greek. 2 The believers(D) at Lystra and Iconium(E) spoke well of him. 3 Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.(F) 4 As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders(G) in Jerusalem(H) for the people to obey.(I) 5 So the churches were strengthened(J) in the faith and grew daily in numbers.(K)
Paul’s Vision of the Man of Macedonia
6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia(L) and Galatia,(M) having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia.(N) 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus(O) would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.(P) 9 During the night Paul had a vision(Q) of a man of Macedonia(R) standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 After Paul had seen the vision, we(S) got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel(T) to them.
Lydia’s Conversion in Philippi
11 From Troas(U) we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day we went on to Neapolis. 12 From there we traveled to Philippi,(V) a Roman colony and the leading city of that district[a] of Macedonia.(W) And we stayed there several days.
13 On the Sabbath(X) we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. 14 One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira(Y) named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart(Z) to respond to Paul’s message. 15 When she and the members of her household(AA) were baptized,(AB) she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.
Paul and Silas in Prison
16 Once when we were going to the place of prayer,(AC) we were met by a female slave who had a spirit(AD) by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. 17 She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God,(AE) who are telling you the way to be saved.” 18 She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so annoyed that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.(AF)
19 When her owners realized that their hope of making money(AG) was gone, they seized Paul and Silas(AH) and dragged(AI) them into the marketplace to face the authorities. 20 They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar(AJ) 21 by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans(AK) to accept or practice.”(AL)
22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten with rods.(AM) 23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer(AN) was commanded to guard them carefully. 24 When he received these orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.(AO)
25 About midnight(AP) Paul and Silas(AQ) were praying and singing hymns(AR) to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken.(AS) At once all the prison doors flew open,(AT) and everyone’s chains came loose.(AU) 27 The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped.(AV) 28 But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”
29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.(AW) 30 He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”(AX)
31 They replied, “Believe(AY) in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved(AZ)—you and your household.”(BA) 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33 At that hour of the night(BB) the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized.(BC) 34 The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he(BD) was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole household.
35 When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” 36 The jailer(BE) told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.”(BF)
37 But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens,(BG) and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.”
38 The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed.(BH) 39 They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city.(BI) 40 After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house,(BJ) where they met with the brothers and sisters(BK) and encouraged them. Then they left.
Footnotes
- Acts 16:12 The text and meaning of the Greek for the leading city of that district are uncertain.
New International Version (NIV) 
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