Psalm 71

Prayer for Lifelong Protection and Help

Ehud

¹² The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord strengthened King Eglon of Moab against Israel, because they had done what was evil in the sight of the Lord. ¹³ In alliance with the Ammonites and the Amalekites, he went and defeated Israel; and they took possession of the city of palms. ¹⁴ So the Israelites served King Eglon of Moab for eighteen years.

¹⁵ But when the Israelites cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up for them a deliverer, Ehud son of Gera, the Benjaminite, a left-handed man. The Israelites sent tribute by him to King Eglon of Moab. ¹⁶ Ehud made for himself a sword with two edges, a cubit in length; and he fastened it on his right thigh under his clothes. ¹⁷ Then he presented the tribute to King Eglon of Moab. Now Eglon was a very fat man. ¹⁸ When Ehud had finished presenting the tribute, he sent the people who carried the tribute on their way. ¹⁹ But he himself turned back at the sculptured stones near Gilgal, and said, ‘I have a secret message for you, O king.’ So the king said,^[a] ‘Silence!’ and all his attendants went out from his presence. ²⁰ Ehud came to him, while he was sitting alone in his cool roof-chamber, and said, ‘I have a message from God for you.’ So he rose from his seat. ²¹ Then Ehud reached with his left hand, took the sword from his right thigh, and thrust it into Eglon’s^[b] belly; ²² the hilt also went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not draw the sword out of his belly; and the dirt came out.^{[c] 23} Then Ehud went out into the vestibule,^[d] and closed the doors of the roof-chamber on him, and locked them.

²⁴ After he had gone, the servants came. When they saw that the doors of the roof-chamber were locked, they thought, ‘He must be relieving himself^[e] in the cool chamber.’ ²⁵ So they waited until they were embarrassed. When he still did not open the doors of the roof-chamber, they took the key and opened them. There was their lord lying dead on the floor.

²⁶ Ehud escaped while they delayed, and passed beyond the sculptured stones, and escaped to Seirah. ²⁷ When he arrived, he sounded the trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites went down with him from the hill country, having him at their head. ²⁸ He said to them, ‘Follow after me; for the Lord has given your enemies the Moabites into your hand.’ So they went down after him, and seized the fords of the Jordan against the Moabites, and allowed no one to cross over. ²⁹ At that time they killed about ten thousand of the Moabites, all strong, able-bodied men; no one escaped. ³⁰ So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest for eighty years.

¹⁵ In those days Peter stood up among the believers^[a] (together the crowd numbered about one hundred and twenty people) and said, ¹⁶ ‘Friends,^[b] the scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit through David foretold concerning Judas, who became a guide for those who arrested Jesus— ¹⁷ for he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry.’ ¹⁸ (Now this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness; and falling headlong,^[c] he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. ¹⁹ This became known to all the residents of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their language Hakeldama, that is, Field of Blood.) ²⁰ ‘For it is written in the book of Psalms,

and

²¹ So one of the men who have accompanied us throughout the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, ²² beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us to his resurrection.’ ²³ So they proposed two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also known as Justus, and Matthias. ²⁴ Then they prayed and said, ‘Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which one of these two you have chosen ²⁵ to take the place^[d] in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.’ ²⁶ And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles.

⁵⁵ Many women were also there, looking on from a distance; they had followed Jesus from Galilee and had provided for him. ⁵⁶ Among them were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

The Burial of Jesus

⁵⁷ When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus. ⁵⁸ He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus; then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. ⁵⁹ So Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth ⁶⁰ and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn in the rock. He then rolled a great stone to the door of the tomb and went away. ⁶¹ Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.

The Guard at the Tomb

⁶² The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate ⁶³ and said, ‘Sir, we remember what that impostor said while he was still alive, “After three days I will rise again.” ⁶⁴ Therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third day; otherwise his disciples may go and steal him away, and tell the people, “He has been raised from the dead”, and the last deception would be worse than the first.’ ⁶⁵ Pilate said to them, ‘You have a guard^[a] of soldiers; go, make it as secure as you can.’^{[b] 66} So they went with the guard and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone.