Old/New Testament
To the Director: A Davidic Psalm.
Prayer and Thanksgiving
31 In you, Lord, I have taken refuge.
Let me never be ashamed.
Because you are righteous, deliver me!
2 Listen to me,
and deliver me quickly.
Become a rock of safety for me,
a fortified citadel to deliver me;
3 For you are my rock and my fortress;
for the sake of your name guide me and lead me.
4 Rescue me from the net that they concealed to trap me;
for you are my strength.
5 Into your hands I commit my spirit;
for you have redeemed me,
Lord God of truth.
6 I despise those who trust vain idols;
but I have trusted in the Lord.
7 I will rejoice and be glad in your gracious love,
for you see my affliction
and take note that my soul is distressed.
8 You have not delivered me into the hand of the enemy,
but you have set my feet in a sturdy[a] place.
9 Be gracious to me, Lord,
for I am in distress.
My eyes have been consumed by my grief
along with my soul and my body.
10 My life is consumed by sorrow,
my years with groaning.
My strength has faltered because of my iniquity;[b]
my bones have been consumed.
11 I have become an object of reproach to all my enemies,
especially to my neighbors.
I have become an object of fear to my friends,
and whoever sees me outside runs away from me.
12 Like a dead man, I am forgotten in their thoughts[c]—
like broken pottery.
13 I have heard the slander of many;
it is like terror all around me,
as they conspire together and plot to take my life.
14 But I trust in you, Lord.
I say, “You are my God.”
15 My times are in your hands.
Deliver me from the hands of my enemies
and from those who pursue me.
16 May your face shine on your servant;
in your gracious love, deliver me.
17 Let me not be ashamed, Lord,
for I have called upon you.
Let the wicked be put to shame,
let them be silent in the next life.[d]
18 Let the lying lips be made still,
especially those who speak arrogantly
against the righteous with pride and contempt.
19 How great is your goodness
that you have reserved for those who fear you,
that you have set in place for those who take refuge in you,
in the presence of the children of men.
20 You will hide them in the secret place of your presence,
away from the conspiracies of men.
You will hide them in your tent,
away from their contentious tongues.
21 Blessed be the Lord!
In a marvelous way he demonstrated his gracious love to me,
when I was in a city under siege.
22 When I said in my panic,
“I have been cut off in your sight,”
then you surely heard the voice of my prayer
in my plea to you for help.
23 Love the Lord, all his godly ones!
The Lord preserves the faithful
and repays those who act with proud motives.
24 Be strong,
and let your heart be courageous,
all you who put your hope in the Lord.
A Davidic instruction.[e]
The Blessings of Forgiveness
32 How blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
2 How blessed is the person against whom the Lord does not charge iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
3 When I kept silent about my sin,[f]
my body[g] wasted away
by my groaning all day long.
4 For your hand was heavy upon me day and night;
my strength was exhausted
as in a summer drought.
5 My sin I acknowledged to you;
my iniquity I did not hide.
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.”
And you forgave the guilt of my sin!
6 Therefore every godly person should pray to you at such a time.[h]
Surely a flood of great waters will not reach him.
7 You are my hiding place;
you will deliver me from trouble
and surround me with shouts of deliverance.
8 I will instruct you and teach you
concerning the path you should walk;
I will direct you with my eye.
9 Don’t be like a horse or mule,
without understanding.
They are held in check by a bit and bridle in their mouths;
otherwise they will not remain near you.
10 The wicked have many sorrows,
but gracious love surrounds those who trust in the Lord.
11 Righteous ones, be glad in the Lord and rejoice!
Shout for joy, all of you who are upright in heart!
16 But the son of Paul’s sister heard about the ambush, so he came and got into the barracks and told Paul. 17 Then Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the tribune, because he has something to tell him.”
18 So the centurion[a] took him, brought him to the tribune, and said, “The prisoner Paul called me and asked me to bring this young man to you. He has something to tell you.”
19 The tribune took him by the hand, stepped aside to be alone with him, and asked, “What have you got to tell me?”
20 He answered, “The Jewish leaders[b] have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the Council[c] tomorrow as though they were going to examine his case more carefully. 21 Don’t believe them, because more than 40 of them are planning to ambush him. They’ve taken an oath not to eat or drink before they’ve killed him. They are ready now, just waiting for your consent.”
22 The tribune dismissed the young man and ordered him not to tell anyone that he had notified him. 23 Then he summoned two centurions and ordered, “Get 200 soldiers ready to leave for Caesarea at nine o’clock tonight,[d] along with 70 mounted soldiers and 200 soldiers with spears. 24 Provide a mount for Paul to ride, and take him safely to Governor Felix.” 25 He wrote a letter with this message:
26 “From:[e] Claudius Lysias
To: Governor Felix
Greetings, Your Excellency:
27 This man had been seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them when I went with the guard and rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman citizen. 28 I wanted to know the exact charge they were making against him, so I had him brought before their Council.[f] 29 I found that, although he was charged with questions about their Law, there was no charge against him deserving death or imprisonment. 30 Since a plot against the man has been reported to me, I’m sending him to you at once, and I’ve also ordered his accusers to present their charges against him before you.”
31 So the soldiers, in keeping with their orders, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. 32 The next day, they let the horsemen ride with Paul[g] while they returned to their barracks. 33 When these men[h] came to Caesarea, they delivered the letter to the governor and handed Paul over to him. 34 After reading the letter, the governor[i] asked which province Paul[j] was from. On learning that he was from Cilicia, 35 he said, “I will hear your case when your accusers arrive.” Then he ordered Paul[k] to be kept in custody in Herod’s palace.[l]
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