Old/New Testament
23 Because the Lord is my Shepherd, I have everything I need!
2-3 He lets me rest in the meadow grass and leads me beside the quiet streams. He gives me new strength. He helps me do what honors him the most.
4 Even when walking through the dark valley of death I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me, guarding, guiding all the way.[a]
5 You provide delicious food for me in the presence of my enemies. You have welcomed me as your guest;[b] blessings overflow!
6 Your goodness and unfailing kindness shall be with me all of my life, and afterwards I will live with you forever in your home.
24 The earth belongs to God! Everything in all the world is his! 2 He is the one who pushed the oceans back to let dry land appear.[c]
3 Who may climb the mountain of the Lord and enter where he lives? Who may stand before the Lord? 4 Only those with pure hands and hearts, who do not practice dishonesty and lying. 5 They will receive God’s own goodness[d] as their blessing from him, planted in their lives by God himself, their Savior. 6 These are the ones who are allowed to stand before the Lord and worship the God of Jacob.
7 Open up, O ancient gates, and let the King of Glory in. 8 Who is this King of Glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, invincible in battle. 9 Yes, open wide the gates and let the King of Glory in.
10 Who is this King of Glory? The Commander of all of heaven’s armies!
25 To you, O Lord, I pray. 2 Don’t fail me, Lord, for I am trusting you. Don’t let my enemies succeed. Don’t give them victory over me. 3 None of those who have faith in God will ever be disgraced for trusting him. But all who harm the innocent shall be defeated.
4 Show me the path where I should go, O Lord; point out the right road for me to walk. 5 Lead me; teach me; for you are the God who gives me salvation. I have no hope except in you. 6-7 Overlook my youthful sins, O Lord! Look at me instead through eyes of mercy and forgiveness, through eyes of everlasting love and kindness.
8 The Lord is good and glad to teach the proper path to all who go astray; 9 he will teach the ways that are right and best to those who humbly turn to him. 10 And when we obey him, every path he guides us on is fragrant with his loving-kindness and his truth.
11 But Lord, my sins! How many they are. Oh, pardon them for the honor of your name.
12 Where is the man who fears the Lord? God will teach him how to choose the best.
13 He shall live within God’s circle of blessing, and his children shall inherit the earth.
14 Friendship with God is reserved for those who reverence him. With them alone he shares the secrets of his promises.
15 My eyes are ever looking to the Lord for help, for he alone can rescue me. 16 Come, Lord, and show me your mercy, for I am helpless, overwhelmed, in deep distress; 17 my problems go from bad to worse. Oh, save me from them all! 18 See my sorrows; feel my pain; forgive my sins. 19 See how many enemies I have and how viciously they hate me! 20 Save me from them! Deliver my life from their power! Oh, let it never be said that I trusted you in vain!
21 Assign me Godliness and Integrity as my bodyguards, for I expect you to protect me 22 and to ransom Israel from all her troubles.
18 The second day Paul took us with him to meet with James and the elders of the Jerusalem church. 19 After greetings were exchanged, Paul recounted the many things God had accomplished among the Gentiles through his work.
20 They praised God but then said, “You know, dear brother, how many thousands of Jews have also believed, and they are all very insistent that Jewish believers must continue to follow the Jewish traditions and customs.[a] 21 Our Jewish Christians here at Jerusalem have been told that you are against the laws of Moses, against our Jewish customs, and that you forbid the circumcision of their children. 22 Now what can be done? For they will certainly hear that you have come.
23 “We suggest this: We have four men here who are preparing to shave their heads and take some vows. 24 Go with them to the Temple and have your head shaved too—and pay for theirs to be shaved.
“Then everyone will know that you approve of this custom for the Hebrew Christians and that you yourself obey the Jewish laws and are in line with our thinking in these matters.
25 “As for the Gentile Christians, we aren’t asking them to follow these Jewish customs at all—except for the ones we wrote to them about: not to eat food offered to idols, not to eat unbled meat from strangled animals, and not to commit fornication.”
26-27 So Paul agreed to their request and the next day went with the men to the Temple for the ceremony, thus publicizing his vow to offer a sacrifice seven days later with the others.
The seven days were almost ended when some Jews from Turkey saw him in the Temple and roused a mob against him. They grabbed him, 28 yelling, “Men of Israel! Help! Help! This is the man who preaches against our people and tells everybody to disobey the Jewish laws. He even talks against the Temple and defiles it by bringing Gentiles in!” 29 (For down in the city earlier that day, they had seen him with Trophimus, a Gentile[b] from Ephesus in Turkey, and assumed that Paul had taken him into the Temple.)
30 The whole population of the city was electrified by these accusations and a great riot followed. Paul was dragged out of the Temple, and immediately the gates were closed behind him. 31 As they were killing him, word reached the commander of the Roman garrison that all Jerusalem was in an uproar. 32 He quickly ordered out his soldiers and officers and ran down among the crowd. When the mob saw the troops coming, they quit beating Paul. 33 The commander arrested him and ordered him bound with double chains. Then he asked the crowd who he was and what he had done. 34 Some shouted one thing and some another. When he couldn’t find out anything in all the uproar and confusion, he ordered Paul to be taken to the armory.[c] 35 As they reached the stairs, the mob grew so violent that the soldiers lifted Paul to their shoulders to protect him, 36 and the crowd surged behind shouting, “Away with him, away with him!”
37-38 As Paul was about to be taken inside, he said to the commander, “May I have a word with you?”
“Do you know Greek?” the commander asked, surprised. “Aren’t you that Egyptian who led a rebellion a few years ago[d] and took 4,000 members of the Assassins with him into the desert?”
39 “No,” Paul replied, “I am a Jew from Tarsus in Cilicia which is no small town. I request permission to talk to these people.”
40 The commander agreed, so Paul stood on the stairs and motioned to the people to be quiet; soon a deep silence enveloped the crowd, and he addressed them in Hebrew as follows:
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.