Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

142 (Mashkil of Dovid; A tefillah when he was in the me’arah) I cried out unto Hashem with my voice; with my voice unto Hashem did I make my techinnah (supplication).

^2 (3) I poured out my complaint before Him; I showed before Him my tzoros.

^3 (4) When my ruach became faint within me, then Thou had da’as of my path. In the way wherein I walked have they laid a pach (snare, hidden trap) for me.

^4 (5) I looked on my right, and behold, there was no man that would know me; refuge failed me; no man cared for my nefesh.

^5 (6) I cried unto Thee, Hashem; I said, Thou art my refuge and my chelek (portion) in the Eretz HaChayyim.

^6 (7) Attend unto my cry; for I am brought very low; save me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I.

^7 (8) Release my nefesh from prison, to praise Shemecha (Thy Name); the tzaddikim shall gather about me; for Thou shalt deal bountifully with me.

9 I saw Adonoi standing by the mizbe’ach; and He said, Strike the pillar capitals [of the heathen shrine], that the thresholds may shake; and smash them upon the heads of all; and I will slay the last of them with the cherev; he that fleeth of them shall not get away, and he that escapeth of them shall not be delivered.

² Though they dig down to Sheol, thence shall Mine hand take them; though they climb up to Shomayim, thence will I bring them down;

³ And though they hide themselves in the summit of Carmel, I will search and take them out thence; and though they be hid from My sight in the bottom of the yam, thence will I command the nachash, and he shall bite them;

⁴ And though they go into golus (exile) before their enemies, thence will I command the cherev, and it shall slay them; and I will set Mine eyes upon them for rah, and not for tov.

¹² In the boker, the Judeans joined in a kesher and bound themselves with a shevu’ah that none of them would eat or drink until they had carried out their plot of retzichah b’seter of Rav Sha’ul.

¹³ Now there were more than arba’im anashim (forty men) who joined in this kesher.

¹⁴ After they approached the Rashei HaKohanim (Chief Priests) and the Zekenim (Elders), they said, "We have bound ourselves with a shevu’ah (oath) to eat nothing until we have killed Rav Sha’ul.

¹⁵ "Now, therefore, you with the Sanhedrin notify the tribune so that he may bring Rav Sha’ul down to you as if intending to determine more accurately the things concerning him, and, before he draws near, we are ready to kill him."

¹⁶ Now when Rav Sha’ul’s achyon (nephew) heard about the ma’arav (ambush), he went and gained entrance into the barracks and reported this to Rav Sha’ul.

¹⁷ And Rav Sha’ul summoned one of the centurions and said, "Bring this bochur to the tribune for he has something to report to him."

¹⁸ So the centurion took the bochur and brought him to the tribune and says, "The prisoner Rav Sha’ul has summoned me and asked me to bring this bochur to you; he has something to say to you."

¹⁹ The tribune grasped the bochur’s hand and drew him aside privately, inquiring, "What is it you have to report to me?"

²⁰ And the bochur said, "The Judeans agreed to ask you to bring Rav Sha’ul down machar (tomorrow) to the Sanhedrin as if intending to inquire something more accurate concerning him.

²¹ "Therefore, you should not be persuaded by them, for more than arba’im anashim are lying in wait for him and these took a shevu’ah upon themselves neither to eat nor to drink until they have assassinated him, and now they are ready, waiting for your consent."

²² Therefore, the tribune dismissed the bochur, ordering him, "Tell no one that you reported these things to me."

²³ And having summoned two of the centurions, the tribune said, "Prepare to leave for Caesarea by nine o’clock tonight the following: two hundred chaiyalim, seventy horsemen, and two hundred bowmen.

²⁴ "And also provide mounts for Rav Sha’ul to ride, that he may be given safe passage to Felix the Moshel."

²⁵ Then the tribune wrote an iggeret to this effect:

²⁶ "Claudius Lysias to the most excellent Moshel, Felix. Greetings.

²⁷ "This man was seized by the Judeans and was about to be killed by them, but when I learned that he is a Roman citizen, I came with the chaiyalim and rescued him.

²⁸ "Desiring to have da’as of the charge for which they were accusing him, I brought him down to their Sanhedrin.

²⁹ "I found he was being accused about issues of their Torah and the charge was nothing worthy of mavet or of imprisonment.

³⁰ "And when I received information of a kesher (plot) keneged (against) the man, I sent him immediately to you, having given orders also to his accusers to state their case against Rav Sha’ul before your excellency."

³¹ Therefore, as they were ordered, the chaiyalim took Rav Sha’ul along and brought him under cover of lailah to Antipatris.

³² And on the next day, having allowed the horsemen to go on with Rav Sha’ul, they returned to the barracks.

³³ When the horsemen entered into Caesarea, they delivered the iggeret to the Moshel and also presented Rav Sha’ul to him.

³⁴ And having read it, and having asked from what province Rav Sha’ul hailed, the Moshel learned that he was from Cilicia.

³⁵ "I will give you a hearing," Felix said, "when also your accusers arrive." Then the Moshel commanded Rav Sha’ul to be watched by shomrim in the Praetorium of Herod.