Psalms 31; Psalms 32; Acts 23:16-35

1 In You, O LORD , I have taken refuge; Let me never be ashamed; In Your righteousness deliver me.

2 Incline Your ear to me, rescue me quickly; Be to me a rock of strength, A stronghold to save me.

3 For You are my rock and my fortress; For Your name's sake You will lead me and guide me.

4 You will pull me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me, For You are my strength.

5 Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have ransomed me, O LORD , God of truth.

6 I hate those who regard vain idols, But I trust in the LORD .

7 I will rejoice and be glad in Your lovingkindness, Because You have seen my affliction; You have known the troubles of my soul,

8 And You have not given me over into the hand of the enemy; You have set my feet in a large place.

9 Be gracious to me, O LORD , for I am in distress; My eye is wasted away from grief, my soul and my body also.

10 For my life is spent with sorrow And my years with sighing; My strength has failed because of my iniquity, And my body has wasted away.

11 Because of all my adversaries, I have become a reproach, Especially to my neighbors, And an object of dread to my acquaintances; Those who see me in the street flee from me.

12 I am forgotten as a dead man, out of mind; I am like a broken vessel.

13 For I have heard the slander of many, Terror is on every side; While they took counsel together against me, They schemed to take away my life.

14 But as for me, I trust in You, O LORD , I say, "You are my God."

15 My times are in Your hand; Deliver me from the hand of my enemies and from those who persecute me.

16 Make Your face to shine upon Your servant; Save me in Your lovingkindness.

17 Let me not be put to shame, O LORD , for I call upon You; Let the wicked be put to shame, let them be silent in Sheol.

18 Let the lying lips be mute, Which speak arrogantly against the righteous With pride and contempt.

19 How great is Your goodness, Which You have stored up for those who fear You, Which You have wrought for those who take refuge in You, Before the sons of men!

20 You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the conspiracies of man; You keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues.

21 Blessed be the LORD , For He has made marvelous His lovingkindness to me in a besieged city.

22 As for me, I said in my alarm, "I am cut off from before Your eyes "; Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications When I cried to You.

23 O love the LORD , all you His godly ones! The LORD preserves the faithful And fully recompenses the proud doer.

24 Be strong and let your heart take courage, All you who hope in the LORD .

1 How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered!

2 How blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity, And in whose spirit there is no deceit!

3 When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away Through my groaning all day long.

4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. Selah.

5 I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I did not hide; I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD "; And You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah.

6 Therefore , let everyone who is godly pray to You in a time when You may be found; Surely in a flood of great waters they will not reach him.

7 You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah.

8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you.

9 Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding, Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check, Otherwise they will not come near to you.

10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked, But he who trusts in the LORD , lovingkindness shall surround him.

11 Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous ones; And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.

16 But the son of Paul's sister heard of their ambush, and he came and entered the barracks and told Paul.

17 Paul called one of the centurions to him and said, "Lead this young man to the commander, for he has something to report to him."

18 So he took him and led him to the commander and said, "Paul the prisoner called me to him and asked me to lead this young man to you since he has something to tell you."

19 The commander took him by the hand and stepping aside, began to inquire of him privately , "What is it that you have to report to me?

20 And he said, "The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down tomorrow to the Council, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more thoroughly about him.

21 "So do not listen to them, for more than forty of them are lying in wait for him who have bound themselves under a curse not to eat or drink until they slay him; and now they are ready and waiting for the promise from you.

22 So the commander let the young man go, instructing him, "Tell no one that you have notified me of these things."

23 And he called to him two of the centurions and said, "Get two hundred soldiers ready by the third hour of the night to proceed to Caesarea, with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen."

24 They were also to provide mounts to put Paul on and bring him safely to Felix the governor.

25 And he wrote a letter having this form:

26 "Claudius Lysias, to the most excellent governor Felix, greetings.

27 "When this man was arrested by the Jews and was about to be slain by them, I came up to them with the troops and rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman.

28 "And wanting to ascertain the charge for which they were accusing him, I brought him down to their Council;

29 and I found him to be accused over questions about their Law, but under no accusation deserving death or imprisonment.

30 "When I was informed that there would be a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once, also instructing his accusers to bring charges against him before you."

31 So the soldiers, in accordance with their orders, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris.

32 But the next day, leaving the horsemen to go on with him, they returned to the barracks.

33 When these had come to Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him.

34 When he had read it, he asked from what province he was, and when he learned that he was from Cilicia,

35 he said, "I will give you a hearing after your accusers arrive also," giving orders for him to be kept in Herod's Praetorium.