Psalms 23; Psalms 24; Psalms 25; Acts 21:18-40

1 The LORD is my shepherd. I am never in need.

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside peaceful waters.

3 He renews my soul. He guides me along the paths of righteousness for the sake of his name.

4 Even though I walk through the dark valley of death, because you are with me, I fear no harm. Your rod and your staff give me courage.

5 You prepare a banquet for me while my enemies watch. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows.

6 Certainly, goodness and mercy will stay close to me all the days of my life, and I will remain in the LORD's house for days without end.

1 The earth and everything it contains are the LORD's. The world and all who live in it are his.

2 He laid its foundation on the seas and set it firmly on the rivers.

3 Who may go up the LORD's mountain? Who may stand in his holy place?

4 [The one who] has clean hands and a pure heart and does not long for what is false or lie when he is under oath.

5 [This person] will receive a blessing from the LORD and righteousness from God, his savior.

6 This is the person who seeks him, who searches for the face of the God of Jacob. Selah

7 Lift your heads, you gates. Be lifted, you ancient doors, so that the king of glory may come in.

8 Who is this king of glory? The LORD, strong and mighty! The LORD, heroic in battle!

9 Lift your heads, you gates. Be lifted, you ancient doors, so that the king of glory may come in.

10 Who, then, is this king of glory? The LORD of Armies is the king of glory! Selah

1 To you, O LORD, I lift my soul.

2 I trust you, O my God. Do not let me be put to shame. Do not let my enemies triumph over me.

3 No one who waits for you will ever be put to shame, but all who are unfaithful will be put to shame.

4 Make your ways known to me, O LORD, and teach me your paths.

5 Lead me in your truth and teach me because you are God, my savior. I wait all day long for you.

6 Remember, O LORD, your compassionate and merciful deeds. They have existed from eternity.

7 Do not remember the sins of my youth or my rebellious ways. Remember me, O LORD, in keeping with your mercy and your goodness.

8 The LORD is good and decent. That is why he teaches sinners the way they should live.

9 He leads humble people to do what is right, and he teaches them his way.

10 Every path of the LORD is [one of] mercy and truth for those who cling to his promise and written instructions.

11 For the sake of your name, O LORD, remove my guilt, because it is great.

12 Who, then, is this person that fears the LORD? He is the one whom the LORD will teach which path to choose.

13 He will enjoy good things in life, and his descendants will inherit the land.

14 The LORD advises those who fear him. He reveals to them the intent of his promise.

15 My eyes are always on the LORD. He removes my feet from traps.

16 Turn to me, and have pity on me. I am lonely and oppressed.

17 Relieve my troubled heart, and bring me out of my distress.

18 Look at my misery and suffering, and forgive all my sins.

19 See how my enemies have increased in number, how they have hated me with vicious hatred!

20 Protect my life, and rescue me! Do not let me be put to shame. I have taken refuge in you.

21 Integrity and honesty will protect me because I wait for you.

22 Rescue Israel, O God, from all its troubles!

18 The next day Paul went with us to visit James. All the spiritual leaders were present.

19 After greeting them, Paul related everything God had done through his work with non-Jewish people.

20 When the spiritual leaders heard about everything, they praised God. They said to Paul, "You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews are now believers, and all of them are deeply committed to Moses' Teachings.

21 But they have been told that you teach all the Jews living among non-Jewish people to abandon Moses. They claim that you tell them not to circumcise their children or follow Jewish customs.

22 What should we do about this? They will certainly hear that you're in town.

23 So follow our advice. We have four men who have made a vow to God.

24 Take these men, go through the purification ceremony with them, and pay the expenses to shave their heads. Then everyone will know that what they've been told about you isn't true. Instead, they'll see that you carefully follow Moses' Teachings.

25 "[To clarify this matter,] we have written non-Jewish believers a letter with our decision. We told them that they should not eat food sacrificed to false gods, bloody meat, or the meat of strangled animals. They also should not commit sexual sins."

26 The next day, Paul took the men and went through the purification ceremony with them. Then he went into the temple courtyard to announce the time when the purification would be over and the sacrifice would be offered for each of them.

27 When the seven days were almost over, the Jews from the province of Asia saw Paul in the temple courtyard. They stirred up the whole crowd and grabbed Paul.

28 Then they began shouting, "Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere to turn against the Jewish people, Moses' Teachings, and this temple. He has even brought Greeks into the temple courtyard and has made this holy place unclean."

29 They had seen Trophimus from Ephesus with him in the city earlier and thought Paul had taken him into the temple courtyard.

30 The whole city was in chaos, and a mob formed. The mob grabbed Paul and dragged him out of the temple courtyard. The courtyard doors were immediately shut.

31 As the people were trying to kill Paul, the officer in charge of the Roman soldiers received a report that all Jerusalem was rioting.

32 Immediately, he took some soldiers and officers and charged the crowd. When the crowd saw the officer and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.

33 Then the officer went to Paul, grabbed him, and ordered him to be tied up with two chains. The officer asked who Paul was and what he had done.

34 Some of the crowd shouted one thing, while others shouted something else. The officer couldn't get any facts because of the noise and confusion, so he ordered Paul to be taken into the barracks.

35 When Paul came to the stairs of the barracks, the crowd was so violent that the soldiers had to carry him.

36 The mob was behind them shouting, "Kill him!"

37 As the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the officer, "May I say something to you?" The officer replied to Paul, "Can you speak Greek?

38 Aren't you the Egyptian who started a revolution not long ago and led four thousand terrorists into the desert?"

39 Paul answered, "I'm a Jew, a citizen from the well-known city of Tarsus in Cilicia. I'm asking you to let me talk to the people."

40 The officer gave Paul permission to speak. So Paul stood on the stairs of the barracks and motioned with his hand for the people to be quiet. When the mob was silent, Paul spoke to them in the Hebrew language.