Through the Bible – Day 200

Bible text(s)

Psalms 48

(A song and a psalm for the people of Korah.)

The city of God

₁The LORD God is wonderful!

He deserves all praise

in the city where he lives.

His holy mountain,

₂beautiful and majestic,

brings joy to all on earth.

Mount Zion, truly sacred,

is home for the Great King.

₃God is there to defend it

and has proved to be

its protector.

₄Kings joined forces

to attack the city,

₅but when they saw it,

they were terrified

and ran away.

₆They trembled all over

like women giving birth

₇or like seagoing ships

wrecked by eastern winds.

₈We had heard about it,

and now we have seen it

in the city of our God,

the LORD All-Powerful.

This is the city that God

will let stand for ever.

₉Our God, here in your temple

we think about your love.

₁₀You are famous and praised

everywhere on earth,

as you win victories

with your powerful arm.

₁₁Mount Zion will celebrate,

and all Judah will be glad,

because you bring justice.

₁₂Let's walk around Zion

and count its towers.

₁₃We will see its strong walls

and visit each fortress.

Then you can say

to future generations,

₁₄“Our God is like this for ever

and will always guide us.”

Psalms 49

(A psalm for the people of Korah and for the music leader.)

Don't depend on wealth

₁Everyone on this earth,

now listen to what I say!

₂Listen, no matter who you are,

rich or poor.

₃I speak words of wisdom,

and my thoughts make sense.

₄I have in mind a mystery

that I will explain

while playing my harp.

₅Why should I be afraid

in times of trouble,

when I am surrounded

by vicious enemies?

₆They trust in their riches

and boast about

all their wealth.

₇You cannot buy back your life

or pay off God!

₈It costs far too much

to buy back your life.

You can never pay God enough

₉to stay alive for ever

and safe from death.

₁₀We see that wise people die,

and so do stupid fools.

Then their money is left

for someone else.

₁₁The grave will be their home

for ever and ever,

although they once had land

of their own.

₁₂Our human glory disappears,

and, like animals, we die.

₁₃Here is what happens to fools

and to those who trust

the words of fools:

₁₄They are like sheep

with death as their shepherd,

leading them to the grave.

In the morning God's people

will walk all over them,

as their bodies lie rotting

in their home, the grave.

₁₅But God will rescue me

from the power of death.

₁₆Don't let it bother you

when others get rich

and live in luxury.

₁₇Soon they will die

and all their wealth

will be left behind.

₁₈We humans are praised

when we do well,

and all of us are glad

to be alive.

₁₉But we will each go down

to our ancestors,

never again to see

the light of day.

₂₀Our human glory disappears,

and, like animals, we die.

Psalms 50

(A psalm by Asaph.)

What pleases God

₁From east to west,

the powerful LORD God

has been calling together

everyone on earth.

₂God shines brightly from Zion,

the most beautiful city.

₃Our God approaches,

but not silently;

a flaming fire comes first,

and a storm surrounds him.

₄God comes to judge his people.

He shouts to the heavens

and to the earth,

₅“Call my followers together!

They offered me a sacrifice,

and we made an agreement.”

₆The heavens announce,

“God is the judge,

and he is always honest.”

₇My people, I am God!

Israel, I am your God.

Listen to my charges

against you.

₈Although you offer sacrifices

and always bring gifts,

₉I won't accept your offerings

of bulls and goats.

₁₀Every animal in the forest

belongs to me,

and so do the cattle

on a thousand hills.

₁₁I know-all the birds

in the mountains,

and every wild creature

is in my care.

₁₂If I were hungry,

I wouldn't tell you,

because I own the world

and everything in it.

₁₃I don't eat the meat of bulls

or drink the blood of goats.

₁₄I am God Most High!

The only sacrifice I want

is for you to be thankful

and to keep your word.

₁₅Pray to me in time of trouble.

I will rescue you,

and you will honour me.

₁₆But to the wicked I say:

“You don't have the right

to mention my laws or claim

to keep our agreement!

₁₇You refused correction

and rejected my commands.

₁₈You made friends

with every criminal you met,

and you liked people who break

their wedding vows.

₁₉You talked only about violence

and told nothing but lies;

₂₀you sat around gossiping,

ruining the reputation

of your own relatives.”

₂₁When you did all this,

I didn't say a word,

and you thought,

“God is just like us!”

But now I will accuse you.

₂₂You have ignored me!

So pay close attention

or I will tear you apart,

and no one can help you.

₂₃The sacrifice that honours me

is a thankful heart.

Obey me, and I, your God,

will show my power to save.

Psalms 48:1-50:23CEVOpen in Bible reader

Acts 21

Paul's arrest in Jerusalem

Paul visits James

₁₇When we arrived in Jerusalem, the Lord's followers gladly welcomed us. ₁₈Paul went with us to see James the next day, and all the church leaders were present. ₁₉Paul greeted them and told how God had used him to help the Gentiles. ₂₀Everyone who heard this praised God and said to Paul:

My friend, you can see how many tens of thousands of the Jewish people have become followers! And all of them are eager to obey the Law of Moses. ₂₁But they have been told that you are teaching those who live among the Gentiles to disobey this Law. They claim that you are telling them not to circumcise their sons or to follow Jewish customs.

₂₂What should we do now that our people have heard that you are here? ₂₃Please do what we ask, because four of our men have made special promises to God. ₂₄Join with them and prepare yourself for the ceremony that goes with the promises. Pay the cost for their heads to be shaved. Then everyone will learn that the reports about you are not true. They will know that you do obey the Law of Moses.

₂₅Some while ago we told the Gentile followers what we think they should do. We instructed them not to eat anything offered to idols. They were told not to eat any meat with blood still in it or the meat of an animal that has been strangled. They were also told not to commit any terrible sexual sins.

₂₆The next day Paul took the four men with him and got himself ready at the same time they did. Then he went into the temple and told when the final ceremony would take place and when an offering would be made for each of them.

Paul is arrested

₂₇When the period of seven days for the ceremony was almost over, some of the Jewish people from Asia saw Paul in the temple. They got a large crowd together and started attacking him. ₂₈They were shouting, “Friends, help us! This man goes around everywhere, saying bad things about our nation and about the Law of Moses and about this temple. He has even brought shame to this holy temple by bringing in Gentiles.” ₂₉Some of them thought that Paul had brought Trophimus from Ephesus into the temple, because they had seen them together in the city.

₃₀The whole city was in an uproar, and the people turned into a mob. They grabbed Paul and dragged him out of the temple. Then suddenly the doors were shut. ₃₁The people were about to kill Paul when the Roman army commander heard that all Jerusalem was starting to riot. ₃₂So he quickly took some soldiers and officers and ran to where the crowd had gathered.

As soon as the mob saw the commander and soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. ₃₃The army commander went over and arrested him and had him bound with two chains. Then he tried to find out who Paul was and what he had done. ₃₄Part of the crowd shouted one thing, and part of them shouted something else. But they were making so much noise that the commander could not find out a thing. Then he ordered Paul to be taken into the fortress. ₃₅As they reached the steps, the crowd became so wild that the soldiers had to lift Paul up and carry him. ₃₆The crowd followed and kept shouting, “Kill him! Kill him!”

Acts 21:17-36CEVOpen in Bible reader