God Shall Scatter His Enemies
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. A Song.
1 eGod shall arise, his enemies shall be fscattered;
and those who hate him shall flee before him!
2 As gsmoke is driven away, so you shall drive them away;
has wax melts before fire,
so the wicked shall perish before God!
3 But ithe righteous shall be glad;
they shall exult before God;
they shall be jubilant with joy!
4 Sing to God, jsing praises to his name;
klift up a song to him who lrides through mthe deserts;
his name is nthe Lord;
exult before him!
5 oFather of the fatherless and pprotector of widows
is God in his holy habitation.
6 God qsettles the solitary in a home;
he rleads out the prisoners to prosperity,
7 O God, when you uwent out before your people,
vwhen you marched through wthe wilderness, Selah
8 xthe earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain,
before God, the One of Sinai,
before God,1 the God of Israel.
9 yRain in abundance, O God, you shed abroad;
you restored your inheritance as it languished;
10 your flock2 found a dwelling in it;
in your goodness, O God, you zprovided for the needy.
11 The Lord gives athe word;
bthe women who announce the news are a great host:
12 c“The kings of the armies—they flee, they flee!”
The women at home ddivide the spoil—
13 though you men lie among ethe sheepfolds—
the wings of a dove covered with silver,
its pinions with shimmering gold.
14 When the Almighty scatters kings there,
let snow fall on fZalmon.
15 O mountain of God, mountain of Bashan;
O many-peaked3 mountain, mountain of Bashan!
16 Why do you look with hatred, O many-peaked mountain,
at the mount that God gdesired for his abode,
yes, where the Lord will dwell forever?
17 hThe chariots of God are twice ten thousand,
thousands upon thousands;
the Lord is among them; Sinai is now in the sanctuary.
18 iYou ascended on high,
jleading a host of captives in your train
and kreceiving gifts among men,
even among lthe rebellious, mthat the Lord God may dwell there.
19 Blessed be the Lord,
who daily nbears us up;
God is our salvation. Selah
20 Our God is a God of salvation,
oand to God, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.
21 pBut God will strike the heads of his enemies,
the hairy crown of him who walks in his guilty ways.
22 The Lord said,
“I will bring them back qfrom Bashan,
rI will bring them back from the depths of the sea,
23 that you may sstrike your feet in their blood,
that tthe tongues of your dogs may have their portion from the foe.”
24 Your procession is4 seen, O God,
the procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—
25 uthe singers in front, vthe musicians last,
between them wvirgins playing tambourines:
26 x“Bless God in the great congregation,
the Lord, O you5 who are of yIsrael’s fountain!”
27 There is zBenjamin, the least of them, in the lead,
the princes of Judah in their throng,
the princes of aZebulun, the princes of Naphtali.
28 bSummon your power, O God,6
the power, O God, by which you have worked for us.
29 Because of your temple at Jerusalem
kings shall cbear gifts to you.
30 Rebuke dthe beasts that dwell among the reeds,
the herd of ebulls with the calves of the peoples.
fTrample underfoot those who lust after tribute;
scatter the peoples who delight in war.7
31 Nobles shall come from gEgypt;
32 jO kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;
sing praises to the Lord, Selah
33 to him kwho rides in lthe heavens, the ancient heavens;
behold, he msends out his voice, his mighty voice.
34 nAscribe power to God,
whose majesty is over Israel,
and whose opower is in pthe skies.
35 qAwesome is God from his8 rsanctuary;
the God of Israel—he is the one who gives spower and strength to his people.
Blessed be God!
Paul Appeals to Caesar
1 Now three days after Festus had arrived in ithe province, he went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea. 2 And the chief priests and the principal men of the Jews jlaid out their case against Paul, and they urged him, 3 asking as a favor against Paul1 that he summon him to Jerusalem—because kthey were planning an ambush to kill him on the way. 4 Festus replied that Paul was being kept at Caesarea and that he himself intended to go there shortly. 5 “So,” said he, “let the men of authority among you go down with me, and if there is anything wrong about the man, let them bring charges against him.”
6 After he stayed among them not more than eight or ten days, he went down to Caesarea. And the next day he took his seat on lthe tribunal and ordered Paul to be brought. 7 When he had arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him mthat they could not prove. 8 Paul argued in his defense, “Neither nagainst othe law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor pagainst Caesar have I committed any offense.” 9 But Festus, qwishing to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, “Do you wish to go up to Jerusalem and there be tried on these charges before me?” 10 But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s rtribunal, where I ought to be tried. To the Jews I have done no wrong, as you yourself know very well. 11 If then I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything for which I deserve to die, I do not seek to escape death. But if there is nothing to their charges against me, no one can give me up to them. sI appeal to Caesar.” 12 Then Festus, when he had conferred with his council, answered, “To Caesar you have appealed; to Caesar you shall go.”
Paul Before Agrippa and Bernice
13 Now when some days had passed, Agrippa the king and Bernice arrived at Caesarea and greeted Festus. 14 And as they stayed there many days, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, t“There is a man left prisoner by Felix, 15 and when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews laid out their case uagainst him, asking for a sentence of condemnation against him. 16 vI answered them that it was not the custom of the Romans to give up anyone wbefore the accused met the accusers face to face and had opportunity to make his defense concerning the charge laid against him. 17 xSo when they came together here, I made no delay, but on the next day took my seat on ythe tribunal and ordered the man to be brought. 18 When the accusers stood up, they brought no charge in his case of such evils as I supposed. 19 Rather they zhad certain points of dispute with him about their own religion and about aa certain Jesus, who was dead, but whom Paul asserted to be alive. 20 Being at a loss how to investigate these questions, I basked whether he wanted to go to Jerusalem and be tried there regarding them. 21 But cwhen Paul had appealed to be kept in custody for the decision of dthe emperor, I ordered him to be held until I could send him to Caesar.” 22 Then eAgrippa said to Festus, “I would like to hear the man myself.” “Tomorrow,” said he, “you will hear him.”
23 So on the next day fAgrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, and they entered the audience hall with the military tribunes and the prominent men of the city. Then, at the command of Festus, Paul was brought in. 24 And Festus said, “King Agrippa and all who are present with us, you see this man about whom gthe whole Jewish people petitioned me, both in Jerusalem and here, hshouting that he ought not to live any longer. 25 But I found that ihe had done nothing deserving death. And jas he himself appealed to kthe emperor, I decided to go ahead and send him. 26 But I have nothing definite to write to my lord about him. Therefore I have brought him before you all, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that, after we have examined him, I may have something to write. 27 For it seems to me unreasonable, in sending a prisoner, not to indicate the charges against him.”
