11 Then all Israel gathered themselves to David unto Hebron, saying, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh. ² In times past, even when Saul was king, it was thou that leddest out and broughtest in Israel: and Jehovah thy God said unto thee, Thou shalt be shepherd of my people Israel, and thou shalt be prince over my people Israel. ³ So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and David made a covenant with them in Hebron before Jehovah; and they anointed David king over Israel, according to the word of Jehovah by Samuel.

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⁴ And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem (the same is Jebus); and the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, were there. ⁵ And the inhabitants of Jebus said to David, Thou shalt not come in hither. Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion; the same is the city of David. ⁶ And David said, Whosoever smiteth the Jebusites first shall be chief and captain. And Joab the son of Zeruiah went up first, and was made chief. ⁷ And David dwelt in the stronghold; therefore they called it the city of David. ⁸ And he built the city round about, from Millo even round about; and Joab repaired the rest of the city. ⁹ And David waxed greater and greater; for Jehovah of hosts was with him.

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¹⁰ Now these are the chief of the mighty men whom David had, who showed themselves strong with him in his kingdom, together with all Israel, to make him king, according to the word of Jehovah concerning Israel. ¹¹ And this is the number of the mighty men whom David had: Jashobeam, the son of a Hachmonite, the chief of the thirty; he lifted up his spear against three hundred and slew them at one time. ¹² And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, who was one of the three mighty men. ¹³ He was with David at Pasdammim, and there the Philistines were gathered together to battle, where was a plot of ground full of barley; and the people fled from before the Philistines. ¹⁴ And they stood in the midst of the plot, and defended it, and slew the Philistines; and Jehovah saved them by a great ^‍victory.

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¹⁵ And three of the thirty chief men went down to the rock to David, into the cave of Adullam; and the host of the Philistines were encamped in the valley of Rephaim. ¹⁶ And David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Beth-lehem. ¹⁷ And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me water to drink of the well of Beth-lehem, which is by the gate! ¹⁸ And the three brake through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Beth-lehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David: but David would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto Jehovah, ¹⁹ and said, My God forbid it me, that I should do this: shall I drink the blood of these men ^‍that have put their lives in jeopardy? for with the jeopardy of their lives they brought it. Therefore he would not drink it. These things did the three mighty men.

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²⁰ And Abishai, the brother of Joab, he was chief of the three; for he lifted up his spear against three hundred and slew them, and had a name among the three. ²¹ Of the three, he was more honorable than the two, and was made their captain: howbeit he attained not to the first three.

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²² Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done mighty deeds, he slew the two sons of Ariel of Moab: he went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow. ²³ And he slew an Egyptian, a man of great stature, five cubits high; and in the Egyptian’s hand was a spear like a weaver’s beam; and he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and slew him with his own spear. ²⁴ These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had a name among the three mighty men. ²⁵ Behold, he was more honorable than the thirty, but he attained not to the first three: and David set him over his guard.

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²⁶ Also the mighty men of the armies: Asahel the brother of Joab, Elhanan the son of Dodo of Beth-lehem, ²⁷ Shammoth the Harorite, Helez the Pelonite, ²⁸ Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite, Abiezer the Anathothite, ²⁹ Sibbecai the Hushathite, Ilai the Ahohite, ³⁰ Maharai the Netophathite, ^‍Heled the son of Baanah the Netophathite, ³¹ Ithai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin, Benaiah the Pirathonite, ³² Hurai of the brooks of Gaash, Abiel the Arbathite, ³³ Azmaveth the Baharumite, Eliahba the Shaalbonite, ³⁴ the sons of ^‍Hashem the Gizonite, Jonathan the son of Shagee the Hararite, ³⁵ Ahiam the son of ^‍Sacar the Hararite, ^‍Eliphal the son of Ur, ³⁶ Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahijah the Pelonite, ³⁷ Hezro the Carmelite, Naarai the son of Ezbai, ³⁸ Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar the son of Hagri, ³⁹ Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Berothite, the armorbearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah, ⁴⁰ Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite, ⁴¹ Uriah the Hittite, Zabad the son of Ahlai, ⁴² Adina the son of Shiza the Reubenite, a chief of the Reubenites, and thirty with him, ⁴³ Hanan the son of Maacah, and Joshaphat the Mithnite, ⁴⁴ Uzzia the Ashterathite, Shama and Jeiel the sons of Hotham the Aroerite, ⁴⁵ Jediael the son of Shimri, and Joha his brother, the Tizite, ⁴⁶ Eliel the Mahavite, and Jeribai, and Joshaviah, the sons of Elnaam, and Ithmah the Moabite, ⁴⁷ Eliel, and Obed, and Jaasiel the Mezobaite.

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12 Now these are they that came to David to Ziklag, ^‍while he yet kept himself close because of Saul the son of Kish; and they were among the mighty men, his helpers in war. ² They were armed with bows, and could use both the right hand and the left in slinging stones and in shooting arrows from the bow: they were of Saul’s brethren of Benjamin. ³ The chief was Ahiezer; then Joash, the sons of Shemaah the Gibeathite, and Jeziel, and Pelet, the sons of Azmaveth, and Beracah, and Jehu the Anathothite, ⁴ and Ishmaiah the Gibeonite, a mighty man among the thirty, and over the thirty, and Jeremiah, and Jahaziel, and Johanan, and Jozabad the Gederathite, ⁵ Eluzai, and Jerimoth, and Bealiah, and Shemariah, and Shephatiah the Haruphite, ⁶ Elkanah, and Isshiah, and Azarel, and Joezer, and Jashobeam, the Korahites, ⁷ and Joelah, and Zebadiah, the sons of Jeroham of Gedor.

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⁸ And of the Gadites there separated themselves unto David to the stronghold in the wilderness, mighty men of valor, men trained for war, that could handle shield and spear; whose faces were like the faces of lions, and they were as swift as the roes upon the mountains: ⁹ Ezer the chief, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third, ¹⁰ Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth, ¹¹ Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh, ¹² Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth, ¹³ Jeremiah the tenth, Machbannai the eleventh. ¹⁴ These of the sons of Gad were captains of the host: he that was least was equal to a hundred, and the greatest to a thousand. ¹⁵ These are they that went over the Jordan in the first month, when it had overflowed all its banks; and they put to flight all them of the valleys, both toward the east and toward the west.

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¹⁶ And there came of the children of Benjamin and Judah to the stronghold unto David. ¹⁷ And David went out to meet them, and answered and said unto them, If ye be come peaceably unto me to help me, my heart shall be knit unto you; but if ye be come to betray me to mine adversaries, seeing there is no ^‍wrong in my hands, the God of our fathers look thereon, and rebuke it. ¹⁸ Then the Spirit came upon Amasai, who was chief of the thirty, and he said, Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse: peace, peace be unto thee, and peace be to thy helpers; for thy God helpeth thee. Then David received them, and made them captains of the band.

28 And when we were escaped, then we knew that the island was called Melita. ² And the barbarians showed us no common kindness: for they kindled a fire, and received us all, because of the present rain, and because of the cold. ³ But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out by reason of the heat, and fastened on his hand. ⁴ And when the barbarians saw the venomous creature hanging from his hand, they said one to another, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped from the sea, yet Justice hath not suffered to live. ⁵ Howbeit he shook off the creature into the fire, and took no harm. ⁶ But they expected that he would have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but when they were long in expectation and beheld nothing amiss came to him, they changed their minds, and said that he was a god.

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⁷ Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the chief man of the island, named Publius; who received us, and entertained us three days courteously. ⁸ And it was so, that the father of Publius lay sick of fever and dysentery: unto whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laying his hands on him healed him. ⁹ And when this was done, the rest also that had diseases in the island came, and were cured: ¹⁰ who also honored us with many honors; and when we sailed, they put on board such things as we needed.

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¹¹ And after three months we set sail in a ship of Alexandria which had wintered in the island, whose sign was ^‍The Twin Brothers. ¹² And touching at Syracuse, we tarried there three days. ¹³ And from thence we made a circuit, and arrived at Rhegium: and after one day a south wind sprang up, and on the second day we came to Puteoli; ¹⁴ where we found brethren, and were entreated to tarry with them seven days: and so we came to Rome. ¹⁵ And from thence the brethren, when they heard of us, came to meet us as far as The Market of Appius and The Three Taverns; whom when Paul saw, he thanked God, and took courage.

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¹⁶ And when we entered into Rome, Paul was suffered to abide by himself with the soldier that guarded him.

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¹⁷ And it came to pass, that after three days he called together those that were the chief of the Jews: and when they were come together, he said unto them, I, brethren, though I had done nothing against the people, or the customs of our fathers, yet was delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans: ¹⁸ who, when they had examined me, desired to set me at liberty, because there was no cause of death in me. ¹⁹ But when the Jews spake against it, I was constrained to appeal unto Caesar; not that I had aught whereof to accuse my nation. ²⁰ For this cause therefore did I entreat you to see and to speak with me: for because of the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain. ²¹ And they said unto him, We neither received letters from Judaea concerning thee, nor did any of the brethren come hither and report or speak any harm of thee. ²² But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest: for as concerning this sect, it is known to us that everywhere it is spoken against.

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²³ And when they had appointed him a day, they came to him into his lodging in great number; to whom he expounded the matter, testifying the kingdom of God, and persuading them concerning Jesus, both from the law of Moses and from the prophets, from morning till evening. ²⁴ And some believed the things which were spoken, and some disbelieved. ²⁵ And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Spirit through Isaiah the prophet unto your fathers, ²⁶ saying,

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^‍Go thou unto this people, and say,
By hearing ye shall hear, and shall in no wise understand;
And seeing ye shall see, and shall in no wise perceive:
²⁷ For this people’s heart is waxed gross,
And their ears are dull of hearing,
And their eyes they have closed;
Lest haply they should perceive with their eyes,
And hear with their ears,
And understand with their heart,
And should turn again,
And I should heal them.

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²⁸ Be it known therefore unto you, that this salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles: they will also hear.^‍

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³⁰ And he abode two whole years in his own hired dwelling, and received all that went in unto him, ³¹ preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness, none forbidding him.

A psalm of thanksgiving for God’s justice.

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For the Chief Musician; set to Muth-labben. A Psalm of David.

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9 I will give thanks unto Jehovah with my whole heart;
I will show forth all thy marvellous works.
² I will be glad and exult in thee;
I will sing praise to thy name, O thou ^‍Most High.
³ When mine enemies turn back,
They stumble and perish at thy presence.
⁴ For thou hast maintained my right and my cause;
Thou sittest in the throne judging righteously.
⁵ Thou hast rebuked the nations, thou hast destroyed the wicked;
Thou hast blotted out their name for ever and ever.
⁶ The enemy are come to an end, they are desolate for ever;
And the cities which thou hast overthrown,
The very remembrance of them is perished.
⁷ But Jehovah sitteth as king for ever:
He hath prepared his throne for judgment;
⁸ And he will judge the world in righteousness,
He will minister judgment to the ^‍peoples in uprightness.
⁹ Jehovah also will be a high tower for the oppressed,
A high tower in times of trouble;
¹⁰ And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee;
For thou, Jehovah, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.
¹¹ Sing praises to Jehovah, who dwelleth in Zion:
Declare among the people his doings.
¹² For he that maketh inquisition for blood remembereth them;
He forgetteth not the cry of the poor.

19 Better is the poor that walketh in his integrity
Than he that is perverse in his lips and is a fool.
² Also, that the soul be without knowledge is not good;
And he that hasteth with his feet ^‍sinneth.
³ The foolishness of man subverteth his way;
And his heart fretteth against Jehovah.