161 A Secret Treasure of David. Preserve me, O God, for I did trust in Thee. 2 Thou hast said to Jehovah, 'My Lord Thou 'art';' My good 'is' not for thine own sake; 3 For the holy ones who 'are' in the land, And the honourable, all my delight 'is' in them. 4 Multiplied are their griefs, 'Who' have hastened backward; I pour not out their libations of blood, Nor do I take up their names on my lips. 5 Jehovah 'is' the portion of my share, and of my cup, Thou—Thou dost uphold my lot. 6 Lines have fallen to me in pleasant places, Yea, a beauteous inheritance 'is' for me. 7 I bless Jehovah who hath counselled me; Also 'in' the nights my reins instruct me.
8 I did place Jehovah before me continually, Because—at my right hand I am not moved. 9 Therefore hath my heart been glad, And my honour doth rejoice, Also my flesh dwelleth confidently: 10 For Thou dost not leave my soul to Sheol, Nor givest thy saintly one to see corruption. 11 Thou causest me to know the path of life; Fulness of joys 'is' with Thy presence, Pleasant things by Thy right hand for ever!
171 A Prayer of David. Hear, O Jehovah, righteousness, attend my cry, Give ear 'to' my prayer, without lips of deceit. 2 From before thee my judgment doth go out; Thine eyes do see uprightly. 3 Thou hast proved my heart, Thou hast inspected by night, Thou hast tried me, Thou findest nothing; My thoughts pass not over my mouth. 4 As to doings of man, Through a word of Thy lips I have observed The paths of a destroyer; 5 To uphold my goings in Thy paths, My steps have not slidden. 6 I—I called Thee, for Thou dost answer me, O God, incline Thine ear to me, hear my speech. 7 Separate wonderfully Thy kindness, O Saviour of the confiding, By Thy right hand, from withstanders.
8 Keep me as the apple, the daughter of the eye; In shadow of Thy wings thou dost hide me. 9 From the face of the wicked who spoiled me. Mine enemies in soul go round against me. 10 Their fat they have closed up, Their mouths have spoken with pride: 11 'Our steps now have compassed 'him';' Their eyes they set to turn aside in the land. 12 His likeness as a lion desirous to tear, As a young lion dwelling in secret places. 13 Arise, O Jehovah, go before his face, Cause him to bend. Deliver my soul from the wicked, Thy sword, 14 From men, Thy hand, O Jehovah, From men of the world, their portion 'is' in life, And 'with' Thy hidden things Thou fillest their belly, They are satisfied 'with' sons; And have left their abundance to their sucklings. 15 I—in righteousness, I see Thy face; I am satisfied, in awaking, 'with' Thy form!
201 And after the ceasing of the tumult, Paul having called near the disciples, and having embraced 'them', went forth to go on to Macedonia; 2 and having gone through those parts, and having exhorted them with many words, he came to Greece; 3 having made also three months' 'stay'—a counsel of the Jews having been against him—being about to set forth to Syria, there came 'to him' a resolution of returning through Macedonia. 4 And there were accompanying him unto Asia, Sopater of Berea, and of Thessalonians Aristarchus and Secundus, and Gaius of Derbe, and Timotheus, and of Asiatics Tychicus and Trophimus; 5 these, having gone before, did remain for us in Troas, 6 and we sailed, after the days of the unleavened food, from Philippi, and came unto them to Troas in five days, where we abode seven days.
7 And on the first of the week, the disciples having been gathered together to break bread, Paul was discoursing to them, about to depart on the morrow, he was also continuing the discourse till midnight, 8 and there were many lamps in the upper chamber where they were gathered together, 9 and there was sitting a certain youth, by name Eutychus, upon the window—being borne down by a deep sleep, Paul discoursing long—he having sunk down from the sleep, fell down from the third story, and was lifted up dead. 10 And Paul, having gone down, fell upon him, and having embraced 'him', said, 'Make no tumult, for his life is in him;' 11 and having come up, and having broken bread, and having tasted, for a long time also having talked—till daylight, so he went forth, 12 and they brought up the lad alive, and were comforted in no ordinary measure.
13 And we having gone before unto the ship, did sail to Assos, thence intending to take in Paul, for so he had arranged, intending himself to go on foot; 14 and when he met with us at Assos, having taken him up, we came to Mitylene, 15 and thence having sailed, on the morrow we came over-against Chios, and the next day we arrived at Samos, and having remained in Trogyllium, on the following day we came to Miletus, 16 for Paul decided to sail past Ephesus, that there may not be to him a loss of time in Asia, for he hasted, if it were possible for him, on the day of the Pentecost to be at Jerusalem.
(Read Acts 20:1-6)
Tumults or opposition may constrain a Christian to remove from his station or alter his purpose, but his work and his pleasure will be the same, wherever he goes. Paul thought it worth while to bestow five days in going to Troas, though it was but for seven days' stay there; but he knew, and so should we, how to redeem even journeying time, and to make it turn to some good account.
(Read Acts 20:7-12)
Though the disciples read, and meditated, and prayed, and sung apart, and thereby kept up communion with God, yet they came together to worship God, and so kept up their communion with one another. They came together on the first day of the week, the Lord's day. It is to be religiously observed by all disciples of Christ. In the breaking of the bread, not only the breaking of Christ's body for us, to be a sacrifice for our sins, is remembered, but the breaking of Christ's body to us, to be food and a feast for our souls, is signified. In the early times it was the custom to receive the Lord's supper every Lord's day, thus celebrating the memorial of Christ's death. In this assembly Paul preached. The preaching of the gospel ought to go with the sacraments. They were willing to hear, he saw they were so, and continued his speech till midnight. Sleeping when hearing the word, is an evil thing, a sign of low esteem of the word of God. We must do what we can to prevent being sleepy; not put ourselves to sleep, but get our hearts affected with the word we hear, so as to drive sleep far away. Infirmity requires tenderness; but contempt requires severity. It interrupted the apostle's preaching; but was made to confirm his preaching. Eutychus was brought to life again. And as they knew not when they should have Paul's company again, they made the best use of it they could, and reckoned a night's sleep well lost for that purpose. How seldom are hours of repose broken for the purposes of devotion! but how often for mere amusement or sinful revelry! So hard is it for spiritual life to thrive in the heart of man! so naturally do carnal practices flourish there!
(Read Acts 20:13-16)
Paul hastened to Jerusalem, but tried to do good by the way, when going from place to place, as every good man should do. In doing God's work, our own wills and those of our friends must often be crossed; we must not spend time with them when duty calls us another way.
