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18 The Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had 44,760 men in their combined armies, warriors who carried shields and swords, were equipped with bows, and were trained for war.[a] 19 They attacked[b] the Hagrites, Jetur, Naphish, and Nodab. 20 They received divine help in fighting them, and the Hagrites and all their allies were handed over to them. They cried out to God during the battle; he responded to their prayers because they trusted in him.[c] 21 They seized the Hagrites’[d] animals, including 50,000 camels, 250,000 sheep, and 2,000 donkeys. They also took captive 100,000 people. 22 Because God fought for them,[e] they killed many of the enemy.[f] They dispossessed the Hagrites and lived in their land until the exile.[g]
The Half-Tribe of Manasseh
23 The half-tribe of Manasseh settled in the land from Bashan as far as Baal Hermon, Senir, and Mount Hermon. They grew in number.
24 These were the leaders of their families:[h]
Epher, Ishi, Eliel, Azriel, Jeremiah, Hodaviah, and Jahdiel. They were skilled warriors, men of reputation,[i] and leaders of their families. 25 But they were unfaithful to the God of their ancestors[j] and worshiped instead[k] the gods of the native peoples[l] whom God had destroyed before them. 26 So the God of Israel stirred up[m] King Pul of Assyria (that is, King Tiglath-Pileser of Assyria),[n] and he carried away the Reubenites, Gadites, and half-tribe of Manasseh and took them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan, where they remain to this very day.
Levi’s Descendants
6 (5:27)[o] The sons of Levi: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.
2 The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.
3 The children of Amram: Aaron, Moses, and Miriam.
The sons of Aaron: Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
4 Eleazar was the father of Phinehas, and Phinehas was the father of Abishua. 5 Abishua was the father of Bukki, and Bukki was the father of Uzzi. 6 Uzzi was the father of Zerahiah, and Zerahiah was the father of Meraioth. 7 Meraioth was the father of Amariah, and Amariah was the father of Ahitub. 8 Ahitub was the father of Zadok, and Zadok was the father of Ahimaaz. 9 Ahimaaz was the father of Azariah, and Azariah was the father of Johanan. 10 Johanan was the father of Azariah, who served as a priest in the temple Solomon built in Jerusalem. 11 Azariah was the father of Amariah, and Amariah was the father of Ahitub. 12 Ahitub was the father of Zadok, and Zadok was the father of Shallum. 13 Shallum was the father of Hilkiah, and Hilkiah was the father of Azariah. 14 Azariah was the father of Seraiah, and Seraiah was the father of Jehozadak. 15 Jehozadak went into exile when the Lord sent the people of[p] Judah and Jerusalem into exile by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.
16 (6:1)[q] The sons of Levi: Gershom,[r] Kohath, and Merari.
17 These are the names of the sons Gershom: Libni and Shimei.
18 The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.
19 The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi.
These are the clans of the Levites by their families.[s]
20 To Gershom: his son Libni, his son Jahath, his son Zimmah, 21 his son Joah, his son Iddo, his son Zerah, and his son Jeatherai.
22 The sons[t] of Kohath: his son Amminadab, his son Korah, his son Assir, 23 his son Elkanah, his son Ebiasaph, his son Assir, 24 his son Tahath, his son Uriel, his son Uzziah, and his son Shaul.
25 The sons of Elkanah: Amasai, Ahimoth,[u] 26 his son Elkanah,[v] his son Zophai, his son Nahath, 27 his son Eliab, his son Jeroham, and his son Elkanah.[w]
28 The sons of Samuel: Joel the firstborn[x] and Abijah the second oldest.
29 The descendants of Merari: Mahli, his son Libni, his son Shimei, his son Uzzah, 30 his son Shimea, his son Haggiah, and his son Asaiah.
Professional Musicians
31 These are the men David put in charge of music in the Lord’s sanctuary,[y] after the ark was placed there. 32 They performed music[z] before the sanctuary[aa] of the meeting tent until Solomon built the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem. They carried out their tasks according to regulations.
33 These are the ones who served along with their sons:
From the Kohathites: Heman the musician, son of Joel, son of Samuel, 34 son of Elkanah, son of Jeroham, son of Eliel, son of Toah, 35 son of Zuph, son of Elkanah, son of Mahath, son of Amasai, 36 son of Elkanah, son of Joel, son of Azariah, son of Zephaniah, 37 son of Tahath, son of Assir, son of Ebiasaph, son of Korah, 38 son of Izhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, son of Israel.
39 Serving beside him was his fellow Levite Asaph,[ab] son of Berechiah, son of Shimea, 40 son of Michael, son of Baaseiah,[ac] son of Malkijah, 41 son of Ethni, son of Zerah, son of Adaiah, 42 son of Ethan, son of Zimmah, son of Shimei, 43 son of Jahath, son of Gershom, son of Levi.
44 Serving beside them were their fellow Levites, the descendants of Merari, led by[ad] Ethan, son of Kishi, son of Abdi, son of Malluch, 45 son of Hashabiah, son of Amaziah, son of Hilkiah, 46 son of Amzi, son of Bani, son of Shemer, 47 son of Mahli, son of Mushi, son of Merari, son of Levi.
48 The rest of their fellow Levites[ae] were assigned to perform the remaining tasks at God’s sanctuary.[af] 49 But Aaron and his descendants offered sacrifices on the altar for burnt offerings and on the altar for incense as they had been assigned to do in the Most Holy Sanctuary.[ag] They made atonement for Israel, just as God’s servant Moses had ordered.[ah]
50 These were the descendants of Aaron:
His son Eleazar, his son Phinehas, his son Abishua, 51 his son Bukki, his son Uzzi, his son Zerahiah, 52 his son Meraioth, his son Amariah, his son Ahitub, 53 his son Zadok, and his son Ahimaaz.
54 These were the areas where Aaron’s descendants lived:[ai]
The following belonged to the Kohathite clan, for they received the first allotment:[aj]
55 They were allotted Hebron in the territory of Judah, as well as its surrounding pasturelands. 56 (But the city’s land and nearby towns were allotted to Caleb son of Jephunneh.) 57 The descendants of Aaron were also allotted as cities[ak] of refuge Hebron, Libnah and its pasturelands, Jattir, Eshtemoa and its pasturelands, 58 Hilez[al] and its pasturelands, Debir and its pasturelands, 59 Ashan[am] and its pasturelands,[an] and Beth Shemesh and its pasturelands.
60 Within the territory of the tribe of Benjamin they were allotted[ao] Geba and its pasturelands, Alemeth and its pasturelands, and Anathoth and its pasturelands. Their clans were allotted thirteen cities in all. 61 The rest of Kohath’s descendants were allotted ten cities in the territory of the half-tribe of Manasseh.[ap]
62 The clans of Gershom’s descendants received thirteen cities within the territory of the tribes of Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and Manasseh (in Bashan).[aq]
63 The clans of Merari’s descendants were allotted twelve cities within the territory of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Zebulun.[ar]
64 So the Israelites gave to the Levites these cities and their pasturelands. 65 They allotted these previously named cities from the territory of the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin.[as]
66 The clans of Kohath’s descendants also received cities as their territory within the tribe of Ephraim.[at] 67 They were allotted as cities[au] of refuge Shechem and its pasturelands (in the hill country of Ephraim), Gezer and its pasturelands, 68 Jokmeam and its pasturelands, Beth Horon and its pasturelands, 69 Aijalon and its pasturelands, and Gath Rimmon and its pasturelands.
70 Within the territory of the half-tribe of Manasseh, the rest of Kohath’s descendants received Aner and its pasturelands and Bileam and its pasturelands.[av]
71 The following belonged to Gershom’s descendants:[aw]
Within the territory of the half-tribe of Manasseh: Golan in Bashan and its pasturelands and Ashtaroth and its pasturelands.
72 Within the territory of the tribe of Issachar: Kedesh and its pasturelands, Daberath and its pasturelands, 73 Ramoth and its pasturelands, and Anem and its pasturelands.
74 Within the territory of the tribe of Asher: Mashal and its pasturelands, Abdon and its pasturelands, 75 Hukok and its pasturelands, and Rehob and its pasturelands.
76 Within the territory of the tribe of Naphtali: Kedesh in Galilee and its pasturelands, Hammon and its pasturelands, and Kiriathaim and its pasturelands.
77 The following belonged to the rest of Merari’s descendants:[ax]
Within the territory of the tribe of Zebulun: Rimmono[ay] and its pasturelands, and Tabor and its pasturelands.
78 Within the territory of the tribe of Reuben across the Jordan River east of Jericho:[az] Bezer in the wilderness and its pasturelands, Jahzah and its pasturelands, 79 Kedemoth and its pasturelands, and Mephaath and its pasturelands.
80 Within the territory of the tribe of Gad: Ramoth in Gilead and its pasturelands, Mahanaim and its pasturelands, 81 Heshbon and its pasturelands, and Jazer and its pasturelands.
Paul Offers His Defense
26 So Agrippa[a] said to Paul, “You have permission[b] to speak for yourself.” Then Paul held out his hand[c] and began his defense:[d]
2 “Regarding all the things I have been accused of by the Jews, King Agrippa,[e] I consider myself fortunate that I am about to make my defense before you today, 3 because you are especially[f] familiar with all the customs and controversial issues[g] of the Jews. Therefore I ask[h] you to listen to me patiently. 4 Now all the Jews know the way I lived[i] from my youth, spending my life from the beginning among my own people[j] and in Jerusalem. 5 They know,[k] because they have known[l] me from time past,[m] if they are willing to testify, that according to the strictest party[n] of our religion, I lived as a Pharisee.[o] 6 And now I stand here on trial[p] because of my hope in the promise made by God to our ancestors,[q] 7 a promise[r] that our twelve tribes hope to attain as they earnestly serve God[s] night and day. Concerning this hope the Jews are accusing me,[t] Your Majesty![u] 8 Why do you people[v] think[w] it is unbelievable[x] that[y] God raises the dead? 9 Of course,[z] I myself was convinced[aa] that it was necessary to do many things hostile to the name of Jesus the Nazarene. 10 And that is what I did in Jerusalem: Not only did I lock up many of the saints in prisons by the authority I received[ab] from the chief priests, but I also cast my vote[ac] against them when they were sentenced to death.[ad] 11 I punished[ae] them often in all the synagogues[af] and tried to force[ag] them to blaspheme. Because I was so furiously enraged[ah] at them, I went to persecute[ai] them even in foreign cities.
12 “While doing this very thing,[aj] as I was going[ak] to Damascus with authority and complete power[al] from the chief priests, 13 about noon along the road, Your Majesty,[am] I saw a light from heaven,[an] brighter than the sun, shining everywhere around[ao] me and those traveling with me. 14 When we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic,[ap] ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? You are hurting yourself[aq] by kicking against the goads.’[ar] 15 So I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord replied,[as] ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16 But get up and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this reason, to designate you in advance[at] as a servant and witness[au] to the things[av] you have seen[aw] and to the things in which I will appear to you. 17 I will rescue[ax] you from your own people[ay] and from the Gentiles, to whom[az] I am sending you 18 to open their eyes so that they turn[ba] from darkness to light and from the power[bb] of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a share[bc] among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
19 “Therefore, King Agrippa,[bd] I was not disobedient[be] to the heavenly[bf] vision, 20 but I declared to those in Damascus first, and then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea,[bg] and to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God,[bh] performing deeds consistent with[bi] repentance. 21 For this reason the Jews, after they seized me while I was in the temple courts,[bj] were trying to kill me. 22 I have experienced[bk] help from God to this day, and so I stand testifying to both small and great, saying nothing except[bl] what the prophets and Moses said[bm] was going to happen: 23 that[bn] the Christ[bo] was to suffer and be the first to rise from the dead, to proclaim light both to our people[bp] and to the Gentiles.”[bq]
24 As Paul[br] was saying these things in his defense, Festus[bs] exclaimed loudly, “You have lost your mind,[bt] Paul! Your great learning is driving you insane!” 25 But Paul replied,[bu] “I have not lost my mind, most excellent Festus,[bv] but am speaking[bw] true and rational[bx] words. 26 For the king knows about these things, and I am speaking freely[by] to him,[bz] because I cannot believe[ca] that any of these things has escaped his notice,[cb] for this was not done in a corner.[cc] 27 Do you believe the prophets,[cd] King Agrippa?[ce] I know that you believe.” 28 Agrippa[cf] said to Paul, “In such a short time are you persuading me to become a Christian?”[cg] 29 Paul replied, “I pray to God that whether in a short or a long time[ch] not only you but also all those who are listening to me today could become such as I am, except for these chains.”[ci]
30 So the king got up, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them, 31 and as they were leaving they said to one another,[cj] “This man is not doing anything deserving[ck] death or imprisonment.” 32 Agrippa[cl] said to Festus,[cm] “This man could have been released[cn] if he had not appealed to Caesar.”[co]
Psalm 6[a]
For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments, according to the sheminith style;[b] a psalm of David.
6 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger.
Do not discipline me in your raging fury.[c]
2 Have mercy on me,[d] Lord, for I am frail.
Heal me, Lord, for my bones are shaking.[e]
3 I am absolutely terrified,[f]
and you, Lord—how long will this continue?[g]
4 Relent, Lord, rescue me![h]
Deliver me because of your faithfulness.[i]
5 For no one remembers you in the realm of death.[j]
In Sheol who gives you thanks?[k]
6 I am exhausted as I groan.
All night long I drench my bed in tears;[l]
my tears saturate the cushion beneath me.[m]
7 My eyes[n] grow dim[o] from suffering;
they grow weak[p] because of all my enemies.[q]
8 Turn back from me, all you who behave wickedly,[r]
for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping.[s]
9 The Lord has heard my appeal for mercy;
the Lord has accepted[t] my prayer.
10 They will be humiliated[u] and absolutely terrified.[v]
All my enemies will turn back and be suddenly humiliated.
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