Acts 20:3

Now, behold, I go bound by the Spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there;

We are pressed on every side, yet not crushed; perplexed, yet not to despair;

When some of both the Gentiles and the Jews, with their rulers, made a violent attempt to mistreat and stone them,

Therefore do what we tell you. We have four men who have taken a vow.

This was because of the false brothers secretly brought in, who stole in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage,

If a man schemes and comes presumptuously on his neighbor to kill him, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.

The Nazirite shall shave the head of his separation at the door of the Tent of Meeting, take the hair of the head of his separation, and put it on the fire which is under the sacrifice of peace offerings.

But if any man hates his neighbor, lies in wait for him, rises up against him, strikes him mortally so that he dies, and he flees into one of these cities;

Outside the sword will bereave, and in the rooms, terror on both young man and virgin, the nursing infant with the gray-haired man.

Hide me from the conspiracy of the wicked, from the noisy crowd of the ones doing evil;

but these lay in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives.

You will see it, and your heart shall rejoice, and your bones will flourish like the tender grass. Yahweh’s hand will be known among his servants; and he will have indignation against his enemies.

He came to Derbe and Lystra: and behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewess who believed; but his father was a Greek.

The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Beroea. When they arrived, they went into the Jewish synagogue.

For Paul had determined to sail past Ephesus, that he might not have to spend time in Asia; for he was hastening, if it were possible for him, to be in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost.

serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears, and with trials which happened to me by the plots of the Jews;

Take them and purify yourself with them, and pay their expenses for them, that they may shave their heads. Then all will know that there is no truth in the things that they have been informed about you, but that you yourself also walk keeping the law.

For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, to the end that you may be established;

But now, I say, I am going to Jerusalem, serving the saints.

I commend to you Phoebe, our sister, who is a servant of the assembly that is at Cenchreae,

But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord is willing. And I will know, not the word of those who are puffed up, but the power.

But I will come to you when I have passed through Macedonia, for I am passing through Macedonia.

I had no relief for my spirit, because I didn’t find Titus, my brother, but taking my leave of them, I went out into Macedonia.

Cain said to Abel, his brother, “Let’s go into the field.” While they were in the field, Cain rose up against Abel, his brother, and killed him.

The Gazites were told, “Samson is here!” They surrounded him and laid wait for him all night in the gate of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying, “Wait until morning light; then we will kill him.”

When Abner was returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into the middle of the gate to speak with him quietly, and struck him there in the body, so that he died, for the blood of Asahel his brother.

But Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab’s hand. So he struck him with it in the body, and shed out his bowels to the ground, and didn’t strike him again; and he died. Joab and Abishai his brother pursued Sheba the son of Bichri.

The words of the wicked are about lying in wait for blood, but the speech of the upright rescues them.

The godly man has perished out of the earth, and there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; every man hunts his brother with a net.

But some of those who were of the synagogue called “The Libertines”, and of the Cyrenians, of the Alexandrians, and of those of Cilicia and Asia arose, disputing with Stephen.

When the brothers knew it, they brought him down to Caesarea, and sent him off to Tarsus.

But the Jews stirred up the devout and prominent women and the chief men of the city, and stirred up a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and threw them out of their borders.

But the unpersuaded Jews took along some wicked men from the marketplace, and gathering a crowd, set the city in an uproar. Assaulting the house of Jason, they sought to bring them out to the people.

He found a certain Jew named Aquila, a man of Pontus by race, who had recently come from Italy, with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome. He came to them,

But when Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul was compelled by the Spirit, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ.

but taking his leave of them, he said, “I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem, but I will return again to you if God wills.” Then he set sail from Ephesus.

After the uproar had ceased, Paul sent for the disciples, took leave of them, and departed to go into Macedonia.

The following night, the Lord stood by him and said, “Cheer up, Paul, for as you have testified about me at Jerusalem, so you must testify also at Rome.”

but now, no longer having any place in these regions, and having these many years a longing to come to you,

I know that when I come to you, I will come in the fullness of the blessing of the Good News of Christ.

Moreover, brothers, we make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the assemblies of Macedonia,

In Damascus the governor under King Aretas guarded the Damascenes’ city, desiring to arrest me.

Behold, this is the third time I am ready to come to you, and I will not be a burden to you; for I seek not your possessions, but you. For the children ought not to save up for the parents, but the parents for the children.

God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob!” He said, “Here I am.”

“Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them: ‘When either man or woman shall make a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to Yahweh,

“ ‘If any man dies very suddenly beside him, and he defiles the head of his separation, then he shall shave his head in the day of his cleansing. On the seventh day he shall shave it.

this Ezra went up from Babylon. He was a skilled scribe in the law of Moses, which Yahweh, the God of Israel, had given; and the king granted him all his request, according to Yahweh his God’s hand on him.

I gathered them together to the river that runs to Ahava; and there we encamped three days: and I looked around at the people and the priests, and found there were none of the sons of Levi.

Yahweh will keep your going out and your coming in, from this time forward, and forever more.

arrogant eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood,

The report about him went out into all Syria. They brought to him all who were sick, afflicted with various diseases and torments, possessed with demons, epileptics, and paralytics; and he healed them.

Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest indeed is plentiful, but the laborers are few.

But when they persecute you in this city, flee into the next, for most certainly I tell you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel until the Son of Man has come.

Joses, who by the apostles was also called Barnabas (which is, being interpreted, Son of Encouragement), a Levite, a man of Cyprus by race,

but their plot became known to Saul. They watched the gates both day and night that they might kill him,

preaching boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus. He spoke and disputed against the Hellenists, but they were seeking to kill him.

Now Herod was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. They came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus, the king’s personal aide, their friend, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the king’s country for food.

Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole assembly, to choose men out of their company, and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas: Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, chief men among the brothers.

They wrote these things by their hand: “The apostles, the elders, and the brothers, to the brothers who are of the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: greetings.

Therefore watch, remembering that for a period of three years I didn’t cease to admonish everyone night and day with tears.

Some of the disciples from Caesarea also went with us, bringing one Mnason of Cyprus, an early disciple, with whom we would stay.

asking a favor against him, that he would summon him to Jerusalem; plotting to kill him on the way.

saying, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. Behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.’

requesting, if by any means now at last I may be prospered by the will of God to come to you.

Now I don’t desire to have you unaware, brothers, that I often planned to come to you, and was hindered so far, that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among the rest of the Gentiles.

Not only so, but ourselves also, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for adoption, the redemption of our body.

To the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain those who are under the law;

For I do not wish to see you now in passing, but I hope to stay a while with you, if the Lord permits.

For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you with many tears, not that you should be made to grieve, but that you might know the love that I have so abundantly for you.

I have been in travels often, perils of rivers, perils of robbers, perils from my countrymen, perils from the Gentiles, perils in the city, perils in the wilderness, perils in the sea, perils among false brothers;

For many walk, of whom I told you often, and now tell you even weeping, as the enemies of the cross of Christ,

knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

If he shoved him out of hatred, or hurled something at him while lying in wait, so that he died,

Then we departed from the river Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy and the bandit by the way.

If they say, “Come with us. Let’s lay in wait for blood. Let’s lurk secretly for the innocent without cause.

For wicked men are found among my people. They watch, as fowlers lie in wait. They set a trap. They catch men.

Their tongue is a deadly arrow. It speaks deceit. One speaks peaceably to his neighbor with his mouth, but in his heart, he waits to ambush him.

A vision appeared to Paul in the night. There was a man of Macedonia standing, begging him, and saying, “Come over into Macedonia and help us.”

Then the brothers immediately sent out Paul to go as far as to the sea, and Silas and Timothy still stayed there.

Paul, having stayed after this many more days, took his leave of the brothers, and sailed from there for Syria, together with Priscilla and Aquila. He shaved his head in Cenchreae, for he had a vow.

Now after these things had ended, Paul determined in the Spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, I must also see Rome.”

When we had come in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left hand, we sailed to Syria and landed at Tyre, for the ship was there to unload her cargo.

In this confidence, I was determined to come first to you, that you might have a second benefit,

For even when we had come into Macedonia, our flesh had no relief, but we were afflicted on every side. Fightings were outside. Fear was inside.

Then I came to the regions of Syria and Cilicia.