According to his usual habit Paul went to the synagogue. There during three Sabbaths he held discussions with the people, quoting

Now stand where you are, and I will accuse you before the LORD by reminding you of all the mighty actions the LORD did to save you and your ancestors.

The LORD says, "Now, let's settle the matter. You are stained red with sin, but I will wash you as clean as snow. Although your stains are deep red, you will be as white as wool.

The LORD, the king of Israel, has this to say: "You gods of the nations, present your case. Bring the best arguments you have!

So then, my friends, because of God's great mercy to us I appeal to you: Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to his service and pleasing to him. This is the true worship that you should offer.

But have reverence for Christ in your hearts, and honor him as Lord. Be ready at all times to answer anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you,

I have the same hope in God that these themselves have, namely, that all people, both the good and the bad, will rise from death.

At the same time he was hoping that Paul would give him some money; and for this reason he would call for him often and talk with him.

The God of Israel has spoken; the protector of Israel said to me: "The king who rules with justice, who rules in obedience to God,

I have always acted justly and fairly.

The LORD is righteous and loves good deeds; those who do them will live in his presence.

you love what is right and hate what is evil. That is why God, your God, has chosen you and has poured out more happiness on you than on any other king.

Do you rulers ever give a just decision? Do you judge everyone fairly?

No! You think only of the evil you can do, and commit crimes of violence in the land.

so that he will rule over your people with justice and govern the oppressed with righteousness.

God presides in the heavenly council; in the assembly of the gods he gives his decision:

Defend the rights of the poor and the orphans; be fair to the needy and the helpless.

Kings cannot tolerate evil, because justice is what makes a government strong.

In addition, I have also noticed that in this world you find wickedness where justice and right ought to be.

The city that once was faithful is behaving like a whore! At one time it was filled with righteous people, but now only murderers remain.

Then one of David's descendants will be king, and he will rule the people with faithfulness and love. He will be quick to do what is right, and he will see that justice is done.)

The LORD says, "I love justice and I hate oppression and crime. I will faithfully reward my people And make an eternal covenant with them.

"I, the LORD, command you to do what is just and right. Protect the person who is being cheated from the one who is cheating him. Do not mistreat or oppress aliens, orphans, or widows; and do not kill innocent people in this holy place.

Does it make you a better king if you build houses of cedar, finer than those of others? Your father enjoyed a full life. He was always just and fair, and he prospered in everything he did.

But you can only see your selfish interests; you kill the innocent and violently oppress your people. The LORD has spoken.

The Sovereign LORD said, "You have sinned too long, you rulers of Israel! Stop your violence and oppression. Do what is right and just. You must never again drive my people off their land. I, the Sovereign LORD, am telling you this.

So then, Your Majesty, follow my advice. Stop sinning, do what is right, and be merciful to the poor. Then you will continue to be prosperous."

They utter empty words and make false promises and useless treaties. Justice has become injustice, growing like poisonous weeds in a plowed field.

I said, 'Plow new ground for yourselves, plant righteousness, and reap the blessings that your devotion to me will produce. It is time for you to turn to me, your LORD, and I will come and pour out blessings upon you.'

Instead, let justice flow like a stream, and righteousness like a river that never goes dry.

Do horses gallop on rocks? Does anyone plow the sea with oxen? Yet you have turned justice into poison, and right into wrong.

And when he comes, he will prove to the people of the world that they are wrong about sin and about what is right and about God's judgment.

Let no one deceive you, my children! Whoever does what is right is righteous, just as Christ is righteous.

Here is the clear difference between God's children and the Devil's children: those who do not do what is right or do not love others are not God's children.

Don't spend all your energy on sex and all your money on women; they have destroyed kings.

When they drink, they forget the laws and ignore the rights of people in need.

A country is in trouble when its king is a youth and its leaders feast all night long.

But a country is fortunate to have a king who makes his own decisions and leaders who eat at the proper time, who control themselves and don't get drunk.

He will give a sense of justice to those who serve as judges, and courage to those who defend the city gates from attack.

Even the prophets and the priests are so drunk that they stagger. They have drunk so much wine and liquor that they stumble in confusion. The prophets are too drunk to understand the visions that God sends, and the priests are too drunk to decide the cases that are brought to them.

One night King Belshazzar invited a thousand noblemen to a great banquet, and they drank wine together.

At once the gold cups and bowls were brought in, and they all drank wine out of them

On the day of the king's celebration they made the king and his officials drunk and foolish with wine.

John the Baptist kept telling Herod, "It isn't right for you to marry your brother's wife!"

Herod was afraid of John because he knew that John was a good and holy man, and so he kept him safe. He liked to listen to him, even though he became greatly disturbed every time he heard him.

The daughter of Herodias came in and danced, and pleased Herod and his guests. So the king said to the girl, "What would you like to have? I will give you anything you want."

So the girl went out and asked her mother, "What shall I ask for?" "The head of John the Baptist," she answered.

humility, and self-control. There is no law against such things as these.

For God has revealed his grace for the salvation of all people.

That grace instructs us to give up ungodly living and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this world,

And now the heathen are surprised when you do not join them in the same wild and reckless living, and so they insult you.

to your knowledge add self-control; to your self-control add endurance; to your endurance add godliness;

And he commanded us to preach the gospel to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God has appointed judge of the living and the dead.

But when the Jews in Thessalonica heard that Paul had preached the word of God in Berea also, they came there and started exciting and stirring up the mobs.

Our God is coming, but not in silence; a raging fire is in front of him, a furious storm around him.

He calls heaven and earth as witnesses to see him judge his people.

I told myself, "God is going to judge the righteous and the evil alike, because every thing, every action, will happen at its own set time."

Don't be surprised when you see that the government oppresses the poor and denies them justice and their rights. Every official is protected by someone higher, and both are protected by still higher officials.

Young people, enjoy your youth. Be happy while you are still young. Do what you want to do, and follow your heart's desire. But remember that God is going to judge you for whatever you do.

God is going to judge everything we do, whether good or bad, even things done in secret.

Many of those who have already died will live again: some will enjoy eternal life, and some will suffer eternal disgrace.

"When the Son of Man comes as King and all the angels with him, he will sit on his royal throne,

He will put the righteous people at his right and the others at his left.

I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger and you received me in your homes,

The righteous will then answer him, 'When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink?

When did we ever see you sick or in prison, and visit you?'

"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Away from me, you that are under God's curse! Away to the eternal fire which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels!

I was a stranger but you would not welcome me in your homes, naked but you would not clothe me; I was sick and in prison but you would not take care of me.'

The King will reply, 'I tell you, whenever you refused to help one of these least important ones, you refused to help me.'

And so, according to the Good News I preach, this is how it will be on that Day when God through Jesus Christ will judge the secret thoughts of all.

Every one of us, then, will have to give an account to God.

So you should not pass judgment on anyone before the right time comes. Final judgment must wait until the Lord comes; he will bring to light the dark secrets and expose the hidden purposes of people's minds. And then all will receive from God the praise they deserve.

For all of us must appear before Christ, to be judged by him. We will each receive what we deserve, according to everything we have done, good or bad, in our bodily life.

and he will give relief to you who suffer and to us as well. He will do this when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven with his mighty angels,

They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord and from his glorious might,

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and because he is coming to rule as King, I solemnly urge you

of the teaching about baptisms and the laying on of hands; of the resurrection of the dead and the eternal judgment.

Everyone must die once, and after that be judged by God.

But they will have to give an account of themselves to God, who is ready to judge the living and the dead.

Then I saw a great white throne and the one who sits on it. Earth and heaven fled from his presence and were seen no more.

Then the sea gave up its dead. Death and the world of the dead also gave up the dead they held. And all were judged according to what they had done.

Those who did not have their name written in the book of the living were thrown into the lake of fire.

When the people heard this, they were deeply troubled and said to Peter and the other apostles, "What shall we do, brothers?"

"But get up and go into the city, where you will be told what you must do."

The jailer called for a light, rushed in, and fell trembling at the feet of Paul and Silas.

When Elijah finished speaking, Ahab tore his clothes, took them off, and put on sackcloth. He refused food, slept in the sackcloth, and went about gloomy and depressed.

and you repented and humbled yourself before me, tearing your clothes and weeping, when you heard how I threatened to punish Jerusalem and its people. I will make it a terrifying sight, a place whose name people will use as a curse. But I have heard your prayer,

Now we must make a solemn promise to our God that we will send these women and their children away. We will do what you and the others who honor God's commands advise us to do. We will do what God's Law demands.

Within the three days, on the twentieth day of the ninth month, all the men living in the territory of Judah and Benjamin came to Jerusalem and assembled in the Temple square. It was raining hard, and because of the weather and the importance of the meeting everyone was trembling.

The LORD is king, and the people tremble. He sits on his throne above the winged creatures, and the earth shakes.

Because of you I am afraid; I am filled with fear because of your judgments.

You have been living an easy life, free from worries; but now, tremble with fear! Strip off your clothes and tie rags around your waist.

I myself created the whole universe! I am pleased with those who are humble and repentant, who fear me and obey me.

My message is like a fire and like a hammer that breaks rocks in pieces.

I hear all this, and I tremble; my lips quiver with fear. My body goes limp, and my feet stumble beneath me. I will quietly wait for the time to come when God will punish those who attack us.

Now we know that everything in the Law applies to those who live under the Law, in order to stop all human excuses and bring the whole world under God's judgment.

For no one is put right in God's sight by doing what the Law requires; what the Law does is to make us know that we have sinned.

But if everyone is proclaiming God's message when some unbelievers or ordinary people come in, they will be convinced of their sin by what they hear. They will be judged by all they hear,

their secret thoughts will be brought into the open, and they will bow down and worship God, confessing, "Truly God is here among you!"

But the scripture says that the whole world is under the power of sin; and so the gift which is promised on the basis of faith in Jesus Christ is given to those who believe.

Now, God has offered us the promise that we may receive that rest he spoke about. Let us take care, then, that none of you will be found to have failed to receive that promised rest.

The word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It cuts all the way through, to where soul and spirit meet, to where joints and marrow come together. It judges the desires and thoughts of the heart.

The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling and afraid!"

Do you believe that there is only one God? Good! The demons also believe---and tremble with fear.

Then he led them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"

Then they preached the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in the house.

Then he took Paul and Silas up into his house and gave them some food to eat. He and his family were filled with joy, because they now believed in God.

Agrippa said to Paul, "In this short time do you think you will make me a Christian?"

Then King Ahab ordered one of his officers, "Arrest Micaiah and take him to Amon, the governor of the city, and to Prince Joash.

Tell them to throw him in prison and to put him on bread and water until I return safely."

I have been calling you, inviting you to come, but you would not listen. You paid no attention to me.

So when you get into trouble, I will laugh at you. I will make fun of you when terror strikes---

Then you will call for wisdom, but I will not answer. You may look for me everywhere, but you will not find me.

You have never wanted my advice or paid any attention when I corrected you.

Inexperienced people die because they reject wisdom. Stupid people are destroyed by their own lack of concern.

Later on King Zedekiah sent for me, and there in the palace he asked me privately, "Is there any message from the LORD?" "There is," I answered, and added, "You will be handed over to the king of Babylonia."

What happened to your prophets who told you that the king of Babylonia would not attack you or the country?

So King Zedekiah ordered me to be locked up in the palace courtyard. I stayed there, and each day I was given a loaf of bread from the bakeries until all the bread in the city was gone.

On another occasion King Zedekiah had me brought to him at the third entrance to the Temple, and he said, "I am going to ask you a question, and I want you to tell me the whole truth."

So King Zedekiah promised me in secret, "I swear by the living God, the God who gave us life, that I will not put you to death or hand you over to the men who want to kill you."

But if you do not surrender, then this city will be handed over to the Babylonians, who will burn it down, and you will not escape from them."

I said, "You will not be handed over to them. I beg you to obey the LORD's message; then all will go well with you, and your life will be spared.

In it I saw all the women left in Judah's royal palace being led out to the king of Babylonia's officers. Listen to what they were saying as they went: 'The king's best friends misled him, they overruled him. And now that his feet have sunk in the mud, his friends have left him.' "

Zedekiah replied, "Don't let anyone know about this conversation, and your life will not be in danger.

Just tell them you were begging me not to send you back to prison to die there."

And I was kept in the palace courtyard until the day Jerusalem was captured.

Herod wanted to kill him, but he was afraid of the Jewish people, because they considered John to be a prophet.

that he promised her, "I swear that I will give you anything you ask for!"

The king was sad, but because of the promise he had made in front of all his guests he gave orders that her wish be granted.

But the invited guests paid no attention and went about their business: one went to his farm, another to his store,

"At that time the Kingdom of heaven will be like this. Once there were ten young women who took their oil lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.

The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any extra oil with them,

The bridegroom was late in coming, so they began to nod and fall asleep.

The ten young women woke up and trimmed their lamps.

'No, indeed,' the wise ones answered, 'there is not enough for you and for us. Go to the store and buy some for yourselves.'

When they heard Paul speak about a raising from death, some of them made fun of him, but others said, "We want to hear you speak about this again."

Don't let yourself go to sleep or even stop to rest.

Get out of the trap like a bird or a deer escaping from a hunter.

Turn to the LORD and pray to him, now that he is near.

The LORD Almighty said to Haggai, "These people say that this is not the right time to rebuild the Temple."

"Do your best to go in through the narrow door; because many people will surely try to go in but will not be able.

The master of the house will get up and close the door; then when you stand outside and begin to knock on the door and say, 'Open the door for us, sir!' he will answer you, 'I don't know where you come from!'

As it was in the time of Noah so shall it be in the days of the Son of Man.

It will be as it was in the time of Lot. Everybody kept on eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building.

Hear what God says: "When the time came for me to show you favor, I heard you; when the day arrived for me to save you, I helped you." Listen! This is the hour to receive God's favor; today is the day to be saved!

So then, as the Holy Spirit says, "If you hear God's voice today,

do not be stubborn, as your ancestors were when they rebelled against God, as they were that day in the desert when they put him to the test.

Instead, in order that none of you be deceived by sin and become stubborn, you must help one another every day, as long as the word "Today" in the scripture applies to us.

Let us, then, do our best to receive that rest, so that no one of us will fail as they did because of their lack of faith.

Now listen to me, you that say, "Today or tomorrow we will travel to a certain city, where we will stay a year and go into business and make a lot of money."

You don't even know what your life tomorrow will be! You are like a puff of smoke, which appears for a moment and then disappears.