I love you, Lord; you are my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety. I called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and he saved me from my enemies.
The ropes of death entangled me; floods of destruction swept over me. The grave wrapped its ropes around me; death laid a trap in my path. But in my distress I cried out to the Lord; yes, I prayed to my God for help. He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry to him reached his ears.
David and the army commanders then appointed men from the families of Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun to proclaim God’s messages to the accompaniment of lyres, harps, and cymbals. Here is a list of their names and their work:
From the sons of Asaph, there were Zaccur, Joseph, Nethaniah, and Asarelah. They worked under the direction of their father, Asaph, who proclaimed God’s messages by the king’s orders.
From the sons of Jeduthun, there were Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six in all. They worked under the direction of their father, Jeduthun, who proclaimed God’s messages to the accompaniment of the lyre, offering thanks and praise to the Lord.
From the sons of Heman, there were Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shubael, Jerimoth, Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti, Romamti-ezer, Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir, and Mahazioth. All these were the sons of Heman, the king’s seer, for God had honored him with fourteen sons and three daughters.
All these men were under the direction of their fathers as they made music at the house of the Lord. Their responsibilities included the playing of cymbals, harps, and lyres at the house of God. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman reported directly to the king. They and their families were all trained in making music before the Lord, and each of them—288 in all—was an accomplished musician. The musicians were appointed to their term of service by means of sacred lots, without regard to whether they were young or old, teacher or student.
The first lot fell to Joseph of the Asaph clan and twelve of his sons and relatives. The second lot fell to Gedaliah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The third lot fell to Zaccur and twelve of his sons and relatives. The fourth lot fell to Zeri and twelve of his sons and relatives. The fifth lot fell to Nethaniah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The sixth lot fell to Bukkiah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The seventh lot fell to Asarelah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The eighth lot fell to Jeshaiah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The ninth lot fell to Mattaniah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The tenth lot fell to Shimei and twelve of his sons and relatives. The eleventh lot fell to Uzziel and twelve of his sons and relatives. The twelfth lot fell to Hashabiah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The thirteenth lot fell to Shubael and twelve of his sons and relatives. The fourteenth lot fell to Mattithiah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The fifteenth lot fell to Jerimoth and twelve of his sons and relatives. The sixteenth lot fell to Hananiah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The seventeenth lot fell to Joshbekashah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The eighteenth lot fell to Hanani and twelve of his sons and relatives. The nineteenth lot fell to Mallothi and twelve of his sons and relatives. The twentieth lot fell to Eliathah and twelve of his sons and relatives. The twenty-first lot fell to Hothir and twelve of his sons and relatives. The twenty-second lot fell to Giddalti and twelve of his sons and relatives. The twenty-third lot fell to Mahazioth and twelve of his sons and relatives. The twenty-fourth lot fell to Romamti-ezer and twelve of his sons and relatives.
One day as we were going down to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit that enabled her to tell the future. She earned a lot of money for her masters by telling fortunes. She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, and they have come to tell you how to be saved.”
This went on day after day until Paul got so exasperated that he turned and said to the demon within her, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And instantly it left her.
Her masters’ hopes of wealth were now shattered, so they grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them before the authorities at the marketplace. “The whole city is in an uproar because of these Jews!” they shouted to the city officials. “They are teaching customs that are illegal for us Romans to practice.”
A mob quickly formed against Paul and Silas, and the city officials ordered them stripped and beaten with wooden rods. They were severely beaten, and then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was ordered to make sure they didn’t escape. So the jailer put them into the inner dungeon and clamped their feet in the stocks.
Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening. Suddenly, there was a massive earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors immediately flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off! The jailer woke up to see the prison doors wide open. He assumed the prisoners had escaped, so he drew his sword to kill himself. But Paul shouted to him, “Stop! Don’t kill yourself! We are all here!”
The jailer called for lights and ran to the dungeon and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas.