He came to see us, and, taking Paul's girdle, and binding his own feet and hands with it, said: "This is what the Holy Spirit says--'The man to whom this girdle belongs will be bound like this at Jerusalem by the Jews, and they will give him up to the Gentiles'."

Well now, as they are certain to hear of your arrival, do what we are going to suggest.

Join these men, share their purification, and bear their expenses, so that they may shave their heads; and then all will see that there is no truth in what they have been told about you, but that, on the contrary, you yourself rule your life in obedience to the Jewish Law.

"Men of Israel! help! This is the man who teaches every one everywhere against our People, our Law, and this Place; and, what is more, he has actually brought Greeks into the Temple and defiled this sacred place."

Then he went up to Paul, arrested him, ordered him to be doubly chained, and proceeded to inquire who he was, and what he had been doing.

Then I said 'What am I to do, Lord?' 'Get up and go into Damascus,' The Lord said to me, 'and there you shall be told all that you have been appointed to do.'

For you shall be a witness for him to all the world of what you have just seen and heard.

On hearing this, the Captain went and reported it to the Commanding Officer. "Do you know what you are doing?" he said. "This man is a Roman citizen."

The Commanding Officer took the lad by the hand, and, stepping aside, asked what it was he had to tell him.

As soon as Felix had read the letter, he enquired to what province Paul belonged, and, learning that he came from Cilicia, he said:

Or else let my opponents here say what they found wrong in me when I was before the Council,

Some days later Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was herself a Jewess, and, sending for Paul, listened to what he had to say about faith in Christ Jesus.

However I have received help from God to this very day, and so stand here, and bear my testimony to high and low alike--without adding a word to what the Prophets, as well as Moses, declared should happen--

Indeed, the King knows about these matters, so I speak before him without constraint. I am sure that there is nothing whatever of what I have been telling him that has escaped his attention; for all this has not been done in a corner.

"Whether it is soon or late," answered Paul, "I would to God that not only you, but all who are listening to me, might to-day become just what I am myself--except for these chains!"

The Roman Officer, however, was more influenced by the captain and the owner than by what was said by Paul.

When daylight came, they could not make out what land it was, but, observing a creek in which there was a beach, they consulted as to whether they could run the ship safely into it.

But we shall be glad to hear from you what your views are, for, with regard to this sect, we are well aware that it is spoken against on all sides."

Some were inclined to accept what he said; others, however, rejected it.

This is so, because what can be known about God is plain to them; for God himself has made it plain.

For 'he will give to every man what his actions deserve.'

When Gentiles, who have no Law, do instinctively what the Law requires, they, though they have no Law, are a Law to themselves;

What is the advantage, then, of being a Jew? or what is the good of circumcision?

What follows then? Some, no doubt, showed a want of faith; but will their want of faith make God break faith? Heaven forbid!

God must prove true, though every man prove a liar! As Scripture says of God-'That thou mayest be pronounced righteous in what thou sayest, and gain thy cause when men would judge thee.'

But what if our wrong-doing makes God's righteousness all the clearer? Will God be wrong in inflicting punishment? (I can but speak as a man.) Heaven forbid!

What follows, then? Are we Jews in any way superior to others? Not at all. Our indictment against both Jews and Greeks was that all alike were in subjection to sin.

For 'no human being will be pronounced righteous before God' as the result of obedience to Law; for it is Law that shows what sin is.

What, then, becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what sort of Law? A Law requiring obedience? No, a Law requiring faith.

What then, it may be asked, are we to say about Abraham, the ancestor of our nation?

For what are the words of Scripture? 'Abraham had faith in God, and his faith was regarded by God as righteousness.'

Under what circumstances, then, did this take place? After his circumcision or before it?

As Scripture says-'I have made thee the Father of many nations.') And this they do in the sight of that God in whom Abraham had faith, and who gives life to the dead, and speaks of what does not yet exist as if it did.

On the contrary, his faith gave him strength; and he praised God, in the firm conviction that what God has promised he is also able to carry out.

What are we to say, then? Are we to continue to sin, in order that God's loving-kindness may be multiplied?

What follows, then? Are we to sin because we are living under the reign of Love and not of Law? Heaven forbid!

But what were the fruits that you reaped from those things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of such things is Death.

Surely, Brothers, you know (for I am speaking to men who know what Law means) that Law has power over a man only as long as he lives.

What are we to say, then? That Law and sin are the same thing? Heaven forbid! On the contrary, I should not have learned what sin is, had not it been for Law. If the Law did not say 'Thou shalt not covet,' I should not know what it is to covet.

Did, then, a thing, which in itself was good, involve Death in my case? Heaven forbid! It was sin that involved Death; so that, by its use of what I regarded as good to bring about my Death, its true nature might appear; and in this way the Commandment showed how intensely sinful sin is.

I do not understand my own actions. For I am so far from habitually doing what I want to do, that I find myself doing the very thing that I hate.

But when I do what I want not to do, I am admitting that the Law is right.

What Law could not do, in so far as our earthly nature weakened its action, God did, by sending his own Son, with a nature resembling our sinful nature, to atone for sin. He condemned sin in that earthly nature,

By our hope we were saved. But the thing hoped for is no longer an object of hope when it is before our eyes; for who hopes for what is before his eyes?

But when we hope for what is not before our eyes, then we wait for it with patience.

Yet he who searches all our hearts knows what the Spirit's meaning is, because the pleadings of the Spirit for Christ's People are in accordance with his will.

What are we to say, then, in the light of all this? If God is on our side, who can there be against us?

What are we to say, then? Is God guilty of injustice? Heaven forbid!

And what if God, intending to reveal his displeasure and make his power known, bore most patiently with the objects of his displeasure, though they were fit only to be destroyed,

This, indeed, is what he says in the Book of Hosea-'I will call those my People who were not my People, and her my beloved who was not beloved.

What are we to say, then? Why, that Gentiles, who were not in search of righteousness, secured it-a righteousness which was the result of faith;

No, but what does it say? 'The Message of Faith' which we proclaim.

But what was the divine response? 'I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have never bowed the knee to Baal.'

What follows from this? Why, that Israel as a nation failed to secure what it was seeking, while those whom God selected did secure it.

For, if their being cast aside has meant the reconciliation of the world, what will their reception mean, but Life from the dead?

Do not conform to the fashion of this world; but be transformed by the complete change that has come over your minds, so that you may discern what God's will is--all that is good, acceptable, and perfect.

Never return injury for injury. Aim at doing what all men will recognize as honorable.

A good action has nothing to fear from Rulers; a bad action has. Do you want to have no reason to fear the Authorities? Then do what is good, and you will win their praise.

For they are God's servants appointed for your good. But, if you do what is wrong, you may well be afraid; for the sword they carry is not without meaning! They are God's servants to inflict his punishments on those who do wrong.

In all cases pay what is due from you--tribute where tribute is due, taxes where taxes are due, respect where respect is due, and honor where honor is due.

If, for the sake of what you eat, you wound your Brother's feelings, your life has ceased to be ruled by love. Do not, by what you eat, ruin a man for whom Christ died!

Do not let what is right for you become a matter of reproach.

Do not undo God's work for the sake of what you eat. Though everything is 'clean,' yet, if a man eats so as to put a stumbling- block in the way of others, he does wrong.

For I will not dare to speak of anything but what Christ has done through me to win the obedience of the Gentiles--

But I appeal to you, Brothers, by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to agree in what you profess, and not to allow divisions to exist among you, but to be united-of one mind and of one opinion.

But God chose what the world counts foolish to put its wise men to shame, and God chose what the world counts weak to put its strong things to shame,

And God chose what the world counts poor and insignificant-- things that to it are unreal-to bring its 'realities' to nothing,

It is what Scripture speaks of as-'What eye never saw, nor ear ever heard, what never entered the mind of man-even all that God has prepared for those who love him.'

For what man is there who knows what a man is, except the man's own spirit within him? So, also, no one comprehends what God is, except the Spirit of God.

What, I ask, is Apollos? or what is Paul? Servants through whom you were led to accept the Faith; and that only as the Lord helped each of you.

Now what we look for in stewards is that they should be trustworthy.

Therefore do not pass judgment before the time, but wait till the Lord comes. He will throw light upon what is now dark and obscure, and will reveal the motives in men's minds; and then every one will receive due praise from God.

All this, Brothers, I have, for your sakes, applied to Apollos and myself, so that, from our example, you may learn to observe the precept-'Keep to what is written,' that none of you may speak boastfully of one teacher to the disparagement of another.

For who makes any one of you superior to others? And what have you that was not given you? But if you received it as a gift, why do you boast as if you had not?

But come to you I will, and that soon, if it please the Lord; and then I shall find out, not what words these men use who are so puffed up, but what power they possess;

What do you wish? Am I to come to you with a rod, or in a loving and gentle spirit?

To deliver such a man as this over to Satan, that what is sensual in him may be destroyed, so that his spirit may be saved at the Day of the Lord.

What have I to do with judging those outside the Church? Is it not for you to judge those who are within the Church,

Do not deprive each other of what is due-unless it is only for a time and by mutual consent, so that your minds may be free for prayer till you again live as man and wife-lest Satan should take advantage of your want of self-control and tempt you.

I should wish every one to be just what I am myself. But every one has his own gift from God-one in one way, and one in another.

I think, then, that, in view of the time of suffering that has now come upon us, what I have already said is best-that a man should remain as he is.

What I mean, Brothers, is this-The time is short. Meanwhile, let those who have wives live as if they had none,

What we eat, however, will not bring us nearer to God. We lose nothing by not eating this food, and we gain nothing by eating it.

Therefore, if what I eat makes my Brother fall, rather than make my Brother fall, I will never eat meat again.

Do not you know that those who do the work of the Temple live on what comes from the Temple, and that those who serve at the altar share the offerings with the altar?

What is my reward, then? To present the Good News free of all cost, and so make but a sparing use of the rights which it gives me.

I speak to you as man of discernment; form your own judgment about what I am saying.

What do I mean? you ask. Than an offering made to an idol, or the idol itself, is anything?

No; what I say is that the sacrifices offered by the Gentiles 'are offered to demons and to a Being who is no God,' and I do not want you to share with demons.

Have you no houses in which you can eat and drink? Or are you trying to show your contempt for the Church of God, and to humiliate the poor? What can I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this matter I cannot praise you.

This being so, Brothers, what good shall I do you, if I come to you and speak in 'tongues,' unless my words convey some revelation, or knowledge, or take the form of preaching or teaching?

And so with you; unless, in using the gift of 'tongues,' you utter intelligible words, how can what you say be understood? You will be speaking to the winds!

What, then, is my conclusion? Simply this-I will pray with my spirit, but with my mind as well; I will sing with my spirit, but with my mind as well.

If you bless God with your spirit only, how can the man in the congregation who is without your gift say 'Amen' to your thanksgiving? He does not know what you are saying!

What do I suggest, then, Brothers? Whenever you meet for worship, each of you comes, either with a hymn, or a lesson, or a revelation, or the gift of 'tongues,' or the interpretation of them; let everything be directed to the building up of faith.

If there is no one able to interpret what is said, they should remain silent at the meeting of the Church, and speak to themselves and to God.

Of preachers two or three should speak, and the rest should weigh well what is said.

What! did God's Message to the world originate with you? or did it find its way to none but you?

If any one thinks that he has the gift of preaching or any other spiritual gift, let him recognize that what I am now saying to you is a command from the Lord.

But it is through the love of God that I am what I am, and the love that he showed me has not been wasted. No, I have toiled harder than any of them, and yet it was not I, but the love of God working with me.