The Sovereign Lord is my strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
he enables me to tread on the heights. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. Start children off on the way they should go,
and even when they are old they will not turn from it. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. For who is God besides the Lord?
And who is the Rock except our God? The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. The tongue of the righteous is choice silver,
but the heart of the wicked is of little value. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. There is no one holy like the Lord;
there is no one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God. Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you!
See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands;
your walls are ever before me. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting. Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. Since you are precious and honored in my sight,
and because I love you,
I will give people in exchange for you,
nations in exchange for your life. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.