Dear children, keep away from idols. | Little children, keep yourselves from idols. |
Do not make gods from silver or from gold instead of me. You will not make them for yourselves. | You shall not make gods of silver alongside me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. |
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Are you not aware that wrongdoers will never inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! Fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, male prostitutes, sodomites, thieves, extortioners, drunkards, slanderers, swindlers—none of these will inherit the kingdom of God. | Do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! Fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, male prostitutes, sodomites, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, revilers, robbers—none of these will inherit the kingdom of God. |
It is the Lord, your God, whom you are to follow. You must fear him and observe his commandments and obey what he tells you and serve him and hold fast to him. | The Lord your God you shall follow, him alone you shall fear, his commandments you shall keep, his voice you shall obey, him you shall serve, and to him you shall hold fast. |
For the carved images of the nations are powerless; they are nothing more than wood cut from a forest, fashioned with a knife by craftsmen and embellished with silver and gold. Then they are fastened with hammers and nails to prevent them from toppling. Like scarecrows in a cucumber field they are unable to speak, and they must be carried from place to place since they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they can do no harm, nor do they have any power to do good. | For the customs of the peoples are false: a tree from the forest is cut down, and worked with an ax by the hands of an artisan; people deck it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move. Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, nor is it in them to do good. |
So today acknowledge it and take it to heart that the Lord is God in the heavens above and on the earth below. There is no other. | So acknowledge today and take to heart that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. |
Take no part in the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather seek to expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of what deeds people do in secret. | Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what such people do secretly. |
And so you should put to death everything in your nature that is earthly: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desires, and greed (which is idolatry). | Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is earthly: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed (which is idolatry). |
I am the Lord, your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. You know no God but me, nor any savior other than me. | Yet I have been the Lord your God ever since the land of Egypt; you know no God but me, and besides me there is no savior. |
If it seems wrong to you to serve the Lord, then today you must choose whom you will serve, whether it be the gods that your fathers served on the other side of the river, or the gods of the Amorites who dwell in the land. As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. | Now if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. |
No weapon used against you will prevail, and you will refute every accusation that is raised in court against you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, their vindication from me, says the Lord. | No weapon that is fashioned against you shall prosper, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, says the Lord. |
Put on the armor of God so that you will be able to stand firm against the deceit of the devil. | Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. |
The love of money is the root of all evils, and in their desire for it some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many serious wounds. | For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains. |
Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good. | Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. |
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law. | The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. |
Shun evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. | Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it. |
I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I do ask you to protect them from the evil one. | I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. |
He continued, “Then put away the foreign gods from among you. Bend your heart to the Lord, the God of Israel.” | He said, “Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.” |
Some trust in chariots, and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord, our God. | Some take pride in chariots, and some in horses, but our pride is in the name of the Lord our God. |
They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and offered worship and service to the creature rather than to the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful passions. Their women exchanged natural intercourse for unnatural practices. Likewise, men gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another. Men committed shameful acts with men and received in their own persons the fitting penalty for their perversion. Furthermore, since these people did not see fit to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their depraved way of thinking and to all types of vile behavior. | Because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. For this reason God gave them up to degrading passions. Their women exchanged natural intercourse for unnatural, and in the same way also the men, giving up natural intercourse with women, were consumed with passion for one another. Men committed shameless acts with men and received in their own persons the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind and to things that should not be done. |
Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you previously, that no one who does such things will inherit the kingdom of God. | Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. |
Now in regard to the eating of meat sacrificed to idols, we know that idols are nothing in the world and that there is only one God. | Hence, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “no idol in the world really exists,” and that “there is no God but one.” |
Let no one deceive you in any way. That Day cannot come before the final rebellion occurs and the lawless one is revealed, the son of destruction. He is the adversary who sets himself in opposition to, and exalts himself above, every so-called god or object of worship, and who even seats himself in the temple of God, declaring himself to be God. | Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come unless the rebellion comes first and the lawless one is revealed, the one destined for destruction. He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, declaring himself to be God. |