| Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. | Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. |
| With the merciful you show yourself merciful; with the blameless man you show yourself blameless. | To the faithful you show yourself faithful; to those with integrity you show integrity. |
| Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid. | To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction. |
| An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. | Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies. |
| But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. | Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living. |
| But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. | But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. |
| For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age. | For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God. |
| God settles the solitary in a home; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity, but the rebellious dwell in a parched land. | God places the lonely in families; he sets the prisoners free and gives them joy. But he makes the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land. |
| Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. | When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. |
| Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. | Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. |
| Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. | Preach the word of God. Be prepared, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching. |
| Whoever covers an offense seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates close friends. | Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends. |
| And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken. | A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. |
| Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets, but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered. | A gossip goes around telling secrets, but those who are trustworthy can keep a confidence. |
| Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent. | Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent; with their mouths shut, they seem intelligent. |
| Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. | Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. |
| Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it. | Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time. |
| Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. | Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! |
| Likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire, but with what is proper for women who profess godliness—with good works. | And I want women to be modest in their appearance. They should wear decent and appropriate clothing and not draw attention to themselves by the way they fix their hair or by wearing gold or pearls or expensive clothes. For women who claim to be devoted to God should make themselves attractive by the good things they do. |
| I ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, for the full three weeks. | All that time I had eaten no rich food. No meat or wine crossed my lips, and I used no fragrant lotions until those three weeks had passed. |
| Honor widows who are truly widows. | Take care of any widow who has no one else to care for her. |
| Fine speech is not becoming to a fool; still less is false speech to a prince. | Eloquent words are not fitting for a fool; even less are lies fitting for a ruler. |
| And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. | All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. |
| Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. | And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. |
| Do not toil to acquire wealth; be discerning enough to desist. | Don’t wear yourself out trying to get rich. Be wise enough to know when to quit. |
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Bible verse of the day
Where shall I go from your Spirit?Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!