A perverse person spreads strife, and a whisperer separates close friends. | A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends. |
Proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable; convince, rebuke, and encourage, with the utmost patience in teaching. | Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. |
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As God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. | Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. |
Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving. | Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. |
Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. | Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. |
A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing personal opinion. | Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. |
For in much wisdom is much vexation, and those who increase knowledge increase sorrow. | For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief. |
Discipline yourselves, keep alert. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour. | Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. |
All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers. | They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers. |
Bear fruit worthy of repentance. | Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. |
Some friends play at friendship but a true friend sticks closer than one's nearest kin. | One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. |
Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. | Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. |
Therefore let us go on toward perfection, leaving behind the basic teaching about Christ, and not laying again the foundation: repentance from dead works and faith toward God, instruction about baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. | Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. |
For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regret, but worldly grief produces death. | Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. |
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. | They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. |
Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. | Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. |
The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple. | The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple. |
Repent and turn from all your transgressions; otherwise iniquity will be your ruin. | Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. |
And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope. | Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. |
Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. | Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. |
Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. | And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. |
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. | The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. |
A fool's lips bring strife, and a fool's mouth invites a flogging. | The lips of fools bring them strife, and their mouths invite a beating. |
And though one might prevail against another, two will withstand one. A threefold cord is not quickly broken. | Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. |
We have sinned and done wrong, acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and ordinances. | We have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. |