| But let justice roll out 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. |
| Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. | In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. |
| Certainly the Lord God does nothing Unless He reveals His secret plan To His servants the prophets. | Indeed, the Sovereign Lord never does anything until he reveals his plans to his servants the prophets. |
| A fool’s lips bring strife, And his mouth invites beatings. | Fools’ words get them into constant quarrels; they are asking for a beating. |
| Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is righteous and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. | Rejoice, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey— riding on a donkey’s colt. |
| How blessed is he whose wrongdoing is forgiven, Whose sin is covered! | Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! |
| Wealth obtained from nothing dwindles, But one who gathers by labor increases it. | Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time. |
| Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with leprosy, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. | Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received! |
| I did not eat any tasty food, nor did meat or wine enter my mouth, nor did I use any ointment at all until the entire three weeks were completed. | 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. |
| Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. | Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. |
| Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness. | Everyone who sins is breaking God’s law, for all sin is contrary to the law of God. |
| You, Lord, rule forever; Your throne is from generation to generation. | But Lord, you remain the same forever! Your throne continues from generation to generation. |
| For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. | For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind. |
| A fool rejects his father’s discipline, But he who complies with rebuke is sensible. | Only a fool despises a parent’s discipline; whoever learns from correction is wise. |
| God makes a home for the lonely; He leads out the prisoners into prosperity, Only the rebellious live in parched lands. | 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. |
| We have sinned, we have done wrong, and acted wickedly and rebelled, even turning aside from Your commandments and ordinances. | But we have sinned and done wrong. We have rebelled against you and scorned your commands and regulations. |
| Let’s examine and search out our ways, And let’s return to the Lord. | Instead, let us test and examine our ways. Let us turn back to the Lord. |
| A fool’s anger is known at once, But a prudent person conceals dishonor. | A fool is quick-tempered, but a wise person stays calm when insulted. |
| Little children, guard yourselves from idols. | Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts. |
| Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility consider one another as more important than yourselves. | Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. |
| One who conceals an offense seeks love, But one who repeats a matter separates close friends. | Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends. |
| Excellent speech is not fitting for a fool, Much less are lying lips to a prince. | Eloquent words are not fitting for a fool; even less are lies fitting for a ruler. |
| For I give plenty of water to the weary ones, and refresh everyone who languishes. | For I have given rest to the weary and joy to the sorrowing. |
| The Lord is compassionate and gracious, Slow to anger and abounding in mercy. | The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. |
| An excellent wife, who can find her? For her worth is far above jewels. | Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies. |
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