| God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched 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. |
| 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. | So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds and placing our faith in God. You don’t need further instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. |
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| All this also comes from the Lord Almighty, whose plan is wonderful, whose wisdom is magnificent. | The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is a wonderful teacher, and he gives the farmer great wisdom. |
| Whoever conceals hatred with lying lips and spreads slander is a fool. | Hiding hatred makes you a liar; slandering others makes you a fool. |
| He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.” | And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.” |
| Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ | For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ |
| The Lord sends poverty and wealth; he humbles and he exalts. | The Lord makes some poor and others rich; he brings some down and lifts others up. |
| Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. | So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. |
| But godliness with contentment is great gain. | Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. |
| All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty. | Work brings profit, but mere talk leads to poverty! |
| In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. | In fact, according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified with blood. For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness. |
| Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. | Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law. |
| For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. | For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love. |
| A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. | The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed. |
| For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. | For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning. |
| Observe my Sabbaths and have reverence for my sanctuary. I am the Lord. | You must keep my Sabbath days of rest and show reverence for my sanctuary. I am the Lord. |
| Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. | Jesus traveled throughout the region of Galilee, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. |
| But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. | But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! |
| I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a young woman. | I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust at a young woman. |
| I will make them and the places surrounding my hill a blessing. I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing. | I will bless my people and their homes around my holy hill. And in the proper season I will send the showers they need. There will be showers of blessing. |
| Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. | At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. |
| The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. | The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. |
| Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness. | And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness. |
| Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. | Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. |
| Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly. | People with understanding control their anger; a hot temper shows great foolishness. |
