Make every effort to present yourself before God as one who is worthy of his approval, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, but who imparts the word of truth without any alteration. | Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. |
And ‘to love him with all your heart, and with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself,’ is worth more than any burnt offerings and sacrifices. | And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. |
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And just as no human being comprehends any person’s innermost being except the person’s own spirit within him, so also no one comprehends what pertains to God except the Spirit of God. | For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. |
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 futile; For one cuts a tree from the forest, The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. They decorate it with silver and gold; They fasten it with nails and hammers So that it will not topple. They are upright, like a palm tree, And they cannot speak; They must be carried, Because they cannot go by themselves. Do not be afraid of them, For they cannot do evil, Nor can they do any good. |
Guide my steps in accord with your word and never let evil triumph over me. | Direct my steps by Your word, And let no iniquity have dominion over me. |
Through him all things came into existence, and without him there was nothing. That which came to be. | All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. |
Brethren, I exhort you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to be in full agreement with one another and not permit any divisions to arise among you. Be perfectly united in mind and purpose. | Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. |
How great you are, Lord God! There is no one like you, and there is no God except you alone, as everything that we have heard confirms. | Therefore You are great, O Lord God. For there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears. |
“You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and every other commandment are all summed up in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” | For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,” “You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” |
Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. Even the hairs on your head have all been counted. Do not be afraid. You are worth far more than any number of sparrows. | Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. |
The heart is more deceitful than any other thing, and it is also perverse. Who can uncover its secrets? I, the Lord, search the heart and probe the mind to reward all according to their conduct and as their deeds deserve. | The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings. |
And I heard a loud voice proclaim from the throne: “Behold, God’s dwelling is with mankind; he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and he will be their God, God-with-them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will no longer be death. Neither will there be any mourning or crying or pain, for the old order has passed away.” | And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” |
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them can fall to the ground without your Father’s knowledge. Even the hairs on your head have all been counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth far more than any number of sparrows. | Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. |
Consider the ravens. They do not sow or reap, they have no storehouse or barn, and yet God feeds them. You are of far greater importance than birds. | Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds? |
Whatever moves and has life will be used for your food. I give you all these things, just as I have already given you every green plant. Only do not eat flesh along with its life, that is, with its blood. | Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. |
Likewise, you who are husbands must show consideration for your wives in your life together. Treat your wife with respect, for even though she is the weaker partner, she is also an equal heir of God’s gift of life. Thus, your prayers will not be hindered in any way. | Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered. |
If anyone thinks that he is religious but does not restrain his tongue, he is deceiving himself, and his religion is worthless. | If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless. |
Brethren, if anyone is detected committing a transgression, you who are spiritual must set him right in a spirit of gentleness. Meanwhile, you should take care so that you yourselves are not tempted. | Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. |
I will establish my covenant with you: never again will all living creatures be cut off by the waters of a flood, nor will the earth be laid waste by a flood again. | Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth. |
It is honorable to avoid strife, but every fool is quarrelsome. | It is honorable for a man to stop striving, Since any fool can start a quarrel. |
Then he sat down, summoned the Twelve, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to be first, he must become the last of all and the servant of all.” | And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.” |
Since in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor lack of circumcision is worth anything. All that matters is faith expressing itself through love. | For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love. |
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single letter, not even a tiny portion of a letter, will disappear from the Law until all things have been accomplished. | For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. |
Rather, I discipline my body and bring it under control, for fear that after preaching to others I myself may be disqualified. | But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. |
Let no one delude himself. If anyone among you considers himself to be wise by worldly standards, he must become a fool in order to be truly wise. | Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. |