The vine withers, the fig tree droops. Pomegranate, palm, and apple— all the trees of the field are dried up; surely, joy withers away among the people. | The grapevines have dried up, and the fig trees have withered. The pomegranate trees, palm trees, and apple trees— all the fruit trees—have dried up. And the people’s joy has dried up with them. |
Then Job arose, tore his robe, shaved his head, and fell on the ground and worshiped. He said, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return there; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” | Job stood up and tore his robe in grief. Then he shaved his head and fell to the ground to worship. He said, “I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be naked when I leave. The Lord gave me what I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!” |
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Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. | So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way. |
For “Those who desire life and desire to see good days, let them keep their tongues from evil and their lips from speaking deceit; let them turn away from evil and do good; let them seek peace and pursue it.” | For the Scriptures say, “If you want to enjoy life and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies. Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it.” |
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.” | I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” |
Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be a healing for your flesh and a refreshment for your body. | Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the Lord and turn away from evil. Then you will have healing for your body and strength for your bones. |
Let the believer who is lowly boast in being raised up, and the rich in being brought low, because the rich will disappear like a flower in the field. | Believers who are poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them. And those who are rich should boast that God has humbled them. They will fade away like a little flower in the field. |
So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. | That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. |
O Lord, you have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away. | O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit down or stand up. You know my thoughts even when I’m far away. |
You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the Lord your God with which I am charging you. | Do not add to or subtract from these commands I am giving you. Just obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you. |
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains. | For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. |
But if the wicked turn away from all their sins that they have committed and keep all my statutes and do what is lawful and right, they shall surely live; they shall not die. | But if wicked people turn away from all their sins and begin to obey my decrees and do what is just and right, they will surely live and not die. |
They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat; for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. | They will never again be hungry or thirsty; they will never be scorched by the heat of the sun. For the Lamb on the throne will be their Shepherd. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes. |
Little children, keep yourselves from idols. | Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts. |
Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out. | Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away. |
Wealth hastily gotten will dwindle, but those who gather little by little will increase it. | Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time. |
Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it. | Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it. |
Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil. | Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways. |
I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. | I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. |
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. | But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ. |
When your eyes light upon it, it is gone; for suddenly it takes wings to itself, flying like an eagle toward heaven. | In the blink of an eye wealth disappears, for it will sprout wings and fly away like an eagle. |
When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you, to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways. | When God raised up his servant, Jesus, he sent him first to you people of Israel, to bless you by turning each of you back from your sinful ways. |
Abba, Father, for you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want. | “Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” |
The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot. | We have happy memories of the godly, but the name of a wicked person rots away. |
I urge you, brothers and sisters, to keep an eye on those who cause dissensions and offenses, in opposition to the teaching that you have learned; avoid them. | And now I make one more appeal, my dear brothers and sisters. Watch out for people who cause divisions and upset people’s faith by teaching things contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them. |