| I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth. | Yes, I am confirming my covenant with you. Never again will floodwaters kill all living creatures; never again will a flood destroy the earth. |
| His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. | By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. |
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| 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. |
| Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. | Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. |
| The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. | So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. |
| And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise. | It was by faith that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed that God would keep his promise. |
| Words from the mouth of the wise are gracious, but fools are consumed by their own lips. | Wise words bring approval, but fools are destroyed by their own words. |
| For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! | For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. |
| He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. | Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. |
| The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. | The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven. |
| Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. | Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. |
| 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. |
| But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. | But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) |
| 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.’ |
| I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. | For I long to visit you so I can bring you some spiritual gift that will help you grow strong in the Lord. When we get together, I want to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours. |
| May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. | I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. |
| What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! | Well then, since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! |
| I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. | My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. |
| Where there is strife, there is pride, but wisdom is found in those who take advice. | Pride leads to conflict; those who take advice are wise. |
| He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. | He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession. |
| This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. | When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father. |
| Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them. | Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them. |
| Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. | And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. |
| No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. | No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. |
| He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. | He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. |
