| 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. | Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree, and a craftsman carves an idol. They decorate it with gold and silver and then fasten it securely with hammer and nails so it won’t fall over. Their gods are like helpless scarecrows in a cucumber field! They cannot speak, and they need to be carried because they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of such gods, for they can neither harm you nor do you any good. |
| Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” | Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.” |
| Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” | Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” |
| While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. | So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. |
| Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. | Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. |
| Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable. | Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure his greatness. |
| You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. | You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. |
| And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one. | I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one. |
| Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? | Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness? |
| My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? | I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him? |
| So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. | That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. |
| But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? | If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person? |
| No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. | The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. |
| For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. | God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. |
| For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? | And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? |
| For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” | For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” |
| So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done.” | Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen.” |
| And if you say in your heart, ‘How shall we know the word which the Lord has not spoken?’— when a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him. | But you may wonder, ‘How will we know whether or not a prophecy is from the Lord?’ If the prophet speaks in the Lord’s name but his prediction does not happen or come true, you will know that the Lord did not give that message. That prophet has spoken without my authority and need not be feared. |
| Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. | Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen. |
| Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. | There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. |
| For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up. | If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. |
| These you may eat of all that are in the waters: you may eat all that have fins and scales. And whatever does not have fins and scales you shall not eat; it is unclean for you. | Of all the marine animals, you may eat whatever has both fins and scales. You may not, however, eat marine animals that do not have both fins and scales. They are ceremonially unclean for you. |
| As he came from his mother’s womb, naked shall he return, To go as he came; And he shall take nothing from his labor Which he may carry away in his hand. | We all come to the end of our lives as naked and empty-handed as on the day we were born. We can’t take our riches with us. |
| I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. | In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe. |
| And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. | If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. |
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