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. | 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. |
Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows. | Learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow. |
|
Let me hear of your unfailing love each morning, for I am trusting you. Show me where to walk, for I give myself to you. | Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning, for in you I put my trust. Teach me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. |
Turn us again to yourself, O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies. Make your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved. | Restore us, O Lord God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved. |
Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed. | Speak out for those who cannot speak, for the rights of all the destitute. |
And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations. | I will put my spirit within you, and make you follow my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances. |
The father of godly children has cause for joy. What a pleasure to have children who are wise. | The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who begets a wise son will be glad in him. |
So let’s stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall. | Let us therefore no longer pass judgment on one another, but resolve instead never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of another. |
Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you. He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun. | Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. He will make your vindication shine like the light, and the justice of your cause like the noonday. |
Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice. | Speak out, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy. |
Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, “Life is not pleasant anymore.” | Remember your creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come, and the years draw near when you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”. |
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. | I will make them and the region around my hill a blessing; and I will send down the showers in their season; they shall be showers of blessing. |
They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires. These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God’s Spirit in them. | For they said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, indulging their own ungodly lusts.” It is these worldly people, devoid of the Spirit, who are causing divisions. |
As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.” | For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. |
Fools’ words get them into constant quarrels; they are asking for a beating. | A fool's lips bring strife, and a fool's mouth invites a flogging. |
O Israel, my faithless people, come home to me again, for I am merciful. I will not be angry with you forever. | Return, faithless Israel, says the Lord. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful, says the Lord; I will not be angry forever. |
Give justice to the poor and the orphan; uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute. | Give justice to the weak and the orphan; maintain the right of the lowly and the destitute. |
I will cause your descendants to become as numerous as the stars of the sky, and I will give them all these lands. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed. I will do this because Abraham listened to me and obeyed all my requirements, commands, decrees, and instructions. | I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of heaven, and will give to your offspring all these lands; and all the nations of the earth shall gain blessing for themselves through your offspring, because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. |
But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life. | But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. |
But I will be merciful only if you stop your evil thoughts and deeds and start treating each other with justice; only if you stop exploiting foreigners, orphans, and widows; only if you stop your murdering; and only if you stop harming yourselves by worshiping idols. Then I will let you stay in this land that I gave to your ancestors to keep forever. | For if you truly amend your ways and your doings, if you truly act justly one with another, if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, and the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own hurt, then I will dwell with you in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your ancestors forever and ever. |
Good comes to those who lend money generously and conduct their business fairly. | It is well with those who deal generously and lend, who conduct their affairs with justice. |
God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. | Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. |
But the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.” | But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people.” |
Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. | For the same reason you also pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, busy with this very thing. |
That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. | So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. |