| I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. | Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures. |
| Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls. | You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him; and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy. The reward for trusting him will be the salvation of your souls. |
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| But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners. | Then he added, “Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’ For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.” |
| Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. | Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began! |
| “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” | “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!” |
| Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. | Wealth and honor come from you alone, for you rule over everything. Power and might are in your hand, and at your discretion people are made great and given strength. |
| For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. | Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come. |
| The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. | The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. |
| And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. | Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. |
| I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. | I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! |
| Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. | Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near. |
| He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.” | And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.” |
| For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. | For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many. |
| Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. | Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure. |
| Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord. | Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away. |
| Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. | For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many. |
| Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else. | See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to all people. |
| Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. | No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. |
| The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.” | The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.” |
| See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. | Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. |
| The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain and stay here, and I will give you the tablets of stone with the law and commandments I have written for their instruction.” | Then the Lord said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain. Stay there, and I will give you the tablets of stone on which I have inscribed the instructions and commands so you can teach the people.” |
| As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. | So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father. |
| “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.” | But the angel said, “Don’t be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Look, this is where they laid his body.” |
| My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? | I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him? |
| Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. | Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world. |
