| Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. | But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit. |
| Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. | For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. |
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| Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life. | Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. |
| The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility. | Fear of the Lord teaches wisdom; humility precedes honor. |
| But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord. | But I will offer sacrifices to you with songs of praise, and I will fulfill all my vows. For my salvation comes from the Lord alone. |
| Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. | If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. |
| He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction. | Those who control their tongue will have a long life; opening your mouth can ruin everything. |
| But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. | So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. |
| For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. | For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. |
| And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. | 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. |
| But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. | But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. |
| Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. | Rejoice, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey— riding on a donkey’s colt. |
| Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. | Don’t be fooled by what they say. For that day will not come until there is a great rebellion against God and the man of lawlessness is revealed—the one who brings destruction. He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God. |
| Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. | Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. |
| Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. | So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. |
| Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither 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. |
| For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. | For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. |
| As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all. | Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things. |
| The wise in heart will receive commandments: but a prating fool shall fall. | The wise are glad to be instructed, but babbling fools fall flat on their faces. |
| As he came forth of his mother's womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labour, 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. |
| But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee. | But who am I, and who are my people, that we could give anything to you? Everything we have has come from you, and we give you only what you first gave us! |
| O my soul, thou hast said unto the Lord, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee. | I said to the Lord, “You are my Master! Every good thing I have comes from you.” |
| But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. | But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. |
| I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire. | I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God. But someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not worthy even to be his slave and carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. |
| For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow. | The greater my wisdom, the greater my grief. To increase knowledge only increases sorrow. |
