| As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things. | Just as you do not know how the breath comes to the bones in the mother's womb, so you do not know the work of God, who makes everything. |
| May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. | And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we abound in love for you. |
|
| Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. | Truly I tell you, if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and if you do not doubt in your heart, but believe that what you say will come to pass, it will be done for you. |
| This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. | By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. And this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming; and now it is already in the world. |
| But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” | But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” |
| For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. | For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline. |
| Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers. | Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers. |
| Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? | For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? |
| Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy. | No one who conceals transgressions will prosper, but one who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy. |
| But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit. | Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit. |
| You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. | You are from your father the devil, and you choose to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. |
| Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? | Do not be mismatched with unbelievers. For what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness? Or what fellowship is there between light and darkness? |
| Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” | But he answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ” |
| Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. | Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. |
| 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. | Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you will abide in the Son and in the Father. |
| The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously. | The wicked borrow, and do not pay back, but the righteous are generous and keep giving. |
| Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. | If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. |
| Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. | Though the fig tree does not blossom, and no fruit is on the vines; though the produce of the olive fails and the fields yield no food; though the flock is cut off from the fold and there is no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will exult in the God of my salvation. |
| All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without sparing. | All day long the wicked covet, but the righteous give and do not hold back. |
| Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. | Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. |
| Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them. | Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but must endure God's wrath. |
| Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. | Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of your possession? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in showing clemency. |
| But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. | But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. |
| The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. | Everyone who commits sin is a child of the devil; for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The Son of God was revealed for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. |
| No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. | No one who denies the Son has the Father; everyone who confesses the Son has the Father also. |
