| Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. | Everyone who hears these words of mine and acts in accordance with them will be like a wise man who constructed his house on a rock foundation. |
| But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? | Which one of you, intending to build a tower, would not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has sufficient funds for its completion? |
| What is the price of five sparrows—two copper coins? Yet God does not forget a single one of them. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows. | Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. Even the hairs on your head have all been counted. Do not be afraid. You are worth far more than any number of sparrows. |
| Then Peter replied, “I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism. In every nation he accepts those who fear him and do what is right.” | Then Peter addressed them: “I now understand how true it is that God has no favorites, but that in every nation all those who fear God and do what is right are acceptable to him.” |
| But if wicked people turn away from all their sins and begin to obey my decrees and do what is just and right, they will surely live and not die. | However, if the wicked renounce all of the sins that they have committed and keep all my statutes and do what is right and just, they shall surely live; they shall not die. |
| 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. | He brought you low, allowing you to suffer from hunger. He then fed you with manna, something with which your fathers were not familiar, so that you might come to know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes forth from the mouth of the Lord. |
| But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” | Jesus answered, “As it is written: ‘Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.’ ” |
| But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. | However, the one who looks intently at the perfect law of freedom and perseveres—not forgetting what he has heard but putting it into practice—will be blessed in everything he does. |
| If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? | If someone says, “I love God,” but at the same time hates his brother, he is a liar. For whoever does not love the brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. |
| Suppose you sin by violating one of the Lord’s commands. Even if you are unaware of what you have done, you are guilty and will be punished for your sin. | When someone sins and does any of the things that the Lord has forbidden, even if he does not realize he did it, he has still committed an offense and must bear his guilt. |
| The wicked borrow and never repay, but the godly are generous givers. | The wicked man borrows but neglects to repay, whereas the righteous man is generous in giving. |
| If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. | If anyone thinks that he is religious but does not restrain his tongue, he is deceiving himself, and his religion is worthless. |
| Some people are always greedy for more, but the godly love to give! | All day long the godless man continues to covet, whereas the righteous man gives unsparingly. |
| Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding. | Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the eternal God, the Creator of the earth’s farthest boundaries. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding cannot be scrutinized. |
| But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” | But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or how tall he stands, for the Lord has rejected him. He does not see the way that men see, for men look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” |
| And anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment. | Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not believe in the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God rests upon him. |
| Where is another God like you, who pardons the guilt of the remnant, overlooking the sins of his special people? You will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing unfailing love. | What god can compare with you, the God who takes away guilt and forgives the transgressions of the remnant of your people? You will not allow your anger to fester forever, for your delight is in bestowing mercy. |
| 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. | Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and whose hope is the Lord. They will be like a tree planted by the water that spreads out its roots to the stream. When the heat comes, it does not fear; its leaves stay green. It is not concerned in a year of drought, and it never fails to bear fruit. |
| I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. | Amen, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be accomplished for him. |
| Anyone who denies the Son doesn’t have the Father, either. But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also. | Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father, but whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. |
| Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut. | Where many words are spoken, sin is not absent, but whoever restrains his tongue is prudent. |
| So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. | Therefore, whoever breaks even one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be considered least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever observes these commandments and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. |
| And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. | While experiencing temptation, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one. |
| If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. | And if one should fall, his companion will help him up. How pathetic is the man who is alone and falls and has no one to assist him to his feet. |
| And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows. | May the Lord cause your love to increase and overflow for one another and for everyone else, just as our love does for you. |
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