| Blessed are those who observe his statutes and seek him with their whole heart. | Joyful are those who obey his laws and search for him with all their hearts. |
| She will give birth to a son, and you shall name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. | And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. |
| Take no part in the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather seek to expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of what deeds people do in secret. | Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. |
| Indeed, fornication and impurity of any kind, as well as greed, should not even be mentioned among you. Such talk is not fitting for saints. | Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people. |
| Those who live according to the flesh fix their attention on the things of the flesh, while those who live according to the Spirit set their thoughts on spiritual things. | Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. |
| Oh, that they would have fear of me in their hearts and they would observe all of my commandments always. Then things would go well with them and their children forever. | Oh, that they would always have hearts like this, that they might fear me and obey all my commands! If they did, they and their descendants would prosper forever. |
| Those who revere your name place their trust in you, for you never abandon those who seek you, O Lord. | Those who know your name trust in you, for you, O Lord, do not abandon those who search for you. |
| The upright are guarded by their integrity; the treacherous are destroyed by their own duplicity. | Honesty guides good people; dishonesty destroys treacherous people. |
| Those who place their hope in the Lord will regain their strength. They will soar as with eagles’ wings, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not become faint. | But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. |
| When you pray do not go on babbling endlessly as the pagans do, for they believe that they are more likely to be heard because of their many words. | When you pray, don’t babble on and on as the Gentiles do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. |
| The heavens were made by the word of the Lord, and all their host by the breath of his mouth. | The Lord merely spoke, and the heavens were created. He breathed the word, and all the stars were born. |
| Even if an army encamps against me, my heart will not succumb to fear; even if war breaks out against me, I will not have my trust shaken. | Though a mighty army surrounds me, my heart will not be afraid. Even if I am attacked, I will remain confident. |
| Even though I wander through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are at my side, with your rod and your staff that comfort me. | Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. |
| O Lord, let your kindness rest upon us, for we have placed our hope in you. | Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord, for our hope is in you alone. |
| For they said to you, “In the final age there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly passions.” It is these people who create divisions, who follow their natural instincts and do not possess the Spirit. | 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. |
| Train a child in the way he should go, and he will not deviate from it, even in old age. | Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it. |
| For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer. However, the face of the Lord is set against those who do evil. | The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right, and his ears are open to their prayers. But the Lord turns his face against those who do evil. |
| The tax collector, however, stood some distance away and would not even raise his eyes to heaven. Rather, he kept beating his breast as he said, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner.’ | But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ |
| The heart is more deceitful than any other thing, and it is also perverse. Who can uncover its secrets? I, the Lord, search the heart and probe the mind to reward all according to their conduct and as their deeds deserve. | The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve. |
| I want their hearts to be encouraged and united in love so that they may grow rich in their complete understanding as they come to the knowledge of the mystery of God, that is, Christ. | I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. |
| However, God has revealed these things to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit explores everything, even the depths of God. | But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. |
| Every day, united in spirit, they would assemble together in the temple. They would break bread in their homes and share their food with joyful and generous hearts as they praised God, and they were regarded with favor by all the people. And day by day the Lord added to those who were being saved. | They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity— all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved. |
| For much wisdom can result in much sorrow, and those who increase their knowledge also increase their grief. | The greater my wisdom, the greater my grief. To increase knowledge only increases sorrow. |
| Follow my statutes and keep my commandments and obey them. Then I will give you rain in its proper season and the yield of the land shall increase and the trees of the field shall bear their fruit. | If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, I will send you the seasonal rains. The land will then yield its crops, and the trees of the field will produce their fruit. |
| By faith Abraham also received the power of procreation, even though he was well past the age—and Sarah herself was barren—because he believed that the one who had made the promise would be faithful in fulfilling it. | It was by faith that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed that God would keep his promise. |
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