| But many who are first will be last, and the last first. | But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first. |
| We love because he first loved us. | We love because He first loved us. |
|
| God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness. | When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways. |
| And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” | Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.” |
| Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, the first, and with the last; I am he. | Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord—with the first of them and with the last—I am he. |
| But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. | But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. |
| For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? | 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 I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. | For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. |
| But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. | But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. |
| It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave. | Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave. |
| Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. | Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) |
| Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years. | Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years. |
| Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. | For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. |
| For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. | For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures. |
| To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles. | But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen— that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles. |
| If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. | If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. |
| For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. | For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. |
| Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. | Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God. |
| Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce. | Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops. |
| And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. | Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. |
| For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. | We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end. |
| But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. | But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life. |
| Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. | He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. |
| For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. | For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have. |
| And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. | And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. |
