| 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. | He is the head of the body, that is, the Church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that in every way he should be supreme. |
| Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. | Keep falsehood and lying far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but simply provide me with the food that I need. |
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| And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins. | And whenever you stand in prayer, forgive whatever grievance you have against anybody, so that your Father in heaven may forgive your wrongs too. |
| But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand. | But who am I, and what are your people, that we should be able to do this? All things belong to you, and everything that we have given you is from your hand. |
| And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” | And I heard a loud voice proclaim from the throne: “Behold, God’s dwelling is with mankind; he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and he will be their God, God-with-them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will no longer be death. Neither will there be any mourning or crying or pain, for the old order has passed away.” |
| Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. | Therefore, let us leave behind the basic teaching about Christ and advance toward maturity. We must not be forever laying the foundation: repentance for actions that lead to death, faith in God, instruction about baptisms and the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. |
| Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. | And now, brethren, I want to remind you of the gospel I proclaimed to you, which you received and in which you stand firm. Through it you are also being saved, provided that you are holding fast to what I proclaimed to you. If not, then you have believed in vain. |
