But as for me, I will look to the Lord. I place my hope in God my savior; my God will hear me. | As for me, I look to the Lord for help. I wait confidently for God to save me, and my God will certainly hear me. |
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. | 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. |
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Turn away from youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, together with those who call on the Lord with a pure heart. | Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts. |
They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, my own special possession on the day when I act, and I will have compassion on them as a father has compassion on the son who serves him. | “They will be my people,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “On the day when I act in judgment, they will be my own special treasure. I will spare them as a father spares an obedient child.” |
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. | Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. |
Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge. | Keep me safe, O God, for I have come to you for refuge. |
Through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves in Christ. | For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. |
He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live in righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. | He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed. |
Blessings are showered on the head of the righteous, but sorrow will cover the face of the wicked. | The godly are showered with blessings; the words of the wicked conceal violent intentions. |
The prudent man perceives danger and seeks shelter, while the simple continue forward and pay the penalty. | A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences. |
Through the grace that God has bestowed upon me, I advise every one of you not to think of yourself too highly, but to regard yourself objectively, based on the measure of faith that God has granted. | Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. |
Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your gracious Spirit lead me along a level path. | Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. May your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing. |
My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a contrite and humble heart, O God, you will not spurn. | The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God. |
See what love the Father has bestowed on us, enabling us to be called the children of God, and that is what we are. If the world does not recognize us, that is because it did not know him. | See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him. |
Let my teaching fall down like rain, and my words descend like the dew. Like rain upon the sprouts, and like showers upon the grass. | Let my teaching fall on you like rain; let my speech settle like dew. Let my words fall like rain on tender grass, like gentle showers on young plants. |
Though he was in the form of God, he did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. Being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient to death, even death on a cross. | Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. |
No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a pot or places it under a bed. Rather he places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light. | No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house. |
On the last and greatest day of the feast, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.” | On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me!” |
I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph. I will bring them back because I have taken pity on them, and they will be as though I had never cast them off; for I am the Lord, their God, and I will answer them. | I will strengthen Judah and save Israel; I will restore them because of my compassion. It will be as though I had never rejected them, for I am the Lord their God, who will hear their cries. |
No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is made complete in us. | No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us. |
Continue in all of the ways that the Lord, your God, has commanded you. Continue in them so that you may live and prosper and that you may long dwell on the land of your inheritance. | Stay on the path that the Lord your God has commanded you to follow. Then you will live long and prosperous lives in the land you are about to enter and occupy. |
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their cry. | The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right; his ears are open to their cries for help. |
God gave the midwives numerous families because they had feared God. | And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own. |
Blessed are the pure of heart, for they will see God. | God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God. |
Jesus looked at them and said, “For men it is impossible, but not for God. For God all things are possible.” | Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.” |