How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony! | How wonderful and delightful it is for brothers to live together in unity. |
Oh, how great are God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways! | Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How inscrutable are his judgments and how unfathomable his ways! |
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Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. | Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have received from God, and that you are not your own? You have been purchased at a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body. |
A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked. | It is better to spend one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in God’s house than dwell inside the tents of the wicked. |
Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. | You need to be steadfast if you want to do the will of God and receive what he has promised. |
Heal the sick, and tell them, ‘The Kingdom of God is near you now.’ | Cure the sick who are there, and say, ‘The kingdom of God has come unto you.’ |
When the Lord Jesus had finished talking with them, he was taken up into heaven and sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand. | Then, after he had spoken to them, the Lord Jesus was taken up into heaven, and there he took his place at the right hand of God. |
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. | For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. |
Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. | For sin is no longer to have any power over you, since you are not under the Law but under grace. |
If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. | Who among you is wise and understanding? Prove by your good life that your works are done with the humility that comes from wisdom. |
But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ. | But according to Scripture all things have been confined under sin, so that through faith in Jesus Christ what was promised might be given to those who believe. |
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. | However, God has revealed these things to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit explores everything, even the depths of God. |
Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. | Therefore, now that we have been justified by faith, we are at peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. |
God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin. Then each of you will control his own body and live in holiness and honor— not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and his ways. | It is the will of God that you should lead a life of sanctity. You must refrain from sexual immorality. Each of you must learn to acquire a wife from pure and honorable motives, not to gratify passion like the Gentiles who do not know God. |
I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. | Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single letter, not even a tiny portion of a letter, will disappear from the Law until all things have been accomplished. |
Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law. | Owe nothing to anyone except the debt of love you owe one another. The one who loves others has fulfilled the Law. |
Then, by the will of God, I will be able to come to you with a joyful heart, and we will be an encouragement to each other. | In that way, I can come to you in joy, if God so wills, and be refreshed together with you. |
And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. | And the world with all its enticements is passing away, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. |
For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace. | Those of you who seek to be justified by the Law have cut yourselves off from Christ and have fallen away from grace. |
So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. | Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, so that at the proper time he may exalt you. |
Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. | Therefore, put on the armor of God, so that you will be able to hold fast on the evil day and to hold your ground with all your strength. |
Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” | Jesus replied, “Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” |
But he knows where I am going. And when he tests me, I will come out as pure as gold. For I have stayed on God’s paths; I have followed his ways and not turned aside. | And yet he is aware of everywhere I go; if he were to test me, I would emerge like pure gold. My footsteps have not strayed from the path he established; I have followed his way and never turned aside. |
So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” | For you did not receive a spirit of slavery leading to fear; rather, you received the Spirit of adoption, enabling us to cry out, “Abba! Father!” |
“The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!” | The time of fulfillment has arrived, and the kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel. |