| For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. | So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law. |
| Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. | Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. |
| The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed. | The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free. |
| Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for God has already approved what you do. | So go ahead. Eat your food with joy, and drink your wine with a happy heart, for God approves of this! |
| The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound. | The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. |
| Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. | Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! |
| The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. | That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. |
| When goods increase, they increase who eat them, and what advantage has their owner but to see them with his eyes? | The more you have, the more people come to help you spend it. So what good is wealth—except perhaps to watch it slip through your fingers! |
| Only fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart. For consider what great things he has done for you. | But be sure to fear the Lord and faithfully serve him. Think of all the wonderful things he has done for you. |
| These things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches 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. |
| 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 such mighty deeds, summoning each new generation from the beginning of time? It is I, the Lord, the First and the Last. I alone am he. |
| 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? | But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? |
| And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one word has failed of all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed. | Soon I will die, going the way of everything on earth. Deep in your hearts you know that every promise of the Lord your God has come true. Not a single one has failed! |
| Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. | You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.” |
| For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. | Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have. |
| Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on 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. |
| For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake. | For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him. |
| For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! | If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. |
| And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way. | And Jesus said to him, “Go, for your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus down the road. |
| Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” | Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” |
| But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? | If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person? |
| Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. | Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth. |
| You shall diligently keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and his testimonies and his statutes, which he has commanded you. | You must diligently obey the commands of the Lord your God—all the laws and decrees he has given you. |
| And it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to do all this commandment before the Lord our God, as he has commanded us. | For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all the commands the Lord our God has given us. |
| For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’ | For the Lord gave us this command when he said, ‘I have made you a light to the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the farthest corners of the earth.’ |
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