| For the customs of the peoples are futile; For one cuts a tree from the forest, The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax. They decorate it with silver and gold; They fasten it with nails and hammers So that it will not topple. They are upright, like a palm tree, And they cannot speak; They must be carried, Because they cannot go by themselves. Do not be afraid of them, For they cannot do evil, Nor can they do any good. | Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree, and a craftsman carves an idol. They decorate it with gold and silver and then fasten it securely with hammer and nails so it won’t fall over. Their gods are like helpless scarecrows in a cucumber field! They cannot speak, and they need to be carried because they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of such gods, for they can neither harm you nor do you any good. |
| If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. | Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. |
| He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. | Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. |
| And the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day. | And the Lord our God commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear him so he can continue to bless us and preserve our lives, as he has done to this day. |
| Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. | Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your oxen and donkeys and other livestock, and any foreigners living among you. All your male and female servants must rest as you do. |
| Let all that you do be done with love. | And do everything with love. |
| Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. | Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy. |
| Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that the Lord your God will set you high above all nations of the earth. | If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world. |
| Great peace have those who love Your law, And nothing causes them to stumble. | Those who love your instructions have great peace and do not stumble. |
| Let my mouth be filled with Your praise And with Your glory all the day. | That is why I can never stop praising you; I declare your glory all day long. |
| And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. | If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. |
| In the day of prosperity be joyful, But in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, So that man can find out nothing that will come after him. | Enjoy prosperity while you can, but when hard times strike, realize that both come from God. Remember that nothing is certain in this life. |
| ‘And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. | And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. |
| All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify. | You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial. |
| And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. | Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell. |
| All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. | You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. And even though “I am allowed to do anything,” I must not become a slave to anything. |
| Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding. | Getting wisdom is the wisest thing you can do! And whatever else you do, develop good judgment. |
| Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ | Jesus replied, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.” |
| What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? | Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? |
| And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. | And if you do good only to those who do good to you, why should you get credit? Even sinners do that much! |
| The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth. | The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth. |
| For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. | Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. |
| So he answered and said, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ” | The man answered, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” |
| The Lord is righteous in all His ways, Gracious in all His works. | The Lord is righteous in everything he does; he is filled with kindness. |
| Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.” | But the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.” |
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