| Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan River. He was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where he was tempted by the devil for forty days. Jesus ate nothing all that time and became very hungry. | Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, where he was tempted by the devil. During that time he ate nothing, and at the end of it he was famished. |
| As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.” | For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. |
| So let us do our best to enter that rest. But if we disobey God, as the people of Israel did, we will fall. | Let us then make every effort to enter into that rest, so that no one may fall by following that example of refusing to believe. |
| In my distress I prayed to the Lord, and the Lord answered me and set me free. | In my distress I called out to the Lord; he answered by setting me free. |
| Giving a gift can open doors; it gives access to important people! | A gift opens doors for the giver and wins him access to the powerful. |
| My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Don’t lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart. | My son, concentrate attentively on my words; pay heed to the instructions I pass on to you. Do not let them slip from your mind; keep them forever in your heart. |
| They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him. They wove thorn branches into a crown and put it on his head, and they placed a reed stick in his right hand as a scepter. Then they knelt before him in mockery and taunted, “Hail! King of the Jews!” | They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they placed it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. Then, bending the knee before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” |
| I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified. | Rather, I discipline my body and bring it under control, for fear that after preaching to others I myself may be disqualified. |
| Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib, and he brought her to the man. “At last!” the man exclaimed. “This one is bone from my bone, and flesh from my flesh! She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken from ‘man.’” This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one. | The Lord God then formed a woman out of the rib that he had taken from the man. He brought her before the man. The man said, “This one is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman because she was taken from man.” This is why a man leaves his father and his mother and joins with a wife, and the two become one flesh. |
| That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” | For as it is written, “Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has the human heart imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” |
| I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. | Where can I go to hide from your spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend to the heavens, you are there; if I take my rest in the netherworld, you are also there. |
| But most of all, my brothers and sisters, never take an oath, by heaven or earth or anything else. Just say a simple yes or no, so that you will not sin and be condemned. | Above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth, or use any oaths at all. Let your “Yes” mean “Yes” and your “No” mean “No.” Otherwise you may be condemned. |
| A newly married man must not be drafted into the army or be given any other official responsibilities. He must be free to spend one year at home, bringing happiness to the wife he has married. | If a man has recently been married, he is not to go off to battle nor have any other duty laid on him. He will be free to stay at home for one year so that he can bring happiness to the wife whom he has married. |
| All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation. | Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In his great mercy he has given us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. |
| Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.” | Jesus said, “Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.” |
| We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. | And not only that, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we realize that suffering develops perseverance, and perseverance produces character, and character produces hope. |
| Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. | Do not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewal of your minds, so that you will be able to discern the will of God and to know what is good and acceptable and perfect. |
| Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. | Brethren, if anyone is detected committing a transgression, you who are spiritual must set him right in a spirit of gentleness. Meanwhile, you should take care so that you yourselves are not tempted. |
| All that time I had eaten no rich food. No meat or wine crossed my lips, and I used no fragrant lotions until those three weeks had passed. | I refrained from eating any choice food, abstaining from consuming meat or wine, and I did not anoint myself until those three weeks had passed. |
| Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. | 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. |
| Don’t envy violent people or copy their ways. Such wicked people are detestable to the Lord, but he offers his friendship to the godly. | Do not envy a violent man or choose to emulate any of his ways. For the perverse man is an abomination to the Lord whose friendship is bestowed only upon the upright. |
| Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. | Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my heavenly Father. |
| But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants. | However, whoever lives by the truth comes to the light so that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been done in God. |
| 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!” |
| I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. | I ask that from the riches of his glory he may grant through his Spirit that you be strengthened with power in your inner being and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. |
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