- Work brings profit,
but mere talk leads to poverty! - The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear.
What can mere people do to me? - I, yes I, am the one who comforts you.
So why are you afraid of mere humans,
who wither like the grass and disappear? - I praise God for what he has promised.
I trust in God, so why should I be afraid?
What can mere mortals do to me? - So we can say with confidence,
“The Lord is my helper,
so I will have no fear.
What can mere people do to me?” - What are mere mortals that you should think about them,
human beings that you should care for them? - For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.
- Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions.
- The Lord merely spoke,
and the heavens were created.
He breathed the word,
and all the stars were born. - But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.
- When you pray, don’t babble on and on as the Gentiles do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again.
- They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires. These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God’s Spirit in them.
- Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God.
The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right;
his ears are open to their cries for help. 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.”Next verse!With image