| For this is the message which you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. | For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. |
| This is the message which we have heard from him and announce to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. | This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. |
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| For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are dying, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. | For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. |
| Namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not reckoning to them their trespasses, and having committed to us the word of reconciliation. | That God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. |
| Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. There were added that day about three thousand souls. | Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. |
| So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. | Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. |
| You may say in your heart, “How shall we know the word which Yahweh has not spoken?” When a prophet speaks in Yahweh’s name, if the thing doesn’t follow, nor happen, that is the thing which Yahweh has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously. You shall not be afraid of him. | You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the Lord?” If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously, so do not be alarmed. |
| Preach the word; be urgent in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort with all patience and teaching. | Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. |
| Jesus therefore answered them, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me.” | Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me.” |
| You are already pruned clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. | You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. |
| Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your heart to the Lord. | Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. |
| From that time, Jesus began to preach, and to say, “Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” | From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” |
| This is Yahweh’s word to Zerubbabel, saying, ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says Yahweh of Armies. | This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty. |
| Every day, in the temple and at home, they never stopped teaching and preaching Jesus, the Christ. | Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah. |
| How I didn’t shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, teaching you publicly and from house to house. | You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. |
| Most certainly I tell you, a servant is not greater than his lord, neither is one who is sent greater than he who sent him. | Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. |
| Now I declare to you, brothers, the Good News which I preached to you, which also you received, in which you also stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold firmly the word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. | Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. |
| The heavens declare the glory of God. The expanse shows his handiwork. Day after day they pour out speech, and night after night they display knowledge. | The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. |
| He therefore who supplies the Spirit to you and does miracles among you, does he do it by the works of the law, or by hearing of faith? | So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard? |
| What was sown among the thorns, this is he who hears the word, but the cares of this age and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. | The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. |
| Now all this has happened that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall give birth to a son. They shall call his name Immanuel,” which is, being interpreted, “God with us.” | All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). |
| Having therefore obtained the help that is from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would happen, how the Christ must suffer, and how, by the resurrection of the dead, he would be first to proclaim light both to these people and to the Gentiles. | But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen— that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles. |
