| Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. | But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect. |
| Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, 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.” |
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| But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. | But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. |
| For the practices of the peoples are worthless; they cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel. They adorn it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so it will not totter. Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field, their idols cannot speak; they must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not fear them; they can do no harm 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. |
| John answered, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.” | John replied, “If you have two shirts, give one to the poor. If you have food, share it with those who are hungry.” |
| If a man has recently married, he must not be sent to war or have any other duty laid on him. For one year he is to be free to stay at home and bring happiness to the wife he has married. | 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. |
| Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything. But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it. | I have given them to you for food, just as I have given you grain and vegetables. But you must never eat any meat that still has the lifeblood in it. |
| 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. | But God has protected me right up to this present time so I can testify to everyone, from the least to the greatest. I teach nothing except what the prophets and Moses said would happen— that the Messiah would suffer and be the first to rise from the dead, and in this way announce God’s light to Jews and Gentiles alike. |
| Each of us should please our neighbors for their good, to build them up. | We should help others do what is right and build them up in the Lord. |
| I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you that you fear mere mortals, human beings who are but grass. | I, yes I, am the one who comforts you. So why are you afraid of mere humans, who wither like the grass and disappear? |
| My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. | Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. |
| Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. | 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. |
| And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. | Then the Lord God said, “Look, the human beings have become like us, knowing both good and evil. What if they reach out, take fruit from the tree of life, and eat it? Then they will live forever!” So the Lord God banished them from the Garden of Eden, and he sent Adam out to cultivate the ground from which he had been made. |
| Be sure to keep the commands of the Lord your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. | You must diligently obey the commands of the Lord your God—all the laws and decrees he has given you. |
| ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’ | You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself. |
| So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. | So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded. |
| Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. | Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. |
| The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” | For the commandments say, “You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet.” These—and other such commandments—are summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” |
| Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them. | 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. |
| We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. | Dear brothers and sisters, we can’t help but thank God for you, because your faith is flourishing and your love for one another is growing. |
| In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus. | You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. |
| Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. | You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate. |
| But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” | But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.” |
| Do not make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold. | Remember, you must not make any idols of silver or gold to rival me. |
| Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but whoever hates correction is stupid. | To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction. |
