| Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. | Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. |
| A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. | The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed. |
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| As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. | As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. |
| Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. | Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body. |
| What a person desires is unfailing love; better to be poor than a liar. | Loyalty makes a person attractive. It is better to be poor than dishonest. |
| Pride brings a person low, but the lowly in spirit gain honor. | Pride ends in humiliation, while humility brings honor. |
| He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.” | And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.” |
| One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. | In the same way, some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike. You should each be fully convinced that whichever day you choose is acceptable. |
| A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends. | A troublemaker plants seeds of strife; gossip separates the best of friends. |
| If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple. | God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. |
| A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. | A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart. |
| Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. | Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. |
| How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word. | How can a young person stay pure? By obeying your word. |
| Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control. | A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls. |
| God “will repay each person according to what they have done.” | He will judge everyone according to what they have done. |
| How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. | And how much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Yes, the law permits a person to do good on the Sabbath. |
| But if a wicked person turns away from all the sins they have committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, that person will surely live; they will not die. | But if wicked people turn away from all their sins and begin to obey my decrees and do what is just and right, they will surely live and not die. |
| The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all. | The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time. |
| Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. | Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends. |
| A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy person keeps a secret. | A gossip goes around telling secrets, but those who are trustworthy can keep a confidence. |
| A person finds joy in giving an apt reply— and how good is a timely word! | Everyone enjoys a fitting reply; it is wonderful to say the right thing at the right time! |
| A person may think their own ways are right, but the Lord weighs the heart. | People may be right in their own eyes, but the Lord examines their heart. |
| “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? For it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.) | “Don’t you understand either?” he asked. “Can’t you see that the food you put into your body cannot defile you? Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.) |
| There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death. | There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death. |
| Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding. | Joyful is the person who finds wisdom, the one who gains understanding. |
