| Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. | Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves. |
| So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbaths. For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality. | Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. |
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| Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. | I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. |
| And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for. | And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. |
| So, what about eating meat that has been offered to idols? Well, we all know that an idol is not really a god and that there is only one God. | So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that “An idol is nothing at all in the world” and that “There is no God but one.” |
| Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. | Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! |
| Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity. | Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. |
| But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God. | However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. |
| Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. | For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. |
| Only a fool despises a parent’s discipline; whoever learns from correction is wise. | A fool spurns a parent’s discipline, but whoever heeds correction shows prudence. |
| Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent; with their mouths shut, they seem intelligent. | Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues. |
| For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ | Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ |
| The rich think of their wealth as a strong defense; they imagine it to be a high wall of safety. | The wealth of the rich is their fortified city; they imagine it a wall too high to scale. |
| For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. | Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin. |
| Keep the Sabbath day holy. Don’t pursue your own interests on that day, but enjoy the Sabbath and speak of it with delight as the Lord’s holy day. Honor the Sabbath in everything you do on that day, and don’t follow your own desires or talk idly. Then the Lord will be your delight. I will give you great honor and satisfy you with the inheritance I promised to your ancestor Jacob. I, the Lord, have spoken! | “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken. |
| He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. | He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. |
| I have chosen to be faithful; I have determined to live by your regulations. | I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I have set my heart on your laws. |
| God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God. | God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. |
| As I learn your righteous regulations, I will thank you by living as I should! | I will praise you with an upright heart as I learn your righteous laws. |
| The very essence of your words is truth; all your just regulations will stand forever. | All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal. |
| But we have sinned and done wrong. We have rebelled against you and scorned your commands and regulations. | We have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. |
| And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations. | And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. |
| But don’t rejoice because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven. | However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven. |
| They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity— all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved. | Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. |
| ‘I am the Lord your God,’ I told them. ‘Follow my decrees, pay attention to my regulations, and keep my Sabbath days holy, for they are a sign to remind you that I am the Lord your God.’ | I am the Lord your God; follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Keep my Sabbaths holy, that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God. |
