For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. | You have tested us, O God; you have purified us like silver. |
The tongue of the righteous is choice silver; the mind of the wicked is of little worth. | The words of the godly are like sterling silver; the heart of a fool is worthless. |
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You shall not make gods of silver alongside me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. | Remember, you must not make any idols of silver or gold to rival me. |
How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver. | How much better to get wisdom than gold, and good judgment than silver! |
A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold. | Choose a good reputation over great riches; being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold. |
The lover of money will not be satisfied with money; nor the lover of wealth, with gain. This also is vanity. | Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness! |
You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. | 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. |
For the customs of the peoples are false: a tree from the forest is cut down, and worked with an ax by the hands of an artisan; people deck it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move. Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried, for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, nor is it in them to do 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. |