| But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. | But when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face. Then no one will notice that you are fasting, except your Father, who knows what you do in private. And your Father, who sees everything, will reward you. |
| Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. | Don’t be fooled by what they say. For that day will not come until there is a great rebellion against God and the man of lawlessness is revealed—the one who brings destruction. He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God. |
| And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ | But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ |
| But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. | 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. |
| In the day of prosperity be joyful, But in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, So that man can find out nothing that will come after him. | Enjoy prosperity while you can, but when hard times strike, realize that both come from God. Remember that nothing is certain in this life. |
| That I may come to you with joy by the will of God, and may be refreshed together with you. | Then, by the will of God, I will be able to come to you with a joyful heart, and we will be an encouragement to each other. |
| But from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female.’ ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’; so then they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate. | But ‘God made them male and female’ from the beginning of creation. ‘This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.’ Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together. |
| So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to perform, the Ten Commandments; and He wrote them on two tablets of stone. | He proclaimed his covenant—the Ten Commandments—which he commanded you to keep, and which he wrote on two stone tablets. |
| And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. | But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too. |
| Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. | So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. |
| So he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights; he neither ate bread nor drank water. And He wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments. | Moses remained there on the mountain with the Lord forty days and forty nights. In all that time he ate no bread and drank no water. And the Lord wrote the terms of the covenant—the Ten Commandments—on the stone tablets. |
| You have also given me the shield of Your salvation; Your right hand has held me up, Your gentleness has made me great. You enlarged my path under me, So my feet did not slip. | You have given me your shield of victory. Your right hand supports me; your help has made me great. You have made a wide path for my feet to keep them from slipping. |
| So you shall serve the Lord your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you. | You must serve only the Lord your God. If you do, I will bless you with food and water, and I will protect you from illness. |
| And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. | You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. |
| And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. | Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. |
| These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. | I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! |
| Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. | So let us do our best to enter that rest. But if we disobey God, as the people of Israel did, we will fall. |
| So He said to them, “Are you thus without understanding also? Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?” | “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.) |
| But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God. | But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants. |
| Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. | Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. |
| Take words with you, And return to the Lord. Say to Him, “Take away all iniquity; Receive us graciously, For we will offer the sacrifices of our lips.” | Bring your confessions, and return to the Lord. Say to him, “Forgive all our sins and graciously receive us, so that we may offer you our praises.” |
| Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time. | So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. |
| And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.” | “Haven’t you read the Scriptures?” Jesus replied. “They record that from the beginning ‘God made them male and female.’” And he said, “‘This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.’ Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together.” |
| So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ. | 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. |
| As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby. | Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment. |
Related topics
Obedience
Jesus answered and said...
Father
As a father pities...
Life
The LORD shall preserve...
Joy
Rejoice always, pray without...
Law
And these words which...
Word of God
All Scripture is given...