| For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. | Indeed, the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any two-edged sword, it pierces to the point where it divides soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and the intentions of the heart. |
| My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you. When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness. | My soul longs for you throughout the night, and my spirit within me seeks your presence. For when your judgments are revealed to the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn to practice justice. |
| You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. | O God, you are my God, for whom I have been searching earnestly. My soul yearns for you and my body thirsts for you, like the earth when it is parched, arid and without water. |
| The one who gets wisdom loves life; the one who cherishes understanding will soon prosper. | Whoever gains wisdom loves his own soul; one who cherishes understanding will prosper. |
| But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you: to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to keep his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. | Take heed to follow the commandments and the laws that Moses, the servant of the Lord, gave you: to love the Lord, your God, and to walk in his ways and to observe his commandments, holding fast to him and serving him with all your heart and all your soul. |
| Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. | At dawn let me experience your kindness, for in you I place my trust. Show me the path I must walk, for to you I lift up my soul. |
| Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts. | As we proceed in the path of your judgments, we wait for you, O Lord; your name and your renown are all that our heart desires. |
| And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good? | And so now, O Israel, what does the Lord, your God, require of you but to fear the Lord, your God, to walk in all of his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord, your God, with all your heart and all your soul, and to observe the commandments and the statutes that I am giving you today for your own good. |
| See, the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright— but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness. | The proud man’s heart is not upright, but the righteous man will live because of his faith. |
| Save me, Lord, from lying lips and from deceitful tongues. | Deliver me, O Lord, from lying lips and from deceitful tongues. |
| All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. | The entire community of believers was united in heart and soul. No one claimed any of his possessions as his own, for everything was held in common. |
| I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. | I rejoice in the Lord with all my heart; my soul exults in my God. For he has clothed me in garments of salvation and wrapped me in a robe of saving justice, like a bridegroom adorned with a garland or a bride bedecked with her jewels. |
| A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. | A generous person will be enriched; he who refreshes others will also be refreshed. |
| I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.” | I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.” |
| Whoever keeps commandments keeps their life, but whoever shows contempt for their ways will die. | Whoever observes the commandments will live, but the one who scorns them will die. |
| The Lord will rescue his servants; no one who takes refuge in him will be condemned. | The Lord redeems the lives of those who serve him; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him. |
| Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me. | Surely God is my helper; the Lord is the one who sustains me. |
| For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. | You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am wonderfully made; awesome are your works, as I know very well. |
| Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. | Let everyone submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which derives from God, and whatever authorities exist have been instituted by God. |
| Now I am about to go the way of all the earth. You know with all your heart and soul that not one of all the good promises the Lord your God gave you has failed. Every promise has been fulfilled; not one has failed. | I am now about to go the way of all upon the earth. You know very well in your hearts and your souls that not one of the good things that the Lord, your God, promised you has failed to take place. Every promise has been fulfilled, not one of them has been broken. |
| The Lord will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. | The Lord will protect you against all evil; he will watch over your life. The Lord will watch over your coming and your going both now and forevermore. |
| To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices. | And ‘to love him with all your heart, and with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself,’ is worth more than any burnt offerings and sacrifices. |
| This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. | In my anguish I cried out; the Lord heard my plea, and I was saved from all my troubles. |
| Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin. | He who guards his mouth makes his life secure, but one who talks excessively ensures his own downfall. |
| If anyone sins and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, even though they do not know it, they are guilty and will be held responsible. | When someone sins and does any of the things that the Lord has forbidden, even if he does not realize he did it, he has still committed an offense and must bear his guilt. |
Bible verse of the day
“Look, he is coming with the clouds,”and “every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him”;
and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.”
So shall it be! Amen.