| Therefore, we fasted and prayed to God to grant us a safe journey, and he answered our prayer. | So we fasted and earnestly prayed that our God would take care of us, and he heard our prayer. |
| Put on the armor of God so that you will be able to stand firm against the deceit 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. |
| Entrust your cares to the Lord, and he will uphold you; he will never allow the righteous to waver. | Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall. |
| This is what love is: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins. | This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. |
| And learn to do good. Pursue justice and rescue the oppressed; listen to the plea of the orphan and defend the widow. | Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows. |
| Remember this, my beloved brethren: everyone should be quick to listen but slow to speak and slow to anger. | Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. |
| Stand firm, then, with the belt of truth fastened around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness clothing you, and with your feet shod in zeal to proclaim the gospel of peace. In all circumstances, hold in your hand the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. | Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. |
| The one who leads a blameless life and does what is right, who speaks the truth from the heart and does not slander anyone, who does not harm a friend and does not scorn a neighbor. | Those who lead blameless lives and do what is right, speaking the truth from sincere hearts. Those who refuse to gossip or harm their neighbors or speak evil of their friends. |
| I understand that man’s greatest happiness is to be glad and do well throughout his life. And when we eat and drink and find satisfaction in all our labors, this is a gift of God. | So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God. |
| Then he sat down, summoned the Twelve, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to be first, he must become the last of all and the servant of all.” | He sat down, called the twelve disciples over to him, and said, “Whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else.” |
| Do I derive any pleasure from the death of the wicked? asks the Lord God. Would I not rather rejoice to see them turn away from their wickedness and live? | Do you think that I like to see wicked people die? says the Sovereign Lord. Of course not! I want them to turn from their wicked ways and live. |
| Trust wholeheartedly in the Lord rather than relying on your own intelligence. In everything you do, acknowledge him, and he will see that your paths are straight. | Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. |
| Enriched in every way, you will be able to practice all your acts of generosity, which, through our intervention, will result in thanksgiving to God. | Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous. And when we take your gifts to those who need them, they will thank God. |
| Do not be concerned about your life and what you will have to eat, or about your body and what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. | That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food to eat or enough clothes to wear. For life is more than food, and your body more than clothing. |
| Above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth, or use any oaths at all. Let your “Yes” mean “Yes” and your “No” mean “No.” Otherwise you may be condemned. | But most of all, my brothers and sisters, never take an oath, by heaven or earth or anything else. Just say a simple yes or no, so that you will not sin and be condemned. |
| If he refuses to listen to them, report it to the Church. And if he refuses to listen to the Church, treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. | If the person still refuses to listen, take your case to the church. Then if he or she won’t accept the church’s decision, treat that person as a pagan or a corrupt tax collector. |
| But what I tell you is this: Do not swear at all, either by heaven, since it is God’s throne, or by earth, since that is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, since that is the city of the great King. | But I say, do not make any vows! Do not say, ‘By heaven!’ because heaven is God’s throne. And do not say, ‘By the earth!’ because the earth is his footstool. And do not say, ‘By Jerusalem!’ for Jerusalem is the city of the great King. |
| You might say to yourself, “How can we know that the Lord did not speak the message?” If what the prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord is not true and it does not happen, then the message was not proclaimed by the Lord. The prophet has spoken presumptuously, you should not fear him. | But you may wonder, ‘How will we know whether or not a prophecy is from the Lord?’ If the prophet speaks in the Lord’s name but his prediction does not happen or come true, you will know that the Lord did not give that message. That prophet has spoken without my authority and need not be feared. |
| Therefore, heed my words. Do not be concerned about your life and what you will have to eat or drink, or about your body and what you will wear. Surely life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing. | That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? |
| For it is by grace that you have been saved through faith. This has not come from you but from the gift of God. It does not come from works, so that no one can boast. | God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. |
| Some trust in chariots, and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord, our God. | Some nations boast of their chariots and horses, but we boast in the name of the Lord our God. |
| When they arrest you and bring you to trial, do not be concerned beforehand about what you are to say. Simply say whatever is given to you when that time comes, for it will not be you who speak but the Holy Spirit. | But when you are arrested and stand trial, don’t worry in advance about what to say. Just say what God tells you at that time, for it is not you who will be speaking, but the Holy Spirit. |
| You want something that you cannot have, so you commit murder. And you covet something but cannot obtain it, so you engage in quarrels and fights. You do not have because you do not ask. | You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. |
| Bring the tithes in full into the treasury so that there may be food in my house. Put me thus to the test, says the Lord of hosts, and see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down blessings upon you without measure. | “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!” |
| Even though the fig tree does not blossom and there is no fruit on the vines, even though the olive crop will fail and the orchards will yield no food, even though the flock is cut off from the fold and there is no herd in the stalls, I will continue to rejoice in the Lord, and exult in the God of my salvation. | Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! |
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