You will not add to what I command you, nor will you take away from it, so that you might observe the commandments of the Lord, your God, that I am giving you. | Do not add to or subtract from these commands I am giving you. Just obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you. |
All those who keep his commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And the proof that he abides in us is the Spirit that he has given us. | Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us. |
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Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that weighs us down and the sins that so easily distract us and with perseverance run the race that lies ahead of us. | Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. |
Those who accepted his message were baptized, and on that day about three thousand people were added to their number. | Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all. |
In that way, I can come to you in joy, if God so wills, and 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. |
For this reason, he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who have been called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since his death has served to redeem the sins that were committed under the first covenant. | That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant. |
For the love of Christ urges us forward, once we conclude that one has died for all, and therefore all have died. And he died for all, so that those who live might no longer live for themselves, but for him who for their sakes died and was raised to life. | Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life. He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them. |
Teach me your ways, O Lord, so that I may walk in your truth; let me worship your name with an undivided heart. | Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor you. |
Now we know that if the earthly tent in which we live is destroyed, we have a dwelling prepared for us by God, a dwelling in the heavens, not made with human hands, that will be eternal. | For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands. |
I further pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know the hope to which he has called you, how rich and glorious is his inheritance in the saints. | I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance. |
Seek good and not evil, so that you may live. Then the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you as you claim he is. | Do what is good and run from evil so that you may live! Then the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies will be your helper, just as you have claimed. |
I want their hearts to be encouraged and united in love so that they may grow rich in their complete understanding as they come to the knowledge of the mystery of God, that is, Christ. | I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. |
The Lord will become king over the whole earth. When that day comes, he will be the only Lord, and his name will be the only name. | And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day there will be one Lord—his name alone will be worshiped. |
Do not repay evil with evil or abuse with abuse. On the contrary, repay with a blessing. This is what you were called to do, so that you might inherit a blessing. | Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will grant you his blessing. |
Take care, brethren, that none of you will ever have an evil and unbelieving heart that will cause you to forsake the living God. | Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. |
I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I do ask you to protect them from the evil one. | I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. |
Who among you is wise and understanding? Prove by your good life that your works are done with the humility that comes from wisdom. | If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. |
Let your attitude be identical to that of Christ Jesus. | You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. |
But whoever drinks the water that I will give him will never be thirsty. The water that I will give him will become a spring of water within him welling up to eternal life. | But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life. |
We know that God makes all things work together for good for those who love him and who are called according to his purpose. | And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. |
I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh, for the life of the world. | I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh. |
Let no one deceive you in any way. That Day cannot come before the final rebellion occurs and the lawless one is revealed, the son of destruction. He is the adversary who sets himself in opposition to, and exalts himself above, every so-called god or object of worship, and who even seats himself in the temple of God, declaring himself to be 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. |
But for that very reason I was treated mercifully, so that in me Jesus Christ might exhibit his inexhaustible patience, making me an example for those who would come to believe in him for eternal life. | But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life. |
I consider that the sufferings we presently endure are not worth comparing with the glory to be revealed in us. | Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. |
A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in abundance. | The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. |