Who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the Kingdom of the Son of his love, in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. | For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins. |
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off are made near in the blood of Christ. | But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ. |
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Now the birth of Jesus Christ was like this: After his mother, Mary, was engaged to Joseph, before they came together, she was found pregnant by the Holy Spirit. | This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. |
For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. | For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. |
Now I beg you, brothers, through the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfected together in the same mind and in the same judgment. | I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose. |
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. | For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. |
I will multiply your offspring as the stars of the sky, and will give all these lands to your offspring. In your offspring all the nations of the earth will be blessed, because Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my requirements, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. | I will cause your descendants to become as numerous as the stars of the sky, and I will give them all these lands. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed. I will do this because Abraham listened to me and obeyed all my requirements, commands, decrees, and instructions. |
In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus. | Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. |
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, through the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. | All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. |
I will never forget your precepts, for with them, you have revived me. | I will never forget your commandments, for by them you give me life. |
By faith even Sarah herself received power to conceive, and she bore a child when she was past age, since she counted him faithful who had promised. | It was by faith that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed that God would keep his promise. |
Like a city that is broken down and without walls is a man whose spirit is without restraint. | A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls. |
You therefore, my child, be strengthened in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. | Timothy, my dear son, be strong through the grace that God gives you in Christ Jesus. |
For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world: your faith. | For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. |
You shall remember that you were a servant in the land of Egypt, and Yahweh your God brought you out of there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm. Therefore Yahweh your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. | Remember that you were once slaves in Egypt, but the Lord your God brought you out with his strong hand and powerful arm. That is why the Lord your God has commanded you to rest on the Sabbath day. |
And be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving each other, just as God also in Christ forgave you. | Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. |
Let’s therefore give diligence to enter into that rest, lest anyone fall after 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. |
I press on toward the goal for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. | I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. |
Yahweh will command his loving kindness in the daytime. In the night his song shall be with me: a prayer to the God of my life. | But each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me, and through each night I sing his songs, praying to God who gives me life. |
For his anger is but for a moment. His favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may stay for the night, but joy comes in the morning. | For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning. |
Now I declare to you, brothers, the Good News which I preached to you, which also you received, in which you also stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold firmly the word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. | Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe the message I told you—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place. |
When goods increase, those who eat them are increased; and what advantage is there to its owner, except to feast on them with his eyes? | The more you have, the more people come to help you spend it. So what good is wealth—except perhaps to watch it slip through your fingers! |
When you vow a vow to God, don’t defer to pay it; for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay that which you vow. | When you make a promise to God, don’t delay in following through, for God takes no pleasure in fools. Keep all the promises you make to him. |
It is because of Yahweh’s loving kindnesses that we are not consumed, because his mercies don’t fail. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness. | The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. |
Who has worked and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I, Yahweh, the first, and with the last, I am he. | Who has done such mighty deeds, summoning each new generation from the beginning of time? It is I, the Lord, the First and the Last. I alone am he. |