| You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected. | Therefore, you must also be prepared, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. |
| Preach the word of God. Be prepared, whether the time is favorable or not. Patiently correct, rebuke, and encourage your people with good teaching. | Preach the message; be persistent in doing so, whether in season or out of season; convince, reprove, and encourage, but with great patience and instruction. |
| No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. | At the time that discipline is received, it always seems painful rather than pleasant, but afterward it yields a harvest of peace and uprightness to those who have been trained by it. |
| Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time. | Wealth hastily acquired will dwindle away, but when amassed little by little, it will increase. |
| Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.” | After Jesus had been born in Bethlehem of Judea during the reign of King Herod, wise men traveled from the east and arrived in Jerusalem, inquiring, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw the rising of his star, and we have come to pay him homage.” |
| That is why the Lord says, “Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning.” | Yet even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. |
| The time is coming when everything that is covered up will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all. | There is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing secret that will not become known. |
| Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan River. He was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where he was tempted by the devil for forty days. Jesus ate nothing all that time and became very hungry. | Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, where he was tempted by the devil. During that time he ate nothing, and at the end of it he was famished. |
| And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one. | And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. |
| All that time I had eaten no rich food. No meat or wine crossed my lips, and I used no fragrant lotions until those three weeks had passed. | I refrained from eating any choice food, abstaining from consuming meat or wine, and I did not anoint myself until those three weeks had passed. |
| “Yes,” Jesus replied, “and I assure you that everyone who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or property, for my sake and for the Good News, will receive now in return a hundred times as many houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and property—along with persecution. And in the world to come that person will have eternal life.” | Jesus answered, “Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive in this age a hundred times more houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and lands—as well as persecutions—and in the age to come, eternal life.” |
| 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. | Who has performed these deeds and accomplished this? Who has summoned the nations from the beginning? I, the Lord, am the first, and I will be there with the last. |
| Fools vent their anger, but the wise quietly hold it back. | A fool gives free rein to his anger, but a wise man bides his time and calms it. |
| Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. | Therefore, put on the armor of God, so that you will be able to hold fast on the evil day and to hold your ground with all your strength. |
| For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! | Once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light. |
| Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. | But he answered me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” Hence, I will boast most gladly of my weaknesses, in order that the power of Christ may dwell within me. |
| Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. | That is why you also pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, and they devote themselves to this service. |
| The Lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him. | The Lord is good, an unfailing refuge in a time of distress. He takes care of those who place their trust in him. |
| If another believer sins, rebuke that person; then if there is repentance, forgive. Even if that person wrongs you seven times a day and each time turns again and asks forgiveness, you must forgive. | If your brother should sin, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. Even if he wrongs you seven times a day, and comes back to you seven times to say, ‘I am sorry,’ you must forgive him. |
| Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak! | Stay awake and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit is indeed willing, but the flesh is weak. |
| Above all, you must realize that no prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding, or from human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God. | No prophecy ever came from human initiative. Rather, when people spoke as messengers of God, they did so under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. |
| 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. | Moses remained with the Lord for forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments, on the tablets. |
| Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf. | Therefore, he has the full power to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to intercede for them. |
| 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. | During the day the Lord grants his kindness, and at night his praise is with me, a prayer to the living God. |
| If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? | If someone says, “I love God,” but at the same time hates his brother, he is a liar. For whoever does not love the brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. |
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Bible verse of the day
On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting.Random Bible Verse
So we can say with confidence,“The Lord is my helper,
so I will have no fear.
What can mere people do to me?”Next verse!With image