| On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God. Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue leader said to the people, “There are six days for work. So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.” The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie your ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?” When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing. | On one Sabbath as Jesus was teaching in the synagogue, a woman was present, possessed by a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and completely unable to stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said, “Woman, you are freed from your infirmity.” Then he laid his hands on her, and immediately she stood up straight and began praising God. But the leader of the synagogue was indignant because Jesus had effected a cure on the Sabbath, and he said to the assembled people, “There are six days when work is permitted. Come on those days and be cured, and not on the Sabbath.” The Lord said to him in reply, “You hypocrites! Is there a single one of you who does not untie his ox or his donkey and lead it from its stall to give it water on the Sabbath? Should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has held bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath?” At these words, all his adversaries were put to shame, and the people rejoiced at all the wonderful things he was doing. |
| Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails. | Many are the plans in a human mind, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will prevail. |
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| Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm; for love is as strong as death, its jealousy unyielding as the grave. It burns like blazing fire, like a mighty flame. | Set me as a seal on your heart, as a seal upon your arm. For love is as strong as death, and ardor is as relentless as the netherworld. Its flames are flashes of fire, an unending blaze. |
| As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart. | Just as water reflects one’s face, so does one human heart reflect another. |
| The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. | The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of distress. |
| Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. | Therefore, do not allow anyone to pass judgment on you in regard to what you eat or drink, or about the observance of Festivals, New Moons, or Sabbaths. These are only a shadow of what is to come. The reality is Christ. |
| You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. | You are the light of the world. A city built upon a mountain cannot be hidden. |
| For the practices of the peoples are worthless; they cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel. They adorn it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so it will not totter. Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field, their idols cannot speak; they must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not fear them; they can do no harm nor can they do any good. | For the carved images of the nations are powerless; they are nothing more than wood cut from a forest, fashioned with a knife by craftsmen and embellished with silver and gold. Then they are fastened with hammers and nails to prevent them from toppling. Like scarecrows in a cucumber field they are unable to speak, and they must be carried from place to place since they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they can do no harm, nor do they have any power to do good. |
| He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” | He answered, “Because you have such little faith. Amen, I say to you, if you have faith as tiny as a mustard seed, you will be able to say to this mountain: ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” |
| I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. | I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit within you. I will remove from your body a heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh in its place. |
| A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son brings grief to his mother. | A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son gives grief to his mother. |
| A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. | A good man produces good from the store of goodness in his heart, whereas an evil man produces evil from the store of evil within him. For the mouth speaks from the abundance of the heart. |
| Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. | Hope deferred sickens the heart, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life. |
| Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? | Which one of you, intending to build a tower, would not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has sufficient funds for its completion? |
| “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store 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. |
| But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked. | But the one who did not know those wishes, and who acted in such a manner as to deserve a beating, will be beaten less severely. Much will be demanded of a person to whom much has been given, and even more will be asked of a person to whom more has been entrusted. |
| The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. | And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth. |
| Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. | Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light to my path. |
| But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. | But you are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people claimed by God as his own possession,” so that you may proclaim the praise of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. |
| Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. | It is better to spend one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in God’s house than dwell inside the tents of the wicked. |
| Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. | Who among you is wise and understanding? Prove by your good life that your works are done with the humility that comes from wisdom. |
| For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. | When the command is given, at the sound of the archangel’s voice and the call of God’s trumpet, the Lord himself will descend from heaven, and those who have died in Christ will be the first to rise. Then those of us who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them on clouds in the air to meet the Lord. And so, we will be with the Lord forever. |
| No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light. | No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a pot or places it under a bed. Rather he places it on a lampstand so that those who enter may see the light. |
| Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. | Therefore, brethren, I implore you by the mercies of God to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice that is holy and acceptable to God—a spiritual act of worship. |
| A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. | A cheerful heart is excellent medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. |
