| When you make a vow to God, do not delay fulfilling it; for he has no pleasure in fools. Fulfill what you vow. | When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. |
| Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners. | But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners. |
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| When goods increase, those who eat them increase; and what gain has their owner but to see them with his eyes? | As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owners except to feast their eyes on them? |
| Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. | Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. |
| Beloved, we are God's children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. | Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. |
| But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God. | But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God. |
| But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Deliverance belongs to the Lord! | But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’ |
| Only fear the Lord, and serve him faithfully with all your heart; for consider what great things he has done for you. | But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. |
| Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots to divide his clothing. | Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots. |
| Go, eat your bread with enjoyment, and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has long ago approved what you do. | Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do. |
| For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life. | For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. |
| Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.” | Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” |
| What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? | What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? |
| Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. | Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. |
| And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. | And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. |
| Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what such people do secretly. | Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. |
| Pay to all what is due them—taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due. | Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor. |
| This means understanding that the law is laid down not for the innocent but for the lawless and disobedient, for the godless and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their father or mother, for murderers, fornicators, sodomites, slave traders, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to the sound teaching that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me. | We also know that the law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me. |
| Well then, does God supply you with the Spirit and work miracles among you by your doing the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard? | So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard? |
| Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear. | Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. |
| As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. | The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. |
| But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to make this freewill offering? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. | But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand. |
| But the scripture has imprisoned all things under the power of sin, so that what was promised through faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. | But Scripture has locked up everything under the control of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe. |
| You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the Lord your God with which I am charging you. | Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the Lord your God that I give you. |
| Woe to you who strive with your Maker, earthen vessels with the potter! Does the clay say to the one who fashions it, “What are you making”? or “Your work has no handles”? | Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’? |
