Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. | Blessed is the one whose offense is forgiven, whose sin is erased. |
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage! | Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage. |
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Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord! | Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in accord with the law of the Lord. |
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. | O Lord, you grant peace to those who are steadfast because of their trust in you. |
In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me? | In God, whose word I praise, in God I place my trust and know no fear; what can people do to me? |
But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. | But from you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, among the tiniest of the clans of Judah, from you will come forth for me one who is to be a ruler in Israel, one whose origins are from the distant past, from ancient times. |
For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.” | For thus says the One who is high and exalted, who lives eternally and whose name is holy: I dwell in a high and holy place but I am with the contrite and the humble, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite. |
I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. | I baptize you with water for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is more powerful than I am. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. |
This also comes from the Lord of hosts; he is wonderful in counsel and excellent in wisdom. | All this knowledge comes from the Lord of hosts whose counsel is wonderful and whose wisdom is great. |
And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. | If it seems wrong to you to serve the Lord, then today you must choose whom you will serve, whether it be the gods that your fathers served on the other side of the river, or the gods of the Amorites who dwell in the land. As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. |
Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit. | Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and whose hope is the Lord. They will be like a tree planted by the water that spreads out its roots to the stream. When the heat comes, it does not fear; its leaves stay green. It is not concerned in a year of drought, and it never fails to bear fruit. |
As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. | Welcome anyone whose faith is weak, but do not get into arguments about doubts. |
A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls. | Like a city that has been breached and made defenseless is the man devoid of self-control. |
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. | Blessed are the pure of heart, for they will see God. |
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. | He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live in righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. |
Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, for all his works are right and his ways are just; and those who walk in pride he is able to humble. | Therefore, now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven. For all of his works are right, and all of his ways are just. Also, he is able to humble all those who follow the path of pride. |
When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. | The righteous call out, and the Lord hears them; he rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord remains close to the brokenhearted, and he saves those whose spirit is crushed. |
He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth in his heart; who does not slander with his tongue and does no evil to his neighbor, nor takes up a reproach against his friend. | The one who leads a blameless life and does what is right, who speaks the truth from the heart and does not slander anyone, who does not harm a friend and does not scorn a neighbor. |
He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk in integrity. | He reserves his wisdom for the upright and is a shield to those who lead blameless lives. |
Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love. | But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those who trust in his kindness. |
Sing to God, sing praises to his name; lift up a song to him who rides through the deserts; his name is the Lord; exult before him! Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. | Sing to God, sing praise to his name; exalt him who rides upon the clouds. Rejoice in the presence of this God whose name is the Lord. The Father of orphans and the defender of widows: such is God in his holy dwelling place. |
Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city. | It is better to be a patient man rather than a warrior, one who controls his temper rather than one who captures a city. |
And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. | And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a sacrificial offering whose fragrance is pleasing to God. |
And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.” | And God said, “Behold, I give you every plant that produces seeds upon the earth and every tree that has fruit with its seed inside of it: these shall be your food.” |
Do not envy a man of violence and do not choose any of his ways, for the devious person is an abomination to the Lord, but the upright are in his confidence. | Do not envy a violent man or choose to emulate any of his ways. For the perverse man is an abomination to the Lord whose friendship is bestowed only upon the upright. |