| Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. | Therefore, take care to live as intelligent people, and do not be like those who are senseless. Make the most of the present time, for this is a wicked age. |
| Till the Spirit is poured on us from on high, and the desert becomes a fertile field, and the fertile field seems like a forest. | Until a spirit from on high is poured out upon us, and the wilderness becomes an orchard and the fruitful field becomes a forest. |
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| My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. | This is my commandment: love one another as I have loved you. |
| Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. | Remain sober and alert, for your enemy the devil is on the prowl like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. |
| As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him. | But as for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and therefore you do not need anyone to teach you. This same anointing teaches you everything and is true and not false, so abide in him just as he taught you. |
| It is written: ‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’ | For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow before me, and every tongue shall give praise to God.” |
| Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. | Nor should you present any part of your body as an instrument for wickedness leading to sin. Rather, present yourselves to God as having been raised from death to life and the parts of your body to God as instruments for righteousness. |
| As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. | As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the wits of his neighbor. |
| For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. | Just as in Adam all die, so all will be brought to life in Christ. |
| I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. | I love the Lord because he has heard my voice and listened to my cry for mercy, because he has inclined his ear to me on the day when I called out to him. |
| For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. | For just as in one body we have many parts, and the parts do not all have the same function, so we, though many, make up one body in Christ, and individually we are all parts of one another. |
| After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and 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.” |
| 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. |
| Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower. | The brother who is in modest circumstances should take pride in being raised up. Likewise, the one who is rich should glory in being brought low, for he will disappear like a flower of the field. |
| Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” | “Peace be with you,” Jesus said to them again. “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” |
| For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” | In it the righteousness of God is revealed, beginning in faith and established in faith. As it is written: “The one who is righteous will live through faith.” |
| Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. | Make every effort to present yourself before God as one who is worthy of his approval, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, but who imparts the word of truth without any alteration. |
| Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. | Therefore, accept one another for the glory of God, just as Christ has accepted you. |
| Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. | Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, just as Christ is the head of the Church, the body of which he is the Savior. |
| I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. | I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. |
| There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called. | There is one body and one Spirit, as well as one hope to which you have been called by your vocation. |
| 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 in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises. | But Jesus has now received a ministry that is far superior, for he is the mediator of a far better covenant that has been established on better promises. |
| For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. | For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tested in every respect as we are, but without sinning. |
| A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy person keeps a secret. | One who gossips reveals secrets, but a trustworthy man keeps things hidden. |
