| This is a symbol of baptism, which now saves you—not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. | And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. |
| For I say through the grace that was given me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think; but to think reasonably, as God has apportioned to each person a measure of faith. | Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. |
| But let justice roll on like rivers, and righteousness like a mighty stream. | Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living. |
| Blessed is the man who trusts in Yahweh, and whose confidence is in Yahweh. For he will be as a tree planted by the waters, who spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes, but its leaf will be green, and will not be concerned in the year of drought. It won’t cease from yielding fruit. | But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit. |
| A second likewise is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ | A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ |
| As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. | He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. |
| As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them, even as on us at the beginning. | “As I began to speak,” Peter continued, “the Holy Spirit fell on them, just as he fell on us at the beginning.” |
| I have rejoiced in the way of your testimonies, as much as in all riches. | I have rejoiced in your laws as much as in riches. |
| I spread out my hands to you. My soul thirsts for you, like a parched land. Selah. | I lift my hands to you in prayer. I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for rain. |
| But now he has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as he is also the mediator of a better covenant, which on better promises has been given as law. | But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises. |
| There remains therefore a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For he who has entered into his rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from his. | So there is a special rest still waiting for the people of God. For all who have entered into God’s rest have rested from their labors, just as God did after creating the world. |
| I will sing to Yahweh as long as I live. I will sing praise to my God while I have any being. | I will sing to the Lord as long as I live. I will praise my God to my last breath! |
| If it is possible, as much as it is up to you, be at peace with all men. | Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. |
| For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God; being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. | For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. |
| For as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, being many, are one body; so also is Christ. | The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. |
| For you will bless the righteous. Yahweh, you will surround him with favor as with a shield. | For you bless the godly, O Lord; you surround them with your shield of love. |
| “Come now, and let’s reason together,” says Yahweh: “Though your sins are as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” | “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.” |
| However, for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first, Jesus Christ might display all his patience for an example of those who were going to believe in him for eternal life. | But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life. |
| As sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing and yet possessing all things. | Our hearts ache, but we always have joy. We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing, and yet we have everything. |
| In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins. | This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. |
| Therefore be merciful, even as your Father is also merciful. | You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate. |
| Yahweh, the Lord, is my strength. He makes my feet like deer’s feet, and enables me to go in high places. | The Sovereign Lord is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights. |
| A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also love one another. | So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. |
| Until the Spirit is poured on us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is considered a forest. | Until at last the Spirit is poured out on us from heaven. Then the wilderness will become a fertile field, and the fertile field will yield bountiful crops. |
| Yahweh restored Job’s prosperity when he prayed for his friends. Yahweh gave Job twice as much as he had before. | When Job prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes. In fact, the Lord gave him twice as much as before! |
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