| Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. | Beloved, don’t believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. |
| This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. | By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit who confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, and every spirit who doesn’t confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God; and this is the spirit of the Antichrist, of whom you have heard that it comes. Now it is in the world already. |
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| I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father. | I came from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the Father. |
| Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. | Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion! Shout, daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King comes to you! He is righteous, and having salvation; lowly, and riding on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. |
| But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. | Nevertheless I tell you the truth: It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I don’t go away, the Counselor won’t come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. |
| Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely, who conduct their affairs with justice. | It is well with the man who deals graciously and lends. He will maintain his cause in judgment. |
| 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. | Let no one therefore judge you in eating or drinking, or with respect to a feast day or a new moon or a Sabbath day, which are a shadow of the things to come; but the body is Christ’s. |
| Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God—I say this to your shame. | Wake up righteously and don’t sin, for some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame. |
| Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? | Examine your own selves, whether you are in the faith. Test your own selves. Or don’t you know about your own selves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified. |
| “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.” | “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.” |
| 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.” | Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him.” |
| But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold. My feet have closely followed his steps; I have kept to his way without turning aside. | But he knows the way that I take. When he has tried me, I will come out like gold. My foot has held fast to his steps. I have kept his way, and not turned away. |
| Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. | Don’t deprive one another, unless it is by consent for a season, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer, and may be together again, that Satan doesn’t tempt you because of your lack of self-control. |
| Lord, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief. | Hear my prayer, Yahweh. Listen to my petitions. In your faithfulness and righteousness, relieve me. |
| Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy. | Open your mouth, judge righteously, and serve justice to the poor and needy. |
| Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me. | Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yes, these may forget, yet I will not forget you! Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands. Your walls are continually before me. |
| Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. | Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age, or in that which is to come. |
| So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. | Therefore also be ready, for in an hour that you don’t expect, the Son of Man will come. |
| For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. | For the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost. |
| “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? For it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.) | He said to them, “Are you also without understanding? Don’t you perceive that whatever goes into the man from outside can’t defile him, because it doesn’t go into his heart, but into his stomach, then into the latrine, making all foods clean?” |
| Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! | Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new. |
| However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband. | Nevertheless each of you must also love his own wife even as himself; and let the wife see that she respects her husband. |
| Repent at my rebuke! Then I will pour out my thoughts to you, I will make known to you my teachings. | Turn at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make known my words to you. |
| But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. | But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, being small among the clans of Judah, out of you one will come out to me who is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings out are from of old, from ancient times. |
| From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” | From that time, Jesus began to preach, and to say, “Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” |
