As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. | I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God. But someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not worthy even to be his slave and carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. |
Paul said, “John baptized with a baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” | Paul said, “John’s baptism called for repentance from sin. But John himself told the people to believe in the one who would come later, meaning Jesus.” |
And the one who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. | If you refuse to take up your cross and follow me, you are not worthy of being mine. |
Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to reward each one as his work deserves. | Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds. |
I am coming quickly; hold firmly to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. | I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown. |
He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. | He who is the faithful witness to all these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon!” Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! |
And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” | Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.” |
Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. | So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. |
And He summoned the crowd together with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.” | Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me.” |
Now, little children, remain in Him, so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not draw back from Him in shame at His coming. | And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame. |
I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you. | No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you. |
The Lord will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in From this time and forever. | The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever. |
Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. | Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. |
For this reason you must be ready as well; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will. | You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected. |
And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup, which is poured out for you, is the new covenant in My blood.” | After supper he took another cup of wine and said, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood, which is poured out as a sacrifice for you.” |
But I have trusted in Your faithfulness; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, Because He has looked after me. | But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. I will sing to the Lord because he is good to me. |
Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen. | Look! He comes with the clouds of heaven. And everyone will see him— even those who pierced him. And all the nations of the world will mourn for him. Yes! Amen! |
But I strictly discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified. | I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified. |
It is a trap for a person to say carelessly, “It is holy!” And after the vows to make inquiry. | Don’t trap yourself by making a rash promise to God and only later counting the cost. |
After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. | In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. |
And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were watching, and a cloud took Him up, out of their sight. | After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. |
So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them. For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. | So if someone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, ‘Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it! For as the lightning flashes in the east and shines to the west, so it will be when the Son of Man comes. |
But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will come forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His times of coming forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity. | But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past, will come from you on my behalf. |
I have seen that every labor and every skill which is done is the result of rivalry between a person and his neighbor. This too is futility and striving after wind. | Then I observed that most people are motivated to success because they envy their neighbors. But this, too, is meaningless—like chasing the wind. |
Then, when they had fasted, prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. | So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands on them and sent them on their way. |