| Do not make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold. | Remember, you must not make any idols of silver or gold to rival me. |
| But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. | But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord. |
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| “Now then,” said Joshua, “throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.” | “All right then,” Joshua said, “destroy the idols among you, and turn your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.” |
| Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. | But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love. |
| Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. | Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law. |
| And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. | We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. |
| If you love me, keep my commands. | If you love me, obey my commandments. |
| We love because He first loved us. | We love each other because he loved us first. |
| If you really change your ways and your actions and deal with each other justly, if you do not oppress the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow and do not shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm, then I will let you live in this place, in the land I gave your ancestors for ever and ever. | But I will be merciful only if you stop your evil thoughts and deeds and start treating each other with justice; only if you stop exploiting foreigners, orphans, and widows; only if you stop your murdering; and only if you stop harming yourselves by worshiping idols. Then I will let you stay in this land that I gave to your ancestors to keep forever. |
| There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. | Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love. |
| Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. | Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. |
| Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance. | May God give you more and more mercy, peace, and love. |
| Do everything in love. | And do everything with love. |
| And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. | Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love. |
| A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must 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. |
| Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. | Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. |
| No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. | No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us. |
| Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. | Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. |
| Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. | If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? |
| If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. | When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. |
| Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs. | Hatred stirs up quarrels, but love makes up for all offenses. |
| My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. | This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. |
| And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ | A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ |
| Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. | Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. |
| Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. | Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. |
