But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then. | But many who are first will be last, and the last first. |
On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me!” | On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.” |
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Then Jesus shouted, “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!” And with those words he breathed his last. | Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last. |
He sat down, called the twelve disciples over to him, and said, “Whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else.” | And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” |
Who has done such mighty deeds, summoning each new generation from the beginning of time? It is I, the Lord, the First and the Last. I alone am he. | Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, the first, and with the last; I am he. |
But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and he will stand upon the earth at last. | For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. |
They told you that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to satisfy their ungodly desires. These people are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They follow their natural instincts because they do not have God’s Spirit in them. | They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.” It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. |
For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! | For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. |
Evil people get rich for the moment, but the reward of the godly will last. | The wicked earns deceptive wages, but one who sows righteousness gets a sure reward. |
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live. I will praise my God to my last breath! | I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being. |
Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love. | So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. |
For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning. | For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning. |
Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised. | Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. |
“The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!” | The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel. |
For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God. | Since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God. |
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. | Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is deemed a forest. |
Dear brothers and sisters, I close my letter with these last words: Be joyful. Grow to maturity. Encourage each other. Live in harmony and peace. Then the God of love and peace will be with you. | Finally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. |
So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. | As we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. |
Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib, and he brought her to the man. “At last!” the man exclaimed. “This one is bone from my bone, and flesh from my flesh! She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken from ‘man.’” This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one. | And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. |
All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. | Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. |
You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name. | You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. |
Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true wisdom. All who obey his commandments will grow in wisdom. Praise him forever! | The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever! |
This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” | For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” |