| Blessed be the Lord, day after day, the God of our salvation, who carries our burden. Selah | Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. |
| Speak out and pronounce righteous judgments; defend the rights of the wretched and the poor. | Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy. |
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| A perverse man sows strife, and a tale-bearer destroys close friendships. | A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends. |
| Let no foul word ever pass your lips. Say only what is useful for edification, so that your words may benefit your listeners. | Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. |
| “All things are lawful,” you may say—but not all things are beneficial. All things may be lawful—but not all things are constructive. | “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. |
| Where can I go to hide from your spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend to the heavens, you are there; if I take my rest in the netherworld, you are also there. | Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. |
| When you fix your gaze upon it, it is gone before you realize it. For it suddenly sprouts wings and flies up to the sky like an eagle. | Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle. |
| The brother who is in modest circumstances should take pride in being raised up. Likewise, the one who is rich should glory in being brought low, for he will disappear like a flower of the field. | Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower. |
| And now it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. The life I live now in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself up for me. | I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. |
| They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and offered worship and service to the creature rather than to the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful passions. Their women exchanged natural intercourse for unnatural practices. Likewise, men gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another. Men committed shameful acts with men and received in their own persons the fitting penalty for their perversion. Furthermore, since these people did not see fit to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their depraved way of thinking and to all types of vile behavior. | They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error. Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. |
| Therefore, put on the armor of God, so that you will be able to hold fast on the evil day and to hold your ground with all your strength. | Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. |
| If your brother wrongs you, go and take up the matter with him when the two of you are alone. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. | If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. |
| The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me because the Lord has anointed me. He has sent me to announce good news to the oppressed, to strengthen the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom to those held in captivity and release to those who have been imprisoned. | The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners. |
| Joseph therefore went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David. He went to be registered together with Mary, his betrothed, who was expecting a child. | So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. |
| If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, then the one who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwells in you. | And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. |
| Speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves, and defend the rights of the destitute. | Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. |
| Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, so that at the proper time he may exalt you. | Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. |
| The one who leads a blameless life and does what is right, who speaks the truth from the heart and does not slander anyone, who does not harm a friend and does not scorn a neighbor. | The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart; whose tongue utters no slander, who does no wrong to a neighbor, and casts no slur on others. |
| Like newborn infants, long for pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may advance on the path to salvation. | Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation. |
| The words of a wise man win favor, but a fool’s tongue is his undoing. | Words from the mouth of the wise are gracious, but fools are consumed by their own lips. |
| Woe to anyone who rises up against his Maker, or to the pot that is displeased with the potter. Does the clay say to the one who molds it, “What are you doing? Your work makes no sense.” | Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’? |
| O Lord, at daybreak you hear my voice; at daybreak I bring my petition before you and await your reply. | In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly. |
| For just as in one body we have many parts, and the parts do not all have the same function, so we, though many, make up one body in Christ, and individually we are all parts of one another. | For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. |
| Come to your senses and sin no more. For some of you have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame. | 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. |
| If you heed the voice of the Lord, your God, and you carefully observe all of the commandments that I have given you today, then the Lord, your God, will lift you up above all the other nations upon the earth. | If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. |
