| But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to make this freewill offering? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. | But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand. |
| If you refrain from trampling the sabbath, from pursuing your own interests on my holy day; if you call the sabbath a delight and the holy day of the Lord honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, serving your own interests, or pursuing your own affairs; then you shall take delight in the Lord, and I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of your ancestor Jacob, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. | “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken. |
| So acknowledge today and take to heart that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. | Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other. |
| He who finds a wife finds a good thing, and obtains favor from the Lord. | He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord. |
| Because if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. | If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. |
| Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. | Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. |
| The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, all that he has is in your power; only do not stretch out your hand against him!” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord. | The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.” Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord. |
| All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being. | Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. |
| The young lions suffer want and hunger, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. | The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. |
| Do not forsake your friend or the friend of your parent; do not go to the house of your kindred in the day of your calamity. Better is a neighbor who is nearby than kindred who are far away. | Do not forsake your friend or a friend of your family, and do not go to your relative’s house when disaster strikes you— better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away. |
| Do not let loyalty and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and of people. | Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. |
| But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. | But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. |
| “All things are lawful,” but not all things are beneficial. “All things are lawful,” but not all things build up. | “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. |
| You may say to yourself, “How can we recognize a word that the Lord has not spoken?” If a prophet speaks in the name of the Lord but the thing does not take place or prove true, it is a word that the Lord has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; do not be frightened by it. | You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the Lord?” If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously, so do not be alarmed. |
| For not by their own sword did they win the land, nor did their own arm give them victory; but your right hand, and your arm, and the light of your countenance, for you delighted in them. | It was not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them victory; it was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you loved them. |
| Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. | Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. |
| For the same reason you also pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, busy with this very thing. | This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. |
| But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. | But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. |
| So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. | So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. |
| Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. | Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. |
| Observe the sabbath day and keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work—you, or your son or your daughter, or your male or female slave, or your ox or your donkey, or any of your livestock, or the resident alien in your towns, so that your male and female slave may rest as well as you. | Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns, so that your male and female servants may rest, as you do. |
| Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels? | Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? |
| If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. | Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. |
| It does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. | Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. |
| Do not deceive yourselves. If you think that you are wise in this age, you should become fools so that you may become wise. | Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. |
Bible verse of the day
Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquityand passing over the transgression
of the remnant of your possession?
He does not retain his anger forever,
because he delights in showing clemency.