My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate before the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.
He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
By this we can be sure that we have come to know Him: if we keep His commandments.
If anyone says, “I know Him,” but does not keep His commandments, he is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
But if anyone keeps His word, the love of God has been truly perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him:
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And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be offered for everyone—
for kings and all those in authority—so that we may lead tranquil and quiet lives in all godliness and dignity.
This is good and pleasing in the sight of God our Savior,
who wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,
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When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.
Suddenly a sound like a mighty rushing wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.
They saw tongues like flames of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.
. . .
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews.
He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs You are doing if God were not with him.”
Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”
“How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time to be born?”
Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
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Woe to you Pharisees! You pay tithes of mint, rue, and every herb, but you disregard justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former.
Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
And He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day,
and in His name repentance and forgiveness of sins will be proclaimed to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.
On the first day of the second month of the second year after the Israelites had come out of the land of Egypt, the LORD spoke to Moses in the Tent of Meeting in the Wilderness of Sinai. He said:
“Take a census of the whole congregation of Israel by their clans and families, listing every man by name, one by one.
You and Aaron are to number those who are twenty years of age or older by their divisions—everyone who can serve in Israel’s army.
And one man from each tribe, the head of each family, must be there with you.
These are the names of the men who are to assist you: From the tribe of Reuben, Elizur son of Shedeur;
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For You formed my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works, and I know this very well.
My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed body; all my days were written in Your book and ordained for me before one of them came to be.
These were the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun,
Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
The sons of Judah: Er, Onan, and Shelah. These three were born to him by Bath-shua the Canaanite. Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the LORD, who put him to death.
Tamar, Judah’s daughter-in-law, bore to him Perez and Zerah. Judah had five sons in all.
The sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul.
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When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.
For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.
My message and my preaching were not with persuasive words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power,
so that your faith would not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.
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Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander.
Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,
now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
As you come to Him, the living stone, rejected by men but chosen and precious in God’s sight,
you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
. . .
But thanks be to God, who always leads us triumphantly as captives in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.
For we are to God the sweet aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.
To the one, we are an odor of death and demise; to the other, a fragrance that brings life. And who is qualified for such a task?
For we are not like so many others, who peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, as men sent from God.
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you?
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After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel.
Now Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria and injured himself. So he sent messengers and instructed them: “Go inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I will recover from this injury.”
But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are on your way to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?’
Therefore this is what the LORD says: ‘You will not get up from the bed on which you are lying. You will surely die.’” So Elijah departed.
When the messengers returned to the king, he asked them, “Why have you returned?”
. . .
After the death of Saul, David returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites and stayed in Ziklag two days.
On the third day a man with torn clothes and dust on his head arrived from Saul’s camp. When he came to David, he fell to the ground to pay him homage.
“Where have you come from?” David asked. “I have escaped from the Israelite camp,” he replied.
“What was the outcome?” David asked. “Please tell me.” “The troops fled from the battle,” he replied. “Many of them fell and died. And Saul and his son Jonathan are also dead.”
Then David asked the young man who had brought him the report, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?”
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And when your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom.
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
We are obligated to thank God for you all the time, brothers, as is fitting, because your faith is growing more and more, and your love for one another is increasing.
That is why we boast among God’s churches about your perseverance and faith in the face of all the persecution and affliction you are enduring.
All this is clear evidence of God’s righteous judgment. And so you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering.
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Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace and peace to you from God our Father.
We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,
because we have heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all the saints—
the faith and love proceeding from the hope stored up for you in heaven, of which you have already heard in the word of truth, the gospel
. . .
And God spoke all these words:
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
You shall have no other gods before Me.
You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath.
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,
. . .
Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who only feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed their flock?
You eat the fat, wear the wool, and butcher the fattened sheep, but you do not feed the flock.
You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bound up the injured, brought back the strays, or searched for the lost. Instead, you have ruled them with violence and cruelty.
They were scattered for lack of a shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild beasts.
. . .
And Adam had relations with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain. “With the help of the LORD I have brought forth a man,” she said.
Later she gave birth to Cain’s brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, while Cain was a tiller of the soil.
So in the course of time, Cain brought some of the fruit of the soil as an offering to the LORD,
while Abel brought the best portions of the firstborn of his flock. And the LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering,
but He had no regard for Cain and his offering. So Cain became very angry, and his countenance fell.
. . .
“As they go forth, they will see the corpses of the men who have rebelled against Me; for their worm will never die, their fire will never be quenched, and they will be a horror to all mankind.”
There is a judge for the one who rejects Me and does not receive My words: The word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.
I have not spoken on My own, but the Father who sent Me has commanded Me what to say and how to say it.
And I know that His command leads to eternal life. So I speak exactly what the Father has told Me to say.”
So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it. Instead, let us cast lots to see who will get it.” This was to fulfill the Scripture: “They divided My garments among them, and cast lots for My clothing.” So that is what the soldiers did.
After this, Jesus crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias).
A large crowd followed Him because they saw the signs He was performing on the sick.
Then Jesus went up on the mountain and sat down with His disciples.
Now the Jewish Feast of the Passover was near.
When Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?”
. . .
But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
Early in the morning He went back into the temple courts. All the people came to Him, and He sat down to teach them.
The scribes and Pharisees, however, brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before them
and said, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery.
In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such a woman. So what do You say?”
. . .
So the sun stood still and the moon stopped until the nation took vengeance upon its enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jashar? “So the sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day.”
Now all the tax collectors and sinners were gathering around to listen to Jesus.
So the Pharisees and scribes began to grumble: “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
Then Jesus told them this parable:
“What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the pasture and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?
And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders,
. . .
Jesus also said to His disciples, “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions.
So he called him in to ask, ‘What is this I hear about you? Turn in an account of your management, for you cannot be manager any longer.’
The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do, now that my master is taking away my position? I am too weak to dig and too ashamed to beg.
I know what I will do, so that after my removal from management, people will welcome me into their homes.’
And he called in each one of his master’s debtors. ‘How much do you owe my master?’ he asked the first.
. . .
Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching,
and the chief priests and scribes were looking for a way to put Jesus to death; for they feared the people.
Then Satan entered Judas Iscariot, who was one of the Twelve.
And Judas went to discuss with the chief priests and temple officers how he might betray Jesus to them.
They were delighted and agreed to give him money.
. . .
On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women came to the tomb, bringing the spices they had prepared.
They found the stone rolled away from the tomb,
but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
While they were puzzling over this, suddenly two men in radiant apparel stood beside them.
As the women bowed their faces to the ground in terror, the two men asked them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?
. . .
“The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.
Suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, rolled away the stone, and sat on it.
His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.
The guards trembled in fear of him and became like dead men.
But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.
. . .
When Jesus came down from the mountain, large crowds followed Him.
Suddenly a leper came and knelt before Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”
Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
Then Jesus instructed him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift prescribed by Moses, as a testimony to them.”
When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came and pleaded with Him,
. . .
Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron:
“The Israelites are to camp around the Tent of Meeting at a distance from it, each man under his standard, with the banners of his family.
On the east side, toward the sunrise, the divisions of Judah are to camp under their standard: The leader of the descendants of Judah is Nahshon son of Amminadab,
and his division numbers 74,600.
The tribe of Issachar will camp next to it. The leader of the Issacharites is Nethanel son of Zuar,
. . .
Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,
“Take a census of the Kohathites among the Levites by their clans and families,
men from thirty to fifty years old—everyone who is qualified to serve in the work at the Tent of Meeting.
This service of the Kohathites at the Tent of Meeting regards the most holy things.
Whenever the camp sets out, Aaron and his sons are to go in, take down the veil of the curtain, and cover the ark of the Testimony with it.
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Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers.
But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.
Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
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For the choirmaster. To the tune of “The Doe of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my words of groaning?
I cry out by day, O my God, but You do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest.
Yet You are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel.
In You our fathers trusted; they trusted and You delivered them.
They cried out to You and were set free; they trusted in You and were not disappointed.
. . .
Many bulls surround me; strong bulls of Bashan encircle me.
They open their jaws against me like lions that roar and maul.
I am poured out like water, and all my bones are disjointed. My heart is like wax; it melts away within me.
My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You lay me in the dust of death.
For dogs surround me; a band of evil men encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet.
. . .
“Sir,” I answered, “you know.” So he replied, “These are the ones who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts.
In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. And a certain man from Bethlehem in Judah, with his wife and two sons, went to reside in the land of Moab.
The man’s name was Elimelech, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah, and they entered the land of Moab and settled there.
Then Naomi’s husband Elimelech died, and she was left with her two sons,
who took Moabite women as their wives, one named Orpah and the other named Ruth. And after they had lived in Moab about ten years,
both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and without her husband.
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In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, saying:
“The LORD was very angry with your fathers.
So tell the people that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Return to Me, declares the LORD of Hosts, and I will return to you, says the LORD of Hosts.’
Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Turn now from your evil ways and deeds.’ But they did not listen or pay attention to Me, declares the LORD.
Where are your fathers now? And the prophets, do they live forever?
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