There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. The one who fears has not been perfected in love.

Now for the matters you wrote about: It is good to abstain from sexual relations. But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband. The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife. Do not deprive each other, except by mutual consent and for a time, so you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again, so that Satan will not tempt you through your lack of self-control. . . .

Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.

But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he lacks nothing of value.

Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you believe in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

This is what the LORD says: “Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind, who makes the flesh his strength and turns his heart from the LORD.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Loving devotion and faithfulness have joined together; righteousness and peace have kissed.

But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him.

It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband. But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife.

But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, brings adultery upon her. And he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

So if you have not been faithful with worldly wealth, who will entrust you with true riches?

But if the unbeliever leaves, let him go. The believing brother or sister is not bound in such cases. God has called you to live in peace.

No one can serve two masters: Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

Then some Pharisees came and tested Him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?”

“For I hate divorce,” says the LORD, the God of Israel. “He who divorces his wife covers his garment with violence,” says the LORD of Hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit and do not break faith.

But Jesus overheard their conversation and said to Jairus, “Do not be afraid; just believe.”

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!

James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes of the Dispersion: Greetings. Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you encounter trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Allow perseverance to finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. . . .

Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a man can commit is outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.

An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, having children who are believers and who are not open to accusation of indiscretion or insubordination.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

Put not your trust in princes, in mortal man, who cannot save. When his spirit departs, he returns to the ground; on that very day his plans perish. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God,

Which of you, wishing to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost to see if he has the resources to complete it?

Precious treasures and oil are in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish man consumes them.

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?

But the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to wipe out all memory of them from the earth. The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears; He delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is near to the brokenhearted; He saves the contrite in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him from them all.

Husbands, in the same way, treat your wives with consideration as a delicate vessel, and with honor as fellow heirs of the gracious gift of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.

Then some Pharisees came and tested Him by asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason?” Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.” “Why then,” they asked, “did Moses order a man to give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?” . . .

The LORD God also said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make for him a suitable helper.”

It has also been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, brings adultery upon her. And he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.

Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope.

I have not allowed my mouth to sin by asking for his life with a curse—

The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.

Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, His body, of which He is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, . . .

But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him. He is like a tree planted by the waters that sends out its roots toward the stream. It does not fear when the heat comes, and its leaves are always green. It does not worry in a year of drought, nor does it cease to produce fruit.

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Whoever heeds instruction will find success, and blessed is he who trusts in the LORD.

Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”

When I am afraid, I put my trust in You. In God, whose word I praise—in God I trust. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for God has said: “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.”

The fear of man is a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is set securely on high.

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, . . .

Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will do it.

My salvation and my honor rest on God, my strong rock; my refuge is in God.

Those who know Your name trust in You, for You, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.

A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown, but she who causes shame is like decay in his bones.

And this is the confidence that we have before Him: If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.

By faith Sarah, even though she was barren and beyond the proper age, was enabled to conceive a child, because she considered Him faithful who had promised. And so from one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.

So we say with confidence: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

You will keep in perfect peace the steadfast of mind, because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, because GOD the LORD is the Rock eternal.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze.

Jesus answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”

Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

Let me hear Your loving devotion in the morning, for I have put my trust in You. Teach me the way I should walk, for to You I lift up my soul.

And Saul was there, giving approval to Stephen’s death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. God-fearing men buried Stephen and mourned deeply over him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ to them. . . .

with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, and with diligence to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD.

May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth: A loving doe, a graceful fawn—may her breasts satisfy you always; may you be captivated by her love forever.

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

For we walk by faith, not by sight.

And though one may be overpowered, two can resist. Moreover, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Yet you ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have broken faith, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. Has not the LORD made them one, having a portion of the Spirit? And why one? Because He seeks godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.

If your brother sins against you, go and confront him privately. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, regard him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.

Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns—and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Commit your works to the LORD and your plans will be achieved.

Never let loving devotion or faithfulness leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will find favor and high regard in the sight of God and man.

He will not allow your foot to slip; your Protector will not slumber.

Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but loving devotion surrounds him who trusts in the LORD.

And we have come to know and believe the love that God has for us. God is love; whoever abides in love abides in God, and God in him.

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

But he must ask in faith, without doubting, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.

And my God will supply all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;

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.

In God, whose word I praise—in God I trust. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

Whom have I in heaven but You? And on earth I desire no one besides You.

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, “You are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly plague. He will cover you with His feathers; under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, . . .

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, “You are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband.

Then Moses went back to his father-in-law Jethro and said to him, “Please let me return to my brothers in Egypt to see if they are still alive.” “Go in peace,” Jethro replied. Now the LORD had said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who sought to kill you are dead.” So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey, and headed back to Egypt. And he took the staff of God in his hand. The LORD instructed Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders that I have put within your power. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go. Then tell Pharaoh that this is what the LORD says: ‘Israel is My firstborn son, . . .

You will keep in perfect peace the steadfast of mind, because he trusts in You.

Houses and wealth are inherited from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the LORD.

A song of ascents. Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion. It cannot be moved; it abides forever.

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every creature that crawls upon the earth.”

For your husband is your Maker—the LORD of Hosts is His name—the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; He is called the God of all the earth.

The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call out to Him in truth.