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John 2:1-11
New International Version
John 2:1-11
New International Version
Jesus Changes Water Into Wine
2 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee.(A) Jesus’ mother(B) was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”
4 “Woman,[a](C) why do you involve me?”(D) Jesus replied. “My hour(E) has not yet come.”
5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”(F)
6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing,(G) each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.[b]
7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.
8 Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”
They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine.(H) He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”
11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs(I) through which he revealed his glory;(J) and his disciples believed in him.(K)
James 3:1-12
New International Version
James 3:1-12
New International Version
Taming the Tongue
3 Not many of you should become teachers,(A) my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged(B) more strictly.(C) 2 We all stumble(D) in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say(E) is perfect,(F) able to keep their whole body in check.(G)
3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal.(H) 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts.(I) Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire,(J) a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body,(K) sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.(L)
7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.(M)
9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness.(N) 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. 11 Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs?(O) Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.
Ecclesiastes 4
New International Version
Ecclesiastes 4
New International Version
Oppression, Toil, Friendlessness
4 Again I looked and saw all the oppression(A) that was taking place under the sun:
I saw the tears of the oppressed—
and they have no comforter;
power was on the side of their oppressors—
and they have no comforter.(B)
2 And I declared that the dead,(C)
who had already died,
are happier than the living,
who are still alive.(D)
3 But better than both
is the one who has never been born,(E)
who has not seen the evil
that is done under the sun.(F)
4 And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.(G)
5 Fools fold their hands(H)
and ruin themselves.
6 Better one handful with tranquillity
than two handfuls with toil(I)
and chasing after the wind.
7 Again I saw something meaningless under the sun:
8 There was a man all alone;
he had neither son nor brother.
There was no end to his toil,
yet his eyes were not content(J) with his wealth.
“For whom am I toiling,” he asked,
“and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?”
This too is meaningless—
a miserable business!
9 Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor:
10 If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
11 Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
12 Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
Advancement Is Meaningless
13 Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to heed a warning. 14 The youth may have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in poverty within his kingdom. 15 I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king’s successor. 16 There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
Jeremiah 12-13
New International Version
Jeremiah 12-13
New International Version
Jeremiah’s Complaint
12 You are always righteous,(A) Lord,
when I bring a case(B) before you.
Yet I would speak with you about your justice:(C)
Why does the way of the wicked prosper?(D)
Why do all the faithless live at ease?
2 You have planted(E) them, and they have taken root;
they grow and bear fruit.(F)
You are always on their lips
but far from their hearts.(G)
3 Yet you know me, Lord;
you see me and test(H) my thoughts about you.
Drag them off like sheep(I) to be butchered!
Set them apart for the day of slaughter!(J)
4 How long will the land lie parched(K)
and the grass in every field be withered?(L)
Because those who live in it are wicked,
the animals and birds have perished.(M)
Moreover, the people are saying,
“He will not see what happens to us.”
God’s Answer
5 “If you have raced with men on foot
and they have worn you out,
how can you compete with horses?
If you stumble[a] in safe country,
how will you manage in the thickets(N) by[b] the Jordan?
6 Your relatives, members of your own family—
even they have betrayed you;
they have raised a loud cry against you.(O)
Do not trust them,
though they speak well of you.(P)
7 “I will forsake(Q) my house,
abandon(R) my inheritance;
I will give the one I love(S)
into the hands of her enemies.(T)
8 My inheritance has become to me
like a lion(U) in the forest.
She roars at me;
therefore I hate her.(V)
9 Has not my inheritance become to me
like a speckled bird of prey
that other birds of prey surround and attack?
Go and gather all the wild beasts;
bring them to devour.(W)
10 Many shepherds(X) will ruin my vineyard
and trample down my field;
they will turn my pleasant field
into a desolate wasteland.(Y)
11 It will be made a wasteland,(Z)
parched and desolate before me;(AA)
the whole land will be laid waste
because there is no one who cares.
12 Over all the barren heights in the desert
destroyers will swarm,
for the sword(AB) of the Lord(AC) will devour(AD)
from one end of the land to the other;(AE)
no one will be safe.(AF)
13 They will sow wheat but reap thorns;
they will wear themselves out but gain nothing.(AG)
They will bear the shame of their harvest
because of the Lord’s fierce anger.”(AH)
14 This is what the Lord says: “As for all my wicked neighbors who seize the inheritance(AI) I gave my people Israel, I will uproot(AJ) them from their lands and I will uproot(AK) the people of Judah from among them. 15 But after I uproot them, I will again have compassion(AL) and will bring(AM) each of them back to their own inheritance and their own country. 16 And if they learn(AN) well the ways of my people and swear by my name, saying, ‘As surely as the Lord lives’(AO)—even as they once taught my people to swear by Baal(AP)—then they will be established among my people.(AQ) 17 But if any nation does not listen, I will completely uproot and destroy(AR) it,” declares the Lord.
A Linen Belt
13 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy a linen belt and put it around your waist, but do not let it touch water.” 2 So I bought a belt, as the Lord directed, and put it around my waist.
3 Then the word of the Lord came to me a second time:(AS) 4 “Take the belt you bought and are wearing around your waist, and go now to Perath[c](AT) and hide it there in a crevice in the rocks.” 5 So I went and hid it at Perath, as the Lord told me.(AU)
6 Many days later the Lord said to me, “Go now to Perath and get the belt I told you to hide there.” 7 So I went to Perath and dug up the belt and took it from the place where I had hidden it, but now it was ruined and completely useless.
8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9 “This is what the Lord says: ‘In the same way I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride(AV) of Jerusalem. 10 These wicked people, who refuse to listen(AW) to my words, who follow the stubbornness of their hearts(AX) and go after other gods(AY) to serve and worship them,(AZ) will be like this belt—completely useless!(BA) 11 For as a belt is bound around the waist, so I bound all the people of Israel and all the people of Judah to me,’ declares the Lord, ‘to be my people for my renown(BB) and praise and honor.(BC) But they have not listened.’(BD)
Wineskins
12 “Say to them: ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Every wineskin should be filled with wine.’ And if they say to you, ‘Don’t we know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’ 13 then tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am going to fill with drunkenness(BE) all who live in this land, including the kings who sit on David’s throne, the priests, the prophets and all those living in Jerusalem. 14 I will smash them one against the other, parents and children alike, declares the Lord. I will allow no pity(BF) or mercy or compassion(BG) to keep me from destroying(BH) them.’”
Threat of Captivity
15 Hear and pay attention,
do not be arrogant,
for the Lord has spoken.(BI)
16 Give glory(BJ) to the Lord your God
before he brings the darkness,
before your feet stumble(BK)
on the darkening hills.
You hope for light,
but he will turn it to utter darkness
and change it to deep gloom.(BL)
17 If you do not listen,(BM)
I will weep in secret
because of your pride;
my eyes will weep bitterly,
overflowing with tears,(BN)
because the Lord’s flock(BO) will be taken captive.(BP)
18 Say to the king(BQ) and to the queen mother,(BR)
“Come down from your thrones,
for your glorious crowns(BS)
will fall from your heads.”
19 The cities in the Negev will be shut up,
and there will be no one to open them.
All Judah(BT) will be carried into exile,
carried completely away.
20 Look up and see
those who are coming from the north.(BU)
Where is the flock(BV) that was entrusted to you,
the sheep of which you boasted?
21 What will you say when the Lord sets over you
those you cultivated as your special allies?(BW)
Will not pain grip you
like that of a woman in labor?(BX)
22 And if you ask yourself,
“Why has this happened to me?”(BY)—
it is because of your many sins(BZ)
that your skirts have been torn off(CA)
and your body mistreated.(CB)
23 Can an Ethiopian[d] change his skin
or a leopard its spots?
Neither can you do good
who are accustomed to doing evil.(CC)
24 “I will scatter you like chaff(CD)
driven by the desert wind.(CE)
25 This is your lot,
the portion(CF) I have decreed for you,”
declares the Lord,
“because you have forgotten(CG) me
and trusted in false gods.(CH)
26 I will pull up your skirts over your face
that your shame may be seen(CI)—
27 your adulteries and lustful neighings,
your shameless prostitution!(CJ)
I have seen your detestable acts
on the hills and in the fields.(CK)
Woe to you, Jerusalem!
How long will you be unclean?”(CL)
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 12:5 Or you feel secure only
- Jeremiah 12:5 Or the flooding of
- Jeremiah 13:4 Or possibly to the Euphrates; similarly in verses 5-7
- Jeremiah 13:23 Hebrew Cushite (probably a person from the upper Nile region)
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
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