Isaiah 58:1-12
English Standard Version Anglicised
True and False Fasting
58 “Cry aloud; do not hold back;
(A)lift up your voice like a trumpet;
(B)declare to my people their transgression,
to the house of Jacob their sins.
2 (C)Yet they seek me daily
and delight to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that did righteousness
and did not forsake the judgement of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgements;
they delight to draw near to God.
3 (D)‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’
Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,[a]
(E)and oppress all your workers.
4 Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high.
5 (F)Is such the fast that I choose,
(G)a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 “Is not this the fast that I choose:
(H)to loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps (I)of the yoke,
to let the oppressed[b] go free,
and to break every yoke?
7 Is it not (J)to share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
(K)and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
8 (L)Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
(M)and your healing shall spring up speedily;
(N)your righteousness shall go before you;
(O)the glory of the Lord shall be your rearguard.
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away (P)the yoke from your midst,
(Q)the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
10 (R)if you pour yourself out for the hungry
and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
(S)then shall your light rise in the darkness
and your gloom be as the noonday.
11 And the Lord will guide you continually
and satisfy your desire in scorched places
and make your bones strong;
and you shall be (T)like a watered garden,
like a spring of water,
whose waters do not fail.
12 (U)And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;
you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
you shall be called the repairer of the breach,
the restorer of streets to dwell in.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 58:3 Or pursue your own business
- Isaiah 58:6 Or bruised
2 Corinthians 8:1-5
English Standard Version Anglicised
Encouragement to Give Generously
8 We want you to know, brothers,[a] about the grace of God that has been (A)given among the churches of Macedonia, 2 for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and (B)their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For they gave (C)according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, 4 begging us earnestly (D)for the favour[b] of taking part in (E)the relief of the saints— 5 and this, not as we expected, but they (F)gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 2 Corinthians 8:1 Or brothers and sisters
- 2 Corinthians 8:4 The Greek word charis can mean favour or grace or thanks, depending on the context
Matthew 6:19-21
English Standard Version Anglicised
Lay Up Treasures in Heaven
19 (A)“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where (B)moth and rust[a] destroy and where thieves (C)break in and steal, 20 (D)but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 6:19 Or worm; also verse 20
Matthew 6:24
English Standard Version Anglicised
24 (A)“No one can serve two masters, for 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 God and (B)money.[a]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 6:24 Greek mammon, a Semitic word for money or possessions
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.