Here’s your Bible Gateway verse-of-the-day calendar for the month of April. Click each link below to read the verse in your preferred translation — or scroll to the bottom to download the image (or PDF) of all verse references.
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Bible Gateway’s Verses of the Day for April
The Joy Set Before Him: Hebrews 12:2
As Holy Week draws near, Scripture invites you to look more closely at the meaning behind the cross. Hebrews 12:2 (NIV) points not only to what Jesus endured — but why:
… fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
What does it mean that Jesus endured the cross “for the joy set before him”?
The NIV Application Bible (available with Bible Gateway Plus) explains:
“That Jesus ‘scorned’ the shame of the cross means that he treated it as insignificant or of little consequence compared to the joy set before our Lord.”
This insight helps you see the cross more clearly. Jesus did not endure suffering without purpose — he endured it with full awareness of what it would accomplish. The shame of the cross was real, but it was not the final word. Joy was.
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