2 Corinthians 12:9-10

English Standard Version

⁹But he said to me, ^(A)“My grace is sufficient for you, for ^(B)my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that ^(C)the power of Christ may rest upon me. ¹⁰^(D)For the sake of Christ, then, ^(E)I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For ^(F)when I am weak, then I am strong.

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Psalm 1

English Standard Version

Book One

The Way of the Righteous and the Wicked

1 Blessed is the man^[a]
    who ^(A)walks not in ^(B)the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in ^(C)the way of sinners,
    nor ^(D)sits in ^(E)the seat of ^(F)scoffers;
²but his ^(G)delight is in the law^[b] of the Lord,
    and on his ^(H)law he meditates day and night.

³He is like ^(I)a tree
    planted by ^(J)streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
    and its ^(K)leaf does not wither.
^(L)In all that he does, he prospers.
⁴The wicked are not so,
    but are like ^(M)chaff that the wind drives away.

⁵Therefore the wicked ^(N)will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in ^(O)the congregation of the righteous;
⁶for the Lord ^(P)knows ^(Q)the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.

Footnotes

Psalm 1:1 The singular Hebrew word for man (ish) is used here to portray a representative example of a godly person; see Preface
Psalm 1:2 Or instruction

Proverbs 31:10-31

English Standard Version

The Woman Who Fears the Lord

¹⁰^[a] ^(A)An excellent wife who can find?
    She is far more precious than ^(B)jewels.
¹¹The heart of her husband trusts in her,
    and he will have no lack of gain.
¹²She does him good, and not harm,
    all the days of her life.
¹³She ^(C)seeks wool and flax,
    and works with willing hands.
¹⁴She is like the ships of the merchant;
    she brings her food from afar.
¹⁵She ^(D)rises while it is yet night
    and ^(E)provides food for her household
    and portions for her maidens.
¹⁶She considers a field and buys it;
    with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
¹⁷She ^(F)dresses herself^[b] with strength
    and makes her arms strong.
¹⁸She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
    Her lamp does not go out at night.
¹⁹She puts her hands to the distaff,
    and her hands hold the spindle.
²⁰She ^(G)opens her hand to ^(H)the poor
    and reaches out her hands to ^(I)the needy.
²¹She is not afraid of snow for her household,
    for all her household are clothed in ^(J)scarlet.^[c]
²²She makes ^(K)bed coverings for herself;
    her clothing is ^(L)fine linen and ^(M)purple.
²³Her husband is known in ^(N)the gates
    when he sits among the elders of the land.
²⁴She makes ^(O)linen garments and sells them;
    she delivers sashes to the merchant.
²⁵^(P)Strength and dignity are her clothing,
    and she laughs at the time to come.
²⁶She opens her mouth with wisdom,
    and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
²⁷She looks well to the ways of her household
    and does not eat the bread of idleness.
²⁸Her children rise up and call her blessed;
    her husband also, and he praises her:
²⁹“Many ^(Q)women have done ^(R)excellently,
    but you surpass them all.”
³⁰^(S)Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
    but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
³¹Give her of the fruit of her hands,
    and let her works praise her in the gates.

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Footnotes

Proverbs 31:10 Verses 10–31 are an acrostic poem, each verse beginning with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet
Proverbs 31:17 Hebrew She girds her loins
Proverbs 31:21 Or in double thickness

James 3:13-4:3

English Standard Version

Wisdom from Above

¹³Who is wise and understanding among you? ^(A)By his good conduct let him show his works ^(B)in the meekness of wisdom. ¹⁴But if you have bitter ^(C)jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. ¹⁵This is not ^(D)the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, ^(E)demonic. ¹⁶For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. ¹⁷But ^(F)the wisdom from above is first pure, then ^(G)peaceable, gentle, open to reason, ^(H)full of mercy and good fruits, ^(I)impartial and ^(J)sincere. ¹⁸And ^(K)a harvest of righteousness ^(L)is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Warning Against Worldliness

4 What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions^[a] are ^(M)at war within you?^[b] ²You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. ³You ask and do not receive, because you ask ^(N)wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

Footnotes

James 4:1 Greek pleasures; also verse 3
James 4:1 Greek in your members

James 4:7-8

English Standard Version

⁷Submit yourselves therefore to God. ^(A)Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸^(B)Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. ^(C)Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and ^(D)purify your hearts, ^(E)you double-minded.

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Psalm 54

English Standard Version

The Lord Upholds My Life

To the choirmaster: with ^(A)stringed instruments. A Maskil^[a] of David, ^(B)when the Ziphites went and told Saul, “Is not David hiding among us?”

54 O God, save me by your ^(C)name,
and vindicate me by your might.
²O God, ^(D)hear my prayer;
give ear to the words of my mouth.

³^(E)For ^(F)strangers^[b] have risen against me;
ruthless men ^(G)seek my life;
they do not set God before themselves. Selah

⁴Behold, ^(H)God is my helper;
the Lord is the upholder of my life.
⁵He will return the evil to my enemies;
in your ^(I)faithfulness ^(J)put an end to them.

⁶With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you;
I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, ^(K)for it is good.
⁷For he has delivered me from every trouble,
and my eye has ^(L)looked in triumph on my enemies.

Footnotes

Psalm 54:1 Probably a musical or liturgical term
Psalm 54:3 Some Hebrew manuscripts and Targum insolent men (compare Psalm 86:14)

Psalm 55:22

English Standard Version

²²^(A)Cast your burden on the Lord,
and he will sustain you;
^(B)he will never permit
the righteous to be moved.

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Psalm 55:22 in all English translations

2 Timothy 4:1-15

English Standard Version

Preach the Word

4 ^(A)I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, ^(B)who is to judge the living and the dead, and by ^(C)his appearing and his kingdom: ²preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; ^(D)reprove, rebuke, and ^(E)exhort, with complete patience and teaching. ³^(F)For the time is coming when people will not endure ^(G)sound^[a] teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, ⁴and ^(H)will turn away from listening to the truth and ^(I)wander off into myths. ⁵As for you, ^(J)always be sober-minded, ^(K)endure suffering, do the work of ^(L)an evangelist, ^(M)fulfill your ministry.

⁶For ^(N)I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my ^(O)departure has come. ⁷^(P)I have fought the good fight, ^(Q)I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. ⁸Henceforth there is ^(R)laid up for me ^(S)the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, ^(T)the righteous judge, will award to me on ^(U)that day, and not only to me but also to all ^(V)who have loved his appearing.

Personal Instructions

⁹^(W)Do your best to come to me soon. ¹⁰For ^(X)Demas, ^(Y)in love with ^(Z)this present world, ^(AA)has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia,^[b] ^(AB)Titus to Dalmatia. ¹¹^(AC)Luke alone is with me. Get ^(AD)Mark and bring him with you, for he is very useful to me for ministry. ¹²^(AE)Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus. ¹³When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments. ¹⁴^(AF)Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; ^(AG)the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. ¹⁵Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message.

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Footnotes

2 Timothy 4:3 Or healthy
2 Timothy 4:10 Some manuscripts Gaul

Matthew 28:18-20

English Standard Version

¹⁸And Jesus came and said to them, ^(A)“All authority ^(B)in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹^(C)Go therefore and ^(D)make disciples of ^(E)all nations, ^(F)baptizing them ^(G)in^[a] ^(H)the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰teaching them ^(I)to observe all that ^(J)I have commanded you. And behold, ^(K)I am with you always, to ^(L)the end of the age.”

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Footnotes

Matthew 28:19 Or into

1 Corinthians 11:17-34

English Standard Version

The Lord's Supper

¹⁷But in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse. ¹⁸For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, ^(A)I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part,^[a] ¹⁹for ^(B)there must be factions among you in order ^(C)that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. ²⁰When you come together, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat. ²¹For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, ^(D)another gets drunk. ²²What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise ^(E)the church of God and ^(F)humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not.

²³For ^(G)I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that ^(H)the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, ²⁴and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for^[b] you. Do this in remembrance of me.”^[c] ²⁵In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” ²⁶For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death ^(I)until he comes.

²⁷^(J)Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord ^(K)in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning ^(L)the body and blood of the Lord. ²⁸^(M)Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. ²⁹For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. ³⁰That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some ^(N)have died.^[d] ³¹^(O)But if we judged^[e] ourselves truly, we would not be judged. ³²But when we are judged by the Lord, ^(P)we are disciplined^[f] so that we may not be ^(Q)condemned along with the world.

³³So then, my brothers,^[g] when you come together to eat, wait for^[h] one another— ³⁴^(R)if anyone is hungry, ^(S)let him eat at home—so that when you come together it will not be for judgment. About the other things ^(T)I will give directions ^(U)when I come.

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Footnotes

1 Corinthians 11:18 Or I believe a certain report
1 Corinthians 11:24 Some manuscripts broken for
1 Corinthians 11:24 Or as my memorial; also verse 25
1 Corinthians 11:30 Greek have fallen asleep (as in 15:6, 20)
1 Corinthians 11:31 Or discerned
1 Corinthians 11:32 Or when we are judged we are being disciplined by the Lord
1 Corinthians 11:33 Or brothers and sisters
1 Corinthians 11:33 Or share with