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25 A Life Based on Love. Therefore, cease your lying and speak the truth to each other, for we are all members of one another. 26 If you are angry, do not sin. Do not let the sun set on your anger, 27 and do not give the devil an opening. 28 Anyone who has been stealing must no longer do so; rather, let him labor, performing some honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with those in need.

29 Let no foul word ever pass your lips. Say only what is useful for edification, so that your words may benefit your listeners. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God who has marked you with his seal for the day of redemption. 31 Remove all forms of bitterness and wrath and anger and shouting and slander, as well as all malice from your lives. 32 Rather, be kind to one another and compassionate, and forgive one another as God has forgiven you in Christ.

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Chapter 5

Hence, be imitators of God, as beloved children, and walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a sacrificial offering whose fragrance is pleasing to God.

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Put your trust in the Lord and do good,
    that you may dwell in the land[a] and be secure.
Take delight in the Lord,
    and he will grant you what your heart[b] desires.
Commit your way to the Lord;
    place your trust in him, and he will act.
He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
    and the justice of your cause, like the noonday.[c]
Wait quietly for the Lord
    and be patient until he comes.
Do not fret over the man who prospers
    because of his evil schemes.
Refrain from anger and turn away from wrath;
    do not fret—it does nothing but harm.
For evildoers will be destroyed,
    but those who wait for the Lord will inherit the land.[d]

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 37:3 The land: the Promised Land (Ps 25:13; Deut 16:20), which in the New Testament became a type of heaven (see Mt 5:3-12; Lk 6:20-26; Heb 11:9, 13-16). This word is also used in verses 9, 11, 22, 27, 29, 34.
  2. Psalm 37:4 Heart: see note on Ps 4:8.
  3. Psalm 37:6 Dawn . . . noonday: light and brightness symbolize truth, well-being, and happiness (see Job 22:28; Song 1:7; Wis 5:6).
  4. Psalm 37:9 Those who hope only in the Lord for their sustenance and their well-being (i.e., “the poor”) will inherit the land, while those who bypass God and by wicked means try to take hold of it will come to naught (see notes on Pss 5:11; 35).