Habakkuk 1:1-13

New King James Version

The Prophet Questions God’s Judgments

1 The ^[a]burden which the prophet Habakkuk saw.

The Prophet’s Question

²O Lord, how long shall I cry,
^(A)And You will not hear?
Even cry out to You, ^(B)“Violence!”
And You will ^(C)not save.
³Why do You show me iniquity,
And cause me to see ^[b]trouble?
For plundering and violence are before me;
There is strife, and contention arises.
⁴Therefore the law is powerless,
And justice never goes forth.
For the ^(D)wicked surround the righteous;
Therefore perverse judgment proceeds.

The Lord’s Reply

⁵“Look^(E) among the nations and watch—
Be utterly astounded!
For I will work a work in your days
Which you would not believe, though it were told you.
⁶For indeed I am ^(F)raising up the Chaldeans,
A bitter and hasty ^(G)nation
Which marches through the breadth of the earth,
To possess dwelling places that are not theirs.
⁷They are terrible and dreadful;
Their judgment and their dignity proceed from themselves.
⁸Their horses also are ^(H)swifter than leopards,
And more fierce than evening wolves.
Their ^[c]chargers ^[d]charge ahead;
Their cavalry comes from afar;
They fly as the ^(I)eagle that hastens to eat.

⁹“They all come for violence;
Their faces are set like the east wind.
They gather captives like sand.
¹⁰They scoff at kings,
And princes are scorned by them.
They deride every stronghold,
For they heap up earthen mounds and seize it.
¹¹Then his ^[e]mind changes, and he transgresses;
He commits offense,
^(J)Ascribing this power to his god.”

The Prophet’s Second Question

¹²Are You not ^(K)from everlasting,
O Lord my God, my Holy One?
We shall not die.
O Lord, ^(L)You have appointed them for judgment;
O Rock, You have marked them for ^(M)correction.
¹³You are of purer eyes than to behold evil,
And cannot look on wickedness.
Why do You look on those who deal treacherously,
And hold Your tongue when the wicked devours
A person more righteous than he?

Read full chapter

Footnotes

Habakkuk 1:1 oracle, prophecy
Habakkuk 1:3 Or toil
Habakkuk 1:8 Lit. horsemen
Habakkuk 1:8 Lit. spring about
Habakkuk 1:11 Lit. spirit or wind

Habakkuk 2:1-4

New King James Version

The Just Shall Live by Faith

2 I will ^(A)stand my watch
And set myself on the rampart,
And watch to see what He will say to me,
And what I will answer when I am corrected.

The Just Live by Faith

²Then the Lord answered me and said:

^(B)“Write the vision
And make it plain on tablets,
That he may run who reads it.
³For ^(C)the vision is yet for an appointed time;
But at the end it will speak, and it will ^(D)not lie.
Though it tarries, ^(E)wait for it;
Because it will ^(F)surely come,
It will not tarry.

⁴“Behold the proud,
His soul is not upright in him;
But the ^(G)just shall live by his faith.

Read full chapter

Psalm 37:1-17

New King James Version

The Heritage of the Righteous and the Calamity of the Wicked

A Psalm of David.

37 Do^(A) not fret because of evildoers,
Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.
²For they shall soon be cut down ^(B)like the grass,
And wither as the green herb.

³Trust in the Lord, and do good;
Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.
⁴^(C)Delight yourself also in the Lord,
And He shall give you the desires of your ^(D)heart.

⁵^(E)Commit^[a] your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him,
And He shall bring it to pass.
⁶^(F)He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light,
And your justice as the noonday.

⁷Rest in the Lord, ^(G)and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who ^(H)prospers in his way,
Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
⁸^(I)Cease from anger, and forsake wrath;
^(J)Do not fret—it only causes harm.

⁹For evildoers shall be ^[b]cut off;
But those who wait on the Lord,
They shall ^(K)inherit the earth.
¹⁰For ^(L)yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more;
Indeed, ^(M)you will look carefully for his place,
But it shall be no more.
¹¹^(N)But the meek shall inherit the earth,
And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

¹²The wicked plots against the just,
^(O)And gnashes at him with his teeth.
¹³^(P)The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees that ^(Q)his day is coming.
¹⁴The wicked have drawn the sword
And have bent their bow,
To cast down the poor and needy,
To slay those who are of upright conduct.
¹⁵Their sword shall enter their own heart,
And their bows shall be broken.

¹⁶^(R)A little that a righteous man has
Is better than the riches of many wicked.
¹⁷For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
But the Lord upholds the righteous.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

Psalm 37:5 Lit. Roll off onto
Psalm 37:9 destroyed

2 Timothy 1:1-14

New King James Version

Greeting

1 Paul, an apostle of ^[a]Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the ^(A)promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,

²To Timothy, a ^(B)beloved son:

Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

Timothy’s Faith and Heritage

³I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my ^(C)forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, ⁴greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, ⁵when I call to remembrance ^(D)the ^[b]genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and ^(E)your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. ⁶Therefore I remind you ^(F)to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. ⁷For ^(G)God has not given us a spirit of fear, ^(H)but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Not Ashamed of the Gospel

⁸^(I)Therefore do not be ashamed of ^(J)the testimony of our Lord, nor of me ^(K)His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, ⁹who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, ^(L)not according to our works, but ^(M)according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus ^(N)before time began, ¹⁰but ^(O)has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, ¹¹^(P)to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher ^[c]of the Gentiles. ¹²For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, ^(Q)for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.

Be Loyal to the Faith

¹³^(R)Hold fast ^(S)the pattern of ^(T)sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. ¹⁴That good thing which was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

2 Timothy 1:1 NU, M Christ Jesus
2 Timothy 1:5 Lit. unhypocritical
2 Timothy 1:11 NU omits of the Gentiles

John 15:7-12

New King James Version

⁷If you abide in Me, and My words ^(A)abide in you, ^(B)you^[a] will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. ⁸^(C)By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; ^(D)so you will be My disciples.

Love and Joy Perfected

⁹“As the Father ^(E)loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. ¹⁰^(F)If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

¹¹“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and ^(G)that your joy may be full. ¹²^(H)This is My ^(I)commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.