Job 27
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Job Maintains His Integrity
27 Job again took up his discourse and said:(A)
2 “As God lives, who has taken away my right,
and the Almighty,[a] who has made my soul bitter,(B)
3 as long as my breath is in me
and the spirit of God is in my nostrils,
4 my lips will not speak falsehood,
and my tongue will not utter deceit.(C)
5 Far be it from me to say that you are right;
until I die I will not put away my integrity from me.(D)
6 I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go;
my heart will not reproach me as long as I live.(E)
7 “May my enemy be like the wicked,
and may my opponent be like the unrighteous.
8 For what is the hope of the godless when God cuts them off,
when God takes away their lives?(F)
9 Will God hear their cry
when trouble comes upon them?(G)
10 Will they take delight in the Almighty?[b]
Will they call upon God at all times?(H)
11 I will teach you concerning the hand of God;
that which is with the Almighty[c] I will not conceal.
12 All of you have seen it yourselves;
why then have you become altogether vain?
13 “This is the portion of the wicked with God
and the heritage that oppressors receive from the Almighty:[d](I)
14 If their children are multiplied, it is for the sword,
and their offspring have not enough to eat.(J)
15 Those who survive them the pestilence buries,
and their widows make no lamentation.(K)
16 Though they heap up silver like dust
and pile up clothing like clay,(L)
17 they may pile it up, but the just will wear it,
and the innocent will divide the silver.(M)
18 They build their houses like nests,
like booths made by sentinels of the vineyard.
19 They go to bed with wealth but will do so no more;
they open their eyes, and it is gone.(N)
20 Terrors overtake them like a flood;
in the night a whirlwind carries them off.(O)
21 The east wind lifts them up, and they are gone;
it sweeps them out of their place.(P)
22 It[e] hurls at them without pity;
they flee from its[f] power in headlong flight.(Q)
23 It[g] claps its[h] hands at them
and hisses at them from its[i] place.(R)
2 Peter 1
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Salutation
1 Simeon[a] Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have received a faith as equally honorable as ours through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:
2 May grace and peace be yours in abundance in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
The Christian’s Call and Election
3 His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by[b] his own glory and excellence.(A) 4 Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust and may become participants of the divine nature.(B) 5 For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with excellence, and excellence with knowledge,(C) 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, 7 and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love. 8 For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.(D) 9 For anyone who lacks these things is blind, suffering from eye disease, forgetful of the cleansing of past sins.(E) 10 Therefore, brothers and sisters, be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you will never stumble. 11 For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you.
12 Therefore I intend to keep on reminding you of these things, though you know them already and are established in the truth that has come to you.(F) 13 I think it right, as long as I am in this body,[c] to refresh your memory,(G) 14 since I know that my death[d] will come soon, as indeed our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me.(H) 15 And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things.
Eyewitnesses of Christ’s Glory
16 For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty.(I) 17 For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, my Beloved,[e] with whom I am well pleased.”(J) 18 We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.(K)
19 So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.(L) 20 First of all you must understand this, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one’s[f] own interpretation, 21 because no prophecy ever came by human will, but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.[g](M)
Footnotes
Job 28
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Interlude: Where Wisdom Is Found
28 “Surely there is a mine for silver
and a place for gold to be refined.
2 Iron is taken out of the earth,
and copper is smelted from ore.(A)
3 Miners put[a] an end to darkness
and search out to the farthest bound
the ore in gloom and deep darkness.
4 They open shafts in a valley away from human habitation;
they are forgotten by travelers;
they sway suspended, remote from people.
5 As for the earth, out of it comes bread,
but underneath it is turned up as by fire.(B)
6 Its stones are the place of sapphires,[b]
and its dust contains gold.
7 “That path no bird of prey knows,
and the falcon’s eye has not seen it.
8 The proud wild animals have not trodden it;
the lion has not passed over it.
9 “They put their hand to the flinty rock
and overturn mountains by the roots.(C)
10 They cut out channels in the rocks,
and their eyes see every precious thing.
11 The sources of the rivers they probe;[c]
hidden things they bring to light.
12 “But where shall wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?(D)
13 Mortals do not know the way to it,[d]
and it is not found in the land of the living.(E)
14 The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’
and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
15 It cannot be gotten for gold,
and silver cannot be weighed out as its price.
16 It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
in precious onyx or sapphire.[e]
17 Gold and glass cannot equal it,
nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.(F)
18 No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal;
the price of wisdom is above pearls.(G)
19 The chrysolite of Cush cannot compare with it,
nor can it be valued in pure gold.(H)
20 “Where then does wisdom come from?
And where is the place of understanding?(I)
21 It is hidden from the eyes of all living
and concealed from the birds of the air.
22 Abaddon and Death say,
‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’(J)
23 “God understands the way to it,
and he knows its place.(K)
24 For he looks to the ends of the earth
and sees everything under the heavens.(L)
25 When he gave to the wind its weight
and apportioned out the waters by measure,(M)
26 when he made a decree for the rain,
and a way for the thunderbolt,(N)
27 then he saw it and declared it;
he established it and searched it out.
28 And he said to humankind,
‘Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
and to depart from evil is understanding.’ ”(O)
Mark 8:11-9:1
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Demand for a Sign
11 The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, asking him for a sign from heaven, to test him.(A) 12 And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why does this generation ask for a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation.”(B) 13 And he left them, and getting into the boat again he went across to the other side.
The Yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod
14 Now the disciples[a] had forgotten to bring any bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. 15 And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out—beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod.”[b](C) 16 They said to one another, “It is because we have no bread.” 17 And becoming aware of it, Jesus said to them, “Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened?(D) 18 Do you have eyes and fail to see? Do you have ears and fail to hear? And do you not remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?” They said to him, “Twelve.”(E) 20 “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you collect?” And they said to him, “Seven.”(F) 21 Then he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”(G)
Jesus Cures a Blind Man at Bethsaida
22 They came to Bethsaida. Some people[c] brought a blind man to him and begged him to touch him.(H) 23 He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had put saliva on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, “Can you see anything?”(I) 24 And the man[d] looked up and said, “I can see people, but they look like trees, walking.” 25 Then Jesus[e] laid his hands on his eyes again, and he looked intently, and his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. 26 Then he sent him away to his home, saying, “Do not even go into the village.”[f](J)
Peter’s Declaration about Jesus
27 Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi, and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?”(K) 28 And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”(L) 29 He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.”[g](M) 30 And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.(N)
Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection
31 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes and be killed and after three days rise again. 32 He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.(O) 33 But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”(P)
34 He called the crowd with his disciples and said to them, “If any wish to come[h] after me, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.(Q) 35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel,[i] will save it.(R) 36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words[j] in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”(S) 9 1
Footnotes
- 8.14 Gk they
- 8.15 Other ancient authorities read the Herodians
- 8.22 Gk They
- 8.24 Gk he
- 8.25 Gk he
- 8.26 Other ancient authorities add or tell anyone in the village
- 8.29 Or the Christ
- 8.34 Other ancient authorities read follow
- 8.35 Other ancient authorities read lose their life for the sake of the gospel
- 8.38 Other ancient authorities read and of mine
- 9.1 Or in
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.