John 1:1-18
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Word Became Flesh
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.(A) 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being(B) 4 in him was life,[a] and the life was the light of all people.(C) 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overtake it.
6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. 8 He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. 9 The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.[b](D)
10 He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet the world did not know him.(E) 11 He came to what was his own,[c] and his own people did not accept him. 12 But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God,(F) 13 who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.(G)
14 And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son,[d] full of grace and truth.(H) 15 (John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ ”) 16 From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.[e](I) 17 The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.(J) 18 No one has ever seen God. It is the only Son, himself God, who[f] is close to the Father’s heart,[g] who has made him known.(K)
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1.4 Or
. . . through him. And without him not one thing came into being that has come into being. In him was life - 1.9 Or He was the true light that enlightens everyone coming into the world
- 1.11 Or to his own home
- 1.14 Or the Father’s only Son
- 1.16 Or grace in place of grace
- 1.18 Other ancient authorities read is the only Son who
- 1.18 Gk bosom
Proverbs 8:22-31
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Wisdom’s Part in Creation
22 “The Lord created me at the beginning[a] of his work,[b]
the first of his acts of long ago.(A)
23 Ages ago I was set up,
at the first, before the beginning of the earth.(B)
24 When there were no depths I was brought forth,
when there were no springs abounding with water.
25 Before the mountains had been shaped,
before the hills, I was brought forth,(C)
26 when he had not yet made earth and fields[c]
or the world’s first bits of soil.
27 When he established the heavens, I was there;
when he drew a circle on the face of the deep,(D)
28 when he made firm the skies above,
when he established the fountains of the deep,
29 when he assigned to the sea its limit,
so that the waters might not transgress his command,
when he marked out the foundations of the earth,(E)
30 then I was beside him, like a master worker,[d]
and I was daily his[e] delight,
playing before him always,(F)
31 playing in his inhabited world
and delighting in the human race.(G)
Wisdom of Solomon 6:12-9:4
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Description of Wisdom
12 Wisdom is radiant and unfading,
and she is easily discerned by those who love her
and is found by those who seek her.(A)
13 She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.(B)
14 One who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty,
for she will be found sitting at the gate.(C)
15 To fix one’s thought on her is perfect understanding,
and one who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,(D)
16 because she goes about seeking those worthy of her,
and she graciously appears to them in their paths
and meets them in every thought.
17 The beginning of wisdom[a] is the most sincere desire for instruction,
18 and concern for instruction is love of her,
and love of her is the keeping of her laws,
and giving heed to her laws is assurance of immortality,(E)
19 and immortality brings one near to God,
20 so the desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom.(F)
21 Therefore if you delight in thrones and scepters, O monarchs over the peoples,
honor wisdom, so that you may reign forever.(G)
22 I will tell you what wisdom is and how she came to be,
and I will hide no secrets from you,
but I will trace her course from the beginning of creation
and make knowledge of her clear,
and I will not pass by the truth,(H)
23 nor will I travel in the company of sickly envy,
for envy[b] does not associate with wisdom.(I)
24 The multitude of the wise is the salvation of the world,
and a sensible king is the stability of any people.(J)
25 Therefore be instructed by my words, and you will profit.
The King Is Like Other Mortals
7 I also am mortal like everyone else,
a descendant of the first-formed child of earth,
and in the womb of a mother I was molded into flesh,(K)
2 within the period of ten months, compacted with blood,
from the seed of a man and the pleasure of marriage.
3 And when I was born, I began to breathe the common air
and fell upon the kindred earth;
my first sound was a cry, as is true of all.(L)
4 I was nursed with care in swaddling cloths.(M)
5 For no king has had a different beginning of existence;
6 there is for all one entrance into life and one way out.(N)
Respect for Wisdom
7 Therefore I prayed, and understanding was given me;
I called on God, and the spirit of wisdom came to me.(O)
8 I preferred her to scepters and thrones,
and I accounted wealth as nothing in comparison with her.(P)
9 Neither did I liken to her any priceless gem,
because all gold is but a little sand in her sight,
and silver will be accounted as clay before her.(Q)
10 I loved her more than health and beauty,
and I chose to have her rather than light
because her radiance never ceases.(R)
11 All good things came to me along with her,
and in her hands uncounted wealth.(S)
12 I rejoiced in them all because wisdom leads them,
but I did not know that she was their mother.
13 I learned without guile, and I impart without grudging;
I do not hide her wealth,(T)
14 for it is an unfailing treasure for mortals;
those who get it obtain friendship with God,
commended for the gifts that come from instruction.(U)
Prayer for Wisdom
15 May God grant me to speak with judgment
and to have thoughts worthy of what I have received,
for he is the guide even of wisdom
and the corrector of the wise.(V)
16 For both we and our words are in his hand,
as are all understanding and skill in crafts.(W)
17 For it is he who gave me unerring knowledge of what exists,
to know the structure of the world and the activity of the elements,(X)
18 the beginning and end and middle of times,
the alternations of the solstices and the changes of the seasons,
19 the cycles of the year and the constellations of the stars,(Y)
20 the natures of animals and the tempers of wild animals,
the powers of spirits[c] and the thoughts of human beings,
the varieties of plants and the virtues of roots;(Z)
21 I learned both what is secret and what is manifest,
22 for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me.
The Nature of Wisdom
There is in her a spirit that is intelligent, holy,
unique, manifold, subtle,
agile, clear, unpolluted,
distinct, invulnerable, loving the good, keen,
23 irresistible, beneficent, humane,
steadfast, sure, free from anxiety,
all-powerful, overseeing all,
and penetrating through all spirits
that are intelligent, pure, and altogether subtle.(AA)
24 For wisdom is more mobile than any motion;
because of her pureness she pervades and penetrates all things.(AB)
25 For she is a breath of the power of God
and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty;
therefore nothing defiled gains entrance into her.(AC)
26 For she is a reflection of eternal light,
a spotless mirror of the working of God,
and an image of his goodness.(AD)
27 Although she is but one, she can do all things,
and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;
in every generation she passes into holy souls
and makes them friends of God and prophets,(AE)
28 for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom.
29 She is more beautiful than the sun
and excels every constellation of the stars.
Compared with the light she is found to be more radiant,(AF)
30 for it is succeeded by the night,
but against wisdom evil does not prevail.
8 She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,
and she orders all things well.(AG)
Love for Wisdom
2 I loved her and sought her from my youth;
I desired to take her for my bride
and became enamored of her beauty.(AH)
3 She glorifies her noble birth by living with God,
and the Lord of all loves her.(AI)
4 For she is an initiate in the knowledge of God
and an associate in his works.
5 If riches are a desirable possession in life,
what is richer than wisdom, the active cause of all things?(AJ)
6 And if understanding is effective,
who more than she is fashioner of what exists?(AK)
7 And if anyone loves righteousness,
her labors are virtues,
for she teaches self-control and prudence,
justice and courage;
nothing in life is more profitable for mortals than these.
8 And if anyone longs for wide experience,
she knows the things of old and infers the things to come;
she understands turns of speech and the solutions of riddles;
she has foreknowledge of signs and wonders
and of the outcome of seasons and times.(AL)
Wisdom Indispensable to Rulers
9 Therefore I determined to take her to live with me,
knowing that she would give me good counsel
and encouragement in cares and grief.(AM)
10 Because of her I shall have glory among the multitudes
and honor in the presence of the elders, though I am young.(AN)
11 I shall be found keen in judgment,
and in the sight of rulers I shall be admired.(AO)
12 When I am silent they will wait for me,
and when I speak they will give heed;
if I speak at greater length,
they will put their hands on their mouths.(AP)
13 Because of her I shall have immortality
and leave an everlasting remembrance to those who come after me.(AQ)
14 I shall govern peoples,
and nations will be subject to me;(AR)
15 dread monarchs will be afraid of me when they hear of me;
among the people I shall show myself capable and courageous in war.
16 When I enter my house, I shall find rest with her,
for companionship with her has no bitterness,
and life with her has no pain but gladness and joy.(AS)
17 When I considered these things inwardly
and pondered in my heart
that in kinship with wisdom there is immortality,(AT)
18 and in friendship with her, pure delight,
and in the labors of her hands, unfailing wealth,
and in the experience of her company, understanding,
and renown in sharing her words,
I went about seeking how to get her for myself.(AU)
19 As a child I was naturally gifted,
and a good soul fell to my lot,
20 or rather, being good, I entered an undefiled body.
21 But I perceived that I would not possess wisdom unless God gave her to me—
and it was a mark of insight to know whose gift she was—
so I appealed to the Lord and implored him,
and with my whole heart I said,(AV)
Prayer for Wisdom
9 “O God of my ancestors and Lord of mercy,
who have made all things by your word(AW)
2 and by your wisdom have formed humankind
to have dominion over the creatures you have made(AX)
3 and rule the world in holiness and righteousness
and pronounce judgment in uprightness of soul,(AY)
4 give me the wisdom that sits by your throne,
and do not reject me from among your children.(AZ)
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.