Faith and Duty

The(A) apostles(B) said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”(C)

“If you have faith the size of[a] a mustard seed,”(D) the Lord said, “you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.

“Which one of you having a servant tending sheep or plowing will say to him when he comes in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? Instead, will he not tell him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, get ready, and serve me while I eat and drink; later you can eat and drink’?(E) Does he thank that servant because he did what was commanded?[b] 10 In the same way, when you have done all that you were commanded, you should say, ‘We are unworthy (F) servants; we’ve only done our duty.’”

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Footnotes

  1. 17:6 Lit faith like
  2. 17:9 Other mss add I don’t think so

41 Can you pull in Leviathan(A) with a hook(B)
or tie his tongue down with a rope?
Can you put a cord[a] through his nose
or pierce his jaw with a hook?(C)
Will he beg you for mercy
or speak softly to you?
Will he make a covenant with you
so that you can take him as a slave forever?(D)
Can you play with him like a bird
or put him on a leash[b] for your girls?
Will traders bargain for him
or divide him among the merchants?
Can you fill his hide with harpoons
or his head with fishing spears?
Lay a[c] hand on him.
You will remember the battle
and never repeat it!
Any hope of capturing him proves false.
Does a person not collapse at the very sight of him?
10 No one is ferocious enough to rouse Leviathan;(E)
who then can stand against me?
11 Who confronted me, that I should repay him?
Everything under heaven belongs to me.(F)

12 I cannot be silent about his limbs,
his power, and his graceful proportions.
13 Who can strip off his outer covering?
Who can penetrate his double layer of armor?[d](G)
14 Who can open his jaws,[e]
surrounded by those terrifying teeth?
15 His pride is in his rows of scales,
closely sealed together.
16 One scale is so close to another[f]
that no air can pass between them.
17 They are joined to one another,
so closely connected[g] they cannot be separated.
18 His snorting[h] flashes with light,
while his eyes are like the rays[i] of dawn.
19 Flaming torches shoot from his mouth;
fiery sparks fly out!
20 Smoke billows from his nostrils(H)
as from a boiling pot or burning reeds.
21 His breath sets coals ablaze,
and flames pour out of his mouth.
22 Strength resides in his neck,
and dismay dances before him.
23 The folds of his flesh are joined together,
solid as metal[j] and immovable.
24 His heart is as hard as a rock,
as hard as a lower millstone!
25 When Leviathan rises, the mighty[k] are terrified;
they withdraw because of his thrashing.
26 The sword that reaches him will have no effect,
nor will a spear, dart, or arrow.
27 He regards iron as straw,
and bronze as rotten wood.
28 No arrow can make him flee;
slingstones become like stubble to him.
29 A club is regarded as stubble,
and he laughs(I) at the sound of a javelin.
30 His undersides are jagged potsherds,
spreading the mud like a threshing sledge.(J)
31 He makes the depths seethe like a cauldron;
he makes the sea like an ointment jar.
32 He leaves a shining wake behind him;[l]
one would think the deep had gray hair!
33 He has no equal on earth—
a creature devoid of fear!
34 He surveys everything that is haughty;
he is king over all the proud beasts.[m]

Footnotes

  1. 41:2 Lit reed
  2. 41:5 Lit or bind him
  3. 41:8 Lit your
  4. 41:13 LXX; MT reads double bridle
  5. 41:14 Lit open the doors of his face
  6. 41:16 Lit One by one they approach
  7. 41:17 Lit another; they cling together and
  8. 41:18 Or sneezing
  9. 41:18 Lit eyelids
  10. 41:23 Lit together, hard on him
  11. 41:25 Or the divine beings
  12. 41:32 Lit a path
  13. 41:34 Lit the children of pride

Paul’s Commendation of Phoebe

16 I commend to you(A) our sister Phoebe, who is a servant[a] of the church in Cenchreae.(B) So you should welcome her in the Lord(C) in a manner worthy of the saints and assist her in whatever matter she may require your help. For indeed she has been a benefactor of many—and of me also.

Greeting to Roman Christians

Give my greetings to Prisca[b] and Aquila,(D) my coworkers in(E) Christ Jesus,(F) who risked their own necks for my life. Not only do I thank them, but so do all the Gentile churches. Greet also the church that meets in their home.(G) Greet my dear friend Epaenetus, who is the first convert[c](H) to Christ from Asia.[d](I) Greet Mary,[e] who has worked very hard for you.[f] Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews[g](J) and fellow prisoners.(K) They are noteworthy in the eyes of the apostles,[h] and they were also in Christ before me. Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our coworker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys. 10 Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus.(L) 11 Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew.[i] Greet those who belong to the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord. 12 Greet Tryphaena and Tryphosa, who have worked hard in the Lord. Greet my dear friend Persis, who has worked very hard in the Lord. 13 Greet Rufus,(M) chosen in the Lord; also his mother—and mine. 14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers and sisters who are with them. 15 Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them.(N) 16 Greet one another with a holy kiss.(O) All the churches of Christ send you greetings.

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Footnotes

  1. 16:1 Others interpret this term in a technical sense: deacon, or deaconess, or minister, or courier
  2. 16:3 Traditionally, Priscilla, as in Ac 18:2,18,26
  3. 16:5 Lit the firstfruits
  4. 16:5 Other mss read Achaia
  5. 16:6 Or Maria
  6. 16:6 Other mss read us
  7. 16:7 Or family members
  8. 16:7 Or They are noteworthy among the apostles
  9. 16:11 Or family member

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