Proverbs 26:12-28
English Standard Version
12 Do you see a man who is (A)wise in his own eyes?
(B)There is more hope for a fool than for him.
13 (C)The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road!
There is a lion in the streets!”
14 As a door turns on its hinges,
so does a sluggard on his bed.
15 (D)The sluggard buries his hand in the dish;
it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth.
16 The sluggard is (E)wiser in his own eyes
(F)than seven men who can answer sensibly.
17 Whoever meddles in a quarrel not his own
is like one who takes a passing dog by the ears.
18 Like a madman who throws (G)firebrands, arrows, and death
19 is the man who deceives his neighbor
and says, “I am only joking!”
20 For lack of wood the fire goes out,
and where there is no (H)whisperer, (I)quarreling ceases.
21 As charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,
so is (J)a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.
22 (K)The words of (L)a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
they go down into the inner parts of the body.
23 (M)Like the (N)glaze[a] covering an earthen vessel
are fervent lips with an evil heart.
24 Whoever hates disguises himself with his lips
and harbors deceit in his heart;
25 (O)when he speaks graciously, believe him not,
for there are (P)seven abominations in his heart;
26 though his hatred be covered with deception,
his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.
27 (Q)Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,
and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.
28 A lying tongue hates its victims,
and a flattering mouth works ruin.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 26:23 By revocalization; Hebrew silver of dross
Romans 4
English Standard Version
Abraham Justified by Faith
4 What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, (A)our forefather according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but (B)not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? (C)“Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” 4 Now (D)to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. 5 And to the one who does not work but (E)believes in[a] him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, 6 just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:
7 (F)“Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
and whose sins are covered;
8 blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not (G)count his sin.”
9 Is this blessing then only for (H)the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? (I)For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness. 10 How then was it counted to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. 11 (J)He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was (K)to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, 12 and to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.
The Promise Realized Through Faith
13 For (L)the promise to Abraham and his offspring (M)that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. 14 (N)For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. 15 For (O)the law brings wrath, but (P)where there is no law (Q)there is no transgression.
16 That is why it depends on faith, (R)in order that the promise may rest on grace and (S)be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, (T)who is the father of us all, 17 as it is written, (U)“I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, (V)who gives life to the dead and calls into existence (W)the things that do not exist. 18 In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, (X)“So shall your offspring be.” 19 He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was (Y)as good as dead ((Z)since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered (AA)the barrenness[b] of Sarah's womb. 20 No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, 21 fully convinced that (AB)God was able to do what he had promised. 22 That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” 23 But (AC)the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, 24 but for ours also. It will be counted to us (AD)who believe in (AE)him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, 25 (AF)who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised (AG)for our justification.
Footnotes
- Romans 4:5 Or but trusts; compare verse 24
- Romans 4:19 Greek deadness
Proverbs 27:1-22
English Standard Version
27 Do not boast about tomorrow,
(A)for you do not know what a day may bring.
2 Let (B)another praise you, and not your own mouth;
a stranger, and not your own lips.
3 A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,
but (C)a fool's provocation is heavier than both.
4 Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming,
but who can stand before (D)jealousy?
5 (E)Better is open rebuke
than hidden love.
6 Faithful are (F)the wounds of a friend;
profuse are the kisses of an enemy.
7 One who is full loathes (G)honey,
but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet.
8 Like (H)a bird that strays from its nest
is a man who strays from his home.
9 (I)Oil and perfume make the heart glad,
and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.[a]
10 Do not forsake your friend and (J)your father's friend,
and do not go to your brother's house in the day of your calamity.
(K)Better is a neighbor who is near
than a brother who is far away.
11 (L)Be wise, (M)my son, and (N)make my heart glad,
that I may (O)answer him who reproaches me.
12 (P)The prudent sees danger and hides himself,
but (Q)the simple go on and suffer for it.
13 (R)Take a man's garment when he has put up security for a stranger,
and hold it in pledge when he puts up security for an adulteress.[b]
14 Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice,
rising early in the morning,
will be counted as cursing.
15 (S)A continual dripping on a rainy day
and a quarrelsome wife are alike;
16 to restrain her is to restrain the wind
or to grasp[c] oil in one's right hand.
17 Iron sharpens iron,
and one man sharpens another.[d]
18 (T)Whoever tends a fig tree will eat its fruit,
and he who (U)guards his master will be honored.
19 As in water face reflects face,
so the heart of man reflects the man.
20 (V)Sheol and Abaddon are (W)never satisfied,
and (X)never satisfied are the eyes of man.
21 (Y)The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
and a man is tested by his praise.
22 (Z)Crush a fool in a mortar with a pestle
along with crushed grain,
yet his folly will not depart from him.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 27:9 Or and so does the sweetness of a friend that comes from his earnest counsel
- Proverbs 27:13 Hebrew a foreign woman; a slight emendation yields (compare Vulgate; see also 20:16) foreigners
- Proverbs 27:16 Hebrew to meet with
- Proverbs 27:17 Hebrew sharpens the face of another
Luke 1:24-56
English Standard Version
24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying, 25 “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, (A)to take away my reproach among people.”
Birth of Jesus Foretold
26 In the sixth month the angel (B)Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named (C)Nazareth, 27 (D)to a virgin betrothed[a] to a man whose name was Joseph, (E)of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, (F)O favored one, (G)the Lord is with you!”[b] 29 But (H)she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. 30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for (I)you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, (J)you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and (K)you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of (L)the Most High. And the Lord God (M)will give to him the throne of (N)his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob (O)forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”[c]
35 And the angel answered her, (P)“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of (Q)the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born[d] will be called (R)holy—(S)the Son of God. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her (T)who was called barren. 37 For (U)nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant[e] of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And (V)the angel departed from her.
Mary Visits Elizabeth
39 In those days Mary arose and went with haste into (W)the hill country, to a town in Judah, 40 and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth (X)was filled with the Holy Spirit, 42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry, (Y)“Blessed are you among women, and (Z)blessed is (AA)the fruit of your womb! 43 And why is this granted to me that the mother of (AB)my Lord should come to me? 44 For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 And (AC)blessed is she who believed that there would be[f] a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”
Mary's Song of Praise: The Magnificat
46 And Mary said,
(AD)“My (AE)soul (AF)magnifies the Lord,
47 (AG)and my (AH)spirit rejoices in (AI)God my Savior,
48 for (AJ)he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations (AK)will call me blessed;
49 for (AL)he who is mighty (AM)has done great things for me,
and (AN)holy is his name.
50 And (AO)his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
51 (AP)He has shown strength with his arm;
(AQ)he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
52 (AR)he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
(AS)and exalted those of humble estate;
53 he has filled (AT)the hungry with good things,
and the rich (AU)he has sent away empty.
54 He has (AV)helped (AW)his servant Israel,
(AX)in remembrance of his mercy,
55 (AY)as he spoke to our fathers,
(AZ)to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”
56 And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.
Read full chapterThe Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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