Proverbs 18

English Standard Version

18 Whoever ^(A)isolates himself seeks his own desire;
    he breaks out against all sound judgment.
²A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,
    but only ^(B)in expressing his opinion.
³When wickedness comes, contempt comes also,
    and with dishonor comes disgrace.
⁴The words of a man's mouth are ^(C)deep waters;
    the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook.
⁵It is not good to ^(D)be partial to^[a] the wicked
    or to ^(E)deprive the righteous of justice.
⁶A fool's lips walk into a fight,
    and his mouth invites ^(F)a beating.
⁷^(G)A fool's mouth is his ruin,
    and his lips are a snare to his soul.
⁸^(H)The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
    they go down into ^(I)the inner parts of the body.
⁹Whoever is slack in his work
    is a ^(J)brother to him who destroys.
¹⁰^(K)The name of the Lord is ^(L)a strong tower;
    the righteous man runs into it and ^(M)is safe.
¹¹^(N)A rich man's wealth is his strong city,
    and like a high wall in his imagination.
¹²^(O)Before destruction a man's heart is haughty,
    but ^(P)humility comes before honor.
¹³If one gives an answer ^(Q)before he hears,
    it is his folly and shame.
¹⁴A man's spirit will endure sickness,
    but ^(R)a crushed spirit who can bear?
¹⁵An intelligent heart acquires knowledge,
    and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.
¹⁶A man's ^(S)gift makes room for him
    and brings him before the great.
¹⁷The one who states his case first seems right,
    until the other comes and examines him.
¹⁸^(T)The lot puts an end to quarrels
    and decides between powerful contenders.
¹⁹A brother offended is more unyielding than a strong city,
    and quarreling is like the bars of a castle.
²⁰^(U)From the fruit of a man's mouth his stomach is satisfied;
    he is satisfied by the yield of his lips.
²¹^(V)Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
    and those who love it will eat its fruits.
²²He who finds ^(W)a wife finds ^(X)a good thing
    and ^(Y)obtains favor ^(Z)from the Lord.
²³The poor use entreaties,
    but ^(AA)the rich answer roughly.
²⁴A man of many companions may come to ruin,
    but ^(AB)there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Footnotes

Proverbs 18:5 Hebrew to lift the face of

Colossians 1

English Standard Version

Greeting

1 Paul, ^(A)an apostle of Christ Jesus ^(B)by the will of God, and Timothy ^(C)our brother,

²To the ^(D)saints and faithful brothers^[a] in Christ at Colossae:

^(E)Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

³^(F)We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, ⁴since we heard of ^(G)your faith in Christ Jesus and of ^(H)the love that you have for all the saints, ⁵because of ^(I)the hope ^(J)laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in ^(K)the word of the truth, the gospel, ⁶which has come to you, as indeed ^(L)in the whole world it is ^(M)bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you ^(N)heard it and understood ^(O)the grace of God in truth, ⁷just as you learned it from ^(P)Epaphras our beloved ^(Q)fellow servant.^[b] He is ^(R)a faithful minister of Christ on your^[c] behalf ⁸and has made known to us your ^(S)love in the Spirit.

⁹And so, ^(T)from the day we heard, ^(U)we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that ^(V)you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all ^(W)spiritual wisdom and understanding, ¹⁰so as ^(X)to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, ^(Y)fully pleasing to him: ^(Z)bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; ¹¹^(AA)being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for ^(AB)all endurance and patience ^(AC)with joy; ¹²^(AD)giving thanks^[d] to the Father, who has qualified you^[e] to share in ^(AE)the inheritance of the saints in light. ¹³He ^(AF)has delivered us from ^(AG)the domain of darkness and transferred us to ^(AH)the kingdom of ^(AI)his beloved Son, ¹⁴^(AJ)in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

The Preeminence of Christ

¹⁵^(AK)He is the image of ^(AL)the invisible God, ^(AM)the firstborn of all creation. ¹⁶For by^[f] him all things were created, ^(AN)in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether ^(AO)thrones or ^(AP)dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created ^(AQ)through him and for him. ¹⁷And ^(AR)he is before all things, and in him all things ^(AS)hold together. ¹⁸And ^(AT)he is the head of the body, the church. He is ^(AU)the beginning, ^(AV)the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. ¹⁹For ^(AW)in him all the ^(AX)fullness of God was pleased to dwell, ²⁰and ^(AY)through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, ^(AZ)making peace ^(BA)by the blood of his cross.

²¹^(BB)And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, ^(BC)doing evil deeds, ²²he has now reconciled ^(BD)in his body of flesh by his death, ^(BE)in order to present you holy and blameless and ^(BF)above reproach before him, ²³^(BG)if indeed you continue in the faith, ^(BH)stable and steadfast, not shifting from ^(BI)the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed ^(BJ)in all creation^[g] under heaven, ^(BK)and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Paul's Ministry to the Church

²⁴Now ^(BL)I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh ^(BM)I am filling up ^(BN)what is lacking in Christ's afflictions ^(BO)for the sake of his body, that is, the church, ²⁵^(BP)of which I became a minister according to ^(BQ)the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, ²⁶^(BR)the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. ²⁷^(BS)To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are ^(BT)the riches of the glory of ^(BU)this mystery, which is Christ in you, ^(BV)the hope of glory. ²⁸Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that ^(BW)we may present everyone ^(BX)mature in Christ. ²⁹For this ^(BY)I toil, ^(BZ)struggling ^(CA)with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

Footnotes

Colossians 1:2 Or brothers and sisters. In New Testament usage, depending on the context, the plural Greek word adelphoi (translated “brothers”) may refer either to brothers or to brothers and sisters
Colossians 1:7 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word sundoulos, see Preface
Colossians 1:7 Some manuscripts our
Colossians 1:12 Or patience, with joy giving thanks
Colossians 1:12 Some manuscripts us
Colossians 1:16 That is, by means of; or in
Colossians 1:23 Or to every creature