Wisdom for Life

A good reputation is more valuable than costly perfume.
    And the day you die is better than the day you are born.

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23 “Collect choice spices—12 1⁄2 pounds of pure myrrh, 6 1⁄4 pounds of fragrant cinnamon, 6 1⁄4 pounds of fragrant calamus,[a] 24 and 12 1⁄2 pounds of cassia[b]—as measured by the weight of the sanctuary shekel. Also get one gallon of olive oil.[c] 25 Like a skilled incense maker, blend these ingredients to make a holy anointing oil. 26 Use this sacred oil to anoint the Tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant, 27 the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and all its accessories, the incense altar, 28 the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the washbasin with its stand.

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Footnotes

  1. 30:23 Hebrew 500 [shekels] [5.7 kilograms] of pure myrrh, 250 [shekels] [2.9 kilograms] of fragrant cinnamon, 250 [shekels] of fragrant calamus.
  2. 30:24a Hebrew 500 [shekels] [5.7 kilograms] of cassia.
  3. 30:24b Hebrew 1 hin [3.8 liters] of olive oil.

Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar[a] of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance.

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Footnotes

  1. 12:3 Greek took 1 litra [327 grams].

They have kept themselves as pure as virgins,[a] following the Lamb wherever he goes. They have been purchased from among the people on the earth as a special offering[b] to God and to the Lamb.

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Footnotes

  1. 14:4a Greek They are virgins who have not defiled themselves with women.
  2. 14:4b Greek as firstfruits.

Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor
    and gave him the name above all other names,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

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You love justice and hate evil.
    Therefore God, your God, has anointed you,
    pouring out the oil of joy on you more than on anyone else.
Myrrh, aloes, and cassia perfume your robes.
    In ivory palaces the music of strings entertains you.

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18 At the moment I have all I need—and more! I am generously supplied with the gifts you sent me with Epaphroditus. They are a sweet-smelling sacrifice that is acceptable and pleasing to God.

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For harmony is as precious as the anointing oil
    that was poured over Aaron’s head,
    that ran down his beard
    and onto the border of his robe.

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14 In her beautiful robes, she is led to the king,
    accompanied by her bridesmaids.

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For I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself. I promised you as a pure bride[a] to one husband—Christ.

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Footnotes

  1. 11:2 Greek a virgin.

Ministers of the New Covenant

14 But thank God! He has made us his captives and continues to lead us along in Christ’s triumphal procession. Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume. 15 Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God. But this fragrance is perceived differently by those who are being saved and by those who are perishing. 16 To those who are perishing, we are a dreadful smell of death and doom. But to those who are being saved, we are a life-giving perfume. And who is adequate for such a task as this?

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Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids

25 “Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten bridesmaids[a] who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.

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Footnotes

  1. 25:1 Or virgins; also in 25:7, 11.

21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus,[a] for he will save his people from their sins.”

22 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet:

23 “Look! The virgin will conceive a child!
    She will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel,[b]
    which means ‘God is with us.’”

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Footnotes

  1. 1:21 Jesus means “The Lord saves.”
  2. 1:23 Isa 7:14; 8:8, 10 (Greek version).

To all who mourn in Israel,[a]
    he will give a crown of beauty for ashes,
a joyous blessing instead of mourning,
    festive praise instead of despair.
In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks
    that the Lord has planted for his own glory.

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Footnotes

  1. 61:3 Hebrew in Zion.

For a child is born to us,
    a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
    And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor,[a] Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
His government and its peace
    will never end.
He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David
    for all eternity.
The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
    will make this happen!

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Footnotes

  1. 9:6 Or Wonderful, Counselor.

“For the time is coming,”
    says the Lord,
“when I will raise up a righteous descendant[a]
    from King David’s line.
He will be a King who rules with wisdom.
    He will do what is just and right throughout the land.
And this will be his name:
    ‘The Lord Is Our Righteousness.’[b]
In that day Judah will be saved,
    and Israel will live in safety.

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Footnotes

  1. 23:5 Hebrew a righteous branch.
  2. 23:6 Hebrew Yahweh Tsidqenu.

15 Happy are those who hear the joyful call to worship,
    for they will walk in the light of your presence, Lord.
16 They rejoice all day long in your wonderful reputation.
    They exult in your righteousness.

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Then the Lord came down in a cloud and stood there with him; and he called out his own name, Yahweh.[a] The Lord passed in front of Moses, calling out,

“Yahweh![b] The Lord!
    The God of compassion and mercy!
I am slow to anger
    and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.
I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations.[c]
    I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin.
But I do not excuse the guilty.
    I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren;
the entire family is affected—
    even children in the third and fourth generations.”

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Footnotes

  1. 34:5 Yahweh is a transliteration of the proper name YHWH that is sometimes rendered “Jehovah”; in this translation it is usually rendered “the Lord” (note the use of small capitals).
  2. 34:6 See note on 34:5.
  3. 34:7 Hebrew for thousands.

The heartfelt counsel of a friend
    is as sweet as perfume and incense.

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Moses Sees the Lord’s Glory

12 One day Moses said to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Take these people up to the Promised Land.’ But you haven’t told me whom you will send with me. You have told me, ‘I know you by name, and I look favorably on you.’

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