Old/New Testament
The Young Shulammite Bride and Jerusalem’s Daughters
1 The [a]Song of (A)Songs, which is Solomon’s.
2 “[b]May he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth!
For your (B)love is better than wine.
3 “Your (C)oils have a pleasing fragrance,
Your (D)name is like [c]purified oil;
Therefore the [d](E)maidens love you.
4 “Draw me after you and let us run together!
The (F)king has brought me into his chambers.”
“[e]We will rejoice in you and be glad;
We will [f]extol your (G)love more than wine.
Rightly do they love you.”
5 “[g]I am black but (H)lovely,
O (I)daughters of Jerusalem,
Like the (J)tents of (K)Kedar,
Like the curtains of Solomon.
6 “Do not stare at me because I am [h]swarthy,
For the sun has burned me.
My (L)mother’s sons were angry with me;
They made me (M)caretaker of the vineyards,
But I have not taken care of my own vineyard.
7 “Tell me, O you (N)whom my soul loves,
Where do you (O)pasture your flock,
Where do you make it (P)lie down at noon?
For why should I be like one who [i]veils herself
Beside the flocks of your (Q)companions?”
Solomon, the Lover, Speaks
8 “[j]If you yourself do not know,
(R)Most beautiful among women,
Go forth on the trail of the flock
And pasture your young goats
By the tents of the shepherds.
9 “[k]To me, (S)my darling, you are like
My (T)mare among the chariots of Pharaoh.
10 “Your (U)cheeks are lovely with ornaments,
Your neck with strings of (V)beads.”
11 “[l]We will make for you ornaments of gold
With beads of silver.”
12 “[m]While the king was at his [n]table,
My [o](W)perfume gave forth its fragrance.
13 “My beloved is to me a pouch of (X)myrrh
Which lies all night between my breasts.
14 “My beloved is to me a cluster of (Y)henna blossoms
In the vineyards of (Z)Engedi.”
15 “[p][q](AA)How beautiful you are, my darling,
[r]How beautiful you are!
Your (AB)eyes are like doves.”
16 “[s][t]How handsome you are, (AC)my beloved,
And so pleasant!
Indeed, our couch is luxuriant!
17 “The beams of our houses are (AD)cedars,
Our rafters, [u](AE)cypresses.
The Bride’s Admiration
3 “[z]Like an [aa](AJ)apple tree among the trees of the forest,
So is my beloved among the [ab]young men.
In his shade I took great delight and sat down,
And his (AK)fruit was sweet to my [ac]taste.
4 “He has (AL)brought me to his [ad]banquet hall,
And his (AM)banner over me is love.
5 “Sustain me with (AN)raisin cakes,
Refresh me with [ae](AO)apples,
Because (AP)I am lovesick.
6 “Let (AQ)his left hand be under my head
And (AR)his right hand (AS)embrace me.”
7 “[af]I (AT)adjure you, O (AU)daughters of Jerusalem,
By the (AV)gazelles or by the (AW)hinds of the field,
(AX)That you do not arouse or awaken my love
Until [ag]she pleases.”
8 “[ah]Listen! My beloved!
Behold, he is coming,
Climbing (AY)on the mountains,
Leaping on the hills!
9 “My beloved is like a (AZ)gazelle or a (BA)young [ai]stag.
Behold, he is standing behind our wall,
He is looking through the windows,
He is peering (BB)through the lattice.
10 “My beloved responded and said to me,
‘(BC)Arise, my darling, my beautiful one,
And come along.
11 ‘For behold, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone.
12 ‘The flowers have already appeared in the land;
The time has arrived for [aj]pruning the vines,
And the voice of the (BD)turtledove has been heard in our land.
13 ‘The (BE)fig tree has ripened its figs,
And the (BF)vines in blossom have given forth their fragrance.
Arise, my darling, my beautiful one,
And come along!’”
14 “[ak]O (BG)my dove, (BH)in the clefts of the [al]rock,
In the secret place of the steep [am]pathway,
Let me see your [an]form,
(BI)Let me hear your voice;
For your voice is sweet,
And your [ao]form is (BJ)lovely.”
15 “[ap](BK)Catch the foxes for us,
The [aq]little foxes that are ruining the vineyards,
While our (BL)vineyards are in blossom.”
16 “[ar](BM)My beloved is mine, and I am his;
He (BN)pastures his flock among the lilies.
17 “(BO)Until [as]the cool of the day when the shadows flee away,
Turn, my beloved, and be like a (BP)gazelle
Or a young stag (BQ)on the mountains of [at]Bether.”
The Bride’s Troubled Dream
3 “[au]On my bed night after night I sought him
(BR)Whom my soul loves;
I (BS)sought him but did not find him.
2 ‘[av]I must arise now and [aw]go about the city;
In the (BT)streets and in the squares
[ax]I must seek him whom my soul loves.’
I sought him but did not find him.
3 “(BU)The watchmen who make the rounds in the city found me,
And I said, ‘Have you seen him whom my soul loves?’
4 “(BV)Scarcely had I [ay]left them
When I found him whom my soul loves;
I (BW)held on to him and would not let him go
Until I had (BX)brought him to my mother’s house,
And into the room of her who conceived me.”
5 “[az]I (BY)adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem,
By the (BZ)gazelles or by the hinds of the field,
That you will not arouse or awaken my love
Until [ba]she pleases.”
Solomon’s Wedding Day
6 “[bb][bc](CA)What is this coming up from the wilderness
Like (CB)columns of smoke,
Perfumed with (CC)myrrh and (CD)frankincense,
With all scented powders of the merchant?
7 “Behold, it is the traveling couch of Solomon;
Sixty mighty men around it,
Of the mighty men of Israel.
8 “All of them are wielders of the sword,
(CE)Expert in war;
Each man has his (CF)sword at his side,
Guarding against the [bd](CG)terrors of the night.
9 “King Solomon has made for himself a sedan chair
From the timber of Lebanon.
10 “He made its posts of silver,
Its [be]back of gold
And its seat of purple fabric,
With its interior lovingly fitted out
By the (CH)daughters of Jerusalem.
11 “Go forth, O (CI)daughters of Zion,
And gaze on King Solomon with the [bf]crown
With which his mother has crowned him
On the (CJ)day of his wedding,
And on the day of his gladness of heart.”
The Council at Jerusalem
2 Then after an interval of fourteen years I (A)went up again to Jerusalem with (B)Barnabas, taking (C)Titus along also. 2 [a]It was because of a (D)revelation that I went up; and I submitted to them the (E)gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but I did so in private to those who were of reputation, for fear that I might be (F)running, or had run, in vain. 3 But not even (G)Titus, who was with me, though he was a Greek, was (H)compelled to be circumcised. 4 But it was because of the (I)false brethren secretly brought in, who (J)had sneaked in to spy out our (K)liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, in order to (L)bring us into bondage. 5 But we did not yield in subjection to them for even an hour, so that (M)the truth of the gospel would remain with you. 6 But from those who [b]were of high (N)reputation (what they were makes no difference to me; (O)God [c]shows no partiality)—well, those who were of reputation contributed nothing to me. 7 But on the contrary, seeing that I had been (P)entrusted with the (Q)gospel [d]to the uncircumcised, just as (R)Peter had been [e]to the circumcised 8 (for He who effectually worked for Peter in his (S)apostleship [f]to the circumcised effectually worked for me also to the Gentiles), 9 and recognizing (T)the grace that had been given to me, [g](U)James and (V)Cephas and John, who were (W)reputed to be (X)pillars, gave to me and (Y)Barnabas the (Z)right [h]hand of fellowship, so that we might (AA)go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. 10 They only asked us to remember the poor—(AB)the very thing I also was eager to do.
Peter (Cephas) Opposed by Paul
11 But when (AC)Cephas came to (AD)Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he [i]stood condemned. 12 For prior to the coming of certain men from [j](AE)James, he used to (AF)eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he began to withdraw and hold himself aloof, (AG)fearing [k]the party of the circumcision. 13 The rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy, with the result that even (AH)Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that they (AI)were not [l]straightforward about (AJ)the truth of the gospel, I said to (AK)Cephas in the presence of all, “If you, being a Jew, (AL)live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, how is it that you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews? [m]
15 “We are (AM)Jews by nature and not (AN)sinners from among the Gentiles; 16 nevertheless knowing that (AO)a man is not justified by the works of [n]the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by (AP)faith in Christ and not by the works of [o]the Law; since (AQ)by the works of [p]the Law no [q]flesh will be justified. 17 But if, while seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have also been found (AR)sinners, is Christ then a minister of sin? (AS)May it never be! 18 For if I rebuild what I have once destroyed, I (AT)prove myself to be a transgressor. 19 For through [r]the Law I (AU)died to [s]the Law, so that I might live to God. 20 I have been (AV)crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but (AW)Christ lives in me; and [t]the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in (AX)the Son of God, who (AY)loved me and (AZ)gave Himself up for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for (BA)if righteousness comes through [u]the Law, then Christ died needlessly.”
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