Old/New Testament
14 ¶ Then certain of the elders of Israel came unto me and sat before me.
2 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
3 Son of man, these men have caused their uncleanness to come up over their heart and have established the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?
4 Therefore speak unto them and say unto them, Thus hath the Lord GOD said: Every man of the house of Israel that sets up his idols in his heart and has established the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face and comes to the prophet, I, the LORD, will answer him that comes like this in the multitude of his idols
5 that I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.
6 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus hath the Lord GOD said: Repent and cause them to repent from your idols and turn away your faces from all your abominations.
7 For any man of the house of Israel or of the strangers that sojourn in Israel who has separated himself from walking after me and has set up his idols in his heart and has established the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face and comes to the prophet to enquire of him concerning me, I, the LORD, will answer him by myself:
8 and I will set my face against that man and will set him up for a sign and for sayings, and I will cut him off from among my people; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
9 And the prophet when he is deceived and speaks a word, I the LORD have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him and will destroy him from among my people Israel.
10 And they shall bear the punishment of their iniquity; the iniquity of the prophet shall be even as the iniquity of him that seeks unto him
11 that the house of Israel may no longer go astray from me, neither be polluted any longer in all their rebellions but that they may be my people, and I may be their God, said the Lord GOD.
12 ¶ The word of the LORD came again to me, saying:
13 Son of man, when the land sins against me by rebelling blatantly and I stretch out my hand upon her and break the staff of the bread thereof and send famine upon her and cut off man and beast out of her
14 though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in the midst of her, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, said the Lord GOD.
15 If I cause an evil beast to pass through the land and destroy her so that it be desolate that there be no one to pass through because of the beast
16 though these three men were in the midst of her, as I live, said the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither their sons nor their daughters; they only shall be delivered, and the land shall be destroyed.
17 Or if I bring a sword upon the land and say: Sword, go through the land; so that I cut off man and beast out of her;
18 though these three men were in the midst of her, as I live, said the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither their sons nor their daughters, but they only shall be delivered themselves.
19 Or if I send a pestilence into that land and pour out my fury upon her in blood to cut off out of her man and beast
20 though Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in the midst of her, as I live, said the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness.
21 Therefore thus hath the Lord GOD said: How much more if I send my four sore judgments against Jerusalem: the sword, the famine, the evil beast, the pestilence, to cut off out of her man and beast?
22 Yet, behold, there shall be left a remnant in her, of whom shall be taken captive your sons and daughters; they shall be taken away: behold, they shall come forth unto you, and ye shall see their way and their doings; and ye shall be comforted concerning the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, even concerning all that I have brought upon her.
23 And they shall comfort you when ye see their ways and their doings and ye shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done in her, said the Lord GOD.
15 ¶ And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying:
2 Son of man, What is the vine tree more than any tree? What is the branch among the trees of the forest?
3 Shall wood be taken from it to do a work? Will men take a peg from it to hang any vessel thereon?
4 Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel; the fire devours both the ends of it, and the midst of it is burned. Is it meet for any work?
5 Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work; how much less afterward shall it be meet for any work when the fire has devoured it, and it is burned?
6 Therefore thus hath the Lord GOD said: As the vine tree among the trees of the forest which I have given to the fire for fuel, so I have given over the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
7 And I will set my face against them; they came out of one fire, and another fire shall devour them; and ye shall know that I am the LORD when I set my face against them.
8 And I will make the land desolate because they have completely rebelled, said the Lord GOD.
2 ¶ My brethren, do not have the faith of our Lord Jesus, the glorious Christ, with respect of persons.
2 For if a man with a gold ring and in precious apparel comes into your synagogue and a poor person in vile raiment also comes in,
3 and ye have respect to him that wears the precious clothing and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there or sit here under my footstool:
4 Are ye not then judging in yourselves and are become judges of evil thoughts?
5 Hearken, my beloved brethren, Has not God chosen the poor of this world that they might be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which he has promised to those that love him?
6 But ye have despised the poor. Do not the rich oppress you with tyranny and draw you with violence to the courts?
7 Do they not blaspheme that worthy name by which ye are called?
8 ¶ If ye truly fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well;
9 but if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin and are accused of the law as rebels.
10 For whosoever shall have kept the whole law, and then offends in one point is made guilty of all.
11 For he that said, Thou shalt not commit adultery, said also, Thou shalt not murder. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou commit murder, thou art become a transgressor of the law.
12 So speak ye and so do as those that shall be judged by the law of liberty.
13 For judgment without mercy shall be done unto the one that has shown no mercy; and mercy boasts against judgment.
14 ¶ My brethren, What shall it profit though someone says that they have faith and do not have works? Shall this type of faith be able to save them?
15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food,
16 and one of you says unto them, Depart in peace; be ye warmed and filled; but ye do not give them those things which are needful for the body; what shall it profit them?
17 Even so faith, if it does not have works, is dead in and of itself.
18 But someone may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works; show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works.
19 Thou believest that God is one; thou doest well; the demons also believe and tremble.
20 But, O vain man, dost thou desire to know that faith without works is dead?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar?
22 Dost thou not see how the faith worked together with his works, and the faith was complete by the works?
23 And that the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness, and he was called the Friend of God.
24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not only by faith.
25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?
26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
Copyright © 2013, 2020 by Ransom Press International