Old/New Testament
The Whole World Should Praise the Lord
148 Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens! Praise Him on high! 2 Praise Him, all His angels! Praise Him, all His army! 3 Praise Him, sun and moon! Praise Him, all you shining stars! 4 Praise Him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens! 5 Let them praise the name of the Lord! For He spoke and they came into being. 6 He has made them last forever and ever. He has set a Law which will not pass away.
7 Praise the Lord from the earth, you large sea animals and all seas, 8 fire and hail, snow and clouds, and wind storms, obeying His Word. 9 Praise the Lord, you mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all tall trees, 10 wild animals and all cattle, small animals that move on the ground and birds that fly, 11 kings of the earth and all people, princes and all leaders of the earth, 12 both young men and women who have never had men, and old men and children.
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord. For His name alone is honored. His shining-greatness is above earth and heaven. 14 He has raised up a horn for His people, praise for all who belong to Him, for the people of Israel, who are near to Him. Praise the Lord!
A Call to Praise God
149 Praise the Lord! Sing a new song to the Lord! Praise Him in the meeting of His people. 2 Let Israel be glad in his Maker. Let the sons of Zion be full of joy in their King. 3 Let them praise His name with dancing. Let them sing praises to Him with timbrels and a harp. 4 For the Lord is happy with His people. He saves those who have no pride and makes them beautiful.
5 Let those who are God-like be full of joy and honor. Let them sing for joy on their beds. 6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and in their hand a sword that cuts both ways. 7 Let it be used to punish the nations and the people. 8 Let their kings be tied in chains, and their rulers with ropes of iron. 9 Let the punishment that is written be given to them. This is an honor for all His faithful ones. Praise the Lord!
A Song of Praise
150 Praise the Lord! Praise God in His holy place! Praise Him in the heavens of His power! 2 Praise Him for His great works! Praise Him for all His greatness!
3 Praise Him with the sound of a horn. Praise Him with harps. 4 Praise Him with timbrels and dancing. Praise Him with strings and horns. 5 Praise Him with loud sounds. Praise Him with loud and clear sounds. 6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
29 What good will it do people if they are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised, why are people baptized for them? 30 Why are we also in danger every hour? 31 I say this, Christian brothers, I have joy in what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for you. That is why I face death every day. 32 As men look at it, what good has it done for me in the city of Ephesus to fight with men who act like wild animals? If the dead are not raised, we might as well be like those who say, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”
33 Do not let anyone fool you. Bad people can make those who want to live good become bad. 34 Keep your minds awake! Stop sinning. Some do not know God at all. I say this to your shame.
The Body That Will Be Raised
35 Someone will say, “How are the dead raised? What kind of bodies will they have?” 36 What a foolish question! When you plant a seed, it must die before it starts new life. 37 When you put it in the earth, you are not planting the body which it will become. You put in only a seed. 38 It is God Who gives it a body just as He wants it to have. Each kind of seed becomes a different kind of body.
39 All flesh is not the same. Men have one kind of flesh. Animals have another kind. Fish have another kind, and birds have another kind. 40 There are bodies in the heavens. There are bodies on earth. Their greatness is not the same. 41 The sun has its greatness. The moon has its greatness. Stars have their greatness. One star is different from another star in greatness.
42 It is the same with people who are raised from the dead. The body will turn back to dust when it is put in a grave. When the body is raised from the grave, it will never die. 43 It has no greatness when it is put in a grave, but it is raised with shining-greatness. It is weak when it is put in a grave, but it is raised with power. 44 It is a human body when it dies, but it is a God-like body when it is raised from the dead. There are human bodies and there are God-like bodies. 45 The Holy Writings say, “The first man, Adam, became a living soul.” But the last Adam (Christ) is a life-giving Spirit.
46 We have these human bodies first. Then we are given God-like bodies that are ready for heaven. 47 Adam was the first man. He was made from the dust of the earth. Christ was the second man. He came down from heaven. 48 All men of the earth are made like Adam. But those who belong to Christ will have a body like the body of Christ Who came from heaven. 49 Now, our bodies are like Adam’s body. But in heaven, our bodies will be like the body of Christ.
50 Christian brothers, our bodies which are made of flesh and blood will not go into the holy nation of God. That which dies can have no part in that which will never die. 51 For sure, I am telling you a secret. We will not all die, but we will all be changed. 52 In a very short time, no longer than it takes for the eye to close and open, the Christians who have died will be raised. It will happen when the last horn sounds. The dead will be raised never to die again. Then the rest of us who are alive will be changed. 53 Our human bodies made from dust must be changed into a body that cannot be destroyed. Our human bodies that can die must be changed into bodies that will never die. 54 When this that can be destroyed has been changed into that which cannot be destroyed, and when this that does die has been changed into that which cannot die, then it will happen as the Holy Writings said it would happen. They said, “Death has no more power over life.” (A) 55 O death, where is your power? O death, where are your pains? 56 The pain in death is sin. Sin has power over those under the Law. 57 But God is the One Who gives us power over sin through Jesus Christ our Lord. We give thanks to Him for this.
58 So then, Christian brothers, because of all this, be strong. Do not allow anyone to change your mind. Always do your work well for the Lord. You know that whatever you do for Him will not be wasted.
Copyright © 1969, 2003 by Barbour Publishing, Inc.