Proverbs 19 Cross References - MSB

¹ Better a poor man who walks with integrity than a fool whose lips are perverse. ² Even zeal is no good without knowledge, and he who hurries his footsteps misses the mark. ³ A man’s own folly subverts his way, yet his heart rages against the LORD. ⁴ Wealth attracts many friends, but a poor man is deserted by his friend. ⁵ A false witness will not go unpunished, and one who utters lies will not escape. ⁶ Many seek the favor of the prince, and everyone is a friend of the gift giver. ⁷ All the brothers of a poor man hate him—how much more do his friends avoid him! He may pursue them with pleading, but they are nowhere to be found. ⁸ He who acquires wisdom loves himself; one who safeguards understanding will find success. ⁹ A false witness will not go unpunished, and one who pours out lies will perish. ¹⁰ Luxury is unseemly for a fool—how much worse for a slave to rule over princes! ¹¹ A man’s insight gives him patience, and his virtue is to overlook an offense. ¹² A king’s rage is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass. ¹³ A foolish son is his father’s ruin, and a quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping. ¹⁴ Houses and wealth are inherited from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the LORD. ¹⁵ Laziness brings on deep sleep, and an idle soul will suffer hunger. ¹⁶ He who keeps a commandment preserves his soul, but he who is careless in his ways will die. ¹⁷ Kindness to the poor is a loan to the LORD, and He will repay the lender. ¹⁸ Discipline your son, for in that there is hope; do not be party to his death. ¹⁹ A man of great anger must pay the penalty; if you rescue him, you will have to do so again. ²⁰ Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days. ²¹ Many plans are in a man’s heart, but the purpose of the LORD will prevail. ²² The desire of a man is loving devotion; better to be poor than a liar. ²³ The fear of the LORD leads to life, that one may rest content, without visitation from harm. ²⁴ The slacker buries his hand in the dish; he will not even bring it back to his mouth. ²⁵ Strike a mocker, and the simple will beware; rebuke the discerning man, and he will gain knowledge. ²⁶ He who assaults his father or evicts his mother is a son who brings shame and disgrace. ²⁷ If you cease to hear instruction, my son, you will stray from the words of knowledge. ²⁸ A corrupt witness mocks justice, and a wicked mouth swallows iniquity. ²⁹ Judgments are prepared for mockers, and beatings for the backs of fools.

¹⁷ Now consider carefully what you must do, because disaster looms over our master and all his household. For he is such a scoundrel that nobody can speak to him!”

²⁵ My lord should pay no attention to this scoundrel Nabal, for he lives up to his name: His name means Fool, and folly accompanies him. I, your servant, did not see my lord’s young men whom you sent.

¹¹ But I will walk with integrity; redeem me and be merciful to me.

²⁶ They are ever generous and quick to lend, and their children are a blessing.

²⁶ A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the ways of the wicked lead them astray.

² He who walks in uprightness fears the LORD, but the one who is devious in his ways despises Him.

¹⁶ Better a little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure with turmoil.

⁸ Better a little with righteousness than great gain with injustice.

²² The desire of a man is loving devotion; better to be poor than a liar.

⁷ The righteous man walks with integrity; blessed are his children after him.

⁶ Better a poor man who walks with integrity than a rich man whose ways are perverse.

³ For your hands are stained with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue mutters injustice.

³¹ Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. ³² Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the one to come. ³³ Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. ³⁴ You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.

²⁶ What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?

⁵ Listen, my beloved brothers: Has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom He promised those who love Him? ⁶ But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you and drag you into court?

⁵ If I have walked in falsehood or my foot has rushed to deceit,

¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, and they are swift to shed blood.

²¹ The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of judgment.

²⁹ A patient man has great understanding, but a quick-tempered man promotes folly.

⁵ The plans of the diligent bring plenty, as surely as haste leads to poverty.

⁸ do not bring hastily to court. Otherwise, what will you do in the end when your neighbor puts you to shame?

²⁰ A faithful man will abound with blessings, but one eager to be rich will not go unpunished.

²² A stingy man hastens after wealth and does not know that poverty awaits him.

²⁰ Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for him.

⁹ Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger settles in the lap of a fool.

⁹ Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also taught the people knowledge; he pondered, searched out, and arranged many proverbs.

¹¹ When its limbs are dry, they are broken off. Women come and use them for kindling; for this is a people without understanding. Therefore their Maker has no compassion on them, and their Creator shows them no favor.

¹⁶ So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.

⁶ My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you as My priests. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your children.

³ They will do these things because they have not known the Father or Me.

² For I testify about them that they are zealous for God, but not on the basis of knowledge.

⁹ And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,

⁶ When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom, she took the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. ⁷ And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; so they sewed together fig leaves and made coverings for themselves. ⁸ Then the man and his wife heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the breeze of the day, and they hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. ⁹ But the LORD God called out to the man, “Where are you?” ¹⁰ “I heard Your voice in the garden,” he replied, “and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.” ¹¹ “Who told you that you were naked?” asked the LORD God. “Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” ¹² And the man answered, “The woman whom You gave me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

⁵ but He had no regard for Cain and his offering. So Cain became very angry, and his countenance fell. ⁶ “Why are you angry,” said the LORD to Cain, “and why has your countenance fallen? ⁷ If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you refuse to do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires you, but you must master it.” ⁸ Then Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go out to the field.” And while they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. ⁹ And the LORD said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I do not know!” he answered. “Am I my brother’s keeper?” ¹⁰ “What have you done?” replied the LORD. “The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground. ¹¹ Now you are cursed and banished from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. ¹² When you till the ground, it will no longer yield its produce to you. You will be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth.” ¹³ But Cain said to the LORD, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. ¹⁴ Behold, this day You have driven me from the face of the earth, and from Your face I will be hidden; I will be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.”

¹⁹ When Korah had gathered his whole assembly against them at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, the glory of the LORD appeared to the whole congregation. ²⁰ And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, ²¹ “Separate yourselves from this congregation so that I may consume them in an instant.” ²² But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, when one man sins, will You be angry with the whole congregation?” ²³ Then the LORD said to Moses, ²⁴ “Tell the congregation to move away from the dwellings of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.” ²⁵ So Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him. ²⁶ And he warned the congregation, “Move away now from the tents of these wicked men. Do not touch anything that belongs to them, or you will be swept away because of all their sins.” ²⁷ So they moved away from the dwellings of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Meanwhile, Dathan and Abiram had come out and stood at the entrances to their tents with their wives and children and infants. ²⁸ Then Moses said, “This is how you will know that the LORD has sent me to do all these things, for it was not my own doing: ²⁹ If these men die a natural death, or if they suffer the fate of all men, then the LORD has not sent me. ³⁰ But if the LORD brings about something unprecedented, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them and all that belongs to them so that they go down alive into Sheol, then you will know that these men have treated the LORD with contempt.” ³¹ As soon as Moses had finished saying all this, the ground beneath them split open, ³² and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households—all Korah’s men and all their possessions. ³³ They went down alive into Sheol with all they owned. The earth closed over them, and they vanished from the assembly. ³⁴ At their cries, all the people of Israel who were around them fled, saying, “The earth may swallow us too!” ³⁵ And fire came forth from the LORD and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense. ³⁶ Then the LORD said to Moses, ³⁷ “Tell Eleazar son of Aaron the priest to remove the censers from the flames and to scatter the coals far away, because the censers are holy. ³⁸ As for the censers of those who sinned at the cost of their own lives, hammer them into sheets to overlay the altar, for these were presented before the LORD, and so have become holy. They will serve as a sign to the Israelites.” ³⁹ So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers brought by those who had been burned up, and he had them hammered out to overlay the altar, ⁴⁰ just as the LORD commanded him through Moses. This was to be a reminder to the Israelites that no outsider who is not a descendant of Aaron should approach to offer incense before the LORD, lest he become like Korah and his followers. ⁴¹ The next day the whole congregation of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You have killed the LORD’s people!”

¹² Then the Israelites declared to Moses, “Look, we are perishing! We are lost; we are all lost! ¹³ Anyone who comes near the tabernacle of the LORD will die. Are we all going to perish?”

¹³ “You have acted foolishly,” Samuel declared. “You have not kept the command that the LORD your God gave you; if you had, the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time.

²³ For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance is like the wickedness of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has rejected you as king.”

¹³ And Saul asked him, “Why have you and the son of Jesse conspired against me? You gave him bread and a sword and inquired of God for him so that he could rise up against me to lie in wait, as he is doing today.” ¹⁴ Ahimelech answered the king, “Who among all your servants is as faithful as David, the king’s son-in-law, the captain of your bodyguard who is honored in your house? ¹⁵ Was that day the first time I inquired of God for him? Far be it from me! Let not the king accuse your servant or any of my father’s household, for your servant knew nothing of this whole affair—not in part or in whole.” ¹⁶ But the king replied, “You will surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house!” ¹⁷ Then the king ordered the guards at his side, “Turn and kill the priests of the LORD, because they too sided with David. For they knew he was fleeing, but they did not tell me.” But the king’s servants would not lift a hand to strike the priests of the LORD. ¹⁸ So the king ordered Doeg, “You turn and strike down the priests!” And Doeg the Edomite turned and struck down the priests himself. On that day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod. ¹⁹ He also put to the sword Nob, the city of the priests, with its men and women, children and infants, oxen, donkeys, and sheep. ²⁰ But one of the sons of Ahimelech son of Ahitub escaped. His name was Abiathar, and he fled to David. ²¹ And Abiathar told David that Saul had killed the priests of the LORD. ²² Then David said to Abiathar, “I knew that Doeg the Edomite was there that day, and that he was sure to tell Saul. I myself am responsible for the lives of everyone in your father’s house. ²³ Stay with me; do not be afraid, for he who seeks your life is seeking mine as well. You will be safe with me.”

⁴² And the prophet said to the king, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Because you have let slip from your hand the man I had devoted to destruction, your life will be exchanged for his life, and your people for his people.’” ⁴³ Sullen and angry, the king of Israel went home to Samaria.

⁹ So the king of Israel, the king of Judah, and the king of Edom set out, and after they had traveled a roundabout route for seven days, they had no water for their army or for their animals. ¹⁰ “Alas,” said the king of Israel, “for the LORD has summoned these three kings to deliver them into the hand of Moab!”

³³ While Elisha was still speaking with them, the messenger came down to him. And the king said, “This calamity is from the LORD. Why should I wait for the LORD any longer?”

⁹ For the eyes of the LORD roam to and fro over all the earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are fully devoted to Him. You have acted foolishly in this matter. From now on, therefore, you will be at war.” ¹⁰ Asa was angry with the seer and became so enraged over this matter that he put the man in prison. And at the same time Asa oppressed some of the people.

¹ Of David. Do not fret over those who do evil; do not envy those who do wrong.

⁷ Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him; do not fret when men prosper in their ways, when they carry out wicked schemes.

³ The integrity of the upright guides them, but the perversity of the faithless destroys them.

²¹ They will roam the land, dejected and hungry. When they are famished, they will become enraged; and looking upward, they will curse their king and their God. ²² Then they will look to the earth and see only distress and darkness and the gloom of anguish. And they will be driven into utter darkness.

⁴⁵ But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and they blasphemously contradicted what Paul was saying. ⁴⁶ Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “It was necessary to speak the word of God to you first. But since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.

⁹ And the people were scorched by intense heat, and men cursed the name of God, who had authority over these plagues; yet they did not repent and give Him glory. ¹⁰ And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness, and men began to gnaw their tongues in anguish ¹¹ and curse the God of heaven for their pains and sores; yet they did not repent of their deeds.

¹⁵ But my brothers are as faithless as wadis, as seasonal streams that overflow, ¹⁶ darkened because of the ice and the inflow of melting snow, ¹⁷ but ceasing in the dry season and vanishing from their channels in the heat. ¹⁸ Caravans turn aside from their routes; they go into the wasteland and perish. ¹⁹ The caravans of Tema look for water; the travelers of Sheba hope to find it. ²⁰ They are confounded because they had hoped; their arrival brings disappointment. ²¹ For now you are of no help; you see terror, and you are afraid. ²² Have I ever said, ‘Give me something; offer me a bribe from your wealth; ²³ deliver me from the hand of the enemy; redeem me from the grasp of the ruthless’?

¹³ He has removed my brothers from me; my acquaintances have abandoned me. ¹⁴ My kinsmen have failed me, and my friends have forgotten me. ¹⁵ My guests and maidservants count me as a stranger; I am a foreigner in their sight. ¹⁶ I call for my servant, but he does not answer, though I implore him with my own mouth. ¹⁷ My breath is repulsive to my wife, and I am loathsome to my own family.

¹⁵ The wealth of the rich man is his fortified city, but poverty is the ruin of the poor.

²⁰ The poor man is hated even by his neighbor, but many are those who love the rich.

⁶ Many seek the favor of the prince, and everyone is a friend of the gift giver. ⁷ All the brothers of a poor man hate him—how much more do his friends avoid him! He may pursue them with pleading, but they are nowhere to be found.

¹³ After a few days, the younger son got everything together and journeyed to a distant country, where he squandered his wealth in wild living. ¹⁴ After he had spent all he had, a severe famine swept through that country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵ So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed the pigs.

¹ “You shall not spread a false report. Do not join the wicked by being a malicious witness.

¹¹ You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave anyone unpunished who takes His name in vain.

¹⁶ If a false witness testifies against someone, accusing him of a crime, ¹⁷ both parties to the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD, before the priests and judges who are in office at that time. ¹⁸ The judges shall investigate thoroughly, and if the witness is proven to be a liar who has falsely accused his brother, ¹⁹ you must do to him as he intended to do to his brother. So you must purge the evil from among you. ²⁰ Then the rest of the people will hear and be afraid, and they will never again do anything so evil among you. ²¹ You must show no pity: life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, and foot for foot.

⁹ Now therefore, do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man. You know what you ought to do to him to bring his gray head down to Sheol in blood.”

³ What will He do to you, and what will be added to you, O deceitful tongue? ⁴ Sharp arrows will come from the warrior, with burning coals of the broom tree!

¹⁹ a false witness who gives false testimony, and one who stirs up discord among brothers.

⁹ A false witness will not go unpunished, and one who pours out lies will perish.

²⁸ A lying witness will perish, but the man who listens to truth will speak forever.

²⁴ At the command of the king, the men who had falsely accused Daniel were brought and thrown into the den of lions—they and their children and wives. And before they had reached the bottom of the den, the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.

²⁰ You are also to say, ‘Look, your servant Jacob is right behind us.’” For he thought, “I will appease Esau with the gift that is going before me. After that I can face him, and perhaps he will accept me.”

⁶ Now Joseph was the ruler of the land; he was the one who sold grain to all its people. So when his brothers arrived, they bowed down before him with their faces to the ground.

¹⁵ So the men took these gifts, along with double the amount of silver, and Benjamin as well. Then they hurried down to Egypt and stood before Joseph.

¹⁹ and said, “My lord, do not hold me guilty, and do not remember your servant’s wrongdoing on the day my lord the king left Jerusalem. May the king not take it to heart. ²⁰ For your servant knows that I have sinned, so here I am today as the first of all the house of Joseph to come down to meet my lord the king.” ²¹ But Abishai son of Zeruiah said, “Shouldn’t Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed the LORD’s anointed?” ²² And David replied, “Sons of Zeruiah, what have I to do with you, that you should be my adversaries today? Should any man be put to death in Israel today? Am I not indeed aware that today I am king over Israel?” ²³ So the king said to Shimei, “You shall not die.” And the king swore an oath to him. ²⁴ Then Mephibosheth, Saul’s grandson, went down to meet the king. He had not cared for his feet or trimmed his mustache or washed his clothes from the day the king had left until the day he returned safely. ²⁵ And he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, who asked him, “Mephibosheth, why did you not go with me?” ²⁶ “My lord the king,” he replied, “because I am lame, I said, ‘I will have my donkey saddled so that I may ride on it and go with the king.’ But my servant Ziba deceived me, ²⁷ and he has slandered your servant to my lord the king. Yet my lord the king is like the angel of God, so do what is good in your eyes. ²⁸ For all the house of my grandfather deserves death from my lord the king, yet you have set your servant among those who eat at your table. What further right, then, do I have to keep appealing to the king?” ²⁹ The king replied, “Why say any more? I hereby declare that you and Ziba are to divide the land.” ³⁰ And Mephibosheth said to the king, “Instead, since my lord the king has safely come to his own house, let Ziba take it all!” ³¹ Now Barzillai the Gileadite had come down from Rogelim to cross the Jordan with the king and send him on his way from there. ³² Barzillai was quite old, eighty years of age, and since he was a very wealthy man, he had provided for the king while he stayed in Mahanaim. ³³ The king said to Barzillai, “Cross over with me, and I will provide for you at my side in Jerusalem.” ³⁴ But Barzillai replied, “How many years of my life remain, that I should go up to Jerusalem with the king? ³⁵ I am now eighty years old. Can I discern what is good and what is not? Can your servant taste what he eats or drinks? Can I still hear the voice of singing men and women? Why should your servant be an added burden to my lord the king? ³⁶ Your servant could go with the king only a short distance past the Jordan; why should the king repay me with such a reward? ³⁷ Please let your servant return, that I may die in my own city near the tomb of my father and mother. But here is your servant Chimham. Let him cross over with my lord the king, and do for him what is good in your sight.” ³⁸ The king replied, “Chimham will cross over with me, and I will do for him what seems good in your sight, and I will do for you whatever you desire of me.” ³⁹ So all the people crossed the Jordan, and then the king crossed over. The king kissed Barzillai and blessed him, and Barzillai returned home.

²⁴ If I smiled at them, they did not believe it; the light of my countenance was precious. ²⁵ I chose their course and presided as chief. So I dwelt as a king among his troops, as a comforter of the mourners.

¹² The Daughter of Tyre will come with a gift; men of wealth will seek your favor.

¹⁵ When a king’s face brightens, there is life; his favor is like a rain cloud in spring.

⁸ A bribe is a charm to its giver; wherever he turns, he succeeds.

¹⁶ A man’s gift opens doors for him, and brings him before great men.

¹² A king’s rage is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.

¹⁴ A gift in secret soothes anger, and a covert bribe pacifies great wrath.

²⁶ Many seek the ruler’s favor, but a man receives justice from the LORD.

¹¹ On coming to the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.

²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

¹¹ My beloved and friends shun my disease, and my kinsmen stand at a distance.

⁸ You have removed my friends from me; You have made me repulsive to them; I am confined and cannot escape.

¹⁸ You have removed my beloved and my friend; darkness is my closest companion.

²³ The poor man pleads for mercy, but the rich man answers harshly.

⁴ Wealth attracts many friends, but a poor man is deserted by his friend.

¹³ Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too shall cry out and receive no answer.

¹⁵ Now a poor wise man was found in the city, and he saved the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man. ¹⁶ And I said, “Wisdom is better than strength, but the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are not heeded.”

³⁸ So he called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” ³⁹ Those who led the way admonished him to be silent, but he cried out all the louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” ⁴⁰ Jesus stopped and directed that the man be brought to Him. When he had been brought near, Jesus asked him,

⁶ But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you and drag you into court?

¹⁵ Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶ If one of you tells him, “Go in peace; stay warm and well fed,” but does not provide for his physical needs, what good is that?

¹⁷ If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him? ¹⁸ My little children, let us love not in word and speech, but in action and truth.

¹¹ By them indeed Your servant is warned; in keeping them is great reward.

¹ My son, if you accept my words and hide my commandments within you, ² if you incline your ear to wisdom and direct your heart to understanding, ³ if you truly call out to insight and lift your voice to understanding, ⁴ if you seek it like silver and search it out like hidden treasure, ⁵ then you will discern the fear of the LORD and discover the knowledge of God. ⁶ For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. ⁷ He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk with integrity, ⁸ to guard the paths of justice and protect the way of His saints. ⁹ Then you will discern righteousness and justice and equity—every good path.

¹⁸ She is a tree of life to those who embrace her, and those who lay hold of her are blessed.

²¹ My son, do not lose sight of this: Preserve sound judgment and discernment.

⁴ he taught me and said, “Let your heart lay hold of my words; keep my commands and you will live.

⁶ Do not forsake wisdom, and she will preserve you; love her, and she will guard you.

²¹ Do not lose sight of them; keep them within your heart.

³⁵ For whoever finds me finds life and obtains the favor of the LORD. ³⁶ But he who fails to find me harms himself; all who hate me love death.”

²⁰ Whoever heeds instruction will find success, and blessed is he who trusts in the LORD.

¹⁶ Why should the fool have money in his hand with no intention of buying wisdom?

¹⁸ for it is pleasing when you keep them within you and they are constantly on your lips.

²⁶ I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

²⁵ Whoever loves his life will lose it, but whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

²¹ Whoever has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me. The one who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and reveal Myself to him.”

¹⁰ For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.

⁵ A false witness will not go unpunished, and one who utters lies will not escape.

¹⁵ The head is the elder and honorable man, and the tail is the prophet who teaches lies. ¹⁶ For those who guide this people mislead them, and those they mislead are swallowed up. ¹⁷ Therefore the Lord takes no pleasure in their young men; He has no compassion on their fatherless and widows. For every one of them is godless and wicked, and every mouth speaks folly. Despite all this, His anger is not turned away; His hand is still upraised.

²⁵ “I have heard the sayings of the prophets who prophesy lies in My name: ‘I had a dream! I had a dream!’ ²⁶ How long will this continue in the hearts of these prophets who prophesy falsehood, these prophets of the delusion of their own minds? ²⁷ They suppose the dreams that they tell one another will make My people forget My name, just as their fathers forgot My name through the worship of Baal. ²⁸ Let the prophet who has a dream retell it, but let him who has My word speak it truthfully. For what is straw compared to grain?” declares the LORD. ²⁹ “Is not My word like fire,” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer that smashes a rock?” ³⁰ “Therefore behold,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who steal from one another words they attribute to Me.” ³¹ “Yes,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and proclaim, ‘The LORD declares it.’” ³² “Indeed,” declares the LORD, “I am against those who prophesy false dreams and retell them to lead My people astray with their reckless lies. It was not I who sent them or commanded them, and they are of no benefit at all to these people,” declares the LORD.

¹⁵ Then the prophet Jeremiah said to the prophet Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah! The LORD did not send you, but you have persuaded this people to trust in a lie. ¹⁶ Therefore this is what the LORD says: ‘I am about to remove you from the face of the earth. You will die this year because you have preached rebellion against the LORD.’” ¹⁷ And in the seventh month of that very year, the prophet Hananiah died.

³¹ “Send a message telling all the exiles what the LORD says concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite. Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you—though I did not send him—and has made you trust in a lie, ³² this is what the LORD says: ‘I will surely punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants. He will have no one left among this people, nor will he see the good that I will bring to My people, declares the LORD, for he has preached rebellion against the LORD.’”

²² Because you have disheartened the righteous with your lies, even though I have caused them no grief, and because you have encouraged the wicked not to turn from their evil ways to save their lives,

⁸ And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will consume with the breath of His mouth and annihilate by the majesty of His arrival. ⁹ The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the working of Satan, with every kind of power, sign, and false wonder, ¹⁰ and with every wicked deception directed against those who are perishing, because they refused the love of the truth that would have saved them.

¹ Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons, ² influenced by the hypocrisy of liars, whose consciences are seared with a hot iron.

¹ Now there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. ² Many will follow in their depravity, and because of them the way of truth will be defamed. ³ In their greed, these false teachers will exploit you with deceptive words. The longstanding verdict against them remains in force, and their destruction will not sleep.

²⁰ But the beast was captured along with the false prophet, who on its behalf had performed signs deceiving those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. Both the beast and the false prophet were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

⁸ But to the cowardly and unbelieving and sinful and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.”

¹⁵ But outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

³⁶ When Abigail returned to Nabal, there he was in the house, holding a feast fit for a king, in high spirits and very drunk. So she told him nothing until morning light.

²⁴ So Joab went to the king and said, “What have you done? Look, Abner came to you. Why did you dismiss him? Now he is getting away! ²⁵ Surely you realize that Abner son of Ner came to deceive you and to track your movements and all that you are doing.”

³⁹ And I am weak this day, though anointed as king, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, are too fierce for me. May the LORD repay the evildoer according to his evil!”

¹⁵ The couriers left, spurred on by the king’s command, and the edict was issued in the citadel of Susa. Then the king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Susa was in confusion.

⁷ Eloquent words are unfit for a fool; how much worse are lying lips to a ruler!

¹ Like snow in summer and rain at harvest, honor does not befit a fool.

²¹ Under three things the earth trembles, under four it cannot bear up: ²² a servant who becomes king, a fool who is filled with food,

⁵ There is an evil I have seen under the sun—an error that proceeds from the ruler: ⁶ Folly is appointed to great heights, but the rich sit in lowly positions. ⁷ I have seen slaves on horseback, while princes go on foot like slaves.

⁵ The people will oppress one another, man against man, neighbor against neighbor; the young will rise up against the old, and the base against the honorable.

¹¹ Woe to those who rise early in the morning in pursuit of strong drink, who linger into the evening, to be inflamed by wine. ¹² At their feasts are the lyre and harp, tambourines and flutes and wine. They disregard the actions of the LORD and fail to see the work of His hands.

¹² On that day the Lord GOD of Hosts called for weeping and wailing, for shaven heads and the wearing of sackcloth. ¹³ But look, there is joy and gladness, butchering of cattle and slaughtering of sheep, eating of meat and drinking of wine: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” ¹⁴ The LORD of Hosts has revealed in my hearing: “Until your dying day, this sin of yours will never be atoned for,” says the Lord GOD of Hosts.

³ They delight the king with their evil, and the princes with their lies. ⁴ They are all adulterers, like an oven heated by a baker who needs not stoke the fire from the kneading to the rising of the dough. ⁵ The princes are inflamed with wine on the day of our king; so he joins hands with those who mock him.

¹ Do not rejoice, O Israel, with exultation like the nations, for you have played the harlot against your God; you have made love for hire on every threshing floor.

³ You dismiss the day of calamity and bring near a reign of violence. ⁴ You lie on beds inlaid with ivory, and lounge upon your couches. You dine on lambs from the flock and calves from the stall. ⁵ You improvise songs on the harp like David and invent your own musical instruments. ⁶ You drink wine by the bowlful and anoint yourselves with the finest oils, but you fail to grieve over the ruin of Joseph.

¹⁹ Now there was a rich man dressed in purple and fine linen, who lived each day in joyous splendor.

²³ In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham from afar, with Lazarus by his side.

⁹ Grieve, mourn, and weep. Turn your laughter to mourning, and your joy to gloom.

¹⁵ When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph bears a grudge? Then he will surely repay us for all the evil that we did to him.” ¹⁶ So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Before he died, your father commanded, ¹⁷ ‘This is what you are to say to Joseph: I beg you, please forgive the transgression and sin of your brothers, for they did you wrong.’ So now, Joseph, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father.” When their message came to him, Joseph wept. ¹⁸ His brothers also came to him, bowed down before him, and said, “We are your slaves!” ¹⁹ But Joseph replied, “Do not be afraid. Am I in the place of God? ²⁰ As for you, what you intended against me for evil, God intended for good, in order to accomplish a day like this—to preserve the lives of many people. ²¹ Therefore do not be afraid. I will provide for you and your little ones.” So Joseph reassured his brothers and spoke kindly to them.

¹⁶ A fool’s anger is known at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult.

¹⁸ A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger calms dispute.

³² He who is slow to anger is better than a warrior, and he who controls his temper is greater than one who captures a city.

¹⁴ To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.

³ It is honorable for a man to resolve a dispute, but any fool will quarrel.

²¹ If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.

⁴⁴ But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you, ⁴⁵ that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

²¹ Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?” ²² Jesus answered, “I tell you, not just seven times, but seventy-seven times!

¹⁸ If it is possible on your part, live at peace with everyone. ¹⁹ Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.” ²⁰ Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. For in so doing, you will heap burning coals on his head.” ²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

³² Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave us.

¹² Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. ¹³ Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as Christ forgave you.

¹⁹ So then, my beloved brothers, everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger,

⁴ is like the light of the morning at sunrise of a cloudless dawn, the glistening after the rain on the sprouting grass of the earth.’

⁸ Just as the king returned from the palace garden to the banquet hall, Haman was falling on the couch where Esther was reclining. The king exclaimed, “Would he actually assault the queen while I am in the palace?” As soon as the words had left the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face.

⁶ May he be like rain that falls on freshly cut grass, like spring showers that water the earth.

³ It is like the dew of Hermon falling on the mountains of Zion. For there the LORD has bestowed the blessing of life forevermore.

¹⁴ The wrath of a king is a messenger of death, but a wise man will pacify it. ¹⁵ When a king’s face brightens, there is life; his favor is like a rain cloud in spring.

² The terror of a king is like the roar of a lion; whoever provokes him forfeits his own life.

¹⁵ Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a helpless people.

⁴ For the king’s word is supreme, and who can say to him, “What are you doing?”

¹² This response made the king so furious with anger that he gave orders to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. ¹³ So the decree went out that the wise men were to be executed, and men went to look for Daniel and his friends to execute them.

¹⁹ At this, Nebuchadnezzar was filled with rage, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He gave orders to heat the furnace seven times hotter than usual, ²⁰ and he commanded some mighty men of valor in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing fiery furnace. ²¹ So they were tied up, wearing robes, trousers, turbans, and other clothes, and they were thrown into the blazing fiery furnace. ²² The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the fiery flames killed the men who carried up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. ²³ And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, firmly bound, fell into the blazing fiery furnace.

¹⁹ Because of the greatness that He bestowed on him, the people of every nation and language trembled in fear before him. He killed whom he wished and kept alive whom he wished; he exalted whom he wished and humbled whom he wished.

⁵ I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like the lily and take root like the cedars of Lebanon.

⁷ Then the remnant of Jacob will be in the midst of many peoples like dew from the LORD, like showers on the grass, which do not wait for man or linger for mankind.

⁴ I tell you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. ⁵ But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear the One who, after you have been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him!

¹ After some time, David’s son Amnon fell in love with Tamar, the beautiful sister of David’s son Absalom. ² Amnon was sick with frustration over his sister Tamar, for she was a virgin, and it seemed implausible for him to do anything to her. ³ Now Amnon had a friend named Jonadab, the son of David’s brother Shimeah. Jonadab was a very shrewd man, ⁴ so he asked Amnon, “Why are you, the son of the king, so depressed morning after morning? Won’t you tell me?” Amnon replied, “I am in love with Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.” ⁵ Jonadab told him, “Lie down on your bed and pretend you are ill. When your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘Please let my sister Tamar come and give me something to eat. Let her prepare it in my sight so I may watch her and eat it from her hand.’” ⁶ So Amnon lay down and feigned illness. When the king came to see him, Amnon said, “Please let my sister Tamar come and make a couple of cakes in my sight, so that I may eat from her hand.” ⁷ Then David sent word to Tamar at the palace: “Please go to the house of Amnon your brother and prepare a meal for him.” ⁸ So Tamar went to the house of her brother Amnon, who was lying down. She took some dough, kneaded it, made cakes in his sight, and baked them. ⁹ Then she brought the pan and set it down before him, but he refused to eat. “Send everyone away!” said Amnon. And everyone went out. ¹⁰ Then Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food into the bedroom, so that I may eat it from your hand.” Tamar took the cakes she had made and went to her brother Amnon’s bedroom. ¹¹ And when she had brought them to him to eat, he took hold of her and said, “Come lie with me, my sister!” ¹² “No, my brother!” she cried. “Do not humiliate me, for such a thing should never be done in Israel. Do not do this disgraceful thing! ¹³ Where could I ever take my shame? And you would be like one of the fools in Israel! Please speak to the king, for he will not withhold me from you.” ¹⁴ But Amnon refused to listen to her, and being stronger, he violated her and lay with her. ¹⁵ Then Amnon hated Tamar with such intensity that his hatred was greater than the love he previously had. “Get up!” he said to her. “Be gone!” ¹⁶ “No,” she replied, “sending me away is worse than this great wrong you have already done to me!” But he refused to listen to her. ¹⁷ Instead, he called to his attendant and said, “Throw this woman out and bolt the door behind her!” ¹⁸ So Amnon’s attendant threw her out and bolted the door behind her. Now Tamar was wearing a robe of many colors, because this is what the king’s virgin daughters wore.

¹⁹ as water wears away the stones and torrents wash away the soil, so You destroy a man’s hope.

¹ The proverbs of Solomon: A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son grief to his mother.

²⁰ A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish man despises his mother.

²¹ A man fathers a fool to his own grief; the father of a fool has no joy.

²⁵ A foolish son brings grief to his father and bitterness to her who bore him.

⁹ Better to live on a corner of the roof than to share a house with a quarrelsome wife.

¹⁹ Better to live in the desert than with a contentious and ill-tempered wife.

²⁴ Better to live on a corner of the roof than to share a house with a quarrelsome wife.

¹⁵ A constant dripping on a rainy day and a contentious woman are alike—

¹⁸ I hated all for which I had toiled under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who comes after me. ¹⁹ And who knows whether that man will be wise or foolish? Yet he will take over all the labor at which I have worked skillfully under the sun. This too is futile.

⁷ The LORD, the God of heaven, who brought me from my father’s house and my native land, who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’—He will send His angel before you so that you can take a wife for my son from there.

¹ So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed him. “Do not take a wife from the Canaanite women,” he commanded. ² “Go at once to Paddan-aram, to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel, and take a wife from among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. ³ May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, so that you may become a company of peoples. ⁴ And may He give the blessing of Abraham to you and your descendants, so that you may possess the land where you dwell as a foreigner, the land God gave to Abraham.”

¹⁶ when that man assigns his inheritance to his sons he must not appoint the son of the beloved wife as the firstborn over the son of the unloved wife.

²³ So Joshua took the entire land, in keeping with all that the LORD had spoken to Moses. And Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to the allotments to their tribes. Then the land had rest from war.

⁶ in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

²² A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is passed to the righteous.

²² He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD.

¹⁰ A wife of noble character, who can find? She is far more precious than rubies. ¹¹ The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he lacks nothing of value. ¹² She brings him good and not harm all the days of her life. ¹³ She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. ¹⁴ She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar. ¹⁵ She rises while it is still night to provide food for her household and portions for her maidservants. ¹⁶ She appraises a field and buys it; from her earnings she plants a vineyard. ¹⁷ She girds herself with strength and shows that her arms are strong. ¹⁸ She sees that her gain is good, and her lamp is not extinguished at night. ¹⁹ She stretches out her hands to the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers. ²⁰ She opens her arms to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy. ²¹ When it snows, she has no fear for her household, for they are all clothed in scarlet. ²² She makes coverings for her bed; her clothing is fine linen and purple. ²³ Her husband is known at the city gate, where he sits among the elders of the land. ²⁴ She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchants. ²⁵ Strength and honor are her clothing, and she can laugh at the days to come. ²⁶ She opens her mouth with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. ²⁷ She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. ²⁸ Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband praises her as well: ²⁹ “Many daughters have done noble things, but you surpass them all!” ³⁰ Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. ³¹ Give her the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her at the gates.

¹⁴ See, I am ready to come to you a third time, and I will not be a burden to you, because I am not seeking your possessions, but you. For children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.

¹⁷ Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.

⁹ How long will you lie there, O slacker? When will you get up from your sleep? ¹⁰ A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,

⁴ Idle hands make one poor, but diligent hands bring wealth. ⁵ He who gathers in summer is a wise son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son.

²⁴ The slacker buries his hand in the dish; he will not even bring it back to his mouth.

¹³ Do not love sleep, or you will grow poor; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of food.

²¹ For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe them in rags.

³³ A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,

¹⁰ Israel’s watchmen are blind, they are all oblivious; they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; they are dreamers lying around, loving to slumber.

¹¹ And do this, understanding the occasion. The hour has come for us to wake up from our slumber, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. ¹² The night is nearly over; the day has drawn near. So let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

¹⁴ So it is said: “Wake up, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

¹⁰ For even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat.”

¹⁸ to those who keep His covenant and remember to obey His precepts.

¹ My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments;

¹³ He who despises instruction will pay the penalty, but the one who respects a command will be rewarded.

³² He who ignores discipline despises himself, but whoever heeds correction gains understanding.

¹⁷ The highway of the upright leads away from evil; he who guards his way protects his life.

²³ He who guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from distress.

⁵ Thorns and snares lie on the path of the perverse; he who guards his soul stays far from them.

¹⁸ Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint; but blessed is he who keeps the Law.

⁵ Whoever keeps his command will come to no harm, and a wise heart knows the right time and procedure.

¹³ When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is this: Fear God and keep His commandments, because this is the whole duty of man.

²³ but this is what I commanded them: Obey Me, and I will be your God, and you will be My people. You must walk in all the ways I have commanded you, so that it may go well with you.

⁵ Since he heard the sound of the horn but failed to heed the warning, his blood will be on his own head. If he had heeded the warning, he would have saved his life.

²⁸ “You have answered correctly,” Jesus said. “Do this and you will live.”

²⁸ But He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”

¹⁵ If you love Me, keep My commandments.

²¹ Whoever has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me. The one who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and reveal Myself to him.” ²² Judas (not Iscariot) asked Him, “Lord, why are You going to reveal Yourself to us and not to the world?” ²³ Jesus replied, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.

¹⁰ If you keep My commandments, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and remain in His love. ¹¹ I have told you these things so that My joy may abide in you and your joy may be complete. ¹² This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴ You are My friends if you do what I command you.

¹⁹ Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God’s commandments is what counts.

³ By this we can be sure that we have come to know Him: if we keep His commandments. ⁴ If anyone says, “I know Him,” but does not keep His commandments, he is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

²² and we will receive from Him whatever we ask, because we keep His commandments and do what is pleasing in His sight.

³ For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome,

¹⁴ Blessed are those who do His commandments, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by its gates.

⁷ If there is a poor man among your brothers within any of the gates in the land that the LORD your God is giving you, then you are not to harden your heart or shut your hand from your poor brother. ⁸ Instead, you are to open your hand to him and freely loan him whatever he needs. ⁹ Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought in your heart: “The seventh year, the year of release, is near,” so that you look upon your poor brother begrudgingly and give him nothing. He will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin. ¹⁰ Give generously to him, and do not let your heart be grieved when you do so. And because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything to which you put your hand. ¹¹ For there will never cease to be poor in the land; that is why I am commanding you to open wide your hand to your brother and to the poor and needy in your land. ¹² If a fellow Hebrew, a man or a woman, is sold to you and serves you six years, then in the seventh year you must set him free. ¹³ And when you release him, do not send him away empty-handed. ¹⁴ You are to furnish him liberally from your flock, your threshing floor, and your winepress. You shall give to him as the LORD your God has blessed you.

⁶ Because he has done this thing and has shown no pity, he must pay for the lamb four times over.”

²⁴ One gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds what is right, only to become poor. ²⁵ A generous soul will prosper, and he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.

¹⁴ By fruitful speech a man is filled with good things, and the work of his hands returns to him.

²¹ He who despises his neighbor sins, but blessed is he who shows kindness to the poor.

³¹ Whoever oppresses the poor taunts their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors Him.

⁸ He who increases his wealth by interest and usury lays it up for one who is kind to the poor.

²⁷ Whoever gives to the poor will not be in need, but he who hides his eyes will receive many curses.

¹ Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.

⁷ Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your home, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? ⁸ Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will come quickly. Your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. ⁹ Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry out, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you remove the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger and malicious talk, ¹⁰ and if you give yourself to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light will go forth in the darkness, and your night will be like noonday. ¹¹ The LORD will always guide you; He will satisfy you in a sun-scorched land and strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.

⁴¹ Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward. ⁴² And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is My disciple, truly I tell you, he will never lose his reward.”

⁴⁰ And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’

³⁸ Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap. For with the same measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”

⁶ Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷ Each one should give what he decides in his heart to give, not out of regret or compulsion. For God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸ And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

¹⁷ Not that I am seeking a gift, but I am looking for the fruit that may be credited to your account.

¹⁰ For God is not unjust. He will not forget your work and the labor of love you have shown for His name as you have ministered to the saints and continue to do so.

²⁴ He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently.

¹⁵ Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline drives it far from him.

¹³ Do not withhold discipline from a child; although you strike him with a rod, he will not die. ¹⁴ Strike him with a rod, and you will deliver his soul from Sheol.

¹⁵ A rod of correction imparts wisdom, but a child left to himself disgraces his mother.

¹⁷ Discipline your son, and he will give you rest; he will bring delight to your soul.

⁷ Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? ⁸ If you do not experience discipline like everyone else, then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. ⁹ Furthermore, we have all had earthly fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them. Should we not much more submit to the Father of our spirits and live? ¹⁰ Our fathers disciplined us for a short time as they thought best, but God disciplines us for our good, so that we may share in His holiness.

³⁰ Then Saul’s anger burned against Jonathan, and he said to him, “You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the disgrace of the mother who bore you? ³¹ For as long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor your kingship shall be established. Now send for him and bring him to me, for he must surely die!”

⁷ Then Saul said to his servants, “Listen, men of Benjamin! Is the son of Jesse giving all of you fields and vineyards and making you commanders of thousands or hundreds? ⁸ Is that why all of you have conspired against me? Not one of you told me that my own son had made a covenant with the son of Jesse. Not one of you has shown concern for me or revealed to me that my son has stirred up my own servant to lie in wait against me, as is the case today.” ⁹ But Doeg the Edomite, who had stationed himself with Saul’s servants, answered: “I saw the son of Jesse come to Ahimelech son of Ahitub at Nob. ¹⁰ Ahimelech inquired of the LORD for him and gave him provisions. He also gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.” ¹¹ Then the king sent messengers to summon Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and his father’s whole family, who were priests at Nob. And all of them came to the king. ¹² “Listen now, son of Ahitub,” said Saul. “Here I am, my lord,” he replied.

¹⁷ and said to David, “You are more righteous than I, for you have rewarded me with good, though I have rewarded you with evil. ¹⁸ And you have shown this day how well you have dealt with me; for when the LORD delivered me into your hand, you did not kill me. ¹⁹ When a man finds his enemy, does he let him go away unharmed? May the LORD reward you with good for what you have done for me this day. ²⁰ Now I know for sure that you will be king, and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands. ²¹ So now, swear to me by the LORD that you will not cut off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father’s house.” ²² So David gave his oath to Saul. Then Saul returned home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.

²¹ Then Saul replied, “I have sinned. Come back, David my son. I will never harm you again, because today you considered my life precious. I have played the fool and have committed a grave error!” ²² “Here is the king’s spear,” David answered. “Let one of the young men come over and get it. ²³ May the LORD repay every man for his righteousness and faithfulness. For the LORD delivered you into my hand today, but I would not stretch out my hand against the LORD’s anointed. ²⁴ As surely as I valued your life today, so may the LORD value my life and rescue me from all trouble.” ²⁵ Saul said to him, “May you be blessed, David my son. You will accomplish great things and will surely prevail.” So David went on his way, and Saul returned home.

⁵ As King David approached Bahurim, a man from the family of the house of Saul was just coming out. His name was Shimei son of Gera, and as he approached, he kept yelling out curses. ⁶ He threw stones at David and at all the servants of the king, though the troops and all the mighty men were on David’s right and left.

²⁴ Do not make friends with an angry man, and do not associate with a hot-tempered man, ²⁵ or you may learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare.

²⁸ Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who does not control his temper.

²² An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered man abounds in transgression.

¹⁰ Who can count the dust of Jacob or number even a fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous; let my end be like theirs!”

¹⁶ He fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers had not known, in order to humble you and test you, so that in the end He might cause you to prosper.

²⁹ If only they were wise, they would understand it; they would comprehend their fate.

³⁷ Consider the blameless and observe the upright, for posterity awaits the man of peace.

¹² So teach us to number our days, that we may present a heart of wisdom.

¹⁴ Satisfy us in the morning with Your loving devotion, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

⁸ Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction, and do not forsake the teaching of your mother.

¹ Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction; pay attention and gain understanding.

³⁴ Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at the posts of my doorway. ³⁵ For whoever finds me finds life and obtains the favor of the LORD.

¹⁵ The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to counsel.

¹⁹ Now there was a rich man dressed in purple and fine linen, who lived each day in joyous splendor. ²⁰ And a beggar named Lazarus lay at his gate, covered with sores ²¹ and longing to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. ²² One day the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. And the rich man also died and was buried. ²³ In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham from afar, with Lazarus by his side.

¹⁹ “Here comes that dreamer!” they said to one another. ²⁰ “Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits. We can say that a vicious animal has devoured him. Then we shall see what becomes of his dreams!”

⁴ Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Please come near me.” And they did so. “I am Joseph, your brother,” he said, “the one you sold into Egypt! ⁵ And now, do not be distressed or angry with yourselves that you sold me into this place, because it was to save lives that God sent me before you. ⁶ For the famine has covered the land these two years, and there will be five more years without plowing or harvesting. ⁷ God sent me before you to preserve you as a remnant on the earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. ⁸ Therefore it was not you who sent me here, but God, who has made me a father to Pharaoh—lord of all his household and ruler over all the land of Egypt.

²⁰ As for you, what you intended against me for evil, God intended for good, in order to accomplish a day like this—to preserve the lives of many people.

²⁵ But when it came before the king, he commanded by letter that the wicked scheme which Haman had devised against the Jews should come back upon his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows.

¹³ But He is unchangeable, and who can oppose Him? He does what He desires.

¹¹ Though they intend You harm, the schemes they devise will not prevail.

¹⁰ The LORD frustrates the plans of the nations; He thwarts the devices of the peoples. ¹¹ The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the purposes of His heart to all generations.

⁴ saying, “Come, let us erase them as a nation; may the name of Israel be remembered no more.”

² The good man obtains favor from the LORD, but the LORD condemns a man who devises evil.

¹ The plans of the heart belong to man, but the reply of the tongue is from the LORD.

⁹ A man’s heart plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.

¹ The king’s heart is a waterway in the hand of the LORD; He directs it where He pleases.

³⁰ There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the LORD.

²⁹ Only this have I found: I have discovered that God made men upright, but they have sought out many schemes.”

⁶ ‘Let us invade Judah, terrorize it, and divide it among ourselves. Then we can install the son of Tabeal over it as king.’ ⁷ But this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘It will not arise; it will not happen.

²⁴ The LORD of Hosts has sworn: “Surely, as I have planned, so will it be; as I have purposed, so will it stand.

²⁶ This is the plan devised for the whole earth, and this is the hand stretched out over all the nations. ²⁷ The LORD of Hosts has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is outstretched, so who can turn it back?

¹⁰ I declare the end from the beginning, and ancient times from what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and all My good pleasure I will accomplish.’

³⁵ All the peoples of the earth are counted as nothing, and He does as He pleases with the army of heaven and the peoples of the earth. There is no one who can restrain His hand or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’”

²⁴ In a time of peace, he will invade the richest provinces and do what his fathers and forefathers never did. He will lavish plunder, loot, and wealth on his followers, and he will plot against the strongholds—but only for a time. ²⁵ And with a large army he will stir up his power and his courage against the king of the South, who will mobilize a very large and powerful army but will not withstand the plots devised against him.

⁴ and they conspired to arrest Jesus covertly and kill Him. ⁵ “But not during the feast,” they said, “or there may be a riot among the people.”

⁶³ “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while He was alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ ⁶⁴ So give the order that the tomb be secured until the third day. Otherwise, His disciples may come by night and steal Him away and tell the people He has risen from the dead. And this last deception would be worse than the first.”

²⁷ In fact, Herod and Pontius Pilate conspired with the Gentiles and the people of Israel against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed. ²⁸ They carried out what Your hand and will had decided beforehand would happen.

³⁸ So in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone. Let them go! For if their purpose or endeavor is of human origin, it will fail. ³⁹ But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop them. You may even find yourselves fighting against God.”

¹¹ In Him we were also chosen as God’s own, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything by the counsel of His will,

¹⁷ So when God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath. ¹⁸ Thus by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be strongly encouraged.

⁸ and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word—and to this they were appointed.

⁴ For certain men have crept in among you unnoticed—ungodly ones who were designated long ago for condemnation. They turn the grace of our God into a license for immorality, and they deny God our only Master and the Lord Jesus Christ.

² Now with all my ability I have made provision for the house of my God—gold for the gold articles, silver for the silver, bronze for the bronze, iron for the iron, and wood for the wood, as well as onyx for the settings, turquoise, stones of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, and slabs of marble—all in abundance. ³ Moreover, because of my delight in the house of my God, I now give for it my personal treasures of gold and silver, over and above all that I have provided for this holy temple:

¹⁷ I know, my God, that You test the heart and delight in uprightness. All these things I have given willingly and with an upright heart, and now I have seen Your people who are present here giving joyfully and willingly to You.

⁸ But the LORD said to my father David, ‘Since it was in your heart to build a house for My Name, you have done well to have this in your heart.

¹⁵ But my brothers are as faithless as wadis, as seasonal streams that overflow,

⁵ If a man denounces his friends for a price, the eyes of his children will fail.

⁹ Lowborn men are but a vapor, the exalted but a lie. Weighed on the scale, they go up; together they are but a vapor.

¹ Better a poor man who walks with integrity than a fool whose lips are perverse.

⁴¹ As Jesus was sitting opposite the treasury, He watched the crowd putting money into it. And many rich people put in large amounts. ⁴² Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius. ⁴³ Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the others into the treasury. ⁴⁴ For they all contributed out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.”

⁶ But Jesus said, “Leave her alone; why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful deed to Me. ⁷ The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them whenever you want. But you will not always have Me. ⁸ She has done what she could to anoint My body in advance of My burial.

² In the terrible ordeal they suffered, their abundant joy and deep poverty overflowed into rich generosity. ³ For I testify that they gave according to their ability and even beyond it. Of their own accord,

¹² For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.

² in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.

⁹ The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; the judgments of the LORD are true, being altogether righteous.

¹³ His soul will dwell in prosperity, and his descendants will inherit the land.

¹⁸ Surely the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear Him, on those whose hope is in His loving devotion ¹⁹ to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.

⁹ Fear the LORD, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing. ¹⁰ Young lions go lacking and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. ¹¹ Come, children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

⁹ Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, that His glory may dwell in our land.

¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him and show him My salvation.”

¹⁷ But from everlasting to everlasting the loving devotion of the LORD extends to those who fear Him, and His righteousness to their children’s children—

¹⁸ The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call out to Him in truth. ¹⁹ He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him; He hears their cry and saves them. ²⁰ The LORD preserves all who love Him, but all the wicked He will destroy.

²⁷ The fear of the LORD prolongs life, but the years of the wicked will be cut short.

²¹ No harm befalls the righteous, but the wicked are filled with trouble.

²⁶ He who fears the LORD is secure in confidence, and his children shall have a place of refuge. ²⁷ The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, turning a man from the snares of death.

¹⁶ At that time those who feared the LORD spoke with one another, and the LORD listened and heard them. So a scroll of remembrance was written before Him regarding those who feared the LORD and honored His name. ¹⁷ “They will be Mine,” says the LORD of Hosts, “on the day when I prepare My treasured possession. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him.

² “But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will go out and leap like calves from the stall.

⁶ Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

³¹ Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria experienced a time of peace. It grew in strength and numbers, living in the fear of the Lord and the encouragement of the Holy Spirit.

²⁸ And we know that all things work together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.

¹¹ I am not saying this out of need, for I have learned to be content regardless of my circumstances. ¹² I know how to live humbly, and I know how to abound. I am accustomed to any and every situation—to being filled and being hungry, to having plenty and having need.

⁸ For physical exercise is of limited value, but godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for the present life and for the one to come.

⁶ Of course, godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷ For we brought nothing into the world, so certainly we cannot carry anything out of it. ⁸ But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. ⁹ Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction.

¹⁸ And the Lord will rescue me from every evil action and bring me safely into His heavenly kingdom. To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

⁵ Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for God has said: “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.” ⁶ So we say with confidence: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

¹¹ Why do You withdraw Your strong right hand? Stretch it out to destroy them!

²⁷ A lazy man does not roast his game, but a diligent man prizes his possession.

¹⁹ The way of the slacker is like a hedge of thorns, but the path of the upright is a highway.

¹⁵ Laziness brings on deep sleep, and an idle soul will suffer hunger.

³⁰ I went past the field of a slacker and by the vineyard of a man lacking judgment. ³¹ Thorns had grown up everywhere, thistles had covered the ground, and the stone wall was broken down. ³² I observed and took it to heart; I looked and received instruction: ³³ A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, ³⁴ and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.

¹³ The slacker says, “A lion is in the road! A fierce lion roams the public square!” ¹⁴ As a door turns on its hinges, so the slacker turns on his bed. ¹⁵ The slacker buries his hand in the dish; it wearies him to bring it back to his mouth. ¹⁶ The slacker is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who answer discreetly.

²³ Jesus answered, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with Me will betray Me.

²⁰ He answered, “It is one of the Twelve—the one who is dipping his hand into the bowl with Me.

¹¹ Then all Israel will hear and be afraid, and will never again do such a wicked thing among you.

²¹ Then all the men of his city will stone him to death. So you must purge the evil from among you, and all Israel will hear and be afraid.

⁸ Do not rebuke a mocker, or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man, and he will love you. ⁹ Instruct a wise man, and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man, and he will increase his learning. ¹⁰ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

⁵ A fool rejects his father’s discipline, but whoever heeds correction is prudent.

¹⁰ A rebuke cuts into a man of discernment deeper than a hundred lashes cut into a fool.

¹¹ When a mocker is punished, the simple gain wisdom; and when a wise man is instructed, he acquires knowledge.

¹⁹ Those I love, I rebuke and discipline. Therefore be earnest and repent.

¹⁸ If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father and mother and does not listen to them when disciplined, ¹⁹ his father and mother are to lay hold of him and bring him to the elders of his city, to the gate of his hometown, ²⁰ and say to the elders, “This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he does not obey us. He is a glutton and a drunkard.” ²¹ Then all the men of his city will stone him to death. So you must purge the evil from among you, and all Israel will hear and be afraid.

⁵ He who gathers in summer is a wise son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son.

² A wise servant will rule over a disgraceful son and share his inheritance as one of the brothers.

²² Listen to your father who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old. ²³ Invest in truth and never sell it—in wisdom and instruction and understanding. ²⁴ The father of a righteous man will greatly rejoice, and he who fathers a wise son will delight in him. ²⁵ May your father and mother be glad, and may she who gave you birth rejoice!

⁷ A discerning son keeps the law, but a companion of gluttons disgraces his father.

¹⁴ Blessed is the man who is always reverent, but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble.

²⁴ He who robs his father or mother, saying, “It is not wrong,” is a companion to the man who destroys.

¹¹ There is a generation of those who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers.

¹⁷ As for the eye that mocks a father and scorns obedience to a mother, may the ravens of the valley pluck it out and young vultures devour it.

¹² The younger son said to him, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. ¹³ After a few days, the younger son got everything together and journeyed to a distant country, where he squandered his wealth in wild living. ¹⁴ After he had spent all he had, a severe famine swept through that country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵ So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. ¹⁶ He longed to fill his belly with the pods the pigs were eating, but no one would give him a thing.

³⁰ But when this son of yours returns from squandering your wealth with prostitutes, you kill the fattened calf for him!’

¹ If a prophet or dreamer of dreams arises among you and proclaims a sign or wonder to you, ² and if the sign or wonder he has spoken to you comes about, but he says, “Let us follow other gods (which you have not known) and let us worship them,” ³ you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. For the LORD your God is testing you to find out whether you love Him with all your heart and with all your soul. ⁴ You are to follow the LORD your God and fear Him. Keep His commandments and listen to His voice; serve Him and hold fast to Him.

²² And he replied, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.’ ‘You will surely entice him and prevail,’ said the LORD. ‘Go and do it.’ ²³ So you see, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours, and the LORD has pronounced disaster against you.” ²⁴ Then Zedekiah son of Chenaanah went up, struck Micaiah in the face, and demanded, “Which way did the Spirit of the LORD go when He departed from me to speak with you?” ²⁵ Micaiah replied, “You will soon see, on that day when you go and hide in an inner room.” ²⁶ And the king of Israel declared, “Take Micaiah and return him to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king’s son, ²⁷ and tell them that this is what the king says: ‘Put this man in prison and feed him only bread and water until I return safely.’” ²⁸ But Micaiah replied, “If you ever return safely, the LORD has not spoken through me.” Then he added, “Take heed, all you people!”

⁷ Stay away from a foolish man; you will gain no knowledge from his speech.

¹⁵ Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

⁶ “Watch out!” Jesus told them. “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”

¹² Then they understood that He was not telling them to beware of the leaven used in bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

²⁴ He went on to say, “Pay attention to what you hear. With the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and even more will be added to you who hear.

⁶ Jesus answered them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. ⁷ They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’ ⁸ You have disregarded the commandment of God to keep the tradition of men—the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other similar things you do.” ⁹ He went on to say, “You neatly set aside the command of God to maintain your own tradition. ¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’ ¹¹ But you say that if a man says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me is Corban’ (that is, a gift devoted to God), ¹² he is no longer permitted to do anything for his father or mother. ¹³ Thus you nullify the word of God by the tradition you have handed down. And you do so in many such matters.” ¹⁴ Once again Jesus called the whole crowd to Him and said, “All of you, listen to Me and understand:

⁵ But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will flee from him because they do not recognize his voice.”

¹³ For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. ¹⁴ And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. ¹⁵ It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their actions.

¹⁴ Then we will no longer be infants, tossed about by the waves and carried around by every wind of teaching and by the clever cunning of men in their deceitful scheming.

⁷ But reject irreverent, silly myths. Instead, train yourself for godliness.

³ If anyone teaches another doctrine and disagrees with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and with godly teaching, ⁴ he is conceited and understands nothing. Instead, he has an unhealthy interest in controversies and semantics, out of which come envy, strife, abusive talk, evil suspicions, ⁵ and constant friction between men of depraved mind who are devoid of the truth. These men regard godliness as a means of gain. Withdraw yourself from such.

¹ Now there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. ² Many will follow in their depravity, and because of them the way of truth will be defamed.

¹ Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.

¹⁰ If anyone comes to you but does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your home or even greet him.

² I know your deeds, your labor, and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate those who are evil, and you have tested and exposed as liars those who falsely claim to be apostles.

¹⁰ But seat two scoundrels opposite him and have them testify, ‘You have cursed both God and the king!’ Then take him out and stone him to death.”

¹³ And the two scoundrels came in and sat opposite Naboth, and these men testified against him before the people, saying, “Naboth has cursed both God and the king!” So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death.

¹⁶ how much less man, who is vile and corrupt, who drinks injustice like water?

¹² Though evil is sweet in his mouth and he conceals it under his tongue, ¹³ though he cannot bear to let it go and keeps it in his mouth,

⁷ What man is like Job, who drinks up derision like water?

⁵ He is secure in his ways at all times; Your lofty judgments are far from him; he sneers at all his foes.

¹¹ He says to himself, “God has forgotten; He hides His face and never sees.”

¹⁴ A discerning heart seeks knowledge, but the mouth of a fool feeds on folly.

¹⁴ Therefore hear the word of the LORD, O scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem. ¹⁵ For you said, “We have made a covenant with death; we have fashioned an agreement with Sheol. When the overwhelming scourge passes through it will not touch us, because we have made lies our refuge and falsehood our hiding place.” ¹⁶ So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken. ¹⁷ I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the level. Hail will sweep away your refuge of lies, and water will flood your hiding place. ¹⁸ Your covenant with death will be dissolved, and your agreement with Sheol will not stand. When the overwhelming scourge passes through, you will be trampled by it.

⁸ They feed on the sins of My people and set their hearts on iniquity.

² “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected men. ³ And there was a widow in that town who kept appealing to him, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ ⁴ For a while he refused, but later he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect men,

¹¹ Then they prompted some men to say, “We heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy against Moses and against God.” ¹² So they stirred up the people, elders, and scribes and confronted Stephen. They seized him and brought him before the Sanhedrin, ¹³ where they presented false witnesses who said, “This man never stops speaking blasphemies against this holy place and against the law.

³⁴ He mocks the mockers, but gives grace to the humble.

²² He follows her on impulse, like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer bounding into a trap,

¹² If you are wise, you are wise to your own advantage; but if you scoff, you alone will bear the consequences.

¹³ Wisdom is found on the lips of the discerning, but a rod is for the back of him who lacks judgment.

⁶ A fool’s lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating.

³ A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools!

²² So now, do not mock, or your shackles will become heavier. Indeed, I have heard from the Lord GOD of Hosts a decree of destruction against the whole land.

²⁰ For the ruthless will vanish, the mockers will disappear, and all who look for evil will be cut down—

⁴⁰ Watch out, then, that what was spoken by the prophets does not happen to you: ⁴¹ ‘Look, you scoffers, wonder and perish! For I am doing a work in your days that you would never believe, even if someone told you.’”

⁶ For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises every son He receives.”

³ Most importantly, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. ⁴ “Where is the promise of His coming?” they will ask. “Ever since our fathers fell asleep, everything continues as it has from the beginning of creation.” ⁵ But they deliberately overlook the fact that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water, ⁶ through which the world of that time perished in the flood. ⁷ And by His word, the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.