- Psalm 104:29-31
You hide Your face, they are troubled;
You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.
You send forth Your Spirit, they are created;
And You renew the face of the earth. May the glory of the LORD endure forever;
May the LORD rejoice in His works.
- Ephesians 2:8-10
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
- Genesis 1:1-2
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
- Psalm 100:1-3
Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!
Serve the LORD with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.
Know that the LORD, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
- Isaiah 27:1
In that day the LORD with His severe sword, great and strong,
Will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent,
Leviathan that twisted serpent;
And He will slay the reptile that is in the sea.
- Isaiah 32:9-10
Rise up, you women who are at ease,
Hear my voice;
You complacent daughters,
Give ear to my speech.
In a year and some days
You will be troubled, you complacent women;
For the vintage will fail,
The gathering will not come.
- Isaiah 32:13-18
On the land of my people will come up thorns and briers,
Yes, on all the happy homes in the joyous city;
Because the palaces will be forsaken,
The bustling city will be deserted.
The forts and towers will become lairs forever,
A joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks—
Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high,
And the wilderness becomes a fruitful field,
And the fruitful field is counted as a forest. Then justice will dwell in the wilderness,
And righteousness remain in the fruitful field.
The work of righteousness will be peace,
And the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.
My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation,
In secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places,
- John 5:16-18
For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working." Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.
- Romans 2:13
(for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified;
- 1 Corinthians 1:26-31
For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence. But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption— that, as it is written, "He who glories, let him glory in the LORD."
- Philippians 2:12-15
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure. Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
- James 5:11
Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.
- Genesis 1:6-8
Then God said, 'Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.' Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day.
- Genesis 1:26
Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
- Genesis 1:28
Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."
- Genesis 1:31
Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
- Genesis 2:2-5
And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made. This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground;
- Genesis 2:7-9
And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed. And out of the ground the LORD God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
- Genesis 6:8-9
But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God.
- Genesis 12:1
Now the LORD had said to Abram:
"Get out of your country,
From your family
And from your father's house,
To a land that I will show you.
- Exodus 20:1-3
And God spoke all these words, saying:
"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
"You shall have no other gods before Me.
- Deuteronomy 7:6-9
"For you are a holy people to the LORD your God; the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth. The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the LORD loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the LORD has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. "Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;
- Job 1:8-11
Then the LORD said to Satan, 'Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?' So Satan answered the LORD and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!”
- Job 2:3-5
Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause.” So Satan answered the LORD and said, 'Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life. But stretch out Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will surely curse You to Your face!”
- Job 3:1-16
After this Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. And Job spoke, and said: “May the day perish on which I was born,
And the night in which it was said,
‘A male child is conceived.’ May that day be darkness;
May God above not seek it,
Nor the light shine upon it. May darkness and the shadow of death claim it;
May a cloud settle on it;
May the blackness of the day terrify it. As for that night, may darkness seize it;
May it not rejoice among the days of the year,
May it not come into the number of the months. Oh, may that night be barren!
May no joyful shout come into it! May those curse it who curse the day,
Those who are ready to arouse Leviathan. May the stars of its morning be dark;
May it look for light, but have none,
And not see the dawning of the day; Because it did not shut up the doors of my mother’s womb,
Nor hide sorrow from my eyes. “Why did I not die at birth?
Why did I not perish when I came from the womb? Why did the knees receive me?
Or why the breasts, that I should nurse? For now I would have lain still and been quiet,
I would have been asleep;
Then I would have been at rest With kings and counselors of the earth,
Who built ruins for themselves, Or with princes who had gold,
Who filled their houses with silver; Or why was I not hidden like a stillborn child,
Like infants who never saw light?
- Job 6:6-7
Can flavorless food be eaten without salt?
Or is there any taste in the white of an egg? My soul refuses to touch them;
They are as loathsome food to me.
- Job 7:17
“What is man, that You should exalt him,
That You should set Your heart on him,
- Job 9:1-19
Then Job answered and said: "Truly I know it is so,
But how can a man be righteous before God? If one wished to contend with Him,
He could not answer Him one time out of a thousand. God is wise in heart and mighty in strength.
Who has hardened himself against Him and prospered? He removes the mountains, and they do not know
When He overturns them in His anger; He shakes the earth out of its place,
And its pillars tremble; He commands the sun, and it does not rise;
He seals off the stars; He alone spreads out the heavens,
And treads on the waves of the sea; He made the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades,
And the chambers of the south; He does great things past finding out,
Yes, wonders without number. If He goes by me, I do not see Him;
If He moves past, I do not perceive Him; If He takes away, who can hinder Him?
Who can say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’ God will not withdraw His anger,
The allies of the proud lie prostrate beneath Him. “How then can I answer Him,
And choose my words to reason with Him? For though I were righteous, I could not answer Him;
I would beg mercy of my Judge. If I called and He answered me,
I would not believe that He was listening to my voice. For He crushes me with a tempest,
And multiplies my wounds without cause. He will not allow me to catch my breath,
But fills me with bitterness. If it is a matter of strength, indeed He is strong;
And if of justice, who will appoint my day in court?
- Job 13:15
Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.
Even so, I will defend my own ways before Him.
- Job 13:26
For You write bitter things against me,
And make me inherit the iniquities of my youth.
- Job 14:14-17
If a man dies, shall he live again?
All the days of my hard service I will wait,
Till my change comes. You shall call, and I will answer You;
You shall desire the work of Your hands. For now You number my steps,
But do not watch over my sin. My transgression is sealed up in a bag,
And You cover my iniquity.
- Job 29:2
“Oh, that I were as in months past,
As in the days when God watched over me;
- Job 29:7-17
“When I went out to the gate by the city,
When I took my seat in the open square, The young men saw me and hid,
And the aged arose and stood; The princes refrained from talking,
And put their hand on their mouth; The voice of nobles was hushed,
And their tongue stuck to the roof of their mouth. When the ear heard, then it blessed me,
And when the eye saw, then it approved me; Because I delivered the poor who cried out,
The fatherless and the one who had no helper. The blessing of a perishing man came upon me,
And I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy. I put on righteousness, and it clothed me;
My justice was like a robe and a turban. I was eyes to the blind,
And I was feet to the lame. I was a father to the poor,
And I searched out the case that I did not know. I broke the fangs of the wicked,
And plucked the victim from his teeth.
- Job 30:22
You lift me up to the wind and cause me to ride on it;
You spoil my success.
- Job 31:1
“I have made a covenant with my eyes;
Why then should I look upon a young woman?
- Job 32:1-3
So these three men ceased answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. Then the wrath of Elihu, the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, was aroused against Job; his wrath was aroused because he justified himself rather than God. Also against his three friends his wrath was aroused, because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job.
- Job 33:6-14
Truly I am as your spokesman before God;
I also have been formed out of clay. Surely no fear of me will terrify you,
Nor will my hand be heavy on you. “Surely you have spoken in my hearing,
And I have heard the sound of your words, saying, ‘I am pure, without transgression;
I am innocent, and there is no iniquity in me. Yet He finds occasions against me,
He counts me as His enemy; He puts my feet in the stocks,
He watches all my paths.’ “Look, in this you are not righteous.
I will answer you,
For God is greater than man. Why do you contend with Him?
For He does not give an accounting of any of His words. For God may speak in one way, or in another,
Yet man does not perceive it.
- Job 33:29-30
“ Behold, God works all these things,
Twice, in fact, three times with a man, To bring back his soul from the Pit,
That he may be enlightened with the light of life.
- Job 38:33
Do you know the ordinances of the heavens?
Can you set their dominion over the earth?
- Job 38:41
Who provides food for the raven,
When its young ones cry to God,
And wander about for lack of food?
- Job 39:2-30
Can you number the months that they fulfill?
Or do you know the time when they bear young? They bow down,
They bring forth their young,
They deliver their offspring. Their young ones are healthy,
They grow strong with grain;
They depart and do not return to them. “Who set the wild donkey free?
Who loosed the bonds of the onager, Whose home I have made the wilderness,
And the barren land his dwelling? He scorns the tumult of the city;
He does not heed the shouts of the driver. The range of the mountains is his pasture,
And he searches after every green thing. “Will the wild ox be willing to serve you?
Will he bed by your manger? Can you bind the wild ox in the furrow with ropes?
Or will he plow the valleys behind you? Will you trust him because his strength is great?
Or will you leave your labor to him? Will you trust him to bring home your grain,
And gather it to your threshing floor? “The wings of the ostrich wave proudly,
But are her wings and pinions like the kindly stork’s? For she leaves her eggs on the ground,
And warms them in the dust; She forgets that a foot may crush them,
Or that a wild beast may break them. She treats her young harshly, as though they were not hers;
Her labor is in vain, without concern, Because God deprived her of wisdom,
And did not endow her with understanding. When she lifts herself on high,
She scorns the horse and its rider. “Have you given the horse strength?
Have you clothed his neck with thunder? Can you frighten him like a locust?
His majestic snorting strikes terror. He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength;
He gallops into the clash of arms. He mocks at fear, and is not frightened;
Nor does he turn back from the sword. The quiver rattles against him,
The glittering spear and javelin. He devours the distance with fierceness and rage;
Nor does he come to a halt because the trumpet has sounded. At the blast of the trumpet he says, ‘Aha!’
He smells the battle from afar,
The thunder of captains and shouting. “Does the hawk fly by your wisdom,
And spread its wings toward the south? Does the eagle mount up at your command,
And make its nest on high? On the rock it dwells and resides,
On the crag of the rock and the stronghold. From there it spies out the prey;
Its eyes observe from afar. Its young ones suck up blood;
And where the slain are, there it is.”
- Job 40:2-14
“Shall the one who contends with the Almighty correct Him?
He who rebukes God, let him answer it.” Then Job answered the LORD and said: “ Behold, I am vile;
What shall I answer You?
I lay my hand over my mouth. Once I have spoken, but I will not answer;
Yes, twice, but I will proceed no further.” Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: “Now prepare yourself like a man;
I will question you, and you shall answer Me: “ Would you indeed annul My judgment?
Would you condemn Me that you may be justified? Have you an arm like God?
Or can you thunder with a voice like His? Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor,
And array yourself with glory and beauty. Disperse the rage of your wrath;
Look on everyone who is proud, and humble him. Look on everyone who is proud, and bring him low;
Tread down the wicked in their place. Hide them in the dust together,
Bind their faces in hidden darkness. Then I will also confess to you
That your own right hand can save you.
- Job 41:7-10
Can you fill his skin with harpoons,
Or his head with fishing spears? Lay your hand on him;
Remember the battle—
Never do it again! Indeed, any hope of overcoming him is false;
Shall one not be overwhelmed at the sight of him? No one is so fierce that he would dare stir him up.
Who then is able to stand against Me?
- Job 41:15-17
His rows of scales are his pride,
Shut up tightly as with a seal; One is so near another
That no air can come between them; They are joined one to another,
They stick together and cannot be parted.
- Job 42:1-6
Then Job answered the LORD and said: "I know that You can do everything,
And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, "Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?"
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Listen, please, and let me speak;
You said, "I will question you, and you shall answer Me." "I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear,
But now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself,
And repent in dust and ashes."
- Psalm 10:4
The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God;
God is in none of his thoughts.
- Psalm 74:12
For God is my King from of old,
Working salvation in the midst of the earth.
- Psalm 74:14
You broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces,
And gave him as food to the people inhabiting the wilderness.
- Psalm 81:1-5
To the Chief Musician. On an instrument of Gath. A Psalm of Asaph.
Sing aloud to God our strength;
Make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob.
Raise a song and strike the timbrel,
The pleasant harp with the lute. Blow the trumpet at the time of the New Moon,
At the full moon, on our solemn feast day.
For this is a statute for Israel,
A law of the God of Jacob.
This He established in Joseph as a testimony,
When He went throughout the land of Egypt,
Where I heard a language I did not understand.
- Psalm 119:1-16
Blessed are the undefiled in the way,
Who walk in the law of the LORD!
Blessed are those who keep His testimonies,
Who seek Him with the whole heart!
They also do no iniquity;
They walk in His ways.
You have commanded us
To keep Your precepts diligently.
Oh, that my ways were directed
To keep Your statutes!
Then I would not be ashamed,
When I look into all Your commandments.
I will praise You with uprightness of heart,
When I learn Your righteous judgments.
I will keep Your statutes;
Oh, do not forsake me utterly! How can a young man cleanse his way?
By taking heed according to Your word.
With my whole heart I have sought You;
Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!
Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You.
Blessed are You, O LORD!
Teach me Your statutes.
With my lips I have declared
All the judgments of Your mouth.
I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,
As much as in all riches.
I will meditate on Your precepts,
And contemplate Your ways.
I will delight myself in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.
- Proverbs 15:25
The LORD will destroy the house of the proud,
But He will establish the boundary of the widow.
- Proverbs 16:25
There is a way that seems right to a man,
But its end is the way of death.
- Ecclesiastes 5:2
Do not be rash with your mouth,
And let not your heart utter anything hastily before God.
For God is in heaven, and you on earth;
Therefore let your words be few.
- Isaiah 14:12-14
"How you are fallen from heaven,
O Lucifer, son of the morning!
How you are cut down to the ground,
You who weakened the nations!
For you have said in your heart:
'I will ascend into heaven,
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
I will also sit on the mount of the congregation
On the farthest sides of the north;
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
I will be like the Most High.'
- Isaiah 40:28
Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The everlasting God, the LORD
The Creator of the ends of the earth,
Neither faints nor is weary.
His understanding is unsearchable.
Seek the LORD while He may be found,
Call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the LORD,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
"For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD.
'For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts.
Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver only themselves by their righteousness,' says the Lord GOD.
Also I raised My hand in an oath to those in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the Gentiles and disperse them throughout the countries, because they had not executed My judgments, but had despised My statutes, profaned My Sabbaths, and their eyes were fixed on their fathers' idols. "Therefore I also gave them up to statutes that were not good, and judgments by which they could not live; and I pronounced them unclean because of their ritual gifts, in that they caused all their firstborn to pass through the fire, that I might make them desolate and that they might know that I am the LORD."'
"Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him, 'Thus says the Lord GOD:
"You were the seal of perfection,
Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
You were in Eden, the garden of God;
Every precious stone was your covering:
The sardius, topaz, and diamond,
Beryl, onyx, and jasper,
Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold.
The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes
Was prepared for you on the day you were created.
"You were the anointed cherub who covers;
I established you;
You were on the holy mountain of God;
You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones.
You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created,
Till iniquity was found in you.
"Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty;
You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor;
I cast you to the ground,
I laid you before kings,
That they might gaze at you.
“Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for My holy name’s sake, which you have profaned among the nations wherever you went. And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the LORD,” says the Lord GOD, “when I am hallowed in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.
“I will set My glory among the nations; all the nations shall see My judgment which I have executed, and My hand which I have laid on them. So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day forward. The Gentiles shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity; because they were unfaithful to Me, therefore I hid My face from them. I gave them into the hand of their enemies, and they all fell by the sword. According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions I have dealt with them, and hidden My face from them.”’ “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Now I will bring back the captives of Jacob, and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for My holy name— after they have borne their shame, and all their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, when they dwelt safely in their own land and no one made them afraid.
then they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who sent them into captivity among the nations, but also brought them back to their land, and left none of them captive any longer. And I will not hide My face from them anymore; for I shall have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,' says the Lord GOD.'
Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"
"If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.
But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men.
and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John.
Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression. Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all (as it is written, 'I have made you a father of many nations') in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did; who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, 'So shall your descendants be.' And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah's womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. And therefore 'it was accounted to him for righteousness.' Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead,
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?
Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.
What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.”
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.
That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed. For this is the word of promise: “At this time I will come and Sarah shall have a son.” And not only this, but when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even by our father Isaac (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), it was said to her, "The older shall serve the younger." As it is written, "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated." What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! For He says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion." So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.
'For who has known the mind of the LORD?
Or who has become His counselor?'
'Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?' For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
Do you have faith? Have it to yourself before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from faith; for whatever is not from faith is sin.
But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.
For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation,
And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.
and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;
having the same conflict which you saw in me and now hear is in me.
And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.
But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, that I also may be encouraged when I know your state. For I have no one like-minded, who will sincerely care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus. But you know his proven character, that as a son with his father he served with me in the gospel.
Yet I considered it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, but your messenger and the one who ministered to my need; since he was longing for you all, and was distressed because you had heard that he was sick. For indeed he was sick almost unto death; but God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore I sent him the more eagerly, that when you see him again you may rejoice, and I may be less sorrowful. Receive him therefore in the Lord with all gladness, and hold such men in esteem; because for the work of Christ he came close to death, not regarding his life, to supply what was lacking in your service toward me.
Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
So I swore in My wrath,
'They shall not enter My rest.'"
For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said:
“ So I swore in My wrath,
‘ They shall not enter My rest,’” although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: 'And God rested on the seventh day from all His works'; and again in this place: 'They shall not enter My rest.' Since therefore it remains that some must enter it, and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience, again He designates a certain day, saying in David, 'Today,' after such a long time, as it has been said:
' Today, if you will hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.' For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day. There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.
Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,
Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.
I have written to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning.
I have written to you, young men, Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one. Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads.
Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, 'Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.
Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. And he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
He was granted power to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there).
And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever.