Daniel 3 Cross References - WEB

¹ Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits, and its width six cubits. He set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. ² Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the local governors, the deputies, and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. ³ Then the local governors, the deputies, and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, were gathered together to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. ⁴ Then the herald cried aloud, “To you it is commanded, peoples, nations, and languages, ⁵ that whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, you fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. ⁶ Whoever doesn’t fall down and worship shall be cast into the middle of a burning fiery furnace the same hour.” ⁷ Therefore at that time, when all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, all the peoples, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshiped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. ⁸ Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came near, and brought accusation against the Jews. ⁹ They answered Nebuchadnezzar the king, “O king, live for ever! ¹⁰ You, O king, have made a decree, that every man that hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image; ¹¹ and whoever doesn’t fall down and worship shall be cast into the middle of a burning fiery furnace. ¹² There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, have not respected you. They don’t serve your gods, and don’t worship the golden image which you have set up.” ¹³ Then Nebuchadnezzar in rage and fury commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought. Then these men were brought before the king. ¹⁴ Nebuchadnezzar answered them, “Is it on purpose, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you don’t serve my god, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? ¹⁵ Now if you are ready whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music to fall down and worship the image which I have made, good; but if you don’t worship, you shall be cast the same hour into the middle of a burning fiery furnace. Who is that god that will deliver you out of my hands?” ¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. ¹⁷ If it happens, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace; and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. ¹⁸ But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image which you have set up.” ¹⁹ Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the form of his appearance was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He spoke, and commanded that they should heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated. ²⁰ He commanded certain mighty men who were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. ²¹ Then these men were bound in their pants, their tunics, and their mantles, and their other clothes, and were cast into the middle of the burning fiery furnace. ²² Therefore because the king’s commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. ²³ These three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the middle of the burning fiery furnace. ²⁴ Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonished, and rose up in haste. He spoke and said to his counselors, “Didn’t we cast three men bound into the middle of the fire?” They answered the king, “True, O king.” ²⁵ He answered, “Look, I see four men loose, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are unharmed. The appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.” ²⁶ Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace. He spoke and said, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, you servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out of the middle of the fire. ²⁷ The local governors, the deputies, and the governors, and the king’s counselors, being gathered together, saw these men, that the fire had no power on their bodies. The hair of their head wasn’t singed. Their pants weren’t changed, the smell of fire wasn’t even on them. ²⁸ Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel, and delivered his servants who trusted in him, and have changed the king’s word, and have yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. ²⁹ Therefore I make a decree, that every people, nation, and language, which speak anything evil against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill; because there is no other god who is able to deliver like this.” ³⁰ Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

²³ You shall most certainly not make gods of silver or gods of gold for yourselves to be alongside me.

² Aaron said to them, “Take off the golden rings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them to me.” ³ All the people took off the golden rings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. ⁴ He received what they handed him, fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it a molded calf. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt.”

³¹ Moses returned to Yahweh, and said, “Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made themselves gods of gold.

²⁵ You shall burn the engraved images of their gods with fire. You shall not covet the silver or the gold that is on them, nor take it for yourself, lest you be snared in it; for it is an abomination to Yahweh your God.

²⁶ The weight of the golden earrings that he requested was one thousand and seven hundred shekels of gold, in addition to the crescents, and the pendants, and the purple clothing that was on the kings of Midian, and in addition to the chains that were about their camels’ necks. ²⁷ Gideon made an ephod out of it, and put it in Ophrah, his city. Then all Israel played the prostitute with it there; and it became a snare to Gideon and to his house.

²⁸ So the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold; and he said to them, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look and behold your gods, Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”

¹⁷ Truly, Yahweh, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, ¹⁸ and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods, but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. Therefore they have destroyed them.

¹ Now in the days of Ahasuerus (this is Ahasuerus who reigned from India even to Ethiopia, over one hundred twenty-seven provinces),

⁴ Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. ⁵ They have mouths, but they don’t speak. They have eyes, but they don’t see. ⁶ They have ears, but they don’t hear. They have noses, but they don’t smell. ⁷ They have hands, but they don’t feel. They have feet, but they don’t walk, neither do they speak through their throat. ⁸ Those who make them will be like them; yes, everyone who trusts in them.

¹⁵ The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.

²⁰ In that day, men shall cast away their idols of silver and their idols of gold, which have been made for themselves to worship, to the moles and to the bats,

²² You shall defile the overlaying of your engraved images of silver, and the plating of your molten images of gold. You shall cast them away as an unclean thing. You shall tell it, “Go away!”

¹⁹ A workman has cast an image, and the goldsmith overlays it with gold, and casts silver chains for it. ²⁰ He who is too impoverished for such an offering chooses a tree that will not rot. He seeks a skillful workman to set up a carved image for him that will not be moved. ²¹ Haven’t you known? Haven’t you heard? Haven’t you been told from the beginning? Haven’t you understood from the foundations of the earth? ²² It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in, ²³ who brings princes to nothing, who makes the judges of the earth meaningless. ²⁴ They are planted scarcely. They are sown scarcely. Their stock has scarcely taken root in the ground. He merely blows on them, and they wither, and the whirlwind takes them away as stubble. ²⁵ “To whom then will you liken me? Who is my equal?” says the Holy One. ²⁶ Lift up your eyes on high, and see who has created these, who brings out their army by number. He calls them all by name. by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power, not one is lacking. ²⁷ Why do you say, Jacob, and speak, Israel, “My way is hidden from Yahweh, and the justice due me is disregarded by my God?” ²⁸ Haven’t you known? Haven’t you heard? The everlasting God, Yahweh, the Creator of the ends of the earth, doesn’t faint. He isn’t weary. His understanding is unsearchable. ²⁹ He gives power to the weak. He increases the strength of him who has no might. ³⁰ Even the youths faint and get weary, and the young men utterly fall; ³¹ but those who wait for Yahweh will renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run, and not be weary. They will walk, and not faint.

⁶ Some pour out gold from the bag, and weigh silver in the balance. They hire a goldsmith, and he makes it a god. They fall down— yes, they worship.

⁹ There is silver beaten into plates, which is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the engraver and of the hands of the goldsmith. Their clothing is blue and purple. They are all the work of skillful men.

²⁰ Should a man make to himself gods which yet are no gods?”

³¹ “You, O king, saw, and behold, a great image. This image, which was mighty, and whose brightness was excellent, stood before you; and its appearance was terrifying. ³² As for this image, its head was of fine gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze,

⁴⁸ Then the king made Daniel great, and gave him many great gifts, and made him rule over the whole province of Babylon, and to be chief governor over all the wise men of Babylon.

³⁰ Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

²³ but have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. You have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which don’t see, or hear, or know; and you have not glorified the God in whose hand your breath is, and whose are all your ways.

⁴ They have set up kings, but not by me. They have made princes, and I didn’t approve. Of their silver and their gold they have made themselves idols, that they may be cut off.

¹⁹ Woe to him who says to the wood, ‘Awake!’ or to the mute stone, ‘Arise!’ Shall this teach? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all within it.

²⁹ Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold, or silver, or stone, engraved by art and design of man.

²⁶ You see and hear that not at Ephesus alone, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that they are no gods that are made with hands.

²⁰ The rest of mankind, who were not killed with these plagues, didn’t repent of the works of their hands, that they wouldn’t worship demons, and the idols of gold, and of silver, and of brass, and of stone, and of wood; which can’t see, hear, or walk.

⁴ He received what they handed him, fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it a molded calf. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” ⁵ When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made a proclamation, and said, “Tomorrow shall be a feast to Yahweh.” ⁶ They rose up early on the next day, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

² for they called the people to the sacrifices of their gods. The people ate and bowed down to their gods.

²³ The lords of the Philistines gathered together to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god, and to rejoice; for they said, “Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.”

³² Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like the feast that is in Judah, and he went up to the altar. He did so in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he had made, and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he had made.

¹² If a ruler listens to lies, all of his officials are wicked.

²⁷ The local governors, the deputies, and the governors, and the king’s counselors, being gathered together, saw these men, that the fire had no power on their bodies. The hair of their head wasn’t singed. Their pants weren’t changed, the smell of fire wasn’t even on them.

¹ It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom one hundred twenty local governors, who should be throughout the whole kingdom; ² and over them three presidents, of whom Daniel was one; that these local governors might give account to them, and that the king should suffer no loss. ³ Then this Daniel was distinguished above the presidents and the local governors, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm. ⁴ Then the presidents and the local governors sought to find occasion against Daniel as touching the kingdom; but they could find no occasion or fault, because he was faithful. There wasn’t any error or fault found in him.

⁶ Then these presidents and local governors assembled together to the king, and said this to him, “King Darius, live forever! ⁷ All the presidents of the kingdom, the deputies and the local governors, the counselors and the governors, have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a strong decree, that whoever asks a petition of any god or man for thirty days, except of you, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions.

² with whom the kings of the earth committed sexual immorality. Those who dwell in the earth were made drunken with the wine of her sexual immorality.”

¹ A Psalm by Asaph. God presides in the great assembly. He judges among the gods. ² “How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked?” Selah. ³ “Defend the weak, the poor, and the fatherless. Maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. ⁴ Rescue the weak and needy. Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.” ⁵ They don’t know, neither do they understand. They walk back and forth in darkness. All the foundations of the earth are shaken. ⁶ I said, “You are gods, all of you are sons of the Most High. ⁷ Nevertheless you shall die like men, and fall like one of the rulers.” ⁸ Arise, God, judge the earth, for you inherit all of the nations.

³⁴ But when they perceived that he was a Jew, all with one voice for a time of about two hours cried out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” ³⁵ When the town clerk had quieted the multitude, he said, “You men of Ephesus, what man is there who doesn’t know that the city of the Ephesians is temple keeper of the great goddess Artemis, and of the image which fell down from Zeus?

²¹ Because knowing God, they didn’t glorify him as God, and didn’t give thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless heart was darkened. ²² Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, ²³ and traded the glory of the incorruptible God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man, and of birds, four-footed animals, and creeping things. ²⁴ Therefore God also gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to uncleanness, that their bodies should be dishonored among themselves; ²⁵ who exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. ²⁶ For this reason, God gave them up to vile passions. For their women changed the natural function into that which is against nature. ²⁷ Likewise also the men, leaving the natural function of the woman, burned in their lust toward one another, men doing what is inappropriate with men, and receiving in themselves the due penalty of their error. ²⁸ Even as they refused to have God in their knowledge, God gave them up to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not fitting;

¹¹ There is no one who understands. There is no one who seeks after God.

²⁴ but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God; ²⁵ because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. ²⁶ For you see your calling, brothers, that not many are wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, and not many noble;

¹³ He performs great signs, even making fire come down out of the sky to the earth in the sight of people. ¹⁴ He deceives my own people who dwell on the earth because of the signs he was granted to do in front of the beast, saying to those who dwell on the earth that they should make an image to the beast who had the sword wound and lived. ¹⁵ It was given to him to give breath to it, to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause as many as wouldn’t worship the image of the beast to be killed. ¹⁶ He causes all, the small and the great, the rich and the poor, and the free and the slave, to be given marks on their right hands, or on their foreheads;

¹³ These have one mind, and they give their power and authority to the beast.

¹⁷ For God has put in their hearts to do what he has in mind, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God should be accomplished.

⁹ Then the king’s scribes were called at that time, in the third month, which is the month Sivan, on the twenty-third day of the month; and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded to the Jews, and to the local governors, and the governors and princes of the provinces which are from India to Ethiopia, one hundred twenty-seven provinces, to every province according to its writing, and to every people in their language, and to the Jews in their writing, and in their language.

¹³ The foolish woman is loud, undisciplined, and knows nothing. ¹⁴ She sits at the door of her house, on a seat in the high places of the city, ¹⁵ to call to those who pass by, who go straight on their ways,

⁹ You who tell good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who tell good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice with strength! Lift it up! Don’t be afraid! Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold, your God!”

¹ “Cry aloud! Don’t spare! Lift up your voice like a trumpet! Declare to my people their disobedience, and to the house of Jacob their sins.

¹ Nebuchadnezzar the king, to all the peoples, nations, and languages, who dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you.

¹⁴ He cried aloud, and said this, ‘Cut down the tree, and cut off its branches! Shake off its leaves, and scatter its fruit! Let the animals get away from under it, and the fowls from its branches.

²⁵ Then king Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and languages, who dwell in all the earth: “Peace be multiplied to you.

¹¹ Ephraim is oppressed, he is crushed in judgment; Because he is intent in his pursuit of idols.

¹⁶ For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of Ahab’s house. You walk in their counsels, that I may make you a ruin, and her inhabitants a hissing; And you will bear the reproach of my people.”

⁷ Therefore at that time, when all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, all the peoples, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshiped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

¹⁰ You, O king, have made a decree, that every man that hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image;

¹⁵ Now if you are ready whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music to fall down and worship the image which I have made, good; but if you don’t worship, you shall be cast the same hour into the middle of a burning fiery furnace. Who is that god that will deliver you out of my hands?”

²⁸ He looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and saw that the smoke of the land went up as the smoke of a furnace.

⁵ you shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them, for I, Yahweh your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation of those who hate me,

¹⁷ The rest of it he makes into a god, even his engraved image. He bows down to it and worships, and prays to it, and says, “Deliver me; for you are my god!”

²² A curse will be taken up about them by all the captives of Judah who are in Babylon, saying, ‘Yahweh make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire;’

¹⁸ “Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to me. All of them are bronze, tin, iron, and lead in the middle of the furnace. They are the dross of silver. ¹⁹ Therefore the Lord Yahweh says: ‘Because you have all become dross, therefore, behold, I will gather you into the middle of Jerusalem. ²⁰ As they gather silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into the middle of the furnace, to blow the fire on it, to melt it; so I will gather you in my anger and in my wrath, and I will lay you there, and melt you. ²¹ Yes, I will gather you, and blow on you with the fire of my wrath, and you will be melted in the middle of it. ²² As silver is melted in the middle of the furnace, so you will be melted in the middle of it; and you will know that I, Yahweh, have poured out my wrath on you.’”

⁵ The king answered the Chaldeans, “The thing has gone from me. If you don’t make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you will be cut in pieces, and your houses will be made a dunghill.

¹² Because of this, the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed. ¹³ So the decree went out, and the wise men were to be slain. They sought Daniel and his companions to be slain.

¹¹ and whoever doesn’t fall down and worship shall be cast into the middle of a burning fiery furnace.

²¹ Then these men were bound in their pants, their tunics, and their mantles, and their other clothes, and were cast into the middle of the burning fiery furnace.

⁷ All the presidents of the kingdom, the deputies and the local governors, the counselors and the governors, have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a strong decree, that whoever asks a petition of any god or man for thirty days, except of you, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions.

⁹ He said to him, “I will give you all of these things, if you will fall down and worship me.”

⁴² and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.

⁵⁰ and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.”

²⁷ Immediately the king sent out a soldier of his guard, and commanded to bring John’s head, and he went and beheaded him in the prison,

² He opened the pit of the abyss, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke from a burning furnace. The sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke from the pit.

¹⁵ It was given to him to give breath to it, to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause as many as wouldn’t worship the image of the beast to be killed. ¹⁶ He causes all, the small and the great, the rich and the poor, and the free and the slave, to be given marks on their right hands, or on their foreheads; ¹⁷ and that no one would be able to buy or to sell, unless he has that mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name.

¹¹ The smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. They have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.

⁷ Babylon has been a golden cup in Yahweh’s hand, who made all the earth drunk. The nations have drunk of her wine; therefore the nations have gone mad.

¹⁶ who in the generations gone by allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.

¹⁹ We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.

⁹ The great dragon was thrown down, the old serpent, he who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

³ One of his heads looked like it had been wounded fatally. His fatal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled at the beast.

⁸ All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been killed.

¹⁴ He deceives my own people who dwell on the earth because of the signs he was granted to do in front of the beast, saying to those who dwell on the earth that they should make an image to the beast who had the sword wound and lived.

⁸ The beast that you saw was, and is not; and is about to come up out of the abyss and to go into destruction. Those who dwell on the earth and whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel when they see that the beast was, and is not, and shall be present.

²⁰ The beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who worked the signs in his sight, with which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.

¹² Be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you have come to us to Jerusalem. They are building the rebellious and bad city, and have finished the walls, and repaired the foundations. ¹³ Be it known now to the king that if this city is built and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and in the end it will be hurtful to the kings. ¹⁴ Now because we eat the salt of the palace, and it is not appropriate for us to see the king’s dishonor, therefore we have sent and informed the king, ¹⁵ that search may be made in the book of the records of your fathers. You will see in the book of the records, and know that this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful to kings and provinces, and that they have started rebellions within it in the past. That is why this city was destroyed. ¹⁶ We inform the king that, if this city is built and the walls finished, then you will have no possession beyond the River.

⁶ But he scorned the thought of laying hands on Mordecai alone, for they had made known to him Mordecai’s people. Therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even Mordecai’s people.

⁸ Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom, and their laws are different from other people’s. They don’t keep the king’s laws. Therefore it is not for the king’s profit to allow them to remain. ⁹ If it pleases the king, let it be written that they be destroyed; and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who are in charge of the king’s business, to bring it into the king’s treasuries.”

¹⁰ The Chaldeans answered before the king, and said, “There is not a man on the earth who can show the king’s matter, because no king, lord, or ruler, has asked such a thing of any magician, or enchanter, or Chaldean.

¹² Then they came near, and spoke before the king concerning the king’s decree: “Haven’t you signed a decree that every man who makes a petition to any god or man within thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions?” The king answered, “This thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which doesn’t alter.” ¹³ Then they answered and said before the king, “That Daniel, who is of the children of the captivity of Judah, doesn’t respect you, O king, nor the decree that you have signed, but makes his petition three times a day.”

²⁰ When they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men, being Jews, are agitating our city ²¹ and advocate customs which it is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being Romans.” ²² The multitude rose up together against them and the magistrates tore their clothes from them, then commanded them to be beaten with rods.

⁶ When they didn’t find them, they dragged Jason and certain brothers before the rulers of the city, crying, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here also, ⁷ whom Jason has received. These all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus!” ⁸ The multitude and the rulers of the city were troubled when they heard these things.

²² But we desire to hear from you what you think. For, as concerning this sect, it is known to us that everywhere it is spoken against.”

³ For we have spent enough of our past time doing the desire of the Gentiles, and having walked in lewdness, lusts, drunken binges, orgies, carousings, and abominable idolatries. ⁴ They think it is strange that you don’t run with them into the same excess of riot, blaspheming.

⁴ Then the Chaldeans spoke to the king in the Syrian language, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.”

⁴ Then the herald cried aloud, “To you it is commanded, peoples, nations, and languages, ⁵ that whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, you fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up.

¹⁰ The queen by reason of the words of the king and his lords came into the banquet house. The queen spoke and said, “O king, live forever; don’t let your thoughts trouble you, nor let your face be changed.

⁶ Then these presidents and local governors assembled together to the king, and said this to him, “King Darius, live forever!

²¹ Then Daniel said to the king, “O king, live forever!

⁷ Therefore give everyone what you owe: if you owe taxes, pay taxes; if customs, then customs; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

¹⁶ and he said, “When you perform the duty of a midwife to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birth stool, if it is a son, then you shall kill him; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live.”

²² Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, “You shall cast every son who is born into the river, and every daughter you shall save alive.”

²⁰ Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a tambourine in her hand; and all the women went out after her with tambourines and with dances. ²¹ Miriam answered them, “Sing to Yahweh, for he has triumphed gloriously. The horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.”

¹⁸ He said, “It isn’t the voice of those who shout for victory. It is not the voice of those who cry for being overcome; but the noise of those who sing that I hear.” ¹⁹ As soon as he came near to the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing. Then Moses’ anger grew hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands, and broke them beneath the mountain.

¹⁶ David spoke to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brothers as singers with instruments of music, stringed instruments, harps, and cymbals, sounding aloud and lifting up their voices with joy.

²⁸ Thus all Israel brought the ark of Yahweh’s covenant up with shouting, with sound of the cornet, with trumpets, and with cymbals, sounding aloud with stringed instruments and harps.

⁵ Asaph the chief, and second to him Zechariah, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-Edom, and Jeiel, with stringed instruments and with harps; and Asaph with cymbals, sounding aloud; ⁶ with Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests with trumpets continually, before the ark of the covenant of God.

¹ Moreover, David and the captains of the army set apart for the service certain of the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who were to prophesy with harps, with stringed instruments, and with cymbals. The number of those who did the work according to their service was: ² of the sons of Asaph: Zaccur, Joseph, Nethaniah, and Asharelah. The sons of Asaph were under the hand of Asaph, who prophesied at the order of the king. ³ Of Jeduthun, the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the hands of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied in giving thanks and praising Yahweh with the harp. ⁴ Of Heman, the sons of Heman: Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shebuel, Jerimoth, Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti, Romamti-Ezer, Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir, and Mahazioth. ⁵ All these were the sons of Heman the king’s seer in the words of God, to lift up the horn. God gave to Heman fourteen sons and three daughters. ⁶ All these were under the hands of their father for song in Yahweh’s house, with cymbals, stringed instruments, and harps, for the service of God’s house: Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman being under the order of the king.

²⁵ He set the Levites in Yahweh’s house with cymbals, with stringed instruments, and with harps, according to the commandment of David, of Gad the king’s seer, and Nathan the prophet; for the commandment was from Yahweh by his prophets.

¹² Then the king’s scribes were called in on the first month, on the thirteenth day of the month; and all that Haman commanded was written to the king’s local governors, and to the governors who were over every province, and to the princes of every people, to every province according to its writing, and to every people in their language. It was written in the name of King Ahasuerus, and it was sealed with the king’s ring. ¹³ Letters were sent by couriers into all the king’s provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, even on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to plunder their possessions. ¹⁴ A copy of the letter, that the decree should be given out in every province, was published to all the peoples, that they should be ready against that day.

¹ For the Chief Musician. On an instrument of Gath. By Asaph. Sing aloud to God, our strength! Make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob! ² Raise a song, and bring here the tambourine, the pleasant lyre with the harp. ³ Blow the trumpet at the New Moon, at the full moon, on our feast day.

¹ A Psalm. A song for the Sabbath day. It is a good thing to give thanks to Yahweh, to sing praises to your name, Most High, ² to proclaim your loving kindness in the morning, and your faithfulness every night, ³ with the ten-stringed lute, with the harp, and with the melody of the lyre.

²⁰ Shall the throne of wickedness have fellowship with you, which brings about mischief by statute?

³ Let them praise his name in the dance! Let them sing praises to him with tambourine and harp! ⁴ For Yahweh takes pleasure in his people. He crowns the humble with salvation.

³ Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet! Praise him with harp and lyre! ⁴ Praise him with tambourine and dancing! Praise him with stringed instruments and flute! ⁵ Praise him with loud cymbals! Praise him with resounding cymbals! ⁶ Let everything that has breath praise Yah! Praise Yah!

¹⁶ Moreover I saw under the sun, in the place of justice, that wickedness was there; and in the place of righteousness, that wickedness was there.

¹ Woe to those who decree unrighteous decrees, and to the writers who write oppressive decrees;

⁴ Then the herald cried aloud, “To you it is commanded, peoples, nations, and languages, ⁵ that whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, you fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. ⁶ Whoever doesn’t fall down and worship shall be cast into the middle of a burning fiery furnace the same hour.” ⁷ Therefore at that time, when all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, all the peoples, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshiped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

¹² Then they came near, and spoke before the king concerning the king’s decree: “Haven’t you signed a decree that every man who makes a petition to any god or man within thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions?” The king answered, “This thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which doesn’t alter.”

⁵ who strum on the strings of a harp; who invent for themselves instruments of music, like David;

⁵⁷ Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had commanded that if anyone knew where he was, he should report it, that they might seize him.

⁷ The women sang to one another as they played, and said, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.” ⁸ Saul was very angry, and this saying displeased him. He said, “They have creditd David with ten thousands, and they have only credited me with thousands. What can he have more but the kingdom?” ⁹ Saul watched David from that day and forward. ¹⁰ On the next day, an evil spirit from God came mightily on Saul, and he prophesied in the middle of the house. David played with his hand, as he did day by day. Saul had his spear in his hand; ¹¹ and Saul threw the spear, for he said, “I will pin David to the wall!” David escaped from his presence twice.

⁸ Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom, and their laws are different from other people’s. They don’t keep the king’s laws. Therefore it is not for the king’s profit to allow them to remain.

⁴ Wrath is cruel, and anger is overwhelming; but who is able to stand before jealousy?

⁴ Then I saw all the labor and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

⁴⁹ Daniel requested of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel was in the king’s gate.

¹³ Then they answered and said before the king, “That Daniel, who is of the children of the captivity of Judah, doesn’t respect you, O king, nor the decree that you have signed, but makes his petition three times a day.”

²⁸ saying, “Didn’t we strictly command you not to teach in this name? Behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and intend to bring this man’s blood on us.”

⁷ whom Jason has received. These all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus!”

⁵ but he didn’t respect Cain and his offering. Cain was very angry, and the expression on his face fell.

³⁰ Then Saul’s anger burned against Jonathan, and he said to him, “You son of a perverse rebellious woman, don’t I know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame, and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness? ³¹ For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, you will not be established, nor will your kingdom. Therefore now send and bring him to me, for he shall surely die!” ³² Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said to him, “Why should he be put to death? What has he done?” ³³ Saul cast his spear at him to strike him. By this Jonathan knew that his father was determined to put David to death.

⁵ When Haman saw that Mordecai didn’t bow down, nor pay him homage, Haman was full of wrath. ⁶ But he scorned the thought of laying hands on Mordecai alone, for they had made known to him Mordecai’s people. Therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even Mordecai’s people.

¹² Let a bear robbed of her cubs meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly.

³ A stone is heavy, and sand is a burden; but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.

²² An angry man stirs up strife, and a wrathful man abounds in sin.

¹² Because of this, the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed.

¹⁹ Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the form of his appearance was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He spoke, and commanded that they should heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated.

¹⁸ Yes, and you will be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony to them and to the nations.

⁹ But watch yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils. You will be beaten in synagogues. You will stand before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony to them.

¹¹ But they were filled with rage, and talked with one another about what they might do to Jesus.

¹² But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you up to synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for my name’s sake.

²⁵ One came and told them, “Behold, the men whom you put in prison are in the temple, standing and teaching the people.” ²⁶ Then the captain went with the officers, and brought them without violence, for they were afraid that the people might stone them. ²⁷ When they had brought them, they set them before the council. The high priest questioned them,

²⁴ But after some days, Felix came with Drusilla, his wife, who was a Jewess, and sent for Paul, and heard him concerning the faith in Christ Jesus.

¹³ but not if it is unintentional, but God allows it to happen; then I will appoint you a place where he shall flee. ¹⁴ If a man schemes and comes presumptuously on his neighbor to kill him, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.

¹ Bel bows down. Nebo stoops. Their idols are carried by animals, and on the livestock. The things that you carried around are heavy loads, a burden for the weary.

² “Declare among the nations and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and don’t conceal: say, ‘Babylon has been taken, Bel is disappointed, Merodach is dismayed! Her images are disappointed. Her idols are dismayed.’

¹ Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits, and its width six cubits. He set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon.

⁸ But at the last Daniel came in before me, whose name was Belteshazzar, according to the name of my god, and in whom is the spirit of the holy gods. I told the dream before him, saying,

² Pharaoh said, “Who is Yahweh, that I should listen to his voice to let Israel go? I don’t know Yahweh, and moreover I will not let Israel go.”

³² Yet now, if you will, forgive their sin—and if not, please blot me out of your book which you have written.”

³⁵ Who are they among all the gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of my hand, that Yahweh should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’”

¹⁵ Now therefore don’t let Hezekiah deceive you, nor persuade you in this way. Don’t believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people out of my hand, and out of the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you out of my hand?” ¹⁶ His servants spoke yet more against Yahweh God, and against his servant Hezekiah. ¹⁷ He also wrote letters insulting Yahweh, the God of Israel, and speaking against him, saying, “As the gods of the nations of the lands, which have not delivered their people out of my hand, so shall the God of Hezekiah not deliver his people out of my hand.”

¹⁸ Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying, “Yahweh will deliver us.” Have any of the gods of the nations delivered their lands from the hand of the king of Assyria? ¹⁹ Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand? ²⁰ Who are they among all the gods of these countries that have delivered their country out of my hand, that Yahweh should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’”

²³ Whom have you defied and blasphemed? Against whom have you exalted your voice and lifted up your eyes on high? Against the Holy One of Israel.

⁵ that whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, you fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. ⁶ Whoever doesn’t fall down and worship shall be cast into the middle of a burning fiery furnace the same hour.”

¹⁷ If it happens, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace; and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king.

²⁸ Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel, and delivered his servants who trusted in him, and have changed the king’s word, and have yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. ²⁹ Therefore I make a decree, that every people, nation, and language, which speak anything evil against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill; because there is no other god who is able to deliver like this.”

¹⁶ Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. The king spoke and said to Daniel, “Your God whom you serve continually, he will deliver you.”

²⁰ When he came near to the den to Daniel, he cried with a troubled voice. The king spoke and said to Daniel, “Daniel, servant of the living God, is your God, whom you serve continually, able to deliver you from the lions?”

¹⁹ But when they deliver you up, don’t be anxious how or what you will say, for it will be given you in that hour what you will say.

⁴³ He trusts in God. Let God deliver him now, if he wants him; for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”

¹¹ When they lead you away and deliver you up, don’t be anxious beforehand, or premeditate what you will say, but say whatever will be given you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.

⁷ If you therefore will worship before me, it will all be yours.” ⁸ Jesus answered him, “Get behind me Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.’”

¹¹ When they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities, don’t be anxious how or what you will answer, or what you will say;

⁹ If it bears fruit, fine; but if not, after that, you can cut it down.’”

¹⁴ Settle it therefore in your hearts not to meditate beforehand how to answer, ¹⁵ for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to withstand or to contradict.

⁸ Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “You rulers of the people, and elders of Israel, ⁹ if we are examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, ¹⁰ may it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, this man stands here before you whole in him. ¹¹ He is ‘the stone which was regarded as worthless by you, the builders, which has become the head of the corner.’ ¹² There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among men, by which we must be saved!”

¹⁹ But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, judge for yourselves,

²⁹ But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.

¹⁵ All who sat in the council, fastening their eyes on him, saw his face like it was the face of an angel.

¹⁰ When the governor had beckoned to him to speak, Paul answered, “Because I know that you have been a judge of this nation for many years, I cheerfully make my defense, ¹¹ seeing that you can verify that it is not more than twelve days since I went up to worship at Jerusalem. ¹² In the temple they didn’t find me disputing with anyone or stirring up a crowd, either in the synagogues, or in the city. ¹³ Nor can they prove to you the things of which they now accuse me.

⁷ The prince of the eunuchs gave names to them: to Daniel he gave the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.

¹² There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, have not respected you. They don’t serve your gods, and don’t worship the golden image which you have set up.”

¹ When Abram was ninety-nine years old, Yahweh appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty. Walk before me and be blameless.

¹⁴ Is anything too hard for Yahweh? At the set time I will return to you, when the season comes round, and Sarah will have a son.”

³⁷ David said, “Yahweh who delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.” Saul said to David, “Go! Yahweh will be with you.”

⁴⁶ Today, Yahweh will deliver you into my hand. I will strike you, and take your head from off you. I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines today to the birds of the sky, and to the wild animals of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,

¹⁹ He will deliver you in six troubles; yes, in seven no evil will touch you.

²⁹ When he gives quietness, who then can condemn? When he hides his face, who then can see him? He is over a nation or a man alike,

¹⁰ He rode on a cherub, and flew. Yes, he soared on the wings of the wind. ¹¹ He made darkness his hiding place, his pavilion around him, darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.

¹ By David. Yahweh is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? Yahweh is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? ² When evildoers came at me to eat up my flesh, even my adversaries and my foes, they stumbled and fell.

¹ For the Chief Musician. To Jeduthun. A Psalm by David. My soul rests in God alone. My salvation is from him. ² He alone is my rock, my salvation, and my fortress. I will never be greatly shaken. ³ How long will you assault a man? Would all of you throw him down, like a leaning wall, like a tottering fence? ⁴ They fully intend to throw him down from his lofty place. They delight in lies. They bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah. ⁵ My soul, wait in silence for God alone, for my expectation is from him. ⁶ He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress. I will not be shaken.

²⁰ As a dream when one wakes up, so, Lord, when you awake, you will despise their fantasies.

³ But our God is in the heavens. He does whatever he pleases.

⁵ Yahweh is your keeper. Yahweh is your shade on your right hand. ⁶ The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. ⁷ Yahweh will keep you from all evil. He will keep your soul.

² Behold, God is my salvation. I will trust, and will not be afraid; for Yah, Yahweh, is my strength and song; and he has become my salvation.”

³ You will keep whoever’s mind is steadfast in perfect peace, because he trusts in you. ⁴ Trust in Yahweh forever; for in Yah, Yahweh, is an everlasting Rock.

¹⁴ You will be established in righteousness. You will be far from oppression, for you will not be afraid, and far from terror, for it shall not come near you.

⁸ Don’t be afraid because of them, for I am with you to rescue you,” says Yahweh.

³⁵ All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and he does according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; and no one can stop his hand, or ask him, “What are you doing?”

²⁰ When he came near to the den to Daniel, he cried with a troubled voice. The king spoke and said to Daniel, “Daniel, servant of the living God, is your God, whom you serve continually, able to deliver you from the lions?” ²¹ Then Daniel said to the king, “O king, live forever! ²² My God has sent his angel, and has shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not hurt me; because as before him innocence was found in me; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm.”

²⁷ He delivers and rescues. He works signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.”

³⁷ For nothing spoken by God is impossible.”

²⁴ But these things don’t count; nor do I hold my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to fully testify to the Good News of the grace of God.

¹³ Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”

²⁰ When neither sun nor stars shone on us for many days, and no small storm pressed on us, all hope that we would be saved was now taken away. ²¹ When they had been long without food, Paul stood up in the middle of them, and said, “Sirs, you should have listened to me, and not have set sail from Crete and have gotten this injury and loss. ²² Now I exhort you to cheer up, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. ²³ For there stood by me this night an angel, belonging to the God whose I am and whom I serve, ²⁴ saying, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. Behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you.’ ²⁵ Therefore, sirs, cheer up! For I believe God, that it will be just as it has been spoken to me.

³¹ What then shall we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

²⁵ Therefore he is also able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, seeing that he lives forever to make intercession for them.

³ “You shall have no other gods before me. ⁴ “You shall not make for yourselves an idol, nor any image of anything that is in the heavens above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: ⁵ you shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them, for I, Yahweh your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation of those who hate me,

⁴ “‘Don’t turn to idols, nor make molten gods for yourselves. I am Yahweh your God.

¹⁵ If it seems evil to you to serve Yahweh, choose today whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh.”

¹⁵ Behold, he will kill me. I have no hope. Nevertheless, I will maintain my ways before him.

¹ The wicked flee when no one pursues; but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

¹² “I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you, that you are afraid of man who shall die, and of the son of man who will be made as grass? ¹³ Have you forgotten Yahweh your Maker, who stretched out the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth? Do you live in fear continually all day because of the fury of the oppressor, when he prepares to destroy? Where is the fury of the oppressor?

²⁸ Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel, and delivered his servants who trusted in him, and have changed the king’s word, and have yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.

²⁸ Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. Rather, fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.

³² Everyone therefore who confesses me before men, I will also confess him before my Father who is in heaven. ³³ But whoever denies me before men, I will also deny him before my Father who is in heaven.

³⁹ He who seeks his life will lose it; and he who loses his life for my sake will find it.

² But he answered them, “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’

³ Therefore whatever you have said in the darkness will be heard in the light. What you have spoken in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops. ⁴ “I tell you, my friends, don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. ⁵ But I will warn you whom you should fear. Fear him who after he has killed, has power to cast into Gehenna. Yes, I tell you, fear him. ⁶ “Aren’t five sparrows sold for two assaria coins? Not one of them is forgotten by God. ⁷ But the very hairs of your head are all counted. Therefore don’t be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows. ⁸ “I tell you, everyone who confesses me before men, the Son of Man will also confess before the angels of God; ⁹ but he who denies me in the presence of men will be denied in the presence of God’s angels.

¹⁰ may it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, this man stands here before you whole in him. ¹¹ He is ‘the stone which was regarded as worthless by you, the builders, which has become the head of the corner.’ ¹² There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among men, by which we must be saved!” ¹³ Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and had perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled. They recognized that they had been with Jesus.

²⁹ But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. ³⁰ The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you killed, hanging him on a tree. ³¹ God exalted him with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins. ³² We are his witnesses of these things; and so also is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

¹⁰ Don’t be afraid of the things which you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested; and you will have oppression for ten days. Be faithful to death, and I will give you the crown of life. ¹¹ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies. He who overcomes won’t be harmed by the second death.

¹¹ They overcame him because of the Lamb’s blood, and because of the word of their testimony. They didn’t love their life, even to death.

⁵ but he didn’t respect Cain and his offering. Cain was very angry, and the expression on his face fell. ⁶ Yahweh said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why has the expression of your face fallen?

² Jacob saw the expression on Laban’s face, and, behold, it was not toward him as before.

⁹ The enemy said, ‘I will pursue. I will overtake. I will divide the plunder. My desire will be satisfied on them. I will draw my sword. My hand will destroy them.’ ¹⁰ You blew with your wind. The sea covered them. They sank like lead in the mighty waters.

¹⁸ “‘If you in spite of these things will not listen to me, then I will chastise you seven times more for your sins.

²¹ “‘If you walk contrary to me, and won’t listen to me, then I will bring seven times more plagues on you according to your sins.

²⁴ then I will also walk contrary to you; and I will strike you, even I, seven times for your sins.

²⁸ then I will walk contrary to you in wrath. I will also chastise you seven times for your sins.

³³ He put the wood in order, and cut the bull in pieces, and laid it on the wood. He said, “Fill four jars with water, and pour it on the burnt offering, and on the wood.” ³⁴ He said, “Do it a second time;” and they did it the second time. He said, “Do it a third time;” and they did it the third time. ³⁵ The water ran around the altar; and he also filled the trench with water.

¹⁰ Ben Hadad sent to him, and said, “The gods do so to me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria will be enough for handfuls for all the people who follow me.” ¹¹ The king of Israel answered, “Tell him, ‘Don’t let him who puts on his armor brag like he who takes it off.’”

²⁷ But I know your sitting down, your going out, your coming in, and your raging against me. ²⁸ Because of your raging against me, and because your arrogance has come up into my ears, therefore I will put my hook in your nose, and my bridle in your lips, and I will turn you back by the way by which you came.’

⁷ The king arose in his wrath from the banquet of wine and went into the palace garden. Haman stood up to make request for his life to Esther the queen; for he saw that there was evil determined against him by the king.

¹⁰ Surely the wrath of man praises you. The survivors of your wrath are restrained.

¹⁴ The king’s wrath is a messenger of death, but a wise man will pacify it.

²⁴ The proud and arrogant man—“Scoffer” is his name— he works in the arrogance of pride.

³ A stone is heavy, and sand is a burden; but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both. ⁴ Wrath is cruel, and anger is overwhelming; but who is able to stand before jealousy?

²³ I will put it into the hand of those who afflict you, who have said to your soul, ‘Bow down, that we may walk over you;’ and you have laid your back as the ground, like a street to those who walk over.”

¹³ Then Nebuchadnezzar in rage and fury commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought. Then these men were brought before the king.

⁶ Then the king’s face was changed in him, and his thoughts troubled him; and the joints of his thighs were loosened, and his knees struck one against another.

²⁴ The king commanded, and they brought those men who had accused Daniel, and they cast them into the den of lions, them, their children, and their wives; and the lions mauled them, and broke all their bones in pieces, before they came to the bottom of the den.

⁶³ saying, “Sir, we remember what that deceiver said while he was still alive: ‘After three days I will rise again.’ ⁶⁴ Command therefore that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest perhaps his disciples come at night and steal him away, and tell the people, ‘He is risen from the dead;’ and the last deception will be worse than the first.” ⁶⁵ Pilate said to them, “You have a guard. Go, make it as secure as you can.” ⁶⁶ So they went with the guard and made the tomb secure, sealing the stone.

⁴ “I tell you, my friends, don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. ⁵ But I will warn you whom you should fear. Fear him who after he has killed, has power to cast into Gehenna. Yes, I tell you, fear him.

³³ But they, when they heard this, were cut to the heart, and were determined to kill them.

⁵⁴ Now when they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.

⁴ When he had arrested him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of four soldiers each to guard him, intending to bring him out to the people after the Passover. ⁵ Peter therefore was kept in the prison, but constant prayer was made by the assembly to God for him.

²³ When they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely,

²⁵ But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

³³ The Egyptians were urgent with the people, to send them out of the land in haste, for they said, “We are all dead men.”

⁸ A righteous person is delivered out of trouble, and the wicked takes his place.

¹⁸ The wicked is a ransom for the righteous, the treacherous for the upright.

¹⁵ He answered Arioch the king’s captain, “Why is the decree so urgent from the king?” Then Arioch made the thing known to Daniel.

² “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling to all the surrounding peoples, and it will also be on Judah in the siege against Jerusalem. ³ It will happen in that day, that I will make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all the peoples. All who burden themselves with it will be severely wounded, and all the nations of the earth will be gathered together against it.

⁵ He threw down the pieces of silver in the sanctuary, and departed. He went away and hanged himself.

¹⁹ When Herod had sought for him, and didn’t find him, he examined the guards, then commanded that they should be put to death. He went down from Judea to Caesarea, and stayed there.

¹⁹ Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but Yahweh delivers him out of them all.

¹¹ You brought us into prison. You laid a burden on our backs. ¹² You allowed men to ride over our heads. We went through fire and through water, but you brought us to the place of abundance.

¹ A Song of Ascents. By David. If it had not been Yahweh who was on our side, let Israel now say, ² if it had not been Yahweh who was on our side, when men rose up against us; ³ then they would have swallowed us up alive, when their wrath was kindled against us; ⁴ then the waters would have overwhelmed us, the stream would have gone over our soul; ⁵ then the proud waters would have gone over our soul.

⁶ Then they took Jeremiah and threw him into the dungeon of Malchijah the king’s son, that was in the court of the guard. They let down Jeremiah with cords. In the dungeon there was no water, but mire; and Jeremiah sank in the mire.

⁵² They have chased me relentlessly like a bird, those who are my enemies without cause. ⁵³ They have cut off my life in the dungeon, and have cast a stone on me. ⁵⁴ Waters flowed over my head. I said, “I am cut off.”

¹⁶ Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. The king spoke and said to Daniel, “Your God whom you serve continually, he will deliver you.” ¹⁷ A stone was brought, and laid on the mouth of the den; and the king sealed it with his own signet, and with the signet of his lords; that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel.

⁸ For we don’t desire to have you uninformed, brothers, concerning our affliction which happened to us in Asia, that we were weighed down exceedingly, beyond our power, so much that we despaired even of life. ⁹ Yes, we ourselves have had the sentence of death within ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead, ¹⁰ who delivered us out of so great a death, and does deliver; on whom we have set our hope that he will also still deliver us;

¹⁷ For our light affliction, which is for the moment, works for us more and more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory,

¹² Beloved, don’t be astonished at the fiery trial which has come upon you to test you, as though a strange thing happened to you. ¹³ But because you are partakers of Christ’s sufferings, rejoice, that at the revelation of his glory you also may rejoice with exceeding joy.

⁵⁵ When Saul saw David go out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the captain of the army, “Abner, whose son is this youth?” Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I can’t tell.”

² Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the local governors, the deputies, and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. ³ Then the local governors, the deputies, and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, were gathered together to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

⁹ They answered Nebuchadnezzar the king, “O king, live for ever! ¹⁰ You, O king, have made a decree, that every man that hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image;

²² it is you, O king, that have grown and become strong; for your greatness has grown, and reaches to the sky, and your dominion to the end of the earth.

²⁷ Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you, and break off your sins by righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps there may be a lengthening of your tranquility.”

¹⁸ “To you, king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father the kingdom, and greatness, and glory, and majesty.

²² My God has sent his angel, and has shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not hurt me; because as before him innocence was found in me; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm.”

²³ “We found the prison shut and locked, and the guards standing before the doors, but when we opened them, we found no one inside!” ²⁴ Now when the high priest, the captain of the temple, and the chief priests heard these words, they were very perplexed about them and what might become of this. ²⁵ One came and told them, “Behold, the men whom you put in prison are in the temple, standing and teaching the people.”

⁶ But rise up and enter into the city, then you will be told what you must do.”

¹³ When Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer.

¹³ at noon, O king, I saw on the way a light from the sky, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who traveled with me.

²⁷ King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.”

⁶ Now on the day when God’s sons came to present themselves before Yahweh, Satan also came among them.

⁷ when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

⁷ Yahweh’s angel encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.

³ For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly pestilence. ⁴ He will cover you with his feathers. Under his wings you will take refuge. His faithfulness is your shield and rampart. ⁵ You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day, ⁶ nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor of the destruction that wastes at noonday. ⁷ A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it will not come near you. ⁸ You will only look with your eyes, and see the recompense of the wicked. ⁹ Because you have made Yahweh your refuge, and the Most High your dwelling place,

⁴ Who has ascended up into heaven, and descended? Who has gathered the wind in his fists? Who has bound the waters in his garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son’s name, if you know?

² When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned, and flame will not scorch you.

¹⁸ But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image which you have set up.”

¹⁸ they will take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it will in no way hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

³⁵ The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore also the holy one who is born from you will be called the Son of God.

⁷ The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.” ⁸ When therefore Pilate heard this saying, he was more afraid.

⁵ However he shook off the creature into the fire, and wasn’t harmed.

⁴ who was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,

¹³ Now who will harm you if you become imitators of that which is good?

¹⁸ Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High.

¹⁷ The priests who bore the ark of Yahweh’s covenant stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan; and all Israel crossed over on dry ground, until all the nation had passed completely over the Jordan.

¹⁰ For the priests who bore the ark stood in the middle of the Jordan until everything was finished that Yahweh commanded Joshua to speak to the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua; and the people hurried and passed over.

¹⁶ “Command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, that they come up out of the Jordan.” ¹⁷ Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, “Come up out of the Jordan!” ¹⁸ When the priests who bore the ark of Yahweh’s covenant had come up out of the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet had been lifted up to the dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and went over all its banks, as before.

¹¹ Thus they returned us answer, saying, “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and are building the house that was built these many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and finished.

¹⁶ Therefore the Lord Yahweh says, “Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone of a sure foundation. He who believes shall not act hastily.

¹² For you shall not go out in haste, neither shall you go by flight: for Yahweh will go before you; and the God of Israel will be your rear guard.

⁴⁷ The king answered to Daniel, and said, “Of a truth your God is the God of gods, and the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you have been able to reveal this secret.”

² It has seemed good to me to show the signs and wonders that the Most High God has worked toward me.

¹⁷ Following Paul and us, she cried out, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us a way of salvation!”

³⁷ But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly without a trial, men who are Romans, and have cast us into prison! Do they now release us secretly? No, most certainly, but let them come themselves and bring us out!”

²³ For there stood by me this night an angel, belonging to the God whose I am and whom I serve,

¹⁰ For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? For if I were still pleasing men, I wouldn’t be a servant of Christ.

⁵ A voice came from the throne, saying, “Give praise to our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, the small and the great!”

⁴⁶ Today, Yahweh will deliver you into my hand. I will strike you, and take your head from off you. I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines today to the birds of the sky, and to the wild animals of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, ⁴⁷ and that all this assembly may know that Yahweh doesn’t save with sword and spear; for the battle is Yahweh’s, and he will give you into our hand.”

¹⁹ Now therefore, Yahweh our God, save us, I beg you, out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Yahweh, are God alone.”

¹⁸ that they may know that you alone, whose name is Yahweh, are the Most High over all the earth.

⁷ Ascribe to Yahweh, you families of nations, ascribe to Yahweh glory and strength. ⁸ Ascribe to Yahweh the glory due to his name. Bring an offering, and come into his courts. ⁹ Worship Yahweh in holy array. Tremble before him, all the earth.

¹¹ Yahweh, your hand is lifted up, yet they don’t see; but they will see your zeal for the people, and be disappointed. Yes, fire will consume your adversaries.

³⁰ but the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

¹⁷ You will be hated by all men for my name’s sake. ¹⁸ And not a hair of your head will perish.

⁶ When this sound was heard, the multitude came together and were bewildered, because everyone heard them speaking in his own language. ⁷ They were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Behold, aren’t all these who speak Galileans? ⁸ How do we hear, everyone in our own native language? ⁹ Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the parts of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, ¹¹ Cretans and Arabians: we hear them speaking in our languages the mighty works of God!” ¹² They were all amazed, and were perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

²⁶ For the king knows of these things, to whom also I speak freely. For I am persuaded that none of these things is hidden from him, for this has not been done in a corner.

³⁴ Therefore I beg you to take some food; for this is for your safety; for not a hair will perish from any of your heads.”

³⁴ quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, grew mighty in war, and caused foreign armies to flee.

²⁶ He said, “Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Shem. Let Canaan be his servant.

¹⁵ When the morning came, then the angels hurried Lot, saying, “Get up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the iniquity of the city.” ¹⁶ But he lingered; and the men grabbed his hand, his wife’s hand, and his two daughters’ hands, Yahweh being merciful to him; and they took him out, and set him outside of the city.

²⁰ They were helped against them, and the Hagrites were delivered into their hand, and all who were with them; for they cried to God in the battle, and he answered them, because they put their trust in him.

²⁰ They rose early in the morning, and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. As they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in Yahweh your God, so you will be established! Believe his prophets, so you will prosper.”

²¹ Yahweh sent an angel, who cut off all the mighty men of valor, and the leaders and captains, in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own land. When he had come into the house of his god, those who came out of his own body killed him there with the sword.

³ Whoever there is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the house of Yahweh, the God of Israel (he is God), which is in Jerusalem.

¹¹ I have also made a decree that whoever alters this message, let a beam be pulled out from his house, and let him be lifted up and fastened on it; and let his house be made a dunghill for this.

²³ Whatever is commanded by the God of heaven, let it be done exactly for the house of the God of heaven; for why should there be wrath against the realm of the king and his sons? ²⁴ Also we inform you that it shall not be lawful to impose tribute, custom, or toll, on any of the priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, temple servants, or laborers of this house of God. ²⁵ You, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges, who may judge all the people who are beyond the River, who all know the laws of your God; and teach him who doesn’t know them. ²⁶ Whoever will not do the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be executed on him with all diligence, whether it is to death, or to banishment, or to confiscation of goods, or to imprisonment. ²⁷ Blessed be Yahweh, the God of our fathers, who has put such a thing as this in the king’s heart, to beautify Yahweh’s house which is in Jerusalem; ²⁸ and has extended loving kindness to me before the king and his counselors, and before all the king’s mighty princes. I was strengthened according to Yahweh my God’s hand on me, and I gathered together chief men out of Israel to go up with me.

⁴ Our fathers trusted in you. They trusted, and you delivered them. ⁵ They cried to you, and were delivered. They trusted in you, and were not disappointed.

¹⁸ Behold, Yahweh’s eye is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his loving kindness,

²¹ For our heart rejoices in him, because we have trusted in his holy name.

⁷ Yahweh’s angel encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. ⁸ Oh taste and see that Yahweh is good. Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

²² Yahweh redeems the soul of his servants. None of those who take refuge in him shall be condemned.

⁸ Trust in him at all times, you people. Pour out your heart before him. God is a refuge for us. Selah.

¹¹ For Yahweh God is a sun and a shield. Yahweh will give grace and glory. He withholds no good thing from those who walk blamelessly. ¹² Yahweh of Armies, blessed is the man who trusts in you.

²⁰ Praise Yahweh, you angels of his, who are mighty in strength, who fulfill his word, obeying the voice of his word.

⁵ Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in Yahweh, his God: ⁶ who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps truth forever;

¹¹ Yahweh takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his loving kindness.

³⁶ Then Yahweh’s angel went out and struck one hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the camp of the Assyrians. When men arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.

⁷ “Blessed is the man who trusts in Yahweh, and whose confidence is in Yahweh. ⁸ For he will be as a tree planted by the waters, who spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes, but its leaf will be green, and will not be concerned in the year of drought. It won’t cease from yielding fruit.

¹⁵ Now if you are ready whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music to fall down and worship the image which I have made, good; but if you don’t worship, you shall be cast the same hour into the middle of a burning fiery furnace. Who is that god that will deliver you out of my hands?” ¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. ¹⁷ If it happens, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace; and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. ¹⁸ But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image which you have set up.”

²⁵ He answered, “Look, I see four men loose, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are unharmed. The appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”

³⁴ At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to heaven, and my understanding returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and I praised and honored him who lives forever; for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom from generation to generation.

²² My God has sent his angel, and has shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not hurt me; because as before him innocence was found in me; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm.” ²³ Then the king was exceedingly glad, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.

²⁶ “I make a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel; “for he is the living God, and steadfast forever. His kingdom is that which will not be destroyed. His dominion will be even to the end.

¹⁰ Then Jesus said to him, “Get behind me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.’”

¹⁹ But an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors by night, and brought them out and said,

⁷ And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side, and woke him up, saying, “Stand up quickly!” His chains fell off his hands. ⁸ The angel said to him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” He did so. He said to him, “Put on your cloak and follow me.” ⁹ And he went out and followed him. He didn’t know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he saw a vision. ¹⁰ When they were past the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went out, and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him. ¹¹ When Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I truly know that the Lord has sent out his angel and delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from everything the Jewish people were expecting.”

¹ Therefore I urge you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service.

⁷ For none of us lives to himself, and none dies to himself. ⁸ For if we live, we live to the Lord. Or if we die, we die to the Lord. If therefore we live or die, we are the Lord’s.

¹² to the end that we should be to the praise of his glory, we who had before hoped in Christ. ¹³ In him you also, having heard the word of the truth, the Good News of your salvation—in whom, having also believed, you were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,

²⁰ according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will in no way be disappointed, but with all boldness, as always, now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.

¹⁴ Aren’t they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?

³⁷ They were stoned. They were sawn apart. They were tempted. They were slain with the sword. They went around in sheep skins and in goat skins; being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated—

²¹ who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead, and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope might be in God.

³¹ For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves concede.

⁸ Salvation belongs to Yahweh. May your blessing be on your people. Selah.

²⁶ “I make a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel; “for he is the living God, and steadfast forever. His kingdom is that which will not be destroyed. His dominion will be even to the end. ²⁷ He delivers and rescues. He works signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.”

³⁰ “Therefore Yahweh, the God of Israel, says, ‘I said indeed that your house and the house of your father should walk before me forever.’ But now Yahweh says, ‘Far be it from me; for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me will be cursed.

³ He will be like a tree planted by the streams of water, that produces its fruit in its season, whose leaf also does not wither. Whatever he does shall prosper.

¹⁴ “Because he has set his love on me, therefore I will deliver him. I will set him on high, because he has known my name.

²⁶ If anyone serves me, let him follow me. Where I am, there my servant will also be. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.