1 Peter 5 Cross References - WNT

¹ So I exhort the Elders among you--I who am their fellow Elder and have been an eye-witness of the sufferings of the Christ, and am also a sharer in the glory which is soon to be revealed. ² Be shepherds of God's flock which is among you. Exercise the oversight not reluctantly but eagerly, in accordance with the will of God; not for base gain but with cheerful minds; ³ not lording it over your Churches but proving yourselves patterns for the flock to imitate. ⁴ And then, when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the never-withering wreath of glory. ⁵ In the same way you younger men must submit to your elders; and all of you must gird yourselves with humility towards one another, for God sets Himself against the proud, but gives grace to the humble. ⁶ Humble yourselves therefore beneath the mighty hand of God, so that at the right time He may set you on high. ⁷ Throw the whole of your anxiety upon Him, because He Himself cares for you. ⁸ Curb every passion, and be on the alert. Your great accuser, the Devil, is going about like a roaring lion to see whom he can devour. ⁹ Withstand him, firm in your faith; knowing that your brethren in other parts of the world are passing through just the same experiences. ¹⁰ And God, the giver of all grace, who has called you to share His eternal glory, through Christ, after you have suffered for a short time, will Himself make you perfect, firm, and strong. ¹¹ To Him be all power unto the Ages of the Ages! Amen. ¹² I send this short letter by Silas, our faithful brother--for such I regard him--in order to encourage you, and to bear witness that what I have told you is the true grace of God. In it stand fast. ¹³ The Church in Babylon, chosen like yourselves by God, sends greetings, and so does Mark my son. ¹⁴ Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace be with all of you who are in Christ.

⁴⁸ You are witnesses as to these things.

²⁶ "When the Advocate is come whom I will send to you from the Father's presence--the Spirit of Truth who comes forth from the Father's presence--He will be a witness concerning me. ²⁷ And you also are witnesses, because you have been with me from the first.

⁸ and yet you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judaea and Samaria and to the remotest parts of the earth."

²² beginning from His baptism by John down to the day on which He was taken up again from us into Heaven--one should be appointed to become a witness with us as to His resurrection."

³² This Jesus, God has raised to life-- a fact to which all of us testify.

¹⁵ The Prince of Life you put to death; but God has raised Him from the dead, and we are witnesses as to that.

³⁰ The God of our forefathers has raised Jesus to life, whom you crucified and put to death. ³¹ God has exalted Him to His right hand as Chief Leader and as Saviour, to give Israel repentance and forgiveness of sins. ³² And we--and the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him--are witnesses as to these things."

³⁹ "And we are witnesses as to all that He did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. But they even put Him to death, by crucifixion. ⁴⁰ That same Jesus God raised to life on the third day, and permitted Him to appear unmistakably, ⁴¹ not to all the people, but to witnesses--men previously chosen by God--namely, to us, who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead.

³⁰ This they did, forwarding their contributions to the Elders by Barnabas and Saul.

²³ And in every Church, after prayer and fasting, they selected Elders by show of hands, and commended them to the Lord on whom their faith rested.

⁴ Upon their arrival in Jerusalem they were cordially received by the Church, the Apostles, and the Elders; and they reported in detail all that God, working with them, had done.

⁶ Then the Apostles and Elders met to consider the matter;

²² Thereupon it was decided by the Apostles and Elders, with the approval of the whole Church, to choose suitable persons from among themselves and send them to Antioch, with Paul and Barnabas. Judas, called Bar-sabbas, and Silas, leading men among the brethren, were selected, ²³ and they took with them the following letter: "The Apostles and the elder brethren send greeting to the Gentile brethren throughout Antioch, Syria and Cilicia.

¹⁷ From Miletus he sent to Ephesus for the Elders of the Church to come to him.

²⁸ "Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has placed you to take the oversight for Him and act as shepherds to the Church of God, which He has bought with His own blood.

¹⁸ On the following day we went with Paul to call on James, and all the Elders of the Church came also.

¹⁷ and if children, then heirs too--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ; if indeed we are sharers in Christ's sufferings, in order that we may also be sharers in His glory. ¹⁸ Why, what we now suffer I count as nothing in comparison with the glory which is soon to be manifested in us.

¹ For we know that if this poor tent, our earthly house, is taken down, we have in Heaven a building which God has provided, a house not built by human hands, but eternal.

⁸ So we have a cheerful confidence, and we anticipate with greater delight being banished from the body and going home to the Lord.

¹⁹ For I know that it will result in my salvation through your prayers and a bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,

²¹ For, with me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. ²² But since to live means a longer stay on earth, that implies more labour for me--and not unsuccessful labour; and which I am to choose I cannot tell. ²³ I am in a dilemma, my earnest desire being to depart and be with Christ, for that is far, far better.

³ For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ appears--He is our true Life--then you also will appear with Him in glory.

¹ Never administer a sharp reprimand to a man older than yourself; but entreat him as if he were your father, and the younger men as brothers;

¹⁹ Never entertain an accusation against an Elder except on the evidence of two of three witnesses.

⁸ From this time onward there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me, but also to all who love the thought of His Appearing.

⁵ I have left you behind in Crete in order that you may set right the things which still require attention, and appoint Elders in every town, as I directed you to do;

⁹ it is for love's sake that--instead of that--although I am none other than Paul the aged, and am now also a prisoner for Christ Jesus,

³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in His great mercy has begotten us anew to an ever-living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ to an inheritance imperishable, undefiled and unfading, which has been reserved in Heaven for you, ⁵ whom God in His power is guarding through faith for a salvation that even now stands ready for unveiling at the End of the Age.

⁷ The sorrow comes in order that the testing of your faith--being more precious than that of gold, which perishes and yet is proved by fire--may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the re-appearing of Jesus Christ.

¹² To them it was revealed that they were serving not themselves but you, when they foretold the very things which have now been openly declared to you by those who, having been taught by the Holy Spirit which had been sent from Heaven, brought you the Good News. Angels long to stoop and look into these things.

⁴ And then, when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the never-withering wreath of glory.

² Dear friends, we are now God's children, but what we are to be in the future has not yet been fully revealed. We know that if Christ reappears we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.

¹ The Elder to the elect lady and her children. Truly I love you all, and not I alone, but also all who know the truth, ² for the sake of the truth which is continually in our hearts and will be with us for ever. ³ Grace, mercy and peace will be with us from God the Father, and from Jesus Christ the Son of the Father, in truth and love. ⁴ It is an intense joy to me to have found some of your children living true Christian lives, in obedience to the command which we have received from the Father. ⁵ And now, dear lady, I pray you--writing to you, as I do, not a new command, but the one which we have had from the very beginning--let us love one another. ⁶ The love of which I am speaking consists in our living in obedience to God's commands. God's command is that you should live in obedience to what you all heard from the very beginning. ⁷ For many deceivers have gone out into the world--men who do not acknowledge Jesus as Christ who has come in human nature. Such a one is 'the deceiver' and 'the anti-Christ.' ⁸ Keep guard over yourselves, so that you may not lose the results of your good deeds, but may receive back a full reward. ⁹ No one has God, who instead of remaining true to the teaching of Christ, presses on in advance: but he who remains true to that teaching has both the Father and the Son. ¹⁰ If any one who comes to you does not bring this teaching, do not receive him under your roof nor bid him Farewell. ¹¹ He who bids him Farewell is a sharer in his evil deeds. ¹² I have a great deal to say to you all, but will not write it with paper and ink. Yet I hope to come to see you and speak face to face, so that your happiness may be complete. ¹³ The children of your elect sister send greetings to you.

¹ The Elder to his dear friend Gaius. Truly I love you. ² My dear friend, I pray that you may in all respects prosper and enjoy good health, just as your soul already prospers. ³ For it is an intense joy to me when brethren come and bear witness to your fidelity to the truth--that you live in obedience to the truth. ⁴ I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are living in obedience to the truth. ⁵ My dear friend, you are acting faithfully in all your behaviour towards the brethren, even when they are strangers to you. ⁶ They have testified, in the presence of the Church, to your love; and you will do well to help them on their journey in a manner worthy of your fellowship with God. ⁷ For it is for Christ that they have gone forth, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. ⁸ It is therefore our duty to show hospitality to such men, so that we may be fellow workers in promoting the truth. ⁹ I wrote to the Church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the first place among them, refuses to listen to us. ¹⁰ For this reason, if I come, I shall not forget his conduct, nor his idle and mischievous talk against us. And he does not stop there: he not only will not receive the brethren, but those who desire to do this he hinders, and excludes them from the Church. ¹¹ My dear friend, do not follow wrong examples, but right ones. He who habitually does what is right is a child of God: he who habitually does what is wrong has not seen God. ¹² The character of Demetrius has the approval of all men, and of the truth itself. We also express our approval of it, and you know that we only give our approval to that which is true. ¹³ I have a great deal to say to you, but I do not wish to go on writing it with ink and pen. ¹⁴ But I hope to see you very soon, and then we will speak face to face. Peace be with you. Our friends send greetings to you. Greet our friends individually.

⁹ I John, your brother, and a sharer with you in the sorrows and Kingship and patient endurance of Jesus, found myself in the island of Patmos, on account of the Word of God and the truth told us by Jesus.

³² "Dismiss your fears, little flock: your Father finds a pleasure in giving you the Kingdom.

¹⁵ When they had finished breakfast, Jesus asked Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these others do?" "Yes, Master," was his answer; "you know that you are dear to me." "Then feed my lambs," replied Jesus. ¹⁶ Again a second time He asked him, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" "Yes, Master," he said, "you know that you are dear to me." "Then be a shepherd to my sheep," He said. ¹⁷ A third time Jesus put the question: "Simon, son of John, am I dear to you?" It grieved Peter that Jesus asked him the third time, "Am I dear to you?" "Master," he replied, "you know everything, you can see that you are dear to me." "Then feed my much-loved sheep," said Jesus.

²⁶ Therefore I protest to you to-day that I am not responsible for the ruin of any one of you. ²⁷ For I have not shrunk from declaring to you God's whole truth. ²⁸ "Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has placed you to take the oversight for Him and act as shepherds to the Church of God, which He has bought with His own blood.

³³ No one's silver or gold or clothing have I coveted. ³⁴ You yourselves know that these hands of mine have provided for my own necessities and for the people with me.

¹³ His reply was, "What can you mean by thus breaking my heart with your grief? Why, as for me, I am ready not only to go to Jerusalem and be put in chains, but even to die there for the sake of the Lord Jesus."

¹⁵ so that for my part I am willing and eager to proclaim the Good News to you also who are in Rome.

⁷ What soldier ever serves at his own cost? Who plants a vineyard and yet does not eat any of the grapes? Or who tends a herd of cattle and yet does not taste their milk?

¹⁶ If I go on preaching the Good News, that is nothing for me to boast of; for the necessity is imposed upon me; and alas for me, if I fail to preach it! ¹⁷ And if I preach willingly, I receive my wages; but if against my will, a stewardship has nevertheless been entrusted to me.

¹⁴ See, I am now for the third time prepared to visit you, but I will not be a dead weight to you. I desire not your money, but yourselves; for children ought not to put by for their parents, but parents for their children. ¹⁵ And as for me, most gladly will I spend all I have and be utterly spent for your salvation.

³ not a hard drinker nor given to blows; not selfish or quarrelsome or covetous;

⁸ Deacons, in the same way, must be men of serious demeanour, not double-tongued, nor addicted to much wine, nor greedy of base gain,

⁷ For, as God's steward, a minister must be of blameless life, not over-fond of having his own way, not a man of a passionate temper nor a hard drinker, not given to blows nor greedy of gain,

¹¹ You must stop the mouths of such men, for they overthrow the faith of whole families, teaching what they ought not, just for the sake of making money.

¹⁴ who gave Himself for us to purchase our freedom from all iniquity, and purify for Himself a people who should be specially His own, zealous for doing good works.

¹ Remind people that they must submit to the rulers who are in authority over them; that they must obey the magistrates, be prepared for every right action,

¹⁴ Only I wished to do nothing without your consent, so that his kind action of yours might not be done under pressure, but might be a voluntary one.

¹⁵ Be carefully on your guard lest there be any one who falls back from the grace of God; lest any root bearing bitter fruit spring up and cause trouble among you, and through it the whole brotherhood be defiled;

³ Thirsting for riches, they will trade on you with their canting talk. From of old their judgement has been working itself out, and their destruction has not been slumbering.

¹² cargoes of gold and silver, of jewels and pearls, of fine linen, purple and silk, and of scarlet stuff; all kinds of rare woods, and all kinds of goods in ivory and in very costly wood, in bronze, steel and marble. ¹³ Also cinnamon and amomum; odors to burn as incense or for perfume; frankincense, wine, oil; fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep; horses and carriages and slaves; and the lives of men.

²⁵ But Jesus called them to Him, and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. ²⁶ Not so shall it be among you; but whoever desires to be great among you shall be your servant,

⁸ "As for you, do not accept the title of 'Rabbi,' for one alone is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. ⁹ And call no one on earth your Father, for One alone is your Father--the Heavenly Father. ¹⁰ And do not accept the name of 'leader,' for your Leader is one alone--the Christ.

⁴² Jesus, however, called them to Him and said to them, "You are aware how those who are deemed rulers among the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men make them feel their authority; ⁴³ but it is not to be so among you. No, whoever desires to be great among you must be your servant; ⁴⁴ and whoever desires to be first among you must be the bondservant of all. ⁴⁵ For the Son of Man also did not come to be waited upon, but to wait on others, and to give His life as the redemption-price for a multitude of people."

²⁴ There arose also a dispute among them which of them should be regarded as greatest. ²⁵ But He said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles are their masters, and those who exercise authority over them are called Benefactors. ²⁶ With you it is not so; but let the greatest among you be as the younger, and the leader be like him who serves. ²⁷ For which is the greater--he who sits at table, or he who waits on him? Is it not he who sits at table? But my position among you is that of one who waits on others.

⁵ What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? They are just God's servants, through whose efforts, and as the Lord granted power to each, you accepted the faith.

⁹ Apollos and I are simply fellow workers for and with God, and you are *God's* field-- *God's* building.

¹¹ Yet, in the Lord, woman is not independent of man nor man independent of woman.

²⁴ Not that we want to lord it over you in respect of your faith--we do, however, desire to help your joy--for in the matter of your faith you are standing firm.

⁵ (For we do not proclaim ourselves, but we proclaim Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bondservants for the sake of Jesus.)

¹⁷ Brethren, vie with one another in imitating me, and carefully observe those who follow the example which we have set you.

⁹ The doctrines and the line of conduct which I taught you--both what you heard and what you saw in me-- hold fast to them; and God who gives peace will be with you.

⁵ The Good News that we brought you did not come to you in words only, but also with power and with the Holy Spirit and with much certainty, for you know the sort of men we became among you, as examples for your sakes. ⁶ And you followed the pattern set you by us and by the Master, after you had received the Message amid severe persecution, and yet with the joy which the Holy Spirit gives,

⁹ This was not because we had not a claim upon you, but it arose from a desire to set you an example--for you to imitate us.

¹² Let no one think slightingly of you because you are a young man; but in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, be an example for your fellow Christians to imitate.

⁷ and above all make your own life a pattern of right conduct, having in your teaching no taint of insincerity, but a serious tone,

⁹ But you are a chosen race, a priesthood of kingly lineage, a holy nation, a people belonging specially to God, that you may make known the perfections of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light.

⁹ I wrote to the Church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the first place among them, refuses to listen to us. ¹⁰ For this reason, if I come, I shall not forget his conduct, nor his idle and mischievous talk against us. And he does not stop there: he not only will not receive the brethren, but those who desire to do this he hinders, and excludes them from the Church.

³¹ "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then will He sit upon His glorious throne, ³² and all the nations will be gathered into His presence. And He will separate them from one another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; ³³ and will make the sheep stand at His right hand, and the goats at His left. ³⁴ "Then the King will say to those at His right, "'Come, my Father's blessed ones, receive your inheritance of the Kingdom which has been divinely intended for you ever since the creation of the world. ³⁵ For when I was hungry, you gave me food; when I was thirsty, you gave me drink; when I was homeless, you gave me a welcome; ³⁶ when I was ill-clad, you clothed me; when I was sick, you visited me; when I was in prison, you came to see me.' ³⁷ "'When, Lord,' the righteous will reply, 'did we see Thee hungry, and feed Thee; or thirsty, and give Thee drink? ³⁸ When did we see Thee homeless, and give Thee a welcome? or ill-clad, and clothe Thee? ³⁹ When did we see Thee sick or in prison, and come to see Thee?' ⁴⁰ "But the King will answer them, "'In solemn truth I tell you that in so far as you rendered such services to one of the humblest of these my brethren, you rendered them to myself.' ⁴¹ "Then will He say to those at His left, "'Begone from me, with the curse resting upon you, into the Fire of the Ages, which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels. ⁴² For when I was hungry, you gave me nothing to eat; when thirsty, you gave me nothing to drink; ⁴³ when homeless, you gave me no welcome; ill-clad, you clothed me not; sick or in prison, you visited me not.' ⁴⁴ "Then will they also answer, "'Lord, when did we see Thee hungry or thirsty or homeless or ill-clad or sick or in prison, and not come to serve Thee?' ⁴⁵ "But he will reply, "'In solemn truth I tell you that in so far as you withheld such services from one of the humblest of these, you withheld them from me.' ⁴⁶ "And these shall go away into the Punishment of the Ages, but the righteous into the Life of the Ages."

¹¹ "I am the Good Shepherd. A good shepherd lays down his very life for the sheep.

²⁵ But every competitor in an athletic contest practices abstemiousness in all directions. They indeed do this for the sake of securing a perishable wreath, but we for the sake of securing one that will not perish.

⁷ and to requite with rest you who are suffering affliction now--rest with us at the re-appearing of the Lord Jesus from Heaven, attended by His mighty angels. ⁸ He will come in flames of fire to take vengeance on those who have no knowledge of God, and do not obey the Good News as to Jesus, our Lord. ⁹ They will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, being banished from the presence of the Lord and from His glorious majesty, ¹⁰ when He comes on that day to be glorified in His people and to be wondered at among all who have believed, including you--because you believed the testimony which we brought for your acceptance.

²⁰ Now may God who gives peace, and brought Jesus, our Lord, up again from among the dead--even Him who, by virtue of the blood of the eternal Covenant, is the great Shepherd of the sheep--

¹² Blessed is he who patiently endures trials; for when he has stood the test, he will gain the victor's crown--even the crown of Life--which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

⁴ to an inheritance imperishable, undefiled and unfading, which has been reserved in Heaven for you,

²⁵ For you were straying like lost sheep, but now you have come back to the Shepherd and Protector of your souls.

² Be shepherds of God's flock which is among you. Exercise the oversight not reluctantly but eagerly, in accordance with the will of God; not for base gain but with cheerful minds;

⁷ He is coming in the clouds, and every eye will see Him, and so will those who pierced Him; and all the nations of the earth will gaze on Him and mourn. Even so. Amen.

¹⁰ Dismiss your fears concerning all that you are about to suffer. I tell you that the Devil is about to throw some of you into prison that you may be put to the test, and for ten days you will have to endure persecution. Be faithful to the End, even if you have to die, and then I will give you the victor's Wreath of Life.

¹¹ I am coming quickly: cling to that which you already possess, so that your wreath of victory be not taken away from you.

¹¹ Then I saw a great white throne and One who was seated on it, from whose presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. ¹² And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing in front of the throne. And books were opened; and so was another book--namely, the Book of Life; and the dead were judged by the things recorded in the books in accordance with what their conduct had been.

¹⁰ As for brotherly love, be affectionate to one another; in matters of worldly honour, yield to one another.

¹⁴ On the contrary, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for gratifying your earthly cravings.

²¹ and submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

³ Do nothing in a spirit of factiousness or of vainglory, but, with true humility, let every one regard the rest as being of more account than himself;

¹² Clothe yourselves therefore, as God's own people holy and dearly loved, with tender-heartedness, kindness, lowliness of mind, meekness, long-suffering;

¹⁷ Obey your leaders and be submissive to them. For they are keeping watch over your souls as those who will have to give account; that they may do this with joy and not with lamentation. For that would be of no advantage to you.

⁶ But He gives more abundant grace, as is implied in His saying, "GOD SETS HIMSELF AGAINST THE HAUGHTY, BUT TO THE LOWLY HE GIVES GRACE."

³ Your adornment ought not to be a merely outward thing--one of plaiting the hair, putting on jewelry, or wearing beautiful dresses. ⁴ Instead of that, it should be a new nature within--the imperishable ornament of a gentle and peaceful spirit, which is indeed precious in the sight of God.

¹ Since, then, Christ has suffered in the flesh, you also must arm yourselves with a determination to do the same--because he who has suffered in the flesh has done with sin--

⁵ But they will have to give account to Him who stands ready to pronounce judgement on the living and the dead.

¹² and one who exalts himself shall be abased, while one who abases himself shall be exalted.

⁵² He has cast monarchs down from their thrones, And exalted men of low estate.

¹¹ For whoever uplifts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be uplifted.

¹⁴ "I tell you that this man went home more thoroughly absolved from guilt than the other; for every one who uplifts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be uplifted."

⁶ For already, while we were still helpless, Christ at the right moment died for the ungodly.

²² Or are we actually arousing the Lord to jealousy. Are we stronger than He is?

⁶ who gave Himself as the redemption price for all--a fact testified to at its own appointed time,

³ And at the appointed time He clearly made known His Message in the preaching with which I was entrusted by the command of God our Saviour:

⁹ Let a brother in humble life rejoice when raised to a higher position; ¹⁰ but a rich man should rejoice in being brought low, for like flowers among the herbage rich men will pass away.

¹⁰ Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.

¹⁰ In illustration, brethren, of persecution patiently endured take the Prophets who have spoken as messengers from the Lord.

²⁵ For this reason I charge you not to be over-anxious about your lives, inquiring what you are to eat or what you are to drink, nor yet about your bodies, inquiring what clothes you are to put on. Is not the life more precious than its food, and the body than its clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds which fly in the air: they do not sow or reap or store up in barns, but your Heavenly Father feeds them: are not you of much greater value than they?

³³ But make His Kingdom and righteousness your chief aim, and then these things shall all be given you in addition. ³⁴ Do not be over-anxious, therefore, about to-morrow, for to-morrow will bring its own cares. Enough for each day are its own troubles.

³⁸ But He Himself was in the stern asleep, with His head on the cushion: so they woke Him. "Rabbi," they cried, "is it nothing to you that we are drowning?"

¹¹ And when they are bringing you before synagogues and magistrates and governors, do not anxiously ponder the manner or matter of your defence, nor what you are to say; ¹² for the Holy Spirit shall teach you at that very moment what you must say."

²² Then turning to His disciples He said, "For this reason I say to you, 'Dismiss all anxious care for your lives, inquiring what you are to eat, and for your bodies, what you are to put on.'

³⁰ For though the nations of the world pursue these things, as for you, your Father knows that you need them. ³¹ But make His Kingdom the object of your pursuit, and these things shall be given you in addition. ³² "Dismiss your fears, little flock: your Father finds a pleasure in giving you the Kingdom.

¹³ For he is only a hired servant and cares nothing for the sheep.

⁶ Do not be over-anxious about anything, but by prayer and earnest pleading, together with thanksgiving, let your request be unreservedly made known in the presence of God.

⁵ Your lives should be untainted by love for money. Be content with what you have; for God Himself has said, "I WILL NEVER, NEVER LET GO YOUR HAND: I WILL NEVER NEVER FORSAKE YOU." ⁶ So that we fearlessly say, "THE LORD IS MY HELPER; I WILL NOT BE AFRAID: WHAT CAN MAN DO TO ME?"

¹ At that time Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the Desert in order to be tempted by the Devil.

¹¹ Thereupon the Devil left Him, and angels at once came and ministered to Him.

³⁹ The enemy who sows the darnel is *the Devil*; the harvest is the Close of the Age; the reapers are the angels.

⁴² Be on the alert therefore, for you do not know the day on which your Lord is coming.

⁴⁸ But if the man, being a bad servant, should say in his heart, 'My master is a long time in coming,' ⁴⁹ and should begin to beat his fellow servants, while he eats and drinks with drunkards; ⁵⁰ the master of that servant will arrive on a day when he is not expecting him and at an hour of which he has not been informed;

⁴¹ "Then will He say to those at His left, "'Begone from me, with the curse resting upon you, into the Fire of the Ages, which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels.

⁴⁵ But if that servant should say in his heart, 'My Master is a long time in coming,' and should begin to beat the menservants and the maids, and to eat and drink, drinking even to excess; ⁴⁶ that servant's Master will come on a day when he is not expecting Him and at an hour that he knows not of, and will punish him severely, and make him share the lot of the unfaithful.

³⁴ "But take heed to yourselves, lest your souls be weighed down with self-indulgence and drunkenness or the anxieties of this life, and that day come upon you, suddenly, like a falling trap;

³⁶ But beware of slumbering; and every moment pray that you may be fully strengthened to escape from all these coming evils, and to take your stand in the presence of the Son of Man."

³¹ "Simon, Simon, I tell you that Satan has obtained permission to have all of you to sift as wheat is sifted.

⁴⁴ The father whose sons you are is the Devil; and you desire to do what gives him pleasure. *He* was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth--for there is no truth in him. Whenever he utters his lie, he utters it out of his own store; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.

¹¹ Carry out these injunctions because you know the critical period at which we are living, and that it is now high time, to rouse yourselves from sleep; for salvation is now nearer to us than when we first became believers. ¹² The night is far advanced, and day is about to dawn. We must therefore lay aside the deeds of darkness, and clothe ourselves with the armour of Light. ¹³ Living as we do in broad daylight, let us conduct ourselves becomingly, not indulging in revelry and drunkenness, nor in lust and debauchery, nor in quarrelling and jealousy.

²⁷ and do not leave room for the Devil.

¹¹ Put on the complete armour of God, so as to be able to stand firm against all the stratagems of the Devil.

⁶ So then let us not sleep, like the rest of the world, but let us keep awake and be sober. ⁷ For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who drink freely, drink at night. ⁸ But let us, belonging--as we do--to the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.

⁹ and I would have the women dress becomingly, with modesty and self-control, not with plaited hair or gold or pearls or costly clothes,

¹⁵ Yet a woman will be brought safely through childbirth if she and her husband continue to live in faith and love and growing holiness, with habitual self-restraint.

² A minister then must be a man of irreproachable character, true to his one wife, temperate, sober-minded, well-behaved, hospitable to strangers, and with a gift for teaching;

¹¹ Deaconesses, in the same way, must be sober-minded women, not slanderers, but in every way temperate and trustworthy.

¹⁷ The Lord, however, stood by me and filled me with inward strength, that through me the Message might be fully proclaimed and that all the Gentiles might hear it; and I was rescued from the lion's jaws.

⁸ but hospitable to strangers, a lover of goodness, sober-minded, upright, saintly, self-controlled;

² Exhort aged men to be temperate, grave, sober-minded, robust in their faith, their love and their patience.

⁴ They should school the young women to be affectionate to their husbands and to their children, to be sober-minded, pure in their lives,

⁶ In the same way exhort the younger men to be discreet,

¹² training us to renounce ungodliness and all the pleasures of this world, and to live sober, upright, and pious lives at the present time,

⁷ Submit therefore to God: resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.

¹³ Therefore gird up your minds and fix your hopes calmly and unfalteringly upon the boon that is soon to be yours, at the re-appearing of Jesus Christ.

⁷ But the end of all things is now close at hand: therefore be sober-minded and temperate, so that you may give yourselves to prayer.

⁸ He who is habitually guilty of sin is a child of the Devil, because the Devil has been a sinner from the very beginning. The Son of God appeared for the purpose of undoing the work of the Devil. ⁹ No one who is a child of God is habitually guilty of sin. A God-given germ of life remains in him, and he cannot habitually sin--because he is a child of God. ¹⁰ By this we can distinguish God's children and the Devil's children: no one who fails to act righteously is a child of God, nor he who does not love his brother man.

⁹ The great Dragon, the ancient serpent, he who is called 'the Devil' and 'the Adversary' and leads the whole earth astray, was hurled down: he was hurled down to the earth, and his angels were hurled down with him.

¹² For this reason be glad, O Heaven, and you who live in Heaven! Alas for the earth and the sea! For the Devil has come down to you; full of fierce anger, because he knows that his appointed time is short."

² He laid hold of the Dragon--the ancient serpent--who is the Devil and the Adversary, and bound him for a thousand years, and hurled him into the bottomless pit.

¹⁰ and the Devil, who had been leading them astray, was thrown into the Lake of fire and sulphur where the Wild Beast and the false Prophet were, and day and night they will suffer torture until the Ages of the Ages.

³ Then the Devil said to Him, "If you are God's Son, tell this stone to become bread." ⁴ "It is written," replied Jesus, "'IT IS NOT ON BREAD ALONE THAT A MAN SHALL LIVE.'" ⁵ The Devil next led Him up and caused Him to see at a glance all the kingdoms of the world. ⁶ And the Devil said to Him, "To you will I give all this authority and this splendour; for it has been handed over to me, and on whomsoever I will I bestow it. ⁷ If therefore you do homage to me, it shall all be yours.' ⁸ Jesus answered him, "It is written, 'TO THE LORD THY GOD THOU SHALT DO HOMAGE, AND TO HIM ALONE SHALT THOU RENDER WORSHIP.'" ⁹ Then he brought Him to Jerusalem and caused Him to stand on the roof of the Temple, and said to Him, "If you are God's Son, throw yourself down from here; for it is written, ¹⁰ 'HE WILL GIVE ORDERS TO HIS ANGELS CONCERNING THEE, TO GUARD THEE SAFELY;' ¹¹ and 'ON THEIR HANDS THEY SHALL BEAR THEE UP, LEST AT ANY MOMENT THOU SHOULDST STRIKE THY FOOT AGAINST A STONE.'" ¹² The reply of Jesus was, "It is said, 'THOU SHALT NOT PUT THE LORD THEY GOD TO THE PROOF.'"

³² But *I* have prayed for *you* that your faith may not fail, and you, when at last you have come back to your true self, must strengthen your brethren."

³³ "I have spoken all this to you in order that in me you may have peace. In the world you have affliction. But keep up your courage: *I* have won the victory over the world."

²² Everywhere they strengthened the disciples by encouraging them to hold fast to the faith, and warned them saying, "It is through many afflictions that we must make our way into the Kingdom of God."

¹³ No temptation has you in its power but such as is common to human nature; and God is faithful and will not allow you to be tempted beyond your strength. But, when the temptation comes, He will also provide the way of escape; so that you may be able to bear it.

¹¹ Put on the complete armour of God, so as to be able to stand firm against all the stratagems of the Devil. ¹² For ours is not a conflict with mere flesh and blood, but with the despotisms, the empires, the forces that control and govern this dark world--the spiritual hosts of evil arrayed against us in the heavenly warfare. ¹³ Therefore put on the complete armour of God, so that you may be able to stand your ground on the day of battle, and, having fought to the end, to remain victors on the field.

¹⁶ And besides all these take the great shield of faith, on which you will be able to quench all the flaming darts of the Wicked one;

⁵ For although, as you say, I am absent from you in body, yet in spirit I am present with you and am delighted to witness your good discipline and the solid front presented by your faith in Christ.

¹⁵ Those Jewish persecutors killed both the Lord Jesus and the Prophets, and drove us out of their midst. They are displeasing to God, and are the enemies of all mankind; ¹⁶ for they still try to prevent our preaching to the Gentiles so that they may find salvation. They thus continually fill up the measure of their own sins, and God's anger in its severest form has overtaken them.

³ that none of you might be unnerved by your present trials: for you yourselves know that they are our appointed lot.

¹² Exert all your strength in the honourable struggle for the faith; lay hold of the Life of the Ages, to which you were called, when you made your noble profession of faith before many witnesses.

¹² And indeed every one who is determined to live a godly life as a follower of Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

⁷ I have gone through the glorious contest; I have run the race; I have guarded the faith.

³³ men who, as the result of faith, conquered whole kingdoms, brought about true justice, obtained promises from God, stopped lions' mouths,

⁶ Rejoice triumphantly in the prospect of this, even if now, for a short time, you are compelled to sorrow amid various trials.

²¹ And it is to this you were called; because Christ also suffered on your behalf, leaving you an example so that you should follow in His steps.

¹⁴ But even if you suffer for righteousness' sake, you are to be envied. So do not be alarmed by their threats, nor troubled;

¹³ On the contrary, in the degree that you share in the sufferings of the Christ, rejoice, so that at the unveiling of His glory you may also rejoice with triumphant gladness.

¹¹ And there was given to each of them a long white robe, and they were bidden to wait patiently for a short time longer, until the full number of their fellow bondservants should also complete--namely of their brethren who were soon to be killed just as they had been.

¹⁴ "My lord, you know," I replied. "They are those," he said, "who have just passed through the great distress, and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

²⁰ Now Law was brought in later on, so that transgression might increase. But where sin increased, grace has overflowed; ²¹ in order that as sin has exercised kingly sway in inflicting death, so grace, too, may exercise kingly sway in bestowing a righteousness which results in the Life of the Ages through Jesus Christ our Lord.

²⁸ Now we know that for those who love God all things are working together for good--for those, I mean, whom with deliberate purpose He has called. ²⁹ For those whom He has known beforehand He has also pre-destined to bear the likeness of His Son, that He might be the Eldest in a vast family of brothers; ³⁰ and those whom He has pre-destined He also has called; and those whom He has called He has also declared free from guilt; and those whom He has declared free from guilt He has also crowned with glory.

¹¹ and even then, though they were not then born and had not done anything either good or evil, yet in order that God's electing purpose might not be frustrated, based, as it was, not on their actions but on the will of Him who called them, she was told,

²⁴ even towards us whom He has called not only from among the Jews but also from among the Gentiles?

⁵ And may God, the giver of power of endurance and of that encouragement, grant you to be in full sympathy with one another in accordance with the example of Christ Jesus,

¹³ May God, the giver of hope, fill you with continual joy and peace because you trust in Him--so that you may have abundant hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

²⁵ To Him who has it in His power to make you strong, as declared in the Good News which I am spreading, and the proclamation concerning Jesus Christ, in harmony with the unveiling of the Truth which in the periods of past Ages remained unuttered,

⁹ God is ever true to His promises, and it was by Him that you were, one and all, called into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ, our Lord.

¹⁷ For this our light and transitory burden of suffering is achieving for us a preponderating, yes, a vastly preponderating, and eternal weight of glory;

¹¹ Finally, brethren, be joyful, secure perfection of character, take courage, be of one mind, live in peace. And then God who gives love and peace will be with you.

¹³ I have strength for anything through Him who gives me power.

²² He has now, in His human body, reconciled to God by His death, to bring you, holy and faultless and irreproachable, into His presence; ²³ if, indeed, you are still firmly holding to faith as your foundation, without ever shifting from your hope that rests on the Good News that you have heard, which has been proclaimed in the whole creation under Heaven, and in which I Paul have been appointed to serve.

⁷ having the roots of your being firmly planted in Him, and continually building yourselves up in Him, and always being increasingly confirmed in the faith as you were taught it, and abounding in it with thanksgiving.

¹² and imploring you to live lives worthy of fellowship with God who is inviting you to share His own Kingship and glory.

¹⁴ To this blessing God has called you by our Good News, so that you may have a share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

¹⁷ comfort your hearts and make you stedfast in every good work and word.

³ But the Lord is faithful, and He will make you stedfast and will guard you from the Evil one.

⁹ For He saved us and called us with a holy call, not in accordance with our desserts, but in accordance with His own purpose and the free grace which He bestowed on us in Christ Jesus before the commencement of the Ages,

¹⁰ For this reason I endure all things for the sake of God's own people; so that they also may obtain salvation--even the salvation which is in Christ Jesus--and with it eternal glory.

¹⁵ And because of this He is the negotiator of a new Covenant, in order that, since a life has been given in atonement for the offences committed under the first Covenant, those who have been called may receive the eternal inheritance which has been promised to them.

²⁰ Now may God who gives peace, and brought Jesus, our Lord, up again from among the dead--even Him who, by virtue of the blood of the eternal Covenant, is the great Shepherd of the sheep-- ²¹ fully equip you with every grace that you may need for the doing of His will, producing in us that which will truly please Him through Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory to the Ages of the Ages! Amen.

⁶ Rejoice triumphantly in the prospect of this, even if now, for a short time, you are compelled to sorrow amid various trials. ⁷ The sorrow comes in order that the testing of your faith--being more precious than that of gold, which perishes and yet is proved by fire--may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the re-appearing of Jesus Christ.

¹⁵ but--in imitation of the holy One who has called you--you also must be holy in all your habits of life.

¹¹ If any one preaches, let it be as uttering God's truth; if any one renders a service to others, let it be in the strength which God supplies; so that in everything glory may be given to God in the name of Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the might to the Ages of the Ages. Amen.

³ seeing that His divine power has given us all things that are needful for life and godliness, through our knowledge of Him who has appealed to us by His own glorious perfections.

²⁵ And this is the promise which He Himself has given us--the Life of the Ages.

²⁴ But to Him who is able to keep you safe from stumbling, and cause you to stand in the presence of His glory free from blemish and full of exultant joy--

³⁶ For the universe owes its origin to Him, was created by Him, and has its aim and purpose in Him. To Him be the glory throughout the Ages! Amen.

⁶ and has formed us into a Kingdom, to be priests to God, His Father--to Him be ascribed the glory and the power until the Ages of the Ages. Amen.

¹³ And as for every created thing in Heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and everything that was in any of these, I heard them say, "To Him who is seated on the throne, And to the Lamb, Be ascribed all blessing and honor And glory and might, Until the Ages of the Ages!"

²¹ On seeing him, Peter asked Jesus, "And, Master, what about him?"

²³ On getting there he was delighted to see the grace which God had bestowed; and he encouraged them all to remain, with fixed resolve, faithful to the Lord.

²⁴ But even the sacrifice of my life I count as nothing, if only I may perfect my earthly course, and be faithful to the duty which the Lord Jesus has entrusted to me of proclaiming, as of supreme importance, the Good News of God's grace.

² through whom also, as the result of faith, we have obtained an introduction into that state of favour with God in which we stand, and we exult in hope of some day sharing in God's glory.

¹ But let me recall to you, brethren, the Good News which I brought you, which you accepted, and on which you are standing,

¹⁹ For Jesus Christ the Son of God--He who was proclaimed among you by us, that is by Silas and Timothy and myself--did not show Himself a waverer between "Yes" and "No." But it was and always is "Yes" with Him.

⁸ But if even we or an angel from Heaven should bring you a Good News different from that which we have already brought you, let him be accursed. ⁹ What I have just said I repeat--if any one is preaching to you a Good News other than that which you originally received, let him be accursed.

³ and that by a revelation the truth hitherto kept secret was made known to me as I have already briefly explained it to you.

²¹ But in order that you also may know how I am doing, Tychicus our dearly-loved brother and faithful helper in the Lord's service will tell you everything.

⁷ as you learned it from Epaphras our dearly-loved fellow servant. He is to you a faithful minister of Christ in our stead,

⁷ Tychicus, our much-loved brother, a trusty assistant and fellow servant with us in the Lord's work, will give you every information about me.

⁹ And with him I send our dear and trusty brother Onesimus, who is one of yourselves. They will inform you of everything here.

¹ Paul, Silas, and Timothy: To the Church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. May grace and peace be granted to you.

¹ Paul, Silas, and Timothy: To the Church of the Thessalonians which is in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

²² Bear with me, brethren, when I thus exhort you; for, in fact, it is but a short letter that I have written to you.

¹² For this reason I shall always persist in reminding you of these things, although you know them and are stedfast believers in truth which you already possess.

¹⁵ Forsaking the straight road, they have gone astray, having eagerly followed in the steps of Balaam, the son of Beor, who was bent on securing the wages of unrighteousness.

⁹ If we accept the testimony of men, God's testimony is greater: for God's testimony consists of the things which He has testified about His Son. ¹⁰ He who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in his own heart: he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, in that he has refused to accept the testimony which God has given about His Son.

¹² The character of Demetrius has the approval of all men, and of the truth itself. We also express our approval of it, and you know that we only give our approval to that which is true.

³ Dear friends, since I am eager to begin a letter to you on the subject of our common salvation, I find myself constrained to write and cheer you on to the vigorous defense of the faith delivered once for all to God's people.

¹² So, after thinking things over, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John surnamed Mark, where a large number of people were assembled, praying.

²⁵ And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, having discharged their mission, and they brought with them John, surnamed Mark.

¹³ The children of your elect sister send greetings to you.

⁵ And on her forehead was a name written: "I am a symbol of great Babylon, the mother of the harlots and of the abominations of the earth."

² and with a mighty voice he cried out, saying, "Great Babylon has fallen, has fallen, and has become a home for demons and a stronghold for every kind of foul spirit and for every kind of foul and hateful bird.

²⁷ Peace I leave with you: my own peace I give to you. It is not as the world gives its greetings that I give you peace. Let not your hearts be troubled or dismayed.

¹⁹ On that same first day of the week, when it was evening and, for fear of the Jews, the doors of the house where the disciples were, were locked, Jesus came and stood in their midst, and said to them, "Peace be to you!"

²⁶ A week later the disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them, when Jesus came--though the doors were locked--and stood in their midst, and said, "Peace be to you."

⁷ To all God's loved ones who are in Rome, called to be saints. May grace and peace be granted to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

¹ There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus;

¹⁶ Salute one another with a holy kiss. All the Churches of Christ send greetings to you.

³⁰ But you--and it is all God's doing--are in Christ Jesus: He has become for us a wisdom which is from God, consisting of righteousness and sanctification and deliverance;

²⁰ The brethren all send greetings to you. Greet one another with a holy kiss.

¹⁷ So that if any one is in Christ, he is a new creature: the old state of things has passed away; a new state of things has come into existence.

¹² Salute one another with a holy kiss.

²³ Peace be to the brethren, and love combined with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

²⁶ Greet all the brethren with a holy kiss.

² chosen in accordance with the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, with a view to their obedience and to their being sprinkled with the blood of Jesus Christ. May more and more grace and peace be granted to you.