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106 Bible verses that are difficult to explain
I've found that the best way to explain something truly difficult is to have lived it firsthand. Walking the walk every day gives you the tools you need to share a message of salvation that can really reach people. There's just nothing like sharing a life-changing message that's rooted in your own experiences.
But here's the thing: it's so important to remember the role of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit has the full picture and the patience to guide us into a deeper understanding. We can't just rely on our own thinking or even other people's stories, because we might find ourselves at a loss when we try to share something we haven't truly encountered ourselves.
The Holy Spirit is ready and willing to teach us today. It's all about being open to that guidance.
Because Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, to bring you to God, by being put to death in the flesh but by being made alive in the spirit.In it he went and preached to the spirits in prison,
Again the day came when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also arrived among them to present himself before the Lord.
This calls for wisdom: Let the one who has insight calculate the beast’s number, for it is man’s number, and his number is 666.
When humankind began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them,Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.The earth was ruined in the sight of God; the earth was filled with violence.God saw the earth, and indeed it was ruined, for all living creatures on the earth were sinful.So God said to Noah, “I have decided that all living creatures must die, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. Now I am about to destroy them and the earth.Make for yourself an ark of cypress wood. Make rooms in the ark, and cover it with pitch inside and out.This is how you should make it: The ark is to be 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high.Make a roof for the ark and finish it, leaving 18 inches from the top. Put a door in the side of the ark, and make lower, middle, and upper decks.I am about to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy from under the sky all the living creatures that have the breath of life in them. Everything that is on the earth will die,but I will confirm my covenant with you. You will enter the ark – you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you.You must bring into the ark two of every kind of living creature from all flesh, male and female, to keep them alive with you.the sons of God saw that the daughters of humankind were beautiful. Thus they took wives for themselves from any they chose.Of the birds after their kinds, and of the cattle after their kinds, and of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every kind will come to you so you can keep them alive.And you must take for yourself every kind of food that is eaten, and gather it together. It will be food for you and for them.And Noah did all that God commanded him – he did indeed.So the Lord said, “My spirit will not remain in humankind indefinitely, since they are mortal. They will remain for 120 more years.”The Nephilim were on the earth in those days (and also after this) when the sons of God were having sexual relations with the daughters of humankind, who gave birth to their children. They were the mighty heroes of old, the famous men.
The pig is unclean to you because its hoof is divided (the hoof is completely split in two), even though it does not chew the cud.
As for the cities of these peoples that the Lord your God is going to give you as an inheritance, you must not allow a single living thing to survive.Instead you must utterly annihilate them – the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites – just as the Lord your God has commanded you,
Jephthah made a vow to the Lord, saying, “If you really do hand the Ammonites over to me,then whoever is the first to come through the doors of my house to meet me when I return safely from fighting the Ammonites – he will belong to the Lord and I will offer him up as a burnt sacrifice.”
The Lord’s anger again raged against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go count Israel and Judah.”
The old prophet then said, “I too am a prophet like you. An angel told me with the Lord’s authority, ‘Bring him back with you to your house so he can eat and drink.’” But he was lying to him.
But if anyone is deficient in wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without reprimand, and it will be given to him.
Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind:when I prescribed its limits, and set in place its bolts and doors,when I said, ‘To here you may come and no farther, here your proud waves will be confined’?Have you ever in your life commanded the morning, or made the dawn know its place,that it might seize the corners of the earth, and shake the wicked out of it?The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; its features are dyed like a garment.Then from the wicked the light is withheld, and the arm raised in violence is broken.Have you gone to the springs that fill the sea, or walked about in the recesses of the deep?Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Have you seen the gates of deepest darkness?Have you considered the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know it all!“In what direction does light reside, and darkness, where is its place,“Who is this who darkens counsel with words without knowledge?that you may take them to their borders and perceive the pathways to their homes?You know, for you were born before them; and the number of your days is great!Have you entered the storehouse of the snow, or seen the armory of the hail,which I reserve for the time of trouble, for the day of war and battle?In what direction is lightning dispersed, or the east winds scattered over the earth?Who carves out a channel for the heavy rains, and a path for the rumble of thunder,to cause it to rain on an uninhabited land, a desert where there are no human beings,to satisfy a devastated and desolate land, and to cause it to sprout with vegetation?Does the rain have a father, or who has fathered the drops of the dew?From whose womb does the ice emerge, and the frost from the sky, who gives birth to it,Get ready for a difficult task like a man; I will question you and you will inform me!when the waters become hard like stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen solid?Can you tie the bands of the Pleiades, or release the cords of Orion?Can you lead out the constellations in their seasons, or guide the Bear with its cubs?Do you know the laws of the heavens, or can you set up their rule over the earth?Can you raise your voice to the clouds so that a flood of water covers you?Can you send out lightning bolts, and they go? Will they say to you, ‘Here we are’?Who has put wisdom in the heart, or has imparted understanding to the mind?Who by wisdom can count the clouds, and who can tip over the water jars of heaven,when the dust hardens into a mass, and the clumps of earth stick together?“Do you hunt prey for the lioness, and satisfy the appetite of the lions,“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you possess understanding!
the sons of God saw that the daughters of humankind were beautiful. Thus they took wives for themselves from any they chose.
I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you spiritual wisdom and revelation in your growing knowledge of him,
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is an eternal God, the creator of the whole earth. He does not get tired or weary; there is no limit to his wisdom.
Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you yourself also be like him.Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own estimation.
For the fate of humans and the fate of animals are the same: As one dies, so dies the other; both have the same breath. There is no advantage for humans over animals, for both are fleeting.A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot what was planted;Both go to the same place, both come from the dust, and to dust both return.Who really knows if the human spirit ascends upward, and the animal’s spirit descends into the earth?
I am the one who forms light and creates darkness; the one who brings about peace and creates calamity. I am the Lord, who accomplishes all these things.
Children are gathering firewood, fathers are building fires with it, and women are mixing dough to bake cakes to offer to the goddess they call the Queen of Heaven. They are also pouring out drink offerings to other gods. They seem to do all this just to trouble me.
I also gave them decrees which were not good and regulations by which they could not live.I declared them to be defiled because of their sacrifices – they caused all their first born to pass through the fire – so that I would devastate them, so that they will know that I am the Lord.’
“Seventy weeks have been determined concerning your people and your holy city to put an end to rebellion, to bring sin to completion, to atone for iniquity, to bring in perpetual righteousness, to seal up the prophetic vision, and to anoint a most holy place.So know and understand: From the issuing of the command to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until an anointed one, a prince arrives, there will be a period of seven weeks and sixty-two weeks. It will again be built, with plaza and moat, but in distressful times.Now after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one will be cut off and have nothing. As for the city and the sanctuary, the people of the coming prince will destroy them. But his end will come speedily like a flood. Until the end of the war that has been decreed there will be destruction.He will confirm a covenant with many for one week. But in the middle of that week he will bring sacrifices and offerings to a halt. On the wing of abominations will come one who destroys, until the decreed end is poured out on the one who destroys.”
If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away! It is better to lose one of your members than to have your whole body thrown into hell.“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away! It is better to lose one of your members than to have your whole body go into hell.
“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace but a sword.
For this reason I tell you, people will be forgiven for every sin and blasphemy, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
At about three o’clock Jesus shouted with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
The one who believes and is baptized will be saved, but the one who does not believe will be condemned.
“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
Jesus said to them, “I tell you the solemn truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in yourselves.
Then they cast lots for them, and the one chosen was Matthias; so he was counted with the eleven apostles.
What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was diligently seeking, but the elect obtained it. The rest were hardened,as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, to this very day.”
For this reason, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.A person should examine himself first, and in this way let him eat the bread and drink of the cup.For the one who eats and drinks without careful regard for the body eats and drinks judgment against himself.But I want you to know that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ.That is why many of you are weak and sick, and quite a few are dead.
Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, then why are they baptized for them?
even because of the extraordinary character of the revelations. Therefore, so that I would not become arrogant, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to trouble me – so that I would not become arrogant.I asked the Lord three times about this, that it would depart from me.But he said to me, “My grace is enough for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” So then, I will boast most gladly about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may reside in me.
For he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world that we may be holy and unblemished in his sight in love.
For it has been granted to you not only to believe in Christ but also to suffer for him,
for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him – all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions, whether principalities or powers – all things were created through him and for him.He himself is before all things and all things are held together in him.
For it is impossible in the case of those who have once been enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, become partakers of the Holy Spirit,tasted the good word of God and the miracles of the coming age,and then have committed apostasy, to renew them again to repentance, since they are crucifying the Son of God for themselves all over again and holding him up to contempt.
For if we deliberately keep on sinning after receiving the knowledge of the truth, no further sacrifice for sins is left for us,but only a certain fearful expectation of judgment and a fury of fire that will consume God’s enemies.
If anyone sees his fellow Christian committing a sin not resulting in death, he should ask, and God will grant life to the person who commits a sin not resulting in death. There is a sin resulting in death. I do not say that he should ask about that.
The one who conquers will be dressed like them in white clothing, and I will never erase his name from the book of life, but will declare his name before my Father and before his angels.
Then I saw a large white throne and the one who was seated on it; the earth and the heaven fled from his presence, and no place was found for them.And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne. Then books were opened, and another book was opened – the book of life. So the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to their deeds.The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and Death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each one was judged according to his deeds.Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death – the lake of fire.If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, that person was thrown into the lake of fire.
eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.
If two men get into a hand-to-hand fight, and the wife of one of them gets involved to help her husband against his attacker, and she reaches out her hand and grabs his genitals,then you must cut off her hand – do not pity her.
She said, “The Philistines are here, Samson!” He woke up and thought, “I will do as I did before and shake myself free.” But he did not realize that the Lord had left him.
So go now and strike down the Amalekites. Destroy everything that they have. Don’t spare them. Put them to death – man, woman, child, infant, ox, sheep, camel, and donkey alike.’”
As they were walking along and talking, suddenly a fiery chariot pulled by fiery horses appeared. They went between Elijah and Elisha, and Elijah went up to heaven in a windstorm.While Elisha was watching, he was crying out, “My father, my father! The chariot and horsemen of Israel!” Then he could no longer see him. He grabbed his clothes and tore them in two.
He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return there. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. May the name of the Lord be blessed!”
Certainly you made my mind and heart; you wove me together in my mother’s womb.I will give you thanks because your deeds are awesome and amazing. You knew me thoroughly;my bones were not hidden from you, when I was made in secret and sewed together in the depths of the earth.Your eyes saw me when I was inside the womb. All the days ordained for me were recorded in your scroll before one of them came into existence.
But he lifted up our illnesses, he carried our pain; even though we thought he was being punished, attacked by God, and afflicted for something he had done.He was wounded because of our rebellious deeds, crushed because of our sins; he endured punishment that made us well; because of his wounds we have been healed.
For I know what I have planned for you,’ says the Lord. ‘I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you. I have plans to give you a future filled with hope.
The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and placed me in the midst of the valley, and it was full of bones.So I prophesied as I was commanded, and the breath came into them; they lived and stood on their feet, an extremely great army.Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are all the house of Israel. Look, they are saying, ‘Our bones are dry, our hope has perished; we are cut off.’Therefore prophesy, and tell them, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am about to open your graves and will raise you from your graves, my people. I will bring you to the land of Israel.Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and raise you from your graves, my people.I will place my breath in you and you will live; I will give you rest in your own land. Then you will know that I am the Lord – I have spoken and I will act, declares the Lord.’”
“Enter through the narrow gate, because the gate is wide and the way is spacious that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.But the gate is narrow and the way is difficult that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.All the nations will be assembled before him, and he will separate people one from another like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothe you?When did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’But the wise ones took flasks of olive oil with their lamps.And the king will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of mine, you did it for me.’“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels!For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink.I was a stranger and you did not receive me as a guest, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’Then they too will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not give you whatever you needed?’Then he will answer them, ‘I tell you the truth, just as you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for me.’And these will depart into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
“There was a rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day.So he called the manager in and said to him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Turn in the account of your administration, because you can no longer be my manager.’But at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus whose body was covered with sores,who longed to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. In addition, the dogs came and licked his sores.“Now the poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried.And in hell, as he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far off with Lazarus at his side.So he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in anguish in this fire.’But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things and Lazarus likewise bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in anguish.Besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us, so that those who want to cross over from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’So the rich man said, ‘Then I beg you, father – send Lazarus to my father’s house(for I have five brothers) to warn them so that they don’t come into this place of torment.’But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they must respond to them.’Then the manager said to himself, ‘What should I do, since my master is taking my position away from me? I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m too ashamed to beg.Then the rich man said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’He replied to him, ‘If they do not respond to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
There are many dwelling places in my Father’s house. Otherwise, I would have told you, because I am going away to make ready a place for you.You will know at that time that I am in my Father and you are in me and I am in you.The person who has my commandments and obeys them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal myself to him.”“Lord,” Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “what has happened that you are going to reveal yourself to us and not to the world?”Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and take up residence with him.The person who does not love me does not obey my words. And the word you hear is not mine, but the Father’s who sent me.“I have spoken these things while staying with you.But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and will cause you to remember everything I said to you.“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; I do not give it to you as the world does. Do not let your hearts be distressed or lacking in courage.You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away and I am coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I am.I have told you now before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe.And if I go and make ready a place for you, I will come again and take you to be with me, so that where I am you may be too.
Now when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene, and visitors from Rome,both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs – we hear them speaking in our own languages about the great deeds God has done!”All were astounded and greatly confused, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”But others jeered at the speakers, saying, “They are drunk on new wine!”But Peter stood up with the eleven, raised his voice, and addressed them: “You men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, know this and listen carefully to what I say.In spite of what you think, these men are not drunk, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning.But this is what was spoken about through the prophet Joel:‘And in the last days it will be,’ God says, ‘that I will pour out my Spirit on all people, and your sons and your daughters will prophesy, and your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.And I will perform wonders in the sky above and miraculous signs on the earth below, blood and fire and clouds of smoke.Suddenly a sound like a violent wind blowing came from heaven and filled the entire house where they were sitting.The sun will be changed to darkness and the moon to blood before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.And then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’“Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man clearly attested to you by God with powerful deeds, wonders, and miraculous signs that God performed among you through him, just as you yourselves know –this man, who was handed over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you executed by nailing him to a cross at the hands of Gentiles.But God raised him up, having released him from the pains of death, because it was not possible for him to be held in its power.For David says about him, ‘I saw the Lord always in front of me, for he is at my right hand so that I will not be shaken.Therefore my heart was glad and my tongue rejoiced; my body also will live in hope,because you will not leave my soul in Hades, nor permit your Holy One to experience decay.You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of joy with your presence.’“Brothers, I can speak confidently to you about our forefather David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.And tongues spreading out like a fire appeared to them and came to rest on each one of them.So then, because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on his throne,David by foreseeing this spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did his body experience decay.This Jesus God raised up, and we are all witnesses of it.So then, exalted to the right hand of God, and having received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, he has poured out what you both see and hear.For David did not ascend into heaven, but he himself says, ‘The Lord said to my lord, “Sit at my right handuntil I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’Therefore let all the house of Israel know beyond a doubt that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified both Lord and Christ.”Now when they heard this, they were acutely distressed and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “What should we do, brothers?”Peter said to them, “Repent, and each one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.For the promise is for you and your children, and for all who are far away, as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.”All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak in other languages as the Spirit enabled them.
And we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose,
If someone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be paid back according to what he has done while in the body, whether good or evil.
For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God;it is not from works, so that no one can boast.
For many live, about whom I have often told you, and now, with tears, I tell you that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ.Their end is destruction, their god is the belly, they exult in their shame, and they think about earthly things.
But she will be delivered through childbearing, if she continues in faith and love and holiness with self-control.
Now without faith it is impossible to please him, for the one who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one.But each one is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desires.
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father by being set apart by the Spirit for obedience and for sprinkling with Jesus Christ’s blood. May grace and peace be yours in full measure!
Now by this we know that we have come to know God: if we keep his commandments.The one who says “I have come to know God” and yet does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in such a person.
but nothing ritually unclean will ever enter into it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or practices falsehood, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
Is it not true that if you do what is right, you will be fine? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at the door. It desires to dominate you, but you must subdue it.”
For you must not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
If a man has sexual intercourse with a male as one has sexual intercourse with a woman, the two of them have committed an abomination. They must be put to death; their blood guilt is on themselves.
You may not eat any corpse, though you may give it to the resident foreigner who is living in your villages and he may eat it, or you may sell it to a foreigner. You are a people holy to the Lord your God. Do not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.
This is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to bring disaster on you from inside your own household! Right before your eyes I will take your wives and hand them over to your companion. He will have sexual relations with your wives in broad daylight!Although you have acted in secret, I will do this thing before all Israel, and in broad daylight.’”Then David exclaimed to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord!” Nathan replied to David, “Yes, and the Lord has forgiven your sin. You are not going to die.Nonetheless, because you have treated the Lord with such contempt in this matter, the son who has been born to you will certainly die.”
If I were to ascend to heaven, you would be there. If I were to sprawl out in Sheol, there you would be.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding.Acknowledge him in all your ways, and he will make your paths straight.
For with great wisdom comes great frustration; whoever increases his knowledge merely increases his heartache.
“Indeed, my plans are not like your plans, and my deeds are not like your deeds,for just as the sky is higher than the earth, so my deeds are superior to your deeds and my plans superior to your plans.
This announcement is by the decree of the sentinels; this decision is by the pronouncement of the holy ones, so that those who are alive may understand that the Most High has authority over human kingdoms, and he bestows them on whomever he wishes. He establishes over them even the lowliest of human beings.’
You have destroyed my people by failing to acknowledge me! Because you refuse to acknowledge me, I will reject you as my priests. Because you reject the law of your God, I will reject your descendants.
and rejected Esau. I turned Esau’s mountains into a deserted wasteland and gave his territory to the wild jackals.”
He presented them with another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a person who sowed good seed in his field.But while everyone was sleeping, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away.When the plants sprouted and bore grain, then the weeds also appeared.So the slaves of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Then where did the weeds come from?’He said, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the slaves replied, ‘Do you want us to go and gather them?’But he said, ‘No, since in gathering the weeds you may uproot the wheat with them.He told them many things in parables, saying: “Listen! A sower went out to sow.Let both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time I will tell the reapers, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned, but then gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
Again I say, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter into the kingdom of God.”
Jesus looked at them and replied, “This is impossible for mere humans, but not for God; all things are possible for God.”
Give, and it will be given to you: A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be poured into your lap. For the measure you use will be the measure you receive.”
I can do nothing on my own initiative. Just as I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will, but the will of the one who sent me.
The unbeliever does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. And he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.
But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing,among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe so they would not see the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God.
For the flesh has desires that are opposed to the Spirit, and the Spirit has desires that are opposed to the flesh, for these are in opposition to each other, so that you cannot do what you want.
Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if someone happens to have a complaint against anyone else. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also forgive others.And to all these virtues add love, which is the perfect bond.
For this is God’s will: that you become holy, that you keep away from sexual immorality,that each of you know how to possess his own body in holiness and honor,not in lustful passion like the Gentiles who do not know God.
Every scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,that the person dedicated to God may be capable and equipped for every good work.
He gave himself for us to set us free from every kind of lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are truly his, who are eager to do good.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us,For they disciplined us for a little while as seemed good to them, but he does so for our benefit, that we may share his holiness.Now all discipline seems painful at the time, not joyful. But later it produces the fruit of peace and righteousness for those trained by it.Therefore, strengthen your listless hands and your weak knees,and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but be healed.Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, for without it no one will see the Lord.See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God, that no one be like a bitter root springing up and causing trouble, and through him many become defiled.And see to it that no one becomes an immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal.For you know that later when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no opportunity for repentance, although he sought the blessing with tears.For you have not come to something that can be touched, to a burning fire and darkness and gloom and a whirlwindand the blast of a trumpet and a voice uttering words such that those who heard begged to hear no more.keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set out for him he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.