The Spirit of Truth (John 14:15-31) The Message Translation

15-17  “If you love me, show it by doing what I’ve told you. I will talk to the Father, and he’ll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can’t take him in because it doesn’t have eyes to see him, doesn’t know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you!

18-20  “I will not leave you orphaned. I’m coming back. In just a little while the world will no longer see me, but you’re going to see me because I am alive and you’re about to come alive. At that moment you will know absolutely that I’m in my Father, and you’re in me, and I’m in you.

21      “The person who knows my commandments and keeps them, that’s who loves me. And the person who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and make myself plain to him.”

22       Judas (not Iscariot) said, “Master, why is it that you are about to make yourself plain to us but not to the world?”

23-24  “Because a loveless world,” said Jesus, “is a sightless world. If anyone loves me, he will carefully keep my word and my Father will love him—we’ll move right into the neighborhood! Not loving me means not keeping my words. The message you are hearing isn’t mine. It’s the message of the Father who sent me.

25-27   “I’m telling you these things while I’m still living with you. The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you. I’m leaving you well and whole. That’s my parting gift to you. Peace. I don’t leave you the way you’re used to being left—feeling abandoned, bereft. So don’t be upset. Don’t be distraught.

28    "You’ve heard me tell you, ‘I’m going away, and I’m coming back.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I’m on my way to the Father because the Father is the goal and purpose of my life.

29-31  “I’ve told you this ahead of time, before it happens, so that when it does happen, the confirmation will deepen your belief in me. I’ll not be talking with you much more like this because the chief of this godless world is about to attack. But don’t worry—he has nothing on me, no claim on me. But so the world might know how thoroughly I love the Father, I am carrying out my Father’s instructions right down to the last detail.  “Get up. Let’s go. It’s time to leave here.”

Jesus the Real Vine (John 15:1-17) The Message Translation

1-3   “I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn’t bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more. You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken.

4    “Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can’t bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can’t bear fruit unless you are joined with me.

5-8  “I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can’t produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire. But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who he is—when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples.

9-10  “I’ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you’ll remain intimately at home in my love. That’s what I’ve done—kept my Father’s commands and made myself at home in his love.

11-15  “I’ve told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I’m no longer calling you servants because servants don’t understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I’ve named you friends because I’ve let you in on everything I’ve heard from the Father.

16    “You didn’t choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won’t spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you.

17    "But remember the root command: Love one another.

The Work of the Holy Spirit (John 16:1-15) The Message Translation

1-4    “I’ve told you these things to prepare you for rough times ahead. They are going to throw you out of the meeting places. There will even come a time when anyone who kills you will think he’s doing God a favor. They will do these things because they never really understood the Father. I’ve told you these things so that when the time comes and they start in on you, you’ll be well-warned and ready for them. 
4-7    “I didn’t tell you this earlier because I was with you every day. But now I am on my way to the One who sent me. Not one of you has asked, ‘Where are you going?’ Instead, the longer I’ve talked, the sadder you’ve become. So let me say it again, this truth: It’s better for you that I leave. If I don’t leave, the Friend won’t come. But if I go, I’ll send him to you.
8-11  “When he comes, he’ll expose the error of the godless world’s view of sin, righteousness, and judgment: He’ll show them that their refusal to believe in me is their basic sin; that righteousness comes from above, where I am with the Father, out of their sight and control; that judgment takes place as the ruler of this godless world is brought to trial and convicted.
12-15  “I still have many things to tell you, but you can’t handle them now. But when the Friend comes, the Spirit of the Truth, he will take you by the hand and guide you into all the truth there is. He won’t draw attention to himself, but will make sense out of what is about to happen and, indeed, out of all that I have done and said. He will honor me; he will take from me and deliver it to you. Everything the Father has is also mine. That is why I’ve said, ‘He takes from me and delivers to you.’

The Lord Correct Those He Loves (Proverbs 3:3-26) The Message Translation

3-4    Don’t lose your grip on Love and Loyalty.  Tie them around your neck; carve their initials on your heart.  Earn a reputation for living well in God’s eyes and the eyes of the people.

5-12  Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own.  Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.  Don’t assume that you know it all.  Run to God! Run from evil!  Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life!  Honor God with everything you own; give him the first and the best.  Your barns will burst, your wine vats will brim over.  But don’t, dear friend, resent God’s discipline; don’t sulk under his loving correction.  It’s the child he loves that God corrects;

 a father’s delight is behind all this.

13-18  You’re blessed when you meet Lady Wisdom, when you make friends with Madame Insight.

She’s worth far more than money in the bank; her friendship is better than a big salary.  Her value exceeds all the trappings of wealth; nothing you could wish for holds a candle to her.  With one hand she gives long life, with the other she confers recognition.  Her manner is beautiful, her life wonderfully complete.  She’s the very Tree of Life to those who embrace her.  Hold her tight—and be blessed!

19-20  With Lady Wisdom, God formed Earth; with Madame Insight, he raised Heaven.  They knew when to signal rivers and springs to the surface, and dew to descend from the night skies.

21-26   Dear friend, guard Clear Thinking and Common Sense with your life; don’t for a minute lose sight of them.  They’ll keep your soul alive and well, they’ll keep you fit and attractive.  You’ll travel safely, you’ll neither tire nor trip.  You’ll take afternoon naps without a worry, you’ll enjoy a good night’s sleep.  No need to panic over alarms or surprises, or predictions that doomsday’s just around the corner,  Because God will be right there with you; he’ll keep you safe and sound.

Love Your Enemies (Matthew 5:43-48) The Message and Good News Translations

THE MESSAGE TRANSLATION
43-47  “You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that.
48    “In a word, what I’m saying is, Grow up. You’re kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.”

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION
43  “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your friends, hate your enemies.’
44  But now I tell you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 
45  so that you may become the children of your Father in heaven. For he makes his sun to shine on bad and good people alike, and gives rain to those who do good and to those who do evil. 
46  Why should God reward you if you love only the people who love you? Even the tax collectors do that! 
47  And if you speak only to your friends, have you done anything out of the ordinary? Even the pagans do that! 
48  You must be perfect—just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

A Simple Guide for Behavior (Judging Others) Matthew 7:1-6 (The Message and Good News Translations)

THE MESSAGE TRANSLATION

1-5  "Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.

6    “Don’t be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don’t reduce holy mysteries to slogans. In trying to be relevant, you’re only being cute and inviting sacrilege.

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION

1  “Do not judge others, so that God will not judge you, 

2  for God will judge you in the same way you judge others, and he will apply to you the same rules you apply to others. 

3  Why, then, do you look at the speck in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the log in your own eye? 

4  How dare you say to your brother, ‘Please, let me take that speck out of your eye,’ when you have a log in your own eye? 

5  You hypocrite! First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will be able to see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.

6  “Do not give what is holy to dogs—they will only turn and attack you. Do not throw your pearls in front of pigs—they will only trample them underfoot.

God's Complete Knowledge and Care (Psalms 139) The Message Translation

1-6    God, investigate my life; get all the facts firsthand.  I’m an open book to you; even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking.  You know when I leave and when I get back; I’m never out of your sight.  You know everything I’m going to say before I start the first sentence.  I look behind me and you’re there, then up ahead and you’re there, too—your reassuring presence, coming and going.  This is too much, too wonderful—I can’t take it all in!

7-12  Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?  to be out of your sight?  If I climb to the sky, you’re there!  If I go underground, you’re there!  If I flew on morning’s wings to the far western horizon,  You’d find me in a minute—you’re already there waiting!  Then I said to myself, “Oh, he even sees me in the dark!  At night I’m immersed in the light!”  It’s a fact: darkness isn’t dark to you;

 night and day, darkness and light, they’re all the same to you.  

13-16  Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb.  I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking!  Body and soul, I am marvelously made!  I worship in adoration—what a creation!  You know me inside and out,  you know every bone in my body;  You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something.  Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you,  The days of my life all prepared before I’d even lived one day.

17-22  Your thoughts—how rare, how beautiful!  God, I’ll never comprehend them!  I couldn’t even begin to count them—any more than I could count the sand of the sea.  Oh, let me rise in the morning and live always with you!  And please, God, do away with wickedness for good!  And you murderers—out of here!—all the men and women who belittle you, God, infatuated with cheap god-imitations.

See how I hate those who hate you, God, see how I loathe all this godless arrogance;  I hate it with pure, unadulterated hatred.  Your enemies are my enemies!

23-24  Investigate my life, O God, find out everything about me;  Cross-examine and test me, get a clear picture of what I’m about;  See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—then guide me on the road to eternal life.

God's Glory and Man's Dignity (Psalms 8) The Message and Good News Translations

THE MESSAGE TRANSLATION

1    God, brilliant Lord, yours is a household name.

2    Nursing infants gurgle choruses about you; toddlers shout the songs  That drown out enemy talk, and silence atheist babble.

3-4  I look up at your macro-skies, dark and enormous, your handmade sky-jewelry,  Moon and stars mounted in their settings.  Then I look at my micro-self and wonder,  Why do you bother with us?  Why take a second look our way?

5-8  Yet we’ve so narrowly missed being gods, bright with Eden’s dawn light.  You put us in charge of your handcrafted world, repeated to us your Genesis-charge,  Made us lords of sheep and cattle, even animals out in the wild,  Birds flying and fish swimming, whales singing in the ocean deeps.

9    God, brilliant Lord, your name echoes around the world.

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION

1  O Lord, our Lord, your greatness is seen in all the world!  Your praise reaches up to the heavens;

2  it is sung by children and babies.  You are safe and secure from all your enemies;  you stop anyone who opposes you.

3  When I look at the sky, which you have made, at the moon and the stars, which you set in their places—

4  what are human beings, that you think of them;  mere mortals, that you care for them?

5  Yet you made them inferior only to yourself;  you crowned them with glory and honor.

6  You appointed them rulers over everything you made;  you placed them over all creation:

7  sheep and cattle, and the wild animals too;  

8  the birds and the fish and the creatures in the seas.

9  O Lord, our Lord, your greatness is seen in all the world!

True Happiness (Psalms 1) The Message and Good News Translations

THE MESSAGE TRANSLATION

1     How well God must like you—you don’t hang out at Sin Saloon, you don’t slink along Dead-End Road, you don’t go to Smart-Mouth College.

2-3   Instead you thrill to God’s Word, you chew on Scripture day and night.  You’re a tree replanted in Eden, bearing fresh fruit every month,  Never dropping a leaf, always in blossom.

4-5   You’re not at all like the wicked, who are mere windblown dust—Without defense in court, unfit company for innocent people.

6     God charts the road you take.  The road they take is Skid Row.

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION

1  Happy are those who reject the advice of evil people, who do not follow the example of sinners    or join those who have no use for God.

2  Instead, they find joy in obeying the Law of the Lord, and they study it day and night.

3  They are like trees that grow beside a stream, that bear fruit at the right time, and whose leaves do not dry up.  They succeed in everything they do.

4  But evil people are not like this at all; they are like straw that the wind blows away.

5  Sinners will be condemned by God and kept apart from God's own people.

6  The righteous are guided and protected by the Lord, but the evil are on the way to their doom.

A Song of Praise (Psalms 92) The Message and Good News Translations

THE MESSAGE TRANSLATION

1-3   What a beautiful thing, God, to give thanks, to sing an anthem to you, the High God!  To announce your love each daybreak, sing your faithful presence all through the night, Accompanied by dulcimer and harp, the full-bodied music of strings.

4-9  You made me so happy, God I saw your work and I shouted for joy.  How magnificent your work, God!  How profound your thoughts!  Dullards never notice what you do; fools never do get it.

When the wicked popped up like weeds and all the evil men and women took over,  You mowed them down, finished them off once and for all.  You, God, are High and Eternal.  Look at your enemies, God!  Look at your enemies—ruined!  Scattered to the winds, all those hirelings of evil!

10-14  But you’ve made me strong as a charging bison, you’ve honored me with a festive parade.

The sight of my critics going down is still fresh, the rout of my malicious detractors.  My ears are filled with the sounds of promise:  “Good people will prosper like palm trees, Grow tall like Lebanon cedars;  transplanted to God’s courtyard, They’ll grow tall in the presence of God, lithe and green, virile still in old age.”

15    Such witnesses to upright God!  My Mountain, my huge, holy Mountain!

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION

1    How good it is to give thanks to you, O Lord, to sing in your honor, O Most High God,

2    to proclaim your constant love every morning and your faithfulness every night,

3    with the music of stringed instruments and with melody on the harp.

4    Your mighty deeds, O Lord, make me glad; because of what you have done, I sing for joy.

5    How great are your actions, Lord!  How deep are your thoughts!

6    This is something a fool cannot know;  someone who is stupid cannot understand:

7    the wicked may grow like weeds, those who do wrong may prosper; yet they will be totally destroyed,

8    because you, Lord, are supreme forever.

9    We know that your enemies will die, and all the wicked will be defeated.

10  You have made me as strong as a wild ox; you have blessed me with happiness.

11   I have seen the defeat of my enemies and heard the cries of the wicked.

12  The righteous will flourish like palm trees; they will grow like the cedars of Lebanon.

13  They are like trees planted in the house of the Lord, that flourish in the Temple of our God,

14   that still bear fruit in old age and are always green and strong.

15   This shows that the Lord is just, that there is no wrong in my protector.

Praise The Lord (Psalms 150) The Message Translation

1-6  Hallelujah!  Praise God in his holy house of worship, praise him under the open skies; Praise him for his acts of power, praise him for his magnificent greatness;  Praise with a blast on the trumpet, praise by strumming soft strings; Praise him with castanets and dance, praise him with banjo and flute; Praise him with cymbals and a big bass drum, praise him with fiddles and mandolin.  Let every living, breathing creature praise God! 

    Hallelujah!

A Living Knowledge of God (Isaiah 11:1-10) The Message Translation

1-5    A green Shoot will sprout from Jesse’s stump, from his roots a budding Branch.  The life-giving Spirit of God will hover over him, the Spirit that brings wisdom and understanding,  The Spirit that gives direction and builds strength, the Spirit that instills knowledge and Fear-of-God.  Fear-of-God will be all his joy and delight.  He won’t judge by appearances, won’t decide on the basis of hearsay.  He’ll judge the needy by what is right, render decisions on earth’s poor with justice.  His words will bring everyone to awed attention.  A mere breath from his lips will topple the wicked.  Each morning he’ll pull on sturdy work clothes and boots, and build righteousness and faithfulness in the land.
6-9   The wolf will romp with the lamb, the leopard sleep with the kid.  Calf and lion will eat from the same trough, and a little child will tend them.  Cow and bear will graze the same pasture, their calves and cubs grow up together, and the lion eat straw like the ox.  The nursing child will crawl over rattlesnake dens, the toddler stick his hand down the hole of a serpent.  Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill on my holy mountain.  The whole earth will be brimming with knowing God-Alive,
 a living knowledge of God ocean-deep, ocean-wide.

The Lord Is The Everlasting God (Isaiah 40:21-31) The Message and Good News Translations

THE MESSAGE TRANSLATION

21-24   Have you not been paying attention?  Have you not been listening?  Haven’t you heard these stories all your life?  Don’t you understand the foundation of all things?  God sits high above the round ball of earth.  The people look like mere ants.  He stretches out the skies like a canvas—yes, like a tent canvas to live under.  He ignores what all the princes say and do.  The rulers of the earth count for nothing.  Princes and rulers don’t amount to much.  Like seeds barely rooted, just sprouted.  They shrivel when God blows on them.  Like flecks of chaff, they’re gone with the wind.

25-26  “So—who is like me?  Who holds a candle to me?” says The Holy.  Look at the night skies:  Who do you think made all this?  Who marches this army of stars out each night, counts them off, calls each by name—so magnificent! so powerful!—and never overlooks a single one?

27-31   Why would you ever complain, O Jacob, or, whine, Israel, saying, “God has lost track of me.  He doesn’t care what happens to me”?  Don’t you know anything? Haven’t you been listening?God doesn’t come and go. God lasts.  He’s Creator of all you can see or imagine.  He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath.  And he knows everything, inside and out.  He energizes those who get tired, gives fresh strength to dropouts.  For even young people tire and drop out, young folk in their prime stumble and fall.  But those who wait upon God get fresh strength.  They spread their wings and soar like eagles,  They run and don’t get tired, they walk and don’t lag behind.

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION

21  Do you not know?  Were you not told long ago?  Have you not heard how the world began?

22  It was made by the one who sits on his throne above the earth and beyond the sky; the people below look as tiny as ants.  He stretched out the sky like a curtain,  like a tent in which to live.

23  He brings down powerful rulers and reduces them to nothing.

24  They are like young plants, just set out and barely rooted.  When the Lord sends a wind, they dry up and blow away like straw.

25  To whom can the holy God be compared?  Is there anyone else like him?

26   Look up at the sky!  Who created the stars you see?  The one who leads them out like an army, he knows how many there are and calls each one by name!  His power is so great—not one of them is ever missing!

27  Israel, why then do you complain that the Lord doesn't know your troubles or care if you suffer injustice?

28   Don't you know? Haven't you heard?  The Lord is the everlasting God; he created all the world.  He never grows tired or weary.  No one understands his thoughts.

29   He strengthens those who are weak and tired.

30   Even those who are young grow weak; young people can fall exhausted.

31   But those who trust in the Lord for help will find their strength renewed.  They will rise on wings like eagles; they will run and not get weary; they will walk and not grow weak.

Learn It By Heart (Proverbs 4:20-27) The Message and Good New Translations

THE MESSAGE TRANSLATION
20-22  Dear friend, listen well to my words; tune your ears to my voice.  Keep my message in plain view at all times.  Concentrate! Learn it by heart!  Those who discover these words live, really live; body and soul, they’re bursting with health.

23-27  Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts.  Don’t talk out of both sides of your mouth; avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip.  Keep your eyes straight ahead; ignore all sideshow distractions.  Watch your step, and the road will stretch out smooth before you.  Look neither right nor left; leave evil in the dust.

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION
20  My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen to my words. 
21  Never let them get away from you. Remember them and keep them in your heart. 
22  They will give life and health to anyone who understands them. 
23  Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts. 
24  Never say anything that isn't true. Have nothing to do with lies and misleading words. 
25  Look straight ahead with honest confidence; don't hang your head in shame. 
26  Plan carefully what you do, and whatever you do will turn out right. 
27  Avoid evil and walk straight ahead. Don't go one step off the right way.

The Benefit Of Wisdom (Proverbs 4:1-19) The Message Translation

1-2    Listen, friends, to some fatherly advice; sit up and take notice so you’ll know how to live.  I’m giving you good counsel; don’t let it go in one ear and out the other.

3-9    When I was a boy at my father’s knee, the pride and joy of my mother,  He would sit me down and drill me:  “Take this to heart. Do what I tell you—live!  Sell everything and buy Wisdom! Forage for Understanding!  Don’t forget one word! Don’t deviate an inch!  Never walk away from Wisdom—she guards your life; love her—she keeps her eye on you.  Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom! Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding! Throw your arms around her—believe me, you won’t regret it; never let her go—she’ll make your life glorious.  She’ll garland your life with grace, she’ll festoon your days with beauty.”

10-15  Dear friend, take my advice; it will add years to your life.  I’m writing out clear directions to Wisdom Way, I’m drawing a map to Righteous Road.  I don’t want you ending up in blind alleys, or wasting time making wrong turns.  Hold tight to good advice; don’t relax your grip.  Guard it well—your life is at stake!  Don’t take Wicked Bypass;  don’t so much as set foot on that road.  Stay clear of it; give it a wide berth.  Make a detour and be on your way.

16-17  Evil people are restless unless they’re making trouble; They can’t get a good night’s sleep unless they’ve made life miserable for somebody.  Perversity is their food and drink, violence their drug of choice.

18-19  The ways of right-living people glow with light;  the longer they live, the brighter they shine.

But the road of wrongdoing gets darker and darker—travelers can’t see a thing; they fall flat on their faces.

The One True God (Psalms 115) The Messenger Translation

1-2    Not for our sake, God, no, not for our sake, but for your name’s sake, show your glory.  Do it on account of your merciful love, do it on account of your faithful ways.  Do it so none of the nations can say, “Where now, oh where is their God?”

3-8     Our God is in heaven doing whatever he wants to do. Their gods are metal and wood, handmade in a basement shop:  Carved mouths that can’t talk, painted eyes that can’t see, Tin ears that can’t hear, molded noses that can’t smell, Hands that can’t grasp, feet that can’t walk or run,  throats that never utter a sound.  Those who make them have become just like them, have become just like the gods they trust.

9-11    But you, Israel: put your trust in God!  —trust your Helper! trust your Ruler!  Clan of Aaron, trust in God!  —trust your Helper! trust your Ruler!  You who fear God, trust in God!  —trust your Helper! trust your Ruler!

12-16   O God, remember us and bless us, bless the families of Israel and Aaron.  And let God bless all who fear God—bless the small, bless the great.  Oh, let God enlarge your families—giving growth to you, growth to your children.  May you be blessed by God, by God, who made heaven and earth. The heaven of heavens is for God, but he put us in charge of the earth.

17-18    Dead people can’t praise God—not a word to be heard from those buried in the ground.  But we bless God, oh yes—we bless him now, we bless him always!

Hallelujah!

One Who Knows Much Says Little (Proverbs 17:17-28) The Messenger Translation

17  Friends love through all kinds of weather, and families stick together in all kinds of trouble.

18  It’s stupid to try to get something for nothing, or run up huge bills you can never pay.

19  The person who courts sin marries trouble; build a wall, invite a burglar.

20  A bad motive can’t achieve a good end; double-talk brings you double trouble.

21  Having a fool for a child is misery; it’s no fun being the parent of a dolt.

22  A cheerful disposition is good for your health; gloom and doom leave you bone-tired.

23  The wicked take bribes under the table; they show nothing but contempt for justice.

24  The perceptive find wisdom in their own front yard; fools look for it everywhere but right here.

25  A surly, stupid child is sheer pain to a father, a bitter pill for a mother to swallow.

26  It’s wrong to penalize good behavior, or make good citizens pay for the crimes of others.

27  The one who knows much says little; an understanding person remains calm.

28  Even dunces who keep quiet are thought to be wise; as long as they keep their mouths shut, they’re smart.

A Whack On The Head Of A Fool (Proverbs 17:1-16) The Message Translation

1    A meal of bread and water in contented peace is better than a banquet spiced with quarrels.

2    A wise servant takes charge of an unruly child and is honored as one of the family.

3    As silver in a crucible and gold in a pan, so our lives are assayed by God.

4    Evil people relish malicious conversation; the ears of liars itch for dirty gossip.

5    Whoever mocks poor people insults their Creator; gloating over misfortune is a punishable crime.

6    Old people are distinguished by grandchildren; children take pride in their parents.

7    We don’t expect eloquence from fools, nor do we expect lies from our leaders.

8    Receiving a gift is like getting a rare gemstone; any way you look at it, you see beauty refracted.

9    Overlook an offense and bond a friendship; fasten on to a slight and—good-bye, friend!

10  A quiet rebuke to a person of good sense does more than a whack on the head of a fool.

11  Criminals out looking for nothing but trouble won’t have to wait long—they’ll meet it coming and going!

12  Better to meet a grizzly robbed of her cubs than a fool hellbent on folly.

13  Those who return evil for good will meet their own evil returning.

14  The start of a quarrel is like a leak in a dam, so stop it before it bursts.

15  Whitewashing bad people and throwing mud on good people are equally abhorrent to God.

16  What’s this? Fools out shopping for wisdom! They wouldn’t recognize it if they saw it!

The Love Of God (Psalms 103) Good News Translation

1    Praise the Lord, my soul!  All my being, praise his holy name!

2    Praise the Lord, my soul, and do not forget how kind he is.

3    He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.

4    He keeps me from the grave and blesses me with love and mercy.

5    He fills my life with good things, so that I stay young and strong like an eagle.

6    The Lord judges in favor of the oppressed and gives them their rights.

7    He revealed his plans to Moses and let the people of Israel see his mighty deeds.

8    The Lord is merciful and loving, slow to become angry and full of constant love.

9    He does not keep on rebuking; he is not angry forever.

10  He does not punish us as we deserve or repay us according to our sins and wrongs.

11  As high as the sky is above the earth, so great is his love for those who honor him.

12  As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our sins from us.

13  As a father is kind to his children, so the Lord is kind to those who honor him.

14  He knows what we are made of; he remembers that we are dust.

15  As for us, our life is like grass.  We grow and flourish like a wild flower;

16  then the wind blows on it, and it is gone—no one sees it again.

17  But for those who honor the Lord, his love lasts forever, and his goodness endures for all generations

18  of those who are true to his covenant and who faithfully obey his commands.

19  The Lord placed his throne in heaven; he is king over all.

20  Praise the Lord, you strong and mighty angels, who obey his commands, who listen to what he says.

21  Praise the Lord, all you heavenly powers, you servants of his, who do his will!

22  Praise the Lord, all his creatures in all the places he rules.  Praise the Lord, my soul!

The Prayer Of Thanksgiving (Psalms 30) Good News Translation

1    I praise you, Lord, because you have saved me and kept my enemies from gloating over me.

2    I cried to you for help, O Lord my God,  and you healed me; 

3    you kept me from the grave.  I was on my way to the depths below, but you restored my life.

4    Sing praise to the Lord, all his faithful people!  Remember what the Holy One has done, and give him thanks!

5    His anger lasts only a moment, his goodness for a lifetime.  Tears may flow in the night, but joy comes in the morning.

6    I felt secure and said to myself, “I will never be defeated.”

7    You were good to me, Lord; you protected me like a mountain fortress.  But then you hid ourself from me, and I was afraid.

8    called to you, Lord; I begged for your help:

9    “What will you gain from my death?  What profit from my going to the grave?  Are dead people able to praise you?  Can they proclaim your unfailing goodness?

10  Hear me, Lord, and be merciful!  Help me, Lord!”

11  You have changed my sadness into a joyful dance; you have taken away my sorrow and surrounded me with joy.

12  So I will not be silent; I will sing praise to you.  Lord, you are my God; I will give you thanks forever.

The Man Who Find Wisdom Find Life

1    Listen! Wisdom is calling out.  Reason is making herself heard.

2    On the hilltops near the road and at the crossroads she stands.

3    At the entrance to the city, beside the gates, she calls:

4    “I appeal to all of you; I call to everyone on earth.

5    Are you immature? Learn to be mature.  Are you foolish? Learn to have sense.

6     Listen to my excellent words; all I tell you is right.

7    What I say is the truth; lies are hateful to me.

8    Everything I say is true; nothing is false or misleading.

9    To those with insight, it is all clear; to the well-informed, it is all plain.

10  Choose my instruction instead of silver; choose knowledge rather than the finest gold.

11  “I am Wisdom, I am better than jewels; nothing you want can compare with me.

12  I am Wisdom, and I have insight; I have knowledge and sound judgment.

13  To honor the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil ways and false words.

14  I make plans and carry them out.  I have understanding, and I am strong.

15  I help kings to govern and rulers to make good laws.

16  Every ruler on earth governs with my help, officials and nobles alike.

17  I love those who love me; whoever looks for me can find me.

18  I have riches and honor to give, prosperity and success.

19  What you get from me is better than the finest gold, better than the purest silver.

20  I walk the way of righteousness; I follow the paths of justice,

21  giving wealth to those who love me, filling their houses with treasures.

22  “The Lord created me first of all, the first of his works, long ago.

23  I was made in the very beginning, at the first, before the world began.

24  I was born before the oceans, when there were no springs of water.

25  I was born before the mountains, before the hills were set in place,

26  before God made the earth and its fields or even the first handful of soil.

27  I was there when he set the sky in place, when he stretched the horizon across the ocean,

28  when he placed the clouds in the sky, when he opened the springs of the ocean

29  and ordered the waters of the sea to rise no further than he said.  I was there when he laid the earth's foundations.

30  I was beside him like an architect, I was his daily source of joy, always happy in his presence—

31  happy with the world and pleased with the human race.

32  “Now, young people, listen to me.  Do as I say, and you will be happy.

33  Listen to what you are taught.  Be wise; do not neglect it.

34  Those who listen to me will be happy—those who stay at my door every day, waiting at the entrance to my home.

35  Those who find me find life, and the Lord will be pleased with them.

36  Those who do not find me hurt themselves; anyone who hates me loves death.”

Wisdom and Stupidity (Proverbs 9:1-18) Good News Translation

1    Wisdom has built her house and made seven columns for it. 

2    She has had an animal killed for a feast, mixed spices in the wine, and set the table. 

3    She has sent her servant women to call out from the highest place in town: 

4    “Come in, ignorant people!” And to the foolish she says,

5    “Come, eat my food and drink the wine that I have mixed. 

6    Leave the company of ignorant people, and live. Follow the way of knowledge.”

7    If you correct conceited people, you will only be insulted. If you reprimand evil people, you will only get hurt. 

8    Never correct conceited people; they will hate you for it. But if you correct the wise, they will respect you. 

9    Anything you say to the wise will make them wiser. Whatever you tell the righteous will add to their knowledge.

10  To be wise you must first have reverence for the Lord. If you know the Holy One, you have understanding. 

11  Wisdom will add years to your life. 

12  You are the one who will profit if you have wisdom, and if you reject it, you are the one who will suffer.

13  Stupidity is like a loud, ignorant, shameless woman.

14  She sits at the door of her house or on a seat in the highest part of town, 

15  and calls out to people passing by, who are minding their own business: 

16  “Come in, ignorant people!” To the foolish she says, 

17  “Stolen water is sweeter. Stolen bread tastes better.” 

18  Her victims do not know that the people die who go to her house, that those who have already entered are now deep in the world of the dead.

God Has The Last Word (Proverbs 16) Good New Translation

1    We may make our plans, but God has the last word.

2    You may think everything you do is right, but the Lord judges your motives.

3    Ask the Lord to bless your plans, and you will be successful in carrying them out.

4    Everything the Lord has made has its destiny; and the destiny of the wicked is destruction.

5    The Lord hates everyone who is arrogant; he will never let them escape punishment.

6    Be loyal and faithful, and God will forgive your sin. Obey the Lord and nothing evil will happen to you.

7    When you please the Lord, you can make your enemies into friends.

8     It is better to have a little, honestly earned, than to have a large income, dishonestly gained.

9    You may make your plans, but God directs your actions.

10  The king speaks with divine authority; his decisions are always right.

11  The Lord wants weights and measures to be honest and every sale to be fair.

12  Kings cannot tolerate evil, because justice is what makes a government strong.

13  A king wants to hear the truth and will favor those who speak it.

14  A wise person will try to keep the king happy; if the king becomes angry, someone may die.

15  The king's favor is like the clouds that bring rain in the springtime—life is there.

16  It is better—much better—to have wisdom and knowledge than gold and silver.

17  Those who are good travel a road that avoids evil; so watch where you are going—it may save your life.

18  Pride leads to destruction, and arrogance to downfall.

19  It is better to be humble and stay poor than to be one of the arrogant and get a share of their loot.

20  Pay attention to what you are taught, and you will be successful; trust in the Lord and you will be happy.

21  A wise, mature person is known for his understanding. The more pleasant his words, the more persuasive he is.

22  Wisdom is a fountain of life to the wise, but trying to educate stupid people is a waste of time.

23  Intelligent people think before they speak; what they say is then more persuasive.

24  Kind words are like honey—sweet to the taste and good for your health.

25  What you think is the right road may lead to death.

26  A laborer's appetite makes him work harder, because he wants to satisfy his hunger.

27  Evil people look for ways to harm others; even their words burn with evil.

28  Gossip is spread by wicked people; they stir up trouble and break up friendships.

29  Violent people deceive their friends and lead them to disaster.

30  Watch out for people who grin and wink at you; they have thought of something evil.

31  Long life is the reward of the righteous; gray hair is a glorious crown.

32  It is better to be patient than powerful. It is better to win control over yourself than over whole cities.

33  People cast lots to learn God's will, but God himself determines the answer.

True Happiness (Psalms 1) Good News and Living Bible Translations

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION

1  Happy are those who reject the advice of evil people, who do not follow the example of sinners or join those who have no use for God.

2  Instead, they find joy in obeying the Law of the Lord, and they study it day and night.

3  They are like trees that grow beside a stream, that bear fruit at the right time, and whose leaves do not dry up.  They succeed in everything they do.

4  But evil people are not like this at all; they are like straw that the wind blows away.

5  Sinners will be condemned by God and kept apart from God's own people.

6  The righteous are guided and protected by the Lord, but the evil are on the way to their doom.

LIVING BIBLE TRANSLATION

1  Oh, the joys of those who do not follow evil men’s advice, who do not hang around with sinners, scoffing at the things of God.

2  But they delight in doing everything God wants them to, and day and night are always meditating on his laws and thinking about ways to follow him more closely.

3  They are like trees along a riverbank bearing luscious fruit each season without fail. Their leaves shall never wither, and all they do shall prosper.

4  But for sinners, what a different story! They blow away like chaff before the wind. 

5  They are not safe on Judgment Day; they shall not stand among the godly.

6  For the Lord watches over all the plans and paths of godly men, but the paths of the godless lead to doom.

A Hymn Of Praise (Psalms 100) Good News and The Message Translations

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION
1  Sing to the Lord, all the world!
2  Worship the Lord with joy; come before him with happy songs!
3   Acknowledge that the Lord is God.  He made us, and we belong to him; we are his people, we are his flock.
4  Enter the Temple gates with thanksgiving; go into its courts with praise.  Give thanks to him and praise him.
5  The Lord is good; his love is eternal and his faithfulness last forever.

THE MESSAGE TRANSLATION
1-2  On your feet now—applaud God!  Bring a gift of laughter, sing yourselves into his presence.
3     Know this: God is God, and God, God.  He made us; we didn’t make him.  We’re his people, his well-tended sheep.
4     Enter with the password: “Thank you!”  Make yourselves at home, talking praise.  Thank him. Worship him.
5    For God is sheer beauty, all-generous in love, loyal always and ever.

The Road Of Holiness (Isaiah 35:1-10) Good News and The Living Bible Translations

GOOD NEWS TRANSLATION

1    The desert will rejoice, and flowers will bloom in the wastelands.

2    The desert will sing and shout for joy; it will be as beautiful as the Lebanon Mountains and as fertile as the fields of Carmel and Sharon.  Everyone will see the Lord's splendor, see his greatness and power.

3    Give strength to hands that are tired and to knees that tremble with weakness.

4    Tell everyone who is discouraged, “Be strong and don't be afraid!  God is coming to your rescue, coming to punish your enemies.”  

5    The blind will be able to see, and the deaf will hear.

6    The lame will leap and dance, and those who cannot speak will shout for joy.  Streams of water will flow through the desert;

7    the burning sand will become a lake, and dry land will be filled with springs.  Where jackals used to live, marsh grass and reeds will grow.

8    There will be a highway there, called “The Road of Holiness.”  No sinner will ever travel that road; no fools will mislead those who follow it.

9    No lions will be there; no fierce animals will pass that way.  Those whom the Lord has rescued will travel home by that road.

10  They will reach Jerusalem with gladness, singing and shouting for joy.  They will be happy forever,  forever free from sorrow and grief.

THE LIVING BIBLE TRANSLATION

1    Even the wilderness and desert will rejoice in those days; the desert will blossom with flowers. 

2    Yes, there will be an abundance of flowers and singing and joy! The deserts will become as green as the Lebanon mountains, as lovely as Mount Carmel’s pastures and Sharon’s meadows; for the Lord will display his glory there, the excellency of our God.

3    With this news bring cheer to all discouraged ones. 

4    Encourage those who are afraid. Tell them, “Be strong, fear not, for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. He is coming to save you.” 

5    And when he comes, he will open the eyes of the blind and unstop the ears of the deaf. 

6   The lame man will leap up like a deer, and those who could not speak will shout and sing! Springs will burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert. 

7    The parched ground will become a pool, with springs of water in the thirsty land. Where desert jackals lived, there will be reeds and rushes!

8    And a main road will go through that once-deserted land; it will be named “The Holy Highway.” No evil-hearted men may walk upon it. God will walk there with you; even the most stupid cannot miss the way.

9    No lion will lurk along its course, nor will there be any other dangers; only the redeemed will travel there.

10  These, the ransomed of the Lord, will go home along that road to Zion, singing the songs of everlasting joy. For them all sorrow and all sighing will be gone forever; only joy and gladness will be there.