Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good character.”

A perverse man spreads dissension, and a gossip divides close friends.

And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to depart into hell.

Do not make friends with an angry man, and do not associate with a hot-tempered man, or you may learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare.

He who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide an escape, so that you can stand up under it.

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Stay away from a foolish man; you will gain no knowledge from his speech.

If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him?

Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as Christ is righteous. The one who practices sin is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the very start. This is why the Son of God was revealed, to destroy the works of the devil.

But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, arguments, and quarrels about the law, because these things are pointless and worthless. Reject a divisive man after a first and second admonition, knowing that such a man is corrupt and sinful; he is self-condemned.

A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the ways of the wicked lead them astray.

A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who stays closer than a brother.

My son, if sinners entice you, do not yield to them.

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.

The wounds of a friend are faithful, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

But to the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.”

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing good with his own hands, that he may have something to share with the one in need.

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore glorify God with your body.

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does. Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. . . .

Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.

Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Whoever conceals an offense promotes love, but he who brings it up separates friends.

Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership can righteousness have with wickedness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness?

I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works, and I know this very well.

You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God.

Watch yourselves. If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. Even if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times returns to say, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.”

Therefore encourage and build one another up, just as you are already doing.

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

But it was He who filled their houses with good things; so I stay far from the counsel of the wicked.

For though we live in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh. The weapons of our warfare are not the weapons of the world. Instead, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We tear down arguments and every presumption set up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. For if one falls down, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to help him up! Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one keep warm alone? And though one may be overpowered, two can resist. Moreover, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.

The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood, but the speech of the upright rescues them.

This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have made known to you.

and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

saying: “In my distress I called to the LORD, and He answered me. From the belly of Sheol I called for help, and You heard my voice.

But now I am writing you not to associate with anyone who claims to be a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a verbal abuser, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat.

Now when Job’s three friends—Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite—heard about all this adversity that had come upon him, each of them came from his home, and they met together to go and sympathize with Job and comfort him.

A mocker seeks wisdom and finds none, but knowledge comes easily to the discerning. Stay away from a foolish man; you will gain no knowledge from his speech.

And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Oil and incense bring joy to the heart, and the sweetness of a friend is counsel to the soul.

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. For if one falls down, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to help him up!

Through Him all things were made, and without Him nothing was made that has been made.

I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.

You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out his desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, refusing to uphold the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies.

Hostile witnesses come forward; they make charges I know nothing about.

Behold what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him. Beloved, we are now children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is.

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers.

Many a man proclaims his loving devotion, but who can find a trustworthy man?

Better an open rebuke than love that is concealed. The wounds of a friend are faithful, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.

Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Outdo yourselves in honoring one another.

and Elijah said to Elisha, “Please stay here, for the LORD has sent me on to Bethel.” But Elisha replied, “As surely as the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel.

A wise man is strong, and a man of knowledge enhances his strength.

For great is Your loving devotion to me; You have delivered me from the depths of Sheol.

Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity for the dishonoring of their bodies with one another.

Many say of me, “God will not deliver him.” Selah But You, O LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head.

For lack of guidance, a nation falls, but with many counselors comes deliverance.

Salvation exists in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have made known to you.

These are the proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel, for gaining wisdom and discipline, for comprehending words of insight, and for receiving instruction in wise living and in righteousness, justice, and equity. To impart prudence to the simple and knowledge and discretion to the young, let the wise listen and gain instruction, and the discerning acquire wise counsel . . .

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which is the bond of perfect unity.

Thus the LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young assistant Joshua son of Nun would not leave the tent.

Foreseeing this, David spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that He was not abandoned to Hades, nor did His body see decay.

And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.

Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days.

For if, when we were enemies of God, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life!

What then shall we say? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed, I would not have been mindful of sin if not for the law. For I would not have been aware of coveting if the law had not said, “Do not covet.” But sin, seizing its opportunity through the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from the law, sin is dead. Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. So I discovered that the very commandment that was meant to bring life actually brought death. For sin, seizing its opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through the commandment put me to death. . . .

Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good character.” Sober up as you ought, and stop sinning; for some of you are ignorant of God. I say this to your shame.

David says about Him: ‘I saw the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

As a prisoner in the Lord, then, I urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling you have received: with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, and with diligence to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I always thank my God for you because of the grace He has given you in Christ Jesus. For in Him you have been enriched in every way, in all speech and all knowledge, . . .

Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.

After David had finished speaking with Saul, the souls of Jonathan and David were knit together, and Jonathan loved him as himself. And from that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return to his father’s house. Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.

No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have made known to you.

Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.

He who loves a pure heart and gracious lips will have the king for a friend.

For it is not an enemy who insults me; that I could endure. It is not a foe who rises against me; from him I could hide. But it is you, a man like myself, my companion and close friend. We shared sweet fellowship together; we walked with the crowd into the house of God.

But Ruth replied: “Do not urge me to leave you or to turn from following you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.”

Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to the family of faith.

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Now when Job’s three friends—Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite—heard about all this adversity that had come upon him, each of them came from his home, and they met together to go and sympathize with Job and comfort him. When they lifted up their eyes from afar, they could barely recognize Job. They began to weep aloud, and each man tore his robe and threw dust in the air over his head. Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights, but no one spoke a word to him because they saw how intense his suffering was.

A despairing man should have the kindness of his friend, even if he forsakes the fear of the Almighty.

Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!

And let us consider how to spur one another on to love and good deeds. Let us not neglect meeting together, as some have made a habit, but let us encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

For where two or three gather together in My name, there am I with them.”

Do not forsake your friend or your father’s friend, and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity; better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.

And Jonathan had David reaffirm his vow out of love for him, for Jonathan loved David as he loved himself.

This is the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants what must soon come to pass. He made it known by sending His angel to His servant John, who testifies to everything he saw. This is the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and obey what is written in it, because the time is near. John, To the seven churches in the province of Asia: Grace and peace to you from Him who is and was and is to come, and from the seven Spirits before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and has released us from our sins by His blood, . . .

But the beast was captured along with the false prophet, who on its behalf had performed signs deceiving those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. Both the beast and the false prophet were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.

Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.