You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath.
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,
“You must not make idols for yourselves or set up a carved image or sacred pillar; you must not place a sculpted stone in your land to bow down to it. For I am the LORD your God.
Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children,
and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.
But among you, as is proper among the saints, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed.
Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or crude joking, which are out of character, but rather thanksgiving.
For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
. . .
Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
“All this I will give You,” he said, “if You will fall down and worship me.”
“Away from Me, Satan!” Jesus declared. “For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”
Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Carefully consider what is right in the eyes of everybody.
If it is possible on your part, live at peace with everyone.
Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.”
On the contrary, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. For in so doing, you will heap burning coals on his head.”
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Children, it is the last hour; and just as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have appeared. This is how we know it is the last hour.
Their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men.
They have mouths, but cannot speak; they have eyes, but cannot see;
they have ears, but cannot hear; they have noses, but cannot smell;
they have hands, but cannot feel; they have feet, but cannot walk; they cannot even clear their throats.
Those who make them become like them, as do all who trust in them.
You hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied correctly about you:
‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.
They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’”
I will destroy your high places, cut down your incense altars, and heap your lifeless bodies on the lifeless remains of your idols; and My soul will despise you.
Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry.
Because of these, the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.
When you lived among them, you also used to walk in these ways.
But now you must put aside all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.
Do not lie to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices,
. . .
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will live.”
So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. If anyone who was bitten looked at the bronze snake, he would live.
Therefore, being offspring of God, we should not think that the Divine Being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by man’s skill and imagination.
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery;
idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions,
and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father is seeking such as these to worship Him.
God is Spirit, and His worshipers must worship Him in spirit and in truth.”
Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts,
nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.
For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires.
So they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.
You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath.
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,
but showing loving devotion to a thousand generations of those who love Me and keep My commandments.
So I fell at his feet to worship him. But he told me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who rely on the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
Masters, supply your slaves with what is right and fair, since you know that you also have a Master in heaven.
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful,
as you pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.
Pray that I may declare it clearly, as I should.
Act wisely toward outsiders, redeeming the time.
. . .
Therefore, since you have been raised with Christ, strive for the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.
Put to death, therefore, the components of your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry.
. . .
In the first year of the reign of Belshazzar over Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he lay on his bed. He wrote down the dream, and this is the summary of his account.
Daniel declared: “In my vision in the night I looked, and suddenly the four winds of heaven were churning up the great sea.
Then four great beasts came up out of the sea, each one different from the others:
The first beast was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man, and given the mind of a man.
Suddenly another beast appeared, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. So it was told, ‘Get up and gorge yourself on flesh!’
. . .
Make two cherubim of hammered gold at the ends of the mercy seat,
one cherub on one end and one on the other, all made from one piece of gold.
And the cherubim are to have wings that spread upward, overshadowing the mercy seat. The cherubim are to face each other, looking toward the mercy seat.
For I want you to know how much I am struggling for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me face to face,
that they may be encouraged in heart, knit together in love, and filled with the full riches of complete understanding, so that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ,
in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
I say this so that no one will deceive you by smooth rhetoric.
For although I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, and I delight to see your orderly condition and firm faith in Christ.
. . .
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,
To the saints and faithful brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace and peace to you from God our Father.
We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,
because we have heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all the saints—
the faith and love proceeding from the hope stored up for you in heaven, of which you have already heard in the word of truth, the gospel
. . .
What use is an idol, that a craftsman should carve it—or an image, a teacher of lies? For its maker trusts in his own creation; he makes idols that cannot speak.
Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
For the Gentiles strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Today has enough trouble of its own.
So since you saw no form of any kind on the day the LORD spoke to you out of the fire at Horeb, be careful
that you do not act corruptly and make an idol for yourselves of any form or shape, whether in the likeness of a male or female,
In the space above the outside of the entrance to the inner sanctuary on all the walls, spaced evenly around the inner and outer sanctuary,
were alternating carved cherubim and palm trees. Each cherub had two faces:
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
So since you saw no form of any kind on the day the LORD spoke to you out of the fire at Horeb, be careful
that you do not act corruptly and make an idol for yourselves of any form or shape, whether in the likeness of a male or female,
of any beast that is on the earth or bird that flies in the air,
or of any creature that crawls on the ground or fish that is in the waters below.
All makers of idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Their witnesses fail to see or comprehend, so they are put to shame.
Who fashions a god or casts an idol which profits him nothing?
Behold, all his companions will be put to shame, for the craftsmen themselves are only human. Let them all assemble and take their stand; they will all be brought to terror and shame.
The blacksmith takes a tool and labors over the coals; he fashions an idol with hammers and forges it with his strong arms. Yet he grows hungry and loses his strength; he fails to drink water and grows faint.
The woodworker extends a measuring line; he marks it out with a stylus; he shapes it with chisels and outlines it with a compass. He fashions it in the likeness of man, like man in all his glory, that it may dwell in a shrine.
. . .
Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. And if you judge the law, you are not a practitioner of the law, but a judge of it.
There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?
Be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves.
For anyone who hears the word but does not carry it out is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror,
and after observing himself goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom, and continues to do so—not being a forgetful hearer, but an effective doer—he will be blessed in what he does.
If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not bridle his tongue, he deceives his heart and his religion is worthless.
. . .
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.
They must no longer offer their sacrifices to the goat demons to which they have prostituted themselves. This will be a permanent statute for them for the generations to come.’
Now if your countryman becomes destitute and cannot support himself among you, then you are to help him as you would a foreigner or stranger, so that he can continue to live among you.
Do not take any interest or profit from him, but fear your God, that your countryman may live among you.
You must not lend him your silver at interest or sell him your food for profit.
I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God.
Then one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to eat with him, and He entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table.
When a sinful woman from that town learned that Jesus was dining there, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume.
As she stood behind Him at His feet weeping, she began to wet His feet with her tears and wipe them with her hair. Then she kissed His feet and anointed them with the perfume.
When the Pharisee who had invited Jesus saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, He would know who this is and what kind of woman is touching Him—for she is a sinner!”
But Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.” “Tell me, Teacher,” he said.
. . .
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,
You, O king, are the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given sovereignty, power, strength, and glory.
Wherever the sons of men or beasts of the field or birds of the air dwell, He has given them into your hand and has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold.
He took the gold from their hands, and with an engraving tool he fashioned it into a molten calf. And they said, “These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You have been more insubordinate than the nations around you; you have not walked in My statutes or kept My ordinances, nor have you even conformed to the ordinances of the nations around you.’
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to each other, so that you do not do what you want.
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery;
idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions,
. . .
Then Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury,
and He saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins.
“Truly I tell you,” He said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others.
For they all contributed out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.”
If there is a poor man among your brothers within any of the gates in the land that the LORD your God is giving you, then you are not to harden your heart or shut your hand from your poor brother.
Instead, you are to open your hand to him and freely loan him whatever he needs.
Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought in your heart: “The seventh year, the year of release, is near,” so that you look upon your poor brother begrudgingly and give him nothing. He will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.
Give generously to him, and do not let your heart be grieved when you do so. And because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything to which you put your hand.
For there will never cease to be poor in the land; that is why I am commanding you to open wide your hand to your brother and to the poor and needy in your land.
Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons,
because they will turn your sons away from following Me to serve other gods. Then the anger of the LORD will burn against you, and He will swiftly destroy you.
Brothers, if someone is caught in a trespass, you who are spiritual should restore him with a spirit of gentleness. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.
Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
Therefore the Lord said: “These people draw near to Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship of Me is but rules taught by men.
A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also must love one another.
By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.”
When the wine ran out, Jesus’ mother said to Him, “They have no more wine.”
“Woman, why does this concern us?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.”
His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever He tells you.”
Now six stone water jars had been set there for the Jewish rites of purification. Each could hold from twenty to thirty gallons.
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,
. . .
I testify to everyone who hears the words of prophecy in this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book.
And if anyone takes away from the words of this book of prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and the holy city, which are described in this book.
Why, then, do you judge your brother? Or why do you belittle your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.
It is written: “As surely as I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow before Me; every tongue will confess to God.”
So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.
You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on another. For on whatever grounds you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.
And we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth.
So when you, O man, pass judgment on others, yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment?
Or do you disregard the riches of His kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you to repentance?