But understand this: In the last days terrible times will come.
For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
unloving, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, without love of good,
traitorous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
having a form of godliness but denying its power. Turn away from such as these!
. . .
Finally, all of you, be like-minded and sympathetic, love as brothers, be tenderhearted and humble.
Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.
By common confession, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in the flesh, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was proclaimed among the nations, was believed in throughout the world, was taken up in glory.
It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit,
who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age—
and then have fallen away—to be restored to repentance, because they themselves are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to open shame.
Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.
And this is the confidence that we have before Him: If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.
And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we already possess what we have asked of Him.
Wives, in the same way, submit yourselves to your husbands, so that even if they refuse to believe the word, they will be won over without words by the behavior of their wives
but from the inner disposition of your heart, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in God’s sight.
For this is how the holy women of the past adorned themselves. They put their hope in God and were submissive to their husbands,
We also have the word of the prophets as confirmed beyond doubt. And you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.
Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture comes from one’s own interpretation.
For no such prophecy was ever brought forth by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
If indeed they have escaped the corruption of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, only to be entangled and overcome by it again, their final condition is worse than it was at first.
It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than to have known it and then to turn away from the holy commandment passed on to them.
Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” and, “A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud.”
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.
And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not take lightly the discipline of the Lord, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you.
For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises every son He receives.”
Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?
If you do not experience discipline like everyone else, then you are illegitimate children and not true sons.
For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
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.
Come now, you who are rich, weep and wail over the misery to come upon you.
Your riches have rotted and moths have eaten your clothes.
Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and consume your flesh like fire. You have hoarded treasure in the last days.
Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.
You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in the day of slaughter.
. . .
I know your deeds; you are neither cold nor hot. How I wish you were one or the other!
So because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to vomit you out of My mouth!
Older women, likewise, are to be reverent in their behavior, not slanderers or addicted to much wine, but teachers of good.
In this way they can train the young women to love their husbands and children,
to be self-controlled, pure, managers of their households, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be discredited.
Women are to be silent in the churches. They are not permitted to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says.
If they wish to inquire about something, they are to ask their own husbands at home; for it is dishonorable for a woman to speak in the church.
When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come to pass: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”
A woman must learn in quietness and full submissiveness.
I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; she is to remain quiet.
For Adam was formed first, and then Eve.
And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman who was deceived and fell into transgression.
Women, however, will be saved through childbearing, if they continue in faith, love, and holiness, with self-control.
Likewise, I want the women to adorn themselves with respectable apparel, with modesty, and with self-control, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes,
but with good deeds, as is proper for women who profess to worship God.
But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me.
Now finish the work, so that you may complete it just as eagerly as you began, according to your means.
For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.
At this, they yielded to Gamaliel. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and released them.
The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.
Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.
For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, His body, of which He is the Savior.
Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.
Therefore do not be partakers with them.
Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
Therefore take up the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you will be able to stand your ground, and having done everything, to stand.
Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed,
and with your feet fitted with the readiness of the gospel of peace.
. . .
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.
I have set you an example so that you should do as I have done for you.
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the keeper of the vineyard.
He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, and every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes to make it even more fruitful.
You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.
Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.
I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing.
. . .
When they had finished eating, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he answered, “You know I love You.” Jesus replied, “Feed My lambs.”
Because of this, the Jews tried all the harder to kill Him. Not only was He breaking the Sabbath, but He was even calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.
After this, Jesus crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias).
A large crowd followed Him because they saw the signs He was performing on the sick.
Then Jesus went up on the mountain and sat down with His disciples.
Now the Jewish Feast of the Passover was near.
When Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?”
. . .
When asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God will not come with observable signs.
Nor will people say, ‘Look, here it is,’ or ‘There it is.’ For you see, the kingdom of God is in your midst.”
Then He said to the disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.
People will tell you, ‘Look, there He is!’ or ‘Look, here He is!’ Do not go out or chase after them.
For just as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other, so will be the Son of Man in His day.
. . .
“Have faith in God,” Jesus said to them.
“Truly I tell you that if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and has no doubt in his heart but believes that it will happen, it will be done for him.
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
As Jesus was sitting opposite the treasury, He watched the crowd putting money into it. And many rich people put in large amounts.
Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius.
Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the others into the treasury.
For they all contributed out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.”
Truly I tell you, the sons of men will be forgiven all sins and blasphemies, as many as they utter.
But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; he is guilty of eternal sin.”
Then Jesus called the Twelve to Him and began to send them out two by two, giving them authority over unclean spirits.
He instructed them to take nothing but a staff for the journey—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts—
and to wear sandals, but not a second tunic.
And He told them, “When you enter a house, stay there until you leave that area.
If anyone will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that place, as a testimony against them.”
. . .
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling!
“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.
The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take along any extra oil.
But the wise ones took oil in flasks along with their lamps.
When the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
. . .
While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper,
a woman came to Him with an alabaster jar of expensive perfume, which she poured on His head as He reclined at the table.
When the disciples saw this, they were indignant and asked, “Why this waste?
This perfume could have been sold at a high price, and the money given to the poor.”
Aware of this, Jesus asked, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful deed to Me.
. . .
Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus:
Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things.
Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him the glory. For the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His bride has made herself ready.
She was given clothing of fine linen, bright and pure.” For the fine linen she wears is the righteous acts of the saints.
Then the angel told me to write, “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”
‘He will wipe away every tear from their eyes,’ and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the former things have passed away.”
For everything that was written in the past was written for our instruction, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures, we might have hope.
We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin.
I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do. But what I hate, I do.
And if I do what I do not want to do, I admit that the law is good.
In that case, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh; for I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.
. . .