Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
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Warning to the Rich
1 And now, you rich people, listen
to me! Weep and wail over the
miseries that are coming upon you!
2 Your riches have rotted away, and
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your clothes have been eaten by
moths.
3 Your gold and silver are
covered with rust, and this rust will
be a witness against you and will eat
up your flesh like fire. note note You have
piled up riches in these last days.
4 You have not paid any wages to the
men who work in your fields. Listen
to their complaints! The cries of
those who gather in your crops have
reached the ears of God, the Lord
Almighty. note
5 Your life here on earth
has been full of luxury and pleasure.
You have made yourselves fat for
the day of slaughter.
6 You have condemned
and murdered innocent people,
and they do not resist you. note note
Patience and Prayer
7 Be patient, then, my brothers,
until the Lord comes. See how patient
a farmer is as he waits for his
land to produce precious crops. He
waits patiently for the autumn and
spring rains.
8 You also must be patient.
Keep your hopes high, for the
day of the Lord's coming is near.
9 Do not complain against one another,
my brothers, so that God will
not judge you. The Judge is near,
ready to appear.
10 My brothers, remember
the prophets who spoke in
the name of the Lord. Take them as
examples of patient endurance under
suffering.
11 We call them happy
because they endured. You have
heard of Job's patience, and you
know how the Lord provided for him
in the end. For the Lord is full of
mercy and compassion. note
12 Above all, my brothers, do not
use an oath when you make a promise.
Do not swear by heaven or by
earth or by anything else. Say only
“Yes” when you mean yes, and
“No” when you mean no, and then
you will not come under God's judgment. note
13 Is anyone among you in trouble?
He should pray. Is anyone happy?
He should sing praises.
14 Is there
anyone who is sick? He should send
for the church elders, who will pray
for him and rub olive oil on him in
the name of the Lord. note
15 This prayer
made in faith will heal the sick person;
the Lord will restore him to
health, and the sins he has committed
will be forgiven.
16 So then, confess
your sins to one another and
pray for one another, so that you
will be healed. The prayer of a good
person has a powerful effect. note
17 Elijah
was the same kind of person as
we are. He prayed earnestly that
there would be no rain, and no rain
fell on the land for three and a half
years. note
18 Once again he prayed, and
the sky poured out its rain and the
earth produced its crops. note
19 My brothers, if one of you wanders
away from the truth and another
one brings him back again,
20 remember this: whoever turns a
sinner back from his wrong way will
save that sinner's soul note from death
and bring about the forgiveness of
many sins. note
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Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
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