The Familiar Stranger

Desperate Prayers for Hope in Hard Times

In Her Image: Character Study of the Proverbs 31 Woman

A Family of Prayer

Always Near: 14 Days of Discovering God’s Presence Every Day

Fervent Still

Sound of Heaven: A 6-Day Devotional by Danny Gokey

Esther’s Legacy: Embracing Your Role in God’s Sovereign Plan

Building Wealth God’s Way: Biblical Keys to Increase Your Net-Worth

Mandates for Men: Serve Others

The Listener’s Bible®: NIV Edition

New International Version™  (Anglicised), Audio Edition

Holy Bible, New International Version™ (Anglicised), South Asian Audio Edition

<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
   <div class="book bkEXO">
      <div class="chapter ch9" data-usfm="EXO.9">
         <div class="label">9</div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">The Plague on Livestock</span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="EXO.9.1"><span class="label">1</span><span class="content">Then the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> said to Moses, &#8220;Go to Pharaoh and say to him, &#8216;This is what the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content">, the God of the Hebrews, says: &#8220;Let my people go, so that they may worship me.&#8221; </span></span><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="EXO.9.2"><span class="label">2</span><span class="content">If you refuse to let them go and continue to hold them back, </span></span><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="EXO.9.3"><span class="label">3</span><span class="content">the hand of the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> will bring a terrible plague on your livestock in the field&#8212;on your horses, donkeys and camels and on your cattle, sheep and goats. </span></span><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="EXO.9.4"><span class="label">4</span><span class="content">But the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and that of Egypt, so that no animal belonging to the Israelites will die.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="EXO.9.4"></span><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="EXO.9.5"><span class="label">5</span><span class="content">The </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> set a time and said, &#8220;Tomorrow the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> will do this in the land.&#8221; </span></span><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="EXO.9.6"><span class="label">6</span><span class="content">And the next day the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> did it: All the livestock of the Egyptians died, but not one animal belonging to the Israelites died. </span></span><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="EXO.9.7"><span class="label">7</span><span class="content">Pharaoh investigated and found that not even one of the animals of the Israelites had died. Yet his heart was unyielding and he would not let the people go.</span></span></div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">The Plague of Boils</span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="EXO.9.7"></span><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="EXO.9.8"><span class="label">8</span><span class="content">Then the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> said to Moses and Aaron, &#8220;Take handfuls of soot from a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in the presence of Pharaoh. </span></span><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="EXO.9.9"><span class="label">9</span><span class="content">It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering boils will break out on people and animals throughout the land.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="EXO.9.9"></span><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="EXO.9.10"><span class="label">10</span><span class="content">So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air, and festering boils broke out on people and animals. </span></span><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="EXO.9.11"><span class="label">11</span><span class="content">The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them and on all the Egyptians. </span></span><span class="verse v12" data-usfm="EXO.9.12"><span class="label">12</span><span class="content">But the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> hardened Pharaoh&#8217;s heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> had said to Moses.</span></span></div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">The Plague of Hail</span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v12" data-usfm="EXO.9.12"></span><span class="verse v13" data-usfm="EXO.9.13"><span class="label">13</span><span class="content">Then the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> said to Moses, &#8220;Get up early in the morning, confront Pharaoh and say to him, &#8216;This is what the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content">, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me, </span></span><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="EXO.9.14"><span class="label">14</span><span class="content">or this time I will send the full force of my plagues against you and against your officials and your people, so you may know that there is no one like me in all the earth. </span></span><span class="verse v15" data-usfm="EXO.9.15"><span class="label">15</span><span class="content">For by now I could have stretched out my hand and struck you and your people with a plague that would have wiped you off the earth. </span></span><span class="verse v16" data-usfm="EXO.9.16"><span class="label">16</span><span class="content">But I have raised you up</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="fr">9:16 </span><span class="ft">Or </span><span class="fqa">have spared you</span></span></span><span class="content"> for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth. </span></span><span class="verse v17" data-usfm="EXO.9.17"><span class="label">17</span><span class="content">You still set yourself against my people and will not let them go. </span></span><span class="verse v18" data-usfm="EXO.9.18"><span class="label">18</span><span class="content">Therefore, at this time tomorrow I will send the worst hailstorm that has ever fallen on Egypt, from the day it was founded till now. </span></span><span class="verse v19" data-usfm="EXO.9.19"><span class="label">19</span><span class="content">Give an order now to bring your livestock and everything you have in the field to a place of shelter, because the hail will fall on every person and animal that has not been brought in and is still out in the field, and they will die.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v19" data-usfm="EXO.9.19"></span><span class="verse v20" data-usfm="EXO.9.20"><span class="label">20</span><span class="content">Those officials of Pharaoh who feared the word of the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> hurried to bring their slaves and their livestock inside. </span></span><span class="verse v21" data-usfm="EXO.9.21"><span class="label">21</span><span class="content">But those who ignored the word of the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> left their slaves and livestock in the field.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v21" data-usfm="EXO.9.21"></span><span class="verse v22" data-usfm="EXO.9.22"><span class="label">22</span><span class="content">Then the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> said to Moses, &#8220;Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that hail will fall all over Egypt&#8212;on people and animals and on everything growing in the fields of Egypt.&#8221; </span></span><span class="verse v23" data-usfm="EXO.9.23"><span class="label">23</span><span class="content">When Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> sent thunder and hail, and lightning flashed down to the ground. So the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> rained hail on the land of Egypt; </span></span><span class="verse v24" data-usfm="EXO.9.24"><span class="label">24</span><span class="content">hail fell and lightning flashed back and forth. It was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. </span></span><span class="verse v25" data-usfm="EXO.9.25"><span class="label">25</span><span class="content">Throughout Egypt hail struck everything in the fields&#8212;both people and animals; it beat down everything growing in the fields and stripped every tree. </span></span><span class="verse v26" data-usfm="EXO.9.26"><span class="label">26</span><span class="content">The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v26" data-usfm="EXO.9.26"></span><span class="verse v27" data-usfm="EXO.9.27"><span class="label">27</span><span class="content">Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. &#8220;This time I have sinned,&#8221; he said to them. &#8220;The </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. </span></span><span class="verse v28" data-usfm="EXO.9.28"><span class="label">28</span><span class="content">Pray to the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content">, for we have had enough thunder and hail. I will let you go; you don&#8217;t have to stay any longer.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v28" data-usfm="EXO.9.28"></span><span class="verse v29" data-usfm="EXO.9.29"><span class="label">29</span><span class="content">Moses replied, &#8220;When I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands in prayer to the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content">. The thunder will stop and there will be no more hail, so you may know that the earth is the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content">&#8217;s. </span></span><span class="verse v30" data-usfm="EXO.9.30"><span class="label">30</span><span class="content">But I know that you and your officials still do not fear the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> God.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v30" data-usfm="EXO.9.30"></span><span class="verse v31" data-usfm="EXO.9.31"><span class="label">31</span><span class="content">(The flax and barley were destroyed, since the barley had headed and the flax was in bloom. </span></span><span class="verse v32" data-usfm="EXO.9.32"><span class="label">32</span><span class="content">The wheat and spelt, however, were not destroyed, because they ripen later.)</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v32" data-usfm="EXO.9.32"></span><span class="verse v33" data-usfm="EXO.9.33"><span class="label">33</span><span class="content">Then Moses left Pharaoh and went out of the city. He spread out his hands toward the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content">; the thunder and hail stopped, and the rain no longer poured down on the land. </span></span><span class="verse v34" data-usfm="EXO.9.34"><span class="label">34</span><span class="content">When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he sinned again: He and his officials hardened their hearts. </span></span><span class="verse v35" data-usfm="EXO.9.35"><span class="label">35</span><span class="content">So Pharaoh&#8217;s heart was hard and he would not let the Israelites go, just as the </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">Lord</span></span><span class="content"> had said through Moses.</span></span></div>
      </div>
   </div>
</div>

<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
   <div class="book bkPSA">
      <div class="chapter ch62" data-usfm="PSA.62">
         <div class="label">62</div><div class="cl"><span class="heading">Psalm 62</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="ft"><span class="heading">In Hebrew texts 62:1-12 is numbered 62:2-13.</span></span></span></span></div><div class="d"><span class="content">For the director of music. For Jeduthun. A psalm of David.</span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.62.1"><span class="label">1</span><span class="content">Truly my soul finds rest in God;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.62.1"><span class="content">my salvation comes from him.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.62.1"></span><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="PSA.62.2"><span class="label">2</span><span class="content">Truly he is my rock and my salvation;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="PSA.62.2"><span class="content">he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.</span></span></div><div class="b"><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="PSA.62.2"></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="PSA.62.2"></span><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="PSA.62.3"><span class="label">3</span><span class="content">How long will you assault me?</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="PSA.62.3"><span class="content">Would all of you throw me down&#8212;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="PSA.62.3"><span class="content">this leaning wall, this tottering fence?</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="PSA.62.3"></span><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.62.4"><span class="label">4</span><span class="content">Surely they intend to topple me</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.62.4"><span class="content">from my lofty place;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.62.4"><span class="content">they take delight in lies.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.62.4"><span class="content">With their mouths they bless,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.62.4"><span class="content">but in their hearts they curse.</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="fr">62:4 </span><span class="ft">The Hebrew has </span><span class="fqa">Selah </span><span class="ft">(a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verse 8.</span></span></span></span></div><div class="b"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.62.4"></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.62.4"></span><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="PSA.62.5"><span class="label">5</span><span class="content">Yes, my soul, find rest in God;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="PSA.62.5"><span class="content">my hope comes from him.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="PSA.62.5"></span><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="PSA.62.6"><span class="label">6</span><span class="content">Truly he is my rock and my salvation;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="PSA.62.6"><span class="content">he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="PSA.62.6"></span><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="PSA.62.7"><span class="label">7</span><span class="content">My salvation and my honor depend on God</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="fr">62:7 </span><span class="ft">Or </span><span class="fqa">/ God Most High is my salvation and my honor</span></span></span><span class="content">;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="PSA.62.7"><span class="content">he is my mighty rock, my refuge.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="PSA.62.7"></span><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="PSA.62.8"><span class="label">8</span><span class="content">Trust in him at all times, you people;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="PSA.62.8"><span class="content">pour out your hearts to him,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="PSA.62.8"><span class="content">for God is our refuge.</span></span></div><div class="b"><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="PSA.62.8"></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="PSA.62.8"></span><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="PSA.62.9"><span class="label">9</span><span class="content">Surely the lowborn are but a breath,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="PSA.62.9"><span class="content">the highborn are but a lie.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="PSA.62.9"><span class="content">If weighed on a balance, they are nothing;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="PSA.62.9"><span class="content">together they are only a breath.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="PSA.62.9"></span><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.62.10"><span class="label">10</span><span class="content">Do not trust in extortion</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.62.10"><span class="content">or put vain hope in stolen goods;</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.62.10"><span class="content">though your riches increase,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.62.10"><span class="content">do not set your heart on them.</span></span></div><div class="b"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.62.10"></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.62.10"></span><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="PSA.62.11"><span class="label">11</span><span class="content">One thing God has spoken,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="PSA.62.11"><span class="content">two things I have heard:</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="PSA.62.11"><span class="content">&#8220;Power belongs to you, God,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="PSA.62.11"></span><span class="verse v12" data-usfm="PSA.62.12"><span class="label">12</span><span class="content">and with you, Lord, is unfailing love&#8221;;</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v12" data-usfm="PSA.62.12"><span class="content">and, &#8220;You reward everyone</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v12" data-usfm="PSA.62.12"><span class="content">according to what they have done.&#8221;</span></span></div>
      </div>
   </div>
</div>

<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
   <div class="book bkPSA">
      <div class="chapter ch63" data-usfm="PSA.63">
         <div class="label">63</div><div class="cl"><span class="heading">Psalm 63</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="ft"><span class="heading">In Hebrew texts 63:1-11 is numbered 63:2-12.</span></span></span></span></div><div class="d"><span class="content">A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah.</span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.63.1"><span class="label">1</span><span class="content">You, God, are my God,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.63.1"><span class="content">earnestly I seek you;</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.63.1"><span class="content">I thirst for you,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.63.1"><span class="content">my whole being longs for you,</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.63.1"><span class="content">in a dry and parched land</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.63.1"><span class="content">where there is no water.</span></span></div><div class="b"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.63.1"></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="PSA.63.1"></span><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="PSA.63.2"><span class="label">2</span><span class="content">I have seen you in the sanctuary</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="PSA.63.2"><span class="content">and beheld your power and your glory.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="PSA.63.2"></span><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="PSA.63.3"><span class="label">3</span><span class="content">Because your love is better than life,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="PSA.63.3"><span class="content">my lips will glorify you.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="PSA.63.3"></span><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.63.4"><span class="label">4</span><span class="content">I will praise you as long as I live,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.63.4"><span class="content">and in your name I will lift up my hands.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="PSA.63.4"></span><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="PSA.63.5"><span class="label">5</span><span class="content">I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="PSA.63.5"><span class="content">with singing lips my mouth will praise you.</span></span></div><div class="b"><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="PSA.63.5"></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="PSA.63.5"></span><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="PSA.63.6"><span class="label">6</span><span class="content">On my bed I remember you;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="PSA.63.6"><span class="content">I think of you through the watches of the night.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="PSA.63.6"></span><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="PSA.63.7"><span class="label">7</span><span class="content">Because you are my help,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="PSA.63.7"><span class="content">I sing in the shadow of your wings.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="PSA.63.7"></span><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="PSA.63.8"><span class="label">8</span><span class="content">I cling to you;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="PSA.63.8"><span class="content">your right hand upholds me.</span></span></div><div class="b"><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="PSA.63.8"></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="PSA.63.8"></span><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="PSA.63.9"><span class="label">9</span><span class="content">Those who want to kill me will be destroyed;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="PSA.63.9"><span class="content">they will go down to the depths of the earth.</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="PSA.63.9"></span><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.63.10"><span class="label">10</span><span class="content">They will be given over to the sword</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.63.10"><span class="content">and become food for jackals.</span></span></div><div class="b"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.63.10"></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="PSA.63.10"></span><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="PSA.63.11"><span class="label">11</span><span class="content">But the king will rejoice in God;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="PSA.63.11"><span class="content">all who swear by God will glory in him,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="PSA.63.11"><span class="content">while the mouths of liars will be silenced.</span></span></div>
      </div>
   </div>
</div>

<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
   <div class="book bkROM">
      <div class="chapter ch13" data-usfm="ROM.13">
         <div class="label">13</div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">Submission to Governing Authorities</span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="ROM.13.1"><span class="label">1</span><span class="content">Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. </span></span><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="ROM.13.2"><span class="label">2</span><span class="content">Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. </span></span><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="ROM.13.3"><span class="label">3</span><span class="content">For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. </span></span><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="ROM.13.4"><span class="label">4</span><span class="content">For the one in authority is God&#8217;s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God&#8217;s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. </span></span><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="ROM.13.5"><span class="label">5</span><span class="content">Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="ROM.13.5"></span><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="ROM.13.6"><span class="label">6</span><span class="content">This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God&#8217;s servants, who give their full time to governing. </span></span><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="ROM.13.7"><span class="label">7</span><span class="content">Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.</span></span></div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">Love Fulfills the Law</span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="ROM.13.7"></span><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="ROM.13.8"><span class="label">8</span><span class="content">Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. </span></span><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="ROM.13.9"><span class="label">9</span><span class="content">The commandments, &#8220;You shall not commit adultery,&#8221; &#8220;You shall not murder,&#8221; &#8220;You shall not steal,&#8221; &#8220;You shall not covet,&#8221;</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="fr">13:9 </span><span class="ft"><span class="ref" usfm="EXO.20.13+EXO.20.14+EXO.20.15">Exodus 20:13-15</span>,<span class="ref" usfm="EXO.20.17">17</span>; <span class="ref" usfm="DEU.5.17+DEU.5.18+DEU.5.19">Deut. 5:17-19</span>,<span class="ref" usfm="DEU.5.21">21</span></span></span></span><span class="content"> and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: &#8220;Love your neighbor as yourself.&#8221;</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="fr">13:9 </span><span class="ft"><span class="ref" usfm="LEV.19.18">Lev. 19:18</span></span></span></span><span class="content"> </span></span><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="ROM.13.10"><span class="label">10</span><span class="content">Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.</span></span></div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">The Day Is Near</span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="ROM.13.10"></span><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="ROM.13.11"><span class="label">11</span><span class="content">And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. </span></span><span class="verse v12" data-usfm="ROM.13.12"><span class="label">12</span><span class="content">The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. </span></span><span class="verse v13" data-usfm="ROM.13.13"><span class="label">13</span><span class="content">Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. </span></span><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="ROM.13.14"><span class="label">14</span><span class="content">Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="fr">13:14 </span><span class="ft">In contexts like this, the Greek word for </span><span class="fq">flesh </span><span class="ft">(<span class="tl">sarx</span>) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
   <div class="book bkROM">
      <div class="chapter ch14" data-usfm="ROM.14">
         <div class="label">14</div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">The Weak and the Strong</span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="ROM.14.1"><span class="label">1</span><span class="content">Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. </span></span><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="ROM.14.2"><span class="label">2</span><span class="content">One person&#8217;s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. </span></span><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="ROM.14.3"><span class="label">3</span><span class="content">The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. </span></span><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="ROM.14.4"><span class="label">4</span><span class="content">Who are you to judge someone else&#8217;s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="ROM.14.4"></span><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="ROM.14.5"><span class="label">5</span><span class="content">One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. </span></span><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="ROM.14.6"><span class="label">6</span><span class="content">Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. </span></span><span class="verse v7" data-usfm="ROM.14.7"><span class="label">7</span><span class="content">For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. </span></span><span class="verse v8" data-usfm="ROM.14.8"><span class="label">8</span><span class="content">If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. </span></span><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="ROM.14.9"><span class="label">9</span><span class="content">For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v9" data-usfm="ROM.14.9"></span><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="ROM.14.10"><span class="label">10</span><span class="content">You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="fr">14:10 </span><span class="ft">The Greek word for </span><span class="fq">brother or sister </span><span class="ft">(<span class="tl">adelphos</span>) refers here to a believer, whether man or woman, as part of God&#8217;s family; also in verses 13, 15 and 21.</span></span></span><span class="content">? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God&#8217;s judgment seat. </span></span><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="ROM.14.11"><span class="label">11</span><span class="content">It is written:</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="ROM.14.11"><span class="content">&#8220;&#8198;&#8216;As surely as I live,&#8217; says the Lord,</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="ROM.14.11"><span class="content">&#8216;every knee will bow before me;</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="ROM.14.11"><span class="content">every tongue will acknowledge God.&#8217;&#8198;&#8221;</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="fr">14:11 </span><span class="ft"><span class="ref" usfm="ISA.45.23">Isaiah 45:23</span></span></span></span></span></div><div class="m"><span class="verse v11" data-usfm="ROM.14.11"></span><span class="verse v12" data-usfm="ROM.14.12"><span class="label">12</span><span class="content">So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v12" data-usfm="ROM.14.12"></span><span class="verse v13" data-usfm="ROM.14.13"><span class="label">13</span><span class="content">Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister. </span></span><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="ROM.14.14"><span class="label">14</span><span class="content">I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean. </span></span><span class="verse v15" data-usfm="ROM.14.15"><span class="label">15</span><span class="content">If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. </span></span><span class="verse v16" data-usfm="ROM.14.16"><span class="label">16</span><span class="content">Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. </span></span><span class="verse v17" data-usfm="ROM.14.17"><span class="label">17</span><span class="content">For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, </span></span><span class="verse v18" data-usfm="ROM.14.18"><span class="label">18</span><span class="content">because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v18" data-usfm="ROM.14.18"></span><span class="verse v19" data-usfm="ROM.14.19"><span class="label">19</span><span class="content">Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. </span></span><span class="verse v20" data-usfm="ROM.14.20"><span class="label">20</span><span class="content">Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. </span></span><span class="verse v21" data-usfm="ROM.14.21"><span class="label">21</span><span class="content">It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v21" data-usfm="ROM.14.21"></span><span class="verse v22" data-usfm="ROM.14.22"><span class="label">22</span><span class="content">So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. </span></span><span class="verse v23" data-usfm="ROM.14.23"><span class="label">23</span><span class="content">But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.</span><span class="note f"><span class="label">#</span><span class="body"><span class="fr">14:23 </span><span class="ft">Some manuscripts place 16:25-27 here; others after 15:33.</span></span></span></span></div>
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