Noah: A Covenant With Humanity

3-Day Bible Plan: How to Truly Love Thy Neighbor in Today’s World

Redeemed: Ruth’s Story of Restoration

Consider It All Joy

A People Set Apart

The Uniqueness of Jesus

Building Living Bridges

Lent: The Journey of Letting Go

The New Loneliness: Nurturing Connection When You Feel Isolated

Quiet Time Moments for Women

New International Version

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 <div class="p">7But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 10We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 11For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus&#8217; sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. 12So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.</div><div class="p">13It is written: &#8220;I believed; therefore I have spoken.&#8221;#4:13 Psalm 116:10 (see Septuagint) Since we have that same spirit of#4:13 Or Spirit-given faith, we also believe and therefore speak, 14because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself. 15All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.</div><div class="p">16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.</div>
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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">
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 <div class="label">5</div><div class="s1">Awaiting the New Body</div><div class="p">1For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, 3because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. 4For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.</div><div class="p">6Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. 7For we live by faith, not by sight. 8We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. 10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.</div><div class="s1">The Ministry of Reconciliation</div><div class="p">11Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience. 12We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to take pride in us, so that you can answer those who take pride in what is seen rather than in what is in the heart. 13If we are &#8220;out of our mind,&#8221; as some say, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14For Christ&#8217;s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.</div><div class="p">16So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:#5:17 Or Christ, that person is a new creation. The old has gone, the new is here! 18All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people&#8217;s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20We are therefore Christ&#8217;s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ&#8217;s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21God made him who had no sin to be sin#5:21 Or be a sin offering for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.</div>
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 <div class="label">6</div><div class="p">1As God&#8217;s co-workers we urge you not to receive God&#8217;s grace in vain. 2For he says,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;In the time of my favor I heard you,</div><div class="q2">and in the day of salvation I helped you.&#8221;#6:2 Isaiah 49:8</div><div class="m">I tell you, now is the time of God&#8217;s favor, now is the day of salvation.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Hardships</div><div class="p">3We put no stumbling block in anyone&#8217;s path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. 4Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; 5in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; 6in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; 7in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; 8through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; 9known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; 10sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.</div><div class="p">11We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians, and opened wide our hearts to you. 12We are not withholding our affection from you, but you are withholding yours from us. 13As a fair exchange&#8212;I speak as to my children&#8212;open wide your hearts also.</div><div class="s1">Warning Against Idolatry</div><div class="p">14Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? 15What harmony is there between Christ and Belial#6:15 Greek Beliar, a variant of Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? 16What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;I will live with them</div><div class="q2">and walk among them,</div><div class="q1">and I will be their God,</div><div class="q2">and they will be my people.&#8221;#6:16 Lev. 26:12; Jer. 32:38; Ezek. 37:27</div><div class="m">17Therefore,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;Come out from them</div><div class="q2">and be separate,</div><div class="q4">says the Lord.</div><div class="q1">Touch no unclean thing,</div><div class="q2">and I will receive you.&#8221;#6:17 Isaiah 52:11; Ezek. 20:34,41</div><div class="m">18And,</div><div class="q1">&#8220;I will be a Father to you,</div><div class="q2">and you will be my sons and daughters,</div><div class="q4">says the Lord Almighty.&#8221;#6:18 2 Samuel 7:14; 7:8</div>
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 <div class="label">7</div><div class="p">1Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Joy Over the Church&#8217;s Repentance</div><div class="p">2Make room for us in your hearts. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have exploited no one. 3I do not say this to condemn you; I have said before that you have such a place in our hearts that we would live or die with you. 4I have spoken to you with great frankness; I take great pride in you. I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.</div><div class="p">5For when we came into Macedonia, we had no rest, but we were harassed at every turn&#8212;conflicts on the outside, fears within. 6But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus, 7and not only by his coming but also by the comfort you had given him. He told us about your longing for me, your deep sorrow, your ardent concern for me, so that my joy was greater than ever.</div><div class="p">8Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it&#8212;I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while&#8212; 9yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. 10Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. 11See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter. 12So even though I wrote to you, it was neither on account of the one who did the wrong nor on account of the injured party, but rather that before God you could see for yourselves how devoted to us you are. 13By all this we are encouraged.</div><div class="p">In addition to our own encouragement, we were especially delighted to see how happy Titus was, because his spirit has been refreshed by all of you. 14I had boasted to him about you, and you have not embarrassed me. But just as everything we said to you was true, so our boasting about you to Titus has proved to be true as well. 15And his affection for you is all the greater when he remembers that you were all obedient, receiving him with fear and trembling. 16I am glad I can have complete confidence in you.</div>
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 <div class="label">8</div><div class="s1">The Collection for the Lord&#8217;s People</div><div class="p">1And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. 2In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. 3For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, 4they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord&#8217;s people. 5And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us. 6So we urged Titus, just as he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part. 7But since you excel in everything&#8212;in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you#8:7 Some manuscripts and in your love for us&#8212;see that you also excel in this grace of giving.</div><div class="p">8I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. 9For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.</div><div class="p">10And here is my judgment about what is best for you in this matter. Last year you were the first not only to give but also to have the desire to do so. 11Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. 12For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.</div><div class="p">13Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. 14At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, 15as it is written: &#8220;The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.&#8221;#8:15 Exodus 16:18</div><div class="s1">Titus Sent to Receive the Collection</div><div class="p">16Thanks be to God, who put into the heart of Titus the same concern I have for you. 17For Titus not only welcomed our appeal, but he is coming to you with much enthusiasm and on his own initiative. 18And we are sending along with him the brother who is praised by all the churches for his service to the gospel. 19What is more, he was chosen by the churches to accompany us as we carry the offering, which we administer in order to honor the Lord himself and to show our eagerness to help. 20We want to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this liberal gift. 21For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of man.</div><div class="p">22In addition, we are sending with them our brother who has often proved to us in many ways that he is zealous, and now even more so because of his great confidence in you. 23As for Titus, he is my partner and co-worker among you; as for our brothers, they are representatives of the churches and an honor to Christ. 24Therefore show these men the proof of your love and the reason for our pride in you, so that the churches can see it.</div>
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 <div class="label">9</div><div class="p">1There is no need for me to write to you about this service to the Lord&#8217;s people. 2For I know your eagerness to help, and I have been boasting about it to the Macedonians, telling them that since last year you in Achaia were ready to give; and your enthusiasm has stirred most of them to action. 3But I am sending the brothers in order that our boasting about you in this matter should not prove hollow, but that you may be ready, as I said you would be. 4For if any Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we&#8212;not to say anything about you&#8212;would be ashamed of having been so confident. 5So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you in advance and finish the arrangements for the generous gift you had promised. Then it will be ready as a generous gift, not as one grudgingly given.</div><div class="s1">Generosity Encouraged</div><div class="p">6Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9As it is written:</div><div class="q1">&#8220;They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor;</div><div class="q2">their righteousness endures forever.&#8221;#9:9 Psalm 112:9</div><div class="m">10Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.</div><div class="p">12This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord&#8217;s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. 13Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. 14And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. 15Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!</div>
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 <div class="label">10</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Defense of His Ministry</div><div class="p">1By the humility and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you&#8212;I, Paul, who am &#8220;timid&#8221; when face to face with you, but &#8220;bold&#8221; toward you when away! 2I beg you that when I come I may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world. 3For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. 5We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 6And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete.</div><div class="p">7You are judging by appearances.#10:7 Or Look at the obvious facts If anyone is confident that they belong to Christ, they should consider again that we belong to Christ just as much as they do. 8So even if I boast somewhat freely about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up rather than tearing you down, I will not be ashamed of it. 9I do not want to seem to be trying to frighten you with my letters. 10For some say, &#8220;His letters are weighty and forceful, but in person he is unimpressive and his speaking amounts to nothing.&#8221; 11Such people should realize that what we are in our letters when we are absent, we will be in our actions when we are present.</div><div class="p">12We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise. 13We, however, will not boast beyond proper limits, but will confine our boasting to the sphere of service God himself has assigned to us, a sphere that also includes you. 14We are not going too far in our boasting, as would be the case if we had not come to you, for we did get as far as you with the gospel of Christ. 15Neither do we go beyond our limits by boasting of work done by others. Our hope is that, as your faith continues to grow, our sphere of activity among you will greatly expand, 16so that we can preach the gospel in the regions beyond you. For we do not want to boast about work already done in someone else&#8217;s territory. 17But, &#8220;Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.&#8221;#10:17 Jer. 9:24 18For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.</div>
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 <div class="label">11</div><div class="s1">Paul and the False Apostles</div><div class="p">1I hope you will put up with me in a little foolishness. Yes, please put up with me! 2I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him. 3But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent&#8217;s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 4For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the Spirit you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.</div><div class="p">5I do not think I am in the least inferior to those &#8220;super-apostles.&#8221;#11:5 Or to the most eminent apostles 6I may indeed be untrained as a speaker, but I do have knowledge. We have made this perfectly clear to you in every way. 7Was it a sin for me to lower myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God to you free of charge? 8I robbed other churches by receiving support from them so as to serve you. 9And when I was with you and needed something, I was not a burden to anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied what I needed. I have kept myself from being a burden to you in any way, and will continue to do so. 10As surely as the truth of Christ is in me, nobody in the regions of Achaia will stop this boasting of mine. 11Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!</div><div class="p">12And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. 13For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.</div><div class="s1">Paul Boasts About His Sufferings</div><div class="p">16I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then tolerate me just as you would a fool, so that I may do a little boasting. 17In this self-confident boasting I am not talking as the Lord would, but as a fool. 18Since many are boasting in the way the world does, I too will boast. 19You gladly put up with fools since you are so wise! 20In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or puts on airs or slaps you in the face. 21To my shame I admit that we were too weak for that!</div><div class="p">Whatever anyone else dares to boast about&#8212;I am speaking as a fool&#8212;I also dare to boast about. 22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they Abraham&#8217;s descendants? So am I. 23Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. 27I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. 29Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?</div><div class="p">30If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying. 32In Damascus the governor under King Aretas had the city of the Damascenes guarded in order to arrest me. 33But I was lowered in a basket from a window in the wall and slipped through his hands.</div>
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 <div class="label">12</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Vision and His Thorn</div><div class="p">1I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. 2I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know&#8212;God knows. 3And I know that this man&#8212;whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows&#8212; 4was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. 5I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses. 6Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, 7or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9But he said to me, &#8220;My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.&#8221; Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ&#8217;s power may rest on me. 10That is why, for Christ&#8217;s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Concern for the Corinthians</div><div class="p">11I have made a fool of myself, but you drove me to it. I ought to have been commended by you, for I am not in the least inferior to the &#8220;super-apostles,&#8221;#12:11 Or the most eminent apostles even though I am nothing. 12I persevered in demonstrating among you the marks of a true apostle, including signs, wonders and miracles. 13How were you inferior to the other churches, except that I was never a burden to you? Forgive me this wrong!</div><div class="p">14Now I am ready to visit you for the third time, and I will not be a burden to you, because what I want is not your possessions but you. After all, children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. 15So I will very gladly spend for you everything I have and expend myself as well. If I love you more, will you love me less? 16Be that as it may, I have not been a burden to you. Yet, crafty fellow that I am, I caught you by trickery! 17Did I exploit you through any of the men I sent to you? 18I urged Titus to go to you and I sent our brother with him. Titus did not exploit you, did he? Did we not walk in the same footsteps by the same Spirit?</div><div class="p">19Have you been thinking all along that we have been defending ourselves to you? We have been speaking in the sight of God as those in Christ; and everything we do, dear friends, is for your strengthening. 20For I am afraid that when I come I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be. I fear that there may be discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder. 21I am afraid that when I come again my God will humble me before you, and I will be grieved over many who have sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, sexual sin and debauchery in which they have indulged.</div>
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 <div class="p">1This will be my third visit to you. &#8220;Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.&#8221;#13:1 Deut. 19:15 2I already gave you a warning when I was with you the second time. I now repeat it while absent: On my return I will not spare those who sinned earlier or any of the others, 3since you are demanding proof that Christ is speaking through me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. 4For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God&#8217;s power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God&#8217;s power we will live with him in our dealing with you.</div><div class="p">5Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you&#8212;unless, of course, you fail the test? 6And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test. 7Now we pray to God that you will not do anything wrong&#8212;not so that people will see that we have stood the test but so that you will do what is right even though we may seem to have failed. 8For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. 9We are glad whenever we are weak but you are strong; and our prayer is that you may be fully restored. 10This is why I write these things when I am absent, that when I come I may not have to be harsh in my use of authority&#8212;the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.</div><div class="s1">Final Greetings</div><div class="p">11Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.</div><div class="p">12Greet one another with a holy kiss. 13All God&#8217;s people here send their greetings.</div><div class="p">14May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.</div>
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 <div class="label">19</div><div class="s1">Paul in Ephesus</div><div class="p">1While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples 2and asked them, &#8220;Did you receive the Holy Spirit when#19:2 Or after you believed?&#8221;</div><div class="p">They answered, &#8220;No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.&#8221;</div><div class="p">3So Paul asked, &#8220;Then what baptism did you receive?&#8221;</div><div class="p">&#8220;John&#8217;s baptism,&#8221; they replied.</div><div class="p">4Paul said, &#8220;John&#8217;s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.&#8221; 5On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues#19:6 Or other languages and prophesied. 7There were about twelve men in all.</div><div class="p">8Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God. 9But some of them became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way. So Paul left them. He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. 10This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.</div><div class="p">11God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, 12so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them.</div><div class="p">13Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, &#8220;In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.&#8221; 14Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. 15One day the evil spirit answered them, &#8220;Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?&#8221; 16Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.</div><div class="p">17When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. 18Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done. 19A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.#19:19 A drachma was a silver coin worth about a day&#8217;s wages. 20In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.</div><div class="p">21After all this had happened, Paul decided#19:21 Or decided in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia. &#8220;After I have been there,&#8221; he said, &#8220;I must visit Rome also.&#8221; 22He sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia, while he stayed in the province of Asia a little longer.</div><div class="s1">The Riot in Ephesus</div><div class="p">23About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way. 24A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in a lot of business for the craftsmen there. 25He called them together, along with the workers in related trades, and said: &#8220;You know, my friends, that we receive a good income from this business. 26And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that gods made by human hands are no gods at all. 27There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited; and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.&#8221;</div><div class="p">28When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting: &#8220;Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!&#8221; 29Soon the whole city was in an uproar. The people seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul&#8217;s traveling companions from Macedonia, and all of them rushed into the theater together. 30Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. 31Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message begging him not to venture into the theater.</div><div class="p">32The assembly was in confusion: Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there. 33The Jews in the crowd pushed Alexander to the front, and they shouted instructions to him. He motioned for silence in order to make a defense before the people. 34But when they realized he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours: &#8220;Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!&#8221;</div><div class="p">35The city clerk quieted the crowd and said: &#8220;Fellow Ephesians, doesn&#8217;t all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? 36Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you ought to calm down and not do anything rash. 37You have brought these men here, though they have neither robbed temples nor blasphemed our goddess. 38If, then, Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a grievance against anybody, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. They can press charges. 39If there is anything further you want to bring up, it must be settled in a legal assembly. 40As it is, we are in danger of being charged with rioting because of what happened today. In that case we would not be able to account for this commotion, since there is no reason for it.&#8221; 41After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly.</div>
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<div class="version vid111 iso6393eng" data-vid="111" data-iso6393="eng">
 <div class="book bkACT">
 <div class="chapter ch20" data-usfm="ACT.20">
 <div class="label">20</div><div class="s1">Through Macedonia and Greece</div><div class="p">1When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples and, after encouraging them, said goodbye and set out for Macedonia. 2He traveled through that area, speaking many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece, 3where he stayed three months. Because some Jews had plotted against him just as he was about to sail for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia. 4He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy also, and Tychicus and Trophimus from the province of Asia. 5These men went on ahead and waited for us at Troas. 6But we sailed from Philippi after the Festival of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, where we stayed seven days.</div><div class="s1">Eutychus Raised From the Dead at Troas</div><div class="p">7On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. 8There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. 9Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. 10Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. &#8220;Don&#8217;t be alarmed,&#8221; he said. &#8220;He&#8217;s alive!&#8221; 11Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. 12The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.</div><div class="s1">Paul&#8217;s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders</div><div class="p">13We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot. 14When he met us at Assos, we took him aboard and went on to Mitylene. 15The next day we set sail from there and arrived off Chios. The day after that we crossed over to Samos, and on the following day arrived at Miletus. 16Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, for he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem, if possible, by the day of Pentecost.</div><div class="p">17From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. 18When they arrived, he said to them: &#8220;You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. 19I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. 20You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. 21I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.</div><div class="p">22&#8220;And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. 23I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. 24However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me&#8212;the task of testifying to the good news of God&#8217;s grace.</div><div class="p">25&#8220;Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. 26Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. 27For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. 28Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God,#20:28 Many manuscripts of the Lord which he bought with his own blood.#20:28 Or with the blood of his own Son. 29I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. 31So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.</div><div class="p">32&#8220;Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33I have not coveted anyone&#8217;s silver or gold or clothing. 34You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. 35In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: &#8216;It is more blessed to give than to receive.&#8217; &#8221;</div><div class="p">36When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. 37They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. 38What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.</div>
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