Hebrews 13

International Children’s Bible

13 Keep on loving each other as brothers in Christ. ² Remember to welcome strangers into your homes. Some people have done this and have welcomed angels without knowing it. ³ Do not forget those who are in prison. Remember them as if you were in prison with them. Remember those who are suffering as if you were suffering with them.

⁴ Marriage should be honored by everyone. Husband and wife should keep their marriage pure. God will judge guilty those who are sexually immoral and commit adultery. ⁵ Keep your lives free from the love of money. And be satisfied with what you have. God has said,

⁶ So we can feel sure and say,

⁷ Remember your leaders. They taught God’s message to you. Remember how they lived and died, and copy their faith. ⁸ Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

⁹ Do not let all kinds of strange teachings lead you into the wrong way. Your hearts should be strengthened by God’s grace, not by obeying rules about foods. Obeying such rules does not help anyone.

¹⁰ We have a sacrifice. But the priests who serve in the Holy Tent cannot eat from it. ¹¹ The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place. There he offers this blood for sins. But the bodies of the animals are burned outside the camp. ¹² So Jesus also suffered outside the city. He died to make his people holy with his own blood. ¹³ So let us go to Jesus outside the camp. We should accept the same shame that Jesus had.

¹⁴ Here on earth we do not have a city that lasts forever. But we are looking for the city that we will have in the future. ¹⁵ So through Jesus let us always offer our sacrifice to God. This sacrifice is our praise, coming from lips that speak his name. ¹⁶ Do not forget to do good to others. And share with them what you have. These are the sacrifices that please God.

¹⁷ Obey your leaders and be under their authority. These men are watching you because they are responsible for your souls. Obey them so that they will do this work with joy, not sadness. It will not help you to make their work hard.

¹⁸ Continue praying for us. We feel sure about what we are doing, because we always want to do the right thing. ¹⁹ And I beg you to pray that God will send me back to you soon.

^20-21 I pray that the God of peace will give you every good thing you need so that you can do what he wants. God is the One who raised from death our Lord Jesus, the Great Shepherd of the sheep. God raised him because of the blood of his death. His blood began the agreement that God made with his people. And this agreement is eternal. I pray that God, through Christ, will do in us what pleases him. And to Jesus Christ be glory forever and ever. Amen.

²² My brothers, I beg you to listen patiently to this message I have written to encourage you. This letter is not very long. ²³ I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been let out of prison. If he arrives soon, we will both come to see you.

²⁴ Greet all your leaders and all of God’s people. Those from Italy send greetings to you.

²⁵ God’s grace be with you all.