Psalm 119[a]

א Aleph

Blessed are those whose ways are blameless,(A)
    who walk(B) according to the law of the Lord.(C)
Blessed(D) are those who keep his statutes(E)
    and seek him(F) with all their heart—(G)
they do no wrong(H)
    but follow his ways.(I)
You have laid down precepts(J)
    that are to be fully obeyed.(K)
Oh, that my ways were steadfast
    in obeying your decrees!(L)
Then I would not be put to shame(M)
    when I consider all your commands.(N)
I will praise you with an upright heart
    as I learn your righteous laws.(O)
I will obey your decrees;
    do not utterly forsake me.(P)

ב Beth

How can a young person stay on the path of purity?(Q)
    By living according to your word.(R)
10 I seek you with all my heart;(S)
    do not let me stray from your commands.(T)
11 I have hidden your word in my heart(U)
    that I might not sin(V) against you.
12 Praise be(W) to you, Lord;
    teach me(X) your decrees.(Y)
13 With my lips I recount
    all the laws that come from your mouth.(Z)
14 I rejoice in following your statutes(AA)
    as one rejoices in great riches.
15 I meditate on your precepts(AB)
    and consider your ways.
16 I delight(AC) in your decrees;
    I will not neglect your word.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 119:1 This psalm is an acrostic poem, the stanzas of which begin with successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet; moreover, the verses of each stanza begin with the same letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

119 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.

Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.

They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways.

Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently.

O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes!

Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments.

I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous judgments.

I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly.

Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.

10 With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments.

11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

12 Blessed art thou, O Lord: teach me thy statutes.

13 With my lips have I declared all the judgments of thy mouth.

14 I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies, as much as in all riches.

15 I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways.

16 I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word.

Read full chapter

Meditations on the Excellencies of the Word of God

א ALEPH

119 Blessed are the [a]undefiled in the way,
(A)Who walk in the law of the Lord!
Blessed are those who keep His testimonies,
Who seek Him with the (B)whole heart!
(C)They also do no iniquity;
They walk in His ways.
You have commanded us
To keep Your precepts diligently.
Oh, that my ways were directed
To keep Your statutes!
(D)Then I would not be ashamed,
When I look into all Your commandments.
I will praise You with uprightness of heart,
When I learn Your righteous judgments.
I will keep Your statutes;
Oh, do not forsake me utterly!

ב BETH

How can a young man cleanse his way?
By taking heed according to Your word.
10 With my whole heart I have (E)sought You;
Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments!
11 (F)Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You.
12 Blessed are You, O Lord!
Teach me Your statutes.
13 With my lips I have (G)declared
All the judgments of Your mouth.
14 I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,
As much as in all riches.
15 I will meditate on Your precepts,
And [b]contemplate Your ways.
16 I will (H)delight myself in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 119:1 blameless
  2. Psalm 119:15 look into

11 The Lord said to me, “Faithless Israel is more righteous(A) than unfaithful(B) Judah.(C) 12 Go, proclaim this message toward the north:(D)

“‘Return,(E) faithless(F) Israel,’ declares the Lord,
    ‘I will frown on you no longer,
for I am faithful,’(G) declares the Lord,
    ‘I will not be angry(H) forever.
13 Only acknowledge(I) your guilt—
    you have rebelled against the Lord your God,
you have scattered your favors to foreign gods(J)
    under every spreading tree,(K)
    and have not obeyed(L) me,’”
declares the Lord.

14 “Return,(M) faithless people,” declares the Lord, “for I am your husband.(N) I will choose you—one from a town and two from a clan—and bring you to Zion. 15 Then I will give you shepherds(O) after my own heart,(P) who will lead you with knowledge and understanding. 16 In those days, when your numbers have increased greatly in the land,” declares the Lord, “people will no longer say, ‘The ark(Q) of the covenant of the Lord.’ It will never enter their minds or be remembered;(R) it will not be missed, nor will another one be made. 17 At that time they will call Jerusalem The Throne(S) of the Lord, and all nations(T) will gather in Jerusalem to honor(U) the name of the Lord. No longer will they follow the stubbornness of their evil hearts.(V) 18 In those days the people of Judah will join the people of Israel,(W) and together(X) they will come from a northern(Y) land to the land(Z) I gave your ancestors as an inheritance.

Read full chapter

11 And the Lord said unto me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.

12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep anger for ever.

13 Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord.

14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:

15 And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.

16 And it shall come to pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the Lord, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the Lord: neither shall it come to mind: neither shall they remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be done any more.

17 At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.

18 In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.

Read full chapter

11 Then the Lord said to me, (A)“Backsliding Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah. 12 Go and proclaim these words toward (B)the north, and say:

‘Return, backsliding Israel,’ says the Lord;
‘I will not cause My anger to fall on you.
For I am (C)merciful,’ says the Lord;
‘I will not remain angry forever.
13 (D)Only acknowledge your iniquity,
That you have transgressed against the Lord your God,
And have (E)scattered your [a]charms
To (F)alien deities (G)under every green tree,
And you have not obeyed My voice,’ says the Lord.

14 “Return, O backsliding children,” says the Lord; (H)“for I am married to you. I will take you, (I)one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to (J)Zion. 15 And I will give you (K)shepherds according to My heart, who will (L)feed you with knowledge and understanding.

16 “Then it shall come to pass, when you are multiplied and (M)increased in the land in those days,” says the Lord, “that they will say no more, ‘The ark of the covenant of the Lord.’ (N)It shall not come to mind, nor shall they remember it, nor shall they visit it, nor shall it be made anymore.

17 “At that time Jerusalem shall be called The Throne of the Lord, and all the nations shall be gathered to it, (O)to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem. No more shall they (P)follow[b] the dictates of their evil hearts.

18 “In those days (Q)the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of (R)the north to (S)the land that I have given as an inheritance to your fathers.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 3:13 Lit. ways
  2. Jeremiah 3:17 walk after the stubbornness or imagination

Jude,(A) a servant of Jesus Christ(B) and a brother of James,

To those who have been called,(C) who are loved in God the Father and kept for[a] Jesus Christ:(D)

Mercy, peace(E) and love be yours in abundance.(F)

The Sin and Doom of Ungodly People

Dear friends,(G) although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share,(H) I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend(I) for the faith(J) that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people.(K) For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about[b] long ago have secretly slipped in among you.(L) They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.(M)

Though you already know all this,(N) I want to remind you(O) that the Lord[c] at one time delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe.(P) And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.(Q) In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah(R) and the surrounding towns(S) gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.(T)

In the very same way, on the strength of their dreams these ungodly people pollute their own bodies, reject authority and heap abuse on celestial beings.(U) But even the archangel(V) Michael,(W) when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses,(X) did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”[d](Y) 10 Yet these people slander whatever they do not understand, and the very things they do understand by instinct—as irrational animals do—will destroy them.(Z)

11 Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain;(AA) they have rushed for profit into Balaam’s error;(AB) they have been destroyed in Korah’s rebellion.(AC)

12 These people are blemishes at your love feasts,(AD) eating with you without the slightest qualm—shepherds who feed only themselves.(AE) They are clouds without rain,(AF) blown along by the wind;(AG) autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted(AH)—twice dead. 13 They are wild waves of the sea,(AI) foaming up their shame;(AJ) wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.(AK)

14 Enoch,(AL) the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: “See, the Lord is coming(AM) with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones(AN) 15 to judge(AO) everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”[e](AP) 16 These people are grumblers(AQ) and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires;(AR) they boast(AS) about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.

A Call to Persevere

17 But, dear friends, remember what the apostles(AT) of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold.(AU) 18 They said to you, “In the last times(AV) there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.”(AW) 19 These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.(AX)

20 But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up(AY) in your most holy faith(AZ) and praying in the Holy Spirit,(BA) 21 keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait(BB) for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.(BC)

22 Be merciful to those who doubt; 23 save others by snatching them from the fire;(BD) to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.[f](BE)

Doxology

24 To him who is able(BF) to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence(BG) without fault(BH) and with great joy— 25 to the only God(BI) our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore!(BJ) Amen.(BK)

Footnotes

  1. Jude 1:1 Or by; or in
  2. Jude 1:4 Or individuals who were marked out for condemnation
  3. Jude 1:5 Some early manuscripts Jesus
  4. Jude 1:9 Jude is alluding to the Jewish Testament of Moses (approximately the first century a.d.).
  5. Jude 1:15 From the Jewish First Book of Enoch (approximately the first century b.c.)
  6. Jude 1:23 The Greek manuscripts of these verses vary at several points.

Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:

Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied.

Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.

For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.

And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.

Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.

Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.

10 But these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves.

11 Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.

12 These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;

13 Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.

14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,

15 To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.

16 These are murmurers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men's persons in admiration because of advantage.

17 But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;

18 How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts.

19 These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit.

20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,

21 Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

22 And of some have compassion, making a difference:

23 And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.

24 Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,

25 To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.

Greeting to the Called

Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and (A)brother of James,

To those who are (B)called, [a]sanctified by God the Father, and (C)preserved in Jesus Christ:

Mercy, (D)peace, and love be multiplied to you.

Contend for the Faith

Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you (E)concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting (F)you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord [b]God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Old and New Apostates

But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that (G)the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not keep their [c]proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day; as (H)Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the [d]vengeance of eternal fire.

(I)Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and (J)speak evil of [e]dignitaries. Yet Michael the archangel, in [f]contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, (K)“The Lord rebuke you!” 10 (L)But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves. 11 Woe to them! For they have gone in the way (M)of Cain, (N)have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished (O)in the rebellion of Korah.

Apostates Depraved and Doomed

12 These are [g]spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried [h]about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; 13 (P)raging waves of the sea, (Q)foaming up their own shame; wandering stars (R)for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever.

14 Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, 15 to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the (S)harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”

Apostates Predicted

16 These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and they (T)mouth great swelling words, (U)flattering people to gain advantage. 17 (V)But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ: 18 how they told you that (W)there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. 19 These are [i]sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit.

Maintain Your Life with God

20 But you, beloved, (X)building yourselves up on your most holy faith, (Y)praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, (Z)looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

22 And on some have compassion, [j]making a distinction; 23 but (AA)others save [k]with fear, (AB)pulling them out of the [l]fire, hating even (AC)the garment defiled by the flesh.

Glory to God

24 (AD)Now to Him who is able to keep [m]you from stumbling,
And (AE)to present you faultless
Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,
25 To [n]God our Savior,
[o]Who alone is wise,
Be glory and majesty,
Dominion and [p]power,
Both now and forever.
Amen.

Footnotes

  1. Jude 1:1 NU beloved
  2. Jude 1:4 NU omits God
  3. Jude 1:6 own
  4. Jude 1:7 punishment
  5. Jude 1:8 glorious ones, lit. glories
  6. Jude 1:9 arguing
  7. Jude 1:12 stains, or hidden reefs
  8. Jude 1:12 NU, M along
  9. Jude 1:19 soulish or worldly
  10. Jude 1:22 NU who are doubting (or making distinctions)
  11. Jude 1:23 NU omits with fear
  12. Jude 1:23 NU adds and on some have mercy with fear
  13. Jude 1:24 M them
  14. Jude 1:25 NU the only God our
  15. Jude 1:25 NU Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Be glory
  16. Jude 1:25 NU adds Before all time,