Luke 9:23-27
Christian Standard Bible
Take Up Your Cross
23 Then he said to them all, “If anyone wants to follow after[a] me, let him deny himself,(A) take up his cross daily,[b] and follow me.(B) 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will save it.(C) 25 For what does it benefit someone if he gains the whole world, and yet loses or forfeits himself?(D) 26 For whoever is ashamed of me and my words,(E) the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory(F) and that of the Father and the holy angels.(G) 27 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death(H) until they see the kingdom of God.”(I)
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Job 6
Christian Standard Bible
Job’s Reply to Eliphaz
6 Then Job answered:
2 If only my grief could be weighed
and my devastation(A) placed with it on the scales.(B)
3 For then it would outweigh the sand of the seas!
That is why my words are rash.
4 Surely the arrows of the Almighty have pierced[a] me;
my spirit drinks their poison.
God’s terrors are arrayed against me.(C)
5 Does a wild donkey bray over fresh grass
or an ox low over its fodder?
6 Is bland food eaten without salt?
Is there flavor in an egg white?[b]
7 I refuse to touch them;
they are like contaminated food.(D)
8 If only my request would be granted
and God would provide what I hope for:
9 that he would decide to crush me,
to unleash his power and cut me off!
10 It would still bring me comfort,
and I would leap for joy in unrelenting pain
that I have not denied[c] the words of the Holy One.(E)
11 What strength do I have, that I should continue to hope?
What is my future, that I should be patient?
12 Is my strength that of stone,
or my flesh made of bronze?
13 Since I cannot help myself,
the hope for success has been banished from me.
14 A despairing man should receive loyalty from his friends,[d](F)
even if he abandons the fear of the Almighty.
15 My brothers are as treacherous as a wadi,
as seasonal streams that overflow
16 and become darkened[e] because of ice,
and the snow melts into them.
17 The wadis evaporate in warm weather;
they disappear from their channels in hot weather.
18 Caravans turn away from their routes,
go up into the desert, and perish.
19 The caravans of Tema look for these streams.
The traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them.
20 They are ashamed because they had been confident of finding water.
When they arrive there, they are disappointed.(G)
21 So this is what you have now become to me.[f]
When you see something dreadful, you are afraid.
22 Have I ever said, “Give me something”
or “Pay a bribe for me from your wealth”
23 or “Deliver me from the enemy’s hand”
or “Redeem me from the hand of the ruthless”?
24 Teach me, and I will be silent.
Help me understand what I did wrong.
25 How painful honest words can be!
But what does your rebuke prove?
26 Do you think that you can disprove my words
or that a despairing man’s words are mere wind?(H)
27 No doubt you would cast lots for a fatherless child
and negotiate a price to sell your friend.(I)
Romans 2:17-3:8
Christian Standard Bible
Jewish Violation of the Law
17 Now if[a] you call yourself a Jew, and rely on the law,(A) and boast in God, 18 and know his will, and approve the things that are superior,(B) being instructed from the law, 19 and if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light to those in darkness, 20 an instructor of the ignorant, a teacher of the immature, having the embodiment of knowledge and truth(C) in the law— 21 you then, who teach another,(D) don’t you teach yourself? You who preach, “You must not steal”—do you steal? 22 You who say, “You must not commit adultery”—do you commit adultery? You who detest idols, do you rob temples?(E) 23 You who boast in the law,(F) do you dishonor God by breaking the law?[b] 24 For, as it is written: The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.[c](G)
Circumcision of the Heart
25 Circumcision benefits you if you observe the law, but if you are a lawbreaker, your circumcision has become uncircumcision.(H) 26 So if an uncircumcised(I) man keeps the law’s requirements,(J) will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision? 27 A man who is physically uncircumcised, but who keeps the law, will judge you(K) who are a lawbreaker in spite of having the letter of the law and circumcision. 28 For a person is not a Jew who is one outwardly,(L) and true circumcision is not something visible in the flesh. 29 On the contrary, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly,(M) and circumcision is of the heart—by the Spirit, not the letter.[d](N) That person’s praise is not from people but from God.(O)
Paul Answers an Objection
3 So what advantage does the Jew have? Or what is the benefit of circumcision? 2 Considerable in every way. First, they were entrusted(P) with the very words of God.(Q) 3 What then? If some were unfaithful,(R) will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? 4 Absolutely not!(S) Let God be true, even though everyone is a liar,(T) as it is written:
5 But if our unrighteousness highlights[f] God’s righteousness,(V) what are we to say?(W) I am using a human argument:[g](X) Is God unrighteous to inflict wrath? 6 Absolutely not! Otherwise, how will God judge the world?(Y) 7 But if by my lie God’s truth abounds to his glory, why am I also still being judged as a sinner?(Z) 8 And why not say, just as some people slanderously claim we say, “Let us do what is evil so that good may come”?(AA) Their condemnation is deserved!
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
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