Parallel Bible results for "Hebrews 12"

Hebrews 12

The Bible in Basic English BBE

1 For this reason, as we are circled by so great a cloud of witnesses, putting off every weight, and the sin into which we come so readily, let us keep on running in the way which is marked out for us,

2 Having our eyes fixed on Jesus, the guide and end of our faith, who went through the pains of the cross, not caring for the shame, because of the joy which was before him, and who has now taken his place at the right hand of God's seat of power.

3 Give thought to him who has undergone so much of the hate of sinners against himself, so that you may not be tired and feeble of purpose.

4 Till now you have not given your blood in your fight against sin:

5 And you have not kept in mind the word which says to you as to sons, My son, do not make little of the Lord's punishment, and do not give up hope when you are judged by him;

6 For the Lord sends punishment on his loved ones; everyone whom he takes as his son has experience of his rod.

7 It is for your training that you undergo these things; God is acting to you as a father does to his sons; for what son does not have punishment from his father?

8 But if you have not that punishment of which we all have our part, then you are not true sons, but children of shame.

9 And again, if the fathers of our flesh gave us punishment and had our respect, how much more will we be under the authority of the Father of spirits, and have life?

10 For they truly gave us punishment for a short time, as it seemed good to them; but he does it for our profit, so that we may become holy as he is.

11 At the time all punishment seems to be pain and not joy: but after, those who have been trained by it get from it the peace-giving fruit of righteousness.

12 For this cause let the hands which are hanging down be lifted up, and let the feeble knees be made strong,

13 And make straight roads for your feet, so that the feeble may not be turned out of the way, but may be made strong.

14 Let your desire be for peace with all men, and to be made holy, without which no man may see the Lord;

15 Looking with care to see that no man among you in his behaviour comes short of the grace of God; for fear that some bitter root may come up to be a trouble to you, and that some of you may be made unclean by it;

16 And that there may not be any evil liver, or any man without respect for God, like Esau, who let his birthright go for a plate of food.

17 For you have knowledge that even long after, when he was desiring the blessing for his heritage, he was turned away, though he made his request frequently and with weeping; because the past might not be changed.

18 You have not come to a mountain which may be touched, and is burning with fire, and to a black cloud, and a dark smoke, and a violent wind,

19 And to the sound of a horn, and the voice of words, the hearers of which made request that not a word more might be said to them:

20 For the order which said, If the mountain is touched even by a beast, the beast is to be stoned, seemed hard to them;

21 And the vision was so overpowering that even Moses said, I am shaking and full of fear.

22 But you have come to the mountain of Zion, to the place of the living God, to the Jerusalem which is in heaven, and to an army of angels which may not be numbered,

23 To the great meeting and church of the first of those who are named in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of good men made complete,

24 And to Jesus by whom the new agreement has been made between God and man, and to the sign of the blood which says better things than Abel's blood.

25 See that you give ear to his voice which comes to you. For if those whose ears were shut to the voice which came to them on earth did not go free from punishment, what chance have we of going free if we give no attention to him whose voice comes from heaven?

26 Whose voice was the cause of the shaking of the earth; but now he has made an oath, saying, There will be still one more shaking, not only of the earth, but of heaven.

27 And the words, Still one more, make it clear that there will be a taking away of those things which are shaking, as of things which are made, so that there may be only those things of which no shaking is possible.

28 If then, we have a kingdom which will never be moved, let us have grace, so that we may give God such worship as is pleasing to him with fear and respect:

29 For our God is an all-burning fire.

Good News Translation GNT

1 As for us, we have this large crowd of witnesses around us. So then, let us rid ourselves of everything that gets in the way, and of the sin which holds on to us so tightly, and let us run with determination the race that lies before us.

2 Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross! On the contrary, because of the joy that was waiting for him, he thought nothing of the disgrace of dying on the cross, and he is now seated at the right side of God's throne.

3 Think of what he went through; how he put up with so much hatred from sinners! So do not let yourselves become discouraged and give up.

4 For in your struggle against sin you have not yet had to resist to the point of being killed.

5 Have you forgotten the encouraging words which God speaks to you as his children? "My child, pay attention when the Lord corrects you, and do not be discouraged when he rebukes you.

6 Because the Lord corrects everyone he loves, and punishes everyone he accepts as a child."

7 Endure what you suffer as being a father's punishment; your suffering shows that God is treating you as his children. Was there ever a child who was not punished by his father?

8 If you are not punished, as all his children are, it means you are not real children, but bastards.

9 In the case of our human fathers, they punished us and we respected them. How much more, then, should we submit to our spiritual Father and live!

10 Our human fathers punished us for a short time, as it seemed right to them; but God does it for our own good, so that we may share his holiness.

11 When we are punished, it seems to us at the time something to make us sad, not glad. Later, however, those who have been disciplined by such punishment reap the peaceful reward of a righteous life.

12 Lift up your tired hands, then, and strengthen your trembling knees!

13 Keep walking on straight paths, so that the lame foot may not be disabled, but instead be healed.

14 Try to be at peace with everyone, and try to live a holy life, because no one will see the Lord without it.

15 Guard against turning back from the grace of God. Let no one become like a bitter plant that grows up and causes many troubles with its poison.

16 Let no one become immoral or unspiritual like Esau, who for a single meal sold his rights as the older son.

17 Afterward, you know, he wanted to receive his father's blessing; but he was turned back, because he could not find any way to change what he had done, even though in tears he looked for it.

18 You have not come, as the people of Israel came, to what you can feel, to Mount Sinai with its blazing fire, the darkness and the gloom, the storm,

19 the blast of a trumpet, and the sound of a voice. When the people heard the voice, they begged not to hear another word,

20 because they could not bear the order which said, "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death."

21 The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling and afraid!"

22 Instead, you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, with its thousands of angels.

23 You have come to the joyful gathering of God's first-born, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, who is the judge of all people, and to the spirits of good people made perfect.

24 You have come to Jesus, who arranged the new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that promises much better things than does the blood of Abel.

25 Be careful, then, and do not refuse to hear him who speaks. Those who refused to hear the one who gave the divine message on earth did not escape. How much less shall we escape, then, if we turn away from the one who speaks from heaven!

26 His voice shook the earth at that time, but now he has promised, "I will once more shake not only the earth but heaven as well."

27 The words "once more" plainly show that the created things will be shaken and removed, so that the things that cannot be shaken will remain.

28 Let us be thankful, then, because we receive a kingdom that cannot be shaken. Let us be grateful and worship God in a way that will please him, with reverence and awe;

29 because our God is indeed a destroying fire.