My Soul Waits for God Alone
To the choirmaster: according to xJeduthun. A Psalm of David.
1 For God alone ymy soul zwaits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2 aHe alone is my rock and my salvation,
3 How long will all of you attack a man
to batter him,
like da leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4 They only plan to thrust him down from his ehigh position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
fThey bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse. Selah
5 For God alone, O ymy soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 aHe only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my gsalvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, hmy refuge is God.
8 iTrust in him at all times, O people;
jpour out your heart before him;
God is ha refuge for us. Selah
9 kThose of low estate are but a breath;
those of high estate lare a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
kthey are together lighter than a breath.
10 Put no trust in extortion;
mset no vain hopes on robbery;
nif riches increase, set not your heart on them.
11 oOnce God has spoken;
otwice have I heard this:
that ppower belongs to God,
12 and that to you, O Lord, qbelongs steadfast love.
For you will rrender to a man
according to his work.
A Life Pleasing to God
1 Finally, then, brothers,1 we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you dreceived from us ehow you ought to walk and fto please God, just as you are doing, that you gdo so more and more. 2 For hyou know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God, iyour sanctification:2 jthat you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each one of you know how to control his own kbody3 in holiness and lhonor, 5 not in mthe passion of lust nlike the Gentiles owho do not know God; 6 that no one transgress and pwrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is qan avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. 7 For rGod has not called us for simpurity, but in holiness. 8 Therefore twhoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, uwho gives his Holy Spirit to you.
9 Now concerning vbrotherly love wyou have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been xtaught by God yto love one another, 10 for that indeed is what zyou are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to ado this more and more, 11 and to aspire bto live quietly, and cto mind your own affairs, and dto work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may ewalk properly before foutsiders and be dependent on no one.
The Coming of the Lord
13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, gthat you may not grieve as others do hwho have no hope. 14 For isince we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him jthose who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you kby a word from the Lord,4 that lwe who are alive, who are left until mthe coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For nthe Lord himself will descend ofrom heaven pwith a cry of command, with the voice of qan archangel, and rwith the sound of the trumpet of God. And sthe dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be tcaught up together with them uin the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so vwe will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
