Luke 14:23 “The master said, ‘Then go to the country roads. Whoever you find, drag them in. I want my house full! Let me tell you, not one of those originally invited i...

14:23 MSG

逐節對照

The Message - “The master said, ‘Then go to the country roads. Whoever you find, drag them in. I want my house full! Let me tell you, not one of those originally invited is going to get so much as a bite at my dinner party.’”
新标点和合本 - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去到路上和篱笆那里，勉强人进来，坐满我的屋子。
和合本2010（上帝版-简体） - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去，到大街小巷强拉人进来，坐满我的屋子。
和合本2010（神版-简体） - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去，到大街小巷强拉人进来，坐满我的屋子。
当代译本 - 主人又说，‘出去到大路上、篱笆旁硬把人拉来，让我家里座无虚席。
圣经新译本 - 主人就对仆人说：‘你出去到路边篱畔，勉强人进来，好把我的屋子坐满。
中文标准译本 - “主人就对奴仆说：‘出去，到大街和小巷上去，强求人进来，好坐满我的房子。
现代标点和合本 - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去到路上和篱笆那里，勉强人进来，坐满我的屋子。
和合本（拼音版） - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去到路上和篱笆那里，勉强人进来，坐满我的屋子。
New International Version - “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full.
New International Reader's Version - “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads. Go out to the country lanes. Make the people come in. I want my house to be full.
English Standard Version - And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.
New Living Translation - So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full.
Christian Standard Bible - “Then the master told the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges and make them come in, so that my house may be filled.
New American Standard Bible - And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the roads and the hedges and press upon them to come in, so that my house will be filled.
New King James Version - Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
Amplified Bible - Then the master told the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled [with guests].
American Standard Version - And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and constrain them to come in, that my house may be filled.
King James Version - And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
New English Translation - So the master said to his slave, ‘Go out to the highways and country roads and urge people to come in, so that my house will be filled.
World English Bible - “The lord said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
新標點和合本 - 主人對僕人說：『你出去到路上和籬笆那裏，勉強人進來，坐滿我的屋子。
和合本2010（上帝版-繁體） - 主人對僕人說：『你出去，到大街小巷強拉人進來，坐滿我的屋子。
和合本2010（神版-繁體） - 主人對僕人說：『你出去，到大街小巷強拉人進來，坐滿我的屋子。
當代譯本 - 主人又說，『出去到大路上、籬笆旁硬把人拉來，讓我家裡座無虛席。
聖經新譯本 - 主人就對僕人說：‘你出去到路邊籬畔，勉強人進來，好把我的屋子坐滿。
呂振中譯本 - 主人就對那僕人說：「你出去到大路上和籬笆那裏，勉強人進來，使我的屋子都滿了人。
中文標準譯本 - 「主人就對奴僕說：『出去，到大街和小巷上去，強求人進來，好坐滿我的房子。
現代標點和合本 - 主人對僕人說：『你出去到路上和籬笆那裡，勉強人進來，坐滿我的屋子。
文理和合譯本 - 主曰、出往道路藩籬間、而強人入、俾滿我室、
文理委辦譯本 - 曰出道路藩籬、有人強之入、俾滿我坐、
施約瑟淺文理新舊約聖經 - 主人語僕曰、出往道途及藩籬間、遇人則強之入、俾滿我室、
吳經熊文理聖詠與新經全集 - 主曰：「出至大路、及藩籬之間、強人來進、務使濟濟一堂。
Nueva Versión Internacional - Entonces el señor le respondió: “Ve por los caminos y las veredas, y oblígalos a entrar para que se llene mi casa.
현대인의 성경 - 주인은 그에게 ‘너는 큰 길과 시내 변두리로 나가서 사람들을 억지로라도 데려와 내 집을 가득 채워라’ 하고 말하였다.
Новый Русский Перевод - Тогда хозяин сказал слуге: «Пройди по дорогам и вдоль изгородей и уговори всех, кого встретишь, прийти на пир, чтобы дом мой был полон гостей.
Восточный перевод - Тогда хозяин сказал рабу: «Пройди по дорогам и вдоль изгородей и уговори всех, кого встретишь, прийти на пир, чтобы дом мой был полон гостей.
Восточный перевод, версия с «Аллахом» - Тогда хозяин сказал рабу: «Пройди по дорогам и вдоль изгородей и уговори всех, кого встретишь, прийти на пир, чтобы дом мой был полон гостей.
Восточный перевод, версия для Таджикистана - Тогда хозяин сказал рабу: «Пройди по дорогам и вдоль изгородей и уговори всех, кого встретишь, прийти на пир, чтобы дом мой был полон гостей.
La Bible du Semeur 2015 - – Eh bien, lui dit le maître, va sur les chemins, le long des haies, fais en sorte que les gens viennent, pour que ma maison soit pleine.
リビングバイブル - それで、主人は言いました。『もうこうなったら、家がいっぱいになるように、街道や垣根の外へ行って、出会った者はだれでも、むりにでも連れて来なさい。
Nestle Aland 28 - καὶ εἶπεν ὁ κύριος πρὸς τὸν δοῦλον· ἔξελθε εἰς τὰς ὁδοὺς καὶ φραγμοὺς καὶ ἀνάγκασον εἰσελθεῖν, ἵνα γεμισθῇ μου ὁ οἶκος·
unfoldingWord® Greek New Testament - καὶ εἶπεν ὁ κύριος πρὸς τὸν δοῦλον, ἔξελθε εἰς τὰς ὁδοὺς καὶ φραγμοὺς, καὶ ἀνάγκασον εἰσελθεῖν, ἵνα γεμισθῇ μου ὁ οἶκος;
Nova Versão Internacional - “Então o senhor disse ao servo: ‘Vá pelos caminhos e valados e obrigue-os a entrar, para que a minha casa fique cheia.
Hoffnung für alle - ›Geh auf die Landstraßen‹, befahl der Herr, ›und wer auch immer dir über den Weg läuft, den bring her! Alle sind eingeladen. Mein Haus soll voll werden.
Kinh Thánh Hiện Đại - Chủ lại bảo đầy tớ: ‘Vào các con đường nhỏ trong làng, gặp ai mời nấy, đưa về cho đầy nhà.
พระคริสตธรรมคัมภีร์ไทย ฉบับอมตธรรมร่วมสมัย - “แล้วนายจึงบอกคนรับใช้ว่า ‘จงไปตามถนนหนทางในชนบท และระดมพวกเขามาให้เต็มบ้านของเรา
พระคัมภีร์ ฉบับแปลใหม่ - แล้วนายก็บอกคนรับใช้ว่า ‘เจ้าจงไปพาพวกคนที่อยู่ตามถนน ตรอกซอกซอยในชนบทมาที่นี่ บ้านของเราจะได้เต็ม

交叉引用

Isaiah 19:24 - On that Day, Israel will take its place alongside Egypt and Assyria, sharing the blessing from the center. God-of-the-Angel-Armies, who blessed Israel, will generously bless them all: “Blessed be Egypt, my people! . . . Blessed be Assyria, work of my hands! . . . Blessed be Israel, my heritage!”
Acts 16:15 - After she was baptized, along with everyone in her household, she said in a surge of hospitality, “If you’re confident that I’m in this with you and believe in the Master truly, come home with me and be my guests.” We hesitated, but she wouldn’t take no for an answer.
Malachi 1:11 - “I am honored all over the world. And there are people who know how to worship me all over the world, who honor me by bringing their best to me. They’re saying it everywhere: ‘God is greater, this God-of-the-Angel-Armies.’
Genesis 19:3 - But he insisted, wouldn’t take no for an answer; and they relented and went home with him. Lot fixed a hot meal for them and they ate.
1 Corinthians 9:19 - Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I’ve become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn’t just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!
Zechariah 14:8 - What a Day that will be! Fresh flowing rivers out of Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea, half to the western sea, flowing year-round, summer and winter!
Zechariah 14:9 - God will be king over all the earth, one God and only one. What a Day that will be! * * *
Acts 10:44 - No sooner were these words out of Peter’s mouth than the Holy Spirit came on the listeners. The believing Jews who had come with Peter couldn’t believe it, couldn’t believe that the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out on “outsider” non-Jews, but there it was—they heard them speaking in tongues, heard them praising God.
Acts 10:46 - Then Peter said, “Do I hear any objections to baptizing these friends with water? They’ve received the Holy Spirit exactly as we did.” Hearing no objections, he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay on for a few days.
2 Corinthians 6:1 - Companions as we are in this work with you, we beg you, please don’t squander one bit of this marvelous life God has given us. God reminds us, I heard your call in the nick of time; The day you needed me, I was there to help. Well, now is the right time to listen, the day to be helped. Don’t put it off; don’t frustrate God’s work by showing up late, throwing a question mark over everything we’re doing. Our work as God’s servants gets validated—or not—in the details. People are watching us as we stay at our post, alertly, unswervingly . . . in hard times, tough times, bad times; when we’re beaten up, jailed, and mobbed; working hard, working late, working without eating; with pure heart, clear head, steady hand; in gentleness, holiness, and honest love; when we’re telling the truth, and when God’s showing his power; when we’re doing our best setting things right; when we’re praised, and when we’re blamed; slandered, and honored; true to our word, though distrusted; ignored by the world, but recognized by God; terrifically alive, though rumored to be dead; beaten within an inch of our lives, but refusing to die; immersed in tears, yet always filled with deep joy; living on handouts, yet enriching many; having nothing, having it all.
Acts 22:21 - “But he said, ‘Don’t argue. Go. I’m sending you on a long journey to outsider non-Jews.’”
Acts 22:22 - The people in the crowd had listened attentively up to this point, but now they broke loose, shouting out, “Kill him! He’s an insect! Stomp on him!” They shook their fists. They filled the air with curses. That’s when the captain intervened and ordered Paul taken into the barracks. By now the captain was thoroughly exasperated. He decided to interrogate Paul under torture in order to get to the bottom of this, to find out what he had done that provoked this outraged violence. As they spread-eagled him with strips of leather, getting him ready for the whip, Paul said to the centurion standing there, “Is this legal: torturing a Roman citizen without a fair trial?”
Acts 26:19 - “What could I do, King Agrippa? I couldn’t just walk away from a vision like that! I became an obedient believer on the spot. I started preaching this life-change—this radical turn to God and everything it meant in everyday life—right there in Damascus, went on to Jerusalem and the surrounding countryside, and from there to the whole world.
Acts 9:15 - But the Master said, “Don’t argue. Go! I have picked him as my personal representative to non-Jews and kings and Jews. And now I’m about to show him what he’s in for—the hard suffering that goes with this job.”
Romans 11:13 - But I don’t want to go on about them. It’s you, the outsiders, that I’m concerned with now. Because my personal assignment is focused on the so-called outsiders, I make as much of this as I can when I’m among my Israelite kin, the so-called insiders, hoping they’ll realize what they’re missing and want to get in on what God is doing. If their falling out initiated this worldwide coming together, their recovery is going to set off something even better: mass homecoming! If the first thing the Jews did, even though it was wrong for them, turned out for your good, just think what’s going to happen when they get it right!
Acts 11:18 - Hearing it all laid out like that, they quieted down. And then, as it sank in, they started praising God. “It’s really happened! God has broken through to the other nations, opened them up to Life!”
Acts 11:19 - Those who had been scattered by the persecution triggered by Stephen’s death traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, but they were still only speaking and dealing with their fellow Jews. Then some of the men from Cyprus and Cyrene who had come to Antioch started talking to Greeks, giving them the Message of the Master Jesus. God was pleased with what they were doing and put his stamp of approval on it—quite a number of the Greeks believed and turned to the Master.
Romans 10:18 - But haven’t there been plenty of opportunities for Israel to listen and understand what’s going on? Plenty, I’d say. Preachers’ voices have gone ’round the world, Their message to earth’s seven seas. So the big question is, Why didn’t Israel understand that she had no corner on this message? Moses had it right when he predicted, When you see God reach out to those you consider your inferiors—outsiders!— you’ll become insanely jealous. When you see God reach out to people you think are religiously stupid, you’ll throw temper tantrums. Isaiah dared to speak out these words of God: People found and welcomed me who never so much as looked for me. And I found and welcomed people who had never even asked about me. Then he capped it with a damning indictment: Day after day after day, I beckoned Israel with open arms, And got nothing for my trouble but cold shoulders and icy stares.
Isaiah 49:5 - “And now,” God says, this God who took me in hand from the moment of birth to be his servant, To bring Jacob back home to him, to set a reunion for Israel— What an honor for me in God’s eyes! That God should be my strength! He says, “But that’s not a big enough job for my servant— just to recover the tribes of Jacob, merely to round up the strays of Israel. I’m setting you up as a light for the nations so that my salvation becomes global!”
Isaiah 11:10 - On that day, Jesse’s Root will be raised high, posted as a rallying banner for the peoples. The nations will all come to him. His headquarters will be glorious.
Ephesians 2:11 - But don’t take any of this for granted. It was only yesterday that you outsiders to God’s ways had no idea of any of this, didn’t know the first thing about the way God works, hadn’t the faintest idea of Christ. You knew nothing of that rich history of God’s covenants and promises in Israel, hadn’t a clue about what God was doing in the world at large. Now because of Christ—dying that death, shedding that blood—you who were once out of it altogether are in on everything.
Ephesians 2:14 - The Messiah has made things up between us so that we’re now together on this, both non-Jewish outsiders and Jewish insiders. He tore down the wall we used to keep each other at a distance. He repealed the law code that had become so clogged with fine print and footnotes that it hindered more than it helped. Then he started over. Instead of continuing with two groups of people separated by centuries of animosity and suspicion, he created a new kind of human being, a fresh start for everybody.
Ephesians 2:16 - Christ brought us together through his death on the cross. The Cross got us to embrace, and that was the end of the hostility. Christ came and preached peace to you outsiders and peace to us insiders. He treated us as equals, and so made us equals. Through him we both share the same Spirit and have equal access to the Father.
Ephesians 2:19 - That’s plain enough, isn’t it? You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home.
Psalms 98:3 - He remembered to love us, a bonus To his dear family, Israel—indefatigable love. The whole earth comes to attention. Look—God’s work of salvation!
Acts 28:28 - “You’ve had your chance. The non-Jewish outsiders are next on the list. And believe me, they’re going to receive it with open arms!”
2 Corinthians 5:11 - That keeps us vigilant, you can be sure. It’s no light thing to know that we’ll all one day stand in that place of Judgment. That’s why we work urgently with everyone we meet to get them ready to face God. God alone knows how well we do this, but I hope you realize how much and deeply we care. We’re not saying this to make ourselves look good to you. We just thought it would make you feel good, proud even, that we’re on your side and not just nice to your face as so many people are. If I acted crazy, I did it for God; if I acted overly serious, I did it for you. Christ’s love has moved me to such extremes. His love has the first and last word in everything we do.
Acts 13:48 - When the non-Jewish outsiders heard this, they could hardly believe their good fortune. All who were marked out for real life put their trust in God—they honored God’s Word by receiving that life. And this Message of salvation spread like wildfire all through the region.

逐節對照

交叉引用

The Message - “The master said, ‘Then go to the country roads. Whoever you find, drag them in. I want my house full! Let me tell you, not one of those originally invited is going to get so much as a bite at my dinner party.’”
新标点和合本 - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去到路上和篱笆那里，勉强人进来，坐满我的屋子。
和合本2010（上帝版-简体） - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去，到大街小巷强拉人进来，坐满我的屋子。
和合本2010（神版-简体） - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去，到大街小巷强拉人进来，坐满我的屋子。
当代译本 - 主人又说，‘出去到大路上、篱笆旁硬把人拉来，让我家里座无虚席。
圣经新译本 - 主人就对仆人说：‘你出去到路边篱畔，勉强人进来，好把我的屋子坐满。
中文标准译本 - “主人就对奴仆说：‘出去，到大街和小巷上去，强求人进来，好坐满我的房子。
现代标点和合本 - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去到路上和篱笆那里，勉强人进来，坐满我的屋子。
和合本（拼音版） - 主人对仆人说：‘你出去到路上和篱笆那里，勉强人进来，坐满我的屋子。
New International Version - “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full.
New International Reader's Version - “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads. Go out to the country lanes. Make the people come in. I want my house to be full.
English Standard Version - And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.
New Living Translation - So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full.
Christian Standard Bible - “Then the master told the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges and make them come in, so that my house may be filled.
New American Standard Bible - And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the roads and the hedges and press upon them to come in, so that my house will be filled.
New King James Version - Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
Amplified Bible - Then the master told the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled [with guests].
American Standard Version - And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and constrain them to come in, that my house may be filled.
King James Version - And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
New English Translation - So the master said to his slave, ‘Go out to the highways and country roads and urge people to come in, so that my house will be filled.
World English Bible - “The lord said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
新標點和合本 - 主人對僕人說：『你出去到路上和籬笆那裏，勉強人進來，坐滿我的屋子。
和合本2010（上帝版-繁體） - 主人對僕人說：『你出去，到大街小巷強拉人進來，坐滿我的屋子。
和合本2010（神版-繁體） - 主人對僕人說：『你出去，到大街小巷強拉人進來，坐滿我的屋子。
當代譯本 - 主人又說，『出去到大路上、籬笆旁硬把人拉來，讓我家裡座無虛席。
聖經新譯本 - 主人就對僕人說：‘你出去到路邊籬畔，勉強人進來，好把我的屋子坐滿。
呂振中譯本 - 主人就對那僕人說：「你出去到大路上和籬笆那裏，勉強人進來，使我的屋子都滿了人。
中文標準譯本 - 「主人就對奴僕說：『出去，到大街和小巷上去，強求人進來，好坐滿我的房子。
現代標點和合本 - 主人對僕人說：『你出去到路上和籬笆那裡，勉強人進來，坐滿我的屋子。
文理和合譯本 - 主曰、出往道路藩籬間、而強人入、俾滿我室、
文理委辦譯本 - 曰出道路藩籬、有人強之入、俾滿我坐、
施約瑟淺文理新舊約聖經 - 主人語僕曰、出往道途及藩籬間、遇人則強之入、俾滿我室、
吳經熊文理聖詠與新經全集 - 主曰：「出至大路、及藩籬之間、強人來進、務使濟濟一堂。
Nueva Versión Internacional - Entonces el señor le respondió: “Ve por los caminos y las veredas, y oblígalos a entrar para que se llene mi casa.
현대인의 성경 - 주인은 그에게 ‘너는 큰 길과 시내 변두리로 나가서 사람들을 억지로라도 데려와 내 집을 가득 채워라’ 하고 말하였다.
Новый Русский Перевод - Тогда хозяин сказал слуге: «Пройди по дорогам и вдоль изгородей и уговори всех, кого встретишь, прийти на пир, чтобы дом мой был полон гостей.
Восточный перевод - Тогда хозяин сказал рабу: «Пройди по дорогам и вдоль изгородей и уговори всех, кого встретишь, прийти на пир, чтобы дом мой был полон гостей.
Восточный перевод, версия с «Аллахом» - Тогда хозяин сказал рабу: «Пройди по дорогам и вдоль изгородей и уговори всех, кого встретишь, прийти на пир, чтобы дом мой был полон гостей.
Восточный перевод, версия для Таджикистана - Тогда хозяин сказал рабу: «Пройди по дорогам и вдоль изгородей и уговори всех, кого встретишь, прийти на пир, чтобы дом мой был полон гостей.
La Bible du Semeur 2015 - – Eh bien, lui dit le maître, va sur les chemins, le long des haies, fais en sorte que les gens viennent, pour que ma maison soit pleine.
リビングバイブル - それで、主人は言いました。『もうこうなったら、家がいっぱいになるように、街道や垣根の外へ行って、出会った者はだれでも、むりにでも連れて来なさい。
Nestle Aland 28 - καὶ εἶπεν ὁ κύριος πρὸς τὸν δοῦλον· ἔξελθε εἰς τὰς ὁδοὺς καὶ φραγμοὺς καὶ ἀνάγκασον εἰσελθεῖν, ἵνα γεμισθῇ μου ὁ οἶκος·
unfoldingWord® Greek New Testament - καὶ εἶπεν ὁ κύριος πρὸς τὸν δοῦλον, ἔξελθε εἰς τὰς ὁδοὺς καὶ φραγμοὺς, καὶ ἀνάγκασον εἰσελθεῖν, ἵνα γεμισθῇ μου ὁ οἶκος;
Nova Versão Internacional - “Então o senhor disse ao servo: ‘Vá pelos caminhos e valados e obrigue-os a entrar, para que a minha casa fique cheia.
Hoffnung für alle - ›Geh auf die Landstraßen‹, befahl der Herr, ›und wer auch immer dir über den Weg läuft, den bring her! Alle sind eingeladen. Mein Haus soll voll werden.
Kinh Thánh Hiện Đại - Chủ lại bảo đầy tớ: ‘Vào các con đường nhỏ trong làng, gặp ai mời nấy, đưa về cho đầy nhà.
พระคริสตธรรมคัมภีร์ไทย ฉบับอมตธรรมร่วมสมัย - “แล้วนายจึงบอกคนรับใช้ว่า ‘จงไปตามถนนหนทางในชนบท และระดมพวกเขามาให้เต็มบ้านของเรา
พระคัมภีร์ ฉบับแปลใหม่ - แล้วนายก็บอกคนรับใช้ว่า ‘เจ้าจงไปพาพวกคนที่อยู่ตามถนน ตรอกซอกซอยในชนบทมาที่นี่ บ้านของเราจะได้เต็ม

Isaiah 19:24 - On that Day, Israel will take its place alongside Egypt and Assyria, sharing the blessing from the center. God-of-the-Angel-Armies, who blessed Israel, will generously bless them all: “Blessed be Egypt, my people! . . . Blessed be Assyria, work of my hands! . . . Blessed be Israel, my heritage!”
Acts 16:15 - After she was baptized, along with everyone in her household, she said in a surge of hospitality, “If you’re confident that I’m in this with you and believe in the Master truly, come home with me and be my guests.” We hesitated, but she wouldn’t take no for an answer.
Malachi 1:11 - “I am honored all over the world. And there are people who know how to worship me all over the world, who honor me by bringing their best to me. They’re saying it everywhere: ‘God is greater, this God-of-the-Angel-Armies.’
Genesis 19:3 - But he insisted, wouldn’t take no for an answer; and they relented and went home with him. Lot fixed a hot meal for them and they ate.
1 Corinthians 9:19 - Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I’ve become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn’t just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!
Zechariah 14:8 - What a Day that will be! Fresh flowing rivers out of Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea, half to the western sea, flowing year-round, summer and winter!
Zechariah 14:9 - God will be king over all the earth, one God and only one. What a Day that will be! * * *
Acts 10:44 - No sooner were these words out of Peter’s mouth than the Holy Spirit came on the listeners. The believing Jews who had come with Peter couldn’t believe it, couldn’t believe that the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out on “outsider” non-Jews, but there it was—they heard them speaking in tongues, heard them praising God.
Acts 10:46 - Then Peter said, “Do I hear any objections to baptizing these friends with water? They’ve received the Holy Spirit exactly as we did.” Hearing no objections, he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay on for a few days.
2 Corinthians 6:1 - Companions as we are in this work with you, we beg you, please don’t squander one bit of this marvelous life God has given us. God reminds us, I heard your call in the nick of time; The day you needed me, I was there to help. Well, now is the right time to listen, the day to be helped. Don’t put it off; don’t frustrate God’s work by showing up late, throwing a question mark over everything we’re doing. Our work as God’s servants gets validated—or not—in the details. People are watching us as we stay at our post, alertly, unswervingly . . . in hard times, tough times, bad times; when we’re beaten up, jailed, and mobbed; working hard, working late, working without eating; with pure heart, clear head, steady hand; in gentleness, holiness, and honest love; when we’re telling the truth, and when God’s showing his power; when we’re doing our best setting things right; when we’re praised, and when we’re blamed; slandered, and honored; true to our word, though distrusted; ignored by the world, but recognized by God; terrifically alive, though rumored to be dead; beaten within an inch of our lives, but refusing to die; immersed in tears, yet always filled with deep joy; living on handouts, yet enriching many; having nothing, having it all.
Acts 22:21 - “But he said, ‘Don’t argue. Go. I’m sending you on a long journey to outsider non-Jews.’”
Acts 22:22 - The people in the crowd had listened attentively up to this point, but now they broke loose, shouting out, “Kill him! He’s an insect! Stomp on him!” They shook their fists. They filled the air with curses. That’s when the captain intervened and ordered Paul taken into the barracks. By now the captain was thoroughly exasperated. He decided to interrogate Paul under torture in order to get to the bottom of this, to find out what he had done that provoked this outraged violence. As they spread-eagled him with strips of leather, getting him ready for the whip, Paul said to the centurion standing there, “Is this legal: torturing a Roman citizen without a fair trial?”
Acts 26:19 - “What could I do, King Agrippa? I couldn’t just walk away from a vision like that! I became an obedient believer on the spot. I started preaching this life-change—this radical turn to God and everything it meant in everyday life—right there in Damascus, went on to Jerusalem and the surrounding countryside, and from there to the whole world.
Acts 9:15 - But the Master said, “Don’t argue. Go! I have picked him as my personal representative to non-Jews and kings and Jews. And now I’m about to show him what he’s in for—the hard suffering that goes with this job.”
Romans 11:13 - But I don’t want to go on about them. It’s you, the outsiders, that I’m concerned with now. Because my personal assignment is focused on the so-called outsiders, I make as much of this as I can when I’m among my Israelite kin, the so-called insiders, hoping they’ll realize what they’re missing and want to get in on what God is doing. If their falling out initiated this worldwide coming together, their recovery is going to set off something even better: mass homecoming! If the first thing the Jews did, even though it was wrong for them, turned out for your good, just think what’s going to happen when they get it right!
Acts 11:18 - Hearing it all laid out like that, they quieted down. And then, as it sank in, they started praising God. “It’s really happened! God has broken through to the other nations, opened them up to Life!”
Acts 11:19 - Those who had been scattered by the persecution triggered by Stephen’s death traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, but they were still only speaking and dealing with their fellow Jews. Then some of the men from Cyprus and Cyrene who had come to Antioch started talking to Greeks, giving them the Message of the Master Jesus. God was pleased with what they were doing and put his stamp of approval on it—quite a number of the Greeks believed and turned to the Master.
Romans 10:18 - But haven’t there been plenty of opportunities for Israel to listen and understand what’s going on? Plenty, I’d say. Preachers’ voices have gone ’round the world, Their message to earth’s seven seas. So the big question is, Why didn’t Israel understand that she had no corner on this message? Moses had it right when he predicted, When you see God reach out to those you consider your inferiors—outsiders!— you’ll become insanely jealous. When you see God reach out to people you think are religiously stupid, you’ll throw temper tantrums. Isaiah dared to speak out these words of God: People found and welcomed me who never so much as looked for me. And I found and welcomed people who had never even asked about me. Then he capped it with a damning indictment: Day after day after day, I beckoned Israel with open arms, And got nothing for my trouble but cold shoulders and icy stares.
Isaiah 49:5 - “And now,” God says, this God who took me in hand from the moment of birth to be his servant, To bring Jacob back home to him, to set a reunion for Israel— What an honor for me in God’s eyes! That God should be my strength! He says, “But that’s not a big enough job for my servant— just to recover the tribes of Jacob, merely to round up the strays of Israel. I’m setting you up as a light for the nations so that my salvation becomes global!”
Isaiah 11:10 - On that day, Jesse’s Root will be raised high, posted as a rallying banner for the peoples. The nations will all come to him. His headquarters will be glorious.
Ephesians 2:11 - But don’t take any of this for granted. It was only yesterday that you outsiders to God’s ways had no idea of any of this, didn’t know the first thing about the way God works, hadn’t the faintest idea of Christ. You knew nothing of that rich history of God’s covenants and promises in Israel, hadn’t a clue about what God was doing in the world at large. Now because of Christ—dying that death, shedding that blood—you who were once out of it altogether are in on everything.
Ephesians 2:14 - The Messiah has made things up between us so that we’re now together on this, both non-Jewish outsiders and Jewish insiders. He tore down the wall we used to keep each other at a distance. He repealed the law code that had become so clogged with fine print and footnotes that it hindered more than it helped. Then he started over. Instead of continuing with two groups of people separated by centuries of animosity and suspicion, he created a new kind of human being, a fresh start for everybody.
Ephesians 2:16 - Christ brought us together through his death on the cross. The Cross got us to embrace, and that was the end of the hostility. Christ came and preached peace to you outsiders and peace to us insiders. He treated us as equals, and so made us equals. Through him we both share the same Spirit and have equal access to the Father.
Ephesians 2:19 - That’s plain enough, isn’t it? You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You’re no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home.
Psalms 98:3 - He remembered to love us, a bonus To his dear family, Israel—indefatigable love. The whole earth comes to attention. Look—God’s work of salvation!
Acts 28:28 - “You’ve had your chance. The non-Jewish outsiders are next on the list. And believe me, they’re going to receive it with open arms!”
2 Corinthians 5:11 - That keeps us vigilant, you can be sure. It’s no light thing to know that we’ll all one day stand in that place of Judgment. That’s why we work urgently with everyone we meet to get them ready to face God. God alone knows how well we do this, but I hope you realize how much and deeply we care. We’re not saying this to make ourselves look good to you. We just thought it would make you feel good, proud even, that we’re on your side and not just nice to your face as so many people are. If I acted crazy, I did it for God; if I acted overly serious, I did it for you. Christ’s love has moved me to such extremes. His love has the first and last word in everything we do.
Acts 13:48 - When the non-Jewish outsiders heard this, they could hardly believe their good fortune. All who were marked out for real life put their trust in God—they honored God’s Word by receiving that life. And this Message of salvation spread like wildfire all through the region.