but he answered ¹  his father, ‘Look! These many years I have worked like a slave ²  for you, and I never disobeyed your commands. Yet ³  you never gave me even a goat ⁴  so that I could celebrate with my friends!

Day after day when I was with you in the temple courts, ¹  you did not arrest me. ²  But this is your hour, ³  and that of the power ⁴  of darkness!”

Then ¹  the Lord turned and looked straight at Peter, and Peter remembered the word of the Lord, ²  how he had said to him, “Before a rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.”

Now at that very moment his disciples came back. ¹  They were shocked ²  because he was speaking ³  with a woman. However, no one said, “What do you want?” ⁴  or “Why are you speaking with her?”

Then the father realized that it was the very time ¹  Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live,” and he himself believed along with his entire household.

“I tell you the solemn truth, ¹  the one who hears ²  my message ³  and believes the one who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned, ⁴  but has crossed over from death to life.

But if I do them, even if you do not believe me, believe the deeds, ¹  so that you may come to know ²  and understand that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.”

If anyone wants to serve me, he must follow ¹  me, and where I am, my servant will be too. ²  If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

At once ¹  she collapsed at his feet and died. So when the young men came in, they found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband.

Then the Lord told him, “Get up and go to the street called ‘Straight,’ ¹  and at Judas’ house look for a man from Tarsus named Saul. For he is praying,

The crowd ¹  was listening to him until he said this. ²  Then ³  they raised their voices and shouted, ⁴  “Away with this man ⁵  from the earth! For he should not be allowed to live!” ⁶ 

Paul replied, ¹  “I am standing before Caesar’s ²  judgment seat, ³  where I should be tried. ⁴  I have done nothing wrong ⁵  to the Jews, as you also know very well. ⁶ 

through whom we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice ¹  in the hope of God’s glory.

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how we should pray, ¹  but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings.

Who is the one who will condemn? Christ ¹  is the one who died (and more than that, he was raised), who is at the right hand of God, and who also is interceding for us.

But who indeed are you – a mere human being ¹  – to talk back to God? ²  Does what is molded say to the molder, “Why have you made me like this?” ³ 

Notice therefore the kindness and harshness of God – harshness toward those who have fallen, but ¹  God’s kindness toward you, provided you continue in his kindness; ²  otherwise you also will be cut off.

And do this ¹  because we know ²  the time, that it is already the hour for us to awake from sleep, for our salvation is now nearer than when we became believers.

Therefore when I was planning to do this, I did not do so without thinking about what I was doing, did I? ¹  Or do I make my plans ²  according to mere human standards ³  so that I would be saying ⁴  both “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time?

You must let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth, but only what is beneficial for the building up of the one in need, ¹  that it may give grace to those who hear.