Finally the crown of righteousness is reserved for me. The Lord, the righteous Judge, will award it to me in that day – and not to me only, but also to all who have set their affection on ¹  his appearing.

So confess your sins to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great effectiveness. ¹ 

(My little children, ¹  I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. ² ) But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate ³  with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous One, ⁴ 

not like Cain ¹  who was of the evil one and brutally ²  murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his deeds were evil, but his brother’s were righteous.

Far be it from you to do such a thing – to kill the godly with the wicked, treating the godly and the wicked alike! Far be it from you! Will not the judge ¹  of the whole earth do what is right?” ² 

Here is ¹  another ²  enigma ³  that occurs on earth: Sometimes there are righteous people who get what the wicked deserve, ⁴  and sometimes there are wicked people who get what the righteous deserve. ⁵  I said, “This also is an enigma.”

This is the account of Noah. ¹  Noah was a godly man; he was blameless ²  among his contemporaries. ³  He ⁴  walked with ⁵  God.

Keep your distance ¹  from a false charge ²  – do not kill the innocent and the righteous, ³  for I will not justify the wicked. ⁴ 

He said to David, “You are more innocent ¹  than I, for you have treated me well, even though I have tried to harm you!

מ (Mem) But it happened ¹  due to the sins of her prophets ²  and the iniquities of her priests, who poured out in her midst the blood of the righteous.

and follows my statutes and observes my regulations by carrying them out. ¹  That man ²  is righteous; he will certainly live, ³  declares the sovereign Lord.

Look, the one whose desires are not upright will faint from exhaustion, ¹  but the person of integrity ²  will live ³  because of his faithfulness. ⁴ 

It will be this way at the end of the age. Angels will come and separate the evil from the righteous

I have ¹  a hope in God (a hope ²  that ³  these men ⁴  themselves accept too) that there is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁵ 

For the righteousness ¹  of God is revealed in the gospel ²  from faith to faith, ³  just as it is written, “The righteous by faith will live.” ⁴ 

This is evidence of God’s righteous judgment, to make you worthy ¹  of the kingdom of God, for which in fact you are suffering.

and congregation of the firstborn, who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous, who have been made perfect,

Now ¹  I heard the angel of the waters saying: “You are just ²  – the one who is and who was, the Holy One – because you have passed these judgments, ³ 

She was permitted to be dressed in bright, clean, fine linen” ¹  (for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints). ² 

Now take your positions, so I may confront you ¹  before the Lord regarding all the Lord’s just actions toward you and your ancestors. ²