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For the LORD is [absolutely] righteous, He loves righteousness (virtue, morality, justice); The upright shall see His face.

So stand firm and hold your ground, HAVING TIGHTENED THE WIDE BAND OF TRUTH (personal integrity, moral courage) AROUND YOUR WAIST and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS (an upright heart).

Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life.

The heart of the righteous thinks carefully about how to answer [in a wise and appropriate and timely way], But the [babbling] mouth of the wicked pours out malevolent things.

The LORD is far from the wicked [and distances Himself from them], But He hears the prayer of the [consistently] righteous [that is, those with spiritual integrity and moral courage]. Blessed [fortunate, prosperous, and favored by God] is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked [following their advice and example],

Nor stand in the path of sinners,

Nor sit [down to rest] in the seat of [b]scoffers (ridiculers).

But his delight is in the law of the LORD,

And on His law [His precepts and teachings] he [habitually] meditates day and night.

And he will be like a tree firmly planted [and fed] by streams of water,

Which yields its fruit in its season;

Its leaf does not wither;

And in whatever he does, he does, he prospers [and comes to maturity].

The wicked [those who live in disobedience to God’s law] are not so,

But they are like the chaff [worthless and without substance] which the wind blows away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand [unpunished] in the judgment,

Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

For the LORD knows and fully approves the way of the righteous,

But the way of the wicked shall perish.

Bless and affectionately praise the LORD, O my soul,

And all that is [deep] within me, bless His holy name.

Bless and affectionately praise the LORD, O my soul,

And do not forget any of His benefits;

Who forgives all your sins,

Who heals all your diseases;

Who redeems your life from the pit,

Who crowns you [lavishly] with lovingkindness and tender mercy;

Who satisfies your years with good things,

So that your youth is renewed like the [soaring] eagle.

We know that our old self [our human nature without the Holy Spirit] was nailed to the cross with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin.

For the person who has died [with Christ] has been freed from [the power of] sin.  

Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live [together] with Him.

For the death that He died, He died to sin [ending its power and paying the sinner’s debt] once and for all; and the life that He lives, He lives to [glorify] God [in unbroken fellowship with Him].

For even though I am absent [from you] in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, delighted to see your good discipline [as you stand shoulder to shoulder and form a solid front] and to see the stability of your faith in Christ [your steadfast reliance on Him and your unwavering confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness.

Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in [union with] Him [reflecting His character in the things you do and say—living lives that lead others away from sin],

having been deeply rooted [in Him] and now being continually built up in Him and [becoming increasingly more] established in your faith, just as you were taught, and overflowing in it with gratitude.