Grieve, mourn, and weep. Turn your laughter into mourning and your joy into despair.

Then he prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the land sprouted with a harvest.

For he gazes at himself and then goes out and immediately forgets what sort of person he was.

For where there is jealousy and selfishness, there is disorder and every evil practice.

And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Now Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.

For every kind of animal, bird, reptile, and sea creature is subdued and has been subdued by humankind.

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into this or that town and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.”

Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain and there was no rain on the land for three years and six months!

For the sun rises with its heat and dries up the meadow; the petal of the flower falls off and its beauty is lost forever. So also the rich person in the midst of his pursuits will wither away.

You desire and you do not have; you murder and envy and you cannot obtain; you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask;

Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.

You believe that God is one; well and good. Even the demons believe that – and tremble with fear.

And similarly, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another way?

Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and make your hearts pure, you double-minded.

You ought to say instead, “If the Lord is willing, then we will live and do this or that.”

Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their misfortune and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

And the tongue is a fire! The tongue represents the world of wrongdoing among the parts of our bodies. It pollutes the entire body and sets fire to the course of human existence – and is set on fire by hell.

Your gold and silver have rusted and their rust will be a witness against you. It will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have hoarded treasure!

But if anyone is deficient in wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without reprimand, and it will be given to him.

Look at ships too: Though they are so large and driven by harsh winds, they are steered by a tiny rudder wherever the pilot’s inclination directs.