Wherever you die, I will die, and that is where I will be buried. May the LORD's worst punishment come upon me if I let anything but death separate me from you!"

When Naomi saw that Ruth was determined to go with her, she said nothing more.

The LORD promised my father David, 'Your son, whom I will make king after you, will build a temple for me.' And I have now decided to build that temple for the worship of the LORD my God.

I will keep my solemn promise to obey your just instructions.

Go away from me, you sinful people. I will obey the commands of my God.

When he arrived and saw how God had blessed the people, he was glad and urged them all to be faithful and true to the Lord with all their hearts.

But if a man, without being forced to do so, has firmly made up his mind not to marry, and if he has his will under complete control and has already decided in his own mind what to do---then he does well not to marry the young woman.

You should each give, then, as you have decided, not with regret or out of a sense of duty; for God loves the one who gives gladly.

I am the LORD who brought you out of Egypt so that I could be your God. You must be holy, because I am holy.

You must be careful to distinguish between what is ritually clean and unclean, between animals that may be eaten and those that may not.

You fed them the fat of your sacrifices and offered them wine to drink. Let them come and help you now; let them run to your rescue.

Then at Peor, God's people joined in the worship of Baal and ate sacrifices offered to dead gods.

Keep me from wanting to do wrong and from joining evil people in their wickedness. May I never take part in their feasts.

The LORD said, "This represents the way the Israelites will have to eat food which the Law forbids, when I scatter them to foreign countries."

But I replied, "No, Sovereign LORD! I have never defiled myself. From childhood on I have never eaten meat from any animal that died a natural death or was killed by wild animals. I have never eaten any food considered unclean."

The people of Israel will not remain in the LORD's land, but will have to go back to Egypt and will have to eat forbidden food in Assyria.

In those foreign lands they will not be able to make wine offerings to the LORD or bring their sacrifices to him. Their food will defile everyone who eats it, like food eaten at funerals. It will be used only to satisfy their hunger; none of it will be taken as an offering to the LORD's Temple.

But Peter said, "Certainly not, Lord! I have never eaten anything ritually unclean or defiled."

This happened three times, and then the thing was taken back up into heaven.

If you hurt others because of something you eat, then you are no longer acting from love. Do not let the food that you eat ruin the person for whom Christ died!

For God's Kingdom is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of the righteousness, peace, and joy which the Holy Spirit gives.

But not everyone knows this truth. Some people have been so used to idols that to this day when they eat such food they still think of it as food that belongs to an idol; their conscience is weak, and they feel they are defiled by the food.

Be careful, however, not to let your freedom of action make those who are weak in the faith fall into sin.

Consider the people of Israel; those who eat what is offered in sacrifice share in the altar's service to God.

No! What I am saying is that what is sacrificed on pagan altars is offered to demons, not to God. And I do not want you to be partners with demons.

But if someone tells you, "This food was offered to idols," then do not eat that food, for the sake of the one who told you and for conscience' sake---

If I thank God for my food, why should anyone criticize me about food for which I give thanks?"