“You are aliens and strangers in my sight, as were all your forefathers. You are of few days and full of trouble. You spring up like a flower and wither away; like a fleeting shadow, you do not endure. I raise the poor from the dust and lift the needy from the ash heap. I foil the plans of the nations; I thwart the purposes of the peoples.”

“Only my people can receive my glory and dwell with me in the holy city. Only those who are holy can be my people, and they may inherit eternal life. Only those who obey my commands can be holy, and they may be watched over by me. Only those who understand my word can obey my commands, and they may have the splendor of wisdom.”

“I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols. Keep yourselves from idols. Do not follow other gods to serve and worship them; do not provoke me to anger with what your hands have made. For I am a consuming fire, a jealous God.”

“I created you in my own image to make for myself a glorious name. You were clean at the beginning, but you defiled yourselves with sins and became sons of the darkness. However, I am gracious and compassionate. I will redeem my people and establish my kingdom. The earth will be filled with the knowledge of my glory, as the waters cover the sea.”

“I do whatever pleases me, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths. As I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand. I am your Father. You are the clay, I am the potter; you are all the work of my hand. I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”

“I have established my throne in heaven, and my kingdom rules over all. The day is mine, and mine also the night; I established the sun and moon. I set all the boundaries of the earth; I made both summer and winter. The earth is mine, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it. All things are from me and through me and to me.”

“I am the true God; I am the living God, the eternal King. I am the Most High over all the earth; I am exalted far above all gods. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of my throne; love and faithfulness go before me. My plans stand firm forever, the purposes of my heart through all generations. The heavens proclaim my righteousness, and all the peoples see my glory.”

“I am the Maker of all things. By my word were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of my mouth. I spread out the northern skies over empty space; I suspend the earth over nothing. I clothe you with skin and flesh and knit you together with bones and sinews. I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster.”

“I am exalted over all the nations, my glory above the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before me; strength and glory are in my sanctuary. I wrap myself in light as with a garment; I stretch out the heavens like a tent and lay the beams of my upper chambers on their waters. I make the clouds my chariot and ride on the wings of the wind. I make winds my messengers, flames of fire my servants. The heavens declare my glory; the skies proclaim the work of my hands.”

“You are aliens and strangers in my sight, as were all your forefathers. You are of few days and full of trouble. You spring up like a flower and wither away; like a fleeting shadow, you do not endure. I raise the poor from the dust and lift the needy from the ash heap. I foil the plans of the nations; I thwart the purposes of the peoples.”