He who searches the hearts knows what is on the Spirit’s mind, because he makes intercession for the saints according to God.
Parallel Translations
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He who searches the hearts knows what is on the Spirit’s mind, because he makes intercession for the saints according to God.
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And he that searcheth the hertes knoweth what is the meaninge of the sprite: for he maketh intercession for the sayntes accordinge to the pleasure of god.
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But he that searcheth the heartes, knoweth what is the meaning of the Spirit: for he maketh request for ye Saints, according to the wil of God.
Cross-references (27)
Passages linked to Romans 8:27 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Jeremiah 17:10 “I, Yahweh, search the mind. I try the heart, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.”
- 1 John 5:14-15 This is the boldness which we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he listens to us. And if we know that he listens to us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions which we have asked of him.
- Ephesians 2:18 For through him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.
- Acts 1:24 They prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two you have chosen
- Romans 8:34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, yes rather, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.
- 1 Chronicles 28:9 You, Solomon my son, know the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind; for Yahweh searches all hearts, and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.
- Psalms 44:21 won’t God search this out? For he knows the secrets of the heart.
- 1 John 3:21-22 Beloved, if our hearts don’t condemn us, we have boldness toward God; so whatever we ask, we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing in his sight.
- Proverbs 17:3 The refining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold, but Yahweh tests the hearts.
- Jeremiah 11:20 But, Yahweh of Armies, who judges righteously, who tests the heart and the mind, I will see your vengeance on them; for to you I have revealed my cause.
- Acts 15:8 God, who knows the heart, testified about them, giving them the Holy Spirit, just like he did to us.
- 1 Thessalonians 2:4 But even as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News, so we speak: not as pleasing men, but God, who tests our hearts.
- Jeremiah 20:12 But Yahweh of Armies, who tests the righteous, who sees the heart and the mind, let me see your vengeance on them, for I have revealed my cause to you.
- Matthew 6:8 Therefore don’t be like them, for your Father knows what things you need, before you ask him.
- John 14:13 Whatever you will ask in my name, I will do it, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
- Revelation 2:23 I will kill her children with Death, and all the assemblies will know that I am he who searches the minds and hearts. I will give to each one of you according to your deeds.
- Psalms 7:9 Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous; their minds and hearts are searched by the righteous God.
- Luke 16:15 He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts. For that which is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
- Hebrews 4:13 There is no creature that is hidden from his sight, but all things are naked and laid open before the eyes of him to whom we must give an account.
- 1 Chronicles 29:17 I know also, my God, that you try the heart, and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things. Now I have seen with joy your people, who are present here, offer willingly to you.
- Psalms 38:9 Lord, all my desire is before you. My groaning is not hidden from you.
- Psalms 66:18-19 If I cherished sin in my heart, the Lord wouldn’t have listened. But most certainly, God has listened. He has heard the voice of my prayer.
- Jeremiah 29:12-13 You shall call on me, and you shall go and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You shall seek me, and find me, when you search for me with all your heart.
- James 5:16 Confess your offenses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The insistent prayer of a righteous person is powerfully effective.
- James 1:5-6 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, without any doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven by the wind and tossed.
- John 21:17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you have affection for me?” Peter was grieved because he asked him the third time, “Do you have affection for me?” He said to him, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I have affection for you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.
- Romans 8:6 For the mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace;
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (16 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 27. But he who searches hearts, etc. This is…
27. But he who searches hearts, etc. This is a remarkable reason for strengthening our confidence, that we are heard by God when we pray through his Spirit, for he thoroughly knows our desires, even as the thoughts of his own Spirit. And here must be noticed the suitableness of the word to know; for it intimates that God regards not these emotions of the Spirit as new and strange, or that he rejects them as unreasonable, but that he allows them, and at the same time kindly accepts them, as allowed and approved by him. As then Paul had before testified, that God then aids us when he draws us as it were into his own bosom, so now he adds another consolation, that our prayers, of which he is the director, shall by no means be disappointed. The reason also is immediately added, because he thus conforms us to his own will. It hence follows, that in vain can never be what is agreeable to his will, by which all things are ruled. Let us also hence learn, that what holds the first place in prayer is consent with the will of the Lord, whom our wishes do by no means hold under obligation. If then we would have our prayers to be acceptable to God, we must pray that he may regulate them according to his will.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Because he teacheth the godly to pray according to…
Because he teacheth the godly to pray according to God’s will.
What sobs and sighs proceed from the instinct of his Spirit.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what…
27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
Ver. 27. Knoweth the mind, &c.] Quomodo enim non exauditur spiritus a patre, qui exaudit cum patre? (Augustine.)
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain He that searcheth the hearts; this phrase is a…
He that searcheth the hearts; this phrase is a periphrasis of God, and is spoken of him after the manner of men. God doth not properly search or inquire into any thing; but because amongst men knowledge comes by searching, therefore, by way of resemblance, this is attributed to God, though that which is intended by it is only this, that God knoweth the heart, Jer 17:10; Act 1:24.
Knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, both with the knowledge of apprehension and approbation.
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Maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God: our prayers shall be sure to speed, if they are of this sort, 1Jo 5:14,15. Praying according to the will of God, respects;
1. The matter of our prayers.
2. The manner of our praying.
3. The end thereof, Jam 4:3.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain Observe here, 1. The title or attribute given and…
Observe here, 1. The title or attribute given and appropriated unto God: He searcheth, or knoweth, the heart. He was the maker of the heart, and is the disposer of the heart, and will judge every man according to his heart; and therefore he must know the heart thoroughly and perfectly, certainly and infallibly; and it is the joy of an upright person, that God knoweth and searcheth the heart.
When the world condemns him for insincerity, he rejoiceth that God knoweth his integrity; and when he has it in the purpose of his heart to do good, but wants power in his hand to accomplish and effect it, this is his consolation, That God accepts as done, what he did desire and resolve to do, 2Ch 6:8.
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Observe, 2. The action here attributed to the heart-searching God: he knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit; that is, he knoweth the workings of the Holy Spirit, and of our own spirits also, in the duty of prayer. It is a great comfort to the children of God, that the Lord knoweth what is the mind of our spirits in that matter. God doth not only hear his people’s prayers, but he hears their desires: and grants not only the desires of our lips, but the desires of our hearts, which have not been expressed by our lips.
Observe, 3. Who the persons are whom the Holy Spirit intercedes for in prayer: they are saints, He maketh intercession for the saints; for them exlusively, and none but them; for them inclusively, for all and everyone of them: the Spirit sanctifies all those in whom and for whom he intercedes: he is first a spirit of regeneration, before he is a spirit of intercession; he first puts gracious dispositions into us, and then stirs up holy desires in us.
Observe, 4. The qualification necessary to render our prayers acceptable to God, they must be according to God; that is, according to the will and mind of God.
And that, 1. In respect of the matter of them: we must pray only for things lawful and warrantable.
2. In regard of the manner of them: we must pray in faith, with fervency, and in the name of Christ.
3. In respect of the end of them, and what we propound to ourselves in them; which is, the glory of God.
Notwithstanding Christ’s mediation, and the Spirit’s intercession, we may ask, and not receive, if we ask amiss; that is, for bad ends, that we may consume it upon our lusts.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And he that searcheth the hearts,.... This is peculiar…
And he that searcheth the hearts,.... This is peculiar to God, and a "periphrasis" of him; angels, neither good nor bad, can search into the hearts of men; one man cannot know the heart of another, nor any man fully know his own; this is the prerogative of God: and
he knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit; not the spirit of men, but of God: that affectionate desire and meaning of the Spirit of God, in the unalterable groans of the saints; he knows the wise meaning there is in them, for so may signify, and is opposed to the carnal mind, or wisdom of the flesh, which desires foolish things. The searcher of hearts knows this, not barely by his omniscience, but he regards it, approves of it, attends, and gives an answer to it; which is no small encouragement to pray, though it be but with sighs and groans unutterable; since the omniscient God understands, and respects such kind of prayer: and the reason is,
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because he, the Spirit of God,
maketh intercession for the saints, according to the will of God; the persons for whom he intercedes are saints: to whom Christ is made sanctification; who are called to be saints; are sanctified by the Spirit of God, and walk after him: now such are the objects of God's delight, they are chosen by him, preserved in Christ, and have his righteousness imputed to them; to these he has made known his Gospel, has given his grace, and will at last the inheritance; so that intercession made for such will certainly be regarded: it may be rendered, "he maketh intercession for holy things according to God"; for spiritual blessings, divine favours, things that belong to God; or divine things, which are agreeably to his nature and will: and since it is the Holy Spirit that makes intercession, and the persons are holy for whom he makes it, and this is made for holy things, and all according to the will of God, which the Spirit of God must fully know, saints may be confident of the prevalence and success of such intercession.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain But he who searcheth the hearts - Wherein the…
But he who searcheth the hearts - Wherein the Spirit dwells and intercedes. Knoweth - Though man cannot utter it. What is the mind of the Spirit, for he maketh intercession for the saints - Who are near to God. According to God - According to his will, as is worthy of God. and acceptable to him.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 27. He maketh intercession for the saints] The…
Verse 27. He maketh intercession for the saints] The word εντυγχανω signifies to apply one's self to a person in behalf of another; to intercede or negotiate for. Our Lord makes intercession for us, by negotiating and managing, as our friend and agent, all the affairs pertaining to our salvation. And the Spirit of God makes intercession for the saints, not by supplication to God on their behalf, but by directing and qualifying their supplications in a proper manner, by his agency and influence upon their hearts; which, according to the Gospel scheme, is the peculiar work and office of the Holy Spirit. See Taylor.
According to the will of God.] κατα θεον. According to the mind, intention, or design of God. And thus the prayers which we offer up, and the desires which subsist in the unutterable groanings, are all such as are pleasing in the sight of God. So that God, whose is the Spirit, and who is acquainted with the mind of the Spirit, knows what he means when he leads the saints to express themselves in words, desires, groans, sighs, or tears: in each God reads the language of the Holy Ghost, and prepares the answer according to the request.
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From all this we learn that a fluency in prayer is not essential to praying: a man may pray most powerfully in the estimation of God, who is not able to utter even one word. The unutterable groan is big with meaning, and God understands it, because it contains the language of his own Spirit. Some desires are too mighty to be expressed; there is no language expressive enough to give them proper form and distinct vocal sound: such desires show that they came from God; and as they came from him, so they express what God is disposed to do, and what he has purposed to do. This is a matter of great encouragement to all those who are agonizing to enter in at the strait gate.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain And he that searcheth the hearts - God. To…
And he that searcheth the hearts - God. To search the heart is one of his attributes which cannot be communicated to a creature; Jer 17:10.
Knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit - Knows the desires which the Holy Spirit excites and produces in the heart. He does not need that those deep emotions should be expressed in words; he does not need the eloquence of language to induce him to hear; but he sees the anxious feelings of the soul, and is ready to aid and to bless.
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Maketh intercession for the saints - Aids and directs Christians.
According to the will of God - Greek, “According to God.” It is according to his will in the following respects:
(1) The Spirit is given according to his will. It is his gracious purpose to grant his aid to all who truly love him.
(2) The desires which he excites in the heart of the Christian are those which are according to his will; they are such as God wishes to exist; the contrite, humble, and penitent pleading of sinners for mercy.
(3) He superintends and guards Christians in their prayers.
It is not meant that they are infallible, or that they never make an improper petition, or have an improper desire; but that he has a general superintendence over their minds, and that so far as they will yield themselves to his direction, they shall not be led into error That man is most safe who yields himself most entirely to the influence of the Holy Spirit. And the doctrine here stated is one that is full of consolation to the Christian. We are poor, and needy, and ignorant, and blind; we are the creatures of a day, and are crushed before the moth. But in the midst of our feebleness we may look to God for the aid of his Spirit, and rejoice in his presence, and in his power to sustain us in our sighings, and to guide us in our wanderings.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain And--rather, "But," inarticulate though these groanings be.
And--rather, "But," inarticulate though these groanings be.
he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he--the Spirit
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maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God--As the Searcher of hearts, He watches the surging emotions of them in prayer, and knows perfectly what the Spirit means by the groanings which He draws forth within us, because that blessed Intercessor pleads by them only for what God Himself designs to bestow.
Note, (1) Are believers "led by the Spirit of God" (Rom 8:14)? How careful then should they be not to "grieve the Holy Spirit of God" (Eph 4:30)! Compare Psa 32:8-9 : "I will . . . guide thee with Mine eye. Be not (then) as the horse, or as the mule," &c. (2) "The spirit of bondage," to which many Protestants are "all their lifetime subject," and the "doubtsome faith" which the Popish Church systematically inculcates, are both rebuked here, being in direct and painful contrast to that "spirit of adoption," and that witness of the Spirit, along with our own spirit, to the fact of our sonship, which it is here said the children of God, as such, enjoy (Rom 8:15-16). (3) As suffering with Christ is the ordained preparation for participating in this glory, so the insignificance of the one as compared with the other cannot fail to lighten the sense of it, however bitter and protracted (Rom 8:17-18). (4) It cannot but swell the heart of every intelligent Christian to think that if external nature has been mysteriously affected for evil by the fall of man, it only awaits his completed recovery, at the resurrection, to experience a corresponding emancipation from its blighted condition into undecaying life and unfading beauty (Rom 8:19-23). (5) It is not when believers, through sinful "quenching of the Spirit," have the fewest and faintest glimpses of heaven, that they sigh most fervently to be there; but, on the contrary, when through the unobstructed working of the Spirit in their hearts, "the first-fruits" of the glory to be revealed are most largely and frequently tasted, then, and just for that reason, is it that they "groan within themselves" for full redemption (Rom 8:23). For thus they reason: If such be the drops, what will the ocean be? If thus "to see through a glass darkly" be so very sweet, what will it be to "see face to face?" If when "my Beloved stands behind our wall, looking forth at the windows, showing Himself through the lattice" (Sol 2:9) --that thin veil which parts the seen from the unseen--if He is even thus to me "Fairer than the children of men," what shall He be when He stands confessed before my undazzled vision, the Only-begotten of the Father in my own nature, and I shall be like Him, for I shall see Him as He is? (6) "The patience of hope" (Th1 1:3) is the fitting attitude for those who with the joyful consciousness that they are already "saved" (Ti2 1:9; Tit 3:5), have yet the painful consciousness that they are saved but in part: or, "that being justified by His grace, they are made (in the present state) heirs according to the hope (only) of eternal life," Tit 3:7 (Rom 8:24-25). (7) As prayer is the breath of the spiritual life, and the believer's only effectual relief under the "infirmity" which attaches to his whole condition here below, how cheering is it to be assured that the blessed Spirit, cognizant of it all, comes in aid of it all; and in particular, that when believers, unable to articulate their case before God, can at times do nothing but lie "groaning" before the Lord, these inarticulate groanings are the Spirit's own vehicle for conveying into "the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth" their whole case; and come up before the Hearer of prayer as the Spirit's own intercession in their behalf, and that they are recognized by Him that sitteth on the Throne, as embodying only what His own "will" determined before to bestow upon them (Rom 8:26-27)! (8) What a view do these two verses (Rom 8:26-27) give of the relations subsisting between the Divine Persons in the economy of redemption, and the harmony of their respective operations in the case of each of the redeemed!
THIRD: Triumphant Summary of the Whole Argument (Rom 8:28-39).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 27. He… hearts—As the Spirit knoweth and sympathizeth with…
27. He… hearts—As the Spirit knoweth and sympathizeth with our feeble human minds, so that Spirit is in communication with God, the heart-searcher.
Knoweth… the mind—The Spirit inspires our unutterable things; yet God, knowing the mind of the Spirit, knoweth the things unuttered. So is the Spirit a mediator of communion between our spirit and God our father.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 27. He that searcheth the hearts] Certainly here, the…
27. He that searcheth the hearts] Certainly here, the Father. But it is the more noteworthy that the same words are used of the Son, Rev_2:23.—“The hearts” here are human hearts. In them the Father sees, below the surface of “ignorance what to pray for as they ought,” the sacred longings which are the expression of the Spirit’s influence.
knoweth] And meeteth with a corresponding answer; crossing perhaps the saint’s explicit prayer, but granting the implicit.
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the mind] The whole Aim and Choice of the great Intercessor.
because] If this rendering is kept, the connexion is; “The Father knows (and welcomes) the ‘mind of the Spirit,’ because in its requests it is in Divine harmony with His own.”—But it is better to render that. “The Father knows the mind of the Spirit; He knows that He intercedes in harmony with His Own will and purpose, and for His Own children.”
the saints] Lit. saints (without article). Such is the character of those for whom He pleads.
according to the will of God] Lit. according to God; in unerring coincidence with the Father’s will. The words are used in emphatic contrast to the possible errors in detail of the saint’s unaided desires and prayers.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (27) God recognises the voice of His own Spirit,…
(27) God recognises the voice of His own Spirit, because the prayers that the Spirit prompts are in strict accordance with His will.
What is the mind of the Spirit.—What are the thoughts of the Spirit, and therefore what is the echo of those thoughts in the prayers that are offered to Him.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 27. Knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit.…
27. Knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit. These speechless groanings are understood by God, because it is according to his will that the Spirit intercedes.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
William B. Godbey 1900 · Public Domain 27. “He who searcheth the hearts knoweth what is…
27. “He who searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession toward God in behalf of the saints.” Here is a most wonderful and infinitely consolatory fact revealed. While the English language contains one hundred and fifty thousand words, the common people only use three or four hundred; great scholars, only seven to ten thousand. Not only are many saints straitened to common words and phases, but with most ample flow of language many of our petitions are too deep for utterance. The most of earthly language is too materialistic and symbolic to express the deep spiritual truths of this wonderful salvation, especially appertaining to glorification, which is super-experimental. When Paul was in heaven (2 Corinthians 12) he heard and saw things too glorious and spiritual for mortal utterance. This deficiency of language the Holy Spirit supplies with groanings which can not be uttered. Hence our most important and efficient prayers are given by the Holy Spirit, and are too deep and spiritual to be formulated in words. Elijah prayed with prayer (Jas 5:17), not as E. V., “prayed earnestly,” but prayed with the prayer the Holy Ghost gave him. Hence the miraculous effect of his prayers. “He that searcheth the heart,” i. e., Jesus, who answers our prayers, “knoweth the mind of the Spirit.” Now you see this wonderful problem; the Holy Spirit indicts our prayers, which are often too deep for utterance. But remember He is the Spirit of Jesus (Chapter 8:9 and Acts 5), i. e., the spiritual Christ on the earth (Mat 28:20); while the glorified Jesus is interceding for us at God’s right hand, who actually understands perfectly all the petitions indicted by the Holy Ghost and groaned out by us, and answers faithfully, though too deeply for verbal utterance. Hence the most illiterate can shake heaven, earth and hell by their prayers. I have known people converted and sanctified in our meetings while praying in their native tongue, which was entirely unknown to the congregation. The Holy Spirit is the Author of a truly efficient prayer. He knows all languages, whether in words or groans. Consequently all true hearts under all circumstances can pray right up to God the petition indicted by the Holy Spirit, whether in words or groans, understood by our glorious Intercessor and presented directly to the Father.
William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. W. McGarvey 1914 · Public Domain and he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is…
and he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God . [Though we, in our ignorance, do not know how to express these inward groanings, or yearnings, and though the Holy Spirit, in his operations within us, can not so lead or train us as to make us able to give them articulate utterance, yet God, who searcheth the heart, or that inner man where the Spirit dwells, knows what it is that the Spirit has in mind; i. e., what the Spirit is prompting us to desire, because the Spirit pleads for the saints according to the will of God, asking those things which accord with the plans, purposes and desires of God. "In short," says Beet, "our own yearnings, resulting as they do from the presence of the Spirit, are themselves a pledge of their own realization." The remainder of the chapter gives the third ground of encouragement, which is briefly this: the Christian has nothing to fear (outside of himself), for nothing can defeat the plan or purpose which God cherishes toward him, and nothing can separate him from the love of God.]
J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.