Basic English Version : Read the Bible in 1 Year

Joel 3 / Basic English

1. For in those days and in that time, when I let the fate of Judah and Jerusalem be changed,
2. I will get together all the nations, and make them come down into the valley of Jehoshaphat; and there I will take up with them the cause of my people and of my heritage Israel, whom they have sent wandering among the nations, and of my land which has been parted by them.
3. And they have put the fate of my people to the decision of chance: giving a boy for the price of a loose woman and a girl for a drink of wine.
4. And further, what are you to me, O Tyre and Zidon and all the circle of Philistia? will you give me back any payment? and if you do, quickly and suddenly I will send it back on your head,
5. For you have taken my silver and my gold, putting in the houses of your gods my beautiful and pleasing things.
6. And the children of Judah and the children of Jerusalem you have given for a price to the sons of the Greeks, to send them far away from their land:
7. See, I will have them moved from the place where you have sent them, and will let what you have done come back on your head;
8. I will give your sons and your daughters into the hands of the children of Judah for a price, and they will give them for a price to the men of Sheba, a nation far off: for the Lord has said it.
9. Give this out among the nations; make ready for war: get the strong men awake; let all the men of war come near, let them come up.
10. Get your plough-blades hammered into swords, and your vine-knives into spears: let the feeble say, I am strong.
11. Come quickly, all you nations round about, and get yourselves together there: make your strong ones come down, O Lord.
12. Let the nations be awake, and come to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there I will be seated as judge of all the nations round about.
13. Put in the blade, for the grain is ready: come, get you down, for the wine-crusher is full, the vessels are overflowing; for great is their evil-doing.
14. Masses on masses in the valley of decision! for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.
15. The sun and the moon have become dark, and the stars keep back their shining.
16. And the Lord will be thundering from Zion, and his voice will be sounding from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth will be shaking: but the Lord will be a breastplate for his people and a strong place for the children of Israel.
17. And you will be certain that I am the Lord your God, living in Zion, my holy mountain: and Jerusalem will be holy, and no strange person will ever again go through her.
18. And it will come about in that day that the mountains will be dropping sweet wine, and the hills will be flowing with milk, and all the streams of Judah will be flowing with water; and a fountain will come out from the house of the Lord, watering the valley of acacia-trees.
19. Egypt will be a waste and Edom a land of destruction, because of the evil done to the children of Judah, because they have let blood be drained out in their land without cause.
20. But Judah will be peopled for ever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.
21. And I will send punishment for their blood, for which punishment has not been sent, for the Lord is living in Zion.

Amos 1 / Basic English

1. The words of Amos, who was among the herdsmen of Tekoa; what he saw about Israel in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the earth-shock.
2. And he said, The Lord will give a lion's cry from Zion, his voice will be sounding from Jerusalem; and the fields of the keepers of sheep will become dry, and the top of Carmel will be wasted away.
3. These are the words of the Lord: For three crimes of Damascus, and for four, I will not let its fate be changed; because they have been crushing Gilead with iron grain-crushing instruments.
4. And I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, burning up the great houses of Ben-hadad.
5. And I will have the locks of the door of Damascus broken, and him who is seated in power cut off from the valley of Aven, and him in whose hand is the rod from the house of Eden; and the people of Aram will go away as prisoners into Kir, says the Lord.
6. These are the words of the Lord: For three crimes of Gaza, and for four, I will not let its fate be changed; because they took all the people away prisoners, to give them up to Edom.
7. And I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza, burning up its great houses:
8. Him who is seated in power I will have cut off from Ashdod, and him in whose hand is the rod from Ashkelon; and my hand will be turned against Ekron, and the rest of the Philistines will come to destruction, says the Lord God.
9. These are the words of the Lord: For three crimes of Tyre, and for four, I will not let its fate be changed; because they gave up all the people prisoners to Edom, without giving a thought to the brothers' agreement between them.
10. And I will send a fire on the wall of Tyre, burning up its great houses.
11. These are the words of the Lord: For three crimes of Edom, and for four, I will not let its fate be changed; because his sword was turned against his brother, without pity, and his wrath was burning at all times, and he was angry for ever.
12. And I will send a fire on Teman, burning up the great houses of Bozrah.
13. These are the words of the Lord: For three crimes of the children of Ammon, and for four, I will not let its fate be changed; because in Gilead they had women with child cut open, so that they might make wider the limits of their land.
14. And I will make a fire in the wall of Rabbah, burning up its great houses, with loud cries in the days of war, with a storm in the day of the great wind:
15. And their king will be made prisoner, he and his captains together, says the Lord.

2 John 1 / Basic English

1. I, a ruler in the church, send word to the noble sister who is of God's selection, and to her children, for whom I have true love; and not only I, but all who have knowledge of what is true;
2. Because of this true knowledge which is in us, and will be with us for ever:
3. May grace, mercy, and peace be with us from God the Father, and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in all true love.
4. It gave me great joy to see some of your children walking in the true way, even as we were ordered to do by the Father.
5. And now, my sister, I make a request to you, not sending you a new law, but the law which we had from the first, that we have love for one another.
6. And love is the keeping of his laws. This is the law which was given to you from the first, so that you might keep it.
7. Because a number of false teachers have gone out into the world, who do not give witness that Jesus Christ came in the flesh. Such a one is a false teacher and Antichrist.
8. Keep watch over yourselves, so that you do not make our work of no effect, but may get your full reward.
9. Anyone who goes on and does not keep to the teaching of Christ, has not God: he who keeps to the teaching has the Father and the Son.
10. If anyone comes to you not having this teaching, do not take him into your house or give him words of love:
11. For he who gives him words of love has a part in his evil works.
12. Having much to say to you, it is not my purpose to put it all down with paper and ink: but I am hoping to come to you, and to have talk with you face to face, so that your joy may be full.
13. The children of your noble sister, who is of God's selection, send you their love.

3 John 1 / Basic English

1. I, a ruler in the church, send word to the well loved Gaius, for whom I have true love.
2. My loved one, it is my prayer that you may do well in all things, and be healthy in body, even as your soul does well.
3. For it gave me great joy when some of the brothers came and gave witness that you had the true faith and were walking in the true way.
4. I have no greater joy than to have news that my children are walking in the true way.
5. My loved one, you are doing a good work in being kind to those brothers who come from other places;
6. Who have given witness to the church of your love for them: and you will do well to send them on their way well cared for, as is right for servants of God:
7. For they went out for love of the Name, taking nothing from the Gentiles.
8. So it is right for us to take in such men as guests, so that we may take our part in the work of the true faith.
9. I sent a letter to the church, but Diotrephes, whose desire is ever to have the first place among them, will not have us there.
10. So if I come, I will keep in mind the things he does, talking against us with evil words: and as if this was not enough, he does not take the brothers into his house, and those who are ready to take them in, he keeps from doing so, putting them out of the church if they do.
11. My loved one, do not be copying what is evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God: he who does evil has not seen God.
12. Demetrius has the approval of all men and of what is true: and we give the same witness, and you are certain that our witness is true.
13. I had much to say to you, but it is not my purpose to put it all down with ink and pen:
14. But I am hoping to see you in a short time, and to have talk with you face to face.
15. May you have peace. Your friends here send you their love. Give my love to our friends by name.