'Dear' in the Bible

So we have unanimously decided to choose men and send them to you with our dear Barnabas and Paul,

But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.

From the standpoint of the gospel, the Jews [at present] are enemies [of God] for your sake [which is for your benefit], but from the standpoint of God’s choice [of the Jews as His people], they are still loved by Him for the sake of the fathers.

Do not take revenge, dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath. For it is written, "Vengeance belongs to me. I will pay them back, declares the Lord."

Greet also the church that meets in their home.Greet my dear friend Epaenetus, who is the first convert to Christ from Asia.

Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.

Greet Urbanus, our coworker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys.

Greet Tryphaena and Tryphosa, who have worked hard in the Lord.Greet my dear friend Persis, who has worked very hard in the Lord.

I’m not writing this to shame you, but to warn you as my dear children.

That's why I sent Timothy to you. He is my dear and dependable son in the Lord and will help you remember how I live for the Messiah Jesus as I teach everywhere in every church.

Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry.

Therefore, my dear brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work, knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Therefore, dear friends, since we have such promises, let us cleanse ourselves from every impurity of the flesh and spirit, completing our sanctification in the fear of God.

You have thought all along that we were defending ourselves to you. No, in the sight of God we are speaking in Christ, and everything, dear friends, is for building you up.

Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

So that you may know what has happened to me and how I am doing, Tychicus, our dear brother and a faithful minister in service to the Lord, will tell you everything.

So then, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

So then, my brothers, you are dearly loved and longed for—my joy and crown. In this manner stand firm in the Lord, dear friends.

As ye also learned of Epaphras our dear fellowservant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ;

Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

Tychicus will tell you everything that has happened to me. He is a dear brother, a faithful minister, and a fellow servant in the Lord.

He is coming with Onesimus, that faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. They will tell you everything that is happening here.

Our dear friend Luke the physician and Demas greet you.

Being conscious, my brothers, dear to God, that you have been marked out by God's purpose;

So being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, but also our own souls, because ye were dear unto us.

Physical exercise is of limited value, but Godliness is very dear, a pledge of life, both there and here.

Moreover, those who have believing masters should be respectful to them, because they are fellow believers. In fact, they must serve them even better, because those who benefit from their service are believers and dear to them. These are the things you must teach and exhort.

To: Timothy, my dear child. May grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and the Messiah Jesus our Lord be yours!

Every one here sends you greeting. Greet the believers who hold us dear. May grace be with you all.

Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother:To Philemon our dear friend and coworker,

16no longer as a slave but better than a slave as a dear brother, especially to me, but even more so to you, both as a person and as a believer.

Even though we are speaking this way, dear friends, in your case we are confident of the better things connected with salvation.

Women received back their dear ones alive from the dead; and others were put to death with torture, refusing the deliverance offered to them--that they might secure a better resurrection.

Marriage is to be held in honor among all [that is, regarded as something of great value], and the marriage bed undefiled [by immorality or by any sexual sin]; for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.

Do not be deceived, my dear brothers.

You must understand this, my dear brothers. Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.

Listen, my dear brothers: Didn’t God choose the poor in this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that He has promised to those who love Him?

Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and temporary residents to abstain from fleshly desires that war against you.

Dear friends, don’t be surprised when the fiery ordeal comes among you to test you as if something unusual were happening to you.

For he received honor and glory from God the Father, when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory: "This is my dear Son, in whom I am delighted."

Dear friends, this is now the second letter I have written to you; in both letters, I want to develop a genuine understanding with a reminder,

Dear friends, don’t let this one thing escape you: With the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.

Therefore, dear friends, while you wait for these things, make every effort to be found at peace with Him without spot or blemish.

Also, regard the patience of our Lord as an opportunity for salvation, just as our dear brother Paul has written to you according to the wisdom given to him.

Therefore, dear friends, since you know this in advance, be on your guard, so that you are not led away by the error of lawless people and fall from your own stability.

Dear children, I write thus to you in order that you may not sin. If any one sins, we have an Advocate with the Father--Jesus Christ the righteous;

Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old command that you have had from the beginning. The old command is the message you have heard.

I am writing to you, dear children, because for His sake your sins are forgiven you.

Dear children, the last hour has come; and as you once heard that there was to be an anti-Christ, so even now many anti-Christs have appeared. By this we may know that the last hour has come.

And now, dear children, continue in union with Him; so that, if He re-appears, we may have perfect confidence, and may not shrink away in shame from His presence at His Coming.

Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him because we will see Him as He is.

Dear children, let no one lead you astray. The man who acts righteously is righteous, just as He is righteous.

Dear children, let us not love in words only nor with the lips, but in deed and in truth.

Dear friends, if our conscience doesn’t condemn us, we have confidence before God

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to determine if they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

As for you, dear children, you are God's children, and have successfully resisted them; for greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.

Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another.

Dear children, guard yourselves from idols.

Dear lady, I am now requesting of you that we all continue to love one another. It is not as though I am writing to give you a new commandment, but one that we have had from the beginning.

The Elder:To my dear friend Gaius: I love you in the truth.

Dear friend, I pray that you may prosper in every way and be in good health physically just as you are spiritually.

Dear friend, you are showing faithfulness by whatever you do for the brothers, especially when they are strangers.

Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God.

Dear friends, although I was eager to write you about the salvation we share, I found it necessary to write and exhort you to contend for the faith that was delivered to the saints once for all.

But you, dear friends, remember what was predicted by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;

But you, dear friends, as you build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit,

To all those who are dear to me, I give sharp words and punishment: then with all your heart have sorrow for your evil ways.