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“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
1 Peter 5:6–7, KJV
Our world can be a pressure cooker filled with despair enough to share. Anxiety and stress press upon the heart from every direction. Families face uncertain futures as wages stagnate and groceries soar in price. Illness arises seemingly out of nowhere, interrupting carefully made plans. Financial pressures weigh heavily upon households, inviting arguments between husbands and wives. The world itself often appears unstable, and our own hearts can become troubled by dangers that are real and fears that may never come to pass. The stress we feel and the possible stress we may have to endure slam a one-two punch right into the stomach of our well-being.
The people of God are not immune to these burdens. Christians experience sorrow, uncertainty, weakness, and fear because they are part of this fallen world in which we still live. Our Lord plainly told His disciples that they would experience tribulation:
“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33, KJV
Faith does not remove us from the difficulties of life. Thankfully, it gives us somewhere to carry them. The God who is our refuge invites us to come to Him in every season of trouble:
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.”
Psalm 46:1–3, KJV
The apostle Peter directs our attention to the mighty hand of God. This is the hand that rules creation, governs history, restrains evil, and accomplishes every purpose of divine grace. Scripture declares that God works all things according to His sovereign will:
“In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.”
Ephesians 1:11, KJV
It is also the hand that holds every redeemed sinner securely in Christ. God calls His children to cast all their care upon Him because He cares for them.
Under the Mighty Hand of God
Peter begins with a call to humility: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God.”
To humble ourselves beneath God’s hand is to acknowledge that He is God and we are His creatures. He possesses perfect wisdom. We do not. He sees the end from the beginning. We see only the small portion of the road immediately before us.
The Lord reminds us that His wisdom stands infinitely above our limited understanding:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Isaiah 55:8–9, KJV
Much of our anxiety grows from the desire to understand what God has not yet revealed and to control what He has placed beyond our reach. We want to know how every problem will be resolved. We want assurance that tomorrow will unfold according to our expectations. When answers do not come, our thoughts begin to race and our hearts become restless.
Humility rests beneath the hand of God.
It confesses rightly that His purposes are wiser than our plans. It trusts that His timing is perfect, even when the waiting is painful. It humbly bows before the truth that our heavenly Father is directing all things according to the counsel of His own will.
Solomon urges us to rest in the Lord’s wisdom rather than lean upon our own limited understanding:
“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
Proverbs 3:5–6, KJV
The hand of God may sometimes feel heavy in providence. Yet it is always the hand of our Father. The same hand that governs the trial also sustains us through it. Our times, with all their joys, sorrows, delays, and uncertainties, remain safely in His hands.
“My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me.”
Psalm 31:15, KJV
Joseph experienced this truth when he was betrayed by his brothers, sold into slavery, and carried into Egypt. For many years, he could not see how those painful events could serve any good purpose. Yet the hand of God was directing every step. What others intended for evil, God intended for good.
At the conclusion of Joseph’s trials, he was able to say to his brothers:
“But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.”
Genesis 50:20, KJV
The believer may not immediately understand what God is doing. Yet by faith we can still trust who He is.
Casting All Our Care Upon Him
Peter continues, “Casting all your care upon him.”
The word “casting” speaks of placing a burden upon someone strong enough to carry it. God does not merely invite us to talk about our cares while continuing to hold them tightly. He bids us place them upon Him.
We may cast every care upon the Lord. Absolutely no burden is too great for His power, and no concern is too small for His fatherly attention.
Bring Him the fear that keeps returning in the quiet hours of the night. Bring Him the uncertainty surrounding your family. Bring Him the medical report, the financial pressure, the strained relationship, and the sorrow that words cannot adequately express. The Lord already knows every detail, yet He graciously invites His children to call upon Him.
Casting our cares upon God is an exercise of faith. It is the believing acknowledgment that the Lord is able to govern what we cannot control. Prayer places our trembling hearts before the One whose throne cannot be shaken.
Paul directs anxious hearts toward prayer and promises that the peace of God will guard His people in Christ:
“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:6–7, KJV
The psalmist likewise declared:
“Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.”
Psalm 55:22, KJV
God may change the circumstances that trouble us. He may also give us grace to endure them. In either case, He faithfully sustains His people. His grace will be sufficient for every trial He appoints.
When Paul pleaded for the removal of his thorn in the flesh, the Lord answered him with the promise of sustaining grace:
“And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
2 Corinthians 12:9, KJV
We are sometimes tempted to cast a burden upon the Lord in prayer and then immediately pick it up again through anxious speculation. Our thoughts begin rehearsing every possible outcome. Faith must continually return to the promises of God. We may need to cast the same care upon Him many times, resting again in His wisdom and mercy.
This repeated casting is not evidence that faith has failed. It is often how faith lives in a frail and troubled heart.
“For He Careth for You”
The sweetest words in this passage may be the simplest: “for he careth for you.”
God’s people are able to cast their cares upon Him because His heart is lovingly inclined toward them. His care is personal, active, constant, and rooted in His eternal purpose of grace.
This divine care is revealed most clearly in the Lord Jesus Christ.
God did not begin loving His people when they learned to pray properly or when their faith became strong. He loved them according to His own gracious purpose. He chose them in Christ before the foundation of the world and adopted them as His children according to the good pleasure of His will:
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
“According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
“Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
“To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.”
Ephesians 1:3–6, KJV
Christ came in the fullness of time to accomplish the redemption of His people and secure their adoption into the family of God:
“But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
“To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”
Galatians 4:4–5, KJV
Upon the cross, the Savior bore their sins and satisfied divine justice on their behalf:
“Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”
1 Peter 2:24, KJV
Paul reasons from this great gift of Christ to the certainty of God’s continuing provision:
“He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?”
Romans 8:32, KJV
The cross settles the question of God’s care for His people. The Father who delivered His Son for our salvation will never abandon those whom Christ redeemed.
His care is not measured by the ease of our circumstances. The path of faith may lead through seasons of deep sorrow. God’s love remains unchanged. Even when His purposes are hidden, His covenant mercy remains sure.
Nothing reaches the life of a believer apart from the wise providence of God. Every trial has its boundary. Every season has its appointed end. God is working all things together for the everlasting good of His children:
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28, KJV
Every tear of His children is known to Him. No sorrow is overlooked, and no moment of pain escapes His compassionate attention:
“Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?”
Psalm 56:8, KJV
Protected by Divine Power
The hand beneath which we humble ourselves is the same hand that protects us.
Earlier in his epistle, Peter described believers as those who are kept by the power of God:
“Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”
1 Peter 1:5, KJV
Our perseverance rests upon God’s preserving power. The security of the Christian is found in Christ. Jesus said concerning His sheep:
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
“And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
“My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.”
John 10:27–29, KJV
The hands that were pierced for our redemption now hold us securely. No enemy can remove us from the keeping power of Christ. Our weakness does not overpower His strength. Our changing emotions do not alter His eternal covenant. Our salvation rests upon the finished work and unfailing faithfulness of the Son of God.
There may be moments when the believer feels that he can scarcely hold on. The good news is that Christ is holding him.
God guards His children through dangers they see and dangers they never recognize. He orders their steps, strengthens their faith, corrects them in love, and supplies every grace necessary to bring them safely home. The Lord’s keeping care extends over the whole journey of His people:
“The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
“The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.”
Psalm 121:7–8, KJV
Exalted in Due Time
Peter assures us that God will “exalt you in due time.”
The present burden will not last forever. God has appointed a “due time” for every purpose. He knows when to deliver, when to strengthen, and when to bring His child out of the valley.
Our timetable is often shaped by discomfort. We naturally desire immediate relief. God’s timetable is governed by perfect wisdom and eternal love. He knows what He is accomplishing through the waiting.
Every trial endured by the believer is moving toward a glorious conclusion. The sufferings of this present life cannot be compared with the glory that will be revealed in the people of God:
“For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”
Romans 8:18, KJV
Christ will return. The dead in Christ will be raised, and every believer will be gathered forever unto the Lord:
“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
“Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”
1 Thessalonians 4:16–17, KJV
Every trace of sin, sorrow, fear, and pain will be removed. The children of God will dwell forever in the presence of their Redeemer:
“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”
Revelation 21:4, KJV
Until that day, we live beneath the mighty hand of God. We pray when we are troubled. We trust when we cannot see. We rest in the assurance that the One who gave His Son for us will withhold nothing necessary for our everlasting good.
Dear Christian, you are neither forgotten nor forsaken. Your heavenly Father knows the burden you are carrying today. He knows the fears you have spoken aloud and the sorrows you have kept hidden within your heart.
Hear His gracious promise:
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
Isaiah 41:10, KJV
Cast your cares upon Him.
The God who rules heaven and earth cares for you. His wisdom directs your path. His grace sustains your soul. His powerful hand will hold you fast until faith gives way to sight and every anxious heart finds everlasting rest in Christ.
Nothing in this world or the world to come can separate God’s people from His everlasting love:
“For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
“Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:38–39, KJV
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“Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
1 Peter 5:6–7
Our world can be a pressure cooker filled with despair enough to share. Anxiety and stress press upon the heart from every direction. Families face uncertain futures as wages stagnate and groceries soar in price. Illness arises seemingly out of nowhere, interrupting carefully made plans. Financial pressures weigh heavily upon households, inviting arguments between husbands and wives. The world itself often appears unstable, and our own hearts can become troubled by dangers that are real and fears that may never come to pass. The stress we feel and the possible stress we may have to endure slam a one-two punch right into the stomach of our well-being.
The people of God are not immune to these burdens. Christians experience sorrow, uncertainty, weakness, and fear because they are part of this fallen world in which we still live. Our Lord plainly told His disciples that they would experience tribulation:
“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33
Faith does not remove us from the difficulties of life. Thankfully, it gives us somewhere to carry them. The God who is our refuge invites us to come to Him in every season of trouble:
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.”
Psalm 46:1–3
The apostle Peter directs our attention to the mighty hand of God. This is the hand that rules creation, governs history, restrains evil, and accomplishes every purpose of divine grace. Scripture declares that God works all things according to His sovereign will:
“In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.”
Ephesians 1:11
It is also the hand that holds every redeemed sinner securely in Christ. God calls His children to cast all their care upon Him because He cares for them.
Under the Mighty Hand of God
Peter begins with a call to humility: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God.”
To humble ourselves beneath God’s hand is to acknowledge that He is God and we are His creatures. He possesses perfect wisdom. We do not. He sees the end from the beginning. We see only the small portion of the road immediately before us.
The Lord reminds us that His wisdom stands infinitely above our limited understanding:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Isaiah 55:8–9
Much of our anxiety grows from the desire to understand what God has not yet revealed and to control what He has placed beyond our reach. We want to know how every problem will be resolved. We want assurance that tomorrow will unfold according to our expectations. When answers do not come, our thoughts begin to race and our hearts become restless.
Humility rests beneath the hand of God.
It confesses rightly that His purposes are wiser than our plans. It trusts that His timing is perfect, even when the waiting is painful. It humbly bows before the truth that our heavenly Father is directing all things according to the counsel of His own will.
Solomon urges us to rest in the Lord’s wisdom rather than lean upon our own limited understanding:
“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
Proverbs 3:5–6
The hand of God may sometimes feel heavy in providence. Yet it is always the hand of our Father. The same hand that governs the trial also sustains us through it. Our times, with all their joys, sorrows, delays, and uncertainties, remain safely in His hands.
“My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me.”
Psalm 31:15
Joseph experienced this truth when he was betrayed by his brothers, sold into slavery, and carried into Egypt. For many years, he could not see how those painful events could serve any good purpose. Yet the hand of God was directing every step. What others intended for evil, God intended for good.
At the conclusion of Joseph’s trials, he was able to say to his brothers:
“But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.”
Genesis 50:20
The believer may not immediately understand what God is doing. Yet by faith we can still trust who He is.
Casting All Our Care Upon Him
Peter continues, “Casting all your care upon him.”
The word “casting” speaks of placing a burden upon someone strong enough to carry it. God does not merely invite us to talk about our cares while continuing to hold them tightly. He bids us place them upon Him.
We may cast every care upon the Lord. Absolutely no burden is too great for His power, and no concern is too small for His fatherly attention.
Bring Him the fear that keeps returning in the quiet hours of the night. Bring Him the uncertainty surrounding your family. Bring Him the medical report, the financial pressure, the strained relationship, and the sorrow that words cannot adequately express. The Lord already knows every detail, yet He graciously invites His children to call upon Him.
Casting our cares upon God is an exercise of faith. It is the believing acknowledgment that the Lord is able to govern what we cannot control. Prayer places our trembling hearts before the One whose throne cannot be shaken.
Paul directs anxious hearts toward prayer and promises that the peace of God will guard His people in Christ:
“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:6–7
The psalmist likewise declared:
“Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.”
Psalm 55:22
God may change the circumstances that trouble us. He may also give us grace to endure them. In either case, He faithfully sustains His people. His grace will be sufficient for every trial He appoints.
When Paul pleaded for the removal of his thorn in the flesh, the Lord answered him with the promise of sustaining grace:
“And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
2 Corinthians 12:9
We are sometimes tempted to cast a burden upon the Lord in prayer and then immediately pick it up again through anxious speculation. Our thoughts begin rehearsing every possible outcome. Faith must continually return to the promises of God. We may need to cast the same care upon Him many times, resting again in His wisdom and mercy.
This repeated casting is not evidence that faith has failed. It is often how faith lives in a frail and troubled heart.
“For He Careth for You”
The sweetest words in this passage may be the simplest: “for he careth for you.”
God’s people are able to cast their cares upon Him because His heart is lovingly inclined toward them. His care is personal, active, constant, and rooted in His eternal purpose of grace.
This divine care is revealed most clearly in the Lord Jesus Christ.
God did not begin loving His people when they learned to pray properly or when their faith became strong. He loved them according to His own gracious purpose. He chose them in Christ before the foundation of the world and adopted them as His children according to the good pleasure of His will:
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
“According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
“Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
“To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.”
Ephesians 1:3–6
Christ came in the fullness of time to accomplish the redemption of His people and secure their adoption into the family of God:
“But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
“To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”
Galatians 4:4–5
Upon the cross, the Savior bore their sins and satisfied divine justice on their behalf:
“Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”
1 Peter 2:24
Paul reasons from this great gift of Christ to the certainty of God’s continuing provision:
“He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?”
Romans 8:32
The cross settles the question of God’s care for His people. The Father who delivered His Son for our salvation will never abandon those whom Christ redeemed.
His care is not measured by the ease of our circumstances. The path of faith may lead through seasons of deep sorrow. God’s love remains unchanged. Even when His purposes are hidden, His covenant mercy remains sure.
Nothing reaches the life of a believer apart from the wise providence of God. Every trial has its boundary. Every season has its appointed end. God is working all things together for the everlasting good of His children:
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28
Every tear of His children is known to Him. No sorrow is overlooked, and no moment of pain escapes His compassionate attention:
“Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?”
Psalm 56:8
Protected by Divine Power
The hand beneath which we humble ourselves is the same hand that protects us.
Earlier in his epistle, Peter described believers as those who are kept by the power of God:
“Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”
1 Peter 1:5
Our perseverance rests upon God’s preserving power. The security of the Christian is found in Christ. Jesus said concerning His sheep:
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
“And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
“My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.”
John 10:27–29
The hands that were pierced for our redemption now hold us securely. No enemy can remove us from the keeping power of Christ. Our weakness does not overpower His strength. Our changing emotions do not alter His eternal covenant. Our salvation rests upon the finished work and unfailing faithfulness of the Son of God.
There may be moments when the believer feels that he can scarcely hold on. The good news is that Christ is holding him.
God guards His children through dangers they see and dangers they never recognize. He orders their steps, strengthens their faith, corrects them in love, and supplies every grace necessary to bring them safely home. The Lord’s keeping care extends over the whole journey of His people:
“The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
“The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.”
Psalm 121:7–8
Exalted in Due Time
Peter assures us that God will “exalt you in due time.”
The present burden will not last forever. God has appointed a “due time” for every purpose. He knows when to deliver, when to strengthen, and when to bring His child out of the valley.
Our timetable is often shaped by discomfort. We naturally desire immediate relief. God’s timetable is governed by perfect wisdom and eternal love. He knows what He is accomplishing through the waiting.
Every trial endured by the believer is moving toward a glorious conclusion. The sufferings of this present life cannot be compared with the glory that will be revealed in the people of God:
“For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”
Romans 8:18
Christ will return. The dead in Christ will be raised, and every believer will be gathered forever unto the Lord:
“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
“Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”
1 Thessalonians 4:16–17
Every trace of sin, sorrow, fear, and pain will be removed. The children of God will dwell forever in the presence of their Redeemer:
“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”
Revelation 21:4
Until that day, we live beneath the mighty hand of God. We pray when we are troubled. We trust when we cannot see. We rest in the assurance that the One who gave His Son for us will withhold nothing necessary for our everlasting good.
Dear Christian, you are neither forgotten nor forsaken. Your heavenly Father knows the burden you are carrying today. He knows the fears you have spoken aloud and the sorrows you have kept hidden within your heart.
Hear His gracious promise:
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
Isaiah 41:10
Cast your cares upon Him.
The God who rules heaven and earth cares for you. His wisdom directs your path. His grace sustains your soul. His powerful hand will hold you fast until faith gives way to sight and every anxious heart finds everlasting rest in Christ.
Nothing in this world or the world to come can separate God’s people from His everlasting love:
“For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
“Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:38–39
Jason K. Boothe serves as a Pastor at Redeemer Church of Piketon, Ohio.
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