Christ Has Set Us Free

5 For ^sfreedom Christ has ^tset us free; ^ustand firm therefore, and do not submit again to ^va yoke of ^wslavery.

2 Look: I, Paul, say to you that ^xif you accept circumcision, ^yChrist will be of no advantage to you. 3 I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that ^zhe is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You are ^asevered from Christ, ^byou who would be justified¹ by the law; ^cyou have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly ^dwait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus ^eneither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but ^fonly faith working through love.

7 ^gYou were running well. Who hindered you from obeying ^hthe truth? 8 This persuasion is not from ⁱhim who calls you. 9 ^jA little leaven leavens the whole lump. 10 ^kI have confidence in the Lord that you will ^ltake no other view, and ^mthe one who is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is. 11 But if I, brothers,² still preach³ circumcision, ⁿwhy am I still being persecuted? In that case ^othe offense of the cross has been removed. 12 I wish ^pthose who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!

13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. ^qOnly do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love ^rserve one another. 14 For ^sthe whole law is fulfilled in one word: ^t“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you ^ubite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.

Keep in Step with the Spirit

16 But I say, ^vwalk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify ^wthe desires of the flesh. 17 For ^xthe desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, ^yto keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are ^zled by the Spirit, ^ayou are not under the law. 19 Now ^bthe works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, ^cdivisions, 21 envy,⁴ drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that ^dthose who do⁵ such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But ^ethe fruit of the Spirit is ^flove, joy, peace, patience, ^gkindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 ^hgentleness, ⁱself-control; ^jagainst such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus ^khave crucified the flesh with its ^lpassions and desires.

25 If we live by the Spirit, ^mlet us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26 ⁿLet us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Bear One Another’s Burdens

6 Brothers,^{1 o}if anyone is caught in any transgression, ^pyou who are spiritual should restore him in ^qa spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. 2 ^rBear one another’s burdens, and ^sso fulfill ^tthe law of Christ. 3 For ^uif anyone thinks he is something, ^vwhen he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 But let each one ^wtest his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. 5 For ^xeach will have to bear his own load.

6 ^yLet the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. 7 ^zDo not be deceived: God is not mocked, for ^awhatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8 For ^bthe one who sows to his own flesh ^cwill from the flesh reap corruption, but ^dthe one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 And ^elet us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, ^fif we do not give up. 10 So then, ^gas we have opportunity, let us ^hdo good to everyone, and especially to those who are ⁱof the household of faith.

Final Warning and Benediction

11 See with what large letters I am writing to you ^jwith my own hand. 12 ^kIt is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh ^lwho would force you to be circumcised, and only ^min order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. 13 For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh. 14 But far be it from me to boast ⁿexcept in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which² the world ^ohas been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15 For ^pneither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but ^qa new creation. 16 And as for all who walk by this rule, ^rpeace and mercy be upon them, and upon ^sthe Israel of God.

17 From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.

18 ^tThe grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be ^uwith your spirit, brothers. Amen.

Ephesians

Greeting

1 Paul, ^aan apostle of Christ Jesus ^bby the will of God,

To the saints who are in Ephesus, and ^care faithful¹ in Christ Jesus:

2 ^dGrace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Blessings in Christ

3 ^eBlessed be ^fthe God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing ^gin the heavenly places, 4 ^heven as he ⁱchose us in him ^jbefore the foundation of the world, that we should be ^kholy and blameless before him. In love 5 ^lhe predestined us² for ^madoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, ⁿaccording to the purpose of his will, 6 ^oto the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in ^pthe Beloved. 7 ^qIn him we have ^rredemption ^sthrough his blood, ^tthe forgiveness of our trespasses, ^uaccording to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 ^vmaking known³ to us the mystery of his will, ⁿaccording to his purpose, which he ^wset forth in Christ 10 as a plan for ^xthe fullness of time, ^yto unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

11 In him we have obtained ^zan inheritance, ^ahaving been predestined ^baccording to the purpose of him who works all things according to ^cthe counsel of his will, 12 so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be ^dto the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you heard ^ethe word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, ^fwere sealed with the ^gpromised Holy Spirit, 14 who is ^hthe guarantee⁴ of our ⁱinheritance until ^jwe acquire ^kpossession of it,^{5 l}to the praise of his glory.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

15 For this reason, ^mbecause I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love⁶ toward all the saints, 16 I ⁿdo not cease to give thanks for you, ^oremembering you in my prayers, 17 that ^pthe God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, ^qmay give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 ^rhaving the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is ^sthe hope to which he has called you, what are ^tthe riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, ^uaccording to the working of ^vhis great might 20 that he worked in Christ ^wwhen he raised him from the dead and ^xseated him at his right hand ^yin the heavenly places, 21 ^zfar above ^aall rule and authority and power and dominion, and above ^bevery name that is named, not only in ^cthis age but also in the one to come. 22 And ^dhe put all things under his feet and gave him as ^ehead over all things to the church, 23 ^fwhich is his body, ^gthe fullness of him ^hwho fills ⁱall in all.

By Grace Through Faith

2 ^jAnd you were ^kdead in the trespasses and sins 2 ^lin which you once walked, following the course of this world, following ^mthe prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in ⁿthe sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in ^othe passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body¹ and the mind, and ^pwere by nature ^qchildren of wrath, like the rest of mankind.² 4 But³ God, being ^rrich in mercy, ^sbecause of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even ^twhen we were dead in our trespasses, ^umade us alive together with Christ—^vby grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and ^wseated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable ^xriches of his grace in ^ykindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For ^zby grace you have been saved ^athrough faith. And this is ^bnot your own doing; ^cit is the gift of God, 9 ^dnot a result of works, ^eso that no one may boast. 10 For ^fwe are his workmanship, ^gcreated in Christ Jesus ^hfor good works, ⁱwhich God prepared beforehand, ^jthat we should walk in them.

One in Christ

11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called ^kthe circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— 12 remember ^lthat you were at that time separated from Christ, ^malienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to ⁿthe covenants of promise, ^ohaving no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were ^pfar off have been brought near ^qby the blood of Christ. 14 For ^rhe himself is our peace, ^swho has made us both one and has broken down ^tin his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ^uordinances, that he might create in himself one ^vnew man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might ^wreconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 17 And he came and ^xpreached peace to you who were ^yfar off and peace to those who were ^znear. 18 For ^athrough him we both have ^baccess in ^cone Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer ^dstrangers and aliens,⁴ but you are ^efellow citizens with the saints and ^fmembers of the household of God, 20 ^gbuilt on the foundation of the ^hapostles and prophets, ⁱChrist Jesus himself being ^jthe cornerstone, 21 ^kin whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into ^la holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him ^myou also are being built together ⁿinto a dwelling place for God by⁵ the Spirit.

The Mystery of the Gospel Revealed

3 For this reason I, Paul, ^oa prisoner of Christ Jesus ^pon behalf of you Gentiles— 2 assuming that you have heard of ^qthe stewardship of ^rGod’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 ^show the mystery was made known to me ^tby revelation, ^uas I have written briefly. 4 ^vWhen you read this, you can perceive my insight into ^wthe mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. 6 This mystery is¹ that the Gentiles are ^xfellow heirs, ^ymembers of the same body, and ^zpartakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

7 ^aOf this gospel I was made ^ba minister according to the gift of ^cGod’s grace, which was given me ^dby the working of his power. 8 To me, ^ethough I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, ^fto preach to the Gentiles the ^gunsearchable ^hriches of Christ, 9 and ⁱto bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery ^jhidden for ages in² God, ^kwho created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold ^lwisdom of God ^mmight now be made known to ⁿthe rulers and authorities ^oin the heavenly places. 11 This was ^paccording to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have ^qboldness and ^raccess with ^sconfidence through our ^tfaith in him. 13 So I ask you not to lose heart over what I am suffering ^ufor you, ^vwhich is your glory.

Prayer for Spiritual Strength

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom ^wevery family³ in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to ^xthe riches of his glory ^yhe may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit ^zin your inner being, 17 ^aso that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being ^brooted and ^cgrounded in love, 18 may have strength to ^dcomprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and ^eheight and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ ^fthat surpasses knowledge, that ^gyou may be filled with all ^hthe fullness of God.

20 ⁱNow to ^jhim who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, ^kaccording to the power at work within us, 21 ^lto him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.