The Potter and the Clay

1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Arise, and go down to ^qthe potter’s house, and there I will let you hear¹ my words.” 3 So I went down to ^rthe potter’s house, and there he was working at his wheel. 4 And the vessel he was making of clay was ^sspoiled in the potter’s hand, and ^the reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do.

5 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 6 “O house of Israel, ^ucan I not do with you as this potter has done? declares the Lord. ^vBehold, like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. 7 If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will ^wpluck up and break down and destroy it, 8 and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, ^xturns from its evil, ^yI will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. 9 And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will ^wbuild and plant it, 10 and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it. 11 Now, therefore, say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: ‘Thus says the Lord, Behold, I am shaping disaster against you and devising a plan against you. ^zReturn, every one from his evil way, and ^aamend your ways and your deeds.’

Life in the Spirit

1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.¹ 2 For the law of ^hthe Spirit of life ⁱhas set you² free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For ^jGod has done what the law, ^kweakened by the flesh, ^lcould not do. ^mBy sending his own Son ⁿin the likeness of sinful flesh and ^ofor sin,³ he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that ^pthe righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, ^qwho walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For ^rthose who live according to the flesh set their minds on ^sthe things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on ^tthe things of the Spirit. 6 For to set ^uthe mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is ^vhostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; ^windeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact ^xthe Spirit of God dwells in you. ^yAnyone who does not have ^zthe Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of ^ahim who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus⁴ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies ^bthrough his Spirit who dwells in you.

27 ^kDo not work for the food that perishes, but for ^lthe food that endures to eternal life, which ^mthe Son of Man will give to you. For on ⁿhim God the Father has ^oset his seal.” 28 Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing ^pthe works of God?” 29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, ^qthat you believe in him whom ^rhe has sent.” 30 So they said to him, ^s“Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? 31 ^tOur fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ^u‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32 Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is ^vhe who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 They said to him, ^w“Sir, give us this bread always.”

35 Jesus said to them, ^x“I am the bread of life; ^ywhoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37 ^zAll that ^athe Father gives me will come to me, and ^bwhoever comes to me I will never cast out. 38 For ^cI have come down from heaven, not to do ^dmy own will but ^dthe will of him ^ewho sent me. 39 And ^fthis is the will of him who sent me, ^gthat I should lose nothing of ^hall that he has given me, but ⁱraise it up on the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who ^jlooks on the Son and ^kbelieves in him ^lshould have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”