Romans 9 Cross References - Twentieth_Century

¹ I am speaking the truth as one in union with Christ; it is no lie; and my conscience, enlightened by the Holy Spirit, ² Bears me out when I say that there is a great weight of sorrow upon me and that my heart is never free from pain. ³ I could wish that I were myself accursed and severed from the Christ, for the sake of my Brothers-my own countrymen. ⁴ For they are Israelites, and theirs are the adoption as Sons, the visible Presence, the Covenants, the revealed Law, the Temple worship, and the Promises. ⁵ They are descended from the Patriarchs; and, as far as his human nature was concerned, from them came the Christ-he who is supreme over all things, God for ever blessed. Amen. ⁶ Not that God's Word has failed. For it is not all who are descended from Israel who are true Israelites; ⁷ Nor, because they are Abraham's descendants, are they all his Children; but-'It is Isaac's children who will be called thy descendants.' ⁸ This means that it is not the children born in the course of nature who are God's Children, but it is the children born in fulfillment of the Promise who are to be regarded as Abraham's descendants. ⁹ For these words are the words of a promise-'About this time I will come, and Sarah shall have a son.' ¹⁰ Nor is that all. There is also the case of Rebecca, when she was about to bear children to our ancestor Isaac. ¹¹ For in order that the purpose of God, working through selection, might not fail-a selection depending, not on obedience, but on his Call-Rebecca was told, before her children were born and before they had done anything either right or wrong, ¹² that 'the elder would be a servant to the younger.' ¹³ The words of Scripture are-'I loved Jacob, but I hated Esau.' ¹⁴ What are we to say, then? Is God guilty of injustice? Heaven forbid! ¹⁵ For his words to Moses are-'I will take pity on whom I take pity, and be merciful to whom I am merciful.' ¹⁶ So, then, all depends, not on human wishes or human efforts, but on God's mercy. ¹⁷ In Scripture, again, it is said to Pharaoh-'It was for this very purpose that I raised thee to the throne, to show my power by my dealings with thee, and to make my name known throughout the world.' ¹⁸ So, then, where God wills, he takes pity, and where he wills, he hardens the heart. ¹⁹ Perhaps you will say to me-'How can any one still be blamed? For who withstands his purpose?' ²⁰ I might rather ask 'Who are you who are arguing with God?' Does a thing which a man has molded say to him who has molded it 'Why did you make me like this?' ²¹ Has not the potter absolute power over his clay, so that out of the same lump he makes one thing for better, and another for common, use? ²² And what if God, intending to reveal his displeasure and make his power known, bore most patiently with the objects of his displeasure, though they were fit only to be destroyed, ²³ So as to make known his surpassing glory in dealing with the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared beforehand for glory, ²⁴ And whom he called-even us-Not only from among the Jews but from among the Gentiles also! ²⁵ This, indeed, is what he says in the Book of Hosea-'I will call those my People who were not my People, and her my beloved who was not beloved. ²⁶ And in the very place where it was said to them-"Ye are not my People", they shall be called Sons of the Living God.' ²⁷ And Isaiah cries aloud over Israel-'Though the Sons of Israel are like the sand of the sea in number, only a remnant of them shall escape! ²⁸ For the Lord will execute his sentence upon the world, fully and without delay.' ²⁹ It is as Isaiah foretold-'Had not the Lord of Hosts spared some few of our race to us, we should have become like Sodom and been made to resemble Gomorrah.' ³⁰ What are we to say, then? Why, that Gentiles, who were not in search of righteousness, secured it-a righteousness which was the result of faith; ³¹ While Israel, which was in search of a Law which would ensure righteousness, failed to discover one. ³² And why? Because they looked to obedience, and not to faith, to secure it. They stumbled over 'the Stumbling-block.' ³³ As Scripture says-'See, I place a Stumbling-block in Zion-- a Rock which shall prove a hindrance; and he who believes in him shall have no cause for shame.'

¹ A genealogy of Jesus Christ, a descendant of David and Abraham. ² Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac of Jacob, Jacob of Judah and his brothers, ³ Judah of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez of Hezron, Hezron of Ram, ⁴ Ram of Amminadab, Amminadab of Nashon, Nashon of Salmon, ⁵ Salmon of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed of Jesse, ⁶ Jesse of David the King. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother was Uriah's widow, ⁷ Solomon of Rehoboam, Rehoboam of Abijah, Abijah of Asa, ⁸ Asa of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat of Jehoram, Jehoram of Uzziah, ⁹ Uzziah of Jotham, Jotham of Ahaz, Ahaz of Hezekiah, ¹⁰ Hezekiah of Manasseh, Manasseh of Ammon, Ammon of Josiah, ¹¹ Josiah of Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the Exile to Babylon. ¹² After the Exile to Babylon--Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel of Zerubbabel, ¹³ Zerubbabel of Abiud, Abiud of Eliakim, Eliakim of Azor, ¹⁴ Azor of Zadok, Zadok of Achim, Achim of Eliud, ¹⁵ Eliud of Eleazar, Eleazar of Matthan, Matthan of Jacob, ¹⁶ Jacob of Joseph, the husband of Mary, who was the mother of Jesus, who is called 'Christ'. ¹⁷ So the whole number of generations from Abraham to David is fourteen; from David to the Exile to Babylon fourteen; and from the Exile to Babylon to the Christ fourteen.

¹³ And take us not into temptation, but deliver us from Evil.'

³⁷ He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

²⁵ At that same time Jesus uttered the words: "I thank thee, Father, Lord of Heaven and earth, that, though thou has hidden these things from the wise and learned, thou hast revealed them to the child-like! ²⁶ Yes, Father, I thank thee that this has seemed good to thee.

¹⁴ And in them is being fulfilled that prophecy of Isaiah which says--'You will hear with your ears without ever understanding, And, though you have eyes, you will see without ever perceiving, ¹⁵ For the mind of this nation has grown dense, And their ears are dull of hearing, Their eyes also have they closed; Lest some day they should perceive with their eyes, And with their ears they should hear, And in their mind they should understand, and should turn--And I should heal them.'

⁵⁷ These things proved a hindrance to their believing in him; whereupon Jesus said: "A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country and in his own house."

¹⁶ And to this Simon Peter answered: "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God."

¹⁶ And a man came up to Jesus, and said: "Teacher, what good thing must I do to obtain Immortal life?" ¹⁷ "Why ask me about goodness?" answered Jesus. "There is but One who is good. If you want to enter the Life, keep the commandments." ¹⁸ "What commandments?" asked the man. "These," answered Jesus:-- "'Thou shalt not kill. Thou shalt not commit adultery. Thou shalt not steal. Thou shalt not say what is false about others. ¹⁹ Honor thy father and thy mother.' And 'Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thou dost thyself." ²⁰ "I have observed all these," said the young man. "What is still wanting in me?"

¹⁵ Have not I the right to do as I choose with what is mine? Are you envious because I am liberal?'

³³ Listen to another parable. A man, who was an employer, once planted a vineyard, put a fence round it, dug a winepress in it, built a tower, and then let it out to tenants and went abroad.

⁴² Then Jesus added: "Have you never read in the Scriptures?-- 'The very stone which the builders despised--Has now itself become the corner-stone; This corner-stone has come from the Lord, And is marvelous in our eyes.'

⁴⁴ Yes, and he who falls on this stone will be dashed to pieces, while any one on whom it falls--it will scatter him as dust."

³¹ By doing this you are furnishing evidence against yourselves that you are true children of the men who murdered the Prophets. ³² Fill up the measure of your ancestor's guilt. ³³ You serpents and brood of vipers! How can you escape being sentenced to the Pit?

²¹ for that will be 'a time of great distress, the like of which has not occurred from the beginning of the world down to the present time'--no, nor ever will again.

³⁵ The heavens and the earth will pass away, but my words shall never pass away.

²⁰ And teaching them to lay to heart all the commands that I have given you; and, remember, I myself am with you every day until the close of the age."

²¹ True, the Son of Man must go, as Scripture says of him, yet alas for that man by whom the Son of Man is being betrayed! For that man 'it would be better never to have been born!'"

¹⁷ He shall go before him in the spirit and with the power of Elijah, 'to reconcile fathers to their children' and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, and so make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him."

⁵⁴ He has stretched out his hand to his servant Israel, Ever mindful of his mercy ⁵⁵ (As he promised to our forefathers) For Abraham and his race for ever."

⁶⁹ And has raised up for us the Strength of our Salvation In the House of his servant David-- ⁷⁰ As he promised by the lips of his Holy Prophets of old-- ⁷¹ Salvation from our enemies and from the hands of all that hate us, ⁷² Showing mercy to our forefathers, And mindful of his sacred Covenant. ⁷³ This was the oath which he swore to our forefather Abraham-- ⁷⁴ That we should be rescued from the hands of our enemies, ⁷⁵ And should serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness, In his presence all our days.

³⁴ Simeon gave them his blessing, and said to Mary, the child's mother: "This child is appointed to be the cause of the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign much spoken against--

⁸ Let your lives, then, prove your repentance; and do not begin to say among yourselves 'Abraham is our ancestor,' for I tell you that out of these very stones God is able to raise descendants for Abraham!

²³ When beginning his work, Jesus was about thirty years old. He was regarded as the son of Joseph, whose ancestors were--Eli, ²⁴ Mattith, Levi, Melchiah, Janna, Joseph, ²⁵ Mattithiah, Amos, Nahum, Azaliah, Nogah, ²⁶ Mattith, Mattithiah, Shimei, Joseph, Josheh, ²⁷ Johanan, Rhesa, Zerubbabel, Shealtiel, Neriah, ²⁸ Melchiah, Addi, Cosam, Elmodam, Er, ²⁹ Joshua, Eliezer, Joram, Mattith, Levi, ³⁰ Simeon, Judah, Joseph, Jonam, Eliakim, ³¹ Meleah, Menan, Mattithiah, Nathan, David, ³² Jesse, Obed, Boaz, Salah, Nahshon, ³³ Amminadab, Arni, Hezron, Perez, Judah, ³⁴ Jacob, Isaac, Abraham, Terah, Nahor, ³⁵ Serug, Reu, Peleg, Eber, Shelah, ³⁶ Kenan, Arpachshad, Shem, Noah, Lamech, ³⁷ Methuselah, Enoch, Jared, Mahalalel, Kenan, ³⁸ Enosh, Seth and Adam the son of GOD.

²³ And blessed is the man who finds no hindrance in me."

²¹ At that same time, moved to exultation by the Holy Spirit, Jesus said: "I thank thee, Father, Lord of Heaven and earth, that, though thou hast hidden these things from the wise and learned, thou hast revealed them to the childlike! Yes, Father, I thank thee that this has seemed good to thee.

²⁶ "If any man comes to me and does not hate his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brothers, and sisters, yes and his very life, he can be no disciple of mine.

²⁴ So he called out 'Pity me, Father Abraham, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering agony in this flame.' ²⁵ 'Child,' answered Abraham, 'remember that you in your lifetime received what you thought desirable, just as Lazarus received what was not desirable; but now he has his consolation here, while you are suffering agony. ²⁶ And not only that, but between you and us there lies a great chasm, so that those who wish to pass from here to you cannot, nor can they cross from there to us.'

³⁰ 'But, Father Abraham,' he urged, 'if some one from the dead were to go to them, they would repent.'

⁴¹ When he drew near, on seeing the city, he wept over it, and said: ⁴² "Would that you had known, while yet there was time--even you--the things that make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your sight. ⁴³ For a time is coming upon you when your enemies will surround you with earthworks, and encircle you, and hem you in on all sides; ⁴⁴ They will trample you down and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know 'the time of your visitation.'"

¹ In the Beginning the Word was; and the Word was with God; and the Word was God. ² He was in the Beginning with God; ³ Through him all things came into being, and nothing came into being apart from him.

¹² But to all who did receive him he gave power to become Children of God--to those who believe in his Name. ¹³ For not to natural conception, nor to human instincts, nor to will of man did they owe the new Life, but to God.

¹³ For not to natural conception, nor to human instincts, nor to will of man did they owe the new Life, but to God.

¹⁷ For the Law was given through Moses, love and truth came through Jesus Christ.

⁴⁷ When Jesus saw Nathanael coming towards him, he said: "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is no deceit!"

⁸ The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound of it, but you do not know whence it comes, or where it goes; it is the same with every one that owes his birth to the Spirit."

²⁷ Work, not for the food that perishes, but for the food that lasts for Immortal Life, which the Son of Man will give you; for upon him the Father--God himself--has set the seal of his approval." ²⁸ "How," they asked, "are we to do the work that God would have us do?" ²⁹ "The work that God would have you do," answered Jesus, "is to believe in him whom God sent as his Messenger."

³³ "We are descendants of Abraham," was their answer, "and have never yet been in slavery to any one. What do you mean by saying 'you will be set free'?"

³⁷ I know that you are descendants of Abraham; yet you are seeking to put me to death, because my Message finds no place in your hearts. ³⁸ I tell you what I have myself seen in the presence of my Father; and you, in the same way, do what you have learned from your father." ³⁹ "Our father is Abraham," was their answer. "If you are Abraham's children," replied Jesus, "do what Abraham did.

³⁰ The Father and I are one."

³⁵ If those to whom God's word were addressed were said to be 'gods'--and Scripture cannot be set aside--

⁵² And not for the nation only, but also that he might unite in one body the Children of God now scattered far and wide.

²⁵ He who loves his life loses it; while he who hates his life in the present world shall preserve it for Immortal Life.

²⁷ For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me, and have believed that I came from the Father.

²⁶ I have made thee known to them, and will do so still; that the love that thou has had for me may be in their hearts, and that I may be in them also."

²³ He, I say, in accordance with God's definite plan and with his previous knowledge, was betrayed, and you, by the hands of lawless men, nailed him to a cross and put him to death.

³⁹ For the promise is for you and for your children, and also for all those now far away, who may be called by the Lord our God."

²⁵ You yourselves are the heirs of the Prophets, and heirs, too, of the Covenant which God made with your ancestors, when he said to Abraham--'In your descendants will all the nations of the earth be blessed.' ²⁶ For you, first, God raised up his Servant, and sent him to bless you, by turning each one of you from his wicked ways."

²⁷ There have indeed gathered together in this city against your holy Servant Jesus, whom you has consecrated the Christ, not Herod and Pontius Pilate only, but the nations and the people of Israel besides-- ²⁸ Yet only to do what thou, by thy power and of thy own will, didst long ago destine to be done.

²³ When he was in his fortieth year, he resolved to visit his brother Israelites; ²⁴ And, seeing an Israelite ill-treated, he defended him, and avenged the man, who was being wronged, by striking down the Egyptian. ²⁵ He thought his brothers would understand that God was using him to save them; but they failed to do so. ²⁶ The next day he again appeared upon the scene, when some of them were fighting, and tried to make peace between them. 'Men,' he said, 'you are brothers; how is it that you are ill-treating one another?'

¹⁵ But the Lord said to him: "Go, for this man is my chosen instrument to uphold my Name before the Gentiles and their kings, and the people of Israel.

²⁶ Brothers, descendants of Abraham, and all those among you who reverence God, it was to us that the Message of this Salvation was sent.

³² We also have good news to tell you, about the promise made to our ancestors-- ³³ That our children have had this promise completely fulfilled to them by God, by his raising Jesus. That is just what is said in the second Psalm--'Thou art my Son; this day I have become thy Father.'

⁴⁷ For this is the Lord's command to us--'I have destined thee for a Light to the Gentiles, a means of Salvation to the ends of the earth'." ⁴⁸ On hearing this, the Gentiles were glad and extolled God's Message; and all those who had been enrolled for Immortal Life became believers in Christ;

¹⁴ Simon has described the manner in which God first visited the Gentiles, in order to take from among them a people to bear his Name.

³⁰ Then he led them out, and said: "What must I do to be saved?" ³¹ "Believe in Jesus, our Lord," they replied, "and you shall be saved, you and your household too." ³² Then they spoke to him of God's Message, and to all his household as well. ³³ And that very hour of the night he took them and washed their wounds, and he himself and every one belonging to him were baptized without delay. ³⁴ Afterwards he took them up to his house and set before them something to eat, rejoicing that he, with all his household, had come to believe in God.

³¹ Because he has fixed a day on which he intends to 'judge the world with justice,' by a man whom he has appointed--and of this he has given all men a pledge by raising this man from the dead."

²⁸ Be watchful over yourselves, and over the whole flock, of which the Holy Spirit has placed you in charge, to shepherd the Church of God, which he won for himself at the cost of his life.

¹⁷ On our arrival at Jerusalem, the Brethren there gave us a hearty welcome; ¹⁸ And the next day Paul went with us to see James, and all the Officers of the Church were present. ¹⁹ After greeting them, Paul related in detail all that God had done among the Gentiles through his efforts; ²⁰ And, when they had heard it, they began praising God, and said to Paul: "You see, Brother, that the Jews who have become believers in Christ may be numbered by tens of thousands, and they are all naturally earnest in upholding the Jewish Law.

²⁶ 'Go to this nation and say--"You will hear with your ears without ever understanding, and, though you have eyes, you will see without ever perceiving." ²⁷ For the mind of this nation has grown dense, and their ears are dull of hearing, their eyes also have they closed; lest some day they should see with their eyes, and with their ears they should hear, and in their mind they should understand, and should turn--and I should heal them.' ²⁸ Understand, then, that this Salvation of God was sent for the Gentiles; and they will listen."

³ Concerning his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord; who, as to his human nature, was descended from David,

⁷ May God, our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ bless you and give you peace.

⁹ God, to whom I offer the worship of my soul as I tell the Goodness of his Son, is my witness how constantly I mention you when I pray,

¹⁷ For in it there is a revelation of the Divine Righteousness resulting from faith and leading on to faith; as Scripture says- -'Through faith the righteous man shall find Life.' ¹⁸ So, too, there is a revelation from Heaven of the Divine Wrath against every form of ungodliness and wickedness on the part of those men who, by their wicked lives, are stifling the Truth.

¹⁸ So, too, there is a revelation from Heaven of the Divine Wrath against every form of ungodliness and wickedness on the part of those men who, by their wicked lives, are stifling the Truth. ¹⁹ This is so, because what can be known about God is plain to them; for God himself has made it plain. ²⁰ For ever since the creation of the universe God's invisible attributes-his everlasting power and divinity-are to be seen and studied in his works, so that men have no excuse; ²¹ Because, although they learned to know God, yet they did not offer him as God either praise or thanksgiving. Their speculations about him proved futile, and their undiscerning minds were darkened. ²² Professing to be wise, they showed themselves fools; ²³ And they transformed the Glory of the immortal God into the likeness of mortal man, and of birds, and beasts, and reptiles. ²⁴ Therefore God abandoned them to impurity, letting them follow the cravings of their hearts, till they dishonored their own bodies;

²⁴ Therefore God abandoned them to impurity, letting them follow the cravings of their hearts, till they dishonored their own bodies; ²⁵ For they had substituted a lie for the truth about God, and had reverenced and worshiped created things more than the Creator, who is to be praised for ever. Amen.

²⁵ For they had substituted a lie for the truth about God, and had reverenced and worshiped created things more than the Creator, who is to be praised for ever. Amen.

²⁵ For they had substituted a lie for the truth about God, and had reverenced and worshiped created things more than the Creator, who is to be praised for ever. Amen. ²⁶ That, I say, is why God abandoned them to degrading passions. Even the women among them perverted the natural use of their bodies to the unnatural;

²⁶ That, I say, is why God abandoned them to degrading passions. Even the women among them perverted the natural use of their bodies to the unnatural; ²⁷ While the men, disregarding that for which women were intended by nature, were consumed with passion for one another. Men indulged in vile practices with men, and incurred in their own persons the inevitable penalty for their perverseness.

²⁷ While the men, disregarding that for which women were intended by nature, were consumed with passion for one another. Men indulged in vile practices with men, and incurred in their own persons the inevitable penalty for their perverseness. ²⁸ Then, as they would not keep God before their minds, God abandoned them to depraved thoughts, so that they did all kinds of shameful things.

²⁸ Then, as they would not keep God before their minds, God abandoned them to depraved thoughts, so that they did all kinds of shameful things. ²⁹ They reveled in every form of wickedness, evil, greed, vice. Their lives were full of envy, murder, quarreling, treachery, malice. ³⁰ They became back-biters, slanderers, impious, insolent, boastful. They devised new sins. They disobeyed their parents. ³¹ They were undiscerning, untrustworthy, without natural affection or pity. ³² Well aware of God's decree, that those who do such things deserve to die, not only are they guilty of them themselves, but they even applaud those who do them.

¹ Therefore you have nothing to say in your own defense, whoever you are who set yourself up as a judge. In judging others you condemn yourself, for you who set yourself up as a judge do the very same things.

⁴ Or do you think lightly of his abundant kindness, patience, and forbearance, not realizing that his kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?

⁴ Or do you think lightly of his abundant kindness, patience, and forbearance, not realizing that his kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? ⁵ Hard-hearted and impenitent as you are, you are storing up for yourself Wrath on the 'Day of Wrath,' when God's justice as a judge will be revealed;

⁵ Hard-hearted and impenitent as you are, you are storing up for yourself Wrath on the 'Day of Wrath,' when God's justice as a judge will be revealed;

¹⁵ For they show the demands of the Law written upon their hearts; their consciences corroborating it, while in their thoughts they argue either in self-accusation or, it may be, in self- defense--

²⁸ For a man who is only a Jew outwardly is not a real Jew; nor is outward bodily circumcision real circumcision. The real Jew is the man who is a Jew in soul; ²⁹ And the real circumcision is the circumcision of the heart, a spiritual and not a literal thing. Such a man wins praise from God, though not from men.

¹ What is the advantage, then, of being a Jew? or what is the good of circumcision? ² Great in every way. First of all, because the Jews were entrusted with God's utterances. ³ What follows then? Some, no doubt, showed a want of faith; but will their want of faith make God break faith? Heaven forbid!

⁵ But what if our wrong-doing makes God's righteousness all the clearer? Will God be wrong in inflicting punishment? (I can but speak as a man.) Heaven forbid!

⁵ But what if our wrong-doing makes God's righteousness all the clearer? Will God be wrong in inflicting punishment? (I can but speak as a man.) Heaven forbid!

⁵ But what if our wrong-doing makes God's righteousness all the clearer? Will God be wrong in inflicting punishment? (I can but speak as a man.) Heaven forbid! ⁶ Otherwise how can God judge the world?

⁶ Otherwise how can God judge the world? ⁷ But, if my falsehood redounds to the glory of God, by making his truthfulness more apparent, why am I like others, still condemned as a sinner? ⁸ Why should we not say-as some people slanderously assert that we do say-'Let us do evil that good may come'? The condemnation of such men is indeed just!

²⁰ For 'no human being will be pronounced righteous before God' as the result of obedience to Law; for it is Law that shows what sin is. ²¹ But now, quite apart from Law, the Divine Righteousness stands revealed, and to it the Law and the Prophets bear witness-- ²² The Divine Righteousness which is bestowed, through faith in Jesus Christ, upon all, without distinction, who believe in him.

²⁹ Or can it be that God is the God only of the Jews? Is not he also the God of the Gentiles? ³⁰ Yes, of the Gentiles also, since there is only one God, and he will pronounce those who are circumcised righteous as the result of faith, and also those who are uncircumcised on their showing the same faith.

⁹ Is this blessing, then, pronounced upon the circumcised only or upon the uncircumcised as well? We say that-'Abraham's faith was regarded by God as righteousness.'

¹¹ Not after, but before. And it was as a sign of this that he received the rite of circumcision-to attest the righteousness due to the faith of an uncircumcised man-in order that he might be the father of all who have faith in God even when uncircumcised, that they also may be regarded by God as righteous;

¹¹ Not after, but before. And it was as a sign of this that he received the rite of circumcision-to attest the righteousness due to the faith of an uncircumcised man-in order that he might be the father of all who have faith in God even when uncircumcised, that they also may be regarded by God as righteous;

¹¹ Not after, but before. And it was as a sign of this that he received the rite of circumcision-to attest the righteousness due to the faith of an uncircumcised man-in order that he might be the father of all who have faith in God even when uncircumcised, that they also may be regarded by God as righteous; ¹² As well as father of the circumcised-to those who are not only circumcised, but who also follow our father Abraham in that faith which he had while still uncircumcised.

¹² As well as father of the circumcised-to those who are not only circumcised, but who also follow our father Abraham in that faith which he had while still uncircumcised. ¹³ For the promise that he should inherit the world did not come to Abraham or his descendants through Law, but through the righteousness due to faith.

¹³ For the promise that he should inherit the world did not come to Abraham or his descendants through Law, but through the righteousness due to faith. ¹⁴ If those who take their stand on Law are to inherit the world, then faith is robbed of its meaning and the promise comes to nothing!

¹⁴ If those who take their stand on Law are to inherit the world, then faith is robbed of its meaning and the promise comes to nothing! ¹⁵ Law entails punishment; but, where no Law exists, no breach of it is possible.

¹⁵ Law entails punishment; but, where no Law exists, no breach of it is possible. ¹⁶ That is why all is made to depend upon faith, that all may be God's gift, and in order that the fulfillment of the promise may be made certain for all Abraham's descendants-not only for those who take their stand on the Law, but also for those who take their stand on the faith of Abraham. (He is the Father of us all;

¹⁶ That is why all is made to depend upon faith, that all may be God's gift, and in order that the fulfillment of the promise may be made certain for all Abraham's descendants-not only for those who take their stand on the Law, but also for those who take their stand on the faith of Abraham. (He is the Father of us all; ¹⁷ As Scripture says-'I have made thee the Father of many nations.') And this they do in the sight of that God in whom Abraham had faith, and who gives life to the dead, and speaks of what does not yet exist as if it did.

²² And therefore his faith 'was regarded as righteousness.'

¹ Therefore, having been pronounced righteous as the result of faith, let us enjoy peace with God through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

³ And not only that, but let us also exult in our troubles;

⁵ And that 'hope never disappoints.' For the love of God has filled our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was given us;

¹¹ And not only that, but we exult in God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, through whom we have now obtained this reconciliation.

²⁰ Law was introduced in order that offences might be multiplied. But, where sins were multiplied, the loving-kindness of God was lavished the more, ²¹ In order than, just as Sin had reigned in the realm of Death, so, too, might Loving-kindness reign through righteousness, and result in Immortal Life, through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

¹⁴ All who are guided by the Spirit of God are Sons of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive the spirit of a slave, to fill you once more with fear, but the spirit of a son which leads us to cry 'Abba, Our Father.' ¹⁶ The Spirit himself unites with our spirits in bearing witness to our being God's children,

²⁸ But we do know that God causes all things to work together for the good of those who love him-those who have received the Call in accordance with his purpose. ²⁹ For those whom God chose from the first he also destined from the first to be transformed into likeness to his Son, so that his Son might be the eldest among many Brothers.

²⁹ For those whom God chose from the first he also destined from the first to be transformed into likeness to his Son, so that his Son might be the eldest among many Brothers. ³⁰ And those whom God destined for this he also called; and those whom he called he also pronounced righteous; and those whom he pronounced righteous he also brought to Glory.

⁶ Not that God's Word has failed. For it is not all who are descended from Israel who are true Israelites;

¹¹ For in order that the purpose of God, working through selection, might not fail-a selection depending, not on obedience, but on his Call-Rebecca was told, before her children were born and before they had done anything either right or wrong,

¹⁴ What are we to say, then? Is God guilty of injustice? Heaven forbid! ¹⁵ For his words to Moses are-'I will take pity on whom I take pity, and be merciful to whom I am merciful.' ¹⁶ So, then, all depends, not on human wishes or human efforts, but on God's mercy.

¹⁶ So, then, all depends, not on human wishes or human efforts, but on God's mercy. ¹⁷ In Scripture, again, it is said to Pharaoh-'It was for this very purpose that I raised thee to the throne, to show my power by my dealings with thee, and to make my name known throughout the world.' ¹⁸ So, then, where God wills, he takes pity, and where he wills, he hardens the heart.

¹⁸ So, then, where God wills, he takes pity, and where he wills, he hardens the heart. ¹⁹ Perhaps you will say to me-'How can any one still be blamed? For who withstands his purpose?'

²¹ Has not the potter absolute power over his clay, so that out of the same lump he makes one thing for better, and another for common, use? ²² And what if God, intending to reveal his displeasure and make his power known, bore most patiently with the objects of his displeasure, though they were fit only to be destroyed, ²³ So as to make known his surpassing glory in dealing with the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared beforehand for glory,

³⁰ What are we to say, then? Why, that Gentiles, who were not in search of righteousness, secured it-a righteousness which was the result of faith; ³¹ While Israel, which was in search of a Law which would ensure righteousness, failed to discover one.

³¹ While Israel, which was in search of a Law which would ensure righteousness, failed to discover one. ³² And why? Because they looked to obedience, and not to faith, to secure it. They stumbled over 'the Stumbling-block.'

¹ Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for my People is for their Salvation. ² I can testify that they are zealous for the honor of God; but they are not guided by true insight, ³ For, in their ignorance of the Divine Righteousness, and in their eagerness to set up a righteousness of their own, they refused to accept with submission the Divine Righteousness.

³ For, in their ignorance of the Divine Righteousness, and in their eagerness to set up a righteousness of their own, they refused to accept with submission the Divine Righteousness. ⁴ For Christ has brought Law to an end, so that righteousness may be obtained by every one who believes in him.

⁶ But the righteousness which results from faith finds expression in these words--'Do not say to yourself "Who will go up into heaven?"'--which means to bring Christ down--'

¹⁰ For with their hearts men believe and so attain to righteousness, while with their lips they make their Profession of Faith and so find Salvation. ¹¹ As the passage of Scripture says--'No one who believes in him shall have any cause for shame.' ¹² For no distinction is made between the Jew and the Greek, for all have the same Lord, and he is bountiful to all who invoke him.

²⁰ And Isaiah says boldly--'I was found by those who were not seeking me; I made myself known to those who were not inquiring of me.

¹ I ask, then, 'Has God rejected his People?' Heaven forbid! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.

¹ I ask, then, 'Has God rejected his People?' Heaven forbid! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. ² God has not rejected his People, whom he chose from the first. Have you forgotten the words of Scripture in the story of Elijah- how he appeals to God against Israel?

⁴ But what was the divine response? 'I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have never bowed the knee to Baal.'

⁴ But what was the divine response? 'I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have never bowed the knee to Baal.' ⁵ And so in our own time, too, there is to be found a remnant of our nation selected by God in love.

⁵ And so in our own time, too, there is to be found a remnant of our nation selected by God in love. ⁶ But if in love, then no longer as a result of obedience. Otherwise love would cease to be love.

⁶ But if in love, then no longer as a result of obedience. Otherwise love would cease to be love. ⁷ What follows from this? Why, that Israel as a nation failed to secure what it was seeking, while those whom God selected did secure it.

⁷ What follows from this? Why, that Israel as a nation failed to secure what it was seeking, while those whom God selected did secure it.

⁷ What follows from this? Why, that Israel as a nation failed to secure what it was seeking, while those whom God selected did secure it. ⁸ The rest grew callous; as Scripture says--'God has given them a deadness of mind--eyes that are not to see and ears that are not to hear--and it is so to this very day.'

¹¹ I ask then--'Was their stumbling to result in their fall?' Heaven forbid! On the contrary, through their falling away Salvation has reached the Gentiles, to stir the rivalry of Israel.

¹¹ I ask then--'Was their stumbling to result in their fall?' Heaven forbid! On the contrary, through their falling away Salvation has reached the Gentiles, to stir the rivalry of Israel. ¹² And, if their falling away has enriched the world, and their failure has enriched the Gentiles, how much more will result from their full restoration! ¹³ But I am speaking to you who were Gentiles. ¹⁴ Being myself an Apostle to the Gentiles, I exalt my office, in the hope that I may stir my countrymen to rivalry, and so save some of them.

¹⁹ But branches, you will say, were broken off, so that I might be grafted in.

²⁸ From the stand-point of the Good News, the Jews are God's enemies on your account; but from the stand-point of God's selection, they are dear to him on account of the Patriarchs.

⁸ For I tell you that Christ, in vindication of God's truthfulness, has become a minister of the Covenant of Circumcision, so that he may fulfil the promises made to our ancestors, ⁹ And that the Gentiles also may praise God for his mercy. As Scripture says--'Therefore will I make acknowledgment to thee among the Gentiles and sing in honor of thy Name.' ¹⁰ And again it says--'Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with God's People.' ¹¹ And yet again--'Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles, and let all Peoples sing his praises.' ¹² Again, Isaiah says--'There shall be a Scion of the house of Jesse, One who is to arise to rule the Gentiles; on him shall the Gentiles rest their hopes.' ¹³ May God, who inspires our hope, grant you perfect happiness and peace in your faith, till you are filled with this hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. ¹⁴ I am persuaded, my Brothers--yes, I Paul, with regard to you- that you are yourselves full of kindness, furnished with all Christian learning, and well able to give advice to one another. ¹⁵ But in parts of this letter I have expressed myself somewhat boldly--by way of refreshing your memories-- ¹⁶ Because of the charge with which God has entrusted me, that I should be a minister of Christ Jesus to go to the Gentiles--that I should act as a priest of God's Good News, so that the offering up of the Gentiles may be an acceptable sacrifice, consecrated by the Holy Spirit.

⁹ God will not fail you, and it is he who called you into communion with his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

²⁰ Where is the Philosopher? where the Teacher of the Law? where the Disputant of to-day? Has not God shown the world's philosophy to be folly?

²³ We are proclaiming Christ crucified!-to the Jews an obstacle, to the Gentiles mere folly,

²⁶ Look at the facts of your Call, Brothers. There are not many among you who are wise, as men reckon wisdom, not many who are influential, not many who are high-born; ²⁷ But God chose what the world counts foolish to put its wise men to shame, and God chose what the world counts weak to put its strong things to shame, ²⁸ And God chose what the world counts poor and insignificant-- things that to it are unreal-to bring its 'realities' to nothing, ²⁹ So that in his presence no human being should boast. ³⁰ But you, by your union with Christ Jesus, belong to God; and Christ, by God's will, became not only our Wisdom, but also our Righteousness, Holiness, and Deliverance, ³¹ So that-in the words of Scripture-'Let him who boasts make his boast of the Lord!'

⁹ Do not you know that wrong-doers will have no share in God's Kingdom? Do not be deceived. No one who is immoral, or an idolater, or an adulterer, or licentious, or a sodomite, ¹⁰ Or a thief, or covetous, or a drunkard, or abusive, or grasping, will have any share in God's Kingdom. ¹¹ Such some of you used to be; but you washed yourselves clean. You became Christ's People! you were pronounced righteous through the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and through the Spirit of our God!

¹⁶ How can you tell, wife, whether you may not save your husband? and how can you tell, husband, whether you may not save your wife?

³ Therefore I tell you plainly that no one who speaks under the influence of the Spirit of God says 'JESUS IS ACCURSED,' and that no one can say 'JESUS IS LORD,' except under the influence of the Holy Spirit.

¹⁶ If you bless God with your spirit only, how can the man in the congregation who is without your gift say 'Amen' to your thanksgiving? He does not know what you are saying!

¹² Now, if it is proclaimed of Christ that he has been raised from the dead, how is it that some of you say that there is no such thing as a resurrection of the dead?

³⁵ Some one, however, may ask 'How do the dead rise? and in what body will they come?'

²² Accursed be any one who has no love for the Lord. THE LORD IS COMING.

¹² Indeed, our main ground for satisfaction is this--Our conscience tells us that our conduct in the world, and still more in our relations with you, was marked by a purity of motive and a sincerity that were inspired by God, and was based, not on worldly policy, but on the help of God.

²³ But, as my life shall answer for it, I call God to witness that it was to spare you that I deferred my visit to Corinth.

¹⁸ And I will be a father to you, and you shall be my sons and daughters," says the Lord, the Ruler of all.'

¹⁰ As surely as I know anything of the Truth of Christ, this boast, as far as I am concerned, shall not be stopped in any part of Greece.

³¹ The God and Father of the Lord Jesus--he who is for ever blessed--knows that I am speaking the truth.

¹⁹ Have you all this time been fancying that it is to you that we are making our defense? No, it is in the sight of God, and in union with Christ, that we are speaking. And all this, dear friends, is to build up your characters;

⁸ Yet even if we--or if an angel from Heaven were to tell you any other 'Good News' than that which we told you, may he be accursed!

²⁰ (As to what I am now writing to you, I call God to witness that I am speaking the truth).

¹⁶ So we placed our faith in Christ Jesus, in order that we might be pronounced righteous, as the result of faith in Christ, and not of obedience to Law; for such obedience 'will not result in even one soul's being pronounced righteous.'

⁸ And Scripture, foreseeing that God would pronounce the Gentiles righteous as the result of faith, foretold the Good News to Abraham in the words--'Through thee all the Gentiles shall be blessed.'

¹⁰ All who rely upon obedience to Law are under a curse, for Scripture says--'Cursed is every one who does not abide by all that is written in the Book of the Law, and do it.'

¹⁰ All who rely upon obedience to Law are under a curse, for Scripture says--'Cursed is every one who does not abide by all that is written in the Book of the Law, and do it.' ¹¹ Again, it is evident that no one is pronounced righteous before God through Law, for we read--'Through faith the righteous man shall find Life.'

¹³ Christ ransomed us from the curse pronounced in the Law, by taking the curse on himself for us, for Scripture says--'Cursed is any one who is hanged on a tree.'

²¹ Does that set the Law in opposition to God's promises? Heaven forbid! For, if a Law had been given capable of bestowing Life, then righteousness would have actually owed its existence to Law. ²² But the words of Scripture represent the whole world as being in bondage to sin, so that the promised blessing, dependent, as it is, upon faith in Jesus Christ, may be given to those who have faith in him.

²⁴ Thus the Law has proved a guide to lead us to Christ, in order that we may be pronounced righteous as the result of faith.

²⁶ For you are all Sons of God, through your faith in Christ Jesus.

²⁶ For you are all Sons of God, through your faith in Christ Jesus. ²⁷ For all of you who were baptized into union with Christ clothed yourselves with Christ. ²⁸ All distinctions between Jew and Greek, slave and freeman, male and female, have vanished; for in union with Christ Jesus you are all one.

²⁸ All distinctions between Jew and Greek, slave and freeman, male and female, have vanished; for in union with Christ Jesus you are all one. ²⁹ And, since you belong to Christ, it follows that you are Abraham's offspring and, under the promise, sharers in the inheritance.

²² Scripture says that Abraham had two sons, one the child of the slave-woman and the other the child of the free woman. ²³ But the child of the slave-woman was born in the course of nature, while the child of the free woman was born in fulfillment of a promise.

²³ But the child of the slave-woman was born in the course of nature, while the child of the free woman was born in fulfillment of a promise. ²⁴ This story may be taken as an allegory. The women stand for two Covenants. One Covenant, given from Mount Sinai, produces a race of slaves and is represented by Hagar ²⁵ (The word Hagar meaning in Arabia Mount Sinai) and it ranks with the Jerusalem of to-day, for she and her children are in slavery. ²⁶ But the Jerusalem above is free, and she it is who is our mother. ²⁷ For Scripture says--'Rejoice, thou barren one, who dost never bear, Break into shouts, thou who art never in labor, For many are the children of her who is desolate--aye, more than of her who has a husband.' ²⁸ As for ourselves, brothers, we, like Isaac, are children born in fulfillment of a promise. ²⁹ Yet at that time the child born in the course of nature persecuted the child born by the power of the Spirit; and it is the same now. ³⁰ But what does the passage of Scripture say? 'Send away the slave-woman and her son; for the slave's son shall not be co-heir with the son of the free woman.'

³⁰ But what does the passage of Scripture say? 'Send away the slave-woman and her son; for the slave's son shall not be co-heir with the son of the free woman.' ³¹ And so, Brothers, we are not children of a slave, but of her who is free.

³ I again declare to every one who receives circumcision, that he binds himself to obey the whole Law. ⁴ You have severed yourselves from Christ--you who are seeking to be pronounced righteous through Law; you have fallen away from love. ⁵ For we, by the help of the Spirit, are eagerly waiting for the fulfillment of our hope--that we may be pronounced righteous as the result of faith.

¹⁶ May all who rule their conduct by this principle find peace and mercy--they who are the Israel of God.

⁴ For he chose us in our union with Christ before the creation of the universe, that we might be holy and blameless in his sight, living in the spirit of love. ⁵ From the first he destined us, in his good-will towards us, to be adopted as Sons through Jesus Christ, ⁶ And so to enhance that glorious manifestation of his loving- kindness which he gave us in The Beloved;

⁶ And so to enhance that glorious manifestation of his loving- kindness which he gave us in The Beloved; ⁷ For in him, and through the shedding of his blood, we have found redemption in the pardon of our offenses. ⁸ All this accords with the loving-kindness which God lavished upon us, accompanied by countless gifts of wisdom and discernment, ⁹ When he made known to us his hidden purpose. And it also accords with the good-will which God purposed to exhibit in Christ, ¹⁰ In view of that Divine Order which was to mark the completion of the ages, when he should make everything, both in Heaven and on earth, center in him. ¹¹ In him, I say, for by our union with him we became God's Heritage, having from the first been destined for this in the intention of him who, in all that happens, is carrying out his own fixed purpose;

¹⁸ That your minds may be so enlightened that you may realize the hope given by God's Call, the wealth of the glory of his heritage among Christ's People,

³ And it was among them that we all once lived our lives, indulging the cravings of our earthly nature, and carrying out the desires prompted by that earthly nature and by our own thoughts. Our very nature exposed us to the Divine Wrath, like the rest of mankind.

³ And it was among them that we all once lived our lives, indulging the cravings of our earthly nature, and carrying out the desires prompted by that earthly nature and by our own thoughts. Our very nature exposed us to the Divine Wrath, like the rest of mankind. ⁴ Yet God, in his abundant compassion, and because of the great love with which he loved us, ⁵ Even though we were 'dead' because of our offenses, gave Life to us in giving Life to the Christ. (By God's loving-kindness you have been saved.)

⁷ In order that, by his goodness to us in Christ Jesus, he might display in the ages to come the boundless wealth of his loving- kindness. ⁸ For it is by God's loving-kindness that you have been saved, through your faith. It is not due to yourselves; the gift is God's. ⁹ It is not due to obedience to Law, lest any one should boast. ¹⁰ For we are God's handiwork, created, by our union with Christ Jesus, for the good actions in doing which God had pre-arranged that we should spend our lives. ¹¹ Remember, therefore, that you were once Gentiles yourselves, as your bodies showed; you were called 'The Uncircumcised' by those who were called 'The Circumcised'--circumcised only by the hand of man! ¹² Remember that you were at that time far from Christ; you were shut out from the citizenship of Israel; you were strangers to the Covenants founded on God's Promise; you were in the world without hope and without God.

¹² Remember that you were at that time far from Christ; you were shut out from the citizenship of Israel; you were strangers to the Covenants founded on God's Promise; you were in the world without hope and without God. ¹³ But now, through your union with Christ Jesus, you who once were 'far off' have, by the shedding of the blood of the Christ, been brought 'near.'

⁶ That, by union with Christ Jesus and through the Good News, the Gentiles are co-heirs with us and members of one Body, and that they share with us in God's Promise. ⁷ Of this Good News I became a minister, in virtue of the charge with which God entrusted me in the exercise of his power-- ⁸ Yes, to me, who am less than the least of all Christ's People, was this charge entrusted!--to tell the Gentiles the Good News of the boundless wealth to be found in the Christ,

⁸ Yes, to me, who am less than the least of all Christ's People, was this charge entrusted!--to tell the Gentiles the Good News of the boundless wealth to be found in the Christ,

¹¹ In accordance with that purpose which runs through all the ages and which he has now accomplished in Jesus, the Christ, our Master.

¹⁶ And pray that, in proportion to the wealth of his glory, he will strengthen you with his power by breathing his Spirit into your inmost soul,

¹⁷ This, then, as one in union with the Lord, I say to you and urge upon you: Do not continue to live such purposeless lives as the Gentiles live, ¹⁸ With their powers of discernment darkened, cut off from the Life of God, owing to the ignorance that prevails among them and to the hardness of their hearts. ¹⁹ Lost to all sense of shame, they have abandoned themselves to licentiousness, in order to practice every kind of impurity without restraint.

⁸ God will bear me witness how I yearn over you all with the tenderness of Christ Jesus.

²⁰ And this will fulfil my earnest expectation and hope that I shall have no cause for shame, but that, with unfailing courage, now as hitherto, Christ will be honored in my body, whether by my life or by my death,

⁶ Though the divine nature was his from the beginning, yet he did not look upon equality with God as above all things to be clung to, ⁷ But impoverished himself by taking the nature of a servant and becoming like men; ⁸ He appeared among us as a man, and still further humbled himself by submitting even to death--to death on a cross! ⁹ And that is why God raised him to the very highest place, and gave him the Name which stands above all other names, ¹⁰ So that in adoration of the Name of Jesus every knee should bend, in Heaven, on earth, and under the earth, ¹¹ And that every tongue should acknowledge JESUS CHRIST as LORD- -to the glory of God the Father.

¹³ Remember it is God who, in his kindness, is at work within you, enabling you both to will and to work.

³ For it is we who are the circumcised--we whose worship is prompted by the Spirit of God, who exult in Christ Jesus, and who do not rely upon external privileges;

⁶ As to zeal, I was a persecutor of the Church; as to such righteousness as is due to Law, I proved myself blameless.

⁹ Any righteousness that I have being, not the righteousness that results from Law, but the righteousness which comes through faith in Christ--the righteousness which is derived from God and is founded on faith.

¹⁸ For there are many--of whom I have often told you, and now tell you even with tears--who are living in enmity to the cross of the Christ.

¹² And you will give thanks to the Father who made you fit to share the lot which awaits Christ's People in the realms of Light.

¹⁶ For in him was created all that is in Heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible--Angels and Archangels and all the Powers of Heaven. ¹⁷ All has been created through him and for him. He was before all things, and all things unite in him; ¹⁸ And he is the Head of the Church, which is his Body. The First-born from the dead, he is to the Church the Source of its Life, that he, in all things, may stand first. ¹⁹ For it pleased the Father that in him the divine nature in all its fulness should dwell,

²⁷ To whom it was his pleasure to make known the surpassing glory of that hidden Truth when proclaimed among the Gentiles--'Christ among you! Your Hope of glory!'

¹¹ In that new life there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, freeman; but Christ is all!--and in all!

⁴ Brothers, whom God loves, we know that he has chosen you,

⁵ Never at any time, as you know, did we use the language of flattery, or make false professions in order to hide selfish aims. God will bear witness to that.

¹² So that you should make your daily lives worthy of God who is calling you into the glory of his Kingdom.

¹⁶ For they would prevent us from speaking to the Gentiles with a view to their Salvation, and thus are always 'filling up the measure of their iniquity.' But the Wrath of God has come upon them to the full!

⁹ For God destined us, not for Wrath, but to win Salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us,

¹⁰ When he comes to be honour ed in his People,' and to be revered in all who have learned to believe in him (for you also believed our testimony)--as he will be on 'That Day.' ¹¹ With this in view, our constant prayer for you is that our God may count you worthy of the Call that you have received, and by his power make perfect your delight in all goodness and the efforts that have resulted from your faith. ¹² Then, in the loving-kindness of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ, will the name of Jesus, our Lord, be honour ed in you, and you in him.

¹⁰ to the ruin of those who are on the path to destruction, because they have never received and loved the Truth to their own Salvation. ¹¹ That is why God places them under the influence of a delusion, to cause them to believe a lie; ¹² So that sentence may be passed on all those who refuse to believe the Truth, but delight in wickedness. ¹³ But, Brothers, whom the Lord loves, it is our duty always to thank God about you, for, from the first, God chose you for Salvation through the purifying influence of the Spirit, and your belief in the Truth. ¹⁴ To this you were called by the Good News which we brought you, to attain to the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁵ The object of all instruction is to call forth that love which comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a sincere faith.

⁷ and it was for this that I was myself appointed a Herald and an Apostle (I am telling the simple truth and no lie)--a Teacher of the Gentiles in the Faith and Truth.

¹⁶ Yes, and confessedly wonderful are the deep truths of our religion; for-- 'He was revealed in our nature, pronounced righteous in spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, taken up into glory.'

²¹ I charge you solemnly, before God and Christ Jesus and the Chosen Angels, to carry out these directions, unswayed by prejudice, never acting with partiality.

⁵ and incessant wrangling on the part of these corrupt-minded people who have lost all hold on the Truth, and who think of religion only as a source of gain.

¹¹ But do you, Servant of God, avoid all this. Aim at righteousness, piety, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.

¹⁵ This will be brought about in his own time by the one ever-blessed Potentate, the King of all kings and Lord of all lords,

⁹ It was God who saved us, and from him we received our solemn Call--not as a reward for anything that we had done, but in fulfillment of his own loving purpose. For that love was extended to us, through Christ Jesus, before time began,

¹² That is why I am undergoing these sufferings; yet I feel no shame, for I know in whom I have put my faith, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until 'That Day.'

⁸ Keep before your mind Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, a descendant of David, as told in the Good News entrusted to me;

¹³ If we lose our trust, he is still to be trusted, for he cannot be false to himself!'

²⁰ Now in a large house there are not only things of gold and silver, but also others of wood and earthenware, some for better and some for common use.

²⁰ Now in a large house there are not only things of gold and silver, but also others of wood and earthenware, some for better and some for common use. ²¹ If, then, a man has escaped from the pollution of such errors as I have mentioned, he will be like a thing kept for better use, set apart, serviceable to its owner, ready for any good purpose.

²¹ If, then, a man has escaped from the pollution of such errors as I have mentioned, he will be like a thing kept for better use, set apart, serviceable to its owner, ready for any good purpose.

⁹ Urge slaves to be submissive to their owners in all circumstances, and to try their best to please them.

³ There was, you remember, a time when we ourselves were foolish, disobedient, misled, slaves to all kinds of passions and vices, living in a spirit of malice and envy, detested ourselves and hating one another.

³ There was, you remember, a time when we ourselves were foolish, disobedient, misled, slaves to all kinds of passions and vices, living in a spirit of malice and envy, detested ourselves and hating one another. ⁴ But, when the kindness of God our Savior and his love for man were revealed, he saved us,

⁴ But, when the kindness of God our Savior and his love for man were revealed, he saved us, ⁵ not as the result of any righteous actions that we had done, but in fulfillment of his merciful purposes. He saved us by that Washing which was a New Birth to us, and by the renewing power of the Holy Spirit,

⁵ not as the result of any righteous actions that we had done, but in fulfillment of his merciful purposes. He saved us by that Washing which was a New Birth to us, and by the renewing power of the Holy Spirit,

⁵ not as the result of any righteous actions that we had done, but in fulfillment of his merciful purposes. He saved us by that Washing which was a New Birth to us, and by the renewing power of the Holy Spirit, ⁶ which he poured out upon us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior; ⁷ that, having been pronounced righteous through his loving-kindness, we might enter on our inheritance with the hope of Immortal Life.

⁸ while of the Son he said-- 'God is thy throne for ever and ever; The scepter of his Kingdom is the scepter of Justice; ⁹ Thou lovest righteousness and hatest iniquity; Therefore God, thy God, has anointed thee with the festal oil more abundantly than thy peers.' ¹⁰ Again-- 'Thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of thy hands. ¹¹ They shall perish, but thou remainest; As a garment they shall all grow old; ¹² As a mantle thou wilt fold them up, And as a garment they shall be changed, But thou art the same, and thy years shall know no end.' ¹³ To which of the angels has God ever said-- 'Sit thou at my right hand until I put thy enemies as a stool for thy feet'?

¹ Therefore, Christian Brothers, you who, all alike, have received the Call from Heaven, fix your attention on Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our Religion.

¹³ When God gave his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater by whom he could swear, he swore by himself. ¹⁴ His words were-- 'I will assuredly bless thee and increase thy numbers.' ¹⁵ And so, after patiently waiting, Abraham obtained the fulfillment of God's promise. ¹⁶ Men, of course, swear by what is greater than themselves, and with them an oath is accepted as putting a matter beyond all dispute. ¹⁷ And therefore God, in his desire to show, with unmistakable plainness, to those who were to enter on the enjoyment of what he had promised, the unchangeableness of his purpose, bound himself with an oath.

¹⁷ And therefore God, in his desire to show, with unmistakable plainness, to those who were to enter on the enjoyment of what he had promised, the unchangeableness of his purpose, bound himself with an oath. ¹⁸ For he intended us to find great encouragement in these two unchangeable things, which make it impossible for God to prove false--we, I mean, who fled for safety where we might lay hold on the hope set before us.

⁶ But Jesus, as we see, has obtained a ministry as far excelling theirs, as the Covenant of which he is the intermediary, based, as it is, on better promises, excels the former Covenant. ⁷ If that first Covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion for a second. ⁸ But, finding fault with the people, God says-- '"Behold, a time is coming," says the Lord, "when I will ratify a new Covenant with the People of Israel and with the People of Judah-- ⁹ Not such a Covenant as I made with their ancestors on the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt. For they did not abide by their Covenant with me, And therefore I disregarded them," says the Lord. ¹⁰ "This is the Covenant that I will make with the People of Israel After those days," says the Lord. "I will impress my laws on their minds, and will inscribe them on their hearts; And I will be their God, and they shall be my People.

¹ It is true that even the first Covenant had its regulations for divine worship, and its Sanctuary--though only a material one.

³ The part of the Tabernacle behind the second Curtain is called the Inner Sanctuary.

¹⁰ the whole system being concerned only with food and drink and various ablutions--external ceremonials imposed until the coming of the New Order.

⁷ It was faith that enabled Noah, after he had received the divine warning about what could not then be foreseen, to build, in reverent obedience, an ark in which to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world, and became possessed of that righteousness which follows upon faith.

¹¹ Again, it was faith that enabled Sarah to conceive (though she was past the age for child-bearing), because she felt sure that he who had given her the promise would not fail her. ¹² And so from one man--and that when his powers were dead--there sprang a people as numerous 'as the stars in the heavens or the countless grains of sand upon the shore.'

¹⁷ It was faith that enabled Abraham, when put to the test, to offer Isaac as a sacrifice--he who had received the promises offering up his only son, ¹⁸ of whom it had been said-- 'It is through Isaac that there shall be descendants to bear thy name.'

¹³ Let no one say, when he is tempted, "It is God who is tempting me!" For God, who cannot be tempted to do wrong, does not himself tempt any one.

¹⁸ Because he so willed, he gave us Life, through the Message of the Truth, so that we should be, as it were, an earnest of still further creations.

¹⁰ For a man who has laid the Law, as a whole, to heart, but has failed in one particular, is liable for breaking all its provisions. ¹¹ He who said 'Thou shalt not commit adultery' also said 'Thou shalt not murder.' If, then, you commit murder but not adultery, you are still an offender against the Law.

²⁰ Now do you really want to understand, you foolish man, how it is that faith without actions leads to nothing?

⁴ I tell you, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you have been fraudulently keeping back, are crying out against you, and the outcries of your reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts!

² and who were chosen in accordance with the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the consecration of the Spirit, to learn obedience, and to be purified by the sprinkling of the Blood of Jesus Christ, from Peter, an Apostle of Jesus Christ. May blessing and peace be yours in ever-increasing measure. ³ Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has, in his great mercy, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ given us the new Life of undying hope, that promises an inheritance, imperishable, stainless, unfading, which has been reserved for you in Heaven-- ⁵ for you who, through faith, are being guarded by the power of God, awaiting a Salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last days.

⁶ For there is a passage of Scripture that runs-- 'See, I am placing in Zion a choice and precious corner-stone; And he who believes in him shall have no cause for shame.' ⁷ It is to you, then, who believe in him that he is precious, but to those who do not believe he is 'a stone which, though rejected by the builders, has now itself become the corner-stone,' ⁸ and 'a stumbling-block, and a rock which shall prove a hindrance.' They stumble because they do not accept the Message. This was the fate destined for them.

⁸ and 'a stumbling-block, and a rock which shall prove a hindrance.' They stumble because they do not accept the Message. This was the fate destined for them. ⁹ But you are 'a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a consecrated nation, God's own People,' entrusted with the proclamation of the goodness of him who called you out of Darkness into his wonderful Light. ¹⁰ Once you were 'not a people,' but now you are 'God's People'; once you 'had not found mercy,' but now you 'have found mercy.'

¹⁰ Once you were 'not a people,' but now you are 'God's People'; once you 'had not found mercy,' but now you 'have found mercy.'

²⁰ who once were disobedient, at the time when God patiently waited, in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared; in which some few lives, eight in all, were saved by means of water.

³ Surely in the past you have spent time enough living as the Gentiles delight to live. For your path has lain among scenes of debauchery, licentiousness, drunkenness, revelry, hard-drinking, and profane idolatry.

¹⁰ God, from whom all help comes, and who called you, by your union with Christ, into his eternal glory, will, when you have suffered for a little while, himself perfect, establish, strengthen you.

¹⁰ Therefore, Brothers, do your best to put God's Call and Selection of you beyond all doubt; for, if you do this, you will never fall.

³ In their covetousness they will try to make you a source of profit by their fabrications; but for a long time past their Sentence has not been standing idle, nor their Ruin slumbering.

⁶ He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and reduced them to ashes, holding them up as a warning to the godless of what was in store for them;

⁹ The Lord, therefore, knows how to deliver the pious from temptation, and to keep the wicked, who are even now suffering punishment, in readiness for 'the Day of Judgment'--

⁸ But you, dear friends, must never shut your eyes to the fact that, to the Lord, one day is the same as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. ⁹ The Lord is not slow to fulfil his promise, as some count slowness; but he is forbearing with you, as it is not his will that any of you should perish, but that all should be brought to repentance.

¹⁵ Regard our Lord's forbearance as your one hope of Salvation. This is what our dear Brother Paul wrote to you, with the wisdom that God gave him.

²⁸ Yes, my Children, maintain your union with Christ, so that, whenever he appears, our confidence may not fail us, and we may not be ashamed to meet him at his coming.

¹ Think what love the Father has shown us in allowing us to be called 'Children of God'; as indeed we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it has not learned to know him.

¹ Think what love the Father has shown us in allowing us to be called 'Children of God'; as indeed we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it has not learned to know him. ² Dear friends, we are God's Children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is that, when it is revealed, we shall be like Christ; because we shall see him as he is.

² Dear friends, we are God's Children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is that, when it is revealed, we shall be like Christ; because we shall see him as he is. ³ And every one who has this hope with regard to Christ tries to make himself pure--as Christ is pure.

¹⁹ By that we shall know that we are on the side of the Truth; and we shall satisfy ourselves in God's sight, ²⁰ that if our conscience condemns us, yet God is greater than our conscience and knows everything. ²¹ Dear friends, if our conscience does not condemn us, then we approach God with confidence,

⁹ We accept the testimony of men, but God's testimony is still stronger; and there is the testimony of God--the fact that he has already borne testimony about his Son. ¹⁰ He who believes in the Son of God has that testimony within him. He who does not believe God has made God a liar, by refusing to believe in that testimony which he has borne about his Son. ¹¹ And that testimony is that God gave us Immortal Life, and that this Life is in his Son. ¹² He who finds the Son finds Life; he who does not find the Son of God does not find Life.

²⁰ We realize, too, that the Son of God has come among us, and has given us the discernment to know the True God; and we are in union with the True God by our union with his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the True God and he is Immortal Life.

⁴ For there have crept in among you certain godless people, whose sentence has long since been pronounced, and who make the mercy of God an excuse for profligacy, and disown our only lord and master, Jesus Christ.

⁷ Like Sodom and Gomorrah and the towns near them, which gave themselves up to fornication, and fell into unnatural vice, these angels now stand out as a warning, undergoing, as they are, the punishment of aeonian fire.

¹⁸ the Everliving. I died, and I am alive for ever and ever. And I hold the keys of the Grave and of the Place of the Dead.

¹⁴ And the four Creatures said 'Amen,' and the Councillors prostrated themselves and worshiped.

⁹ When the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been killed for the sake of God's Message and for the testimony which they had borne. ¹⁰ They cried in a loud voice--'How long, O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, before thou wilt give judgment and avenge our blood upon all who are living upon the earth?' ¹¹ Then to each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to rest yet a little longer, till the number of their fellow-servants and of their Brothers who were about to be put to death, as they had been, should be complete.

¹⁶ and they are crying to the mountains and the rocks-- 'Fall upon us, and hide us from the eyes of him who is seated on the throne, and from the Wrath of the Lamb, ¹⁷ for the great Day of their Wrath is come, and who can stand to meet it?'

³ Then I will give permission to my Two Witnesses, and for those twelve hundred and sixty days they will continue teaching, clothed in sackcloth.'

³ They are singing the song of Moses, the Servant of God, and the song of the Lamb-- 'Great and marvelous are thy deeds, O Lord, our God, the Almighty. Righteous and true are thy ways, Eternal King. ⁴ Who will not reverence and praise thy Name, O Lord? Thou alone art holy! All nations will come and worship before thee, for thy judgments have become manifest.'

⁷ And I heard the response from the altar-- 'Yes, O Lord, our God, the Almighty, true and righteous are they judgments.'

¹⁴ They will fight with the Lamb, but the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings; so, too, will those with him who have received the Call and are chosen and faithful.

⁹ Then a voice said to me 'Write-- "Blessed are those who have been summoned to the marriage feast of the Lamb."' And the voice said-- 'These words of God are true.'

¹¹ Then I saw that Heaven lay open. There appears a white horse; its rider is called 'Faithful' and 'True'; righteously does he judge and make war.

¹⁶ 'I, Jesus, sent my angel to bear testimony to you about these things before the Churches. I am the Scion and the Offspring of David, the bright Star of the Morning.'

²⁰ He whose testimony this is says-- 'Assuredly I will come quickly.' 'Amen, come, Lord Jesus.'