Eph 1:1 Paul, an apostle
of Jesus Christ by the will of God,
To the saints who are in Ephesus,
and faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace to you and peace
from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed
be the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in
the heavenly places
in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him
before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame
before Him in love, 5 having
predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to
the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the
praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the
Beloved.
7 In Him we have
redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the
riches of His grace 8 which He made to
abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, 9 having
made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure
which He purposed in Himself, 10 that
in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in
one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in
Him. 11 In Him also we have obtained an
inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all
things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that
we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.
13 In Him you also
trusted, after you heard
the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having
believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who
is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased
possession, to the praise of His glory.
15 Therefore I also,
after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the
saints, 16 do not cease to give thanks
for you, making mention of you in my prayers: 17 that
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the
spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the
eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the
hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in
the saints, 19 and what
is the exceeding greatness
of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty
power 20 which He worked in Christ when
He raised Him from the dead and seated Him
at His right hand in the heavenly places,
21 far above all principality and power
and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age
but also in that which is to come.
22 And He put all
things under His feet,
and gave Him to be
head over all things
to the church, 23 which is His body,
the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
2:1 And you
He made alive, who were
dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which
you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the
prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of
disobedience, 3 among whom also we all
once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires
of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as
the others.
4 But God, who is rich in
mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even
when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by
grace you have been saved), 6 and
raised us up
together, and made us
sit together in the heavenly places
in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to
come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward
us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you
have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves;
it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should
boast. 10 For we are His workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that
we should walk in them.
11 Therefore remember
that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what
is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands— 12 that
at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of
Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and
without God in the world. 13 But now in
Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood
of Christ.
14 For He Himself is our
peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of
separation, 15 having abolished in His
flesh the enmity, that is,
the law of commandments contained
in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man
from the two,
thus making peace,
16 and that He might reconcile them both to
God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.
17 And He came and preached peace to
you who were afar off and to those who were near. 18 For
through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
19 Now, therefore, you
are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints
and members of the household of God, 20 having
been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ
Himself being the chief cornerstone,
21 in whom the whole building, being
fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in
whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the
Spirit.
3:1 For this reason I,
Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles— 2 if
indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was
given to me for you, 3 how that by
revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written
already, 4 by which, when you read, you
may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), 5 which
in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been
revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: 6 that
the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His
promise in Christ through the gospel, 7 of
which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to
me by the effective working of His power.
8 To me, who am less than
the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach
among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and
to make all see what is
the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been
hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; 10 to
the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the
church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly
places, 11 according
to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord,
12 in whom we have boldness and access
with confidence through faith in Him. 13 Therefore
I ask that you do not lose heart at my tribulations for you, which is your
glory.
14 For this reason I bow
my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 from
whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 that
He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened
with might through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 that
Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and
grounded in love, 18 may be able to
comprehend with all the saints what is
the width and length and depth and height— 19 to
know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with
all the fullness of God.
20 Now to Him who is able
to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to
the power that works in us, 21 to Him
be glory in the
church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
4:1 I, therefore, the
prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which
you were called, 2 with all lowliness
and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,
3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace. 4 There is
one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your
calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one
baptism; 6 one God and Father of all,
who is above all,
and through all, and in you all.
7 But to each one of us
grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore
He says:
“When He ascended on high,
He led captivity captive,
And gave gifts to men.”
9 (Now this,
“He ascended”—what does it
mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth?
10 He who descended is also the One who
ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)
11 And He Himself gave
some to be
apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for
the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till
we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of
God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of
Christ; 14 that we should no longer be
children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine,
by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,
15 but, speaking the truth in love, may
grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from
whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies,
according to the effective working by which every part does its share,
causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
17 This I say, therefore,
and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the
Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 having
their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because
of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart;
19 who, being past feeling, have given
themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.
20 But you have not so
learned Christ, 21 if indeed you have
heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus:
22 that you put off, concerning your former
conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,
23 and be renewed in the spirit of your
mind, 24 and that you put on the new
man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
25 Therefore, putting
away lying, “Let
each one of you
speak truth with his neighbor,”
for we are members of one another. 26 “Be
angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go
down on your wrath, 27 nor give place
to the devil. 28 Let him who stole
steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with
his hands what is good,
that he may have something to give him who has need. 29 Let
no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary
edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. 30 And
do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of
redemption. 31 Let all bitterness,
wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all
malice. 32 And be kind to one another,
tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
5:1 Therefore be
imitators of God as dear children. 2 And
walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an
offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.
3 But fornication and all
uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is
fitting for saints; 4 neither
filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting,
but rather giving of thanks. 5 For this
you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an
idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let
no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath
of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore
do not be partakers with them.
8 For you were once
darkness, but now you are
light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for
the fruit of the Spirit is
in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), 10 finding
out what is acceptable to the Lord. 11 And
have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose
them.
12 For it is shameful even to speak of those
things which are done by them in secret. 13 But
all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever
makes manifest is light. 14 Therefore
He says: “Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead,
And Christ will give you light.”
15 See then that you walk
circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, 16 redeeming
the time, because the days are evil.
17 Therefore do not be
unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord
is. 18 And
do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the
Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in
psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your
heart to the Lord, 20 giving thanks
always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ, 21 submitting to one another in
the fear of God.
22 Wives, submit to your
own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For
the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and
He is the Savior of the body. 24 Therefore,
just as the church is subject to Christ, so let
the wives be to
their own husbands in everything.
25 Husbands, love your
wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,
26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with
the washing of water by the word, 27 that
He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or
wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.
28 So husbands ought to love their own
wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For
no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the
Lord does the
church. 30 For we are members of His
body, of His flesh and of His bones. 31 “For
this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his
wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”
32 This is a great mystery, but I speak
concerning Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless
let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let
the wife see that
she respects her
husband.
6:1 Children, obey your
parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor
your father and mother,” which is the first
commandment with promise: 3 “that it
may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.”
4 And you, fathers, do
not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and
admonition of the Lord.
5 Bondservants, be
obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and
trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; 6 not
with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the
will of God from the heart, 7 with
goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, 8 knowing
that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord,
whether he is a
slave or free.
9 And you, masters, do
the same things to them, giving up threatening, knowing that your own Master
also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.
10 Finally, my brethren,
be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put
on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles
of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle
against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against
the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual
hosts of wickedness in the
heavenly places.
13 Therefore take up the whole armor of
God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all,
to stand.
14 Stand therefore,
having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of
righteousness, 15 and having shod your
feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above
all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all
the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And
take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word
of God; 18 praying always with all
prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all
perseverance and supplication for all the saints— 19 and
for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly
to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for
which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I
ought to speak.
21 But that you also may
know my affairs and
how I am doing, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the
Lord, will make all things known to you; 22 whom
I have sent to you for this very purpose, that you may know our affairs, and
that he may
comfort your hearts.
23 Peace to the brethren,
and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
24 Grace be
with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.
12:1 I beseech you
therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a
living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God,
which is your reasonable service. 2 And
do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of
your mind, that you may prove what is
that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
3 For I say, through the
grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think
of himself more highly than
he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a
measure of faith. 4 For as we have many
members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function,
5 so we,
being many, are one body in Christ, and
individually members of one another. 6 Having
then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us,
let us use them: if
prophecy, let us
prophesy in
proportion to our faith; 7 or ministry,
let us use it in
our ministering;
he who teaches, in teaching; 8 he who
exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with
diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
9 Let
love be without
hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. 10 Be
kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving
preference to one another; 11 not
lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing
in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;
13 distributing to the needs of the saints,
given to hospitality.
14 Bless those who
persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice
with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 Be
of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things,
but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.
17 Repay no one evil
for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. 18 If
it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.
19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves,
but rather give
place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance
is Mine, I will repay,”
says the Lord. 20 Therefore
“If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is
thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on
his head.”
21 Do not be overcome by
evil, but overcome evil with good.