Ephesians 4

1 I then, the prisoner in the Lord, make this request from my heart, that you will see that your behaviour is a credit to the position which God's purpose has given you,

I, then, the prisoner for the Master's sake, entreat you to live and act as becomes those who have received the call that you have received--

2 With all gentle and quiet behaviour, taking whatever comes, putting up with one another in love;

with all lowliness of mind and unselfishness, and with patience, bearing with one another lovingly, and earnestly striving to maintain,

3 Taking care to keep the harmony of the Spirit in the yoke of peace.

in the uniting bond of peace, the unity given by the Spirit.

4 There is one body and one Spirit, even as you have been marked out by God in the one hope of his purpose for you;

There is but one body and but one Spirit, as also when you were called you had one and the same hope held out to you.

5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

There is but one Lord, one faith, one baptism,

6 One God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all, and in all.

and one God and Father of all, who rules over all, acts through all, and dwells in all.

7 But to every one of us has grace been given in the measure of the giving of Christ.

Yet to each of us individually grace was given, measured out with the munificence of Christ.

8 For this reason he says, He went up on high, taking his prisoners with him, and gave freely to men.

For this reason Scripture says: "He re-ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, and gave gifts to men."

9 (Now this, He went up, what is it but that he first went down into the lower parts of the earth?

(Now this "re-ascended" --what does it mean but that He had first descended into the lower regions of the earth?

10 He who went down is the same who went up far over all the heavens so that he might make all things complete.)

He who descended is the same as He who ascended again far above all the Heavens in order to fill the universe.)

11 And he gave some as Apostles, and some, prophets; and some, preachers of the good news; and some to give care and teaching;

And He Himself appointed some to be Apostles, some to be Prophets, some to be evangelists, some to be pastors and teachers,

12 For the training of the saints as servants in the church, for the building up of the body of Christ:

in order fully to equip His people for the work of serving--for the building up of Christ's body--

13 Till we all come to the harmony of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to full growth, to the full measure of Christ:

till we all of us arrive at oneness in faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, and at mature manhood and the stature of full-grown men in Christ.

14 So that we may be no longer children, sent this way and that, turned about by every wind of teaching, by the twisting and tricks of men, by the deceits of error;

So we shall no longer be babes nor shall we resemble mariners tossed on the waves and carried about with every changing wind of doctrine according to men's cleverness and unscrupulous cunning, making use of every shifting device to mislead.

15 But saying true words in love, may come to full growth in him, who is the head, even Christ;

But we shall lovingly hold to the truth, and shall in all respects grow up into union with Him who is our Head, even Christ.

16 Through whom all the body, being rightly formed and united together, by the full working of every part, is increased to the building up of itself in love.

Dependent on Him, the whole body--its various parts closely fitting and firmly adhering to one another-- grows by the aid of every contributory link, with power proportioned to the need of each individual part, so as to build itself up in a spirit of love.

17 This I say, then, and give witness in the Lord, that you are to go no longer in the way of the Gentiles whose minds are turned to that which has no profit,

Therefore I warn you, and I implore you in the name of the Master, no longer to live as the Gentiles in their perverseness live,

18 Whose thoughts are dark, to whom the life of God is strange because they are without knowledge, and their hearts have been made hard;

with darkened understandings, having by reason of the ignorance which is deep-seated in them and the insensibility of their moral nature, no share in the Life which God gives.

19 Who having no more power of feeling, have given themselves up to evil passions, to do all unclean things with overmuch desire.

Such men being past feeling have abandoned themselves to impurity, greedily indulging in every kind of profligacy.

20 For this was not the teaching of Christ which was given to you;

But these are not the lessons which you have learned from Christ;

21 If in fact you gave ear to him, and were given teaching in him, even as what is true is made clear in Jesus:

if at least you have heard His voice and in Him have been taught--and this is true Christian teaching--

22 That you are to put away, in relation to your earlier way of life, the old man, which has become evil by love of deceit;

to put away, in regard to your former mode of life, your original evil nature which is doomed to perish as befits its misleading impulses,

23 And be made new in the spirit of your mind,

and to get yourselves renewed in the temper of your minds and clothe yourselves

24 And put on the new man, to which God has given life, in righteousness and a true and holy way of living.

with that new and better self which has been created to resemble God in the righteousness and holiness which come from the truth.

25 And so, putting away false words, let everyone say what is true to his neighbour: for we are parts one of another.

For this reason, laying aside falsehood, every one of you should speak the truth to his fellow man; for we are, as it were, parts of one another.

26 Be angry without doing wrong; let not the sun go down on your wrath;

If angry, beware of sinning. Let not your irritation last until the sun goes down;

27 And do not give way to the Evil One.

and do not leave room for the Devil.

28 Let him who was a thief be so no longer, but let him do good work with his hands, so that he may have something to give to him who is in need.

He who has been a thief must steal no more, but, instead of that, should work with his own hands in honest industry, so that he may have something of which he can give the needy a share.

29 Let no evil talk come out of your mouth, but only what is good for giving necessary teaching, and for grace to those who give ear.

Let no unwholesome words ever pass your lips, but let all your words be good for benefiting others according to the need of the moment, so that they may be a means of blessing to the hearers.

30 And do not give grief to the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were marked for the day of salvation.

And beware of grieving the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you have been sealed in preparation for the day of Redemption.

31 Let all bitter, sharp and angry feeling, and noise, and evil words, be put away from you, with all unkind acts;

Let all bitterness and all passionate feeling, all anger and loud insulting language, be unknown among you--and also every kind of malice.

32 And be kind to one another, full of pity, having forgiveness for one another, even as God in Christ had forgiveness for you.

On the contrary learn to be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ has also forgiven you.