The Living Stone and a Chosen People

2 Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice and all guile, insincerity, envy, and all slander.^(A)

³¹ Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice.^(A)

²¹ Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.^(A)

Warning against Judging Another

¹¹ Do not speak evil against one another, brothers and sisters. Whoever speaks evil against another or judges another speaks evil against the law and judges the law, but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge.^(A)

¹⁰ For

⁵ Put to death, therefore, whatever in you is earthly: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed (which is idolatry).^{(A) 6} On account of these the wrath of God is coming on those who are disobedient.^{[a](B) 7} These are the ways you also once followed, when you were living that life.^{[b] 8} But now you must get rid of all such things: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive^[c] language from your mouth.^(C)

²² to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts,^{(A) 23} and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴ and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.^(B)

Rules for the New Life

²⁵ So then, putting away falsehood, let each of you speak the truth with your neighbor, for we are members of one another.^(C)

³ For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, despicable, hating one another.^{(A) 4} But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,^{(B) 5} he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water^[a] of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.^(C)

⁴ They are surprised that you no longer join them in the same excesses of dissipation, and so they blaspheme.^[a](A)