⁶ So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?”

Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

¹⁰ So I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Arise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do.’

^14 (A)And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, ^(B)with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. ^15 (C)This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that ^(D)Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. ¹⁶ However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.

¹⁶ But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, ^(A)to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you.

Light Bearers

¹² Therefore, my beloved, ^(A)as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, ^(B)work out your own salvation with ^(C)fear and trembling;

¹⁵ But when it pleased God, ^(A)who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, ^16 (B)to reveal His Son in me, that ^(C)I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with ^(D)flesh and blood,

²⁰ But Isaiah is very bold and says:

³ For they being ignorant of ^(A)God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own ^(B)righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.

¹⁵ For He says to Moses, ^(A)“I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” ¹⁶ So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. ¹⁷ For ^(B)the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, ^(C)“For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” ¹⁸ Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He ^(D)hardens.

¹⁹ You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For ^(E)who has resisted His will?” ²⁰ But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? ^(F)Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” ²¹ Does not the ^(G)potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make ^(H)one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?

²² What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering ^(I)the vessels of wrath ^(J)prepared for destruction, ²³ and that He might make known ^(K)the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had ^(L)prepared beforehand for glory, ²⁴ even us whom He ^(M)called, ^(N)not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?