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12 In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope.

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Paul’s Concern for the Galatians

Before you Gentiles knew God, you were slaves to so-called gods that do not even exist.

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21 This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions.

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The Hope of Eternal Life

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation,

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31 “The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. 32 This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant, though I loved them as a husband loves his wife,” says the Lord.

33 “But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 34 And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already,” says the Lord. “And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.”

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The Hope of the Resurrection

13 And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died[a] so you will not grieve like people who have no hope.

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Footnotes

  1. 4:13 Greek those who have fallen asleep; also in 4:14.

18 Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him.

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26 And I will make a covenant of peace with them, an everlasting covenant. I will give them their land and increase their numbers,[a] and I will put my Temple among them forever.

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Footnotes

  1. 37:26 Hebrew reads I will give them and increase their numbers; Greek version lacks the entire phrase.

not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and his ways.

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“Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.

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18 So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us.

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16 God gave the promises to Abraham and his child.[a] And notice that the Scripture doesn’t say “to his children,[b]” as if it meant many descendants. Rather, it says “to his child”—and that, of course, means Christ. 17 This is what I am trying to say: The agreement God made with Abraham could not be canceled 430 years later when God gave the law to Moses. God would be breaking his promise.

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Footnotes

  1. 3:16a Greek seed; also in 3:16c, 19. See notes on Gen 12:7 and 13:15.
  2. 3:16b Greek seeds.

19 What am I trying to say? Am I saying that food offered to idols has some significance, or that idols are real gods? 20 No, not at all. I am saying that these sacrifices are offered to demons, not to God. And I don’t want you to participate with demons.

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This means that Abraham’s physical descendants are not necessarily children of God. Only the children of the promise are considered to be Abraham’s children.

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They are the people of Israel, chosen to be God’s adopted children.[a] God revealed his glory to them. He made covenants with them and gave them his law. He gave them the privilege of worshiping him and receiving his wonderful promises. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are their ancestors, and Christ himself was an Israelite as far as his human nature is concerned. And he is God, the one who rules over everything and is worthy of eternal praise! Amen.[b]

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Footnotes

  1. 9:4 Greek chosen for sonship.
  2. 9:5 Or May God, the one who rules over everything, be praised forever. Amen.

20 I asked you to come here today so we could get acquainted and so I could explain to you that I am bound with this chain because I believe that the hope of Israel—the Messiah—has already come.”

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25 You are the children of those prophets, and you are included in the covenant God promised to your ancestors. For God said to Abraham, ‘Through your descendants[a] all the families on earth will be blessed.’

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Footnotes

  1. 3:25 Greek your seed; see Gen 12:3; 22:18.

13 O Lord, the hope of Israel,
    all who turn away from you will be disgraced.
They will be buried in the dust of the earth,
    for they have abandoned the Lord, the fountain of living water.

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The Lord said, “I have made a covenant with David, my chosen servant.
    I have sworn this oath to him:
‘I will establish your descendants as kings forever;
    they will sit on your throne from now until eternity.’” Interlude
All heaven will praise your great wonders, Lord;
    myriads of angels will praise you for your faithfulness.
For who in all of heaven can compare with the Lord?
    What mightiest angel is anything like the Lord?
The highest angelic powers stand in awe of God.
    He is far more awesome than all who surround his throne.
O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies!
    Where is there anyone as mighty as you, O Lord?
    You are entirely faithful.

You rule the oceans.
    You subdue their storm-tossed waves.
10 You crushed the great sea monster.[a]
    You scattered your enemies with your mighty arm.
11 The heavens are yours, and the earth is yours;
    everything in the world is yours—you created it all.
12 You created north and south.
    Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon praise your name.
13 Powerful is your arm!
    Strong is your hand!
    Your right hand is lifted high in glorious strength.
14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne.
    Unfailing love and truth walk before you as attendants.
15 Happy are those who hear the joyful call to worship,
    for they will walk in the light of your presence, Lord.
16 They rejoice all day long in your wonderful reputation.
    They exult in your righteousness.
17 You are their glorious strength.
    It pleases you to make us strong.
18 Yes, our protection comes from the Lord,
    and he, the Holy One of Israel, has given us our king.

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Footnotes

  1. 89:10 Hebrew Rahab, the name of a mythical sea monster that represents chaos in ancient literature.

For a long time Israel was without the true God, without a priest to teach them, and without the Law to instruct them.

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“I will confirm my covenant with you and your descendants[a] after you, from generation to generation. This is the everlasting covenant: I will always be your God and the God of your descendants after you. And I will give the entire land of Canaan, where you now live as a foreigner, to you and your descendants. It will be their possession forever, and I will be their God.”

The Mark of the Covenant

Then God said to Abraham, “Your responsibility is to obey the terms of the covenant. You and all your descendants have this continual responsibility.

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Footnotes

  1. 17:7 Hebrew seed; also in 17:7b, 8, 9, 10, 19.

18 So the Lord made a covenant with Abram that day and said, “I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt[a] to the great Euphrates River—

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Footnotes

  1. 15:18 Hebrew the river of Egypt, referring either to an eastern branch of the Nile River or to the Brook of Egypt in the Sinai (see Num 34:5).

And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure.

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15 Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.

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21 Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory.

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