Ephesians 4:1-16

English Standard Version

Unity in the Body of Christ

4 I therefore, ^(A)a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to ^(B)walk in a manner worthy of ^(C)the calling to which you have been called, ²with all ^(D)humility and ^(E)gentleness, with ^(F)patience, ^(G)bearing with one another in love, ³eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in ^(H)the bond of peace. ⁴There is ^(I)one body and ^(J)one Spirit—just as you were called to the one ^(K)hope that belongs to your call— ⁵^(L)one Lord, ^(M)one faith, ^(N)one baptism, ⁶^(O)one God and Father of all, ^(P)who is over all and through all and in all. ⁷But ^(Q)grace was given ^(R)to each one of us ^(S)according to the measure of Christ's gift. ⁸Therefore it says,

^(T)“When he ascended on high ^(U)he led a host of captives,
and he gave gifts to men.”^[a]

⁹(^(V)In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into ^(W)the lower regions, the earth?^[b] ¹⁰He who descended is the one who also ^(X)ascended ^(Y)far above all the heavens, that he might ^(Z)fill all things.) ¹¹And ^(AA)he gave the ^(AB)apostles, the prophets, the ^(AC)evangelists, the ^(AD)shepherds^[c] and teachers,^[d] ¹²^(AE)to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for ^(AF)building up ^(AG)the body of Christ, ¹³until we all attain to ^(AH)the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, ^(AI)to mature manhood,^[e] to the measure of the stature of ^(AJ)the fullness of Christ, ¹⁴so that we may no longer be children, ^(AK)tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in ^(AL)deceitful schemes. ¹⁵Rather, ^(AM)speaking the truth in love, we are to ^(AN)grow up in every way into him who is ^(AO)the head, into Christ, ¹⁶^(AP)from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, ^(AQ)when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

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Footnotes

Ephesians 4:8 The Greek word anthropoi can refer to both men and women
Ephesians 4:9 Or the lower parts of the earth?
Ephesians 4:11 Or pastors
Ephesians 4:11 Or the shepherd-teachers
Ephesians 4:13 Greek to a full-grown man

Isaiah 45:11-25

English Standard Version

¹¹Thus says ^(A)the Lord,
    the Holy One of Israel, and the one who formed him:
^(B)“Ask me of things to come;
    will you command me ^(C)concerning my children and ^(D)the work of my hands?^[a]
¹²^(E)I made the earth
    and created man on it;
it was my hands ^(F)that stretched out the heavens,
    and ^(G)I commanded all their host.
¹³^(H)I have stirred him up in righteousness,
    ^(I)and I will make all his ways level;
^(J)he shall build my city
    ^(K)and set my exiles free,
not for price or reward,”
    says the Lord of hosts.

The Lord, the Only Savior

¹⁴Thus says the Lord:
^(L)“The wealth of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush,
    and the Sabeans, men of stature,
shall come over to you ^(M)and be yours;
    they shall follow you;
    they shall come over in chains and bow down to you.
They will plead with you, saying:
    ‘Surely God is in you, and there is no other,
    no god besides him.’”

¹⁵^(N)Truly, you are a God who hides himself,
    O God of Israel, the Savior.
¹⁶^(O)All of them are put to shame and confounded;
    the makers of idols go in confusion together.
¹⁷But Israel is saved by the Lord
    with everlasting salvation;
^(P)you shall not be put to shame or confounded
    to all eternity.

¹⁸^(Q)For thus says the Lord,
who created the heavens
    (he is God!),
who formed the earth and made it
    (he established it;
he ^(R)did not create it empty,
    ^(S)he formed it to be inhabited!):
“I am the Lord, and there is no other.
¹⁹^(T)I did not speak in secret,
    in a land of darkness;
I did not say to the offspring of Jacob,
    ^(U)‘Seek me in vain.’^[b]
I the Lord speak ^(V)the truth;
    I declare what is right.

²⁰^(W)“Assemble yourselves and come;
    draw near together,
    you survivors of the nations!
^(X)They have no knowledge
    who ^(Y)carry about their wooden idols,
^(Z)and keep on praying to a god
    that cannot save.
²¹^(AA)Declare and present your case;
    let them take counsel together!
Who told this long ago?
    Who declared it of old?
Was it not I, the Lord?
    And there is no other god besides me,
a righteous God ^(AB)and a Savior;
    there is none besides me.

²²“Turn to me and be saved,
    ^(AC)all the ends of the earth!
    For I am God, and there is no other.
²³^(AD)By myself I have sworn;
    from my mouth has gone out in ^(AE)righteousness
    a word that shall not return:
^(AF)‘To me every knee shall bow,
    every tongue shall swear allegiance.’^[c]

²⁴^(AG)“Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me,
    are righteousness and ^(AH)strength;
to him shall come and be ashamed
    ^(AI)all who were incensed against him.
²⁵In the Lord all the offspring of Israel
    shall be justified and shall glory.”

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Footnotes

Isaiah 45:11 A slight emendation yields will you question me about my children, or command me concerning the work of my hands?
Isaiah 45:19 Hebrew in emptiness
Isaiah 45:23 Septuagint every tongue shall confess to God

Psalm 68:19-35

English Standard Version

¹⁹Blessed be the Lord,
    who daily ^(A)bears us up;
    God is our salvation. Selah
²⁰Our God is a God of salvation,
    ^(B)and to God, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.
²¹^(C)But God will strike the heads of his enemies,
    the hairy crown of him who walks in his guilty ways.
²²The Lord said,
    “I will bring them back ^(D)from Bashan,
^(E)I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,
²³that you may ^(F)strike your feet in their blood,
    that ^(G)the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from the foe.”

²⁴Your procession is^[a] seen, O God,
    the procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary—
²⁵^(H)the singers in front, ^(I)the musicians last,
    between them ^(J)virgins playing tambourines:
²⁶^(K)“Bless God in the great congregation,
    the Lord, O you^[b] who are of ^(L)Israel's fountain!”
²⁷There is ^(M)Benjamin, the least of them, in the lead,
    the princes of Judah in their throng,
    the princes of ^(N)Zebulun, the princes of Naphtali.

²⁸^(O)Summon your power, O God,^[c]
    the power, O God, by which you have worked for us.
²⁹Because of your temple at Jerusalem
    kings shall ^(P)bear gifts to you.
³⁰Rebuke ^(Q)the beasts that dwell among the reeds,
    the herd of ^(R)bulls with the calves of the peoples.
^(S)Trample underfoot those who lust after tribute;
    scatter the peoples who delight in war.^[d]
³¹Nobles shall come from ^(T)Egypt;
    ^(U)Cush shall hasten to ^(V)stretch out her hands to God.

³²^(W)O kingdoms of the earth, sing to God;
    sing praises to the Lord, Selah
³³to him ^(X)who rides in ^(Y)the heavens, the ancient heavens;
    behold, he ^(Z)sends out his voice, his mighty voice.
³⁴^(AA)Ascribe power to God,
    whose majesty is over Israel,
    and whose ^(AB)power is in ^(AC)the skies.
³⁵^(AD)Awesome is God from his^[e] ^(AE)sanctuary;
    the God of Israel—he is the one who gives ^(AF)power and strength to his people.
Blessed be God!

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Footnotes

Psalm 68:24 Or has been
Psalm 68:26 The Hebrew for you is plural here
Psalm 68:28 By revocalization (compare Septuagint); Hebrew Your God has summoned your power
Psalm 68:30 The meaning of the Hebrew verse is uncertain
Psalm 68:35 Septuagint; Hebrew your

Proverbs 24:3-4

English Standard Version

³By ^(A)wisdom a house is built,
and by understanding it is established;
⁴by knowledge the rooms are filled
with all ^(B)precious and pleasant riches.