The Word Became Flesh

1 ^(A)In the beginning was ^(B)the Word, and ^(C)the Word was with God, and ^(D)the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ^3 (E)All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. ^4 (F)In him was life,^[a] and ^(G)the life was the light of men. ^5 (H)The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

⁶ There was a man ^(I)sent from God, whose name was ^(J)John. ⁷ He came as a ^(K)witness, to bear witness about the light, ^(L)that all might believe through him. ^8 (M)He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

^9 (N)The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. ¹⁰ He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet ^(O)the world did not know him. ¹¹ He came to ^(P)his own,^[b] and ^(Q)his own people^{[c] (R)}did not receive him. ¹² But to all who did receive him, ^(S)who believed in his name, ^(T)he gave the right ^(U)to become ^(V)children of God, ¹³ who ^(W)were born, ^(X)not of blood ^(Y)nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

¹⁴ And ^(Z)the Word ^(AA)became flesh and ^(AB)dwelt among us, ^(AC)and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son^[d] from the Father, full of ^(AD)grace and ^(AE)truth. ¹⁵ (^(AF)John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ^(AG)‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) ¹⁶ For from ^(AH)his fullness we have all received, ^(AI)grace upon grace.^{[e] 17} For ^(AJ)the law was given through Moses; ^(AK)grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. ^18 (AL)No one has ever seen God; ^(AM)the only God,^[f] who is at the Father's side,^{[g] (AN)}he has made him known.

The Testimony of John the Baptist

¹⁹ And this is the ^(AO)testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ^(AP)“Who are you?” ^20 (AQ)He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” ²¹ And they asked him, “What then? ^(AR)Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you ^(AS)the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” ²² So they said to him, “Who are you? We need to give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” ²³ He said, “I am ^(AT)the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight^[h] the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

²⁴ (Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.) ²⁵ They asked him, ^(AU)“Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” ²⁶ John answered them, ^(AV)“I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, ²⁷ even ^(AW)he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” ²⁸ These things took place in Bethany across the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

Moses Given Powerful Signs

4 Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you.’” ² The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, ^(A)“A staff.” ³ And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. ⁴ But the Lord said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand— ⁵ “that they may ^(B)believe that the Lord, ^(C)the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.” ⁶ Again, the Lord said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.”^[a] And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was ^(D)leprous^[b] like snow. ⁷ Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, ^(E)it was restored like the rest of his flesh. ⁸ “If they will not believe you,” God said, “or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign. ⁹ If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile ^(F)will become blood on the dry ground.”

¹⁰ But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but ^(G)I am slow of speech and of tongue.” ¹¹ Then the Lord said to him, “Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? ¹² Now therefore go, and ^(H)I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” ¹³ But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” ¹⁴ Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses and he said, “Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can speak well. Behold, ^(I)he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. ^15 (J)You shall speak to him and ^(K)put the words in his mouth, and ^(L)I will be with your mouth and with his mouth and will teach you both what to do. ^16 (M)He shall speak for you to the people, and he shall be your mouth, and ^(N)you shall be as God to him. ¹⁷ And take in your hand ^(O)this staff, with which you shall do the signs.”

Moses Returns to Egypt

¹⁸ Moses went back to ^(P)Jethro his father-in-law and said to him, “Please let me go back to my brothers in Egypt to see whether they are still alive.” And Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.” ¹⁹ And the Lord said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for ^(Q)all the men who were seeking your life are dead.” ²⁰ So Moses took ^(R)his wife and his sons and had them ride on a donkey, and went back to the land of Egypt. And Moses took ^(S)the staff of God in his hand.

²¹ And the Lord said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the ^(T)miracles that I have put in your power. But ^(U)I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go. ²² Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, ^(V)Israel is my ^(W)firstborn son, ²³ and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I ^(X)will kill your firstborn son.’”

⁸ See to it that no one takes you captive by ^(A)philosophy and ^(B)empty deceit, according to ^(C)human tradition, according to the ^(D)elemental spirits^[a] of the world, and not according to Christ. ⁹ For ^(E)in him the whole fullness of deity dwells ^(F)bodily, ¹⁰ and ^(G)you have been filled in him, who is ^(H)the head of all rule and authority. ¹¹ In him also ^(I)you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by ^(J)putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, ^12 (K)having been buried with him in baptism, in which ^(L)you were also raised with him through faith in ^(M)the powerful working of God, ^(N)who raised him from the dead. ^13 (O)And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God ^(P)made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, ¹⁴ by ^(Q)canceling ^(R)the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. ^15 (S)He disarmed the rulers and authorities^[b] and ^(T)put them to open shame, by ^(U)triumphing over them in him.^[c]

Let No One Disqualify You

¹⁶ Therefore let no one ^(V)pass judgment on you ^(W)in questions of food and drink, or with regard to ^(X)a festival or ^(Y)a new moon or a Sabbath. ^17 (Z)These are a shadow of the things to come, but ^(AA)the substance belongs to Christ. ¹⁸ Let no one ^(AB)disqualify you, ^(AC)insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, ^(AD)going on in detail about visions,^{[d] (AE)}puffed up without reason by ^(AF)his sensuous mind, ¹⁹ and ^(AG)not ^(AH)holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.

²⁰ If with Christ ^(AI)you died to the ^(AJ)elemental spirits of the world, ^(AK)why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— ^21 (AL)“Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” ²² (^(AM)referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to ^(AN)human precepts and teachings? ²³ These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in ^(AO)promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are ^(AP)of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.

Put On the New Self

3 ^(AQ)If then you have been raised with Christ, seek ^(AR)the things that are above, where Christ is, ^(AS)seated at the right hand of God. ^2 (AT)Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. ³ For ^(AU)you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ ^(AV)who is your^[e] life ^(AW)appears, then you also will appear with him ^(AX)in glory.

^5 (AY)Put to death therefore ^(AZ)what is earthly in you:^{[f] (BA)}sexual immorality, impurity, ^(BB)passion, evil desire, and covetousness, ^(BC)which is idolatry. ^6 (BD)On account of these the wrath of God is coming.^{[g] 7 (BE)}In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. ⁸ But now ^(BF)you must put them all away: ^(BG)anger, wrath, malice, ^(BH)slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. ^9 (BI)Do not lie to one another, seeing that ^(BJ)you have put off ^(BK)the old self^[h] with its practices ¹⁰ and ^(BL)have put on ^(BM)the new self, ^(BN)which is being renewed in knowledge ^(BO)after the image of ^(BP)its creator. ^11 (BQ)Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave,^[i] free; but Christ is ^(BR)all, and in all.