¹⁶ I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd.

⁵² And not only for that nation, but to bring together and unite all the children of God scattered around the world.

²³ And I will set over them one shepherd, my servant David. He will feed them and be a shepherd to them.

²⁴ “My servant David will be their king, and they will have only one shepherd. They will obey my regulations and be careful to keep my decrees.

¹³ But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ.

¹⁴ For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us. ¹⁵ He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups. ¹⁶ Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.

¹⁷ He brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near. ¹⁸ Now all of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us.

²⁷ My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.

³⁷ However, those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them.

Believers Should Stand Firm

¹³ As for us, we can’t help but thank God for you, dear brothers and sisters loved by the Lord. We are always thankful that God chose you to be among the first^[a] to experience salvation—a salvation that came through the Spirit who makes you holy and through your belief in the truth.