The Way of the Righteous and the End of the Ungodly

³ as His ^(A)divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him ^(B)who called us by glory and virtue, ^4 (C)by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be ^(D)partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the ^[a]corruption that is in the world through lust.

Fruitful Growth in the Faith

⁵ But also for this very reason, ^(E)giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue ^(F)knowledge, ⁶ to knowledge self-control, to self-control ^[b]perseverance, to perseverance godliness, ⁷ to godliness brotherly kindness, and ^(G)to brotherly kindness love.

¹⁷ You therefore, beloved, ^(A)since you know this beforehand, ^(B)beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; ^18 (C)but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

^(D)To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

^16 (A)All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, ^(B)and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for ^[a]instruction in righteousness,

^25 (A)not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and ^(B)so much the more as you see ^(C)the Day approaching.

¹² for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, ^(A)for the ^[a]edifying of ^(B)the body of Christ, ¹³ till we all come to the unity of the faith ^(C)and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to ^(D)a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; ¹⁴ that we should no longer be ^(E)children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of ^(F)deceitful plotting, ¹⁵ but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the ^(G)head—Christ— ^16 (H)from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

The New Man

¹⁷ This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should ^(I)no longer walk as ^[b]the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, ¹⁸ having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the ^(J)blindness of their heart; ^19 (K)who, being past feeling, ^(L)have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.

²⁰ But you have not so learned Christ, ²¹ if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: ²² that you ^(M)put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, ²³ and ^(N)be renewed in the spirit of your mind, ²⁴ and that you ^(O)put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.