⁵ he saved us,^(A) not because of righteous things we had done,^(B) but because of his mercy.^(C) He saved us through the washing^(D) of rebirth and renewal^(E) by the Holy Spirit,

²⁶ to make her holy,^(A) cleansing^[a] her by the washing^(B) with water through the word,

⁵ Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.^(A)