Book of Common Prayer

Beware of false teaching!

4 Now the spirit specifically declares that in the last times some people will abandon the faith, and will cling on to deceitful spirits and demonic teachings ² perpetrated by hypocritical false teachers whose consciences are branded with a hot iron. ³ They will forbid marriage, and teach people to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by people who believe and know the truth. ⁴ Every creation of God, you see, is good; nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, ⁵ for then it is made holy by God’s word and prayer.

Get into training!

⁶ Set these instructions before the family. If you do this, you will be a good servant of Messiah Jesus; you will be nourished by the words of faith and the good teaching which you have been following. ⁷ Keep well away from worthless myths, the sort of things some old women mumble on about.

Go into training in godliness! ⁸ Physical exercise, you see, has a limited usefulness, but godliness is useful in every way. It carries the promise of life both now and in the future. ⁹ That saying is trustworthy; it deserves to be accepted totally! ¹⁰ This is what we are working and struggling for, you see, because we have set our hope on the living God, who is the savior of all people—more especially, of believers.

Pay attention to yourself and your teaching

¹¹ You must urge and teach these things. ¹² Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but be an example to the believers in what you say, how you behave, in love, faith and holiness. ¹³ Until I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation and to teaching. ¹⁴ Don’t neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you through prophecy when the elders laid hands on you. ¹⁵ Work hard at these things; give yourself to them, so that everyone may see your progress. ¹⁶ Pay attention to yourself and your teaching, and keep steadily on with them. If you do that, you see, you will save yourself, and those who hear you as well.

The parable of the weeds

²⁴ He put another parable to them.

“The kingdom of heaven,” he said, “is like this! Once upon a time a man sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵ While the workers were asleep, his enemy came and sowed weeds in among the wheat, and went away. ²⁶ When the crop came up and produced wheat, then the weeds appeared as well.

²⁷ “So the farmer’s servants came to him.

“ ‘Master,’ they said, ‘didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’

²⁸ “ ‘This is the work of an enemy,’ he replied.

“ ‘So,’ the servants said to him, ‘do you want us to go and pull them up?’

²⁹ “ ‘No,’ he replied. ‘If you do that you’ll probably pull up the wheat as well, while you’re collecting the weeds. ³⁰ Let them both grow together until the harvest. Then, when it’s time for harvest, I will give the reapers this instruction: First gather the weeds and tie them up in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.’ ”