Book of Common Prayer

4 So what shall we say about Abraham? He is the father of our family on earth.

² If Abraham was put right with God, because of what he did, he has something to be proud of. But he has nothing to be proud of when he stands before God.

³ What do the holy writings say? It says, `Abraham believed God. And God said that he was a good man.'

⁴ When a person works, his pay is not a gift to him. His pay belongs to him.

⁵ But no person can work to put himself right with God. It is God alone who makes a bad person right. The one who believes in him - even a bad person is put right.

⁶ David also says that God blesses a man. God calls him a good man but not because he has kept the law.

⁷ David said, `God blesses people who have been forgiven the wrong things they have done. God covers over the wrong things they have done.

⁸ The Lord blesses people when he forgets the wrong things they have done.'

⁹ Does God bless only people who have been circumcised? Or does he also bless those who are not? We say, because Abraham believed God, God called him a good man. His faith made him right with God.

¹⁰ When did God say that? Was it when Abraham was circumcised? Or was it before? It was not when he was circumcised: it was before.

¹¹ Abraham was circumcised as a sign. It was a sign that he was a good man, because he believed when he was not yet circumcised. That makes him the father of all people who believe, even those who are not circumcised. God says they are good people.

¹² That makes him also the father of those who are circumcised. I mean people who are circumcised and do as our father Abraham did. Even when he was not circumcised, he believed.

¹⁴ When the feast was half finished, Jesus went to the temple and taught the people.

¹⁵ The Jews were very much surprised. `How can this man know books? He never went to school.'

¹⁶ Jesus answered the people, `I am not teaching you my teaching. It is the teaching of the one who sent me.

¹⁷ If any man wants to do what God wants him to do, he will know the teaching. He will know if it is God's teaching or if I am speaking from my own mind.

¹⁸ The person who speaks from his own mind only wants to be great himself. But the person whom God has sent wants to show that God is great. That person is true. He is not a bad man.

¹⁹ Did not Moses give you the law? Not one of you is keeping the law. Why are you trying to kill me?'

²⁰ The people answered Jesus, `A bad spirit is in you! Who is trying to kill you?'

²¹ Jesus answered them, `I have done one thing. You are all surprised about it.

²² Moses gave you the law of circumcision. You obey the law, not because it came from Moses, but because it came from the fathers long ago. You circumcise a baby boy on the Sabbath day.

²³ You do it on the Sabbath day so that you will not break the law of Moses. If you do that, then why are you angry with me because I healed a man on the Sabbath day?

²⁴ Do not judge by what you see, but judge in the right way.'

²⁵ Some people from Jerusalem said, `Is not this the person they are trying to kill?

²⁶ See, he does not fear to speak and yet they say nothing to him! Do the rulers really know that this man is the Christ?

²⁷ But we know where this man comes from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where he comes from.'

²⁸ Jesus was teaching in the temple. He spoke loudly saying, `You know me and you know where I come from. I have not come in my own power. The one who sent me is true. He is the one you do not know.

²⁹ I know him because I came from him. He sent me.'

³⁰ Then the people wanted to catch him. But no one put a hand on him. It was not yet the time for that.

³¹ Many of the people believed in Jesus. They said, `When Christ comes, will he do greater works than this man has done?'

³² The Pharisees heard what the people said about him. The chief priests and the Pharisees sent soldiers to catch him.

³³ Jesus said, `I will stay with you a short time longer. Then I will go back to him who sent me.

³⁴ You will look for me, but you will not find me. You will not be able to go to the place where I will be.'

³⁵ The Jews said to one another, `Where will he go that we cannot find him? Will he go to our people who are living in other countries? Will he teach them?

³⁶ What does he mean by this: "You will look for me and will not find me. You will not be able to go to the place where I will be"?'