Book of Common Prayer

He warns them to beware of false teachers, whom he calls dogs, evil workers, and enemies of Christ. He reproves man’s own righteousness.

3 Moreover, my brethren, put your trust in the Lord. It grieves me not to write the same thing often to you, for to you it is a safeguard. ² Beware of dogs. Beware of evil workers. Beware of dissension.

³ For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, and trust in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh – ⁴ though I have whereof I might be confident in the flesh. If any other man thinks that he has reason to trust in the flesh, I have much more: ⁵ circumcised the eighth day, of the kindred of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of the Hebrews; as concerning the law, a Pharisee, ⁶ and as concerning zeal, I persecuted the congregation. And as for the righteousness that is in the law, I was unrebukable.

⁷ But the things that were of advantage to me, I counted worthless for Christ’s sake. ⁸ Yea, I think all things worthless for the sake of the supreme and precious knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord. For him I have counted all things a waste, and do judge them but dung, so that I may win Christ, ⁹ and may be found in him – not having my own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is of the faith that is in Christ. I mean the righteousness which comes from God through faith, ¹⁰ in knowing him, and the power of the resurrection, and the fellowship of his passions, so that I may be conformable to his death, ¹¹ if by any means I might attain to the resurrection of the dead.

¹² It is not as if I had already attained to it, or were already perfect. But I press on, if so be that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus laid hold of me. ¹³ Brethren, I do not count myself as having gotten it. But one thing I say: I forget that which is behind and reach for that which is ahead, ¹⁴ and press on to that mark appointed, to obtain the reward of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

⁹ A great many of the Jews learned that he was there, and they went to Bethany, not for Jesus’ sake only, but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from death. ¹⁰ The high priests therefore held a council, how they could put Lazarus to death also, ¹¹ because on his account many of the Jews went away and believed on Jesus.

¹² On the next day, many people who had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, ¹³ took branches of palm trees and went and met him, and cried, Hosanna! Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord, the king of Israel! ¹⁴ And Jesus got a young donkey and sat on it, according to that which was written: ¹⁵ Fear not, daughter of Zion. Behold, your king comes, sitting on a donkey’s colt.

¹⁶ These things his disciples did not understand at the first. But when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that such things were written of him, and that people had done such things to him.

¹⁷ The people that had been with Jesus when he called Lazarus out of his grave and raised him from death were speaking about it. ¹⁸ Therefore the crowd met him, because they heard that he had done such a miracle. ¹⁹ The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, See how we are accomplishing nothing? Look, the world is going away after him.