Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

1 I am Paul the apostle, a messenger from God. Men did not call me to be an apostle. Men did not make me an apostle. Jesus Christ and God the Father made me an apostle. It was the same God the Father who raised Jesus from death.

² All the Christian brothers who are with me and I, send greetings. To the churches in the province of Galatia:

³ May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ bless you with his loving kindness and give you peace.

⁴ Christ gave his life to pay for the wrong things we have done. He did this to set us free from the wrong ways of this world. This is what our God and Father wanted him to do.

⁵ All the praise for this belongs to God for ever and ever. Yes, it does!

⁶ I am very much surprised. It is so soon, and you are leaving God who called you by the love of Christ. Instead you are listening to another good news.

⁷ There is really no other good news. But some people are making you think wrong things. They want to change the good news of Christ.

⁸ We are wrong if we tell you a different kind of good news. Even an angel from heaven is wrong to tell you something different. Let a punishment from God come upon us if we tell you a different kind of good news.

⁹ We have said it before, and I say it again now. A curse be on any one who tells you a kind of good news which is not the good news we have already told you.

¹⁰ Now, am I trying to please men or God? If I were still trying to please men, then I would not be the servant of Christ.

¹¹ My brothers, I want you to know this. The good news which I told you is not man's good news.

¹² No man told it to me. No man taught it to me. But it was Jesus Christ who showed it to me.

7 Jesus finished saying all these things for the people to hear. Then he went to Capernaum.

² An army officer had a servant whom he loved. The servant was sick and almost dying.

³ The officer heard of Jesus. So he sent some of the leaders of the Jews to him. He asked him to come and heal his servant.

⁴ They came to Jesus and begged him very much. They said, `He is a good man. You should come and do this for him.

⁵ He loves our people and he built the meeting house for us.'

⁶ Jesus went with them. When he came near the house, the officer sent some friends to meet him and to say, `Sir, do not trouble yourself to come further. I am not good enough to have you come into my house.

⁷ And I did not think I was good enough to come to you. Just say the word and my servant will be healed.

⁸ I myself am a man who takes orders, and I have soldiers who take orders from me. I say to one, "Go," and he goes. I say to another, "Come," and he comes. I say to my servant, "Do this," and he does it.'

⁹ Jesus was surprised when he heard this. He turned to the people who followed him. He said, `I tell you, I have not found a Jew who believes as this man does.'

¹⁰ The men who had been sent to Jesus went back into the house. They found that the servant who had been sick was well.