¹ I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,

² With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;

³ Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

⁴ There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;

⁵ One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

⁶ One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

⁷ But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

⁸ Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

⁹ (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?

¹⁰ He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)

¹¹ And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

¹² For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

¹³ Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

¹⁴ That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

¹⁵ But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:

¹⁶ From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

¹⁷ This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind,

¹⁸ Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart:

¹⁹ Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.

²⁰ But ye have not so learned Christ;

²¹ If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:

²² That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;

²³ And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;

²⁴ And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

²⁵ Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.

²⁶ Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:

²⁷ Neither give place to the devil.

²⁸ Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.

²⁹ Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

³⁰ And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

³¹ Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:

³² And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

¹ I ask then, did God reject his people? May it never be! For I also am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.

² God didn't reject his people, which he foreknew. Or don't you know what the Scripture says about Elijah? How he pleads with God against Israel:

³ "Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have broken down your altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life."

⁴ But how does God answer him? "I have reserved for myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to Baal."

⁵ Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.

⁶ And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.

⁷ What then? That which Israel seeks for, that he didn't obtain, but the chosen ones obtained it, and the rest were hardened.

⁸ According as it is written, "God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear, to this very day."

⁹ David says, "Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, a stumbling block, and a retribution to them.

¹⁰ Let their eyes be darkened, that they may not see. Bow down their back always."

¹¹ I ask then, did they stumble that they might fall? May it never be! But by their fall salvation has come to the Gentiles, to provoke them to jealousy.

¹² Now if their fall is the riches of the world, and their loss the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fullness?

¹³ For I speak to you who are Gentiles. Since then as I am an apostle to Gentiles, I glorify my ministry;

¹⁴ if by any means I may provoke to jealousy those who are my flesh, and may save some of them.

¹⁵ For if the rejection of them is the reconciling of the world, what would their acceptance be, but life from the dead?

¹⁶ If the first fruit is holy, so is the lump. If the root is holy, so are the branches.

¹⁷ But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them, and became partaker with them of the root and of the richness of the olive tree;

¹⁸ don't boast over the branches. But if you boast, it is not you who support the root, but the root supports you.

¹⁹ You will say then, "Branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in."

²⁰ True; by their unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by your faith. Don't be conceited, but fear;

²¹ for if God didn't spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you.

²² See then the goodness and severity of God. Toward those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in his goodness; otherwise you also will be cut off.

²³ They also, if they don't continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.

²⁴ For if you were cut out of that which is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a good olive tree, how much more will these, which are the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree?

²⁵ For I don't desire you to be ignorant, brothers, of this mystery, so that you won't be wise in your own conceits, that a partial hardening has happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in,

²⁶ and so all Israel will be saved. Even as it is written, "There will come out of Zion the Deliverer, and he will turn away ungodliness from Jacob.

²⁷ This is my covenant to them, when I will take away their sins."

²⁸ Concerning the Good News, they are enemies for your sake. But concerning the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sake.

²⁹ For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.

³⁰ For as you in time past were disobedient to God, but now have obtained mercy by their disobedience,

³¹ even so these also have now been disobedient, that by the mercy shown to you they may also obtain mercy.

³² For God has shut up all to disobedience, that he might have mercy on all.

³³ Oh the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out!

³⁴ "For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?"

³⁵ "Or who has first given to him, and it will be repaid to him again?"

³⁶ For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things. To him be the glory for ever! Amen.