65 Bible Verses about Exclusiveness

"There shall be for you no other gods before me.

[There] shall not be for you other gods {besides me}.

For you will not bow in worship to another god, for 'Yahweh [Is] Jealous' is his name, he [is] a jealous God,

You shall not go after other gods from the gods of the peoples who [are] all around you, for Yahweh your God [is] a jealous god in your midst, {so that the anger of Yahweh your God would be kindled}, and he would destroy you from the face of the earth.

Yahweh had {made} a covenant with them and commanded them, "You shall not fear other gods, nor shall you bow down to them, nor shall you serve them, nor shall you sacrifice to them. Rather, Yahweh, who brought you out from the land of Egypt with great strength and with an outstretched arm--him you shall fear, and to him you shall bow down, and to him you shall sacrifice. The statutes, the decisions, the law, and the commands that he wrote to you, you shall observe to do always, and you shall not fear other gods.read more.
The covenant that I have {made} with you, you shall not forget, and you shall not fear other gods. But Yahweh your God you shall fear, and he will deliver you from the hand of all of your enemies."

I [am] Yahweh; that [is] my name, and I do not give my glory to another, nor my praise to the idols.

And you shall be holy for me, because I, Yahweh, [am] holy, and I have singled you out from the nations to be mine.

"And you shall keep the {Israelites} separate from their uncleanness so that they might not die because of their uncleanness by their making my tabernacle, which [is] in their midst, unclean.

And you shall not follow the statutes of the nation that I am driving out {from before you}, because they did all these things, and I detested them. So I said to you, "You yourselves shall take possession of their land, and I myself shall give it to you to possess it--a land flowing with milk and honey"; I [am] Yahweh your God, who {has set you apart} from the nations.

"When Yahweh your God brings you into the land that you [are] about to enter {into it} to take possession of it, and he drives out many nations {before you}, the Hittites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, seven nations mightier and more numerous than you, and Yahweh your God will give them {over to you} and you defeat them, you must {utterly destroy them}; you shall not make a covenant with them, and you shall not show mercy [to them]. And you shall not intermarry with them; you shall not give your daughter to their son; and you shall not take his daughter for your son.read more.
For their sons and daughters will cause your son to turn away {from following me}, and [so] they will serve other gods, and {the anger of Yahweh would be kindled} against you, and he would quickly destroy you. But this is what you must do to them: you shall break down their altars, and their stone pillars you shall smash, and their Asherah poles you shall hew down, and you shall burn their idols with fire. For you [are] a holy people for Yahweh your God; Yahweh your God has chosen you to be for him a people, a treasured possession from [among] all the peoples that [are] on the face of the earth.

Because from the top of [the] rocks I see him, from hilltops I watch him. Behold, a people [who] dwell alone, they do not consider themselves among the nations.

so as not to go among these remaining nations with you; {do not profess} the name of their gods, and do not swear by them, serve them, or {bow down to them}.

The {Israelites} who returned from the exile and all those who separated themselves from the uncleanness of the nations of the earth to seek Yahweh the God of Israel, ate.

On that day the book of Moses was read in the hearing of the people and it was found written in it that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever come into the assembly of God because they did not come to meet the {Israelites} with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them in order to curse them--but our God changed the curse into a blessing. So it happened when they heard the law that they separated all of the foreign people from Israel.

Thus says the Lord Yahweh: "Every {foreigner} uncircumcised of heart and uncircumcised of flesh shall not come into my sanctuary--[not] any of [the] {foreigners} who [are] in the midst of the {Israelites}.

We will not give our daughters to the peoples of the land nor take their daughters for our sons.

And you shall not intermarry with them; you shall not give your daughter to their son; and you shall not take his daughter for your son. For their sons and daughters will cause your son to turn away {from following me}, and [so] they will serve other gods, and {the anger of Yahweh would be kindled} against you, and he would quickly destroy you.

After finishing these things the officials approached me saying, "The people of Israel, the priests, and the Levites have not separated from the people of the lands with their detestable things, and from the Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites, Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians, and Amorites. For they have taken from their daughters for themselves and their sons. So the holy seed has mixed itself with the peoples of the lands, and the hand of the officials and prefects were foremost in this sin. When I heard this I tore my garment and my robe, and I pulled the hair out from my head and beard, and I sat appalled.read more.
Then all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel because of the sin of the returned exiles were gathered around me and I sat appalled until the evening offering.

Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin assembled in Jerusalem within the three days. It was the ninth month on the twentieth day of the month. All the people sat in the public square of the house of God trembling because of this matter and from the rains. Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, "You have broke faith and married foreign women, increasing the guilt of Israel. Now make a confession to Yahweh the God of your ancestors and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign women."read more.
Then all the assembly answered with a great voice and said, "It is so. We must do according to your words. But the people are many, and it is the time of rain; we are unable to stand outside. The task is not for one day or two, for we greatly rebelled in this matter. Please let our leaders stand for the whole assembly, and let all that are in our cities who have married foreign women come at set times, and with them the elders of and judges of each city, until the fierce wrath of our God because of this matter is averted from us." Only Jehonathan son of Asahel and Jahzeiah son of Tikvah stood against this, and the Levites Meshullam and Shabbethai supported them. The {returned exiles} did so. Ezra the priest selected men, the heads of the {families} according to the house of their fathers, all of them by name. They sat down to examine the matter on the first day of the tenth month. They finished [investigating] all the men who married foreign women by the first day of the first month.

Also in those days I saw Jews who had married women of Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab. Half of their children spoke Ashdodite and could not speak Judean, but [only] the tongues of other nations. So I quarreled with them and cursed them and beat some of their men and pulled out their hair. I made them take an oath by God: "Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons or for yourselves.read more.
Did not King Solomon of Israel sin in this way? And among the many nations there was no king like him, and he was beloved by his God, and God made him king over all Israel. Yet the foreign women made even him sin. Should we listen to you all and do this great evil, acting unfaithfully against our God by marrying foreign women?"

And it happened [as] he {was dining} in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners were coming [and] {dining} with Jesus and his disciples. And [when they] saw [it], the Pharisees began to say to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

And it happened that he {was dining} in his house, and many tax collectors and sinners {were dining with} Jesus and his disciples, for there were many and they were following him. And the scribes of the Pharisees, [when they] saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, began to say to his disciples, "Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

And Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house, and there was a large crowd of tax collectors and others who were reclining for the meal with them. And the Pharisees and their scribes began to complain to his disciples, saying, "Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?"

Now all the tax collectors and the sinners were drawing near to hear him. And both the Pharisees and the scribes were complaining, saying, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them!"

For before certain people came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles, but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, [because he] was afraid of those [who were] of the circumcision,

And God said to Abraham, "Now [as for] you, you must keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you, throughout their generations. This [is] my covenant which you shall keep, between me and you, and [also] with your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you.read more.
And {at eight days of age} you shall yourselves circumcise every male [belonging] to your generations [and] {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner} who is not from your offspring. {You must certainly circumcise} {the servant born in your house and the one bought from any foreigner}. And my covenant shall be with your flesh as an everlasting covenant. And [as for any] uncircumcised male who has not circumcised the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people. He has broken my covenant.

And when an alien dwells with you and he wants to prepare [the] Passover for Yahweh, every male belonging to him must be circumcised, and then he may come near to prepare it, and he will be as the native of the land, but any uncircumcised [man] may not eat it.

And on the eighth day his foreskin's flesh shall be circumcised.

And he gave him the covenant of circumcision, and so he became the father of Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac [did so with] Jacob, and Jacob [did so with] the twelve patriarchs.

"And this day will become a memorial for you, and you will celebrate it as a religious feast for Yahweh throughout your generations; you will celebrate it as a lasting statute. You will eat unleavened bread for seven days. Surely on the first day you shall remove yeast from your houses, because anyone [who] eats [food with] yeast from the first day until the seventh day--that person will be cut off from Israel. It will be for you on the first day a holy assembly and on the seventh day a holy assembly; no work will be done on them; only what is eaten by every person, it alone will be prepared for you.

"And you will keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because on this very day I brought out your divisions from the land of Egypt, and you will keep this day for your generations as a lasting statute. On the first [day], on the fourteenth day of the month, in the evening, you will eat unleavened bread until the evening of the twenty-first day of the month. For seven days yeast must not be found in your houses, because {anyone eating food with yeast} will be cut off from the community of Israel--[whether] an alien or a native of the land.read more.
You will eat no [food with] yeast; in all of your dwellings you will eat unleavened bread."

Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "Surely the Day of Atonement [is] on the tenth [day] of the seventh month; it shall be a holy assembly for you, and you shall deny yourselves, and you shall present an offering made by fire to Yahweh. And you must not do {any regular work} on {this very same day}, because it [is] the Day of Atonement to make atonement for you {before} Yahweh your God.read more.
If [there is] any person who does not deny [himself] on {this very same day}, then he shall be cut off from his people.

But the man who [is] clean and not on a journey, and he fails to observe the Passover, that person will be cut off from the people because he did not present the offering of Yahweh on its appointed time. That man will bear his guilt.

[This is] a lasting statute for your generations in all your dwellings: you must not eat any fat or any blood.'"

Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the {Israelites}, saying, 'You must not eat any fat of ox, or sheep, or goat; and a dead body's fat or mangled carcass's fat may be used for any {purpose}, but you certainly must not eat it.read more.
When anyone eats fat from the domestic animal from which he presented an offering made by fire for Yahweh, then that person who ate shall be cut off from his people. And in any of your dwellings, you must not eat any blood {belonging to} birds or domestic animals. Any person who eats any blood, that person shall be cut off from his people.'"

Then Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying to them, "Speak to the {Israelites}, saying, 'These [are] the animals that you may eat from all the animals that [are] on the land: Any among the animals that has a divided hoof and has a split cleft in [the] hoof, such you may eat.read more.
However, these you may not eat from those that chew the cud and from those that have a divided hoof: the camel, because it [is] a chewer of cud but it does not have a hoof that is divided--it [is] unclean for you; and the coney, because it [is] a chewer of cud but it does not have a hoof that is divided--it [is] unclean for you; and the hare, because it [is] a chewer of cud but it does not have a hoof that is divided--it [is] unclean for you; and the pig, because it has a divided hoof and has a split cleft in the hoof but it does not chew cud--it [is] unclean for you. You must not eat from their meat, and you must not touch their dead body--they are unclean for you. " 'These you may eat from all that [are] in the water: any in the water that has a fin and scales, [whether] in the seas or in the streams--such you may eat. But any that does not have a fin and scales, [whether] in the seas or in the streams, {among} all the water's swarmers among all the living creatures that [are] in the water--they [are] a detestable thing to you. And they shall be detestable to you; you must not eat from their meat, and you must detest their dead body. Any that does not have a fin and scales in the water--it [is] a detestable thing to you. " 'And these you must detest from the birds; they must not be eaten--they [are] detestable: the eagle and the vulture and the short-toed eagle, and the red kite and the black kite according to its kind, every crow according to its kind, and {the ostrich} and the short-eared owl and the seagull and the hawk according to its kind, and the little owl and the cormorant and the great owl, and the barn owl and the desert owl and the carrion vulture, and the stork, the heron according to its kind and the hoopoe and the bat. " 'Any {winged insect} that walks on [all] fours [is] detestable to you. Only this may you eat from any of {the winged insects} that walk on [all] fours--[that] which has jointed legs above its feet for leaping upon the land. {From these} you may eat the locust according to its kind and the bald locust according to its kind and the cricket according to its kind and the grasshopper according to its kind. But any [other] {winged insect} that has four legs [is] detestable to you. And by these you shall become unclean--anyone who touches their dead body shall become unclean until the evening, and anyone who carries their dead body must wash his garments, and he shall be unclean until the evening. " '[With regard] to any animal that has a divided hoof but does not split the hoof, or does not have a cud [for] chewing--they [are] unclean for you; anyone who touches them shall become unclean. And anything that walks upon its paws among any of the animals that walks on [all] fours--they [are] unclean for you; anyone who touches their dead body shall become unclean until the evening, and the one who carries their dead body must wash his garments, and he shall be unclean until the evening--they [are] unclean for you. " 'And these [are] the unclean for you among the swarmers that swarm on the land: the weasel and the mouse and the thorn-tailed lizard according to its kind, and the gecko and the land crocodile and the lizard and the sand lizard and the chameleon. These [are] the unclean for you among all the swarmers; anyone who touches them at their death shall become unclean until the evening. And anything on which {one of them} falls at their death shall become unclean: any object of wood or garment or skin or sackcloth--any object that has performed work--must be placed in water, and it shall be unclean until the evening, and [then] it shall be clean. And any clay vessel into which it falls shall become unclean, and you must break it. Any of the food that could be eaten on which water [from such a vessel] comes shall become unclean, and any liquid that could be drunk in any [such] vessel shall become unclean. And anything on which {one of their dead bodies} falls shall become unclean: an oven or a stove must be broken--they [are] unclean and shall be unclean for you. Surely a spring or a cistern collecting water shall be clean, but that which touches their dead body shall become unclean. And when {one of their dead bodies} falls on any {seed for sowing}, it [is] clean. But when water is put on [the] seed and {one of their dead bodies} falls on it, it [is] unclean for you. " 'And when {one of the animals} dies that is for you to eat, the one who touches its dead body shall become unclean until the evening. And the one who eats {some of} its dead body must wash his garments, and he shall be unclean until the evening; and the one who carries its dead body must wash his garments, and he shall be unclean until the evening. " 'And any swarmer that swarms on the land [is] detestable; it must not be eaten. You must not eat anything that moves upon its belly or that walks on [all] fours, even any [with] numerous feet [belonging] to any swarmer that swarms on the land, because they [are] detestable. You must not defile yourselves with any swarmer that swarms, and you must not make yourselves unclean by them and [so] be made unclean by them, because I [am] Yahweh your God, and you must keep yourselves sanctified, so that you shall be holy, because I [am] holy. And you must not make yourselves unclean with any swarmer that moves along on the land, because I [am] Yahweh, who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be for you as God. Thus you shall be holy, because I [am] holy. " 'This is the regulation of the animals and the birds and all living creatures that move along in the water and {concerning} all the creatures that swarm on the land, to distinguish between the unclean and the clean and between the animal that is to be eaten and the animal that must not be eaten.'"

And [if there is] {anyone} from the house of Israel or from the alien who is dwelling in their midst who eats any blood, then I will set my face against the person who eats the blood, and I will cut him off from among his people. Indeed the flesh's life [is] in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your lives, because it [is] the blood with the life that makes atonement. {Therefore} I said to the {Israelites}, '{None of you} may eat blood, nor may the alien who is dwelling in your midst eat blood.'read more.
"And [if there is] {anyone} from the {Israelites} or from the alien who is dwelling in their midst who hunts a wild game animal or a bird that may be eaten, then he shall pour out its blood, and he shall cover it with the soil. Indeed, [the] life of all flesh, its blood, [is] in its life, so I said to the {Israelites}, 'You may not eat [the] blood of any flesh, because [the] life of all flesh [is] its blood; anyone who eats it must be cut off.'

[that you] abstain from food sacrificed to idols, and from blood, and from what has been strangled, and from sexual immorality. [If you] keep yourselves from {these things} you will do well. Farewell.

" '{None} [of] you shall approach anyone [who is] {his close relative} to expose nakedness; I [am] Yahweh.

You must not expose your father's nakedness or your mother's nakedness--she [is] your mother; you must not expose her nakedness. You must not expose the nakedness of your father's wife--it is your father's nakedness. [As for] your sister's nakedness, [whether] your father's daughter or your mother's daughter, [whether] {born at home} or {born abroad}, you must not expose their nakedness.read more.
[As for] the nakedness of your son's daughter or your daughter's daughter, you must not expose their nakedness, because they [are] your nakedness. [As for] the nakedness of the daughter of your father's wife, she [is] your sister, a relative of your father; you must not expose her nakedness. You must not expose the nakedness of your father's sister; she [is] {your father's close relative}. You must not expose the nakedness of your mother's sister, because she [is] {your mother's close relative}. You must not expose the nakedness of your father's brother; you must not {have sex with} his wife--she [is] your aunt. You must not expose your daughter-in-law's nakedness; she [is] your son's wife; you must not expose her nakedness. You must not expose the nakedness of your brother's wife; she [is] your brother's nakedness. You must not expose the nakedness of a woman and her daughter, or her son's daughter, or her daughter's daughter; you must not take [her as wife] to expose her nakedness; they [are] {close relatives}--that [is] wickedness. And you must not take [as wife] a woman with her sister, to be a rival-wife, to expose her nakedness before her {during} her life. " 'And you must not {have sex with} a woman to expose her nakedness {during} her menstrual uncleanness. And {you must not have sex} with your fellow citizen's wife, becoming unclean with her. " 'And you shall not give {any of} your offspring in order to sacrifice [them] to Molech, nor shall you profane the name of your God; I [am] Yahweh. And you shall not lie with a male as lying {with} a woman; that [is] a detestable thing. And you shall not {have sexual relations} with any animal, becoming unclean with it; and a woman shall not stand {before} an animal to copulate with it--that [is] a perversion. " 'You must not make yourself unclean in any of these [things], because the nations whom I am driving out from your presence were made unclean by all of these. So the land became unclean, and {I have brought the punishment of} its guilt upon it, and the land has vomited out its inhabitants. But you ([neither] the native nor the alien who is dwelling in your midst) shall keep my statutes and my regulations, and you shall not {practice} any of these detestable things (because the people of the land, who [were] {before you}, did all these detestable things, so the land became unclean), so that the land will not vomit you out when you make it unclean [just] as it vomited out the nation that [was] {before you}. Indeed, anyone who does any of these detestable things, even those persons who do so shall be cut off from the midst of their people. Thus you shall keep my obligation to not do any of the statutes {regarding} the detestable things that they did {before you}, so that you will not make yourselves unclean by them; I [am] Yahweh your God.'"

" 'As for a man who commits adultery with a man's wife, who commits adultery with his neighbor's wife, [both] the man who commits adultery and the woman who commits adultery shall surely be put to death. As for a man who lies with his father's wife, he has exposed his father's nakedness; both of them shall be put to death--their blood [is] on them. As for a man who lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall be put to death; they have committed a perversion--their blood [is] on them.read more.
" 'As for the man who lies with a male [as] lying [with] a woman, they have committed a detestable thing; they shall surely be put to death--their blood [is] on them. " 'As for a man who marries a woman and her mother, that [is] depravity; they shall burn him and them, so that it shall not become depravity in the midst of you [all]. " 'As for a man who {has sexual relations} with an animal, he shall surely be put to death, and you must kill the animal. As for a woman who approaches any animal to copulate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall surely be put to death--their blood [is] on them. " 'As for a man who takes his sister, his father's daughter or his mother's daughter, and he sees her nakedness and she herself sees his nakedness, it [is] a disgrace, and they shall be cut off {before} the eyes of {their people}; he has exposed his sister's nakedness--he must bear his guilt. As for a man who lies with a menstruating woman, he exposes her nakedness--her source he exposes and she herself reveals her blood's source--both of them shall be cut off from the midst of their people. And you shall not expose the nakedness of your mother's sister, and you shall not expose your father's sister, because such a person has dishonored his close relative--they must bear their guilt. As for a man who lies with his aunt, he has exposed his uncle's nakedness--they shall bear their sin; they shall die childless. As for a man who marries his brother's wife, it [is] an abomination; he has exposed his brother's nakedness--they shall be childless.

'Cursed be the one who lies with the wife of his father, because {he has dishonored his father's bed}.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.' 'Cursed be the one who lies with any [kind] of animal.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.' 'Cursed be the one who lies with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'read more.
'Cursed be the one who lies with his mother-in-law.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'

So the Samaritan woman said to him, "How do you, being a Jew, ask from me [water] to drink, [since I] am a Samaritan woman?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)

Now the enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the {returned exiles} [were] building a temple for Yahweh the God of Israel. And they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of the {families}, and they said to them, "Let us build with you. Like you, we seek your God and have been sacrificing [to him] from the days of Esarhaddon the king of Assyria who brought us up here. But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of the {families} of Israel said to them, "[It is] not for you but for us to build a house for our God. For we ourselves alone will build [it] for Yahweh the God of Israel, just as Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us."

Jesus sent out these twelve, instructing them saying, "Do not go on the road to the Gentiles, and do not enter into a city of the Samaritans, but go instead to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Now it happened that when the days were approaching {for him to be taken up}, he set [his] face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers before {him}, and they went [and] entered into a village of the Samaritans in order to prepare for him. And they did not welcome him because {he was determined to go} to Jerusalem.

And he said to them, "You know that it is forbidden for a Jewish man to associate with or to approach a foreigner. And to me God has shown [that] I should call no man common or unclean.

Jesus sent out these twelve, instructing them saying, "Do not go on the road to the Gentiles, and do not enter into a city of the Samaritans,

And departing from there, Jesus went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that district came [and] cried out, saying, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter [is] severely possessed by a demon!" But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came up [and] asked him, saying, "Send her away, because she is crying out after us!"read more.
But he answered [and] said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came [and] knelt down before him, saying, "Lord, help me!" And he answered [and] said, "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw [it] to the dogs!" So she said, "Yes, Lord, for even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table." Then Jesus answered [and] said to her, "O woman, your faith [is] great! Let it be done for you as you want." And her daughter was healed from that hour.

And from there he set out [and] went to the region of Tyre. And [when he] entered into a house, he wanted no one to know, and [yet] he was not able to escape notice. But immediately a woman whose young daughter was possessed by an unclean spirit, [when she] heard about him, came [and] fell down at his feet, Now the woman was a Greek--a Syrophoenician by nationality--and she was asking him that he would expel the demon from her daughter.read more.
And he said to her, "Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not right to take the children's bread and throw [it] to the dogs!" But she answered and said to him, "Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." And he said to her, "Because of this statement, go! The demon has gone out of your daughter." And [when she] went to her home, she found the child lying on the bed and the demon gone.

Then they brought Jesus from Caiaphas to the governor's residence. Now it was early, and they did not enter into the governor's residence so that they would not be defiled, but could eat the Passover.

Now the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had accepted the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision took issue with him, saying, "You went to men {who were uncircumcised} and ate with them!"read more.
But Peter began [and] explained [it] to them in an orderly sequence, saying, "I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision--an object something like a large sheet coming down, being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came to me. [As I] looked intently into it, I was considering [it], and I saw the four-footed animals of the earth and the wild animals and the reptiles and the birds of the sky. And I also heard a voice saying to me, 'Get up, Peter, slaughter and eat!' But I said, 'Certainly not, Lord! For nothing common or unclean has ever entered into my mouth!' But the voice replied from heaven for the second time, '[The things] which God has made clean, you must not consider unclean!' And this happened three times, and everything was pulled up into heaven again. And behold, at once three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea approached the house in which we were [staying]. And the Spirit told me to accompany them, not hesitating [at all]. So these six brothers also went with me, and we entered into the man's house. And he reported to us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, 'Send to Joppa and summon Simon, who is also called Peter, who will speak words to you by which you will be saved, you and all your household.' And [as] I was beginning to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them, just as also on us at the beginning. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' Therefore if God gave them the same gift as also to us [when we] believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I [to be] able to hinder God?" And [when they] heard these [things], they became silent and praised God, saying, "Then God has granted the repentance [leading] to life to the Gentiles also!"

But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed [him] to his face, because he was condemned. For before certain people came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles, but when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, [because he] was afraid of those [who were] of the circumcision, and the rest of the Jews also joined in [this] hypocrisy with him, so that even Barnabas was carried away with them in [their] hypocrisy.

And some men came down from Judea [and] began teaching the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom [prescribed] by Moses, you cannot be saved."

But some of those who had believed from the party of the Pharisees stood up, saying, "It is necessary to circumcise them and to command [them] to observe the law of Moses!"

Look! I, Paul, tell you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing! And again I testify to every man who becomes circumcised, that he is under obligation to keep the whole law. You are estranged from Christ, [you] who are attempting to be justified by the law; you have fallen from grace.read more.
For through the Spirit by faith we eagerly await the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but faith working through love.

As many as are wanting to make a good showing in the flesh, these are attempting to compel you to be circumcised, only so that they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.

For there are many rebellious [people], idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision,

And God, who knows the heart, testified to them [by] giving [them] the Holy Spirit, just as he also [did] to us.

For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free [persons], and all were made to drink one Spirit.

I want only to learn this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now trying to be made complete by the flesh? Have you suffered so many [things] for nothing--if indeed also [it was] for nothing?read more.
Therefore does the one who gives you the Spirit and who works miracles among you [do so] by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

We [are] Jews by nature and not sinners from among the Gentiles, but knowing that a person is not justified by the works of the law, if not by faith in Jesus Christ, and we have believed in Christ Jesus so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law {no human being will be justified}.

And he made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. So now why are you putting God to the test [by] placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe [we] will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus in {the same} way those also [are]."

For we consider a person to be justified by faith apart from the works of the law. Or [is God] the God of the Jews only? [Is he] not also [the God] of the Gentiles? Yes, also of the Gentiles, since God [is] one, who will justify {those who are circumcised} by faith and {those who are uncircumcised} through faith.

Therefore, [is] this blessing for {those who are circumcised}, or also for {those who are uncircumcised}? For we say, "Faith was credited to Abraham for righteousness." How then was it credited? [While he] was {circumcised} or {uncircumcised}? Not {while circumcised} but {while uncircumcised}! And he received the sign of circumcision [as] a seal of the righteousness by faith which [he had] {while uncircumcised}, so that he could be the father of all who believe {although they are uncircumcised}, so that righteousness could be credited to them,read more.
and the father {of those who are circumcised} to those who are not only from the circumcision, but who also follow in the footsteps of the faith of our father Abraham {which he had while uncircumcised}.