so that we should be devoted to the extolling of His glorious attributes--we who were the first to fix our hopes on Christ.

And in Him you Gentiles also, after listening to the Message of the truth, the Good News of your salvation--having believed in Him--were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit;

To you Gentiles also, who were dead through your offences and sins,

which were once habitual to you while you walked in the ways of this world and obeyed the Prince of the powers of the air, the spirits that are now at work in the hearts of the sons of disobedience--to you God has given Life.

Among them all of us also formerly passed our lives, governed by the inclinations of our lower natures, indulging the cravings of those natures and of our own thoughts, and were in our original state deserving of anger like all others.

caused us, dead though we were through our offences, to live with Christ--it is by grace that you have been saved--

Therefore, do not forget that formerly you were Gentiles as to your bodily condition. You were called the Uncircumcision by those who style themselves the Circumcised--their circumcision being one which the knife has effected.

At that time you were living apart from Christ, estranged from the Commonwealth of Israel, with no share by birth in the Covenants which are based on the Promises, and you had no hope and no God, in all the world.

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were so far away have been brought near through the death of Christ.

by setting aside the Law with its commandments, expressed, as they were, in definite decrees. His design was to unite the two sections of humanity in Himself so as to form one new man,

So He came and proclaimed good news of peace to you who were so far away, and peace to those who were near;

There is but one body and but one Spirit, as also when you were called you had one and the same hope held out to you.

For this reason, laying aside falsehood, every one of you should speak the truth to his fellow man; for we are, as it were, parts of one another.

There was a time when you were nothing but darkness. Now, as Christians, you are Light itself.

because we are, as it were, parts of His Body.

Slaves, be obedient to your earthly masters, with respect and eager anxiety to please and with simplicity of motive as if you were obeying Christ.