As it is said in the Writings, He has sent out far and wide, he has given to the poor; his righteousness is for ever.

For it is said, “His letters are weighty and powerful, but his physical presence is weak, and his public speaking is despicable.”

Such people should consider this: When I arrive for action I shall do exactly what I said I would in my letters when far away.

that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable things said which it is not allowed to man to utter.

And at once he said unto me - Sufficient for thee, is my favour, for, my power, in weakness, is made complete. Most gladly, therefore, will I rather boast in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may spread a tent over me.

So, let it be [said] that I did not become a burden to you. But being a clever person, [some are saying] that I took you in by trickery. [Note: Paul is saying that even though he took no financial support from the church, they are accusing him of taking financial advantage of them through other people].

I have said formerly, and I now forewarn you as when I was present the second time, so now when I am absent the second time, so now when I am absent, saying to those who had sinned before, and to all the rest, "If I come again, I will not spare,"

I have said it before, and I now repeat it, if any one is preaching a gospel to you other than that which you have received, let him be accursed.

only they used to hear it said, "He who was once persecuting us is now preaching the gospel of the very faith which he once tried to ruin."

But when I saw that they were not walking a straight path, in the presence of the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all. "If you, although you are a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, why do you try to compel the Gentiles to become Jews?

But if, while we seek to be justified in Christ, we also were found to be sinners, is Christ therefore a minister of sin? Let it not be said!

Because the Scripture saw ahead of time that God would justify the gentiles by faith, it announced the gospel to Abraham beforehand when it said, "Through you all nations will be blessed."

For all who are of the works of the law are under a curse: because it is said in the Writings, A curse is on everyone who does not keep on doing all the things which are ordered in the book of the law.

Christ has made us free from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us: because it is said in the Writings, A curse on everyone who is put to death by hanging on a tree:

The promises were spoken to Abraham and his offspring. He said not, And to offsprings, as of many, but as of one, And to your offspring, which is Christ.

Is the Law then against the promises of God? Let it not be said! For if a law had been given which could have given life, indeed righteousness would have been out of Law.

This is being said as an allegory, for these women represent two covenants. The one woman, Hagar, is from Mount Sinai, and her children are born into slavery.

envyings, murders, drunkennesses, revellings, and such like, of which I tell you before, as I also said before, that those doing such things the reign of God shall not inherit.

How by revelation the secret was made clear to me, as I said before in a short letter,

Therefore it says,

“When He ascended on high,
He led captivity captive,
And He bestowed gifts on men.”

And let there be no low behaviour, or foolish talk, or words said in sport, which are not right, but in place of them the giving of praise.

For this reason it is said, "Awake, thou sleeper! Arise from the dead; And Christ shall shine upon thee!"

Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. it is not uneasy to me to write what I have already said, and it is an advantage to you.

(For many walk, of whom I said to you often, and now also say weeping, the enemies of the cross of Christ:

And when we were with you, we said to you that trouble was before us; and so it came about, as you see.

But, when Timothy recently returned to us from you with good news of your faith and love, and told us how kindly you think of us--always longing, he said, to see us, just as we are longing to see you--

And that no man may make attempts to get the better of his brother in business: for the Lord is the judge in all these things, as we said to you before and gave witness.

For we say this to you by [the authority of] the word of the Lord [Note: Paul was either quoting what Jesus had previously said, or was giving a revelation he had received from the Lord. See I Cor. 14:37], that we [Christians] who are [still] alive, who are left [on earth] when the Lord returns, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. [Note: The point Paul is making is that the living will not be "changed" (I Cor. 15:51-52) and taken to heaven before the dead are raised].

not to be so quickly upset or alarmed when someone claims that we said, either by some spirit, conversation, or letter that the Day of the Lord has already come.

Have you no memory of what I said when I was with you, giving you word of these things?

If anyone refuses to obey what we have said in this letter, mark that person and stop having anything to do with him, so that he will feel ashamed of it.

Though I had said violent words against God, and done cruel acts, causing great trouble: but I was given mercy, because I did it without knowledge, not having faith;

I transmit these instructions to you, Timotheus my son, in accordance with what the prophets said who first directed me to you; fight the good fight on these lines,

And he is to have a good name among those outside the church, so that nothing may be said against him and he may not be taken by the designs of the Evil One.

for then it is consecrated by the prayer said over it.

Give orders to this effect, so that no evil may be said of anyone.

Let all who are servants under the yoke give all honour to their masters, so that no evil may be said against the name of God and his teaching.

And the things which I have said to you before a number of witnesses, give to those of the faith, so that they may be teachers of others.

for he has been bitterly hostile to anything I have said.

I did not take you with me when I went away from Crete, so that you might do what was necessary to put things in order there, placing men in authority over the churches in every town, as I said to you;

Men having a good record, husbands of one wife, whose children are of the faith, children of whom it may not be said that they are given to loose living or are uncontrolled.

One of them, a prophet of their own countrymen, has said, "Cretans are always liars, wicked brutes, lazy bellies."

To be wise in mind, clean in heart, kind; working in their houses, living under the authority of their husbands; so that no evil may be said of the word of God.

For unto which of the messengers said he at any time - My Son, art, thou, I, this day have begotten thee? and again - I, will become, his father, and, he, shall become my Son?

And further, when he brought the firstborn into the habitable world, he said, Let all the angels of God worship him.

While of the angels he said, He makes his angels into winds, His ministering servants into flames of fire.

while of the Son he said-- 'God is thy throne for ever and ever; The scepter of his Kingdom is the scepter of Justice;

But to which of the heavenly agents has he ever said, Sit thou by my right hand until I place thine enemies a footstool of thy feet?

For someone somewhere has solemnly said: "What is man that you should think of him, or the Son of Man that you should care for Him?

And Moses certainly kept faith as a servant, in all his house, and as a witness of those things which were to be said later;

So, even as the Holy Spirit said [Psa. 95:7-11], "Today, if you hear His [i.e., God's] voice,

Therefore I was angry with that generation, and said, They are always led astray in their heart, and they did not know my ways.

for we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold fast our first confidence firm unto the end; inasmuch as it is said,

while it is said, Today if ye will hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.

For those who believe enter into that rest, just as he said, So I swore in my wrath, They will not enter into my rest, although the works occurred from the foundation of the world.

For in one place he has said of the seventh day, And God had rest from all his works on the seventh day;

and again in this, “They shall not enter My rest.”

again he appoints a certain day, Today, saying in David after so long a time (as it is said), Today if ye will hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.

For if Joshua had given them rest, he would not have said anything about another day.

So also Christ did not glorify himself to become a high priest, but it was he who said to him, Thou are my Son, today I have begotten thee.

also said in another passage, You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.

and said, "I will certainly bless you richly, and greatly increase your numbers."

And it could be said that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid a tithe through Abraham.

Thus if perfection was through the Levitical priesthood, for on the basis of it the people received the law, what further need [is there] for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchizedek and not said to be according to the order of Aaron?

For He of whom this is said became a member of a different tribe no member of which ever officiated at the altar.

For it is very clear that our Lord sprang from Judah, a tribe about which Moses said nothing as to priests.

for it is said, "thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec."

for the Levitical priests were appointed without His taking an oath, but He with His oath, when He said to Him: "The Lord took oath and will not change, You are a priest forever" --

What we have said amounts to this; we have an high priest, who sits in heaven on the right hand of the throne of the divine majesty.

and yet they officiate in a sanctuary that is a mere copy and shadow of the heavenly one, as Moses, when he was about to make the tent of worship, was warned, for, said He, "See to it that you make it all just like the pattern shown you on the mountain."

For, because He was dissatisfied with His people, He said: "'See; the time is coming,' says the Lord, 'When I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah,

When he said, "A new covenant," he has made the first obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.

and said, "This is the blood of the covenant that God has commanded you to keep."

So, when Christ was coming into the world, He said:

Then said I, Lo, I am come (In the roll of the book it is written of me) To do thy will, O God.

Although at first He said, "You never wished or took delight in sacrifices and offerings, burnt-offerings and sin-offerings" -- all of which are repeatedly offered in accordance with the law --

then hath he said, Lo, I am come to do thy will. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.

And the Holy Spirit also beareth witness to us; for after he hath said,

This is the agreement which I will make with them after those days, says the Lord; I will put my laws in their hearts, writing them in their minds; he said,

For we know him that said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.

By faith Enoch was translated without seeing death, and was not found because God translated him. For before the translation he was said to have pleased God;

By faith Abraham did as God said when he was ordered to go out into a place which was to be given to him as a heritage, and went out without knowledge of where he was going.

even he to whom it was said, In Isaac shall thy seed be called:

concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the grave; from whence, in a figurative sense, be may be said to have been recover'd.

By faith Joseph, when his end was near, said that the children of Israel would go out of Egypt; and gave orders about his bones.

And to the sound of a horn, and the voice of words, the hearers of which made request that not a word more might be said to them:

For the order which said, If the mountain is touched even by a beast, the beast is to be stoned, seemed hard to them;

and so fearful was the appearance, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:

Be ye free from the love of money; content with such things as ye have: for himself hath said, I will in no wise fail thee, neither will I in any wise forsake thee.

But, brothers, take kindly the words which I have said for your profit; for I have not sent you a long letter.

There is a blessing on the man who undergoes testing; because, if he has God's approval, he will be given the crown of life, which the Lord has said he will give to those who have love for him.

Give ear, my dear brothers; are not those who are poor in the things of this world marked out by God to have faith as their wealth, and for their heritage the kingdom which he has said he will give to those who have love for him?

For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou dost not commit adultery, but killest, thou art become a transgressor of the law.

it will be said, "you have a speculative faith, but mine is practical. where is your faith, if no effects appear? as for me, my actions will vouch for my faith.

And the Scripture was fulfilled which said, And Abraham believed God, and this was imputed to him as righteousness, and he was called God's friend.

But he gives more and more grace. therefore it is said, God ever resists the proud; but to the humble he gives grace continually.

Because it has been said in the Writings, You are to be holy, for I am holy.

For it is said, All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flower of the grass. The grass becomes dry and the flower dead:

Because it is said in the Writings, See, I am placing a keystone in Zion, of great and special value; and the man who has faith in him will not be put to shame.

And the value is for you who have faith; but it is said for those without faith, The very stone which the builders put on one side, was made the chief stone of the building;