1 I therefore, being prisoner in the Lord, praie you that yee walke worthie of the vocation whereunto yee are called, 2 With all humblenesse of minde, and meekenesse, with long suffering, supporting one an other through loue, 3 Endeuouring to keepe the vnitie of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body, and one Spirit, euen as yee are called in one hope of your vocation. 5 There is one Lord, one Faith, one Baptisme, 6 One God and Father of all, which is aboue all, and through all, and in you all. 7 But vnto euery one of vs is giuen grace, according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8 Wherfore he saith, Whe he asceded vp on hie, he led captiuity captiue, and gaue gifts vnto men. 9 (Nowe, in that hee ascended, what is it but that he had also descended first into the lowest partes of the earth? 10 Hee that descended, is euen the same that ascended, farre aboue all heauens, that hee might fill all things) 11 Hee therefore gaue some to be Apostles, and some Prophets, and some Euangelists, and some Pastours, and Teachers, 12 For the repairing of the Saintes, for the woorke of the ministerie, and for the edification of the bodie of Christ, 13 Till we all meete together (in the vnitie of faith and that acknowledging of the Sonne of God) vnto a perfite man, and vnto the measure of the age of the fulnesse of Christ, 14 That we henceforth be no more children, wauering and caried about with euery winde of doctrine, by the deceit of men, and with craftines, whereby they lay in wait to deceiue. 15 But let vs folowe the truth in loue, and in all things, grow vp into him, which is the head, that is, Christ. 16 By whome al the body being coupled and knit together by euery ioynt, for ye furniture therof (according to the effectual power, which is in the measure of euery part) receiueth increase of the body, vnto the edifying of itselfe in loue. 17 This I say therefore and testifie in the Lord, that yee hencefoorth walke not as other Gentiles walke, in vanitie of their minde, 18 Hauing their vnderstanding darkened, and being strangers from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardnesse of their heart: 19 Which being past feeling, haue giuen themselues vnto wantonnesse, to woorke all vncleannesse, euen with griedinesse. 20 But yee haue not so learned Christ, 21 If so be yee haue heard him, and haue bene taught by him, as the trueth is in Iesus, 22 That is, that yee cast off, concerning the conuersation in time past, that olde man, which is corrupt through the deceiueable lustes, 23 And be renued in the spirit of your minde, 24 And put on ye new man, which after God is created vnto righteousnes, and true holines. 25 Wherefore cast off lying, and speake euery man truth vnto his neighbour: for we are members one of another. 26 Bee angrie, but sinne not: let not the sunne goe downe vpon your wrath, 27 Neither giue place to the deuill. 28 Let him that stole, steale no more: but let him rather labour, and worke with his handes the thing which is good, that hee may haue to giue vnto him that needeth. 29 Let no corrupt comunication proceed out of your mouths: but that which is good, to ye vse of edifying, that it may minister grace vnto the hearers. 30 And grieue not the holy Spirit of God, by whom ye are sealed vnto ye day of redemption. 31 Let all bitternesse, and anger, and wrath, crying, and euill speaking be put away from you, with all maliciousnesse. 32 Be ye courteous one to another, and tender hearted, freely forgiuing one another, euen as God for Christes sake, freely forgaue you.
The Unity of the Body
1 I urge you, then—I who am a prisoner because I serve the Lord: live a life that measures up to the standard God set when he called you. 2 Be always humble, gentle, and patient. Show your love by being tolerant with one another. 3 Do your best to preserve the unity which the Spirit gives by means of the peace that binds you together. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as there is one hope to which God has called you. 5 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 there is one God and Father of all people, who is Lord of all, works through all, and is in all.
7 Each one of us has received a special gift in proportion to what Christ has given. 8 As the scripture says,
“When he went up to the very heights,
he took many captives with him;
he gave gifts to people.”
9 Now, what does “he went up” mean? It means that first he came down to the lowest depths of the earth. 10 So the one who came down is the same one who went up, above and beyond the heavens, to fill the whole universe with his presence. 11 It was he who “gave gifts to people”; he appointed some to be apostles, others to be prophets, others to be evangelists, others to be pastors and teachers. 12 He did this to prepare all God's people for the work of Christian service, in order to build up the body of Christ. 13 And so we shall all come together to that oneness in our faith and in our knowledge of the Son of God; we shall become mature people, reaching to the very height of Christ's full stature. 14 Then we shall no longer be children, carried by the waves and blown about by every shifting wind of the teaching of deceitful people, who lead others into error by the tricks they invent. 15 Instead, by speaking the truth in a spirit of love, we must grow up in every way to Christ, who is the head. 16 Under his control all the different parts of the body fit together, and the whole body is held together by every joint with which it is provided. So when each separate part works as it should, the whole body grows and builds itself up through love.
The New Life in Christ
17 In the Lord's name, then, I warn you: do not continue to live like the heathen, whose thoughts are worthless 18 and whose minds are in the dark. They have no part in the life that God gives, for they are completely ignorant and stubborn. 19 They have lost all feeling of shame; they give themselves over to vice and do all sorts of indecent things without restraint.
20 That was not what you learned about Christ! 21 You certainly heard about him, and as his followers you were taught the truth that is in Jesus. 22 So get rid of your old self, which made you live as you used to—the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires. 23 Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, 24 and you must put on the new self, which is created in God's likeness and reveals itself in the true life that is upright and holy.
25 No more lying, then! Each of you must tell the truth to the other believer, because we are all members together in the body of Christ. 26 If you become angry, do not let your anger lead you into sin, and do not stay angry all day. 27 Don't give the Devil a chance. 28 If you used to rob, you must stop robbing and start working, in order to earn an honest living for yourself and to be able to help the poor. 29 Do not use harmful words, but only helpful words, the kind that build up and provide what is needed, so that what you say will do good to those who hear you. 30 And do not make God's Holy Spirit sad; for the Spirit is God's mark of ownership on you, a guarantee that the Day will come when God will set you free. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, passion, and anger. No more shouting or insults, no more hateful feelings of any sort. 32 Instead, be kind and tender-hearted to one another, and forgive one another, as God has forgiven you through Christ.