Therefore I, ^athe prisoner of the Lord, ^bimplore you to ^cwalk in a manner worthy of the ^dcalling with which you have been ^ecalled, 2 with all ^ahumility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another ^bin love, 3 being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the ^abond of peace. 4 There is ^aone body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one ^bhope of your calling; 5 ^aone Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all ^awho is over all and through all and in all.

7 But ^ato each one of us ^bgrace was given ^caccording to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore ¹it says,“^aWHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH,HE ^bLED CAPTIVE A HOST OF CAPTIVES,AND HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN.” 9 (Now this expression, “He ^aascended,” what ¹does it mean except that He also ²had descended into ^bthe lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is Himself also He who ascended ^afar above all the heavens, so that He might ^bfill all things.) 11 And He ^agave ^bsome as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as ^cevangelists, and some as pastors and ^dteachers, 12 ^afor the equipping of the ¹saints for the work of service, to the building up of ^bthe body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to ^athe unity of the faith, and of the ^1bknowledge of the Son of God, to a ^cmature man, to the measure of the stature ²which belongs to the ^dfullness of Christ. 14 ¹As a result, we are ^ano longer to be children, ^btossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by ^ccraftiness ²in ^ddeceitful scheming; 15 but ¹speaking the truth ^ain love, ²we are to ^bgrow up in all aspects into Him who is the ^chead, even Christ, 16 from whom ^athe whole body, being fitted and held together ¹by what every joint supplies, according to the ²proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself ^bin love.

17 ^aSo this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, ^bthat you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the ^cfutility of their mind, 18 being ^adarkened in their understanding, ^1bexcluded from the life of God because of the ^cignorance that is in them, because of the ^dhardness of their heart; 19 and they, having ^abecome callous, ^bhave given themselves over to ^csensuality ¹for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. 20 But you did not ^alearn ¹Christ in this way, 21 if indeed you ^ahave heard Him and have ^bbeen taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 22 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you ^alay aside the ^bold ¹self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the ^clusts of deceit, 23 and that you be ^arenewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and ^aput on the ^bnew ¹self, which ^2cin the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

25 Therefore, ^alaying aside falsehood, ^bSPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are ^cmembers of one another. 26 ^aBE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and do not ^agive the devil ¹an opportunity. 28 He who steals must steal no longer; but rather ^ahe must labor, ^bperforming with his own hands what is good, ^cso that he will have something to share with ¹one who has need. 29 Let no ^1aunwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for ^bedification ²according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. 30 ^aDo not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, ¹by whom you were ^bsealed for the day of redemption. 31 ^aLet all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be ^bput away from you, along with all ^cmalice. 32 ^aBe kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, ^bjust as God in Christ also has forgiven ¹you.

So I, ^athe prisoner for the Lord, ^bappeal to you to ^clive a life worthy of the ^dcalling to which you have been ^ecalled that is, to live a life that exhibits godly character, moral courage, personal integrity, and mature behavior—a life that expresses gratitude to God for your salvation, 2 with all ^ahumility forsaking self-righteousness, and gentleness maintaining self-control, with patience, bearing with one another ^1bin unselfish love. 3 Make every effort to keep the oneness of the Spirit in the ^abond of peace each individual working together to make the whole successful. 4 There is ^aone body of believers and one Spirit—just as you were called to one ^bhope when called to salvation— 5 ^aone Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of us all ^awho is sovereign over all and working through all and living in all.

7 Yet ^agrace God’s undeserved favor was given ^bto each one of us not indiscriminately, but in different ways ^cin proportion to the measure of Christ’s rich and abundant gift. 8 Therefore it says,“^aWHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH,HE ^bLED CAPTIVITY CAPTIVE,AND HE BESTOWED GIFTS ON MEN.” Ps 68:18 9 (Now this expression, “He ^aascended,” what does it mean except that He also had previously descended from the heights of heaven into ^bthe lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is the very same as He who also has ascended ^ahigh above all the heavens, that He His presence might ^bfill all things that is, the whole universe). 11 And His gifts to the church were varied and He Himself ^aappointed ^bsome as apostles special messengers, representatives, some as prophets who speak a new message from God to the people, some as ^cevangelists who spread the good news of salvation, and some as pastors and ^dteachers to shepherd and guide and instruct, 12 and He did this ^ato fully equip and perfect the saints (God’s people) for works of service, to build up the ^bbody of Christ the church; 13 until we all reach ^aoneness in the faith and in the ^bknowledge of the Son of God, growing spiritually to become a ^cmature believer, reaching to the measure of the ^dfullness of Christ manifesting His spiritual completeness and exercising our spiritual gifts in unity. 14 So that we are ^ano longer children spiritually immature, ^btossed back and forth like ships on a stormy sea and carried about by every wind of shifting doctrine, by the ^ccunning and trickery of unscrupulous men, by ^dthe deceitful scheming of people ready to do anything for personal profit. 15 But speaking the truth ^ain love in all things—both our speech and our lives expressing His truth, let us ^bgrow up in all things into Him following His example who is the ^cHead—Christ. 16 From Him ^athe whole body the church, in all its various parts, joined and knitted firmly together by what every joint supplies, when each part is working properly, causes the body to grow and mature, building itself up ^1bin unselfish love.

17 ^aSo this I say, and solemnly affirm together with the Lord as in His presence, ^bthat you must no longer live as the unbelieving Gentiles live, in the ^cfutility of their minds and in the foolishness and emptiness of their souls, 18 for ^atheir moral understanding is darkened and their reasoning is clouded; they are ^balienated and self-banished from the life of God with no share in it; this is because of the willful ^cignorance and spiritual blindness that is deep-seated within them, because of the ^dhardness and insensitivity of their heart. 19 And they, the ungodly in their spiritual apathy, having ^abecome callous and unfeeling, ^bhave given themselves over as prey to unbridled ^csensuality, eagerly craving the practice of every kind of impurity that their desires may demand. 20 But you did not ^alearn Christ in this way! 21 If in fact you ^ahave really heard Him and have ^bbeen taught by Him, just as truth is in Jesus revealed in His life and personified in Him, 22 that, regarding your previous way of life, you ^aput off your ^bold self completely discard your former nature, which is being corrupted through ^cdeceitful desires, 23 and be continually ^arenewed in the spirit of your mind having a fresh, untarnished mental and spiritual attitude, 24 and ^aput on the ^bnew self the regenerated and renewed nature, created ^cin God’s image, godlike in the righteousness and holiness of the truth living in a way that expresses to God your gratitude for your salvation.

25 Therefore, ^arejecting all falsehood whether lying, defrauding, telling half-truths, spreading rumors, any such as these, ^bSPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are all ^cparts of one another and we are all parts of the body of Christ. Zech 8:16 26 ^aBE ANGRY at sin—at immorality, at injustice, at ungodly behavior, YET DO NOT SIN; do not let your anger cause you shame, nor allow it to last until the sun goes down. Ps 4:4 27 And do not ^agive the devil an opportunity to lead you into sin by holding a grudge, or nurturing anger, or harboring resentment, or cultivating bitterness. 28 The thief who has become a believer must no longer steal, but instead ^ahe must work hard making an honest living, ^bproducing that which is good with his own hands, ^cso that he will have something to share with those in need. 29 Do not let ^aunwholesome foul, profane, worthless, vulgar words ever come out of your mouth, but only such speech as is good for ^bbuilding up others, according to the need and the occasion, so that it will be a blessing to those who hear you speak. 30 And ^ado not grieve the Holy Spirit of God but seek to please Him, by whom you were ^bsealed and marked branded as God’s own for the day of redemption the final deliverance from the consequences of sin. Eph 1:13, 14; Phil 3:20, 21 31 ^aLet all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor perpetual animosity, resentment, strife, fault-finding and slander be ^bput away from you, along with every kind of ^cmalice all spitefulness, verbal abuse, malevolence. 32 ^aBe kind and helpful to one another, tender-hearted compassionate, understanding, forgiving one another readily and freely, ^bjust as God in Christ also forgave ¹you.

Therefore I, ^athe prisoner in the Lord, ^bexhort you to ^cwalk worthy of the ^dcalling with which you have been ^ecalled, 2 with all ^ahumility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another ^bin love, 3 being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the ^abond of peace. 4 There is ^aone body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one ^bhope of your calling; 5 ^aone Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all ^awho is over all and through all and in all.

7 But ^ato each one of us ^bgrace was given ^caccording to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore ¹it says,“^aWHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH,HE ^bLED CAPTIVE A HOST OF CAPTIVES,And HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN.” 9 (Now this expression, “He ^aascended,” what ¹does it mean except that He also ²descended into ^bthe lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is Himself also He who ascended ^afar above all the heavens, so that He might ^bfill all things.) 11 And He Himself ^agave ^bsome as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as ^cevangelists, and some as pastors and ^dteachers, 12 ^afor the equipping of the ¹saints for the work of service, to the building up of ^bthe body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to ^athe unity of the faith, and of the ^1bfull knowledge of the Son of God, to a ^cmature man, to the measure of the stature ²which belongs to the ^dfullness of Christ, 14 so that we are ^ano longer to be children, ^btossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by ^ccraftiness ¹in ^ddeceitful scheming, 15 but ¹speaking the truth ^ain love, ²we are to ^bgrow up in all aspects into Him who is the ^chead, that is Christ, 16 from whom ^athe whole body, being joined and held together ¹by what every joint supplies, according to the properly ^bmeasured working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself ^cin love.

17 ^aTherefore this I say, and testify in the Lord, ^bthat you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the ^cfutility of their mind, 18 being ^adarkened in their mind, ^balienated from the life of God because of the ^cignorance that is in them, because of the ^dhardness of their heart. 19 And they, having ^abecome callous, ^bhave given themselves over to ^csensuality ¹for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. 20 But you did not ^alearn ¹Christ in this way— 21 if indeed you ^aheard Him and were ^btaught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 22 ¹to ^alay aside, in reference to your former conduct, the ^bold man, which is being corrupted in accordance with the ^clusts of deceit, 23 and to be ^arenewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and to ^aput on the ^bnew man, which ^1cin the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

25 Therefore, ^alaying aside falsehood, ^bSPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are ^cmembers of one another. 26 ^aBE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and do not ^agive the devil ¹an opportunity. 28 He who steals must steal no longer, but rather ^ahe must labor, ^bperforming with his own hands what is good, ^cso that he will have something to share with ¹one who has need. 29 Let no ^1aunwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for ^bbuilding up ²what is needed, so that it will give grace to those who hear. 30 ^aAnd do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, ¹by whom you were ^bsealed for the day of redemption. 31 ^aLet all bitterness and anger and wrath and shouting and slander be ^bput away from you, along with all ^cmalice. 32 ^aInstead, be kind to one another, tender-hearted, graciously forgiving each other, ^bjust as God in Christ also has graciously forgiven ¹you.