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.
الدعوة إلى الوحدة
1 فأطلُبُ إلَيكُم، أنا السّجينَ في الرّبّ، أنْ تَعيشوا عِيشَةً تَليقُ بِالدّعوَةِ التي دَعاكُمُ اللهُ إلَيها، 2 وأنْ تكونوا مُتواضِعينَ ولُطَفاءَ وصَبورِينَ. فاَحتَمِلوا بَعضُكُم بَعضًا بِمَحبّةٍ، 3 واَجتَهِدوا في المُحافَظَةِ على وَحدَةِ الرّوحِ بِرِباطِ السّلامِ. 4 فأنتُم جَسَدٌ واحدٌ ورُوحٌ واحدٌ، مِثلَما دَعاكُمُ اللهُ إلى رَجاءٍ واحدٍ. 5 ولكُم رَبّ واحدٌ وإيمانٌ واحِدٌ ومَعمودِيّةٌ واحدةٌ 6 وإلهٌ واحدٌ أبٌ لِلجميعِ وفَوقَهُم، يَعمَلُ فيهِم جميعًا وهوَ فيهِم جميعًا. 7 لِكُلّ واحدٍ مِنّا نَصيبُهُ مِنَ النّعمَةِ على مِقدارِ ما وهَبَ لَه المَسيحُ، 8 فالكِتابُ يَقولُ:
«عِندَما صَعِدَ إلى العَلاءِ
أخَذَ أسرى كثيرينَ
وأعطى البشَرَ عطايا».
9 وما المَقصودُ بِقَولِهِ «صَعِدَ» سوى أنّهُ نَزَلَ أوّلاً إلى أعمَقِ أعماقِ الأرضِ. 10 وهذا الذي نزَلَ هوَ نَفسُهُ الذي صَعِدَ إلى ما فَوقَ السّماواتِ كُلّها لِـيَملأَ كُلّ شيءٍ، 11 وهوَ الذي أعطى بَعضَهُم أنْ يكونوا رُسُلاً وبَعضَهُم أنبـياءَ وبَعضَهُم مُبشّرينَ وبَعضَهُم رُعاةً ومُعَلّمينَ. 12 وبذلِكَ يُهَيّـئُ الإخوةَ القِدّيسينَ لِلخدمَةِ في سَبـيلِ بِناءِ جَسَدِ المَسيحِ، 13 إلى أنْ نَصِلَ كُلّنا إلى وحدةِ الإيمانِ ومَعرِفَةِ اَبنِ اللهِ، إلى الإنسانِ الكامِلِ، إلى مِلءِ قامَةِ المَسيحِ، 14 فلا نَبقى أطفالاً تَتَقاذَفُهُم أمواجُ المَذاهِبِ وتَميلُ بِهِم كُلّ ريحٍ فيَخدَعُهُمُ النّاسُ ويَقودونَهُم بالحِيلَةِ إلى الضّلالِ، 15 بَلْ نُعلِنُ الحَقّ في المَحبّةِ فنَنمو في كُلّ شيءٍ نَحوَ المَسيحِ الذي هوَ الرّأسُ. 16 فبِهِ يتَماسَكُ الجَسَدُ كُلّهُ ويَلتَحِمُ بِفَضلِ جميعِ المَفاصِلِ التي تَقومُ بِحاجَتِهِ، حتى إذا قامَ كُلّ جُزءٍ بِعمَلِهِ الخاصّ بِه، نَما الجَسَدُ كُلّهُ وتكامَلَ بُنيانُهُ بِالمَحبّةِ.
الحياة الجديدة في المسيح
17 فأقولُ لكُم وأشهَدُ في الرّبّ أنْ لا تَسيروا بَعدَ الآنَ سِيرَةَ الوَثَنيّينَ الذينَ يُفكّرونَ باطِلاً، 18 وهُمْ في ظَلامِ بَصائِرِهِم وجَهلِهِم وقَساوَةِ قُلوبِهِم غُرَباءُ عَنْ حَياةِ اللهِ. 19 فلمّا فقَدوا كُلّ حِسّ اَستَسلَموا إلى الفُجورِ، فاَنغَمَسوا في كُلّ فِسقٍ ولا يَشبَعونَ. 20 أمّا أنتُم فَما هكذا تَعَلّمتُم ما هوَ المَسيحُ، 21 إذا كُنتُم سَمِعتُم بِه وتَلقّيتُم تَعليمًا مُطابِقًا لِلحقيقَةِ التي في يَسوعَ. 22 فاَترُكوا سِيرَتكُمُ الأُولى بِتَركِ الإنسانِ القَديمِ الذي أفسَدَتْهُ الشّهواتُ الخادِعَةُ، 23 وتَجدّدوا رُوحًا وعَقلاً، 24 واَلبَسوا الإنسانَ الجَديدَ الذي خلَقَهُ اللهُ على صُورَتِهِ في البرّ وقَداسَةِ الحَقّ.
25 لذلِكَ اَمتَنِعوا عَنِ الكَذِبِ، وليَتكَلّمْ كُلّ واحدٍ مِنكُم كلامَ الصّدقِ معَ قَريبِهِ لأنّنا كُلّنا أعضاءٌ، بَعضُنا لِبَعضٍ. 26 وإذا غَضِبتُم لا تُخطِئوا ولا تَغرِبِ الشّمسُ على غَضَبِكُم. 27 لا تُعطوا إبليسَ مكانًا. 28 مَنْ كانَ يَسرُقُ فلْيَمتَنِـعْ عَنِ السّرِقَةِ، بَلْ علَيهِ أنْ يَتعَبَ ويَعمَلَ الخَيرَ بـيَديهِ لِـيكونَ قادِرًا على مُساعَدَةِ المُحتاجينَ. 29 لا تَخرُجْ كَلِمَةُ شرّ مِنْ أفواهِكُم، بَلْ كُلّ كَلِمَةٍ صالِحَةٍ لِلبُنيانِ عِندَ الحاجَةِ وتُفيدُ السّامعينَ. 30 لا تُحزنوا رُوحَ اللهِ القُدّوسَ الذي بِه خُتِمتُم ليَومِ الفِداءِ. 31 تخَلّصوا مِنْ كُلّ حِقدٍ ونَقمَةٍ وغَضَبٍ وصِياحٍ وشَتيمَةٍ وما إلى ذلِكَ مِنَ الشّرورِ، 32 وليَكُنْ بَعضُكُم لِبَعضٍ مُلاطِفًا رَحيمًا غافِرًا كما غَفَرَ اللهُ لكُم في المَسيحِ.