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In the freedom, then, with which Christ did make you free -- stand ye, and be not held fast again by a yoke of servitude;

lo, I Paul do say to you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing;

and I testify again to every man circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law;

ye were freed from the Christ, ye who in law are declared righteous; from the grace ye fell away;

for we by the Spirit, by faith, a hope of righteousness do wait for,

for in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith through love working.

Ye were running well; who did hinder you -- not to obey the truth?

the obedience [is] not of him who is calling you!

a little leaven the whole lump doth leaven;

10 I have confidence in regard to you in the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded; and he who is troubling you shall bear the judgment, whoever he may be.

11 And I, brethren, if uncircumcision I yet preach, why yet am I persecuted? then hath the stumbling-block of the cross been done away;

12 O that even they would cut themselves off who are unsettling you!

13 For ye -- to freedom ye were called, brethren, only not the freedom for an occasion to the flesh, but through the love serve ye one another,

14 for all the law in one word is fulfilled -- in this: `Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself;'

15 and if one another ye do bite and devour, see -- that ye may not by one another be consumed.

16 And I say: In the Spirit walk ye, and the desire of the flesh ye may not complete;

17 for the flesh doth desire contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit contrary to the flesh, and these are opposed one to another, that the things that ye may will -- these ye may not do;

18 and if by the Spirit ye are led, ye are not under law.

19 And manifest also are the works of the flesh, which are: Adultery, whoredom, uncleanness, lasciviousness,

20 idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, strifes, emulations, wraths, rivalries, dissensions, sects,

21 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.

22 And the fruit of the Spirit is: Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith,

23 meekness, temperance: against such there is no law;

24 and those who are Christ's, the flesh did crucify with the affections, and the desires;

25 if we may live in the Spirit, in the Spirit also we may walk;

26 let us not become vain-glorious -- one another provoking, one another envying!

Freedom in Christ

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.(A) Stand firm,(B) then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.(C)

Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised,(D) Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.(E) You who are trying to be justified by the law(F) have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.(G) For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope.(H) For in Christ Jesus(I) neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value.(J) The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.(K)

You were running a good race.(L) Who cut in on you(M) to keep you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you.(N) “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.”(O) 10 I am confident(P) in the Lord that you will take no other view.(Q) The one who is throwing you into confusion,(R) whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty. 11 Brothers and sisters, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted?(S) In that case the offense(T) of the cross has been abolished. 12 As for those agitators,(U) I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!

Life by the Spirit

13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free.(V) But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh[a];(W) rather, serve one another(X) humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”[b](Y) 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

16 So I say, walk by the Spirit,(Z) and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.(AA) 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh.(AB) They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[c] you want.(AC) 18 But if you are led by the Spirit,(AD) you are not under the law.(AE)

19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality,(AF) impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.(AG) I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.(AH)

22 But the fruit(AI) of the Spirit is love,(AJ) joy, peace,(AK) forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.(AL) Against such things there is no law.(AM) 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh(AN) with its passions and desires.(AO) 25 Since we live by the Spirit,(AP) let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited,(AQ) provoking and envying each other.

Footnotes

  1. Galatians 5:13 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit; also in verses 16, 17, 19 and 24; and in 6:8.
  2. Galatians 5:14 Lev. 19:18
  3. Galatians 5:17 Or you do not do what