Ephesians 2:2

Easy To Read Version

Yes, in the past you lived doing those sins. You lived the way the world lives. You followed the ruler of the evil powers over the earth. That same spirit is now working in those people who refuse to obey God.

Cross References

Job 1:16

While that messenger was still speaking, another messenger came to Job. The second messenger said, “Lightning struck from the sky and burned up your sheep and servants. I am the only person that escaped. So I came to tell you the news!”

Job 1:19

Then a strong wind suddenly blew in from the desert and blew the house down. The house fell on your sons and daughters, and they are dead. I am the only person that escaped. So I came to tell you the news!”

Job 1:7

The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you been?”

Job 31:7

\{Then God would know\}\par if I walked off the the right path,\par if my eyes led my heart to do evil,\par or if my hands are dirty with sin,\par

Psalm 17:14

Lord, use your power and remove\par bad people from the \{land of\} the living.\par

Isaiah 30:1

The Lord said, “Look at these children. They don’t obey me. They make plans, but they don’t ask me to help them. They make agreements with other nations, but my Spirit does not want those agreements. These people are adding more and more sins to themselves.

Isaiah 57:4

You are evil and lying children.\par You make fun of me.\par You make faces at me.\par You stick your tongues out at me.\par

Jeremiah 23:10

The land of Judah is full of people that do the sin of adultery. {\cf2\super [183]} \par They are unfaithful in many ways.\par The Lord cursed the land,\par and it became very dry.\par The plants are dried and dying in the pastures.\par The fields have become like the desert.\par The prophets are evil.\par Those prophets use their influence\par and power in the wrong way.\par

Hosea 10:9

Israel, you have sinned since the time of Gibeah. {\cf2\super [107]} (And those people have continued sinning there.) War truly will catch those evil people at Gibeah.

Leviticus 11:16

ostriches, nighthawks, sea gulls, all kinds of hawks,

Matthew 11:19

The Son of Man {\cf2\super [142]} came eating \{like other people\} and drinking wine, and people say, ‘Look at him! He eats too much and drinks too much wine. He is a friend of tax collectors {\cf2\super [143]} and other bad people.’ But wisdom is shown to be right by the things it does.”

Matthew 13:22

And what is the seed that fell among the thorny weeds? That seed is like the person that hears the teaching but lets worries about this life and love for money stop that teaching from growing. So the teaching does not make fruit {\cf2\super [184]} \{in that person’s life\}.

Matthew 13:38

The field is the world. The good seed are all of God’s children in the kingdom. The weeds are those people that belong to the Evil One (the devil).

Mark 4:19

But then these things come into their lives: the worries of this life, the love of money, and wanting all kinds of other things. These things stop the teaching from growing. So that teaching does not make fruit {\cf2\super [53]} \{in the lives of those people\}.

Luke 16:8

Later, the master told the dishonest manager that he had done a smart thing. Yes, worldly people are smarter \{in their business\} with the people of their time than spiritual people are.

Luke 22:31

“Satan (the devil) has asked to test you men like a farmer tests his wheat. O Simon, Simon (Peter),

John 12:31

Now is the time for the world to be judged. Now the ruler of this world (the devil) will be thrown out.

John 13:2

Jesus and his followers were at the evening meal. The devil had already persuaded Judas Iscariot to turn against Jesus. (Judas was the son of Simon.)

John 13:27

When Judas took the bread, Satan (the devil) entered him. Jesus said to Judas. “The thing that you will do—do it quickly!”

John 14:30

I will not talk with you much longer. The ruler of this world (the devil) is coming. He has no power over me.

John 15:19

If you belonged to the world, then the world would love you like it loves its own people. But I have chosen you out of the world. So you don’t belong to the world. That is why the world hates you.

John 16:11

And the Helper will prove to the world the truth about judgment, because the ruler of this world (the devil) is already judged.

John 7:7

The world cannot hate you. But the world hates me. Why? Because I tell the people in the world that they do evil things.

John 8:23

But Jesus said to those Jews, “You people are from here below. But I am from above. You belong to this world, but I don’t belong to this world.

John 8:44

Your father is the devil. You belong to him. You want to do what he wants. The devil was a murderer from the beginning. He was always against the truth. There is no truth in him. He is like the lies he tells. Yes, the devil is a liar. He is the father of lies.

Acts 19:35

Then the city clerk persuaded the people to be quiet. He said, “Men of Ephesus, all people know that Ephesus is the city that keeps the temple {\cf2\super [392]} of the great goddess Artemis. All people know that we also keep her holy rock. {\cf2\super [393]}

Acts 5:3

Peter said, “Ananias, why did you let Satan (the devil) rule your heart? You lied and tried to deceive (fool) the Holy Spirit. {\cf2\super [85]} You sold your field, but why did you keep part of the money for yourself?

Romans 12:2

Don’t change yourselves to be like the people of this world. But let God change you inside with a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to decide and accept what God wants for you. You will be able to know what things are good and pleasing to God and what things are perfect.

1 Corinthians 5:10

But I did not mean that you should not associate with the sinful people of this world. Those people of the world sin sexually, or they are greedy and cheat each other, or they worship idols (false gods). To get away from those people you would have to leave this world.

1 Corinthians 6:11

In the past, some of you were like that. But you were washed clean, you were made holy, {\cf2\super [36]} and you were made right with God in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

2 Corinthians 4:4

The ruler {\cf2\super [17]} of this world (the devil) has blinded the minds of people who don’t believe. They cannot see the light (truth) of the Good News—the Good News about the glory of Christ. Christ is the One who is exactly like God.

Galatians 1:4

Jesus gave himself for our sins. Jesus did this to free us from this evil world we live in. This is what God the Father wanted.

Ephesians 1:21

God made Christ more important than all rulers, authorities, powers, and kings. Christ is more important than anything that has power in this world or in the next world.

Ephesians 2:11

You were born non-Jews. You are the people the Jews call “uncircumcised. {\cf2\super [8]} ” Those Jews who call you “uncircumcised” call themselves “circumcised. {\cf2\super [9]} ” (Their circumcision {\cf2\super [10]} is only something they themselves do on their bodies.)

Ephesians 2:13

Yes, at one time you were far away \{from God\}. But now in Christ Jesus you are brought near to him. You are brought near \{to God\} through the blood (death) of Christ.

Ephesians 2:3

In the past, all of us lived like those people. We lived trying to please our sinful selves. We did all the things our bodies and minds wanted. We were \{evil\} people. We should have suffered God’s anger because of the way we were. We were the same as all other people.

Ephesians 4:17

For the Lord I tell you this. I warn you: Don’t continue living like those people who don’t believe. Their thoughts are worth nothing.

Ephesians 4:22

You were taught to leave your old self. This means that you must stop living the evil way you lived before. That old self becomes worse and worse, because people are fooled by the evil things they want to do.

Ephesians 5:6

Don’t let any person fool you by telling you things that are not true. Those evil things make God angry with the people who don’t obey.

Ephesians 5:8

In the past you were \{full of\} darkness (sin), but now you are \{full of\} light (goodness) in the Lord. So live like children who belong to the light.

Ephesians 6:12

Our fight is not against people on earth. We are fighting against the rulers and authorities and the powers of this world’s darkness. We are fighting against the spiritual powers of evil in the heavenly places.

Colossians 1:21

At one time you were separated from God. You were God’s enemies in your minds, because the evil things you did were against God.

2 Timothy 4:10

Demas loved this world too much. That is why he left me. He went to Thessalonica. Crescens went to Galatia. And Titus went to Dalmatia.

James 1:27

The kind of religion (worship) that God accepts is this: caring for orphans {\cf2\super [2]} or widows {\cf2\super [3]} who need help, and keeping yourself free from the world’s \{evil\} influence. This is the kind of religion (worship) that God accepts as pure and good.

James 4:4

So you people are not faithful to God! You should know that loving the world is the same as hating God. So if a person wants to be a part {\cf2\super [18]} of the world, then he makes himself God’s enemy.

1 Peter 1:14

In the past you did not understand about these things, so you did the evil things you wanted. But now you are children \{of God\} who obey. So don’t live like you lived in the past.

1 Peter 4:3

In the past you wasted too much time doing the things that the non-believers like to do. You were doing sexual sins. You were doing the evil things you wanted. You were becoming drunk, having wild and wasteful parties, having drunken parties, and doing wrong by worshiping idols (false gods).

2 Peter 2:14

Every time they look at a woman they want her. These false teachers are always sinning this way. They lead weaker people into the trap \{of sin\}. They have taught themselves well to be greedy. They are under a curse. {\cf2\super [9]}

1 John 3:10

So we can see who God’s children are. Also, we can know who the children of the devil are. The people who don’t do what is right are not children of God. And the person who does not love his brothers and sisters \{in Christ\} is not a child of God.

1 John 3:8

The devil has been sinning since the beginning. The person who continues to sin belongs to the devil. The Son of God (Christ) came for this: to destroy the devil’s work.

1 John 4:4

My dear children, you belong to God. So you have defeated them (the false teachers). Why? Because the One (God) who is in you is greater than the one (the devil) who is in \{the people of\} the world.

1 John 5:19

These are the people who divide you. These people do only what their sinful selves want. They don’t have the Spirit. {\cf2\super [9]}

1 John 5:4

I was very happy to learn about some of your children. I am happy that they are following the way of truth, like the Father (God) commanded us.

Revelation 12:9

The snake was thrown down out of heaven. (The giant snake is that old snake called the devil or Satan. He leads the whole world into the wrong way.) The snake with his angels were thrown to the earth.

Revelation 13:14

This second animal fools the people that live on the earth. He fools them by using the miracles that he has been given the power to do. He does these miracles to serve the first animal. The second animal ordered people to make an idol {\cf2\super [96]} to honor the first animal. This was the animal that was wounded by the sword but did not die.

Revelation 13:8

All the people who live on earth will worship the animal. These are all the people since the beginning of the world whose names are not written in the Lamb’s book of life. The Lamb is the One who was killed.

Revelation 16:17

The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air. Then a loud voice came out of the temple {\cf2\super [124]} from the throne. The voice said, “It is finished!”

Revelation 20:2

The angel grabbed the giant snake (that old serpent). The giant snake is the devil (or Satan). The angel tied him \{with the chain\} for 1,000 years.