becauseof the hopelaidup for you in heaven,of whichyou previously heardin the wordof truth,the gospel
Howgreatis Your goodness,WhichYou have storedup for those who fearYou, Which You have wroughtfor those who takerefugein You, Beforethe sonsof men!
"Sellyour possessionsand giveto charity;makeyourselvesmoney beltswhich do not wearout, an unfailingtreasurein heaven,wherenothiefcomes nearnormothdestroys.
"The wordwhichHe sentto the sonsof Israel,preachingpeacethroughJesusChrist(He is Lordof all)--
"Brethren,sonsof Abraham'sfamily,and thoseamongyou who fearGod,to us the messageof thissalvationhas been sent.
But perceivingthat onegroupwere Sadduceesand the otherPharisees,Paul[began] cryingout in the Council,"Brethren,I ama Pharisee,a sonof Pharisees;I am on trialfor the hopeand resurrectionof the dead!"
havinga hopein God,whichthese mencherishthemselves,that there shall certainlybe a resurrectionof boththe righteousand the wicked.
But whatdoes it say?"THE WORDIS NEARYOU, IN YOUR MOUTHAND IN YOUR HEART"--that is, the wordof faithwhichwe are preaching,
But nowfaith,hope,love,abidethesethree;but the greatestof theseis love.
Ifwe have hopedin Christin thislifeonly,we are of allmenmost to be pitied.
namely,that Godwas in Christreconcilingthe worldto Himself,not countingtheir trespassesagainst them, and He has committedto us the wordof reconciliation.
in the wordof truth,in the powerof God;by the weaponsof righteousnessfor the right handand the left,
But whenI sawthat they were not straightforwardaboutthe truthof the gospel,I saidto Cephasin the presenceof all,"Ifyou, beinga Jew,livelike the Gentilesand not like the Jews,how[is it that] you compelthe Gentilesto live like Jews?
But we did not yieldin subjectionto them for evenan hour,sothat the truthof the gospelwould remainwith you.
For we through the Spirit,by faith,are waitingfor the hopeof righteousness.
In Him, you also,after listeningto the messageof truth,the gospelof your salvation--having alsobelieved,you were sealedin Him with the HolySpiritof promise,
ifindeedyou have heardHim and have been taughtin Him, justas truthis in Jesus,
ifindeedyou continuein the faithfirmly establishedand steadfast,and not moved awayfrom the hopeof the gospelthat you have heard,which was proclaimedin allcreationunderheaven,and of whichI, Paul,was madea minister.
to whomGodwilledto make knownwhatis the richesof the gloryof thismysteryamongthe Gentiles,whichis Christin you, the hopeof glory.
Let the wordof Christrichlydwellwithinyou, with allwisdomteachingand admonishingone anotherwith psalms[and] hymns[and] spiritualsongs,singingwith thankfulnessin your heartsto God.
For thisreasonwe alsoconstantlythankGodthat when you receivedthe wordof Godwhichyou heardfrom us, you accepted[it] not [as] the wordof men,but [for] whatit reallyis, the wordof God,whichalsoperforms its workin you who believe.
Nowmay our LordJesusChristHimselfand Godour Father,who has lovedus and givenus eternalcomfortand goodhopeby grace,
It is a trustworthystatement,deservingfullacceptance,that ChristJesuscameinto the worldto savesinners,among whomI amforemost[of all].
in the futurethere is laidup for me the crownof righteousness,whichthe Lord,the righteousJudge,will awardto me on that day;and not onlyto me, but alsoto allwho have lovedHis appearing.
in the hopeof eternallife,whichGod,who cannot lie,promisedlong agesago,
(for the Lawmadenothingperfect),and on the other handthere is a bringingin of a betterhope,throughwhichwe draw nearto God.
likenewbornbabies,longfor the puremilkof the word,sothat by it you may growin respectto salvation,
but sanctifyChristas Lordin your hearts,always[being] readyto make a defenseto everyonewho asksyou to give an accountfor the hopethat is in you, yetwith gentlenessand reverence;
Therefore,I will alwaysbe readyto remindyou of these things,even thoughyou [already] know[them], and have been establishedin the truthwhich is presentwith [you].
And everyonewho hasthishope[fixed] on Him purifieshimself,justas He is pure.
