how muchmorewill the bloodof Christ,whothroughthe eternalSpiritofferedHimselfwithout blemishto God,cleanseyour consciencefrom deadworksto servethe livingGod?
"Howmuchmore,whenwickedmenhave killeda righteousmanin his own houseon his bed,shall I not nowrequirehis bloodfrom your handand destroyyou from the earth?"
"InclineYour ear,O LORD,and hear;openYour eyes,O LORD,and see;and listento the wordsof Sennacherib,whichhe has sentto reproachthe livingGod.
Howmuchlessone who is detestableand corrupt,Man,who drinksiniquitylike water!
Washme thoroughlyfrom my iniquityAnd cleanseme from my sin.
Your lambshall be an unblemishedmalea yearold;you may takeit from the sheepor from the goats.
"Behold,My Servant,whom I uphold;My chosenone [in whom] My souldelights.I have putMy Spiritupon Him; He will bringforthjusticeto the nations.
His gravewas assignedwith wickedmen,Yet He was with a richmanin His death,BecauseHe had donenoviolence,Norwas there any deceitin His mouth.
For thussaysthe highand exaltedOne Who livesforever,whose nameis Holy,"I dwell[on] a highand holyplace, And [also] with the contriteand lowlyof spiritIn order to revivethe spiritof the lowlyAnd to revivethe heartof the contrite.
The Spiritof the LordGODis upon me, Becausethe LORDhas anointedme To bringgood newsto the afflicted;He has sentme to bindup the brokenhearted,To proclaimlibertyto captivesAnd freedomto prisoners;
But the LORDis the true God;He is the livingGodand the everlastingKing.At His wraththe earthquakes,And the nationscannotendureHis indignation.
Thussaysthe LordGOD,"In the first[month], on the firstof the month,you shall takea youngbullwithoutblemishand cleansethe sanctuary.
"I makea decreethat in allthe dominionof my kingdommen are to fearand tremblebeforethe Godof Daniel;For He is the livingGodand enduringforever,And His kingdomis one whichwill not be destroyed,And His dominion[will be] forever.
Whateverhas a defect,you shall not offer,for it will not be acceptedfor you.
Then at the beginningof each of your monthsyou shall presenta burntofferingto the LORD:twobullsand oneram,sevenmalelambsone yearoldwithoutdefect;
"You shall sayto them, 'Thisis the offeringby firewhichyou shall offerto the LORD:twomalelambsone yearoldwithoutdefect[as] a continualburntofferingevery day.
Then on the sabbathdaytwomalelambsone yearoldwithoutdefect,and two-tenths[of an] [ephah] of fineflourmixedwith oilas a grain offering,and its drinkoffering:
"But ifI castout demonsby the Spiritof God,thenthe kingdomof Godhas comeupon you.
SimonPeteranswered,"You are the Christ,the Sonof the livingGod."
justas the Sonof Mandid not cometo be served,but to serve,and to giveHis lifea ransomfor many."
"Ifyou then,beingevil,know howto givegoodgiftsto your children,how muchmorewill your Fatherwho is in heavengivewhat is goodto thosewho askHim!
To grantus that we, being rescuedfrom the handof our enemies,Might serveHim without fear,
"Considerthe ravens,for they neithersownorreap;they have nostoreroomnorbarn,and [yet] Godfeedsthem; how muchmorevaluableyou are than the birds!
"But ifGodsoclothesthe grassin the field,which is [alive] todayand tomorrowis throwninto the furnace,how muchmore[will He clothe] you? You men of little faith!
"THE SPIRITOF THE LORDIS UPON ME, BECAUSEHE ANOINTEDME TO PREACH THE GOSPELTO THE POOR.HE HAS SENTME TO PROCLAIMRELEASETO THE CAPTIVES,AND RECOVERY OF SIGHTTO THE BLIND,TO SETFREETHOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED,
"For He whomGodhas sentspeaksthe wordsof God;for He givesthe Spiritwithoutmeasure.
untilthe daywhen He was takenup [to heaven], after He had by the HolySpiritgiven ordersto the apostleswhomHe had chosen.
"[You know of] Jesusof Nazareth,howGodanointedHim with the HolySpiritand with power,and [how] He went aboutdoing goodand healingallwho were oppressedby the devil,for Godwas with Him.
and saying,"Men,whyare you doingthese things?We are alsomenof the same natureas you, and preach the gospelto you that you should turnfrom thesevain thingsto a livingGod,WHOMADETHE HEAVENAND THE EARTHAND THE SEAAND ALLTHAT IS IN THEM.
and He madenodistinctionbetweenus and them, cleansingtheir heartsby faith.
For sincethe creationof the worldHis invisibleattributes, His eternalpowerand divine nature,have been clearly seen,being understoodthrough what has been made,sothat they are without excuse.
who was declaredthe Sonof Godwith powerby the resurrectionfrom the dead,accordingto the Spiritof holiness,JesusChristour Lord,
Nowiftheir transgressionis richesfor the worldand their failureis richesfor the Gentiles,how muchmorewill their fulfillmentbe!
For ifyou were cut offfrom whatis by naturea wild olive tree,and were graftedcontraryto natureinto a cultivated olive tree,how muchmorewill thesewhoare the natural[branches] be graftedinto their ownolive tree?
and do not go on presentingthe membersof your body to sin[as] instrumentsof unrighteousness;but presentyourselvesto Godas those alivefrom the dead,and your members[as] instrumentsof righteousnessto God.
But nowhaving been freedfrom sinand enslavedto God,you deriveyour benefit,resultingin sanctification,and the outcome,eternallife.
Soalsoit is written,"The firstMAN,Adam,BECAMEA LIVINGSOUL."The lastAdam[became] a life-givingspirit.
He madeHim who knewnosin[to be] sinon our behalf,sothat we might becomethe righteousnessof Godin Him.
Orwhatagreementhas the templeof Godwith idols?For we are the templeof the livingGod;justas Godsaid,"I WILL DWELLIN THEM AND WALK AMONGTHEM; AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD,AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE.
"For throughthe LawI diedto the Law,sothat I might liveto God.
evenwhen we were deadin our transgressions,made us alive togetherwith Christ(by graceyou have beensaved),
and walkin love,justas Christalsolovedyou and gaveHimselfup for us, an offeringand a sacrificeto Godas a fragrantaroma.
"But ifit hasany defect,[such as] lamenessorblindness,[or] anyseriousdefect,you shall not sacrificeit to the LORDyour God.
"You shall not sacrificeto the LORDyour Godan oxor a sheepwhichhasa blemish[or] anydefect,for that is a detestablethingto the LORDyour God.
"For I knowyour rebellionand your stubbornness;behold,while I am stillalivewith you today,you have beenrebelliousagainstthe LORD;howmuchmore,then, aftermy death?
"The eternalGodis a dwellingplace,And underneathare the everlastingarms;And He droveout the enemyfrom beforeyou, And said,'Destroy!'
For whois there of allfleshwhohas heardthe voiceof the livingGodspeakingfrom the midstof the fire,as we [have], and lived?
For they themselvesreportaboutus what kindof a receptionwe hadwith you, and howyou turnedto Godfrom idolsto servea livingand true God,
Nowto the Kingeternal,immortal,invisible,the onlyGod,[be] honorand gloryforeverand ever.Amen.
but in caseI am delayed,[I write] sothat you will knowhowone oughtto conducthimself in the householdof God,whichis the churchof the livingGod,the pillarand supportof the truth.
whogaveHimselffor us to redeemus from everylawless deed,and to purifyfor Himselfa peoplefor His ownpossession,zealousfor gooddeeds.
And He is the radianceof His gloryand the exact representationof His nature,and upholdsall thingsby the wordof His power.When He had madepurificationof sins,He sat downat the right handof the Majestyon high,
By thiswillwe have beensanctifiedthroughthe offeringof the bodyof JesusChristonce for all.
but He, having offeredonesacrificefor sinsfor all time,SAT DOWNAT THE RIGHT HANDOF GOD,
Otherwise,would they not have ceasedto be offered,becausethe worshipers,having oncebeen cleansed,would nolongerhave hadconsciousnessof sins?
let us draw nearwith a sincereheartin full assuranceof faith,having our heartssprinkled[clean] from an evilconscienceand our bodieswashedwith purewater.
By faithJacob,as he was dying,blessedeachof the sonsof Joseph,and worshiped,[leaning] on the topof his staff.
ThereforeJesusalso,that He might sanctifythe peoplethroughHis ownblood,sufferedoutsidethe gate.
Take care,brethren,that there not be in any oneof you an evil,unbelievingheartthat falls awayfrom the livingGod.
Thereforeleavingthe elementaryteachingabout the Christ,let us presson to maturity,not layingagaina foundationof repentancefrom deadworksand of faithtowardGod,
whohas become[such] not on the basisof a lawof physicalrequirement,but accordingto the powerof an indestructiblelife.
whodoes not needdaily,likethosehigh priests,to offerup sacrifices,firstfor His ownsinsand thenfor the [sins] of the people,becausethisHe didonce for allwhen He offeredup Himself.
and not throughthe bloodof goatsand calves,but throughHis ownblood,He enteredthe holy placeonce for all,having obtainedeternalredemption.
Otherwise,He would have neededto sufferoftensincethe foundationof the world;but nowonceat the consummationof the agesHe has been manifestedto put awaysinby the sacrificeof Himself.
but into the second,onlythe high priest[enters] oncea year,not without[taking] blood,whichhe offersfor himselfand for the sinsof the peoplecommitted in ignorance.
which[is] a symbolfor the presenttime.Accordinglybothgiftsand sacrificesare offeredwhich cannotmakethe worshiperperfectin conscience,
but with preciousblood,as of a lambunblemishedand spotless,[the blood] of Christ.
WHOCOMMITTEDNOSIN,NORWAS ANY DECEITFOUNDIN HIS MOUTH;
and He Himselfboreour sinsin His bodyon the cross,sothat we might dieto sinand liveto righteousness;for by His woundsyou were healed.
For Christalsodiedfor sinsonce for all,[the] justfor [the] unjust,sothat He might bringus to God,having been put to deathin the flesh,but made alivein the spirit;
soas to livethe restof the timein the fleshno longerfor the lustsof men,but for the willof God.
but ifwe walkin the Lightas He Himselfis in the Light,we havefellowshipwith one another,and the bloodof JesusHis Soncleansesus from allsin.
You knowthat He appearedin orderto take awaysins;and in Him there is nosin.
and from JesusChrist,the faithfulwitness,the firstbornof the dead,and the rulerof the kingsof the earth.To Him who lovesus and releasedus from our sinsby His blood--
Then Davidspoketo the menwho were standingby him, saying,"Whatwill be donefor the manwhokillsthisPhilistineand takesawaythe reproachfrom Israel?For whois thisuncircumcisedPhilistine,that he should tauntthe armiesof the livingGod?"
