John the Baptist Prepares the Way

1 ^hIn those days ⁱJohn the Baptist came preaching in ^jthe wilderness of Judea, 2 ^k“Repent, for ^lthe kingdom of heaven is at hand.”¹ 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

4 Now John wore ^oa garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was ^plocusts and ^qwild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, 6 and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, ^rconfessing their sins.

7 But when he saw many of ^sthe Pharisees and ^tSadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, ^u“You brood of ^vvipers! Who warned you to flee from ^wthe wrath to come? 8 Bear fruit ^xin keeping with repentance. 9 And do not presume to say to yourselves, ^y‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from ^zthese stones to raise up children for Abraham. 10 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. ^aEvery tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

11 ^b“I baptize you with water ^cfor repentance, but ^dhe who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you ^ewith the Holy Spirit and ^ffire. 12 His ^gwinnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and ^hgather his wheat into the barn, ⁱbut the chaff he will burn with ^junquenchable fire.”

The Baptism of Jesus

13 ^kThen Jesus came ^lfrom Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 ^mJohn would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. 16 And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, ^othe heavens were opened to him,³ and he ^psaw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; 17 and behold, ^qa voice from heaven said, ^r“This is my beloved Son,⁴ with whom I am well pleased.”

The Resurrection

1 ^mNow after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and ⁿthe other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for ^oan angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 ^pHis appearance was like lightning, and ^qhis clothing white as snow. 4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and ^rbecame like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has risen, ^sas he said. Come, see the place where he¹ lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, ^the is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” 8 So they departed quickly from the tomb ^uwith fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus ^vmet them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and ^wtook hold of his feet and ^xworshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; ^ygo and tell ^zmy brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”

The Report of the Guard

11 While they were going, behold, some of ^athe guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers 13 and said, “Tell people, ^b‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 And if this comes to ^cthe governor’s ears, we will ^dsatisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews ^eto this day.

The Great Commission

16 Now the eleven disciples ^fwent to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they ^gworshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, ^h“All authority ⁱin heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 ^jGo therefore and ^kmake disciples of ^lall nations, ^jbaptizing them ^min^{2 n}the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them ^oto observe all that ^pI have commanded you. And behold, ^qI am with you always, to ^rthe end of the age.”

The Coming of the Holy Spirit

1 When ^fthe day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like ^ga mighty rushing wind, and ^hit filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues ⁱas of fire appeared to them and rested¹ on each one of them. 4 And they were all ^jfilled with the Holy Spirit and began ^kto speak in other tongues ^las the Spirit gave them utterance.

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And ^mat this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And ⁿthey were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking ^oGalileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and ^pMedes and ^qElamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and ^rproselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And ^sall were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others ^tmocking said, “They are filled with new wine.”

Peter’s Sermon at Pentecost

14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, ^usince it is only the third hour of the day.² 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:

22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, ^da man attested to you by God ^ewith ^fmighty works and wonders and signs that ^gGod did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus,^{3 h}delivered up according to ⁱthe definite plan and ^jforeknowledge of God, ^kyou crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 ^lGod raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because ^mit was not possible for him to be held by it. 25 For David says concerning him,

29 “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about ^tthe patriarch David ^uthat he both died and ^vwas buried, and ^whis tomb is with us to this day. 30 ^xBeing therefore a prophet, and knowing that ^yGod had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, 31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that ^zhe was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus ^aGod raised up, ^band of that we all are witnesses. 33 ^cBeing therefore ^dexalted at the right hand of God, and having received from ^ethe Father ^fthe promise of the Holy Spirit, ^ghe has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. 34 For ^hDavid did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says,

36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that ^jGod has made him ^kboth Lord and Christ, this Jesus ^lwhom you crucified.”

37 Now when ^mthey heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, ⁿwhat shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, ^o“Repent and ^pbe baptized every one of you ^qin the name of Jesus Christ ^rfor the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive ^sthe gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For ^tthe promise is for you and ^ufor your children and for all ^vwho are far off, everyone ^wwhom the Lord our God calls to himself.” 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, ^x“Save yourselves from this ^ycrooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and ^zthere were added that day about three thousand souls.

The Fellowship of the Believers

42 And ^athey devoted themselves to the apostles’ ^bteaching and the ^cfellowship, to ^dthe breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe⁴ came upon every soul, and ^emany wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and ^fhad all things in common. 45 And ^fthey were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, ^gattending the temple ^htogether and ⁱbreaking bread in their homes, they received their food ^jwith glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and ^khaving favor with all the people. And the Lord ^ladded to their number ^mday by day those who ⁿwere being saved.

Greeting

1 Paul, ^aan apostle of Christ Jesus ^bby the will of God, and Timothy ^cour brother,

2 To the ^dsaints and faithful brothers¹ in Christ at Colossae:

^eGrace to you and peace from God our Father.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

3 ^fWe always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 since we heard of ^gyour faith in Christ Jesus and of ^gthe love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of ^hthe hope ⁱlaid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in ^jthe word of the truth, the gospel, 6 which has come to you, as indeed ^kin the whole world it is ^lbearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you ^mheard it and understood ⁿthe grace of God in truth, 7 just as you learned it from ^oEpaphras our beloved ^pfellow servant.² He is ^pa faithful minister of Christ on your³ behalf 8 and has made known to us your ^qlove in the Spirit.

9 And so, ^rfrom the day we heard, ^swe have not ceased to pray for you, asking that ^tyou may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all ^uspiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as ^vto walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, ^wfully pleasing to him: ^xbearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 ^ybeing strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for ^zall endurance and patience ^awith joy; 12 ^bgiving thanks⁴ to the Father, who has qualified you⁵ to share in ^cthe inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He ^dhas delivered us from ^ethe domain of darkness and transferred us to ^fthe kingdom of ^ghis beloved Son, 14 ^hin whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

The Preeminence of Christ

15 ⁱHe is the image of ^jthe invisible God, ^kthe firstborn of all creation. 16 For by⁶ him all things were created, ^lin heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether ^mthrones or ⁿdominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created ^othrough him and for him. 17 And ^phe is before all things, and in him all things ^qhold together. 18 And ^rhe is the head of the body, the church. He is ^sthe beginning, ^tthe firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For ^uin him all the ^vfullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and ^wthrough him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, ^xmaking peace ^yby the blood of his cross.

21 ^zAnd you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, ^adoing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled ^bin his body of flesh by his death, ^cin order to present you holy and blameless and ^dabove reproach before him, 23 ^eif indeed you continue in the faith, ^fstable and steadfast, not shifting from ^gthe hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed ^hin all creation⁷ under heaven, ⁱand of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Paul’s Ministry to the Church

24 Now ^jI rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh ^kI am filling up ^lwhat is lacking in Christ’s afflictions ^mfor the sake of his body, that is, the church, 25 ⁿof which I became a minister according to ^othe stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, 26 ^pthe mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. 27 ^qTo them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are ^rthe riches of the glory of ^pthis mystery, which is Christ in you, ^sthe hope of glory. 28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that ^twe may present everyone ^umature in Christ. 29 For this ^vI toil, ^wstruggling ^xwith all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

1 For I want you to know ^yhow great a ^wstruggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, 2 that ^ztheir hearts may be encouraged, being ^aknit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of ^bGod’s mystery, which is Christ, 3 ^cin whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I say this in order ^dthat no one may delude you with plausible arguments. 5 For ^ethough I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your ^fgood order and ^gthe firmness of your faith in Christ.

Alive in Christ

6 ^hTherefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7 ⁱrooted and ^jbuilt up in him and ^kestablished in the faith, just ^las you were taught, abounding ^min thanksgiving.

8 See to it that no one takes you captive by ⁿphilosophy and ^oempty deceit, according to ^phuman tradition, according to the ^qelemental spirits¹ of the world, and not according to Christ. 9 For ^rin him the whole fullness of deity dwells ^sbodily, 10 and ^tyou have been filled in him, who is ^uthe head of all rule and authority. 11 In him also ^vyou were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by ^wputting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 ^xhaving been buried with him in baptism, in which ^yyou were also raised with him through faith in ^zthe powerful working of God, ^zwho raised him from the dead. 13 ^aAnd you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God ^bmade alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by ^ccanceling ^dthe record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 ^wHe disarmed the rulers and authorities² and ^eput them to open shame, by ^ftriumphing over them in him.³

Let No One Disqualify You

16 Therefore let no one ^gpass judgment on you ^hin questions of food and drink, or with regard to ⁱa festival or ^ja new moon or a Sabbath. 17 ^kThese are a shadow of the things to come, but ^lthe substance belongs to Christ. 18 Let no one ^mdisqualify you, ⁿinsisting on asceticism and worship of angels, ^ogoing on in detail about visions,^{4 p}puffed up without reason by ^qhis sensuous mind, 19 and ^rnot ^sholding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.

20 If with Christ ^tyou died to the ^uelemental spirits of the world, ^vwhy, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— 21 ^w“Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” 22 (^xreferring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to ^yhuman precepts and teachings? 23 These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in ^zpromoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are ^aof no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.