Προς Εφεσιους 4
1 Παρακαλῶ οὖν ὑμᾶς, ἐγὼ ὁ δέσμιος ἐν ˚Κυρίῳ, ἀξίως περιπατῆσαι τῆς κλήσεως ἧς ἐκλήθητε,
I, then, the prisoner for the Master's sake, entreat you to live and act as becomes those who have received the call that you have received--
2 μετὰ πάσης ταπεινοφροσύνης καὶ πραΰτητος, μετὰ μακροθυμίας, ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων ἐν ἀγάπῃ,
with all lowliness of mind and unselfishness, and with patience, bearing with one another lovingly, and earnestly striving to maintain,
3 σπουδάζοντες τηρεῖν τὴν ἑνότητα τοῦ ˚Πνεύματος ἐν τῷ συνδέσμῳ τῆς εἰρήνης.
in the uniting bond of peace, the unity given by the Spirit.
4 Ἓν σῶμα καὶ ἓν ˚Πνεῦμα, καθὼς καὶ ἐκλήθητε ἐν μιᾷ ἐλπίδι τῆς κλήσεως ὑμῶν,
There is but one body and but one Spirit, as also when you were called you had one and the same hope held out to you.
5 εἷς ˚Κύριος, μία πίστις, ἓν βάπτισμα,
There is but one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
6 εἷς ˚Θεὸς καὶ Πατὴρ πάντων, ὁ ἐπὶ πάντων, καὶ διὰ πάντων, καὶ ἐν πᾶσιν.
and one God and Father of all, who rules over all, acts through all, and dwells in all.
7 Ἑνὶ δὲ ἑκάστῳ ἡμῶν ἐδόθη ἡ χάρις, κατὰ τὸ μέτρον τῆς δωρεᾶς τοῦ ˚Χριστοῦ.
Yet to each of us individually grace was given, measured out with the munificence of Christ.
8 Διὸ λέγει, “Ἀναβὰς εἰς ὕψος, ᾐχμαλώτευσεν αἰχμαλωσίαν, ἔδωκεν δόματα τοῖς ἀνθρώποις.”
For this reason Scripture says: "He re-ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, and gave gifts to men."
9 Τὸ δὲ, “ἀνέβη”, τί ἐστιν, εἰ μὴ ὅτι καὶ κατέβη εἰς τὰ κατώτερα μέρη τῆς γῆς;
(Now this "re-ascended" --what does it mean but that He had first descended into the lower regions of the earth?
10 Ὁ καταβὰς αὐτός ἐστιν καὶ ὁ ἀναβὰς ὑπεράνω πάντων τῶν οὐρανῶν, ἵνα πληρώσῃ τὰ πάντα.
He who descended is the same as He who ascended again far above all the Heavens in order to fill the universe.)
11 Καὶ αὐτὸς ἔδωκεν τοὺς μὲν ἀποστόλους, τοὺς δὲ προφήτας, τοὺς δὲ εὐαγγελιστάς, τοὺς δὲ ποιμένας καὶ διδασκάλους,
And He Himself appointed some to be Apostles, some to be Prophets, some to be evangelists, some to be pastors and teachers,
12 πρὸς τὸν καταρτισμὸν τῶν ἁγίων εἰς ἔργον διακονίας, εἰς οἰκοδομὴν τοῦ σώματος τοῦ ˚Χριστοῦ,
in order fully to equip His people for the work of serving--for the building up of Christ's body--
13 μέχρι καταντήσωμεν οἱ πάντες εἰς τὴν ἑνότητα τῆς πίστεως, καὶ τῆς ἐπιγνώσεως τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ ˚Θεοῦ, εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον, εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας τοῦ πληρώματος τοῦ ˚Χριστοῦ,
till we all of us arrive at oneness in faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, and at mature manhood and the stature of full-grown men in Christ.
14 ἵνα μηκέτι ὦμεν νήπιοι, κλυδωνιζόμενοι καὶ περιφερόμενοι παντὶ ἀνέμῳ τῆς διδασκαλίας ἐν τῇ κυβείᾳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἐν πανουργίᾳ πρὸς τὴν μεθοδείαν τῆς πλάνης,
So we shall no longer be babes nor shall we resemble mariners tossed on the waves and carried about with every changing wind of doctrine according to men's cleverness and unscrupulous cunning, making use of every shifting device to mislead.
15 ἀληθεύοντες δὲ ἐν ἀγάπῃ, αὐξήσωμεν εἰς αὐτὸν τὰ πάντα, ὅς ἐστιν ἡ κεφαλή ˚Χριστός,
But we shall lovingly hold to the truth, and shall in all respects grow up into union with Him who is our Head, even Christ.
16 ἐξ οὗ πᾶν τὸ σῶμα, συναρμολογούμενον καὶ συμβιβαζόμενον διὰ πάσης ἁφῆς τῆς ἐπιχορηγίας κατʼ ἐνέργειαν ἐν μέτρῳ ἑνὸς ἑκάστου μέρους, τὴν αὔξησιν τοῦ σώματος ποιεῖται εἰς οἰκοδομὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἐν ἀγάπῃ.
Dependent on Him, the whole body--its various parts closely fitting and firmly adhering to one another-- grows by the aid of every contributory link, with power proportioned to the need of each individual part, so as to build itself up in a spirit of love.
17 Τοῦτο οὖν λέγω καὶ μαρτύρομαι ἐν ˚Κυρίῳ, μηκέτι ὑμᾶς περιπατεῖν, καθὼς καὶ τὰ ἔθνη περιπατεῖ ἐν ματαιότητι τοῦ νοὸς αὐτῶν.
Therefore I warn you, and I implore you in the name of the Master, no longer to live as the Gentiles in their perverseness live,
18 Ἐσκοτωμένοι τῇ διανοίᾳ ὄντες, ἀπηλλοτριωμένοι τῆς ζωῆς τοῦ ˚Θεοῦ, διὰ τὴν ἄγνοιαν τὴν οὖσαν ἐν αὐτοῖς, διὰ τὴν πώρωσιν τῆς καρδίας αὐτῶν,
with darkened understandings, having by reason of the ignorance which is deep-seated in them and the insensibility of their moral nature, no share in the Life which God gives.
19 οἵτινες ἀπηλγηκότες, ἑαυτοὺς παρέδωκαν τῇ ἀσελγείᾳ εἰς ἐργασίαν ἀκαθαρσίας πάσης ἐν πλεονεξίᾳ.
Such men being past feeling have abandoned themselves to impurity, greedily indulging in every kind of profligacy.
20 Ὑμεῖς δὲ οὐχ οὕτως ἐμάθετε τὸν ˚Χριστόν,
But these are not the lessons which you have learned from Christ;
21 εἴ γε αὐτὸν ἠκούσατε καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ ἐδιδάχθητε, καθώς ἐστιν ἀλήθεια ἐν τῷ ˚Ἰησοῦ,
if at least you have heard His voice and in Him have been taught--and this is true Christian teaching--
22 ἀποθέσθαι ὑμᾶς κατὰ τὴν προτέραν ἀναστροφὴν τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον, τὸν φθειρόμενον κατὰ τὰς ἐπιθυμίας τῆς ἀπάτης,
to put away, in regard to your former mode of life, your original evil nature which is doomed to perish as befits its misleading impulses,
23 ἀνανεοῦσθαι δὲ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ νοὸς ὑμῶν,
and to get yourselves renewed in the temper of your minds and clothe yourselves
24 καὶ ἐνδύσασθαι τὸν καινὸν ἄνθρωπον τὸν κατὰ ˚Θεὸν, κτισθέντα ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ ὁσιότητι τῆς ἀληθείας.
with that new and better self which has been created to resemble God in the righteousness and holiness which come from the truth.
25 Διὸ ἀποθέμενοι τὸ ψεῦδος, “λαλεῖτε ἀλήθειαν ἕκαστος μετὰ τοῦ πλησίον αὐτοῦ”, ὅτι ἐσμὲν ἀλλήλων μέλη.
For this reason, laying aside falsehood, every one of you should speak the truth to his fellow man; for we are, as it were, parts of one another.
26 “Ὀργίζεσθε, καὶ μὴ ἁμαρτάνετε”· ὁ ἥλιος μὴ ἐπιδυέτω ἐπὶ παροργισμῷ ὑμῶν,
If angry, beware of sinning. Let not your irritation last until the sun goes down;
27 μηδὲ δίδοτε τόπον τῷ διαβόλῳ.
and do not leave room for the Devil.
28 Ὁ κλέπτων μηκέτι κλεπτέτω, μᾶλλον δὲ κοπιάτω, ἐργαζόμενος ταῖς χερσὶν τὸ ἀγαθόν, ἵνα ἔχῃ μεταδιδόναι τῷ χρείαν ἔχοντι.
He who has been a thief must steal no more, but, instead of that, should work with his own hands in honest industry, so that he may have something of which he can give the needy a share.
29 Πᾶς λόγος σαπρὸς ἐκ τοῦ στόματος ὑμῶν μὴ ἐκπορευέσθω, ἀλλʼ εἴ τις ἀγαθὸς πρὸς οἰκοδομὴν τῆς χρείας, ἵνα δῷ χάριν τοῖς ἀκούουσιν.
Let no unwholesome words ever pass your lips, but let all your words be good for benefiting others according to the need of the moment, so that they may be a means of blessing to the hearers.
30 Καὶ μὴ λυπεῖτε τὸ ˚Πνεῦμα τὸ Ἅγιον τοῦ ˚Θεοῦ, ἐν ᾧ ἐσφραγίσθητε εἰς ἡμέραν ἀπολυτρώσεως.
And beware of grieving the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you have been sealed in preparation for the day of Redemption.
31 Πᾶσα πικρία, καὶ θυμὸς, καὶ ὀργὴ, καὶ κραυγὴ, καὶ βλασφημία, ἀρθήτω ἀφʼ ὑμῶν σὺν πάσῃ κακίᾳ.
Let all bitterness and all passionate feeling, all anger and loud insulting language, be unknown among you--and also every kind of malice.
32 Γίνεσθε εἰς ἀλλήλους χρηστοί, εὔσπλαγχνοι, χαριζόμενοι ἑαυτοῖς, καθὼς καὶ ὁ ˚Θεὸς ἐν ˚Χριστῷ ἐχαρίσατο ὑμῖν.
On the contrary learn to be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ has also forgiven you.
