Ephesians 6
6 “Children,
obey your parents in THE
LORD, for this is right.
2 ‘Honor your father and mother’—which is the first commandment with
a promise—
3 ‘so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life
on the earth.’
4 Fathers, do not exasperate your
children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of THE LORD.
5 Slaves, obey your earthly masters
with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would
obey CHRIST.
6 Obey them not only to win their
favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of CHRIST, doing the will of GOD from your heart.
7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you
were serving THE LORD
not people,
8 because you know that THE LORD will reward
each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.
9 And masters, treat your slaves in
the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that HE WHO IS BOTH THEIR MASTER AND
YOURS IS IN HEAVEN, and THERE IS NO FAVORITISM WITH HIM.
10 Finally, be strong in THE LORD and in HIS MIGHTY POWER.
11 Put on THE FULL ARMOR OF GOD, so that you
can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
12 For our struggle is not against flesh
and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against
the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in
the heavenly realms.
13 Therefore put on THE FULL ARMOR OF GOD, so
that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and
after you have done everything, to stand.
14 Stand firm then, with THE BELT OF TRUTH
buckled around your waist, with THE BREASTPLACE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS in place,
15 and with your feet fitted with the
readiness that comes from THE
GOSPEL OF PEACE.
16 In
addition to all this, take up THE SHIELD OF FAITH, with which you can extinguish all
the flaming arrows of the evil one.
17 Take THE HELMET OF SALVATION and THE SWORD OF THE SPIRIT, which
is THE WORD OF GOD.
18 And pray in THE SPIRIT on
all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in
mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all THE LORD’s people.
19 Pray also for me, that whenever
I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known THE MYSTERY OF THE GOSPEL,
20 for which I am an
ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I
should.
21 Tychicus, the dear brother
and faithful servant in THE
LORD, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and
what I am doing.
22 I am sending him to you for this
very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage you.
23 PEACE to
the brothers and sisters, and
LOVE WITH FAITH from GOD
THE FATHER and THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.
24 GRACE to
all who love OUR LORD
JESUS CHRIST with an undying love.”
