who are Israelites. To them belong the adoption as sons, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the temple worship, and the promises.

Just as Isaiah predicted, “If the Lord of armies had not left us descendants, we would have become like Sodom, and we would have resembled Gomorrah.”

so they too have now been disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy.

Pay everyone what is owed: taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due.

but as it is written: “Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.”

Therefore after I have completed this and have safely delivered this bounty to them, I will set out for Spain by way of you,

Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who create dissensions and obstacles contrary to the teaching that you learned. Avoid them!

God has revealed these to us by the Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.

For though you may have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, because I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

I wish that everyone was as I am. But each has his own gift from God, one this way, another that.

Nevertheless, as the Lord has assigned to each one, as God has called each person, so must he live. I give this sort of direction in all the churches.

For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward. But if I do it unwillingly, I am entrusted with a responsibility.

Instead I subdue my body and make it my slave, so that after preaching to others I myself will not be disqualified.

and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they were all drinking from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ.

For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night in which he was betrayed took bread,

and by which you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message I preached to you – unless you believed in vain.

For all these things are for your sake, so that the grace that is including more and more people may cause thanksgiving to increase to the glory of God.

But even if we (or an angel from heaven) should preach a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be condemned to hell!

As we have said before, and now I say again, if any one is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, let him be condemned to hell!

in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles, so that we could receive the promise of the Spirit by faith.