The Path to Holiness

1 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Say to the people of Israel, Any one of the people of Israel or of the strangers who sojourn in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him with stones. 3 I myself will set my face against that man and will cut him off from among his people, because he has given one of his children to Molech, to make my sanctuary unclean and to profane my holy name. 4 And if the people of the land do at all close their eyes to that man when he gives one of his children to Molech, and do not put him to death, 5 then I will set my face against that man and against his clan and will cut them off from among their people, him and all who follow him in whoring after Molech.

6 “If a person turns to mediums and necromancers, whoring after them, I will set my face against that person and will cut him off from among his people. 7 Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God. 8 Keep my statutes and do them; I am the Lord who sanctifies you. 9 For anyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death; he has cursed his father or his mother; his blood is upon him.” – Leviticus 20:1-9 ESV

The laws outlined in chapters 18 and 19 declare all those things that the Israelites were forbidden to do. But in chapter 19, God provides the consequences that were to accompany the violation of some of those very laws. Back in Leviticus 18, Moses recorded God’s ban on the practice of child sacrifice.

“You shall not give any of your children to offer them to Molech, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.” – Leviticus 18:21 ESV

Now, in chapter 20, God provides the penalty for violating this command: Death.

“Say to the people of Israel, Any one of the people of Israel or of the strangers who sojourn in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him with stones.” – Leviticus 20:2 ESV

The law prescribed in chapter 18 clearly prohibited the Israelites from offering their children as human sacrifices to the Canaanite god, Molech. This law was incontestable and binding. But the only outcome for violating this law was the profaning of God’s name. Yet chapter 20 adds the deadly consequences for daring to break this particular command.

God was making it painfully clear to the Israelites that He was serious about their obedience and holiness. He expected His people to distinguish themselves from the nations of Canaan by adhering to His laws and avoiding any temptation to assimilate their pagan practices and customs.

It seems strange that God would place so much emphasis on forbidding child sacrifice. After all, the very thought of willingly putting your child to death to appease a god is repugnant to our modern sensibilities. It seems barbaric and inhumane. How could any loving Israelite parent ever consider the thought of sacrificing their child to a foreign god? Yet, God knew that His chosen people would eventually find even this repulsive act to be acceptable and even preferable. The Scriptures reveal that the day came when infant sacrifice became common practice among the Israelites, with the king himself setting the standard for this egregious behavior.

Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord his God, as his father David had done, but he walked in the way of the kings of Israel. He even burned his son as an offering, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.  – 2 Kings 16:2-3 ESV

Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Hephzibah. And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.…And he burned his son as an offering and used fortune-telling and omens and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. – 2 Kings 21:1-2, 6 ESV

Even the great king, Solomon, the son of David, promoted the worship of Molech along with a host of other false gods introduced to him by his many foreign wives.

So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and did not wholly follow the Lord, as David his father had done. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites, on the mountain east of Jerusalem. And so he did for all his foreign wives, who made offerings and sacrificed to their gods. – 1 Kings 11:6-8 ESV

These injunctions by God were absolutely necessary because the people of Israel were predisposed to disobedience and fully capable of committing sins of the worst kind. Upon hearing God’s ban on child sacrifice, it’s likely that the Israelites were appalled that God would consider them capable of such a heinous sin. But God knew His people well and He understood the depravity of the human heart.

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?” – Jeremiahs 17:9 NLT

The path to apostasy begins with a single step, a minor concession that, at first glance, appears innocent enough but that eventually leads ends in death. No self-respecting Israelite would have ever considered himself capable of committing such a despicable sin, yet God knew it was not only possible but inevitable. Even with His commands carefully articulated and the consequences for disobedience clearly communicated, the people of Israel would still choose to disobey and suffer the penalty for doing so, and that penalty was severe. The guilty individual was to be stoned to death. No questions asked, no excuses accepted, and no exceptions made. And God gives the reason this sin was unforgivable and demanded death.

“…because they have defiled my sanctuary and brought shame on my holy name by offering their children to Molech.” – Leviticus 20:3 NLT

Any pagan religious practice the Israelites incorporated was an affront to God because it diminished the sanctity of the Tabernacle and cast doubt on the all-sufficient nature of God Himself. By offering sacrifices to false gods, the Israelites were demonstrating their lack of faith in Yahweh. He was not enough. By sacrificing their children to Molech, they would be denigrating God’s gift of the fruit of the womb, one of the many blessings the Israelites could expect to receive from Him in the land of Canaan.

“And if you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God. Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.” – Deuteronomy 28:1-6 NLT

To take a gift given by God and to sacrifice it to a false god was the ultimate slap in Yahweh’s face. These kinds of actions revealed a lack of belief in God’s goodness and demonstrated an underlying doubt in the efficacy of the Tabernacle and the sacrificial system He had provided.

The primary issue, as always, was holiness. God’s people were to live set-apart lives, determined by God’s laws and regulated by His sacrificial system. God knew His people would fail to keep all His laws. That’s why He provided the sacrificial system as a means of receiving atonement and forgiveness for sins. But there were certain sins that, when committed, were unforgivable and for which atonement was unavailable. These included child sacrifice as well as any involvement with mediums and necromancers. 

“I will also turn against those who commit spiritual prostitution by putting their trust in mediums or in those who consult the spirits of the dead. I will cut them off from the community.” – Leviticus 20:6 NLT

“The prohibition here concerns those who would seek special knowledge through the spirits of the dead, whether the dead in general or dead relatives in particular.” – NET Bible Study Notes

God was placing off-limits any of the cultic practices of the Canaanites. This included the worship or veneration of the dead. Canaanites believed that following physical death, the soul departed from the body to the land of Mot (Death). Through the use of mediums and necromancers, they believed they could communicate with deceased relatives, offering them food and drink in return for help. God forbade these kinds of superstitious practices among His people because they displayed a blatant disregard for His sovereignty.

How ludicrous it sounds to seek help from the dead when you have the power of the living God at your disposal. But the author of Hebrews reminds us just how easy it is to turn your back on God and seek assistance from the dead and powerless things of this world.

Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. – Hebrews 3:12-13 NLT

God alone brings life. He is the only reliable source of hope and help. And He calls His people to keep His commands so that they might enjoy the ongoing blessing of His presence and the benefit of His incomparable power.

“So set yourselves apart to be holy, for I am the Lord your God. Keep all my decrees by putting them into practice, for I am the Lord who makes you holy.” – Leviticus 20:7-8 NLT

The worship of Molech would not make them holy, but it would cut them off from the community of faith and place them under the judgment of a holy and righteous God. Rather than enjoying life, they would experience death. The ways of the Canaanites might appear attractive and potentially beneficial, but they would prove to be dangerous and deadly. The path to holiness was paved with the commandments of God and led to a life of blessing and joy. But the world always offers alternative routes that promise a shortcut to the desired end. But as Jesus articulated in His sermon on the mount, the ways of the world may seem tempting and tantalizingly easy, but they all lead to the wrong destination.

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” – Matthew 7:13-14 ESV

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Cut It Out or Be Cut Off

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to Aaron and his sons and to all the people of Israel and say to them, This is the thing that the Lord has commanded. 3 If any one of the house of Israel kills an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or kills it outside the camp, 4 and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it as a gift to the Lord in front of the tabernacle of the Lord, bloodguilt shall be imputed to that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people. 5 This is to the end that the people of Israel may bring their sacrifices that they sacrifice in the open field, that they may bring them to the Lord, to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and sacrifice them as sacrifices of peace offerings to the Lord. 6 And the priest shall throw the blood on the altar of the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting and burn the fat for a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 7 So they shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices to goat demons, after whom they whore. This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations.

8 “And you shall say to them, Any one of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who sojourn among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice 9 and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it to the Lord, that man shall be cut off from his people.” – Leviticus 17:1-9 ESV

Leviticus 17-26 contains what has come to be known as The Holiness Code. Many scholars believe it was added to the Leviticus corpus much later, perhaps during Judah’s exile in Babylon. It appears to be a summary section that seems somewhat of place, containing language and style inconsistent with the rest of the book. Some believe these chapters include portions written by other authors that were later compiled, edited, and then placed within the book of Leviticus. But the evidence for these conclusions, while compelling, is far from convincing. There is no ironclad proof that these chapters were not penned by Moses. While they differ in style, they carry the same theme that has permeated the rest of the book, the theme of holiness.

These chapters stand out, not only because of their stylistic differences but also because their emphasis shifts from the priestly class to the average Israelite. God was calling all His people to a life of holiness – in every area of their lives. For the last few chapters, the focus has been on the Tabernacle and the sacrificial system associated with it. Chapter 16 dealt with the singular Day of Atonement, a once-a-year sacred event that took place within the context of the Tabernacle and was presided over by Aaron and his sons.

But in chapter 17, God turns his attention to a potential problem among His people. While He had provided them with a comprehensive sacrificial system and a sanctuary in which to perform all the prescribed rites and rituals, He knew that they would be tempted to seek alternative options that would be unacceptable and unholy. Their long tenure in Egypt had left them more than amenable to the worship of false gods, as the golden calf episode so clearly demonstrated (Exodus 32).

Verses 1-9 are not presenting a hypothetical scenario that might take place, but they deal with a pre-existing problem among God’s chosen people. Take a close look at verse 9.

“…the people must no longer offer their sacrifices to the goat demons, acting like prostitutes by going after them.” – Leviticus 17:9 NLT

Evidently, the people of Israel had adopted the pagan practices of their former captors, worshiping the false gods of Egypt, including “goat demons.” These were divine beings that were commonly portrayed with both human and animal characteristics. Separate from both gods and humans, these supernatural creatures were able to move between the divine and real worlds, causing great harm but also coming to the aid of all those who called upon them.

“‘They could be something like genies,’ says Egyptologist Kasia Szpakowska. ‘They would come to one’s aid as often as they acted as fearsome, dangerous creatures.’ Images of demons first began to appear in the Middle Kingdom (ca. 2030–1640 B.C.). Before this time, worship of the gods was highly centralized and mediated by the pharaoh, but during the second millennium B.C., all Egyptians were able to directly participate in religious life…It’s possible these demons—who likely numbered far more than 4,000—were more important to Egyptians’ everyday experience than were the remote gods venerated in the land’s great monuments. ‘An Egyptian demon is really any divine being not worshipped in a temple,’ says Szpakowska. ‘And they were everywhere.’” – Eric A. Powell, “The World of Egyptian Demons,” www.archeology.org

One such “demon” was believed to have the form of a goat and inhabited the wilderness places. It is estimated that the ancient Egyptians had as many as 4,000 different demons they worshiped and feared. So, it seems that the Israelites had picked up on this propensity for worshiping and sacrificing to a variety of divine beings, including gods and demons. In fact, the book of Chronicles records the actions of Jeroboam, when he established the northern kingdom of Israel (1 Kings 12).

Jeroboam appointed his own priests to serve at the pagan shrines, where they worshiped the goat and calf idols he had made. – 2 Chronicles 11:15 NLT

God knew that His people had a built-in predilection for idolatry and unfaithfulness. So much so, that they would continue to struggle with remaining true to Yahweh, despite all He had done for them. He had provided the Tabernacle to serve as His dwelling place among them and He had given them the sacrificial system so they could remain holy and worthy of His divine presence. But it seems that they were still practicing the habits they had picked up in Egypt.

Between the time they had left Egypt and arrived at Mount Sinai, where God gave them His law, the people of Israel had been offering sacrifices to false gods. But now that the Tabernacle was complete and the sacrificial system was in place, those days were officially over. God would no longer tolerate their unfaithfulness. So, he laid down “the law.”

“Blood guilt will be accounted to any man from the house of Israel who slaughters an ox or a lamb or a goat inside the camp or outside the camp, but has not brought it to the entrance of the Meeting Tent to present it as an offering to the Lord before the tabernacle of the Lord.” – Leviticus 17:3-4 NLT

Anyone who sacrificed an animal for the purpose of worshiping a demon or false god was in serious trouble. Their actions were to be deemed a capital offense punishable by death. These verses are not dealing with the slaughter of an animal for food. This is a prohibition against offering sacrifices outside the context of the Tabernacle and for any other reason than worshiping Yahweh. God would not tolerate blood sacrifices of any kind that were not dedicated to Him. He alone could provide forgiveness and atonement and, for that reason, He alone was worthy of Israel’s undivided attention and undistracted devotion.

If someone slaughtered an animal “in the open field” (Leviticus 17:5), with the intent of offering its blood to a goat demon, they were advised to alter course and bring that animal to the Tabernacle as a sacrifice to God.

“And the priest shall throw the blood on the altar of the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting and burn the fat for a pleasing aroma to the Lord.” – Leviticus 17:6 ESV

The guilty party could escape the death penalty and enjoy life, by a simple act of course correction that demonstrated his commitment to Yahweh’s holiness and His status as the one true God. Even though his original intent had been evil and an offense to a holy God, it was never too late to do the right thing and demonstrate a change of heart. But for all those who dared to disobey God’s law and continue their obstinate pursuit of the gods, demons, and spirits of the Egyptians and other pagan nations, the penalty would be both harsh and fatal.

“Any man from the house of Israel or from the resident foreigners who live in their midst, who offers a burnt offering or a sacrifice but does not bring it to the entrance of the Meeting Tent to offer it to the Lord—that person will be cut off from his people.” – Leviticus 17:8-9 NLT

“The penalty for such idolatry and disregard for the one true God was to ‘cut [the guilty person] off from his people’ (Leviticus 17:4). The implication is that the crime is serious, as serious as murder, in fact, for the guilty person faced death. The use of this expression probably meant that God brought about the judgment.” – Allen P. Ross, Holiness to the Lord: A Guide to the Exposition of the Book of Leviticus

God takes holiness seriously. There could be no syncretism on the part of His people. He would not tolerate their worship of any gods other than Himself. While they might consider their habit of being equal-opportunity idolaters fully compatible with their status as God’s chosen people, God was not amused or willing to give an inch. He had made His position on the matter quite clear.

“You must not have any other god but me. You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods.” – Exodus 20:3-5 NLT

When it came to idolatry, God was quite adamant. Cut it out or be cut off.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Cost of Commitment

9 And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. 10 This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, 13 both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. 14 Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.” – Genesis 17:9-14 ESV

Up to this point in the story, the covenant between God and Abram had been non-binding. The agreement had been unilateral in nature, obligating God to keep all that He had promised to Abram. Even when God had ordered Abram to sacrifice and divide the animals, God had walked through the midst of them alone (Genesis 16:1-21). He had not required Abram to join him in this covenant ratification ceremony. God, in the form of a smoking pot and a flaming torch, passed through the midst of the dismembered animals, signifying His commitment to keep all the promises He had made to Abram. In a sense, God was saying, “May what happened to these animals be my own fate should I fail to honor my word.” This action by God ratified or sealed the agreement, but nothing was required of Abram. Until now.

Thirteen years after Ishmael’s birth, God visited Abram again and revisited the covenant agreement between them. But this time, God revealed to Abram that he could no longer be a non-participant in the covenant. He too would have a binding and costly obligation to uphold. Gone were the days of simply waiting on God to fulfill His commitment. Other than delay and possible disappointment, Abram had no skin in the game (excuse the pun). So, God upped the ante and placed upon Abram a sobering obligation.

“…walk before me, and be blameless, that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” – Genesis 17:1-2 ESV

God had already committed Himself to shower this obscure individual from Ur of the Chaldees with blessings beyond his wildest imaginations.

“I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” – Genesis 12:2-3 ESV

But now, decades later, Abram was still waiting for a son so that this amazing future might come to fruition. And as Abram waited and wondered about the future, God called him to live his life in the present with a soldout commitment to and trust in the trustworthiness of El Shaddai, God Almighty. Abram had been set apart by God for a divine purpose and God wanted Abram to conduct his life in keeping with His calling.

But this call to a committed life was going to be far more costly than Abram could have imagined, and it would be perpetual in nature, being passed down to Abram’s descendants. While Abram was still waiting for an heir, God had already confirmed His covenant commitment to Abram’s progeny.

“I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you.” – Genesis 17:7 ESV

God’s promise was unconditional. He would do what He said He would do. But, as His chosen people, the descendants of Abram were to walk before Him and be blameless. They were to conduct their lives in keeping with their calling and set-apart status – just like Abram. They would belong to God. And as a reminder of their status as His prized possession, God provided them with a sign, a very intimate and extremely painful sign: The rite of circumcision.

This latest directive from God must have left Abram slack-jawed and a bit confused. It had to have sounded strange and unnecessary. As far as can be discerned from the text, this was an unprecedented command from God. There is no indication that this rite was practiced by any other people group at the time. But God had made it a non-negotiable requirement for Abram and all his male descendants.

“As for you, you must keep the covenantal requirement I am imposing on you and your descendants after you throughout their generations.” – Genesis 17:9 NET

This was an addendum to the original covenant agreement. But it did nothing to alter God’s previous commitment to fulfill His covenantal obligations. In other words, God was not attempting to move the goal post or change the rules in the middle of the game. He would still do what He had promised to do. But He was placing a binding requirement on Abram and his descendants.

“This is my requirement that you and your descendants after you must keep: Every male among you must be circumcised.  You must circumcise the flesh of your foreskins. This will be a reminder of the covenant between me and you.” – Genesis 17:10-11 NET

Even to the modern mind, this rite or ritual sounds strange and difficult to rationalize. Why was God demanding such a painful and personal “sacrifice” on the part of Abram’s male descendants? What possible reason could God have for commanding the removal of the foreskin of every male’s sexual organ? How would that be a “sign,” when no one would ever see it?

The key to understanding this rite is found within the nature of God’s promise to Abram. God had told Abram that he would be a father and that he would fruitful. He would produce seed or offspring. Just as God had commanded Adam to be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth, so too, He was expecting Abram to obey the divine mandate to procreate and populate the earth with more of his kind. And the male genitalia would play a vital role in the fulfillment of that command to be fruitful.

In commanding the circumcision of the flesh of their foreskin, God was providing a very personal and intimate sign to each and every male descendant of Abram and Adam. This sign would be invisible to the rest of the world. But those who bore it would have an unavoidable and daily reminder of its meaning. Even when fulfilling their divine mandate to “be fruitful,” they would be forced to recognize the set-apart nature of their relationship with God.

And it’s important to recognize that this ritual was not reserved for Abram’s blood descendants alone. He was told to circumcise every male in his household.

“This applies not only to members of your family but also to the servants born in your household and the foreign-born servants whom you have purchased.” – Genesis 17:12 NLT

This would have included Abram’s man-servant, Eliezer of Damascus, as well as Ishmael, the son of Hagar, the Egyptian handmade to Sarai. Every male associated with Abram was to undergo this “surgical” procedure. No one was exempt. Their bodies were to bear the mark of God’s everlasting covenant.

And God makes it clear that anyone who fails to be “cut” will be “cut off” from His people.

“Any male who fails to be circumcised will be cut off from the covenant family for breaking the covenant.” – Genesis 17:14 NLT

There is a rather subtle but obvious wordplay going on here. In Hebrew, the word for “circumcised” is מוּל (mûl) and it literally means “to cut” or “to cut off.” God is declaring that those who refuse to cut off their foreskins will face equally painful consequences. They will be “cut off” (כָּרַת – kāraṯ) from the household of Abram. In other words, failure to be circumcised will result in their physical expulsion from the covenant community. They were to be excommunicated. Some Old Testament scholars speculate that this punishment may have included execution, not just expulsion. Whatever the case, it was intended as a strong incentive to obey God’s command and submit to the sign of the covenant. The fact that God decreed that this rite take place on the eighth day of an infant’s life, ensures that it was adhered to without the risk of refusal. It was mandatory and not optional. One can only imagine what went through the mind of a grown man like Eliezer when Abram informed him of this new requirement. It would be easy to see how someone might want to avoid this painful and humiliating ritual. But, as the text will reveal, Abram obeyed and command of God and the men of his household complied.

It is essential to understand that this caveat or condition to the covenant in no way altered God’s commitment. If a man refused to undergo circumcision, he would be forfeit his right to the blessings of the covenant. But God would remain fully committed to keeping the promises He had made to Abram. He would make of Abram a great nation, and that nation would enjoy the blessings of God. And through that nation, God would raise up an offspring of Abram who would one day bestow divine blessings on all the nations of the earth – even upon the uncircumcised. And the apostle Paul points out the staggering implications of God’s commitment to His covenant promises.

Don’t forget that you Gentiles used to be outsiders. You were called “uncircumcised heathens” by the Jews, who were proud of their circumcision, even though it affected only their bodies and not their hearts. In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope. But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ. – Ephesians 2:11-13 NLT

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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