Ephesians 4:17-5:25

¹⁷So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.

¹⁸They are darkened in their understanding and alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts.

¹⁹Having lost all sense of shame, they have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity, with a craving for more.

²⁰But this is not the way you came to know Christ.

²¹Surely you heard of Him and were taught in Him — in keeping with the truth that is in Jesus —

²²to put off your former way of life, your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;

²³to be renewed in the spirit of your minds;

²⁴and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

²⁵Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one another.

²⁶“Be angry, yet do not sin.” Do not let the sun set upon your anger,

²⁷and do not give the devil a foothold.

²⁸He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing good with his own hands, that he may have something to share with the one in need.

²⁹Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen.

³⁰And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

³¹Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice.

³²Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.

¹Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children,

²and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.

³But among you, as is proper among the saints, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed.

⁴Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or crude joking, which are out of character, but rather thanksgiving.

⁵For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

⁶Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.

⁷Therefore do not be partakers with them.

⁸For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light,

⁹for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth.

¹⁰Test and prove what pleases the Lord.

¹¹Have no fellowship with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.

¹²For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.

¹³But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that is illuminated becomes a light itself.

¹⁴So it is said:

“Wake up, O sleeper,

rise up from the dead,

and Christ will shine on you.”

¹⁵Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,

¹⁶redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

¹⁷Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.

¹⁸Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.

¹⁹Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your hearts to the Lord,

²⁰always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

²¹Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

²²Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.

²³For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, His body, of which He is the Savior.

²⁴Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

²⁵Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her

Related Resources from Heartlight

Cross References for Ephesians 4:17-5:25

The Berean Standard Bible