1 So then, as the prisoner in the Lord I urge you to walk worthily of the calling with which you were called, 2 with all humility and courtesy, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 taking pains to keep the unity of the Spirit* in the bond of the peace.* 4 There is one body and one Spirit (just as you also were called in one hope of your calling), 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all,* who is over all and through all and in us* all.

7 Now to each one of us the grace according to the measure of Christ's gift was given. 8 That is why He says, "When He ascended into the heights He captured the concentration camp, and distributed gifts to men."* gifts from men", just the opposite of "distributed". What to do? The Targum (a Hebrew commentary) interprets as, "You have given gifts to the children of men". Upon reflection this would appear to be obvious. When you put tithes and offerings in the offering plate at church, you are giving to God, but does that money literally go to Heaven? No, it is redistributed down here—some goes to the preacher's salary, some to a missionary, some to pay the light bill, etc. God does indeed receive gifts from men, but He does not stash them in Heaven somewhere; they are redistributed down here. When done properly He gets the credit: "He distributed gifts to men." 9 (What does ‘He ascended’ imply if not that He also first descended into the interior regions of the earth?* 10 He who descended is the very one who also ascended far above all the heavens,* that He might fill all things.) 11 Yes, He Himself gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,* 12 for the equipping of the saints into the work of the ministry, so as to build up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain into the unity of the faith and of the real knowledge of the Son of God, into a complete man, into the resulting full stature of Christ;* believer is supposed to grow into full stature. Just because we do not reach a goal does not invalidate that goal. 14 so that we no longer be ‘infants’, tossed about as by waves and carried off by every doctrinal fad, through the underhanded dealings of the people who collect the fee for the error;*" (ανηρ, not ανθρωπος) is like Jesus—when Satan comes with his shortcuts he is not taken in. Let us try to pull it together. The fad (ανεμος) is an error (πλανη), which carries a fee—the error is not free. The purveyor needs a method for collecting the fee (μεθοδεια) for the error he is selling. But it cannot be obvious, he needs to finesse it (κυβεια εν πανουργια) (he wants happy, unsuspecting sheep). Someone who is mature (verse 13) knows there are no shortcuts, so is not taken in by any cheap promise. Telling the truth in love (verse 15) contrasts with selling an error for gain (verse 14). 15 rather, speaking the truth in love, let us in all things grow up into Him who is the Head, the Christ; 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and knit together by what every joint supplies, as each individual part does its work, promotes its own growth,* its own edification, in love.

17 So then, I affirm and insist on this in the Lord: you must no longer carry on as the rest of the Gentiles do,* in the futility of their mind, 18 having been darkened in their understanding, being alienated [as a continuing condition] from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts,* 19 who, having become dead to hope, have abandoned themselves to depravity, greedily indulging in every kind of vileness.* 20 Now that is not how you ‘learned Christ’— 21 if indeed you have heard Him and been taught by Him (as the truth is in Jesus): 22 that you put away, concerning your former way of life, the old man* (that keeps on being corrupted by the deceitful desires), 23 and that you be renewed* in the spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the new man, created in the likeness of God,* in true righteousness and holiness.

25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, ‘Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,’* for we are members of one another. 26 ‘Be angry but do not sin’;* do not let the sun set on your angry mood, 27 nor give an opportunity to the devil.* 28 The one who steals must steal no longer, but rather let him work, doing something good with his hands, that he may have something to share with someone in need. 29 Let no evil word proceed from your mouth, but only what is good for edification, as needed,* that it may impart grace to those who hear. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God,* with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor and slander be removed from you, with all malice.* 32 Rather, be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another, just as in Christ God forgave you.