Ephesians 2 good news bible

Here is Ephesians 2 in the Good News Bible (GNB):

Ephesians 2

1 You were dead because of your sins and because you disobeyed God. He brought you to life with Christ, and now you are part of God's family.

2 You were saved when you believed. And even though you were once far away from God, now he has brought you close to himself because of what Christ has done for you.

3 For he is our peace. He made both groups of people one and has destroyed the barrier, the wall of partition, by abolishing the law of commandments and ordinances, so that the two might become one new person in himself.

4 In this way, there is one new person in Christ Jesus, created to live for God: this new creation, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

5 For we were all adopted, and it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as the offspring of Abraham.

6 God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, made us alive with Christ, even when we were dead in our sins. He did this because of what Christ has done for us.

7 You were saved by faith when you believed. This is not because of anything you have done, so that no one can boast.

8 For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

9 Not because of what we have done, but because of what he has done for us, God is rich in mercy. You were saved when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God.

10 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

11 For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

12 And now the God who made this wonderful thing in Christ will make it all work together for good, because he loves you and wants you to have all the blessings he has in store for his children.

13 God chose us to be the holy people he loves. He was pleased to have all of his glory displayed in us.

14 Because of Christ and what he has done for us, we have boldness and confidence in coming to God.

15 And now, because of our Lord Jesus Christ and through the Spirit, we boldly say that we are coheirs with Christ, if indeed we share his suffering in order also to share his glory.

16 I mean that the creation itself will be set free from its slavery to decay and will be set free and become the glorious children of God.

17 Not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, also groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons and daughters, the redemption of our bodies.

18 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

19 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God.

20 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

21 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

22 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

23 What shall we say, then? "Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?" By no means!

24 For we died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?

25 Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?

26 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

27 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his.

28 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—

29 because anyone who has died has been set free from sin.

30 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.

31 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him.

32 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

33 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

34 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal bodies so that you obey its evil desires.

35 Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.

36 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.