| New Living Translation | Berean Study Bible |
| 1So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law. | 1It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be encumbered once more by a yoke of slavery. |
| 2Listen! I, Paul, tell you this: If you are counting on circumcision to make you right with God, then Christ will be of no benefit to you. | 2Take notice: I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. |
| 3I’ll say it again. If you are trying to find favor with God by being circumcised, you must obey every regulation in the whole law of Moses. | 3Again I testify to every man who gets himself circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. |
| 4For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace. | 4You who are trying to be justified by the law have been severed from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. |
| 5But we who live by the Spirit eagerly wait to receive by faith the righteousness God has promised to us. | 5But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the hope of righteousness. |
| 6For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love. | 6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. All that matters is faith, expressed through love. |
| 7You were running the race so well. Who has held you back from following the truth? | 7You were running so well. Who has obstructed you from obeying the truth? |
| 8It certainly isn’t God, for he is the one who called you to freedom. | 8Such persuasion does not come from the One who calls you. |
| 9This false teaching is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough! | 9A little leaven works through the whole batch of dough. |
| 10I am trusting the Lord to keep you from believing false teachings. God will judge that person, whoever he is, who has been confusing you. | 10I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is troubling you will bear the judgment, whoever he may be. |
| 11Dear brothers and sisters, if I were still preaching that you must be circumcised—as some say I do—why am I still being persecuted? If I were no longer preaching salvation through the cross of Christ, no one would be offended. | 11Now, brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. |
| 12I just wish that those troublemakers who want to mutilate you by circumcision would mutilate themselves. | 12As for those who are agitating you, I wish they would proceed to emasculate themselves! |
| 13For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. | 13For you, brothers, were called to freedom; but do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Rather, serve one another in love. |
| 14For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” | 14The entire law is fulfilled in a single decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” |
| 15But if you are always biting and devouring one another, watch out! Beware of destroying one another. Living by the Spirit’s Power | 15But if you keep on biting and devouring one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another. |
| 16So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. | 16So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. |
| 17The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. | 17For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to each other, so that you do not do what you want. |
| 18But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses. | 18But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. |
| 19When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, | 19The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; |
| 20idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, | 20idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, |
| 21envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. | 21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. |
| 22But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, | 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, |
| 23gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! | 23gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. |
| 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. | 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. |
| 25Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. | 25Since we live by the Spirit, let us walk in step with the Spirit. |
| 26Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another. | 26Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying one another. |
|
