Acts 15:29

but that we write to them that they abstain from the pollution of idols, from sexual immorality, from what is strangled, and from blood.

Don’t be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good, well-pleasing, and perfect will of God.

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, for its lusts.

forsaking the right way, they went astray, having followed the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of wrongdoing;

Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against Yahweh in the matter of Peor, and so the plague was among the congregation of Yahweh.

As if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshiped him.

However, that knowledge isn’t in all men. But some, with consciousness of the idol until now, eat as of a thing sacrificed to an idol, and their conscience, being weak, is defiled.

Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts.

You adulterers and adulteresses, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

that you no longer should live the rest of your time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.

Only be sure that you don’t eat the blood; for the blood is the life. You shall not eat the life with the meat.

For if you live after the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,

make my joy full by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind;

But I rejoice in the Lord greatly, that now at length you have revived your thought for me; in which you did indeed take thought, but you lacked opportunity.

But if any widow has children or grandchildren, let them learn first to show piety toward their own family and to repay their parents, for this is acceptable in the sight of God.

Flee from youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them and embraced them from afar, and having confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

Where do wars and fightings among you come from? Don’t they come from your pleasures that war in your members?

You must strike your master Ahab’s house, that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of Yahweh, at the hand of Jezebel.

For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but Yahweh upholds the righteous.

Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to Yahweh’s law.

They were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord.

I coveted no one’s silver, gold, or clothing.

“I will hear you fully when your accusers also arrive.” He commanded that he be kept in Herod’s palace.

Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen.

Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that no idol is anything in the world, and that there is no other God but one.

For I do not wish to see you now in passing, but I hope to stay a while with you, if the Lord permits.

Have no fellowship with the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather even reprove them.

So then, my beloved, even as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

but the goal of this command is love, out of a pure heart and a good conscience and sincere faith,

Let them also first be tested; then let them serve if they are blameless.

But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceful, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.

for he who welcomes him participates in his evil deeds.

Woe to them! For they went in the way of Cain, and ran riotously in the error of Balaam for hire, and perished in Korah’s rebellion.

But flesh with its life, that is, its blood, you shall not eat.

“ ‘Whatever man there is of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who takes in hunting any animal or bird that may be eaten, he shall pour out its blood, and cover it with dust.

“ ‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife. It is your father’s nakedness.

Elisha left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, “Let me please kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.” He said to him, “Go back again; for what have I done to you?”

Depart from evil, and do good. Seek peace, and pursue it.

“Hear my prayer, Yahweh, and give ear to my cry. Don’t be silent at my tears. For I am a stranger with you, a foreigner, as all my fathers were.

When you saw a thief, you consented with him, and have participated with adulterers.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation. Uphold me with a willing spirit.

Your princes are rebellious and companions of thieves. Everyone loves bribes and follows after rewards. They don’t defend the fatherless, neither does the cause of the widow come to them.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came to me.’

Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, with what will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”

The multitude of those who believed were of one heart and soul. Not one of them claimed that anything of the things which he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common.

When it was day, some of the Jews banded together, and bound themselves under a curse, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul.

They ought to have been here before you, and to make accusation, if they had anything against me.

but I see a different law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity under the law of sin which is in my members.

Therefore I urge you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service.

Be of the same mind one toward another. Don’t set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Don’t be wise in your own conceits.

Don’t let him who eats despise him who doesn’t eat. Don’t let him who doesn’t eat judge him who eats, for God has accepted him.

But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord is willing. And I will know, not the word of those who are puffed up, but the power.

Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.

I rejoice at the coming of Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus; for that which was lacking on your part, they supplied.

We are therefore ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating by us: we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

Working together, we entreat also that you do not receive the grace of God in vain,

Having therefore these promises, beloved, let’s cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

For we rejoice when we are weak and you are strong. We also pray for this: your becoming perfect.

that he might present the assembly to himself gloriously, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without defect.

I know how to be humbled, and I also know how to abound. In everything and in all things I have learned the secret both to be filled and to be hungry, both to abound and to be in need.

May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely. May your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, putting away all filthiness and overflowing of wickedness, receive with humility the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

For you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will both live, and do this or that.”

Beloved, I beg you as foreigners and pilgrims, to abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;

But may the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a little while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

But concerning the Gentiles who believe, we have written our decision that they should observe no such thing, except that they should keep themselves from food offered to idols, from blood, from strangled things, and from sexual immorality.”

Now concerning things sacrificed to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.

“ ‘It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your dwellings, that you shall eat neither fat nor blood.’ ”

Only you shall not eat the blood. You shall pour it out on the earth like water.

It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles, that one has his father’s wife.

When I was present with you and was in need, I wasn’t a burden on anyone, for the brothers, when they came from Macedonia, supplied the measure of my need. In everything I kept myself from being burdensome to you, and I will continue to do so.

lest there be any sexually immoral person, or profane person, like Esau, who sold his birthright for one meal.

But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to throw a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality.

But I have this against you, that you tolerate your woman, Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. She teaches and seduces my servants to commit sexual immorality, and to eat things sacrificed to idols.

You shall not eat any blood, whether it is of bird or of animal, in any of your dwellings.

You shall not eat their meat. You shall not touch their carcasses. They are unclean to you.

“ ‘Any man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners among them, who eats any kind of blood, I will set my face against that soul who eats blood, and will cut him off from among his people.

For as to the life of all flesh, its blood is with its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, “You shall not eat the blood of any kind of flesh; for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.”

and the people pounced on the plunder, and took sheep, cattle, and calves, and killed them on the ground; and the people ate them with the blood.

Therefore tell them, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “You eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood. So should you possess the land?

Another also said, “I want to follow you, Lord, but first allow me to say good-bye to those who are at my house.”

A voice came to him again the second time, “What God has cleansed, you must not call unclean.”

but taking his leave of them, he said, “I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem, but I will return again to you if God wills.” Then he set sail from Ephesus.

Finally, brothers, rejoice! Be perfected. Be comforted. Be of the same mind. Live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.

For this is the will of God: your sanctification, that you abstain from sexual immorality,

For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, if it is received with thanksgiving.

Lay hands hastily on no one. Don’t be a participant in other people’s sins. Keep yourself pure.

Pure religion and undefiled before our God and Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

We have the more sure word of prophecy; and you do well that you heed it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns, and the morning star arises in your hearts:

Little children, keep yourselves from idols.

They have testified about your love before the assembly. You will do well to send them forward on their journey in a way worthy of God,

Now to him who is able to keep them from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory in great joy,

When I was told that the Jews lay in wait for the man, I sent him to you immediately, charging his accusers also to bring their accusations against him before you. Farewell.”