Ephesians 4:11

You have ascended on high. You have led away captives. You have received gifts among people, yes, among the rebellious also, that Yah God might dwell there.

“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy, and tell them, even the shepherds, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Shouldn’t the shepherds feed the sheep?

For no one can lay any other foundation than that which has been laid, which is Jesus Christ.

Therefore leaving the teaching of the first principles of Christ, let’s press on to perfection—not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works, of faith toward God,

as newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the Word, that with it you may grow,

This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it; for then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall have good success.

For everyone who lives on milk is not experienced in the word of righteousness, for he is a baby.

You will not need to fight this battle. Set yourselves, stand still, and see the salvation of Yahweh with you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Don’t be afraid, nor be dismayed. Go out against them tomorrow, for Yahweh is with you.’ ”

I will set up shepherds over them, who will feed them. They will no longer be afraid or dismayed, neither will any be lacking,” says Yahweh.

Don’t you be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you. Yes, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.

I will give you shepherds according to my heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Therefore the Lord Yahweh says, “Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone of a sure foundation. He who believes shall not act hastily.

Having stripped the principalities and the powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

Therefore don’t be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner; but endure hardship for the Good News according to the power of God,

But Yahweh says, “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the plunder retrieved from the fierce, for I will contend with him who contends with you and I will save your children.

I will set up one shepherd over them, and he will feed them, even my servant David. He will feed them, and he will be their shepherd.

“Don’t judge, so that you won’t be judged.

I also tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my assembly, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and as a pretense you make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.

but he who didn’t know, and did things worthy of stripes, will be beaten with few stripes. To whomever much is given, of him will much be required; and to whom much was entrusted, of him more will be asked.

These words pleased the whole multitude. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch;

Yet I wish that all men were like me. However each man has his own gift from God, one of this kind, and another of that kind.

Follow after love and earnestly desire spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.

He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Most gladly therefore I will rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest on me.

This is a faithful saying: someone who seeks to be an overseer desires a good work.

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they watch on behalf of your souls, as those who will give account, that they may do this with joy, and not with groaning, for that would be unprofitable for you.

Because it is contained in Scripture, “Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, chosen and precious: He who believes in him will not be disappointed.”

Behold, I am with you, and will keep you, wherever you go, and will bring you again into this land. For I will not leave you, until I have done that which I have spoken of to you.”

No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not fail you nor forsake you.

He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will gather the lambs in his arm, and carry them in his bosom. He will gently lead those who have their young.

Whoever, therefore, shall break one of these least commandments, and teach others to do so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever shall do and teach them shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.

that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophet, saying, “I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world.”

This is he who was in the assembly in the wilderness with the angel that spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, who received living revelations to give to us,

for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many people in this city.”

But to us, God revealed them through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God.

for you were bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Watch! Stand firm in the faith! Be courageous! Be strong!

Then the heavens and the earth, and all that is therein, will sing for joy over Babylon; for the destroyers will come to her from the north,” says Yahweh.

“Hear another parable. There was a man who was a master of a household, who planted a vineyard, set a hedge about it, dug a wine press in it, built a tower, leased it out to farmers, and went into another country.

For I say through the grace that was given me, to every man who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think reasonably, as God has apportioned to each person a measure of faith.

For who makes you different? And what do you have that you didn’t receive? But if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?

If any man thinks himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him recognize the things which I write to you, that they are the commandment of the Lord.

being built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief cornerstone;

For this I was appointed as a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.

You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

But you be sober in all things, suffer hardship, do the work of an evangelist, and fulfill your ministry.

For he looked for the city which has the foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

not as lording it over those entrusted to you, but making yourselves examples to the flock.

that you should remember the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior:

Therefore rejoice, heavens, and you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and to the sea, because the devil has gone down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has but a short time.”

Yahweh of Armies is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge.

Yahweh of Armies is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge.

The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.

Shepherd your people with your staff, the flock of your heritage, who dwell by themselves in a forest, in the middle of fertile pasture land, let them feed; in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old.

“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall give birth to a son. They shall call his name Immanuel;” which is, being interpreted, “God with us.”

For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the middle of them.”

Don’t be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.

Joses, who by the apostles was also called Barnabas (which is, being interpreted, Son of Encouragement), a Levite, a man of Cyprus by race,

He said to them, “You yourselves know how it is an unlawful thing for a man who is a Jew to join himself or come to one of another nation, but God has shown me that I shouldn’t call any man unholy or unclean.

As they served the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, for the work to which I have called them.”

Give no occasion for stumbling, whether to Jews, or to Greeks, or to the assembly of God;

in whom we have our redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,

which in other generations was not made known to the children of men, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit,

Therefore he says, “When he ascended on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts to people.”

Paul and Timothy, servants of Jesus Christ; To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and servants:

The overseer therefore must be without reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible, modest, hospitable, good at teaching;

Let not many of you be teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive heavier judgment.

They sang a new song, saying, “You are worthy to take the book and to open its seals: for you were killed, and bought us for God with your blood out of every tribe, language, people, and nation,

Now for a long time Israel was without the true God, without a teaching priest, and without law.

“For it is like a man, going into another country, who called his own servants, and entrusted his goods to them.

Now in these days, prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.

Now in the assembly that was at Antioch there were some prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen the foster brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.

On the next day, we who were Paul’s companions departed, and came to Caesarea. We entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, and stayed with him.

having gifts differing according to the grace that was given to us: if prophecy, let’s prophesy according to the proportion of our faith;

Now concerning spiritual things, brothers, I don’t want you to be ignorant.

You shall give the Levites to Aaron and to his sons. They are wholly given to him on the behalf of the children of Israel.

He said, “Now hear my words. If there is a prophet among you, I, Yahweh, will make myself known to him in a vision. I will speak with him in a dream.

So I took the heads of your tribes, wise and respected men, and made them heads over you, captains of thousands, captains of hundreds, captains of fifties, captains of tens, and officers, according to your tribes.

The Lord announced the word. The ones who proclaim it are a great company.

Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your teachers won’t be hidden any more, but your eyes will see your teachers;

“So you, son of man: I have set you a watchman to the house of Israel. Therefore hear the word from my mouth, and give them warnings from me.

Those who are wise will shine as the brightness of the expanse. Those who turn many to righteousness will shine as the stars forever and ever.

Now the names of the twelve apostles are these. The first, Simon, who is called Peter; Andrew, his brother; James the son of Zebedee; John, his brother;

teaching them to observe all things that I commanded you. Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

When it was day, he called his disciples, and from them he chose twelve, whom he also named apostles:

Not for these only do I pray, but for those also who will believe in me through their word,

Take heed, therefore, to yourselves, and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the assembly of the Lord and God which he purchased with his own blood.

Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the Good News of God,

or service, let’s give ourselves to service; or he who teaches, to his teaching;

Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes,

Now there are various kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.

Tell Archippus, “Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you fulfill it.”

For although by this time you should be teachers, you again need to have someone teach you the rudiments of the first principles of the revelations of God. You have come to need milk, and not solid food.

As each has received a gift, employ it in serving one another, as good managers of the grace of God in its various forms.

Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained a like precious faith with us in the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:

I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.”

The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them twelve names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb.

But you, beloved, remember the words which have been spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.

“Rejoice over her, O heaven, you saints, apostles, and prophets; for God has judged your judgment on her.”