Jesus replied “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For [this] was not revealed to you {by} flesh and blood, but [by] My Father in heaven.

and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave [his] father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’

So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, [let] man not separate.

“Watch and pray so that you will not enter into temptation. For the spirit [is] willing, but the body [is] weak.

and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh.

Watch and pray so that you will not enter into temptation. For the spirit [is] willing, but the body [is] weak.

And all humanity will see God’s salvation.’”

Look at My hands and My feet. It is I Myself. Touch Me and see — for a spirit {does} not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.

The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, [the] glory of [the] one and only [Son] from [the] Father, full of grace and truth.

Flesh is born of flesh, [but] spirit is born of the Spirit.

I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And [this] bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh.

At this, the Jews began to argue among themselves “How can this [man] give us His flesh to eat?

So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man, you have no life in you.

Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.

For My flesh is real food, and My blood is real drink.

Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood remains in Me, and I in him.

The Spirit gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.

You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.

For You granted Him authority over all people, so that He may give eternal life [to] all those You have given Him.

In the last days God says, I will pour out My Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will dwell in hope,

Foreseeing this, [David] spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that He was not abandoned to Hades, nor {did} His body see decay.

regarding His Son, who was a descendant of David according to [the] flesh,

A [man] is not a Jew [ because he is one ] outwardly, nor [is] circumcision [ only ] outward [and] physical.

What then shall we say [that] Abraham, our forefather according to [the] flesh, has discovered?

I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. Just as you used to offer the parts of your [body] in slavery to impurity and to escalating wickedness, so now offer [them] in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.

For when we [lived] according to the flesh, the sinful passions [aroused] by the law were at work in our bodies, bearing fruit for death.

I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh; for I have the desire to do what is good, but [I] cannot [carry it out].

Thanks [be] to God, through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with [my] mind I serve [the] law of God, but [with my] flesh [I serve the] law of sin.

For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God [did] by sending His [own] Son in [the] likeness of sinful man, [ as an offering ] for sin. He [thus] condemned sin in the flesh,

so that the righteous standard of the law might be fulfilled in us, who {do} not walk according to [the] flesh but according to [the] Spirit.

Those who live according to [the] flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh; but those [who live] according to [the] Spirit [set their minds on] the things of the Spirit.

The mind of the flesh [is] death, but the mind of the Spirit [is] life and peace,

because the mind of the flesh [is] hostile to God: It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it [do so].

Those controlled by [the] flesh cannot please God.

You, however, are controlled not by [the] flesh, but by [the] Spirit, if [the] Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone {does} not have [the] Spirit of Christ, he {does} not belong to [Christ].

Therefore brothers, we have [an] obligation, [but it is] not to the flesh, to live according to [it].

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

[Theirs are] the patriarchs, and from them [ proceeds ] [the] human [descent] of Christ, who is God over all, forever worthy of praise! Amen.

So it is not the children of the flesh [who are] God’s children, but [it is] the children of the promise who are regarded as offspring.

in the hope that I may provoke my [own] people {to jealousy} and save some of them.

Instead, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for [the] desires of the flesh.

so that no [one] may boast in [His] presence

hand this man {over} to Satan for [the] destruction of the flesh, so that [his] spirit may be saved on the Day of the Lord.

Or don’t you know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one [with her] in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.”

But if you do marry, you have not sinned. And if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But [those who marry] will face troubles in [this] life, and I [want to] spare you [this].

Consider the people of Israel: Are not those who eat the sacrifices fellow partakers in the altar?

Not all flesh [is] the same: Men [have] one [kind of] flesh, animals [have] another birds another and fish another.

Now I declare [to you] brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit [the] kingdom of God, nor {does} the perishable inherit the imperishable.

When I planned this, did I do it carelessly? Or do I make my plans by human standards, so as [to say] “Yes, yes and also “No, no

For we who are alive {are} always consigned to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus {may} also be revealed in our mortal body.

So from now on we regard no one according to [the] flesh. Although we once regarded Christ [in this way] [we do so] no longer.

Therefore, beloved, since we have these promises, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that defiles body and spirit, perfecting holiness in [the] fear of God.

For [when] we arrived in Macedonia, our bodies had no rest, but we were pressed from every [direction] — conflicts on the outside, fears within.

I beg [you] that when I come I may not need to be as bold as I expect toward [those] who presume that we live according to [the] flesh.

For though we live in [the] flesh, we do not wage war according to [the] flesh.

Since many are boasting according to the flesh, I too will boast.

or because of these surpassingly great revelations. So to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in [my] flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me

to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not rush to consult with flesh and blood,

I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The [life] I live in [the] body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Are you so foolish? After starting in [the] Spirit, are you now finishing in [the] flesh?

And [although] my [illness] [was a] trial to you, you did not despise [or] reject [me]. Instead, you welcomed me as if [I were] an angel of God, as if [I were] Christ Jesus [Himself].

His [son] by the slave woman was born according to [the] flesh, [but] [his son] by the free [woman] [was born] through the promise.

At that time, however, the [son] born by [the] flesh persecuted the [son born] by [the] Spirit. [It is] the same now.

For you, brothers, were called to freedom; but [do] not [use] [your] freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Rather, serve one another in love.

So I say, walk by [the] Spirit, and you will not gratify [the] desires [of the] flesh.

For 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.

The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, [and] debauchery;

Those who [belong to] Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with [its] passions and desires.

The [one] who sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; but the [one] who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.

Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. [They] only [ do this ] to avoid persecution for the cross of Christ.

For the circumcised {do} not even keep [the] law themselves, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast in your flesh.

All of us also lived among [them] at one time, fulfilling the cravings of our flesh [and] indulging [its] desires and thoughts Like the rest, we were by nature children of wrath.

Therefore remember that formerly you who [are] Gentiles in [the] flesh [and] called uncircumcised by the so-called circumcision ({that done} in [the] body by human hands) —

by abolishing in His flesh the law of commandments [and] decrees. [ He did this ] to create in Himself one new man [out of] the two, [thus] making peace

Indeed, no one ever hated his [own] body, but he nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ [does] the church.

“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this {world’s} darkness, [and] against the spiritual [forces] of evil in the heavenly realms.

But if I go on living in [the] body, this [will mean] fruitful labor for me. So what shall I choose? I do not know.

But [it is] more necessary for you that I remain in the body.

For [it is] we [who] are the circumcision, we who worship by [the] Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and [who] put no confidence in [the] flesh —

though I myself could have such confidence If anyone else thinks he has grounds for confidence in [the] flesh, I [have] more:

But now He has reconciled [you] by [Christ’s] physical body through death to present you holy, unblemished, and blameless in His presence

Now I rejoice in [my] sufferings for you and I fill up in my flesh what is lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions for the sake of His body, which is the church.

For although I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, [and] I delight to see your orderly condition and firm faith in Christ.

In Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of [your] sinful nature with the circumcision [performed] by Christ [and] not by human hands.

[When] you were dead in [your] trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with [Christ]. He forgave us all [our] trespasses,

[Do not let anyone] who delights in [false] humility and [the] worship of angels disqualify you with speculation about what he has seen. [Such a person] is puffed up without basis by his unspiritual mind.

Such [restrictions] indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with [their] self-prescribed worship, [their false] humility, and [their] harsh treatment of [the] body; [but] they are of no value against [the] indulgence of the flesh.

By common confession, the mystery of godliness is great: [He] appeared in [the] flesh, was vindicated by [the] Spirit, was seen by angels, was proclaimed among [the] nations, was believed in throughout [the] world, was taken up in glory.

no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, [as] a beloved brother. [He is] especially [ beloved ] to me, but even more so to you, both in person and in [the] Lord.

Now since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in [their] [humanity], so that by [His] death He might destroy him who holds the power of death, that is, the devil,

During the days of [Jesus’] earthly [life], He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the [One who] could save Him from death, and He was heard because of [His] reverence.

[ They consist ] only in food and drink and special washings — external regulations imposed until [the] time of reform.

For if the blood of goats and bulls and [the] ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify [them] so that [their] bodies are clean,

by [the] new and living way opened for us through the curtain of His body,

Furthermore we have all had earthly fathers who disciplined [us], and we respected [them]. {Should we} not much more submit to the Father of [our] spirits and live?

Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and consume your flesh like fire. You have hoarded treasure in [the] last days.

For, “All flesh [is] like grass, and all its glory like [the] flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall,

For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, [the] righteous for [the] unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in [the] body but made alive in [the] Spirit,

And [this water] symbolizes [the] baptism [that] now saves you {also} — not the removal of dirt from the body, but [the] pledge of a clear conscience toward God — through [the] resurrection of Jesus Christ,

Therefore, since Christ suffered in [His] body, arm yourselves with the same resolve, because anyone who has suffered [in his] body is done with sin.

Consequently, he does not live out [his] remaining time on earth for human passions, but for [the] will of God.

That is why the gospel was preached even to [those who are now] dead, so that they might be judged as men in [the] flesh, but live according to God in [the] spirit.

[ Such punishment is ] specially [reserved] for those who indulge [the] corrupt desires of [the] flesh and despise authority. Bold [and] self-willed, they are unafraid to slander glorious beings.

With lofty [but] empty words, they appeal [to the] sensual passions of [the] flesh [and] entice those [who are] just escaping from [others] who live in error.

For all that [is] in the world — the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life — is not from the Father but from the world.

By this you will know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses [that] Jesus Christ has come in [the] flesh is from God,

For many deceivers have gone out into the world, refusing to confess the coming of Jesus Christ in [the] flesh. Any such [ person ] is the deceiver and the antichrist.

In like manner Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, who indulged in sexual immorality and pursued strange flesh, are on display as an example of those who sustain [the] punishment of eternal fire.

Yet in the same way these dreamers defile [their] bodies, reject authority, and slander glorious [beings].

save others by snatching [them] from [the] fire; and to still others show mercy [ tempered ] with fear, hating even the clothing stained by the flesh.

And the ten horns and the beast that you saw will hate the prostitute. They will leave her desolate and naked, and they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire.

so that you may eat [the] flesh of kings and commanders and mighty [men], of horses and riders of everyone slave and free, small and great.

And the rest were killed with the sword that proceeded from [the] mouth of the [One] seated on the horse. And all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.