1Stand firm, and do not be willing to be again held by the yoke of servitude. 2Behold, I, Paul, say to you, that if you have been circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you. 3For I again testify, about every man circumcising himself, that he is obligated to act according to the entire law. 4You are being emptied of Christ, you who are being justified by the law. You have fallen from grace. 5For in spirit, by faith, we await the hope of justice. 6For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision prevails over anything, but only faith which works through charity.
41And let your mercy overwhelm me, O Lord: your salvation according to your eloquence. 42And I will respond to those who reproach me by word, for I have hoped in your words. 43And do not utterly take away the word of truth from my mouth. For in your judgments, I have hoped beyond hope. 44And I will always keep your law, in this age and forever and ever. 45And I have wandered far and wide, because I was seeking your commandments. 46And I spoke of your testimonies in the sight of kings, and I was not confounded. 47And I meditated on your commandments, which I loved. 48And I lifted up my hands to your commandments, which I loved. And I was trained in your justifications.
12For the Word of God is living and effective: more piercing than any two-edged sword, reaching to the division even between the soul and the spirit, even between the joints and the marrow, and so it discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
37And as he was speaking, a certain Pharisee asked him to eat with him. And going inside, he sat down to eat. 38But the Pharisee began to say, thinking within himself: “Why might it be that he has not washed before eating?” 39And the Lord said to him: “You Pharisees today clean what is outside the cup and the plate, but what is inside of you is full of plunder and iniquity. 40Fools! Did not he who made what is outside, indeed also make what is inside? 41Yet truly, give what is above as alms, and behold, all things are clean for you.