Romans 6:17

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
But thank God that, although you used to be slaves of sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching to which you were handed over,

King James Version (1611)
But God bee thanked, that yee were the seruants of sinne: but ye haue obeyed from the heart that fourme of doctrine, which was deliuered you.

King James Version
But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.

English Standard Version
But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed,

New American Standard Bible
But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were entrusted,

New Century Version
In the past you were slaves to sin—sin controlled you. But thank God, you fully obeyed the things that you were taught.

Amplified Bible
But thank God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient with all your heart to the standard of teaching in which you were instructed and to which you were committed.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed,

Legacy Standard Bible
But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching to which you were given over,

Berean Standard Bible
But thanks be to God that, though you once were slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were committed.

Contemporary English Version
You used to be slaves of sin. But I thank God that with all your heart you obeyed the teaching you received from me.

Complete Jewish Bible
By God's grace, you, who were once slaves to sin, obeyed from your heart the pattern of teaching to which you were exposed;

Darby Translation
But thanks [be] to God, that ye were bondmen of sin, but have obeyed from the heart the form of teaching into which ye were instructed.

Easy-to-Read Version
In the past you were slaves to sin—sin controlled you. But thank God, you fully obeyed what you were taught.

Geneva Bible (1587)
But God be thanked, that ye haue beene the seruants of sinne, but yee haue obeyed from the heart vnto the forme of the doctrine, wherunto ye were deliuered.

George Lamsa Translation
But thank God that you, who were once the servants of sin, now obey from the heart that form of doctrine which has been delivered to you.

Good News Translation
But thanks be to God! For though at one time you were slaves to sin, you have obeyed with all your heart the truths found in the teaching you received.

Lexham English Bible
But thanks be to God that you were slaves of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart the pattern of teaching to which you were entrusted,

Literal Translation
But thanks be to God that you were slaves of sin, but you obeyed from the heart the form of doctrine to which you were delivered.

American Standard Version
But thanks be to God, that, whereas ye were servants of sin, ye became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching whereunto ye were delivered;

Bible in Basic English
But praise be to God that though you were the servants of sin, you have now given yourselves freely to that form of teaching under which you were placed;

Hebrew Names Version
But thanks be to God, that, whereas you were servants of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching whereunto you were delivered.

International Standard Version
But thank God that, though you were once slaves of sin, you became obedient from your hearts to that form of teaching with which you were entrusted!2 Timothy 1:13;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
But praise to Aloha that you were the servants of sin, but have obeyed from the heart the form of doctrine to which you have been delivered.

Murdock Translation
But thanks be to God, that ye were [fn] the servants of sin but have [fn] from the heart obeyed that form of doctrine to which ye are devoted.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
But God be thanked, that ye were the seruautes of sinne: but ye haue obeyed with heart the fourme of doctrine, into the which ye were brought vnto.

English Revised Version
But thanks be to God, that, whereas ye were servants of sin, ye became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching whereunto ye were delivered;

World English Bible
But thanks be to God, that, whereas you were servants of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching whereunto you were delivered.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
But thanks be to God, that, whereas ye were the servants of sin, ye have now obeyed from the heart the form of doctrine into which ye have been delivered.

Weymouth's New Testament
But thanks be to God that though you were once in thraldom to Sin, you have now yielded a hearty obedience to that system of truth in which you have been instructed.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
But Y thanke God, that ye weren seruauntis of synne; but ye han obeischid of herte in to that fourme of techyng, in which ye ben bitakun.

Update Bible Version
But thanks be to God, that, whereas you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were delivered;

Webster's Bible Translation
But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin; but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.

New English Translation
But thanks be to God that though you were slaves to sin, you obeyed from the heart that pattern of teaching you were entrusted to,

New King James Version
But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered.

New Living Translation
Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you.

New Life Bible
At one time you were held by the power of sin. But now you obey with all your heart the teaching that was given to you. Thank God for this!

New Revised Standard
But thanks be to God that you, having once been slaves of sin, have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted,

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
But thanks be unto God, that - whereas ye were servants of sin, ye became obedient out of the heart unto the mould of teaching into which ye were delivered;

Douay-Rheims Bible
But thanks be to God, that you were the servants of sin but have obeyed from the heart unto that form of doctrine into which you have been delivered.

Revised Standard Version
But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed,

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
God be thanked yt though ye were once the servauntes of synne ye have yet obeyed with herte vnto the forme of doctryne wher vnto ye were delyvered.

Young's Literal Translation
and thanks to God, that ye were servants of the sin, and -- were obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which ye were delivered up;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But God be thanked, that though ye haue bene the seruauntes of synne, ye are now yet obedient of herte to the ensample off the doctryne, whervnto ye are commytted.

Mace New Testament (1729)
but God be thanked, that you, who were the vassals of sin, have sincerely obeyed in the manner the gospel prescribed.

Simplified Cowboy Version
Thank God that even though ya used to ride for sin's outfit, ya took ahold of the things you've been taught.

Contextual Overview

¹So what do we do? Keep on sinning so God can keep on forgiving? I should hope not! If we've left the country where sin is sovereign, how can we still live in our old house there? Or didn't you realize we packed up and left there for good? That is what happened in baptism. When we went under the water, we left the old country of sin behind; when we came up out of the water, we entered into the new country of grace—a new life in a new land! That's what baptism into the life of Jesus means. When we are lowered into the water, it is like the burial of Jesus; when we are raised up out of the water, it is like the resurrection of Jesus. Each of us is raised into a light-filled world by our Father so that we can see where we're going in our new grace-sovereign country. Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life—no longer at sin's every beck and call! What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ's sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection. We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end. Never again will death have the last word. When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us. From now on, think of it this way: Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word. You are dead to sin and alive to God. That's what Jesus did. That means you must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives. Don't give it the time of day. Don't even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life. Throw yourselves wholeheartedly and full-time—remember, you've been raised from the dead!—into God's way of doing things. Sin can't tell you how to live. After all, you're not living under that old tyranny any longer. You're living in the freedom of God. So, since we're out from under the old tyranny, does that mean we can live any old way we want? Since we're free in the freedom of God, can we do anything that comes to mind? Hardly. You know well enough from your own experience that there are some acts of so-called freedom that destroy freedom. Offer yourselves to sin, for instance, and it's your last free act. But offer yourselves to the ways of God and the freedom never quits. All your lives you've let sin tell you what to do. But thank God you've started listening to a new master, one whose commands set you free to live openly in his freedom! I'm using this freedom language because it's easy to picture. You can readily recall, can't you, how at one time the more you did just what you felt like doing—not caring about others, not caring about God—the worse your life became and the less freedom you had? And how much different is it now as you live in God's freedom, your lives healed and expansive in holiness? As long as you did what you felt like doing, ignoring God, you didn't have to bother with right thinking or right living, or right anything for that matter. But do you call that a free life? What did you get out of it? Nothing you're proud of now. Where did it get you? A dead end. But now that you've found you don't have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God's gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master. ⁴When Death Becomes Life So what do we do? Keep on sinning so God can keep on forgiving? I should hope not! If we've left the country where sin is sovereign, how can we still live in our old house there? Or didn't you realize we packed up and left there for good? That is what happened in baptism. When we went under the water, we left the old country of sin behind; when we came up out of the water, we entered into the new country of grace—a new life in a new land! That's what baptism into the life of Jesus means. When we are lowered into the water, it is like the burial of Jesus; when we are raised up out of the water, it is like the resurrection of Jesus. Each of us is raised into a light-filled world by our Father so that we can see where we're going in our new grace-sovereign country. Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life—no longer at sin's every beck and call! What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ's sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection. We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end. Never again will death have the last word. When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us. From now on, think of it this way: Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word. You are dead to sin and alive to God. That's what Jesus did. That means you must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives. Don't give it the time of day. Don't even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life. Throw yourselves wholeheartedly and full-time—remember, you've been raised from the dead!—into God's way of doing things. Sin can't tell you how to live. After all, you're not living under that old tyranny any longer. You're living in the freedom of God. So, since we're out from under the old tyranny, does that mean we can live any old way we want? Since we're free in the freedom of God, can we do anything that comes to mind? Hardly. You know well enough from your own experience that there are some acts of so-called freedom that destroy freedom. Offer yourselves to sin, for instance, and it's your last free act. But offer yourselves to the ways of God and the freedom never quits. All your lives you've let sin tell you what to do. But thank God you've started listening to a new master, one whose commands set you free to live openly in his freedom! I'm using this freedom language because it's easy to picture. You can readily recall, can't you, how at one time the more you did just what you felt like doing—not caring about others, not caring about God—the worse your life became and the less freedom you had? And how much different is it now as you live in God's freedom, your lives healed and expansive in holiness? As long as you did what you felt like doing, ignoring God, you didn't have to bother with right thinking or right living, or right anything for that matter. But do you call that a free life? What did you get out of it? Nothing you're proud of now. Where did it get you? A dead end. But now that you've found you don't have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God's gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master. ⁵When Death Becomes Life So what do we do? Keep on sinning so God can keep on forgiving? I should hope not! If we've left the country where sin is sovereign, how can we still live in our old house there? Or didn't you realize we packed up and left there for good? That is what happened in baptism. When we went under the water, we left the old country of sin behind; when we came up out of the water, we entered into the new country of grace—a new life in a new land! That's what baptism into the life of Jesus means. When we are lowered into the water, it is like the burial of Jesus; when we are raised up out of the water, it is like the resurrection of Jesus. Each of us is raised into a light-filled world by our Father so that we can see where we're going in our new grace-sovereign country. ⁶Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life—no longer at sin's every beck and call! What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ's sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection. We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end. Never again will death have the last word. When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us. From now on, think of it this way: Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word. You are dead to sin and alive to God. That's what Jesus did. ¹²That means you must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives. Don't give it the time of day. Don't even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life. Throw yourselves wholeheartedly and full-time—remember, you've been raised from the dead!—into God's way of doing things. Sin can't tell you how to live. After all, you're not living under that old tyranny any longer. You're living in the freedom of God. ¹⁵So, since we're out from under the old tyranny, does that mean we can live any old way we want? Since we're free in the freedom of God, can we do anything that comes to mind? Hardly. You know well enough from your own experience that there are some acts of so-called freedom that destroy freedom. Offer yourselves to sin, for instance, and it's your last free act. But offer yourselves to the ways of God and the freedom never quits. All your lives you've let sin tell you what to do. But thank God you've started listening to a new master, one whose commands set you free to live openly in his freedom! ¹⁹ I'm using this freedom language because it's easy to picture. You can readily recall, can't you, how at one time the more you did just what you felt like doing—not caring about others, not caring about God—the worse your life became and the less freedom you had? And how much different is it now as you live in God's freedom, your lives healed and expansive in holiness? ²⁰As long as you did what you felt like doing, ignoring God, you didn't have to bother with right thinking or right living, or right anything for that matter. But do you call that a free life? What did you get out of it? Nothing you're proud of now. Where did it get you? A dead end. ²²But now that you've found you don't have to listen to sin tell you what to do, and have discovered the delight of listening to God telling you, what a surprise! A whole, healed, put-together life right now, with more and more of life on the way! Work hard for sin your whole life and your pension is death. But God's gift is real life, eternal life, delivered by Jesus, our Master.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

But: Romans 1:8, 1 Chronicles 29:12-16, Ezra 7:27, Matthew 11:25, Matthew 11:26, Acts 11:18, Acts 28:15, 1 Corinthians 1:4, Ephesians 1:16, Philippians 1:3-5, Colossians 1:3, Colossians 1:4, 1 Thessalonians 1:2, 1 Thessalonians 1:3, 1 Thessalonians 3:9, 2 Thessalonians 1:3, 2 Timothy 1:3-5, Philemon 1:4, 2 John 1:4, 3 John 1:3

that: 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, Ephesians 2:5-10, 1 Timothy 1:13-16, Titus 3:3-7, 1 Peter 2:9, 1 Peter 4:2-5

but ye: Romans 1:5, Romans 2:8, Romans 15:18, Romans 16:26, Psalms 18:44, *marg. 2 Corinthians 10:5, 2 Corinthians 10:6, Hebrews 5:9, Hebrews 11:8, 1 Peter 1:22, 1 Peter 3:1, 1 Peter 4:17

that form: 2 Timothy 1:13

which was delivered you: Gr. whereto ye were delivered

Reciprocal: Leviticus 25:10 - proclaim Leviticus 25:55 - my servants Deuteronomy 6:21 - General Deuteronomy 16:12 - General Deuteronomy 27:9 - this day Job 36:11 - If Jeremiah 24:7 - for they Micah 7:19 - subdue Acts 8:23 - the bond Romans 2:20 - the form Romans 6:16 - whether of sin Romans 6:19 - for as ye Romans 6:20 - the servants Romans 7:25 - thank God Romans 10:16 - obeyed 1 Corinthians 6:11 - such Galatians 3:1 - ye Galatians 5:7 - obey Ephesians 1:13 - after that ye heard Ephesians 6:6 - from Colossians 1:13 - and 1 Thessalonians 2:13 - effectually 2 Thessalonians 2:10 - they received 2 Thessalonians 2:13 - we 1 Timothy 2:1 - and James 1:21 - the engrafted

Cross-References

Genesis 6:3
Then God said, "I'm not going to breathe life into men and women endlessly. Eventually they're going to die; from now on they can expect a life span of 120 years."

Genesis 6:4
This was back in the days (and also later) when there were giants in the land. The giants came from the union of the sons of God and the daughters of men. These were the mighty men of ancient lore, the famous ones.

Genesis 6:13
God said to Noah, "It's all over. It's the end of the human race. The violence is everywhere; I'm making a clean sweep.

Genesis 6:14
"Build yourself a ship from teakwood. Make rooms in it. Coat it with pitch inside and out. Make it 450 feet long, seventy-five feet wide, and forty-five feet high. Build a roof for it and put in a window eighteen inches from the top; put in a door on the side of the ship; and make three decks, lower, middle, and upper.

Genesis 6:22
Noah did everything God commanded him to do.

Genesis 7:17
The flood continued forty days and the waters rose and lifted the ship high over the Earth. The waters kept rising, the flood deepened on the Earth, the ship floated on the surface. The flood got worse until all the highest mountains were covered—the high-water mark reached twenty feet above the crest of the mountains. Everything died. Anything that moved—dead. Birds, farm animals, wild animals, the entire teeming exuberance of life—dead. And all people—dead. Every living, breathing creature that lived on dry land died; he wiped out the whole works—people and animals, crawling creatures and flying birds, every last one of them, gone. Only Noah and his company on the ship lived.

Exodus 14:17
"Meanwhile I'll make sure the Egyptians keep up their stubborn chase—I'll use Pharaoh and his entire army, his chariots and horsemen, to put my Glory on display so that the Egyptians will realize that I am God ."

Deuteronomy 32:39
"Do you see it now? Do you see that I'm the one? Do you see that there's no other god beside me? I bring death and I give life, I wound and I heal— there is no getting away from or around me! I raise my hand in solemn oath; I say, ‘I'm always around. By that very life I promise: When I sharpen my lightning sword and execute judgment, I take vengeance on my enemies and pay back those who hate me. I'll make my arrows drunk with blood, my sword will gorge itself on flesh, Feasting on slain and captive alike, the proud and vain enemy corpses.'"

Psalms 29:10
Above the floodwaters is God 's throne from which his power flows, from which he rules the world.

Isaiah 51:12
"I, I'm the One comforting you. What are you afraid of—or who? Some man or woman who'll soon be dead? Some poor wretch destined for dust? You've forgotten me, God , who made you, who unfurled the skies, who founded the earth. And here you are, quaking like an aspen before the tantrums of a tyrant who thinks he can kick down the world. But what will come of the tantrums? The victims will be released before you know it. They're not going to die. They're not even going to go hungry. For I am God , your very own God, who stirs up the sea and whips up the waves, named God -of-the-Angel-Armies. I teach you how to talk, word by word, and personally watch over you, Even while I'm unfurling the skies, setting earth on solid foundations, and greeting Zion: ‘Welcome, my people!'"

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But God be thanked that ye were the servants of sin,.... Not that the apostle must be thought to give thanks to God for that these persons had been the servants of sin, than which nothing is more disagreeable to God, or caused more shame to themselves; but that inasmuch as they had been in the drudgery and service of sin, they were now freed from it. Just as if a person, that has been a slave for some time in Algiers, should bless God, or be thankful to the instrument of his deliverance, that whereas he had been in such slavery, he is now redeemed from it: wherefore it is added,

but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. By "the form of doctrine", is meant the Gospel, which is the "doctrine" of the Scriptures, of Christ and his apostles, and is sound and according to godliness; and is a "form", or contains a summary and compendium of truths, and is a pattern or exemplar, according to which ministers are to preach, and people to hear and receive. So the word טופס which is the same with τυπος here, is used by the Jewish y writers for a form, copy, pattern, or exemplar of any sort of writings This form of doctrine is קבלה, "a Cabala", but not like that of the Jews' oral law, or form of traditions z, handed down, as they say, from one man, and set of men, to another; but this is delivered from the Father to Christ, from Christ to his apostles, and by them to the saints; and "into which they were delivered", as it may be rendered, as into a mould; and so received the impression of it, and were evangelized by it: so such are who have a spirit of Gospel liberty, in opposition to a spirit of bondage; who live by faith on Christ, and not by the works of the law; who derive their comfort from him, and not from anything done by them; whose repentance and obedience are influenced by the grace of God, and who are zealous of good works, without any dependence on them. This form of doctrine was "obeyed" by them; by which is meant, not a mere obedience to the ordinances of the Gospel; nor a bare hearing of the doctrines of it, and giving an assent unto them; but an embracing of them by faith for themselves, so as to lay hold on Christ in them, submit to his righteousness therein revealed, and be willing to be saved by him, and him alone, in his own way; and this is the obedience of faith: the reason why faith is expressed by obedience is, because faith receives truth upon the veracity of God, and not upon the dictates of carnal reason; and is always more or less attended with external obedience to the will of God; and that is rightly performed only by faith. And this obedience did not lie in words, or proceed on mercenary views, and in an hypocritical way; but was "from the heart"; and was real and sincere: and good reason there is why a hearty, cheerful, and voluntary obedience should be yielded to t he Gospel; since it is from God; Christ is the substance of it; it is truth, and the word of our salvation. The Alexandrian copy reads, "from a pure heart"; and the Arabic version, "from the sincerity of your heart"; and the Ethiopic version, "with your whole heart".

y T. Bab. Gittin, fol. 26. 1. Bava Bathra, fol. 44. 2. R. Moses Kotzensis Mitzvot Tora, precept. Affirm. 50. z Vid. Pirke Abot, c. 1. sect. 1.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

But God be thanked - The argument in this verse is drawn from a direct appeal to the feelings of the Roman Christians themselves. From their experience, Paul was able to draw a demonstration to his purpose, and this was with him a ground of gratitude to God.

That ye were ... - The sense of this passage is plain. The ground Of the thanksgiving was not that they had been the slaves of sin; but it is, that notwithstanding this, or although they had been thus, yet that they were now obedient. To give thanks to God that people were sinners, would contradict the whole spirit of this argument, and of the Bible. But to give thanks that although people had been sinners, yet that now they had become obedient; that is, that great sinners had become converted, is in entire accordance with the spirit of the Bible, and with propriety. The word “although” or “whereas,” understood here, expresses the sense, “But thanks unto God, that whereas ye were the servants of sin,” etc. Christians should thank God that they themselves, though once great sinners, have become converted; and when others who are great sinners are converted, they should praise him.

The servants of sin - This is a strong expression implying that they had been in bondage to sin; that they had been completely its slaves.

From the heart - Not in external form only; but as a cordial, sincere, and entire service. No other obedience is genuine.

That form of doctrine - Greek, type; see the note at Romans 5:14. The form or type of doctrine means that shape or model of instruction which was communicated. It does not differ materially from the doctrine itself, “you have obeyed that doctrine,” etc. You have yielded obedience to the instructions, the rules, the tenor of the Christian revelation. The word “doctrine” does not refer to an abstract dogma, but means instruction, that which is taught. And the meaning of the whole expression is simply, that they had yielded a cheerful and hearty obedience to what had been communicated to them by the teachers of the Christian religion; compare Romans 1:8.

Which was delivered you - Margin, “Whereto ye were delivered.” This is a literal translation of the Greek; and the sense is simply in which you have been instructed.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Romans 6:17. But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin — This verse should be read thus: But thanks be to God that, although ye were the servants of sin, nevertheless ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine that was delivered unto you; or, that mould of teaching into which ye were cast. The apostle does not thank God that they were sinners; but that, although they were such, they had now received and obeyed the Gospel. The Hebrew phrase, Isaiah 12:1, is exactly the same as that of the apostle here: In that day thou shalt say, I will praise thee, for thou wast angry with me: that is, although thou wast angry with me, thou hast turned away thy wrath, c.

That form of doctrine — Τυπον διδαχης here Christianity is represented under the notion of a mould, or die, into which they were cast, and from which they took the impression of its excellence. The figure upon this die is the image of God, righteousness and true holiness, which was stamped on their souls in believing the Gospel and receiving the Holy Ghost. The words εις ὁν παρεδοθητε τυπον refer to the melting of metal; which, when it is liquified, is cast into the mould, that it may receive the impression that is sunk or cut in the mould; and therefore the words may be literally translated, into which mould of doctrine ye have been cast. They were melted down under the preaching of the word, and then were capable of receiving the stamp of its purity.