2 Corinthians 5

₁Our bodies are like tents that we live in here on earth. But when these tents are destroyed, we know that God will give each of us a place to live. These homes will not be buildings that someone has made, but they are in heaven and will last for ever. ₂While we are here on earth, we sigh because we want to live in that heavenly home. ₃We want to put it on like clothes and not be naked.

₄These tents we now live in are like a heavy burden, and we groan. But we don't do this just because we want to leave these bodies that will die. It is because we want to change them for bodies that will never die. ₅God is the one who makes all this possible. He has given us his Spirit to make us certain that he will do it. ₆So always be cheerful!

As long as we are in these bodies, we are away from the Lord. ₇But we live by faith, not by what we see. ₈We should be cheerful, because we would rather leave these bodies and be at home with the Lord. ₉But whether we are at home with the Lord or away from him, we still try our best to please him. ₁₀After all, Christ will judge each of us for the good or the bad that we do while living in these bodies.

₁₁We know what it means to respect the Lord, and we encourage everyone to turn to him. God himself knows what we are like, and I hope you also know what kind of people we are. ₁₂We are not trying once more to boast about ourselves. But we want you to be proud of us, when you are with those who are not sincere and boast about what others think of them.

₁₃If we seem out of our minds, it is between God and us. But if we are in our right minds, it is for your good. ₁₄We are ruled by Christ's love for us. We are certain that if one person died for everyone else, then all of us have died. ₁₅And Christ did die for all of us. He died so we would no longer live for ourselves, but for the one who died and was raised to life for us.

₁₆We are careful not to judge people by what they seem to be, though we once judged Christ in that way. ₁₇Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The past is forgotten, and everything is new. ₁₈God has done it all! He sent Christ to make peace between himself and us, and he has given us the work of making peace between himself and others.

₁₉What we mean is that God was in Christ, offering peace and forgiveness to the people of this world. And he has given us the work of sharing his message about peace. ₂₀We were sent to speak for Christ, and God is begging you to listen to our message. We speak for Christ and sincerely ask you to make peace with God. ₂₁Christ never sinned! But God treated him as a sinner, so that Christ could make us acceptable to God.