You will never be healthier or more prosperous than your
soul. You can be born again, even filled with the Holy Spirit,
and still not be prosperous in your soul. For instance, an old
saint of God, living in poverty, can pray revival down on a
church, get everybody in town saved, and be lying in bed sick
the whole time—if she does not believe the Word of God for her
health! She can do these things, never knowing the fullness of
the infilling of the Holy Spirit and speaking with other tongues,
even though healing and prosperity belong to her all the time.
You see, her soul was not prosperous in these areas; her mind
had not grasped the full meaning of the Word of God; her mental
computer had never been fed on God’s Word concerning
healing, the Holy Spirit and prosperity. She knew the Word
enough to seek salvation and revival and used this knowledge
to pray down the power of God. Her soul was prosperous in
this area.

The world’s definition of physical prosperity (prosperity of
the senses) includes gold, silver, financial favor or power, political
favor or power and social favor or power. The world’s definition
of mental prosperity (prosperity of the soul) is “knowing
it all.” Put these two ideas together and you have a person who
can use his mind to get financial and political power. This is
the world’s total concept of prosperity. You can easily see its
drawbacks! Wealth and power cannot answer every problem.
Money makes a lousy god! It can’t buy good health or prevent
sickness and disease from taking over the human body. Yes, it
can go toward buying it, but the world’s system of healing just
isn’t good enough. In the mental realm, a person can have all
the facts in his head and not have the ability to use that knowledge
to obtain the money or the health that he needs.

What produces spiritual, mental and physical prosperity?
What brings all these areas together? The Word of God. The
Bible says in Hebrews 4:12 that the Word is alive, powerful and
sharper than a two-edged sword. It says that it divides the soul
and the spirit, the joints and the marrow, and that it is a discerner
of the thoughts and intents of the heart. When you are
walking in the Word of God, you will prosper and be in health.

We cannot settle for prosperity in the physical or the mental
realm only. It would be easy just to settle for spiritual prosperity,
but we can’t afford to be lazy and to discount physical
and mental prosperity simply because we are saved and filled
with the Holy Spirit. It is the will of God for us to be made
whole—spirit, soul and body—and to be kept that way until
the return of our Lord Jesus Christ (see 1 Thessalonians 5:23).
As you walk in the light of God’s Word, you will become prosperous
in every area of your life.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

To prosper spiritually, you must be born again. When you
accept Jesus as your Savior and make Him the Lord of your
life, your spirit is reborn and brought into fellowship with the
Father, the Almighty God. This then puts you in a position to
receive from Him all the things promised in His Word.

To prosper in your soul, you must be able to control your
mind, your will and your emotions. Just because you have
accumulated large amounts of knowledge does not mean that
your mind is prosperous. Prosperity of the mind comes when
you use the knowledge that has been accumulated—when you
are controlling your mind instead of your mind controlling
you. Second Corinthians 10:5 says we are to cast down imaginations
and every high thing that exalts itself against the
knowledge of God (or against the Word of God), bringing into
captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. The person
who does this has control of his mind and is in position to
prosper mentally. You cannot control your mind completely without
the Word of God being alive and operating inside you.

You must control your will in the same way. Some people
say, “Lord, help my will to crumble.” God doesn’t want a broken
will that He can dominate. He wants your will whole and in
submission to His will so that the two of you can work together
in unity. When God made man, He gave him a will that has
power. It is actually a godlike will because man has the right to
choose his own eternal destiny. Only a god has that kind of
choice! Man was made in God’s image and given the will to
make up his own mind. You can go to hell if you want to and
God will protect your right…you don’t have to, but you can. On
the other hand, you can choose Jesus Christ and the Word of
God. In Deuteronomy 30:19, God said, “I call heaven and earth
to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and
death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and
thy seed may live.” What a privilege! The choice is yours!

When a man’s soul is prosperous, his will is in line with
God’s will. How can you get in line with God’s will? You can’t
until you know what His Word says. His Word and His will are
the same! An honest man can’t will one thing and say another.
If you are in line with the Word of God, you are in line with the
will of God.

Let’s discuss our emotions as part of the soul. The person
who is emotionally prosperous can control his emotions. I used
to think this meant never showing emotions, but that’s not so.
Jesus had complete control over His emotions, yet He wept at
the tomb of Lazarus! The important thing is that His weeping
didn’t cause Him to join the grief-stricken throng of people. He
continued to move in the Spirit. He put His priorities where
they belonged and raised Lazarus from the dead. He showed
emotions, but He was not moved by them.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

As we begin this study of prosperity and how it functions
according to the Word of God, let’s read the basic scriptures on
which our whole study is founded. Let me mention here that
we are putting the Word of God first and foremost throughout
this study, not what we think it says, but what it actually says!
When we see it in the Word, believe it, and begin to act on it,
faith is created. “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the
word of God” (Romans 10:17).

As you read our basic scripture text, remember Jesus said in
John 17:17, “Thy word is truth.” For a clearer meaning substitute
the Word for truth as follows: “Beloved, I wish above all
things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul
prospereth. For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified
of the truth [the Word] that is in thee, even as thou walkest
in the truth [the Word]. I have no greater joy than to hear that my
children walk in truth [the Word]” (3 John 2-4).

It would be good to point out that when the Apostle John
wrote this epistle, he was an old man and had been in the
Christian walk for a long, long time—in fact, from the time of
his youth. He had walked with Jesus and watched Him closely
throughout His earthly ministry. John was a wise old man,
strong in the Lord, and he said, “I wish above all things that you
prosper and be in health.”

Through our traditional ideas, we have been lead to believe
that prosperity is bad or ungodly. However, John writes that
we should prosper and be in health and then it says in verse 11,
“Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He
that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen
God.” If prosperity is evil, why would He want us to prosper?
You see, there is nothing wrong with prosperity in itself. Money
is not the root of all evil. The love of money is the root of all evil
(see 1 Timothy 6:10), and there are people committing this sin
who don’t have a dime! I want you to realize, however, that
prosperity covers much more than finances.

When John said we should prosper and be in health, he
added the phrase, “Even as thy soul prospereth.” Man is a spirit;
he has a soul consisting of the mind, the will and the emotions;
and he lives in a body. Thus, there is spiritual prosperity; there
is mental prosperity; and there is physical prosperity.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

God used His Word to set the standards by which we would
operate. It had to be by faith or not at all. We made commitments
that seemed so hard. We declared that we would never
ask any man for anything including money and places to minister.
We pledged ourselves and this ministry to Romans 13:8,
that we would never borrow one cent. We would tell our needs
only to God and expect what He was teaching us to produce.
Little did we know then what a blessing these standards would
be. We learned, many times the hard way. We prayed. We confessed
our faith. We stood on God’s Word when every circumstance
spelled absolute doom. God’s Word worked! Things
began to happen for us instead of to us. We began to grow. In
11 months, we were free from debt. Unless you have experienced
the freedom of being debt-free, you cannot imagine how great it
is not to have any man putting pressure on you. We know what
Hebrews 4:11 means when it says, “…labour therefore to enter
into that rest.” There is peace and rest when you know how to
operate in God’s laws instead of being forced to seek help from
men’s sources.

God always has more than enough. The rise in interest rates
has not affected our ministry. The rise in medical costs has not
affected us. We have learned to receive our healing from God.

The world’s shortages have no effect on someone who has
already gone to heaven. Therefore, they should have no effect
on us here who have made Jesus the Lord of our lives.
Philippians 4:19 says that our needs are to be met according to
His riches in glory, not our shortages in earth. Our problem has
been in not knowing heaven’s ways of doing things. We have
tried to live in God’s blessings with the world’s laws. It won’t
work. We receive from God by using His laws and ways.

In the book you are about to read, I have shared these laws
of prosperity the way they were given to me from God’s Word.
They are not theories; they are facts. We have tried and proven
each one in our lives! We live this way. My invitation
to you is from Malachi 3:10. God Himself says, “Prove me now
herewith…if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour
you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive
it.” Determine now to act on God’s Word and start looking for
more room!

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

God first began dealing with me about the laws that govern
prosperity in 1967. I was conducting a series of meetings in a
very small church in a very small town in the Texas panhandle.
For years I had entertained the idea that success was not an
accident, that luck has nothing to do with it. I had read books
of different kinds on this idea but had not found any answers
that satisfied me. It didn’t occur to me that the Bible was written
by the most successful individual alive—God!

In those early days of following the Lord’s teaching, it
seemed that He was very hard on me. I could see no reason for
Him to be so strict. Of course, I had no idea then that, in less
than 10 years, prime interest rates would soar to heights as
never before. Who could dream that the fuel shortage, food
shortage, paper shortage, etc., would come storming their way
into our lives.

When Gloria and I first began to put the things we were
learning into practice, we had nothing around us but problems.
I had returned to college at the age of 30 and from there God
called us into a full-time ministry in His service. We were deeply
in debt and lived in surroundings that were very poor. The job
God called me to do required that I travel extensively preaching
and teaching His Word, but our car was completely worn out.
We had no clothes. I had lost 75 pounds and, obviously, none
of my clothes fit. The trousers on some of my suits had been
altered so many times that, instead of two back pockets, it
looked like one big pocket! I could go on and on about our
situation, but it’s easy to see that we had less than nothing. We
were thousands of dollars in debt.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Isaiah 43:1-3
KJV—Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I
have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.
When thou passest through the waters, I will
be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall
not overflow thee: when thou walkest through
the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall
the flame kindle upon thee. For I am the Lord
thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour.

AMP—Fear not, for I have redeemed you
[ransomed you by paying a price instead of
leaving you captives]; I have called you by your
name; you are Mine. When you pass through
the waters, I will be with you, and through the
rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you
walk through the fire, you will not be burned
or scorched, nor will the flame kindle upon
you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy
One of Israel, your Savior.

Moffatt—Fear not, for I redeem you, I claim
you, you are mine. I will be with you when you
pass through waters, no rivers shall overflow
you; when you pass through fire, you shall not
be scorched, no flames shall burn you. For I
the Eternal am your God, Israel’s Majestic One
is your deliverer.

NIV—Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I
have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be
with you; and when you pass through the
rivers, they will not sweep over you. When
you walk through the fire, you will not be
burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of
Israel, your Savior.

Isaiah 54 :14-15
KJV—In righteousness shalt thou be established:
thou shalt be far from oppression; for
thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall
not come near thee. Behold, they shall surely
gather together, but not by me: whosoever
shall gather together against thee shall fall for
thy sake.

AMP—You shall establish yourself in righteousness
(rightness, in conformity with God’s
will and order): you shall be far from even
the thought of oppression or destruction, for
you shall not fear, and from terror, for it shall
not come near you. Behold, they may gather
together and stir up strife, but it is not from
Me. Whoever stirs up strife against you shall
fall and surrender to you.

NIV—In righteousness you will be established:
Tyranny will be far from you; you will have
nothing to fear. Terror will be far removed; it
will not come near you. If anyone does attack
you, it will not be my doing; whoever attacks
you will surrender to you.

NAS—In righteousness you will be established;
you will be far from oppression, for you will
not fear; and from terror, for it will not come
near you. If anyone fiercely assails you it will
not be from Me. Whoever assails you will fall
because of you.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Psalm 23:5
KJV—Thou preparest a table before me in the
presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my
head with oil; my cup runneth over.

AMP—You prepare a table before me in the
presence of my enemies. You anoint my head
with oil; my [brimming] cup runs over.

Moffatt—Thou art my host, spreading a feast
for me, while my foes have to look on! Thou
hast poured oil upon my head, my cup is
brimming over.

Psalm 55:16, 18
NIV—The Lord saves me…. He ransoms me
unharmed from the battle waged against me,
even though many oppose me.

KJV—The Lord shall save me. . . . He hath
delivered my soul in peace from the battle that
was against me: for there were many with me.

AMP—The Lord will save me…. He has redeemed
my life in peace from the battle that
was against me [so that none came near me],
for they were many who strove with me.

Moffatt—The Eternal helps me…. He will…give
me peace and freedom from this strife, from
the host of foes around me.

Psalm 91:7-8
KJV—A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten
thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not
come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou
behold and see the reward of the wicked.

AMP—A thousand may fall at your side, and
ten thousand at your right hand, but it shall
not come near you. Only a spectator shall you
be [yourself inaccessible in the secret place of
the Most High] as you witness the reward of
the wicked.

TLB—Though a thousand fall at my side,
though ten thousand are dying around me,
the evil will not touch me. I will see how the
wicked are punished but I will not share it.

Psalm 138:7
KJV—Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth
thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies,
and thy right hand shall save me.

AMP—Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
You will revive me; You will stretch forth Your
hand against the wrath of my enemies, and
Your right hand will save me.

Moffatt—Though I must pass through the
thick of trouble, thou wilt preserve me; thy
hand shall fall upon my angry foes, thy right
hand rescues me.

NIV—Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life; you stretch out your
hand against the anger of my foes, with your
right hand you save me.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Psalm 18:39
KJV—Thou hast girded me with strength unto
the battle: thou hast subdued under me those
that rose up against me.

AMP—You have girded me with strength
for the battle; You have subdued under me
and caused to bow down those who rose up
against me.

Moffatt—Thou hast braced me for the fray;
thou makest my assailants drop before me.

NIV—You armed me with strength for battle;
you made my adversaries bow at my feet.

Psalm 119:114
KJV—Thou art my hiding place and my shield:
I hope in thy word.

AMP—You are my hiding place and my shield;
I hope in Your word.

Moffatt—I await thy promise, thou my shield
and shelter.

NIV—You are my refuge and my shield; I have
put my hope in your word.

Psalm 140:7
KJV—O God the Lord, the strength of my
salvation, thou hast covered my head in the
day of battle.

AMP—O God the Lord, the Strength of my
salvation, You have covered my head in the
day of battle.

Moffatt—Eternal One, my Lord, my saving
strength, who screenest me against attack.

NIV—O Sovereign Lord, my strong deliverer,
who shields my head in the day of battle.

Proverbs 30:5
KJV—Every word of God is pure: he is a shield
unto them that put their trust in him.

AMP—Every word of God is tried and purified;
He is a shield to those who trust and take
refuge in Him.

Moffatt—God’s promises are all tried and
true; those who shelter beside him he shields.

NIV—Every word of God is flawless; he is a
shield to those who take refuge in him.

Ephesians 6:10-18
KJV—Be strong in the Lord, and in the power
of his might. Put on the whole armour of God,
that ye may be able to stand against the wiles
of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh
and blood, but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness
of this world, against spiritual wickedness
in high places. Wherefore take unto you the
whole armour of God, that ye may be able
to withstand in the evil day, and having done
all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your
loins girt about with truth, and having on the
breastplate of righteousness; and your feet
shod with the preparation of the gospel of
peace; above all, taking the shield of faith,
wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the
fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet
of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which
is the word of God: Praying always with all
prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and
watching thereunto with all perseverance and
supplication for all saints.

AMP—Be strong in the Lord [be empowered
through your union with Him]; draw your
strength from Him [that strength which His
boundless might provides]. Put on God’s
whole armor [the armor of a heavy-armed
soldier which God supplies], that you may be
able successfully to stand up against [all] the
strategies and the deceits of the devil. For
we are not wrestling with flesh and blood
[contending only with physical opponents],
but against the despotisms, against the
powers, against [the master spirits who are]
the world rulers of this present darkness,
against the spirit forces of wickedness in the
heavenly (supernatural) sphere. Therefore
put on God’s complete armor, that you may
be able to resist and stand your ground on
the evil day [of danger], and, having done all
[the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your
place]. Stand therefore [hold your ground],
having tightened the belt of truth around
your loins and having put on the breastplate
of integrity and of moral rectitude and right
standing with God, and having shod your
feet in preparation [to face the enemy with
the firm-footed stability, the promptness, and
the readiness produced by the good news]
of the Gospel of peace. Lift up over all the
[covering] shield of saving faith, upon which
you can quench all the flaming missiles of the
wicked [one]. And take the helmet of salvation
and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is
the Word of God. Pray at all times (on every
occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all
[manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end
keep alert and watch with strong purpose and
perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the
saints (God’s consecrated people).

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Jeremiah 20 :11
KJV—The Lord is with me as a mighty terrible
one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble,
and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly
ashamed; for they shall not prosper.

AMP—The Lord is with me as a mighty and
terrible One; therefore my persecutors will
stumble, and they will not overcome [me].
They will be utterly put to shame, for they will
not deal wisely or prosper [in their schemes].

Moffatt—I have the Eternal on my side, a
dread and doughty champion! My persecutors
shall collapse and miss their aim; bitter shall
be their shame over their failure.

NIV—The Lord is with me like a mighty warrior;
so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail.
They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced.

Zechariah 2:8-9
KJV—Thus saith the Lord of hosts…He that
toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.
For, behold, I will shake mine hand upon them,
and they shall be a spoil to their servants.

AMP—Thus said the Lord of hosts…He who
touches you touches the apple or pupil of His
eye: Behold, I will swing my hand over them
and they shall become plunder for those who
served them.

Moffatt—The Lord of hosts declares (for he
who touches you touches the apple of the
Eternal’s eye), I will swing my hand over them,
and they shall be plundered by their victims.

NIV—This is what the Lord Almighty says…
“Whoever touches you touches the apple of
his eye—I will surely raise my hand against
them so that their slaves will plunder them.”

2 Samuel 22:33-34
KJV—God is my strength and power: and
he maketh my way perfect. He maketh my
feet like hinds’ feet: and setteth me upon my
high places.

AMP—God is my strong Fortress; He guides
the blameless in His way and sets him free.
He makes my feet like the hinds’ [firm and
able]; He sets me secure and confident upon
the heights.

Moffatt—God is my stronghold, God is a
perfect guide to me. He makes me nimble as a
deer, and sets me on the height.

NIV—It is God who arms me with strength
and makes my way perfect. He makes my feet
like the feet of a deer; he enables me to stand
on the heights.

Psalm 3:3
KJV—Thou, O Lord, art a shield for me; my
glory, and the lifter up of mine head.

AMP—You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my
glory, and the lifter up of my head.

Moffatt—Thou shieldest me, O thou Eternal,
in triumph, thou whom I do glorify!

NIV—You are a shield around me, O Lord; you
bestow glory on me and lift up my head.

Psalm 18:35
KJV—Thou hast also given me the shield of thy
salvation: and thy right hand hath holden me
up, and thy gentleness hath made me great.

AMP—You have also given me the shield of
Your salvation, and Your right hand has held
me up; Your gentleness and condescension
have made me great.

Moffatt—Thou hast shielded me with thine
aid, thy right hand holds me up; thine answers
to prayer have raised me.

NIV—You give me your shield of victory, and
your right hand sustains me; you stoop down
to make me great.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Psalm 44:7
KJV—Thou hast saved us from our enemies,
and hast put them to shame that hated us.

AMP—You have saved us from our foes and
have put them to shame who hate us.

NIV—You give us victory over our enemies,
you put our adversaries to shame.

NAS—You have saved us from our adversaries,
and You have put to shame those who hate us.

Psalm 57:3
KJV—He shall send from heaven, and save me
from the reproach of him that would swallow
me up…. God shall send forth his mercy and
his truth.

AMP—He will send from heaven and save me
from the slanders and reproaches of him who
would trample me down or swallow me up,
and He will put him to shame…. God will send
forth His mercy and loving-kindness and His
truth and faithfulness.

Moffatt—God send me help from heaven!
God send his love and loyalty, discomfiting
those who would trample me down!

NIV—He sends from heaven and saves me,
rebuking those who hotly pursue me. God
sends his love and his faithfulness.

Psalm 68:1
KJV—Let God arise, let his enemies be
scattered: let them also that hate him flee
before him.

AMP—God is [already] beginning to arise, and
His enemies to scatter; let them also who hate
Him flee before Him!

Moffatt—When God stirs, his enemies scatter,
those who hate him fly before him.

NIV—May God arise, may his enemies be
scattered; may his foes flee before him.

Psalm 109:29
KJV—Let mine adversaries be clothed with
shame, and let them cover themselves with
their own confusion, as with a mantle.

AMP—Let my adversaries be clothed with
shame and dishonor, and let them cover
themselves with their own disgrace and
confusion as with a robe.

Moffatt—May my opponents be covered with
disgrace, robed in their own dishonour!

NIV—My accusers will be clothed with disgrace
and wrapped in shame as in a cloak.

Psalm 140:1, 4
KJV—Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man:
preserve me from the violent man…. Keep
me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
preserve me from the violent man; who have
purposed to overthrow my goings.

AMP—Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men;
preserve me from violent men…. Keep me, O
Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve
me from the violent men who have purposed
to thrust aside my steps.

Moffatt—From evil men deliver me, O Eternal,
save me from violent men…. Preserve me, O
Eternal, from the grip of the ungodly, save
me from outrageous men, who plan to
overthrow me.

NIV—Rescue me, O Lord, from evil men; protect
me from men of violence…. Keep me, O Lord,
from the hands of the wicked; protect me from
men of violence who plan to trip my feet.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries