1 If you are a slave, you should respect and honor your owner. This will keep people from saying bad things about God and about our teaching. 2 If any of you slaves have owners who are followers, you should show them respect. After all, they are also followers of Christ, and he loves them. So you should serve and help them the best you can.
False Teaching and True Wealth
These are the things you must teach and tell the people to do. 3 Anyone who teaches something different disagrees with the correct and godly teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 Those people who disagree are proud of themselves, but they don't really know a thing. Their minds are sick, and they like to argue over words. They cause jealousy, disagreements, unkind words, evil suspicions, 5 and nasty quarrels. They have wicked minds and have missed out on the truth.
These people think religion is supposed to make you rich. 6 And religion does make your life rich, by making you content with what you have. 7 We didn't bring anything into this world, and we won't take anything with us when we leave. 8 So we should be satisfied just to have food and clothes. 9 People who want to be rich fall into all sorts of temptations and traps. They are caught by foolish and harmful desires that drag them down and destroy them. 10 The love of money causes all kinds of trouble. Some people want money so much they have given up their faith and caused themselves a lot of pain.
Fighting a Good Fight for the Faith
11 Timothy, you belong to God, so keep away from all these evil things. Try your best to please God and to be like him. Be faithful, loving, dependable, and gentle. 12 Fight a good fight for the faith and claim eternal life. God offered it to you when you clearly told about your faith, while so many people listened. 13 Now I ask you to make a promise. Make it in the presence of God, who gives life to all, and in the presence of Christ Jesus, who openly told Pontius Pilate about his faith. 14 Promise to obey completely and fully all that you have been told until our Lord Jesus Christ returns.
15 The glorious God
is the only Ruler,
the King of kings
and Lord of lords.
At the time that God
has already decided,
he will send Jesus Christ
back again.
16 Only God lives forever!
And he lives in light
that no one can come near.
No human has ever seen God
or ever can see him.
God will be honored,
and his power
will last forever. Amen.
17 Warn the rich people of this world not to be proud or to trust in wealth that is easily lost. Tell them to have faith in God, who is rich and blesses us with everything we need to enjoy life. 18 Instruct them to do as many good deeds as they can and to help everyone. Remind the rich to be generous and share what they have. 19 This will lay a solid foundation for the future, so they will know what true life is like.
20 Timothy, guard what God has placed in your care! Don't pay any attention to godless and stupid talk that sounds smart but really isn't. 21 Some people have even lost their faith by believing this talk.
I pray that the Lord will be kind to all of you!
1 Bose bamu jokwi le bulanda bakafanila linga botetshi bali bathu banofanigwa nge kutetiwa kwakapelela, kuti ndizo zina le Ndzimu ne zwidiyo zwisitjinyiwe. 2 Ibabo bana botetshi banogalamoyo abazofanila kubashayila mazwibhato ngobe bali zwikamu. Koga bakafanila kubashingila kupinda, ngobe ibabo banobuyigwa mu nshingo wabo bagalimoyo kakale bali badiwa.
Tjidiyo tje manyepkhwa ne fumwa dze malebeswa
Ezwi ndizo zwithu zwawakafanila kubadiya ne kubalaya.
3 Ha mmwe ediya zwidiyo zwipoga, asingadumane ne zwidiyo zwe malebeswa zwa She wedu Jesu Kirisiti ne zwidiyo zwinoyendidzana ngotja Ndzimu, 4 unozwida kakale akuna tjaanoziba. Unohwanana nge kunyanyayidzana nenge kukakabadzana ngekwe matama kunozhisa ndandala ne kutukana ne ndebo dzinotjinya bamwe mazina, kukumbulila kwakabipa 5 nenge kusayendidzana kusingapele pakati kwe bathu be mikumbulo yakaleleka bakalashikigwa nge malebeswa, kakale banokumbula kuti kunamata Ndzimu ndiyo zila ye kuwana fumwa ye mari.
6 Koga kunamata Ndzimu, i mbuyilo hwulu, ina kugutshika nge tjaunatjo. 7 Ngobe akuna tjatakazhisa mu shango, akuna tjatinowotola mu shango iyeyi. 8 Koga ha kuli kuti tina zojiwa ne zwiambalo, takafanila kugutshiwa ndi ikoko. 9 Koga ibabo banoshaka kufuma, banowowila mu kulikwa ne mu dati le njemulo njinji dze bulengwe dzinokubadza, kakale dzinolashila nthu mu kuloba ne kukolomoka. 10 Ngobe ludo gwe mari ndigo ndzi we bubi gose, bamwe bathu, ngoda mari, bakabhuda mu kugalamoyo, ngono bakazwihwisa zogwadza kunjinji.
Ndayo kuna Timoti
11 Koga iwe nthu we Ndzimu, tizha ikoku kose, uzwimisile ndulamo ne kutja Ndzimu ne kugalamoyo ne ludo ne kudzikitadza nenge moyonnyolo. 12 Igwa ngwa mbuyanana ye bugalimoyo. Uwane butjilo gusingapele gwawakadanigwa pawakazwileba bugalimoyo gugo kwakatambunuka mbeli kwe batendeki banjinji. 13 Mu mesho e Ndzimu iwo unopa tjimwe ne tjimwe butjilo ne mu mesho a Kirisiti Jesu iye wakati epa butendeki mbeli kwa Pontiyo Pilato kazwileba kwakatambunuka, ndokulaya kuti 14 ulondolodze ndayo iyeyi kusina itoyi kene nlandu kuswikila kuboneka kwa She wedu Jesu Kirisiti, 15 iko Ndzimu kwaunowozhisa nge tjibaka tjawo, Ndzimu iwo una makombolelo, iwo Mbusi ali yega. Iye Mambo wa bomambo, kakale She wa boshe, 16 iwo woga usingafe, kakale unogala mu tjedza tjisingasedzegwe kutjili, usina wakatongo ubona kene ungaubona. Ngakubepo gudzo ne simba lisingapele kuuli. Ngakujalo.
17 Idwa ibabo bakafuma fumwa ye shango iyeyi, kuti basishiye kene kubiga kugalabgwe kwabo mu fumwa dzisina malebeswa, koga bagalebgwe mu Ndzimu, iwo unotipa nge buzhalo tjimwe ne tjimwe tje kushatha kwedu. 18 Bakafanila kuthama zwakalulwama, babe ne fumwa mu mishingo yakalulwama ne kupana nenge kuzwimisila kukobana ne bamwe. 19 Nge zila iyeyi, banowozwibigila thiwa yakalulwama ye mangwana, kuti ndizo bawane butjilo gwe malebeswa.
20 Timoti, lisa tjawakapiwa mu maboko awo. Thubukana ne ndebo dzisina bundzimu nenge kukakabadzana kwe bulengwe iko kunodang'wa “Luzibo,” 21 bamwe gwabakati banago ngono nge zila iyeyi bakabhuda mu kugalamoyo.
Ngoni dze Ndzimu dzibe namwi.