Tjilakidzo tje ndobolo
1 Apa amutoziba kene zwikamu kuti nlayo unolaula nthu ha atjatjila koga? Ndolebeleka ne bathu banoziba nlayo. 2 Kongasawoku nkadzi wakalobogwa wakasungwa nge nlayo ku nlume uwe ha nlume atjatjila, koga ha nlume uwe atjifa nkadzi wasununguka mu nlayo we ndobolo. 3 Ndizo ha elobogwa nge mmwe nlume koga nlume uwe atjatjila, unowodang'wa phombgwekadzi. Koga ha nlume uwe afa, wasununguka mu nlayo iwoyu, ndizo ha elobogwa nge mmwe ate ali phombgwekadzi. 4 Saikoko zwikamu zwangu makafa ku nlayo, ndi Kirisiti, kuti ndizo ngwenu mube be upoga ba iye wakamusiwa mu bafi, kuti ndizo mube nge zwizwalo mu Ndzimu. 5 Takati titjatjilila tjinyama njemulo dzedu mbi dzinosasayidzigwa nge nlayo dzakabe dzishinga mu mibili yedu, dzakasima kuti dzizwale mitjelo ye lufu. 6 Koga ngwenu takasunungugwa mu nlayo, ngoti takafa kuna itjo tjakatongobe tjakatisunga. Ndizo atitoshinga tili pasi kwe nlayo nkulukugwi wakabe wakakwagwa, timu butjilo butshwa gwe Meya.
Nlayo ne tjibi
7 Towotini ngono? Towoti nlayo tjibi kene? Ndodwa! Koga ha nlayo wakabe usipo ndobe ndisakaziba tjibi. Ha nlayo wakabe usati, “Usitjibe” ndobe ndisakaziba kuti tjiba ini. 8 Koga ngekwe nlayo tjibi tjakawana tjibaka tje kuthama zila dzose dze tjiba mundili. Kuzhe kwe nlayo tjibi tjakafa. 9 Ndakatongobe ndili mpenyu kuzhe kwe nlayo, koga nlayo wakati uzha, tjibi tjikamuka, ngono afa. 10 Ngono nlayo iwo wakabe wakafanila kuzhisa butjilo, ku ndili wakazhisa lufu. 11 Ngobe tjibi ngowana tjibaka tjakatubula mu nlayo tjikanditjebela, nge kwawo tjikandibulaya.
12 Ndizo nlayo wakayengemala ne ndayo yakayengemala kakale yakalulwama imbuya. 13 Apa ikoku kodwa kuti tjakalulwama tjakandizhisila lufu kene? Ndodwa! Tjibi nditjo tjakazhisa lufu ngoshingisa tjakalulwama, kuti ndizo tjibi tjiboneke kuti tjibi. Ngono ndizo nge nlayo tjibi tjolakidziwa tjakabipa kupindisa.
Ngwa imu nthu
14 Toziba kuti nlayo u tjimeya, koga imi ndi tjinyama, ndakatengesiwa kube nlanda we tjibi. 15 Anditohwisisa mishingo yangu, ngobe anditoshinga tjandinoda koga ndoshinga itjo tjandisingashake. 16 Ndizo ha ndishinga tjandisingashake ndoduma kuti nlayo wakalulwama. 17 Ndizo akutji imi ndinotjithama koga i tjibi tjigele mundili. 18 Ngobe ndoziba kuti akuna tjakalulwama tjinogala mundili, ndodwa kuti mu mbumbiko yangu ye tjinyama. Ndingayemula kushinga tjakalulwama koga asitubule kutjishinga; 19 ngobe tjandinoshinga ate tjakanaka tjandinoshaka shinga, koga, mbipo yandisingashake shinga ndiyo yandinoshinga. 20 Koga ngwenu andishinga tjandisingashake shinga, akutji imi ndinotjishinga koga tjibi tjinogala mundili.
21 Ndizo ndotjiwana kwabe nlayo kuti ha ndishaka kushinga tjakalulwama, mbipo ipejo nami. 22 Ngobe mukati kwangu ndoshathila nlayo we Ndzimu, 23 koga ndobona nlayo upoga ushinga mu ndungululo dze mbili wangu, ugwa ne nlayo we nkumbulo wangu, ngono undithama nsungwa we nlayo we tjibi unogala mu ndungululo dze mbili wangu. 24 Ndodziyila seni! Apa ndiani unowondiangulila mu mbili iwoyu we lufu kene? 25 Ngakubokiwe Ndzimu, iwo unoshinga ikoku ndi She wedu Jesu Kirisiti!
Ndizo ngwenu imi nge kwangu mu nkumbulo wangu ndolondolodza nlayo we Ndzimu, koga mu tjinyama ndolondolodza nlayo we tjibi.
An Example from Marriage
1 My friends, you surely understand enough about law to know that laws only have power over people who are alive. 2 For example, the Law says that a man's wife must remain his wife as long as he lives. But once her husband is dead, she is free 3 to marry someone else. However, if she goes off with another man while her husband is still alive, she is said to be unfaithful.
4 That is how it is with you, my friends. You are now part of the body of Christ and are dead to the power of the Law. You are free to belong to Christ, who was raised to life so we could serve God. 5 When we thought only of ourselves, the Law made us have sinful desires. It made every part of our bodies into slaves who are doomed to die. 6 But the Law no longer rules over us. We are like dead people, and it cannot have any power over us. Now we can serve God in a new way by obeying his Spirit, and not in the old way by obeying the written Law.
The Battle with Sin
7 Does this mean that the Law is sinful? Certainly not! But if it had not been for the Law, I would not have known what sin is really like. For example, I would not have known what it means to want something that belongs to someone else, unless the Law had told me not to do this. 8 It was sin that used this command as a way of making me have all kinds of desires. But without the Law, sin is dead.
9 Before I knew about the Law, I was alive. But as soon as I heard that command, sin came to life, 10 and I died. The very command that was supposed to bring life to me, instead brought death. 11 Sin used this command to trick me, and because of it I died. 12 Still, the Law and its commands are holy and correct and good.
13 Am I saying something good caused my death? Certainly not! It was sin that killed me by using something good. Now we can see how terrible and evil sin really is. 14 We know that the Law is spiritual. But I am merely a human, and I have been sold as a slave to sin. 15 In fact, I don't understand why I act the way I do. I don't do what I know is right. I do the things I hate. 16 Although I don't do what I know is right, I agree that the Law is good. 17 So I am not the one doing these evil things. The sin that lives in me is what does them.
18 I know that my selfish desires won't let me do anything that is good. Even when I want to do right, I cannot. 19 Instead of doing what I know is right, I do wrong. 20 And so, if I don't do what I know is right, I am no longer the one doing these evil things. The sin that lives in me is what does them.
21 The Law has shown me that something in me keeps me from doing what I know is right. 22 With my whole heart I agree with the Law of God. 23 But in every part of me I discover something fighting against my mind, and it makes me a prisoner of sin that controls everything I do. 24 What a miserable person I am. Who will rescue me from this body that is doomed to die? 25 Thank God! Jesus Christ will rescue me.
So with my mind I serve the Law of God, although my selfish desires make me serve the law of sin.