1Me, Asɔre panin,
Meretwerɛ akɔma me dɔfo pa Gaio.
2Mʼadamfo pa, mebɔ mpaeɛ sɛ biribiara nkɔ so yie mma wo, na nya ahoɔden sɛdeɛ menim sɛ honhom fa mu no, wowɔ ahoɔden no. 3Anuanom bi baa ha bɛka kyerɛɛ me sɛ, woanya nokorɛ no mu gyidie no, na woda so kura nokorɛ no mu no, ɛyɛɛ me anigye yie. 4Biribiara nyɛ me anigye nkyɛn sɛ mɛte sɛ me mma no te nokorɛ mu.
5Mʼadamfo pa, wodi nokorɛ yie wɔ adwuma a woyɛ ma anuanom no a ɛmfa ho sɛ wɔyɛ ahɔhoɔ mpo. 6Wɔaka ɔdɔ a wodɔ asafo a ɛwɔ hɔ no ho asɛm. Mesrɛ wo, boa wɔn wɔn akwantuo no mu ma ɛnsɔ Onyankopɔn ani. 7Ɛfiri sɛ, wɔn kwan a wɔretu no, wɔretu wɔ Awurade din mu a wɔmpɛ mmoa biara mfiri wɔn a wɔnyɛ agyidifoɔ no nkyɛn. 8Yɛn Akristofoɔ na ɛsɛ sɛ yɛboa saa nnipa no sɛdeɛ yɛne wɔn bɛyɛ nokorɛ no ho adwuma.
Diotrefe
9Metwerɛɛ krataa tiawa bi kɔmaa asafo no, nanso Diotrefe a nʼani gye sɛ ɔyɛ wɔn panin no rentie deɛ meka no. 10Sɛ meba a, biribiara a wayɛ no, mede ho asɛm bɛto mo anim. Nsɛm a ɛyɛ hu a ɔka fa yɛn ho ne atorɔ a ɔtwa nyinaa, mɛka ho asɛm. Nanso, ɛno nko ara nyɛ mma no. Sɛ anuanom afoforɔ ba a, ɔnnye wɔn, na obiara a ɔpɛ sɛ ɔgye wɔn no nso, ɔsi wɔn kwan na wabɔ mmɔden apam wɔn afiri asafo no mu.
11Mʼadamfo pa, monnsua ade bɔne, na mmom, monsua ade pa. Obiara a ɔyɛ papa no yɛ Onyankopɔn dea. Na obiara a ɔyɛ bɔne no nhunuu Onyankopɔn. 12Obiara ka Demetrio ho asɛm pa, na mpo nokorɛ no ankasa ka ne ho asɛm pa. Na yɛn nso yɛdi ne ho adanseɛ pa na monim sɛ deɛ yɛka no yɛ nokorɛ.
13Mewɔ nsɛm bebree ka kyerɛ mo, nanso meremfa krataa ne twerɛdua so nka. 14Ɛrenkyɛre biara mɛhunu mo na me ne mo akasa.
15Asomdwoeɛ nka mo.
Mo nnamfonom nyinaa kyeakyea mo. Kyeakyea yɛn nnamfonom nyinaa.
1I, the elder, am writing this letter.
I am sending it to you, my dear friend Gaius. I love you because of the truth.
2Dear friend, I know that your spiritual life is going well. I pray that you also may enjoy good health. And I pray that everything else may go well with you. 3Some believers came to me and told me that you are faithful to the truth. They told me that you continue to live by it. This news gave me great joy. 4I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are living by the truth.
5Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers and sisters. You are faithful even though they are strangers to you. 6They have told the church about your love. Please help them by sending them on their way in a manner that honors God. 7They started on their journey to serve Jesus Christ. They didn’t receive any help from those who aren’t believers. 8So we should welcome people like them. We should work together with them for the truth.
9I wrote to the church. But Diotrephes will not welcome us. He loves to be the first in everything. 10So when I come, I will point out what he is doing. He is saying evil things that aren’t true about us. Even this doesn’t satisfy him. So he refuses to welcome other believers. He also keeps others from welcoming them. In fact, he throws them out of the church.
11Dear friend, don’t be like those who do evil. Be like those who do good. Anyone who does what is good belongs to God. Anyone who does what is evil hasn’t really seen or known God. 12Everyone says good things about Demetrius. He lives in keeping with the truth. We also say good things about him. And you know that what we say is true.
13I have a lot to write to you. But I don’t want to write with pen and ink. 14I hope I can see you soon. Then we can talk face to face.
15May you have peace.
The friends here send their greetings. Greet each one of the friends there.
