Salamu
11:1 Mdo 11:30; 2Yn 1Mzee:
Kwa Gayo rafiki yangu, nimpendaye katika kweli.
Gayo Anasifiwa Kwa Ajili Ya Ukarimu Wake
21:2 2Yn 4Mpendwa, naomba ufanikiwe katika mambo yote na kuwa na afya njema kama vile roho yako ifanikiwavyo. 31:3 Mdo 1:16; 2Yn 4Ilinifurahisha sana baadhi ya ndugu walipokuja na kutueleza juu ya uaminifu wako katika kweli na jinsi unavyoendelea kuenenda katika hiyo kweli. 41:4 1Kor 4:14; 1Yn 1:2Sina furaha kubwa kuliko hii, kusikia kwamba watoto wangu wanaenenda katika kweli.
51:5 Rum 12:13Rafiki mpendwa, wewe ni mwaminifu kwa yale unayowatendea ndugu, ingawa wao ni wageni kwako. 61:6 1Kor 16:11; 2Kor 1:16; Efe 4:1Wameshuhudia kuhusu upendo wako mbele ya kanisa. Utafanya vyema ukiwasafirisha kama inavyostahili kwa Mungu. 71:7 Yn 15:21; Mdo 20:33, 35Ilikuwa ni kwa ajili ya hilo Jina waliondoka, bila kukubali kupokea msaada wowote kutoka kwa watu wasioamini. 81:8 Ebr 13:2; 2Yn 10Kwa hiyo imetupasa sisi kuonyesha ukarimu kwa watu kama hao ili tuweze kutenda kazi pamoja kwa ajili ya kweli.
Deotrefe
9Nililiandikia kanisa, lakini Deotrefe, yeye apendaye kujifanya wa kwanza, hakubali mamlaka yetu. 101:10 3Yn 14; 2Yn 5; Yn 9:22, 34Hivyo kama nikija, nitakumbuka matendo yake atendayo, akitusingizia kwa maneno ya hila. Wala hatosheki na hayo anayotusingizia, bali pia hukataa kuwakaribisha ndugu, na hata huwazuia wale walio tayari kufanya hivyo na kuwafukuza watoke kanisani.
Demetrio
111:11 Za 34:14; 37:27; 1Yn 2:29; 3:6, 9, 10Rafiki mpendwa, usiige lile lililo baya bali lile lililo jema. Yeyote atendaye mema atoka kwa Mungu, bali atendaye mabaya hajamwona Mungu.
121:12 Yn 19:39; 21:24Kila mtu ameshuhudia mema kuhusu Demetrio, vivyo hivyo hata na hiyo kweli yenyewe. Sisi pia twashuhudia mema juu yake, nanyi mwajua kwamba ushuhuda wetu ni kweli.
Salamu Za Mwisho
131:13 2Yn 12Ninayo mambo mengi ya kukuandikia, lakini sipendi kuandika kwa kalamu na wino. 141:14 2Yn 12; Rum 1:7; Efe 6:23; Yn 10:3Badala yake, nataraji kukuona upesi, nasi tutaongea pamoja ana kwa ana.
15Amani iwe kwako. Rafiki zetu walioko hapa wanakusalimu. Wasalimu hao rafiki zetu walioko huko, kila mmoja kwa jina lake.
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.
