True Humility
1 Christ encourages you, and his love comforts you. God's Spirit unites you, and you are concerned for others. 2 Now make me completely happy! Live in harmony by showing love for each other. Be united in what you think, as if you were only one person. 3 Don't be jealous or proud, but be humble and consider others more important than yourselves. 4 Care about them as much as you care about yourselves 5 and think the same way that Christ Jesus thought:
6 Christ was truly God.
But he did not try to remain
equal with God.
7 Instead he gave up everything
and became a slave,
when he became
like one of us.
8 Christ was humble.
He obeyed God and even died
on a cross.
9 Then God gave Christ
the highest place
and honored his name
above all others.
10 So at the name of Jesus
everyone will bow down,
those in heaven, on earth,
and under the earth.
11 And to the glory
of God the Father
everyone will openly agree,
“Jesus Christ is Lord!”
Lights in the World
12 My dear friends, you always obeyed when I was with you. Now that I am away, you should obey even more. So work with fear and trembling to discover what it really means to be saved. 13 God is working in you to make you willing and able to obey him.
14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing. 15 Then you will be the pure and innocent children of God. You live among people who are crooked and evil, but you must not do anything they can say is wrong. Try to shine as lights among the people of this world, 16 as you hold firmly to the message that gives life. Then on the day when Christ returns, I can take pride in you. I can also know that my work and efforts were not useless.
17 Your faith in the Lord and your service are like a sacrifice offered to him. And my own blood may have to be poured out with the sacrifice. If this happens, I will be glad and rejoice with you. 18 In the same way, you should be glad and rejoice with me.
Timothy and Epaphroditus
19 I want to be encouraged by news about you. So I hope the Lord Jesus will soon let me send Timothy to you. 20 I don't have anyone else who cares about you as much as he does. 21 The others think only about what interests them and not about what concerns Christ Jesus. 22 But you know what kind of person Timothy is. He has worked with me like a son in spreading the good news. 23 I hope to send him to you, as soon as I find out what is going to happen to me. 24 And I feel sure the Lord will also let me come soon.
25 I think I ought to send my dear friend Epaphroditus back to you. He is a follower and a worker and a soldier of the Lord, just as I am. You sent him to look after me, 26 but now he is eager to see you. He is worried, because you heard he was sick. 27 In fact, he was very sick and almost died. But God was kind to him, and also to me, and he kept me from being burdened down with sorrow.
28 Now I am more eager than ever to send Epaphroditus back again. You will be glad to see him, and I won't have to worry any longer. 29 Be sure to give him a cheerful welcome, just as people who serve the Lord deserve. 30 He almost died working for Christ, and he risked his own life to do for me what you could not.
Omerisusuparisiro wa Kristus nounene we
1 Ongarero yeṋu mu Kristus mai mu zeuparisa, norusuvero rwe maru mu huhumiṋa. Eṋe mu noruwano nOmbepo ya Kristus, nu mu ṱirasana otjari nondjenda. 2 Otji me riyarikaṋa ku eṋe kutja mu urise ondjorokero yandje mokuripura tjimwe na mokukara norusuvero rumwe na mokukara momutima umwe nouripura umwe. 3 Amu tjiti otjiṋa ngamwa mokurivara oveni poo mokurihiva oveni, nungwari zarasaneye nomerisusuparisiro, aruhe ovakweṋu amamu ve vara otja ovananḓengu pu eṋe. 4 Amu tara kozonḓero zeṋu porwe, nungwari tareye ku inḓa zovakweṋu wina. 5 Kareye nomeritjindiro wongaro tjingeyo ndji Kristus Jesus ndja ri na yo.
6 Eye aruhe wa ri mongaro ya Ndjambi,
nungwari ka panḓerere pokuripura
kutja u ṱeki pu Ndjambi.
7 Moruveze rwanao nombango ye omuini
eye we risusuparisa
na kambura ongaro yomukarere.
Eye wa rira omundu,
na munika mombuniko yomundu.
8 Eye we risusuparisa omuini na rire
omunanḓuviro nga konḓiro,
nga konḓiro ye yotjikoroise.
9 Ndjambi wina opa zire okumutongamisa kombanda,
ne mu ruku ena, ndi ri kombanda yomana aehe.
10 Nu komuhingo mbwi mondengero kena ra Jesus,
oviutwa avihe meyuru na kombanda yehi na kehi yehi
mavi woro ozongoro,
11 nu avehe mave hongonona ave tja:
“Jesus Kristus eye oMuhona!”
kondjozikiro ya Ndjambi Ihe.
Okuyera otja ondjerera mouye
12 Vakwetu ovasuverwa, eṋe aruhe mwa ri nonḓuviro ku ami tji mba ri puna eṋe. Otji mamu sokukara nonḓuviro tjinene nambano ngunda ambi ri kokure na eṋe. Ramangeye ondjamo yeṋu amu nondjozikiro nondira ku Ndjambi, 13 Ndjambi tjinga e ungura mu eṋe aruhe. Eye me mu pe ombango nomasorero okuyenenisa ondyero ye.
14 Tjiteye avihe nokuhinakuunauna poo okunyamukura, 15 kokutja mu rire ovehinandjo novakohoke otja ovanatje ovapwe va Ndjambi, mba tura mouye wovandu, mba pandjara nu mba zunḓaka. Rireye omamunine mokati kawo otja ozonyose nḓe yerisa evaverwa ouṱuku, 16 amamu panḓere pokuvepa embo romuinyo. Tji mwa tjiti oviṋa mbi, ami me rihivire eṋe meyuva Kristus ndi meya, motjimbe tjokutja ma tji raisa kutja ami hi kondjere omungandjo, nu hi ungurire omungandjo.
17 Ongamburiro yeṋu oyo ombunguhiro motjiungura tjokukarera Ndjambi. Ombinḓu yandje nandi ya tirahiwa okurira ombunguhiro yomanuwa, ami me yoroka, ii, me yoroka puna eṋe amuhe. 18 Momuhingo tjingewo eṋe wina mamu sokuyoroka, ii, mamu sokuyoroka puna ami.
Timoteus na Epafroditus
19 Nu tje ri ombango ya Muhona Jesus, ami me hindi Timoteus ku eṋe tjimanga, kokutja mbi yarurwe pehi omutima tji mba zuu ongarero yeṋu. 20 Eye erike ongu nomutima umwe otja ami, nu tjiri, ongu rikendera eṋe. 21 Avehe varwe ve rikendera imbi ovyonḓero yawo oveni uriri, nu kave rikendere imbi vya Jesus Kristus. 22 Neṋe mamu tjiwa nawa kutja Timoteus omupyuke, nokutja eṱe na ye, otja omuatje na ihe, twa ungura pamwe okuzuvarisa indji Ombuze Ombwa. 23 Ami otji me ripura oku mu hindi ku eṋe tjimanga, indu tji mba zu nokutjiwa kutja me tjitwa vi. 24 Nami me riyameke ku Muhona kutja, tje ri ombango ye, ami omuini mbi ye tjimanga ku eṋe.
25 Nu mba tjangovasi me yarura omukwetu Epafroditus ku eṋe; eye wa ungura puna ami nu twa rwa pamwe; wa ungura otja omuhindwa weṋu mokundjivatera moumba mu mbi ri. 26 Eye u nonḓero tjinene okumumuna amuhe, nu u rikenda tjinene, tjinga a zuva kutja eṋe mwa zuvire kutja eye wa verere tjinene. 27 Nu, tjiri, eye wa verere nga tja hara okuṱa; nu Ndjambi we mu tjariparera, nu kaye uriri ngwa tjariparerwa, nungwari wina ami we ndji tjariparera, kokutja e ha kara noruhoze. 28 Ami otji me mu hindi ku eṋe, kokutja tji mwe mu munu, mu kare nenyando nokutja oruhoze rwandje ru yande. 29 Nu mu yakureye nenyando otja ngu ri omukweṋu mu Muhona. Yozikeye ovandu mbe ri nai, 30 eye tjinga a hara okuṱira otjiungura tja Kristus, kokutja e ndji pe ombatero eṋe ndji mu ha yenenene okundjipa.
