Preserve Your Freedom
1 Freedom is what we have—Christ has set us free! Stand, then, as free people, and do not allow yourselves to become slaves again.
2 Listen! I, Paul, tell you that if you allow yourselves to be circumcised, it means that Christ is of no use to you at all. 3 Once more I warn any man who allows himself to be circumcised that he is obliged to obey the whole Law. 4 Those of you who try to be put right with God by obeying the Law have cut yourselves off from Christ. You are outside God's grace. 5 As for us, our hope is that God will put us right with him; and this is what we wait for by the power of God's Spirit working through our faith. 6 For when we are in union with Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor the lack of it makes any difference at all; what matters is faith that works through love.
7 You were doing so well! Who made you stop obeying the truth? How did he persuade you? 8 It was not done by God, who calls you. 9 “It takes only a little yeast to make the whole batch of dough rise,” as they say. 10 But I still feel confident about you. Our life in union with the Lord makes me confident that you will not take a different view and that whoever is upsetting you will be punished by God.
11 But as for me, my friends, if I continue to preach that circumcision is necessary, why am I still being persecuted? If that were true, then my preaching about the cross of Christ would cause no trouble. 12 I wish that the people who are upsetting you would go all the way; let them go on and castrate themselves!
13 As for you, my friends, you were called to be free. But do not let this freedom become an excuse for letting your physical desires control you. Instead, let love make you serve one another. 14 For the whole Law is summed up in one commandment: “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” 15 But if you act like wild animals, hurting and harming each other, then watch out, or you will completely destroy one another.
The Spirit and Human Nature
16 What I say is this: let the Spirit direct your lives, and you will not satisfy the desires of the human nature. 17 For what our human nature wants is opposed to what the Spirit wants, and what the Spirit wants is opposed to what our human nature wants. These two are enemies, and this means that you cannot do what you want to do. 18 If the Spirit leads you, then you are not subject to the Law.
19 What human nature does is quite plain. It shows itself in immoral, filthy, and indecent actions; 20 in worship of idols and witchcraft. People become enemies and they fight; they become jealous, angry, and ambitious. They separate into parties and groups; 21 they are envious, get drunk, have orgies, and do other things like these. I warn you now as I have before: those who do these things will not possess the Kingdom of God.
22 But the Spirit produces love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 humility, and self-control. There is no law against such things as these. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have put to death their human nature with all its passions and desires. 25 The Spirit has given us life; he must also control our lives. 26 We must not be proud or irritate one another or be jealous of one another.
Nyä̀ti Dritai Amiro
1 Dritai ni ŋgase ama be sina owo, Kristo onji ama te dritai ro! Ka'do inye nyèdre ŋgyiri oso lidri dritai ro ronye, ago mì'ba andivo amiro ko a'done kpa to'di iyeäṛii ro.
2 Nyèri! Ma, Paulo, ma ta iti ämiri ondro ka'do mìlete andivo amiro olone ŋbiṛiro, anjioko Kristo iro te ta awi yi ämiri. 3 Ma tazevoedre kpa to'di mano se lebe andivo ndaro olone ŋbiṛiro anjioko ndäri Ota cini orone. 4 Azaka amiro se kabe ojo iyi o'bane a'done ŋgye Lu be ugu Ota oro si iyi, kyeyi andivo ànyaro te lozo ni Kristo resi, ami te orivoya tesi ni tai'dwero Lu ro resi. 5 Oko ama, mio'ba amaro anjioko Lu o'bana ama 'da ŋgye nda be; ago ono ni ŋgase màbe kotena owo, mbara Tori Lu ro ro kugu losi oye ama ya taoma si. 6 Tana ondro ama rudro'be be Kristo Yesu be, ca 'diolo ŋbiṛiro ca oloako ŋbiṛiro 'ba a'do toto ko; tapara anjioko orivoya ni taoma se kabe losi oye ŋgalu si 'do.
7 Mìye tate kadoro! Oko a'di 'ba ami ni edrene ni taŋgye orovoya ya? Nda leye ami te eŋwanye ya? 8 Lu se kabe ami uzi ono ye kote ni. 9 “Loŋga giṛiŋwa kani ambata o'ba upine duŋguṛu, oso ànya kabe ata ronye.” 10 Oko ma gi'du mio'ba be ami ya. Ori amaro rudro'be Opi be si kani ma o'ba mio'bane anjioko mìnina ko a'done ta to aza be, ago mano se kabe ami gburu, nda 'bo a'di owo ya, Lu ezana nda 'da.
11 Ädrupii maro, ondro ka'do ma drigba ta 'diolo ŋbiṛiro ro opena, tana e'di a dri gi'du ugu ma eza niya? Ondro 'do ka'do ndi ta endaro yi, 'dooko taope maro ta taka Kristo ro rota unina ko rriti ozone. 12 Aba male gi ṛo lidri se kabe ugu ami gburu koyi ri ànya enjine ndra, mì'ba ànya keŋgyeyi andivo ànyaro roti ro!
13 Oko ami, ädrupii maro, äzi ami te a'done dritai ro. Oko mì'ba dritai amiro ono ko a'done megyegye ro ugu ole lomvo amiro ro ri ami mirine ni. Oko, mì'ba ŋgalu ko'ba ami ruindune azi ri. 14 Tana Ota cini aṛi kalana te ota alo ono ya. “Nyulu oriazi miro oso nyabe andivo miro lu ronye.” 15 Oko ondro nyà taoye oso koronyai vocowaro ronye, nyà azi oga ago nyà ugu oyena koziro, mìndre ami kado ukyi nyèpere azi 'da.
Tori ndi A'do Lomvo robe
16 Tase mabe atana ni ono: mì'ba Tori kelepe ori amiro ni, ago mìnina ko ole lomvo ro oyene. 17 Tana ŋgase lomvo amaro kabe olena letadri ko tase Tori kolebe be, ago ŋgase Tori kolebe letadri ko tase lomvo kolebe be. Se ritu kwoi orivoya kyila'baazii, ago ta ono ro mìnina ko tase mìlebe oyene. 18 Ondro Tori kate ni ami lepe, 'dooko ami kote Ota zele.
19 Tase a'do lomvo ro kabe oyena orivoya ṛo ŋbelero. Aka'da begi kwoi, ronyi, taundi, taoye undiro, 20 lui awi mätu, läkä. Lidri ka a'do kyila'baazii ro ago kayi kyila oye, ànya kayi a'do yaoko be, kyila be, yao'ba be, ànya kayi rulewe njonjo ago gboko ro, 21 mawi o'ba si, 'diufu wa si si, käri kozi si, ndi ŋga azaka oso kwoi ronye oye be. Ma ata ämiri kpa to'di oso maye be käti ronye, ànya se kayibe ta kwoi oyena urunayi Miri 'Bädri'ba Lu ro ro ko drimbi ro.
22 Oko Tori ka ŋgalu, riyä, taliatokpe, yaiŋgyi, yauni, takado, a'do'diri, 23 mäwuako ndi andivo rita be owa. Ota aza i'do se ka ata ekye ŋga kwoi orivoya koziro. 24 Ago ànya se Kristo Yesu ro 'bayi a'do lomvo ro ànyaro te odrane mbara cini anyaro ndi ŋgalovona be be. 25 Tori ozo adri te ämäri; beṛo kpa ndäri ni ori amaro ritane. 26 Beṛo ko ämäri a'done driuŋgyi be kode ya azi ro ekwone kode a'done yaoko be azi lomvo.