Galati 3

1 Galati hlangang rhoek aw, a tai tangtae Jesuh Khrih te mik hmuh ah a tueng lalah unim nangmih aka hloih.

You [fellow believers who live in] Galatia are very foolish! (Someone must have put an evil spell on you!/Did someone put an evil spell on you?) [RHQ] I clearly explained to you [SYN] [what] Jesus Christ [accomplished when] he was crucified {he died on the cross}.

2 Nangmih lamkah tah he bueng ni ming ka ngaih. Olkhueng kah khoboe nen nim, na dang uh mueihla neh tangnah hnavue nen nim?

[So], I want you to tell me one thing: [Do you think that] it was because you obeyed the laws God gave Moses that you received the [Holy] Spirit? [Do you not know that] [RHQ] it was because [when you] heard [the good message concerning Christ, you] trusted in him?

3 Hlangang la na om uh tangloeng. Mueihla ah hma aka pai loh pumsa ah na khah uh coeng.

(You are acting so foolishly/Why are you being so foolish?) [RHQ]! You first [became Christians] as a result of God’s Spirit [enabling you]. So, (you should not now think that it is by what you yourselves do that you will continue [to grow spiritually]/do you now think it is by your own human efforts that you will continue [to grow spiritually?]!) [RHQ]

4 A hoeihae lam nim heyet na patang uh? Te koinih a hoeihae pawn ni te.

Keep in mind that [if what God has done for you was because of your obeying the laws that God gave to Moses and] not because of trusting in Christ, when others caused you to suffer, you suffered many things needlessly! [RHQ] [I certainly hope that you did not suffer like that] needlessly.

5 Te dongah nangmih te mueihla aka pae tih nangmih ah thaomnah a tueng sak tah olkhueng kah khoboe nen nim? Thangnah kah hnavue nen dae nim?

[When God now] generously gives to you his Spirit and performs miracles among you, [do you think that it is] [RHQ] because you obey the laws [that God gave to Moses? Surely you know that] it is because when you heard [the good message about Christ], you trusted in him [RHQ]!

6 Te vanbangla Abraham loh Pathen te a tangnah tih amah te duengnah la a nawt.

[What you have experienced is] as [Moses wrote in the Scriptures about] Abraham. [He wrote that Abraham] trusted God, and as a result, he was considered as being righteous {[God] erased the record of his sins}.

7 Te dongah tangnah dongkah rhoek tah Abraham kah a ca rhoek ni tila ming uh.

You must realize, therefore, that it is those who trust [in what Christ has done who] are [like] Abraham’s descendants [MET] [because they trust in God as Abraham did].

8 Namtom rhoek he tangnah loh a tang sak te cacim loh ana hmaitang coeng. Pathen loh Abraham te, “Nang lamloh namtom boeih a yoethen ni,” tila olthangthen a thui.

Furthermore, God planned beforehand that it was [when] non-Jews trusted [him] that he would erase the record of their sins. [Moses wrote in] the Scriptures [PRS] this good message that God told Abraham: “Because of [what] you [did], I will bless [people in] [MTY] all nations.”

9 Te dongah tangnah kah hlang rhoek te tah uepom Abraham rhangneh a yoethen uh.

So, [we can conclude that] it is those who trust [in what Christ has done] whom [God] blesses. That includes [all non-Jews and Jews who trust him], along with Abraham, the one who trusted him [long ago].

10 Olkhueng kah bibi lamloh aka om boeih tah rhunkhuennah hmuiah om uh. A saii uh ham te olkhueng cabu khuiah a daek. Te rhoek boeih dongah aka ngolpai pawt rhoek te rhunkhuen thil saeh,” tila a daek coeng.

That is, God will eternally punish all those who [mistakenly] think [that God will erase the record of their sins] as a result of their [obeying] the laws [that God gave to Moses]. What is written in the Scriptures is that [God] will eternally punish everyone who does not continuously and completely obey all the laws [that Moses wrote].

11 Tedae olkhueng lamloh Pathen taengah a tang pawt te mingpha coeng dongah aka dueng tah tangnah nen ni a hing eh.

But God has declared that if he erases the record of anyone’s sins, it will not be as a result of their obeying the laws God gave Moses. [This is evident because the Scriptures say], “Every person whose record of sins God erases because that person trusts God will live [spiritually].”

12 Te dongah olkhueng tah tangnah dongah om pawt dae te te aka vai tah te nen te hing ni.

But [when God gave] his laws [to the Jews, he did] not [say that a person must] trust [him]. Instead, [God said that] it is those who obey [all God’s laws, continuously and completely], who will live.

13 Khrih loh mamih he olkhueng kah rhunkhuennah lamloh n'tlan tih mamih yueng la rhunkhuennah a yook. “Rhunkhuen boeih tah thing dongah a hoei,” tila a daek pai.

Even though we humans have not continuously and completely obeyed God’s laws, Christ rescued us from [God] punishing us eternally. Christ rescued us by his being [the one God condemned] instead of God condemning us. What is written {[someone/Moses] wrote} [in the Scriptures] shows that this is true. It is written {[He] wrote}, “[God] has cursed anyone [whom people have executed for his crimes and whose body they] have hung on a tree.”

14 Te daengah ni Abraham kah yoethennah tah Khrih Jesuh lamloh namtom taengah a pha eh. Te daengah ni Mueihla kah olkhueh te tangnah lamloh n'dang eh.

Jesus Christ rescued us in order that as a result of what he [has done, God might bless the non-Jews, in a way similar to the way] God blessed Abraham. He also desired that as a result of our trusting [Christ], we [all] might receive the Spirit [whom God] promised to [give to] us.

15 Manuca rhoek hlang vanbangla ka thui. Hlang loh a cak sak paipi pataeng hnawt pawt tih a thap bal moenih.

My fellow believers, I will now [illustrate] by referring to human [relationships. After an agreement is confirmed by two people] {[two people have signed] an agreement}, no one can reject it or add to it.

16 Te dongah Abraham neh a tiingan ham olkhueh a thui uh vaengah a yet ham bangla, “Tiingan rhoek te,” a ti moenih. Tedae pakhat ham bangla, “Na tiingan taengah,” a ti nah. Te tah Khrih dae ni.

[God] declared to Abraham and his descendant that he was promising [to give blessings to Abraham]. [The words that God spoke were not “and your] descendants.” [He was not] referring to many persons. Instead, he was referring to one person, who is Christ, [because the words that God spoke were], “and your descendant.”

17 Te dongah he he ka thui. Pathen loh a cak sak phoeikah kum yali sawmthum ah aka thoeng olkhueng loh paipi a hmil moenih. Te vanbangla olkhueh te khaw a phae moenih.

This is what I am saying: [Since God] gave the laws [to the Jews] 430 years after [he declared to Abraham what he was promising to do for Abraham], those laws do not cancel that agreement [with] Abraham that God himself had previously agreed about [PRS].

18 Rho tah olkhueng lamloh om koinih olkhueh dongah om mahpawh. Tedae Pathen loh olkhueh nen ni Abraham te a rhen.

Remember that if it is because [we obey God’s] laws [that he gives to us] what [he has] promised [to give to us], then it is not [just] because he [has] promised [that he would give those things to us]. God freely gave to Abraham [what he had promised to give to him, just] because [God had] promised [that he would give it to him. Similarly, it is not because we obey God’s laws that God gives to us what he has promised to give to us].

19 Te koinih olkhueng te ta? A caeng tangtae tiingan te ha pawk duela boekoeknah rhoek te a thap. Tekah te rhikhangkung kut longah puencawn lamloh a uen coeng.

So, [if someone should ask], “Why [did God later give] his laws [to Moses?” I would reply that] it was in order that [people might realize] how sinful they were. [Those laws were valid] until [Jesus came. He was] the descendant that God [was referring to when he made] the promises to Abraham. [The laws] were given {[God] gave [his laws]} [to Moses] by God’s causing angels to [speak to him. Moses was the] mediator, [the one who told the laws to the people].

20 Rhikhangkung tah pakhat kah la om pawh. Tedae Pathen tah pakhat la om.

Now, [when] a mediator [functions], one [person] is not [speaking with another] directly; but God himself [made his promises directly to Abraham].

21 Te koinih olkhueng loh Pathen kah olkhueh te a kingkalh a? Tlam te om mahpawh. Olkhueng a paek loh hing sak thai koinih olkhueng dongah duengnah rhep n'dang ni.

[If someone should ask, “When God gave his] laws [to Moses] long [after he told Abraham] what he was promising [to give to him, was he] changing his mind?” [I would reply that God] certainly did not [change his mind when he did that]! If God had given a law that could enable people to live [eternally], then it actually would be because of people [obeying that] law that God would erase the record of their sins.

22 Tedae a cungkuem he cacim loh tholhnah hmuiah a up coeng. Te daengah ni olkhueh tah Jesuh Khrih kah tangnah lamloh aka tangnah rhoek taengah a paek eh.

But instead, [what we read in] the Scriptures [PRS] is that God [caused all people to be unable to escape being punished for] their [sins] [MET], just like [people] in prison [are unable to escape] [PRS, MET]. [God did that in order that he might give what he promised to those who trust Jesus Christ, just] because they trust him.

23 Tedae tangnah ha pawk hlan lamloh tangnah a pumphoe tom duela olkhueng hmuiah a uup tih n'khoembael.

Before [God revealed the good message about] trusting [in Christ], the laws [PRS] that God gave to Moses were [confining/imprisoning us Jews] [MET], [as] a prisoner [in jail is] confined. [We] were unable to escape [obeying those] [MET] [laws]. This happened in order that [we might believe] the good message [concerning Christ, the message that God would] reveal [later].

24 Te dongah mamih kah cakhoem olkhueng loh Khrih taengla n'om sak. Te daengah ni tangnah lamloh n'tang sak.

[Like a father supervises his immature son by appointing a] servant to take care of him [MET], [God] was supervising us [by] his laws [MET, PRS] until Christ came. [He did this] in order that he might erase the record of our sins [only] because we trust [Christ].

25 Tedae tangnah ha pawk vaengah tah cakhoem kut hmuiah om uh voel pawh.

But [now that God] has revealed the message [about trusting in Christ], the laws [that God gave to Moses] are no longer supervising us [Jews] [PRS, MET].

26 Jesuh Khrih dongkah tangnah lamloh Pathen ca rhoek la boeih na om uh.

Now all of you [Jews and] non-Jews are [as though you are] God’s children because you trusted Christ Jesus.

27 Khrih ah naka nuem boeih loh Khrih te na bai uh.

That is, you who [began a relationship] with Christ when you were baptized identified yourselves [MET] with Christ.

28 Judah khaw Greek khaw om pawh. Sal khaw hlang loeih khaw om pawh. Tongpa neh huta om pawh. Nangmih tah Jesuh Khrih ah pakhat la boeih na om uh.

[If you are believers, it does] not [matter to God if you are] Jews or non-Jews; slaves or ones [who are] not slaves; males or females, because all of you are [as] one [sort of person because of your relationship] with Christ Jesus.

29 Nangmih khaw Khrih kah coeng atah rhopangnah olkhueh vanbangla Abraham kah tiingan la na om uh van.

Furthermore, since you belong to Christ, you are [like] Abraham’s descendants [because you trust God as Abraham did], and you will possess/receive all that God has promised [MET].