Colossians 1
1 I, Paul, [am writing this letter to you], and our fellow believer Timothy [is with me]. I am an apostle who represents Christ Jesus, because that is what God wanted.
Pauro muapositori waJesu Kristu nechido chaMwari, naTimotio hama,
2 [I am sending this letter] to you who are in Colossae [city], and who are God’s people, and our faithful fellow believers who have a close relationship with Christ. We pray that God our Father will be acting kindly towards you, and that he will cause you to have [inner] peace.
kuvatsvene nehama dzakatendeka muna Kristu dziri paKorose: Nyasha kwamuri nerugare rwunobva kuna Mwari Baba vedu naIshe Jesu Kristu.
3 Very often [HYP] we thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, while we are praying for you,
Tinovonga Mwari naBaba vaIshe wedu Jesu Kristu, tichikunyengetererai nguva dzese,
4 because we have heard that you believe in Christ Jesus, and that you love all God’s people.
sezvo takanzwa zverutendo rwenyu muna Kristu Jesu, uye zverudo kuvatsvene vese,
5 You do that because you confidently expect to receive that which God is (reserving/keeping safe) for you in heaven, which you heard about previously when you heard the true message, that is, the message [about Christ].
nekuda kwetariro yakaisirwa imwi kumatenga, yamakagara manzwa pashoko rechokwadi cheevhangeri,
6 [People] proclaimed it [PRS] to you, just like [people] have proclaimed it in many different countries [HYP, IDM]. The true message is changing more and more people’s lives, just like it changed your lives because you heard it and you truly experienced that God acts kindly towards us in ways we do not deserve.
yasvika kwamuri sepanyika yesewo; ichibereka chibereko, sezvainoitawo kwamuri, kubvira pazuva ramakanzwa nekuziva nyasha dzaMwari muchokwadi;
7 That is just what Epaphras taught you [would happen]. We love Epaphras. He serves Christ together with us and works for Christ faithfully for your benefit.
sezvamakadzidzawo kuna Epafrasi, muranda anodikanwa pamwe nesu, anova mushumiri wakatendeka waKristu nekuda kwenyu,
8 He told us that you love [all God’s people], just like God’s Spirit [has enabled you to] (OR, spiritually).
wakatiudzawo zverudo rwenyu muMweya.
9 Because of what we heard about you, we have also been praying [LIT] very often to God for you [HYP], ever since we heard this report about you. We pray that you will truly know all that God wants you to do; that is, that you will become very wise, and that you will understand spiritual matters well.
Nekuda kweizvi isuwo, kubvira pazuva ratakanzwa, hatimiri kukunyengetererai, nekukumbira kuti muzadzwe neruzivo rwechido chake pauchenjeri hwese nekunzwisisa kwemweya,
10 We have been praying like that in order that you will conduct yourselves as the Lord’s people should conduct themselves, in order that you will please the Lord in every way. Specifically, we have been praying like that in order that you will be doing every sort of good deed [IDM] and in order that you will be getting to know God truly, more and more.
kuti mufambe zvinofanira Ishe pane zvese zvinofadza, muchibereka zvibereko pabasa rese rakanaka, muchikura paruzivo rwaMwari;
11 And we pray that [God] will greatly strengthen you [spiritually] with the mighty power that he has shown [to people], in order that you will always be steadfast and patient [when you experience difficulties], while [at the same time] you will be rejoicing.
muchisimbiswa nesimba rese, zvichienderana nesimba rekubwinya kwake, pamoyo murefu wese nekutsungirira pamwe nemufaro;
12 And we pray that you will be thanking God our Father, because he has enabled you/us to receive the things that he will give to his people in heaven [SYN].
muchivonga kuna Baba, vakatiita kuti tifanire kugoverana kwenhaka yevatsvene muchiedza,
13 God our Father rescued us [spiritually] so that the evil one no longer rules us [MET, MTY], and he caused us now to be ruled by his Son, whom he loves.
vakatinunura pasimba rerima, vakatishandurira muushe hweMwanakomana werudo rwavo,
14 That is, because of our relationship with his Son (OR, because of what the one who is also God did), God has redeemed/bought us; in particular, he has forgiven our sins.
watine dzikunuro maari neropa rake, ndiko kukanganwirwa kwezvivi.
15 God’s Son reveals perfectly what God, his Father, is like, whom no one can see. God’s Son existed before and ranks above everything that God has created.
Anova mufananidzo waMwari asingaonekwi, dangwe rechisikwa chega-chega.
16 When God created everything that is on the earth, he did it by having his Son do it. He created everything that [people] can see, and also everything which is in heaven that [people] cannot see. In particular, his Son created all ranks of important spirit beings. [And his Son ranks above everything], because God by the work of had his Son, and because by his Son all things were created {because [God] had his Son create everything} in order that everything might praise his Son,
Nokuti maari zvinhu zvese zvakasikwa, zviri kumatenga nezviri panyika, zvinoonekwa nezvisingaonekwi, kana zviri zvigaro zveushe, kana umambo, kana ukuru, kana masimba; zvinhu zvese zvakasikwa naye, zvikasikirwa iye.
17 and because it is his Son who existed before anything else existed, and because God sustains everything by what his Son [does].
Ndiyewo anotangira zvinhu zvese, uye zvinhu zvese zvakabatanidzwa maari.
18 And [God’s Son ranks above everything], because it is his Son who [rules over his people] [MET] [as a person’s] head [controls his physical] body, because his Son causes his people to live [spiritually]. [God’s Son] is the first one who became alive again, in order that he should become more important than anything and everyone.
Uye iye musoro wemuviri, wekereke; anova kutanga, dangwe kubva kune vakafa; kuti pazvese iye ave wekutanga;
19 [God’s Son reveals perfectly what God his Father is like], because his Father chose to live completely in him.
nokuti zvakafadza Baba, kuti kuzara kwese kugare maari,
20 [God our Father caused his Son to rule us], because he decided to reconcile with himself everything that is on earth and that is in heaven by what his Son did, in order that everything might honor his Son; that is, God our Father decided to reconcile everything to himself as a result of his [Son’s] blood [flowing when he died] on the cross. [The chiastic material is rearranged below so that the directly related propositional clusters are joined together.] 13 God our Father rescued us [spiritually] so that we are no longer ruled by the evil one, and God our Father caused us now to be ruled by his Son (OR, the man who is also God) whom he loves. 14a That is, by means of what his Son did, we have been redeemed by God, our Father. 14b In particular, our sins have been forgiven by God, our Father. 20 God, our Father, has done this because he decided to reconcile to himself, by means of his Son, everything that is on earth and that is in heaven, in order that his Son might be honored; that is, God, our Father decided to reconcile everything to himself by means of God’s Son’s blood [flowing out when he died] on the cross. 15b God cannot be seen by anyone, 15a but his Son reveals perfectly what God—his Father—is like, 19a because it is in his Son that the Father chose 19b that he himself would dwell completely. 15c God’s Son ranks above everything 15d that has been created, 16 because it was by means of God’s Son that God created everything that is on the earth and that can be seen by people, and also everything that is in heaven and that cannot be seen by people. In particular, all types of important spirit beings were created by means of him, since everything has been created by God by means of God’s Son. And his Son ranks above everything, because everything has been created by God, in order that God’s Son might be honored by everything, 17 and because it is he who existed before anything else existed, and since everything is sustained by God by means of God’s Son. 18 And God’s Son ranks above everything because it is he who [rules over all believers, just like a person’s] head [controls his physical body, because he causes all believers to live spiritually]. His Son is the first one who rose from among those who have died, in order that he should become more important than everything and everyone.
uye ayananisa naye zvinhu zvese kwaari, aita rugare neropa remuchinjikwa wake kubudikidza naiye, kunyange zviri panyika kunyange zviri kumatenga.
21 As for you, [although] formerly God [considered you his] enemies (OR, [God considered you] as alienated [from him]) and [although] you were formerly hostile [to God] because you thought evil thoughts and because you did evil deeds,
Nemwi maimbova vaeni nevavengi mufungwa nemabasa akaipa, asi ikozvinowo wayanana nemwi
22 nevertheless, God our Father has now reconciled you [with himself. He did that] as a result of his Son dying physically. He did it in order that you should be completely holy when he brings you into his presence.
mumuviri wenyama yake kubudikidza nerufu, akukumikidzei muri vatsvene uye musina mhosva uye musingamhuriki pamberi pake;
23 He wants you to continue [DOU] to believe the message about Christ; specifically, he wants you to continue to be stable/steadfast and to continue to confidently expect to receive that which you heard about when you heard that message. That message has been proclaimed {They have proclaimed that message} to people in very many places [HYP]; and I, Paul, also become someone who tells it to people.
zvino kana muchirambira parutendo makateyiwa uye makasimbiswa, uye hamubviswi patariro yeevhangeri yamakanzwa, yakaparidzirwa chisikwa chega-chega chiri pasi pedenga; iyo yandakaitwa mushumiri wayo ini Pauro.
24 At the present time I am rejoicing that I am suffering for your benefit; that is, I am completing what Christ [decided] that I should suffer physically for the benefit of all believers, [who are as dear to him as] his own body.
Zvino ikozvino ndinofara pamatambudziko angu nekuda kwenyu, nekuzadzisa zvakasara pamatambudziko aKristu munyama yangu nekuda kwemuviri wake, unova kereke;
25 I myself became someone who serves God’s people, because I was appointed {[God] appointed me} to be responsible to [help] you [who are non-Jews]. I became one who serves God’s people in order that I should make known to you non-Jews the whole message from/about God.
ini yandakaitwa mushumiri wayo zvichienderana nekubatiswa kwaMwari chandakapiwa pamusoro penyu, kuzadzisa shoko raMwari,
26 [We did not know this message previously; that is, God] concealed it from [the people who lived in all] the previous ages, but he has now revealed it to his people. (aiōn g165)
chakavanzika chakange chakavanzwa kubvira kare uye kubva kumazera, asi ikozvino chinoratidzwa kuvatsvene vake, (aiōn g165)
27 That is, God decided to reveal to them this message, which declares that he will greatly bless the non-Jews. Specifically, this message declares that Christ, [by his Spirit], will live in you who are non-Jews, with the result that you confidently expect that you will experience how glorious [God is].
kune ivo Mwari vaakada kuzivisa kuti fuma yekubwinya kwechakavanzika ichi pakati pevahedheni chii, chinova Kristu mamuri, tariro yekubwinya;
28 We tell about Christ [to every class of persons]; we warn them, and specifically, we teach everyone very wisely. We do this in order that every person who (has a close relationship with/is united to) Christ may be (all that God wants them to be/perfect) when we present them to Christ.
watinoparidza isu, tichiyambira munhu umwe neumwe, nekudzidzisa munhu umwe neumwe munjere dzese, kuti tikumikidze munhu umwe neumwe akakwana muna Kristu Jesu;
29 In order that I might [achieve/accomplish this], I am also working very hard, depending on Christ to empowering me very greatly.
ndizvo zvandinoshingairirawo, ndichirwa zvinoenderana nekubata kwake kunobata mandiri nesimba.
