3 Johani 1
1 Mukuru, kuna Gayo anodikanwa, wandinoda ini pachokwadi.
Dear Guyus, This letter is from the church leader that people call Old Man. Guyus, you are my good friend, and I really love you.
2 Mudikanwi, ndinonyengetera pazvinhu zvese kuti ubudirire, uye ugwinye, semweya wako uchibudirira.
My friend, I know that God has made your spirit healthy inside you. I pray that everything in your life will be good, and I pray that your body will be healthy, just like your spirit is healthy.
3 Nokuti ndakafara zvikuru, hama padzakasvika ndokupupurira chokwadi chako, sezvaunofamba iwe muchokwadi.
You know, some Christians came here and told me about you. They said, “Guyus always lives God’s way.” I was very happy to hear that. I know that you really believe God’s true message, and you are living God’s way.
4 Handina mufaro unopfuura izvi, kuti ndinzwe vana vangu vachifamba muchokwadi.
You know that I look after lots of churches, and the people in those churches are like my own kids. So, whenever I hear that those people are living God’s way, it makes me really happy. It makes me more happy than anything else.
5 Mudikanwi, unoita nekutendeka zvese zvaunobata kuhama nekuvaeni,
Those Christians that visited you, they came back here, and they told the whole church mob about you. They said, “Guyus loved us. He was really good to us.” My friend, that was a really good thing that you did. You didn’t know those Christians, but you looked after them anyway. That shows that you are living God’s way. Whenever those Christians visit you, please look after them. And when they leave you, give them things to take with them, so that they can keep telling people about Jesus in other places. God wants you to do that.
6 vakapupurira rudo rwako pamberi pekereke; uchaita zvakanaka kana ukavaperekedza zvakafanira Mwari.
7 Nokuti nekuda kwezita rake vakabuda vasingagamuchiri chinhu kuvahedheni.
You see, those Christians are working for Jesus Christ. They go to different places, and they talk to people that are not in God’s family, and they tell them about Jesus. But they don’t ask those people for money. They don’t make people pay money to hear the true message about Jesus.
8 Naizvozvo isu tinofanira kugamuchira vakadaro, kuti tigova vanobatsirana pachokwadi.
So us Christian mob, we have to look after Christians that come to our town to tell people God’s true message. We have to give them food and money to help them do that work. In that way, we are helping those Christians to tell people God’s true message.
9 Ndakanyorera kereke; asi Dhiotirefesi, anoda kuva wekutanga pakati pavo asingatigamuchiri.
I wrote a letter to the Christians that live near you. But that man Diotrefees doesn’t listen to what we say. He thinks he’s really important, and he wants to be the boss.
10 Naizvozvo, kana ndichiuya, ndicharangarira mabasa ake aanoita, achitiitira makuhwa nemashoko akaipa; uye asingagutsikani neizvozvo, kunyange iye amene haagamuchiri hama, uye anovadzivisa vanoda, nekudzinga mukereke.
I will visit soon, and I will talk to everyone about the bad things that Diotrefees is doing. He is making up lies against us, and he is rubbishing us. And that’s not all. Diotrefees does other bad things too. Whenever Christians come to tell people about Jesus, Diotrefees doesn’t let them come to church or stay at his house. And if somebody else in the church says, “I want to help those Christians,” then Diotrefees says, “No, don’t help them.” And he tells that person that they are not allowed to come to church any more.
11 Mudikanwi, usatevera chakaipa, asi chakanaka. Anoita chakanaka ndeanobva kuna Mwari; asi anoita zvakaipa, haana kuona Mwari.
My friend, whenever you see people doing bad things like that, don’t copy them. But whenever you see people doing good things, you have to copy them. If somebody does good things, that shows that they belong to God. But if somebody does bad things, that shows that they don’t properly know God.
12 Dhemetrio anopupurirwa zvakanaka nevese, uye nechokwadi pachacho; nesuwo tinopupura, nemwi munoziva kuti kupupura kwedu ndekwechokwadi.
Now I want to talk to you about Demetrius. Everyone says that he is a good man. Look at the way he lives. He takes notice of God’s true message, and he lives God’s way. We also say that Demetrius is a good man, and you know that we don’t lie to you.
13 Ndakange ndine zvizhinji zvekunyora, asi handidi kukunyorera neingi nepeni;
I have more things that I want to tell you, but I don’t really want to write them in a letter.
14 asi ndinovimba kukurumidza kukuona, titauriranewo muromo nemuromo. Rugare kwauri. Vadikanwi vanokukwazisa. Kwazisa vadikanwi nezita.
I want to visit you soon. Then we will talk together. I pray that you are happy and quiet inside yourself. Your friends here say hello to you. Please say hello to each of my friends there with you.
