GREETINGS

¹From Small Man (Paul), chosen by the Great Spirit to be a message bearer for the Chosen One, Creator Sets Free (Jesus), and from He Gives Honor (Timothy), our spiritual brother.

To the members of Creator’s sacred family who gather in Village of Pleasure (Corinth), and to all Creator’s holy people who live in the territory of Land of Sorrow (Achaia).

²Great kindness and peace to you from our Father the Great Spirit and from our Honored Chief Creator Sets Free (Jesus) the Chosen One. ³All blessings belong to the Great Spirit, who is the Father of our Honored Chief Creator Sets Free (Jesus) the Chosen One. He is a kind-hearted and merciful Father, the Maker of Life who walks by our side to give us help, and the Great Spirit of all comfort.

COURAGE AND COMFORT

⁴The Great Spirit walks with us through times of trouble, giving us courage and well-being so that we can give to others the same comfort he has given to us. ⁵When our suffering overflows because we represent the Chosen One, he gives us overflowing strength and well-being. ⁶Our sufferings and the comfort we receive help us to bring you comfort when you suffer in the same way we have. ⁷This gives us great hope, for we know that when you share in our troubles, you will also share in our comfort.

⁸With this in mind, my sacred family members, we want you to know about the road of suffering we walked in Land of the Rising Sun (Asia). Things could not have been worse. We ran out of strength, and our hearts fell to the ground. It was as if we had come face to face with death. ⁹It truly felt as if death were stalking us. This caused us to stop trusting in ourselves and to put our trust in the Great Spirit who brings the dead back to life—and he did! ¹⁰The Great Spirit snatched us from the jaws of death. Yes, we have set our hearts on the one who rescues us, that he will rescue us again and again! ¹¹We need your prayers, for as you send your voice to the Great Spirit, many will see in our lives the answers to your many prayers and give him thanks.

¹²We may be bragging, but we are bold enough to tell you that our hearts are pure, for we have walked this road of life in a sacred and true manner. We have not followed the ways of this world, but by the gift of Creator’s great kindness we have walked in a good way before the people of this world, and even more toward you. In the same way, our words to you are as straight as an arrow. We do not speak with forked tongues in our letters to you. ¹³What you read in our letters should be clear to you, so I hope you understand everything in the way we mean it.

¹⁴Even now you do not fully know us, and my hope is that you will come to know us for who we truly are. Then on the day of our Honored Chief Creator Sets Free (Jesus), we will take pride in knowing each other. ^15-16It was for this reason that I had planned the blessing of two visits with you. I would have come to you first on my way to Land of Tall People (Macedonia), and then I would have come to you again on my way to Land of Promise (Judea). Then you could have sung a traveling song over me and sent me on my way.

A MAN OF HIS WORD

¹⁷So when I had to change my plans, did this make you think that I am not a man of my word? Do you think I say “Yes” when I mean “No,” like the people who follow the ways of this world? ¹⁸If you trust the Great Spirit, then you can trust that I am a man of my word. When I say “Yes” or “No” I mean what I say.

¹⁹So you can be sure that the message made known to you by Forest Walker (Silvanus), He Gives Honor (Timothy), and me, Small Man (Paul), remains “Yes” in the Chosen One Creator Sets Free (Jesus) the Son of the Great Spirit, for Creator is true to his word. ²⁰The many promises of the Great Spirit find their “Yes” in the Chosen One. He is the reason we say, “Aho! May it be so!” to honor the Great Spirit.

²¹Creator has set us all firmly on the rock of the Chosen One. He poured the oil of the Spirit’s power on us. ²²He put his Spirit into our hearts to mark us as his own. His Spirit in us is the promise of our place in the world to come.

²³I call on the Great Spirit to be a witness to the truth I tell you now. The reason I did not come to you in Village of Pleasure (Corinth) was to spare you the pain my sharp words would bring to you. ²⁴Instead, we want to work together with you to make your hearts glad. It is not our aim to rule over you but to walk together with you as you stand firm in your faith.

FORGIVE THE ONE WHO HAS DONE WRONG

⁵But there is one among you who has caused trouble and pain, not so much to me but mostly to all of you. ⁶The discipline most of you have already given him is enough. There is no need to punish him further. ⁷Instead, to keep him from losing heart and falling into deep sorrow and self-pity, you should forgive and speak words of healing over him. ⁸That is why I now beg you to show him once again how much you love him.

⁹The reason for my letter was to find out whether you would follow all of my instructions, even the hard ones. ¹⁰Anyone you forgive, I forgive also. Whatever I have already forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I forgave knowing that the Chosen One is here with us in spirit.1 ¹¹I do this to make sure that Accuser (Satan) gains no foothold, for we know his evil trickster ways.

SMALL MAN AT THE VILLAGE OF CUT THROUGH

¹²On my journey I arrived at the seaport village of Cut Through (Troas). For it was there that our Honored Chief had opened a way for me to tell the good story about the Chosen One. ¹³But my spirit was restless when I did not find Big Man (Titus) there, for he is like a brother to me. So I left there and journeyed on my way to look for Big Man (Titus) in Land of Tall People (Macedonia).

¹⁴We are giving thanks to the Great Spirit, for the Chosen One is his headman dancer leading us in the victory dance. Everywhere we go Creator uses us to spread the sweet-smelling smoke of what it means to know the Chosen One. ¹⁵To the Great Spirit we smell like the Chosen One. To those who are being set free and made whole we have the smell of life, ¹⁶but to the ones who are walking the road to a bad end, we have the smell of death. Who among us is able to carry the weight of such a task?

¹⁷We are not like those who are turning Creator’s message into a way to gain possessions. For in the Chosen One, with Creator looking down on us, we speak truth from our hearts as we represent the Great Spirit.

SERVANTS OF THE NEW PEACE TREATY

¹Do you think we are trying to prove ourselves to you once again? Do we, like some others, need letters of approval for you or from you? ²You are our letter of approval, one that has been written on our hearts, a letter everyone can clearly see and read. ³Your lives show that you are a letter about the Chosen One, written by us not with pen and ink but by Creator’s own Spirit, not with words that have been carved into stone tablets but with words that have been carved into human hearts.

⁴We say such bold things about ourselves because we trust in what the Great Spirit can do through the Chosen One. ⁵We do not think we have the power to do these things on our own. Our power comes from the Great Spirit, who works in and through us. ⁶For it is Creator himself who has chosen and prepared us to tell others the meaning and purpose of his new peace treaty.

This new peace treaty does not depend on written words, but in what the Spirit says. For the peace treaty written as law ended in death, but what the Spirit writes on our hearts brings life.

⁷The law of the peace treaty that was given by Drawn from the Water (Moses) became a way of death instead of life. Even so, this law came with so much honor and shining-greatness that the people of Wrestles with Creator (Israel) could not look for long on the face of Drawn from the Water (Moses), even though the brightness was already fading. ⁸In the light of this, how much greater will be the honor and shining-greatness that comes from the Spirit?

THE BEAUTY OF THE NEW PEACE TREATY

⁹If the way that condemns people to death came like a shining light, then the way that gives people good standing and life far outshines it. ¹⁰The shining light that came first has lost its brilliance in the greater light of the beauty and splendor that has now come. ¹¹For if what was fading away came as a shining light, how much more beauty and shining-greatness belongs to what will never fade away! ¹²This kind of hope gives us the courage to speak with brave words about these things.

¹³We will not be like Drawn from the Water (Moses), who hid his face behind a cloth so the people of Wrestles with Creator (Israel) would not see that the brightness was fading away. This kept them from seeing and understanding. ¹⁴Even now, when the old peace treaty is being read, it is as if the same cloth also covers their minds and blinds them to the truth. It is only the Chosen One who can remove their blinders and make them see.

¹⁵But to this day, whenever they hear the words of Drawn from the Water (Moses) being read, a cloth remains over their hearts. ¹⁶But our Honored Chief removes the cloth from the hearts of all who turn to him. ¹⁷The Honored Chief I am talking about here is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit walks, freedom follows!

¹⁸So then, with uncovered faces, we are seeing the bright and shining face of our Honored Chief. This bright and shining-greatness, which shines from his face into ours, keeps changing us to be more and more like him. This is what the Spirit does for us, for he is the Spirit of our Honored Chief.

A LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS

¹Since we have received this sacred task through Creator’s mercy, we never lose heart as we walk this road. ²For this reason we have put an end to shameful ways that are kept hidden in darkness. We do not walk in the ways of a trickster or misrepresent Creator’s message. Instead, under Creator’s watchful eyes we openly speak the truth. In this way, all who hear can know within themselves what kind of people we are.

³But even if the good story we tell is hidden from their eyes, it is hidden only to the ones who walk the road to a bad end. ⁴For the ones who do not believe have been blinded in their minds by the evil spirit-ruler of this present world. This blindness keeps them from seeing the light that shines when the good story is told about the beauty of the Chosen One, who is the only one who fully represents the Great Spirit.

⁵The story we tell is not about ourselves. It is about our Honored Chief Creator Sets Free (Jesus) the Chosen One. And because of him we see ourselves as your servants. ⁶For the same Great Spirit who told light to shine out of darkness has shined his light into our hearts. His light helps us to see the beauty of the Great Spirit in the face of Creator Sets Free (Jesus) the Chosen One.

CLAY POTS FILLED WITH CREATOR’S POWER

⁷Our bodies are like old clay pots that have been filled with the sacred gift of his light. This shows that the great power we have does not come from us but from our Creator. ⁸Trouble surrounds us and presses in on us, but we know there is always a way out. Even when we do not know which way to go, we never lose hope or give in to fear. ⁹We are hunted down and mistreated, but the Great Spirit never abandons us. Even when beaten to the ground, we get up and keep walking.

¹⁰Everywhere we go death bears down on us. Our bodies are dying the kind of death Creator Sets Free (Jesus) died. In this way his life will also be seen in our bodies. ¹¹It is because of Creator Sets Free (Jesus) that we who are alive are always facing death. It is for this reason that the life of Creator Sets Free (Jesus) will also be seen in our death-doomed bodies. ¹²So you can see that we struggle with death, but because of this you have the life of the world to come.

COURAGE TO SPEAK

¹³It has been written in our Sacred Teachings, “My faith gave me the courage to speak.”3 Since the same faith lives in our spirits, we too have the courage to speak. ¹⁴For we know that the one who raised up Creator Sets Free (Jesus) to sit beside the Great Spirit will also raise us up to be with him.4 Then together, we will all stand before him.

¹⁵So then, all that we suffer is for your good. This means that Creator’s gift of great kindness will reach more and more people. Then many people will give thanks to the Great Spirit, bringing him even greater honor. ¹⁶That is why we never lose heart. For even though our outer being is fading away, our inner being grows stronger every day.

¹⁷For the troubles we now face are small compared to what is coming and do not last for long. Instead, they are getting us ready for the great and shining beauty of the world to come, a beauty beyond comparison that will never fade away. So we set our minds not on the things we can see but on the things we cannot see. ¹⁸For the things we can see will last only for a short time, but the things we cannot see are from the world to come, which will never fade away.

ABOUT OUR NEW BODIES

¹Our bodies are like tipis that we live in here on earth. If our tipi wears out and is taken down in death, we know for sure that the Great Spirit has a better lodge for us in the spirit-world above. That lodge is not made with human hands and will never grow old or wear out.

²As long as we remain here in our earthly tipis, we groan, for we are aching to put on our tipis from the world above. ³After we have taken off these old bodies, we will be given new bodies to wear.5 In this way we will not remain spirits without bodies.6

⁴As long as we remain in these tipis of our earthly bodies, we keep groaning with heavy hearts, longing for something more. We do not desire our earthly bodies to be stripped from us, but that we would be fitted with our new bodies. When this happens, these death-doomed bodies of ours will be overtaken with new life.

WALKING BY TRUSTING, NOT BY SEEING

⁵Our Creator is the one who has made us ready for this new body. The gift of his Spirit is his proof to us that his promise is trustworthy and true. ⁶This is the reason our hearts remain firm, for we know that as long as we remain in this earthly body, we are not yet at home with our Honored Chief. ⁷As we walk the road of life, we trust in him even though we do not yet see him, for we walk by faith, not by sight.

⁸Our hearts remain so firm in this truth that we can say, “We would rather be at home with our Honored Chief than to remain in these earthly bodies.” ⁹So whether we stay here on earth or go to be with him in the spirit-world above, it is our aim to make his heart glad. ¹⁰For we must all stand before the council seat of the Chosen One and give an answer for what we have done in these earthly bodies—whether good or bad. Then the Chosen One will give back to each of us the honor that is due.

¹¹Knowing that all will stand before our Honored Chief in this way fills us with great respect and awe. This is why we work so hard to help all people see and understand this truth. The Great Spirit can see who we are, and we trust that you can also see from your hearts who we truly are.

LIVING OR DYING, WE TRUST IN HIM

¹²We are not trying to make ourselves look big in your eyes, but we do want you to be proud of us in a good way. Then you will be able to see through the ones who brag about how things look on the outside rather than what is in the heart. ¹³If we sound as if we have lost our minds, that is between us and the Great Spirit. If we sound as if we are in our right minds, it is for your good.

¹⁴The love shown to us by the Chosen One has taken hold of our hearts, because we know that if one has died for all human beings, then all of us died. ¹⁵He died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the one who died and rose for them.

¹⁶So from now on we will no longer look at others through weak human eyes. Even though we used to see the Chosen One in this way, that is not how we see him now.

NEW CREATION

¹⁷I am saying that anyone who has been joined together with the Chosen One is now part of the new creation. For in the Chosen One the old creation has faded away and the new creation has come into being. ¹⁸It is the Great Spirit himself who has done all of this! Through the Chosen One, Creator has removed the hostility between human beings and himself, bringing all creation into harmony once again. The Great Spirit has chosen us to represent him in the sacred task of helping others find and walk this path of peacemaking and healing—turning enemies into friends.

¹⁹The Great Spirit was not holding people’s broken ways against them. Instead, he was working in the Chosen One to bring all people back into harmony with himself. He has now given us the honor of bringing this message to others.

²⁰So we now represent the Chosen One. It is as if Creator is speaking through us, calling out for all people to walk the path of being restored back to the Great Spirit. ²¹Creator Sets Free (Jesus), the one who knew no broken ways, was chosen by the Great Spirit to bear our broken ways, so that we would become the ones who represent his right ways.

TODAY IS A GOOD DAY

¹As we work side by side with Creator, we are calling out for you to not let the gift of Creator’s great kindness fall to the ground. ²For the Great Spirit is speaking to you through the Sacred Teachings, “At the right time I heard your cry, and I set you free on the day you needed my help.”7 Behold! Now is the right time, and today is the day to be set free.

WALKING IN A GOOD WAY

³We walk in a way that will make no one else stumble, so that no one has a reason to talk bad about our sacred task. ⁴Instead, we represent ourselves to others in a good way as servants of the Great Spirit. It is with great patience that we walk through times of trouble, suffering, and misery. ⁵We have been beaten, thrown in prison, and faced uprisings. We have worked hard, spent nights with no sleep, and have gone hungry for days.

⁶We walk with clean hearts as we carry sacred knowledge with patience and kindness. We stay in step with the Holy Spirit as we walk the road of love with our hearts open for all to see. ⁷We speak the truth by the power of the Great Spirit. We fight for what is right with spiritual weapons in our right hand and in our left.

WALKING IN THIS WORLD

⁸As we walk the road, we are honored and dishonored. Some speak evil of us, while others speak well of us. Even though we speak the truth, some say we speak with a forked tongue. ⁹We are strangers to some but well known to others. We look as if we are dying, but look again—we live! We have been whipped and mistreated, but death has not found us. ¹⁰Our hearts are glad even in times of sorrow. We may be poor, but we have made many rich. It looks as if we have nothing, but the truth is, all things are ours.8

OPEN MOUTHS AND OPEN HEARTS

¹¹O you who live in Village of Pleasure (Corinth), we have spoken freely to you, and our hearts have been wide open. ¹²Our hearts have not been closed to you. Why have yours been closed to us? ¹³I will speak to you as I would to my own children: let us make a good trade. Since our hearts are wide open to you, you should open wide your hearts to us.

CREATOR’S LODGE MUST BE KEPT SACRED

¹⁴Do not try to walk in step with those who do not trust in the Chosen One. How can doing right be in harmony with doing wrong? How can light and darkness walk the same path together? ¹⁵How can there be any agreement between the Chosen One and the Worthless One (Belial)?9 What common ground does one who trusts in the Chosen One share with one who does not? ¹⁶Do spirit-images have any place in Creator’s sacred lodge? For we are his sacred lodge, and Creator lives in us.

The Great Spirit himself has said, “I will make my home in them and walk among them. I will be their Great Spirit, and they will be my people.”10

¹⁷That is why our Sacred Teachings also say, “‘Walk away from them and separate yourselves from their ways,’ says the Great Spirit. ‘Do not join yourself to what is ceremonially impure, and I will welcome you.’”11 And, ¹⁸“‘I will be a father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters,’ says the All-Powerful One.”

COMFORT AND TROUBLES

²Open your hearts and let us in. We have wronged no one. We have harmed no one. We have cheated no one. ³I do not say this to accuse you. For as I told you before, whether we live together or die together, you remain in our hearts.

⁴I boldly tell others how much I respect you. My heart has been made strong and overflows with joy, even as we walk a troubled path. ⁵As soon as we came to Land of Tall People (Macedonia) we found no rest for our bodies. Trouble came at us from all directions, arguments from the outside, and fears on the inside.

⁶But the Great Spirit, who lifts up the downcast, lifted our hearts by sending Big Man (Titus) to us. ⁷We were also encouraged when he gave us a good report about your concern for us. He told us of your longing to see me, of your tears, and your burning desire to defend me. This made my heart glad!

SORROW TURNED TO JOY

⁸I know that letter I wrote caused you sorrow. At first, this made me wish I had not written it, but since your sorrow was only for a short time, I no longer feel that way. ⁹Now my heart is glad, not that you were made sad, but that your sadness led you to change your ways. This is what Creator wanted, so that you would not be harmed by our letter. ¹⁰With the help of the Great Spirit, sorrow can create a change of heart that will not turn back, which sets us free and makes us whole. But there is a sorrow in this world that leads only to death.

¹¹Look at what Creator has done in you. He has turned your sorrow into something good. You took my warnings to heart, restored your reputation, and put your anger to good use. You treated my counsel with great respect, and your burning desire was to make the wrongs right again. In every way you have represented yourselves in a good and sacred manner.

¹²I wrote that letter not because of the one who did wrong, or because of the one who was harmed. I wrote so that in the eyes of the Great Spirit you would see for yourselves how much we care for the well-being of all the sacred family.

TRUST RESTORED BECAUSE OF BIG MAN

¹³You have lifted up our hearts. For when Big Man (Titus) told us of the joy he felt when you refreshed his spirit, our hearts were also filled with joy. ¹⁴I am not ashamed that I bragged about you to Big Man (Titus). For in the same way that we have always spoken truth to you, what we told him about you has also proven to be true. ¹⁵His care for you has grown even deeper as he remembers the great respect you showed him when he came to you, and how willing you were to follow all of his instructions. ¹⁶All these things make my heart glad and give me the courage to fully trust you.

GIVING SACRIFICIALLY

¹My sacred family members, we want to tell you what the Great Spirit has done among the sacred families who gather in Land of Tall People (Macedonia). The gift of Creator’s great kindness has taken hold of their hearts. ²Even though they were walking a rough and troubled road with only a few possessions, they found great joy in giving away as much as they could. ³I speak truth from my heart. They not only gave as much as they could. They willingly sacrificed even more. Of their own free will ⁴they begged us to let them participate in bringing help to Creator’s holy people who live in Village of Peace (Jerusalem).

⁵They did much more than we had hoped for. For they first offered their lives to our Honored Chief, and then, under Creator’s guidance, they offered their lives to us as well. ⁶This is why we asked Big Man (Titus) to once again stir up this gift of great kindness in your hearts. For he is the one who first asked you to join in with this offering to help Creator’s holy people.

THE RIGHT WAY TO GIVE

⁷You are strong in faith, noble in speech, wise in understanding, and wholehearted in all that you do. The love we planted in you has grown strong. Since you have done so well in all these things, see to it that you also do well in this gift of giving. ⁸I am not demanding that you give, but, by choosing you as an example for others, I am proving how deep your love truly is.

⁹For you know the loving kindness of our Honored Chief Creator Sets Free (Jesus) the Chosen One. Even though he had great treasures, he became poor for your sake, that through his poverty you might share in his great treasures.

FINISH WHAT YOU STARTED

¹⁰The reason I give you this counsel is to help you finish what you started to do last year. You were the first to be willing to help, ¹¹so now is the time for you to finish the journey you began. Be as eager to finish this journey as you were when you started, and give as much as you are able. I would not ask you to give more than you are able. ¹²If you have a willing heart, it is accepted that you give from what you have and not from what you do not have.

¹³It is not that I am trying to lift the burden of others only to burden you. But to restore balance, ¹⁴you who have more than enough should give to the ones in need. Then when they have more than enough and you are in need, they can help you. This is what I mean by restoring balance. ¹⁵Just as it has been written in our Sacred Teachings, “The ones who gathered much had nothing left over. The ones who gathered little had all they needed.”12

HELPERS IN THE GOOD STORY

¹⁶I give thanks to the Great Spirit, for he put into the heart of Big Man (Titus) the same care that I have for you. ¹⁷When we asked Big Man (Titus) for his help, he welcomed the idea, because going to you was already in his heart. ¹⁸Along with Big Man (Titus) we have sent a spiritual brother whose reputation for living the good story is well known and highly respected among all the sacred families.

¹⁹It is for this reason the sacred families have chosen him to help us in this sacred task. He will journey with us as we take this gift of kindness to Creator’s holy people in Village of Peace (Jerusalem). We welcome him to join with us in this sacred task that Creator has called us to. ²⁰Taking him with us shows our goodwill and helps us prove beyond a doubt that we are doing things in a good way. ²¹Our aim is to do what is honorable, not only in the eyes of the Great Spirit but also in the eyes of human beings.

²²We are also sending another spiritual brother to journey with them. He has proven himself to be always willing to help. He has dedicated himself to this sacred task because of the good things he has heard about you.

²³As for Big Man (Titus), he is my trusted partner as he works by my side to serve you. As for the other spiritual brothers, they serve as message bearers for the sacred families and bring honor to the Chosen One. ²⁴So show these brothers your love in a way that the sacred families can clearly see. This will prove that we had good reason to brag about you.

READY AND WILLING TO GIVE

¹There is no need for me to speak anything more to you about helping Creator’s holy people in this matter of giving. ²I know how ready and willing you are. I brag about you to the sacred families in Land of Tall People (Macedonia). I tell them that the sacred families in Land of Sorrow (Achaia) have been ready to give since last year. It was your eagerness to give that made them want to do the same.

³To make sure that my bragging about you will not fall to the ground, I am sending some spiritual brothers to you so you will make yourselves ready to give this gift just as I said you would be. ⁴For if any from Land of Tall People (Macedonia) were to come with me and find you not ready, this would bring shame to us all. ⁵It is for this reason I felt that I needed to urge these brothers to come to you ahead of time. They will help make sure your promised gift will be ready. In this way, when we arrive, it will show you gave from your hearts and not because you felt forced to give.

GIVING BRINGS HONOR

⁶Remember this saying: The one who plants only a few seeds will harvest a small crop. The one who plants many seeds will harvest a large crop. ⁷Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give. You should not feel forced to give out of guilt because someone is shaming you for not giving. For the Great Spirit loves it when people give with glad hearts.

⁸Creator has the power to use the gift of all of his great kindness to provide more than enough for all that you need at all times. In this way you will have plenty to help others, ⁹just as it says in our Sacred Teachings, “He filled many giveaway blankets with gifts to the poor. His right ways will bring honor to him beyond the end of all days.”

¹⁰The one who gives seed for planting and good food for eating will make your seeds grow into a great harvest for doing what is right. ¹¹His blessing will rest on you in every way so that you can always be a blessing to others. In this way, the gift you give to us for others will bring honor and thanks to the Great Spirit. ¹²This sacred task of giving not only helps the poor among Creator’s holy people in Village of Peace (Jerusalem), but it also inspires many people to give praise to the Great Spirit.

¹³Your willingness to follow through with this sacred task of giving shows that your faithfulness to the good story of the Chosen One goes beyond words. Your freely given gift to them and to all will bring honor to Creator. ¹⁴With deep feelings for you they will send their voice to the Great Spirit, for they have seen the gift of Creator’s great kindness at work in you.

¹⁵Give thanks to the Great Spirit for the gift that goes beyond our weak ways of speaking!

SMALL MAN SPEAKS FOR HIMSELF

¹Now I, Small Man (Paul), will speak for myself. With all the humility and kindness of the Chosen One I beg you to listen to what I have to say. Some have said that I am weak when with you and bold when away from you. ²These people think that we walk in weak and broken human ways, but they will soon find out what kind of courage and boldness we can walk in! I beg you not to make me treat you in the same manner as I must treat those who stand against me.

³Even though we are walking in weak human bodies, we are not fighting with human strength. We do not make war in the ways of this world. ⁴Our weapons have Creator’s power to break through and tear down strongholds. These strongholds are high-minded and wrong ideas about the Great Spirit and his ways. ⁵We help others see clearly about Creator and capture those wrong ideas, so that the truth about the Chosen One becomes a clear path to follow. ⁶Then, when you are fully walking in the ways of the Chosen One, we will be ready to bring Creator’s justice to those who fail to walk in his ways.

⁷You are only looking at how things appear on the outside. If you are sure that you belong to the Chosen One, you should remind yourself that we, as much as you, also belong to the Chosen One.

SMALL MAN DEFENDS HIS AUTHORITY

⁸You might think I brag too much about my authority in the Chosen One, but I am not ashamed to boast, for he gave me the right to build you up, not to tear you down. ⁹I say this so you will not think I am trying to make you afraid with my letters.

¹⁰It has been said by some, “In his letters his words carry much weight and power, but face to face his words are weak and empty.” ¹¹Those who say this should think again, for what we have said in our letters when away we will do when we are among you.

¹²We dare not measure ourselves or lump ourselves together with those who beat their own drum. For when they measure themselves against each other and compare themselves one with another, they show that they have no wisdom.

¹³So then, unlike the others, we will not boast beyond the territory Creator has assigned to us. It is a far-reaching territory that includes you who live in Village of Pleasure (Corinth). ¹⁴We did not overstep our boundaries when we came to you, for we were the very first to reach all the way to you with the good story about the Chosen One.

¹⁵We do not overstep boundaries or take for ourselves honor for what others have done. Instead, our hope is that, as your trust in us grows, our sacred task among you will reach out and touch many more. ¹⁶When that time comes, we will be able to tell the good story to villages beyond you. In this way we will never take for ourselves honor for what others have done.

¹⁷For it says in our Sacred Teachings, “Let the one who brags boast in what the Great Spirit has done.”13

¹⁸For it is not the ones who honor themselves that are proven worthy, but only those who are honored by the Great Spirit.

TRUE AND FALSE MESSAGE BEARERS

¹Since you have already been patient with me, I hope you will put up with my boasting a little longer. ²I am jealous for you with a jealousy that comes from the Great Spirit. For I have promised you in marriage to one husband, the Chosen One, to give you to him as pure as a maiden who has never been with a man.

³Long ago the evil snake used his trickster ways to take Life Bearer (Eve) down the wrong path.14 I fear that, in the same manner she was tricked, false message bearers may take you down the wrong path in your thinking and lead you away from your single-hearted loyalty to the Chosen One.

⁴I say this because you seem so willing to put up with someone who tells you about another Creator Sets Free (Jesus) who is not the same Creator Sets Free (Jesus) we told you about. You are also willing to welcome a different spirit from the one you welcomed from us. You even welcome a different good story from the good story we told you.

⁵I do not think I am any less of a message bearer than any of these puffed-up ones you have been listening to. ⁶I may not speak with a smooth tongue, but I know what I am talking about. For we have made ourselves clearly understood to you all.

⁷Was it wrong for me to humble myself by giving you Creator’s good story without charge in order to bless you? ⁸I felt as if I were stealing from other sacred families when I took gifts from them to serve you. ⁹While I was with you, I did not ask any of you for help, even though I was in need. Some sacred family members who came from Land of Tall People (Macedonia) gifted me with everything I needed. In this way, I was able to keep myself from becoming a burden to you, and I mean to keep it that way.

¹⁰I speak truth from my heart with the Chosen One as my witness. No one throughout the territory of Land of Sorrow (Achaia) will be able to keep me from walking true to my boast in what the Chosen One has helped me to do. ¹¹You may ask why I will not let myself become a burden to you. Do you think it is because I do not love you? The Great Spirit knows I love you!

¹²I will keep walking this same path, so that these puffed-up message bearers will have no solid ground to walk on when they brag that they walk in the same manner that we do. ¹³The ones who make this boast are false message bearers and lying tricksters. They represent themselves as message bearers of the Chosen One, but the regalia they wear does not represent who they truly are. ¹⁴This should not surprise us, for Accuser (Satan) falsely represents himself as a spirit-messenger wearing bright and shining regalia. ¹⁵So it is no surprise that the followers of Accuser (Satan) would falsely represent themselves as servants of Creator’s right ways. The path they walk will take them to a bad end.

SMALL MAN SPEAKS LIKE A FOOL

¹⁶I will say it again: I want no one to think of me as a fool. But if you think of me in that manner, then let me speak as if I were a fool so that I can brag some more. ¹⁷To be clear, I am not speaking as our Honored Chief would have me speak. Instead, I will speak as a fool who brags too much. ¹⁸Since there are so many who brag about who they are and what they have done, I will now do the same!

¹⁹If I speak as a fool, this should help you understand me better, for you are so wise that you are glad to put up with many foolish things. ²⁰You even let others rule over you as if you were their slaves. You put up with them when they devour your goods, trick you, look down on you, and insult you. ²¹Shame on me! I was not strong enough to treat you so badly! But if others can boldly brag—I speak like a fool—I dare to brag just as much.

THE MARKS OF A TRUE MESSAGE BEARER

²²Are they Tribal Members (Hebrews)? So am I! Are they of the tribes of Wrestles with Creator (Israelites)? So am I! Are they descendants of Father of Many Nations (Abraham)? So am I!

²³Are they servants of the Chosen One? Some may think I have lost my mind, but I want to brag even more! I have worked harder. I have been in prison more. I have been beaten more times than I can count. I have faced death many times. ²⁴Five times I have been beaten with thirty-nine strikes of the whip by the people of my own tribe. ²⁵I was beaten with clubs three times. Once I was almost killed when they threw stones at me. I was shipwrecked three times, and I drifted on the deep waters of the sea for a night and a day.

²⁶Many times I have traveled far and wide. On these journeys I faced dangers from raging rivers and desperate outlaws. I have faced threats from my own people and from the people of the Outside Nations. I have faced dangers in villages, dangers in the desert, dangers at sea, and dangers from false sacred family members. ²⁷My hands have been worn to the bone with hard work. On many nights I have gone without sleep. On my journeys I have been hungry and thirsty, often without food, with no blanket to keep me warm.

²⁸Alongside all these challenges, each day I am weighed down with my deep concern for all the sacred families under my care. ²⁹I feel the weakness of any who are weak. I burn with fire in my inner being every time someone is turned away from the good road.

³⁰If I must boast, I choose to brag about the things that show how weak I am. ³¹The Great Spirit who is the Father of our Honored Chief Creator Sets Free (Jesus), who is blessed beyond the end of all days, knows that I speak the truth.

³²When I was in the village of Silent Weaver (Damascus), the governor representing the ruler named Brave One (Aretas) was on the lookout to capture me. ³³I had to sneak away from there by being lowered in a basket through an opening in the village wall.

SACRED VISIONS AND SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCES

¹It does not seem like a good thing for me to keep “bragging like this,” but I now want to tell you about the sacred visions shown to me by the Great Spirit.

^2-3Let me tell you the story of a man I know, a follower of the Chosen One. Fourteen winters ago this man was taken up into the highest place in the spirit-world above.15 If this happened to him in the body or outside the body, I do not know. Only the Great Spirit knows. ⁴This man was taken up into Creator’s Beautiful Garden,16 where he heard mysterious words that human beings are not permitted to speak.

⁵I will brag about that man, but as for myself I will boast only in how small and weak I am. ⁶It would not be a foolish thing for me to brag about this, because I would be speaking the truth about myself. But I will hold back from saying too much, so that none of you will think too highly of me beyond what you hear me say and see me do.

⁷The things that were shown to me were so mysterious and powerful that I was given a thorn to stab me where I was weak, a messenger from Accuser (Satan) to prick my pride and keep me humble. ⁸Three times I begged our Honored Chief to remove this thorn from me.

⁹“The gift of my great kindness will give you the strength you need,” our Honored Chief said to me. “For the greatness of my power comes to the ones who understand how weak they are.”

So then, I am glad to brag even more about how weak I am, so it can be clearly seen that the power resting on me comes from the Chosen One. ¹⁰That is why I can take joy in those things that show how weak I am. Others can insult me, mistreat me, hunt me down, and make things hard for me, all because of my trust in the Chosen One. For when I am weak, Creator’s strength becomes my own.

¹¹I may be acting like a fool, but you are to be blamed for it. You should have shown honor to me, for I am no less a message bearer than these puffed-up ones, even though I am nothing. ¹²The powerful signs and wonders that mark one as a true message bearer were performed among you with great patience. ¹³What have I done for the other sacred families that I have not done for you? Only that I did not become a burden to you. You must release me from this wrong!

¹⁴I am now ready to come to you for a third time. Once again I will not be a burden to you. I want you, not what you can give to me. For it is the parents who should provide for their children, and not children for their parents. ¹⁵It would make my heart glad to give all that I have and all that I am to you. If my love for you is so great, then why is your love for me so small?

^16-17Since it is clear that I did not ask anything for myself, do you think I acted like a trickster to fool and cheat you by sending others to collect the offering? ¹⁸When I sent Big Man (Titus) and the other spiritual brother to you, did they take more than they should? You know that they did not. For Big Man (Titus) and I walk together in the same spirit on the same path.

¹⁹Have you been thinking all this time that we have been trying to prove ourselves to you? We have nothing to prove to you, for we speak with the words of the Chosen One and under the eyes of the Great Spirit. You are our much-loved ones, and everything we do is to lift you up and make you strong in him.

²⁰But I fear that when I come to you we will not be walking in step with each other. I might find among you that there will be arguing, jealousy, uncontrolled anger, selfish desires, forked tongues, boastful talk, and hostile ways. ²¹This makes me afraid that when I come to you again the Great Spirit will humble me in front of you. For I will weep many tears for the ones who have been following their bad hearts and have not turned away from walking in impurity and uncontrolled sexual desires.

FINAL WORDS OF WARNING AND ENCOURAGEMENT

¹This will be the third time I will be coming to you. It says in the Sacred Teachings that it takes two or three witnesses to prove a wrongdoing.17 ²When I came the second time, I warned the ones who were doing wrong, and now I warn the rest of you. When I come this time, I will not take pity on anyone. ³You who seek proof that the Chosen One is speaking through me will get all the proof you need. Do not think that the Chosen One is weak in this matter. His power is at work among you. ⁴Yes, he was nailed to a tree-pole—the cross—and died as a weak human being, but he now lives by the power of the Great Spirit. In the same way we, like him, are also weak human beings, but you will see that, like him, we also live by the power of the Great Spirit as we walk together with you.

⁵Take a good look inside yourselves to see whether you walk true to what you believe. Put yourselves to the test. Do you know who you truly are? Do you not understand that Creator Sets Free (Jesus) the Chosen One lives in and among you? Or have you failed the test of walking true to this in your own lives? ⁶It is my hope that you will come to know that I and my fellow workers have not failed this test.

⁷We are sending our voices to the Great Spirit, praying for you to do nothing wrong. This is not to make it look as if we have passed the test, but so that you will do what is good and right even if it looks as if we have failed. ⁸For we must stand firm on the truth and not walk away from it. ⁹So if our being weak means that you are strong, it makes our hearts glad. It is our prayer that you will become strong and mature followers of the Chosen One.

¹⁰I am writing this letter to you while I am away, so that I will not have to speak sharp words like this when I come to you. Instead, I want to use the power our Honored Chief has given me to build you up, not to tear you down.

LAST WORDS

¹¹Last of all, my sacred family members, let your hearts be glad. Mend your ways, walk side by side with each other, sharing the same purpose and living in harmony with one another. In this way, the Great Spirit who gives love and peace will walk with you on the road of life.

¹²Welcome each other with a holy kiss. All of Creator’s holy ones who are with me send their greetings to you.

¹³May the gift of great kindness that comes from our Honored Chief Creator Sets Free (Jesus), the Chosen One, along with the love of our Creator remain with you as you walk hand in hand together with the Holy Spirit.