For thisreason,ifI come,I will call attentionto his deedswhichhe does,unjustly accusingus with wickedwords;and not satisfiedwith this,he himselfdoes not receivethe brethren,either,and he forbidsthosewho desire[to do so] and puts[them] out of the church.
He who winksthe eyecausestrouble,And a babblingfoolwill be ruined.
The wiseof heartwill receivecommands,But a babblingfoolwill be ruined.
Hearthe wordof the LORD,you whotrembleat His word:"Your brotherswho hateyou, who excludeyou for My name'ssake,Have said,'Let the LORDbe glorified,that we may seeyour joy.'But they will be putto shame.
"Blessedare you whenmenhateyou, and ostracizeyou, and insultyou, and scornyour nameas evil,for the sakeof the Sonof Man.
His parentssaidthisbecausethey were afraidof the Jews;for the Jewshad alreadyagreedthat ifanyoneconfessedHim to be Christ,he was to be put out of the synagogue.
At thistimePeterstoodup in the midstof the brethren(a gatheringof aboutone hundredand twentypersonswas there together),and said,
I have previously saidwhenpresentthe second time,and though nowabsentI say in advanceto thosewho have sinned in the pastand to allthe rest[as well], that ifI comeagainI will not spare[anyone],
So then,whilewe haveopportunity,let us dogoodto all people,and especiallyto thosewho are of the householdof the faith.
At the same timethey alsolearn[to be] idle,as they go aroundfrom house to house;and not merelyidle,but alsogossipsand busybodies,talkingabout things not proper[to mention].
Ifanyonecomesto you and does not bringthisteaching,do not receivehim into [your] house,and do not givehim a greeting;
Though I havemany thingsto writeto you, I do not wantto [do so] with paperand ink;but I hopeto cometo you and speakfaceto face,sothat your joymay be made full.
For I was verygladwhen brethrencameand testifiedto your truth,[that is], howyou are walkingin truth.
Beloved,you are actingfaithfullyin whateveryou accomplishfor the brethren,and especially[when they are] strangers;
