You Walk in the Truth

¹ The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth.

² Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers. ³ For I was very glad when brethren came and testified to your truth, that is, how you are walking in truth. ⁴ I have no greater joy than ^[a]this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.

⁵ Beloved, you are acting faithfully in whatever you accomplish for the brethren, and ^[b]especially when they are strangers; ⁶ and they have testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God. ⁷ For they went out for the sake of the Name, accepting nothing from the Gentiles. ⁸ Therefore we ought to ^[c]support such men, so that we may ^[d]be fellow workers ^[e]with the truth.

⁹ I wrote something to the church; but Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, does not accept ^[f]what we say. ¹⁰ For this reason, if I come, I will call attention to his deeds which he does, unjustly accusing us with wicked words; and not satisfied with this, he himself does not receive the brethren, either, and he forbids those who desire to do so and puts them out of the church.

¹¹ Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God. ¹² Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, and from the truth itself; and we add our testimony, and you know that our testimony is true.

¹³ I had many things to write to you, but I am not willing to write them to you with pen and ink; ¹⁴ but I hope to see you shortly, and we will speak face to face.

¹⁵ Peace be to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends by name.

Idolatrous Worship Denounced

6 And the word of the Lord came to me saying, ² “Son of man, set your face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them ³ and say, ‘Mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord ^[a]God! Thus says the Lord ^[b]God to the mountains, the hills, the ravines and the valleys: “Behold, I Myself am going to bring a sword on you, and I will destroy your high places. ⁴ So your altars will become desolate and your incense altars will be smashed; and I will make your slain fall in front of your idols. ⁵ I will also lay the dead bodies of the sons of Israel in front of their idols; and I will scatter your bones around your altars. ⁶ In all your dwellings, cities will become waste and the high places will be desolate, that your altars may become waste and ^[c]desolate, your idols may be broken and brought to an end, your incense altars may be cut down, and your works may be blotted out. ⁷ The slain will fall among you, and you will know that I am the Lord.

⁸ “However, I will leave a remnant, for you will have those who escaped the sword among the nations when you are scattered among the countries. ⁹ Then those of you who escape will remember Me among the nations to which they will be carried captive, how I have ^[d]been hurt by their adulterous hearts which turned away from Me, and by their eyes which played the harlot after their idols; and they will loathe themselves in their own sight for the evils which they have committed, for all their abominations. ¹⁰ Then they will know that I am the Lord; I have not said in vain ^[e]that I would inflict this disaster on them.”’

¹¹ “Thus says the Lord ^[f]God, ‘Clap your hand, stamp your foot and say, “Alas, because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel, which will fall by sword, famine and plague! ¹² He who is far off will die by the plague, and he who is near will fall by the sword, and he who remains and is besieged will die by the famine. Thus will I spend My wrath on them. ¹³ Then you will know that I am the Lord, when their slain are among their idols around their altars, on every high hill, on all the tops of the mountains, under every green tree and under every leafy oak—the places where they offered soothing aroma to all their idols. ¹⁴ So throughout all their habitations I will stretch out My hand against them and make the land more desolate and waste than the wilderness toward Diblah; thus they will know that I am the Lord.”’”