¹⁵ For if you were to have countless ^(A)tutors in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers, for in ^(B)Christ Jesus I ^(C)became your father through the ^(D)gospel. ¹⁶ Therefore I urge you, be ^(E)imitators of me. ¹⁷ For this reason I ^(F)have sent to you ^(G)Timothy, who is my ^(H)beloved and faithful child in the Lord, and he will remind you of my ways which are in Christ, ^(I)just as I teach everywhere in every church. ¹⁸ Now some have become ^[a](J)arrogant, as though I were not ^(K)coming to you. ¹⁹ But I ^(L)will come to you soon, ^(M)if the Lord wills, and I shall find out, not the ^[b]words of those who are ^(N)arrogant, but their power. ²⁰ For the kingdom of God is ^(O)not in ^[c]words, but in power. ²¹ What do you desire? ^(P)That I come to you with a rod, or with love and a spirit of gentleness?

⁶ nor did we ^(A)seek honor from people, either from you or from others, though ^[a]we could have ^[b]asserted our authority as ^(B)apostles of Christ. ⁷ But we ^[c]proved to be ^[d](C)gentle ^[e]among you. ^(D)As a nursing mother ^[f]tenderly cares for her own children, ⁸ in the same way we had a fond affection for you and were delighted to ^(E)share with you not only the ^(F)gospel of God, but also our own ^[g]lives, because you had become ^[h]very dear to us.

⁹ For you recall, brothers and sisters, our ^(G)labor and hardship: it was by ^(H)working night and day so as not to be a ^(I)burden to any of you, that we proclaimed to you the ^(J)gospel of God. ¹⁰ You are witnesses, and so is ^(K)God, of ^(L)how devoutly and rightly and blamelessly we ^[i]behaved toward you ^[j]believers; ¹¹ just as you know how we were ^(M)exhorting and encouraging and ^(N)imploring each one of you as ^(O)a father would his own children, ¹² so that you would ^(P)walk in a manner worthy of the God who ^(Q)calls you into His own kingdom and ^(R)glory.

¹³ For this reason we also constantly ^(S)thank God that when you received the ^(T)word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it ^(U)not as the word of mere men, but as what it really is, the word of God, ^(V)which also is at work in you who believe. ¹⁴ For you, brothers and sisters, became ^(W)imitators of ^(X)the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are ^(Y)in Judea, for ^(Z)you also endured the same sufferings at the hands of your own countrymen, ^(AA)even as they did from the Jews, ^15 (AB)who both killed the Lord Jesus and ^(AC)the prophets, and ^[k]drove us out. ^[l]They are not pleasing to God, ^[m]but hostile to all people, ^16 (AD)hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles ^(AE)so that they may be saved; with the result that they always ^[n](AF)reach the limit of their sins. But ^(AG)wrath has come upon them ^[o]fully.

¹⁷ But we, brothers and sisters, having been orphaned from you by absence for a ^[p]short while—^(AH)in ^[q]person, not in ^[r]spirit—were all the more eager with great desire ^(AI)to see your face. ^18 [s]For ^(AJ)we wanted to come to you—I, Paul, ^[t](AK)more than once—and ^(AL)Satan ^(AM)hindered us. ¹⁹ For who is our hope, or ^(AN)joy or crown of pride, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His ^[u](AO)coming? Or is it not indeed you? ²⁰ For you are ^(AP)our glory and joy.