⁷ But we behaved gently when we were among you, like a devoted mother tenderly caring for her own children. ⁸ Having such a deep affection for you, we ^[a]were delighted to share with you not only God’s good news but also our own lives, because you had become so very dear to us.

⁹ For you remember, ^[b]believers, our labor and hardship. We worked night and day [practicing our trade] in order not to be a [financial] burden to any of you while we proclaimed the gospel of God to you. ¹⁰ You are witnesses, and so is God, how unworldly and just and blameless was our behavior toward you who believe [in our Lord Jesus Christ]. ¹¹ For you know how we were exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you just as a father does [in dealing with] his own children, [guiding you] ¹² to live lives [of honor, moral courage, and personal integrity] worthy of the God who [saves you and] calls you into His own kingdom and glory.