An Exhortation to Proper Living

⁶ And now, dear brothers and sisters, we give you this command in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ: Stay away from all believers^[a] who live idle lives and don’t follow the tradition they received^[b] from us.

¹⁰ Even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “Those unwilling to work will not get to eat.”

¹¹ Yet we hear that some of you are living idle lives, refusing to work and meddling in other people’s business.

⁷ For you know that you ought to imitate us. We were not idle when we were with you.

Paul’s Final Instructions

¹⁷ And now I make one more appeal, my dear brothers and sisters. Watch out for people who cause divisions and upset people’s faith by teaching things contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them.

¹⁴ Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy. Encourage those who are timid. Take tender care of those who are weak. Be patient with everyone.

¹⁴ Take note of those who refuse to obey what we say in this letter. Stay away from them so they will be ashamed. ¹⁵ Don’t think of them as enemies, but warn them as you would a brother or sister.^[a]

¹⁵ With all these things in mind, dear brothers and sisters, stand firm and keep a strong grip on the teaching we passed on to you both in person and by letter.

Live to Please God

4 Finally, dear brothers and sisters,^[a] we urge you in the name of the Lord Jesus to live in a way that pleases God, as we have taught you. You live this way already, and we encourage you to do so even more.

¹⁷ And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

⁵ They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!