²⁵ “I fell down in the presence of the Lord forty days and forty nights because the Lord had threatened to destroy you. ²⁶ I prayed to the Lord:

Lord God, do not annihilate your people, your inheritance, whom you redeemed^(A) through your greatness and brought out of Egypt with a strong hand. ²⁷ Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Disregard this people’s stubbornness, and their wickedness and sin. ²⁸ Otherwise, those in the land you brought us from will say, ‘Because the Lord wasn’t able to bring them into the land he had promised them, and because he hated them, he brought them out to kill them in the wilderness.’^{(B) 29} But they are your people, your inheritance, whom you brought out by your great power and outstretched arm.^(C)

Sound Teaching and Christian Living

2 But you are to proclaim things consistent with sound teaching.^{(A) 2} Older men^(B) are to be self-controlled, worthy of respect, sensible, and sound in faith, love,^(C) and endurance. ³ In the same way, older women^(D) are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not slaves to excessive drinking. They are to teach what is good, ⁴ so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands and to love their children, ⁵ to be self-controlled, pure, workers at home, kind, and in submission^(E) to their husbands, so that God’s word^(F) will not be slandered.

⁶ In the same way, encourage the young men^(G) to be self-controlled ⁷ in everything. Make yourself an example of good works with integrity and dignity^[a] in your teaching. ⁸ Your message is to be sound beyond reproach,^(H) so that any opponent will be ashamed, because he doesn’t have anything bad to say about us.

⁹ Slaves are to submit to their masters^(I) in everything, and to be well-pleasing,^(J) not talking back ¹⁰ or stealing, but demonstrating utter faithfulness, so that they may adorn the teaching of God our Savior^(K) in everything.

¹¹ For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation^[b] for all people,^{(L) 12} instructing us to deny godlessness^(M) and worldly lusts^(N) and to live in a sensible, righteous,^(O) and godly^(P) way in the present age, ¹³ while we wait for the blessed hope,^(Q) the appearing of the glory^(R) of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. ¹⁴ He gave himself for us^(S) to redeem us from all lawlessness and to cleanse for himself a people for his own possession,^(T) eager to do good works.

¹⁵ Proclaim these things; encourage and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard^[c] you.