¹⁴ They must stop listening to Jewish myths and the commands of people who have turned away from the truth.

⁴ They will reject the truth and chase after myths.

²² Such rules are mere human teachings about things that deteriorate as we use them.

²² They prove the truth of this proverb: “A dog returns to its vomit.”^[a] And another says, “A washed pig returns to the mud.”

⁹ So now that you know God (or should I say, now that God knows you), why do you want to go back again and become slaves once more to the weak and useless spiritual principles of this world?

⁴ Don’t let them waste their time in endless discussion of myths and spiritual pedigrees. These things only lead to meaningless speculations,^[a] which don’t help people live a life of faith in God.^[b]

⁵ The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith. ⁶ But some people have missed this whole point. They have turned away from these things and spend their time in meaningless discussions. ⁷ They want to be known as teachers of the law of Moses, but they don’t know what they are talking about, even though they speak so confidently.

²⁵ Be careful that you do not refuse to listen to the One who is speaking. For if the people of Israel did not escape when they refused to listen to Moses, the earthly messenger, we will certainly not escape if we reject the One who speaks to us from heaven!