In Thessalonica
1 Paul and Silas traveled on through Amphipolis and Apollonia and came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue. 2 According to his usual habit Paul went to the synagogue. There during three Sabbaths he held discussions with the people, quoting 3 and explaining the Scriptures, and proving from them that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from death. “This Jesus whom I announce to you,” Paul said, “is the Messiah.” 4 Some of them were convinced and joined Paul and Silas; so did many of the leading women and a large group of Greeks who worshiped God.
5 But some Jews were jealous and gathered worthless loafers from the streets and formed a mob. They set the whole city in an uproar and attacked the home of a man named Jason, in an attempt to find Paul and Silas and bring them out to the people. 6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city authorities and shouted, “These men have caused trouble everywhere! Now they have come to our city, 7 and Jason has kept them in his house. They are all breaking the laws of the Emperor, saying that there is another king, whose name is Jesus.” 8 With these words they threw the crowd and the city authorities in an uproar. 9 The authorities made Jason and the others pay the required amount of money to be released, and then let them go.
In Berea
10 As soon as night came, the believers sent Paul and Silas to Berea. When they arrived, they went to the synagogue. 11 The people there were more open-minded than the people in Thessalonica. They listened to the message with great eagerness, and every day they studied the Scriptures to see if what Paul said was really true. 12 Many of them believed; and many Greek women of high social standing and many Greek men also believed. 13 But when the Jews in Thessalonica heard that Paul had preached the word of God in Berea also, they came there and started exciting and stirring up the mobs. 14 At once the believers sent Paul away to the coast; but both Silas and Timothy stayed in Berea. 15 The men who were taking Paul went with him as far as Athens and then returned to Berea with instructions from Paul that Silas and Timothy should join him as soon as possible.
In Athens
16 While Paul was waiting in Athens for Silas and Timothy, he was greatly upset when he noticed how full of idols the city was. 17 So he held discussions in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentiles who worshiped God, and also in the public square every day with the people who happened to come by. 18 Certain Epicurean and Stoic teachers also debated with him. Some of them asked, “What is this ignorant show-off trying to say?”
Others answered, “He seems to be talking about foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching about Jesus and the resurrection. 19 So they took Paul, brought him before the city council, the Areopagus, and said, “We would like to know what this new teaching is that you are talking about. 20 Some of the things we hear you say sound strange to us, and we would like to know what they mean.” ( 21 For all the citizens of Athens and the foreigners who lived there liked to spend all their time telling and hearing the latest new thing.)
22 Paul stood up in front of the city council and said, “I see that in every way you Athenians are very religious. 23 For as I walked through your city and looked at the places where you worship, I found an altar on which is written, ‘To an Unknown God.’ That which you worship, then, even though you do not know it, is what I now proclaim to you. 24 God, who made the world and everything in it, is Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples made by human hands. 25 Nor does he need anything that we can supply by working for him, since it is he himself who gives life and breath and everything else to everyone. 26 From one human being he created all races of people and made them live throughout the whole earth. He himself fixed beforehand the exact times and the limits of the places where they would live. 27 He did this so that they would look for him, and perhaps find him as they felt around for him. Yet God is actually not far from any one of us; 28 as someone has said,
‘In him we live and move and exist.’
It is as some of your poets have said,
‘We too are his children.’
29 Since we are God's children, we should not suppose that his nature is anything like an image of gold or silver or stone, shaped by human art and skill. 30 God has overlooked the times when people did not know him, but now he commands all of them everywhere to turn away from their evil ways. 31 For he has fixed a day in which he will judge the whole world with justice by means of a man he has chosen. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising that man from death!”
32 When they heard Paul speak about a raising from death, some of them made fun of him, but others said, “We want to hear you speak about this again.” 33 And so Paul left the meeting. 34 Some men joined him and believed, among whom was Dionysius, a member of the council; there was also a woman named Damaris, and some other people.
Ezunganeno mOtesalonika
1 Paulus na Silas va kayenda komurungu ave tuurunga Amfipolis na Apolonie nave ya mOtesalonika mu mwa ri osinagoge. 2 Nu Paulus wa hita mosinagoge otja tjaa tjiti, nu mOmasabata yetatu wa kara ama patasana kuna wo okuza momatjangwa. 3 Eye aa handjaura omatjangwa nokuraisa mu wo kutja Omutwirisiwa wa sere okuṱa nu wa sere okupenduka movakoke. Paulus wa tjere: “Ingwi Jesus ami ngu me hongononene eṋe eye onguri Omutwirisiwa.” 4 Ovajuda tjiva va popwa i omahungi wa Paulus, narire tji ve rikutu ku ye na Silas; wina ovakazendu ovengi ovayozikwa notjimbumba otjinene tjOvagrike tji tji nondira ku Ndjambi tje rikuta kuna Paulus na Silas.
5 Nungwari Ovajuda va ṱeruru na wo, ave woronganisa ovandu tjiva vakauriri motupanda nu ave utu otjira tjovazunganise. Owo va tjita ezunganeno motjihuro atjihe nave taurire mondjuwo yomurumendu wena Jason kutja nani mave vaza mo Paulus na Silas, nu ve ve ete kotjiwaṋa. 6 Nungwari tjinga ave he ve vazere mo, arire tji va nana Jason novakambure tjiva okuveeta kovanane votjihuro nu ave ravaere amave tja: “Ovandu mba va tjita ezunganeno akuhe! Nambano owo ve ya kotjihuro tjetu, 7 nu Jason we ve sekirisa moye. Owo avehe ve teya omazikamisiro wombara ya Roma nu ve tja pe nombara yarwe, nena rayo oJesus.” 8 Nu mokuhungira omambo nga aave zunganisa otjimbumba tjovandu novanane votjihuro. 9 Ovanane va sutisa Jason novakwao imbi ovimariva mbyaa vi heperwa po kutja arire tji va isiwa, nu tjazumba ave ve esa ave i.
Paulus na Silas mOberea
10 Tjimanga tji kwa rira ouṱuku, ovakambure va hindire Paulus na Silas kOberea. Nu tji ve ya ngo, arire tji va i kosinagoge yOvajuda. 11 Ovature va Berea va ri nombango tjinene pu imba Ovatesalonika okuyakura omazuvarisiro wa Paulus. Owo aave puratene kembo ra Ndjambi nonḓero onene, nu eyuva arihe aave konḓonona omatjangwa okutjiwa kutja imbi Paulus mbi ma hungire ovyo ouatjiri. 12 Novengi mokati kawo va kamburire, novakazendu ovengi Ovagrike ovayozikwa novarumendu ovengi Ovagrike wina va kamburire. 13 Nungwari Ovajuda mOtesalonika tji va zuva kutja Paulus wina wa zuvarisa embo ra Ndjambi mOberea, arire tji va i ngo nave kayaruka okuhandjisa nokuhohiza ovazunganise. 14 Tjimanga ovakambure ave twara Paulus komukuro wokuvare; nungwari Silas na Timoteus owo va kara pehi mOberea. 15 Ovarumendu mba twara Paulus va ya nga kOatene, tjazumba ave kotoka kOberea nomambo Paulus nga raa wokutja Silas na Timoteus nga ve ye kuye tjimanga.
Paulus mOatene
16 Paulus ngunda ama undjire Silas na Timoteus mOatene wa kurungisirwe tjinene indu tja munine kutja motjihuro mu noviserekarera vyovisenginina ovingi tjinene. 17 Eye otja kara nombatasaneno mosinagoge kuna Ovajuda naimba mbe he ri Ovajuda, mba ri nondira ku Ndjambi, nu wina eyuva arihe poruveze romarandero eye aa hungire kuna ovakapite. 18 Nozonongo zorive zOvaepikuri nozOvastoiki za patasana kuna ye. Tjiva za pura aze tja: “Omundu kotjitakanyo ngwi ma vanga okutja tjike hapo?”
Ovakwao ave ziri nai: “Eye ngahino kamuhungirire po woomukuru wozonganda are?” Owo va tja nao Paulus tjinga aa zuvarisa Jesus nombendukiro ye. 19 Nowo opu va kamburire Paulus ave mu twara kovanane votjihuro kOareopagus, ave katja: “Eṱe matu vanga okutjiwa kutja omahongero omape nga ngu mo hungire owatjike. 20 Oviṋa tjiva mbi matu ku zuu amo hungire, eṱe katu vi i, notji matu vanga okutjiwa kutja ovyo mavi hee tjike.” 21 Ovature va Atene novozonganda mba turire mo kave yandjerere oruveze rwawo kotjiṋa tjarwe posi yokuserekarera nokupuratena komahungi omape. 22 Paulus arire tja kurama komurungu wovanane votjihuro a tja: “Eṋe va Atene, ami me munu kutja mu avihe eṋe oweṋe ovanangamburiro tjinene. 23 Ami tjinga amba ryanga motjihuro tjeṋu nokutara poṋa apehe pu mu rikotamenena, otjinga amba muna otjipunguhiro ku kwa tjangwa nai: ‘Ku Ndjambi ngu he iwe.’ Ingwi eṋe ku mu rikotamena, amu he mu i, ami nambano ongu me mu zuvarisire. 24 Ndjambi ngwa uta ouye na imbi avihe mbi ri mu wo, eye onguri Muhona weyuru nehi, neye ka tura mozondjuwo ozonḓere nda tungwa nomake wovandu. 25 Eye wina ka hepa okurikenderwa i ovandu, tjinga e ri ye omuini ngu yandja omuinyo nosuvaneno noviṋa avihe ku ngamwa auhe. 26 Nu pomundu umwe eye wa utire po omihoko avihe vyovandu, nu e vi turisa mouye auhe. Eye omuini rukuru ongwa twire po otuveze otusemba nomiruko vyomaturiro wavyo. 27 Ndjambi ovandu we ve utira okumupaha, nokutja nani mave pambaha okumumuna. Nungwari eye hapo ke ri kokure na eṱe atuhe, 28 otja omundu worive pa heere a tja:
‘Mu ye omu tu nomuinyo nomu tu nyinganyinga nomu tu ri.’
Poo otja ovatjange veṋu vomiṱanḓu punga amave tja:
‘Eṱe wina oweṱe orukwato rwe.’
29 Eṱe tjinga atu ri orukwato rwa Ndjambi, otjinga atu ha sokutjangovasi ongaro ye ya sana notjiserekarera tjongoldo notjosilveri notjomawe, mbya hongwa nounongo nouripura womundu. 30 Ndjambi wa zembira ovandu itwi otuveze owo tuyave he mu tjiwa, nungwari nambano, eye meve rakiza avehe akuhe kutja ve ise ozondjira zawo zouvi, 31 tjinga a zikamisa eyuva eye mu ma pangura ouye nousemba mokutwa po omurumendu eye ngwa toorora. Notjiṋa hi we tji raisa ongahukiro ku avehe indu tja pendura omurumendu ngwi movakoke!”
32 Nowo tji va zuva Paulus ama hungire ombendukiro movakoke, tjiva arire tji ve mu nyekerere, novakwao ave tja: “Matu vanga okukuzuva amo hungire oviṋa mbi rukwao.” 33 Tjazumba Paulus a zu po pu wo. 34 Ovarumendu tjiva va panḓera pu Paulus nave kambura, nu umwe wawo wa ri Dionisius, okaṋepo kOareopagus, nomukazendu wina wena Damaris, novandu ovakwao tjiva.
