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.
Trouble in Thessalonica
1 After Paul and his friends had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they went on to Thessalonica. A synagogue was in that city. 2 So as usual, Paul went there to worship, and on three Sabbaths he spoke to the people. He used the Scriptures 3 to show them that the Messiah had to suffer, but that he would rise from death. Paul also told them that Jesus is the Messiah he was preaching about. 4 Some of them believed what Paul had said, and they became followers with Paul and Silas. Some Gentiles and many important women also believed the message.
5 The Jewish leaders were jealous and got some troublemakers who hung around the marketplace to start a riot in the city. They wanted to drag Paul and Silas out to the mob, and so they went straight to Jason's home. 6 But when they did not find them there, they dragged out Jason and some of the Lord's followers. They took them to the city authorities and shouted, “Paul and Silas have been upsetting things everywhere. Now they have come here, 7 and Jason has welcomed them into his home. All of them break the laws of the Roman Emperor by claiming that someone named Jesus is king.”
8 The officials and the people were upset when they heard this. 9 So they made Jason and the other followers pay bail before letting them go.
People in Berea Welcome the Message
10 That same night the Lord's followers sent Paul and Silas on to Berea, and after they arrived, they went to the synagogue. 11 The people in Berea were much nicer than those in Thessalonica, and they gladly accepted the message. Day after day they studied the Scriptures to see if these things were true. 12 Many of them put their faith in the Lord, including some important Greek women and several men.
13 When the Jewish leaders in Thessalonica heard that Paul had been preaching God's message in Berea, they went there and caused trouble by turning the crowds against Paul.
14 At once the followers sent Paul down to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed in Berea. 15 Some men went with Paul as far as Athens, and then returned with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.
Paul in Athens
16 While Paul was waiting in Athens, he was upset to see all the idols in the city. 17 He went to the synagogue to speak to the Jews and to anyone who worshiped with them. Day after day he also spoke to everyone he met in the market. 18 Some of them were Epicureans and some were Stoics, and they started arguing with him.
People were asking, “What is this know-it-all trying to say?”
Some even said, “Paul must be preaching about foreign gods! That's what he means when he talks about Jesus and about people rising from death.”
19 They brought Paul before a council called the Areopagus, and said, “Tell us what your new teaching is all about. 20 We have heard you say some strange things, and we want to know what you mean.”
21 More than anything else the people of Athens and the foreigners living there loved to hear and to talk about anything new. 22 So Paul stood up in front of the council and said:
People of Athens, I see that you are very religious. 23 As I was going through your city and looking at the things you worship, I found an altar with the words, “To an Unknown God.” You worship this God, but you don't really know him. So I want to tell you about him. 24 This God made the world and everything in it. He is Lord of heaven and earth, and he doesn't live in temples built by human hands. 25 He doesn't need help from anyone. He gives life, breath, and everything else to all people. 26 From one person God made all nations who live on earth, and he decided when and where every nation would be.
27 God has done all this, so that we will look for him and reach out and find him. He isn't far from any of us, 28 and he gives us the power to live, to move, and to be who we are. “We are his children,” just as some of your poets have said.
29 Since we are God's children, we must not think that he is like an idol made out of gold or silver or stone. He isn't like anything that humans have thought up and made. 30 In the past, God forgave all this because people did not know what they were doing. But now he says that everyone everywhere must turn to him. 31 He has set a day when he will judge the world's people with fairness. And he has chosen the man Jesus to do the judging for him. God has given proof of this to all of us by raising Jesus from death.
32 As soon as the people heard Paul say a man had been raised from death, some of them started laughing. Others said, “We will hear you talk about this some other time.” 33 When Paul left the council meeting, 34 some of the men put their faith in the Lord and went with Paul. One of them was a council member named Dionysius. A woman named Damaris and several others also put their faith in the Lord.
