1
Maana nataka ninyi mjue jinsi ilivyo kuu juhudi yangu niliyo nayo kwa ajili yenu, na kwa ajili ya wale wa Laodikia, na wale wasioniona uso wangu katika mwili;
For I want you to know how much I am struggling for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me face to face,
2
ili wafarijiwe mioyo yao, wakiunganishwa katika upendo, wakapate utajiri wote wa kufahamu kwa hakika, wapate kujua kabisa siri ya Mungu, yaani, Kristo;
that they may be encouraged in heart, knit together in love, and filled with the full riches of complete understanding, so that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ,
3
ambaye ndani yake yeye hazina zote za hekima na maarifa zimesitirika.
in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
4
Nasema neno hili, mtu asije akawadanganya kwa maneno ya kuwashawishi.
I say this so that no one will deceive you by smooth rhetoric.
5
Maana nijapokuwa sipo kwa mwili, lakini nipo pamoja nanyi kwa roho, nikifurahi na kuuona utaratibu wenu na uthabiti wa imani yenu katika Kristo.
For although I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, and I delight to see your orderly condition and firm faith in Christ.
6
Basi kama mlivyompokea Kristo Yesu, Bwana, enendeni vivyo hivyo katika yeye;
Therefore, just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in Him,
7
wenye shina na wenye kujengwa katika yeye; mmefanywa imara kwa imani, kama mlivyofundishwa; mkizidi kutoa shukrani.
rooted and built up in Him, established in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
8
Angalieni mtu asiwafanye mateka kwa elimu yake ya bure na madanganyo matupu, kwa jinsi ya mapokeo ya wanadamu, kwa jinsi ya mafundisho ya awali ya ulimwengu, wala si kwa jinsi ya Kristo.
See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, which are based on human tradition and the spiritual forces of the world rather than on Christ.
9
Maana katika yeye unakaa utimilifu wote wa Mungu, kwa jinsi ya kimwili.
For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form.
10
Na ninyi mmetimilika katika yeye aliye kichwa cha enzi yote na mamlaka.
And you have been made complete in Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.
11
Katika yeye mmetahiriwa kwa tohara isiyofanyika kwa mikono, kwa kuuvua mwili wa nyama, kwa tohara ya Kristo.
In Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of your sinful nature, with the circumcision performed by Christ and not by human hands.
12
Mkazikwa pamoja naye katika ubatizo; na katika huo mkafufuliwa pamoja naye, kwa kuziamini nguvu za Mungu aliyemfufua katika wafu.
And having been buried with Him in baptism, you were raised with Him through your faith in the power of God, who raised Him from the dead.
13
Na ninyi mlipokuwa mmekufa kwa sababu ya makosa yenu na kutokutahiriwa kwa mwili wenu, aliwafanya hai pamoja naye, akiisha kutusamehe makosa yote;
When you were dead in your trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our trespasses,
14
akiisha kuifuta ile hati iliyoandikwa ya kutushitaki kwa hukumu zake, iliyokuwa na uadui kwetu; akaiondoa isiwepo tena, akaigongomea msalabani;
having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us. He took it away, nailing it to the cross!
15
akiisha kuzivua enzi na mamlaka, na kuzifanya kuwa mkogo kwa ujasiri, akizishangilia katika msalaba huo.
And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
16
Basi, mtu asiwahukumu ninyi katika vyakula au vinywaji, au kwa sababu ya sikukuu au mwandamo wa mwezi, au sabato;
Therefore let no one judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a feast, a New Moon, or a Sabbath.
17
mambo hayo ni kivuli cha mambo yajayo; bali mwili ni wa Kristo.
These are a shadow of the things to come, but the body that casts it belongs to Christ.
18
Mtu asiwanyang'anye thawabu yenu, kwa kunyenyekea kwa mapenzi yake mwenyewe tu, na kuabudu malaika, akijitia katika maono yake na kujivuna bure, kwa akili zake za kimwili;
Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you with speculation about what he has seen. Such a person is puffed up without basis by his unspiritual mind.
19
wala hakishiki Kichwa, ambacho kwa yeye mwili wote ukiruzukiwa na kuungamanishwa kwa viungo na mishipa, hukua kwa maongeo yatokayo kwa Mungu.
He has lost connection to the head, from whom the whole body, supported and knit together by its joints and ligaments, grows as God causes it to grow.
20
Basi ikiwa mlikufa pamoja na Kristo mkayaacha yale mafundisho ya awali ya ulimwengu, kwa nini kujitia chini ya amri, kama wenye kuishi duniani,
If you have died with Christ to the spiritual forces of the world, why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its regulations:
21
Msishike, msionje, msiguse;
“Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!”?
22
(mambo hayo yote huharibika wakati wa kutumiwa); hali mkifuata maagizo na mafundisho ya wanadamu?
These will all perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings.
23
Mambo hayo yanaonekana kana kwamba yana hekima, katika namna ya ibada mliyojitungia wenyewe, na katika kunyenyekea, na katika kuutawala mwili kwa ukali; lakini hayafai kitu kwa kuzizuia tamaa za mwili.
Such restrictions indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-prescribed worship, their false humility, and their harsh treatment of the body; but they are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.