¹For you yourselves know , brothers, our visit to you wasn’t in vain ,

²but having suffered before and been shamefully treated, as you know , at Philippi , we grew bold in our God to tell you the Good News of God in much conflict.

³For our exhortation is not of error , nor of uncleanness, nor in deception .

⁴But even as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News , so we speak —not as pleasing men , but God , who tests our hearts .

⁵For neither were we at any time found using words of flattery, as you know , nor a cloak of covetousness (God is witness ),

⁶nor seeking glory from men (neither from you nor from others), when we might have claimed authority as emissaries of Messiah .

⁷But we were gentle amongst you , like a nursing mother cherishes her own children .

⁸Even so , affectionately longing for you , we were well pleased to impart to you not the Good News of God only , but also our own souls , because you had become very dear to us .

⁹For you remember , brothers, our labour and travail ; for working night and day , that we might not burden any of you , we preached to you the Good News of God .

¹⁰You are witnesses with God how holy, righteously , and blamelessly we behaved ourselves towards you who believe .

¹¹As you know , we exhorted , comforted , and implored every one of you , as a father does his own children ,

¹²to the end that you should walk worthily of God , who calls you into his own Kingdom and glory .

¹³For this cause we also thank God without ceasing that when you received from us the word of the message of God , you accepted it not as the word of men , but as it is in truth, God ’s word , which also works in you who believe .

¹⁴For you , brothers, became imitators of the assemblies of God which are in Judea in Messiah Yeshua; for you also suffered the same things from your own countrymen , even as they did from the Judeans

¹⁵who killed both the Lord Yeshua and their own prophets , and drove us out , and don’t please God , and are contrary to all men ,

¹⁶forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they may be saved , to fill up their sins always . But wrath has come on them to the uttermost .

¹⁷But we , brothers, being bereaved of you for a short season in presence , not in heart , tried even harder to see your face with great desire ,

¹⁸because we wanted to come to you —indeed , I , Paul , once and again —but Satan hindered us .

¹⁹For what is our hope , or joy , or crown of rejoicing ? Isn’t it even you , before our Lord Yeshua at his coming ?[#2:19 TR adds “Messiah”]

²⁰For you are our glory and our joy .