帖撒罗尼迦前书 4
1 弟兄们,我还有话说。我们靠着主耶稣求你们,劝你们,你们既然受了我们的教训,知道该怎样行,可以讨神的喜悦,就要照你们现在所行的,更加勉励。
Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.
2 你们原晓得我们凭主耶稣传给你们什么命令。
For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.
3 神的旨意就是要你们成为圣洁,远避淫行。
It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality;
4 要你们各人晓得怎样用圣洁尊贵,守着自己的身体。
that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable,
5 不放纵私欲的邪情,像那不认识神的外邦人。
not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God;
6 不要一个人在这事上越分,欺负他的弟兄。因为这一类的事,主必报应,正如我预先对你们说过,又切切嘱咐你们的。
and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you.
7 神召我们,本不是要我们沾染污秽,乃是要我们成为圣洁。
For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.
8 所以那弃绝的,不是弃绝人,乃是弃绝那赐圣灵给你们的神。
Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.
9 论到弟兄们相爱,不用人写信给你们,因为你们自己蒙了神的教训,叫你们彼此相爱。
Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.
10 你们向马其顿全地的众弟兄,固然是这样行,但我劝弟兄们要更加勉励。
And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more.
11 又要立志作安静人,办自己的事,亲手作工,正如我们从前所吩咐你们的。
Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you,
12 叫你们可以向外人行事端正,自己也就没有什么缺乏了。
so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.
13 论到睡了的人,我们不愿意弟兄们不知道,恐怕你们忧伤,像那些没有指望的人一样。
Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.
14 我们若信耶稣死而复活了,那已经在耶稣里睡了的人,神也必将他与耶稣一同带来。
We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.
15 我们现在照主的话告诉你们一件事。我们这活着还存留到主降临的人,断不能在那已经睡了的人之先。
According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
16 因为主必亲自从天降临,有呼叫的声音,和天使长的声音,又有神的号吹响。那在基督里死了的人必先复活。
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 以后我们这活着还存留的人,必和他们一同被提到云里,在空中与主相遇。这样,我们就要和主永远同在。
After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
18 所以你们当用这些话彼此劝慰。
Therefore encourage each other with these words.