⁹ And for the same reason I sent you a letter so that I might be certain of your desire to do my orders in all things.

⁶ Being ready to give punishment to whatever is against his authority, after you have made it clear that you are completely under his control.

²² But his quality is clear to you; how, as a child is to its father, so he was a help to me in the work of the good news.

²¹ Being certain that you will do my desire, I am writing to you, in the knowledge that you will do even more than I say.

¹⁴ And if any man does not give attention to what we have said in this letter, take note of that man, and keep away from him, so that he may be shamed.

¹² So then, my loved ones, as you have at all times done what I say, not only when I am present, but now much more when I am not with you, give yourselves to working out your salvation with fear in your hearts;

²⁴ Make clear then to them, as representatives of the churches, the quality of your love, and that the things which we have said about you are true.

¹² So though I sent you a letter, it was not only because of the man who did the wrong, or because of him to whom the wrong was done, but so that your true care for us might be made clear in the eyes of God.

¹³ So we have been comforted: and we had the greater joy in our comfort because of the joy of Titus, for his spirit had been made glad by you all.

¹⁴ For I was not put to shame in anything in which I may have made clear to him my pride in you; but as we said nothing to you but what was true, so the good things which I said to Titus about you were seen by him to be true.

¹⁵ And his love to you is the more increased by his memory of you all, how you gave way to his authority, and how you took him to your hearts with fear and honour.

³ Then give no attention to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God is testing you, to see if all the love of your heart and soul is given to him.

¹⁶ Who gave you manna for your food in the waste land, a food which your fathers had never seen; so that your pride might be broken and your hearts tested for your good in the end;

² And keep in mind the way by which the Lord your God has taken you through the waste land these forty years, so that he might make low your pride and put you to the test, to see what was in your heart and if you would keep his orders or not.

⁴ Then the Lord said to Moses, See, I will send down bread from heaven for you; and the people will go out every day and get enough for the day's needs; so that I may put them to the test to see if they will keep my laws or not.