¹Mimi Paulo, mtume wa Kristo Yesu kwa mapenzi ya Mungu, na ndugu Timotheo,

¹Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Timotheus the brother,

²tunawaandikia ninyi watu wa Mungu huko Kolosai, ndugu zetu waaminifu katika kuungana na Kristo. Tunawatakieni neema na amani kutoka kwa Mungu Baba yetu.

²to the saints in Colossae, and to the faithful brethren in Christ: Grace to you, and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ!

³Daima tunamshukuru Mungu, Baba wa Bwana wetu Yesu Kristo, wakati tunapowaombea.

³We give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, always praying for you,

⁴Maana tumesikia juu ya imani yenu katika Kristo Yesu na juu ya upendo wenu kwa watu wote wa Mungu.

⁴having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love that [is] to all the saints,

⁵Wakati ujumbe ule wa kweli, yaani Habari Njema, ilipowafikieni kwa mara ya kwanza, mlipata kusikia juu ya lile tumaini linalopatikana kwake. Kwa sababu hiyo imani na upendo wenu vinategemea jambo lile mnalotumainia ambalo mmewekewa salama mbinguni.

⁵because of the hope that is laid up for you in the heavens, which ye heard of before in the word of the truth of the good news,

⁶Habari Njema inazidi kuzaa matunda na kuenea ulimwenguni kote kama vile ilivyofanya kwenu ninyi tangu siku ile mliposikia juu ya neema ya Mungu na kuitambua ilivyo kweli.

⁶which is present to you, as also in all the world, and is bearing fruit, as also in you, from the day in which ye heard, and knew the grace of God in truth;

⁷Mlijifunza juu ya neema ya Mungu kutoka kwa Epafra, mtumishi mwenzetu, ambaye ni mfanyakazi mwaminifu wa Kristo kwa niaba yetu.

⁷as ye also learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow-servant, who is for you a faithful ministrant of the Christ,

⁸Yeye alitupa habari za upendo wenu mliojaliwa na Roho.

⁸who also did declare to us your love in the Spirit.

⁹Kwa sababu hiyo tumekuwa tukiwaombeeni daima tangu tulipopata habari zenu. Tunamwomba Mungu awajazeni ujuzi kamili wa mapenzi yake, awajazeni hekima yote na elimu iletwayo na Roho wake.

⁹Because of this, we also, from the day in which we heard, do not cease praying for you, and asking that ye may be filled with the full knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding,

¹⁰Hapo mtaweza kuishi kama anavyotaka Bwana na kutenda daima yanayompendeza. Maisha yenu yatakuwa yenye matunda ya kila namna ya matendo mema na mtazidi kukua katika kumjua Mungu.

¹⁰to your walking worthily of the Lord to all pleasing, in every good work being fruitful, and increasing to the knowledge of God,

¹¹Mungu awajalieni nguvu kwa uwezo wake mtukufu ili mweze kustahimili kila kitu kwa uvumilivu.

¹¹in all might being made mighty according to the power of His glory, to all endurance and long-suffering with joy.

¹²Na kwa furaha, mshukuruni Baba aliyewawezesha ninyi kuwa na sehemu yenu katika mambo yale Mungu aliyowawekea watu wake katika utawala wa mwanga.

¹²Giving thanks to the Father who did make us meet for the participation of the inheritance of the saints in the light,

¹³Yeye alituokoa katika nguvu ya giza, akatuleta salama katika ufalme wa Mwanae mpenzi,

¹³who did rescue us out of the authority of the darkness, and did translate [us] into the reign of the Son of His love,

¹⁴ambaye kwa njia yake tunakombolewa, yaani dhambi zetu zinaondolewa.

¹⁴in whom we have the redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of the sins,

¹⁵Kristo ni mfano wa Mungu asiyeonekana; ni mzaliwa wa kwanza wa viumbe vyote.

¹⁵who is the image of the invisible God, first-born of all creation,

¹⁶Maana kwa njia yake vitu vyote viliumbwa duniani na mbinguni, vitu vinavyoonekana na visivyoonekana: wenye enzi, watawala, wakuu na wenye mamlaka. Vyote viliumbwa kwa njia yake na kwa ajili yake.

¹⁶because in him were the all things created, those in the heavens, and those upon the earth, those visible, and those invisible, whether thrones, whether lordships, whether principalities, whether authorities; all things through him, and for him, have been created,

¹⁷Kristo alikuwako kabla ya vitu vyote; kwa kuungana naye, vyote vyadumu mahali pake.

¹⁷and himself is before all, and the all things in him have consisted.

¹⁸Yeye ni kichwa cha mwili wake, yaani kanisa; yeye ni chanzo cha uhai wa huo mwili. Yeye ndiye mwanzo, mzaliwa wa kwanza aliyefufuliwa kutoka wafu, ili awe na nafasi ya kwanza katika vitu vyote.

¹⁸And himself is the head of the body — the assembly — who is a beginning, a first-born out of the dead, that he might become in all [things] — himself — first,

¹⁹Maana Mungu alipenda utimilifu wote uwe ndani yake.

¹⁹because in him it did please all the fulness to tabernacle,

²⁰Kwa njia yake Mungu alivipatanisha naye vitu vyote naam, viumbe vyote mbinguni na duniania; alileta amani kwa damu ya Kristo msalabani.

²⁰and through him to reconcile the all things to himself — having made peace through the blood of his cross — through him, whether the things upon the earth, whether the things in the heavens.

²¹Hapo kwanza ninyi pia mlikuwa mbali na Mungu na mlikuwa adui zake kwa sababu ya fikira zenu na matendo yenu maovu.

²¹And you — once being alienated, and enemies in the mind, in the evil works, yet now did he reconcile,

²²Lakini sasa, kwa kifo cha Mwanae aliyeishi hapa duniani, Mungu amewapatanisha naye, kusudi awalete mbele yake mkiwa watakatifu, safi na bila lawama.

²²in the body of his flesh through the death, to present you holy, and unblemished, and unblameable before himself,

²³Mnapaswa, lakini kuendelea kuwa imara na thabiti katika imani hiyo, na msikubali kusukumwa mbali na tumaini lile mlilopata wakati mlipoisikia Habari Njema. Mimi Paulo nimekuwa mtumishi wa hiyo Habari Njema ambayo imekwisha hubiriwa kila kiumbe duniani.

²³if also ye remain in the faith, being founded and settled, and not moved away from the hope of the good news, which ye heard, which was preached in all the creation that [is] under the heaven, of which I became — I Paul — a ministrant.

²⁴Na sasa nafurahi kuteseka kwa ajili yenu, maana kwa mateso yangu hapa duniani, nasaidia kukamilisha kile kilichopungua bado katika mateso ya Kristo kwa ajili ya mwili wake, yaani kanisa.

²⁴I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and do fill up the things lacking of the tribulations of the Christ in my flesh for his body, which is the assembly,

²⁵Nami nimefanywa kuwa mtumishi wa kanisa kufuatana na mpango wake Mungu ambao alinikabidhi kwa faida yenu. Mpango wenyewe ni kuutangaza kwa ukamilifu ujumbe wake,

²⁵of which I — I did become a ministrant according to the dispensation of God, that was given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God,

²⁶ambao ni siri aliyowaficha binadamu wote tangu milele, lakini sasa amewajulisha watu wake.

²⁶the secret that hath been hid from the ages and from the generations, but now was manifested to his saints,

²⁷Mpango wa Mungu ni kuwajulisha watu wake siri hii kuu na tukufu ambayo ni kwa ajili ya watu wote. Na, siri yenyewe ndiyo hii: Kristo yuko ndani yenu, na jambo hilo lamaanisha kwamba ninyi mtaushiriki utukufu wa Mungu.

²⁷to whom God did will to make known what [is] the riches of the glory of this secret among the nations — which is Christ in you, the hope of the glory,

²⁸Kwa sababu hiyo tunamhubiri Kristo kwa watu wote; tunawaonya na kuwafundisha wote kwa hekima yote, ili tuweze kumleta kila mmoja mbele ya Mungu akiwa amekomaa katika kuungana na Kristo.

²⁸whom we proclaim, warning every man, and teaching every man, in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus,

²⁹Kwa madhumuni hayo mimi nafanya kazi na kujitahidi nikiitumia nguvu kuu ya Kristo ifanyayo kazi ndani yangu.

²⁹for which also I labour, striving according to his working that is working in me in power.