Masters, be just and fair to your slaves. Remember that you also have a Master— in heaven.

你们作主人的，要公公平平地待仆人，因为知道你们也有一位主在天上。

你们作主人的，待仆人要公正，因为知道，你们也有一位主在天上。

你们作主人的，待仆人要公正，因为知道，你们也有一位主在天上。

你们做主人的，对待奴仆要公平合理，别忘了你们也有一位天上的主。

你们作主人的，要公平地对待仆人，因为知道你们也有一位主在天上。

你们做主人的，要公正、公平地对待奴仆，因为你们知道，你们也有一位主人在天上。

你們作主人的，要公公平平地待僕人，因為知道你們也有一位主在天上。

你們作主人的，待僕人要公正，因為知道，你們也有一位主在天上。

你們作主人的，待僕人要公正，因為知道，你們也有一位主在天上。

你們作主人的，對待奴僕要公平合理，別忘了你們也有一位天上的主。

你們作主人的，要公平地對待僕人，因為知道你們也有一位主在天上。

做主人的，你們要以正義和公平待僕人，因為知道你們也有一位主在天上。

你們做主人的，要公正、公平地對待奴僕，因為你們知道，你們也有一位主人在天上。

主宜以公平待僕、知在天爾亦有主也、○

主待僕以公平、知在天爾亦有主、

爾為主人者、當待奴以公平、因知爾亦有主在天、○

主人之待其奴僕、務宜公平忠厚、應知爾在天亦自有一主也。

Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.

Masters, give your slaves what is right and fair. Do it because you know that you also have a Master in heaven.

Masters, treat your bondservants justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

Masters, deal with your slaves justly and fairly, since you know that you too have a Master in heaven.

Masters, grant your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

Masters, give your bondservants what is just and fair, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

Masters, render unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.

Masters, supply your slaves with what is right and fair, since you know that you too have a Master in heaven.

Masters, give unto[ your] servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.

Masters, treat your slaves with justice and fairness, because you know that you also have a master in heaven.

Masters, give to your servants that which is just and equal, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

Remember that the Lord will reward each one of us for the good we do, whether we are slaves or free.Masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Don’t threaten them; remember, you both have the same Master in heaven, and he has no favorites.A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.For we are not fighting against flesh and blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.

Jesus told this story to his disciples:“ There was a certain rich man who had a manager handling his affairs. One day a report came that the manager was wasting his employer’s money.So the employer called him in and said,‘ What’s this I hear about you? Get your report in order, because you are going to be fired.’“ The manager thought to himself,‘ Now what? My boss has fired me. I don’t have the strength to dig ditches, and I’m too proud to beg.Ah, I know how to ensure that I’ll have plenty of friends who will give me a home when I am fired.’“ So he invited each person who owed money to his employer to come and discuss the situation. He asked the first one,‘ How much do you owe him?’The man replied,‘ I owe him 800 gallons of olive oil.’ So the manager told him,‘ Take the bill and quickly change it to 400 gallons.’“‘ And how much do you owe my employer?’ he asked the next man.‘ I owe him 1,000 bushels of wheat,’ was the reply.‘ Here,’ the manager said,‘ take the bill and change it to 800 bushels.’“ The rich man had to admire the dishonest rascal for being so shrewd. And it is true that the children of this world are more shrewd in dealing with the world around them than are the children of the light.Here’s the lesson: Use your worldly resources to benefit others and make friends. Then, when your possessions are gone, they will welcome you to an eternal home.“ If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities.And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven?And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?“ No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.”

“ If one of your fellow Israelites falls into poverty and is forced to sell himself to you, do not treat him as a slave.Treat him instead as a hired worker or as a temporary resident who lives with you, and he will serve you only until the Year of Jubilee.At that time he and his children will no longer be obligated to you, and they will return to their clans and go back to the land originally allotted to their ancestors.The people of Israel are my servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt, so they must never be sold as slaves.Show your fear of God by not treating them harshly.

Together they will go to war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will defeat them because he is Lord of all lords and King of all kings. And his called and chosen and faithful ones will be with him.”

Don’t be surprised if you see a poor person being oppressed by the powerful and if justice is being miscarried throughout the land. For every official is under orders from higher up, and matters of justice get lost in red tape and bureaucracy.

“ Never take advantage of poor and destitute laborers, whether they are fellow Israelites or foreigners living in your towns.You must pay them their wages each day before sunset because they are poor and are counting on it. If you don’t, they might cry out to the Lord against you, and it would be counted against you as sin.

But what if the servant is evil and thinks,‘ My master won’t be back for a while,’and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk?The master will return unannounced and unexpected,and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

For listen! Hear the cries of the field workers whom you have cheated of their pay. The cries of those who harvest your fields have reached the ears of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.

There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when he judges you.

“ Do not defraud or rob your neighbor.“ Do not make your hired workers wait until the next day to receive their pay.

“ If a fellow Hebrew sells himself or herself to be your servant and serves you for six years, in the seventh year you must set that servant free.“ When you release a male servant, do not send him away empty handed.Give him a generous farewell gift from your flock, your threshing floor, and your winepress. Share with him some of the bounty with which the Lord your God has blessed you.Remember that you were once slaves in the land of Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you! That is why I am giving you this command.

“ If I have been unfair to my male or female servants when they brought their complaints to me,how could I face God? What could I say when he questioned me?For God created both me and my servants. He created us both in the womb.

He had ordered all the people to free their Hebrew slaves— both men and women. No one was to keep a fellow Judean in bondage.The officials and all the people had obeyed the king’s command,but later they changed their minds. They took back the men and women they had freed, forcing them to be slaves again.So the Lord gave them this message through Jeremiah:“ This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I made a covenant with your ancestors long ago when I rescued them from their slavery in Egypt.I told them that every Hebrew slave must be freed after serving six years. But your ancestors paid no attention to me.Recently you repented and did what was right, following my command. You freed your slaves and made a solemn covenant with me in the Temple that bears my name.But now you have shrugged off your oath and defiled my name by taking back the men and women you had freed, forcing them to be slaves once again.“ Therefore, this is what the Lord says: Since you have not obeyed me by setting your countrymen free, I will set you free to be destroyed by war, disease, and famine. You will be an object of horror to all the nations of the earth.

We belong to the same family as those who are wealthy, and our children are just like theirs. Yet we must sell our children into slavery just to get enough money to live. We have already sold some of our daughters, and we are helpless to do anything about it, for our fields and vineyards are already mortgaged to others.”When I heard their complaints, I was very angry.After thinking it over, I spoke out against these nobles and officials. I told them,“ You are hurting your own relatives by charging interest when they borrow money!” Then I called a public meeting to deal with the problem.At the meeting I said to them,“ We are doing all we can to redeem our Jewish relatives who have had to sell themselves to pagan foreigners, but you are selling them back into slavery again. How often must we redeem them?” And they had nothing to say in their defense.Then I pressed further,“ What you are doing is not right! Should you not walk in the fear of our God in order to avoid being mocked by enemy nations?I myself, as well as my brothers and my workers, have been lending the people money and grain, but now let us stop this business of charging interest.You must restore their fields, vineyards, olive groves, and homes to them this very day. And repay the interest you charged when you lent them money, grain, new wine, and olive oil.”They replied,“ We will give back everything and demand nothing more from the people. We will do as you say.” Then I called the priests and made the nobles and officials swear to do what they had promised.I shook out the folds of my robe and said,“ If you fail to keep your promise, may God shake you like this from your homes and from your property!” The whole assembly responded,“ Amen,” and they praised the Lord. And the people did as they had promised.

“ At that time I will put you on trial. I am eager to witness against all sorcerers and adulterers and liars. I will speak against those who cheat employees of their wages, who oppress widows and orphans, or who deprive the foreigners living among you of justice, for these people do not fear me,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

You humble yourselves by going through the motions of penance, bowing your heads like reeds bending in the wind. You dress in burlap and cover yourselves with ashes. Is this what you call fasting? Do you really think this will please the Lord?“ No, this is the kind of fasting I want: Free those who are wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you. Let the oppressed go free, and remove the chains that bind people.Share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help.“ Then your salvation will come like the dawn, and your wounds will quickly heal. Your godliness will lead you forward, and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.Then when you call, the Lord will answer.‘ Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply.“ Remove the heavy yoke of oppression. Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!

They press out olive oil without being allowed to taste it, and they tread in the winepress as they suffer from thirst.The groans of the dying rise from the city, and the wounded cry for help, yet God ignores their moaning.

“ After he was crowned king, he returned and called in the servants to whom he had given the money. He wanted to find out what their profits were.

‘ We have fasted before you!’ they say.‘ Why aren’t you impressed? We have been very hard on ourselves, and you don’t even notice it!’“ I will tell you why!” I respond.“ It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves. Even while you fast, you keep oppressing your workers.

“ Don’t let anyone call you‘ Rabbi,’ for you have only one teacher, and all of you are equal as brothers and sisters.And don’t address anyone here on earth as‘ Father,’ for only God in heaven is your Father.