The Elder:

To my dear friend Gaius: I love you in the truth.

Beloved, I pray that in every way you may succeed and prosper and be in good health [physically], just as [I know] your soul prospers [spiritually].

For it is an intense joy to me when brethren come and bear witness to your fidelity to the truth--that you live in obedience to the truth.

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

My dear friend, you are acting faithfully in all your behaviour towards the brethren, even when they are strangers to you.

We therefore ought to welcome such, that we may be fellow-workers for the truth.

I wrote something to the church; but Diotrephes, who loves to put himself first, does not accept what we say and refuses to recognize my authority.

because of this, if I may come, I will cause him to remember his works that he doth, with evil words prating against us; and not content with these, neither doth he himself receive the brethren, and those intending he doth forbid, and out of the assembly he doth cast.

My dear friend, do not follow wrong examples, but right ones. He who habitually does what is right is a child of God: he who habitually does what is wrong has not seen God.

Everybody testifies to Demetrius, and so does the Truth itself: I testify to him too, and you know my testimony is true.

I had much to say to you, but it is not my purpose to put it all down with ink and pen:

But I am hoping to see you in a short time, and to have talk with you face to face. May you have peace. Your friends here send you their love. Give my love to our friends by name.

Peace be to you. The friends [here] greet you. Greet the friends [personally] by name.