looking diligently, lest any one come short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and the many be thereby defiled;

I come quickly; hold fast that which thou hast, that no one may take thy crown.

That we lose

Have ye suffered so much in vain? if indeed it be really in vain.

I fear for you, lest I may have bestowed upon you labor in vain.

that ye may be blameless and pure, children of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation; among whom ye shine as luminaries in the world,

Nevertheless, whereto we have reached, in that let us walk.

But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were enlightened, ye endured a great struggle with sufferings;

I come quickly; hold fast that which thou hast, that no one may take thy crown.

That we receive

Already is the reaper receiving wages, and gathering fruit unto everlasting life; that both the sower and the reaper may rejoice together.

And he that planteth and he that watereth are one; and each will receive his own reward, according to his own labor.

And last of all, as to one born out of due time, he appeared also to me.

General references

saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.