2 Thessalonians 3:6-8

Expanded Bible

The Duty to Work

⁶ Brothers and sisters, ·by the authority [^Lin the name] of our Lord Jesus Christ we command you to stay away from any ·believer [^Lbrother (or sister)] who ·refuses to work [or behaves irresponsibly; ^Llives/walks in idleness/disorder] and does not follow the ·teaching we gave you [^Ltradition you received from us]. ⁷ [^LFor] You yourselves know that you should ·live as we live [follow our example; imitate us]. [^LBecause] We were not ·lazy [idle; undisciplined] when we were with you. ⁸ And when we ate another person’s ·food [bread], we always paid for it. We worked ·very hard [^Lwith labor and toil] night and day so we would not be an ·expense [financial burden] to any of you.