3. Take [with me] your share of the hardships and suffering [which you are called to endure] as a good (first-class) soldier of Christ Jesus.
4. No soldier when in service gets entangled in the enterprises of [civilian] life; his aim is to satisfy and please the one who enlisted him.
5. And if anyone enters competitive games, he is not crowned unless he competes lawfully (fairly, according to the rules laid down).
6. [It is] the hard-working farmer [who labors to produce] who must be the first partaker of the fruits.
7. Think over these things I am saying [understand them and grasp their application], for the Lord will grant you full insight and understanding in everything.
8. Constantly keep in mind Jesus Christ (the Messiah) [as] risen from the dead, [as the prophesied King] descended from David, according to the good news (the Gospel) that I preach. [Ps. 16:10.]