2 Timothy 2

The full text of 2 Timothy 2 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Greek. Free to read.

All of 2 Timothy KJV

¹ You then, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

² And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to faithful people who will be able to teach others as well.

³ Share in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

⁴ No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs; he wants to please his commanding officer.

⁵ Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor's crown without competing according to the rules.

⁶ The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops.

⁷ Think about what I am saying, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

⁸ Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel,

⁹ for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God's word is not chained.

¹⁰ Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, so that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

¹¹ Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him, we will also live with him;

¹² if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we disown him, he will also disown us;

¹³ if we are faithless, he remains faithful—
for he cannot disown himself.

¹⁴ Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value and only ruins those who listen.

¹⁵ Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.

¹⁶ Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly.

¹⁷ Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus,

¹⁸ who have departed from the truth. They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the faith of some.

¹⁹ Nevertheless, God's solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The Lord knows those who are his," and, "Everyone who names the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."

²⁰ In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for honorable use, others for common use.

²¹ Those who cleanse themselves from what is dishonorable will be instruments for honorable use, made holy, useful to the Master, and prepared for every good work.

²² Flee the desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

²³ Have nothing to do with foolish and ignorant arguments, because you know they breed quarrels.

²⁴ And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, patient when wronged.

²⁵ Gently instructing those who oppose him, in the hope that God may grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth,

²⁶ and that they may come to their senses and escape the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

Translation notes (15)

2 Timothy 2:3^a Greek synkakopathēson (συνκακοπάθησον), 'suffer hardship together,' is rendered here as 'Share in suffering'. Some manuscripts read kakopathēson (κακοπάθησον), 'suffer hardship,' omitting the 'together'; others add 'with me' (moi).
2 Timothy 2:4^a The Greek phrase strateuomenos, 'one on military service,' refers to a Roman soldier. His enlistment oath, the sacramentum, bound him to his commander and forbade civilian entanglements.
2 Timothy 2:5^a The verb athleō (ἀθλέω), 'to compete as an athlete', draws on the Greek games, where the victor was crowned with a stephanos, 'wreath', of perishable leaves. The adverb nomimōs, 'lawfully', can mean keeping the rules of the contest itself or, more broadly, fulfilling the prescribed training that games such as the Olympics required of entrants under oath.
2 Timothy 2:6^a Greek prōton 'first' (πρῶτον) can modify metalambanein 'to partake' (μεταλαμβάνειν), yielding priority in partaking, or be read as sequential with kopiōnta geōrgon 'toiling farmer' (τον κοπιῶντα γεωργόν), meaning toil before partaking. This translation takes prōton with metalambanein.
2 Timothy 2:8^a The Greek phrase ek spermatos Dauid, literally 'from the seed of David', echoes the covenant promise of 2 Samuel 7:12 and matches Paul's wording in Romans 1:3. The participle egēgermenon, 'raised', is a perfect tense, presenting the resurrection as an accomplished event whose effect continues.
2 Timothy 2:11^a The formula pistos ho logos, 'faithful is the saying', appears five times in the Pastoral Epistles and here introduces what is widely regarded as a fragment of an early Christian hymn or confession. Its rhythmic conditional clauses, built on verbs compounded with syn-, 'together with', extend through verse 13.
2 Timothy 2:12^a Greek hēmas, 'us' (ἡμᾶς), is widely supported; some manuscripts read hymas, 'you' (ὑμᾶς). The translation follows the stronger 'disown us' reading.
2 Timothy 2:14^a Some manuscripts read 'before the Lord' (tou kyriou); others read 'before God' (tou theou). The translation here follows 'the Lord' because it is supported by the earliest witnesses.
2 Timothy 2:15^a The Greek word orthotomounta literally means 'cutting straight.' This is a metaphor, perhaps from cutting a road or plowing, for handling the word of truth rightly.
2 Timothy 2:17^a Greek gangraina (γάγγραινα), 'gangrene', is a medical term for a spreading ulcer or mortification of tissue, appearing only here in the New Testament. The idiom nomēn hexei, literally 'will have pasturage', pictures the disease feeding its way through healthy flesh, hence the rendering 'will spread'.
2 Timothy 2:18^a Greek ēstochēsan, 'missed the mark', is an archery metaphor for departure from the truth. The claim that the resurrection had already occurred likely reflects an early teaching that spiritualized resurrection as a present experience, denying a future bodily raising. The verb anatrepousin, 'overturn', pictures the faith of some being upended like a capsized vessel.
2 Timothy 2:19^a The two sealed sayings draw on the Korah narrative: the first quotes Numbers 16:5 in the wording of the Septuagint, and the second echoes the call to depart from the rebels in Numbers 16:26, with language reminiscent of Isaiah 26:13. Greek sphragis, 'seal', refers to an owner's inscription stamped on a foundation stone, marking the building as his.
2 Timothy 2:20^a The Greek contrast is eis timēn, 'for honor', and eis atimian, 'for dishonor', the latter rendered here as 'common use'. In a wealthy Greco-Roman household, gold and silver vessels served guests at table, while wooden and earthenware ones handled everyday or menial tasks; the image assumes this familiar social gradation of skeuē, 'vessels'.
2 Timothy 2:21^a 'Honorable' translates Greek timē (τιμή), 'honor, value', in the idiom eis timēn, 'for honor', denoting noble use. 'Dishonorable' reflects the contrast with atimia (ἀτιμία) in 2:20, 'dishonor, ignobility', arising from the vessel metaphor.
2 Timothy 2:26^a The pronouns in this verse are ambiguous. Those captured may escape 'the devil's trap, having been captured by him to do his will,' or they may be 'captured by him (the devil) to do God's (or the Lord's servant's) will.' The Greek text leaves the two pronouns (hyp' autou and ekeinou) open to these different interpretations.

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