2 Timothy 2

¹You, then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus. ²And what you heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to faithful people who will be able to teach others too. ³Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. ⁴No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him. ⁵And if someone competes as an athlete, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. ⁶The farmer who labors must be the first to receive a share of the crops. ⁷Think about what I am saying, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

⁸Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, from David's seed, according to my good news, ⁹for which I suffer hardship, even chains, as a criminal. But God's word is not chained. ¹⁰For this reason I endure everything for the sake of the chosen, so that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory. ¹¹This saying is trustworthy:

For if we died with him, we will also live with him; ¹²if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us; ¹³if we are faithless, he remains faithful—he cannot deny himself.

¹⁴Remind them of these things, solemnly charging them before the Lord not to fight over words. This is of no use and brings ruin to those who hear. ¹⁵Make every effort to present yourself to God as approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, correctly handling the word of truth. ¹⁶But avoid profane, empty talk, for those who engage in it will advance further in ungodliness, ¹⁷and their word will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, ¹⁸who have missed the mark concerning the truth, saying that the resurrection has already happened, and are overturning the faith of some. ¹⁹Yet God's firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord turn away from unrighteousness.”

²⁰In a large house there are vessels not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. ²¹So if someone cleanses himself from these, he will be a vessel for honor, made holy, useful to the master, prepared for every good deed. ²²Flee youthful desires, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, together with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. ²³Refuse foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they breed fights. ²⁴A slave of the Lord must not fight, but must be gentle toward everyone, able to teach, patient when wronged, ²⁵correcting opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance leading to knowledge of the truth, ²⁶and they will come to their senses and escape the devil's snare, having been captured alive by him to do his will.

Translation notes 10

2:2 — “Faithful people.” The word for people does not itself specify men. “Faithful” can mean trustworthy or believing; reliability in passing on the teaching is prominent here. “In the presence of many witnesses” can also be understood as “through many witnesses,” emphasizing their confirming testimony.

2:3–7 — Soldier, athlete, farmer. The three comparisons emphasize dedicated service, competing properly, and labor with its rightful share. The text does not spell out a single detailed analogy for every feature. Verse 7 says the Lord “will give”; a textual alternative says “may the Lord give.”

2:8–9 — “David's seed”; chains. Seed means descendants, here identifying Jesus' descent from David. The contrast between the prisoner's chains and God's unchained word remains explicit.

2:11–13 — The trustworthy saying. The line divisions identify the parallel clauses without claiming a recovered hymn. “With him” and the first “him” after “deny” make the understood reference to Christ explicit. Faithlessness can include unbelief or unfaithfulness. The statement about Christ's faithfulness stands alongside the warning that he will deny those who deny him; neither is explained away.

2:14–15 — “Before the Lord”; “correctly handling.” Other Greek editions read “before God” in verse 14. The verb in verse 15 is traditionally rendered “rightly dividing.” Here it concerns treating or teaching the true message correctly, not an explicit instruction to divide Scripture into sections.

2:16–18 — Gangrene and resurrection. The Greek moves from empty talk to the people promoting it; “those who engage in it” makes that transition explicit. Gangrene preserves the destructive bodily image. The claim that resurrection has already occurred is reported without reconstructing the opponents' entire teaching.

2:19 — The seal. The first saying recalls Numbers 16:5. The second calls those claiming the Lord's name to abandon wrongdoing, but it is not an exact quotation of one readily identifiable scriptural verse.

2:20–21 — Vessels and cleansing. The household vessels represent people. “From these” leaves the compact reference intact: separation from the dishonorable vessels, understood as corrupt people, is likely; cleansing from the wrong conduct just described is also possible. “Master” is the householder in the image.

2:22–25 — Desires and correction. “Youthful desires” is not restricted to sexual desire. “Slave” retains the relationship of belonging to the Lord. The correction is gentle, with repentance described as God's gift rather than an outcome guaranteed by argument.

2:26 — The devil's snare. The draft takes both “him” and “his” as referring to the devil. Other interpretations take the final will as God's, or understand the capture as the Lord's worker winning people for God. The two Greek pronouns differ, leaving the reference disputed. “Escape” supplies the movement implied by coming to one's senses out of the snare.