1 Timothy 1–3

Chapter 1

Misleadings in Doctrine and Living

¹Paul, ^aan apostle of ^bChrist Jesus ^caccording to the commandment of God our Savior, and of Christ Jesus, who is our ^dhope,

²To ^aTimothy, my true child in the faith: ^bGrace, mercy and peace from God the Father and ^cChrist Jesus our Lord.

³As I urged you ¹upon my departure for ^aMacedonia, ²remain on at ^bEphesus so that you may instruct certain men not to ^cteach strange doctrines,

⁴nor to ¹pay attention to ^amyths and endless ^bgenealogies, which give rise to mere ^cspeculation rather than ^dfurthering ²the administration of God which is by faith.

⁵But the goal of our ^1ainstruction is love ^bfrom a pure heart and a ^cgood conscience and a sincere ^dfaith.

⁶For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to ^afruitless discussion,

^7awanting to be ^bteachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions.

⁸But we know that ^athe Law is good, if one uses it lawfully,

⁹realizing the fact that ^alaw is not made for a righteous person, but for those who are lawless and ^brebellious, for the ^cungodly and sinners, for the unholy and ^dprofane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers

¹⁰¹and ^2aimmoral men and ^bhomosexuals and ^ckidnappers and ^dliars and ^eperjurers, and whatever else is contrary to ^fsound teaching,

¹¹according to ^athe glorious gospel of ^bthe blessed God, with which I have been ^centrusted.

¹²I thank ^aChrist Jesus our Lord, who has ^bstrengthened me, because He considered me faithful, ^cputting me into service,

¹³even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a ^apersecutor and a violent aggressor. Yet I was ^bshown mercy because ^cI acted ignorantly in unbelief;

¹⁴and the ^agrace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the ^bfaith and love which are found in Christ Jesus.

^15aIt is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that ^bChrist Jesus came into the world to ^csave sinners, among whom ^dI am foremost of all.

¹⁶Yet for this reason I ^afound mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might ^bdemonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those ¹who would believe in Him for eternal life.

¹⁷Now to the ^aKing ¹eternal, ^bimmortal, ^cinvisible, the ^donly God, ^ebe honor and glory ²forever and ever. Amen.

¹⁸This ^acommand I entrust to you, Timothy, ^bmy ¹son, in accordance with the ^cprophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you ^dfight the good fight,

¹⁹keeping ^afaith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to ^1btheir faith.

²⁰¹Among these are ^aHymenaeus and ^bAlexander, whom I have ^chanded over to Satan, so that they will be ^dtaught not to blaspheme.

Chapter 2

A Call to Prayer

¹First of all, then, I urge that ^aentreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men,

^2afor kings and all who are in ¹authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and ²dignity.

³This is good and acceptable in the sight of ^aGod our Savior,

^4awho desires all men to be ^bsaved and to ^ccome to the ¹knowledge of the truth.

⁵For there is ^aone God, and ^bone mediator also between God and men, the ^cman Christ Jesus,

⁶who ^agave Himself as a ransom for all, the ^btestimony ¹given at ^2cthe proper time.

^7aFor this I was appointed a ¹preacher and ^ban apostle (^cI am telling the truth, I am not lying) as a teacher of ^dthe Gentiles in faith and truth.

⁸Therefore ^aI want the men ^bin every place to pray, ^clifting up ^dholy hands, without wrath and dissension.

Women Instructed

⁹Likewise, I want ^awomen to adorn themselves with proper clothing, ¹modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments,

¹⁰but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness.

^11aA woman must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness.

^12aBut I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet.

^13aFor it was Adam who was first ¹created, and then Eve.

¹⁴And it was not Adam who was deceived, but ^athe woman being deceived, ¹fell into transgression.

¹⁵But women will be ¹preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in ^afaith and love and sanctity with ²self-restraint.

Chapter 3

Overseers and Deacons

^1aIt is a trustworthy statement: if any man aspires to the ^boffice of ¹overseer, it is a fine work he desires to do.

^21aAn overseer, then, must be above reproach, ^bthe husband of one wife, ^ctemperate, prudent, respectable, ^dhospitable, ^eable to teach,

^3anot addicted to wine ¹or pugnacious, but gentle, peaceable, ^bfree from the love of money.

⁴He must be one who ^amanages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity

⁵(but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of ^athe church of God?),

⁶and not a new convert, so that he will not become ^aconceited and fall into the ^bcondemnation ¹incurred by the devil.

⁷And he must ^ahave a good reputation with ^bthose outside the church, so that he will not fall into reproach and ^cthe snare of the devil.

^8aDeacons likewise must be men of dignity, not ¹double-tongued, ^2bor addicted to much wine ^cor fond of sordid gain,

^9abut holding to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.

^10aThese men must also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons if they are beyond reproach.

¹¹¹Women must likewise be dignified, ^anot malicious gossips, but ^btemperate, faithful in all things.

^12aDeacons must be ^bhusbands of only one wife, and ^1cgood managers of their children and their own households.

¹³For those who have served well as deacons ^aobtain for themselves a ¹high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

¹⁴I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long;

¹⁵but ¹in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how ²one ought to conduct himself in ^athe household of God, which is the ^bchurch of ^cthe living God, the ^dpillar and support of the truth.

¹⁶By common confession, great is ^athe mystery of godliness:

He who was ^brevealed in the flesh,

Was ^1cvindicated ²in the Spirit,

^dSeen by angels,

^eProclaimed among the nations,

^fBelieved on in the world,

^gTaken up in glory.