Instructions for the Church

5 ^dDo ^enot rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father, younger men as brothers, 2 older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, in all purity.

3 ^fHonor widows who are truly widows. 4 But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is ^gpleasing in the sight of God. 5 ^hShe who is truly a widow, left all alone, ⁱhas set her hope on God and ^jcontinues in supplications and prayers night and day, 6 but she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. 7 ^kCommand these things as well, so that they may be without reproach. 8 But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has ^ldenied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

9 Let a widow be enrolled if she is not less than sixty years of age, having been ^mthe wife of one husband,¹ 10 and having a reputation for good works: if she has brought up children, has shown hospitality, has ⁿwashed the feet of the saints, has cared for the afflicted, and has devoted herself to every good work. 11 But refuse to enroll younger widows, for when their passions draw them away from Christ, they desire to marry 12 and so incur condemnation for having abandoned their former faith. 13 Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and ^obusybodies, saying what they should not. 14 ^pSo I would have younger widows marry, ^qbear children, ^rmanage their households, and ^sgive the adversary no occasion for slander. 15 For some have already ^tstrayed after Satan. 16 If any believing woman has relatives who are widows, let her care for them. Let the church not be burdened, so that it may care for those who are truly widows.

17 ^uLet the ^velders who ^wrule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. 18 ^xFor the Scripture says, ^y“You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, ^z“The laborer deserves his wages.” 19 Do not admit a charge against an elder except ^aon the evidence of two or three witnesses. 20 As for those who persist in sin, ^brebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear. 21 ^cIn the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the elect angels I charge you to keep these rules without prejudging, ^ddoing nothing from partiality. 22 ^eDo not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor take part in the sins of others; keep yourself pure. 23 No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments. 24 The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. 25 So also good works are conspicuous, and ^feven those that are not cannot remain hidden.

6 ^gLet all who are under a yoke as bondservants¹ regard their own masters as worthy of all honor, ^hso that the name of God and the teaching may not be reviled. 2 Those who have believing masters must not be disrespectful on the ground that they are ⁱbrothers; rather they must serve all the better since those who benefit by their good service are believers and beloved.

False Teachers and True Contentment

Teach and urge ^jthese things. 3 If anyone ^kteaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the ^lsound² words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching ^mthat accords with godliness, 4 he is ⁿpuffed up with conceit and ^ounderstands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for ^pcontroversy and for ^qquarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, 5 and constant friction among people who are ^rdepraved in mind and deprived of the truth, ^simagining that godliness is a means of gain. 6 But ^tgodliness with ^ucontentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and³ we ^vcannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. 9 But ^wthose who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a ^xsnare, into many senseless and harmful desires that ^yplunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

Fight the Good Fight of Faith

11 But as for you, O ^zman of God, ^aflee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. 12 Fight the ^bgood fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good ^cconfession in the presence of many witnesses. 13 I ^dcharge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his ^etestimony before⁴ Pontius Pilate made the good confession, 14 to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the ^fappearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 which he will display ^gat the proper time—he who is the ^hblessed and only Sovereign, the ⁱKing of kings and Lord of lords, 16 who alone has immortality, ^jwho dwells in unapproachable light, ^kwhom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

17 As for the rich in ^lthis present age, charge them not to be ^mhaughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, ⁿbut on God, ^owho richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18 They are to do good, to be ^prich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 thus ^qstoring up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

20 O Timothy, guard the deposit ^rentrusted to you. Avoid the ^sirreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called “knowledge,” 21 for by professing it some have ^tswerved from the faith.

^uGrace be with you.⁵

2 Timothy

Greeting

1 Paul, an ^aapostle of Christ Jesus ^bby the will of God according to the ^cpromise of the life that is in Christ Jesus,

2 To Timothy, my beloved ^dchild:

^eGrace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

Guard the Deposit Entrusted to You

3 ^fI thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a ^gclear conscience, as I ^hremember you ⁱconstantly in my prayers ^jnight and day. 4 As I remember ^kyour tears, ^lI long to see you, that I may be filled with joy. 5 I am reminded of your ^msincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in ⁿyour grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the ^ogift of God, which is in you through the ^playing on of my hands, 7 for God gave us ^qa spirit not of fear but of power and love and ^rself-control.

8 Therefore do not be ^sashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his ^tprisoner, but ^ushare in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, 9 who saved us and ^vcalled us to¹ a holy calling, ^wnot because of our works but because of his own ^xpurpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus ^ybefore the ages began,² 10 and which now has been ^zmanifested through the ^aappearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished ^bdeath and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, 11 for which I was ^cappointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, 12 which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and ^dI am convinced that ^ehe is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me.³ 13 ^fFollow the pattern of the ^gsound⁴ words that you have heard from me, ^hin the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 14 By the Holy Spirit who ⁱdwells within us, guard the good deposit ^jentrusted to you.

15 You are aware that all who are in Asia ^kturned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 May the Lord grant mercy to the household of ^lOnesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of ^mmy chains, 17 but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me earnestly and found me— 18 may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day!—and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.

A Good Soldier of Christ Jesus

2 You then, my child, ⁿbe strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses ^oentrust to faithful men,¹ who will be able to teach others also. 3 ^pShare in suffering as a good ^qsoldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. 5 An athlete is not ^rcrowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6 ^sIt is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

8 Remember Jesus Christ, ^trisen from the dead, the ^uoffspring of David, as preached in my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. ^vBut the word of God is not bound! 10 Therefore I ^wendure everything ^xfor the sake of the ^yelect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. 11 ^zThe saying is trustworthy, for:

for he cannot deny himself.

A Worker Approved by God

14 Remind them of these things, and ^dcharge them before God² not to ^equarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. 15 Do your best to ^fpresent yourself to God as one approved,³ a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the ^gword of truth. 16 But ^havoid ⁱirreverent babble, for it will lead people into ^jmore and more ungodliness, 17 and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are ^kHymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have ^lswerved from the truth, ^msaying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some. 19 But God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: ⁿ“The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let everyone who ^onames the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.”

20 Now in a great ^phouse there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, ^qsome for honorable use, some for dishonorable. 21 Therefore, ^rif anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable,⁴ he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ^sready for every good work.

22 So ^tflee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, ^ulove, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. 23 Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant ^vcontroversies; you know that they breed quarrels. 24 And the Lord’s servant⁵ must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 ^wcorrecting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the ^xsnare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

Godlessness in the Last Days

3 But understand this, that ^yin the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, ^zproud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, ^aswollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. ^bAvoid such people. 6 For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, 7 always learning and never able to arrive at a ^cknowledge of the truth. 8 Just as ^dJannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men ^ecorrupted in mind and ^fdisqualified regarding the faith. 9 But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.

All Scripture Is Breathed Out by God

10 ^gYou, however, have ^hfollowed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, 11 my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at ⁱAntioch, at ^jIconium, and at ^kLystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord ^lrescued me. 12 Indeed, all who desire to live a ^mgodly life in Christ Jesus ⁿwill be persecuted, 13 while evil people and impostors will go on ^ofrom bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom¹ you learned it 15 and how ^pfrom childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 ^qAll Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the ^rman of God² may be complete, ^sequipped for every good work.