Thirdly, the Christian worker is compared to a farmer, with special emphasis on the farmer’s whole-hearted devotion to his task.

Hard-working is literally “to work hard,” “to toil,” which implies going through suffering, a point emphasized in verse 3. This verb is used often in the Pauline letters in relation to pastoral work and is therefore appropriate in the present context, where Timothy is receiving advice for his pastoral ministry. See further on 1 Tim 4.10 (“toil”) and 5.17 (“labor”).

Such a hard-working farmer ought to have the first share of the crops. Ought suggests the idea of compulsion and necessity, which means that the hard-working farmer has a legitimate claim on the crops. What is not clear, though, is the antecedent of first. There are various possibilities: (1) The hard-working farmer has the right to be the first to receive a share of the crops. This is reflected in several translations; for example, Revised English Bible “The farmer who does the work has first claim on the crop”; “And farmers who work hard are the first to eat what grows in their field” (Contemporary English Version; also New Jerusalem Bible, New International Version). (2) A farmer has to work hard first before he can have a share of the crops. No translation follows this option. Besides, it is hard to see that the Greek would support this interpretation. (3) The first share of the crops (a designated portion) should be given to the farmer who works hard. This is the sense that comes out in a literal translation; for example, Revised Standard Version, New Revised Standard Version, New American Bible, Revised. On the whole the first of these options seems to reflect the intention of the verse. The background of this understanding is found in the Old Testament; for example, Deut 20.6 and Pro 27.18; compare 1 Cor 9.7, where a similar figure is used.

Quoted with permission from Arichea, Daniel C. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s Second Letter to Timothy. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1995. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Secondly, the Christian worker is compared to an athlete. The athletic imagery appears elsewhere in Paul’s letters (see especially 1 Cor 9.24-27).

Athlete translates a verb that means “to be a contestant in competitive games,” “to engage in a contest,” hence “to compete.” The word for crowned appears only here in the Pastoral Letters. (It occurs twice more, in Heb 2.7, 9.) It was customary in ancient times to bestow a crown of leaves or flowers on victorious athletes; the crown therefore is a symbol of victory. An athlete is not crowned may therefore mean that (1) an athlete cannot win in the contest, or (2) an athlete is not acknowledged as victor even though he or she wins the contest.

According to the rules is literally “lawfully,” which is the same word found in 1 Tim 1.8. What these rules are is not specified in the text; perhaps these refer to training regulations, which goes logically with the first option above and that produces the following possible restructuring: “Athletes cannot win in a contest unless they obey the rules of training.” A second possibility is to understand these rules as pertaining to the competition itself, which goes with the second option above and produces a possible restructuring as follows: “Athletes are not crowned as winners even though they win the contest, unless they follow all the contest rules.” This second option seems to be closer to the intention of the verse, since it reiterates the eschatological emphasis that, as we have seen, is a main feature of this letter. Furthermore, this option takes seriously the meaning of athlete, which as previously mentioned is derived from a verb that means “to compete” and therefore focuses on actual competition rather than mere preparation.

An alternative translation model for this verse is:
• Any person who runs (or, competes) in a race against others cannot win unless he (or, he or she) follows (or, obeys) all the rules.

Quoted with permission from Arichea, Daniel C. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s Second Letter to Timothy. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1995. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .