SIL Translator’s Notes on 2 Timothy 2003

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:8

3:8a

Just as Jannes and Jambres: In 3:8, Paul returned to talking about the false teachers. He compared them to two men who opposed Moses.

Because these men lived long before Paul and Timothy, it may also be helpful to begin this verse with a time phrase such as “long ago….”

Jannes and Jambres: Jannes and Jambres are the names of the two magicians who performed false miracles in front of Moses and Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. Their names are not mentioned in the Old Testament, but they are known from Jewish tradition. (See Exodus 7:11–22 and Exodus 8:7–19.) These two magicians wanted to show Pharaoh that their power was as great as the power that Moses had from the true God.

In your translation, it may be helpful to add a footnote explaining briefly what Paul meant when he referred to Jannes and Jambres. For example:

These men were magicians who opposed Moses in Pharaoh’s court. (See Exodus 7:11–22.)

opposed Moses: The word opposed means “to be against” or “to resist.”

3:8b

so also these men: Here these men refers to the false teachers that Paul mentioned in 3:6a.

oppose the truth: These men opposed the truth by teaching false doctrines, so that people would not hear or pay attention to the true message about Jesus Christ. Another way to express this idea is “these men hinder/prevent others from hearing the truth.”

the truth: The phrase the truth refers to the gospel.

General Comment on 3:8a–b

In some languages, it may be more natural to reverse the order of the comparison. Here is an example:

These teachers oppose the truth just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses.

3:8c

In 3:8c Paul was further describing the “men” in 3:8b. The Berean Standard Bible indicates this by beginning a new sentence.

They are depraved in mind: In 3:8c–d, Paul used two phrases to describe the men who opposed the gospel. This is the first description.

depraved: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as depraved also means “corrupt” or “ruined.” Paul used a form of this Greek word in 1 Timothy 6:5.

3:8d

and disqualified from the faith: This statement is the second description of those men who opposed the truth.

disqualified: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as disqualified means “not passing the test,” “failed,” “rejected,” “worthless,” or “unfit.” It is the opposite of the word “approved” in 2:15a. Good News Translation says: “who are failures in the faith.”

The word disqualified refers back to the word “men” in 3:8c, not the word “faith.” So this word means “disqualified men” or “worthless men.”

from the faith: This phrase in Greek literally means “concerning the faith.” These men may have been useful to their community in other ways, but they were worthless concerning the Christian faith.

the faith: In this context the faith refers to the teachings or doctrines of the Christian religion and the standards of right and wrong that are associated with it.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible. BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:16

3:16a

All Scripture is God-breathed: The term God-breathed is a literal translation of the Greek word that older English versions translated as “inspired.” This is the only place in the New Testament that this word is used.

This word indicates that the people who wrote the books of the Bible did not merely write what they themselves were thinking. It means that they wrote the thoughts that God put into their minds. God was the source or origin of what they wrote.

Another way to translate this term is “all Scripture came from God.” Whichever way you translate this term, be sure that the word “Scripture” is the topic of the sentence.

3:16b

is useful: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as useful also means “helpful” or “beneficial.” This same word is used in 1 Timothy 4:8 and Titus 3:8.

In some languages, it may be necessary to say for whom Scripture is useful. Since Paul was writing to Timothy, he meant that Scripture was useful for Timothy and other church leaders as they would teach, correct, and instruct. If you must state the participants, use a general statement like “it is useful to us^(incl) .”

General Comment on 3:16a–b

There are two ways to interpret and translate 3:16a–b. They are:

(1) “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful….” This is the interpretation presented above. For example, Good News Translation says:

All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching….

See also Berean Standard Bible, New International Version (2011 Revision), Revised Standard Version, NET Bible, New American Standard Bible, King James Version, New Jerusalem Bible, God’s Word, New Living Translation (2004 Revision), Contemporary English Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English, New Century Version.

(2) “All God-breathed Scripture is useful….” This second interpretation is based on the fact that there is no word in the Greek text between “Scripture” and “God-breathed.” The Revised English Bible says:

All inspired scripture has its use for teaching….

See also the footnotes in Good News Translation, New Revised Standard Version, NET Bible.

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). Also, if the major language version in use in your area has a footnote here to show interpretation (2), it is recommended that you also include a footnote about it.

3:16c

for instruction: Paul said that Timothy should use Scripture to teach people. If you need to indicate what the Scriptures teach and to whom it is taught. You could say:

All Scripture…is useful for teaching people God’s message…
-or-
All Scripture…is useful for teaching people the truth….

3:16d

for conviction: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as conviction means “to tell people that what they are believing or doing is wrong.” When Paul used this word, he was probably thinking of the false teachers who believed and taught false doctrine. Another way to translate this word in English is “rebuke” or “reprimand.” This Greek word occurs only here and as a verb in 4:2c (translated as “reprove”) and in 1 Timothy 5:20 (translated as “rebuked”).

3:16e

correction: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as correction probably refers to correcting both wrong beliefs that people had and the wrong ways that they were behaving, and then showing them what was right. It is best to use a general term like Good News Translation does, for example, “correcting faults.”

3:16f

for training in righteousness: Paul told Timothy that he should use the Scriptures to train, or instruct, people in righteousness.

righteousness: The word righteousness includes the meaning of “doing what God says is right/moral,” or “behaving correctly/morally.” So training in righteousness means, “to instruct people how to do what is right.”

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:15

3:15a

From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures: This clause is the second object of the verb “know” in 3:14c.

^14cYou know those from whom you have learned these things/truths ^15aand you know that from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures

infancy: In this verse the term infancy refers to the time from which Timothy was able to learn. Timothy probably began learning the Scriptures when he was three to five years old. It does not literally mean from the time he was born. Another way to say this is “from the time you were a small child.”

known: Timothy knew the holy Scriptures because his mother and grandmother taught him the Scriptures. Another way to say this is that Timothy had “learned” the holy Scriptures.

Holy Scriptures: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Scriptures is literally “writings.” There were many “writings” in that day, so the word Holy specified that these “writings” were the “sacred writings” or the books of the Bible that we now call the Old Testament. Other ways to translate Holy Scriptures are “holy/sacred writings” or “God’s word.”

3:15b

which are able to make you wise: Paul said that learning the truths of the Scriptures will make a person wise.

Some other ways to say this are:

God’s word is able to cause you to understand that…
-or-
As you learn God’s word you become wise.

for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus: These words explain what a person will learn from God’s word. Each person will be able to understand, as Timothy had done, what Christ Jesus did to make a way for God to save that person.

This complicated set of phrases can be analyzed as follows:

salvation = God saves you

faith in Christ Jesus = you believe/trust in Christ Jesus

Simply stated, this means:

God saves you through your believing in Christ Jesus.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:14

3:14a

But as for you: The two Greek words that occur at the beginning of this verse also occurred at the beginning of 3:10a. The literal translation of these words is “but you (sing).” In this context, they clearly contrast Timothy with the evil men and impostors mentioned in 3:13. If your language has a term to indicate a strong contrast, you should use it here.

continue in the things you have learned: This phrase means “continue to believe what you have learned.”

If it is necessary to specify from whom Timothy learned the gospel, you can say “things you have learned from us.” The pronoun should be plural because in Greek, the phrase “from whom” in 3:14c is plural. Timothy learned the gospel from his mother, grandmother, and Paul.

3:14b

and firmly believed: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as firmly believed also means “have believed to be true.”

3:14c

since you know: Implied in the clause you know is “and you can trust” those people who taught the truth about God to you.

from whom you have learned them: The phrase from whom refers to Timothy’s mother, grandmother, and Paul.

them: There is no pronoun here in the Greek text, but it is implied. If in 3:14a you have chosen the word “things,” “truths,” or “teachings” to represent the word “the things” (Berean Standard Bible), you should follow English versions, such as the New American Standard Bible and Revised English Bible, and use the plural pronoun “them” here. Or you can repeat the word “things,” “truths,” or “teachings” if it is more natural in your language.

General Comment on 3:14

In some languages, it may be more natural to reorder the parts of this verse as follows:

^14cYou know and can trust those from whom you learned the gospel. ^14aSo continue to believe what you have learned ^14band have been convinced is true.
-or-
^14cYou know those who have taught you the gospel. ^14aSo continue to follow what they taught you. ^14bContinue to believe it.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:13

3:13a

while: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as while is the common Greek conjunction de. Most scholars and English versions interpret this word as indicating a contrast between the godly people in 3:12 and the evil people in 3:13.

evil men and imposters: The two terms evil men and impostors refer back to the false teachers. Scholars disagree about how these terms are related. The interpretations are:

(1) These two terms describe two separate groups of people. For example, the New Living Translation (2004 Revision) says:

But evil people and impostors will flourish.

See also Berean Standard Bible, New International Version (2011 Revision), Good News Translation, Revised Standard Version, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, King James Version, God’s Word, NET Bible.

(2) These two terms refer to the same group of people: the evil men are also impostors. So these two nouns express a single idea. For example, the Contemporary English Version says:

evil people who pretend to be what they are not

See also New Jerusalem Bible and New Century Version.

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1).

imposters: An impostor is a person who pretends to be someone that he is not in order to deceive other people. A synonym for this term is “deceivers.”

go from bad to worse: Paul did not specify in what way these men would continually become worse. He probably was referring to their moral lives and to their teaching. Make the translation of this portion of the verse as general as possible.

3:13b

deceiving: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as deceiving also means “misleading.” The implied object for the verb deceiving is “other people.”

and being deceived: The text does not say who deceives the evil men and impostors. It is probably “other people,” but would not be the same group of people that they deceived.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:12

3:12a

Indeed: The phrase Indeed is how the Berean Standard Bible translates the two Greek conjunctions de and kai which occur together here. Paul had more to say about persecution. After reminding Timothy that he had suffered for the Lord, he used these words to introduce a general statement about suffering.

You have at least two options for translating these Greek words here:

• Choose a conjunction or grammatical feature in your language that would indicate that Paul was introducing a general statement. Another phrase in English similar to Indeed is “in fact.”

• Leave the words untranslated, as do the Good News Translation, Revised English Bible, Contemporary English Version, and New Century Version.

godly lives: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as godly also means “devout,” “pious,” or “religious.” All who live godly lives are those who submit themselves to God and act in ways that please God. Some ways to translate godly lives are: “live/act in a way that pleases God” or “do that which pleases God.”

in Christ Jesus: The phrase in Christ Jesus refers to those who “believe in Christ Jesus.” This phrase further defines the group of people who will be persecuted (3:12b). Those who will be persecuted are those who want to live a godly life and who believe in Christ Jesus.

Christ Jesus: Notice that in this verse Paul referred to Jesus as Christ Jesus instead of “Jesus Christ.” The names Christ Jesus and “Jesus Christ” mean the same thing. In most English translations and other national language translations, “Jesus Christ” and “Christ Jesus” are translated literally and in the same order as they occur in the Greek manuscripts. It is recommended that you do the same thing. However, if the people who will be reading your translation might be confused when they see two different word orders of the names, you may decide to translate Christ Jesus as “Jesus Christ,” which is the more familiar word order.

3:12b

will be persecuted: The Greek verb is passive, as the Berean Standard Bible shows. If you need to make the verb active, you can say something similar to this:

Indeed, people will persecute everyone who desires to live a godly life….

If you use an active verb, be sure that the emphasis remains on the word “everyone,” not on the clause “people will persecute.” The second Meaning Line in the Display gives another example of how you can change the passive verb into an active one.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:11

3:11a

persecutions: The word persecutions refers to physical or mental abuse or harassment. People who did not agree with Paul’s religious beliefs had regularly said and done things to discredit or harm him. They did those things so he would stop preaching about Christ.

sufferings: The word sufferings refers to the physical pain that Paul had experienced because people persecuted him.

3:11b

that came upon me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra: Here Paul named some specific places where his “persecutions and sufferings” had occurred.

Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra: These are the names of three towns. Before translating this verse read what Luke wrote about Paul’s visits to these towns, in Acts 13:44–14:23. Lystra was the town where the Jews provoked the crowd to stone Paul. It was also the town where Timothy and his parents lived. So even though Paul did not specifically mention “stoning,” Timothy knew what Paul meant when he said that came upon me.

3:11c

What persecutions I endured!: There was no punctuation in the original Greek manuscripts of the New Testament. Therefore Bible scholars have different opinions about how this clause relates to the rest of the sentence and what its function is. The main interpretations are:

(1) It restates the previous clause (3:11b) about what had happened to Paul in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra. For example, the New Jerusalem Bible says:

^11aand the persecutions and sufferings ^11bthat came to me in places like Antioch, Iconium and Lystra—^11call the persecutions I have endured:

See also New International Version (2011 Revision), Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, King James Version.

(2) It is the first clause of the following sentence. For example, the NET Bible says:

^11aas well as the persecutions and sufferings ^11bthat happened to me in Antioch, in Iconium, and in Lystra. ^11cI endured these persecutions ^11dand the Lord delivered me from them all.

See also God’s Word, New Century Version, New Living Translation (2004 Revision), LSA.

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) as do the majority of translations.

3:11d

Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them: There were times when the people who persecuted Paul almost killed him. But the Lord had protected and rescued him from each of these difficult situations.

Yet: The Greek conjunction kai, which the Berean Standard Bible translates here as Yet, is the most common way to join sentences in Greek. Its most basic meaning is “and.” Here, 3:11d seems to be in contrast with 3:11c. So an English conjunction like “but” shows contrast much better than “and.” Good News Translation, King James Version, New Living Translation (2004 Revision), and New Century Version all translate this word as “but.”

the Lord: Here the word Lord most likely refers to Jesus, not God the Father.

If there is a term in your language for Lord that can refer to both God the Father and to Jesus, use it. If not, use a word that specifically refers to Jesus, for example, “the Lord Jesus.”

them: The pronoun them refers to the persecutions in 3:11c.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:10

Section 3:10–4:8

Paul gave Timothy some more instructions and encouraged him to continue preaching the gospel

In 3:10–4:8 Paul reminded Timothy that Timothy had thoroughly learned true doctrine, so he should continue to preach it faithfully, even if he had to suffer because of it.

Paragraph 3:10–17

3:10a

You, however: This verse in Greek begins with the pronoun meaning “you (sing)” and the conjunction de, which the Berean Standard Bible translates as however. By using the pronoun as the very first word, Paul clearly contrasts Timothy with the false teachers of 3:1–9. Use the words or grammatical pattern in your language that also show such contrast. For example, you could say: “But as for you….”

In addition, since this verse begins a new section, it might be helpful for the readers if you repeat Timothy’s name. You might say, “But as for you, Timothy….”

have observed: The clause have observed is the Berean Standard Bible translation of one Greek verb. Some English versions have translated this verb literally as “follow.” (See Good News Translation, NET Bible, New American Standard Bible, New Century Version, New Jerusalem Bible.) Other versions have translated this verb metaphorically as “know” in the sense of “follow with the mind.” (See the New International Version (2011 Revision), King James Version, God’s Word, New Living Translation (2004 Revision), Contemporary English Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English.) Paul used this same verb in 1 Timothy 4:6.

It is important for you to notice that this one verb relates to all nine items that Paul listed in 3:10a–3:11a. In Greek, the verb occurs only once, but in many languages, it is necessary to repeat the verb at some point or to use a different verb before some of the things that Paul listed. Two English versions (Good News Translation, New Century Version) that translate the Greek verb as “follow” in 3:10a change the verb to “observe” or “know” when they repeat a verb later in the list.

In translating this verb, you have at least the following two choices:

• Follow the example of the Berean Standard Bible and begin the list with a verb that can be used with all of the items in the list. The Berean Standard Bible uses “have observed.”

• Follow the example of the New Century Version and use one verb for part of the list and another verb for the rest of the list, when it becomes necessary. The New Century Version uses “follow” and “know.”

my teaching: When Paul said my teaching he was referring to all of the doctrines that he had taught. He considered all of these doctrines to be closely related to each other and spoke of them as a group.

my: In the Greek text this pronoun occurs just once before this first item in the list of things that Timothy knew about Paul’s life and teaching. In that position it indicates that my applies to each item in the list from 3:10a–11a. The Berean Standard Bible repeats the word my for each item in the list, but you should follow the patterns for proper pronoun use in your language as you translate each of the items in 3:10b–11a. You must not feel that you have to follow the Greek or any English grammatical pattern.

3:10b–11a

In 3:10b–11a, Paul listed some of the things that characterized the way that he had served Christ. He reminded Timothy about some things that Timothy already knew about Paul and how he had served the Lord and suffered because he preached the gospel. Paul implied that he hoped Timothy would remember these characteristics and imitate them. In some languages, it may be necessary to use verbs or whole sentences to translate each of the abstract nouns that Paul used in 3:10b–11a.

3:10b

my conduct: The phrase my conduct is the translation of one Greek word. It indicates that Timothy knew that Paul had lived in a way that was right according to God’s word. He also knew that Paul behaved in the same righteous manner that he instructed the believers to follow.

3:10c

my purpose: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as purpose also occurs in 1:9d. Some other ways to translate this word are “plan,” “intention,” “goal,” or “what I want to do.”

Paul’s purpose in life was to preach God’s word to others. When groups of Christians formed congregations as a result of his preaching, it was also Paul’s purpose to teach them even more truths from the word of God, so that they would develop spiritually.

3:10d

faith: In Paul’s letters, the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as faith has at least three meanings:

(a) a Christian’s belief or trust in God,

(b) the basic doctrines that Christians believe,

In this verse, Paul probably used the word faith in the first sense. Here Paul said that Timothy knew how much he (Paul) trusted God.

See the note in 3:10a about the word “my.”

3:10e

patience: The word patience refers to being able to endure something that is unpleasant without complaining. Here Paul was referring to his own patience towards other people as he traveled to different places preaching and teaching the good news.

love: Here Paul was referring to his love for other people, not his love for God. Paul did not define love as an emotional feeling. He defined it as an attitude of caring about the well-being of other people.

3:10f

perseverance: This word means almost the same thing as the word “patience” in 3:10e. The word perseverance refers to being able to continue doing whatever one is doing, even in difficult circumstances. Timothy knew about Paul’s perseverance because he knew that Paul had continued to preach and teach even when he was living in difficult circumstances and when people were reluctant to accept his teaching.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

Step into the multitudes of languages of the Bible and join the worldwide conversation!

Source: SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 2003

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:8

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:16

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:15

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:14

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:13

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:12

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:11

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Timothy 3:10

Step into the multitudes of languages of the Bible and join the worldwide conversation!

American Bible Society