OET interlinear 1 TIM 2:4

Section 2:1–15: Paul told Timothy that it was important that believers should pray

In this section Paul told Timothy some things that the believers should do when they met together regularly to worship God. They should pray for everybody. The men should pray in holiness and without anger, and the women should dress and behave modestly and appropriately.

Paragraph 2:1–7

When believers gather together, they should pray for everybody. They should pray that God would help their government officials to govern well so that believers can worship God peacefully. They should also pray for everybody else because God wants to save everybody.

Everything that Paul wrote in this paragraph (2:1–7) was to help Timothy communicate the gospel to everyone.

One reason that Paul emphasized that the gospel was for everyone was probably because the false teachers were doing exactly the opposite. They were encouraging their followers to consider themselves as better than other people and as part of a small, elite group that excluded other people.Fee, pages 61 and 62, says, “…what might be the place of this first paragraph in the argument? The frequent answer is that the point lies in verse 2, that prayer be made for rulers so that the church may enjoy a peaceful existence. It has even been suggested that a correct Christian attitude toward the state is what is in view. Verses 4–7, then, are seen as nearly irrelevant to that point, but go back to elaborate on a secondary point made in verse 1 (prayer be made for everyone). However, it seems much more likely that precisely the opposite is the case. The one clear concern that runs through the whole paragraph has to do with the gospel as for everyone (‘all people,’ vv. 1, 4–6, and 7). In this view, the phrase this is good in verse 3 refers to prayer for everyone in verse 1, thus seeing verse 2 as something of a digression —albeit as before (1:12–17), a meaningful one. The best explanation for this emphasis lies with the false teachers, who either through the esoteric, highly speculative nature of their teaching (1:4–6) or through its ‘Jewishness’ (1:7) or ascetic character (4:3) are promoting an elitist or exclusivist mentality among their followers. The whole paragraph attacks that narrowness.”

who wants everyone to be saved

• God wants everyone to be saved from sin

and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

• and to eventually know the truth.

• and to learn the truth of his message.

General Comment on 2:3–4

In 2:4, Paul stated the reason that it is good to pray for other people and why it pleases God. In some languages, it may be necessary to reorder 2:3 and 2:4. One way to do this is:

^4aGod wants all people to be saved ^4band come to know the truth. Therefore, when we pray for everyone, ^3awe are doing something right ^3band pleasing God.