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InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
2 Tim 2 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26
OET (OET-LV) Be_reminding them these things, testifying before the god, to_ not _be_quibbling_about_messages against nothing useful, to the_ruin of_the ones hearing.
OET (OET-RV) Keep reminding them of all that. Tell them in front of God not to quibble[fn] about the intricacies of words, as it’s not helpful and can lead the listeners to ruin.
2:14 There’s a textual issue here and we follow the standard SR (with ‘expert override’) rather than the developmental version.
Paul was writing only to Timothy here, so the verbs are singular.
Remind the believers of these things,
¶ Repeatedly tell/teach the believers these things.
¶ Timothy, remind the believers of these things I have said/written.
Remind: The form of the Greek verb that the BSB translates as Remind indicates that Paul was asking Timothy to never stop reminding the believers about these things.
the believers: The word believers refers to the entire group of believers in Ephesus and across the province of Asia.
these things: The phrase these things refers back to what Paul had already said, and not to the text that follows. However, Bible scholars are not certain how many of the previous verses Paul was referring to here. He was referring at least to the hymn in 2:11–13. He may also have been referring to all that he had written up to this point. It is best to translate in a general sense so that 2:14a is not limited to any specific thing that Paul mentioned earlier in this letter.
charging them before God
Warn/tell them in the presence of God
Warn/command them, “In the presence/name of God I tell you
charging them before God: This phrase is similar to the wording in 1 Timothy 5:21.
before God: This phrase means “in the presence of God.” It is a type of oath that Paul and other people normally used to emphasize that what they said was true. (See Galatians 1:20.) Here, however, Paul instructed Timothy to use this phrase when he talked to the believers in order to emphasize how important his warning was. See the Display for an example of translating this as direct speech.
Some other ways to translate this phrase are:
with God as your witness (CEV)
in the name of God (NJB)
God: There is a textual issue here.
Some Greek manuscripts have God. These manuscripts are followed by the BSB, NIV, GNT, NRSV, NJB, GW, NLT, CEV, JBP, NCV, NET, NASB, and REB.
Other Greek manuscripts have Lord. These manuscripts are followed by the RSV and KJV.
It is recommended that you follow option (1) as the majority of English versions do.
to avoid quarreling over words,
not to argue with one another about the meaning of words.
not to fight about words.”
quarreling over words: The verb phrase quarreling over words is a translation of a single Greek verb. It means, “to strongly disagree about the meaning of words and the proper way to use them.” Paul warned Timothy in a similar way in 1 Timothy 6:4.
Paul could have been referring to the small details of words that do not change the meaning of doctrines. Or he may have been referring to myths, genealogies, and other cultural ideas that he mentioned in 1 Timothy 1:4 and 4:7.
which succeeds only
That kind of quarreling/arguing is completely useless,
That kind of quarreling does not benefit anyone at all.
(NASB) which is useless: When people argued over unimportant differences in meaning, it would not help those who were listening to better understand the word of God. Such arguments were useless.
A literal translation of this phrase from Greek into English is “for nothing useful/beneficial.” The phrase “for nothing” occurs before the word “useful.” This gives “for nothing” extra emphasis. One way to show this emphasis in English would be to say “no good at all.”
in leading the listeners to ruin.
and it causes harm to those people who are listening.
In fact, it ruins/injures the faith of those who listen.
(NASB) in leading the listeners to ruin: The people who argued about differences in meaning that were not important might confuse the people who listened to them. This confusion could ruin the listeners’ faith.
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
ὑπομίμνῃσκε
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ταῦτα Ὑπομίμνῃσκε διαμαρτυρόμενος ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ μή λογομαχεῖν ἐπʼ οὐδέν χρήσιμον ἐπί καταστροφῇ τῶν ἀκουόντων)
Here Paul implies that Timothy should Remind the believers who are with him and over whom he has responsibility. If it would be helpful in your language, you could make that idea more explicit. Alternate translation: [Remind the believers there of]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
ταῦτα
these_‹things›
Here the phrase these things refer to what Paul has previously written. This includes the trustworthy word in [2:11–13](../02/11.md) and perhaps also [2:1–10](../02/01.md). If it would be helpful in your language, you could make that idea more explicit. Alternate translation: [what I have written] or [the things I have just said]
Note 3 topic: writing-oathformula
διαμαρτυρόμενος ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ
testifying before ¬the God
Here Paul could be: (1) indicating that God knows and approves what Timothy should command the believers. Alternate translation: [declaring with God hearing and approving] or [declaring by God’s authority] (2) asking Timothy to put the believers under oath, making them swear by God, that they will do what Timothy tells them to do. Alternate translation: [making them swear before God] or [requiring that they solemnly promise God]
Note 4 topic: translate-textvariants
τοῦ Θεοῦ
¬the God
Many ancient manuscripts read God. The ULT follows that reading. Other ancient manuscripts read “the Lord.” If a translation of the Bible exists in your region, you may wish to use the reading that it uses. If a translation of the Bible does not exist in your region, you may wish to use the reading of the ULT.
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
μὴ λογομαχεῖν
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ταῦτα Ὑπομίμνῃσκε διαμαρτυρόμενος ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ μή λογομαχεῖν ἐπʼ οὐδέν χρήσιμον ἐπί καταστροφῇ τῶν ἀκουόντων)
Here Paul refers to arguments about what words mean as if they were battles. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable figure of speech or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [not to dispute about words]
Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns
ἐπὶ καταστροφῇ τῶν ἀκουόντων
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ταῦτα Ὑπομίμνῃσκε διαμαρτυρόμενος ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ μή λογομαχεῖν ἐπʼ οὐδέν χρήσιμον ἐπί καταστροφῇ τῶν ἀκουόντων)
If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of destruction, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: [and it destroys the ones hearing]
Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
ἐπὶ καταστροφῇ τῶν ἀκουόντων
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ταῦτα Ὑπομίμνῃσκε διαμαρτυρόμενος ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ μή λογομαχεῖν ἐπʼ οὐδέν χρήσιμον ἐπί καταστροφῇ τῶν ἀκουόντων)
Here Paul implies that battling about words damages the faith of the ones hearing and stops their spiritual growth. If it would be helpful in your language, you could make that idea more explicit. Alternate translation: [to the destruction of the faith of the ones hearing] or [to the ruin of the spiritual growth of the ones hearing]
2:14-26 Timothy must insist on the teaching of 2:8-13 and steer clear of the teaching and conduct of the false teachers. The heresy was probably the same as in 1 Tim 6:20-21.
OET (OET-LV) Be_reminding them these things, testifying before the god, to_ not _be_quibbling_about_messages against nothing useful, to the_ruin of_the ones hearing.
OET (OET-RV) Keep reminding them of all that. Tell them in front of God not to quibble[fn] about the intricacies of words, as it’s not helpful and can lead the listeners to ruin.
2:14 There’s a textual issue here and we follow the standard SR (with ‘expert override’) rather than the developmental version.
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.