2 TH 2:15 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, magenta:vocative.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT So then, brothers, stand firm and hold tight to the traditions that you were taught, whether by word or by our letter.

UST So, our fellow believers, continue to strongly believe in the Messiah. Continue believing the true teachings that we have passed on to you when we spoke to you and wrote a letter to you.

BLB So then, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, whether by word, or by letter from us.

AICNT So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or by our letter.

OEB Stand firm then, friends, and hold fast to the truths that we taught you, whether by word or by letter.

WEBBE So then, brothers, stand firm and hold the traditions which you were taught by us, whether by word or by letter.

WMBB (Same as above)

MSG ^(15-17)So, friends, take a firm stand, feet on the ground and head high. Keep a tight grip on what you were taught, whether in personal conversation or by our letter. May Jesus himself and God our Father, who reached out in love and surprised you with gifts of unending help and confidence, put a fresh heart in you, invigorate your work, enliven your speech.

NET Therefore, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold on to the traditions that we taught you, whether by speech or by letter.

LSV so, then, brothers, stand fast, and hold the traditions that you were taught, whether through word, whether through our letter;

FBV So, brothers and sisters, stand firm, and hold on to what you've been taught, whether by what you were told, or through a letter from us.

TCNT So then, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the teachings that were passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by a letter from us.

T4T So, our fellow believers, continue to be firm concerning what you believe; that is, continue believing the true teaching that we gave to you by our speaking to you and by our writing a letter to you.

LEB So then, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions which you were taught, whether by spoken word or by letter from us.

BBE So then, brothers, be strong in purpose, and keep the teaching which has been given to you by word or by letter from us.

Moff Well then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the rules which you have learned from us orally or by letter.

Wymth So then, brethren, stand your ground, and hold fast to the teachings which you have received from us, whether by word of mouth or by letter.

ASV So then, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye were taught, whether by word, or by epistle of ours.

DRA Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God and our Father, who hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation, and good hope in grace,

YLT so, then, brethren, stand ye fast, and hold the deliverances that ye were taught, whether through word, whether through our letter;

Drby So then, brethren, stand firm, and hold fast the instructions which ye have been taught, whether by word or by our letter.

RV So then, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye were taught, whether by word, or by epistle of ours.
(So then, brethren/brothers, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye/you_all were taught, whether by word, or by epistle of ours. )

SLT Therefore, brethren, stand, and hold firmly the doctrines which ye were taught, whether by the word, or by our epistle.

Wbstr Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.

KJB-1769 Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.
(Therefore, brethren/brothers, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye/you_all have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. )

KJB-1611 Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which yee haue beene taught, whether by word or our Epistle.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation and punctuation)

Bshps Therfore brethren stande fast, and holde the ordinaunces whiche ye haue ben taught, whether it were by our preachyng, or by our epistle.
(Therefore brethren/brothers stand fast, and hold the ordinances which ye/you_all have been taught, whether it were by our preaching, or by our epistle.)

Gnva Therefore, brethren, stand fast and keepe the instructions, which ye haue bene taught, either by worde, or by our Epistle.
(Therefore, brethren/brothers, stand fast and keep the instructions, which ye/you_all have been taught, either by word, or by our Epistle. )

Cvdl Therfore brethren stonde fast, and kepe the ordinaunces which ye haue lerned, whether it were by oure preachinge or by epistle.
(Therefore brethren/brothers stand fast, and keep the ordinances which ye/you_all have learned/learnt, whether it were by our preaching or by epistle.)

TNT Therfore brethren stonde fast and kepe the ordinaunces which ye have learned: whether it were by oure preachynge or by pistle.
(Therefore brethren/brothers stand fast and keep the ordinances which ye/you_all have learned/learnt: whether it were by our preaching or by pistle. )

Wycl And oure Lord Jhesu Crist him silf, and God oure fadir, which louyde vs, and yaf euerlastinge coumfort and good hope in grace, stire youre hertis,
(And our Lord Yhesu Christ himself, and God our father, which loved us, and gave everlasting comfort and good hope in grace, stir your(pl) hearts,)

Luth So stehet nun, liebe Brüder, und haltet an den Satzungen, die ihr gelehret seid, es sei durch unser Wort oder Brief.
(So stands now, love(v) brothers, and hold/keep at/to the statutes, the you(pl)/their/her taught are, it be through our word or Brief.)

ClVg Itaque fratres, state: et tenete traditiones, quas didicistis, sive per sermonem, sive per epistolam nostram.
(Itaque brothers, state: and holdse traditions, which I_learntstis, if/or through conversation, if/or through letterolam ours. )

UGNT ἄρα οὖν, ἀδελφοί, στήκετε καὶ κρατεῖτε τὰς παραδόσεις ἃς ἐδιδάχθητε, εἴτε διὰ λόγου, εἴτε δι’ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν.
(ara oun, adelfoi, staʸkete kai krateite tas paradoseis has edidaⱪthaʸte, eite dia logou, eite di’ epistolaʸs haʸmōn.)

SBL-GNT ἄρα οὖν, ἀδελφοί, στήκετε, καὶ κρατεῖτε τὰς παραδόσεις ἃς ἐδιδάχθητε εἴτε διὰ λόγου εἴτε διʼ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν.
(ara oun, adelfoi, staʸkete, kai krateite tas paradoseis has edidaⱪthaʸte eite dia logou eite diʼ epistolaʸs haʸmōn.)

RP-GNT Ἄρα οὖν, ἀδελφοί, στήκετε, καὶ κρατεῖτε τὰς παραδόσεις ἃς ἐδιδάχθητε, εἴτε διὰ λόγου, εἴτε δι' ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν.
(Ara oun, adelfoi, staʸkete, kai krateite tas paradoseis has edidaⱪthaʸte, eite dia logou, eite di' epistolaʸs haʸmōn.)

TC-GNT Ἄρα οὖν, ἀδελφοί, στήκετε, καὶ κρατεῖτε τὰς παραδόσεις ἃς ἐδιδάχθητε, εἴτε διὰ λόγου, εἴτε δι᾽ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν.
(Ara oun, adelfoi, staʸkete, kai krateite tas paradoseis has edidaⱪthaʸte, eite dia logou, eite di epistolaʸs haʸmōn. )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, orange:accents differ, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 2:13–17: The Thessalonian believers should continue to believe the gospel firmly

Paul was reminding the Thessalonians that God had chosen to save them and to honor them in his kingdom. He therefore encouraged them to believe firmly in what he had taught them. He prayed that God and Christ would encourage and strengthen them so that they would continue behaving in a way that would please God.

2:15a

Therefore, brothers, stand firm

Therefore, brothers, continue to be firm concerning what you believe about Jesus,

Therefore: Paul had been preparing the believers for the important command he was going to give them. He introduced his command with a Greek phrase ara oun, which the BSB translates as Therefore. Paul was saying, “In view of all that I have just said…” This refers to all he had said in 2:1–14.

brothers: See the note on 1:3a.

stand firm: Paul typically used the metaphor stand firm to mean “to continue to believe firmly in (something).” Paul wanted the Thessalonians to continue believing what he had taught them, no matter what happened.

2:15b

and cling to the traditions we taught you,

and keep believing the things that Jesus taught us^(excl) and that we^(excl) in turn taught you,

cling to the traditions we taught you: Most commentators and English versions understand this to be a second command to the Thessalonians. Most English versions therefore connect this verse part to 2:15a with a coordinating word such as “and.”

the traditions we taught you: The Greek word paradosis , which the BSB translates as traditions, normally refers to something passed down from one generation to another. Paul used the word to emphasize that what he had taught the Thessalonians was not just his own ideas but something that had been passed on to him from Jesus and that he, in turn, was passing on to them.The Greek word paradosis here possibly refers to a specific body of teaching, such as some form of creed and catechism. These important teachings would help to ensure unity from church to church in the absence of the apostles and before the New Testament had been written.

2:15c

whether by speech or by letter.

either while we^(excl) were with you or when we^(excl) sent a letter to you.
both when we^(excl) talked with you personally and when we^(excl) wrote to you.

by speech: This refers to the time when Paul had been in Thessalonica and taught them personally.

by letter: This probably refers to the letter known as 1 Thessalonians.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-logic-result

ἄρα οὖν

consequently (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἄρα Οὖν ἀδελφοί στήκετε καί κρατεῖτε τάς παραδόσεις ἅς ἐδιδάχθητε εἴτε διά λόγου εἴτε διʼ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν)

The words So then connect this verse with verses 13 and 14 as their logical conclusion. Because God did the wonderful things in those verses, the Thessalonians should do what verse 15 says. Use a natural way to introduce a conclusion in your language. Alternate translation: [Therefore] or [Because God did all of that for you]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / gendernotations

ἀδελφοί

brothers

Here, brothers means fellow believers in Jesus, including both men and women. Alternate translation: [brothers and sisters]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

στήκετε

˓be˒_standing_firm

Here, the phrase stand firm is used to mean to not change one’s beliefs but, rather, to remain steadfast in what one believes. If this would be unclear in your language, consider using an equivalent expression, or use plain language. Alternate translation: [continue to believe the truth] or [do not give up your faith]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

κρατεῖτε τὰς παραδόσεις

˓be˒_taking_hold_of (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἄρα Οὖν ἀδελφοί στήκετε καί κρατεῖτε τάς παραδόσεις ἅς ἐδιδάχθητε εἴτε διά λόγου εἴτε διʼ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν)

Here, traditions refers to the truths about Christ that Paul and the other apostles taught. Paul speaks of them as if his readers could hold on to them with their hands. Alternate translation: [do not give up believing those truths] or [continue to believe the true teachings]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / doublet

στήκετε καὶ κρατεῖτε

˓be˒_standing_firm (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἄρα Οὖν ἀδελφοί στήκετε καί κρατεῖτε τάς παραδόσεις ἅς ἐδιδάχθητε εἴτε διά λόγου εἴτε διʼ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν)

These two phrases mean basically the same thing. The repetition is used to emphasize the importance of doing this. If your language does not use repetition to do this, you can use one phrase and provide emphasis in another way. Alternate translation: [keep on firmly believing] or [do not allow anyone to change your mind in any way about]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive

ἐδιδάχθητε

˱you_all˲_˓were˒_taught

If your language does not use the passive form in this way, you can say this with an active form. Alternate translation: [we have taught you]

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / synecdoche

διὰ λόγου

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἄρα Οὖν ἀδελφοί στήκετε καί κρατεῖτε τάς παραδόσεις ἅς ἐδιδάχθητε εἴτε διά λόγου εἴτε διʼ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν)

Here, by word is an expression that means that Paul had been present with them and taught them personally. Alternate translation: [by what we said to you in person] or [when we were talking to you.]

Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

δι’ ἐπιστολῆς ἡμῶν

by letter ˱from˲_us

You can make clear the implicit information that by our letter refers to what Paul taught to the Thessalonians in an earlier letter (probably 1 Thessalonians). Alternate translation: [by what we wrote to you in a letter]

Parallel 2 TH 2:15

Section 2:13–17: The Thessalonian believers should continue to believe the gospel firmly

2:15a

2:15b

2:15c

Parallel 2 TH 2:15