1 TIM 2:1 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.)

OET (OET-RV) Then first of all I urge you all to pray for all people—petitioning to God while also expressing thanks for them.

Key: khaki:verbs, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor.
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 I urge, therefore, first of all, for requests, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings to be made for all men,

UST So then, I ask believers to focus especially on praying for all people. Believers should be thankful for these people and ask God to act kindly to them.

BLB First of all, therefore, I exhort entreaties, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings, to be made on behalf of all men

AICNT Therefore, I urge first of all that requests, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men,

OEB First of all, then, I ask that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings should be offered for everyone,

CSB First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone,

NLT I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.

NIV I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—

CEV First of all, I ask you to pray for everyone. Ask God to help and bless them all, and tell God how thankful you are for each of them.

ESV First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people,

NASB First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men,

LSB First of all, then, I exhort that petitions and prayers, requests and thanksgivings, be made for all men,

WEBBE I exhort therefore, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and givings of thanks be made for all men,

WMBB (Same as above)

MSG Simple Faith and Plain Truth (1-3) The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live.

NET First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers, intercessions, and thanks be offered on behalf of all people,

LSV I exhort, then, first of all, there be made supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings, for all men—

FBV First of all, I want to encourage you to pray for everybody: make requests of God, ask on their behalf, and give thanks.

TCNT I urge then, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people,

T4T The first (OR, most important) thing that I urge you to tell your congregation is that Christians should continually ask God for what they need. They should also pray to God for all other people, and they should be thanking God.

LEB Therefore, I urge first of all that petitions, prayers, requests, and thanksgiving be made on behalf of all people,

NRSV First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone,

NKJV Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men,

NAB First of all, then, I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone,

BBE My desire is, first of all, that you will make requests and prayers and give praise for all men;

Moff Well, my very first counsel is that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgiving, are to be offered for all men--

Wymth I exhort then, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings be offered on behalf of all men;

ASV I exhort therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings, be made for all men;

DRA I desire therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men:

YLT I exhort, then, first of all, there be made supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings, for all men:

Drby I exhort therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings be made for all men;

RV I exhort therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings, be made for all men;

SLT I Beseech therefore, first of all, supplications to be made, prayers, entreaties, thanks, for all men;

Wbstr I exhort therefore, that first of all supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men;

KJB-1769 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;

KJB-1611 ¶ [fn]I exhort therefore, that first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giuing of thanks be made for all men:
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation and footnotes)

2:1 Or, desire.

Bshps I exhort therefore, that firste of all, prayers, supplications, intercessios and geuynge of thankes be made for all men:
(I exhort therefore, that first of all, prayers, supplications, intercessios and giving of thanks be made for all men:)

Gnva I Exhort therefore, that first of all supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giuing of thanks be made for all men,
(I Exhort therefore, that first of all supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, )

Cvdl I exhorte therfore, yt aboue all thinges, prayers, supplicacions, intercessions and geuynge of thakes be had for all men
(I exhorte therefore, it above all things, prayers, supplications, intercessions and giving of thanks be had for all men)

TNT I exhorte therfore that above all thynges prayers supplicacions intercessions and gevynge of thankes behad for all men:
(I exhorte therefore that above all things prayers supplications intercessions and geving of thanks behad for all men: )

Wycl Therfor Y biseche first of alle thingis, that bisechingis, preieris, axyngis, doyngis of thankyngis, ben maad for alle men,
(Therefore I beseech/implore first of all things, that beseeching/imploringis, prayers, askings, doings of thankings, been made for all men,)

Luth So ermahne ich nun, daß man vor allen Dingen zuerst tue Bitte, Gebet, Fürbitte und Danksagung für alle Menschen,
(So admonish/rebuke I now, that man before/in_front_of all/everyone things first do/act Please, prayer, Fürbitte and thanksgiving for/in_favour_of all people,)

ClVg Obsecro igitur primum omnium fieri obsecrationes, orationes, postulationes, gratiarum actiones, pro omnibus hominibus:[fn]
(Please therefore first of_all to_be_done obsecrationes, prayers, demandsiones, thanks actions, for to_all to_humans: )

2.1 Obsecro. Hactenus de pseudo-apostolis, hic de orationibus. Primo omnium. Id est, ante omnia fieri obsecrationes. Ordo missæ hic ostenditur quod est speciale genus orationis. Obsecrationes. Sive precationem illam quæ fit juxta vel ante consecrationem. Orationes. Id est ipsa consecratione. Postulationes. Vel interpellationes, quasi ex debito ut quod hic geritur, in æterna vita perficiatur, ut cum populus ab episcopo benedicitur. Gratiarum actiones. De factis, quæ totum concludunt quasi totum sit a Deo: ut benedicamus Domino. Pro omnibus. Ut sequamur clementiam Dei, quia Deus vult omnes homines salvos fieri, etsi secundum justitiam quosdam reprobet. Ut quietam a persecutione.

2.1 Please. Hactenus from/about pseudo-apostolis, this/here from/about prayers. At_first of_all. That it_is, before everything to_be_done obsecrationes. Order(n) missæ this/here is_shown that it_is speciale kind/class prayers. Obsecrationes. Sive precationem her which fit next_to or before consecrationm. Speech/Prayernes. That it_is herself consecration. Requesttiones. Or interpellationes, as_if from debito as that this/here wearsur, in/into/on eternal life perficiatur, as when/with the_people away episcopo blessesur. Gracerum actions. From/About deeds/activities, which whole concludunt as_if whole be from to_God: as I_will_blessus Master. For to_all. As let's_follow mercy/clemencym of_God, because God wants everyone people/men salvos to_be_done, even_though after/second justice some reprobet. As quietam from persecution.

UGNT παρακαλῶ οὖν, πρῶτον πάντων ποιεῖσθαι δεήσεις, προσευχάς, ἐντεύξεις, εὐχαριστίας, ὑπὲρ πάντων ἀνθρώπων;
(parakalō oun, prōton pantōn poieisthai deaʸseis, proseuⱪas, enteuxeis, euⱪaristias, huper pantōn anthrōpōn;)

SBL-GNT Παρακαλῶ οὖν πρῶτον πάντων ποιεῖσθαι δεήσεις, προσευχάς, ἐντεύξεις, εὐχαριστίας, ὑπὲρ πάντων ἀνθρώπων,
(Parakalō oun prōton pantōn poieisthai deaʸseis, proseuⱪas, enteuxeis, euⱪaristias, huper pantōn anthrōpōn,)

RP-GNT Παρακαλῶ οὖν πρῶτον πάντων ποιεῖσθαι δεήσεις, προσευχάς, ἐντεύξεις, εὐχαριστίας, ὑπὲρ πάντων ἀνθρώπων·
(Parakalō oun prōton pantōn poieisthai deaʸseis, proseuⱪas, enteuxeis, euⱪaristias, huper pantōn anthrōpōn;)

TC-GNT Παρακαλῶ οὖν πρῶτον πάντων ποιεῖσθαι δεήσεις, προσευχάς, ἐντεύξεις, εὐχαριστίας, ὑπὲρ πάντων ἀνθρώπων·
(Parakalō oun prōton pantōn poieisthai deaʸseis, proseuⱪas, enteuxeis, euⱪaristias, huper pantōn anthrōpōn; )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

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.”

2:1a

First of all, then, I urge

¶ Therefore, Timothy,, the most important thing that I am strongly encouraging you and the other believers to do is

First of all: The Greek word that the BSB translates as First of all is the word that means “first.” In this context there are two possible meanings:

It refers to something that is first in importance. So Paul was saying that prayer was more important than anything else he mentioned in this section.
It refers to something that is first in order. So the first thing that Paul urged people to do in this section was to pray.

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) and translate First of all as “most importantly.”

then: The Greek word that the BSB translates as then is oun, which literally means “therefore.”Louw and Nida (89.50) say that it is a “marker of result, often implying the conclusion of a process of reasoning - ‘so, therefore, consequently, accordingly, then, so then.’” It connects this paragraph to what Paul said in chapter 1. Try to translate this connection in a general way. For example, use a word like “therefore” or “so,” or an expression like:

so, this is what I want you to do

urge: In the Greek text, this word is the same as the word that the BSB translates as urged in 1:3a. Paul was strongly encouraging something or making an important request.

In some languages, it may be necessary to say whom Paul was addressing or urging. If this is true in your language, you could use a second person plural pronoun (like “you^(plur)”). This will make it clear that Paul was not only writing to Timothy, but expected other believers to read the letter.

2:1b

that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be offered for everyone—

to make requests to God for all people, to pray and intercede for them, and to thank God for what he has done for them.
to pray earnestly to God for everyone and also to thank God for all that he does for them.

petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving: Paul used four Greek words to describe prayer. The BSB translates them as petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving. The first three words all refer to asking God to do something. The last word, thanksgiving, refers to thanking God for what he has done.

petitions, prayers, intercessions: These three words mean almost the same thing.

petitions: The Greek word that the BSB translates as petitions refers to people asking God for particular things that they or other people need.

prayers: The Greek word that the BSB translates as prayers is a more general word. It refers to people asking God in a general way to bless and care for themselves and other people.

intercessions: The Greek word that the BSB translates as intercessions refers to people asking God to supply other people’s needs.

The reason that Paul used these three similar words was to emphasize that prayer is important and that believers should pray often. However, in some languages there may not be three different words for prayer. If this is true in your language, translate this part of the verse in a way that emphasizes how important prayer is. For example:

pray earnestly

pray in every way

thanksgiving: Although the first three words that Paul used (petitions, prayers, intercessions) have a similar meaning, the final word in the list, thanksgiving, is different. The Greek word that the BSB translates as thanksgiving refers to people thanking God for what he has done rather than asking him to do something.

be offered for everyone: Paul meant that we should pray for all kinds of people, no matter who they are. No one should be excluded.Knight, page 115, says, “The repetition of ὑπέρ [=‘for’] and further specification, as a subgroup, of civil rulers (v. 2) points in the direction of it meaning all kinds of people. This meaning would fit in the other occurrences of the phrase in 1 Timothy and Titus (especially Tit. 3:2) and would appear to be the understanding of the term when it was first presented to Paul as the perspective for his ministry (Acts 22:15). It is also the most natural understanding in a number of the Pauline passages where an absolute universalism is a virtual impossibility and a reference to all kinds of individuals is more likely (cf. Rom. 12:17, 18; 2 Cor. 3:2; Phil. 4:5; perhaps 1 Thes. 2:15; cf. also εἰς πάντας in Rom. 10:12…).”

General Comment on 2:1a–b

In some languages it may be helpful to start a new sentence for the idea of thanksgiving. For example:

So first of all, I urge you^(plur) to make petitions, prayers and intercessions for all people. And I urge you all to thank God for all that he does for us.

In other languages, it may be necessary to reorder the verse and place 2:1a after 2:1b. For example:

I urge you^(plur) to make petitions, prayers and intercessions for all people. And I urge you all to thank God. These are the most important things to do.

General Comment on 2:1b

In some languages it may be necessary to state what believers should ask God for. Paul wanted believers to pray that God would help people to stop sinning and begin to trust Christ. In the following verses (2:3–7) Paul said that God wanted to save all people. If you can avoid specifying what the believers should pray about, you should do so. However if you need to say what the believers should pray for, you could say:

to pray that everyone be saved

In other languages, it may be necessary to state what people should thank God for. Avoid being too specific. Instead, use a general phrase like:

thank God for everything he has done for people

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-logic-result

παρακαλῶ οὖν

˱I˲_˓am˒_exhorting (Some words not found in SR-GNT: παρακαλῶ Οὖν πρῶτον πάντων ποιεῖσθαι δεήσεις προσευχάς ἐντεύξεις εὐχαριστίας ὑπέρ πάντων ἀνθρώπων)

Here, the word therefore introduces an exhortation that is based on what Paul has said in chapter 1. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a different word or phrase that introduces an exhortation based on a previous section. Alternate translation: [Because of all that, I urge] or [Given what I have written, I urge]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

πρῶτον πάντων

first ˱of˲_all

Here Paul could be using the word first: (1) to indicate that what he is about to urge is the most important thing he will urge. Alternate translation: [most importantly] (2) to indicate that what he is about to urge is the first of several commands he will give. Alternate translation: [as the first of the following commands]

Note 3 topic: translate-ordinal

πρῶτον

first

If your language does not use ordinal numbers, you could use a cardinal number here or an equivalent expression. Alternate translation: [number one]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive

ποιεῖσθαι δεήσεις, προσευχάς, ἐντεύξεις, εὐχαριστίας

˓to_be_being˒_made petitions prayers petitions thanksgivings

If your language does not use this passive form, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. If you need to say who should do the action, it is clear from the context that it should be Christians. Alternate translation: [that Christians make requests, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

ποιεῖσθαι δεήσεις, προσευχάς, ἐντεύξεις, εὐχαριστίας,

˓to_be_being˒_made petitions prayers petitions thanksgivings

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the ideas in this list, you could express the same ideas in another way. Alternate translation: [for believers to request things, pray, intercede, and thank God]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / doublet

δεήσεις, προσευχάς, ἐντεύξεις, εὐχαριστίας

petitions prayers petitions thanksgivings

Here Paul uses four words that refer to four types of prayer. The word prayers is the most general, and the word thanksgivings refers to thanking God for something rather than asking for something. The words requests and intercessions both refer to asking God to do something, and they mean very similar things. Paul uses these four words to indicate that believers should be praying for all men in many different ways. If it would be clearer for your readers, you could express the idea by referring to two or three types of prayer. Alternate translation: [prayers and thanksgivings] or [for prayers, requests, and thanksgivings]

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / gendernotations

ἀνθρώπων

people

Although the term men is masculine, Paul is using the word in a generic sense that includes both men and women. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a phrase that makes this clear. Alternate translation: [men and women]