1 Timothy 3:7

3:7 And he must be well thought of by those outside the faith, so that he may not fall into disgrace and be caught by the devil’s trap.

Matthew 5:16

5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good deeds and give honor to your Father in heaven.

Acts 9:36

Peter Raises Dorcas

9:36 Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which in translation means Dorcas). She was continually doing good deeds and acts of charity.

Acts 10:22

10:22 They said, “Cornelius the centurion, a righteous and God-fearing man, well spoken of by the whole Jewish nation, 10  was directed by a holy angel to summon you to his house and to hear a message 11  from you.”

Acts 16:1-3

Timothy Joins Paul and Silas

16:1 He also came to Derbe 12  and to Lystra. 13  A disciple 14  named Timothy was there, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, 15  but whose father was a Greek. 16  16:2 The brothers in Lystra 17  and Iconium 18  spoke well 19  of him. 20  16:3 Paul wanted Timothy 21  to accompany him, and he took 22  him and circumcised 23  him because of the Jews who were in those places, 24  for they all knew that his father was Greek. 25 

Acts 22:12

22:12 A man named Ananias, 26  a devout man according to the law, 27  well spoken of by all the Jews who live there, 28 

Galatians 5:22-23

5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit 29  is love, 30  joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 31  5:23 gentleness, and 32  self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Philippians 1:11

1:11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.


tn Or “have a good reputation with”; Grk “have a good testimony from.”

tn Grk “the ones outside.”

tn Or “be trapped like the devil was”; Grk “fall into the trap of the devil.” The parallel in 2 Tim 2:26 supports the rendering given in the text.

sn Joppa was a seaport on the Philistine coast, in the same location as modern Jaffa. “Though Joppa never became a major seaport, it was of some importance as a logistical base and an outlet to the Mediterranean” (A. F. Rainey, ISBE 2:1118-19).

tn Grk “which being translated is called.” In English this would normally be expressed “which is translated as” or “which in translation means.” The second option is given by L&N 33.145.

sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. Dorcas is the Greek translation of the Aramaic name Tabitha. Dorcas in Greek means “gazelle” or “deer.”

tn Or “and helping the poor.” Grk “She was full of good deeds and acts of charity which she was continually doing.” Since it is somewhat redundant in English to say “she was full of good deeds…which she was continually doing,” the translation has been simplified to “she was continually doing good deeds and acts of charity.” The imperfect verb ἐποίει (epoiei) has been translated as a progressive imperfect (“was continually doing”).

sn See the note on the word centurion in 10:1.

tn Or “just.”

10 tn The phrase τοῦ ἔθνους τῶν ᾿Ιουδαίων (tou eqnou" twn Ioudaiwn) is virtually a technical term for the Jewish nation (1 Macc 10:25; 11:30, 33; Josephus, Ant. 14.10.22 [14.248]). “All the Jewish people,” while another possible translation of the Greek phrase, does not convey the technical sense of a reference to the nation in English.

11 tn Grk “hear words.”

12 sn Derbe was a city in Lycaonia about 35 mi (60 km) southeast of Lystra. It was about 90 mi (145 km) from Tarsus.

13 sn Lystra was a city in Lycaonia about 25 mi (40 km) south of Iconium.

14 tn Grk “And behold, a disciple.” Here ἰδού (idou) has not been translated.

15 tn L&N 31.103 translates this phrase “the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer.”

16 sn His father was a Greek. Timothy was the offspring of a mixed marriage between a Jewish woman (see 2 Tim 1:5) and a Gentile man. On mixed marriages in Judaism, see Neh 13:23-27; Ezra 9:1-10:44; Mal 2:10-16; Jub. 30:7-17; m. Qiddushin 3.12; m. Yevamot 7.5.

17 sn Lystra was a city in Lycaonia about 25 mi (40 km) south of Iconium.

18 sn Iconium was a city in Lycaonia about 110 mi (175 km) east of Pisidian Antioch.

19 tn For this sense of μαρτυρέω (marturew), see BDAG 618 s.v. 2.b.

20 tn Grk “who was well spoken of by the brothers in Lystra and Iconium.” Because of the awkwardness in English of having two relative clauses follow one another (“who was a believer…who was well spoken of”) and the awkwardness of the passive verb (“was well spoken of”), the relative pronoun at the beginning of 16:2 (“who”) has been translated as a pronoun (“him”) and the construction converted from passive to active at the same time a new sentence was started in the translation.

21 tn Grk “this one”; the referent (Timothy) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

22 tn Grk “and taking him he circumcised him.” The participle λαβών (labwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Paul’s cultural sensitivity showed in his action here. He did not want Timothy’s lack of circumcision to become an issue (1 Cor 9:15-23).

23 tn The verb περιέτεμεν (perietemen) here may be understood as causative (cf. ExSyn 411-12) if Paul did not personally perform the circumcision.

24 tn Or “who lived in the area.”

25 tn The anarthrous predicate nominative has been translated as qualitative (“Greek”) rather than indefinite (“a Greek”).

26 tn Grk “a certain Ananias.”

27 sn The law refers to the law of Moses.

28 tn BDAG 534 s.v. κατοικέω 1.a translates this present participle “ὑπὸ πάντων τῶν (sc. ἐκεῖ) κατοικούντων ᾿Ιουδαίων by all the Jews who live there Ac 22:12.”

29 tn That is, the fruit the Spirit produces.

30 sn Another way to punctuate this is “love” followed by a colon (love: joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control). It is thus possible to read the eight characteristics following “love” as defining love.

31 tn Or “reliability”; see BDAG 818 s.v. πίστις 1.a.

32 tn “And” is supplied here as a matter of English style, which normally inserts “and” between the last two elements of a list or series.