4:1 I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is going to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom:
2:14 Remind people 11 of these things and solemnly charge them 12 before the Lord 13 not to wrangle over words. This is of no benefit; it just brings ruin on those who listen. 14
1:6 Because of this I remind you to rekindle God’s gift that you possess 17 through the laying on of my hands.
1 tn Grk “having broken…and having brought…” (describing Christ). Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here (and at the beginning of v. 11) in the translation.
2 sn That good thing (Grk “the good deposit”) refers to the truth of the gospel committed to Timothy (cf. 1 Tim 6:20).
3 tn Grk “that he may please.”
4 tn Grk “the man of God,” but ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpos) is most likely used here in a generic sense, referring to both men and women.
5 tn This word is positioned for special emphasis; it carries the sense of “complete, competent, able to meet all demands.”
5 tc The reading ὁ κύριος (Jo kurio", “the Lord”) is well supported by א* F G 33 1739 1881 sa, but predictable expansions on the text have occurred at this point: A 104 614 pc read ὁ κύριος ᾿Ιησοῦς (Jo kurio" Ihsou", “the Lord Jesus”), while א2 C D Ψ Ï sy bo have ὁ κύριος ᾿Ιησοῦς Χριστός (Jo kurio" Ihsou" Cristo", “the Lord Jesus Christ”). As B. M. Metzger notes, although in a late book such as 2 Timothy, one might expect the fuller title for the Lord, accidental omission of nomina sacra is rare (TCGNT 582). The shorter reading is thus preferred on both external and internal grounds.
6 tc Most witnesses (א2 D Ψ Ï lat sy) conclude this letter with ἀμήν (amhn, “amen”). Such a conclusion is routinely added by scribes to NT books because a few of these books originally had such an ending (cf. Rom 16:27; Gal 6:18; Jude 25). A majority of Greek witnesses have the concluding ἀμήν in every NT book except Acts, James, and 3 John (and even in these books, ἀμήν is found in some witnesses). It is thus a predictable variant. Further, there are several excellent witnesses of the Alexandrian and Western texts (א* A C F G 6 33 81 1739* 1881 sa) that lack the particle, rendering the omission the preferred reading.
6 tn Or “chains,” “bonds.”
7 tn Or “word.”
8 tn Or “chained,” “bound.”
7 tn Grk “remind of these things,” implying “them” or “people” as the object.
8 tn Grk “solemnly charging.” The participle διαμαρτυρόμενος (diamarturomeno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
9 tc ‡ Most witnesses (A D Ψ 048 1739 1881 Ï sy) have κυρίου (kuriou, “Lord”) instead of θεοῦ (qeou, “God”) here, while a few have Χριστοῦ (Cristou, “Christ”; 206 {429 1758}). θεοῦ, however, is well supported by א C F G I 614 629 630 1175 al. Internally, the Pastorals never elsewhere use the expression ἐνώπιον κυρίου (enwpion kuriou, “before the Lord”), but consistently use ἐνώπιον θεοῦ (“before God”; cf. 1 Tim 2:3; 5:4, 21; 6:13; 2 Tim 4:1). But this fact could be argued both ways: The author’s style may be in view, or scribes may have adjusted the wording to conform it to the Pastorals’ universal expression. Further, only twice in the NT (Jas 4:10 [v.l. θεοῦ]; Rev 11:4 [v.l. θεοῦ]) is the expression ἐνώπιον κυρίου found. That such an expression is not found in the corpus Paulinum seems to be sufficient impetus for scribes to change the wording here. Thus, although the external evidence is somewhat on the side of θεοῦ, the internal evidence is on the side of κυρίου. A decision is difficult, but κυρίου is the preferred reading.
10 tn Grk “[it is] beneficial for nothing, for the ruin of those who listen.”
8 tn Grk “having been captured by him.”
9 tn Grk “for that one’s will,” referring to the devil, but with a different pronoun than in the previous phrase “by him.” Some have construed “for his will” with the earlier verb and referred the pronoun to God: “come to their senses and escape the devil’s trap (though they have been captured by him) in order to do His will.” In Classical Greek the shift in pronouns would suggest this, but in Koine Greek this change is not significant. The more natural sense is a reference to the devil’s will.
9 tn Grk “that is in you.”
10 tn Grk “the testimony of our Lord.”
11 tn Or “according to.”
12 tn Grk “suffer hardship together,” implying “join with me in suffering.”
11 tn More literally, “who saved us,” as a description of God in v. 8. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
12 tn Or “according to,” or “by.”
13 tn Grk “before eternal times.”
12 sn A quotation from Num 16:5.
13 tn Grk “names the name of the Lord.”