1 Timothy 1:17

1:17 Now to the eternal king, ¹  immortal, invisible, the only ²  God, be honor and glory forever and ever! ³  Amen.

1 Timothy 3:2

3:2 The overseer ⁴  then must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, ⁵  temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, an able teacher,

[1:17]  ¹ tn Or more literally, “king of the ages.”

[1:17]  ² tc Most later witnesses (א² D¹ H^c Ψ 1881 Ï) have “wise” (σόφῳ, swfw) here (thus, “the only wise God”), while the earlier and better witnesses (א* A D* F G H* 33 1739 lat co) lack this adjective. Although it could be argued that the longer reading is harder since it does not as emphatically affirm monotheism, it is more likely that scribes borrowed σόφῳ from Rom 16:27 where μόνῳ σόφῳ θεῷ (monw sofw qew, “the only wise God”) is textually solid.

[1:17]  ³ tn Grk “unto the ages of the ages,” an emphatic way of speaking about eternity in Greek.

[3:2]  ⁴ tn Or “bishop.”

[3:2]  ⁵ tn Or “a man married only once,” “devoted solely to his wife” (see 1 Tim 3:12; 5:9; Titus 1:6). The meaning of this phrase is disputed. It is frequently understood to refer to the marital status of the church leader, excluding from leadership those who are (1) unmarried, (2) polygamous, (3) divorced, or (4) remarried after being widowed. A different interpretation is reflected in the NEB’s translation “faithful to his one wife.”