1 Timothy 2:8

2:8 So I want the men ¹  to pray ²  in every place, lifting up holy hands ³  without anger or dispute.

1 Timothy 3:11

3:11 Likewise also their wives ⁴  must be dignified, not slanderous, temperate, faithful in every respect.

1 Timothy 6:11

6:11 But you, as a person dedicated to God, ⁵  keep away from all that. ⁶  Instead pursue righteousness, godliness, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness.

1 Timothy 6:21

6:21 By professing it, some have strayed from the faith. ⁷  Grace be with you all. ⁸ 

[2:8]  ¹ tn The word translated “men” here (ἀνήρ, anhr) refers to adult males, not people in general. Note the command given to “the women” in v. 9.

[2:8]  ² sn To pray. In this verse Paul resumes and concludes the section about prayer begun in 2:1-2. 1 Tim 2:3-7 described God’s concern for all people as the motive for such prayer.

[2:8]  ³ sn Paul uses a common ancient posture in prayer (lifting up holy hands) as a figure of speech for offering requests from a holy life (without anger or dispute).

[3:11]  ⁴ tn Or “also deaconesses.” The Greek word here is γυναῖκας (gunaika") which literally means “women” or “wives.” It is possible that this refers to women who serve as deacons, “deaconesses.” The evidence is as follows: (1) The immediate context refers to deacons; (2) the author mentions nothing about wives in his section on elder qualifications (1 Tim 3:1-7); (3) it would seem strange to have requirements placed on deacons’ wives without corresponding requirements placed on elders’ wives; and (4) elsewhere in the NT, there seems to be room for seeing women in this role (cf. Rom 16:1 and the comments there). The translation “wives” – referring to the wives of the deacons – is probably to be preferred, though, for the following reasons: (1) It would be strange for the author to discuss women deacons right in the middle of the qualifications for male deacons; more naturally they would be addressed by themselves. (2) The author seems to indicate clearly in the next verse that women are not deacons: “Deacons must be husbands of one wife.” (3) Most of the qualifications given for deacons elsewhere do not appear here. Either the author has truncated the requirements for women deacons, or he is not actually referring to women deacons; the latter seems to be the more natural understanding. (4) The principle given in 1 Tim 2:12 appears to be an overarching principle for church life which seems implicitly to limit the role of deacon to men. Nevertheless, a decision in this matter is difficult, and our conclusions must be regarded as tentative.

[6:11]  ⁷ tn Grk “O man of God.”

[6:11]  ⁸ tn Grk “flee these things.”

[6:21]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “have deviated concerning the faith.”

[6:21]  ¹¹ tc Most witnesses (א² D¹ Ψ Ï 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, the earliest and best witnesses (א* A D* F G 33 81 1739* 1881 it sa) lack the particle, indicating that the letter concluded with “Grace be with you all.”