2:21a

So: At the beginning of 2:21a, Paul used a Greek conjunction oun, which means “therefore” or “so.” This conjunction connects 2:20 and 2:21 and indicates that Paul was going to interpret the image in 2:20. Many English versions omit this word, but it is recommended that you translate this conjunction so that readers understand the purpose of 2:21. You can follow the example of the Berean Standard Bible (So) or the New American Standard Bible (“Therefore”). If you need a more explicit way to show that Paul was explaining his image, you can say something like “The lesson is that…” or “In the same way….”

if anyone cleanses himself: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as cleanses means “to thoroughly clean.” It is a rare word that occurs only here and in 1 Corinthians 5:7. Paul used the word cleanses in a spiritual sense. It means that someone has cleansed (or removed) sin from his life or that he has repented from sin. In this context, the sin was accepting the false teachers and their doctrines.

of what is unfit: In the Greek text, this phrase is literally “from these.” There are two views about the meaning of the word “these.”

(1) It refers specifically to the common purposes that Paul mentioned at the end of 2:20. In this view, the phrase means that believers should stay away from the false teachers and their doctrines. For example, the Revised Standard Version says,

If any one purifies himself from what is ignoble…

See also New International Version (2011 Revision), NET Bible.

(2) It refers to evil or wickedness in general that Paul mentioned in 2:16–19d. For example, the Revised English Bible says,

Anyone who cleanses himself from all this wickedness…

See also Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, New Century Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English.

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1).

2:21b

he will be a vessel for honor: Paul continued to use the same figure of speech. The word he refers to Christians who reject false teachers and their doctrines. Paul compared these Christians to containers/vessels that are for honor.

vessel: This is the same word as in 2:20a and refers to the containers that are made of gold and silver.

honor: This is the same term in Greek as in 2:20d–e. It refers to containers that people used for special food.

2:21c

sanctified: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as sanctified means “set apart,” or “reserved” “made holy” for God’s use.

This verb is passive. The text does not say who sanctified the person, so if possible, you should use a passive verb. If, however, you need to supply a subject, you can say something like “The Master has made him holy….” If you need to make it active instead of passive you can say, “His life will be pure.”

useful: The Master can “use” a person who is holy.

the Master: Here Paul continued the figure of speech about a house. The Master represents God. Paul compared God, who is the Christians’ master, to the master/owner of the house.

2:21d

and prepared for every good work: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as prepared is literally “having been prepared.” It is a passive verb. As with the term “sanctified” in 2:21c, the text does not say who “prepared” the person. If necessary, you can say:

The Master has prepared him for any good deed.

However, a better way to translate prepared is to use a verb that means “to be ready.” For example, the New Living Translation (2004 Revision) says:

you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work.

© 2003 by SIL International®

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible. BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.