2:2

In 2:2, Paul gave Timothy the second command. This second command was that Timothy should pass this teaching on to others.

2:2a

And the things that you have heard me say: The wording here is similar, but not identical, to 1:13a.

And: In Greek, 2:1 and 2:2 are one sentence. The word And indicates a simple coordination between the command in 2:1 and the command in this verse. Many English translations begin a new sentence here and do not include the word And.

the things: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates here as the things refers to the phrase “sound teaching” in 1:13. Because things is emphasized in Greek, one way to show this is to say, “As for the things you have heard me say….”

2:2b

among many witnesses: The Greek word dia, which the Berean Standard Bible translates with the phrase among, usually means “through” or “by.” So Bible scholars have different opinions about what the Greek text means here.

(1) It means that Timothy had heard Paul preach and teach the gospel in front of or in the presence of many people. For example, Good News Translation says:

Take the teachings that you heard me proclaim in the presence of many witnesses

See also Berean Standard Bible, New International Version (2011 Revision), Revised Standard Version, King James Version, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English, NET Bible, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible.

(2) It means that Timothy had heard the gospel confirmed through or by many other people. Timothy had heard the gospel message from Paul. He had also heard it from others. For example, the New Living Translation (2004 Revision) says:

You have heard me teach many things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses.

See also New Jerusalem Bible, New Revised Standard Version, God’s Word, New Century Version.

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1).

witnesses: The witnesses are people who have seen or heard something. Here it refers to those who had heard Paul speak. They could confirm that Paul had preached the gospel and that what he said was true. This is the same word that is used in 1 Timothy 5:19 and 1 Timothy 6:12.

2:2c

entrust these to faithful men: The verb entrust means to “leave something valuable with other people who will keep it safe.” Here, the thing that Timothy was to entrust was the message about Jesus Christ. Paul wanted Timothy to teach that message to people whom he was certain would not change the message. These were to be people whom Timothy could trust to teach the gospel accurately to other people.

faithful: Other words for faithful are “reliable,” “trustworthy,” or “dependable.”

2:2d

who will be qualified to teach others as well: The men whom Timothy was to choose were to be those who were able to teach well.

qualified: This word means “capable” or “competent.”

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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.