4:8a

From now on there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness: Here Paul used another figure of speech from sports. During the time that Paul lived, an athlete who won a fight or a race or any other sports event received a crown made of leaves as a prize. Paul lived a righteous life and had done everything that God had told him to do, so he anticipated that God would give him a prize in heaven. Paul described his prize as a crown that was already in heaven waiting for him to arrive.

From now on: The crown was already in heaven waiting for Paul when he wrote this letter to Timothy.

the crown of righteousness: The Greek word that is translated by the Berean Standard Bible as crown is the same word that is used in 2:5b–c. It refers to the crown of leaves given to a winning athlete, not to the crown a king wears. It may be better to translate it as “reward” or “prize” instead of crown if your readers would not know this meaning. For example, the Good News Translation says,

And now there is waiting for me the victory prize….

Scholars have several opinions about the meaning of the phrase crown of righteousness. Two possibilities are:

(1) It is the reward or prize for a person who is righteous. In other words, it is the reward for a person who lives to please and obey God and who lives a life that God considers right. For example, the Contemporary English Version says:

a crown will be given to me for pleasing the Lord.

(2) It is the symbol that God has accepted someone and he is right in God’s eyes. For example, God’s Word says:

The prize that shows I have God’s approval

See also Good News Translation, New Century Version.

Most English versions translate the phrase crown of righteousness literally and the reader cannot tell which option the version followed. It is recommended that if possible, you also do not specify which option you are following, However, if you need to be specific, it is recommended that you follow option (1). In the context, the crown is a reward, which fits better with option (1).

Some ways to translate this term are:

crown of victory for living right
-or-
victory prize for pleasing God
-or-
reward because I was righteous

4:8b

the Lord: In this context Bible scholars agree that the Lord refers to Christ.

the righteous Judge: Christ is the righteous Judge. He always judges people justly and fairly. The righteous Judge would give Paul this prize because Paul had lived righteously.

4:8c

will award to me on that day: The phrase on that day refers to the time when Christ will return to the earth and will judge all people. A similar phrase, for that day occurs in 1:12d.

4:8d–e

and not only to me, but to all who: This grammatical construction (not only me, but to all who…) is stronger than a simple coordination of two groups (“me and all who…”). These words emphasize that Paul was including other Christians.

all who crave His appearing: Christ will also give a crown of righteousness to everyone who desires to see him. The constant, hopeful anticipation of the time when Christ will return is one of the main characteristics that distinguishes genuine Christians from other people.

crave: The word which the Berean Standard Bible translates as crave means “desire.”

His appearing: The term His appearing refers to the time when “Christ will return.”

© 2003 by SIL International®

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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.