SIL Translator's Notes on 1 Timothy 1:14

1:14a

And the grace of our Lord: This means that the grace came from the Lord. The Lord acted graciously or showed his grace.

grace: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as grace refers to kindness or generosity shown to someone who does not deserve it.

our: This again refers to Paul, Timothy, and the Ephesian believers.

Lord: Scholars have interpreted this in two ways:

(1) It refers to the Lord Jesus (Contemporary English Version)

(2) It refers to God the Father (probably the New Living Translation (2004 Revision))

In 1:12a Paul referred to Christ as “our Lord.” So it is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) that Lord here refers to Christ.

overflowed to me: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as overflowed literally means “was more abundant.” Here the verb is used figuratively. The sense is that the Lord was extremely kind. Other possible ways to say this are:

The Lord generously poured out his grace upon me.
-or-
The Lord was wonderfully kind to me.

1:14b

along with: Along with grace, Christ gave Paul “faith” and “love.”

faith: This refers to Paul’s faith in Christ.

love: In this context Paul probably meant that he was able both to love God and other people. To love God primarily means to obey him (1 John 5:3). To love other people primarily means to serve and help them (1 Corinthians 13:4–7; 1 John 3:16–18).

1:14c

that are in Christ Jesus: Scholars disagree about what the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as that are refers to. There are two ways to interpret this:

(1) Paul meant that both faith and love are in Christ Jesus. For example, the Good News Translation says:

the faith and love which are ours in union with Christ Jesus

(Berean Standard Bible, Good News Translation, Revised Standard Version, New International Version (2011 Revision), New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, Contemporary English Version, New Century Version)

(2) Paul meant that love is in Christ Jesus For example, the New Jerusalem Bible says:

with faith and with the love that is in Christ Jesus

(New Jerusalem Bible, King James Version, God’s Word, New Living Translation (2004 Revision))

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1).

in Christ Jesus: Paul said here that the faith and love that he received were in Christ Jesus. By this, he meant that he was able to trust and to love because he was now united with Christ Jesus.

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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.

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 Timothy 3:12

3:12a

deacon: See the note on 3:8a.

the husband of but one wife: This is the same phrase that Paul used in 3:2b about overseers. You should follow the same interpretation here as you chose there and place the other one in a footnote.

3:12b

a good manager: Paul used the same Greek word here as he did in 3:4a. You should translate it in the same way here.

his own household: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as household referred to two groups that normally lived together in the same house or compound. First, there was the family, a group of people related by blood or marriage. Second, there may have been slaves and servants who belonged to or worked for that family. (Louw and Nida (10.8) on oikos) You should choose a term or expression that includes both groups.

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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.

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 Timothy 5:14

5:14a

So: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as So introduces Paul’s conclusion based on what he said in 5:11–13 about younger widows.

I advise the younger widows to marry: Paul advised Timothy to tell younger widows to remarry. (Kelly, page 119, says, “It is often argued that this advice proves that the writer cannot be the Apostle, since in I Cor. vii. 25 ff., while not opposed to marriage, he gave it as his opinion that in view of the imminence of the Parousia it was better for the unmarried to remain so. But (a) his Corinthian ruling was given many years previously, and it is agreed that as he grew older his sense of the nearness of the Parousia became dimmer; and (b) that ruling was in any case a general one, whereas here he is dealing with the very special case of widows. It is clearly his view that it is ideally better for anyone, man or woman, whose partner has died to avoid a second marriage, but his good sense and realism make him encourage second marriages where the strain involved in remaining single would be too great. This, as a matter of fact, is exactly the position he adopts in I Corinthians, where we find him (vii. 9; 36) specifically recommending marriage for (a) unmarried people and widows, and (b) partners in spiritual celibacy, provided they find it impossible to control their passions.”) He did so because he especially did not want the young widows to face the temptations listed in 5:11–13.

5:14b

have children: That is, to give birth to children. It is implied that Paul expected the mothers to take care of those children.

5:14c

and manage their households: The phrase manage their households means to do all the things that women had to do to ensure that they had properly cared for their families. Although the Berean Standard Bible translates the Greek word in the same way as in 3:4, the word is different.

5:14d

denying the adversary occasion for slander: Paul wanted the younger widows to behave well so that no one would have an excuse to criticize the Christians.

the adversary: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the adversary is literally “the one oppressing.” In this verse it can refer to either:

(1) the devil

(2) any person who opposes Christians and Christianity (New Century Version says “no enemy”; Good News Translation says “our enemies”)

Most translations do not explain who the enemy is. It is recommended that you use as general a word as possible in your translation. If you must be specific, it is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). Paul was probably talking about the devil. However, one way that the devil slanders Christians is causing people to criticize them.

slander: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as slander means “speaking against,” “insulting.” The English word slander implies that someone is saying something false. However the Greek word can also refer to saying true things to insult people. (Louw and Nida (33.393) define the Greek word (loidoria) as “to speak in a highly insulting manner.” However, Kittel

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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.

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 Timothy 2:6

2:6a

In this verse part Paul described the way in which Christ acted as a mediator.

gave Himself: This means that Jesus willingly died.

ransom: The Greek word antilutron that the Berean Standard Bible translates as ransom refers to a price that was paid to set someone free from captivity or slavery. In this verse Paul said that Jesus himself was the ransom. When he died, he paid the price to set people free (see Romans 3:23–24 and 1 Peter 1:18–19).

Paul did not say who received the payment of Jesus’ death. (Since the New Testament never actually states to whom the payment was made, different theories have developed. The theory that God paid himself is referred to by Millard Erickson in Christian Theology, page 796, as the commercial or satisfaction theory of the atonement. He says, “It emphasizes that Christ died to satisfy a principle in the very nature of God the Father. Not only was the atonement not primarily directed at man, but it also did not involve any sort of payment to Satan.”) So you should avoid making this explicit in your translation. (R. W. Lyon, in the article entitled “Ransom” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, page 908, says, “In the NT the terms of ransom and purchase, which in other contexts suggest an economic or financial exchange, speak of the consequences or results (cf. 1 Cor. 7:23). The release is from judgment (Rom. 3:25–26), sin (Eph. 1:7), death (Rom. 8:2). There is no need, then, to ask the question posed so often in the past: to whom was the ransom paid?”) For example, the New Century Version says:

He gave himself as a payment to free all people.

and the New Living Translation (2004 Revision) says:

He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone.

In some languages it will not be possible to keep the figure of speech about paying a ransom. If this is true in your language, you could follow the Revised English Bible which says:

who sacrificed himself to win freedom for all mankind

However if you translate that way, the verse will not explain the way that Jesus’ death sets people free from sin. So try to keep the figure of speech if you can.

A similar Greek word lutron occurs in Matthew 20:28 and Mark 10:45. In those verses, Jesus said that he came “to give his life as a ransom for many.” Try to translate ransom in the same way here as you did in these other passages.

for: The Greek word huper that the Berean Standard Bible translates as for means “on behalf of, in the place of” in this context.

all: The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as all here refers to all people. It includes all human beings: men, women, and children. (There is debate as to whether Christ actually died for all people, meaning every single person (this is called universal atonement), or only for the elect (this is called limited atonement). John Stott’s statement at this point is worth mentioning: “As with the statement that God desires all people to be saved, so with the statement that Christ gave himself for all people, it is possible to argue that ‘all’ means ‘all kinds and classes’ and not ‘absolutely everybody’. Yet it is probably wiser to concede that Scripture appears to affirm both positions in an antinomy [a logical contradiction which cannot be resolved] which we are at present unable to resolve. Whatever we may decide about the scope of the atonement, we are absolutely forbidden to limit the scope of world mission. The gospel must be preached to all, and salvation must be offered to all” (page 71).)

2:6b

the testimony that was given at just the right time: The Greek text here literally says “the testimony in its own times.” In most languages it is necessary to supply a verb here. The Berean Standard Bible does so by using the verb given. Paul had mentioned Christ’s sacrifice in 2:5b–6a. Here he said it was the message that has been told to people (by God).

the testimony: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as testimony refers to something that proves something else. In this verse Paul said that Jesus’ death was a testimony, or proof, that God wanted all people to be saved (2:4a) and to come to know the truth (2:4b). The Good News Translation makes this clear by translating this verse part as:

That was the proof at the right time that God wants everyone to be saved

at just the right time: The Greek expression that the Berean Standard Bible translates as at just the right time means that God announced his message to people at the exact time he had chosen. For example, the New Living Translation (2004 Revision) says:

This is the message that God gave to the world at the proper time.

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version (2011 Revision), Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, NET Bible, Contemporary English Version, New Century Version, New Living Translation (2004 Revision))

General Comment on 2:5–6

As stated above, these verses possibly contain a saying that believers used to recite. Some English versions try to show this by using a poetry format. For example, the Contemporary English Version says:

5aThere is only one God,

5band Christ Jesus

is the only one

who can bring us

to God.

5cJesus was truly human, 6aand he gave himself to rescue all of us. 6bGod showed us this at the right time.

Another way to indicate this is to use quotations marks for the saying. However, scholars do not agree about where the saying ends. It may end with 2:6b, or 2:6b may have been a comment made by Paul. If it was a comment, it was not part of the saying (See the New Revised Standard Version). Therefore, it is recommended that you do not use any special formatting here.

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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.

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 Timothy 4:8

4:8–10

In 4:9, Paul used an expression that he had used before (see the note on 1:15a). He was indicating that he was quoting a saying that was probably known to Timothy and other believers.

However, in this chapter, scholars do not agree about the contents of the saying. There are two main views:

(1) The saying is in 4:8. The Contemporary English Version indicates that it is following this option by placing quotation marks in 4:8. However, most other versions only indicate that they follow this interpretation by the way they word the verse or by the punctuation they use.

(Berean Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, Good News Translation, New Jerusalem Bible, Revised Standard Version, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, New Century Version, New Living Translation (2004 Revision), God’s Word)

Most commentators also support this view.

(2) The saying is found in 4:10.

(New International Version (2011 Revision), Revised English Bible)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) as it is supported by the majority of scholars.

4:8a

For: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as For connects 4:8 with 4:7. It explains the reason that it was important for Timothy to train himself to be godly (4:7b).

physical exercise: This phrase refers to the way an athlete trains his body to become strong. Paul used the same word for exercise here as he used in the expression “train yourself” in 4:7b. However here he added the word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as physical, that is, “bodily.”

is of limited value: When Paul said that physical training is of limited value, he meant that physical training did benefit people in some way. However, he made it clear in 4:8b that godliness benefited people more. Physical training helps people only while they are alive on earth. Godliness helps people now and also after they die.

4:8b

but: The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as but indicates that there is a contrast between physical training (4:8a) and spiritual training (4:8b).

godliness: Paul was still talking about training, but now the emphasis was on spiritual training. As the note on “godliness” in 4:7b said, the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as godliness refers to the way people behave when they respect God.

is valuable in every way: This contrasts with the words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as “is of some value” in 4:8a.

4:8c

holding promise: This part of the verse explains the way in which “godliness has value for all things” (4:8b). It is because it holds promise. This means that when a person trains himself in godliness, he can be sure that there will be a reward (from God).

for the present life and for the one to come: This verse does not state what the rewards might be. But it does say that there will be rewards both before and after a person dies. The Contemporary English Version has one way to express this:

It promises life now and forever.

Paul used a saying that was well known to the believers at that time. He had done the same thing in 1:15a and 3:1a.

Paragraph 4:9–10

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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.

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 Timothy 5:25

5:25a

In the same way: It can take time to learn about how a person has sinned. In the same way, it can also take some time to learn about the good deeds that a person does.

good deeds are obvious: This is the parallel expression to 5:24a. Paul said that not all good deeds are obvious, and you may need to indicate that here in 5:25a.

good deeds: In some languages it may be necessary to translate deeds using a verb. It may be possible to say “behave well” or “do things to help other people.”

5:25b

even the ones that are inconspicuous cannot remain hidden: Some “good deeds” are not immediately obvious. But in time all “good deeds” will be known.

General Comment on 5:25b

In some languages it may be necessary to make the meaning of this verse part more explicit. For example:

But other people do good in ways that people do not learn about immediately. Nevertheless, people will certainly learn later what they have done.
-or-
But other times people do not learn about the kind/helpful things that others do at the time when they do them. Nevertheless, people will certainly learn later what they have done.

Paragraph 6:2f–g

Most English versions begin a new paragraph here because these verse parts refer to all believers, not just the slaves whom Paul had been talking about in 6:1–2.

6:2f

Teach and encourage these principles: Paul was referring to what he had written from 5:3 to 6:2e.

and encourage: Paul wanted Timothy not only to teach believers these things, but also to exhort them to obey these things.

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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.

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 Timothy 1:4

1:4a

In 1:4a, Paul was explaining the specific false doctrines that he had referred to in 1:3d.

devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as “devote to” means “pay close attention to.” The false teachers were paying close attention to myths and endless genealogies. They were continually thinking about them and teaching people about them. (Some commentators understand myths and endless genealogies as a hendiadys; that is, the two nouns compose one unit of meaning. The phrase would then mean that false teachers were teaching myths that they based on endless genealogies. For example, Lock, page 8, says that the two words should “be taken closely together, muthoi being defined by genealogiai, legendary stories about genealogies.” Stott, page 44, agrees.)

myths: A myth is a story that has been made up and passed down from one generation to another. It may be based on something that happened in the past. Or it might be something made up to teach people why they should follow certain customs. But it is not true like history. See also 2 Timothy 4:4 and Titus 1:14.

endless genealogies: A “genealogy” is a list of the names of ancestors in a family history. It shows how people are related to each other. Paul did not explain what genealogies he meant here (Some commentators think that the false teachers in Crete studied the Jewish genealogies in the OT and tried to find secret meaning in them. Other commentators think that the false teachers studied long lists of names of angels and other supernatural beings that they thought could help them reach God.), but it was probably something connected to religion, and something that people studied and argued about. (Some people do not think that Paul was referring to lists of ancestors when he said genealogies. They say that he was talking about different spirits, or angels, that stood between men and God. The idea that there were different levels of spirits, or angels, between men and God is a part of Gnosticism. But Paul was probably not talking about this here. Stott, page 45, comments: “There are two main problems with this reconstruction [that Paul was talking about Gnosticism]. The first is that Paul was not predicting the future phenomenon of developed second-century Gnosticism, but was describing a reality with which Timothy had to deal in his own day, in which Gnosticism had only begun to develop. Secondly, there is no evidence that the Gnostics ever referred to the aeons as ‘genealogies’…. All we can say in conclusion is that Paul’s references suggest a false teaching which combined Jewish and Gnostic elements, either ‘a Gnosticizing Judaism’ or ‘Judaizing forms of Gnosticism.’”) (Knight, pages 73–74, drawing on Spicq, mentions that this kind of teaching is found in rabbinic Haggadah, Philo’s writings, the pseudo-Philonic The Biblical Antiquities of Philo (shortly after AD 70), in The Book of Jubilees (135–195 BC), and in the Qumran writings (cf. 1QS 3:13–15). Stott, page 44, says, “The author of The Biblical Antiquities supplements the biblical narrative ‘by means of his fabulous genealogies’, which occupy chapters 1, 2, 4 and 8. Similarly The Book of Jubilees supplies us with the names of all the children of Adam and Eve, of Enoch’s family, of Noah’s predecessors and descendants, and of the seventy people who went down into Egypt. It may be, then, that it is to this kind of fanciful literature that Paul is referring when he writes of law, myths and genealogies.”) See also Titus 3:9.

endless: The genealogies that the false teachers taught were very long and complicated. That is the reason that Paul called the genealogies endless. This is an example of hyperbole or exaggeration.

1:4b

which: The relative pronoun which refers grammatically to the “endless genealogies” (1:4a). However Paul probably intended to refer both to the myths and to the genealogies. Try to make this clear in your translation.

promote: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as promote means “cause” or “bring about.” You could also say “lead to,” “produce,” or “result in.”

speculation: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as speculation is only found in Christian writings. A similar word occurs in 6:4b; 2 Timothy 2:23; and Titus 3:9. Scholars understand the word here in two ways:

(1) It means “controversies” or “arguments.” These teachers spent a lot of time talking about “myths and endless genealogies.” This caused other people to discuss them and argue about them. For example, the Contemporary English Version says:

Such things only cause arguments.

(Contemporary English Version, New International Version (2011 Revision), Good News Translation, New Century Version)

(2) It means “speculations” or “questions.” People were listening to what the false teachers were teaching. When they heard these things, they began to wonder about things that were unimportant. For example, God’s Word says:

These myths and genealogies raise a lot of questions

(Berean Standard Bible, God’s Word, Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, NET Bible, New Living Translation (2004 Revision), King James Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). Paul was telling Timothy that false teaching caused arguments.

1:4c

rather than: In 1:4b Paul said what the myths and genealogies did promote (that is, speculation and controversies; see 1:4b). Here, in 1:4c, he told Timothy what they did not promote. They did not promote God’s work.

the stewardship of God’s work: Scholars interpret the Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as God’s work in three ways:

(1) It refers to the work that God had given believers to do. By teaching wrongly, the false teachers were not working for God in the way that he wanted them to work for him. For example, the Contemporary English Version says:

They don’t help anyone to do God’s work

(Berean Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, New International Version (2011 Revision), New Century Version)

(2) It refers to God’s plan to save people and change them so that they will behave as God wants them to behave. For example, the Revised English Bible says:

and do not further God’s plan for us

(Revised English Bible, Good News Translation, New Jerusalem Bible, NET Bible, God’s Word)

(3) It refers to training or instruction. For example, the Revised Standard Version says:

rather than the divine training

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). God’s work refers to work that is done for God or work that God has given people to do.

1:4d

by faith: There are two different ways to interpret the Greek words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as by faith:

(1) A person can only do God’s work when he himself has faith in God. The New Century Version probably follows this interpretation when it says:

God’s work…is done in faith.

(New Century Version, Contemporary English Version)

(2) A person can only do God’s work when he helps other people have faith in God. For example, the New Living Translation (2004 Revision) translates this verse part as:

They [myths and genealogies]… don’t help people live a life of faith in God.

Most translations do not say who was to have faith, and it is recommended that you do not either. But if you must be specific, it is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). God’s work can only be done by people who have faith. That is, only those who trust in him can do his work.
General Comment on 1:3–4

In some languages it may be more natural to combine these verses and change the order of some of the information. In 1:3b Paul told Timothy to stay in Ephesus. In 1:3c–d Paul told Timothy the purpose for that command. He wanted Timothy to tell certain men to stop teaching wrong things. In 1:4 he gave more details about this.

In some languages it may be necessary to mention some of the information about the false teachers before you translate Paul’s command. This will help people understand the reason that Paul wanted Timothy to tell them not to teach wrong doctrines. Here is one way to combine these verses and reorder the parts:

4aAs you know, Timothy, there are some people in Ephesus who teach what is wrong. They continually teach untrue stories which they base on long lists of ancestors. 3aRemember when I was ready to go to Macedonia? 3bAt that time I asked you to remain in Ephesus 3cand to tell those people 3dnot to teach like that. 4bWhen they teach such things, people argue about them. 4cThe result is that those teachers are not doing the work God gave them, 4dwhich they can only do by trusting God.

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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.

SIL Translator's Notes on 1 Timothy 3:2

3:2a

An overseer: Even though Paul used the singular form overseer here, he was not saying that there was always only one overseer per church. He was describing the qualities that each overseer needed to have. In some languages it may be better to use plural forms here and in the rest of the list. For example, it may be better to say “overseers must be above reproach” rather than to say “the overseer must be above reproach.”

then: The Greek word oun that the Berean Standard Bible translates as then normally means “therefore.” It is not a time word. Paul used this word to begin the list of the character qualities a person should have if he wanted to become an overseer. Since it was noble to want to be an overseer, such people needed to fulfill certain qualifications. Another way to translate this connection could be “because of that,”

must be above reproach: Paul said that overseers should behave well so that no one would be able to accuse them of doing something wrong. They should be people whom other people respected as men who behaved in a godly way. This word is also used in 5:7b and 6:14b.

3:2b

the husband of but one wife: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the husband of but one wife literally says “a one-wife husband” or “a one-woman man.” Scholars interpret this in two main ways: (There is a third interpretation followed by the New Revised Standard Version, that is, an overseer must only be married once.)

(1) An overseer must not be married to more than one woman at the same time; that is, he must not be polygamous. For example, the Good News Translation says:

he must have only one wife

(Berean Standard Bible, Good News Translation, New International Version (2011 Revision), Revised Standard Version, God’s Word, New Century Version, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, NET Bible)

(2) An overseer must not have sex with anyone other than his wife; that is, he must not commit adultery. Many commentaries follow this interpretation. For example, the New Living Translation (2004 Revision) says:

faithful to his wife

(New Living Translation (2004 Revision), Contemporary English Version)

Either of these interpretations is possible. If an elder was not faithful to his wife, people would criticize him or criticize the church. So Paul wanted each church leader to be faithful to his wife. However, interpretation (2) is followed by several English versions. You may wish to follow the same interpretation as the version most in use in your area. It is recommended that whichever interpretation you choose, you mention the other in a footnote.

It is also important to notice that the same Greek expression is used in Titus 1:6. Make sure that you translate both passages the same way.

3:2c

temperate: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as temperate means “behaving in a sober, restrained manner.” (Louw and Nida (88.87) on nēphalios) It often refers to not drinking too much alcohol. But most commentators agree that the meaning is more general here. It includes not getting drunk, but it also refers to not losing control of oneself in any other way. The same word is used in 3:11c and Titus 2:2.

self-controlled: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as self-controlled means “being sensible and moderate in one’s behavior.” (Louw and Nida (88.94) on sōphrōn) It describes a person who thinks and acts wisely. Because the overseer is in control of himself, he is able to act calmly and appropriately in every situation. This word is also used to describe an overseer in Titus 1:8. It also occurs in Titus 2:2, 2:5–6, 2:12.

These two words translated temperate and self-controlled mean almost the same thing. They both refer to a person who can control the way in which he reacts to things or situations. Both words also occur together in Titus 2:2. Paul probably used both words together to emphasize that an overseer should be in control of himself in every area of his life. So, if you do not have two words to use in your translation, you could combine them and say:

he should be self-controlled in everything he does

3:2d

respectable: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as respectable means “orderly,” “well-behaved,” or “virtuous.” It means that other people value and admire a person who is respectable.

hospitable: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as hospitable literally means “loving strangers.” An overseer must be a person who welcomes guests into his home. He may also give guests food or a place to stay for the night. This word is also used in Titus 1:8.

able to teach: An overseer must be a person who is able to teach believers what Scripture means. The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as able to teach is also used in 2 Timothy 2:24.

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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.