Duties of Servants and Masters

1All who are under the yoke of slavery should regard their own masters as deserving of the highest respect,a so that the name of God and our teaching may not be discredited.b 2Moreover, those who have believing masters should be respectful to them, because they are fellow believers.c In fact, they must serve them even better, because those who benefit from their service are believers and dear to them. These are the things you must teach and exhort.

Rules for Godly Living

3If anyone teaches false doctrine and refuses to agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah,d and godly teaching, 4he is a conceited person and does not understand anything. He has an unhealthy craving for arguments and debates. This produces jealousy, rivalry, slander, evil suspicions, 5and incessant conflict between people who are depraved in mind and deprived of truth. They think that godliness is a way to make a profit.e 6Of course, godliness with contentment does bring a great profit.

7Nothing to this world we bring;

from it take we nothing.

8With food to eat and clothes to wear;

content we are in everything.

9But people who want to get rich keep toppling into temptation and are trapped by many stupid and harmful desires that plunge them into destruction and ruin. 10For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, in their eagerness to get rich, have wandered away from the faith and causedf themselves a lot of pain.

Advice for Timothy

11But you, man of God, must flee from all these things.

Instead, you must pursue righteousness, godliness, faithfulness,g

love, endurance, and gentleness.

12Fight the good fight for the faith.

Keep holding on to eternal life, to which you were called

and about which you gave a good testimony

in front of many witnesses.

13Since you areh in the presence of God, who gives life to everything, and in the presence of the Messiahi Jesus, who gave a good testimony before Pontius Pilate, I solemnly charge you 14to keep these commands stainlessly and blamelessly until the appearance of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah.j 15At the right time, he will make him known.

Godk is the blessed and only Ruler,

the King of kings

and Lord of lords.

16He alone has endless life

and lives in inaccessible light.

No one has ever seen him,

nor can anyone see him.

Honor and eternal power belong to him!

Amen.

Advice for the Wealthy

17Tell those who are rich in this age not to be arrogant and not to place their confidence in anything as uncertain as riches. Instead, let them place their confidencel in God, who lavishly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18They are to do good, to be rich in good actions, to be generous, and to share. 19By doing this they store up a treasure for themselves that is a good foundation for the future, so that they can keep their hold on the life that is real.

Final Greeting

20Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you. Avoid the pointless discussions and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge. 21Although some claim to have it, they have abandoned the faith. May grace be with all of you!