Chapter 1
Paul, sent as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, in furtherance of that promise of life which is given us in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, his well beloved son, grace and mercy and peace from God the Father, and from Christ Jesus our Lord. It is with gratitude to that God, whom I worship with a clear conscience in the way my fathers taught me, that I make mention of you continually, day and night, in my prayer. I keep the memory of your tears, and long to see you again, so as to have my fill of joy when I receive fresh proof of your sincere faith. That faith dwelt in your grandmother Lois, and in your mother Eunice, before you; I am fully persuaded that it dwells in you too. That is why I would remind you to fan the flame of that special grace which God kindled in you, when my hands were laid upon you. The spirit he has bestowed on us is not one that shrinks from danger; it is a spirit of action, of love, and of discipline. Do not blush, then, for the witness you bear to our Lord, or for me, who am his prisoner; share all the tribulations of the gospel message as God gives you strength. Has he not saved us, and called us to a vocation of holiness? It was not because of anything we had done; we owe it to his own design, to the grace lavished on us, long ages ago, in Christ Jesus. Now it has come to light, since our Saviour Jesus Christ came to enlighten us; now he has annulled death, now he has shed abroad the rays of life and immortality, through that gospel which I have been appointed to herald, as an apostle and a teacher of the Gentiles. This is what I have to suffer as the result; but I am not put to the blush. He, to whom I have given my confidence, is no stranger to me, and I am fully persuaded that he has the means to keep my pledge safe, until that day comes.
With all the faith and love you have in Christ Jesus, keep to the pattern of sound doctrine you have learned from my lips. By the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, be true to your high trust. In Asia, as you know, all have treated me coldly, Phigellus and Hermogenes among them. May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus; often enough he revived my spirits. Instead of being ashamed of a prisoner's acquaintance, he sought me out when he was in Rome, and succeeded in finding me. The Lord grant that he may find mercy with his Lord when that day comes; what he did for me in Ephesus I have no need to tell you.