New International Version
2 Timothy 2:5
5Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor’s crown except by competing according to the rules.
2 Timothy 2:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.
- English Standard Version (ESV)An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And also if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
- New Living Translation (NLT)And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules.
Context of 2 Timothy 2:5
3Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer. Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor’s crown except by competing according to the rules. 6The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. 7Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.
Read all of 2 Timothy 22 Timothy 2:5 word by word
ἐὰν δὲ καὶ ἀθλῇ τις, οὐ στεφανοῦται ἐὰν μὴ νομίμως ἀθλήσῃ.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for 2 Timothy 2:5
- Luke 13:24“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.
- 1 Corinthians 9:24Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
- Philippians 1:15It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill.
- Colossians 1:29To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.
- Hebrews 12:4In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
- 2 Timothy 4:7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
- Hebrews 2:7You made them a little lower than the angels; you crowned them with glory and honor
- James 1:12Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
- 1 Peter 5:4And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.
- Revelation 2:10Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.
- Revelation 3:11I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.
- Revelation 4:4Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads.
Commentaries on 2 Timothy 2:5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5If a man also strive for masteries - ͅ · If a man contend in the public games - the Olympic or Isthmian games among the Greeks, so often alluded to and particularly explained in the notes on 1 Corinthians 9:24-26, to which the reader is referred for a full illustration of this verse. Is he not crowned - Though he may have conquered, except he strive lawfully - unless he enter according to the rules of the athlete, and act as these direct. No man, however…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5And if a man also strive for masteries - As in the Grecian games. See this favorite illustration of Paul explained in the notes at 1 Corinthians 9:24 ff. Yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully - In conformity with the rules of the games. See Grotius, in loc. No one could obtain the prize unless he had complied with all the laws of the games, and had thus given to those with whom he contended, a fair opportunity to succeed. “In those contests, he…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-7Paul quickly quotes a series of sayings about hard work, struggle, and reward.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. And--"Moreover." strive for masteries--"strive in the games" [Alford]; namely, the great national games of Greece. yet is he not crowned, except--even though he gain the victory. strive lawfully--observing all the conditions of both the contest (keeping within the bounds of the course and stript of his clothes) and the preparation for it, namely, as to self-denying diet, anointing, exercise, self-restraint, chastity, decorum, &c. (1Co 9:24-27).Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Timothy 2:5
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 2 Timothy 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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