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Now to the King eternal, immortal, and invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
1 Timothy 1:17 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
  • KJV Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
  • NKJV Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
  • NASB Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
  • NLT All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Overwhelmed by grace, Paul bursts into praise to the eternal, immortal, invisible God. It models worship as the natural response to the gospel.

Overview

Paul's reflection on mercy overflows into a doxology honoring the King eternal and only God. Praise is the fitting response to grace received in Christ. The verse reminds believers that sound doctrine should lead the heart to worship.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 40

  • Eph 3:20–21Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us,
  • Jude 1:25to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord before all time, and now, and for all eternity. Amen.
  • 1 Tim 6:15–16which the blessed and only Sovereign One—the King of kings and Lord of lords—will bring about in His own time.
  • Rev 17:14They will make war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will triumph over them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and He will be accompanied by His called and chosen and faithful ones.”
  • Rev 19:1After this I heard a sound like the roar of a great multitude in heaven, shouting: “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God!
  • 1 Chr 29:11Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the splendor and the majesty, for everything in heaven and on earth belongs to You. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom, and You are exalted as head over all.
  • Col 1:15The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
  • Rev 19:16And He has a name written on His robe and on His thigh: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
  • Ps 45:6Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever, and justice is the scepter of Your kingdom.
  • Jer 10:10But the LORD is the true God; He is the living God and eternal King. The earth quakes at His wrath, and the nations cannot endure His indignation.
  • Ps 10:16The LORD is King forever and ever; the nations perish from His land.
  • Rev 19:6And I heard a sound like the roar of a great multitude, like the rushing of many waters, and like a mighty rumbling of thunder, crying out: “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.
  • Heb 1:8–13But about the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever, and justice is the scepter of Your kingdom.
  • Dan 7:14And He was given dominion, glory, and kingship, that the people of every nation and language should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
  • Ps 145:13Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and Your dominion endures through all generations. The LORD is faithful in all His words and kind in all His actions.
  • Ps 90:2Before the mountains were born or You brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God.
  • Ps 106:48Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Let all the people say, “Amen!” Hallelujah!
  • Rom 1:23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images of mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
  • Dan 4:34But at the end of those days I, Nebuchadnezzar, looked up to heaven, and my sanity was restored to me. Then I praised the Most High, and I honored and glorified Him who lives forever: “For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His kingdom endures from generation to generation.
  • Dan 4:37Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, for all His works are true and all His ways are just. And He is able to humble those who walk in pride.
  • Rev 4:8–11And each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around and within. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”
  • Rev 7:12saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”
  • Rev 5:9–14And they sang a new song: “Worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, because You were slain, and by Your blood You purchased for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.
  • Matt 28:20and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
  • Rom 2:7To those who by perseverance in doing good seek glory, honor, and immortality, He will give eternal life.
  • Rom 1:20For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse.
  • Ps 72:18–19Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds.
  • Rom 16:27to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.
  • Matt 25:34Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
  • Neh 9:5Then the Levites—Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah—said, “Stand up and bless the LORD your God from everlasting to everlasting: Blessed be Your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise.
  • Mal 1:14“But cursed is the deceiver who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but sacrifices a defective animal to the Lord. For I am a great King,” says the LORD of Hosts, “and My name is to be feared among the nations.
  • 1 Pet 5:11To Him be the power forever and ever. Amen.
  • 2 Pet 3:18But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
  • Rom 11:36For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen.
  • John 1:18No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is Himself God and is at the Father’s side, has made Him known.
  • 1 Jn 4:12No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God remains in us, and His love is perfected in us.
  • Rev 15:3and they sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb: “Great and wonderful are Your works, O Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the nations!
  • Matt 6:13And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’
  • Mic 5:2But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel—One whose origins are of old, from the days of eternity.
  • Heb 11:27By faith Moses left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw Him who is invisible.

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — 1 Timothy videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on 1 Timothy 1:17YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on 1 TimothyMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

There is 'one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all' — the mystery of godliness, God manifest in the flesh.

How 1 Timothy 1:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.