To Timothy, a beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Parallel translations
- WEB to Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
- KJV To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
- BSB To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
- NASB To Timothy, my beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
- NLT I am writing to Timothy, my dear son. May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy, and peace.
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
Paul greets Timothy as his beloved spiritual child and prays grace, mercy, and peace upon him. The warmth shows the close mentoring bond between them.
Overview
Timothy was Paul's trusted coworker, here addressed with deep affection as a spiritual son. The threefold blessing of grace, mercy, and peace flows 'from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord,' placing the Father and the Son together as the single source of all spiritual good. This greeting sets a tender, pastoral tone for a letter meant to strengthen a younger minister.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- 2 Tim 2:1You therefore, my child, be strengthened in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
- 1 Tim 1:2to Timothy, my true child in faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
- Acts 16:1He came to Derbe and Lystra: and behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewess who believed; but his father was a Greek.
- Rom 12:19Don’t seek revenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to God’s wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.”
- Phil 4:1Therefore, my brothers, beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand firm in the Lord, my beloved.
- Rom 1:7to all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Christ Jesus 'abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel' — the risen Lord whose word and kingdom endure to the end.
How 2 Timothy 1:2 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.