1 Timothy 2:2
New International Version
for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.

New Living Translation
Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity.

English Standard Version
for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.

Berean Standard Bible
for kings and all those in authority—so that we may lead tranquil and quiet lives in all godliness and dignity.

Berean Literal Bible
for kings and all those being in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

King James Bible
For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

New King James Version
for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.

New American Standard Bible
for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

NASB 1995
for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

NASB 1977
for kings and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

Legacy Standard Bible
for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

Amplified Bible
for kings and all who are in [positions of] high authority, so that we may live a peaceful and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

Christian Standard Bible
for kings and all those who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
for kings and all those who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

American Standard Version
for kings and all that are in high place; that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and gravity.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
For the sake of Kings and Rulers, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil way of life in complete reverence to God and purity.

Contemporary English Version
Pray for kings and others in power, so we may live quiet and peaceful lives as we worship and honor God.

Douay-Rheims Bible
For kings, and for all that are in high station: that we may lead a quiet and a peaceable life in all piety and chastity.

English Revised Version
for kings and all that are in high place; that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and gravity.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
for rulers, and for everyone who has authority over us. Pray for these people so that we can have a quiet and peaceful life always lived in a godly and reverent way.

Good News Translation
for kings and all others who are in authority, that we may live a quiet and peaceful life with all reverence toward God and with proper conduct.

International Standard Version
for kings, and for everyone who has authority, so that we might lead a quiet and peaceful life with all godliness and dignity.

Literal Standard Version
for kings, and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all piety and gravity,

Majority Standard Bible
for kings and all those in authority—so that we may lead tranquil and quiet lives in all godliness and dignity.

New American Bible
for kings and for all in authority, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity.

NET Bible
even for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.

New Revised Standard Version
for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity.

New Heart English Bible
for kings and all who are in high places; that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and reverence.

Webster's Bible Translation
For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

Weymouth New Testament
including kings and all who are in high station, in order that we may live peaceful and tranquil lives with all godliness and gravity.

World English Bible
for kings and all who are in high places, that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and reverence.

Young's Literal Translation
for kings, and all who are in authority, that a quiet and peaceable life we may lead in all piety and gravity,

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
A Call to Prayer
1First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be offered for everyone— 2for kings and all those in authority— so that we may lead tranquil and quiet lives in all godliness and dignity. 3This is good and pleasing in the sight of God our Savior,…

Cross References
Ezra 6:10
Then they will be able to offer sacrifices of a sweet aroma to the God of heaven and to pray for the lives of the king and his sons.

Jeremiah 29:7
Seek the prosperity of the city to which I have sent you as exiles. Pray to the LORD on its behalf, for if it prospers, you too will prosper."

Romans 13:1
Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which is from God. The authorities that exist have been appointed by God.


Treasury of Scripture

For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

kings.

Ezra 6:10
That they may offer sacrifices of sweet savours unto the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king, and of his sons.

Nehemiah 1:11
O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name: and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king's cupbearer.

Psalm 20:1-4
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; …

for all.

Romans 13:1
Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.

1 Peter 2:13
Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme;

authority.

Genesis 49:14,15
Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens: …

2 Samuel 20:19
I am one of them that are peaceable and faithful in Israel: thou seekest to destroy a city and a mother in Israel: why wilt thou swallow up the inheritance of the LORD?

Proverbs 24:21
My son, fear thou the LORD and the king: and meddle not with them that are given to change:

all godliness.

Luke 1:6
And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

Luke 2:25
And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.

Acts 10:22
And they said, Cornelius the centurion, a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nation of the Jews, was warned from God by an holy angel to send for thee into his house, and to hear words of thee.

Jump to Previous
Authority Behaviour Calm Dignity Fear Godliness Godly Gravity High Honesty Including Kings Lead Order Peaceable Peaceful Piety Places Positions Quiet Respectful Reverence Serious Station Tranquil Way
Jump to Next
Authority Behaviour Calm Dignity Fear Godliness Godly Gravity High Honesty Including Kings Lead Order Peaceable Peaceful Piety Places Positions Quiet Respectful Reverence Serious Station Tranquil Way
1 Timothy 2
1. Instruction to pray and give thanks.
9. How women should be attired.
12. They are not permitted to teach.
15. They shall be saved if they continue in faith.














(2) For kings, and for all that are in authority.--Without any special reference to the Roman emperors, the expression simply directs that prayer should be offered in all Christian congregations for the supreme authorities of the Roman empire, and especially of that particular province in which the church, where the prayer was offered, happened to be situate. Josephus especially mentions how a refusal on the part of the Jews to pray for Roman magistrates led to the great war with the empire which ended in their destruction as a separate nation.

A well-known passage in the Apology of Tertullian, written about a century and a quarter after St. Paul sent his first letter to Timothy, shows how well and carefully this charge of the great teacher, written to the Church in Ephesus, was kept in distant Carthage:--"We Christians. . . . do intercede for all the emperors that their lives may be prolonged, their government be secured to them, that their families may be preserved in safety, their senates faithful to them, their armies brave, their people honest, and that the whole empire may be at peace, and for whatever other things are desired by the people or the Caesar."

Early in the second century, Polycarp of Smyrna bears similar testimony to this practice in the early Church of praying publicly for their heathen rulers:--"Pray for all the saints; pray, too, for all kings and powers and rulers, and for your persecutors, and those that hate you, and for your cruel enemies."

That we may lead a quiet and peaceable life.--What now is the special object of this prayer for those in high authority and power? First, that through their wise rule the Christians might enjoy peace; and, second, that the temper of the people who prayed thus for the ruling powers might be so affected the constant repetition of such prayers: that all thoughts of revolt and resistance would be gradually stamped out.

St. Paul knew whom he was addressing. The Christian congregations of his age were largely made up of Jews. An intense longing to throw off the yoke of Rome pervaded the whole nation. The terrible events of the year 70 (only four or five years at most from the time of writing this Epistle) show how deep-seated was their hatred of the stranger. No Christian, however, was implicated in that fatal rebellion; so thoroughly had the teaching of St. Paul and his fellow Apostles done its work among the Jewish followers of the Crucified.

In all godliness and honesty.--The word rendered "honesty" is better translated gravity, or decorum. These words are only used by St. Paul in his Pastoral Epistles, where "godliness" occurs nine times, and "gravity" three times. The sphere, so to speak, in which St. Paul's ideal Christian must walk during his quiet, unobtrusive pilgrimage, was reverence and decorum.

Verse 2. - And all for and for all, A.V.; high place for authority, A.V.; tranquil and quiet for quiet and peaceable, A.V.; gravity for honesty, A.V. For kings, etc. The early Liturgies closely followed these directions. "Every day, both in the evening and the morning, we offer prayers for the whole world, for kings, and for all in authority" (Chrysost., in lee.). So in the Liturgy of St. Mark: "Preserve our king in peace, in virtue, and righteousness.... Subdue his enemies under him... incline him to peace towards us and towards thy Holy Name, that in the serenity of his reign we too may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all piety and honesty [or, 'gravity']." In the Liturgy of St. Clement: "Let us pray for kings and those in authority, that they may be peaceably inclined toward us, and that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all piety and honesty [or, 'gravity']." In the Liturgy of St. Chrysostom: "Let us pray for our most religious and God-protected emperors, and all their palace and court." "We offer this our reasonable service on behalf of our most faithful and Christian (φιλοχρίστων) emperors, and all their palace and court." And in the Liturgy of St. Basil: "Remember, Lord, our most religious and faithful kings... that in their serenity we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and gravity. Remember, O Lord, all rulers and all in authority, and all our brethren in the palace, and the whole court." In high place (ἐν ὑπεροχῇ); elsewhere only in 1 Corinthians 2:1, where it is rendered "excellency." But in Romans 13:1 we have ἐξουσίαις ὑπερεχούσαις "the higher powers;" and in 1 Peter 2:13, τῷ βασιλεῖ ὡς ὑπερέχοντι, "the king as supreme." In 2 Macc. 3:11 the phrase, ἀνδρὸς ἐν ὑπεροχῇ κειμένου, occurs; and in Polybius, οἱ ἐν ὑπεροχῇ ὔντες It is often used in Polybius for "authority" or "power." That we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and gravity. The prayer for the rulers is recommended (as was explained in the above extracts from the Liturgies) in order to obtain for Christians a tranquil life, undisturbed by persecution and molestation, in spite of their peculiar way of life. Their wish was to be allowed to live in the faith and obedience of the gospel, "in godliness and gravity," without being interfered with by the heathen magistrates. The clause in the Prayer for the Church Militant which corresponds to this is "that under her we may be godly and quietly governed." Tranquil (ἤρεμος); found only here in the New Testament. The derivatives, ἠρέμιος ἠρεμέω, etc., are common in the LXX. They all apply to a still, undisturbed, life. Quiet (ἡσύχιος); found only here and l Peter 3:4 in the New Testament, and in the LXX. in Isaiah 66:2. But the noun ἡσυχία and the verb ἡσυχάζειν are common. Godliness (εὐσεβεία). One of the words almost peculiar to the pastoral Epistles (1 Timothy 3:16; 1 Timothy 4:7, 8; 1 Timothy 6:3, 5, 6, 11; 2 Timothy 3:5; Titus 1:1); but elsewhere only in Acts 3:12; 2 Peter 1:3, 6, 7; 2 Peter 3:11. Cornelius was αυησεβής, and so was one of the soldiers who waited upon him (Acts 10:2, 7). Ananias was ἀνὴρ εὐσεβής (Acts 22:12, T.R.). The adverb εὐσεβῶς is also peculiar to the pastoral Epistles (2 Timothy fit. 12; Titus 2:12). Gravity (σεμνοτής): so rendered also in the A.V. of 1 Timothy 3:4 and Titus 2:7 - the only other places in the New Testament where it is found. So also the adjective σεμνός (1 Timothy 3:8, 11; Titus 2:2). Elsewhere in the New Testament only in Philippians 4:8, where it is rendered" honest" in the A.V., and "honorable" in the R.V. In classical Greek σεμνός is properly spoken of the gods, "august," "venerable," and, when applied to persons, indicates a similar quality. Here σεμνοτής is the respectable, venerable, and dignified sobriety of a truly godly man.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
for
ὑπὲρ (hyper)
Preposition
Strong's 5228: Gen: in behalf of; acc: above.

kings
βασιλέων (basileōn)
Noun - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 935: A king, ruler, but in some passages clearly to be translated: emperor. Probably from basis; a sovereign.

and
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

all
πάντων (pantōn)
Adjective - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 3956: All, the whole, every kind of. Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole.

those
τῶν (tōn)
Article - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

in
ἐν (en)
Preposition
Strong's 1722: In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.

authority,
ὑπεροχῇ (hyperochē)
Noun - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 5247: Superiority, excellence, preeminence, authority. From huperecho; prominence, i.e. superiority.

so that
ἵνα (hina)
Conjunction
Strong's 2443: In order that, so that. Probably from the same as the former part of heautou; in order that.

we may lead
διάγωμεν (diagōmen)
Verb - Present Subjunctive Active - 1st Person Plural
Strong's 1236: (either trans. or intrans.), I spend time, pass time, live. From dia and ago; to pass time or life.

tranquil
ἤρεμον (ēremon)
Adjective - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2263: Quiet, tranquil. Perhaps by transposition from eremos; tranquil.

and
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

quiet
ἡσύχιον (hēsychion)
Adjective - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2272: A prolonged form of a compound probably of a derivative of the base of hedraios and perhaps echo; properly, keeping one's seat, i.e. still.

lives
βίον (bion)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 979: A primary word; life, i.e. the present state of existence; by implication, the means of livelihood.

in
ἐν (en)
Preposition
Strong's 1722: In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.

all
πάσῃ (pasē)
Adjective - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3956: All, the whole, every kind of. Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole.

godliness
εὐσεβείᾳ (eusebeia)
Noun - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 2150: Piety (towards God), godliness, devotion, godliness. From eusebes; piety; specially, the gospel scheme.

and
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

dignity.
σεμνότητι (semnotēti)
Noun - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 4587: Dignity, honor, gravity, seriousness. From semnos; venerableness, i.e. Probity.


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NT Letters: 1 Timothy 2:2 For kings and all who are (1 Tim. 1Ti iTi 1tim i Tm)
1 Timothy 2:1
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