# 1 Timothy 1.16 **Book:** [1 Timothy](/codex/1-timothy/) · NASB95 ## Immediate context (±2 verses) **ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/)) > 14. and the grace of our Lord abounded exceedingly with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. 15. Faithful is the saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief: > > **16. howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me as chief might Jesus Christ show forth all his longsuffering, for an ensample of them that should thereafter believe on him unto eternal life.** > > 17. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen. 18. This charge I commit unto thee, my child Timothy, according to the prophecies which led the way to thee, that by them thou mayest war the good warfare; (1 Timothy 1:14-18, ASV) **WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/)) > 14. The grace of our Lord abounded exceedingly with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. 15. The saying is faithful and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. > > **16. However, for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first, Jesus Christ might display all his patience, for an example of those who were going to believe in him for eternal life.** > > 17. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. 18. This instruction I commit to you, my child Timothy, according to the prophecies which led the way to you, that by them you may wage the good warfare; (1 Timothy 1:14-18, WEB) **KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/)) > 14. And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. 15. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. > > **16. Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.** > > 17. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen. 18. This charge I commit unto thee, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest war a good warfare; (1 Timothy 1:14-18, KJV) **YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/)) > 14. and exceedingly abound did the grace of our Lord, with faith and love that [is] in Christ Jesus: 15. stedfast [is] the word, and of all acceptation worthy, that Christ Jesus came to the world to save sinners, first of whom I am; > > **16. but because of this I found kindness, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all long-suffering, for a pattern of those about to believe on him to life age-during:** > > 17. and to the King of the ages, the incorruptible, invisible, only wise God, [is] honour and glory, to the ages of the ages! Amen. 18. This charge I commit to thee, child Timotheus, according to the prophesies that went before upon thee, that thou mayest war in them the good warfare, (1 Timothy 1:14-18, YLT) ## Setting - **Speaker:** [Paul](/codex/paul-the-apostle/), who names himself in the opening line (1:1) and writes in the first person throughout. Authorship of the three Pastoral Epistles (1 and 2 Timothy, Titus) is disputed. Many critical scholars hold that a later follower wrote them in Paul's name, pointing to differences of vocabulary and style from the undisputed letters and to a more settled church order. Others defend Paul's authorship, among them Luke Timothy Johnson (Anchor Bible, 2001), William Mounce (Word Biblical Commentary, 2000) and Philip Towner (NICNT, 2006), citing the letter's personal details and its acceptance in the second-century church. - **Audience:** Timothy, Paul's "true child in faith" (1:2), whom Paul had urged to stay on at Ephesus to stop certain men from teaching "a different doctrine" (1:3). Timothy came from Lystra, the son of a believing Jewish mother and a Greek father, and had travelled with Paul since the second missionary journey (Acts 16:1-3). The letter is addressed to him, but its directions on prayer, worship, overseers, deacons and widows are meant to order the church at [Ephesus](/codex/church-at-ephesus/) as a whole (3:14-15). - **Location:** not stated. Paul says he left Timothy at Ephesus "when I was going into Macedonia" (1:3) and hopes to rejoin him soon (3:14; 4:13), so Macedonia is the usual suggestion for where the letter was written. - **Time period:** on Pauline authorship, usually c. AD 62-65, after Paul's release from the Roman imprisonment that ends Acts, since the journey in 1:3 is hard to fit into the Acts narrative. Scholars who regard the letter as pseudonymous usually place it late in the first century or early in the second. The reading below does not depend on the choice. - **Literary context:** Paul's testimony (1:12-17), following the faithful saying that "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief" (1:15) and leading into the doxology of 1:17. ## Theological reading "howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me as chief might Jesus Christ show forth all his longsuffering, for an ensample of them that should thereafter believe on him unto eternal life." (1 Timothy 1:16, ASV) **The chief of sinners.** Paul does not soften his past. He "was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious" (1:13), the man who had tried to destroy the church (Acts 8:3; 9:1-2). Calling himself "chief" of sinners (1:15) is not false modesty; it is his own judgment on what he did against Christ's people. **A pattern for later believers.** The reason for the mercy is given: so that Christ could display "all his longsuffering" in the worst case, "for an ensample" to everyone who would believe afterward. The word means a model or outline from which others are drawn. If Christ's patience reached the persecutor, no later sinner can conclude that he is beyond it. Paul's conversion becomes a public argument for the reach of grace. **From testimony to worship.** The memory of mercy turns at once into praise: "Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen" (1:17). See [1 Timothy 1.15](/codex/1-timothy-1-15/), [1 Timothy 1.17](/codex/1-timothy-1-17/) and [Paul the Apostle](/codex/paul-the-apostle/). ## Key words _Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word._ - None of the words in this verse has its own lexicon entry yet. ## Quoted in **Arguments and defeaters:** - [Argument from Transformed Lives](/codex/argument-from-transformed-lives/), via [1 Timothy 1.12-17](/codex/1-timothy-1-12-17/) ## Notes _Your annotations._ ## Why these four translations ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the **most literal English translations available** (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the **public domain in the United States**, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance. The four: - **[ASV](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition. - **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English. - **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base. - **[YLT](/codex/ylt/)** (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff. See [Bibles](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.