Passage

2 Timothy 3.8

Book: 2 Timothy · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

6. For of these are they that creep into houses, and take captive silly women laden with sins, led away by divers lusts, 7. ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

8. And even as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also withstand the truth. Men corrupted in mind, reprobate concerning the faith.

But they shall proceed no further. For their folly shall be evident unto all men, as theirs also came to be. 10. But thou didst follow my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, patience, (2 Timothy 3:6-10, ASV)

WEB

6. For some of these are people who creep into houses, and take captive gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, 7. always learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

8. Even as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so do these also oppose the truth; men corrupted in mind, who concerning the faith, are rejected.

But they will proceed no further. For their folly will be evident to all men, as theirs also came to be. 10. But you did follow my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, steadfastness, (2 Timothy 3:6-10, WEB)

KJV

6. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 7. Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

8. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. ^{reprobate: or, of no judgment} ^{reprobate: or, of no judgment}

But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was. 10. But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, ^{fully: or, been a diligent follower of} (2 Timothy 3:6-10, KJV)

YLT

6. for of these there are those coming into the houses and leading captive the silly women, laden with sins, led away with desires manifold, 7. always learning, and never to a knowledge of truth able to come,

8. and, even as Jannes and Jambres stood against Moses, so also these do stand against the truth, men corrupted in mind, disapproved concerning the faith;

but they shall not advance any further, for their folly shall be manifest to all, as theirs also did become. 10. And thou, thou hast followed after my teaching, manner of life, purpose, faith, long-suffering, love, endurance, (2 Timothy 3:6-10, YLT)

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Setting

Speaker: Paul, writing under his own name
Audience: Timothy, Paul's delegate at Ephesus
Location: written from imprisonment at Rome to Timothy at Ephesus
Time period: c. AD 64-67, traditionally Paul's last letter, written from a second Roman imprisonment shortly before his execution

Theological reading

Jannes and Jambres are named as Moses' opponents, and neither name appears anywhere in Exodus, which records the confrontation with Pharaoh's magicians without identifying them. The names come from Jewish tradition: the Damascus Document from Qumran refers to a pair opposing Moses, Targum Pseudo-Jonathan names Jannes and Jambres at Exodus 7:11, and Pliny and Numenius mention a Jannes in connection with Egyptian magic.

This is regularly raised as an objection, that Scripture cites extra-biblical legend as fact. Two observations constrain it. Paul's assertion is that these men withstood Moses and that the false teachers of his own day resemble them, and the Exodus narrative does record magicians withstanding Moses; the names are the added element. And naming figures from a shared cultural tradition to make a point is ordinary rhetorical practice, as when Paul quotes Aratus at Acts 17:28 and Epimenides at Titus 1:12 without endorsing their theology. Jude 9 and 14 present the same phenomenon and the same discussion._

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; see Lexicon Roadmap.

G3563 - nous, nous, Strong's G3563
G0225 - aletheia, aletheia, Strong's G0225
G4102 - pistis, pistis, Strong's G4102

Quoted in

Lexicon:

G3563 - nous

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 (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
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 for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.