Paul’s letters consistently teach how to live faithfully in Christ, being an example to others and not fearing the persecution of the world.

New Renditions for 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus

The BYU New Testament Commentary group has created free New Renditions for several New Testament books, and New Renditions for the remaining books are in the works. The New Rendition is a modern rendering designed to support Latter-day Saint readers in their study. The New Rendition does not seek to replace the authorized KJV adopted by the Church as its official English text. Rather, it aims to enhance readers’ understanding conceptually and spiritually by rendering the Greek texts into modern English with Latter-day Saint sensitivities in mind.

“The ‘Same’ Organization That Existed in the Primitive Church,” Grant Underwood, in Go Ye into All the World: Messages of the New Testament Apostles

Words such as bishop, deacon, elder, and teacher are used by Paul (namely in Ephesians, Titus, and Timothy) and used by Joseph Smith in the sixth article of faith. For us to know what Joseph Smith had in mind, these terms “are best understood in terms of function rather than position” and not for their organizational status

“The Occasional Nature, Composition, and Structure of Paul’s Letters,” Eric D. Huntsman, in How the New Testament Came to Be: The Thirty-fifth Annual Sidney B. Sperry Symposium

“First Timothy and Titus, commonly called ‘pastoral epistles,’ are in effect priesthood handbooks or collections of instructions for the practical organization and regulation of branches of the Church. In them Timothy and Titus are given instructions for the selection and appointment of Church officials, warnings against false teachings, and practical advice on community behavior and belief. While 2 Timothy also addresses some of these issues, it also takes the form of a ‘testament’ or final expression of belief before Paul met his death.”

“The One Pure Defense,” Boyd K. Packer, Religious Educator

Paul’s warnings in 2 Timothy 3 describe “exactly what our present conditions are now.” Fortunately, Paul told us what to do (2 Timothy 3:14–16).

“Chiasmus in Philemon,” Chart 15-20, from Charting the New Testament

The full letter to Philemon can be seen as a chiasmus, with versus 14 and 15 as the center, pointing to the bond between Onesimus and Philemon.

“1 Timothy,” Chart 14-8, from Charting the New Testament

A list of main themes in 1 Timothy.

“2 Timothy and Titus,” Chart 14-9, from Charting the New Testament

A list of main themes in 2 Timothy and Titus.