Cambridge Greek Testament Commentary

1 Timothy 6:21

μεθʼ ὑμῶν. So אAGP; μετὰ σοῦ is the reading of rec. text, following D2EKL &c. Cp. 2 Timothy 4:22 and Titus 3:15.

אcD2bcEKLP &c. add ἀμήν; this is absent from א*AD2*G &c.

The subscription printed in the rec. text, viz. Πρὸς Τιμόθεον πρώτη ἐγράφη�, ἥτις ἐστὶ μητρόπολις Φρυγίας τῆς Πακατιανῆς, is found in KL and elsewhere; א17 have simply πρὸς Τιμόθεον ᾱ; D2E add ἐπληρώθη; A 120 &c. have πρὸς τιμοθ. ᾱ ἐγράφη�·; P has πρ. τιμόθ. ᾱ ἐγράφη�, and there are other variants. See Introd. p. xxxii.

21. ἥν τινες ἐπαγγελλόμενοι, which some (as usual, the false teachers are vaguely hinted at, without specification of individuals) professing. For ἐπαγγέλλεσθαι see on 1 Timothy 2:10.

περὶ τὴν πίστιν ἠστόχησαν, missed their aim in the matter of the faith. See 1 Timothy 1:19; 2 Timothy 2:18 for a similar use of περί, and for ἀστοχέω on 1 Timothy 1:6, ὦν τινὲς�. The aorist ἠστόχησαν points to a definite failure on the part of some; not, as the perfect would, to a continued ἀστοχία apparent at the time of writing. See the note on 1 Timothy 1:19.

BENEDICTION

ἡ χάρις μεθʼ ὑμῶν. See the critical note.

The ordinary conclusion of a private letter of the period was ἔρρωσο or ἔρρωσθε, as χαίρειν was the introductory greeting (see note on 1 Timothy 1:1). The Epistles of James, 1 John, 2 John have no formal ending, 2 Peter and Jude end in a doxology, and 1 Peter and 3 John with the salutation of peace (εἰρήνη). St Paul’s usage is quite peculiar; and he calls it the σημεῖον ἐν πάσῃ ἐπιστολῇ (2 Thessalonians 3:17). All his letters end with the salutation The Grace, ἡ χάρις. In the earlier letters this is put in the form The grace of the Lord [Jesus Christ] be with you. When we come to Ephesians we find that the word grace is used absolutely, and that the words ‘of the Lord Jesus,’ or the like, are no longer added. And in Colossians, 1 Timothy and 2 Timothy we have simply ‘grace (or, rather, the grace) be with you,’ and in Titus ‘the grace be with you all.’

This usage had many imitators afterwards, as e.g. the Ep. to the Hebrews which ends ἡ χάρις μετὰ πάντων ὑμῶν, and the Epistle of Clement of Rome which has the longer form ἡ χάρις τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ μεθʼ ὑμῶν κ.τ.λ. But Ignatius and Polycarp do not follow it; all their letters end with the customary ἔρρωσθε, adding words such as ἐν θεῷ πατρί, ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ and the like, which fill it with a Christian meaning.

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Cambridge Greek Testament Commentary

1 Timothy 6:21

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