1. From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by order of God our Saviour and Christ Jesus our hope —
2. To Timothy, my true son in the faith:May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy, and peace.
3. I want you to stay in Ephesus, just as I urged you when I was on my way to Macedonia. Some people there are teaching false doctrines, and you must order them to stop.
4. Tell them to give up those legends and those long lists of ancestors, which only produce arguments; they do not serve God's plan, which is known by faith.
5. The purpose of this order is to arouse the love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a genuine faith.
6. Some people have turned away from these and have lost their way in foolish discussions.
7. They want to be teachers of God's law, but they do not understand their own words or the matters about which they speak with so much confidence.
8. We know that the Law is good if it is used as it should be used.
9. It must be remembered, of course, that laws are made, not for good people, but for lawbreakers and criminals, for the godless and sinful, for those who are not religious or spiritual, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers,
10. for the immoral, for sexual perverts, for kidnappers, for those who lie and give false testimony or who do anything else contrary to sound doctrine.
11. That teaching is found in the gospel that was entrusted to me to announce, the Good News from the glorious and blessed God.