Chapter
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Verse
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1 Timothy 6:12
ESV Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
NIV Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
NASB Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
CSB Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of eternal life to which you were called and about which you have made a good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
NLT Fight the good fight for the true faith. Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have declared so well before many witnesses.
KJV Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

What does 1 Timothy 6:12 mean?

Verse 11 commanded Timothy to flee from sin and temptation, and gave a list of positive character traits to pursue, instead. In this verse, Paul provides two imperatives. First, Timothy is to, "Fight the good fight of the faith." This wording closely resembles words Paul will use regarding himself in his second letter to Timothy (2 Timothy 4:7). The metaphor of our spiritual warfare as a boxing match is not unusual for Paul, who also spoke of the Christian faith as a boxing match or fight in 1 Corinthians 9:26: "… I do not box as one beating the air," referencing the idea of shadow boxing.

Paul's second command in this verse is for Timothy to live as if he has eternal life already. Paul mentioned eternal life earlier in 1 Timothy 1:16 and often spoke of it in his letters (Romans 2:7; 5:21; 6:22, 23; Galatians 6:8; Titus 1:2).

Timothy's profession of faith, mentioned here, had clearly happened among other believers in Lystra before he set out to travel with Paul as a missionary.
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