Core Glossary
Core Glossary — 2 Timothy — English → Greek
This glossary extends translation_memory.json (Romans/Galatians baseline) for the 2 Timothy curriculum. Terms already recorded in the baseline translation memory are reused exactly and are marked “Baseline reuse” below — they are listed for completeness of full-book coverage, not re-litigated. Only terms new to this curriculum receive new risk analysis. All Greek renderings below must be loaded into translation_memory.json as new entries before Phase 2 translation begins.
A. Baseline Terms Reused Exactly (2 Timothy occurrences)
| English Term | Greek Rendering | Risk (baseline) | Key 2 Timothy References |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grace | χάρη | Critical | 1:2, 1:9, 2:1, 4:22 |
| Faith | πίστη | High | 1:5, 1:13, 2:18, 2:22, 3:8, 3:10, 3:15, 4:7 |
| Righteousness | δικαιοσύνη | Critical | 2:22, 3:16, 4:8 |
| Salvation | σωτηρία | Critical | 1:9, 2:10, 3:15 |
| Called/Calling | κλητός / κλήση | Critical | 1:9 |
| Holy | άγιος | Critical | 1:9, 3:15 |
| Sanctification | αγιασμός | High | 2:21 |
| Resurrection | ανάσταση | Critical | 2:8, 2:18 |
| Lord | Κύριος | Critical | throughout (e.g. 1:2, 1:8, 1:16, 2:19, 2:24, 4:8, 4:14, 4:17, 4:22) |
| Glory | δόξα | Medium | 2:10, 4:18 |
| Election | εκλογή (ἐκλεκτός) | High | 2:10 |
| Promise | υπόσχεση (επαγγελία) | High | 1:1 |
| Seed of David | σπέρμα Δαβίδ | Medium | 2:8 |
| Credited | λογίζομαι | Critical | 4:16 |
| Exhort | προτρέπω | Low | 4:2 (παρακάλεσον) |
| God | Θεός | Critical | throughout |
| Jesus / Christ | Ιησούς / Χριστός | Critical | throughout |
| Holy Spirit | Άγιο Πνεύμα | Critical | 1:14 |
| Father | Πατέρας | Critical | 1:2 |
| Kingdom of God | βασιλεία του Θεού | Medium | 4:1, 4:18 |
| Sin | αμαρτία | Medium | 3:6 |
| Gentiles | έθνη | Medium | 4:17 |
| Thanksgiving | ευχαριστία | Low | 1:3 |
| Spiritual Gifts | πνευματικά χαρίσματα | Medium | 1:6 |
| Apostle | απόστολος | Low | 1:1, 1:11 |
| David | Δαβίδ | Low | 2:8 |
| Certainly Not (formula) | μη γένοιτο | Low | not present verbatim; register consistency note only |
B. New Terms Introduced by 2 Timothy
| # | English Term | Greek Rendering | Transliteration | Risk | Doctrine | References | Alternatives Rejected | Translation Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The entrusted deposit | παραθήκη | paratheke | Critical | Guarding Sound Doctrine; Faithful Transmission of the Gospel | 1:12, 1:14, 2:2 (verb παρατίθημι) | “τραπεζική κατάθεση” (bank deposit, too narrow/financial) | The letter’s controlling metaphor. Must be glossed at every occurrence as “the gospel message, entrusted for safekeeping and faithful transmission, not human property to alter.” The Modern Greek figurative sense of a treasured national/cultural “παρακαταθήκη” (legacy) is a usable asset if explicitly anchored to gospel content. |
| 2 | God-breathed | θεόπνευστος | theopneustos | Critical | Inspiration and Sufficiency of Scripture | 3:16 | none — no viable alternative exists | Paul’s own coinage; zero secular competing sense in Modern Greek, unlike most Critical terms in this glossary. The Critical rating reflects doctrinal centrality, not bleaching risk. Must be anchored to divine authorship of the text, not merely its inspiring effect on readers. |
| 3 | Sound doctrine / sound teaching | υγιαίνουσα διδασκαλία (also: υγιής διδασκαλία) | hygiainousa didaskalia | Critical | Guarding Sound Doctrine | 4:3 (cf. 1:13 ὑποτύπωσις ὑγιαινόντων λόγων) | none acceptable without gloss | Modern Greek υγιής/υγιαίνω defaults to physical bodily health. FORBIDDEN unglossed use: must be explicitly explained as “doctrinally healthy teaching, opposed to corrupting error” at first occurrence in every document. |
| 4 | Appearing (of Christ) | επιφάνεια | epiphaneia | Critical | Assurance of Reward; Charge to Preach the Word | 1:10 (first appearing/incarnation), 4:1, 4:8 (second appearing) | none acceptable without gloss | FORBIDDEN unglossed use. Modern Greek defaults to physical “surface”; also collides with the fixed liturgical feast name Επιφάνεια/Θεοφάνεια (Christ’s baptism, Jan. 6). Must distinguish 1:10 (first appearing) from 4:1/4:8 (second appearing) explicitly, since the same word covers both referents. |
| 5 | I solemnly charge | διαμαρτύρομαι | diamartyromai | Critical | The Charge to Preach the Word | 4:1 | ”σου δίνω επίσημη εντολή” (preferred substitute phrase) | FORBIDDEN unglossed use. Modern Greek διαμαρτύρομαι overwhelmingly means “I protest/lodge a complaint.” Unglossed rendering produces an inverted, near-comic reading (“I protest before God and Christ Jesus”). Use the substitute phrase or attach a mandatory note anchoring the archaic solemn-testimony sense. |
| 6 | Form/appearance of godliness | μόρφωσις εὐσεβείας → render “σχήμα ευσέβειας” | morphōsis eusebeias | Critical | Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days | 3:5 | ”μόρφωση ευσέβειας” (FORBIDDEN — reads as “education in godliness”) | Mirrors the baseline’s Galatians 4:19 μορφωθῇ trap exactly. Modern μόρφωση = formal education/schooling. Never render with μόρφωση; use “σχήμα” (outward shape/form) with mandatory explanatory gloss distinguishing outward semblance from inward substance. |
| 7 | Departure (euphemism for death) | ανάλυσις → render “αναχώρηση” | analysis / anachōrēsē | Critical | Assurance of Reward | 4:6 | ”ανάλυση” (FORBIDDEN — reads as “data/lab analysis”) | FORBIDDEN unglossed use of “ανάλυση.” Modern Greek ανάλυση is the dominant word for data/financial/medical analysis. Use “αναχώρηση” (departure) as the primary rendering; ἀνάλυσις retained only in an explanatory footnote about the classical nautical/military background. |
| 8 | The race/course (finished) | δρόμος → render “αγώνας δρόμου” | dromos | Critical | Assurance of Reward | 4:7 | ”τον δρόμο τετέλεκα” (FORBIDDEN unglossed — reads as “finished the street/road”) | Modern Greek δρόμος defaults to “street/road.” Must render “τον αγώνα δρόμου τελείωσα” or equivalent to activate the athletic-race sense present in Modern Greek sport vocabulary but absent from the word in isolation. |
| 9 | Equipped (for every good work) | εξηρτισμένος → render “εξοπλισμένος” / “πλήρως καταρτισμένος” | exērtismenos | Critical | Inspiration and Sufficiency of Scripture | 3:17 | ”εξαρτημένος” (FORBIDDEN — reads as “dependent/addicted”) | Near-homonym collision with Modern Greek εξαρτημένος (“dependent,” esp. substance addiction). Never use any ἐξαρτ- root form; use εξοπλισμένος (equipped, as with tools) instead. |
| 10 | Testimony | μαρτυρία (NOT μαρτύριο) | martyria | High | Faithful Transmission of the Gospel; Perseverance under Suffering | 1:8 | ”μαρτύριο” (reads as “torment/ordeal” in Modern Greek) | Use μαρτυρία consistently for “testimony/witness” to avoid collision with μαρτύριο’s dominant modern sense of torment. |
| 11 | Last days | έσχατες ημέρες | eschatai hēmerai | High | Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days | 3:1 | none | Stable and culturally weighty (asset), but teach as an already-inaugurated present era exemplified in Timothy’s own generation, not exclusively a future countdown. |
| 12 | Impostor / deceiver | απατεώνες / πλάνοι (NOT γόης unglossed) | apateōnes / planoi | High | Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days | 3:13 | ”γόης” (unglossed — now means “a charming/attractive man” in Modern Greek, a near-total connotation reversal) | Never use γόης without a gloss; default to απατεώνες or πλάνοι. |
| 13 | Crown (of righteousness) | στέφανος | stephanos | High | Assurance of Reward | 4:8 | none rejected outright, but requires clarifying note | Modern Greek’s dominant association is the Orthodox wedding crown (στέφανα). Not corrupting, but requires a note distinguishing the athletic victor’s-wreath image (tied to 4:7’s finished race) from the nuptial image. |
| 14 | Ministry / service | διακονία | diakonia | High | The Charge to Preach the Word; Faithful Transmission of the Gospel | 4:5, 4:11 | none — the word itself is correct | Modern ecclesiastical usage narrows διακονία toward the specific ordained deacon office. Must be glossed as Timothy’s whole pastoral-apostolic ministry, broader than the diaconate. |
| 15 | Repentance | μετάνοια | metanoia | High | Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days | 2:25 | none — the word itself is correct | Modern Orthodox devotional usage narrows the plural “μετάνοιες” to physical prostrations in prayer. Gloss as inward reorientation toward truth, distinct from the liturgical prostration practice. |
| 16 | Rightly handle (the word of truth) | ορθοτομώ (τον λόγο της αλήθειας) | orthotomeō | High | Guarding Sound Doctrine | 2:15 | ”σωστά χειρίζομαι” (too generic, loses the “cut straight” image) | Rare technical compound, not everyday vocabulary. Requires brief explanatory framing (image of cutting a straight line/furrow) at first occurrence. |
| 17 | Persecution / godly living provokes persecution | διωγμός / εὐσεβῶς ζῆν | diōgmos / eusebōs zēn | High | Perseverance under Suffering | 3:11-12 | none | Preserve as a universal claim (“all who desire to live godly… will be persecuted”), not a hedge or exception clause. |
| 18 | Deny / he remains faithful | αρνούμαι / πιστὸς μένει | arneomai / pistos menei | High | Assurance of Reward; Apostasy | 2:12-13 | none | Preserve both the warning (denial has real consequence) and the assurance (God’s own faithfulness is unshakeable) without collapsing either into the other. |
| 19 | Turn away from the truth | αποστρέφω (την ακοή) από την αλήθεια | apostrephō | High | Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days | 4:4 | none | Preserve the moral force of deliberate rejection, not neutral “stopped listening.” |
| 20 | Fulfill (one’s ministry) completely | εκπλήρωσε πλήρως (NOT πληροφόρησε) | plērophoreō | High | The Charge to Preach the Word | 4:5 | ”πληροφόρησε” (FORBIDDEN — reads as “informed/notified” in Modern Greek) | Modern πληροφορώ = “to inform.” Use “εκπλήρωσε πλήρως” or “φέρε σε πέρας πλήρως” instead. |
| 21 | Herald / preach / proclamation | κήρυκας / κηρύσσω / κήρυγμα | kēryx / kēryssō / kērygma | Medium-High | The Charge to Preach the Word | 1:11, 4:2, 4:17 | none | Stable, established Bible-translation vocabulary; watch for a faint secular-political “sloganeering” connotation in modern usage (κήρυγμα μίσους, “hate speech”) that should not attach to gospel proclamation. |
| 22 | Reproof / expose | έλεγχος / ελέγχω | elegchos / elenchō | Medium | Inspiration and Sufficiency of Scripture; The Charge to Preach the Word | 3:16, 4:2 | none | Modern Greek έλεγχος defaults to “inspection/audit” (tax audit, ID check); anchor to personal moral conviction, not bureaucratic inspection. |
| 23 | Immortality / incorruption | αφθαρσία | aphtharsia | Medium-High | Assurance of Reward | 1:10 | none | Zero lexical gap; sits near Orthodox theosis vocabulary (participation in divine incorruptibility). Preserve 2 Timothy’s own emphasis (a decisive gift “brought to light through the gospel”) without over-importing the full theosis framework. |
| 24 | Abandon / forsake | εγκαταλείπω | enkataleipō | Medium-High | Perseverance under Suffering | 4:10, 4:16 | none | Carries appropriate weight (echoes Christ’s cry of dereliction in the Greek liturgical text); preserve gravity, do not soften. |
| 25 | Mercy | έλεος | eleos | Medium | (greeting formula) | 1:2 | none | Strong liturgical asset (“Κύριε ελέησον”); watch for the casual exclamatory use (“Έλεος!” = “Give me a break!”) bleeding into lighter-register material. |
| 26 | Vessel | σκεύος | skeuos | Medium | Guarding Sound Doctrine | 2:20-21 | none | Common word for kitchen utensil/container in Modern Greek; keep the household-vessel metaphor (gold/silver/wood/clay) explicit in surrounding context to avoid trivialization. |
| 27 | Approved / disqualified | δόκιμος / αδόκιμος | dokimos / adokimos | Medium | Guarding Sound Doctrine; Apostasy | 2:15, 3:8 | none | Modern Greek δόκιμος also names an institutional cadet/trainee (police, military); context should convey “tested and proven,” not “still on probation.” |
| 28 | Endurance / endure | υπομονή / υπομένω | hypomonē / hypomenō | Medium-High | Perseverance under Suffering | 2:10, 2:12, 3:10 | none | Common everyday word for ordinary patience (e.g., waiting in line); reinforce the specifically theological weight — sustained faithfulness under real hardship, not mild inconvenience. |
| 29 | Be sober-minded | νήφω (cf. ανανήφω) | nēphō | Medium | The Charge to Preach the Word; Apostasy | 4:5 (cf. 2:26) | none | Modern Greek νηφάλιος primarily denotes literal (non-alcohol) sobriety; the spiritual-alertness sense is present but secondary and needs contextual reinforcement. |
| 30 | Godliness | ευσέβεια | eusebeia | Medium | Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days | 3:5, 3:12 | none | Stable in formal/liturgical register; ensure it denotes genuine devoted living, not mere ceremonial religiosity — precisely the confusion 3:5 diagnoses. |
| 31 | Myths | μύθοι | mythoi | Medium | Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days | 4:4 | none | Do not let the term narrow to a dismissive reference to classical Greek mythology specifically; intends any fabricated substitute for revealed truth. |
| 32 | Evangelist (do the work of) | ευαγγελιστής | euangelistēs | Medium | The Charge to Preach the Word | 4:5 | none | Shares the baseline gospel root exactly. Distinguish Timothy’s ongoing ministry function from the capitalized “Ευαγγελιστές” (the Four Gospel-writers) of Orthodox iconography/liturgy. |
| 33 | Soldier | στρατιώτης | stratiōtēs | Medium | Perseverance under Suffering | 2:3-4 | none | Zero lexical gap; watch for imported national-military/patriotic overtones foreign to Paul’s point (devotion to Christ, not civic duty). |
| 34 | Contest / fight (the good fight) | αγώνας / αγωνίζομαι | agōn / agōnizomai | Medium | Assurance of Reward | 4:7 (cf. 2:5) | none | Dominant modern sense is a sports match or a political/social struggle; elevate register through context to retain “noble contest for the faith.” |
| 35 | Faithful is the saying (formula) | πιστός ο λόγος | pistos ho logos | Medium | Faithful Transmission of the Gospel | 2:11 | none | Fixed formulaic marker introducing received creedal material; render so its quotation-marking function is clear, not read as a general aphorism. |
| 36 | Foundation | θεμέλιο | themelios | Low | Guarding Sound Doctrine | 2:19 | none | Fully stable; metaphor transfers naturally from literal construction. |
| 37 | Judge the living and the dead | κρίνω / κριτής | krinō / kritēs | Medium-High | Assurance of Reward; The Charge to Preach the Word | 4:1, 4:8 | none | Fixed Nicene Creed formula (“κριτὴν ζώντων καὶ νεκρῶν”) — strong liturgical asset requiring no gloss; watch elsewhere for secular “contest judge/referee” drift. |
| 38 | Deposit (verb: entrust) | παρατίθημι | paratithēmi | High | Faithful Transmission of the Gospel | 2:2 | none | Cognate verb of παραθήκη (#1); render to keep the root-family visible across 1:12–2:2 wherever feasible, preserving the letter’s controlling metaphor. |
| 39 | Faithful men (trustworthy transmitters) | πιστοί άνθρωποι | pistoi anthrōpoi | Medium | Faithful Transmission of the Gospel | 2:2 | none | Emphasis on reliability as transmitters of teaching, not merely personal belief; shares baseline πίστη root. |
| 40 | Itching ears (idiom) | με φαγούρα στην ακοή / να τους γαργαλάει η ακοή | knēthomenoi tēn akoēn | Medium | Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days | 4:3 | literal word-for-word gloss without framing (reads as merely odd) | No standing Modern Greek idiom matches this image exactly; requires brief explanatory framing to land as pointed rather than merely strange. |
C. Proper Names (Low Risk — Standard Transliteration)
| Name | Greek Rendering | References |
|---|---|---|
| Timothy | Τιμόθεος | throughout |
| Paul | Παύλος | 1:1 |
| Lois | Λωΐς | 1:5 |
| Eunice | Εὐνίκη | 1:5 |
| Onesiphorus | Ονησιφόρος | 1:16, 4:19 |
| Hymenaeus | Υμέναιος | 2:17 |
| Philetus | Φίλητος | 2:17 |
| Jannes | Ιάννης | 3:8 |
| Jambres | Ιαμβρής | 3:8 |
| Demas | Δημάς | 4:10 |
| Crescens | Κρήσκης | 4:10 |
| Titus | Τίτος | 4:10 |
| Luke | Λουκάς | 4:11 |
| Mark | Μάρκος | 4:11 |
| Tychicus | Τυχικός | 4:12 |
| Carpus | Κάρπος | 4:13 |
| Alexander | Αλέξανδρος | 4:14 |
| Priscilla (Prisca) | Πρίσκα | 4:19 |
| Aquila | Ακύλας | 4:19 |
| Erastus | Έραστος | 4:20 |
| Trophimus | Τρόφιμος | 4:20 |
| Eubulus | Εὔβουλος | 4:21 |
| Pudens | Πούδης | 4:21 |
| Linus | Λίνος | 4:21 |
| Claudia | Κλαυδία | 4:21 |
| Antioch | Αντιόχεια | 3:11 |
| Iconium | Ικόνιο | 3:11 |
| Lystra | Λύστρα | 3:11 |
| Ephesus | Έφεσος | 4:12 |
| Israel/David/etc. | (baseline forms) | 2:8 |
D. Risk Summary for 2 Timothy New Terms
| Risk Tier | Count | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | 9 | Human theologian (every occurrence) |
| High | 11 | Human theologian |
| Medium-High | 5 | Human theologian |
| Medium | 13 | Native speaker review |
| Low | 2 | Automated review |
Note on the Forbidden Substitution List for 2 Timothy (to be merged into the AI Translation Requirements document, Phase 1 Step 8-equivalent for this curriculum):
- ἐπιφάνεια → never leave unglossed as “surface”
- διαμαρτύρομαι → never leave unglossed as “protest”
- μόρφωσις εὐσεβείας → never render with “μόρφωση” (education)
- ἀνάλυσις (4:6) → never render with “ανάλυση” (data analysis); use “αναχώρηση”
- δρόμος (4:7) → never render as bare “δρόμος” (street); use “αγώνας δρόμου”
- ἐξηρτισμένος (3:17) → never render with “εξαρτημένος” (dependent/addicted)
- γόης (3:13) → never render unglossed (now means “charming man”); use “απατεώνες”
- πληροφορέω (4:5) → never render with modern “πληροφορώ” (inform); use “εκπλήρωσε πλήρως”
- μαρτύριον (1:8) → prefer “μαρτυρία” over “μαρτύριο” (torment) to avoid collision
Critical Risk Terms
Grace
Approved rendering: χάρη
Transliteration: chári
Doctrine: Grace
Rejected alternatives: χάρη με την καθημερινή έννοια της γοητείας ή ομορφιάς, χάρη ως νομική/προεδρική χάρη (απονομή χάριτος)
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: appears in the epistolary greeting (1:2) and at 1:9, 2:1 (‘be strengthened in the grace that is in Christ Jesus’); guard against the everyday senses of personal charm or legal pardon per the baseline.
Righteousness
Approved rendering: δικαιοσύνη
Transliteration: dikaiosýni
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: δικαιοσύνη αποκλειστικά με τη σύγχρονη έννοια της νομικής ή κοινωνικής δικαιοσύνης
Original: δικαιοσύνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: at 2:22 and 3:16 denotes righteous living/character; at 4:8 (‘the crown of righteousness’) denotes final reward from Christ the righteous Judge. Guard against the dominant modern civic/legal sense (Υπουργείο Δικαιοσύνης) crowding out both senses simultaneously present in the letter.
Salvation
Approved rendering: σωτηρία
Transliteration: sotiría
Doctrine: Salvation
Original: σωτηρία
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 1:9 and 3:15 tie salvation to Scripture’s stated purpose and to God’s own prior calling ‘not because of our works’ — reinforce the decisive, faith-received sense against the theosis-accretion risk documented in the baseline, since 3:15’s ‘able to make you wise for salvation’ could otherwise be absorbed into an open-ended formation process.
Calling
Approved rendering: κλήση
Transliteration: klísi
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Rejected alternatives: κλήση με την καθημερινή έννοια μιας τηλεφωνικής κλήσης ή δικαστικής κλήσης/κλήσης τροχαίας
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 1:9 (‘called us to a holy calling’) ties calling directly to salvation and holiness in a single clause; the baseline’s CRITICAL caution against κλήση collapsing into ‘phone call/traffic summons’ applies with full force, since the verse’s entire theological weight depends on the word carrying sovereign, gracious summons.
Holy
Approved rendering: άγιος
Transliteration: ágios
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: ἅγιος
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 1:9 (‘holy calling’), 3:15 (‘sacred/holy writings’). Guard against the name-day/canonized-saint association crowding out the general set-apart sense applied here to the calling itself and to Scripture, not to a person’s title.
Resurrection
Approved rendering: ανάσταση
Transliteration: anástasi
Doctrine: Resurrection of Christ
Original: ἀνάστασις
Category: Eschatology
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 2:8 affirms Christ ‘raised from the dead’ as core gospel content; 2:18 records Hymenaeus and Philetus teaching the resurrection ‘already happened’ — a named, condemned heresy using the identical word. Every occurrence at 2:18 requires explicit editorial framing distinguishing it from the true confession at 2:8.
Lord
Approved rendering: Κύριος
Transliteration: Kýrios
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Κύριος με την καθημερινή έννοια της ευγενικής προσφώνησης ‘κύριε’ (αντίστοιχο του ‘Mr.’)
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: used throughout (1:2, 1:8, 1:16, 2:19, 2:24, 4:8, 4:14, 4:17, 4:22), including at 4:8 as ‘the righteous Judge’ who awards the crown — the everyday ‘Mister/Sir’ bleaching risk is amplified by the sheer frequency of the title across this short letter; every occurrence needs its full theological weight actively maintained. Never adjust to obscure Christ’s identity with God.
Credited
Approved rendering: λογίζομαι
Transliteration: logizomai
Doctrine: Salvation
Original: λογίζομαι
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans/Galatians package. 2 Timothy note: 4:16 uses the identical forensic-accounting verb from Romans 4 in a gracious, negative application — ‘may it not be counted against them’ (those who deserted Paul). Use the identical verb form to preserve this intertextual link; do not flatten to casual forgiveness language.
God
Approved rendering: Θεός
Transliteration: Theós
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: θεός
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. Used throughout 2 Timothy without new risk beyond the baseline entry.
Jesus
Approved rendering: Ιησούς
Transliteration: Iisoús
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Original: Ἰησοῦς / Χριστός
Category: Christology
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. Also used with ‘Χριστός’ throughout 2 Timothy without new risk beyond the baseline entry.
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: Άγιο Πνεύμα
Transliteration: Ágio Pnévma
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: πνεῦμα ἅγιον
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 1:14 (‘through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us’) directly ties the Spirit’s personal indwelling to the doctrine of guarding sound doctrine.
Father
Approved rendering: Πατέρας
Transliteration: Patéras
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Original: πατήρ
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: appears in the 1:2 greeting triad (grace, mercy, peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord).
Entrusted Deposit
Approved rendering: παραθήκη
Transliteration: paratheke
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
Rejected alternatives: τραπεζική κατάθεση/παραθήκη (bank deposit — too narrow, trivializes the gospel into a financial-custody image), παρακαταθήκη ως αφηρημένη ‘εθνική κληρονομιά’ χωρίς αναφορά στο περιεχόμενο του ευαγγελίου
Original: παραθήκη
Category: Sound Doctrine
The letter’s controlling metaphor (1:12, 1:14, conceptually 2:2). Modern Greek ‘παραθήκη/παρακαταθήκη’ pulls toward either a narrow banking sense or a positive but unanchored ‘national/cultural legacy’ sense. Every occurrence requires a gloss: ‘the gospel entrusted by God, to be guarded and passed on intact — not our own possession to alter.’ Also note the Orthodox Ιερά Παράδοση resonance: do not let an institutional-succession-only reading silently replace 2 Timothy’s own Scripture-tested, person-to-person transmission emphasis (3:14-17; 2:2).
God Breathed
Approved rendering: θεόπνευστος
Transliteration: theopneustos
Doctrine: Inspiration and Sufficiency of Scripture
Original: θεόπνευστος
Category: Scripture
Paul’s own coinage (3:16); no viable alternative exists and no competing secular sense in Modern Greek — the sole Critical term in this package whose Critical rating reflects doctrinal centrality rather than bleaching risk. Anchor every occurrence to divine authorship of the text itself, avoiding the English-language trap where ‘inspired’ can mean merely ‘moving/inspiring’, a trap this Greek word does not share.
Equipped For Every Good Work
Approved rendering: εξοπλισμένος / πλήρως καταρτισμένος
Transliteration: exērtismenos (source); artios
Doctrine: Inspiration and Sufficiency of Scripture
Rejected alternatives: εξαρτημένος (FORBIDDEN — Modern Greek’s standard clinical/social word for dependency/addiction, ‘εξάρτηση από ουσίες’)
Original: ἄρτιος / ἐξηρτισμένος
Category: Scripture
3:17, the letter’s culminating sufficiency-claim. FORBIDDEN: any form built on the ἐξαρτ- root. Use ‘εξοπλισμένος’ (equipped, as with tools/instruments) or ‘πλήρως καταρτισμένος’ instead — an unglossed ἐξαρτ- form nearly inverts Paul’s claim into a statement of dependency/deficiency.
Sound Doctrine
Approved rendering: η υγιαίνουσα διδασκαλία
Transliteration: hygiainousa didaskalia
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
Rejected alternatives: υγιής διδασκαλία χωρίς επεξηγηματική σημείωση (χωρίς γλωσσάρι κινδυνεύει να εννοηθεί ως σωματική υγεία)
Original: ὑγιαίνουσα διδασκαλία
Category: Sound Doctrine
4:3, cf. 1:13. FORBIDDEN unglossed use: Modern Greek ‘υγιής/υγιαίνω’ defaults overwhelmingly to physical bodily health. Must be glossed at first occurrence in every document as ‘teaching that keeps the body of believers spiritually whole, opposed to teaching that corrupts like disease’ (cf. 2:17’s gangrene image). The single most important term for the letter’s central doctrine.
Appearing Of Christ
Approved rendering: επιφάνεια
Transliteration: epiphaneia
Doctrine: Assurance of Reward
Original: ἐπιφάνεια
Category: Reward/Eschatology
1:10 (first appearing/incarnation), 4:1 and 4:8 (second appearing/return in glory). FORBIDDEN unglossed use: Modern Greek defaults to a physical ‘surface’, and collides with the fixed liturgical feast name Επιφάνεια/Θεοφάνεια (Christ’s baptism, January 6) — the wrong event. Mandatory explanatory note at every occurrence distinguishing which appearing is meant. Must be rendered and glossed as a visible, bodily, publicly-manifest event — never as an invisible presence, per the Jehovah’s Witness παρουσία doctrine flagged in the translation landscape analysis.
Solemn Charge
Approved rendering: σου δίνω επίσημη εντολή ενώπιον του Θεού
Transliteration: diamartyromai (source)
Doctrine: The Charge to Preach the Word
Rejected alternatives: διαμαρτύρομαι χωρίς επεξήγηση (FORBIDDEN — Modern Greek reads this overwhelmingly as ‘I protest/lodge a complaint’)
Original: διαμαρτύρομαι
Category: Ministry
4:1, the verb launching Timothy’s commissioning. FORBIDDEN unglossed use of ‘διαμαρτύρομαι’. Use the substitute phrase ‘σου δίνω επίσημη εντολή ενώπιον του Θεού’ (‘I give you a solemn charge before God’), or retain ‘διαμαρτύρομαι’ only with a mandatory note anchoring its archaic solemn-testimony/oath sense.
Form Of Godliness
Approved rendering: σχήμα ευσέβειας
Transliteration: morphōsis eusebeias (source)
Doctrine: Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days
Rejected alternatives: μόρφωση ευσέβειας (FORBIDDEN — Modern Greek’s dominant word for formal education/schooling; reads as ‘an education in godliness’, inverting Paul’s point)
Original: μόρφωσις εὐσεβείας, ἀρνούμενοι τὴν δύναμιν αὐτῆς
Category: Apostasy
3:5. Mirrors the baseline’s Galatians 4:19 μορφωθῇ trap exactly. Never render with ‘μόρφωση’; use ‘σχήμα’ (outward shape/form) or ‘εξωτερική εμφάνιση ευσέβειας’, always with a mandatory explanatory gloss distinguishing outward semblance from inward reality.
Departure
Approved rendering: αναχώρηση
Transliteration: analysis (source, rendered anachōrēsē)
Doctrine: Assurance of Reward
Rejected alternatives: ανάλυση χωρίς επεξήγηση (FORBIDDEN — dominant Modern Greek word for data/financial/medical analysis)
Original: ἀνάλυσις
Category: Assurance of Reward
4:6. FORBIDDEN unglossed use of ‘ανάλυση’, which produces the nonsensical reading ‘the time of my analysis has arrived’. Use ‘αναχώρηση’ (departure); retain ‘ανάλυσις’ only in an explanatory footnote citing the classical nautical/military background (casting off moorings, breaking camp).
Finished The Race
Approved rendering: τον αγώνα δρόμου τελείωσα
Transliteration: ton dromon teteleka (source)
Doctrine: Assurance of Reward
Rejected alternatives: τον δρόμο τετέλεκα χωρίς επεξήγηση (FORBIDDEN — bare ‘δρόμος’ defaults to ‘street/road’ in Modern Greek)
Original: τὸν δρόμον τετέλεκα
Category: Assurance of Reward
4:7, part of the letter’s most celebrated summary statement. FORBIDDEN bare rendering. Use ‘τον αγώνα δρόμου τελείωσα’ or ‘το τέρμα του δρόμου έφτασα’ to activate the athletic sense present in Modern Greek sport vocabulary (‘αγώνας δρόμου’, ‘δρομέας’) but absent from the bare noun.
High Risk Terms
Gospel
Approved rendering: ευαγγέλιο
Transliteration: evangélio
Doctrine: Faithful Transmission of the Gospel
Original: εὐαγγέλιον
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: at 1:8, 1:10, 2:8 the gospel is bound up with Paul’s imprisonment and Christ’s resurrection — must read as an authoritative, historically anchored message, not generic good tidings.
Faith
Approved rendering: πίστη
Transliteration: písti
Doctrine: Faith
Rejected alternatives: πίστη με τη γενική έννοια της αφοσίωσης σε οποιαδήποτε ιδέα ή πρόσωπο
Original: πίστις
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: also used of Timothy’s family-transmitted faith (1:5), of false teachers overturning ‘the faith’ as a body of belief (2:18), and of Paul having ‘kept the faith’ (4:7) — the same word covers personal trust and transmitted content of belief; context must disambiguate.
Called
Approved rendering: κλητός
Transliteration: klitós
Doctrine: Divine Calling
Original: κλητός / κλῆσις
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. See ‘calling’ for the Modern Greek secular-bleaching risk affecting the related noun; same caution applies at 1:9.
Sanctification
Approved rendering: αγιασμός
Transliteration: agiasmós
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: ἁγιασμός
Category: Sanctification
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 2:21 (the vessel that ‘cleanses himself’ becomes ‘set apart, useful to the master’) — keep the Epiphany water-blessing ritual association from narrowing this to a liturgical rite rather than ongoing moral purification tied to guarding sound doctrine.
Election
Approved rendering: εκλογή
Transliteration: eklogí
Doctrine: Effectual Calling
Rejected alternatives: εκλογή με τη σύγχρονη κυρίαρχη πολιτική έννοια (πολιτικές εκλογές, ψηφοφορία)
Original: ἐκλεκτός / ἐκλογή
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. 2 Timothy note: 2:10 (‘for the sake of the elect’, εκλεκτοί) grounds Paul’s endurance in suffering; guard against the political ballot-box association, especially since this term appears in a passage about hardship rather than a passage explicitly about doctrine, where the political drift is less likely to be caught by context alone.
Promise
Approved rendering: υπόσχεση (επαγγελία)
Transliteration: epangelia
Doctrine: Covenant
Rejected alternatives: επαγγελία συγχεόμενη με το σύγχρονο ‘επάγγελμα’ (profession)
Original: ἐπαγγελία
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package. 2 Timothy note: 1:1 (‘the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus’) — the mis-derivation risk toward ‘επάγγελμα’ applies identically here.
Entrust To Faithful Men
Approved rendering: παρατίθημι / πιστοί άνθρωποι
Transliteration: paratithēmi / pistoi anthrōpoi
Doctrine: Faithful Transmission of the Gospel
Original: παρατίθημι / πιστοὶ ἄνθρωποι
Category: Faithful Transmission
Render ‘εμπιστεύσου/παράδωσε… σε αξιόπιστους ανθρώπους’, keeping the παραθήκη root-family visible where feasible (2:2) to preserve the letter’s controlling metaphor across 1:12–2:2. ‘Πιστοί’ must convey reliability as transmitters, not merely ‘believing’ — Paul’s point is a chain of custody, not merely a chain of belief.
All Scripture
Approved rendering: πᾶσα Γραφή / όλη η Γραφή
Transliteration: pasa graphē
Doctrine: Inspiration and Sufficiency of Scripture
Original: πᾶσα γραφή
Category: Scripture
3:16. Modern Greek ‘γραφή’ also means ordinary handwriting/written composition; the fixed pairing with θεόπνευστος immediately following anchors the canonical sense, but the term should not stand entirely unsupported by that co-text.
Judge Living And Dead
Approved rendering: κριτής ζώντων και νεκρών
Transliteration: krinein zōntas kai nekrous
Doctrine: The Judgment of Christ
Original: κρίνειν ζῶντας καὶ νεκρούς / δίκαιος κριτής
Category: Reward/Eschatology
4:1, cf. 4:8 ‘δίκαιος κριτής’. Strong asset: a fixed formula from the Greek Nicene Creed, recited in every Divine Liturgy — requires no gloss. Elsewhere in the curriculum, watch that ‘κριτής’ does not casually slip toward its secular sense of a contest/talent-show judge.
Preach The Word
Approved rendering: κήρυξε τον λόγο
Transliteration: kēryxon ton logon
Doctrine: The Charge to Preach the Word
Original: κήρυξον τὸν λόγον
Category: Ministry
4:2, the central imperative of the ministry charge. Stable, dignified, established Bible-translation vocabulary, but Modern Greek also applies κήρυγμα to secular political sloganeering (‘κήρυγμα μίσους’, hate speech); keep the gospel-proclamation sense clear through context.
Turn Away From Truth
Approved rendering: θα αποστρέψουν την ακοή τους από την αλήθεια
Transliteration: apostrephō apo tēs alētheias
Doctrine: Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days
Original: ἀπὸ τῆς ἀληθείας τὴν ἀκοὴν ἀποστρέψουσιν
Category: Apostasy
4:4. Preserve the moral force of deliberate rejection; do not soften into a neutral ‘will stop listening’.
Fulfill Your Ministry
Approved rendering: εκπλήρωσε πλήρως τη διακονία σου
Transliteration: tēn diakonian sou plērophorēson
Doctrine: The Charge to Preach the Word
Rejected alternatives: πληροφόρησε τη διακονία σου (FORBIDDEN — modern ‘πληροφορώ’ means ‘to inform/notify’)
Original: τὴν διακονίαν σου πληροφόρησον
Category: Ministry
4:5, the concluding summary imperative of the whole charge. FORBIDDEN: modern verb ‘πληροφορώ’ means simply ‘to inform/notify’; using it here reads as ‘notify your ministry’. Use ‘εκπλήρωσε πλήρως’ or ‘φέρε σε πέρας πλήρως’ instead.
Testimony
Approved rendering: μαρτυρία
Transliteration: martyrion (source, rendered martyria)
Doctrine: Faithful Transmission of the Gospel
Rejected alternatives: μαρτύριο (Modern Greek ‘torment/ordeal’ — collides with, but is not, Paul’s intended sense at 1:8)
Original: μαρτύριον
Category: Faithful Transmission
1:8. Use ‘μαρτυρία’ (testimony/witness), NOT ‘μαρτύριο’, to avoid the collision with Modern Greek’s dominant ‘torment’ sense — a real risk given the letter’s genuine suffering theme makes the wrong reading thematically plausible.
United With Christ In Suffering And Reign
Approved rendering: συναποθνήσκω / συζώ / υπομένω / συμβασιλεύω
Transliteration: synapothnēskō / syzōmen / hypomenomen / symbasileusomen
Doctrine: Assurance of Reward
Original: συναποθνήσκω / συζῶμεν / ὑπομένομεν / συμβασιλεύσομεν
Category: Assurance of Reward
2:11-12, a creedal couplet building assurance of future reward on present union with Christ. All are transparent, fully productive συν- compounds in Modern Greek. ‘Υπομένω’ risks flattening into everyday queue-line patience; reinforce the specifically theological weight of sustained faithfulness under real hardship.
Deny And Gods Faithfulness
Approved rendering: αρνούμαι / παραμένει πιστός
Transliteration: arneomai / pistos menei
Doctrine: Divine Faithfulness amid Human Unfaithfulness
Original: ἀρνέομαι … πιστὸς μένει
Category: Assurance of Reward
2:12-13. The passage moves within one breath from a severe warning (denial has real consequence) to an assurance grounded in God’s unshakeable character (‘he cannot deny himself’). Preserve both halves without collapsing either into the other.
Rightly Handle The Word
Approved rendering: ορθοτομώντας τον λόγο της αλήθειας
Transliteration: orthotomounta ton logon tēs alētheias
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
Rejected alternatives: σωστά χειρίζομαι (too generic, loses the ‘cut straight’ image)
Original: ὀρθοτομοῦντα τὸν λόγον τῆς ἀληθείας
Category: Sound Doctrine
2:15. A defining image for guarding sound doctrine — cutting a straight line/furrow. Rare, technical compound absent from everyday Modern Greek vocabulary; requires brief explanatory framing at first occurrence rather than being left as opaque jargon.
Repentance
Approved rendering: μετάνοια
Transliteration: metanoia
Doctrine: Repentance and Restoration of the Erring
Original: μετάνοια
Category: Apostasy
2:25, God-granted change of mind/heart leading opponents to a knowledge of the truth. Modern Greek Orthodox devotional practice uses the plural ‘μετάνοιες’ as the technical term for physical prostrations in prayer, especially during Great Lent — a ritual-physical narrowing that could crowd out the inward, cognitive/moral sense intended. Gloss at first occurrence.
Last Days
Approved rendering: έσχατες ημέρες
Transliteration: eschatai hēmerai
Doctrine: Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days
Original: ἔσχαται ἡμέραι
Category: Apostasy
3:1. Stable and theologically weighty in Greek Orthodox eschatology (an asset), but must be taught as an already-present reality exemplified in Timothy’s own contemporaries, not exclusively a future countdown — a common popular-eschatology misreading this curriculum should proactively correct.
Persecution For Godliness
Approved rendering: διωγμοί / όσοι θέλουν να ζήσουν ευσεβώς εν Χριστώ… θα διωχθούν
Transliteration: diōgmoi, pathēmata / eusebōs zēn en Christō … diōchthēsontai
Doctrine: Perseverance under Suffering
Original: διωγμοί, παθήματα / εὐσεβῶς ζῆν ἐν Χριστῷ … διωχθήσονται
Category: Perseverance
3:11-12, Paul’s general-rule claim grounded in named experiences (Antioch, Iconium, Lystra). ‘Διωγμός’ is stable and weighty in Greek historical/Orthodox memory (an asset); ensure the universal causal claim is not softened into a merely possible outcome.
Impostor Deceiver
Approved rendering: απατεώνες / πλάνοι
Transliteration: goētes (source, rendered apateōnes)
Doctrine: Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days
Rejected alternatives: γόης χωρίς επεξήγηση (FORBIDDEN — has drifted in Modern Greek to mean ‘a charming, attractive man’)
Original: πονηροὶ ἄνθρωποι καὶ γόητες
Category: Apostasy
3:13. FORBIDDEN unglossed use of ‘γόης’, a near-total connotation reversal from Paul’s pejorative sense. Use ‘απατεώνες’ or ‘πλάνοι’ to avoid an accidental compliment where Paul intends a warning.
Crown Of Righteousness
Approved rendering: ο στέφανος της δικαιοσύνης
Transliteration: ho tēs dikaiosynēs stephanos
Doctrine: Assurance of Reward
Original: ὁ τῆς δικαιοσύνης στέφανος
Category: Assurance of Reward
4:8, the eschatological reward, an athlete’s victor’s-wreath image continuing from 4:7’s finished race. ‘Στέφανος’ is fully alive, but its single most common present-day cultural association is the Orthodox wedding crown (τα στέφανα). Requires a brief clarifying note distinguishing the athletic victor’s-wreath image from the nuptial image.
Abandon Forsake
Approved rendering: εγκαταλείπω
Transliteration: enkataleipō
Doctrine: Perseverance under Suffering
Original: ἐγκαταλείπω
Category: Perseverance
4:10, 4:16, used twice of human abandonment of Paul (Demas, and ‘all’ at his defense), echoing Christ’s own cry of dereliction. Stable and carries appropriate emotional/theological weight — precisely the verb used in the Greek liturgical reading of Christ’s cry of dereliction, a genuine asset. Preserve gravity; do not soften.
Ministry Service
Approved rendering: διακονία
Transliteration: diakonia
Doctrine: The Charge to Preach the Word
Original: διακονία
Category: Ministry
4:5, 4:11. Timothy’s whole pastoral-apostolic ministry, considerably broader than any single ordained office. Modern ecclesiastical usage narrows ‘διακονία’ toward the specific ordained deacon office (διάκονος); always accompany with a note anchoring the general ministry sense.
Medium Risk Terms
Glory
Approved rendering: δόξα
Transliteration: dóxa
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: δόξα με τη σύγχρονη έννοια της φήμης ή επιτυχίας (π.χ. αθλητική δόξα)
Original: δόξα
Category: God
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 2:10 (‘salvation… with eternal glory’) and 4:18 (closing doxology) — guard against the secular sense of fame/acclaim.
Seed Of David
Approved rendering: σπέρμα Δαβίδ
Transliteration: spérma Davíd
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Original: σπέρμα Δαυίδ
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 2:8 (‘Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the seed of David’) pairs this directly with resurrection as summary gospel content Timothy must remember and guard.
Kingdom Of God
Approved rendering: βασιλεία του Θεού
Transliteration: vasileía tou Theoú
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission
Original: βασιλεία
Category: Kingdom
Inherited from Romans package. 2 Timothy note: rendered ‘η βασιλεία αὐτοῦ’ at 4:1 (Christ’s kingdom, paired with his judgment and appearing) and 4:18 (final heavenly deliverance) — distinguish from a political or national-cultural kingdom.
Sin
Approved rendering: αμαρτία
Transliteration: amartía
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Rejected alternatives: αμαρτία με την καθημερινή, εξασθενημένη έννοια του ‘κρίμα’
Original: ἁμαρτία
Category: Sin
Inherited from Romans package. 2 Timothy note: 3:6 (women ‘laden with sins’, deceived by false teachers infiltrating households).
Gentiles
Approved rendering: έθνη
Transliteration: éthni
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Rejected alternatives: εθνικοί με σύγχρονη εθνικιστική χροιά
Original: ἔθνη
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package. 2 Timothy note: 4:17 (‘so that… all the Gentiles might hear’) ties the term to the universal scope of gospel proclamation amid Paul’s personal rescue narrative.
Spiritual Gifts
Approved rendering: πνευματικά χαρίσματα
Transliteration: pnevmatiká charísmata
Doctrine: Spiritual Gifts
Original: χαρίσματα
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package. 2 Timothy note: 1:6 refers to a singular, personal, ordination-specific ‘χάρισμα’ given to Timothy — see the dedicated ‘spiritual_gift_personal’ entry below for the nuance not present in the baseline’s plural, congregational sense.
Peace
Approved rendering: ειρήνη
Transliteration: eiríni
Doctrine: Peace with God
Rejected alternatives: ειρήνη με την ησυχαστική έννοια της εσωτερικής ή νοερής ησυχίας (μυστικιστική παράδοση)
Original: εἰρήνη
Category: Salvation
Inherited from Romans package. 2 Timothy note: 1:2 (greeting) and 2:22 (‘pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace’ — a relational virtue among believers rather than the forensic peace-with-God sense). Distinguish from the Hesychast mystical-contemplative sense per the baseline.
Sacred Writings
Approved rendering: τα ιερά γράμματα
Transliteration: hiera grammata
Doctrine: Inspiration and Sufficiency of Scripture
Original: ἱερὰ γράμματα
Category: Scripture
3:15 — the body of authoritative religious writings Timothy has known ‘from infancy’. Stable and dignified; must not be flattened into generic ‘religious literature’ — emphasis is on divinely authoritative texts, reinforced by v.16’s θεόπνευστος.
Scripture Fourfold Purpose
Approved rendering: διδασκαλία, έλεγχος, επανόρθωση, παιδεία
Transliteration: didaskalia, elegchos, epanorthōsis, paideia
Doctrine: Inspiration and Sufficiency of Scripture
Original: διδασκαλία, ἔλεγχος, ἐπανόρθωσις, παιδεία ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ
Category: Scripture
3:16. ‘Έλεγχος’ risks flattening into the bureaucratic ‘audit/inspection’ sense (tax audit, ID check); anchor to personal moral conviction. ‘Παιδεία’ risks narrowing into formal schooling (Υπουργείο Παιδείας); anchor to character formation, adding ‘διαπαιδαγώγηση’/‘διαμόρφωση χαρακτήρα’ if ambiguity persists.
Reprove Rebuke Exhort
Approved rendering: έλεγξε, επιτίμησε, παρακάλεσε
Transliteration: elegxon, epitimēson, parakaleson
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
Original: ἔλεγξον, ἐπιτίμησον, παρακάλεσον
Category: Ministry
4:2, the full pastoral toolkit. ‘Έλεγχος’ inherits the audit/inspection bleaching risk. ‘Επιτίμηση’ retains its NT force in liturgical memory. ‘Παρακάλεσε’ needs elevated context to avoid the casual ‘please’ register.
Itching Ears
Approved rendering: με φαγούρα στην ακοή
Transliteration: knēthomenoi tēn akoēn
Doctrine: Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days
Rejected alternatives: λέξη-προς-λέξη απόδοση χωρίς επεξηγηματικό πλαίσιο (κινδυνεύει να ακουστεί απλά παράξενη)
Original: κνηθόμενοι τὴν ἀκοήν
Category: Apostasy
4:3. No standing Modern Greek idiom matches this image; render literally but always with brief explanatory framing (‘an insatiable appetite for novel, flattering teaching’) so the image lands as pointed diagnosis rather than merely odd.
Myths
Approved rendering: μύθοι
Transliteration: mythoi
Doctrine: Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days
Original: μῦθοι
Category: Apostasy
4:4. Stable and intelligible, but Modern Greek also uses ‘μύθος’ for classical Greek mythology (national pride) or loosely for any false popular belief. Ensure the term is read as any fabricated substitute for revealed truth generally, not a dismissive nod to Greek mythological heritage specifically (relevant to contemporary Hellenic-revivalist reclamation of the term).
Be Sober Minded
Approved rendering: νήφε / να είσαι νηφάλιος
Transliteration: nēphe
Doctrine: The Charge to Preach the Word
Original: νῆφε
Category: Ministry
4:5 (cf. 2:26 ἀνανήφω). Modern Greek ‘νηφάλιος’ primarily denotes literal (non-alcohol) sobriety; the metaphorical spiritual-alertness sense is present but secondary and needs contextual reinforcement.
Endure Hardship
Approved rendering: κακοπάθησε
Transliteration: kakopathēson
Doctrine: Perseverance under Suffering
Original: κακοπάθησον
Category: Perseverance
4:5, cf. 2:9. Stable literary/biblical verb, not in everyday casual use, which helps preserve its weight; ensure it is not softened into mere ‘inconvenience’.
Work Of An Evangelist
Approved rendering: κάνε το έργο του ευαγγελιστή
Transliteration: ergon poiēson euangelistou
Doctrine: The Charge to Preach the Word
Original: ἔργον ποίησον εὐαγγελιστοῦ
Category: Ministry
4:5. Shares the baseline ‘ευαγγέλιο’ root exactly. In Greek Orthodox usage the capitalized ‘Ευαγγελιστές’ refers specifically to the Four Gospel-writers; a brief clarifying note that Timothy is charged with the ongoing ministry function of proclamation (not Scripture-authorship) is advisable at first occurrence.
Mercy
Approved rendering: έλεος
Transliteration: eleos
Doctrine: God
Original: ἔλεος
Category: God
1:2, unique to this greeting among Paul’s letters (absent from Romans’ greeting). Strong liturgical asset (‘Κύριε ελέησον’, ‘Lord, have mercy’), but watch for the casual exclamatory use (‘Έλεος!’ ≈ ‘Give me a break!’) bleeding into lighter-register material.
Spiritual Gift Personal
Approved rendering: το χάρισμα
Transliteration: charisma
Doctrine: Ordination and Stewardship of Spiritual Gifts
Original: χάρισμα
Category: Church
1:6, Timothy’s own singular ordination gift, given through the laying on of Paul’s hands, to be ‘fanned into flame’ (αναζωπυρέω) — a vivid, fully alive Modern Greek image requiring no gloss. Guard against the secular sense of natural talent/personal charisma (‘έχει χάρισμα στην ομιλία’).
Spirit Of Power Love Selfcontrol
Approved rendering: πνεύμα δειλίας… δύναμη, αγάπη και εγκράτεια
Transliteration: pneuma deilias… dynamis kai agapē kai sōphronismos
Doctrine: Perseverance under Suffering
Rejected alternatives: σωφρονισμός (avoid — Modern Greek ‘σωφρονιστικό σύστημα’ is the standard term for the penal/correctional prison system)
Original: πνεῦμα δειλίας … δύναμις καὶ ἀγάπη καὶ σωφρονισμός
Category: Perseverance
1:7. Prefer ‘εγκράτεια’ or ‘σωφροσύνη’ over ‘σωφρονισμός’ to sidestep the prison-system association.
Guard The Deposit
Approved rendering: φυλάσσω / τηρώ
Transliteration: tēreō / phylassō
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
Original: τηρέω / φυλάσσω
Category: Sound Doctrine
1:14, cf. 4:7. Both fully alive in Modern Greek; ensure the guarding is understood as doctrinal fidelity to the παραθήκη, not merely ritual observance.
Soldier Of Christ
Approved rendering: στρατιώτης
Transliteration: stratiōtēs
Doctrine: Perseverance under Suffering
Original: στρατιώτης
Category: Perseverance
2:3-4, the first of three vocational metaphors (soldier, athlete, farmer). Zero-gap and vivid, but Greece’s strong national-military historical identity risks importing patriotic overtones foreign to Paul’s point; keep the referent explicitly Christ (‘who enlisted him’), not civic duty.
Faithful Is The Saying
Approved rendering: πιστός ο λόγος
Transliteration: pistos ho logos
Doctrine: Faithful Transmission of the Gospel
Original: πιστὸς ὁ λόγος
Category: Faithful Transmission
2:11, a fixed formula marking a received, creed-like fragment as reliable. Ensure its quotation-marking, formulaic function is clear (through punctuation/framing) rather than read as a general aphorism about faithfulness in the abstract.
Approved Worker
Approved rendering: δόκιμος / αδόκιμος
Transliteration: dokimos / adokimos
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
Original: δόκιμος / ἀδόκιμος
Category: Sound Doctrine
2:15 (positive); 3:8 (negative, of false teachers). Modern Greek ‘δόκιμος’ has acquired a specific institutional sense of ‘cadet/probationary trainee’ (police, military); context must convey ‘tested and proven’, not ‘still under evaluation’.
Vessel For Honor
Approved rendering: σκεύος
Transliteration: skeuos
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
Original: σκεῦος εἰς τιμήν / εἰς ἀτιμίαν
Category: Sound Doctrine
2:20-21, the household-vessel metaphor for the church’s mixed composition. ‘Σκεύος’ is a common everyday word for kitchen utensils, which risks trivializing the image unless the metaphorical framing (gold, silver, wood, clay vessels) is kept explicit in surrounding context.
Godliness
Approved rendering: ευσέβεια
Transliteration: eusebeia
Doctrine: Apostasy and False Teachers in the Last Days
Original: εὐσέβεια
Category: Apostasy
3:5, 3:12. Stable in formal/liturgical Modern Greek, not everyday casual speech; ensure it denotes genuine devoted living, not mere ceremonial religiosity — precisely the confusion 3:5 diagnoses.
Fought The Good Fight
Approved rendering: τον καλό αγώνα αγωνίστηκα
Transliteration: ton kalon agōna ēgōnismai
Doctrine: Assurance of Reward
Original: τὸν καλὸν ἀγῶνα ἠγώνισμαι
Category: Assurance of Reward
4:7. ‘Αγώνας’ is fully alive but dominantly means a sports match or a political/social struggle in everyday usage; elevate register through surrounding context to retain the sense of a noble contest for the faith.
Rescued By The Lord
Approved rendering: ρύομαι
Transliteration: errysthēn ek stomatos leontos / rhysetai
Doctrine: Perseverance under Suffering
Original: ἐρρύσθην ἐκ στόματος λέοντος / ῥύσεται
Category: Perseverance
4:17-18. ‘Ρύομαι’ is stable and vivid; the ‘lion’s mouth’ image is likely figurative for mortal danger generally (possibly the imperial court) rather than a literal arena account — a brief historical note is advisable in teaching material.
Libation Offering
Approved rendering: σπονδή (σπένδομαι)
Transliteration: spendomai
Doctrine: The Believer’s Death as a Completed Offering
Original: σπένδομαι
Category: Perseverance
4:6. Rare, literary/sacrificial term absent from everyday Modern Greek usage; render with brief explanatory framing (‘σαν σπονδή’, ‘like a libation/drink-offering’) so the co-opted pagan-ritual image is recognized as a dignified, positive theological figure rather than lost on a contemporary reader.
Not Ashamed
Approved rendering: επαισχύνομαι / ντρέπομαι
Transliteration: epaischynomai
Doctrine: Shame and Bold Witness
1:8, 1:12, 1:16, a refrain across chapter 1. Stable and clear in Modern Greek; risk is only secondary, via the adjacent μαρτυρία/μαρτύριο collision noted under ‘testimony’.
Herald Kerygma
Approved rendering: κήρυκας / κήρυγμα
Transliteration: kēryx / kērygma
Doctrine: The Charge to Preach the Word
1:11, 4:17. Paul’s own ministry self-description (‘herald, apostle, teacher’), anticipating the κήρυξον charge at 4:2. κήρυγμα is a positive Greek Orthodox liturgical asset (homilies are themselves called κηρύγματα) but also used in secular political sloganeering (‘κήρυγμα μίσους’); keep the gospel-proclamation sense clear through context.
Servant Of The Lord
Approved rendering: δούλος Κυρίου
Transliteration: doulos kyriou
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
2:24. Modern Greek ‘δούλος’ retains its historical ‘slave/bondservant’ meaning strongly (reinforced by Greece’s own national-historical memory of δουλεία under Ottoman rule) — largely an asset for conveying total submission to Christ; should not be softened into the diminished sense of a lowly employee.
Low Risk Terms
Exhort
Approved rendering: προτρέπω
Transliteration: protrépo
Doctrine: Mutual Edification
Original: παρακαλέω
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package. 2 Timothy note: imperative form at 4:2 rendered ‘παρακάλεσε’; keep register elevated and pastoral, not the casual ‘please/you’re welcome’ sense, especially standing alongside sharper words (‘reprove, rebuke’) in the same list.
Thanksgiving
Approved rendering: ευχαριστία
Transliteration: efcharistía
Doctrine: Thanksgiving
Rejected alternatives: Θεία Ευχαριστία αποκλειστικά (η Ευχαριστία ως Μυστήριο)
Original: εὐχαριστία / εὐχαριστῶ
Category: Faith
Inherited from Romans package. 2 Timothy note: 1:3 (‘I thank God’) — general gratitude, not the sacramental sense; distinguish per the baseline.
Apostle
Approved rendering: απόστολος
Transliteration: apóstolos
Doctrine: Apostleship
Original: ἀπόστολος
Category: Church
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 1:1, 1:11 — Paul’s self-identification grounding his authority to charge Timothy.
David
Approved rendering: Δαβίδ
Transliteration: Davíd
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Original: Δαυίδ
Category: Covenant
Inherited from Romans package, reused exactly. 2 Timothy note: 2:8, within the ‘seed of David’ phrase.
In Season Out Of Season
Approved rendering: σε κατάλληλο και ακατάλληλο καιρό
Transliteration: eukairōs akairōs
Doctrine: The Charge to Preach the Word
Original: εὐκαίρως ἀκαίρως
Category: Ministry
4:2. The καιρός root remains fully alive and unambiguous in Modern Greek; no gloss required.
Patience Longsuffering
Approved rendering: μακροθυμία
Transliteration: makrothymia
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
Original: μακροθυμία
Category: Ministry
4:2. Stable, dignified liturgical/biblical term, not used casually in Modern Greek; retains its theological weight without secular competition.
Rekindle The Gift
Approved rendering: αναζωπυρώνω
Transliteration: anazōpyreō
Doctrine: Ordination and Stewardship of Spiritual Gifts
1:6. Fully alive and vivid in Modern Greek (used of rekindling fires literally and enthusiasm figuratively) — a genuine asset requiring no gloss.
Firm Foundation
Approved rendering: θεμέλιο
Transliteration: themelios
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
Original: θεμέλιος
Category: Sound Doctrine
2:19. Fully stable, common also in literal construction contexts; the metaphor transfers naturally with no gloss required.
Love Agape
Approved rendering: αγάπη
Transliteration: agapē
Doctrine: Faith
Original: ἀγάπη
Category: Faith
2:22, listed among the virtues Timothy is to pursue alongside righteousness, faith, and peace. The standard NT/Modern Greek word for self-giving love, with no significant secular competition in formal register.
Sincere Faith
Approved rendering: ανυπόκριτη πίστη
Transliteration: anypokritos pistis
Doctrine: Generational and Family Discipleship
1:5, Timothy’s faith traced through Lois and Eunice. Transparent compound of two fully stable words (baseline ‘πίστη’ + the baseline-adjacent ‘υποκρισία’).
Gangrene
Approved rendering: γάγγραινα
Transliteration: gangraina
Doctrine: Guarding Sound Doctrine
2:17. A stable medical term in Modern Greek with no competing sense — a strong, visceral asset for conveying how false teaching corrupts a body of believers, requiring no gloss.
Medium-High Risk Terms
Immortality
Approved rendering: αφθαρσία
Transliteration: aphtharsia
Doctrine: Assurance of Reward
Original: ἀφθαρσία
Category: Reward/Eschatology
1:10. Zero lexical gap, but sits near Greek Orthodox theosis vocabulary (participation in God’s own incorruptibility, 2 Peter 1:4). Preserve 2 Timothy’s own emphasis — a decisive gift already ‘brought to light through the gospel’ — without either flattening it or importing the full theosis framework uncritically.
Referenced passages