1 Timothy 4:7
New International Version
Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly.

New Living Translation
Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas and old wives’ tales. Instead, train yourself to be godly.

English Standard Version
Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness;

Berean Standard Bible
But reject irreverent, silly myths. Instead, train yourself for godliness.

Berean Literal Bible
But refuse profane and silly fables. Rather, train yourself to godliness.

King James Bible
But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness.

New King James Version
But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness.

New American Standard Bible
But stay away from worthless stories that are typical of old women. Rather, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness;

NASB 1995
But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness;

NASB 1977
But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness;

Legacy Standard Bible
But refuse godless myths fit only for old women. On the other hand, train yourself for the purpose of godliness,

Amplified Bible
But have nothing to do with irreverent folklore and silly myths. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness [keeping yourself spiritually fit].

Christian Standard Bible
But have nothing to do with pointless and silly myths. Rather, train yourself in godliness.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
But have nothing to do with irreverent and silly myths. Rather, train yourself in godliness,

American Standard Version
but refuse profane and old wives' fables. And exercise thyself unto godliness:

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
But abstain from insipid fables of old women and train yourself in righteousness;

Contemporary English Version
Don't have anything to do with worthless, senseless stories. Work hard to be truly religious.

Douay-Rheims Bible
But avoid foolish and old wives' fables: and exercise thyself unto godliness.

English Revised Version
but refuse profane and old wives' fables. And exercise thyself unto godliness:

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Don't have anything to do with godless myths that old women like to tell. Rather, train yourself to live a godly life.

Good News Translation
But keep away from those godless legends, which are not worth telling. Keep yourself in training for a godly life.

International Standard Version
Do not have anything to do with godless myths and fables of old women. Instead, train yourself to be godly.

Literal Standard Version
but reject the profane and old women’s fables, and exercise yourself to piety,

Majority Standard Bible
But reject irreverent, silly myths. Instead, train yourself for godliness.

New American Bible
Avoid profane and silly myths. Train yourself for devotion,

NET Bible
But reject those myths fit only for the godless and gullible, and train yourself for godliness.

New Revised Standard Version
Have nothing to do with profane myths and old wives’ tales. Train yourself in godliness,

New Heart English Bible
But refuse profane and old wives' tales. Exercise yourself toward godliness.

Webster's Bible Translation
But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather to godliness.

Weymouth New Testament
But worldly stories, fit only for credulous old women, have nothing to do with.

World English Bible
But refuse profane and old wives’ fables. Exercise yourself toward godliness.

Young's Literal Translation
and the profane and old women's fables reject thou, and exercise thyself unto piety,

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
A Good Minister of Jesus Christ
6By pointing out these things to the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, nourished by the words of faith and sound instruction that you have followed. 7But reject irreverent, silly myths. Instead, train yourself for godliness. 8For physical exercise is of limited value, but godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for the present life and for the one to come.…

Cross References
1 Timothy 1:4
or devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculation rather than the stewardship of God's work, which is by faith.

1 Timothy 1:9
We realize that law is not enacted for the righteous, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for killers of father or mother, for murderers,

1 Timothy 4:8
For physical exercise is of limited value, but godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for the present life and for the one to come.

1 Timothy 6:3
If anyone teaches another doctrine and disagrees with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and with godly teaching,

1 Timothy 6:5
and constant friction between men of depraved mind who are devoid of the truth. These men regard godliness as a means of gain.

2 Timothy 3:5
having a form of godliness but denying its power. Turn away from such as these!

Hebrews 5:14
But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained their senses to distinguish good from evil.


Treasury of Scripture

But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise yourself rather to godliness.

refuse.

1 Timothy 1:4
Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.

1 Timothy 6:20
O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called:

2 Timothy 2:16,23
But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness…

exercise.

1 Timothy 1:4
Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.

1 Timothy 2:10
But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.

1 Timothy 3:16
And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

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Avoid Discipline Exercise Fables Fit Godless Godliness Hand Myths Piety Profane Purpose Rather Refuse Reject Religion Silly Stories Thyself Train Training Unclean Wives Women Women's Worldly
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Avoid Discipline Exercise Fables Fit Godless Godliness Hand Myths Piety Profane Purpose Rather Refuse Reject Religion Silly Stories Thyself Train Training Unclean Wives Women Women's Worldly
1 Timothy 4
1. He foretells that in the latter times there shall be a departure from the faith.
6. And to the end that Timothy might not fail in doing his duty, he furnishes him with various precepts.














(7) But refuse profane and old wives' fables.--Here Timothy--who has been previously (see 1Timothy 4:1-6) warned against a false asceticism, against putting an unnatural interpretation on the words of Christ, against sympathising with a teaching which would unfit men and women for practical every-day life--is now urged to guard himself against the temptation to give himself up to the favourite and apparently enticing study of the sayings of the famous Jewish Rabbis, in which every book, almost every word--in many cases the letters of the Hebrew Scriptures--were subjected to a keen but profitless investigation. In such study the spirit of the holy writers was too often lost, and only a dry and barren formalism--commands respecting the tithing of mint, and anise, and cummin--remained, while the weightier matters of the law--judgment, justice, and truth--were carefully sifted out. Round the grand old Jewish history all kind of mythical legends grew up, till for a Jewish student of the Rabbinical schools the separation of the true from the false became in many cases impossible--through all this elaborate and careful but almost profitless study. The minister of Christ was to avoid these strange and unusual interpretations, this vast fantastic collection of legends, partly true and partly false. He was to regard them as merely profane and old wives' fables, as being perfectly useless and even harmful in their bearing on practical every-day life.

And exercise thyself rather unto godliness.--Instead of these weary profitless efforts--the painful, useless asceticism on the one hand, and the endless and barren Rabbinic studies of the Law on the other--Timothy, as a good minister of Jesus Christ, was to bestow all his pains and labour to promote an active, healthy, practical piety among the congregation of believers, as we have seen in 1Timothy 4:6, in the words, "ever training thyself." To lead such a life required ceaseless pains and efforts, for true godliness is ever a progressive state. Surely exercising himself unto godliness would be a task hard enough to satisfy the most ardent, the most enthusiastic soul! The "godliness," or "piety," here alluded to, as the end toward which Timothy was to direct all his efforts, was that practical piety which influences for good, which leavens with a holy leaven all classes of society, all life, of the slave as well as of the patrician.

Verse 7. - Unto godliness for rather unto godliness, A.V. The R.V., by putting a full stop after "fables," disturbs the natural flow of the thought. The two imperatives παραιτοῦ and γύμναζε connect and contrast the thoughts in the two clauses of the verse, as the A.V. indicates by the insertion of "rather." Profane (βεβήλους; 1 Timothy 1:9, note) Old wives' (γράωδεις); only here in the New Testament; not used in LXX.; rare in classical Greek. Exercise thyself unto godliness (γύμναζε σευτόν). The verb γυμνάζειν occurs in the New Testament only in this place, twice in the Epistle to the Hebrews (Hebrews 5:14; 12:11), and once in 2 Peter (2 Peter 2:14). In the LXX. it occurs only once (2 Macc. 10:15), but is common in classical Greek. The metaphor is drawn from training for gymnastic exercises. As regards the whole passage, it seems that there were current among the Jews at this time many "fables" (1 Timothy 1:4; 2 Timothy 4:4; Titus 1:14; 2 Peter 1:16), childish legends and doctrines, some of them directed especially to enforcing certain rules about eating and drinking, and other "bodily exercises," which St. Paul utterly discountenances, and contrasts with that "good doctrine" which he directs Timothy continually to teach. This would account, naturally, for the introduction of the phrase, γύμναζε σεαυτόν.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
But
δὲ (de)
Conjunction
Strong's 1161: A primary particle; but, and, etc.

reject
παραιτοῦ (paraitou)
Verb - Present Imperative Middle or Passive - 2nd Person Singular
Strong's 3868: From para and the middle voice of aiteo; to beg off, i.e. Deprecate, decline, shun.

irreverent
βεβήλους (bebēlous)
Adjective - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 952: Permitted to be trodden, accessible. From the base of basis and belos; accessible, i.e. heathenish, wicked.

and
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

silly
γραώδεις (graōdeis)
Adjective - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 1126: Belonging to old women, such as old women tell. From graus and eidos; crone-like, i.e. Silly.

myths.
μύθους (mythous)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3454: An idle tale, fable, fanciful story. Perhaps from the same as mueo; a tale, i.e. Fiction.

Instead,
δὲ (de)
Conjunction
Strong's 1161: A primary particle; but, and, etc.

train
γύμναζε (gymnaze)
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Singular
Strong's 1128: To train by physical exercise; hence: train, in the widest sense. From gumnos; to practise naked, i.e. Train.

yourself
σεαυτὸν (seauton)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative Masculine 2nd Person Singular
Strong's 4572: Of yourself.

for
πρὸς (pros)
Preposition
Strong's 4314: To, towards, with. A strengthened form of pro; a preposition of direction; forward to, i.e. Toward.

godliness.
εὐσέβειαν (eusebeian)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 2150: Piety (towards God), godliness, devotion, godliness. From eusebes; piety; specially, the gospel scheme.


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NT Letters: 1 Timothy 4:7 But refuse profane and old wives' fables (1 Tim. 1Ti iTi 1tim i Tm)
1 Timothy 4:6
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