Chapter
1 2 3 4 5 6
Verse
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1 Timothy 6:20
ESV O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you. Avoid the irreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called "knowledge,"
NIV Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge,
NASB Timothy, protect what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly, empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called 'knowledge'—
CSB Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding irreverent and empty speech and contradictions from what is falsely called knowledge.
NLT Timothy, guard what God has entrusted to you. Avoid godless, foolish discussions with those who oppose you with their so-called knowledge.
KJV O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called:
NKJV O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge—

What does 1 Timothy 6:20 mean?

Verses 20 and 21 form the conclusion to one of Paul's most profound letters. Paul begins this verse with another personal appeal to Timothy. Paul referred to Timothy directly by name three times in this letter (1 Timothy 1:2, 18), reflecting their friendly perspective and close relationship. His challenge for Timothy to "guard the deposit" seems to be two-edged. One side is the reality of the kingdom of God, which needs to be proclaimed and defended. The other is a reference to the time and effort Paul had invested into Timothy's life. He shared these same words with Timothy shortly before his death, saying "by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you" (2 Timothy 1:14).

Paul also repeats a common theme of his instructions to church leaders: steer clear of false knowledge and shallow arguments. Among the false teachings in Ephesus was a philosophy which would soon be known as Gnosticism, named from the Greek root word for "knowledge." Gnostic ideas presented matter as evil and spirit as good. Depending on the flavor of Gnostic teaching, the sins committed in the body either did not matter or all pleasures of the body were inherently wrong. Timothy was to stay away from such false teachings which contradicted the "sound doctrine" Paul had taught him (1 Timothy 1:8–11).
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