¹² Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and for which you made^[a] the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.^(A)

¹⁸ This charge I commit to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies made earlier about you, so that by following them you may fight the good fight,^(A)

²⁵ Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one.^{(A) 26} So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air,

¹⁰ And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ,^[a] will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you.^(A)

The Whole Armor of God

¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power; ¹¹ put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, ¹² for our^[a] struggle is not against blood and flesh but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present^[b] darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.^{[c](A) 13} Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on the evil day and, having prevailed against everything, to stand firm.^{(B) 14} Stand, therefore, and belt your waist with truth and put on the breastplate of righteousness^{(C) 15} and lace up your sandals in preparation for the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ With all of these,^[d] take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.^{(D) 17} Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.^{(E) 18} Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints.^(F)

⁷ I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith.^(A)

¹³ In the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you^(A)

¹⁸ so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible that God would prove false, we who have taken refuge might be strongly encouraged to seize the hope set before us.^(A)

³ Remember, then, what you received and heard; obey it and repent. If you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.^(A)

Pressing toward the Goal

¹² Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal,^[a] but I press on to lay hold of that for which Christ^[b] has laid hold of me.^{(A) 13} Brothers and sisters, I do not consider that I have laid hold^[c] of it, but one thing I have laid hold of: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,^{(B) 14} I press on toward the goal, toward the prize of the heavenly^[d] call of God in Christ Jesus.^(C)