1 Timotius 1:17

1:17 Now to the eternal king, ¹  immortal, invisible, the only ²  God, be honor and glory forever and ever! ³  Amen.

1 Timotius 6:5

6:5 and constant bickering by people corrupted in their minds and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness ⁴  is a way of making a profit.

[1:17]  ¹ tn Or more literally, “king of the ages.”

[1:17]  ² tc Most later witnesses (א² D¹ H^c Ψ 1881 Ï) have “wise” (σόφῳ, swfw) here (thus, “the only wise God”), while the earlier and better witnesses (א* A D* F G H* 33 1739 lat co) lack this adjective. Although it could be argued that the longer reading is harder since it does not as emphatically affirm monotheism, it is more likely that scribes borrowed σόφῳ from Rom 16:27 where μόνῳ σόφῳ θεῷ (monw sofw qew, “the only wise God”) is textually solid.

[1:17]  ³ tn Grk “unto the ages of the ages,” an emphatic way of speaking about eternity in Greek.

[6:5]  ⁴ tc Although most witnesses, including some early versions and fathers (D² Ψ Ï sy Cyp Lcf Ambst), have ἀφίστασο ἀπὸ τῶν τοιούτων (afistaso apo’ twn toioutwn, “stay away from such things!”) after εὐσεβείαν (eusebeian, “godliness”; thus, “who suppose that godliness is a way of making a profit; stay away from such things!”), there seems to be little good reason for this clause’s omission in some of the oldest and best witnesses (א A D* F G 048 6 33 81 1175 1739 1881 lat co). It is likely that it crept into the text early, perhaps as a marginal comment, but it should not be considered authentic in light of the strong external evidence against it.