What Does 1 Timothy 4:9 Mean?
This word is steady, and worthy of all welcome.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation.THE KEY
The saying’s steadiness and its worth belong together: what holds firm is worthy of being fully received.
THE MEANING
This word stands firm and is worthy of full reception. Its dependability is not meant to remain at a distance; it belongs with welcome.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
This undoes the idea that a dependable word can be admired while kept at arm’s length: the saying is worthy of full reception.
THE ROOT
πιστός
pistos
GROWS FROM
πειθ-
peith-
To persuade or bring to trust; here, reliable, firm, steady.
“steady word” in this verse is pistos. English “faithful” can suggest loyalty, while πιστός also describes what is dependable and holds firm. Its word family connects that steadiness with trust: the saying can be leaned on.
ALSO GROWS
pistis: trust
πίστις
The same word family links the saying’s reliability with the trust it can bear.
pisteuō: trust, believe
πιστεύω
Trust here grows from something steady enough to rely on.
ἀποδοχή
apodochē
GROWS FROM
δεχ-
dech-
To receive or welcome.
“welcome” in this verse is apodochē. “Acceptation” can sound formal, but the Greek word carries the sense of receiving. The saying is not only recognized as dependable; it is worthy of being welcomed in full.
ALSO GROWS
dechomai: receive, welcome
δέχομαι
This root makes acceptance an act of receiving the saying, not merely noticing it.
apodechomai: accept, welcome
ἀποδέχομαι
The related verb gives “worthy of all acceptation” the feel of a welcome extended fully.
λόγος
logos
GROWS FROM
λεγ-
leg-
To say or speak; λόγος is a spoken word or message.
“steady word” in this verse is logos. The KJV says “saying,” while λόγος is also the Greek word for “word.” The phrase presents this as a word with substance, not a passing remark.
ALSO GROWS
legō: say, speak
λέγω
The saying is rooted in the act of speaking a word.
logion: utterance, oracle
λόγιον
This related word shows λόγος can carry the sense of an utterance offered with weight.
THE PATTERN
A true word endures, accomplishes its purpose, and takes effect as it is received.
The head of your word is truth, and every judgment of your alignment stands for the ages.So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth. It shall not return to me empty, but shall do what I delight in, and shall break through in the thing to which I sent it.And for this reason we also thank God without leaving a gap. For when you took hold of the word of God that you heard from us, you received it not as the word of humankind, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also works in you who trust.THE THREAD
This is a firm word, and worthy of every welcoming hand, that Jesus the Anointed One came into the world to deliver those missing the mark; of whom I am the first.The same Greek phrase, πιστὸς ὁ λόγος καὶ πάσης ἀποδοχῆς ἄξιος, appears in both verses: “a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation.” Here the repeated words introduce the announcement that follows, showing that this formula marks a word presented as firm and worthy of full reception.
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