THE SECOND LETTER TO TIMOTHY
Chapters 2:14-4:22
Perseverance in Right Doctrine and Paul's Final Greetings and Farewell
Eternal Lord,
We study Your Sacred Scriptures in the light of Christ guided by the
teachings of Mother Church. You have given the Church the authority to guide
us in the interpretation of the Scriptures and the application of right
doctrine. We do this so Jesus' Gospel of salvation remains as true and unchanged
as it was when He first gave it to His Apostles and disciples. Open our hearts
and minds with understanding as Jesus did for His disciples on Resurrection
Sunday to everything written about Him in the law of Moses and in the prophets
and psalms that He told them must be fulfilled, as He "opened their minds to
understand the Scriptures" (Lk 24:45). Help us, Lord, to have the commitment
St. Paul had to pass on the truth of Jesus' Gospel unaltered to the next
generation. We pray in the name of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Spirit. Amen.
+ + +
Please him [Christ] in whose army you
serve and from whom you receive your wages. Let none of you turn deserter.
Let your baptism be your shield, faith your helmet, love your spear, endurance
your armor.
St. Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to
Polycarp, 6.2
In the first lesson, St. Paul referred to his imprisonment several times (1:8, 16-17; 2:9). St. Luke described his first incarceration in Rome in Acts 28:30-31 as lasting for two years where he was free to receive visitors and preach the Gospel under conditions more like "house arrest." However, when Paul wrote his second letter to Timothy during his second Roman imprisonment, his circumstances are different. If he was in the notorious Mamertine Prison near the Roman Forum, prisoners were kept in an underground chamber that was thirty feet in diameter and reached only by a hole in its ceiling that opened on a smaller guardroom above it. Many Christian historians believe that St. Peter was held there before his martyrdom. As a Roman citizen and since Paul was able to receive visitors and write or dictate letters suggests he was in custodia militaris (military custody) and chained, perhaps to his Roman guard.
In his second letter to Timothy, the transmission of sound Christian doctrine continues to be a serious concern for St. Paul (1:13-14; 4:2-3). False teaching had already spread, weakening the Christian community at Ephesus. In his first letter to Timothy, he wrote: I repeat the request I made of you when I was on my way to Macedonia, that you stay in Ephesus to instruct certain people not to teach false doctrines or to concern themselves with myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the plan of God that is to be received by faith (1 Tim 1:3-4). He repeats his warning to Timothy that he will have to continue to defend the Gospel against those preaching false doctrines who will cause confusion within the community and erode the faith of even strong believers (2 Tim 3:1-9). Paul reminds Timothy that his mission is to guard the true message of Jesus that he received (2 Tim 1:14) and to continue the work of preaching and teaching the unaltered Gospel of the Christ (2 Tim 2:2; 4:2-3).
Chapter 2:14-4:8 ~ Instructions Concerning False Teaching
2 Timothy 2:14-19 ~ Paul's Warning Against Useless Disputes
14 Remind
people of these things and charge them before God to stop disputing about
words. This serves no useful purpose since it harms those who listen. 15 Be eager to present yourself as
acceptable to God, a workman who causes no disgrace, imparting the word of
truth without deviation. 16 Avoid
profane, idle talk, for such people will become more and more godless, 17 and their teaching will spread like
gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have deviated from the truth by
saying that [the] resurrection has already taken place and are upsetting the
faith of some. 19 Nevertheless,
God's solid foundation stands, bearing this inscription, "The Lord knows those
who are his"; and, "Let everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord avoid
evil."
"These things," in verse 14, refer to the truths of salvation preached in Jesus' Gospel that is one of the most important duties of the pastor of a Christian community. In Ephesus, "these things" are in jeopardy because of the "disputing about words" initiated by false teachers and ungodly acting professing Christians. The phrase "disputing about words" is one word in Greek and means "making war with words" and refers to heated discussions that tear down rather than build up the faith community. Listeners who are untrained in the truth of the Gospel message can be easily misled and suffer spiritual harm.
The church at Ephesus wasn't the first to struggle with the problem of false teachers; it was a continuing problem for the Church. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote about a similar problem when inflated rhetoric that had the appearance of "words of wisdom" misled the Christians of Corinth and caused divisions. Paul wrote: 10 I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose (1 Cor 1:10). And in verse 17, he writes that Christ sent him to preach not with the wisdom of human eloquence, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its meaning.
Question: What is Paul's first recommendation for
how Timothy should present himself to his congregation?
Answer: He should demonstrate his authority over
the congregation by the example of his life as one who is "acceptable to God."
Paul writes that God employs Timothy as a "workman" (ergates), who teaches the "word of truth without deviation." Paul's message also recalls what he told the Galatians about not deviating from the truth of the Gospel when he wrote, I am amazed that you are so quickly forsaking the one who called you by the grace of Christ for a different Gospel, not that there is another. But there are some who are disturbing you and wish to pervert the Gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a Gospel other than the one that we preached to you, let that one be accursed! (Gal 1:6-8, underlining added for emphasis).
Question: Can you recall when two people presented
another, false gospel, and claimed to have received a divine revelation from an
angel?
Answer: Both Mohammed in the 7th
century AD who founded Islam and Joseph Smith in the 19th century AD who
founded Mormonism claimed to have received instruction from an angel that was
contrary to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
16 Avoid
profane, idle talk, for such people will become more and more godless
Question: What do you think Paul means by
"profane, idle talk"?
Answer: He is probably referring to those who
gossip, are overly critical of others and are overly proud and boastful in
their efforts to build themselves up in the esteem of the community.
Question: How will those people who engage in
worldly and empty talk contrary to a godly Christian reveal themselves?
Answer: People who insist on worldly and empty
talk contrary to the true Gospel will become more and more godless.
St. Paul wrote previously to the Corinthians Christians warning them about those who are counterfeit apostles who are dishonest workers disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. There is nothing astonishing in this; even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. It is nothing extraordinary, then, when his servants disguise themselves as the servants of the upright. They will come to an end appropriate to what they have done (2 Cor 11:13-15).
Question: What warning did Jesus give to such
people in Matthew 12:36?
Answer: Jesus said "I tell you, on the Day of
Judgment people will render an account for every careless word they speak. By
your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
17 and
their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and
Philetus
Paul may be referring to an early form of the heresy of
Gnosticism. Such heresies were accompanied by moral corruption that Paul
compares to the physical condition of gangrene that destroyed healthy tissue
and organs in a healthy body like false teachings infect previously spiritually
healthy Christians.
Two men are singled out as examples of those who
"deviated from the truth. Philetus is not mentioned again by Paul or elsewhere
in Scripture, but he mentioned Hymenaeus previously in his first letter to Timothy.
Question: What happened to Hymenaeus in 1 Timothy
1:20?
Answer: Paul deprived him of the Sacraments by
excommunicating him from the Church.
18 who
have deviated from the truth by saying that [the] resurrection has already
taken place and are upsetting the faith of some.
What does Paul mean concerning their deviation from the
truth concerning the resurrection? The NAB places "the" in brackets because
some of the oldest Greek manuscripts have the definite article and read "the
resurrection," while the definite article is missing in others that read simply
"resurrection" or "a resurrection." So, to what heresy is Paul referring
concerning the resurrection? He cannot be condemning the men for teaching that
Jesus' resurrection on the third day after His physical death and entombment
has already happened, nor can he be referring to the spiritual resurrection
that already took place for Christians who submit to the Sacrament of Baptism.
These are aspects of the resurrection taught by Paul and the other New
Testament writers (for Paul see Rom 6:4-11; 1 Cor 15:1-4; Eph 2:6;
Col 2:12;
3:1). The men, therefore, must be denying the bodily resurrection of all the
faithful and the sinners in the Second Advent of Christ before the Final
Judgment.
When Paul preached a bodily resurrection of the dead in Athens, his Greek audience considered bodily resurrection an absurdity (Acts 17:32). Paul had already encountered this false teaching concerning the resurrection and wrote about it in his letter to the Christians at Corinth in 1 Corinthians Chapter 15 where some members of the community were willing to believe in Jesus' resurrection from death but denied the bodily resurrection of all the dead when Christ returns in glory (see 1 Cor 15:12-19).
The early Church Roman lawyer and Christian apologist, Tertullian (AD 155-220), wrote that the denial of a bodily resurrection in favor of only that which was spiritual was the teaching of the Valentinian Gnostics who claimed the resurrection had already happened spiritually in the believers' acquisition of truth (Against Heresies, 2.48.2). Followers of the Gnostic heresy saw everything material (including the human body) as evil and only the spiritual as good.
19 Nevertheless,
God's solid foundation stands, bearing this inscription
In spite of these doctrinal errors, Paul declares: "God's
solid foundation stands" because of Christian leaders like Timothy who
persevered in doctrinal truth. The NJB has "foundation-stone" which is
probably more accurate. Paul uses the Greek word themelois translated
as "foundation" or "foundation-stone." The same word appears in secular Greek
literature for the foundation of cities or houses or buildings, and also in the
metaphorical sense for the foundation of mountains, land, earth, and heaven
(George T. Montegue, First and Second Timothy, Titus, page 169-70). Buildings
in ancient times often had details about the structure inscribed on a
foundation stone. Paul uses the word in a figurative sense for the Church here
and in 1 Timothy 3:13 and so does St. Peter in 1 Peter 2:5-6. For the
"foundation stone" he could be referring to Christ Himself (1 Cor 3:11), who
referred to Himself as the "cornerstone" (XXX) and so did Peter refer to Christ
in the same way (Acts XXX), or the Apostles/apostles (Eph 2:20), or faith in
God's divine plan and unbreakable promises (2:13). Also compare verse 19 with
Revelation 21:14.
"The Lord knows those who are his"; and, "Let everyone
who calls upon the name of the Lord avoid evil."
Next, Paul uses two quotations that allude to the Greek
Septuagint translation of Numbers 16:5 and 26.
Question: What circumstances took place concerning
these two verses from Numbers Chapter 16? What happened in Numbers Chapter 16?
Why does Paul allude to this event?
Answer: The quotes are from the Chapter about the
rebellion of Korah and his followers. He was a Levite who defied the
instructions of God's agents, Moses and Aaron, just as these men defy Christ's
apostles and His Church. God destroyed Korah and all those who followed him as
their judgment for failing in obedience God's commands transmitted to Moses and
Aaron. Paul is giving a warning to false teachers that they will receive the
same just punishment of divine judgment and destruction as Korah and his
followers.
The difference is, in the New Covenant with eternal blessings and punishments, those rebellious disrupters will face eternal judgment.
2 Timothy 2:20-26 ~ Those Who Make Up a Household of Faith
20 In a
large household there are vessels not only of gold and silver but also of wood
and clay, some for lofty and others for humble use. 21 If anyone cleanses himself of these
things, he will be a vessel for lofty use, dedicated, beneficial to the master
of the house, ready for every good work. 22
So turn from youthful desires and pursue righteousness, faith,
love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord with purity of heart. 23 Avoid foolish and ignorant debates,
for you know that they breed quarrels. 24
A slave of the Lord should not quarrel, but should be gentle with
everyone, able to teach, tolerant, 25 correcting
opponents with kindness. It may be that God will grant them repentance that
leads to knowledge of the truth, 26 and
that they may return to their senses out of the devil's snare, where they are
entrapped by him, for his will.
Paul compares the Church, that is the "household of God" (cf. Gal 6:10; Eph 2:19), to other households that have both precious vessels and ordinary vessels just as God's "household" has righteous, precious believers and those who miss the mark becoming vessels of lesser quality. "These things" in verse 21 refers to back to those and their activities Paul described in verse 16: Avoid profane, idle talk, for such people will become more and more godless, 17 and their teaching will spread like gangrene. Paul then advises in verses 22-26 what those who have fallen into error should and shouldn't do. Those in the community who repent can cleanse themselves and become "a vessel for lofty use" by the Lord God who is the Master of His house that is the Church and will escape "the devil's snare."
2 Timothy 3:1-9 ~ The Last Days
1 But
understand this: there will be terrifying times in the last days. 2 People will be self-centered and lovers
of money, proud, haughty, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful,
irreligious, 3 callous,
implacable, slanderous, licentious, brutal, hating what
is good, 4 traitors,
reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 as they make a pretense of religion but
deny its power. Reject them. 6 For
some of these slip into homes and make captives of women weighed down by sins,
led by various desires, 7 always
trying to learn but never able to reach a knowledge of the truth. 8 Just as
Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so they also oppose the truth; people of
depraved mind, unqualified in the faith. 9
But they will not make further progress, for their foolishness
will be plain to all, as it was with those two.
Paul turns to the subject of the conditions of the "last days" before the return of Christ and the Final Judgment (CCC 1038-41).
Question: How does Paul describe the behavior of
most people in the "last days"? What is his advice concerning them?
Answer: He lists nineteen negative dispositions:
Question: What does Paul advise concerning people
with such character traits?
Answer: Paul advises rejecting associating with
them.
Question: Do you recognize any of these traits among people in your family or community?
6 For some
of these slip into homes and make captives of women weighed down by sins, led
by various desires, 7 always
trying to learn but never able to reach a knowledge of the truth.
Paul identifies women "weighted down by sins" as being
especially vulnerable. We can perhaps see this in the abortion industry of
Planned Parenthood, and the many women involved in that organization who have
themselves had abortions. Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood
had an ideology cemented in eugenics, the belief and practice with the aim to
eliminate certain groups of people who not deserve to live. Sanger encouraged the sterilization of
persons with what she considered "less desirable qualities," and strongly
encouraged the reproduction of groups with more desirable qualities. Sanger's
disdain for blacks, minority groups, the diseased, and disabled spawned the
birth of an abortion corporation that profits off the killing of humanity's weakest
and most vulnerable. From its conception, Planned Parenthood was built upon the
roots of exterminating individuals deemed "unfit" for the human family.
8 Just as
Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so they also oppose the truth; people of
depraved mind, unqualified in the faith. 9
But they will not make further progress, for their foolishness
will be plain to all, as it was with those two.
Paul compares those people with the qualities he listed
with the two Egyptian priests who opposed Moses, although their names are not
in Scripture but were assigned to them by the people of the Old Covenant
Church. People like them cannot make progress in understanding truth because
they oppose the truth. An example is those who support the abortion of a baby
as simply removing an unwanted growth despite the fact that science shows these
are viable lives with their own DNA, have a heartbeat, and feel pain when they
are murdered.
2 Timothy 3:10-17 ~ Living by Paul's Example and Teaching
10 You
have followed my teaching, way of life, purpose, faith, patience, love,
endurance, 11 persecutions,
and sufferings, such as happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra,
persecutions that I endured. Yet from all these things the Lord delivered me.
12 In fact, all who want to
live religiously in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. 13 But wicked people and charlatans will
go from bad to worse, deceivers and deceived. 14 But you, remain faithful to what you have learned and
believed, because you know from whom you learned it, 15 and that from infancy you have known
the sacred scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation
through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All
scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for
correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 so that one who belongs to God may be competent,
equipped for every good work.
In contrast to the negative traits listed in verses 2-5, Paul lists the positive qualities of Timothy who follows Paul's teachings that are visible in his same qualities:
Antioch of Pisidia (not Antioch, Syria), Iconium, and Lystra are all places where Paul endured persecution (Acts 13:13-51; 14:6-20).
Question: To whom does Paul give the credit for
his deliverance from those persecutions and sufferings?
Answer: He gives the credit to God.
In verses 12-17, Paul tells Timothy that he too must expect persecution like everyone who lives religiously in Christ Jesus. To live "religiously" refers to the moral virtue by which a person is disposed lead a life of piety and to render to God the worship and service He deserves. The word religare means "to tie, fasten, bind, or relegere to gather up, treat with care" (Catholic Dictionary, page 364). It is through the practice of our religion that we continually bind our selves to the Most Holy Trinity, and we make our journey of faith to the promise of eternal life. One cannot have a relationship with Christ with the regular practice on religion through worship and service.
13 But
wicked people and charlatans will go from bad to worse, deceivers and deceived.
The inevitability of Christian persecution and suffering
is a recurring theme in Paul's letter (1:8; 2:3; 4:5) and in the other New
Testament books and letters (Jn 16:2-3; Acts 14:22; 1 Pt 4:12-14). Pope St.
Leo the Great wrote: "Persecution is not only what attacks Christian piety by
sword, fire, and torments. Persecution is also inflicted through personal
conflict, the perversity of the disobedient, and the sharp point of slanderous
tongues" (Letters, 167).
16 All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
14 But
you, remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know
from whom you learned it, 15 and
that from infancy you have known the sacred scriptures, which are capable of
giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
Timothy learned the Scriptures, referring to what we call
the Old Testament Scriptures from his devout mother and grandmother. Jewish
children usually began their instruction in the Torah of Moses at age five (Mishnah:
Aboth, 5.21). And from Paul, he learned the application and fulfillment of
those Scriptures that pointed the way to salvation in Jesus, the
Redeemer-Messiah (Rom 1:2-3) and which continue to instruct concerning the
reborn Christian life in the new and eternal covenant (Rom 15:4; CCCC 121-23,
128-30; 1962-64).
16 All
scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for
correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 so that one who belongs to God may be competent,
equipped for every good work.
By "all Scripture" Paul means both the Old and New
Testament book and letter that were being written during Paul's lifetime. When
Paul writes that all Scripture is "inspired" by God, he uses the Greek word theopneustos,
a compound adjective that means "God-breathed," formed from the Greek noun
"God" = theos and a verb meaning "blow" or breathe out" = pneo.
It only appears here in the New Testament. Applied to Sacred Scripture it
means that everything written down in the Bible has been "breathed forth" from
the mouth of the Lord God. God is, therefore, the ultimate source of Scripture
and its principal Author.1
St. Peter makes a similar statement and adds to this teaching that God collaborated with the human writers as they wrote: Know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of Scripture that is a matter of personal interpretation, for no prophecy ever came through human will; but rather human beings moved by the Holy Spirit spoke under the influence of God (2 Pt 1:20-21; see CCC 109-19).
17 so that
one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
Scripture, writes Paul, is the preeminent guide for a
moral life. But in other letters he will include that we also need
comprehensive instruction in all matters of Christian doctrine, worship, our oral
tradition passed on to us by Christ (who wrote no letters but taught orally)
that became the authority of apostolic tradition, and ecclesial government (1
Cor 11:1; 2 Thess 2:15) for a Church built on the foundation of Christ and His
Apostles (1 Cor 3:11; Eph 2:20).
2 Timothy 4:1-5 ~ Paul's Solemn Charge to Timothy
1 I charge
you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and
the dead, and by his appearing and his kingly power: 2 proclaim the word; be persistent
whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage
through all patience and teaching. 3 For the time will come when people
will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following their own desires and
insatiable curiosity, will accumulate teachers 4 and will stop listening to the truth and will be
diverted to myths. 5 But
you, be self-possessed in all circumstances; put up with hardship; perform the
work of an evangelist; fulfill your ministry.
Paul issues a final and solemn appeal to Timothy, as though they are in a courtroom where God the Father is present and God the Son is the presiding judge, asking Timothy to fulfill his mission to proclaim the Word. By the "word" Paul can be referring to the testimony of the Christ, the Living Word of God, or the "word" of Jesus' Gospel message of salvation which is, in essence, the same testimony. Timothy is to make a pledge to do this under all circumstances by convincing his audience, reprimanding the sinners, and encouraging with patience and teaching everyone.
3 For the
time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following
their own desires and insatiable curiosity, will accumulate teachers 4 and will stop listening to the truth
and will be diverted to myths. 5 But
you, be self-possessed in all circumstances; put up with hardship; perform the
work of an evangelist; fulfill your ministry.
The conditions Paul lists in verses 3-4 sadly have
happened in every age of the Church; at sometimes more devastating to the
faithful and the security of the Church than at other times. The situation
Paul outlines has already happened at Ephesus where false teachers are enamored
with their own speculations, refuse to accept correction, and take here and
there from Scripture only what suits them (1 Tim 1:4; 4:7).
Question: What does Paul tell Timothy should be
his response to these unpleasant and theological dangerous conditions?
Answer: He should remain composed and accept the
resulting hardships while he continues to fulfill his mission as an evangelist,
preaching the "good news" of Christ.
2 Timothy 4:6-8 ~ The End of Paul's Race and His
Victor's Crown
6 For I am
already being poured out like a libation, and the time of my departure is at
hand. 7 I have competed
well, I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. 8 From now on the crown of righteousness
awaits for me, which the Lord, the just judge, will award to me on that day,
and not only to me, but to all who have longed for his appearance.
Paul uses liturgical language to express his life lived in dedication to the Lord that is at the point of being sacrificed. In the Old Covenant liturgy of worship, the blood of certain sacrificial victims was collected in a chalice and sprinkled or poured out at the base of the altar (Lev 1:5; 3:1-2; 4:7, 30; etc.), and a libation of wine was poured out against the holy altar of sacrifice at the end of the worship service (Ex 29:38-40; Num 28:7). Paul compares these liturgical practices to the offering up of his life as a sacrifice in his death which he calls his "departure" from this temporal existence.
Paul likes to use soldiering or sporting imagery like boxing and foot races in his letters. He refers to his life as a Christian missionary as a race in which he has "competed well," and has "finished," having "kept the faith" and for which he will be awarded the victor's crown like a Greek or Roman athlete (i.e., 1 Cor 9:24; 1 Tim 1:18).
Question: What is the "crown of righteousness"
that awaits Paul in verse 8 and who is the judge who will award it? See Gal 5:5; Jam 1:12; 1 Pt 5:4 and Rev 2:10-11.
Answer: It is what Christ will give him and all
the faithful on Judgment Day as an eternal reward for a life of faith and
righteousness.
Paul trusts in Christ' promise of a reward after his thirty years of ministry, suffering, and success in completing his mission to take the Gospel of salvation to the Gentiles as Jesus commissioned him without straying from the course Christ set for him (Acts 20:24). "That day" refers to the Day of Divine Judgment and his appearing refers either to the future return of Christ in glory (4:1) or possibly His first coming in the flesh (1:10).
Chapter 4:9-22 ~ Paul's Personal Requests, Final Greetings, and Farewell
2 Timothy 4:9-18 ~ Paul's Requests
9 Try to
join me soon, 10 for Demas,
enamored of the present world, deserted me and went to Thessalonica, Crescens
to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. 11 Luke
is the only one with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is helpful to
me in the ministry. 12 I
have sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13 When
you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus I Troas, the papyrus rolls, and
especially the parchments. 14 Alexander
the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm; the Lord will repay him according
to his deeds. 15 You too be
on guard against him, for he has strongly resisted our preaching. 16 At my first defense, no one appeared
on my behalf, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them! 17 But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength,
so that through me the proclamation might be completed and all the Gentiles
might hear it. And I was rescued from the lion's mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every
evil threat and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory
forever and ever. Amen.
Paul senses the nearness of death, and so there is a sense of urgency in his request for Timothy to join him in verse 9.
Paul is still naming the defectors, partly because of his deeply wounded feelings of betrayal and partly to warn Timothy not to count on them for support (4:15), but he also names friends:
13 When
you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus I Troas, the papyrus rolls, and
especially the parchments.
Paul expects Timothy to fulfill his request to visit him
in prison and asks him to bring not only his cloak but papyrus rolls and
parchments, two forms of writing material. Papyrus pages were made from
papyrus reeds that were soaked in water and then pounded together and dried to
form sheets. Parchment was of higher quality and came from animal skins. If
these are blank sheets, Paul intends to do more letter writing while he still
had time. However, they could be Paul's copies of Old Testament Scripture.
16 At my
first defense no one appeared on my behalf, but everyone deserted me. May it
not be held against them! 17 But
the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the proclamation
might be completed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was rescued from
the lion's mouth. 18 The
Lord will rescue me from every evil threat and will bring me safely to his
heavenly kingdom. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
It is uncertain if Paul is referring to his first
imprisonment and trial or if he is referring to the first part of his most
recent trial where he was expected to present his defense before the Roman
judges. Since he mentions being rescued by the Lord to complete his mission to
the Gentiles using the imagery of escaping from "the lion's mouth," that could
be literal or symbolic, it is likely Paul is referring to his first
incarceration when he was released to continue his work in the Lord's name. He
is unsure if he will be released this time, but he gives a little prayer
expressing his confidence that God will rescue him "from every evil" to bring
him "safe to his heavenly kingdom." And for this confidence, he gives glory to
God!
2 Timothy 4:19-22 ~ Paul's Final Greetings and Farewell
19 Greet
Prisca and Aquila and the family of Onesiphorus. 20 Erastus remained in Corinth, while I
left Trophimus sick at Miletus. 21 Try to get here before winter. Eubulus,
Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brothers send greetings. 22 The
Lord be with your spirit. Gace be with all of you.
Pricilla and Aquila are a married couple and dear friends of Paul. They were living in Rome (Rom 16:3-5) but have returned to Ephesus. Notice he gives her the affectionate nickname of Prisca and names her before her husband. They assisted Paul in his ministry in Corinth (Acts 18:2-3) and Ephesus (Acts 18:19-26; 1 Cor 16:19). In his letter to the Romans, Paul wrote that they risked death to save his life, and all the Gentile communities are indebted to them, but he does not give the details of their courageous acts (Rom 16:3-5).
21 Try to
get here before winter.
The coming of winter will make travel by sea, the faster
way to make the journey, very hazardous if not impossible, and Paul needs his
cloak to stay warm in prison (4:13).
Erastus was the treasurer of the city of Corinth (Acts 19:22; Rom 16:24). Trophimus was from the province of Asia and accompanied Paul from Greece to Troas (Acts 20:4-5). Eubulus, a disciple of Paul's and a member of the community at Corinth in Greece, is only named here.
Linus may be the Pope St. Linus listed as the successor of St. Peter as Bishop of Rome and Claudia is probably his mother. Both are mentioned in the 4th century Apostolic Constitutions. Concerning Linus, Bishop Eusebius wrote: "After the martyrdom of Paul and Peter, Linus was the first to obtain the episcopate of the Church at Rome. Paul mentions him, when writing to Timothy from Rome, in the salutation at the end of the epistle" (Eusebius, Church History, III.2; also see III.4.9; III.13). St. Irenaeus makes the same identification in Against Heresies, III.3.3, by Pseudo-Ignatius in the Epistle to the Trallians, Chapter 7, and by Bishop Eusebius in his 4th century Church History 3.2; 5.6 who noted that he served as Peter's successor for twelve years, after which he was succeeded by Anacletus/Cletus (Church History, III.13).
Pudens, a layman of the Roman church, was an early Christian saint and martyr. According to tradition, he was a Roman senator who housed St. Peter while he was in Rome and was baptized by him. Pudens suffered martyrdom during Emperor Nero's Christian persecutions. He is commemorated on April 14th in the Eastern Orthodox Church calendar and May 19th according to the Dominican Martyrology and probably died in the same year that Paul and Peter suffered martyrdom. Paul was beheaded and Peter was crucified (according to tradition both died on June 29, AD 67).
22 The
Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with all of you.
Paul ends his letter with a blessing for Timothy and his
entire congregation. All the Pastoral Epistles end with a benediction using
the word "you" in the plural (see 1 Tim 6:21 and Tit 3:15), suggesting that
while his letters are addressed to Timothy and Titus personally, he intended it
to be read aloud to the congregations they served. According to tradition,
Timothy suffered martyrdom in the city of Ephesus during a period of intense
Roman persecution of the Christian population. He traveled the path of his
spiritual father even in his departure from this earthly life into the eternal
life beyond.
Questions for reflection or discussion:
Question: Have you ever felt pressured to deny
Christ of His teachings? What did you do? Did you remember what Jesus said
about denying Him before others and did that influence you? Both Paul and
Timothy could have probably saved their lives by denying Christ but why was
that kind of temporal salvation not worth it to them?
Question: Timothy couldn't have asked for a better Christian role model than Paul. Who are your Christian role models, and what has their behavior taught you?
Question: When the resurrected Christ confronted Paul on his journey to Damascus to persecute Christians, Jesus said to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" (Acts 9:4). What did Jesus mean, and how does what He told Paul apply to those who denigrate Christians and the Church today?
Endnotes:
1. Some translators prefer to interpret 3:16 as "All
inspired Scripture." However, while it is grammatically possible, contextually
and statistically it unlikely since it would allow the possibility that some
Scriptures might not be inspired, and neither Paul nor any other theologian in
the early Church would accept such a proposition. Also, Greek scholars will
testify that parallel construction in Greek almost always treats the second
modifier as a predicate as in "Scripture is inspired" rather than an
attributive as in "inspired Scripture."
2. Paul's trusted associate, Titus, was a Gentile-Christian assistant who went from Paul's home church in Antioch, Syria with Paul and Barnabas to Jerusalem for the Church's first Council (Acts 15:2; Gal 2:1). According to 2 Corinthians, Titus was with Paul on his third missionary journey (2 Cor 2:13; 7:6, 13-14). He delivered Paul's letter to the community (2 Cor 7:6-8) and had the responsibility of taking up a collection for the Christian church in Jerusalem (2 Cor 8:6, 16).
Michal Hunt, Copyright © 2019 Agape Bible Study. Permissions All Rights Reserved.
Catechism references for this lesson (* indicates
Scripture is quoted or paraphrases in the citation):
2 Timothy 2:22 (CCC 2518*);
2:23-26 (CCC 2518*)
2 Timothy 3:2-5 (CCC 1852*);
3:12 (CCC 287*)
4 (CCC 2015*);
4:1 (CCC 679*)