Article Images Copyright 2023 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. The world easily puts up with the mask of a religion which depends on itself, but the piety which derives its vigor directly from Christ is as odious to modern Christians as it was to the ancient Jews [Bengel]. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1977. Things are very much taking this direction of late, and at the present moment. Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. In other words, there is within the Old Testament so much concerning Jesus Christ that through the understanding and the study of the Old Testament you should logically be led to Jesus Christ. There were those who would revenge themselves on an enemy by informing against him. No man can teach what he does not know, and therefore before a man can teach Christ to others he must know him himself. That persecution which will properly furnish any evidence that we are the friends of Christ, must be only that which is for righteousness sake Matthew 5:10, and must be brought upon us in an honest effort to obey the commands of God. The closing chapter (2 Timothy 4:1-22) then gives his solemn charge, and at the same time his own expression of what was before him. We find a precisely similar kind of combination in Paul. [4.] As Shakespeare had it: "Good name in man and woman, dear my lord. If Timothy wishes to live godly in Christ, he must make up his mind to encounter. Paul contrasts the conduct of Timothy, his loyal disciple, with the conduct of the heretics who were doing their utmost to wreck the Church. It may well be a proof of Timothy's courage and consecration that he had seen very clearly what could happen to an apostle and had yet not hesitated to cast in his lot with Paul. Indeed it may be well to remark here, that we never read of Timothy appointing bishops or elders. The thing that amazes me is that he can attract people who will support him. This may be either an injury done to his feelings, his family, his reputation, his property, his liberty, his influence; it may be by depriving him of an office which he held, or preventing him from obtaining one to which he is eligible; it may be by subjecting him to fine or imprisonment, to banishment, torture, or death. 2. Only Luke is with me." THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL For, if we do not believe their truth and goodness, they will do us no good. 442.]. All rights reserved. Godly = adv. He must maintain this confidence, knowing that the Scriptures are divinely given and that they are Gods means of instructing people in right belief and right living. Xenophon tells us how Cyrus, the Persian king, defined the alazon ( G213) : "The name alazon ( G213) seems to apply to those who pretend that they are richer than they are or braver than they are, and to those who promise to do what they cannot do, and that, too, when it is evident that they do this only for the sake of getting something or making some gain" (Xenophon: Cyropoedia, 2, 2, 12). And you will find as God's word becomes a very part of your life and you begin to be guided by the word of God, that God will begin to use you in very exciting ways. The word is huperephanos ( G5244) . They should remember that, in this respect, they are treated as the Master was, and are in the goodly company of the prophets, apostles, and martyrs; for they were all persecuted. From childhood he has been guided by the Scriptures, and his faith in those Scriptures gives him assurance in his salvation (14-15). Now though it is infallible, inerrant and inspired, I did make a mistake in my message this morning on the speed of Arcturus; it's twelve thousand miles a second, I think I said twelve million. So don't expect the world to speak well of you or to applaud you for your living a godly life and taking a righteous stand. When children are disobedient to their parents, and break through the obligations which they lie under to them both in duty and gratitude, and frequently in interest, having their dependence upon them and their expectation from them, they make the times perilous; for what wickedness will those stick at who will be abusive to their own parents and And so Paul said to Timothy, "You have fully known". A. M. Chirgwin has story after story of how the Scriptures came by chance into the hands of men and changed their lives. 3:1 You must realize this--that in the last days difficult times will set in. A man can reach a stage when, so far from controlling it, he can become a slave to some habit or desire. We've just experienced a tremendous demonstration of that in the Los Angeles basin in the last couple of weeks. I am not at liberty of course to leave Christendom, I dare not get out of the great house at all; indeed I cannot (at any rate without becoming an apostate) leave the house of God, however bad its state may be. The Greek is hupomone ( G5281) , which means not a passive sitting down and bearing things but a triumphant facing of them so that even out of evil there can come good. "Because ye are not of the world therefore the world hateth you" (John 15:19; Matthew 10:22,38,39). The first is the moral character of the source or channel whence Timothy had derived what he knew. The scriptures we are to know are the holy scriptures; they come from the holy God, were delivered by holy men, contain holy precepts, treat of holy things, and were designed to make us holy and to lead us in the way of holiness to happiness; being called the holy scriptures, they are by this distinguished from profane writings of all sorts, and from those that only treat morality, and common justice and honesty, but do not meddle with holiness. Only in the New Testament have we any picture of Jesus, any account of his life and any record of his teaching. It is as if he said to them: "You have been well warned." It is not "the commandment," as of authority, but "according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus." Years later that same brigand turned up again. 2 Timothy 3:12 - Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. We have already seen how secluded the life of the respectable Greek woman was, how she was brought up under the strictest supervision, how she was not allowed "to see anything, to hear anything, or to ask any questions," how she never appeared, even on a shopping expedition, alone on the streets, how she was never allowed even to appear at a public meeting. I think we've gone just about as far as we can. This statement does not contradict what Paul said in 2 Timothy 3:9. There are those who shrink from helping on others in order to the work and doctrine of the Lord. The more the person who lives godly and righteous in Christ stands out. Perilous Times 2 Timothy 3:1. But the condition of the believers had deteriorated. Oh, Jesus, you mean you believe that story? If anyone proposes to introduce into his life a loyalty which surpasses all earthly loyalties, there are bound to be clashes. Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines; for it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace,Hebrews 13:9. The whole idea is that of thoroughly fitting you as an instrument that God can use. When Job was talking to his friends and they were talking to him about the future, and Job said, Oh, I wish I were dead. Whose will is to live, or who are bent on living. "The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day." He must study the Scriptures to make himself useful to God and to his fellow-men. In these terrible days men would be braggarts and arrogant. Because the true child of God brings the worldly person under conviction. The most amazing things may happen if he does, for there is a saving wisdom here that is in no other book. We have already seen that that teaching issued in one of two things. (1.) He was wrong on that you know. It is not simply now to follow these, as urged in the first epistle (1 Timothy 6:11); but he adds a most characteristic word in the second epistle. [3.] It instructs us in that which is true, reproves us for that which is amiss, directs us in that which is good. [ See verse text ] Persecution against godly people is to be expected in this world; it's one of the few constants in life (2 Timothy 3:12). "Reprobate concerning the faith.". Each one of these words in the Greek is an interesting word study. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear" (it was what Timothy was manifesting), "but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. In 2 Timothy 3:9 he meant that the teaching of evil does not necessarily become more extensive and capture a wider audience as evil becomes worse. 13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. I mean, people will have had it with the unrighteousness of the world. He is sure that God will rescue the man who puts his faith in him. There is training. He is sure that the ungodly man will go from bad to worse and that there is literally no future for the man who refuses to accept the way of God. Men will be without human affection (astorgos, G794) . We live in a fallen world with a spiritual enemy who prowls around as a roaring lion or appears to us as an angel of light seeking to devour, destroy, or deceive us.Jesus clearly told us that in this world, those who believe in Him would suffer persecution and pain, and Paul expands that truth by adding that all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. It is a great happiness to know the certainty of the things wherein we have been instructed (Luke 1:4); not only to know what the truths are, but to know that they are of undoubted certainty. We must note that Paul here makes a distinction. There is patience. 2 Timothy 3:12 Context. "I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers, with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day, greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears." shall suffer persecutionand will not decline it (Ga 5:11). He had fully known his conversation: Thou hast fully know my doctrine, and manner of life; his manner of life was of a piece with his doctrine, and did not contradict it. It is an immense blessing that we have the truth not only in a book, but in a practical shape, the truth that comes out of the heart and from the lips of living men of God. Observe, (1.) It is to be remembered that a man may lose his soul far more easily in prosperity than in adversity; and he is on the way to losing his soul when he assesses the value of life by the number of things which he possesses. There was infirmity in the character of Timothy. There was the great trade route from the Euphrates valley which came by way of Colosse and Laodicea and poured the wealth of the east into the lap of Ephesus. My wife and I eat out quite a bit. And Paul said, You've known the Holy Scriptures, able to bring you to a faith in Jesus Christ, salvation through the faith in Jesus Christ. He said, Who is this? 3:14-17 But as for you, remain loyal to the things which you have learned, and in which your belief has been confirmed, for you know from whom you learned them, and you know that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that will bring you salvation through the faith which is in Christ Jesus. The Greek verb kratein ( G2902) means to control. But the phrase may mean any future time, whether near or distant. It will be getting better a little further down the road, but evil days are going to wax worse and worse, until the Lord takes His church out and then God judges the world for its unrighteousness and ungodliness. There is only one test for falsity--"You will know them by their fruits." Note, Those are wise indeed who are wise to salvation. [Note: Knight, p. Therefore it is incumbent for the Christian to look to this gravely, never to be dragged by the fear of breaking unity into accrediting what dishonours the Lord. Storge is the word used especially of family love, the love of child for parent and parent for child. But thou hast fully known ( 2 Timothy 3:10 ), Now in contrast to this, boy, and what a contrast the Christian is to the world around him, and more and more, you know, more and more your lifestyle is different from the world. Promotions are withheld, invitations are denied, and a snickering unpopularity are the daily portion of many precious souls working in a hostile, atheistic environment. Oh I know it costs more but . God wants us each to take His power, His love, and His calm thinking and overcome fear, to be used of Him with all the gifts He gives. And for a person to take advantage of a child is unthinkable. He wants to accustom his mind to expect hardship instead of shirking it. "If religion gives no quarter to vice, the vicious will give no quarter to religion and its professors.". It is beyond argument that the Scriptures can convict a man of his error and convince him of the power of Christ. Jesus said, "You do search the scriptures: because in them you think you have life; but actually, they are testifying of me" ( John 5:39 ). It is the Greek parakolouthein ( G3877) and literally means to follow alongside; but it is used with a magnificent width of meaning. And so Paul is warning Timothy of certain things that will be transpiring in the last days. Man can do it but not God. You're a pilgrim. Verse 1. This is God's attitude to men. The oldest Greek laws disfranchised the man who struck his parents; to strike a father was in Roman law as bad as murder; in the Jewish law honour for father and mother comes high in the list of the Ten Commandments. But no man ought to separate himself from the children of God, unless it be a dire necessity for the Lord; it is clearly not according to Christ. Plutarch uses the word to describe a quack doctor. It appears it was not merely in Rome. Easy it seems to get sort of distracted and off course. I don't know exactly yet what He said but when I find out I know He's going to be right. It is not enough to be satisfied when a church is humming like a dynamo and every night in the week has its own crowded organization. (3) if we are persecuted, we should carefully inquire, before we avail ourselves of this consolation, whether we are persecuted because we "live godly in Christ Jesus," or for some other reason. What is a man well taught in the truth for, if not to communicate his knowledge to others that are faithful, but not equally instructed in the word of God? There was a state of things coming when it would be impossible to have local charges chosen according to the full sanction which they had in apostolic days. I've never found that in one of those little Bible promise books, I mean, promise things yet. It seems to me, I confess, that if there were simplicity of faith, the Lord would give one eyes to see some at least that call upon the Lord out of a pure heart. VERSION, NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. They're profitable for doctrine. Would you find it easier if it, if the account said, And a submarine surfaced and the captain got out on deck and, you know, they hauled Jonah in and they submerged again and headed towards Joppa and let him off the port. And leaving guilelessness, will draw near to malice; And forsaking the commandments of the Lord. No one can possibly mistake him. The Jews divided all time into this present age and the age to come. The volume of the book, the Old Testament, it's all about Jesus Christ. These things may be expected in the best times, and under the most favorable circumstances; and it is known that a large part of the history of the world, in its relation to the church, is nothing more than a history of persecution. e Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.. Guard the Deposit Entrusted to You. Don't expect the world to applaud when you speak out against evil. He directs him to keep close to a good education, and particularly to what he had learned out of the holy scriptures (2 Timothy 3:14; 2 Timothy 3:15): Continue thou in the things which thou hast learned. Yes, and everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. (1) it teaches the only way to the Father is through Jesus; (2) it teaches a morality (a way of life) unpopular with the world; (3) it teaches a miraculous creation, a miraculous end; and a miraculous Savior who was resurrected; (4), Why does the world hate Christians? That the man of God may be perfect ( 2 Timothy 3:17 ). for it is evident that there have been many godly persons who have never suffered banishment, or imprisonment, or flight, or any kind of persecution. And so Paul, you know, how I've lived; my faith, my longsuffering, my love, my patience, and the persecutions and afflictions that came to me. Xenophon in the Memorabilia tells how Socrates utterly condemned such impostors. Do you have a hard time accepting that man can build a great fish that can swallow men and keep them under water for several days and deposit them later at a port?Hey, hey, wait a minute then. . The braggart is a swaggering creature, who tries to bluster his way into power and eminence. She doesn't have the time to prepare the meal on Friday evening and we'll go out on Friday night. There are still Church dignitaries whose main thought is their own dignity; but the Christian is the follower of him who was meek and lowly in heart. Paul met him on his first missionary journey. That's proper and you should have that desire. It is able to make us wise to salvation; that is, it is a sure guide in our way to eternal life. Thou hast fully known my afflictions. Yea, and all that would live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. He knew that he had suffered ill for doing well (2 Timothy 3:11; 2 Timothy 3:11): "Thou hast fully known the persecutions and afflictions that came unto me" (he mentions those only which happened to him while Timothy was with him, at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra); "and therefore let it be no surprise to thee if thou suffer hard things, it is no more than I have endured before." He said, "A wicked and an adulterous generation seeks after a sign; but no sign will be given it, except the sign of the prophet Jonah: For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth" ( Matthew 12:38-40 ). Again, it is startling. Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution - Paul takes occasion from the reference to his own persecutions, to say that his case was not unique. Compare the catalogue, Ro 1:29, &c., where much the same sins are attributed to heathen men; it shall be a relapse into virtual heathendom, with all its beast-like propensities, whence the symbol of it is "a beast" (Re 13:1, 11, 12, &c.; 17:3, 8, 11). The qualities he lists are not qualifications in the sense that anyone who fulfils these requirements is an elder (for such a person may not have the elder-shepherd qualities outlined above). True, he is telling of something which happened later than this, but the wretched story would be the same (Irenaeus: Against Heresies, 1, 13, 3). Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. It would not be accordant with the mind of God. Still the man has become crude, blasphemous, ranting and raving, a disgrace to Jesus Christ who said, "By this sign shall men know that you are my disciples, that you love one another" ( John 13:34 ). It is needful to exercise judgment now. All God-inspired scripture is useful for teaching, for the conviction of error, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work. but they deny the power thereof: [Paul said to Timothy] from such turn away. Or are you going to develop a doctrine that is diametrically opposed to what Jesus said? No matter what the reasons or excuses for joining with them, "turn away.". Men will be implacable in their hatreds (aspondos, G786) . A book with a record such as it has cannot be disregarded. Otherwise this might have seemed to be (what unbelief taunts and stigmatizes it, spite of His sanction) pride of heart and presumption. God said it.They are profitable. A man may embrace some absurd opinion, and call it religion; he may adopt some mode of dress irresistibly ludicrous, from the mere love of singularity, and may call it conscience; or he may be boorish in his manners, and uncivil in his deportment, outraging all the laws of social life, and may call this deadness to the world; and for these, and similar things, he may be contemned, ridiculed, and despised. This is evidently not the true remedy to abandon the confession of Christ: only an apostate could think of it. If anyone proposes to accept a set of standards quite different from the world's, he is bound to encounter trouble. "Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things. It is often a very great safeguard for the saint of God; for, after all, it makes no small difference who says this or that. Paul's life contrasted with the world. Even an unbeliever is acting unfairly unless he tries to read it. In either case the word describes a certain harshness of mind which separates a man from his fellow-men in unrelenting bitterness. When we are tempted to do so, we should hear again the voice of our blessed Lord saying on the Cross: "Father, forgive them.". "Every scripture" for this is the proper force of the passage "Every scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.". 2 Timothy 3 He preached in the same church as C. H. Spurgeon over one hundred years earlier. Well soon your Bible will be so messed up you wouldn't be able to read it. Don't start messing with it. Or it can mean that a man is so dishonourable that he breaks the terms of the agreement he has made. Originally the alazon ( G213) was a wandering quack. Aspondos ( G786) can mean two things. A man may embrace some absurd opinion, and call it religion; he may adopt some mode of dress irresistibly ludicrous, from the mere love of singularity, and may call it "conscience;" or he may be boorish in his manners, and uncivil in his deportment, outraging all the laws of social life, and may call this "deadness to the world;" and for these, and similar things, he may be contemned, ridiculed, and despised. He is sure that in the long run it is better to suffer with God and the right than to prosper with men and the wrong. "And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also." This sort of atmosphere will mark the last days . Here is the essential conclusion. Thus he comforts Timothy at the same time that he admonishes him. But we, so often, make the mistake of going out ill-equipped or running without a message. "Trucebreakers". One day a visitor came to the ward and left a supply of gospels. For it is not dogma pure and simple, it is not mere instruction; and we may thank God for it. Theophylact called this kind of pride akropolis (compare G206 and G4172) kakon ( G2556) , the citadel of evils. And then Jesus will come and establish God's righteous kingdom, but by then, those that will remain will be saying, Oh, God help us. Assuredly he would rejoice to scare Timothy from the field of serving Christ, and would shrink from no means to secure it. 1. Only here and Titus 2:12. Now you'd think that the world would treat a person like that very cordially. In a measure, no doubt, the truth is in Christendom, and only there; for one cannot look for the truth in Judaism or heathenism now. The word here is makrothumia ( G3115) ; and makrothumia, as the Greeks used it, usually meant patience with people. In the last days perilous times will come: The word translated perilous has the idea of troubles, difficulty, and stressful situations. But let him not infer, "therefore," that he is to be enrolled among the martyrs, and that he is certainly a real Christian. The man who is huperephanos ( G5244) , said Theophrastus, has a kind of contempt for everyone except himself. The difference between the braggart and the man who is arrogant is this. Timothy needed to realize, as all Christians do, especially those to whom "prosperity theology" appeals, that when a person determines to live a godly life he or she will suffer persecution. There is nothing that more shows God than His ability to combine that which is eternal with care for the smallest things of this life. "All scripture is given by inspiration of God.". Every one who is of the truth hears my voice.' We should be asking: what, if any, is the unifying purpose which binds all this activity together? Take what is called physical Christianity a stupid, gross, and heathenish phrase, but just enough to show where people are drifting to. He read them and never rested until he obtained the rest of the Bible. It is said that, after hearing an evangelical sermon, Lord Melbourne once remarked: "Things have come to a pretty pass when religion is allowed to invade the sphere of private life." His answer was: "That which will be most useful to them when they are men." God had made Jesus to be Lord and Christ, preached Peter on that day of power, when as yet much lay hid, and the great instrument of the revelation of the mystery was still shrouded in the darkness of midnight. They must not lie by us neglected, seldom or never looked into. And may not their freedom from it prove that they have surrendered the principles of their religion, where they should have stood firm, though the world were arrayed against them? i. Now, it is doubtless as true as it ever was, that a man who will live as the Saviour did, will, like him, be subjected to some such injury or disadvantage. The scriptures are able to make us truly wise, wise for our souls and another world. Yet most people today have never heard of John Gill. It's twelve thousand miles a second, but that's pretty fast, too. "Follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. And how profitable is the word of God to us today! Don't start trying to cut out certain stories because they don't fit your scheme because you have a little hard, you have a hard time sort of believing that. When our Lord was pleased to take upon himself the form of a servant, and to go about preaching the kingdom of God; he took all opportunities in public, and more especially in private, to caution his disciples against . The peculiar task confided to the latter was care of doctrine much more than of outward order. As teachers we should sometimes ask ourselves: what am I trying to do with these people whom I teach? (2.) The nature of its doctrine was no way likely to command success: (1) it condemns all other religions, some established for ages; (2) it enjoins precepts ungrateful to flesh and blood, the mortifying of the flesh, the love of enemies, and the bearing of the cross; (3) it enforces these seemingly unreasonable precepts by promises seemingly incredible; not good things such as afford complacency to our senses, but such as cannot be obtained till after this life, and presuppose what then seemed impossible, the resurrection; (4) it predicts to its followers what would seem sure to keep most of the world from embracing it, persecutions. Here is one of the most terrible pictures in the New Testament of what a godless world would be like, with the terrible qualities of godlessness set out in a ghastly series. 1. Sets before him his own example, which Timothy had been an eye-witness of, having long attended Paul (2 Timothy 3:10; 2 Timothy 3:10): Thou hast fully known my doctrine.
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