Second Timothy: An Exegetical Analysis and Exposition

By Dr. Paula Sewell

If there is ever a time when we need to read, study, and obey the Word of God, it is now. The tide of lawlessness, spreading like wildfire, can be tempered when Christians know His Word and can accurately apply it to improve their lives and those around them.

As the seismic tremors of deception attempt to penetrate the church, those who are "rooted and grounded" in God's Word can become effective witnesses in combating this evil end-time occurrence.

Paul, the apostle, writing to his protege Timothy, warned of the events of the "last days." He wrote, "But know this, that in the last days, perilous times will come" (2 Timothy 3:1). He noted nineteen vices that would grip society and become evident as people's hearts deteriorate and become increasingly wicked. Notably, these vices fostered by deception and indifference to God and His Word bring Paul's prophetic writing to reality.

This commentary provides an in-depth study of the book of 2 Timothy. It was written to:

encourage believers to "study to shew themselves approved unto God,"

"rightly divide the word of truth" that will enable them to avoid the pitfalls of deception,

promote a better understanding of who God is,

grow in their faith and become mature believers,

and facilitate further reflection with the goal of becoming lifelong students of the Word of God.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 12, 2023
• ISBN: 9781685705442

Book preview

cover.jpg

Second Timothy

An Exegetical Analysis and Exposition

Dr. Paula Sewell

ISBN 978-1-68570-543-5 (paperback)

ISBN 978-1-68570-544-2 (digital)

Copyright © 2023 by Dr. Paula Sewell

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Acknowledgment

Abbreviations

Definitions

Preface

The Bible

Article XIII

Article XV

Chapter 1

The Preamble to Second Timothy

The Apostle Paul

Timothy

Ephesus

Chapter 2

Second Timothy

Authorship

Genre

Date and Place of Writing

Audience

Historical Background

Themes

A Panoramic View of Second Timothy

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Citations to Greek

Outline of Second Timothy as Used in This Commentary157

Chapter 1

Examples of Disloyalty and Loyalty (1:15–18)Chapter 2

Timothy's Responsibility in Light of False Teachers (2:22–26)Chapter 3

As Learned from God's Word (3:15–17)Chapter 4

Chapter 3

Second Timothy 1:1–18

Salutation

Thanksgiving

God's Word for Today: Thankfulness

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

Timothy's Faith and Heritage

God's Word for Today: The Transforming Power of Love

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

Do Not Be Ashamed of the Gospel

Consider Paul's Example

Be Loyal to the Faith and Keep the Truth

God's Word for Today: Hold Fast to Sound Words

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

Examples of Disloyalty and Loyalty

God's Word for Today: Loyalty

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

Second Timothy 2:1–26

An Appeal to Endurance

Entrust the Ministry to Reliable Men

Endure Hardship as a Good Soldier

God's Word for Today: Strength beyond Our Strength

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

Remain Loyal unto Death

Handling the Word Accurately

God's Word for Today: Watch Out for Heretics

(False Prophets and False Teachers)262

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

Approved and Disapproved Workers

Timothy's Responsibility in Light of False Teachers

Chapter 4

Second Timothy 3:1–17

Perilous Times and Perilous Men

God's Word for Today: Surviving the Last Days

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

The Indictment of False Teachers

As Learned from Paul's Example

God's Word for Today: Living in Christ Jesus

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

As Learned from God's Word

God's Word for Today: Being Equipped for Every Good Work

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

Second Timothy 4:1–22

A Final Appeal to Timothy

Paul's Final Testimony

Paul's Final Instructions

God's Word for Today: The Prayers of a Righteous Man in Today's Society

Application

Questions For Reflection And Discussion

Final Greetings

The Benediction

Postface

Bibliography

Commentaries

Reference Materials

Dictionaries

Concordance

Encyclopedia

Handbooks

Journals

About the Author

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version of the Bible. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked AMPC are taken from the Amplified Bible. Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, and 1987 by the Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org.

Scripture quotations marked TPT are taken from Letters from Heaven by the Apostle Paul: The Passion Translation. Copyright © 2014 and 2016. Used by permission of BroadStreet Publishing Group, LLC, Racine, Wisconsin, USA. All rights reserved. thePassionTranslation.com.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, and 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois, 60188. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from the Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publication. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked RSV are taken from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible. Copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971, the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Acknowledgment

To the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Godhead who has guided me in the execution and completion of this commentary, thank you!

The words Christian and believer are used interchangeably.

The words Paul and the apostle are used interchangeably.

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

—Second Timothy 2:15 KJV

Abbreviations

ABD: The Anchor Bible Dictionary

BECNT: Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament

BETS: Bulletin of the Evangelical Theological Society

BBS: Bulletin for Biblical Research

DPL: Dictionary of Paul and His Letters

ESV: English Standard Version

HCSB: Holman Christian Standard Bible

HIBD: Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary

JBL: Journal of Biblical Literature

JETS: Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society

JSOT: Journal for the Study of Old Testament

JSNT: Journal for the Study of the New Testament

JTS: Journal of Theological Studies

KJV: King James Version

NKJV: New King James Version

TDNT: Theological Dictionary of the New Testament

TJ: Trinity Journal

TMSJ: The Master's Seminary Journal

WTJ: Westminster Theological Journal

WBC: Word Biblical Commentary

Definitions

Authenticity. The Bible is authentic. This means that it is genuine, bona fide and actually and exactly what is claimed.¹ As a result, the books of the Bible are neither spurious nor fraudulent and are free from anything counterfeit or deceptive.² Presently, the Bible is the same as it was when each book finally appeared in its canonical form.³

Bible. The word Bible comes from two Greek words (ta biblia)⁴ and means the books.⁵ One theologian note that the early church added to biblia a unique title, such as holy, divine, and sacred.⁶ This practice was adopted without alteration into Latin during the Middle Ages. Currently, the English words Holy Bible are used instead of Latin. Furthermore, the expression Holy Bible refers entirely to the Old and New Testament books.⁷

Bible. Canon of the The term canon means a measuring rod or rule.⁸ This measuring rod or rule, derived from the Greek term kanon and designated as a carpenter's rule, was the standard by which books, regarded by the church as authoritative and divine were classified.⁹ These books were believed to be spiritually superior.¹⁰ They acquired the distinction of Holy Scriptures and became the accepted standards for faith and practice.¹¹

Exegesis. The Scriptures are to be read and used in practical ways. In The Zondervan Encyclopedia of the Bible, Tenney says that the material, written several hundred years ago, presents notable challenges to contemporary readers because of differences in the language, culture, and environments.¹² These differences were believed to allow for the practice of exegesis, making the Bible relevant for today, without changing the original meaning and intention of the author. A beautiful summary is proposed by David Freedman. He says exegesis involves a thorough and systematic study of Bible passages to produce useful interpretations of those passages.¹³ Freedman continues, the goal of exegesis is to understand neither more nor less of the information contained in any passage of Scripture.¹⁴ In his conclusion, he assures the reader that when exegesis is carefully carried out, the language of the biblical text becomes evident in its earliest or original form.¹⁵

Genre. This French term is portrayed as kinds or types of literary writings.¹⁶ Examples of these literary types include comedy, narrative, epic, tragedy, history, parable, letter, fiction, poetry, gospel, prophecy, wisdom literature, and apocalypse.¹⁷ One finds that some books such as Daniel and Revelation are apocalyptic and reveal divine mysteries concerning future events.¹⁸ Others like Job and Proverbs are wisdom books while Amos is a prophetic oracle. ¹⁹ There is the opinion that categories of the genre are generally useful when interpreting biblical texts, especially those that are narrative.²⁰ This is stated to be important, because when one recognizes the nature of the text, one can enter a life-world other than their own and become transformed by the new spiritual order it creates.²¹

Inerrant. The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy defines the term inerrant as, the quality of being free from all deceit or error and safeguarding the truth that Scripture is entirely true and trustworthy in all its assertions.²²

Infallible. This is a compound word. The Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms indicates that it is from the Latin infallibilis, meaning not, and fallere, meaning to deceive.²³ From all accounts, the Bible will not deceive or portray anything that leads to error. A clear picture showing the infallibility of the Bible is presented in scholarship. It safeguards in absolute terms, the truth that Holy Scripture is a sure, safe, and reliable rule and guide in all matters of [biblical doctrine].²⁴

Pseudonymity. This word originated from the Greek pseudonymous, and means bearing a false name.²⁵ Whenever authorship is given to someone who is not the legitimate author of the work, pseudonymity occurs. Terry Wilder believes that pseudonymous writings existed in the Old Testament (e.g., Daniel) and in the New Testament (e.g., the Pastoral Epistles).²⁶ He outlines several other pieces of literature, such as 4 Ezra, 1 Enoch, 3 Corinthians, the Gospel of Peter, and the Epistle to the Laodiceans. However, he thinks there is little evidence to support these claims.²⁷

Scripture. In Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Scripture is defined as, the Judeo-Christian name for the specific literature the church receives as divine instruction.²⁸ It means a writing in the Latin scriptura and in the Greek graphe.²⁹ Scripture, in its plural form, encompasses the entire collection of writings (see Matthew 21:42 and 1 Corinthians 15:3–4). When Scripture is used in the singular form it can mean either a stated passage [Mark 12:10] or the constituent body of writings (Galatians 3:22).³⁰

Preface

The Bible

The importance of the Bible in any society is unquestionable. It is not an ordinary book. Presumably, for most Christians, the Bible is the lifeline of their existence and the authority upon which they govern their lives. Its pages contain the inspired Word of God, which has the power to deliver humanity from its corrupt and fallen state. The Bible contains sixty-six books written by holy men as they were moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21). This inspired book is, therefore, of divine origin, inerrant, and infallible.³¹

The Bible is the best-selling book of all time.³² It is reported to be the most printed, most translated, and most read book in the world.³³ These findings are corroborated in the book Golden Multitudes: The Story of Best Sellers in the United States. The author writes, Strictly speaking, there is only one all-time bestseller—the Bible—and all others are only ‘better sellers' or ‘good sellers.'³⁴ Daniel Radosh gives a moderate estimate regarding the sale of Bibles. In his article, The Good Book Business: Why Publishers Love the Bible, he says about twenty-five million Bibles were sold in 2005 in the United States alone.³⁵

The Bible, written thousands of years ago, is still relevant today. It is believed to be highly influential and pervades every sphere of society. Read what John Haynes of Emory University's Candler School of Theology writes about the Bible.

The influence of the Bible permeates almost every aspect of life in the twentieth-century Western world—laws, literature, art, music, architecture, morals, and of course, religion. Many of the Bible's words and phrases are a part of our current speech, and allusions to its stories are widely understood. It is a vital part of our total cultural heritage; indeed, many people would claim that it is, for a variety of reasons, the most important and influential collection of writings ever brought together and bound in a single volume.³⁶

Several other scholars agree with Haynes. J. H. Gottcent names the Bible, The most famous piece of writing in the Western world.³⁷ Gabel and Wheeler describe it as, A fascinating human document of enormous importance to the culture and history of the modern world.³⁸ These writers conclude that this document addresses many issues related to humans and the condition of their humanity.³⁹

Coming on the heels of these descriptions are those instructors who concur that the Bible is a library of books⁴⁰ and a monument of English Literature.⁴¹ Alder and Kermode believe the Bible could be the most critical source of all literature. They claim this book has molded The minds and lives of intelligent men and women for over two millennia.⁴² Ryken contends that the Bible deals with a wide variety of subject matter in the form of parables, satires, heroic narratives, prophecies, proverbs, apocalyptic visions as well as other literary forms and styles.⁴³ The instructors who view the Bible as literature did so to understand Western culture.

While editing a book of essays on the New Testament, contemporary poet, teacher, and essayist Alfred Corn, came to some interesting conclusions. He asserts, Biblical texts are the cornerstone of our customs, laws, literature, art, family structure and, notions of romantic love.⁴⁴ He professes both the Bible and Christian tradition were the nuts and bolts of much of the writings in the West since primitive times. Corn says this dominance continues today.⁴⁵

Current scholarship validates that the Bible has come under severe attacks within and without Christendom. The effects of postmodernism on biblical hermeneutics have been disastrous. This cultural phenomenon has unleashed a vengeance on the claims of Scripture, espousing pluralistic methods of interpretation based on fallible human reasoning.⁴⁶

Dr. Jerry Wiles, assistant vice president of church relations at Houston Baptist University from 1991 until 2003, explains that many persons have tried to destroy, distort, and misuse the message of the Bible.⁴⁷ He notes that this book has had considerable opposition, far more than any book written.⁴⁸

A letter published in the Minnesota Star Tribune on October 17, 1992, from Minnesota Atheists notes that many contradictions, historical errors, plagiarism, and myths are found in the Bible. They lambasted the Bible, stating that although there are "inspirational sentiments, entertaining stories, and insightful observations about human behavior, these