The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (241 page)

15
 You are aware that all who are in
Asia
 
*
turned away from me, and among them Phy'gelus and Hermog'enes.
¹⁶
May the Lord grant mercy to the household of
Onesiph'orus
, for he often refreshed me; he was not ashamed of my chains,
¹⁷
but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me eagerly and found me—
¹⁸
may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that Day—and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.

A Good Soldier of Christ

2
  
You then,
my son
, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus,
²
and what you have heard from me before many witnesses
entrust to faithful men
who will be able to teach others also.
³
Take your
share of suffering
as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
⁴
No soldier on service gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to satisfy the one who enlisted him.
⁵
An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
⁶
It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops.
⁷
Think over what I say, for the Lord will grant you understanding in everything.

8
 
Remember Jesus
Christ, risen from the dead, descended from David, as preached in my gospel,
⁹
the gospel for which I am suffering and wearing chains like a criminal. But
the word of God is not chained
.
¹⁰
Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which in Christ Jesus goes with
eternal glory
.
¹¹
The saying
is sure:

  
If we have died
with him, we shall also live with him;

¹²
if we endure, we shall also reign with him;

  
if we deny him, he also will deny us;

¹³
if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

  
for he cannot deny himself.

A Workman Approved by God

14
 Remind them of this, and charge them before the Lord
^b
to
avoid disputing
about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers.
¹⁵
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling
the word of truth
.
¹⁶
Avoid such godless chatter, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,
¹⁷
and their talk will eat its way like gangrene. Among them are
Hymenae'us
and Phile'tus,
¹⁸
who have swerved from the truth by holding that
the resurrection is past
already.
 
*
They are upsetting the faith of some.
¹⁹
But
God's firm foundation
stands, bearing this seal: "The Lord knows those who are his," and, "Let every one who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity."

20
 In a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and earthenware, and some for noble use, some for ignoble.
²¹
If any one purifies himself from what is ignoble, then he will be a vessel for noble use, consecrated and useful to the master of the house, ready for any good work.
²²
So
shun youthful passions
and aim at righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call upon the Lord from a pure heart.
²³
Have nothing to do with stupid, senseless controversies; you know that they breed quarrels.
²⁴
And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kindly to every one, an apt teacher,
forbearing
,
²⁵
correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant that they will repent and come to know the truth,
²⁶
and they may escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
^c

Godlessness in the Last Days

3
  
But understand this
, that in
the last days
there will come times of stress.
²
For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
³
inhuman, implacable, slanderers, profligates, fierce, haters of good,
⁴
treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
⁵
holding the form of religion but denying the power of it. Avoid such people.
⁶
For among them are those who make their way into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and swayed by various impulses,
⁷
who will listen to anybody and can never arrive at a knowledge of the truth.
⁸
As
Jan'nes and Jam'bres
opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of corrupt mind and counterfeit faith;
⁹
but they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.

Paul's Charge to Timothy

10
 
Now you have observed
my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness,
¹¹
my persecutions, my sufferings, what befell me at
Antioch, at Ico'nium, and at Lystra
, what persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me.
¹²
Indeed all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus
will be persecuted
,
¹³
while evil men and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceivers and deceived.
¹⁴
But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it
¹⁵
and how from childhood you have been acquainted with
the Sacred Writings
which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
¹⁶
All Scripture
is
inspired by God
and
^d
profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
 
*
¹⁷
that the man of God may be
complete
, equipped for every good work.

4
  
I charge you
in the presence of God
and of Christ Jesus who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom:
²
preach the word, be urgent
in season and out of season
, convince, rebuke, and exhort, be unfailing in patience and in teaching.
³
For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings,
⁴
and will turn away from listening to the truth and
wander into myths
.
⁵
As for you, always be steady, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfil your ministry.

6
 For I am already on
the point of being sacrificed
;
 
*
the time of my departure has come.
⁷
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
⁸
From now on there is laid up for me the
crown of righteousness
, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

Personal Instructions

9
 Do your best to
come to me soon
.
¹⁰
For
Demas
, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessaloni'ca; Crescens has gone to Galatia,
^e
Titus to Dalmatia.
¹¹
Luke
alone is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you; for he is very useful in serving me.
¹²
Tych'icus
I have sent to Ephesus.
¹³
When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Tro'as, also the
books, and above all the parchments
.
¹⁴
Alexander the coppersmith
did me great harm; the Lord will pay him back for his deeds.
¹⁵
Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message.
¹⁶
At my first defense no one took my part; all deserted me. May it not be charged against them!
¹⁷
But the Lord stood by me and gave me
strength to proclaim
the word fully, that all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion's mouth.
¹⁸
The Lord will rescue me from every evil and save me for his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Final Greetings and Benediction

19
 Greet
Prisca and Aqui'la
, and the household of Onesiph'orus.
²⁰
Eras'tus remained at Corinth; Troph'imus I left ill at Mile'tus.
²¹
Do your best to come before winter. Eubu'lus sends greetings to you, as do Pudens and
Linus
 
*
and Claudia and all the brethren.

22
 The Lord be with your spirit.
Grace be with you
.

Commentary on The Second Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy

1:1 Paul, an apostle:
The sender of the letter, not the addressee, is named first in ancient epistles. Paul was appointed an ambassador of Jesus Christ and commissioned to spread the gospel to Israel and all nations (1:11; Acts 9:15; 1 Cor 1:17). Paul's apostleship ranks him alongside the original Twelve selected by Jesus (Lk 6:13-16) (CCC 858).
promise of the life:
Eternal life, which we receive now as grace (1 Jn 5:13) and will possess more abundantly in the state of heavenly glory (Col 3:4; 1 Tim 4:8). Christ offers this life to the world through the preaching of the gospel and communicates it through the sacramental actions of the Church to those properly disposed to receive it (CCC 2, 1114-16). 
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1:2 Timothy:
A friend and companion of Paul ever since his recruitment on the apostle's second missionary tour (Acts 16:13).
See note on 1 Tim 1:2
.
Grace, mercy, and peace:
A slight expansion of Paul's customary greeting of "grace" and "peace". 
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1:4 your tears:
Probably shed at the last parting of Paul and Timothy in Ephesus (1 Tim 1:3). Since then, the apostle has not laid eyes on his coworker, despite intentions to rejoin him (1 Tim 3:14). This original plan probably fell through as a result of Paul's arrest and imprisonment (2 Tim 2:9). 
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1:5 your grandmother Lois:
Otherwise unknown.
your mother Eunice:
A convert from Judaism who had instructed her son in the OT Scriptures since his childhood (3:15). Timothy's father was a Greek and may not have become a Christian (Acts 16:1). In any case, Paul is encouraged by the faith that Timothy inherited from the godly women of his family (CCC 2220). 
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1:6 rekindle the gift:
Refers to the grace of priestly ministry. Timothy received the fullness of this grace when Paul and a gathering of elders ordained him as bishop by the imposition of hands (CCC 1558, 1577). He is now urged to make use of this divine help in order to complete his mission in Ephesus.
See note on 1 Tim 4:14
. • Zeal is required to stir up the gift of God, for it lies within our power to kindle or quench this grace. By laziness and carelessness it is extinguished, and by attentiveness and diligence it is kept aflame (St. John Chrysostom,
Homilies on 2 Timothy
1). 
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