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Second Letter to Timothy - Chapter 3
- 1 The Jews expected that before the Coming of the Messiah for the Last Judgement, there would be a period
of increasing wrongdoing and godlessness. Now we think of the period between the Resurrection and the
Second Coming as the Last Days - we are in them now!
- 2 Surely this is a good description of the godlessness we see around us now - it was no different in Paul's
time!
- 3 We should not be surprised if in this "end-game" the forces of evil fight desperately with all their might,
knowing that defeat is inevitable after Calvary. Calvary has not put everything right - things may be
expected to get worse. That's how beaten enemies behave!
- 4 Notice that these behaviours affect both the perpetrators and their victims. These behaviours are bad
because they are destructive of human life and society, not because of the 10 commandments.
- 5 Paul says the obvious: "avoid such people" - but do we? Perhaps we should be more vigilant about
associating with people we know to be bad examples. Even going through the motions of showing religious
belief without it really touching the heart - or behaviour. A danger especially for those who lead liturgies -
and for congregations who recite prayers at speed without thinking about members who cannot speak - or
think - so fast?!
- 6 Did Paul and his culture really have such a poor view of women, or are there some types of religious
preaching that are particularly seductive to women? Like the witches of Salem?
- 7 But there are certainly preachers who deliberately prey on vulnerable people, who hope that new ideas
will help them to sort out their lives. Only the truth can do that.
- 8 These two are not named in our Scripture, but are in Jewish tradition as the magicians who reproduced
Moses' miracles (Exod 7:11-12) to impress Pharoah. There will always be people who will uses any trick
they can to attract others to falsehood and evil (eg drugs, motoring offences ok?).
- 9 Like these magicians, such false teachers can gain only temporary success.
- 10 Timothy should model his behaviour and life on Paul's: teaching, conduct, aim, faith, patience, love,
steadfastness (under what the physical world throws at him), persecutions (from people), sufferings.
- 11 But always rely on the Lord. (Timothy came from Lystra, Acts 16:1)
- 12 Assures us that a godly life will attract persecutors - and we know today how often good people are
attacked because their goodness offends the ungodly.
- 13 Seems to hold out little hope for rescue for evil people.
- 14 Again: be persistent and firm in your belief, relying on who (NB not "which book"!) you learned it from.
- 15 And especially rely on the Scriptures, which teach you how to attain salvation.
- 16 Paul spells out how Timothy is to use the scriptures. The Greek could mean "all scripture is inspired by
God" or "all scripture inspired by God" is profitable for teaching, etc. The Bible is not a collection of dead
books, but "an inhabited ruin" - it is inhabited, lived in by the Spirit - the breath - of God. We should let
God's Spirit breathe out of the Scriptures into our lives - gradually, little by little. Note the four uses of
scripture - mainly the OT for Paul at this time before the Gospels were written: teaching, reproof or
refutation, correction, and "training in righteousness". (Inspiration - breathing - of scriptures by God does
not mean reading them literally: must be understood in the ways they were intended to be understood (Cf
Dei Verbum).
- 17 The aim is that the believer should be a complete human being, ready to carry out the tasks expected of
him by God. While this is mainly aimed at Timothy's role as bishop, to teach, correct and refute errors in the
Church, we might also ponder the meaning of righteousness? God is said to be righteous: He is supremely
just and cannot do other than judge sins; but He is also supremely merciful, so can show us mercy. Through
baptism we are said to "be made righteous": in this case the meaning is more "to be at rights with God". But
if we choose God's way it also means to be holy, set apart, as members of God's chosen people, His elect.
Yes this gives us the benefit of being "sons and heirs of God", but it also puts duties on us to persist in
spreading the gospel, knowing that we will be persecuted for doing so. As we see in John's Gospel the
seeing - enlightenment - of baptism comes gradually throughout our lives (Jn 9).
