1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope,
2 To Timothy my true son in the faith:
Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Timothy Charged to Oppose False Teachers
3 As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain people not to teach false doctrines any longer 4 or to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. Such things promote controversial speculations rather than advancing God’s work—which is by faith. 5 The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 6 Some have departed from these and have turned to meaningless talk. 7 They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.
8 We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. 9 We also know that the law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10 for the sexually immoral, for those practicing homosexuality, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine 11 that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.
The Lord’s Grace to Paul
12 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service. 13 Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. 14 The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
15 Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. 16 But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life. 17 Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
The Charge to Timothy Renewed
18 Timothy, my son, I am giving you this command in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by recalling them you may fight the battle well, 19 holding on to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck with regard to the faith. 20 Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme
NOTES:
1:1–2 For the Pauline use of the conventional epistolary
form, see note on Rom 1:1–7.
1:3–7 Here Timothy’s initial task in Ephesus (cf. Acts
20:17–35) is outlined: to suppress the idle religious speculations, probably
about Old Testament figures (1 Tm 1:3–4, but see note on 1 Tm 6:20–21), which
do not contribute to the development of love within the community (1 Tm 1:5)
but rather encourage similar useless conjectures (1 Tm 1:6–7).
1:4 The plan of God that is to be received by faith: the
Greek may also possibly mean “God’s trustworthy plan” or “the training in faith
that God requires.”
1:8–11 Those responsible for the speculations that are to be
suppressed by Timothy do not present the Old Testament from the Christian
viewpoint. The Christian values the Old Testament not as a system of law but as
the first stage in God’s revelation of his saving plan, which is brought to
fulfillment in the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.
1:10 Sodomites: see 1 Cor 6:9 and the note there.
1:12–17 Present gratitude for the Christian apostleship
leads Paul to recall an earlier time when he had been a fierce persecutor of
the Christian communities (cf. Acts 26:9–11) until his conversion by
intervention of divine mercy through the appearance of Jesus. This and his
subsequent apostolic experience testify to the saving purpose of Jesus’
incarnation. The fact of his former ignorance of the truth has not kept the
apostle from regarding himself as having been the worst of sinners (1 Tm 1:15).
Yet he was chosen to be an apostle, that God might manifest his firm will to
save sinful humanity through Jesus Christ (1 Tm 1:16). The recounting of so
great a mystery leads to a spontaneous outpouring of adoration (1 Tm 1:17).
1:15 This saying is trustworthy: this phrase regularly
introduces in the Pastorals a basic truth of early Christian faith; cf. 1 Tm
3:1; 4:9; 2 Tm 2:11; Ti 3:8.
1:17 King of ages: through Semitic influence, the Greek
expression could mean “everlasting king”; it could also mean “king of the
universe.”
1:18–20 Timothy is to be mindful of his calling, which is
here compared to the way Barnabas and Saul were designated by Christ as
prophets for missionary service; cf. Acts 13:1–3. Such is probably the sense of
the allusion to the prophetic words (1 Tm 1:18). His task is not to yield,
whether in doctrine or in conduct, to erroneous opinions, taking warning from
what has already happened at Ephesus in the case of Hymenaeus and Alexander (1
Tm 1:19–20).
1:18 The prophetic words once spoken about you: the Greek
may also be translated, “the prophecies that led (me) to you.” It probably
refers to testimonies given by charismatic figures in the Christian
communities. Fight a good fight: this translation preserves the play on words
in Greek. The Greek terms imply a lengthy engagement in battle and might well
be translated “wage a good campaign.”
1:20 Hymenaeus: mentioned in 2 Tm 2:17 as saying that the resurrection has already taken place (in baptism). Alexander: probably the Alexander mentioned in 2 Tm 4:14 as the coppersmith who “did me a great deal of harm.” Whom I have handed over to Satan: the same terms are used in the condemnation of the incestuous man in 1 Cor 5:5.
BACK TO:
Copyright © 2020 by Ekklesia Katholes (Acts 9:31)
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
No part of this publication may be produced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission from the publisher.
No comments:
Post a Comment