CHAPTER 1
1. Paulus, an envoy of Yeshua the Messiah by Elohim’s choice, according to the promise of life that is in Messiah Yeshua,
Promise of life: His resurrection is the guarantee of resurrection for all who are connected to him.
2. to Timotheos, my beloved child: Favor, mercy, and total well-being from Father YHWH and from Yeshua the Messiah, our Master.
3. I am thankful to the Elohim Whom I worship since my forefathers [did] with a clean conscience, as I constantly have the remembrance of you in my fervent petitions night and day,
4. eagerly desiring to see you, remembering your tears, so that I might be filled with joy,
5. bringing [back] to mind the unhypocritical faith you have, which first found [its] home in your grandmother Loidi, then in your mother Eunike, but I am also persuaded that it is in you.
Unhypocritical: i.e., sincere. Faith: or trust.
6. For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of Elohim which is in you through the laying on of my hands,
Rekindle: or stir up the fire, fan the flame when it has been burning low, seemingly through disuse:
7. because Elohim has not given us a spirit of timidity, but rather of ability to change, love, and self-discipline.
Timidity: or cowardice, fear. Self-discipline: or sensibility (literally, safe-mindedness, i.e., making the right decisions which will not put one in danger—which apparently he was afraid of).
8. Therefore you should not be ashamed of the testimonial [evidence about] our Master, or of me his prisoner, but rather endure hardship together for the glad news, through the empowering [that comes] down from Elohim,
Ashamed: as if Paulus’ sufferings were a cause for disgrace; rather, he wore them proudly in the good sense. Endure hardship: literally, suffer bad together. Empowering: which renders us capable of doing whatever we need to or are chosen to do:
9. the One who rescued us and summoned us with a unique calling, not because of our own accomplishments, but according to His purpose and inclination to favor, which was made available to us through Messiah Yeshua in an age before [our] particular time,
10. but has now been made clearly manifest through the [timely] appearance of our deliverer, Yeshua the Messiah, who has indeed rendered death inert but brought life and immortality to light through the glad news,
Immortality: based on the concept of no longer being corruptible. While our bodies are still under the curse of Adam, his resurrection has blazed the way to something beyond that, which would not only extend life but change its quality to what Adam knew before he fell. Part of the glad news Yeshua proclaimed was that this Kingdom was now again available to the rest of Israel, among whom Timotheos lived, not just the Jews.
11. to which I was appointed a herald and an envoy and a teacher.
12. This is also why I am suffering these things. But I do not consider it a disgrace, because I know the One in whom I have put my trust, and am persuaded that He is able to keep guard over [the deposit] that I have entrusted to Him [all the way] into that Day.
Deposit: or even, treasure.
13. Hold onto the [exemplary] pattern of sound words which you heard from me, through the faithfulness and [loving] commitment that [are] in Messiah Yeshua.
Sound: healthy, well-balanced, reasonable, words that work properly—i.e., true and realistic.
14. Through the spirit of being set apart which has found a home within us, guard the [treasure] that has been entrusted to you.
The treasure: this example and the words (i.e, ideas and logical explanations) that constitute the glad news (vv. 10, 12)
15. This you have seen, that all who are in Asiya have deserted me—among them being Fügelos and Hermogenes.
16. May the Master grant mercy to the household of Onesiforos, because many times he brought me relief, and was not embarrassed by my chain.
Relief: specifically, restoration of the soul (as in Psalm 23)—literally, “up-souled”, i.e., encouraged or helped him recover a sense of cheer after a time of trouble or anxiety.
17. Rather, when he arrived in Roma, he diligently searched for me and located me.
In Roma: He had to find out which prison Paulus was in (tradition says it was the Mamertine--see photo above), but asking such questions could have raised suspicions about Onesiforos also, possibly putting him in danger of also being imprisoned.
18. May the Master grant that he find mercy from YHWH in that Day! And you know how very well he [actively] served in Efesos.
CHAPTER 2
1. So you, my child, be strengthened through the empowering that [is] in Messiah Yeshua.
The empowering: He need not fall away like others had (see the previous verses), because YHWH can give whatever it takes to those who ask Him for it, if they are “covered” under Messiah’s “policy”, and can receive whatever flows from the Father through Yeshua. (Yochanan 15:5).
2. And the things that you have heard from me through many witnesses, entrust these to faithful persons—whichever will be competent to teach others also.
What is not passed on all too soon gets lost.
3. Share in [our] hardships as a good field-soldier of Messiah Yeshua.
“Soldier on”: Paulus is trying to toughen Timotheos up, as fearfulness is his main area of weakness. The word “timid” even seems to have stemmed from his name by way of his reputation.
4. No one [while] serving as a soldier entangles himself in the affairs of this life, in order that he might please the one who enlisted him.
Life: the biological type, but the idea is of “everyday life”, because one who is distracted by ordinary activities will be unable to focus on the life-or-death defensive struggle which requires every ounce of his attention. Please: The word carries the idea of service willingly rendered.
5. On the other hand, [it is] also [true that] if anyone competes in an athletic contest, he is not given the [winner’s] crown if he doesn’t play by the rules.
6. It is only fitting for the hard-working farmer to partake of the best of the produce.
Best: or, to be the first to partake.
7. Apply mental effort to the things I am saying, because YHWH will give you understanding in [them] all.
Understanding: here, the ability to synthesize different kinds of facts, “connecting the dots”, to arrive at “the big picture”.
8. Remember Yeshua the Messiah, who has been raised out from the dead, [who comes] from the seed of David, according to the glad news I proclaim,
9. during which I undergo hardship even to the point of chains as if [I were] a criminal! But the Word of Elohim is not imprisoned.
Imprisoned: or bound, fettered, held back as if with chains like he was wearing.
10. That is why I endure anything for the sake of the chosen ones, in order that they, too, may obtain the deliverance which is in Messiah Yeshua, along with perpetual honor.
Endure: actively persevering and putting up with any indignity or pain that may be required to render that chosenness active, as up to this point it is only theoretical until they are made aware of YHWH’s choice.
11. The saying is trustworthy: “For if we have died together, we will also live together [with him];
12. “If we remain firm, bearing up under [pressure, we will reign with [him]; if we disavow him, he will likewise disavow us.
Disavow: deny or reject.
13. “If we are unconvinced, he remains faithful, because he cannot disavow himself!”
Unconvinced: or faithless, refusing to believe, but apparently this is not as strong a fault as actually rejecting him, but only a point of weakness which will have less-permanent consequences.
14. Remind them of these things, exhorting them earnestly [thoroughly, and with deep personal involvement] before YHWH not to quarrel about words on the basis of nothing profitable, [leading only] to the ruin of those who hear.
Words: in context, trifling matters unworthy of an argument. (Thayer)
15. Be diligent to present yourself to Elohim as an approved laborer who has nothing to be ashamed of, who handles the word of truth correctly.
Handles correctly: literally, cuts a straight line.
16. But keep away from profane, worthless babblings, for they drive [one] forward onto more [and more] irreverence,
17. and their way of reasoning spreads like gangrene, among whom are Hümenaios and Filetos,
18. such as have deviated from the truth, asserting that the resurrection has already taken place, and upsetting some people’s faith.
Upsetting: as in “the apple cart”—literally, overturning. By such an assertion they create panic in people who therefore think they have missed Yeshua’s return and are therefore condemned.
19. Nevertheless, Elohim’s solid foundation has stood firm, having this seal: “YHWH knows the ones who are His” and “Let everyone who names the name of YHWH take a stand away from unrighteousness.”
Take a stand: or step away, i.e., remove yourself, leave it behind. Otherwise we would be “taking His name in vain”.
20. Now in a large house there are not only implements of gold and silver, but also of wood and earthenware, some of which are indeed put to dignified use, while others are put to dishonorable use.
21. So if anyone has cleansed himself from these, he will be an implement designated for honor, set apart, useful to the Master, having been made ready for any good work.
22. On the other hand, run away from juvenile lusts, but chase after justice, faithfulness, committed love, [and] peace with those who call upon YHWH from a pure heart.
Chase after justice: a quote from Deut. 16:20. Run toward it, in contrast with the “youthful lusts” we should stay far away from.
23. But decline [to engage in] absurd and uninvestigated controversies, knowing that they breed quarrels,
Uninvestigated: or untrained, uneducated—making hasty assertions without studying them out first. Controversies: debates, disputes, or speculations.
24. and it is necessary that the bondservant of YHWH not be quarrelsome, but kind toward all, patient when wronged,
25. with gentleness educating those who oppose, in case Elohim might ever grant them repentance into acknowledgement of the truth
26. and they might come back to their senses out of the devil’s trap, having been ensnared by him into [carrying out] what he desires.
CHAPTER 3
1. But recognize this, that in the lattermost days, dangerous times will be impending,
Dangerous: or furiously difficult.
2. because the people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogantly disdainful [of others], irreverently abusive, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, without respect for what is sacred,
Does this not sound like the direction we are headed today? People: literally, humans, hinting that there will be other, non-human players in these seasons of peril, possibly alluding to what Yeshua said about their being like the days of Noakh. (Mat. 24:37; compare Gen. 6:1-5, 11.) Disobedient: incorrigible, unpersuadable.
3. devoid of affection for kinsmen, implacable, slanderous, unruly, fierce, hostile to what is virtuous,
Implacable: unable to be appeased or come to any kind of reconciliation or even truce; i.e., demanding what they want with regard for no one else’s needs. Slanderous: making false or hurtful, defaming accusations; from the same word from which we get “devil”. Unruly: lacking the inner power of self-restraint. Fierce: literally wild or savage. Hostile…: literally, without love of what is good.
4. traitors, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of Elohim,
Rash: impulsive and reckless, rushing headlong into things without considering the consequences. Conceited: literally, clouded, i.e., muddled, morally blinded or confused, or puffed up (inflated with arrogance and therefore unable to “see” objectively). Lovers of pleasure: literally philo-hedonists.
5. having a form of piety but refusing to affirm its power [to bring change]. Avoid these also,
Form of piety: those who call themselves “spiritual” but do not identify with the Holy Spirit or who do not let it make a meaningful difference in their lives. Avoid: turn away from, deflect, or shun.
6. for among this sort are those who sneak into households and captivate silly women, loaded up with sins, being driven by a variety of passions,
Sneak: literally with a cloak (i.e., disguise, here probably more figurative, as in a guise of decency). Silly: or weak, but the term is diminutive—literally “little”.
7. always learning [facts] and never able to come into a [firsthand] knowledge of the truth.
Knowledge: or recognition. One can only understand truth directly and experientially when in a right relationship with the one in whom all individuals truths hold together. (Col. 1:17)
8. Now in the manner in which Yannes and Yambres opposed Moshe, so these also resist the truth, persons of corrupt minds, unsuitable to be relied on.
This is a targumic account (added as an explanation in a translation of Exodus 7 from Hebrew into Aramaic) also found in the Zohar, which says the names of the chief magicians of Egypt, who claimed to want to convert when they saw YHWH’s deeds, were Jannes and Jambres. However, YHWH told Moshe not to receive them. Nonetheless, he did accept them, and they later became leaders in a rebellion against Moshe.
9. But they will not advance much further, because their irrationality will be plainly evident to all, just as that of those two became.
10. You, however, have closely conformed to my instruction, mode of conduct, faith, patience, commitment, steadfast cheerfulness,
11. persecutions and hardships such as I underwent in Antiokhia, Ikonio, and Lüstrois--such persecutions I suffered! Yet the Master rescued me out of [them] all.
12. And indeed, all who intend to live devotedly in Messiah Yeshua will be persecuted.
There is no getting around it, for when someone takes his position and calling seriously, the enemy does take notice. Get it clearly in your mind ahead of time so you can prepare and steel yourself against the tendency to want to “drop out” when the going gets tough.
13. Indeed, malicious people and impostors will go on [from bad] to worse, straying off course and being led astray.
14. You, however, remain in the things you have learned and become convinced of, considering whom you learned them from,
Convinced: or assured, having established them to be trustworthy. Considering: seeing, remembering.
15. and from infancy you have known the sacred writings, which are able to render you wise to the point of preservation through the faithfulness that is in Messiah Yeshua.
16. Every Scripture is breathed out by Elohim and is beneficial for teaching, for convicting evidence, for correction, and for training in righteousness
Whether or not we are in a position to carry out every command to its fullest extent right now, it is all profitable to teach us something—either what to be like or what not to be like.
17. so that the person [belonging to] Elohim may be completely outfitted, having become fully equipped for every beneficial work.
Outfitted: ready to act immediately without any further preparation needed.
CHAPTER 4
1. I solemnly charge [you], in the presence of Elohim and of Messiah Yeshua, the one who is about to judge [the] living and [the] dead, and by his [conspicuous] appearance, and by his Kingdom:
2. Proclaim the message; be ready in season [and] out of season. Rebuke, admonish, and encourage with all kinds of patience and teaching,
Ready: literally, at a moment’s notice. In season: when the weather is favorable.
3. because a time is coming when they will not tolerate sound instruction but will collect around themselves teachers corresponding with their own [inordinate] desires, that scratch an itching ear.
4. And indeed they will turn away from hearing the truth, then be turned aside on the basis of myths.
Myths: here, not archetypal legends, but fictitious, fanciful tales.
5. But you, keep your wits about you in all things, endure hardship, carry out the work of a bearer of glad news, [and] fully accomplish [the service of] your ministry,
Keep your wits: or, be sober, vigilant, circumspect—alert to what is going on around you and able to respond with clear, sound judgment.
6. because I am already being poured out [as a drink offering], and the time of my release is right at hand.
Release: or departure, but from a word for loosing or unyoking of beasts of burden from their load. At hand: is already present, standing by for orders.
7. I have fought the good fight; I have completed the racecourse; I have [successfully] guarded the faith.
Good fight: literally, an agonizing struggle in which he had contended or striven with all his effort. Guarded: the term includes the outcome of preserving it unharmed and keeping it intact. The faith: the particular body of truth with which he had been entrusted. He was now passing on that responsibility to a younger “guard”.
8. All that remains is the [winner’s] crown of approval that is reserved for me, which the Master, the just judge, will award to me on that Day--though not to me alone, but to all who are longingly committed to his [re]appearance.
All that remains: or, henceforth, finally, from now on. Approval: or, which is justly deserved, honestly or properly earned, well-justified. His reappearance: or, the manifestation of himself.
9. Make [every] effort to come to me quickly,
Quickly: he asks him for due diligence and as much haste as is possible, because it is clear to him that time is very quickly running out for him, and he does not want him to miss this one last open door.
10. because Demas has deserted me, having [when it came to choices] preferred the present age, and has gone into Thessaloniki; Kreskes [too has gone] into Galatia, [and] Titos into Dalmatia.
Present age: thus considering the age to come a “pipe dream” for all intents and purposes, because he no longer let it drive his priorities. This is the kind of assessment we want to avoid at all costs. Demas is mentioned in Colossians 4:14 as a companion of Paul in the same breath as the likes of Lukas, whose name remains unsullied, remaining with Paulus to the end. (v. 11) Apparently these other two former companions who had departed had done so for nobler reasons.
11. Only Lukas is [still] with me. Pick up Markos and bring him with you, because he is well-suited for ministry.
Well-suited: or useful, beneficial, profitable—not in the monetary sense, but he has proven his worth. Though at one time he dropped out, apparently finding it too hard, so that Paulus did not think him worth the risk of bringing him along, to the point of a schism with his close companion Barnaba (Acts 12:25; 15:37-39), in the final analysis, Paulus gives him a warm and unequivocal commendation, probably evidencing that Barnaba had in fact lived up to his name as an encourager.
12. Tükhikos, however, I have sent into Ephesus.
13. When you come, bring along the coat that I left behind with Karpo in Troas, as well as the books, especially the parchments.
Parchments: of special importance, possibly to write more letters, or as objects of study if they were already written on.
14. Alexander the copper-worker did me much harm; YHWH will render [back to him] what he deserves according to what he has done.
15. [against] whom you must really be on your guard, because he has opposed our message.
Paulus will not avenge himself on this man, but he does recommend that others steer clear of him.
16. At my first legal appeal, no one has stood by me publicly; rather, they have all deserted me. May it not be counted against them!
Legal appeal: or defense; literally, apology—the hearing he had demanded before Caesar (Acts 25:11), and now that it has finally been granted him, such insistence on rights or a political solution to his troubles is no longer looking so valuable to him. Counted: or charged; like Yeshua, at the end of his life he is readier to forgive many people than he once was (compare vv. 11, 14), but entrusts his situation to YHWH.
17. But YHWH stood by me and strengthened me inwardly, so that through me the proclamation could be fully accomplished and all the Gentiles could hear. I was also delivered out of the lion’s mouth.
Lion: possibly the emperor himself, or, more likely, haSatan. (Compare 1 Kefa/Peter 56:8.)
18. YHWH will deliver me from every evil action, and will bring me safely into the Kingdom.
Delivery from one a threat is only finally valuable if we are delivered to our goal as well.
19. Give my respects to Priska and Aküla as well as the household of Onesiforos.
20. Erastos stayed on in Korinthos, but Trofimos I left in Miletos [because he was] ill.
21. Do all you can to arrive before winter. Euvoulos sends you his regards, as [do] Pudes, Linos, Klaudia, and all the brothers.
22. [May] YHWH be with your spirit. [May] the empowering favor be with you [all]. Amen!
The…favor: probably shorthand for “the favor of our Master, Yeshua the Messiah” (as in Romans 16:20, 24; 1 Cor. 16:23; Gal. 6:18; Phil. 4:23; 1 Thess. 5:28; 2 Thess. 3:18; Philemon 25; and, by another write, Rev. 22:21, showing that this was a common greeting used by followers of the Way). Amen: possibly the last word he ever wrote, and a powerful note to end one’s life on.
THE SECOND LETTER OF PAULUS
TO
Timotheos
INTRODUCTION: Timotheos was the overseer of the congregation at Efesos, but because of Paulus’ sufferings for the cause of Messiah, he seemed to be shrinking back from doing the bolder things that needed to be done. Paulus encourages him to live up to his name, being a “fearer [only] of Elohim”, not of men, who can, as Yeshua said, only destroy the flesh. This is Paulus’ final extant letter, written from prison as he awaited his second audience with Caesar (Nero). Its tone, as when anyone senses that his own end may be near, is one of reminder to put the emphasis on the most important things, though he does hope to see Timotheos at least one more time, and in fact asks him to bring some supplies that he is lacking in prison.
