Soldier of Christ στρατιώτης Χριστοῦ Kory Capps January 2011 2 Timothy 2:3-4 1. Grammatical Structure Συγκακοπάθησον ὡς καλὸς στρατιώτης Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ. οὐδεὶς ἐμπλέκεται ταῖς πραγματείαις τοῦ βίου στρατευόμενος ἵνα τῷ στρατολογήσαντι ἀρέσῃ 2. Parsing Συγκακοπάθησον (Aorist Active Imperative 2nd Person Singular) ὡς καλὸς στρατιώτης Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ. οὐδεὶς στρατευόμενος (Present Middle Participle Singular Nominative Masculine) ἐμπλέκεται (Present Passive Indicative 3rd Person Singular) ταῖς τοῦ βίου πραγματείαις, ἵνα τῷ στρατολογήσαντι (Aorist Active Participle Singular Dative Masculine) ἀρέσῃ (Aorist Active Subjunctive 3rd Person Singular). 3. Word Study Συγκακοπάθησον- Comes from the verb συγκακοπαθέω. It is used only one other time in the NT. 2 Timothy 1:8 do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering (συγκακοπάθησον) for the gospel by the power of God. It means to join in, share, or participate in suffering. It carries the idea of suffering together with another person. στρατιώτης This noun always refers to soldiers in the NT. It is used 26 times in the NT and 25 of these uses refer to literal soldiers (Matt 8:9, 27:27, 28:12, Mk 15:16, Lk 7:8, 23:36, Jn 19:2, 23, 24, 32, 34, Acts 10:7- - στρατιώτης εὐσεβής, 12:4, 21:32, 23:23, 27:31, 28:16 note also the one LXX usage: 2
Sam 23:8 referring to the mighty men). Here in Timothy is the one figurative use of this term. This is the one place in the NT where we have the designation: soldier of Christ (στρατιώτης Χριστοῦ). στρατευόμενος- This partciple comes from the verb στρατεύω. It is used seven times in the NT. It refers to those who are literally performing military service as a soldier (Lk 3:14, 1 Cor 9:7). It is used figuratively (in one sense it is figurative language but in another sense it is absolutely literal it is not merely a figure of speech for the reality it points to is just that: real) in two senses. First, the Christian wages warfare as a soldier against external spiritual enemies (2 Cor 10:3, 1 Tim 1:18). Second, the Christian wages an internal war as he engages the warring desires with in him (James 4:1, 1 Pet 2:11). The verb captures the activity of the soldier. It communicates military action and service. ἐμπλέκεται- This word is from the verb ἐμπλέκω. It is only used twice in the New Testament. Besides this text in Timothy it is used in 2 Peter 2:20- - - For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled (ἐμπλακέντες) in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. In both Peter and Timothy the word refers to being involved in or entangled with. It is used in the passive both times in the NT. It is not an active pursuit per se but rather a state one finds oneself in. ταῖς πραγματείαις- This noun comes from πραγματεία. It is used only here in the NT. It is used in classical Greek Literature and in the Septuagint to refer to an occupation with something, the concerns of daily life, and business. It is used in a general sense of the varied affairs of everyday life. τῷ στρατολογήσαντι- This partciple is from the verb στρατολογέω. It is used only here in the NT. It is used in Classical Greek literature and here in Timothy to refer to enlisting soldiers and gathering an army. This is the third word in these two verses from the στρατ root. These three words are part of a word group that specializes in military language. The remaining words in this word group shed further light on the language that is used here in 2 Timothy. o στρατεία- army campaign, expedition (2 Cor 10:4, 1 Tim 1:18) o στρατιά- army, host (Lk 2:13, Acts 7:42 references to angels) o στρατεύμα- smaller detachment of soldiers (Matt 22:7, Acts 23:10) o συστρατιώτης- fellow soldier (Phil 2:25, Philem 2:2) o στρατηγός- military leader (Lk 22:4, Acts 16:20) o στρατοπέδαρχος- military commander (Acts 28:16) o στρατόπεδον- military camp (Lk 21:20)
ἀρέσῃ- This word comes from the verb ἀρέσκω. It is used 17 times in the NT. It is used in two senses. First, it refers to having favor or being pleasing to someone (Matt 14:6, Mk 6:22, Acts 6:5, Rom 8:8). Second, it refers to seeking favor or striving to please someone (Rom 15:1-3, 1 Cor 7:32-34, 1 Cor 10:33, Gal 1:10, 1 Thess 2:4, 4:1). In Timothy it is the latter meaning that is intended. In the NT the goal and longing of the believer is not to please himself (Rom 15:1), not to be a man- pleaser (Gal 1:10, Eph 6:6, Col 3:22- - ἀνθρωπάρεσκοι, 1 Thess 2:4), but to please his Lord (1 Cor 7:32, Gal 1:10, 1 Thess 2:4, 4:1) and his neighbor for his good (Rom 15:2, 1 Cor 10:33). The foundation that this pursuit rests upon is the Lord Jesus who refused to please himself but rather lived to please the Lord and to please his neighbor and demonstrated this most clearly at the cross (Rom 15:1-3). The believer thus strives to please the Lord so that me might be pleasing to the Lord (εὐάρεστος- Rom 12:1, 14:8, 2 Cor 5:9, Eph 5:10, Heb 13:21). Paul sums it up perfectly: So whether we are at home [in the body] or away [from the body], we make it our aim to please (εὐάρεστοι) him. The assurance that this will indeed happen is found in Hebrews 13:21 where the author prays that God would equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing (τὸ εὐάρεστον) in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. God ultimately provides all that is necessary to strive to please him and to be pleasing to him. Here in Timothy the aim of the soldier is to please the one who enlisted him. 4. Translation You must share in suffering as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Noone soldiering gets entangled in the [civilian?] affairs of life in order that he might be pleasing to the one who enlisted him. 5. Exegetical and Theological Observations Timothy is commanded in this text to join in and share in suffering as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Earlier in the letter Paul has called upon Timothy to suffer together with him for the sake of the gospel (2 Tim 1:18). The suffering that Paul is urging Timothy to join with him in is the suffering that results from faithfully carrying out one s calling to spread the gospel. It is a suffering provoked by obedience to Christ. He is to understand this fellowship of suffering with the Apostle in terms of warfare. He is to suffer as a good soldier of Chris Jesus. Paul is reminding Timothy of his identity and relationship to God. Timothy is a warrior, a soldier, a military man. He is no regular mercenary he is a soldier of Christ. He has been brought into the army of God and is now engaged in a battle against the darkness. Soldier of Christ is an identity that Timothy is to wear like battle fatigues. A soldier is a man who is prepared for and expects to suffer. Timothy then is to strive to be faithful as a soldier of Christ by faithfully carrying out the ministry of the gospel in and through suffering alongside Paul. A good soldier of Christ is one in the fray enduring
suffering for the purpose of gospel advancement. In Paul s call for Timothy to share in the sufferings for the gospel he is showing us that the army of Christ is a band of brothers. Paul calls upon Timothy to wage war (1 Tim 1:18) but he does not call upon him to do it alone. He is a part of an army and more narrowly a part of Paul s platoon (Phil 2:25, Philem 2:2). He is a fellow soldier with Paul. The New Testament does not envision individual soldiers out on the battlefield all by themselves but an entire army that engages the enemy as one. We need a corrective in our thinking about spiritual warfare from an individual perspective to a corporate perspective. The enemy is waging war against the community of faith (Rev 12:1-17, 2 Cor 2:10-11, Eph 4:25-27, 1 Tim 5:13-15, Matt 16:18, Rev 2:10). The response to his war against the church is a unified response of the church engaging in battle together (Eph 6:10-20 this text needs to be reread through a corporate lens. The one new man striving for maturity in Ephesians is the church collective (Eph 2:15, 4:12-14). Is it the individual believer donning the gospel weaponry here or the church corporate? The church as the army of God must engage the enemy as a unit (Heb 3:12-14, 10:23-25)). Paul then tells Timothy that no one who is soldiering and engaged in active duty in the military of God entangles himself in the civilian affairs of life. He refrains from engaging in these activities in order that he might please the one who has enlisted him. The ultimate aim of the soldier is to please his Commander and Chief. This desire informs all of his decisions and actions as a soldier. This desire to please his enlister leads him to abandon the life of a civilian and walk the path of a warrior. The soldier of Christ refuses to allow the affairs of this life to interrupt with his obedience to his General. He refrains from anything and everything that distracts him from his purpose. A good soldier cannot be sidetracked or softened by the common pursuits of the civilian. This is a call to live a lifestyle quite different than the regular person. There is a singleness of devotion here in this call to soldiering. There is a fierce focus necessary for this warfare. There is a ruthlessness required in refraining and detaching oneself from the common affairs of man in order to be a warrior for Christ s sake. Suffering and foregoing the typical pleasures of this life are the chosen lot of the soldier of Christ. It is worth noting that God is enlisting men into his army. He is looking to raise up a mighty force that will take his gospel to the ends of the earth. The New Testament is replete with rich imagery that serves to communicate the nature of our relationship to God. Our identity in Christ is marked by diversity. We are sons, daughters, slaves, athletes, friends, subjects, kings, queens, sheep, a bride, a temple, and a priesthood. Too understand the depths of who we are in Christ we must unfold and revel in each and every image we are given in the NT. We must balance all of these images for they each communicate something vital about who we are and how we are to engage this life. The image of soldier is just another one of these images. It communicates a few crucial things about our identity in Christ and our responsibility to God.
We belong to God s army. We are on the side of the Victor. We answer to the Commander and Chief and due his bidding with no questions asked. Our entire aim is to please our General. We are fighting men who need to be tough, disciplined, willing to suffer, and ready to lay down not only the comforts of this world but our own lives. We have been given a clear mission to spread the gospel to the ends of the earth. The accomplishment of this military commission requires strategic planning, trained warriors, and sacrificial action. This has significant ramifications for money, posessions, time- management, and entertainment. The enemy we battle against is unseen and is striving to hinder the spread of the gospel and destroy the church. He is a shrewd enemy who has years of military experience. He has many warriors, strategies, weapons, and much ground on this planet. We must become familiar with this enemy and his ways to wage an effective war. The church is an army. We must live with the mindsite of those who are in the midst of war. We should see our fellow brothers and sisters as fellow- soldiers. We should see our close friendships and small groups as platoons. The role of the pastor and the teachers in the church is to model warrior- like attitude and action as they equip and prepare the church to wage war. If the Christian life is war then there is the real possibility of injuries and even casualties. Though our enemies are unseen they often wage war in the physcal realm. Sicknes, persecution, death, division in the body, etc- - - all these things can be induced by unseen forces that war against us (with God s sovereign permission). This theme of war taps into a much larger biblical motif. We are entering into a war that has been raging since moments after the surrender of Adam and Eve to our enemy of war, Satan (Gen 3:1-15). God declared war upon the serpent (Gen 3:15) and the war has been raging ever since. There were many battles and duals that served as a shadow of what was to come in the great Victor Christ Jesus. The coming of Christ was the climactic event in this war in which we now participate. His entire ministry can and should be viewed from the angle of warfare. He was waging war on the evil one as he cast out demons, healed people, and ushered in the kingdom of God. He drove back the forces of Satan by invading the enemie s territory. He demonstrated his military prowess most magnificiently at the cross. His blood was his greatest weapon. In what looked like defeat Jesus absolutely dominated the evil one. He crushed the head of the serpent by having his heels nailed to a tree. When we are enlisted into God s army we are commissioned to continue waging a war that is already won but awaits the full realization of victory. The way we war is by resting in the finished work of Christ and by imitating the military strategy of the cross.