The Coming Apostasy 3:1 The apostle now gives Timothy a description of conditions that will exist in the world prior to the Lord s coming. It has often been pointed out that the list of sins that follows is very similar to the description of the ungodly heathen in Romans 1. The remarkable thing is that the very conditions that exist among the heathen in their savagery and uncivilized state will characterize professing believers in the last days. How solemn this is! The last days referred to here are the days between the apostolic period and the appearing of Christ to set up His kingdom. 3:2 One cannot study these verses without being struck by the repetition of the word lovers. In verse 2, for instance, we find lovers of self and lovers of money. In verse 3, the expression despisers of good means literally no-lovers-of good. In verse 4, we read of lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. In verses 2 5, nineteen characteristics of mankind during the last days are given. We shall simply list them and give synonyms that explain their meaning: Lovers of themselves self-centered, conceited, egotistical. Lovers of money greedy for money, avaricious. Boasters braggarts, full of great swelling words. Proud arrogant, haughty, overbearing. Blasphemers evil speakers, profane, abusive, foulmouthed, contemptuous, insulting. Disobedient to parents rebellious, undutiful, uncontrolled. Unthankful ungrateful, lacking in appreciation. Unholy impious, profane, irreverent, holding nothing sacred. Unloving hard-hearted, unnaturally callous, unfeeling. Unforgiving implacable, refusing to make peace, refusing efforts toward reconciliation. Slanderers spreading false and malicious reports. Without self-control men of uncontrolled passions, dissolute, debauched. Brutal savage, unprincipled. Despisers of good haters of whatever or whoever is good; utterly opposed to goodness in any form. Traitors treacherous, betrayers.
Headstrong reckless, self-willed, rash. Haughty making empty pretensions, conceited. Lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God those who love sensual pleasures but not God. 3:5 Outwardly these people seem religious. They make a profession of Christianity, but their actions speak louder than their words. By their ungodly behavior, they show that they are living a lie. There is no evidence of the power of God in their lives. While there might have been reformation, there never was regeneration. Weymouth translates: They will keep up a makebelieve of piety and yet exclude its power. Though they keep up a form of religion, they will have nothing to do with it as a force. They will maintain a façade of religion but their conduct will deny its validity. They want to be religious and to have their sins at the same time (Rev. 3:14 22). It is the fearful portrayal of an apostate Christendom, a new paganism masquerading under the name of Christianity. From all such people Timothy is exhorted to turn away. These are the vessels described in the previous chapter from which he is to purge himself. 3:6 Among the corrupt men of the last days, Paul now singles out a particular group, namely, leaders and teachers of false cults. This detailed description of their character and methods finds its fulfillment in the cults of our present day. First of all, we read that they creep or worm their way into households. It is not by accident that this description reminds us of the movement of a serpent. If they revealed their true identity, they would not succeed in getting into many of these homes, but they use various subtle devices, such as speaking about God, the Bible, and Jesus (even if they do not believe what Scripture teaches about these). Next it says that they make captives of gullible women. This is characteristic. They plan their visit when the husband is apt to be at work or elsewhere. History repeats itself. Satan approached Eve in the Garden of Eden and deceived her. She usurped authority over her husband, making the decision that should have been left to him. Satan s methods have not changed. He still approaches the womenfolk with his false teachings and leads them captive. These women are gullible in the sense that they are weak and unstable. They do not lack brains as much as they lack strength of character. They are described as loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts. This suggests, first of all, that they are burdened under a sense of sin and feel a need in their lives. It is at this crucial time that the false cultists arrive. How sad it is that those who know the truth of God s word are not more zealous in reaching these anxious souls. Secondly, we read that they are led away by various lusts. This to mean led by ever-changing caprice, wayward creatures of impulse. The
thought seems to be that, conscious of their load of sin and seeking relief from it, they are willing to expose themselves to every passing wind of doctrine and to every religious novelty. 3:7 The expression always learning does not mean that they are continually learning more about the Lord Jesus and the word of God. Rather, it means that they are constantly delving into one cult after another, but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. The Lord Jesus is Himself the Truth. These women seem to come ever so close to Him at times, but they are taken captive by the enemy of their souls and never attain the rest that is found only in the Savior. It should be noted at this point that members of the various cults invariably say, I am learning, mentioning the system by name. They can never speak with finality as to an accomplished redemption through faith in Jesus Christ. This verse also makes us think of the vast present-day increase in knowledge in every realm of human endeavor, the tremendous emphasis on education so prevalent in modern life, and yet the abysmal failure of it all to bring men to the knowledge of the truth. 3:8 Three pairs of men are mentioned in this Epistle: Phygellus and Hermogenes (1:15) ashamed of the truth. Hymenaeus and Philetus (2:17, 18) erred concerning the truth. Jannes and Jambres (3:8) resisted the truth. In this eighth verse, Paul returns to the leaders and teachers of false cults. He compares them to Jannes and Jambres who resisted Moses. Who were these men? Actually, their names are not mentioned in the OT, but it is generally understood that they were two of the chief Egyptian magicians who were called in by Pharaoh to imitate the miracles performed by Moses. The question arises as to how Paul knew their names. This should present no difficulty, for if they were not passed down by Jewish tradition, it is not at all unreasonable that the names could have been given to him by divine revelation. The important thing is that they resisted Moses by imitating his works, by counterfeit miracles. That is precisely the case with the false cultists. They withstand the work of God by imitating it. They have their own Bible, their own way of salvation in short, they have a substitute for everything in Christianity. They withstand the truth of God by presenting a cheap perversion, and sometimes by resorting to magical arts. These men are of corrupt mind. Arthur Way translates it: their minds are rotten to the core. Their minds are distorted, debased, and depraved. When tested concerning the Christian faith, they are found to be disapproved and spurious. The greatest single test that can be applied to them is to ask the simple question, Is Jesus Christ God? Many of them seek to hide their false doctrine by admitting that Jesus is the Son of God, but they mean that He is a son of God in the same sense that others are children of God. But
when faced with the question, Is Jesus Christ God? they show their true colors. They not only deny the deity of Jesus Christ but usually become angry when so challenged. This is true of Christian Scientists, Spiritualists, Jehovah s Witnesses. 3:9 Paul assures Timothy that these false teachers will progress no further. The difficulty here is that in every age they seem to be prospering on every hand, and nothing seems to hinder their advance in the world! The probable meaning is that every system of error is eventually exposed. False systems come and go, one after the other. Although they might seem to prosper mightily, and even for a long time, yet the time comes when their falsity becomes evident to all. They can lead men up to a certain point, even offering a certain measure of reformation. But they fail in that they have no regeneration. They cannot offer a man freedom from the penalty and power of sin. They cannot give life. Jannes and Jambres could imitate Moses to a certain extent by their acts of magic. However, when it came to producing life from death, they were utterly powerless. This is the very issue on which the false cults meet their defeat. 3:10 In marked contrast to these false teachers was the life and ministry of Paul. Timothy was well aware of the nine prominent features which characterized this servant of the Lord. He had followed Paul closely and could testify to the fact that here was a man who was faithful to Christ and His word. The apostle s doctrine or teaching was true to the word of God and loyal to the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. His manner of life, or conduct, was consistent with the message he preached. His purpose in life was to be separate from moral and doctrinal evil. Faith here may mean Paul s trust in the Lord, or his own personal fidelity. Timothy knew him as one who was utterly dependent on the Lord, and at the same time, one who was honest and trustworthy. The apostle s longsuffering was seen in his attitude toward his persecutors and critics, and toward physical afflictions. As to love, he was selflessly devoted to the Lord and to his fellow men. The less he was loved by others, the more determined he was to love. Perseverance literally means bearing up under, that is, fortitude or endurance. 3:11 Some of the persecutions and afflictions, or sufferings, of Paul are described in 2 Corinthians 11:23 28. However, he is thinking particularly of those with which Timothy would have been personally acquainted. Since Timothy s home was Lystra, he would know about the persecutions which came to Paul there and in the neighboring cities of Antioch and Iconium. The inspired record of these sufferings is given in the book of Acts Antioch, Acts 13:45, 50; Iconium, Acts 14:3 6; Lystra, Acts 14:19, 20. Paul exults in the fact that the Lord had delivered him out of... all of these crises. The Lord had not delivered from trouble, but He had delivered him out of the troubles. This is a reminder to us that we are not promised freedom from difficulties, but we are promised that the Lord will be with us and will see us through.
3:12 Persecution is an integral part of a devout Christian life. It is well that every young Timothy should be reminded of this. Otherwise, when he is called upon to go through deep waters, he might be tempted to think that he has failed the Lord or that the Lord is displeased with him for some reason. The fact is that persecution is inevitable for all who desire to live in a godly manner. The reason for this persecution is simple. A godly life exposes the wickedness of others. People do not like to be thus exposed. Instead of repenting of their ungodliness and turning to Christ, they seek to destroy the one who has shown them up for what they really are. It is totally irrational behavior, of course, but that is characteristic of fallen man. 3:13 Paul had no illusions that the world would gradually become better and better, until finally all men would be converted. Rather, he knew by divine revelation that the very opposite would be the case. Evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse. They would become more subtle in their methods and more bold in their attacks. Not only would they deceive others, but they themselves would be ensnared by the very false teaching with which they sought to trap their hearers. After having peddled their lies for so long, they would actually come to believe them personally.