Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our savior and of Christ Jesus our hope, to 2 Timothy, my true child in faith: grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. 3 I repeat the request I made of you when I was on my way to Macedonia, that you stay in Ephesus to instruct certain people not to teach false doctrines 4 or to concern themselves with myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the plan of God that is to be received by faith. 5 The aim of this instruction is love from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith. 6 Some people have deviated from these and turned to meaningless talk, 7 wanting to be teachers of the law, but without understanding either what they are saying or what they assert with such assurance. 8 We know that the law is good, provided that one uses it as law, 9 with the understanding that law is meant not for a righteous person but for the lawless and unruly, the godless and sinful, the unholy and profane, those who kill their fathers or mothers, murderers, 10 the unchaste, sodomites, kidnappers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is opposed to sound teaching, 11 according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, with which I have been entrusted.
Paul writes to Timothy in this pastoral letter giving him guidance on how to shepherd the Christian community in Ephesus entrusted to his care. Paul identifies himself as the author of the letter and writes that he is an apostle appointed by God through Christ Jesus and that Jesus is the hope for all believers. He introduces Timothy as a “true child in faith,” and gives the customary greeting of grace, mercy, and peace.
Paul was very concerned about false teachers and the spread of false doctrine and practice. He had previously asked Timothy to remain in Ephesus to refute the teaching of false doctrine and to promote sound doctrine within the Christian community (Acts 20:26-35). The false teaching could have resulted from the Jews trying to make the law into a myth and asserting that their regulations should be followed (Ti. 1:14).
Under Paul’s Christian dispensation, the community should be known for its love from pure hearts (Rom. 13:10), good conscience, and sincere faith. The community should not be engaged in meaningless discussions and arguments about the Mosaic Law and its role in the Christian life. Many seek to be teachers of the law, but they lack both knowledge of the Law and how to apply it (Ti. 1:10). This contributed to their teaching false doctrine. The Law is part of God’s revelation (Rom. 7:12) but must be used as God intended. It was not meant for the just man but to keep sinners under control by making them conscious of their sins. Paul asserts that his instruction is in accordance with “the glorious gospel of the blessed God,” with which he has been entrusted (Ti. 1:3).
Almighty God, grant us the grace to be faithful stewards of your truth, to hold fast to sound doctrine, and to avoid meaningless arguments and discussions. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
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References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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