A Torah Verse By Verse Commentary Of Paul's Epistles by Re'tzon Ha'El - HTML preview

Chapter 4

V1 diamarturomai which is translated charge means to solemnly affirm or testify. By so doing before Elohim, and also mentioning the fact that Yeshua shall judge the living and the dead at His appearing, Paul was expressing how deadly serious his succeeding exhortation to Timothy was. We know from other passages of scripture that at Yeshua’s return, He shall only judge the righteous dead and the righteous living after having been caught up in the air or ‘raptured’ as has been coined by modern day Christendom.

The wicked shall be destroyed at his second coming and together with the wicked dead shall be judged at the Great White Throne judgement for the damned cf 1 Thes 4:15-17; 2 Cor 5:10; Rev 20:11-15. Timothy in these times of Roman persecution against the Christians under the orders of Nero, had undoubtedly been rattled, and fear must have gripped him, leading him to possibly doubt the gospel somewhat. Paul greatly fearing that his protege may also desert him as did the likes of Phygellus and Hermogenes, felt it prudent to instil greater fear in Timothy’s heart of deserting the very Messiah that would judge him one day.

V2 ephistemi translated be ‘instant’, in modern English would mean ‘be ready’. Eukaioros/in season means when opportunity arises and akairos/out of season means inopportunely. We must not wait for certain conditions to prevail such as church services, funerals, weddings and the like to herald the gospel. We are expected of our Saviour to do so even at the unlikeliest of times, such as amongst complete strangers who do not know or may not have heard the gospel at all cf 1 Thes 5:14; Tit 2:15; 1 Tim 5:20; Rev 3:19. Even when it seems dangerous to do so in say a communist or Muslim state, are we to be courageous to preach the gospel of truth. Even more noteworthy is to use this gospel message to:

a. elegcho/reprove or convict the heart of sinners; 

b. epitimao/ rebuke or chide sinful behaviour not directly to the person but in the name of our Master cf Jude 1:9

c. parakaleo/ exhort or encourage the immature Christian. 

This does not transpire with ease but requires great patience and perseverance to win the soul over for Messiah. In this deplorable world that we live in, imagine attempting to preach to an individual who was adopted by a homosexual couple practising wicca witchcraft, and indoctrinated in their wicked ways, never having known Yeshua. Clearly the poor soul did not choose to be brought up in such a family setup. Can you imagine what great a degree of forbearance you would have to muster, coupled with a razor-sharp knowledge of scripture to convert such a pitiful, woefully unfortunate soul to the kingdom of Elohim? This, dear reader is one of but a myriad of examples where this verse should resonate in our minds and prepare us for a twisted world full of prisoners unfairly chained up in Satan’s web of deceit.

V3 -4 An even more difficult group to deal with would be the deluded Christian who fills up many a church hall, filled with insatiable desire for all things worldly, lending his ear to any false preacher who may craftily twist scripture to justify his lascivious conduct. That time prophesied by Paul certainly dawned upon our generation in immensely greater measure than that witnessed in Timothy’s epoch. Muthos translated fables is Greek for fiction, falsehood, invention, which characterises the brazen perversion of scripture such as found in denominations deifying wealth, promoting polygamy, accepting homosexuality and abortion in the churches, misquoting grace as covering wilful sin, and most worryingly the spell-binding, all-encompassing doctrines of abolition of Torah and once saved always saved, which have bewitched well over 90% of Christendom cf 2 Pet 2:1-3; Jer 23:16-17; 29:8

V5 nepho translated ‘watch’ is better translated ‘be temperate or circumspect’. This Timothy was admonished to be in every waking moment, and as expected of true Christians, to endure hardships from the enemy. An evangelist is one who heralds the gospel of salvation in Yeshua the Messiah. In this ministry Timothy was to ensure that he served to his greatest potential.

V6 Ede spendo translated ‘now ready to be offered’ is an incomplete translation. It should be fully translated’ for I am already being poured out as a drink offering’, which is an allusion to Numbers 15:1-10 made when the Israelites finally entered Canaan, a foreshadowing of entering into glory in heaven. The drink offering was the last ritual in the sacrificial offering, which succeeded the offering of the ram, bull or lamb. Paul had presented his body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto YHVH, and in his final course in life was quite literally about to have his blood poured out in death by beheading. In Phil 2:17 Paul had alluded to the possibility of being sacrificed. In this instance during his imprisonment in Rome, coupled with Nero’s fierce persecution of the Christian world, particularly targeting the leaders of the faith, Paul was certain of his impending demise. 

V7 agonizomai is Greek for contending with difficulties and dangers. Paul’s ministry had been plagued with persistent raging battles, physical and spiritual, against the host of hell and its human agents. Paul had completed his spiritual race of life and knew that he had been true to the faith. What a blessing and honour it would be if one knew in their dying days that they had served Yeshua to their greatest ability, and were ready to be accepted into His glorious kingdom cf Phil 3:13-14; Acts 20:24.

V8 A true Christian serving YHVH to his uttermost capabilities, will never fear death, nor second guess his destiny. We need to strive towards perfection, with non-delusional confidence in Messiah, that rewards await us in the afterlife, as opposed to uncertainty over whether one shall narrowly slip into heaven or be carried away to infernal destruction. Five different crowns are described in scripture pertaining to rewarding the saints:

1. An incorruptible crown-for striving for mastery i.e. contending against the enemy in spiritual warfare facing difficulties and dangers 1 Cor 9:25.

2. Crown of rejoicing-for evangelism of the gospel of salvation in the midst of adversity and persecution 1 Thes 2:19.

3. Crown of righteousness-to them that love Yeshua’s coming, having endured to the end all manner of persecution for His name’s sake 2 Tim 4:8.

4. Crown of glory-for shepherding the flock of Elohim 1 Pet 5:4.

5. Crown of life-for enduring trials and tribulations Jm 1:12; Rev 2:10

Yeshua is rightfully referred to as the righteous judge, as he shall indeed judge the saints at His coming cf Jn 5:22.

V9-11 Paul then requests Timothy to expeditiously visit him, and not to forsake him as yet another faint-hearted Christian Demus, had done. In 1:4 Paul had expressed his great desire to see Timothy, and in this chapter the reason for this yearning is divulged in Paul’s knowledge of imminent martyrdom. He was running out of time on this earth. It was a great shame that a once faithful brother so affectionately loved by Paul, had turned his back on him in times of trial cf Col 4:14; Philemon 1:24. Many a Christian have thrown in the towel in these times of ease for pleasure, yet Demus gave in due to trial and tribulation. This does not diminish his sin, but the point made here is how woeful it is that in our present age, love for money, and lusts of the flesh have taken over many malingering self-proclaimed Christians, yet times of hardship are yet to come.

How much more shall surely desert Yeshua when persecution versus Satan’s fleeting riches are presented to us. Many shall take up the mark of the beast wilfully for lack of foresight of life eternal, which supersedes the waterfalls of this passing age. Crescens and Titus do not appear to be considered as having deserted Paul for the allurements of this world, but rather to have departed for Galatia and Dalmatia respectively to serve Yeshua in those regions, otherwise Paul would have been unlikely to have dedicated an epistle to Titus, had he been in the same league as a renegade such as Demus.

Luke the physician Col 4:14, and the eponymous author of the gospel, and of the book of Acts, had faithful stood by Paul’s side. Despite the antagonism in times past between Paul and John Mark cf Acts 15:37-38, the two had buried the hatchet and become very close later on in Paul’s ministry.

V12-13 Tychicus was a loved, faithful close companion of Paul, who was his amanuensis for the epistle to the Ephesians and Colossians cf Acts 20:4; Eph 6:21-24, Col 4:7,18; Tit 3:12. Further requests are made by Paul of paraphernalia of personal value, that may have not been at his disposal during his second arrest and imprisonment in Rome. 

V14 Alexander was undoubtedly a wretched soul, having been so dastardly in nature and injurious to the Christian faith,  that Paul had delivered him unto Satan cf 1 Tim 1:20. Paul in this instance wished for YHVH to fulfil His word cf Deut 32:41; Ps 28:4; 1 Sam 24:12; 2 Thes 1:6. It would seem Paul’s wish was at great variance with Yeshua’s teachings in Matt 5:43-44 and Lk 6:27-28. However, we need to note that the enemies being referred to are those that offend us, but may not necessarily offend YHVH.

Many Christians within the body of Messiah have at some point in time detested each other over a myriad of issues, such as differences of opinions, doctrines, beliefs and such like, which may have sparked heated debate to the point of enmity being forged. However, both parties may not have blasphemed YHVH and continued praying to Him and doing their level best to serve Him in their limited capacity of truth, with a heart filled with good intent. 

It is very clear from the verses I have cited pertaining to YHVH dealing with those that have offended Him, that although we are to love our enemies who most likely would not be enemies of YHVH, the enemies of YHVH are of a different classification. Hence in essence there are enemies between men who may both be servants of Elohim, who are to love one another, despite having hurt each other in their immaturity.

There also are enemies of YHVH who blaspheme Him day and night, whom we are permitted to pray for YHVH to deal with, as it is not in our jurisdiction to mete out punishment against them. Examples would include Muslim Jihadist warriors intent on destroying all Christians and Jews who worship YHVH, or communist and agnostic nations and communities, who force antichristian laws upon us such as acceptance of homosexuality, abortion, pagan gods and rituals, whilst denouncing all things Christian, in open rebellion to YHVH Elohim the one true Elohim. We need to fully understand scripture lest we fall into the trap of tolerating evil.

V15 Following on from v14, we are to be very wary of antagonists of Elohim, and never tolerate nor placate their evil, lest we bring confusion and ruin to the faith. The likes of Alexander the coppersmith had greatly opposed the logos, translated ‘words’, which more specifically is the word of Elohim. Without the need to even interpret these last two verses, it is abundantly clear that those opposed to the gospel of Messiah, who actively and openly frustrate its preaching, are enemies of Elohim, of whom we should not fear imprecating through praying to Elohim to deal with accordingly.

V16 apologia translated ‘answer’, is Greek for verbal defence. Following the great fire in Rome of AD 64, Nero branded Christians as incendiaries, resulting in great persecution against them. In Paul’s first trial, it was not surprising at all that he was deserted by all men, including his closest allies, for fear of the death sentence, which was the endgame for most of the other Christians found in such a predicament. Paul understood this fear and gracefully petitioned Elohim to not condemn them for such conduct.

V17 Yeshua in the form of the Holy Spirit indwelling Paul, gave him strength and courage to not only defend himself against his vicious enemies railing all manner of accusation, but more miraculously preach the gospel in the presence of such inordinate anti-Christian hostility, to impress upon some Gentiles to the extent of winning their souls for the Kingdom of Elohim! This was a demonstration and fulfilment of the promise Yeshua made to His future faithful followers who would not deny Him in trial and tribulation cf Lk 21:12-15. Despite such a daring stance, Paul was delivered from the mouth of the lion cf Ps 22:21. This could possibly have been reference to the lions of the Roman coliseum by which martyrs were devoured in the arena, or could have been hyperbolic speech referring to Nero, his executioner or Satan outright cf 1 Pet 6:8.

V18 The evil work being referred to would have been that of the executioner. Paul was well aware that his days were numbered and had come to terms with that as expressed in 4:7. Despite impending death via a cruel manner, he was convinced that Yeshua would sozo/rescue him from the pain before welcoming him into the comfort, rest and bliss of heaven, which awaited him. I am thoroughly convinced that all saints who are faithful and true, and undergo the most horrendous executions such as beheadings and burning at the stake, are supernaturally protected from abject pain by the power of the Spirit of Yeshua dwelling in them. Foxe’s book of martyrs has accounts of martyrs who burned at the stake singing songs of praise, awaiting their entrance into glory. 

V19-20 In classic Pauline fashion, he sends out greetings to his beloved and faithful saints. Prisca and Aquila cf Acts 18:1-3,24-26. Onesipherus cf 2 Tim 1:16-18. Erastus cf Acts 19:21-22; Rom 16:23. Trophimus cf Acts 20:1-4.

V21 Timothy was encouraged to visit Paul before winter. Paul undoubtedly supernaturally knew of the period when he was to be martyred, possibly through a vision or dream, as evidenced by his repeated pleas for Timothy to visit him soon. Four other Christians are mentioned who had sent out their salutations to Timothy. Not much else is known about them, solely being mentioned here in scripture.

V22 Paul’s epilogue is as most of his other epistles.