2 Timothy 1

KJV · Chapter 1/4

¹Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,

²To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

³I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day;

⁴Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy;

⁵When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.

⁶Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.

⁷For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

⁸Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;

⁹Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

¹⁰But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:

¹¹Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.

¹²For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.

¹³Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.

¹⁴That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.

¹⁵This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me; of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes.

¹⁶The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain:

¹⁷But, when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me.

¹⁸The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day: and in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus, thou knowest very well.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Paul, now imprisoned and near the end of his life, writes with affection to Timothy, recalling his sincere faith inherited from his grandmother and mother. He encourages him not to be ashamed of the gospel and to rekindle the gift of God within him.

Explanation

This is considered Paul's last letter, written from prison in Rome shortly before his death, which gives a personal and urgent tone to every word. He recalls the faith of Lois and Eunice, Timothy's grandmother and mother, showing how faith can pass from generation to generation within a family. The apostle asks Timothy not to be ashamed of the gospel, even at the cost of suffering, and to rekindle the spiritual gift he received through the laying on of hands. The application for today is that courage in faith often needs to be reignited, and a family's spiritual legacy can sustain future generations.

Fun facts

This letter is traditionally regarded as Paul's 'spiritual testament,' written during his second imprisonment in Rome, unlike the milder first imprisonment mentioned in Acts 28.

Verse-by-verse explanation

2 Timothy 1:1Paul writes this second letter to Timothy already imprisoned in Rome, expecting to be executed; it is the last letter of his that we have, and a tone of farewell marks the whole book.
2 Timothy 1:2Paul calls Timothy “my dearly beloved son” and repeats his usual greeting, but here, written near the end of his life, it carries a more personal weight.
2 Timothy 1:3Paul recalls that he serves God with the same clear conscience his Jewish forefathers had, and says that he prays for Timothy constantly, night and day.
2 Timothy 1:4Paul remembers Timothy’s tears, probably from their last farewell, and says that seeing his friend again up close would bring him real joy.
2 Timothy 1:5Paul recalls that Timothy’s faith comes from a family line, passed down through his grandmother and his mother before him — according to the book of Acts, his mother was a converted Jew and his father was Greek, which made Timothy something of a bridge between the two cultures. It is a personal detail that shows how faith was passed on within families, not only through public preaching.
2 Timothy 1:6Paul refers to the same gesture mentioned in 1 Timothy 4:14, the moment when hands were laid on Timothy to formally commission him for service. Here he asks Timothy to reignite that disposition, like rekindling a fire that may have been cooling because of discouragement.
2 Timothy 1:7This is one of the most quoted verses in the letter: Paul recalls that the spirit God gives is not one of fear, but of power, love, and self-control, an encouragement for Timothy to lead without cowardice.
2 Timothy 1:8Paul asks that Timothy feel no shame either about speaking of Jesus or about visiting him, a prisoner, but that he share in the hardships of the gospel with the strength that comes from God.
2 Timothy 1:9Paul recalls that salvation did not come as a reward for merit, but because of a plan and a grace of God that already existed before the world began.
2 Timothy 1:10This ancient plan, Paul says, became visible when Jesus appeared, conquering death and bringing to light a life that never ends.
2 Timothy 1:11Paul repeats, as he had already said in 1 Timothy 2:7, that he was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles, the non-Jews.
2 Timothy 1:12“Deposit” was a commercial term, used for something valuable left in the trustworthy keeping of another person. Paul uses the image to say that he entrusts his life and his mission to God like someone leaving something precious in the keeping of someone fully trustworthy, until the day of final judgment.
2 Timothy 1:13Paul asks Timothy to hold on to everything he learned from him as a model, keeping the faith and love that come from Christ Jesus as a constant reference.
2 Timothy 1:14Paul repeats the image of the “deposit” he already used before (1:12), now asking Timothy to guard that same trust with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in him.
2 Timothy 1:15Paul, already imprisoned and near the end of his life, feels abandoned by Christians from the region of Asia, part of modern-day Turkey, whom he knew well, including Ephesus. It is this climate of loneliness that makes the praise that follows, about someone who did the opposite, stand out even more.
2 Timothy 1:16Looking for a prisoner in Rome, especially someone accused for reasons tied to the emperor, could be risky and compromising for whoever paid that visit. Paul highlights Onesiphorus’s effort precisely because of this risk, in contrast to those who chose to keep their distance.
2 Timothy 1:17Unlike those who avoided Paul (1:15), Onesiphorus made a point of seeking him out as soon as he arrived in Rome, even knowing the risk of associating with a prisoner.
2 Timothy 1:18Paul closes his praise of Onesiphorus with a request for blessing, also recalling all the help he had already given before, in Ephesus.

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