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2 Timothy 4

Paul places Timothy’s continuing ministry and his own approaching death under Christ’s judgment, sustaining presence, and promise of his kingdom.

Paul writes to Timothy with death approaching, charging him to preach the word and endure hardship under the authority of Christ, the coming judge. He looks back on his service and ahead to the crown of righteousness. Then the letter turns to absent companions, opposition, and practical requests: Timothy should bring Mark, a cloak, and books, and come before winter. Paul recalls being abandoned at his defense, where the Lord stood by him and strengthened him.

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1I command you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his Kingdom:
2preach the word; be urgent in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort with all patience and teaching.
3For the time will come when they will not listen to the sound doctrine, but having itching ears, will heap up for themselves teachers after their own lusts,
4and will turn away their ears from the truth, and turn away to fables.
5But you be sober in all things, suffer hardship, do the work of an evangelist, and fulfill your ministry.
6For I am already being offered, and the time of my departure has come.
7I have fought the good fight. I have finished the course. I have kept the faith.
8From now on, the crown of righteousness is stored up for me, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give to me on that day; and not to me only, but also to all those who have loved his appearing.
9Be diligent to come to me soon,
10for Demas left me, having loved this present world, and went to Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia; and Titus to Dalmatia.
11Only Luke is with me. Take Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for service.
12But I sent Tychicus to Ephesus.
13Bring the cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus when you come—and the books, especially the parchments.
14Alexander the coppersmith did much evil to me. The Lord will repay him according to his deeds.
15Beware of him, for he greatly opposed our words.
16At my first defense, no one came to help me, but all left me. May it not be held against them.
17But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, that through me the message might be fully proclaimed, and that all the Gentiles might hear. So I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.
18And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and will preserve me for his heavenly Kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
19Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the house of Onesiphorus.
20Erastus remained at Corinth, but I left Trophimus at Miletus sick.
21Be diligent to come before winter. Eubulus salutes you, as do Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brothers.
22The Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Grace be with you. Amen.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
2 Timothy 4:7Paul’s images of combat and a completed race frame his approaching death as the close of faithful service.
2 Timothy 4:17The Lord’s presence at Paul’s abandoned defense sustains his witness so that the Gentiles can hear the message.
2 Timothy 4:18Paul’s confidence reaches beyond his approaching death to the Lord’s power to preserve him for his heavenly kingdom.
Where this chapter reaches

The charge to guard sound teaching continues a concern shared with 1 Timothy, while the race and crown imagery also appears in 1 Corinthians. Paul’s witness to the Gentiles connects with Acts, and his language of rescue from a lion shares imagery with Psalm.

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After reading the whole chapter

How do Paul’s requests for companionship and a cloak shape your understanding of his confidence in the Lord?

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What stands out about the patience Timothy must bring to correcting and teaching people who resist the truth?

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Questions people ask about 2 Timothy 4

What does the lion mean in 2 Timothy 4:17?

Paul uses the image of rescue from a lion’s mouth while describing his first defense and the Lord’s help. The chapter does not identify a literal lion or name a person represented by it. The image conveys grave danger from which Paul was delivered while bearing witness.

Why does Paul expect deliverance in 2 Timothy 4:18 if he is about to die?

Paul has said that his departure has come and that he has finished the course. His confidence in verse 18 centers on being preserved for the Lord’s heavenly kingdom. The verse therefore allows for death: Paul trusts that evil will not prevent the Lord from bringing him into that kingdom.

What are itching ears in 2 Timothy 4?

The phrase describes people who refuse sound doctrine and gather teachers who suit their own desires. Verse 4 explains the result: they turn from truth to fables. Paul contrasts this demand for agreeable teaching with Timothy’s charge to preach the word, correct error, and teach with patience.

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2 Timothy · 4 chapters
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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).