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A Warning against Apostasy.
v. 18. This charge I commit unto thee, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest war a good warfare,
v. 19. holding faith and a good conscience; which some, having put away concerning faith, have made shipwreck;
v. 20. of whom is Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have delivered unto Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.
In the preceding sections the apostle had discussed the Christian doctrine as a whole as well as in its application to the individual Christian. He now turns directly to Timothy, warning him against unfaithfulness and apostasy: This charge I lay before thee, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies of old upon thee. Not only in his childhood and youth had Timothy learned the Holy Scriptures, that is, the prophecies of old, but also after his conversion he had studied the Word of the Lord very carefully, also in its fulfillment in Christ Jesus. He had, in short, received the necessary instruction, not only for membership in the congregation, but also for the work of a minister of the Lord. Of this the apostle reminds his young assistant, whom he addresses with the very cordial term "son Timothy," incidentally bidding him wage a good warfare in them. In the Word of the Lord he should live, in that he should be clad, with that he should fight the Lord's battles, Eph_6:13-17. He that is clothed in the armor of the Lord can cheerfully and confidently go forth to battle for the Lord, being assured of victory from the very outset.
In such spiritual warfare a condition is, as a matter of course: Having faith and a good conscience, which some, having rejected, suffered shipwreck with regard to their faith. Every Christian, and especially every Christian pastor, must have faith, faith in his Redeemer, faith in the doctrines of Christianity as divine truth. He that himself entertains doubts with regard to these two points will hardly be able to teach with conviction. At the same time a good conscience is necessary, not one growing out of self-righteousness, but one that controls the entire conduct of man in accordance with the will of God. Unless these two conditions are met, unless faith and a good conscience are cargo and ballast in the ship of every Christian, he is apt to become a play of the billows and experience shipwreck. The apostle in his warning purposely uses a word which signifies a deliberate, malicious rejection of the Word of God, of faith and a good conscience, resulting in eternal disaster for the soul. The apostle mentions the names of two men whose terrible example should act as a deterrent to all lukewarm Christians: Among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have delivered unto Satan that they may be taught not to blaspheme. The case of these two men was known to Timothy, both of them having become manifest as men that had denied the faith and a good conscience. Paul, therefore, had been obliged to deal harshly with these two men by having the resolution of excommunication passed upon them, by declaring them to be citizens in the kingdom of Satan. But he did not want to be understood as though he had thereby definitely shut out these men from the hope of salvation. True, indeed, if they would not repent and return to the truth, they would be lost forever. At the same time, exclusion from the Christian congregation was intended as an educational measure. Having lost the blessed privileges of church-membership, the two men might be brought to see the heinousness of their offense in making light of the great blessings of God. Thus in this case also we see that "the primary cause of the highest censures in the primitive Church was to prevent further sin, and to reclaim the sinner" (Henry).
Summary
After the opening salutation the apostle Characterizes the Judaizing teachers, over against whom the true object of the Law should always be emphasized; he shows the greatness of the mercy experienced by him, for which he praises the Lord in a special doxology; he adds a wanting again & apostasy.