Introduction to 2nd Timothy

Welcome Prayer Song

Background of Paul's Imprisonment

Paul appears to have been in prison at Rome when he penned this second letter to Timothy. Whether it was during his first imprisonment or second is the mystery and the divide is wide between commentators.

We remember that on a visit to Jerusalem and then in the temple, Paul was assaulted by a mass crowd of Jews. They get really angry at him and he addresses them under Roman protection. Then when a plot against his life is discovered a band of cavalry and foot soldiers took him at night to safety in Caesarea (that’s found in Acts 21:27-33). From this point and for the next two years (from around 57-59 AD), Paul is kept under guard in Herod's palace in Caesarea (Acts 23:34-35) as the politicians — Roman governors and Jewish kings — seek to use Paul to gain political advantage with the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem. His imprisonment wasn’t about justice but about preventing upheaval and rebellion among the Jews. So, Paul is neither formally charged nor released.

Initially, (according to Acts 24) five days pass before a contingent from Jerusalem comes to present its charges before Felix the Roman governor. The high priest, Ananias, led the delegation. Ananias had a reputation for greed and gluttony. He had been appointed in 47 AD. According to F.F. Bruce, Ananias "was one of the most disgraceful profaners of the sacred office." For example, he seized tithes intended for the common priests and uses them to increase his own wealth, a paragon of greed. He had been sent to Rome, accused by the governor of Syria of acts of violence in 52 AD, but was acquitted by emperor Claudius and returned to the high priesthood. Even after Ananias was deposed from office, he uses his great wealth to get his way through violence and assassination. Because he is pro-Roman, however, he is put to deathSeparation from God—now overcome. Physical death remains, but it no longer separates us from life with God. by Jewish zealots at the beginning of the Jewish rebellion against Rome in 66 AD.

The Trial Before Governor Felix

The high priest's spokesman is a Jewish lawyer, Tertullus, evidently a Hellenistic Jew, since his name is a common one in the Greek world. He is a skilled orator. The governor, Antonius Felix, is procurator of Judea (from 52-59 AD), and he filled the position once held by Pontius Pilate (who reigned from 26-36 AD). Felix was a Roman of common origins, but was elevated in rank because his brother happened to be in the court of the Emperor Claudius. As governor, in a time of increased uprisings among the Jews, Felix becomes known for his ruthlessness. Roman historian Tacitus (56-120 AD) says about the man: "Antonius Felix, indulging in every kind of barbarity and lust, exercised the power of a king in the spirit of a slave."

Charges Against Paul

In this trial the lawyer Tertullus starts off with a flourish of undeserved flattery of the corrupt Felix. Then he lays out the charges. According to Tertullus, Paul is a: Troublemaker, a public menace, stirring up riots among the Jews wherever he goes. While "troublemaker" sounds overly general to us, one who causes riots and sedition was a direct threat to the peace Rome sought. It would be a serious charge before a Roman procurator, if it could be substantiated. He was also considered a ringleader of Nazarene sect. According to Acts 24:12 Paul offers a few nice words of his own towards Felix, and then explains the details, denying that he was "arguing with anyone at the temple, or stirring up a crowd in the synagogues or anywhere else in the city." He asserts that his accusers can't prove their charge of him being a "troublemaker" but Paul admits to being "a follower of the Way" at the same time asserting that he was a conscientious Pharisee, was ceremonially clean when he entered the temple, and didn't cause a disturbance.

Felix puts off any decision until he hears from Lysias, the Jerusalem tribune. Acts 24:23 says that Felix, “ordered the centurion to keep Paul under guard but to give him some freedom and permit his friends to take care of his needs." So at that point Paul was under guard, but not in a dungeon and his food was supplied by Christian friends in Caesarea. Felix, a corrupt governor, isn't interested in justice, but in what will benefit him. So, he keeps Paul around, hoping Paul or his friends will come up with a bribe. Luke notes that Felix is "well acquainted with the Way." But Felix and his wife Drusilla, who is Jewish, enjoy talking with…

Paul's Interaction with Roman Governors

Paul. It's entertaining to them. And Paul uses the opportunity to tell the governor about Jesus.

"[Felix] sent for Paul and listened to him as he spoke about faith in Christ Jesus. As Paul discoursed on righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix became afraid and said (in Acts 24:24-25), 'That's enough for now! You may leave. When I find it convenient, I will send for you.'" But Felix brought Paul back "frequently" for discussions over the next two years, in fact as long as Felix remained governor. Paul's passion for Jesus apparently “fascinates” Felix but he never commits to faith in Christ. In the end, Felix perfectly fits Paul's description to Timothy (which we will read in 2nd Timothy 3:7) as one who is "always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth." Instead of releasing Paul, which would have been more than just, Felix keeps Paul in prison "to grant a favor to the Jews." Again, to Felix, Paul is a political pawn in the Roman occupation of Judea — and an interesting fellow to converse with.

Transition of Governance

Then according to Acts 25:1-12, Governor Felix is succeeded as procurator in 59 AD by Porcius Festus. According to Josephus, Festus is a prudent and honorable governor. He succeeds somewhat in ridding the province of the Sicarii, robbers who would descend upon a village, plunder it, set it on fire, and murder whomever they wish. However, he is governor for only two years, and then is succeeded by a new and purposeless governor, Albinus.

Soon after Festus arrives as governor of Judea, he spends several days in Jerusalem, where the Jewish leaders present their charges against Paul. They want Paul returned to Jerusalem because, Luke tells us in Acts 25:3, "they were preparing an ambush to kill him along the way." Festus invites the Jewish leaders to Caesarea to present their charges before him officially. Luke says in Acts 25:7 that they brought "many serious charges against him, which they could not prove."

Paul's Appeal to Caesar

Festus wants to do a favor to the Jews and cement good relations with them, so he asks Paul if he is willing to go to Jerusalem to face the charges — before Festus, not the Sanhedrin, but in Jerusalem. Paul is aware of the Jews' plot to ambush him, so he refuses to go to Jerusalem. With Festus wanting to go along with the Jews' request, Paul feels he has no choice. Roman justice in Caesarea has been subverted by the Romans' desire to keep the Jews happy and therefore easier to govern. Paul knows that he won’t ever find justice there. So, he says in Acts 25:11:

"If the charges brought against me by these Jews are not true, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar!"

So Paul has now officially invoked his right as a Roman citizen to have his trial before Caesar in Rome. Festus confers with his advisors, and seeing no way to get around Paul's rights but to still please the Jews, declares officially (in Acts 25:12), "You have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar you will go."

Arrival of King Agrippa II

However, the next official to appear on the scene is King Herod Agrippa II and his sister Bernice. This Roman procurator is the highest authority in Judea, but he rules through Jewish kings who have been set in place by Rome. Agrippa is the eighth and last king of the Herodian dynasty. It is rumored that he has an incestuous relationship with his sister Bernice, who is widowed and lives in his palace. Later, she becomes the mistress of Emperor Titus, which created a scandal in Rome. Since King Agrippa II has the right to appoint high priests, the Romans would consult him on religious matters. However, when the Jews revolt against the Romans in 69 AD, Agrippa sides with Rome against the Jews – his own people. That's his background.

So back in Acts 25, Felix has been replaced by the new governor Festus who explains to this King Agrippa what happened when he consulted with the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem. They haven't charged Paul with any real crimes, he says. "Instead, (Acts 25:19 says) they had some points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive." King Agrippa II and Bernice express a desire to hear Paul's defense, so Festus welcomes them to help him decide what to write in

Paul's Defense Before King Agrippa

Paul addresses King Agrippa directly, acknowledging his acquaintance with Jewish customs and controversies. He identifies himself as a Pharisee and mentions his hope of resurrection as one of the reasons he is being accused by the (mainly Sadducee) Jewish leaders and chief priests.

Then he relates his story — how he persecuted Christians and how he was converted on the road to Damascus. He tells of the bright light, Jesus' words to him, and his commission to the Gentiles, which Paul says in Acts 26:18 was

"… To open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me." Paul explains (in Acts 26:20) that he has been obedient to Jesus, preaching everywhere that people "should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds." For this, Paul says, the Jews seized me and tried to kill me, but God has helped him. In Acts 26:22-23 Paul says:

"So I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen — that the Christ would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would proclaim light to his own people and to the Gentiles."

Interruption by Festus

Paul is stirred as he proclaims the good news of the Messiah to the king and governor and assembled officials. But Festus, the pagan Roman governor, interrupts Paul by shouting, according to Acts 26:24:

"You are out of your mind, Paul! Your great learning is driving you insane."

Though he uses the Greek word mania, Festus isn't making a psychiatric diagnosis. Rather, in an attempt to stop Paul's powerful witness, he suggests that Paul has become a fanatic which was a way of discrediting what he was saying.

Paul, the veteran of many dialogs in Jewish synagogues over the years, replies (in Acts 26:26),

"I am not insane, most excellent Festus. What I am saying is true and reasonable. The king is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner."

Paul's Question to King Agrippa

In other words, as a Roman, Festus, you may not understand Jewish history, but King Agrippa does. So now Paul appeals to the Jewish king himself, and we enter into the second most dramatic scene in scripture between a believer and a leader (with the first being Jesus to Pilate). But in this scene Paul directly questions King Agrippa about his faith, saying:

"King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do." (Acts 26:27)

And we see Paul the questioned and the one on trial putting Agrippa in this place. But Agrippa pushes back.

"Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?" (Acts 26:28)

Paul doesn't miss a beat.

"Short time or long — I pray God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains." (Acts 26:29)

Notice that King Agrippa uses the word "Christian," which had become a term to describe believers some years before in Antioch (according to Acts 11:26). While the term "Christian" is rare in the New Testament, Peter also uses the term (1 Peter 4:16).

The interview is over. Paul has turned it around to calling both the governor and the king to faith. Rather than continue, they get up and leave but they agree, however, on Paul's legal status and say, (according to Acts 26:31-32)

"This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment… This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar."

So Paul sails to Rome under the watch of a centurion named Julius, part of the Imperial Regiment who appears to have several soldiers under him on the voyage who were in charge of Paul and other prisoners headed for Rome.

Paul's ship sails from Caesarea and there is a long tale of his arduous travels to Rome which I won’t describe. But note, in the midst of the storm tossed sea when all hope is lost, an angel appears to Paul and says (in Acts 27:24):

"Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail."

Paul's Time in Rome

The ship wrecks but all are saved and there are some wonderful stories of Paul on the Island among the natives and his healing them. The rest of the trip to Rome is uneventful. After a week's stay with friends, the centurion and Paul's party travel along the Appian Way towards Rome. Christian believers, who hear they are coming, travel greet Paul. Since he is not a convicted criminal, he isn't housed in a jail when they get to Rome, but rather stay in a house he has rented, though he is constantly guarded by a soldier.

Paul's Ministry to the Jews

There is a Christian congregation in Rome that Paul had addressed in his Letter to the Romans. But it is apparently mostly a Gentile congregation. So, the first thing Paul does when he arrives is to reach out to the Jewish community. The Roman Jews seem genuinely interested. Paul assures them that he is a loyal Jew, not a heretic, and says to them in Acts 28:20: "It is because of the hope of Israel that I am bound with this chain."

The "hope of Israel" statement would include both that the Messiah would be the king of the world and the resurrection of the dead. So he invites the Jews to come and hear the whole story. On the appointed day, even larger numbers come to hear what he will say. In Acts 28:23-24 we read: "From morning till evening he explained and declared to them the kingdom of GodGod’s spiritual reign—fulfilled and present, not political or future. and tried to convince them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets." Just as he has done in city synagogues in Syria, Galatia, Macedonia, Greece, and Asia, Paul preaches Christ as the one who fulfills the Old Testament prophecies, who has died for our sins and raised from the dead.

Acts 28:24-28 summarizes the results of this, saying:

24 Some were convinced by what he said, but others would not believe.

25 They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: 'The Holy Spirit spoke the truth to your forefathers when he said through Isaiah the prophet:

26 Go to this people and say, You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.

27 For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them."

28 Therefore I want you to know that God's salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!'"

Continued Ministry Under House Arrest

So Paul is still under house arrest in Rome. But within these constraints, he is free to conduct his ministry in person and by letter. The book of Acts concludes at chapter 28 with:

30 For two whole years Paul stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him.

31 Boldly and without hindrance he preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ."

For these two years, he is chained to a Roman guard, one of several who rotate through shifts. As a result, over time, many soldiers are converted. In spite of the inconvenience of being chained to a guard, Paul carries on a rather active ministry, with many people coming and going. This is how the Acts of the Apostles ends with Paul in the heart of the Roman Empire, declaring the gospel openly, with the full knowledge of the Roman government.

Speculations on Paul's Later Years

It is presumed that Paul ultimately did have a hearing as was released around 62AD. Early church historian Eusebius, writing around 300 AD says: "After pleading his cause, he is said to have been sent again upon the ministry of preaching.” Jerome wrote in 392 AD, that at the end of his first imprisonment, "Paul was dismissed by Nero, that the gospel of Christ might be preached also in the West.”

If Paul was released in 62AD and was then executed by Nero in 64 AD, he appears to have had around a two year period to preach freely during that time. What was Paul doing exactly in those years? Can’t say exactly. Some say that he went to Spain. This is because Clement, bishop of Rome 88-99 AD, says: "After preaching both in the east and west, he gained the illustrious reputation due to his faith, having taught righteousness to the whole world, and come to the extreme limit of the west, and suffered martyrdom under the prefects."

Early Christian Work and Paul's Journey

The "limit of the west" probably indicates Spain. There is some evidence of early Christian work in Spain. What are called “The Pastoral Epistles” (1 and 2 Timothy, Titus) seem to have been written after Paul's Roman imprisonment, offering some tantalizing clues to Paul's activities. We're not sure of Paul's location when he writes 1 Timothy and Titus, though 2 Timothy is written from prison in Rome at the end of his life.

The Great Fire of Rome

Speaking of the end of his life, on the night of July 18-19, 64 AD, a fire begins in the region of the Roman circus and consumes half the city before it is brought under control after six days. Various stories circulate about its cause, with several blaming Nero. This is a horrible fire that is ultimately blamed on the Christians. Roman historian Tacitus concludes in 117 AD:

"Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace.

(HE GOES ON)

Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their center and become popular.

Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired.

Nero offered his gardens for the spectacle and was exhibiting a show in the circus while he mingled with the people in the dress of a charioteer or stood aloft on a car. Hence, even for criminals who deserved extreme and exemplary punishment, there arose a feeling of compassion; for it was not, as it seemed, for the public good, but to glut one man's cruelty, that they were being destroyed.”

Paul apparently wasn't convicted by accusations of the Jews that brought him to Rome to be tried before Nero about 60-62 AD. But after the terrible fire that consumed much of Rome, anyone considered as a leader of the Christians in Rome would be subject to arrest and death, whether or not he is a Roman citizen. We assume that Paul is arrested and was in custody in Rome sometime in 64 or 65 AD. Both St. Peter and St. Paul are imprisoned there, according to tradition.

Letters to Timothy

Paul's final letter is 2 Timothy, probably written from this final prison. It is addressed to Timothy, who is still leading the church in Ephesus. Paul seeks to encourage his protégé Timothy and writes in the 1st Chapter verse 8: “Don’t be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner." In verses 11-12, Paul knows the reason why he is suffering and is unashamed, saying: "Of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day."

All the way back in Acts chapter 9, when Paul was called by Christ, the Lord told Ananias to go and fetch the blinded soul, saying: "I will show him how much he must suffer for my name." Here in the first chapter of this second letter to Timothy, Paul reminds the young man that God is faithful even in tough times, saying at verse 10:

"10 You … know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 11 persecutions, sufferings — what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. 12 In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." (2 Timothy 3:10-12)

Christian Life as a Soldier

It is in this epistle that Paul will liken being a true Christian to being a good soldier along with several other aspects of devotion and resilience.

Apostle Paul’s Final Words and Legacy

Bits of advice that are commonly cited by believers even today, including things like being deserted by once loyal friends in the faith, that in the end of his life he, like Christ, was poured out like a drink offering, the importance of finishing a race well, and of fighting the good fight, keeping the faith, and of a crown of righteousness waiting him. These things from the Apostle Paul make the epistle of great value to us readers today, giving encouragement to all for the Christian battles we face.

The Death of Paul

Eusebius records Paul’s death saying: "After a second visit to the city, that he finished his life with martyrdom."

Jerome wrote: "He then, in the fourteenth year of Nero on the same day with Peter, was beheaded at Rome for Christ's sake and was buried in the Ostian way, the twenty-seventh year after our Lord's passion." Jerome's dating may be a bit off, since Nero reigned 54 to 68 AD, but the tradition of Paul being beheaded by order of Nero is sound.

Paul’s Final Letter

And so Paul begins this final letter he will ever write as a human being on earth saying, as he typically does:

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

We will pick it up from here next week.

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