and gradually more ; Rom. iii. 3, note.1 Their names are not mentioned. There are not wanting those who suspect the per son meant to be Apollonius Tyanseus, who came to Ephesus in the lifetime of Timothy. They do not deserve well at the hands of the truth, who too much extenuate the heretical doctrines of the first century. — rr{c, mareus, from the faith) which in all its exactness maintains Divine revelation, ver. 6, [and of which the foundation was a little ago described (iii. 15, 16). — Y. g.]— vviu- /jt,affi tfXdvoig xat bioatiKa\iaig ftai/Aovftov, seducing spirits and doctrines of demons) Seducing spirits are those who speak by false pro phets, and are called spirits, not only in respect of their own nature, but because they inspire2 (with their deceit) these false prophets ; therefore the word spirits is parallel to doctrines [not to demons~\. Aa/,aowwv, of demons, is the genitive of the cause (the source from which the doctrines now). Aai/j,6viov is often taken in a good sense by the Greeks ; for example, by the Athenians, Acts xvii. 18 : but with the LXX. interpreters and the apostles, it always denotes evil spirits.
2. '.Ev vtfozpiffet -vJ/gonSoXoywi*, [Engl. Vers. speaking lies in hypo crisy] through the hypocrisy of liars) This is construed with they shall fall away, or depart. That hypocrisy, which is the charac teristic of liars, shall carry them away. Ttvsg, some, viz. they, are the seduced ; the liars are the seducers. -^sudo\6ryuv, the genitive, depends solely on u-rox^/Vg/. The expression, of liars, implies a relation to others, and therefore the antithesis is in ibiav, their own conscience. — xe-Aaurripiaff/Aevuv rfy ibiav foviidyffw, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron) As faith and a good con science are joined in ch. i. 5 (where see the note3), so, hypocrisy (i.e. unbelief, Matt. xxiv. 51, note4) and a depraved conscience in this passage ; where, on the contrary, * faith' and " the know-
1 Some, for many. An Euphemism. And moreover unbelievers, though they be many, are spoken of as some, indefinitely, because they are not much taken into account. — ED.
2 The use of spirant in connection with spiritus, cannot be imitated in a translation . — TR AN SL.
3 Faith is as the precious liquor, a good conscience as clean glass. Faith is towards God ; conscience, towards one's self. — ED.
4 In Matt. xxiv. 5, " Shall appoint him his portion with the hypo crites ;" in Luke xii. 46, "with the unbelievers.'" The two are therefore akin. — ED.