Vers. 1~18.-A t11arrii'.ng against win babblings, with their tendency to heruy and impiety. .. But shun profane babblings." • L 'l'HE DUTY OF THE HINISTEB TOWARD SUCH BABBLTNGS. He is to shun them, because they are profitless-a mere sound of words, without solid meaning; great swelling words of vauity, not only unprofitable, but contrary to the doctrine that is ar.cording to godliness. 'l'he minister mnst shun, discourage, and repudiate them in the interests of truth and piety. ll. THE TENDENCY OF sucH BABDLINGS. "They will proceed further in ungodliness." The allusion is not to the l,abblings, but to the false teachers. 1. There is a close con- nection between 1.a:,; doctrine and a loose life. The error of the false teachers had not yet appeared in its fully developed form, but its true moral tendency was clearly fore- seen from the first. 2. 7'here is a tendency in false teachers to oorry their principles to their la.'lt logiool tttmlts. They have thrown off the checks of authority and conscience; they have been emboldened, perhaps, by a temporary success; and so they insist on wresting the whole Scripture to their own destruction as well as that of oLhers. IIL 'l'HE EFFECTS OF soCH FALSE TEACHING. "And their word will eat as doth a gangrene." L It will spread further and further. (1) Through the subtlety of sed11cers; (2) through the unwary simplicity of Ch1istian professors; (3) and as a judicial inflic- tiou upo11 such as, possessing no love of the truth, receive delusiou to believe a lio. 2. It will have corropting and destroying effects. 'l'he strong figure of the apostle set& the matter in au impressive light. IV. THE BING-LEADERS OF HERESY. "Of whom is Hymenmus and Philetus; men who conceruing the truth have erred, saying that the rt'surrection is pa,t alread,v, and over- throw the faith of som,·." 1. The leading apostks of error. (1) It is a solemn- thought \hat the Spirit of inspiration has given an immortality of infamy to these two names. [t they were ambitioua of noooriety, they have gained it far beyond the extent of their expectations. (2) Hymenmua is evidently the person referred to already (1 Tim. i. 25), whom the af•Ostle had "delivered uuoo Satan;" but he seems to have profited in no way in the interval by the severe discipline applied to him. Of Pbiletus nothing is known. It iB a Gre~k name, but it occurs in Homan inscriptions. 2. The nature oj tl.eir mTOf', Their principal error, which is mentioned, was a denial of the resurrection in its true sense. (1) They probably perverted the words of the apostle himself when he spoke of a spiritual resurrection (Rom. vi. 4, etc.; Col. ii. 12), of which they could 11ay truly euougb that "it was past already;" but they denied a resurrection of the body, THE SECOND EPISTLE TO TIMOTHY. 31
which was just RR expressly taught by the same apostle. (2) The error had its origin in the Greek pliilosophy, which regarded matter as eRsentially evil, and as therefore unworthy to Khare in the ultimate glori6cation of the rede<·med. 3. The iniorioue ~ect8 of their error. "And overthrow the fait.h of some." (1) The doctrine of the n·snrrection is founded on the resurrection of Christ, which is the foundation-doctrine of Christianity. Those errori~ts seem to have to11ched with unholy hands this corner-stone of Christian hope. (2) The iufluence of tlie errorists, evil as it was, was only partial. It only affected" some;" but even this thougl,t was a sad one to the apostle.-T. C.
Ver. 19.-The comfort amidst ,wounding apostasy. Though some turn away from the truth, God'~ Uhurcb stands firm in it8 grand integrity. I. THE CHURCH OF' GOD IN ITS EVER-DURING STABILITY. "Howbeit tl,e firm foundation of God standeth." 1. The Church is very properly called a foundation, because it is placed in the world as the platform on which the whole future household of faith is to rest (Eph. ii. 20). Christ is the Comer-stone of the foundation. 2. It stands firm from age to age on its unshaken foundation, notwithstanding all the efforts made to deHtroy it. It was to be the constant witness to the truth amidst all error and apostasy. II. THE CHURCH OF GoD WITH ITB TWOFOLD INSCRIPTION. "Having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his; and, Let every one that nameth the Name of the Lord depart from unrighteousn~ss." It was an ancient custom to engrave upon a buil,ling an in~cription which told of its orii!in and purpose. The names of the apostles were written in the twelve foundations of the apocalyptic city of God (Rev. xxi. 14). The Church has a s,,al with a duuble in~cription, which nisplays the true character of the edifice. 1. One inscription is the legend of ccmfort and hope. "The Lord knoweth them that are his." What a cornf"rt there is in the thought of this individualizing knowledge! What a hope there is in the thought that the saints are God's" purchased possession"! 2. .Another inscription is the legend of duty. "Let every one that narneth the Na111e of the Lor<i depart from unrighteu11sness." There is no place fur unrighteousness in the Church of God. Therefore believers must separate themselves from all evil.-T. C.