3 “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” (2 Timothy 4:3–4 (ESV)
In today’s text, the phrase the time is coming (ἔσται καιρὸς; estai kairos) refers to a period of time, a season or an era which will exist in the future. It will be an age which will happen or occur. What will happen during this future period of time? How will believers in Christ know the arrival of this future time period? The Apostle Paul answered these questions with four definitive statements.
Frist, “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching.”
Second, “For the time is coming when people … having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions.”
Third, “For the time is coming when people … will turn away from listening to the truth.” To turn away (ἀποστρέψουσιν; apostrepsousin) means to turn back and to change or reject belief. What people will turn away from is listening to the truth (ἀληθείας ἀκοὴν; aletheias akoen). This is a deliberate rejection of biblical reality concerning God, sin, salvation and the Lord Jesus Christ. In short, it is a rejection of the Gospel. This refers to apostasy.
“Apostasy is turning against God, as evidenced by abandonment and repudiation of former beliefs. The term generally refers to a deliberate renouncing of the faith by a once sincere believer rather than a state of ignorance or mistaken knowledge. Apostasy is distinguished from heresy (denial of a part of the faith) and from transfer of allegiance from one religious body to another within the same faith. Also, it is possible to deny the faith, as Peter once did, and then at a later time reaffirm it.[1]
“Many NT passages, using different words, convey warnings against apostasy. In the last days, tribulation and persecution will cause many to “fall away” (Mt 24:9–10); false prophets will arise and “lead many astray” (Mt 24:11). Other causes of apostasy include temptation (Lk 8:13) and unbelief (Heb 3:12). Paul cited Hymenaeus and Alexander as examples of those who had rejected the faith (1 Tim 1:20). The writer of Hebrews referred to those who had believed and then departed from the faith as being in a hopeless state-with no possibility of further repentance (Heb 6:1–6). The consequences of willful sinning after receiving Christ are terrifying (Heb 10:26–31). The apostle Peter said that, for believers in Christ who knowingly turned away, “they are worse off than before” (2 Pt 2:20–22). The apostle John addresses this same problem (1 Jn 2:18–19).[2]
Dr. Simon Kistemaker writes, “God’s redemptive truth, which deals with sin and damnation, with the necessity of inner change, etc. (cf. 2 Tim. 3:15–17) they cannot stomach.[3]
“Paul had just commanded Timothy to be careful to preach the Word in all situations. Why did the apostle find it necessary to say this to an experienced minister who had faithfully served with him for so many years? Paul understood the great pressure brought to bear on every prophet by the culture in which he preaches. We tend to think that Paul never felt intimidated by the ethos of pagan society. Yet the intrepid missionary admitted that he entered the gates of hedonistic Corinth in weakness, fear, and trembling (1 Cor. 2:3). In Athens he experienced the impact of the derisive laughter of the intellectually elite philosophers at Mars Hill when he told them that Jesus walked out of His grave. Paul personally knew the reality of the temptation to adapt the doctrines of the gospel to oblige the lifestyles of the world,” explains Dr. R. C. Sproul.
[Verse 1]
When I fear my faith will fail
Christ will hold me fast
When the tempter would prevail
He will hold me fast
I could never keep my hold
Through life’s fearful path
For my love is often cold
He must hold me fast.
[Chorus]
He will hold me fast
He will hold me fast
For my Savior loves me so
He will hold me fast.
[Verse 2]
Those He saves are His delight
Christ will hold me fast
Precious in His holy sight
He will hold me fast
He’ll not let my soul be lost
His promises shall last
Bought by Him at such a cost
He will hold me fast. – Keith & Kristyn Getty
May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here. Have a God-glorifying day.
Soli deo Gloria!
[1] Walter A. Elwell and Philip Wesley Comfort, Tyndale Bible Dictionary, Tyndale Reference Library (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2001), 95.
[2] Ibid., 95.
[3] William Hendriksen and Simon J. Kistemaker, Exposition of the Pastoral Epistles, vol. 4, New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1953–2001), 312.
