1Ti 4:15-16, 2Ti 4:2 | Barnes | STEP | Verse 15. Meditate upon these things . Upon the train of events by which you have been led into the ministry, and upon the responsibilities and duties of the office. Let your mind be deeply impressed with these things; make them the subject of profound and serious thought. Give thyself wholly to them . Gr., "Be in them"--a phrase similar to that of Horace-- totus in illis . The meaning is plain. He was to devote his life wholly to this work. He was to have no other grand aim of living. His time, attention, talents, were to be absorbed in the proper duties of the work. He was not to make that subordinate and tributary to any other purpose, nor was he to allow any other object to interfere with the appropriate duties of that office. He was not to live for money, fame, or pleasure; not to devote his time to the pursuits of literature or science for their own sakes; not to seek the reputation of an elegant or profound scholar; not to aim to be distinguished merely as an accomplished gentleman, or as a skilful farmer, teacher, or author. Whatever was done in any of these departments, was to be wholly consistent with the direction, εντουτοιςισθι--" be in these things "-- be absorbed in the appropriate duties of the ministerial office. It may be remarked here that no man will ever make much of himself, or accomplish much in any profession, who does not make this the rule of his life. He who has one great purpose of life to which he patiently and steadily devotes himself, and to which he makes everything else bend, will uniformly rise to high respectability, if not to eminence. He who does not do this, can expect to accomplish nothing. That thy profiting . Gr. Thy going forward; that is, thy advancement or progress. A minister of the gospel ought to make steady improvement in all that pertains to his office. No man ought to be satisfied with present attainments. To all . Marg., in all things . The margin is the more correct rendering, but either of them makes good sense. It should be apparent to all persons who attend on a stated preaching of a minister of the gospel, that he is making steady advances in knowledge, and wisdom, and piety, and in all things that pertain to the proper performance of the duties of his office. If a man really makes progress, it will be seen and appreciated by others; if he does not, that will be as well understood by his hearers. (1) "appear to all" "in all things"

1 Timothy 4:15-16

Verse 15. Meditate upon these things. Upon the train of events by which you have been led into the ministry, and upon the responsibilities and duties of the office. Let your mind be deeply impressed with these things; make them the subject of profound and serious thought.

Give thyself wholly to them. Gr., "Be in them"--a phrase similar to that of Horace--totus in illis. The meaning is plain. He was to devote his life wholly to this work. He was to have no other grand aim of living. His time, attention, talents, were to be absorbed in the proper duties of the work. He was not to make that subordinate and tributary to any other purpose, nor was he to allow any other object to interfere with the appropriate duties of that office. He was not to live for money, fame, or pleasure; not to devote his time to the pursuits of literature or science for their own sakes; not to seek the reputation of an elegant or profound scholar; not to aim to be distinguished merely as an accomplished gentleman, or as a skilful farmer, teacher, or author. Whatever was done in any of these departments, was to be wholly consistent with the direction, εντουτοιςισθι--"be in these things"-- be absorbed in the appropriate duties of the ministerial office. It may be remarked here that no man will ever make much of himself, or accomplish much in any profession, who does not make this the rule of his life. He who has one great purpose of life to which he patiently and steadily devotes himself, and to which he makes everything else bend, will uniformly rise to high respectability, if not to eminence. He who does not do this, can expect to accomplish nothing.

That thy profiting. Gr. Thy going forward; that is, thy advancement or progress. A minister of the gospel ought to make steady improvement in all that pertains to his office. No man ought to be satisfied with present attainments.

To all. Marg., in all things. The margin is the more correct rendering, but either of them makes good sense. It should be apparent to all persons who attend on a stated preaching of a minister of the gospel, that he is making steady advances in knowledge, and wisdom, and piety, and in all things that pertain to the proper performance of the duties of his office. If a man really makes progress, it will be seen and appreciated by others; if he does not, that will be as well understood by his hearers.

(1) "appear to all" "in all things" Verse 16. Take heed unto thyself. This may be understood as relating to everything of a personal nature that would qualify him for his work. It may be applied to personal piety; to health; to manners; to habits of living; to temper; to the ruling purposes; to the intercourse with others. In relation to personal religion, a minister should take heed

(1.) that he has true piety; and

(2.) that he is advancing in the knowledge and love of God. In relation to morals, he should be upright; to his intercourse with others, and his personal habits, he should be correct, consistent, and gentlemanly, so as to give needless offence to none. The person of a minister should be neat and cleanly; his manners such as will show the fair influence of religion on his temper and deportment; his style of intercourse such as will be an example to the old and the young, and such as will not offend against the proper laws of courtesy and urbanity. There is no religion in a filthy person; in uncouth manners; in an inconvenient and strange form of apparel; in bad grammar, and in slovenly habits--and to be a real gentleman should be as much a matter of conscience with a minister of the gospel as to be a real Christian. Indeed under the full and fair influence of the gospel, the one always implies the other. Religion refines the manners--it does not corrupt them; it makes one courteous, polite, and kind--it never produces boorish manners, or habits that give offence to the well-bred and the refined.

And unto the doctrine. The kind of teaching which you give, or to your public instructions. The meaning is, that he should hold and teach only the truth, he was to "take heed" to the whole business of public instruction that is, both to the matter and the manner. The great object was to get as much truth as possible before the minds of his hearers and in such a way as to produce the deepest impression on them.

Continue in them. That is, in these things which have been specified. He was ever to be found perseveringly engaged in the performance of these duties.

For in doing thou shalt both save thyself. By holding of the truth, and by the faithful performance of your duties, you will secure the salvation of the soul. We are not to suppose that the apostle meant to teach that this would be the meritorious cause of his salvation, but that these faithful labours would be regarded as an evidence of piety, and would be accepted as such. It is equivalent to saying, that an unfaithful minister of the gospel cannot be saved; one who faithfully performs all the duties of that office with a right spirit, will be.

And them that hear thee. That is, you will be the means of their salvation. It is not necessary to suppose that the apostle meant to teach that he would save all that heard him. The declaration is to be understood in a popular sense, and it is undoubtedly true, that a faithful minister will be the means of saving many sinners. The assurance furnishes a ground of encouragement for a minister of the gospel. He may hope for success, and should look for success. He has the promise of God that if he is faithful he shall see the fruit of his labours; and this result of his work is a sufficient reward for all the toils, and sacrifices, and self-denials of the ministry. If a minister should be the means of saving but one soul from the horrors of eternal suffering and eternal sinning, it would be worth the most self-denying labours of the longest life. Yet what minister of the gospel is there, who is at all faithful to his trust, who is not made the honoured instrument of the salvation of many more than one? Few are the devoted ministers of Christ who are not permitted to see evidence even here, that their labour has not been in vain. Let not, then, the faithful preacher be discouraged. A single soul rescued from death will be a gem in his eternal crown brighter by far than ever sparkled on the brow of royalty.

(a) "heed" Eze 44:24 (b) "save themselves" Jas 5:20

2 Timothy 4:2

Verse 2. Preach the word. The word of God; the gospel. This was to be the main business of the life of Timothy, and Paul solemnly charges him, in view of the certain coming of the Redeemer to judgment, to be faithful in the performance of it.

Be instant. Rom 12:12, The meaning here is, that he should be constant in this duty. Literally, to stand by, or to stand fast by; that is, he was to be pressing or urgent in the performance of this work. He was always to be at his post, and was to embrace every opportunity of making known the gospel. What Paul seems to have contemplated was not merely that he should perform the duty at stated and regular times; but that he should press the matter as one who had the subject much at heart, and never lose an opportunity of making the gospel known.

In season. ευκαιρως. In good time; opportunely. Comp. Mt 16:16, Lk 22:6, Mk 14:11. The sense is, when it could be conveniently done; when all things were favourable, and when there were no obstructions or hinderances. It may include the stated and regular seasons for public worship, but is not confined to them.

Out of season. ακαιρως. This word does not elsewhere occur in the New Testament. It is the opposite of the former, and means that a minister is to seek opportunities to preach the gospel even at such periods as might be inconvenient to himself, or when there might be hinderances and embarrassments, or when there was no stated appointment for preaching. He is not to confine himself to the appointed times of worship, or to preach only when it will be perfectly convenient for himself; but he is to have such an interest and earnestness in the work, that it will lead him to do it in the face of embarrassments and discouragements, and whenever he can find an opportunity. A man who is greatly intent on an object will seek every opportunity to promote it. He will not confine himself to stated times and places, but will present it everywhere, and at all times. A man, therefore, who merely confines himself to the stated seasons of preaching the gospel, or who merely reaches when it is convenient to himself, should not consider that he has come up to the requirement of the rule laid down by the apostle. He should preach in his private conversation, and in the intervals of his public labours, at the side of the sick bed, and wherever there is a prospect of doing good to any one. If his heart is full of love to the Saviour and to souls, he cannot help doing this.

Reprove. Or convince. 2Ti 3:16. The meaning is, that he was to use such arguments as would convince men of the truth of religion, and of their own need of it.

Rebuke. Rebuke offenders. Tit 2:15. See the use of the word in Mt 8:26, 12:16, (rendered charged;) Mt 16:22, 17:18; Mt 19:13, 20:31, Lk 4:35,39, 17:3, 18:15, Jude 1:9. In the New Testament the word is used to express a judgment of what is wrong, or contrary to one's will, and hence to admonish or reprove. It implies our conviction that there is something evil, or some fault in him who is rebuked. The word in this verse rendered reprove, does not imply this, but merely that one may be in error, and needs to have arguments presented to convince him of the truth. That word also implies no superior authority in him who does it. He presents reasons, or argues the case, for the purpose of convincing. The word here rendered rebuke, implies authority or superiority, and means merely that we may say that a thing is wrong, and administer a rebuke for it, as if there were no doubt that it was wrong. The propriety of the rebuke rests on our authority for doing it, not on the arguments which we present. This is based on the presumption that men often know that they are doing wrong, and need no arguments to convince them of it. The idea is, that the minister is not merely to reason about sin, and convince men that it is wrong; but he may solemnly admonish them not to do it, and warn them of the consequences.

Exhort. Rom 12:8.

With all long-suffering. That is, with a patient and persevering spirit if you are opposed. 2Ti 2:25. Comp. Rom 2:4. Comp. Rom 9:22, 2Cor 6:6, Gal 5:22; Eph 4:2, Col 1:11, 3:12, 1Timm 1:16.

And doctrine. Teaching, or patient instruction.