ris3n's Apologetics Codex

Passage

2 Timothy 2.18

Book: 2 Timothy · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

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ASV

16. But shun profane babblings: for they will proceed further in ungodliness, 17. and their word will eat as doth a gangrene: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;

18. men who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already, and overthrow the faith of some.

  1. Howbeit the firm foundation of God standeth, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his: and, Let every one that nameth the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness. 20. Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some unto honor, and some unto dishonor. (2 Timothy 2:16-20, ASV)
WEB

16. But shun empty chatter, for it will go further in ungodliness, 17. and those words will consume like gangrene, of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;

18. men who have erred concerning the truth, saying that the resurrection is already past, and overthrowing the faith of some.

  1. However God’s firm foundation stands, having this seal, “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let every one who names the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness.” 20. Now in a large house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of clay. Some are for honor, and some for dishonor. (2 Timothy 2:16-20, WEB)
KJV

16. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. 17. And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; canker: or, gangrene

18. Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.

  1. Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. sure: or, steady 20. But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour. (2 Timothy 2:16-20, KJV)
YLT

16. and the profane vain talkings stand aloof from, for to more impiety they will advance, 17. and their word as a gangrene will have pasture, of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus,

18. who concerning the truth did swerve, saying the rising again to have already been, and do overthrow the faith of some;

  1. sure, nevertheless, hath the foundation of God stood, having this seal, 'The Lord hath known those who are His,' and 'Let him depart from unrighteousness, every one who is naming the name of Christ.' 20. And in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth, and some to honour, and some to dishonour: (2 Timothy 2:16-20, YLT)

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Setting

  • Speaker: Paul, writing under his own name
  • Audience: Timothy, Paul's delegate at Ephesus
  • Location: written from imprisonment at Rome to Timothy at Ephesus
  • Time period: c. AD 64-67, traditionally Paul's last letter, written from a second Roman imprisonment shortly before his execution

Theological reading

The error stated on its own: they "have erred concerning the truth, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some."

The verb rendered "erred" is the one behind the English "astray," used of missing a target or wandering from a path, and Paul uses it elsewhere for the same kind of doctrinal drift (1 Timothy 1:6, 6:21). Two observations. The claim is not that the resurrection will not happen but that it already has, which is a subtler error than denial and harder to detect. And Paul measures it by effect rather than by category: it overthrows the faith of some. That is his consistent test in these letters, whether a teaching builds or demolishes actual people, and it is why the next verse immediately reasserts what stands firm regardless._

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap.

Quoted in

Concepts:

Lexicon:

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

  • ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
  • WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
  • KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
  • YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.