2 Timothy 2.17a-Paul Predicts the False Doctrine of the Apostate Pastors in Ephesus Will Spread Like a Cancerous Disease
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Wednesday May 13, 2015
Second Timothy: Second Timothy 2:17a-Paul Predicts the False Doctrine of the Apostate Pastors in Ephesus Will Spread Like a Cancer
Lesson # 45
2 Timothy 2:16 But avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness. 17 and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus. (NASB95)
“And their talk will spread like gangrene” presents an additional reason for the prohibition Paul issued Timothy in Second Timothy 2:16.
“Their talk” is composed of the following: (1) articular nominative masculine singular form of the noun logos (λόγος), “talk” (2) third person genitive masculine plural form of the intensive personal pronoun autos (αὐτός), “their.”
The noun logos is in the singular and means “teaching” and is referring back to the expression τὰς βεβήλους κενοφωνίας, “the words lacking content which are worldly,” which appears at the beginning of Second Timothy 2:16.
As we noted this expression refers to the false doctrine taught by the Judaizers which the apostate pastors in Ephesus were adhering to and teaching many in the church at Ephesus.
So therefore, here in verse 17, the noun logos refers to this false doctrine taught by these individuals.
The third person genitive masculine plural form of the intensive personal pronoun autos means “their” referring to those in Ephesus who were teaching false doctrine to the church.
Specifically, it refers to the Judaizers and the apostate pastors in Ephesus who were obeying the teaching of the Judaizers and communicating this teaching to the church in Ephesus themselves.
“Will spread” is composed of the following: (1) accusative feminine singular form of the noun nomē (νομή), “spread” (2) third person singular future active indicative form of the verb echō (ἒχω), “will.”
The verb echō means “to possess a particular characteristic” which is identified by the expression ὡς γάγγραινα νομὴν, “spread like gangrene.”
Therefore, it denotes that the false doctrine of the Judaizers and apostate pastors in Ephesus “will possess the characteristic of” spreading like gangrene in the body of Christ.
The future tense of the verb echō is a predictive future indicating that it will come to pass or will happen in the future that the false doctrine of the Judaizers and those apostate pastors in Ephesus will possess the characteristic of spreading like gangrene.
The noun nomē means “spread, spread its infection” since it is used in a figurative sense as a medical term for an ulcerous growth that spreads and eats at the flesh of the body.
“Like gangrene” is composed of the following: (1) conjunction hōs (ὡς), “like” (2) nominative feminine singular form of the noun gangraina (γάγγραινα), “gangrene.”
The noun gangraina is a technical medical term which means “gangrene, cancer” since it is used to describe any disease or ulcer which gradually eats away at the body, spreading insidiously unless appropriately treated.
It pertains to any disease involving severe inflammation which if left untreated can become a destructive and deadly ulcerous condition.
This noun gangraina is employed with the conjunction hōs, which means, “like” since it is functioning as a marker of comparison meaning it is comparing the propagation of the false doctrine of the Judaizers and the apostate pastors in Ephesus with the spread of cancer or gangrene.
The noun gangraina is functioning as a predicate nominative meaning it is making the assertion that the false doctrine of the Judaizers and apostate pastors in Ephesus will as a certainty possess the characteristic of spreading like a cancerous disease.
Second Timothy 2:17 Furthermore, their teaching will, as a certainty possess the characteristic of spreading like a cancerous disease, among whom are Hymenaeus as well as Philetus. (My translation)
The apostle Paul presents an additional reason for the prohibition he issued Timothy in Second Timothy 2:16 that he was to continue making it his habit of avoiding the words lacking content which are worldly.
As we noted in our study of verse 16, this is a reference to the teaching of the Judaizers which the apostate pastors in Ephesus were adhering to.
In verse 16, Paul also presents the first reason why Timothy was to obey this prohibition, namely because this false teaching will as a certainty promote a greater depth of involvement with ungodliness or ungodly living.
Now, here in verse 17, Paul presents a second reason why Timothy was to obey his prohibition in verse 16.
In Second Timothy 2:17, the apostle Paul is prophesying that the false doctrine taught by these apostate pastors in Ephesus will as a certainty spread like a cancerous disease.
This prophesy makes clear that it will come to pass or will happen in the future that the false doctrine of these apostate pastors in Ephesus will possess the characteristic of spreading like a cancerous disease.
This would indicate that the spread of this false doctrine throughout the body of Christ in Ephesus had yet to take place but certain to occur.
Paul compares this propagation of the false doctrine taught by these apostate pastors in Ephesus to that of the spread of a cancerous disease in the human body.
This analogy indicates that this false doctrine would as a certainty in the near future spread like a cancerous disease among the members of the body of Christ in Ephesus.
This should not be surprising to the reader since Paul mentioned to Timothy in Second Timothy 1:15 a fact he was well aware of, namely that the majority of Christians in Asia had deserted him upon his arrest and imprisonment. Ephesus was in Asia.
Therefore, a comparison of these two statements in Second Timothy 2:17 and 1:15 would indicate that the majority of the Christians in Ephesus who deserted Paul and were in apostasy would obey this false doctrine taught by the apostate pastors in Ephesus.
Hymenaeus and Philetus were two of these pastors who were leading Christians away from obeying Paul’s apostolic teaching.
The terms doctrine and theology in the church today are not very popular in Christian circles and in fact, these terms are often ridiculed.
We hear ignorant statements from Christians and I’m sure many of you have too where they say the following: “We don’t need to know all that theological or doctrinal stuff. We just need to know Jesus.”
Or you hear something like: “Well, I’m not a theologian, I just love Jesus.”
How can you say that you love Jesus when you don’t know anything about Him?
The reason they don’t know anything about Him is that they are ignorant of the Bible and they are ignorant because they are arrogant.
You see doctrine is simply another name for teaching and theology means “the knowledge of God.”
The term doctrine is mentioned many times in Scripture (Matt. 7:28-29; 22:33; John 7:16-17; 18:19; Acts 2:42; 5:27-28; 17:19; 1 Tim. 4:1-6; 2 Tim. 4:1-4; Tit. 1:7-9; 2:1, 7, 9-10).
Biblical theology is simply truths of God’s Word that give us knowledge of God, man, salvation, sanctification, the church, or life.
So when these Christians reject doctrine and theology and say that they just love Jesus what they are saying in effect is that they are relying upon emotional experiences and their own misconceptions that they learned in another denomination.
Such an attitude of ignorance from arrogance is the result of ignoring the fact the Bible is God-breathed and is authoritative (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
Believers are in rebellion when they reject the Word of God.
This attitude treats God’s Word as unnecessary and outdated information.
Something they say they don’t really need and they elevate the wisdom of men above God’s wisdom when the opposite is really the case.
The Scriptures emphasize the importance of avoiding false doctrine (Matt. 16:12; Rom. 16:17; 1 Tim. 6:3-11; Heb. 13:9; 2 John 9-10).
Obedience to Bible doctrine is absolutely essential in order to experience fellowship with God and also serves as a protection for the soul against false doctrine that is propagated by the kingdom of darkness (2 Cor. 10:5) and purifies the soul (1 Pet. 1:22-23).
Paul thanked God for the positive volition in Thessalonica (1 Thess. 2:13) and he warned his students to hold fast to the doctrinal instruction that they had received from him (2 Thess. 2:15; 2 Tim. 1:13).
Satan promotes religion through his false prophets and their false doctrine.
The Lord warned His disciples of these false teachers (Matthew 7:15-29).
Paul warned the pastors in Ephesus in his farewell address to beware of these false teachers that promote religion (Acts 20:28-30) and he warned the Galatians of these false teachers that teach a counterfeit gospel (Galatians 1:8-9).
Peter warned his readers of being deceived by false teachers (2 Peter 2:1-3).
The Holy Spirit is the resident teacher or mentor whom the Father has sent through the Son to indwell every New Testament believer as God’s special anointing to teach and make the truths of the Word understood and real to the heart or mind of believers (John. 14:16-20, 26; 15:26; 16:7-16; 1 Co. 2:10-16; 2 Co. 13:14; Ga. 5:5, 16-25; Eph. 3:16-19; 5:18; 1 Jo. 2:20-27).
This anointing, which is the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit as our true teacher and mentor, protects us from the lies of the cosmic system, which are promoted by Satan’s false teachers.