The Second Letter of
St. Paul to Timothy
Chapter 3
¹ You must understand this, that in the last days distressing times will come. ² For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, ³ inhuman, implacable, slanderers, profligates, brutes, haters of good, ⁴ treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure than lovers of God, ⁵ holding to the outward form of godliness but denying its power. Avoid them!
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verses 1 to 5)
Oh God, my beloved Father, according to the behavioral traits listed in the introduction of this letter to Timothy we are really and truly living in the last days. If I had to go through the whole list and find statistics to prove each and every one the results would be amazing thus continuing to prove that the messages in the Bible which are the Word of God are true to the day and hour of its planned fulfillment. Amen.
⁶ For among them are those who find their way into households and captivate silly women, overwhelmed by their sins and swayed by all kinds of desires, ⁷ who are always being instructed and can never arrive at a knowledge of the truth.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verses 6 to 7)
Oh God, my beloved Father, it could be the case that as in the case of the mentioned women whom I do not describe as being silly, but overwhelmed by their sins, who may consider themselves as being the worst sinners in the world so much that they are not worthy to receive Your forgiveness. However, Your door is always open ajar, and You are always waiting for us to back to You Amen. I pray that we remain aware and sensitive to our spiritual lives, however, on the other hand, we are to realize that we are one of many rowing the same boat and that as much as sin exists, so does God's forgiveness. Amen.
⁸ As Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these people, of corrupt mind and counterfeit faith, also oppose the truth.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 8)
Oh God my Father, there have been many people in the world who thought they were wise enough to oppose You, powerful people such as Adolf Hitler who tried to exterminate Your chosen people, however, You thwarted such people of corrupt mind and brought their ideology to a nullity. I pray that You also challenge any false beliefs about myself, others and Yourself that are in me, so that together we can continue to live in fellowship and harmony Amen.
⁹ But they will not make much progress because as in the case of those two men, their folly will become plain to everyone.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 9)
Oh God my Father, I pray for all those whose work is that of defending the 'Truth' that is found in the 'Good News' and in all the teachings of the 'Roman Catholic Church' that even though we are a body of sinners, we are also chosen to be holy. May You stop the seeds of the evil one from corrupting the souls of many good people Amen.
¹⁰ Now you have observed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, ¹¹ my persecutions, and my suffering the things that happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra. What persecutions I endured! Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verses 10 to 11)
Oh God, my beloved Father may I imitate both You and St. Paul in sharing such qualities such as perseverance in the face of oppression and persecution. As You rescued Paul I have strong faith that You will also rescue me Amen.
¹² Indeed all who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 12)
Oh God my beloved Father, You did not promise us a comfortable life but one of persecution if we decide to follow You, and this is true, for Your logic goes against the logic of the world, and offers it a great challenge that it cannot beat or match. Therefore people who wish to follow You have always been viewed with doubt and suspicion, however, these are the same people as in the case of St. Francis of Assisi, who by following Your ways have left their impact in the history of the world Amen. Let us all imitate such holy people and not the projected and created heroes of the world.
¹³ But wicked people and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving others and being deceived.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 13)
Oh God my beloved Father, when we live in a world of deception and lies, everything becomes a trap, for we risk getting caught in our own lies, and therefore life becomes more stressful and insecure. I pray that my life will be always governed by the truth as found in the Bible Amen because all truth has its roots in You Amen.
¹⁴ But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you have learned it, ¹⁵ and how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 14 to 15)
Oh God my Father, throughout the course of life, we are taught many theories assumptions and even beliefs, however not all water is good to drink. Therefore we need the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to be able to discriminate which type of water is the best for us. For myself, I have decided to choose the fountains of water coming from scripture as my guide and point of reference, even though as a human I am still weak and not always able to obey it. Amen.
¹⁶ All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, ¹⁷ so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 16 to 17)
Oh God, my beloved Father, this is why I like to meditate and pray on the Bible, for it helps me in my life. By means of Scripture, You give me purpose and direction and even correction when it is the case Amen. I thank You for Scripture oh God my Father Amen.
I would like to end this third chapter of the second letter of St.Paul to Timothy with the following prayer:
Oh God my blessed Father, I thank You for scripture, and I pray that You continue to use it to train and guide me in Your ways every day of my life. I pray that I become proficient so that when my time comes I will be ready to appear before You Amen. Thank You, Jesus.
⁶ For among them are those who find their way into households and captivate silly women, overwhelmed by their sins and swayed by all kinds of desires, ⁷ who are always being instructed and can never arrive at a knowledge of the truth.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verses 6 to 7)
Oh God, my beloved Father, it could be the case that as in the case of the mentioned women whom I do not describe as being silly, but overwhelmed by their sins, who may consider themselves as being the worst sinners in the world so much that they are not worthy to receive Your forgiveness. However, Your door is always open ajar, and You are always waiting for us to back to You Amen. I pray that we remain aware and sensitive to our spiritual lives, however, on the other hand, we are to realize that we are one of many rowing the same boat and that as much as sin exists, so does God's forgiveness. Amen.
⁸ As Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these people, of corrupt mind and counterfeit faith, also oppose the truth.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 8)
Oh God my Father, there have been many people in the world who thought they were wise enough to oppose You, powerful people such as Adolf Hitler who tried to exterminate Your chosen people, however, You thwarted such people of corrupt mind and brought their ideology to a nullity. I pray that You also challenge any false beliefs about myself, others and Yourself that are in me, so that together we can continue to live in fellowship and harmony Amen.
⁹ But they will not make much progress because as in the case of those two men, their folly will become plain to everyone.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 9)
Oh God my Father, I pray for all those whose work is that of defending the 'Truth' that is found in the 'Good News' and in all the teachings of the 'Roman Catholic Church' that even though we are a body of sinners, we are also chosen to be holy. May You stop the seeds of the evil one from corrupting the souls of many good people Amen.
¹⁰ Now you have observed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, ¹¹ my persecutions, and my suffering the things that happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra. What persecutions I endured! Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verses 10 to 11)
Oh God, my beloved Father may I imitate both You and St. Paul in sharing such qualities such as perseverance in the face of oppression and persecution. As You rescued Paul I have strong faith that You will also rescue me Amen.
¹² Indeed all who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 12)
Oh God my beloved Father, You did not promise us a comfortable life but one of persecution if we decide to follow You, and this is true, for Your logic goes against the logic of the world, and offers it a great challenge that it cannot beat or match. Therefore people who wish to follow You have always been viewed with doubt and suspicion, however, these are the same people as in the case of St. Francis of Assisi, who by following Your ways have left their impact in the history of the world Amen. Let us all imitate such holy people and not the projected and created heroes of the world.
¹³ But wicked people and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving others and being deceived.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 13)
Oh God my beloved Father, when we live in a world of deception and lies, everything becomes a trap, for we risk getting caught in our own lies, and therefore life becomes more stressful and insecure. I pray that my life will be always governed by the truth as found in the Bible Amen because all truth has its roots in You Amen.
¹⁴ But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you have learned it, ¹⁵ and how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 14 to 15)
Oh God my Father, throughout the course of life, we are taught many theories assumptions and even beliefs, however not all water is good to drink. Therefore we need the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to be able to discriminate which type of water is the best for us. For myself, I have decided to choose the fountains of water coming from scripture as my guide and point of reference, even though as a human I am still weak and not always able to obey it. Amen.
¹⁶ All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, ¹⁷ so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.
(The Second Letter of St. Paul to Timothy Chapter 3 verse 16 to 17)
Oh God, my beloved Father, this is why I like to meditate and pray on the Bible, for it helps me in my life. By means of Scripture, You give me purpose and direction and even correction when it is the case Amen. I thank You for Scripture oh God my Father Amen.
I would like to end this third chapter of the second letter of St.Paul to Timothy with the following prayer:
Oh God my blessed Father, I thank You for scripture, and I pray that You continue to use it to train and guide me in Your ways every day of my life. I pray that I become proficient so that when my time comes I will be ready to appear before You Amen. Thank You, Jesus.
