2:1-7 The disciples of Christ must be praying people; all, without distinction of nation, sect, rank, or party. Our duty as Christians, is summed up in two words; godliness, that is, the right worshipping of God; and honesty, that is, good conduct toward all men. These must go together: we are not truly honest, if we are not godly, and do not render to God his due; and we are not truly godly, if not honest. What is acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, we should abound in. There is one Mediator, and that Mediator gave himself a ransom for all. And this appointment has been made for the benefit of the Jews and the Gentiles of every nation; that all who are willing may come in this way, to the mercy-seat of a pardoning God, to seek reconciliation with him. Sin had made a quarrel between us and God; Jesus Christ is the Mediator who makes peace. He is a ransom that was to be known in due time. In the Old Testament times, his sufferings, and the glory that should follow, were spoken of as things to be revealed in the last times. Those who are saved must come to the knowledge of the truth, for that is God's appointed way to save sinners: if we do not know the truth, we cannot be ruled by it.

Verse 1. - First of all, that for that, first of all, A.V.; thanksgivings for and giving of thanks. A.V. I exhort therefore. The insertion of the connecting particle "therefore" marks that this arrangement of Church prayers is a part - as the following words, first of all, mark that it is the first part - of that charge or administration which was now committed to Timothy. Supplications, prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings (see the Prayer for the Church Militant). The question naturally arises whether the first words here used - δεήσις προσευχάς, and ἐντεύξεις - have any distinctive meaning, or are merely accumulated, like synonyms m legal documents, or various phrases in rhetorical addresses, to ensure completeness and to add force. It is against the notion of any distinctive meaning attaching to them that no such distinction can be supported by actual use. In Philippians 4:6 two of the words (προσευχή and δέησις) are used in conjunction as here with εὐχαριστία, with no apparent difference, both being the way of making known their requests to God (so also Ephesians 6:18 and 1 Timothy 5:5). Again, in the ancient Liturgies, the words δεέσθαι and προσεύχεσθαι are constantly used of the same praying. It may, however, perhaps be said that every δέησις is a προσευχή, though every προσευχή is not a δέησις. The δέησις is a "petition" - a distinct asking something of God, which a προσευχή need not necessarily be. It may be merely an act of adoration, of confession, of recital of God's mercies, and so on. So as regards ἐντεύξεις, here rendered "intercessions." There is nothing in the etymology/ or in the use of this word, which only occurs elsewhere in the New Testament in 1 Timothy 4:5, to limit the meaning of it to "intercession." Nor has it this meaning in the passage where it occurs in the Liturgy of St. Clement, near the close, where God is addressed as Ὁ καὶ τῶν σιωπώντων ἐπιστάμενος τὰς ἐντεύξεις, "Who understandest the petitions even of those who are silent." In 2 Macc. 4:8 and Diod. Sic., 16:55 it seems to mean "a request preferred in a personal interview," which is an extension of its common meaning in classical Greek of "access," "an interview," "social intercourse," or the like. But when we turn to the use of the verb ἐντυγχάνω in the New Testament, we seem to get the idea of "intercession." Αντυγχάνειν is to go to someone to ask him to take action against or in favor of some third party (see Acts 25:24; Romans 11:2; Romans 8:27, 28, 34; Hebrews 7:25); and so Chrysostom (quoted in Steph., 'Thesaur.') explains ἐντυχία to be the action of one who applies to God to avenge him of those who have done him wrong. So that perhaps "intercessions" is, on the whole, the best rendering here, though an imperfect one; and would comprise the prayers for the emperor, for the Church, for the sick, travelers, slaves, captives, etc., for the bishops, clergy, and laity, etc., and such prayers as "Turn away from us every plot (ἐπιβουλήν) of wicked men" (Liturgy of St. Mark).

I exhort therefore, that first of all,.... The two principal parts of public worship, being the ministry of the word and prayer; and the apostle having insisted on the former, in the preceding chapter, in which he orders Timothy to charge some that they teach no other doctrine than that of the Gospel, gives an account of his own ministry, and call to it, and of the glorious Gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to his trust, and stirs up Timothy to the faithful and diligent discharge of his work and office; now proceeds to the latter, to prayer, and exhorts unto it; either Timothy in particular, for so read the Syriac, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions, "I exhort thee", or "desire thee"; or else the church in general; unless it should rather be thought to be a charge to Timothy to exhort, and so Beza's Claromontane copy reads, "exhort thou therefore": but it is commonly considered as an exhortation of the apostle's, which he was very urgent in: it was what lay much upon his mind, and he was greatly desirous that it should be attended unto; for so the words may be read, "I exhort first of all", or before all things; of all things he had to say, this was the chief, or it was what he would have principally and chiefly done by others: for this does not so much regard the order of time, that prayer should be made early in the morning, in the first place, before anything else is done, and particularly before preaching, which seems to have been the custom of the primitive saints, Acts 4:31 but the pre-eminence and superior excellency of it; though the words may be rendered, "I exhort, that first, the supplications of all be made": and so may regard public prayer, the prayer of the whole church, in distinction from private prayer, or the prayer of a single person; which is expressed by different words,

supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks: the first of these, "supplications", signifies such petitions for things that are wanted by men, either by themselves or others; and that either for their bodies or souls, as food and raiment for the one, and discoveries of pardoning love, supplies of grace, spiritual peace, comfort, &c. for the other: and the second word, "prayers", signifies good wishes and desires, directed and expressed to God for things that are in themselves to be wished for, and desired of God, either for ourselves or others: and the next word, "intercessions", intends either complaints exhibited in prayer against others that have done injuries; or prayers put up for others, either for the averting of evil from them, or for the bestowing some good thing on them: and the last word, "thanksgivings", with which requests should always be made known to God, designs that branch of prayer in which thanks are given to God for mercies received, whether temporal or spiritual: and these are to

be made for all men; not only for all the saints, for all the churches of Christ, and, ministers of the Gospel; nor only for near relations and friends, according to the flesh; but for all the inhabitants of the country and city in which men dwell, the peace and prosperity of which are to be prayed for; yea, for enemies, and such as reproach, persecute, and despitefully use the saints, even for all sorts of men, Jews and Gentiles, rich and poor, high and low, bond and free, good men and bad men: for it cannot be understood of every individual that has been, is, or shall be in the world; millions of men are dead and gone, for whom prayer is not to be made; many in hell, to whom it would be of no service; and many in heaven, who stand in no need of it; nor is prayer to be made for such who have sinned the sin unto death, 1 John 5:16 besides, giving of thanks, as well as prayers, are to be made for all men; but certainly the meaning is not, that thanks should be given for wicked men, for persecutors, and particularly for a persecuting Nero, or for heretics, and false teachers, such as Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom the apostle had delivered to Satan. But the words must be understood of men of all sorts, of every rank and quality, as the following verse shows.

CHAPTER 2

1Ti 2:1-15. Public Worship. Direction as to Intercessions for All Men, since Christ Is a Ransom for All. The Duties of Men and Women Respectively in Respect to Public Prayer. Woman's Subjection; Her Sphere of Duty.

1. therefore—taking up again the general subject of the Epistle in continuation (2Ti 2:1). "What I have therefore to say to thee by way of a charge (1Ti 1:3, 18), is," &c.

that, first of all … be made—Alford takes it, "I exhort first of all to make." "First of all," doubtless, is to be connected with "I exhort"; what I begin with (for special reasons), is … As the destruction of Jerusalem drew near, the Jews (including those at Ephesus) were seized with the dream of freedom from every yoke; and so virtually "'blasphemed" (compare 1Ti 1:20) God's name by "speaking evil of dignities" (1Ti 6:1; 2Pe 2:10; Jude 8). Hence Paul, in opposition, gives prominence to the injunction that prayer be made for all men, especially for magistrates and kings (Tit 3:1-3) [Olshausen]. Some professing Christians looked down on all not Christians, as doomed to perdition; but Paul says all men are to be prayed for, as Christ died for all (1Ti 2:4-6).

supplications—a term implying the suppliant's sense of need, and of his own insufficiency.

prayers—implying devotion.

intercessions—properly the coming near to God with childlike confidence, generally in behalf of another. The accumulation of terms implies prayer in its every form and aspect, according to all the relations implied in it.

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