Phygellus is a biblical figure mentioned in the New Testament, specifically in the Second Epistle to Timothy. His mention is brief, yet it provides insight into the challenges faced by the early Christian community and the Apostle Paul during his ministry.

Biblical Reference:

Phygellus is referenced in 2 Timothy 1:15, where the Apostle Paul writes: "You know that everyone in the province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygellus and Hermogenes."

Context and Significance:

The mention of Phygellus occurs in the context of Paul's second letter to Timothy, which is traditionally understood to be written during Paul's imprisonment in Rome, shortly before his martyrdom. This epistle is a personal letter to Timothy, a young pastor and Paul's close companion, offering encouragement, instruction, and warnings about the challenges of ministry.

In 2 Timothy 1:15, Paul laments the desertion of believers in the province of Asia, a region that included important early Christian centers such as Ephesus. Phygellus, along with Hermogenes, is specifically named as one who turned away from Paul. This desertion is significant as it highlights the trials Paul faced, not only from external persecution but also from internal abandonment by those who were once part of the Christian fellowship.

Theological Implications:

Phygellus's desertion serves as a cautionary example within the Christian tradition. It underscores the reality of apostasy and the pressures that can lead believers to abandon their faith or their leaders. This passage is often interpreted as a reminder of the importance of steadfastness and loyalty in the face of adversity.

The mention of Phygellus also reflects the human aspect of the early church, where not all who initially followed the apostolic teaching remained faithful. It serves as a backdrop to the exhortations Paul gives Timothy to remain strong, to guard the gospel, and to endure suffering for the sake of Christ.

Historical and Cultural Background:

The province of Asia, where Phygellus was located, was a significant area for early Christian evangelism. It was a region with a mix of cultures and religions, which often led to conflicts and challenges for the nascent Christian communities. The pressures from both Roman authorities and local religious groups could have contributed to the desertion of some believers.

Lessons for Today:

Phygellus's account, though brief, offers a timeless lesson for contemporary Christians. It serves as a reminder of the need for perseverance in faith and the importance of supporting and standing by spiritual leaders, especially during times of trial. The account encourages believers to examine their own faithfulness and commitment to the gospel and to the community of believers.Phygellus

fugitive

Phygellus

(fugitive). [HERMOGENES]

Fugitive, a Christian of Asia, who "turned away" from Paul during his second imprisonment at Rome (2 Timothy 1:15). Nothing more is known of him. PHYGELUS; PHYGELLUS

fi-je'-lus, fi-jel'-us (Phugellos; Tischendorf and Westcott and Hort, The New Testament in Greek, with others, read Phugelos, Phygellus or Phygelus (2 Timothy 1:15); the King James Version): One of the Christians who deserted Paul at the time of his 2nd imprisonment at Rome. Paul mentions him, along with Hermogenes, as being among those "that are in Asia," who turned away from him then. What is meant may be that Phygelus and Hermogenes, along with other native Christians from proconsular Asia, were in Rome when he was brought before the emperor's tribunal the second time, and that they had not merely taken no measures to stand by and support him, but that they had deserted him.

The meaning, however, may be that the turning away of Phygelus and Hermogenes from Paul took place, not in Rome, but in Asia itself.

The times during and immediately following the Neronic persecution were more dreadful than can easily be conceived, and the temptation was strong to forsake the Christian name, and to do so in a wholesale fashion. A great community like the Christian church in Ephesus or in Rome felt the terrible pressure of those times, when for a mere word-a word, however, denying the Lord who bought them-men were at once set free from persecution, from the loss of property or of home, and from death. 1 Peter records how the aftermath of the Neronic persecution had extended far indeed from Rome, where it had originated. Peter asks the Christians not to give way under "the fiery trial" which is trying them (1 Peter 4:12), and those whom he thus addresses were the members of the church throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia (1 Peter 1:1). The epistles to the seven churches in Asia in the Apocalypse also show how sorely persecution had raged throughout that province.

See PERSECUTION.

But in addition to the temptation to deny Christ's name and to go back to heathenism or to Judaism, there was also another which pressed upon some of the churches, the temptation to repudiate the authority of Paul. Many passages in the New Testament show how the name of Paul was sometimes very lightly esteemed, and how his authority was repudiated, e.g. by persons in Corinth, and in the churches of Galatia.

What is said here is, that among the Christians of proconsular Asia, i.e. of Ephesus and the churches in the valley of the Cayster, there was a widespread defection from that loyalty to Paul which was to be expected from those who owed to him all that they possessed of the knowledge of Christ's salvation. "All that are in Asia turned away from me; of whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes." On the whole, all the necessary conditions of these words are satisfied by a reference to Rome and to Paul's environment there, and perhaps this is the more probable meaning.

See HERMOGENES.

John Rutherfurd

5436. Phugelos -- Phygelus, one who deserted Paul
... Phygelus. Probably from pheugo; fugitive; Phygellus, an apostate Christian -- Phygellus.
see GREEK pheugo. (phugelos) -- 1 Occurrence. 5435, 5436. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5436.htm - 6k

2 Timothy i. 13-18
... This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me; of whom
are Phygellus and Hermogenes. ... "Of whom is Phygellus and Hermogenes. ...
/.../homily iii 2 timothy i.htm

Weak People Fall an Easy Prey to Heresy, which Derives Strength ...
... [1879] It is a comparatively small thing, [1880] that certain men, like Phygellus,
and Hermogenes, and Philetus, and Hymen??us, deserted His apostle: [1881 ...
/.../the prescription against heretics/chapter iii weak people fall an.htm

The Final Arrest
... Phygellus and Hermogenes were the first to go. Then Demas, dismayed by the thickening
clouds of difficulty and danger, forsook the persecuted apostle. ...
/.../white/the acts of the apostles/lesson 47 the final arrest.htm

Other Passages Quoted from St. Paul, which Categorically Assert ...
... excluded while they are with premature haste seizing that which is promised after
this life; erring concerning the truth, no less than Phygellus and Hermogenes ...
/.../on the resurrection of the flesh/chapter xxiv other passages quoted from.htm

The Same Hippolytus on the Seventy Apostles.
... 23. Stachys, bishop of Byzantium. 24. Barnabas, bishop of Heraclea. 25. Phygellus,
bishop of Ephesus. He was of the party also of Simon. [2033]. 26. Hermogenes. ...
/.../the extant works and fragments of hippolytus/the same hippolytus on the.htm

My Brother Fabius
... For the apostle likewise delivered Phygellus and Hermogenes over to Satan
that by chastening they might be taught not to blaspheme. ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/tertullian/de fuga in persecutione/my brother fabius.htm

The Heresies of the Apostolic Age.
... themselves under his standard, soon partially adopted his principles; and there
is cause to think that Hymenaeus, Philetus, Alexander, Phygellus, and Hermogenes ...
/.../killen/the ancient church/chapter iii the heresies of.htm

The Pastoral Epistles
... The apostle had apparently requested two of his friends, Phygellus and
Hermogenes, to come to him at Rome, but they had declined. ...
/.../pullan/the books of the new testament/chapter xvii the pastoral epistles.htm

Homilies on the Epistles to Timothy, Titus, and Philemon.
... Paul's love to, how shown, [3684]550. Philosophy, a life of pleasure opposed to,
[3685]495. Phygellus, [3686]484. Plato, Republic of, [3687]539 (note) . ...
/.../homilies on the epistles to.htm

Acts VIII
... For time would fail me to tell of Simon the sorcerer, of Alexander the coppersmith,
of Phygellus and Hermogenes, of Hymeneus and Alexander whom Paul delivered ...
/.../mcgarvey/a commentary on acts of the apostles/acts viii.htm

Phygellus (1 Occurrence)
... Nothing more is known of him. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. PHYGELUS; PHYGELLUS. ...
John Rutherfurd. Multi-Version Concordance Phygellus (1 Occurrence). ...
/p/phygellus.htm - 10k

Hermogenes (1 Occurrence)
... Mercury-born, at one time Paul's fellow-labourer in Asia Minor, who, however,
afterwards abandoned him, along with one Phygellus, probably on account of the ...
/h/hermogenes.htm - 10k

Phygelus (1 Occurrence)
... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia PHYGELUS; PHYGELLUS. fi-je'-lus,
fi-jel'-us (Phugellos; Tischendorf and Westcott and Hort, The New ...
/p/phygelus.htm - 9k

Onesiphorus (2 Occurrences)
... In the former of the two passages where his name occurs, his conduct is contrasted
with that of Phygellus and Hermogenes and others-all of whom, like ...
/o/onesiphorus.htm - 11k

Phuvah (1 Occurrence)

/p/phuvah.htm - 6k

Phy'gelus (1 Occurrence)
... Phy'gelus (1 Occurrence). 2 Timothy 1:15 thou hast known this, that they did turn
from me -- all those in Asia, of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes; (See RSV). ...
/p/phy'gelus.htm - 6k

Hermog'enes (1 Occurrence)
... 2 Timothy 1:15 thou hast known this, that they did turn from me -- all those
in Asia, of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes; (See RSV). ...
/h/hermog'enes.htm - 6k

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