2 Timothy 3 Footnotes

3:8 Although the OT never names the Egyptian sorcerers who opposed Moses before Pharaoh (Ex 7:11-12,22; 8:7,16-19), Paul did not claim to quote the OT directly here. Ancient Jewish traditions (Targum of Pseudo-Jonathan, Qumran Scrolls, and rabbinic writings) also identify the magicians by these names. No good reason exists to question these traditions at this point.

3:12 Jesus and NT writers warned believers of impending persecution (Mt 5:10-12; 10:16-25; 1Pt 4:12-16). The warning may seem to conflict with texts like Pr 16:7; however, both the warnings and the proverb are true. This warning must be balanced with Paul’s acknowledgment that some unbelievers will respect Christians for their honesty, kindness, and wisdom, all of which produce peace when rightly received (1Tm 2:2; 3:7; 2Tm 2:22-26). The manner in which Christians responded to persecution, suffering, and death was one of the ways in which Christianity undermined paganism in the Roman Empire.

3:16 Some critics argue that all Scripture cannot be divinely inspired since a moral God could not possibly have inspired, say, the story of a horrible rape in Jdg 19:22-30. Scripture does record immoral acts. Inspiration guarantees its accuracy, not its divine approval. God’s approval or disapproval of human acts recorded in the Bible must be inferred from the comments of the biblical narrator, the divine response to the action, the purpose of the book as a whole, and biblical principles stated in other sections of Scripture.