What does 2 Timothy 2:13 mean? (2024)

GenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SolomonIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation

1234

1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526

THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright© 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica®.

The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, Copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® Copyright© 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New American Standard Bible Copyright© 1960 - 2020 by The Lockman Foundation.

Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright© 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by Permission.

The final phrase in this hymn ends on a word of hope: God can hold us, even if we fail. Those who are saved (2 Timothy 2:11) and endure will reign with the Lord (2 Timothy 2:12). Those who reject Him will be rejected by Him. Those believers who struggle, or are "faithless," are still held by God. He remains faithful, even when His people are not. This theme is consistent with God's faithfulness to His people Israel in the Old Testament. Though they often rejected Him, He continued to keep His promises to them.

The final phrase "for he cannot deny himself," reveals that the audience in mind in this last verse involves believers. We are clothed in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:1–5) and cannot be separated from His love: "For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38–39).