Paul's Second Epistle to Timothy, his final letter, was written from a Roman dungeon during a period of intense Christian persecution under Emperor Nero. The text details Paul's re-arrest and confinement in the Mamertine dungeon, contrasting it with his earlier imprisonment and release, before his eventual execution. The letter's central theme emphasizes the importance of faithfulness to Christ in a time of spiritual decline.
Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day; greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy; when I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also. Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. (vv. 1-7)
This Second Epistle to Timothy was written from a dungeon death cell. It is the last of Paul’s letters, as 1 Thessalonians is the first, which God has preserved for the edification of the church. Paul, of course, may have written, and probably did write, a great many more letters than the fourteen (including Hebrews) that we have in the Word of God. But these are the only ones which the Spirit of God both inspired Paul to write, and also which He included in the canon of Scripture.
The circumstances in connection with the writing of this last letter are very interesting. We do not get much information from the Scriptures themselves, except what we glean from that which Paul tells us in these Epistles and in that to Titus. Much has come down to us, however, from some of the earliest Christian writers which enables us to piece things together, and so to know something of the actual conditions under which the letter was penned.
We learn from the book of Acts that Paul was sent to prison in Rome, charged with endeavoring to incite an insurrection against the Roman government. For two full years he remained a prisoner under guard in his own hired house until he appeared before Caesar, and then he was set free because the charges which the Jews had brought against him were not sustained. He was permitted to take up again his work of ministering the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. So far as we can learn from these early records, he then went on to Spain and preached there for a time. There is a legend-I think it is only a legend-to the effect that he crossed over to the British Isles and that he was the first to preach the gospel in Britain, but there is no proof of this which careful historians accept. From Spain he retraced his steps and went back to the region of Illyricum, along the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea. He visited a number of churches where he had preached before, and went to Crete and other places not visited previously.
He was arrested again at a time when there was a great persecution against Christians. During the first imprisonment Christianity was looked upon as a sect of Judaism, which was a legalized religion. But shortly afterward the city of Rome was burned down, and by many this was attributed to Nero’s own order. Finding that he was greatly blamed for such iniquity he attempted to turn the onus from himself by putting it upon the Christians. He issued an indictment demanding that all Christians should be sought out everywhere in the empire as enemies of Rome and put to death. It was during this persecution that Paul was arrested again, and taken back to Rome and confined in the Mamertine dungeon.
If you visit the city of Rome today you can see that dungeon. You can go down into it, and as you look around at those bare walls and gaze up at the ceiling, where there is just a little hole in the center from which food was dropped down to Paul and water passed through in some kind of vessel, you get an idea of the suffering that he must have endured. There is no window whatsoever through which to look to the outside world. A river passes underneath, and there is a cleft in the floor where you can look down and see the water running. It must have been cold and damp in there at all times of the year, particularly in the winter. As I stood there I had some little realization of what it must have meant for God’s servants in early days to devote themselves to the ministry of the Word of God. Surely in comparison the lines have fallen unto us in pleasant places.
Just how long Paul remained in that dungeon we do not know. Nero died in the sixty-eighth year of our era. So sometime before that, possibly about a.d. 66 or 67, Paul was led out from his prison one day to the place of execution on the Ostian Road. There he laid down his gray head upon a great stone, and in a moment the executioner’s axe had decapitated him. Paul was absent from the body and present with the Lord.
Some time during those months he wrote this letter-the last letter of his that has come down to us. There is always something tender about the last message from one whom we have learned to love. How we thank God for the apostle Paul’s ministry. How delighted we would have been if we might have known him and heard his message delivered from his own lips. Here is his last word to his son in the faith.
As we read this epistle we shall find again and again that it is a triumphant message, though it came from a dungeon death cell. The great outstanding theme of the letter is the importance of faithfulness to Christ in a day of declension. First Epistles are, almost invariably, given to teaching; the Second Epistles are given more to prophecy. Now prophecy is not simply foretelling, but it is forth telling-stirring up the hearts and minds of God’s people by proclaiming the ministry suited to the times. As we read this letter we hear not simply the voice of the teacher, as in the First Epistle, but we hear the voice of the prophet calling us to increased devotedness to Christ as the days become darker.
We have the salutation in the first two verses: “Paul, an apostle [that is, a sent one, an official messenger] of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus.” In the letter to Titus, Paul uses a similar expression, but adds these words, “which was given before the ages began.” What promise of life in Christ Jesus was given before the ages began? The probationary ages which began after the fall of man. The promise of life was given in connection with the curse put upon Satan when God said to him,
“I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15).
After their sin was committed, Adam and Eve had no reason at all to expect to live. They had every reason to expect that they would be destroyed immediately, but instead of that, in infinite grace, God gave the promise of life in Christ Jesus. He said that the Seed of the woman who should yet be brought into the world “shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” Adam immediately accepted this as a promise of life, and we read that he changed his wife’s name. He called her “Eve.”
You will notice she is never called Eve until after the Fall. We read that in the beginning
“God created man in his own image, … male and female created he them”(Genesis 1:27),
and He called their name “Adam.” When the man first beheld the wife God had given him, he called her Ishah (lady) because she was taken out of Ish (man). But after God gave the promise of life in Christ, Adam called her
“Eve,” for Eve means “the mother of all living.”
So Christ came and through Him God offers life to the world. Paul had gone through many lands proclaiming this message of life for all who believe the gospel.
“To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.”
We have noticed in looking at the previous epistle that when the Apostle addresses a church he simply says, “grace and peace,” when he addresses individuals it is “grace, mercy, and peace.” It is so in 1 Timothy and in that to Titus. In the case of the letter to Philemon he does not insert the word mercy, because he is addressing not only Philemon but also “the church in thy house.” The church, as such, does not need mercy, but individuals do because individuals fail and, therefore, are in need of constant mercy.
The introduction to the letter is found in verses 3-7 The great thing which this introduction emphasizes, it seems to me, is the blessing of a godly heritage. Now grace is not inherited. Every individual has to be born again, no matter how pious and devoted his parents may have been. But on the other hand, it is a great thing to have a godly heritage, to have parents who have known and loved the Lord Jesus Christ.
I have in my desk an old, old photograph. It is a photograph of my greatgrandfather, just a farmer in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The photograph is almost faded out with age, though I have tried to keep it covered from the light because I wanted to have it as long as I might live for this reason: I have been told many, many times by those who knew my great-grandfather (people who have long since gone home to heaven but used to know me, and whom I knew as a child) they told me how that great-grandfather of mine, at the close of every day, used to gather all his family-and it was a large family-and all his farmhands-and he had a large farm-about him and have family worship. He always prayed for the salvation and the blessing of his children and his children’s children unto the third and fourth generations-and I come in there. As I look at the grizzled face of that old Scottish farmer I thank God for a godly heritage, and I thank Him for the way in which He has answered prayer.
Oh, young men and young women, never undervalue the piety of your dear father and mother. If they know Christ, thank God for it. Thank Him that you have Christian parents. Do not imagine you belong to a generation better instructed than they. You may know a little more about the sciences of today, but I fear few of us know nearly as much as many of our Christian parents knew of the things of God and eternity.
Now Paul himself was indebted to a godly heritage.
“I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience.”
His mind went back over the centuries, and he realized that he came from a line of godly people who loved the Lord and loved the truth of God. Even though, as Saul of Tarsus, he misunderstood and was zealous in his effort to destroy all who were followers of Jesus of Nazareth, doubtless his conversion was in answer to prayers which were made long before the time came when he was brought to know and love the Lord Jesus Christ.
“That without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day.”
Paul valued Timothy because of his love for Christ, and he adds,
“Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy.”
Evidently Timothy was very tenderhearted and affectionate and wept over sinners and over his own sins. Paul delighted to think of this because Timothy was his own convert and later his companion in the ministry.
He reminds Timothy of his early training. He says,
“When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee.”
We know from another passage of Scripture that Timothy’s father was a Greek, and perhaps he was not a believer at all (Acts 16:1), but Timothy’s mother and grandmother were Jewesses. They were pious women who loved the Word of God and taught it to Timothy. We are told in this same letter that,
“From a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (3:15).
Now when the Apostle says that, he does not mean that Timothy knew the New Testament, for it had not been written at that time. When he was growing up in that home yonder in Lystra or Derbe, there was no New Testament, but his mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois taught him the things of God out of the Old Testament. No doubt many times as a lad he sat at their feet as they read those marvelous Messianic Psalms and prophecies of the coming Redeemer. One can imagine him asking what this meant and what that meant as the Scriptures were explained to him. So when the day arrived that Paul came to that region preaching the gospel, Timothy listened to the message, and the Spirit of God created faith in his heart, for
“Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).
So Timothy was saved by faith in Christ Jesus.
I repeat what I said in the beginning, grace is not inherited. It is not necessarily true that because your parents are Christians you will be saved. But unless a spirit of rebellion is developed against the things of God, the children will follow on in the steps of godly parents and be led on in the ways of God. As Christian parents we have a right to expect that our children will be saved if we bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. But we need to be careful that we walk before them so that they may see in us just what a Christian ought to be.
“Which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.”
The faith dwelt first in the grandmother, then was manifested in the mother, and finally in young Timothy who, when he heard the gospel, was ready to believe and confess Christ as his Savior.
Timothy was still out preaching the Word. Paul says,
“Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.”
When Timothy was leaving Lystra to go out into the work of the Lord, the elder brethren met together-the Presbyters as they are called-and placed their hands in loving fellowship upon his head. Paul was with them. And they prayed that God would give Timothy some special blessing, and in answer to prayer there was a definite gift bestowed upon him. Notice again the words here:
“Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.”
In response to Paul’s prayer of consecration as this young man went forth to preach the gospel, God gave him a special gift in order that he might be more useful in Christian service.
Then Paul urges him not to become lax, not to become careless, but to stir up the gift of God thus given. He says, as it were, Do not forget your responsibility, and do not let anybody terrify you. Do not be afraid of others, no matter how great the persecution may be and how great the hatred.
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
These are the indications that one is really controlled by the Holy Spirit of God. These things will be manifest in the life. There will be power over sin. There will be power as we go out to win others to Christ. There will be power as we preach the gospel. There will be love for all men,
“Because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us” (Romans 5:5).
Then he speaks of a sound mind. The Spirit of God will not lead into fanaticism. I have heard a great many people talk about being filled with the Spirit who, as far as I could see, gave every evidence of an unsound mind. They were taken up with all kinds of queer, fantastical, emotional experiences. Where the Holy Spirit controls there will be a sound mind. The Spirit of God will guard our intellect so that we will serve God in a reasonable and intelligent way. In this Christ Himself is our example.
In closing may I stress again the blessing and responsibility of a godly heritage? If I am addressing any who are still out of Christ and yet have had a true Christian home, who have had the blessing of faithful parents whose prayers went up to God daily on your behalf, and who read the Word of God in that home, remember that a tremendous responsibility rests upon you. You can be sure that God will never overlook your indifference and your carelessness as to the privileges you have enjoyed as a boy or a girl raised in such an atmosphere. I plead with you, therefore, to determine early in life that you are going to belong to the Christ of your father, that your mother’s Savior will be your Savior and your God, that the Bible they loved will be treasured by you, and that your life will answer to the prayers that they have offered on your behalf.
Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God; who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel: whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us. This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me; of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes. The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain: but, when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me. The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day: and in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus, thou knowest very well. (vv. 8-18)
There is so much in these verses that I was almost tempted to divide this portion into about three sections. But in one way they are all linked together, so I thought it best to consider them all at one time. They are connected by that expression “not ashamed.” We have it three times in these verses: first, in the admonition of Paul to Timothy; second, Paul’s own declaration; and third, in that which he testifies concerning his friend, Onesiphorus.
I wish we might fix our attention upon these words, “not ashamed.” In Romans 1:16 we have that declaration of the Apostle,
“I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”
Why should anybody be ashamed of the gospel? It answers every question concerning sin and its remedy that the mind of man can possibly raise. God has opened up His heart to men in the gospel. It is His message concerning His blessed Son and the salvation He has wrought out for all who believe.
It was because of his faithfulness in proclaiming the gospel that Paul was in prison. And now, writing to his younger friend, he said,
“Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord.”
It is as though he said, “Timothy, you have something of which you need never be ashamed as you go forth in Christ’s name, telling how God has given His only begotten Son up to the death of the cross that all who put their trust in Him might be redeemed from sin’s guilt and power.” There are preachers who never seem to have anything to say about the blood of Jesus or the cross on which He died. But this is God’s own message to a lost world, and we to whom it has been committed should never be ashamed of it.
The Apostle adds,
“Nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God.”
He says, “Do not be ashamed of me.” There might have been those who would say to Timothy, “You are linked up with that fellow, Paul. I understand he came to a bad end and is now in prison.” It would be easy for Timothy to say, “Oh, I knew him somewhat, but I was not intimate with him.” But Paul said, “Do not be ashamed of me, but speak out boldly and let people know you stand for the same things for which I stand, because it is for this that I am in prison. It is for you to be partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God.”
It is a great privilege to partake of the blessings of the gospel, but God has ordained that we should not only have a part in these privileges, but that we should also be permitted to suffer for Christ’s sake. This is the only world in which we can do that. Nobody suffers for Christ in heaven. It is down here only that we have this blessed opportunity. We should ever count it a privilege to bear shame for His name’s sake when we think of what He has done for us.
In verse 9 he says,
“Who hath saved us.”
Are you sure that you have been saved? There is a lot of uncertainty with many about this question. Some people think of salvation as a process going on all through life, and eventually, if they are faithful enough, they hope to be saved. But the Apostle says,
“Who hath saved us.”
In the epistle to the Ephesians he writes,
“By grace are ye saved [literally, by grace have ye been saved] through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” (2:8-9).
There is no reason why any believer in the Lord Jesus Christ should be uncertain in regard to this question of salvation.
It may sound humble to sing as John Newton wrote one time when he had a fit of despondency,
’Tis a point I long to know,Oft it causes anxious thought;Do I love my Lord, or no?Am I His, or am I not?
But that is not the language of faith. The man who believes God can say, He
“hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works.”
We do not purchase salvation by good behavior or by anything else we can do, but it is
“according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began”-that is, before the ages began.
Before sin came into the world, God had made all His plans for redemption. It was not an afterthought with God. It was all arranged. The Devil thought he was ahead of God when he caused man to sin, but God had already prepared for man’s redemption, and that redemption
“is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death.”
It is written in Hebrews 9:27,
“And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.”
That is what makes death so terrible for the unconverted man: he has to face God in judgment after he leaves this life. But the Lord Jesus Christ has
“abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”
Elsewhere it is written,
“That through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage” (Hebrews 2:14-15).
In the Old Testament even believers had a fear of death. They did not know the blessedness of an accomplished redemption; and so many of them were left in a state of doubt and uncertainty as to what death might mean. They could not all say with Job,
“For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God” (19:25-26).
Many did not understand that. But now Jesus has gone down into death and has come up in triumph. He says,
“I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, … and have the keys of hell and of death” (Revelation 1:18).
Thus He delivers them
“who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage” (Hebrews 2:15).
I have often used an illustration of this, and it might not be out of place to repeat it in order to make this clear. Years ago when I was preaching out in the mountains of California the Lord gave me the joy of seeing many souls saved. After they were converted it was my desire to baptize them, and I have always been very old-fashioned in my idea of baptism. I take them right down under the water. Of course, some of you may sympathize with me in my ignorance, but that is all right, I return the compliment. I have baptized in lakes, in rivers, in ponds, and even in horse-troughs.
One time we had quite a group to baptize, both men and women. It was in the winter, and winter in California is a rainy time. It was in the region where the only water available was in the Sacramento River, which runs high in the winter and is very dark because of the silt brought down from the hills. I went out the day before and scouted around to find a place that seemed to be fit. There was room for a good audience to stand on the bank. I waded out into the river to make sure it was all right. On the next day we gathered together. It had been noised around that there was to be baptizing, and so there were hundreds of people gathering from all over the countryside. We preached the gospel. I saw those who were to be baptized looking at that dark river, and away down in their hearts I am sure everyone of them wished they were Presbyterians! I could tell they did not want to walk down into the water; they did not know what kind of experience it might involve.
While the people were singing the final hymn, I left the company, walked out into the water, and went on until I reached the place suitable for the baptizing. I felt around to see that there were no deep holes or dangerous rocks. I could see that those who were to be baptized were watching me. Finally, I went back to the shore, and when I put out my hand they came one after another. They were not afraid anymore. Why? Because I had gone down into the dark river and had come up safely.
Jesus went down into the dark waters of death and came up in triumph. And those who have trusted in Him do not dread death. They know death simply means going home to be forever with the Lord.
Now the Apostle says, “It is this that I was sent to preach, for which
‘I am appointed… an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. For the which cause I also suffer these things.’”
He was in prison. He was enduring much hardship. He was suffering for His name’s sake who gave Himself for lost mankind. And in order that he might carry that gospel to the world, he had given up all his earthly ambitions. He had given himself wholly to this one purpose of carrying the message from nation to nation, from people to people, from city to city. Now they had put him in jail, and this seemed to be the end of life, for in a little while he was going out to die for Jesus’ sake. But he could say,
“Nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.”
Paul gloried in the privilege of suffering for Christ. He was not ashamed of his message or of his Lord.
Observe Paul does not say, “I know what I have believed.” He did know what he had believed. He had no doubts about that. But it is one thing to believe what, and quite another thing to believe whom. He says,
“I know whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.”
Again and again the questions come to me, either by mail or from people whom I meet, “Do you believe in the perseverance of saints? Do you believe that if a man is once saved he is saved forever?” I generally say,
“I certainly do not believe in the perseverance of saints as such. I know them too well, for I am one myself. But I believe with all my heart in the perseverance of the Lord Jesus, and I am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.”
The Apostle had committed his soul to the Lord, and he knew that He would not let him down. That is why he is able to say elsewhere,
“For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).
Do you know anything which is neither included in things present nor things to come? Do you know anything that is not included in life or in death? Paul says that nothing in death, nothing in life, nothing present, nothing to come, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Again he says to Timothy,
“Hold fast the form of sound words.”
In other words, he is saying, “Timothy, do not let anything go that you have received from God. Cleave to the truth, and then in that day when you have to give an account you will have the Lord’s approval because of your faithfulness.” On the other hand, he adds,
“Which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.”
You know it is an easy thing to become very disagreeable and contentious, even when one is endeavoring to be faithful to truth. The servant of God is called upon to contend for the faith. He is to maintain an attitude of faithfulness to Christ and love to the brethren. As we walk in love toward our brethren and stand firmly for the truth, we will commend to others that truth which we seek to proclaim with our lips.
At the time that Timothy went into the service of the Lord, he was commended to the Lord in a special way by a group of the elder brethren at Lystra, Paul joining with them, as we have noted already. In answer to their prayers, God gave Timothy some special gift to fit him for the work. So here in verse 14 Paul says to him,
“That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.”
Paul had heard that many in Asia had turned away from the truth, the simplicity which is in Christ. Timothy was in Asia at this time where Paul had labored years before, and where many Christians had been led away from the truth by certain evil-disposed men who had gone in among them, teaching things contrary to the grace of God. Many of the saints were getting bewildered and carried away with these teachings. Some had even gone so far as to repudiate Paul’s doctrine and refused to accept him as an apostle. We see that in the epistle to the Galatians. This was a great grief to him.
“This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me; of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes.”
Now do not misunderstand. Paul did not say they were no longer Christians, but he declared that they had turned away from him. These false teachers had come in and turned the saints away from the full gospel message that Paul had taught them, and they had repudiated him, no longer recognizing him as an apostle of Christ.
Next he mentions one who had come from Asia, who had been very faithful to him and very true. Paul speaks most tenderly concerning him. I do not know what had happened, whether he had been imprisoned or martyred for Christ’s sake, but something had taken place which led him to write,
“The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain.”
Evidently this man was what we would call today a traveling man. He moved about, possibly on business, or it may be that in the work of the Lord he went from place to place. In the course of his travels he came to Rome while Paul was a prisoner there.
“But, when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me.”
It might not have been easy to find Paul in that great city, but Onesiphorus inquired of one and another until he found him.
Paul said,
“[He] was not ashamed of my chain.”
He was not ashamed to stand by that prisoner in the dungeon and say, “He and I are friends. He and I stand for the same things. We serve the same Master.”
I repeat, I do not know what had happened, but in the next verse Paul says,
“The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day: and in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus, thou knowest very well.”
“Not ashamed!”
Paul says to Timothy. “I do not want you to be ashamed. Do not be ashamed of the testimony of God; do not be ashamed of those who suffer for Christ’s sake.” Paul himself was not ashamed. Onesiphorus was not ashamed. He boldly identified himself with the prisoner of the Lord.
So I pass the word on to you who know and love the Lord. May we never be ashamed of His name.