1 Timothy 4:1

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; NOW - Greek, 'But.' The "mystery of iniquity" here, already working (2 Thessalonians 2:7), stands opposed to the ' "mystery of godliness" (1 Timothy 3:16). THE SPIRIT - in the prophets, then in the Church (resting on the prophecies of the Old Testament, Daniel 7:25; Daniel 8:23, etc.; Daniel 11:30; as also on those of...

1_Now the Spirit plainly saith _He had industriously admonished Timothy about many things; and now he shews the necessity, because it is proper to provide against the danger which the Holy Spirit forewarns to be fast approaching, namely, that false teachers will come, who shall hold out trifles as the doctrine of faith, and who, placing all holiness in outward exercises, shall throw into the shade the spiritual worship of God, which alone is lawful. And, indeed, the servants of God have always had to contend against such persons as Paul here describes. Men being by nature inclined to hypocrisy, Satan easily persuades them that God is worshipped aright by ceremonies and outward discipline; and, indeed, without a teacher, almost all have this conviction deeply rooted in their hearts. Next is added the craftiness of Satan to confirm the error: the consequence is, that, in all ages, there ha...

1-5 The Holy Spirit, both in the Old and the New Testament, spoke of a general turning from the faith of Christ, and the pure worship of God. This should come during the Christian dispensation, for those are called the latter days. False teachers forbid as evil what God has allowed, and command as a duty what he has left indifferent. We find exercise for watchfulness and self-denial, in attending to the requirements of God's law, without being tasked to imaginary duties, which reject what he has allowed. But nothing justifies an intemperate or improper use of things; and nothing will be good to us, unless we seek by prayer for the Lord's blessing upon it....

CHAPTER IV. _Apostasy from the true faith predicted, and in what that_ _apostasy should consist_, 1-5. _Exhortations to Timothy to teach the truth_, 6. _To avoid old wives' fables; to exercise himself to godliness_, 7, 8. _To labour, command, and teach_, 9, 10, 11. _To act so that none might despise his youth_, 12. _To give attendance to reading and preaching_, 13, 14. _To give up himself wholly to the Divine work_, 15. _And so doing he should both save himself and them that heard_ _him_, 1

NOW THE SPIRIT - Evidently the Holy Spirit; the Spirit of inspiration. It is not quite certain, from this passage, whether the apostle means to say that this was a revelation “then” made to him, or whether it was a well-understood thing as taught by the Holy Spirit. He himself elsewhere refers to this same prophecy, and John also more than once mentions it; compare 2 Thessalonians 2; 1 John 2:18; Revelation 20:1. From 2 Thessalonians 2:5, it would seem that this was a truth which had before been communicated to the apostle Paul, and that he had dwelt on it when he preached the gospel in

EXPOSITION 1 TIMOTHY 4:1 _But _for _now_,_ _A.V.; _saith _for _speaketh_,_ _A.V.;_ later _for _the latter_,_ _A.V.;_ fall away _for _depart_,_ _A.V. THE SPIRIT SAITH EXPRESSLY (ῥητῶς);_ _only here in the New Testament, and very rare in classical Greek. But the adjective ῥητός, in the sense of something "laid down," "definite.... expressly mentioned," is common. It was, doubtless, on account of these prophetic warnings of a falling away from the faith, that the apostle gave the preceding heads of Christian doctrine in such a terse and tangible form, and laid such a solemn charge upon Timothy. (For examples of these prophetic utterances, see Acts 11:28;...

NOW THE SPIRIT SPEAKETH EXPRESSLY,.... The prophecy hereafter mentioned was not an human conjecture, but, as all true prophecy, it came from the Spirit of God, who spoke or delivered it; either in the prophets of the Old Testament, who, as they spoke of the Gospel dispensation, so of the defection that should be in it; and particularly of antichrist, and of the apostasy through him, which is what is here intended, especially in Daniel's prophecies, under the names of the little horn, and vile person, Daniel 7:1 and Daniel 11:1, or in the Lord Jesus Christ, who foretold that false prophets would arise and deceive many; or in some of the prophets in the Christian church, such as Agabus, and others, who might in so many words foretell this thing; or rather in the apostle himself, at this time, since this p

IV. CONCERNING THE LATTER-DAY APOSTASY CHAPTER 4 _ 1. What the Spirit has predicted (1 Timothy 4:1)_ 2. The remedies against apostasy (1 Timothy 4:6) 1 Timothy 4:1 The mystery of godliness having been mentioned, the apostle speaks of Satan's power in opposition to the faith and truth of God (the mystery of godliness here, and the mystery of iniquity in 2 Thessalonians). “But the Spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons.” It is a prophetic warning. Paul had given a similar warning to the Ephesian elders gathered at Miletus a number of years before, and elsewhere in the New Testament t

1 Timothy 4:1 to 1 Timothy 6:2_ A._ THE CHARGE RESPECTING TIMOTHY'S OWN BEHAVIOUR WITHIN THE CHURCH. (_a_) _1 TIMOTHY 4:1_. TIMOTHYS ATTITUDE TO ERROR. 1 Timothy 4:1. The False Asceticism. Despite the greatness of the revelation, however, even within the Church error will arise. Prophets, inspired by the Spirit, foretell an apostasy which will be brought about by men inspired by evil spirits (_cf._ 1 John 4:1 ff.) and bearing on their conscience the mark of their master, Satan (contrast...

The Spirit clearly says that in the later times some will desert from the faith, through paying attention to spirits who can do nothing but lead them astray, and to teachings which come from the demons, teachings of false men whose characteristic is insincerity, teachings of men whose conscience has been branded with the mark of Satan, teachings of those who forbid marriage, and who order men to abstain from foods which God created in order that men might gratefully take their share of them in the company of those who believe and who really know the truth; for everything that God has made is good, and nothing is to be rejected, but it is to be gratefully received; for it is hallowed by the word of God and by prayer. The Christian Church had inherited from the Jews the belief that in this world things would be a great deal worse before they were better. The Jews always thought of time in...