1 Timothy 6:13

1 Timothy 6:13. I give thee charge. The apostle retains to the opening thought of the Epistle, that of the ‘charge or ‘injunction' which he committed to his disciple, 1 Timothy 1:5; 1 Timothy 1:18; but now that he is drawing to a close, the injunction assumes a more solemn character and is given as in the presence of God and Christ.

That quickeneth all things. The special attribute of God needed for the encouragement of the faint-hearted. Men may slay the body, but God can both give life to the soul and restore it to the corpse.

Before Pontius Pilate. The Greek may have either this meaning, or ‘ under Pontius Pilate,' as in the Creed.

Witnessed a good confession. The word for ‘witness' seems purposely chosen for the higher form of witness that was consummated by death. The Greek, as before, has the article before confession, as referring to something well known, and so the passage becomes important as evidence that the narrative of the Passion was sufficiently familiar to be thus appealed to.