2 Timothy 2:17

And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
And	καὶ kai	G2532	and · conjunction
their	αὐτῶν autōn	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — genitive plural masculine
word	λόγος logos	G3056	something said (including the thought) · noun — nominative singular masculine
will	ἕξει· hexei	G2192	to hold (used in very various applications · verb — future active indicative, 3rd person singular
eat	νομὴν nomēn	G3542	pasture · noun — accusative singular feminine
doth	ὡς hōs	G5613	which how · particle
canker	γάγγραινα gangraina	G1044	an ulcer ("gangrene") · noun — nominative singular feminine
whom	ὧν hōn	G3739	the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun · relative pronoun — genitive plural masculine
is	ἐστί estí	G2076	he (she or it) is
Hymenaeus	Ὑμέναιος Humenaios	G5211	"hymenæal" · noun — nominative singular masculine, a proper name
and	καὶ kai	G2532	and · conjunction
Philetus	Φίλητος, Philētos	G5372	amiable · noun — nominative singular masculine, a proper name

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

1 Timothy 1:20 Of whom is Hymenaeus and Alexander; whom I have delivered unto Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme.
Nahum 3:15 There shall the fire devour thee; the sword shall cut thee off, it shall eat thee up like the cankerworm: make thyself many as the cankerwor…
James 5:3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have hea…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 2 Timothy 2:14-18

Having thus encouraged Timothy to suffer, he comes in the next place to direct him in his work. I. He must make it his business to edify those who were under his charge, to put them in remembrance of those things which they did already know; for this is the work of ministers; not to tell people that which they never knew before, but to put them in mind of that which they do know, charging them that they strive not about words. Observe, Those that are disposed to strive commonly strive about matters of very small moment. Strifes of words are very destructive to the things of God. That they strive not about words to no profit. If people did but consider of what little use most of the controver…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 2 Timothy 2:17

will eat--literally, "will have pasture." The consuming progress of mortification is the image. They pretend to give rich spiritual pasture to their disciples: the only pasture is that of a spiritual cancer feeding on their vitals. canker--a "cancer" or "gangrene." Hymenaeus--(See on Ti1 1:20). After his excommunication he seems to have been readmitted into the Church and again to have troubled it.

Adam Clarke on 2 Timothy 2:17

Their word will eat as doth a canker - Ὡς γαγγραινα· As a gangrene; i.e. as a mortification in the flesh, where the circulation is entirely stopped, and putrefaction takes place, which continues to corrupt all the circumjacent flesh, spreading more and more till death takes place, unless stopped by a timely and judicious application of medicine. Such is the influence of false doctrine; it fixes its mortal seed in the soul, which continues to corrupt and assimilate every thing to itself, till, if not prevented by a timely application of the word of life, under the direction of the heavenly Physician, it terminates in the bitter pains of an eternal death. To such a gangrene the apostle compar…

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John Gill on 2 Timothy 2:17

The Church Fathers

It is a comparatively small thing, that certain men, like Phygellus, and Hermogenes, and Philetus, and Hymenµus, deserted His apostle: the betrayer of Christ was himself one of the apostles.
— Tertullian, The Prescription Against Heretics

and their message will spread like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are among them, who have strayed concerning the truth. like gangrene. Gangrene is a infected ulcer, consuming the place, causing rotting; some say it is a creeping ulcer, or erysipelas. He who is Hymenaeus..." Of those ones who utter profane and empty chatter.
— Oecumenius, COMMENTARY ON 2 TIMOTHY

That kind of wound is called a suppurating sore, which begins in the female breasts and then grows quickly into the abdominal region. When it finally becomes a poison that permeates the heart, there is no remedy. In just such a way the discussions of heretics are to be avoided, lest through the ears they reach the mind with an irremediable wound.
— Pelagius, PELAGIUS'S COMMENTARY ON THE SECOND LETTER TO TIMOTHY

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Canker — A gangrene or mortification which gradually spreads over the whole body (2 Tim. 2:17). In James 5:3 “cankered” means “rusted” (R.V.) or tarnished.
Hymenaeus — (belonging to marriage), the name of a person occurring twice in the correspondence between St. Paul and Timothy; the first time classed with Alexander, (1 Timothy 1:20) and the second time classed…
Philetus — Amiable, with Hymenaeus, at Ephesus, said that the “resurrection was past already” (2 Tim. 2:17, 18). This was a Gnostic heresy held by the Nicolaitanes. (See ALEXANDER [4].)
Canker · FIGURATIVE — FIGURATIVE
Doctrines · FALSE — FALSE
Holiness · 2:17;5:22-25;6:15; — 2:17;5:22-25;6:15;
Hymenaeus · A false teacher — A false teacher
Influence · EVIL — EVIL
Philetus · An hereti — An hereti

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

2 Timothy 2:17

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 2 Timothy 2:14-18

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 2 Timothy 2:17

Adam Clarke on 2 Timothy 2:17

John Gill on 2 Timothy 2:17

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

2 Timothy 2:17

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 2 Timothy 2:14-18

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 2 Timothy 2:17

Adam Clarke on 2 Timothy 2:17

John Gill on 2 Timothy 2:17

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on 2 Timothy 2:14-18

Tyndale Open Study Notes on 2 Timothy 2:17