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See also: The Divinity of Jesus 190–93 ■ The Word Spreads 288–89 ■
Paul’s Arrest 294–95 ■ The Power of the Resurrection 304–05Timothy
Timothy was a colleague
of the Apostle Paul during
several of Paul’s missionary
journeys and his imprisonment
in Rome. The son of a Jewish-
Christian mother and a Greek
father, Timothy had been
taught the Hebrew scriptures
(the Old Testament) from an
early age. Paul used Timothy
as either a coauthor or the
recording secretary for his
letters to the Philippians,
Colossians, and to Philemon.
During Paul’s life, Timothy
served as his representative
to churches in Thessalonica,
Corinth, and Philippi, before
he eventually took up the role
of pastor in Ephesus. Paul
wrote two letters directly to
Timothy in Ephesus; these
became the books of 1 and 2
Timothy. The latter, written
from prison in the last days of
his life, is considered to have
been Paul’s spiritual last will
and testament.
One Christian author in
the eighth century claimed
Timothy was present with
Mary, the mother of Jesus, at
the end of her life. According
to Foxe’s Book of Martyrs,
Timothy was beaten to death
by a mob in Ephesus in 97 ce.which had prepared him to hear
and understand Paul’s message
that Jesus was the fulfillment of
the Old Testament prophecies
of a messiah who would redeem
God’s chosen people.
These scriptures, Paul wrote,
were “God-breathed” (2 Timothy
3:16). This phrase indicates that
Paul himself understood the
Hebrew scriptures to be God’s
Word. It is little surprise that Paul,ACTS, EPISTLES, AND REVELATION
Illustrated manuscripts of the
Bible, such as this page from the Book
of Kells, an Irish manuscript of the
Gospels from c.800, both glorified
God’s word and aided understanding.[Scripture] is useful
for teaching ... and
training in righteousness,
so that the servant
of God may be
thoroughly equipped.
2 Timothy 3:16who had been trained among the
Pharisees as a rabbi, would see
the Old Testament as coming
directly from the Lord. Since Moses,
the prophets had introduced their
pronouncements with the phrase,
“This is what the Lord says ...”
more than 400 times, while “the
word of the Lord came” appears
245 times in the Bible.Prophecies of old
At roughly the same time as Paul,
the Apostle Peter writes that the
prophets of the Old Testament
never came by their prophecies
based on their own interpretations:
“For prophecy never had its origin
in the human will, but prophets,
though human, spoke from God
as they were carried along by
the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21). These
writings were not considered to be
the prophets’ personal opinions
about what was happing or what
they wanted to see happen in the
future. The prophets were mere
agents; they spoke from God,
and they had as much control
over the content of their writings
as sailors on a small boat in a
storm. God’s Spirit was the wind
that carried them along and
determined their course.
Jesus speaks in ways similar
to the Old Testament prophets,
but with a unique development.
Like the prophets, Jesus says that
He speaks from God (John 12:49).
Unlike the prophets, however, Jesus
does not preface His sermons with
“This is what God says.” Instead, ❯❯US_308-311_The_Bible_as_Gods_word.indd 309 27/09/17 10:18 am