Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary 2 Timothy 2:13

"if we are faithless, he abideth faithful; for he cannot deny himself." — 2 Timothy 2:13 (ASV)

For “here is a trustworthy saying,” see comment on 1 Timothy 1:15. In this case, the trustworthy saying is the following three verses, which may be an early Christian hymn. It is in the typical form of Hebrew poetic parallelism—four “if” clauses, each followed by a balancing conclusion.

The first two are positive, the other two negative. The implications of “if we died with [GK 5271] him” is spelled out by Paul in Ro 6:3–6. It is only as we die with Christ, by identification with him in his death, that we can have spiritual life in him. “We will also live with him” does not refer to our future resurrection, but to our present life in Christ (cf. the parallel in Ro 6:8, 11). Right here and now we are to count ourselves “dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”

The Pauline formula is “You have to die in order to live.” Paul goes with “if we endure, we will also reign with him.” It is only as we keep on enduring to the end that we will be saved in time of persecution (Matthew 10:22; cf. context).

The third proposition is negative: “If we disown him, he will also disown us.” This is a serious warning: We cannot reject Christ without being rejected ourselves.

“If we are faithless” (GK 601) is in the present tense, indicating a settled state of refusing to believe in Jesus and to obey him. But whatever we do, “he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.” God’s faithfulness is eternal.