Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary 2 Timothy 4:5

"But be thou sober in all things, suffer hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfil thy ministry." — 2 Timothy 4:5 (ASV)

“Keep your head” (GK 3768) is from a verb that often means “be sober, abstain from wine.” But in the NT (cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:6, 8; 1 Peter 1:13; 1 Peter 4:7; 1 Peter 5:8) it has the metaphorical sense of being self-controlled or self-possessed—Timothy is to keep his self-control under all circumstances. He is then again urged to “endure hardship” (GK 2802; cf. 2:3). He must do the work of an “evangelist” (cf. Acts 21:8; Ephesians 4:11), which means to announce the good news of salvation in Christ. This word may well refer to an itinerant preacher, but the established pastor must also be an evangelist, pointing sinners to Christ. The summary of Paul’s solemn charge to Timothy is this: “Discharge all the duties of your ministry.” He is to fulfill his calling by packing his ministry to the full with the things Paul has been exhorting him to do in these two letters.