John Calvin Commentary 2 Timothy 4:8

"henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give to me at that day; and not to me only, but also to all them that have loved his appearing." — 2 Timothy 4:8 (ASV)

Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness. Having boasted of having fought his fight, finished his course, and kept the faith, he now affirms that he has not labored in vain. It is possible to put forth strenuous exertion and yet be defrauded of the reward which is due. But Paul says that his reward is sure.

This certainty arises from turning his eyes to the day of the resurrection, and this is what we also ought to do. For all around we see nothing but death. Therefore, we ought not to keep our eye fixed on the outward appearance of the world but, on the contrary, to hold out to our minds the coming of Christ. The consequence will be that nothing can detract from our happiness.

Which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will render to me. Because he mentions “the crown of righteousness” and “the righteous Judge,” and uses the word “render,” the Papists attempt, by means of this passage, to establish the merits of works in opposition to the grace of God. But their reasoning is absurd. Justification by free grace, which is bestowed on us through faith, is not at variance with the rewarding of works. On the contrary, these two statements perfectly agree: that a man is justified freely through the grace of Christ, and yet that God will render to him the reward of works. For as soon as God has received us into favor, he likewise accepts our works, so as even to deign to give them a reward, though it is not due to them.

The Papists commit two blunders here:

1. In arguing that we deserve something from God because we do well by virtue of our free will.
2. In holding that God is bound to us, as if our salvation proceeded from anything other than his grace.

But it does not follow that God owes anything to us because he renders righteously what he renders, for he is righteous even in those acts of kindness that are of free grace.

And he “renders the reward” that he has promised, not because we take the lead by any act of obedience, but because, in the same course of generosity with which he began to act toward us, he follows up his former gifts with those that are afterwards bestowed.

In vain, therefore, and to no purpose, do the Papists labor to prove from this that good works proceed from the power of free will, because there is no absurdity in saying that God crowns in us his own gifts.

No less absurdly and foolishly do they attempt, by means of this passage, to destroy the righteousness of faith, since the goodness of God — by which he graciously embraces a man, not imputing his sins to him — is not inconsistent with that rewarding of works which he will render by the same kindness with which he made the promise.

And not to me only. So that all the other believers might fight courageously along with him, he invites them to share in the crown. For his unshaken steadfastness could not have served as an example to us if the same hope of obtaining the crown had not been held out to us.

To all who love his coming. This is a distinctive mark that he employs in describing believers. Indeed, wherever faith is strong, it will not permit their minds to fall asleep in this world but will elevate them to the hope of the last resurrection.

His meaning, therefore, is that all who are so devoted to the world and love this fleeting life so much that they do not care about the coming of Christ, and are not moved by any desire for it, deprive themselves of immortal glory. Woe to our stupidity, therefore, which exercises such power over us that we never think seriously about the coming of Christ, to which we ought to give our whole attention. Besides, he excludes from the number of believers those in whom the coming of Christ produces terror and alarm, for it cannot be loved unless it is regarded as pleasant and delightful.