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Paul here foretels, I. A dreadful apostasy (Ti1 4:1-3). II. He treats of Christian liberty (Ti1 4:4, Ti1 4:5). III. He gives Timothy divers directions with respect to himself, his doctrine, and the people under his care (Ti1 4:6 to the end)

INTRODUCTION TO 1 TIMOTHY 4 In this chapter the apostle foretells a dreadful apostasy which should happen in the last times, the particulars of which he gives; and on occasion of one branch of it, discourses of Christian liberty in eating all sorts of food fit for use; and delivers out exhortations to Timothy to various duties relating to himself, his doctrine, and his charge. The prophecy is in Ti1 4:1, the author of this prophecy is the Spirit of God; the manner in which it was delivered was very clear and express; the time when it should be fulfilled, the last days; the thing itself, a departure of some from the faith; the means whereby it would come about are, some giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils, and the hypocrisy and hardened consciences of others, who would forbid marriage, and order an abstinence from certain meats; the evil of which last is exposed by their being the creatures of God, and by their being made for this purpose to be received with thankfulness by all believers, and who know the truth: and the reasons why they should be received and used follow; because they are all good, as they are the creatures of God; and because there is nothing to be refused, provided it be received with a thankful heart; and because every creature is sanctified by the word of God, and prayer, Ti1 4:4. And then Timothy is exhorted to put the brethren in mind of those things, by which he would show himself to be a faithful minister of Christ, and well instructed in the doctrines of the Gospel, Ti1 4:6, and to reject things profane and fabulous, but use himself to internal and powerful godliness, since outward worship signifies little, but the former has the promise of this, and the other world annexed to it; which is a true saying, and to be depended on, Ti1 4:7 and which is confirmed from the practice and experience of the apostles, and therefore should be taught with authority, Ti1 4:10. And then the apostle gives Timothy some advice, which being taken, would prevent his being despised, on account of his youth; as with respect to his life and conversation, so to behave as to be a pattern to others, Ti1 4:12, and with respect to the exercise of his ministry, to make use of such means, as reading and meditation, that his profiting might be manifest to all, Ti1 4:13 and with respect to the doctrines he preached, to abide by them, whereby he would be a means of saving himself, and others, Ti1 4:16.

For bodily exercise profiteth little,.... Meaning not the exercise of the body in the Olympic games, as by running, wrestling, &c. which profited but little, for the obtaining of a corruptible crown at most; though since a word is used here, and in the preceding verse, borrowed from thence, there may be an allusion to it: much less exercise of the body for health or recreation, as riding, walking, playing at any innocent diversion; which profits but for a little time, as the Syriac and Arabic versions read; and the latter renders the phrase "bodily recreation": nor is the exercise of the body in the proper employment of trade and business, to which a man is called, and which profits for the support of life for a little while, intended; nor any methods made use of for the mortification of the body, and the keeping of it under, as watchings, fastings, lying on the ground, scourging, &c. but rather mere formal external worship, as opposed to godliness, or spiritual worship. There ought to be an exercise of the body, or a presenting of that in religious worship before God; there should be an outward attendance on the word and ordinances; but then, without internal godliness, this will be of little advantage: it is indeed showing an outward regard to public worship, and may be a means of keeping persons out of bad company, and from doing evil things; but if this is trusted to, and depended on, it will be of no avail to everlasting life; see Luk 13:26 but godliness is profitable unto all things; to the health of the body, and the welfare of the soul; to the things of this life, and of that which is to come; to themselves and others, though not to God, or in a way of merit: having promise of the life that now is; of the continuance of it, of length of days, of living long in the earth, and of enjoying all necessary temporal good things, the mercies of life; for God has promised to his spiritual worshippers, to them that fear him, and walk uprightly, that their days shall be prolonged, that they shall want no good thing, nor will he withhold any from them that is for their good, that is proper and convenient for them: and of that which is to come; even of eternal life; not that eternal life is received or procured hereby; for it is the free gift of God, and is not by any works of men, for otherwise it would not be by promise; for its being by promise shows it to be of grace: there is nothing more or less in it than this, that God promises glory to his own grace; for internal godliness, which animates and maintains spiritual worship, is of God, is of his own grace, and every part of it is a free gift of his, as faith, hope, love, fear, &c.

Those who are too hasty, and give up even before midnight, we reprehend as remiss and intemperate, and as almost breaking off from their course in their precipitation, for it is a wise man's word, "That is not little in life which is within a little." And those who hold out and continue for a very long time, and persevere even on to the fourth watch, which is also the time at which our Saviour manifested Himself walking upon the sea to those who were then on the deep, we receive as noble and laborious disciples. On those, again, who pause and refresh themselves in the course as they are moved or as they are able, let us not press very hard: for all do not carry out the six days of fasting either equally or alike; but some pass even all the days as a fast, remaining without food through the whole; while others take but two, and others three, and others four, and others not even one.

Some indeed put it thus, “Incline my heart unto Thy testimonies and not to what is useful.” The reference is to that kind of usefulness which is always on the watch for making gains in business and has been bent and diverted by the habits of men to the pursuit of money. For as a rule most people call that only useful which is profitable, but we are speaking of that kind of usefulness which is sought in earthly loss “that we may gain Christ,” whose gain is “godliness with contentment.” Great, too, is the gain whereby we attain to godliness, which is rich with God, not indeed in fleeting wealth but in eternal gifts, and in which rests no uncertain trial but grace constant and unending. There is therefore a usefulness connected with the body, and also one that has to do with godliness, according to the apostle’s division, “Bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things.”

"For bodily exercise profiteth little." This has by some been referred to fasting; but away with such a notion! for that is not a bodily but a spiritual exercise. If it were bodily it would nourish the body, whereas it wastes and makes it lean, so that it is not bodily. Hence he is not speaking of the discipline of the body. What we need, therefore, is the exercise of the soul. For the exercise of the body hath no profit, but may benefit the body a little, but the exercise of godliness yields fruit and advantage both here and hereafter.

“Godliness,” then, “which is the true worship of God, is profitable to all things,” since it deflects or blunts the troubles of this life and leads to that other life, our salvation, where we shall suffer no evil and enjoy the supreme and everlasting good. I exhort you as I do myself to pursue this happiness more earnestly and to hold to it with strong constancy.

St. Paul is plainly referring to this when he says, “bodily exercise is profitable for a little, but godliness” (by which he surely means charity) “is profitable for all things, having the promise of the life that now is and of the life to come.” What is said to be profitable for a little cannot be profitable forever and cannot (of itself) bring a man to the perfect life. The phrase “for a little” might mean one of two things. It might mean “for a short time,” since these bodily exercises are not going to last as long as the man who practices them. Or it might mean “only of little profit.” Corporal austerity brings the first beginnings of progress, but it does not beget that perfect charity which has the promise of this life and the life to come.

Train yourself to godliness; for physical exercise is of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come. Train. That is, accustom yourself. to godliness. Godliness is the diligence and zeal of life with right faith. for physical exercise. It makes the body healthy. However, in comparison it is only for a short time. having promise of the life. Do you see the benefit? That godliness also in the present and in the future life gives life to the spiritual life.

Some suppose that by fasting he means bodily exercise. This is not true: fasting is a spiritual exercise. But by bodily exercise he means that which, although it requires great labors, nevertheless brings little profit, and only for a time. Here, he says, piety helps a person. For one whose conscience convicts him of nothing bad both rejoices in spirit here, having sure promises of future blessings, and there will live the true life in very deed. Through comparison the apostle shows the superiority of piety.

Then when he says, bodily exercise is profitable to little, he chooses it over abstinence: first, he shows how it is profitable; second, how godliness is profitable, at but godliness. He says, therefore, that the bodily exercise of fasting and so on are not good of their very nature, but penal. Furthermore, if man had not sinned, they would be useless; yet they are good medicine. For just as rhubarb is good for relieving cholera, so bodily exercise is good for repressing concupiscence. Therefore, it is useful in that respect: I chastise my body and bring it into subjection (1 Cor 9:27); mortify your members which are upon the earth (Col 3:5). And so, if man were in that state in which he could not sin, he would not need fastings and the like. Hence Chrysostom, commenting on Matthew: Jesus came into the quarters of Caesarea Philippi, says: John, a mere man, needed the medicine of fasting; but Christ was pure God and not merely man; therefore, he did not need such a thing (Matt 16:30). Consequently, it is useful to little, namely, for diseases of carnal sin, not of spiritual; for sometimes a man falls into anger, vain glory, and so on because of fasting. Then when he says, but godliness is profitable to all things, he chooses it over abstinence; where godliness is taken in both senses of referring to divine worship and mercy. It is profitable to all things, because it removes all sins: water quenches a flaming fire; and alms resists sin (Sir 3:33); also it promotes what is good: the alms of a man is as a signet with him (Sir 17:18). Again, it merits God's special mercy: blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy (Matt 5:7). Therefore, in order to stress this the Lord praises works of mercy in a special way (Matt 25). Then the Apostle proves his statement when he adds, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come. For in the precepts of the decalogue there is but one which refers to godliness, namely, to honor your father and your mother; but under it are contained all the precepts that are concerned with bestowing benefits upon one's neighbor. Furthermore, this is the only precept, among those that are concerned with our neighbor, having promise attached to it, namely, that you may be long-lived upon the land which the Lord, your God, will give you (Exod 20:12). And the Apostle here takes long-lived as referring to the present life and the future life: length of days is in her right hand (Prov 3:16). But here a question arises: for we sometimes observe a man who pursues godliness but does not live long. I answer, according to the Philosopher, that temporal goods are good only to the extent that they are useful for felicity. Hence, if a man had so many temporal goods that they hindered him from the pursuit of goodness and felicity, this would not turn out for his good, but for evil, as it is stated in the Ethics X. And length of days is one of the temporal goods, inasmuch as it is an aid to virtue. But sometimes it is an occasion for sinning; as a result God sometimes keeps them from a man, not because he is reneging on his promise, but because he wishes to give something better: he was taken away lest wickedness should alter his understanding (Wis 4:11). Then there is another question: the Apostle seems to prefer godliness over bodily exercise, because it holds a promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. But does not bodily exercise hold a promise? Otherwise, one who fasts would not merit eternal life. The answer is that when two virtues are such that one contains the other, then the per se characteristics of the higher virtue belong accidentally to the lower. Now the virtue whose per se characteristic is to merit eternal life is charity, whose proper and immediate effect is godliness. Therefore, it belongs to the very nature of godliness to merit eternal life; but not so abstinence, unless it is ordained to charity and godliness. For if one who fasts does not relate it to love of God, he does not merit eternal life. The third question is this: Ambrose in a Gloss on this passage says that the whole sum of Christian discipline lies in mercy and godliness, which, when someone follows them, if he experiences perils to his flesh, he will doubtlessly be attacked, but will not perish. The first question is concerned with the first part of this statement, because mercy and godliness are immediately ordained to charity, in which lies the sum of the Christian religion. The answer, as given by Augustine in The City of God, is that it has been the opinion of some that those who perform acts of godliness will not perish in the end, no matter how many carnal sins they commit. And to this is an authority, where Christ reproaches the damned for not performing works of mercy (Matt 25:41). Consequently, eternal damnation will fall only on the unmerciful. But Augustine says the contrary, because the Apostle states: they who do such things shall not obtain the kingdom of God (Gal 5:21). For no matter how much a person is exercised in the works of mercy, if he dies in mortal sin, he will not enter the kingdom. The answer to the opposite opinion is that a person is not merciful, if he is not merciful to himself, as it is said: have pity on your own soul, pleasing God (Sir 30:24); and this happens if a man is united to God in love; otherwise he cannot be merciful. To the citation from Matthew, Augustine answers that not everyone who sins is cast into hell at once, because there still remains some room for repentance; but he will be cast in who finally dies in sin; and penance pertains to mercy. But what does Ambrose mean by experiencing perils in the flesh? I answer that he is speaking of mortal peril. And he says, he will not perish, although this is not ex condigno but ex congruo, inasmuch as the soul is disposed toward the good. That is why the Lord restored man after his fall. And this is especially seen in godliness, because a man by helping others induces them to pray for him; and the Lord sometimes grants pardon to sinners because of the prayers of the saints, inasmuch as they obtain from him a pardon for sin and the gift of grace. For a man can merit ex congruo the first grace for another man; otherwise the Church's prayers for sinners would be of no avail.

Apostasy from the true faith predicted, and in what that apostasy should consist, Ti1 4:1-5. Exhortations to Timothy to teach the truth, Ti1 4:6. To avoid old wives' fables; to exercise himself to godliness, Ti1 4:7, Ti1 4:8. To labor, command, and teach, Ti1 4:9, Ti1 4:10, Ti1 4:11. To act so that none might despise his youth, Ti1 4:12. To give attendance to reading and preaching, Ti1 4:13, Ti1 4:14. To give up himself wholly to the Divine work, Ti1 4:15. And so doing he should both save himself and them that heard him, Ti1 4:16.

For bodily exercise profiteth little - Προς ολιγον εστιν ωφελιμος. Those gymnastic exercises, so highly esteemed among the Greeks, are but little worth; they are but of short duration; they refer only to this life, and to the applause of men: but godliness has the promise of this life, and the life to come; it is profitable for all things; and for both time and eternity. But godliness is profitable unto all things - By godliness we are to understand every thing that the Christian religion either promises or prescribes: the life of God in the soul of man; and the glory of God as the object and end of that life. To receive the first, a man must renounce his sins, deny himself, take up his cross, and follow his Lord through evil and through good report. To obtain the latter, a man must labor to enter into that rest which remains for the people of God. Having promise, of the life that now is - The man that fears, loves, and serves God, has God's blessing all through life. His religion saves him from all those excesses, both in action and passion, which sap the foundations of life, and render existence itself often a burden. The peace and love of God in the heart produces a serenity and calm which cause the lamp of life to burn clear, strong, and permanent. Evil and disorderly passions obscure and stifle the vital spark. Every truly religious man extracts the uttermost good out of life itself, and through the Divine blessing gets the uttermost good that is in life; and, what is better than all, acquires a full preparation here below for an eternal life of glory above. Thus godliness has the promise of, and secures the blessings of, both worlds.

PREDICTION OF A COMING DEPARTURE FROM THE FAITH: TIMOTHY'S DUTY AS TO IT: GENERAL DIRECTIONS TO HIM. (1Ti. 4:1-16) Now--Greek, "But." In contrast to the "mystery of godliness." the Spirit--speaking by the prophets in the Church (whose prophecies rested on those of the Old Testament, Dan 7:25; Dan 8:23, &c.; Dan 11:30, as also on those of Jesus in the New Testament, Mat 24:11-24), and also by Paul himself, Th2 2:3 (with whom accord Pe2 3:3; Jo1 2:18; Jde 1:18). expressly--"in plain words." This shows that he refers to prophecies of the Spirit then lying before him. in the latter times--in the times following upon the times in which he is now writing. Not some remote future, but times immediately subsequent, the beginnings of the apostasy being already discernible (Act 20:29): these are the forerunners of "the last days" (Ti2 3:1). depart from the faith--The apostasy was to be within the Church, the faithful one becoming the harlot. In Th2 2:3 (written earlier), the apostasy of the Jews from God (joining the heathen against Christianity) is the groundwork on which the prophecy rises; whereas here, in the Pastoral Epistles, the prophecy is connected with Gnostic errors, the seeds of which had already been sown in the Church [AUBERLEN] (Ti2 2:18). Apollonius TyanÃ&brvbrus, a heretic, came to Ephesus in the lifetime of Timothy. giving heed-- (Ti1 1:4; Tit 1:14). seducing spirits--working in the heretical teachers. Jo1 4:2-3, Jo1 4:6, "the spirit of error," opposed to "the spirit of truth," "the Spirit" which "speaketh" in the true prophets against them. doctrines of devils--literally "teachings of (that is suggested by) demons." Jam 3:15, "wisdom . . . devilish"; Co2 11:15, "Satan's ministers."

profiteth little--Greek, "profiteth to (but) a small extent." Paul does not deny that fasting and abstinence from conjugal intercourse for a time, with a view to reaching the inward man through the outward, do profit somewhat, Act 13:3; Co1 7:5, Co1 7:7; Co1 9:26-27 (though in its degenerate form, asceticism, dwelling solely on what is outward, Ti1 4:3, is not only not profitable but injurious). Timothy seems to have had a leaning to such outward self-discipline (compare Ti1 5:23). Paul, therefore, while not disapproving of this in its due proportion and place, shows the vast superiority of godliness or piety, as being profitable not merely "to a small extent," but unto all things; for, having its seat within, it extends thence to the whole outward life of a man. Not unto one portion only of his being, but to every portion of it, bodily and spiritual, temporal and eternal [ALFORD]. "He who has piety (which is 'profitable unto all things') wants nothing needed to his well-being, even though he be without those helps which, 'to a small extent,' bodily exercise furnishes" [CALVIN]. "Piety," which is the end for which thou art to "exercise thyself" (Ti1 4:7), is the essential thing: the means are secondary. having promise, &c.--Translate as Greek, "Having promise of life, that which now is, and that which is to come." "Life" in its truest and best sense now and hereafter (Ti2 1:1). Length of life now so far as it is really good for the believer; life in its truest enjoyments and employments now, and life blessed and eternal hereafter (Mat 6:33; Mar 10:29-30). "Now in this time" (Psa 84:11; Psa 112:1-10; Rom 8:28; Co1 3:21-22, "all things are yours . . . the world, life . . . things present, things to come"). Christianity, which seems to aim only at our happiness hereafter, effectually promotes it here (Ti1 6:6; Pe2 1:3). Compare Solomon's prayer and the answer (Kg1 3:7-13).