2 Timothy 3:8

Now as Jannes and Jambres And like as; the conjunction should be translated -now" only when there is more of a fresh departure; the present is only a small additional paragraph. Jannes and Jambres are nowhere else mentioned in Scripture. The Targum of Jonathan inserts their names in Exodus 7:11, Mambres which the Vulgate reads here being sometimes a later form for Jambres in the Jewish Commentaries. They were held to be the magicians who first imitated the wonders wrought by Moses and Aaron (see 2 Timothy 3:13 -impostors" or -magicians") but afterwards failing confessed that the power of God was with those whom they had withstood. Pliny, Hist. Nat. xxx. i. 2, mentions their story -est et alia magices factio a Mose et Jamne et Jotape Judæis pendens." He could not have derived his information from St Paul. There must have been an oral tradition or a lost book of Israelitish early history. Mr Poole (Art. Dict. Bib. from which this account is mainly taken) inclines to the latter supposition as more likely to preserve the exact names. That they are exact he thinks probable; since (1) the termination in Jambres or Mambres is like that of many Egyptian compounds ending with ra "the Sun," as Men-kau-ra, (2) Jannes appears to be a transcription of the Egyptian name Aan, that of a king of the 15th dynasty who was probably the second predecessor of Joseph's Pharaoh, and the most prevalent names among the Egyptians were those of kings then reigning or not long dead. The Rabbins state that Jannes and Jambres were sons of Balaam, and prophesied to Pharaoh the birth of Moses, and were authors of much mischief, subsequently perishing either in the Red Sea or in the tumult over the golden calf.

resist the truth Rather, withstand, keeping the word.

of corrupt minds Implies too much a naturalviciousness; the perfect passive participle implies -having come to a corrupt state and remaining in it" as above. In itselfthe word -corrupt" from the Latin participle (cf. the Vulg. -corrupti mente)" should have just this force, but in usage it is a mere adjective; render corrupted in mind.

reprobate Just as in Titus 1:16, where see note.